SMILE-A DRONE IS WATCHING YOU plus IT'S ALL IN THE FOAM-THE WEEKENDER

DRONE SKIRMISHES

      Several years ago while running a large television news operation I had my first relationship with a drone.
      A contact/source with whom I had worked previously called to say he was working with a technology guy and they had developed a flight platform and wanted to test it. He brought a very sophisticated and light weight "miniature"  airplane to the station.  Some of my news managers attended and we were joined by the developer, an investor in the project and two fellows identified as interested parties and potential buyers.  Later I was to learn they were  from a federal agency that had high hopes for the plane.
     The plane fit on a conference table but was rigged so it could take a lightweight camera mount. This was long before "drone" had worked it's way into the public lexicon or  before being pressed into action as they are now.  I was excited by the prospects of flying it over traffic jams, fires, emergency situations and getting images back for broadcast at much less expense than what our helicopter cost to operate.
      My corporate boss lacked vision on this and despite my best efforts he passed and did so in a derisive way.  I told him he was passing up a chance to be the first to use something from the future. Still to no avail.  
      Fast forward to 2014.  They've become ubiquitous and in some cases practical. But I think we've entered a new chapter in our relationship with drones, as this piece of video tape from California demonstrates.

SHADOWS AND FOAM

       I was fascinated by the interplay of the shadows and 

kaleidoscopic flow of waves and sea foam. It provided a sort of black and white shape puzzle.

   See you down the trail.

AN AMERICAN DILEMMA & A CURSE OF STARDOM Plus PICS

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE DRONE WAR?

      McClatchy News is out with an insightful and illuminating report including data on the kill rate of US drones under the command of the Obama administration.

      We, the US, have eliminated more than top commanders of Al Quaeda. Others, including non combatants, have also been killed.

      Drone strikes are a lethal reach in modern war, but they are the source of a complex and thorny debate. Precise, but not perfect, the control, use and implication of drones are something in which every American has a stake. What do you think?

GOING PRO BLUES

   I wonder what Dr James Naismith would think of the game of basketball that he invented in 1891 while teaching at a YMCA school. And I wonder how he'd think about college players, dropping out of school to turn professional.

     It's that time of year when college stars are dashing the hopes of fans and coaches as they announce they are entering the NBA-going for the big bucks.

 Fox Sports 

      All season I've been telling friends that Victor

Oladipo, IU's sensational junior would make a great NBA Player.  I just didn't want to see him leave yet.  He announced he is making himself available to be drafted.  I've also been sounding off about another Hoosier standout and scorer-

Bleacher Report

7 foot Cody Zeller.  I think the kid has great potential, but he's not there yet.  His two older brothers, Tyler and Luke are already in the NBA but Cody needs another year in college ball to gain skills that he presently lacks.  His disappointing performance against Syracuse in the NCAA demonstrates his need for more strength, more finesse and more seasoning.  Other big men can make him look like what he is, a 20 year old kid. He's got to learn to "play bigger" and to quit lowering his shoulder when he drives, and a few other skills that would make him a better pro.  Too early for Cody, I fear. The lure of big money is a curse to the young athletes.  Some leave school too early and have only middling careers as players.

A GOOD YEAR FOR LUPINE

A SEASONAL MATCH

   See you down the trail.

SWEET TALK-THE IMPOSSIBLE-TORTURE & KILLING

SWEETNESS FIRST

     Sweet Talk Radio (STR) aka Kate and Tim brought their extraordinary talents back to the central coast and turned out another powerful performance but to an all too small audience at a Paso Robles stage.

     The summit pass was freezing, the stars descended like a dome around us and the lingering refrains from this remarkable couple sweetened our drive over the mountains and through the Templeton gap but we were troubled. We are acknowledged fans and their CD's are among our frequently played, so we were miffed that D'Anbino Winery and music room didn't provide the sold out audience as The Painted Sky has done. 

      "Just one of those nights" Tim said.

      A great night for those on hand.

      Chances are you've heard them on television shows.  Producers and directors hire them to drop in songs for especially dramatic, climactic or poignant moments.  Tim is an accomplished player and song writer. His Writing in Pen is a poignant soul stirrer.  You fall in love with Kate's voice the moment you hear it.  Her tune, My Hallelujah, written after Katrina, will stay with you forever. 
       Her version of Carol King's Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow, a hit by the Shirelles, is fantastic. Kate's singing is beautiful, but her ballad style adaptation underscores the honest, though early, feminist power of the tune. Remember that tune was a hit in the early 60's.  If STR is in your area, make sure you get there.  Check them out here.

