It’s quite a legacy he left us

Hi again from the Bastion on the Puget Sound. Well, for a great deal of the world, today marks one of the most significant ~ if not controversial ~ events in history, the birth of an extraordinary human being. Even those religions which deny that he was ~ as even some of their own prophets contended ~ the son of God acknowledge that he lived, that he ministered, that he died and that whether his resurrection was physical or spiritual, it set into motion a chain of events which defined both the capacity for divine nobility and the relentless denial of those values for which a man named Jesus stood.

Perhaps because of my own genetic blend of the two faiths Christ symbolized and because of the incredible persecution both Jews and Christians have suffered since Calvary, it is not important to me whether Jesus was the son of God. What does mean something to me ~ and it means a very great deal ~ was that this individual came among us and by both the doctrine he preached and the personal example he set, he inspired others to actively work for a more compassionate society.

There can also be no denying that the example he set resonated. Yes, it bothers me that much that was not humane was done in his name but then this too was going on long before that fateful night in Bethlehem. Like so many fine and decent things in life, his gospel has been tarnished and used to shackle those very people Jesus sought so desperately in his life to free.

A great deal has transpired since his birth. Mighty empires have risen and fallen. Even the geography of the planet has changed. In a relatively swift passing of those years, the human species has emerged from primordial darkness to claim the planet for its own and to launch its destiny into the universe.

It is somehow reassuring to me that for perhaps the most tumultuous aspect of that span, millions have continued not only to celebrate the birth of Jesus, but in their own way, to emulate his example in their own lives.

It’s quite a legacy you left the world, Jesus. Happy birthday.

IN OTHER NEWS

Well, the good news is that we’re living longer. The bad news is that a lot of us are not living longer well. Factors like morbid obesity and hypertension ~ as well as a general lack of attention to preventative health measures ~ are on the increase. To me, that suggests that life has become so difficult that subconsciously, some of us don’t want to add years to an existence which doesn’t seem to be providing a lot of joy, security or satisfaction. That’s sad but it’s also a personal choice and sometimes attitude really is all.

I’m not sure why I’m glad about this one but it might just be the smidge of French in me. Apparently, the head of King Henry IV, who was assassinated and then decapitated in 1610, has been verified as legitimate. The embalmed skull of this particular monarch circulated among private collections for 183 years and then, during the French Revolution, disappeared entirely. Somehow, now that it’s been found, the universe seems just a bit tidier.

One out of four applicants for military service in the United States Army cannot, apparently, pass the entrance examination, leading many educators and the Secretary of Education to conclude that America’s “underperforming” (Gotta love those euphemisms, eh?) education system now poses a threat to national security. Among 30 other industrialized nations, America ranks near the bottom on the literacy level.

We found the newly released 2010 Census Report absolutely fascinating. Thanks to population growth well ahead of the national average, Washington became the 13th most populated state in America and gained a Congressional seat. To see how your community has changed, please go here.

Felina: Humans certainly do take this time of the year seriously. Such delicious aromas from down in the valley and such delightful sounds. I am a little overwhelmed by the apparent diversity of beliefs involved. They do, however, all seem to be celebrating something very important. And this human, who was to some apparently also a child of the creator and the creator, this, I must admit, confuses me.

Sam: I’m going to take a shot at this and say we are not talking about Santa Claus here.

Felina: Quite so and no, not Saint Nicholas, who was of the early Christian faith when Rome still ruled the world, and who was very good to the humans he served, so much so that the Emperor became jealous.

Sam: Yep, that big Roman, Diocletian.

Felina: Diocletian, quite so. This Diocletian person tried to get St. Nicholas to renounce his faith, then imprisoned him and tortured him when he would not.

Sam: Yep. Then another Roman emperor, Constantine, came to power. And this emperor was a Christian.

Felina: And St. Nicholas found himself a hero among the people.

Sam: Particularly when he helped a poor father out by collecting dowries for the man’s two daughters and then tossing the sacks of gold down the chimney.

Felina: Ah, so that was the origin of that particularly quaint custom of theirs?

Sam: Yep, another good idea that managed to get diverted some. However, we digress.

Felina: We are the Carpenters of digression.

Sam: We are the Donny and Marie of digression.

Felina: We are the Mormon’s Tabernacle Choir of digression, which sings the praises of this human who is not Santa Claus but whom, it appears, suffered at least as much for subscribing to these particular set of beliefs humans define as “Christian.”

Sam: He was a good example of what human beings can be when they love one another enough. He was a carpenter, a working stiff as it were, who felt he had a real special relationship with the Creator.

Felina: He was apparently a very nice human so that would follow, yes. Quite so.

Sam: He was also a very caring and compassionate one who believed that all of his species should be free, not only of body, but of mind and spirit.

Felina: Like the wild oxen we have seen who prospered for the absence of the yolk.

Sam: Yep. This human told all those who would rule his brothers and sisters that no other human being had that mandate; that only that which created life had dominion over it.

Felina: And for that, those of his parents’ faith judged him a threat to society and convinced Rome that he was, as well.

Sam: Yep. They put a ‘crown’ of thorns on his head and forced him to carry the cross of his crucifixion up a big hill on a hot day.

Felina: How absolutely appalling.

Sam: The best is yet to come, love of my life.

Felina: I can hardly wait, sun and moon of mine.

Sam: They nailed his paws and feet to this cross, then put it in the ground, between two others with humans hanging from them, in the middle of what is now called a “landfill.” And they left him to die.

Felina: Only apparently he did not die, which I understand is what Easter for Christians is all about.

Sam: Yep. And depending on the accounts that one reads, this human lived a very long time and became important to people from China to both Americas. Even religions which do not claim his as the progeny of the creator do not deny that he was of, for and with the creator.

Felina: So this Christmas is actually about the birth, life and death of an extraordinary human being who loved powerfully and with the courage a good parent with a big family.

Sam: Aye, Felina, that’s pretty much it. And on that note?

Felina: And on that note, gentle readers, until next time, may the creator bless and keep you.

SURVIVING HARD TIMES

Surviving hard times is also about refusing to accept the status quo when said status quo sucks. In their blog Finding Rootedness, Robin Broad and John Cavanaugh report on their search for the social, environmental, and economic anchoring that sees us through tough times. I recommend this one without reservation.