THE U.S. AS TORTURER

THE PRESIDENT AS EXECUTIONER

    The White House memos related to the President and 

the killing of terrorists by drone strike provided some interesting chatter here-a long way from the studios of New York and Washington-but by men with better credentials than the TV pretties and pundits. The following quotes are from friends, so I know their sincerity, which is more than I know of the TV talking heads.

     A former Navy Pilot
     To quote Spock...the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the one.....having been subjected to POW simulation during my getting ready to go to Vietnam days; a couple of observations.  Torture does work on most people. The instructors who debriefed us on our performance while being water boarded or confined in a little ity bitty black box with few air holes was very pragmatic: Hold on until you can't..then give in and tell them what they want to know....don't die for intel which may have a relative short shelf life. And most important: Don't lie. Usually they are asking some questions they know the answer to.  Another reality:  You will be tortured...particularly if you are in their land engaged in combat. 

      This from a national daily retired editor
     i agree completely... we can lose ourselves in all sorts of arguments about what is war, what is an enemy, etc., but if we are to claim a moral base for what we do--indeed, for what we are-- we shouldn't torture people. it debases us, and it is all too easy to become accustomed to that...  does this mean that some American lives possibly could be lost because we didn't waterboard, or send current through the genitals of, or didn't hang from the ceiling of rendition cells, some jihadists? yes. but that is the price of decency as a people and a nation. 

        This from a former Marine
   I am opposed to enhanced interrogation, water boarding, etc.  I think we need to be the moral high ground.  If you saw Zero Dark Thirty, giving a prince a Ferrari seemed to be the ticket.  That said, I do think effective use of drones is a much improved doctrine of war... As for targeting Americans, that is a bit more of a sticky wicket.  It would seem to me that using drones against an American should be with judicial approval just as when the government wants to bypass the citizen's right to privacy with a wiretrap or other surveillance.  There is a court of Federal Judges that assure that a judge will be available 24/7 to give approval for those wiretraps... Why not require that the CIA or military or President, prior to launching a drone against an American citizen have to get an ok from that judge?  That provides judicial review and forces the government agency to at least provide documentation to an outside source.  It has worked very well for wiretap and surveillance so why not use that existing structure for this next level?

        This from a political consultant and operative
     The over reaction of Bush/Cheney to 911 produced the most reprehensible behavior in the history of international relations for our country.  We scrapped the conclusions of the Nuremberg Trials completely.  Only the treatment and systematic destruction of the native American Indian culture tops the 911 moral relapse.  I believe over the span of its existence, the CIA has been far more of a liability than an asset for our government.  While I acknowledge our nation needs to maintain a constant and vigilant stance regarding those forces who are committed to our permanent detriment, we must be guided by a sense of propriety and probity.

     The use of drones, while efficient in vanquishing suspected terrorists, have permanently denigrated our nation's standing in the Middle East...  

American citizens are entitled to know the circumstances that permit our government to kill them. Anyone that consciously bears arms or conspires against our country's vital interests deserves the same fate of the states and individuals that rebelled in 1861.

      This from a retired Navy Intelligence Officer
War is in fact War.  All rules are bent or broken.  Ya do what ya gotta do.

    A late add from a retired Navy Communications Specialist 
I have a problem condoning the torture of fellow human beings (animals, too). Whether for intel, resources, property, whatever. I understand that there can be short term accomplishments or perhaps some benefits derived from the information, but the mental decision and choice to use torture lowers us to the level of the bad guy we are at war with. Their choices and actions are at least a part of why we consider them "bad" people. It seems to me that if we are at all serious about eliminating our imperfections as humans, and eventually knowing God/becoming Godlike, we have to try to raise the rate of vibration of all of us and the entire earth by trying to project love, and truth and positive values in every way we can. We are not only the creators of the younger generation, we have a responsibility as their teachers, educators, guides and examples. We need to try to improve the human race. We need to contribute our positive energy and example to try to improve the morals and consciousness of humankind. I think we are all part of the same energy pool. Since we do all have free will, we have to learn the effects, ramifications, positives and negatives of interaction that includes torture as part of the mix and make decisions about how we will behave. I can't endorse it.

    As noted in an earlier post, the film Zero Dark Thirty contributed to the national conversation as well.  It is an important matter for Americans to weigh.  

 FINISHINGS

    I heard someone say the power failure at the Super Bowl served as a reminder how this great nation has permitted its infrastructure to fail and fall toward third world status.