ON THE CANCER FRONT

Women at high risk for cancer now have two new options, according to results of a recently published federally-funded study and presented at a meeting of the American Association For Cancer Research in Washington, DC. Yep, for more on this one, please go here.

RESOURCES AND RELATED LINKS:
Cancer Research Journal
National Cancer Institute (American)
Fighting Breast Cancer: Breast Cancer Survivor Stories
Science Daily: Health & Medicine News
American Cancer Statistics 2009
Canadian Cancer Statistics 2009

HEALTH NEWS

In what some experts are proving could be the majour medical breakthrough of the 21st Century, researchers saved the life of a Wisconsin child by running the boy’s entire gene sequence and finding the defective one which was causing the problem. He was treated with a blood transfusion and recovered. Yep, for more on this one, go here.

As much as we hate to encourage gluttony ~ our own and those of others ~ we’re also real practical when it comes to the holiday season. It’s past the winter solstice and those of us in the northern climes need to eat more just to stay warm. And since we are nothing but the epitome of good decorum, we do not refuse dinner invitations nor risk insulting a host by refusing second helpings. What we do in the name of good manners and going along with the program has, in the past, given us gout and tummy stretch marks. Here’s something to drink after a heavy meal.

GOOD EXAMPLES

We congratulate the American Congress and Chief Executive for making it possible for people with other than heterosexual gender preferences to serve openly in the military. One of the young people in my life, a medic with the Alabama National Guard, served with distinction in Operation Desert Storm. Her caring, courage, dedication and military professionalism were never an issue. nor was the unmitigated and public record of the service lesbians and gays rendered to their country.

Thanks to the pro bono work of attorneys affiliated with the international Innocence Network ~ a coalition of 63 individual organizations, including the Innocence Project Northwest at the University of Washington School of Law ~ three Washington state men convicted of rape were cleared this year through post-conviction DNA testing. They are among 29 individuals nationwide who were exonerated or whose convictions were overturned in 2010.

Well, one Oregon timberjack who started out augmenting his income by building storage sheds for his neighbours is now building the minimalist type houses that have proliferated in Vancouver, British Columbia. Over the last five years, he estimates he’s built 100 of these and now he’s looking at making an entire subdivision of these for people who have either lost their homes or are facing that bleak future. This is definitely an example that can be emulated so yep, for more, please go here.

NORTHSTAR FAVORITES

Finding Rootedness is perhaps the most empowering blog we’ve yet come across for those of us who are pledged to a work which improves with the subscription to and application of positive and empowering alternatives. This one is for the window pushers among us. It offers not only solid alternatives to the chaos but news of where these options are being successfully implemented.

Irish Newsletter is an outstanding pocket source of Irish life, politics and times. Particularly well written are their news snaps (shorts) which ~ according to friends of mine in Erin ~ literally tell it like it is. While the Republic of Ireland’s population is only about 4.5-million, there are an estimated 80 million people of Irish descent worldwide and email version of this reached 50,000 of them.

Meade Fisher Observes Humanity From A Safe Distance is a blog authored by an outdoor writer, photographer, West Coast kayaker and environmentalist living in the San Francisco Bay area. These short, humorous, few holds barred observations on the machinations of the human species run from the whimsical to the arid and occasionally to the quietly outraged. I’ve been a fan of this particular writer for years and I’ve always found him worth the read.

Sightline Daily is the best Pacific Northwest source of environmentally friendly news we’ve encountered yet. They draw from newspapers and National Public Radio sources in Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon and Washington State.

The Northstar Gallery features photography of Seattle available as postcards, computer wallpaper and workspace art.

Wrath of the Testament, an exciting seagoing saga of war and rebellion, is now available for $3.99 at amazon.com.

Yes magazine is the online Life and Look of the Internet combined and their present series “What Happy Families Know is both insightful and inspirational.

SEATTLE SCENES

Seattle's Union Station

Photo by Merritt Scott (Rusty) Miller.

What’s Going On Here?

Whether you live here or plan to visit ~ and whatever it is you enjoy doing at home or as a tourist ~ you’ll find it, you’ll find it listed here at seattlepi.com.

SEATTLE FACTS AND FIGURES
Seattle Rainfall in Comparison To Other US Cities
Seattle Geography & Climate
For more information about Seattle

OTHER RELATED STUFF FROM THE SHORES OF THE SALISH SEA
For live cameras on Seattle, the Puget Sound and Washington State
Mount Rainier slide show
Eat healthy while you’re here – Seattle PCC Co-Op
Take some fresh produce back to your hotel – Seattle Farmers Markets

CRITTER STUFF

Well, for those of us who love “all creatures great and small,” wolverines have apparently either returned to the Northwest or ~ after years of being hunted and trapped nearly to extinction ~ have decided that it’s now safe for them to come out of hiding. They’ve been spotted by several wildlife groups in the region who are also busy doing what they can to make sure this extremely circumspect creature of the woods is protected for posterity.

Recommended Related Links:
National Wildlife Magazine
Go Northwest: Northwest Wildlife Websites
BBC’s wildlife finder
National Geographic Daily News - Animals
Retrieverman’s Weblog: Engaging articles on domestic & wildlife in the American South

YOU GUYS THINK I MAKE THIS STUFF UP

Okay, even for Seattle at Christmas time, this is reaching the outer limits. There’s this Jewish lady who works for the Seattle Aquarium who dons SCUBA gear and goes into the 120,000 gallon Window on Washington Waters tank with these big bags of herring, krill and squid to feed the denizens of the deep. Next time I hear about somebody dressing their hairless Chihuahua in a sweater and hat, I probably won’t be quite so quick to roll my eyes and go, “They should treat their human family so good.” Yep, for a photo and more links to Northwest weird, go here.

Well, that’s it for now. Thanks for the ear. Before you leave, if you’re in a shopping mood and into some interesting choices? We’ve got a “reader stocked” General Store that you might want to check out. If you’d like to sell something with us or know someone who does, email us at minstrel312@aol.com and we’ll see what we can do.

The Northstar Journal is funded by contributions from readers like yourself. If you enjoyed this edition and would like to contribute to the next, please click the donate button below.

Historically, it has never proven wise to push this Eagle too far

Hi again from the Bastion on the Puget Sound. Well, a British judge granted Wikileaks founder Julian Assange bail at $310,000 and ordered him under house arrest at the 600 acre country estate of a supporter in the east of England. He must spend every night in the 10-room mansion and has been electronically tagged so he can’t wander too far afield.

He is also required to report to the police each day and he’s under curfew. As of this writing, he is also still in police custody pending an appeal by the prosecutor. A hearing on that is expected within 48 hours and Assange is to appear for another hearing on January 11, at which time, his extradition to Sweden to answer non-related sexual assault charges is expected to be decided.

Meanwhile, the US is seriously considering charges of their own against him and is exploring options, including the application of the 1917 Espionage Act, which was invoked unsuccessfully against the New York Times when it published the Pentagon Papers in the 1970s. Capitol Hill legislators are also drafting new legislation in these regards.

I also found it interesting that readers of Time magazine voted Assange man of the year. Over a million ballots were cast and the Wikileaker garnered almost as many of them as the dollars it’s going to take to pay his British bail. We also found it very reassuring that Time magazine itself did not accord this cyber anarchist that honor but instead polled its staff and editors and decided Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook, deserved it more.

And his supporters have certainly made their impact felt, flooding the websites of his detractors with spam and otherwise causing some cybernetic havoc. We also noted ~ without surprise ~ that American film maker Michael Moore offered to pay $20,000 of Assange’s $.3-million bail.

So now, in addition to a dramatic international dialogue examining the true meaning of freedom of expression and the responsible use of it, we have a new arms race as cyber experts in the government and private sector seek better encryption and cyber anarchists, better code busters.

The thing I keep reminding myself of is that ultimately, this affects both sides and if it goes on too long, even the cyber anarchists are going to feel it close to home. I think this is a demonstration of power but it is not empowerment. It is not nearly as difficult to orchestrate such a global dog and pony show on the Internet as it is to live with the offline results.

The American Intelligence Community was caught totally by surprise just as they were on 9/11 and just as they were after the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor which has managed yet to “live in infamy,” despite the reconciliation of the two nations involved.

It was one thing, I suspect, when cyber anarchists hack into financial institutions and into the accounts of entertainment celebrities. It is another, I am certain, to the American Intelligence Community, when the invasion produces casualties on the battlefield.

My concern now then is for Assange and his actively engaged supporters, however well-intentioned and passionate their motives. In this exquisitely technological society, assassination, accidents and natural disasters are often difficult to distinguish from one another, especially if engineered by those protecting the lives of their family, friends, community and nation.

Historically, it has never proven a wise idea to push the Eagle too far.

IN OTHER NEWS

A recently released British study confirms that taking one aspirin a day can reduce by from one-half to one-third one’s risk of dying from most common cancers. This 100-year-old painkiller has long been considered a “miracle drug” for a variety of health problems, including headaches and cardiac conditions. Yep, for more on this one, please go here.

Torrential rains battered most of the Pacific Northwest this weekend, bringing with it widespread flooding, landslides and damage to roads and other infrastructures. I spent eight hours with my two new house mates bailing out a basement that filled with three inches of water, unclogging gutters, securing plastic drainage pipe, installing fans, heaters, water evacuation lines and drying out what property could be restored. About the only thing missing from this one was a big boat with an old man and animals.

One Seattle neighborhood, isolated for days during a blizzard two years ago, is organizing in anticipation of an even colder and wetter winter season, thanks to La Niña. Preparations include a snow brigade, with drivers and walkers to deliver groceries and prescriptions, shovel walks, drive homebound residents to warm shelters and even walk dogs. This is definitely an example which can be emulated, so for more, please go here.

Although popular in Europe for decades, a firm in Portland, Oregon is building the first power plant in America that will use food waste from commercial and industrial sources to make methane gas to power engines that will generate electricity. It will generate power per day to supply 5,000 homes and among its byproducts are a fiber soil additive and a liquid fertilizer.

We congratulate Kristianstad, Sweden for essentially weaning itself off fossil fuels. This community, perhaps best known for Absolut vodka, essentially uses no oil, natural gas or coal to heat homes and businesses, even during the long winter months. And they haven’t gone solar or wind power to do it. Yep, for more, go here.

Felina: Samuel, I am reading more about this misanthropic cyber anarchist. I have come across an expression with which I am not familiar.

Sam: I’m going to take a shot at this and guess that the expression is “dog and pony show.”

Felina: Quite so. I have seen American television shows in which both dogs and horses were stars but I have never watched a programme in which they co-starred with one another.

Sam: Nope and me either, Felina. Dog and pony shows were real popular in the American Midwest in the latter half of the 1800s. They were essentially small traveling circuses which couldn’t afford exotic animals so they trained domestic dogs and ponies to act solo and with one another.

Felina: Ah, so this expression started out to describe something wholesome and good for human beings, before the advent of television, which some human beings wish had not been invented.

Sam: Yep, the same human beings who walked away from fire because it only had one channel and could burn them if used irresponsibly.

Felina: But the contemporary usage of the term is pejorative, then.

Sam: Extremely.

Felina: I suspected as much, love of my life. It now seems to apply to an elaborate presentation designed to use illusion, innuendo, deceit and other tools of propaganda to convince masses of human beings to act against whatever is in their own best interests and the health and welfare of their communities.

Sam: Yep, Lass, that about covers it.

Felina: I also found it quite interesting that the readers of one of their most popular news magazines voted this Assange creature male human of the year?

Sam: I’ve noticed that humans are real fickle that way. They exalt the peace maker and the war monger alike, depending on the mood sweeping the nation at the moment.

Felina: Quite so. I have read about the American Wild West where heroes were professional assassins and train robbers and yellow-maned megalomaniacs who slaughtered those who lived in skin caves and followed the big horned thunder beasts.

Sam: And their first Great Depression when humans with interesting names like Al Capone, Bonnie and Clyde, Frank Nitti, John Dillinger, Ma Barker, Machinegun Kelly and Mad Dog Coll were media darlings.

Felina: Hard times do seem to transform them a bit. It almost appears many of them turn into that which they would otherwise so despise.