    Good point, don't you think?

REEL THOUGHTS

THE IMPOSSIBLE

      As so many have said, The Impossible is an emotional and powerful experience. Indeed. Great acting by Naomi Watts, Ewan MacGregor and the kids.  But I was most impressed by the small side story of people helping others, strangers assisting each other, the little kindnesses that were manifest in the face of the overwhelming tragedy. That is a take-a-way with a life confronting power.  And that takes us back to Kate's powerful, My Hallelujah. 

   See you down the trail.  

     

BEAUTIFUL DWARF PYGMYS & SHRINK CAMPAIGN $

GET THE BIG $ OUT OF POLITICS

     Frequent readers may recall my plea for getting big money out of campaigns.  Well, here's a great idea from writer Jim Worth.

DRONE FOLLOW UP

    Blogger Bob Christy posted this extraordinary story after

reading my post  about trying to get a drone into operation

in my news shop.

DAY BOOK

A PLACE FOR THE ANCIENTS

     This extraordinary creature is a 600-800 year old  dwarfed pygmy oak residing in the Los Osos Oaks State Reserve. The 85 acres of ancient sand dune is south of Morro Bay and just east of Los Osos off Los Osos Valley Road in San Luis Obispo County. Chumash Indians once lived where the historic trees have been saved. 

      It is a small reserve but has managed to protect living
links to the 11th century.  When these oaks were saplings, 

   European court society had not yet sent explorers toward
what they would call North America. The Chumash camped
on this land.  Some of the preserve is on a Chumash midden.

      Lace lichen streamers decorate some of the old stand. Historians say Chumash mothers used the lichen as wraps for their infants.

Three hiking trails take you beneath the old growth oaks. The eastern edge of the preserve runs along a stand of old sycamore, willow, laurel and cottonwood trees. Between Morro Bay and San Luis Obispo you can time travel.

See you down the trail.     

IN DEFENSE OF CRYSTAL-A DRONE STORY-THANKS FOR THE AWARD

GET OVER IT

     Apparently some are upset, or so some would lead us to believe, over Billy Crystal's impersonation of Sammy Davis Jr.  

     First, it is a reprise of a famous sketch he's performed many times, secondly it was in no way disrespectful, and this

particular bit was hilarious. If you were offended, of course you are entitled to your sentiment, but come on, comedy

is all a joke. Lighten up!  There are serious things over 

which to be offended, but these recriminations sound shallow, void of a knowledge of this artist's history, self-serving, contrived and as though someone was just looking
for something to tweet.  

WHEN I WANTED MY OWN DRONE

     Reading Associated Press writer Joan Lowy's piece on drone's going mainstream reminded me of my attempt to put one to work for my news organization.

     In covering national security and intelligence issues I made friends with people with unique skills and job descriptions.  Later when I was a television news executive I got a call from an old contact telling me about some amazing  new technology.  We set up a show and tell.  He, and a retinue, brought a couple of drone aircraft to our conference room.  They played a recording of the craft in flight, showed telemetry data, discussed it's operation system and the budget for flying it.  

      They did not want news coverage, but wanted to let me know, as a favor to an old friend, the system was available.

Well, I was awestruck.  This is years ago, long before there was public knowledge of the technology and certainly long before military applications.  They had rigged a craft with a

camera to show how we could use it in covering critical situation incidents; emergencies, disasters, accidents, hostage situations, surveillance in investigative reporting, and many more possibilities that my mind ran to.  

      Now here the story takes a couple of jogs.  In the contingent in the room were a couple of guys who were very circumspect about who they were and what was their interest. There was the developer, an engineer, a business partner and financial backer and two guys who later I learned

were what I suspected at the time-federal employees watching over this prized technology.  
      My contact was probably not the first to develop such a system, but may have been the first willing to "test it" in a commercial field exercise, in this case assisting journalism.
      The other jog was the broadcast division executive who shot it down even before we could fly it.  He'd "never heard of such a thing," and didn't want to give it a try.  He said we "didn't have a budget" for such a line, though I showed him where and how we could afford it. He was a numbers cruncher, not at all a visionary or creative thinker.  

      So, now as drones are used by police, farmers, power companies and at lot less cost than the helicopter and pilots I kept on staff, I can't help but imagine what if.