Sam: It’s like those who are bitten by those humans who turn into bats.

Felina: Samuel, please. I know what vampires are. And if memory serves, vampires were allegorical for how evil spreads by close association with it.

Sam: Yep. You’re not just who you eat but who you hang out with.

Felina: Quite so. As I have come so well down our years together to know.

Sam: I love you too, Felina and thank you once again for reminding me mountain lions can blush.

Felina: Quite so, my love. And on that note, gentle readers, until next time, may the Creator bless and keep you.

SURVIVING HARD TIMES

Sometimes surviving hard times means people in the position to make difference thinking outside the box, big time. Like a certain governor in the American South who decided, based on what his advisors told him about another successful venture like it, to create a Biblical theme park with an actual scale Noah’s Ark, with animals and human cast, on this artificial lake. During the press conference which heralded the announcement, a reporter suggested that this was not, as required by the First Amendment, keeping church and state separated. Kentucky Gov. Steven L. Beshear dismissed the allegation as nonsense, pointing out that he was not elected “to debate religion” but to create jobs. Yep, I thoroughly loved this one.

ON THE CANCER FRONT

Sometimes, surviving cancer ~ and some would say that is a miracle of its own ~ makes other wonderful things happening, like love once thought long last. Yep, this is one of those Frank Capra, Campbell Soup, feel good stories, and our thanks to Brigitta and Kenneth in Manchester, UK, for tipping us off to this one.

RESOURCES AND RELATED LINKS:
Cancer Research Journal
National Cancer Institute (American)
Fighting Breast Cancer: Breast Cancer Survivor Stories
Science Daily: Health & Medicine News
American Cancer Statistics 2009
Canadian Cancer Statistics 2009

HEALTH NEWS

Smartphones, laptops, wireless routers, wireless phones, Bluetooth headsets, remotes, printers, satellite TVs, Wii, Kindles, and at least 25 other electronic gadgets because they emit what are called electromagnetic fields are dangerous to our health, according to the authors of two recently released books. This kind of radiation is linked to a variety of diseases and conditions including sleep disturbances, memory problems, depression, poor sperm production, heart disease, miscarriage, birth defects, immune-system suppression, and even cancer and Lou Gehrig's disease. For more on this and to see what you can do to minimize your risk and those of you family, please go here.

GOOD EXAMPLES

If you need a reason to believe that human beings can be exceptionally compassionate and caring toward one another, this one might do it. There’s a man at Seattle Children’s Hospital called “The Moo Man.” He’s a nutritionist who delivers complex liquid formulas to kids, along with cookies, candy and impersonating a cow. And the kids love it. So does the staff, one of whom said that he’s the spirit of the place. And when that spirit needed a kidney transplant and had no relatives to whom to turn, one of his co-workers ~ after discussing it with her husband (also a staffer) and their seven children ~ came through. The surgery was successful. Both patients are doing fine and the Moo Man is due back on his rounds anytime now. Yep, for even more on this one, please go here.

In the midst of an ongoing recession, there are communities which are not only surviving but growing and prospering. They’re learning new ways to interact and to cooperate rather than compete. To watch a video and learn how one northwestern Washington community is going that, please go here

The latest participants to join the Pacific Northwest’s farm/garden to table movement are the region’s small forest owners and no, it’s not bark they’re bring to the feast but mushrooms, black berries, raspberries, blue berries, miner’s lettuce and a host of other staples that have been keeping the First Nation tribes alive and healthy for thousands of years. It’s one more step in regional self-determinism at the most fundamental level. Yep, for more, please go here.

NORTHSTAR FAVORITES

Sightline Daily is the best Pacific Northwest source of environmentally friendly news we’ve encountered yet. They draw from newspapers and National Public Radio sources in Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon and Washington state.

Meade Fisher Observes Humanity From A Safe Distance is a blog authored by an outdoor writer, photographer, West Coast kayaker and environmentalist living in the San Francisco Bay area. These short, humorous, few holds barred observations on the machinations of the human species run from the whimsical to the arid and occasionally to the quietly outraged. I’ve been a fan of this particular writer for years and I’ve always found him worth the read.

The Northstar Gallery features photography of Seattle available as postcards, computer wallpaper and workspace art.

Wrath of the Testament, an exciting seagoing saga of war and rebellion, is now available at amazon.com.

Yes magazine is the online Life and Look of the Internet combined and their present series “What Happy Families Know is both insightful and inspirational.

SEATTLE SCENES

Seattle Skyline from the south Photo by Merritt Scott (Rusty) Miller.

What’s Going On Here?

Whether you live here or plan to visit ~ and whatever it is you enjoy doing at home or as a tourist ~ you’ll find it, you’ll find it listed here at seattlepi.com.

SEATTLE FACTS AND FIGURES
Seattle Rainfall in Comparison To Other US Cities
Seattle Geography & Climate
For more information about Seattle

OTHER RELATED STUFF FROM THE SHORES OF THE SALISH SEA
For live cameras on Seattle, the Puget Sound and Washington State
Mount Rainier slide show
Eat healthy while you’re here – Seattle PCC Co-Op
Take some fresh produce back to your hotel – Seattle Farmers Markets

CRITTER STUFF

In an attempt to learn more about where they feed when they cruise a territory from Vancouver Island to the Northern California coast, federal officials are proposing tagging the Puget Sound’s three resident orca pods with transmitters delivered by dark gun to the creature’s dorsal fin. The technique has been successfully used before with other marine mammal populations to, among other things, find and protect where these species feed. The tags are transmitters about the size of a 9-volt battery which activate when the orca surfaces and sends its location to a satellite, which it turn sends it to scientists with the National Marine Fisheries Service.

A Canadian federal court judge, in response to a suit brought by a coalition of nine environmental groups, including Greenpeace, the David Suzuki Foundation, Ecojustice, the Sierra Club and the International Fund for Animal Welfare, decided the 300 or so orcas living in Canadian waters have not received adequate protection from Ottawa and specifically from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Said agency is reviewing the Court’s decision and contemplating a response.

Recommended Related Links:
National Wildlife Magazine
Go Northwest: Northwest Wildlife Websites
BBC’s wildlife finder
National Geographic Daily News - Animals
Retrieverman’s Weblog: Engaging articles on domestic & wildlife in the American South

YOU GUYS THINK I MAKE THIS STUFF UP

Last week, the president of a private college in Oregon ended up going goat wrangling. What’s goat wrangling? In this case, it’s what you do after your two four-footed invasive plants control agents decide to eat through a natural fence and go browsing along

Well, that’s it for now. Thanks for the ear. Before you leave, if you’re in a shopping mood and into some interesting choices? We’ve got a “reader stocked” General Store that you might want to check out. If you’d like to sell something with us or know someone who does, email us at minstrel312@aol.com and we’ll see what we can do.

The Northstar Journal is funded by contributions from readers like yourself. If you enjoyed this edition and would like to contribute to the next, please click the donate button below.

International betrayal, an unenviable legacy for WikiLeaks

Hi again from the Bastion on the Puget Sound. Well, I for one, was NOT happy to learn that WikiLeaks, decided to compromise international diplomacy on the installment plan. Even if done in the name of freedom of speech, it was also done with a sense of responsibility so narrow in scope as to suggest if not myopia, then certainly a tunnel vision view of the results of this on literally millions of people. The only thing more astounding to me is the mindset of the American soldier who made all this classified material available to WikiLeaks in the first place.

I worked in classified communications in the service and held a Top Secret clearance. Like I did to get through Vietnam in general, I trained my mind to forget things I either shouldn’t really know, weren’t healthy for me to know, or which were things I didn’t want to know because I might remember them. Even though all of us who worked at jobs like mine were indoctrinated into the consequences of leaking, it probably also helped that I was in the Navy and “leaking” is not a word a sailor wants to hear in any context. It’s like the operating surgeon going “Ooops.”

I knew too that the teletypes and dispatches I was reading and sometimes couriering were bits and pieces of a global operational matrix I was not trained ~ and very likely not intelligent enough ~ to understand. I was exposed to a lot of weird stuff, things that never made the press during my war because back then, the media worked with the military to make sure nothing was published which might get an American in uniform killed. There were exceptions and those exceptions were, in my mind, justified. But by and large, there was an operational integrity which placed The First Amendment in a context far more appropriate the times than a strict letter of the law interpretation.

And this is not to suggest that the Fourth Estate pandered to the military, to the government or to anyone else. If that had been the case, the My Lai Massacre and Watergate, to name two, would never have come to light. But this WikiLeaks is not investigative journalism and they share the blame with the media of this generation. Why? Because even though the information was offered and accepted, it did not need to be published.

So to me, this is a rank and foul abuse of an honored profession and the betrayal of all those who believe in it. When asked by a colleague this morning what I would have done had WikiLeaks approached me as an outlet, I said that I would have accepted a sample, read it and returned it to the source saying that I was not interested.

The Northstar Journal would not have published something that will very likely get several thousand people killed within the next fortnight or so. We’re small but we have a conscience and we reach around 700 of you in seven nations who do as well. There’s not legions of you but it’s a band of brothers (and sisters) and that’s more than enough company for me.

IN OTHER NEWS

Well, we found this more than a little ironic. Apparently Interpol is looking for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange because he faces charges of rape, sexual molestation and unlawful coercion. His accusers are apparently two women he met in Stockholm on a recent visit. Interpol is looking for him and he’s rumoured to be in hiding in the south of England. His spokesperson denies the allegations and says this is Sweden’s retaliation for leaking all those documents. That doesn’t wash with me. Sweden does not play cop of the world. If the allegations are true, not only is Julian Assange a man totally devoid of scruples, he’s also an amoral predator who preys on women. My hunch is this tribute to humanity has probably cut more deals with the devil than Daniel Webster and with not nearly the finesse. The Devil’s finally become totally bored and now he’s calling this idiot home.

Canadians have discovered that sewage makes a good source of electricity and an inexpensive one. Vancouver’s Olympia Village has such a generator and provides its customers with electricity at three dollars per kilowatt hour cheaper than BC Hydro. This is another exportable, one of those, “if they can do it, it might just be worth us trying it too” stories so yep, for more, please go here.

Some Canadian farmers are now producing more than agricultural products, they’re also producing electricity. Thanks to a federal program called MicroFIT introduced at the provincial level and emulated from Manitoba to British Columbia, fallow land or land not suitable for cultivation, farmers have solar panels or wind generators installed. The electricity produced runs the farm and the surplus is sold to the local utility, making these farms energy self-sustaining and reducing the cost of the harvest so these savings can, in turn, be passed along to the consumer, local or export.

Felina: Well, this person from that place on the other side of the planet that is upside down from here and where they have these big hopping mice with pouches and where wrestling with big water lizards appears to be a national pastime among them certainly seems to have stirred up the proverbial hornet’s nest now, eh, Samuel?

Sam: I’m going to take a shot at this and say we’re talking about the founder of WikiLeaks and that place he comes from is Australia.

Felina: Quite so. His name is Julian Assange and the place he comes from is also known as “Down Under” or “Oz,” which I understand the humans who live there do not like.

Sam: Yep, that’s it pretty much, Felina.

Felina: He is certainly an interesting human. He steals these things called documents, gives them to someone who does not know he does not own them and then shares these private communications with other humans to whom they were not addressed. I am searching for a parallel in the animal kingdom.

Sam: We’re both going to be old and gray and in that Big Green Valley Up Yonder before you’ll find one, love of my life.

Felina: I suspected as much, oh sun and moon of mine. And this Julian Assange certainly seems quite the global traveler.

Sam: And according to two female humans in that place up north and east of here and across the other pond…

Felina: Please, Samuel. I know where Sweden is. And if these allegations against him are true, he is not quite the lady’s man he seems to think he is.

Sam: You’re being real generous here, aren’t you, Felina?

Felina: I find that human being’s behaviour absolutely despicable and without moral precedent from the amoeba to the zebra. And what galls me even more, Samuel, is that this human is considered by many to be “successful” in the society of his species? Even the jackal and the hyena have more claim to the title of noble beast than this pitiful excuse for even a member of the species which was created last and with what mud remained.

Sam: No argument there, of occasional volcano of my life. It does make one pause to contemplate a fallible creator.