THANK YOU CHUBBY CHATTERBOX

      There is only one way into this and it is to resort to 

fully acknowledged copy cat writing.  I was "humbled and honored" to read this weekend that The Chubby Chatterbox,
who's blog link is listed along the side, had nominated me
for an award he had won, that of the Versatile Blogger.
      The Chatterbox is a marvelous writer and an equally superb artist. He has taken blogging to a fine level of creativity, imagination, style and warmth. So I am all the more humbled and honored-- with all sincerity.
       In getting this nomination I am to tell you seven things about myself and to pass along my nomination to other bloggers.
       #1 I am a blessed, lucky, fortunate man, with a wonderful and creative wife, two loving daughters who make me proud and more friends than I deserve.
      #2 I have authored two published historical mystery
and historical thriller novels: The Sanibel Arcanum and The Sanibel Cayman Disc.
      #3  I co-authored a professional guide, Crisis Coverage and News Room Credibility, with US Army Lt. Col. Charles Ricks,retired FBI Executive William Ervin, and the late Benjamin Strout.
      #4  I have recently finished a new manuscript and I am searching for a new agent and publisher.  My previous publisher was purchased by a media conglomerate that did away with the literary imprint.  I was invited to do graphic novels or coffee table books.  I have declined and I am work on a more literary project now, an homage to Kurt Vonnegut and Tom Robbins.
      #5 I spent four decades in journalism and documentary work that took me to far reaches of the globe and/or put 
me at the ringside for important moments in history.
     #6  My idea of the ideal job was to have been a National Geographic photographer.  Never achieving that I now blog
and thus entertain my fantasy of that and my second ideal job-a newspaper columnist.
     # 7 Aside from hiking, I play a lot of tennis, a game I did not pick up until about 3 1/2 years ago which I think bespeaks my faith and pragmatic idealism.  It is probably good to work our butts off in good pursuit, no matter our age. Regardless of the score, what really matters is how we play the game.


      BLOGS I NOMINATE
      ODDBALL OBSERVATIONS by The Catalyst
      Vinylstats by Frank Phillippi
      Artist C.W. Mundy

DAY BOOK

SCENES OF THE SEASON

See you down the trail.

POST BIN LADEN- AN UNEASY LEGACY & THE SEX AND WORK LIFE OF THE BLOND ITALIANS

A COUPLE OF THINGS DON'T FEEL RIGHT

       Watching the reaction to Bin Laden's demise has prompted an imprecise kind of brooding. The world is a better place without him.  He fit my description of evil.  Still I feel uneasy about the celebrations of his death. I am happy to see a sense of national relief and unity.  I have been moved by comments from friends and loved ones of victims of the 9/11 attack.  This will create major disruptions for al-Qaida. I do not mourn his passing and in my own heart hope that he sensed a moment of panic, terror and pain before he died.  Still, I am squeamish about seeing joyous celebrations over a death, even the death of an evil man.

       I recall thoughts of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German theologian and preacher who

was executed for his role in the attempt to assassinate Adolph Hitler. He was convinced that his was his duty to work for Hitler's death.  He believed his imprisonment and eventual death were part of the cost he had to bear.  I've heard analysts compare Bin Laden to Hitler.  Both were driven by dark and evil forces.  Still our higher calling is more than death, war and revenge.  Just a nagging riff in my heart.

        NOW TO THE FUTURE

      Our national security and foreign policy apparatus needs to examine the Pakistani duplicity.  One expert compared Abbottabad to a kind of West Point garrison town.  How could they not have known of Bin Laden's presence under their nose?  Stupid? Inept?

or double dealing?

         Some $3 Billion a year flows to the Pakis.  Hmmm!  It is a tough call, given they are members of the nuclear club, but there will be some hard discussions forthcoming.

AND NOW-JOY

SEX AND HONEY

QUEEN, ARE YOU IN THERE?

         The more appropriate question would go to her reproductive proclivities.  After setting the hive, we need to check to see if there are signs of baby bees in the making.

The frames need to be examined.

Looking for signs of closed cells, indication that eggs have been deposited and pupa are growing and in transformation.

The new bees further populate the colony and add to the work force our our blond Italian bees from Glenn Ca.
Most are female workers, who collect the nectar and pollen.
The others are male drones most of whom just hang out waiting for a chance to mate.

The bees build their honeycomb structures on the frames

 but it is important the queen not lay eggs in the portion of the hive where the honey is to be harvested

so there is a debate about the Queen Screen

This will separate the Queen and the reproductive business from the upper end of the hive where those of us on the Pooh patrol get the good stuff.

However bee keepers disagree on the need or wisdom of the separator.  So in a few days, we'll peek again to see if our work force can squeeze thru  the slats.

The queen is too big for that. 

No further comment!

Stay tuned.