Felina: I doubt very seriously whether the Creator had anything to do with this. This one would disgrace primordial slime.

Sam: Well, look at it this way, between that gooey stuff you just mentioned and the hatred he is reaping among his own kind, he’s probably not going to last too long.

Felina: I understand they are doing great things with those metal fire canisters they send into space. Surely they could find room for him on one of those.

Sam: Nope, Felina. The universe would just bat it back to them. But where he’s going, one of those big cement caves with bars.

Felina: Samuel, be careful.

Sam: Where he’s going, he’ll have lots of help pondering the wickedness of his ways.

Felina: I hope his cell has air-conditioning. In winter.

Sam: And on that note?

Felina: And on that note, gentle readers, until next time, may the Creator bless and keep you.

SURVIVING HARD TIMES

Hard times can often be more difficult during the holidays and for a lot of us, the Christmas season is not the easiest time of the year to get through. YES magazine offers us the secrets of sharing and getting along in an entire issue dedicated to sharing with us what happy families know

ON THE CANCER FRONT

Surviving cancer is often also a matter of attitude and of being inspired by others. This is the story of a British man with testicular cancer who fought the disease for 16 years. Now his wife is pregnant thanks to some sperm he had frozen before the first of two operations. This is one of those Frank Capra Feel Real Good Stories and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Lung cancer among women in England is on the rise while declining among men. A recent study concluded that this was because the nationwide anti-smoking campaign focused more on males than on females. For more and what the British are doing to correct for course, yep, go here.

RESOURCES AND RELATED LINKS:
Cancer Research Journal
National Cancer Institute (American)
Fighting Breast Cancer: Breast Cancer Survivor Stories
Science Daily: Health & Medicine News
American Cancer Statistics 2009
Canadian Cancer Statistics 2009

HEALTH NEWS

For those of us who don’t always sleep too well at night and then feel the heavy weight of it the next day, here are eight dynamite tips for surviving and dramatically reducing the likelihood of another insomniac night.

GOOD EXAMPLES

Anyone who works to protect kids gets a very long round of applause and I’m further delighted that this one goes out to the home of my birth. The Canadian government is now enforcing the strictest standards in the world for the amount of lead paint in children’s toys. The new amounts allowed are so small it’s apparently not worth using lead in these products at all. Way to go, Ottawa!

We applaud amazon.com for terminating its relationship with WikiLeaks, that cyber volcano of treason whose founder faces sex crimes charges in Sweden. Although they were approached by the government, amazon.com claims that WikiLeaks simply violated its terms of service by, among other things, storing too much data which didn’t belong to it on the site it rented from amazon.com. I sort of missed the fragrance of fire and brimstone around that one but I’m also reminded that a company is responsible to act ethically. It is not responsible for promoting ethics as a good business practice.

Goggle also gets an atta-person (PC rocks) for ending a practice that sort of has me admiring it for its simplicity. Seems that Google and other search engines can’t tell the difference between a positive or negative visit to a website. They rank a site by the TOTAL hits. So some merchants apparently go out of their way to be rude, screw up orders, delay shipments and otherwise generate visits to its complaint department. Goggle’s come up with another algorithm but is ~ sagely in our opinion ~ not releasing any details

NORTHSTAR FAVORITES

Sightline Daily is the best Pacific Northwest source of environmentally friendly news we’ve encountered yet. They draw from newspapers and National Public Radio sources in Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon and Washington state.

Meade Fisher Observes Humanity From A Safe Distance is a blog authored by an outdoor writer, photographer, West Coast kayaker and environmentalist living in the San Francisco Bay area. These short, humorous, few holds barred observations on the machinations of the human species run from the whimsical to the arid and occasionally to the quietly outraged. I’ve been a fan of this particular writer for years and I’ve always found him worth the read.

The Northstar Gallery features photography of Seattle available as postcards, computer wallpaper and workspace art.

Irish Newsletter is an outstanding pocket source of Irish life, politics and times. Particularly well written are their news snaps (shorts) which ~ according to friends of mine in Erin ~ literally tell it like it is. While the Republic of Ireland’s population is only about 4.5-million, there are an estimated 80 million people of Irish descent worldwide and email version of this reached 50,000 of them.

Wrath of the Testament, an exciting seagoing saga of war and rebellion, is now available at amazon.com.

SEATTLE SCENES

Nocturnal snow, Seattle's University District, recently. Photo by Merritt Scott (Rusty) Miller

What’s Going On Here?

Whether you live here or plan to visit ~ and whatever it is you enjoy doing at home or as a tourist ~ you’ll find it, you’ll find it listed here at seattlepi.com.

SEATTLE FACTS AND FIGURES
Seattle Rainfall in Comparison To Other US Cities
Seattle Geography & Climate
For more information about Seattle

OTHER RELATED STUFF FROM THE SHORES OF THE SALISH SEA
For live cameras on Seattle, the Puget Sound and Washington State
Mount Rainier slide show
Eat healthy while you’re here – Seattle PCC Co-Op
Take some fresh produce back to your hotel – Seattle Farmers Markets

CRITTER STUFF

Thanks to a unique program by Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife, dozens of Puget Sound river otters whose presence at commercial and private marinas, boathouse docks and waterfront homes has posed a threat to their continued existence are now thriving and prospering on a remote stretch of the Gila River in New Mexico. I totally loved this one.

In a move which probably truly explodes the possibility of life in the universe and unknown forms of it on this planet, scientists trained a microbe to eat arsenic instead of phosphorous. The microbe decided it liked this deadly poison just fine. I definitely got a 1950s sci-fi chill when I learned that this tiny dude is a bacterium scraped from the bottom of Mono Lake, in California. It also strongly suggests to me that even if we allow ourselves and a lot of other life forms to drown in a sea of our garbage or choke on a deadly atmosphere of toxic gases, there is one life form on the planet who will probably watch that and go, “Cool. And look at all there is to eat now.” (including us.)

Recommended Related Links:
National Wildlife Magazine
Go Northwest: Northwest Wildlife Websites
BBC’s wildlife finder
National Geographic Daily News - Animals
Retrieverman’s Weblog: Engaging articles on domestic & wildlife in the American South

YOU GUYS THINK I MAKE THIS STUFF UP

Well, ever since I worked at Boeing, I have not been a real fan of going up 30,000 feet in something put together by a consortium of the lowest bidders. This article in AOL news, headlined Most Unexpected Flight Delays, has reaffirmed my pledge to remain with transportation I can swim or walk away from if it stops working. I have yet to see any human being fly away from a plane crash. At least none that were not Heaven bound. On the flip side, I also totally loved this and I think you will too.

Well, that’s it for now. Thanks for the ear. Before you leave, if you’re in a shopping mood and into some interesting choices? We’ve got a “reader stocked” General Store that you might want to check out. If you’d like to sell something with us or know someone who does, email us at minstrel312@aol.com and we’ll see what we can do.

Rusty

The Northstar Journal is funded by contributions from readers like yourself. If you enjoyed this edition and would like to contribute to the next, please click the donate button below.

RAIN, A STORY OF LOVE AND WAR IN 500 WORDS

Hi again from the Bastion on the Puget Sound. For some reason, this past week seems to have been an inordinately trying one for a lot of people under the seven flags this publication reaches. The world’s thundering some and perhaps it’s time to unplug for just a bit, draw back and contemplate by candlelight before a warm hearth. The story I’m about to share with you is something that really happened, to real people. It’s a love and war story in five hundred words and it’s entitled RAIN

They'd been married once. Younger then, their lives had been a collage of rain dimpling a duck pond, wishing games in the high branches of the evergreens, intimate meals in the kitchen and nights that grew richer with familiarity.

Theirs was a strange, almost inarticulate love best captured in the mornings she'd fall asleep at her easel, exhausted over a night's work, or the cold-coffee dawns he'd come home with a split lip and nothing to show for a week on the road with his combo.

"I like it."

"You don't think the trees are too green?"

"They're beautiful."

"I'm glad you're home."

"Me too."

"How much do we owe the landlord?"

"I'm glad you're home. The landlord will keep."

There were, as well, those funny/sad times when the edge cut so deep it blunted itself on midnight cornflake conversations.

"What are you doing still up?"

"Couldn't sleep. What's your excuse?"

"I missed you. Go for a walk?"

"Like this?"

"You look fine."

"OK."

And then they'd stroll the quiet streets, reaping a clear night star harvest, or stand alone on the levee, watching the moon play on the rolling glass river. Sometimes it was back to the all-night coffee shop, where they would sit across from each other without talking, or needing to. Theirs was the rule of no apology, and that gentle dictate blessed their lives for two years and a season.
Then time and an era caught up with them.

His best friend was killed at Chu Lai over Thanksgiving, and she sold two of her canvases, only to learn they'd been purchased for their frames. She began her rage at one end of town, he his at the other, and they met in the heat of it all at the coffee shop. She cursed him for something he said, and he slapped her. In a moment of absolute terror, they told each other they were sorry.

He came back 18 months later with a limp and a double row of campaign ribbons. They talked over coffee, and he whistled at the prices her paintings were bringing. She reached out to touch the gaunt planes of his cheeks. They dined together, then went walking.

Along dusty country lanes, they played in rainbow leaves, chased squirrels and waded in the Indian summer silt of bullfrog ponds. They renamed the trees and called the southbound geese by the colors of the palette. He memorized her eyes again, and traced her long mane from bangs to shoulder blades. She felt the gentle strength of his hands and heard the quiet joy of words a cordite-parched throat could barely speak. Loves was theirs once more -- and for an emerald instant -- time and an era left them in peace.

When he returned to stay, she met him at the airport and saw him through the final mile home. He never smiled or told her how glad he was to see her. She never mentioned how much she had missed him. When the final strains of epitaph faded into the eternal chill, she walked home and sat down on the living room couch.

Rain fell softly beyond her.

IN OTHER NEWS

Ireland has decided to accept the European Union’s offer of financial assistance after months of unsuccessful austerity measures and the announcement last week that Prime Minister Brian Cowen will be stepping down early next year. Even the British are coming on board for this one because, as their Chancellor of the Exchequer pointed out, Ireland is their closet trading partner. After the announcement was made, both European and global stocks took a jump, an indication of just how important Ireland’s economy is to the rest of the world. Related: Ireland Unveils Austerity Plan to Help Secure Bailout

Since 1930, the tidal level in Norfolk, Virginia has risen 14.6”/37cm, making it the most dramatic on the American East Coast. There’s a local debate going on about whether global warming is causing the problems this city built on a peninsula is having with particularly estuarine tides which also flood out streets when the moon is full. I found this a fascinating story about how the residents of this metropolis and its city government are dealing with this.

Felina: Such a troubled land, this place they call the Emerald Isle, across the other big ocean. Where they have this rock humans turn upside down to kiss for luck. And where there are lots of clover and not so many tall trees. And where there are miniature humans with pots of gold at the end of a rainbow. It sounds like such an enchanting place.

Sam: I’m going to take a shot at this and say we’re talking about Ireland here.

Felina: Quite so. The Republic of Ireland is also called Erin and Eire, if memory serves.

Sam: It serves you very well, love of my life.

Felina: Thank you, love of mine. Do you remember that time we visited Leon and Jill in Colorado?

Sam: The Uris’s, yep. He wrote about Ireland in two novels considered classics now.

Felina: Yes, Trinity and Redemption. I was thinking of that book of photographs that Jill produced entitled Ireland, a Terrible Beauty.

Sam: That still sends shudders through me. Her talent certainly equaled that of her mate.

Felina: Something with which I have some familiarity, as well, Samuel Alexander.

Sam: Thank you, Felina, for reminding me that cougars blush.

Felina: You do look absolutely divine in crimson, my Yankee Doodle flipping charmer.

Sam: Yep, me and that stupid St. Louis cardinal a strong wind blew too far west. We’re a matched set. However, we digress.

Felina: We are the Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy of digression.

Sam: Okay, Felina, that’s a stretch.

Felina: I just cannot understand how one place and one collection of human beings can have been made to suffer so much.

Sam: The Jews, the Poles, Native Americans, they’ve all been asking that about themselves, along with gays and male humans who dare wear pink. In Ireland’s case, she had a flourishing civilization that in its own quiet way, far surpassed Athens at its zenith.

Felina: And other tribes of humans conquered them.

Sam: In successive waves, Felina, they tried. The Romans, the Vikings, the Normans, the English, they all gave it their best shot. They slashed, stabbed, burned, shot, hung, imprisoned, slammed into workhouses and starved the Irish. They impressed them into the military and sent thousands to penal colonies abroad. The result, however, is that there’s not a place on the earth where the Irish have not been, grown and prospered.

Felina: Indeed and quite so. Such a magnificent spirit the Irish have.

Sam: Yep and they’ll get through this, once the rest of the human world understands why they are so skeptical of accepting help from especially former conquerors. They want the right to determine their own destiny and they’ve been battling for that right since Moses was a wee voyager in a reed boat. I can’t speak for you or any of the rest of our species but this Yankee Doodle flipping mountain lion happens to think they deserve that right and I pray to the Creator for a helping hand in that direction.

Felina: Quite so, Samuel! Quite so! And very well put, oh sun and moon of my life.

Sam: Thank you, Princess. I love you too, Lass. And on that note?

Felina: And on that note, gentle readers, until next time. And may the Creator bless and keep you.

SURVIVING HARD TIMES

Sometimes, surviving hard times is also about hearing from those who are doing it? This is a gem and far better expressed than we here at the NSJ could render it.

ON THE CANCER FRONT

We just learned about the Movember Movement, which originated in Australia six years ago. Men start out November clean shaven and then get people to donate to cancer research by growing mustaches and beards. This month’s Movember is expected to raise $65-million for prostate cancer research.

RESOURCES AND RELATED LINKS:
Cancer Research Journal
National Cancer Institute (American)

Fighting Breast Cancer: Breast Cancer Survivor Stories
Science Daily: Health & Medicine News
American Cancer Statistics 2009
Canadian Cancer Statistics 2009

HEALTH NEWS

People who can touch their toes while sitting down are likely to have healthier hearts and lower blood pressure than those who cannot, according to a recent study of adults over 40. Sit-ups which include that are recommended. For more and for a quick test to learn how flexible and elastic your heart and arteries are, please go here.

GOOD EXAMPLES

South Korea is waging a war on dementia and the soldiers in this one are children who are learning what it is like to have this condition and how to care for aging relatives and family friends afflicted. It is estimated that nine percent of South Korea’s population over 62 falls into this category.

We almost put this one under the weirder than usual category except that President Obama sort of got there first. The United States Army has apparently decided that using robots to fight wars would make the process a lot safer. Okay, yep, to my mind too, that is SO riddled with oxymorons. But then again, who am I to judge? I do not work out of a building that has five sides? But yeah, I could see another arms race and a battle field that looked a lot like monster trucks going at it or Saturday morning kid’s television programming. It would be another interesting way to expend natural resources other than our own youth.

Ever since I read “Tom Swift and His Electric Runabout,” I have been absolutely wired into the evolution of electric transportation. This article in the Los Angeles Times by Jerry Hirsch and Tiffany Hsu headlined “As electric cars step from lab to showroom, customers must choose: Stalled for nearly a century, electric cars are about to move into the fast lane when the first of a new generation of vehicles reaches dealer showrooms next month” pretty much says it all in these regards.

NORTHSTAR FAVORITES

Sightline Daily is the best Pacific Northwest source of environmentally friendly news we’ve encountered yet. They draw from newspapers and National Public Radio sources in Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon and Washington state.

Meade Fisher Observes Humanity From A Safe Distance is a blog authored by an outdoor writer, photographer, West Coast kayaker and environmentalist living in the San Francisco Bay area. These short, humorous, few holds barred observations on the machinations of the human species run from the whimsical to the arid and occasionally to the quietly outraged. I’ve been a fan of this particular writer for years and I’ve always found him worth the read.

The Northstar Gallery features photography of Seattle available as postcards, computer wallpaper and workspace art.

SEATTLE SCENES

A reminder of warmer days. University Way (“The Ave”), University District, Seattle

Photo by Merritt Scott (Rusty) Miller.

What’s Going On Here?

Whether you live here or plan to visit ~ and whatever it is you enjoy doing at home or as a tourist ~ you’ll find it, you’ll find it listed here at seattlepi.com.

SEATTLE FACTS AND FIGURES
Seattle Rainfall in Comparison To Other US Cities
Seattle Geography & Climate
For more information about Seattle

OTHER RELATED STUFF FROM THE SHORES OF THE SALISH SEA
For live cameras on Seattle, the Puget Sound and Washington State
Mount Rainier slide show
Eat healthy while you’re here – Seattle PCC Co-Op
Take some fresh produce back to your hotel – Seattle Farmers Markets

CRITTER STUFF

Well, it’s sea lions versus human fisherfolk at the Bonnieville Dam and it looks like the former are winning. The National Marine Fisheries Service wanted to destroy these big marine mammals because they were eating too many imperiled salmon. It turns out, however, that sport fishing is taking as many and sometimes more so the NMFS got to explain to a federal court judge why it was okay to kill a natural predator but not restrict the taking of the same endangered species by humans. Their argument was not convincing. Yep, for more, go here.

Recommended Related Links:
National Wildlife Magazine
Go Northwest: Northwest Wildlife Websites
BBC’s wildlife finder
National Geographic Daily News - Animals
Retrieverman’s Weblog: Engaging articles on domestic & wildlife in the American South

YOU GUYS THINK I MAKE THIS STUFF UP

Playing hardball is hardly an expression new to politics but when we read that President Obama had to have twelve stitches after a basketball game with family and friends, we couldn’t help wonder if there’s not some hidden aggression coming to the surface close to home. On the other hand, a dozen stitches must, at times, seem mild compared to the drubbing he’s been taking from both his own party and those who are bound by elephantine doctrine to oppose him, whether they personally agree with him or not.

Well, that’s it for now. Thanks for the ear. Before you leave, if you’re in a shopping mood and into some interesting choices? We’ve got a “reader stocked” General Store that you might want to check out. If you’d like to sell something with us or know someone who does, email us at minstrel312@aol.com and we’ll see what we can do.

The Northstar Journal is funded by contributions from readers like yourself. If you enjoyed this edition and would like to contribute to the next, please click the donate button below.