The Forest and Climate Change

From a press release I received yesterday (emphasis mine):

A recent Forest Service determination finds climate change could affect the distribution and diversity of plants and animals in the United States. ...

U.S. Forests can also play a major role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Use of wood products in place of alternative products can reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Growing shade trees around buildings can reduce energy use. Large scale cellulosic ethanol production from wood
may become an economically viable option for offsetting fossil fuel emissions. ...

Everyone should be interested in the forest because forest management includes water and water quality. A majority of our water resources come from federal National Forest land. You may be interested in a synopsis of the full report, which you can find here:

http://www.fs.fed.us/research/rpa/2005rpa/Key_Msg_Talk_Pts_RPA_Update_112807.doc

Personally, I found it eyebrow raising to see something coming out of the current administration that actually acknowledges climate change ...

Up until the current president took office, as a rural news writer I had unfettered access to the district rangers. I wrote about a vast range of topics related to forestry, including endangered species such as the James spinymussel and a particular bat that's found only in Craig County, land formations, tree harvesting, Smoky Bear, fire safety, hunter safety, etc.

Within two months of the current president taking office, my access to the forest rangers ended abruptly. I was told I could no longer talk to the rangers; I had to go through the PR office in Roanoke.

The stories about the forest and the U.S. Forest Service and what it was doing locally ceased overnight. In the last seven years, I've written very little about something that takes up about 20 percent of the land mass of my county. The exception has been the federal government's efforts to sell off forest land to pay some of its bills, which made the national news everywhere. (The effort failed.)

My hindered access to the Forest Service and the lack of stories coming at the local level was my first hint of how bad things would get at the federal level. I questioned the lack of access, but at the time no one knew about such things as the PATRIOT ACT and spying on citizens and asking folks what books they check out of libraries. No one thought we'd turn into a police state so quickly... and this was before September 11, 2001.

Eventually the local ranger offices closed because the government "consolidated" the Forest Service work force.

There are lessons here in what I've written, and implications for the future. But we have to be paying attention to see. Are we, I wonder?

Cotton Candy Sunrise

I took this picture on Thursday, November 29, 2007, with my Nikon D40.

It's a Parade!

Saturday at 2 p.m. the Fincastle Christmas Parade marched through the streets!


The police led the way while deputies stood to the side making sure traffic stopped.



There were clowns!


Churches had floats in remembrance of the real reason for the season.



There was lots of waving!




The real reason I was at the parade. The above beauty queen is my niece. She is five years old and quite the ham when she spies a camera. That's my brother at the wheel and my sister-in-law beside her.




The Girl Scouts strut their stuff.



The Fire Department mascot marched alongside the trucks.



Bands played! "Bells are ringing children singing O What a beautiful sight" - Santa Claus is Coming to Town!



Tractors putted down Main Street.



The fellow who brought up the rear!

Humbled

A few days ago, Beth over at Blue Ridge Blue Collar Girl handed me a Community Blogger Award. This award celebrates people "who reach out and make the blogger community a better one," as I understand it.


This is my first recognition ever for blogging. I am very humbled to be acknowledged because there is a lot of nice writing on the web, and a lot of people visit and offer stories and advice and friendliness.

Blogs create a nice community and I enjoy reading what people do and think and experience. I wish I had more time to spend on visiting other folks spaces so that I could "see more of the world," as it were.

The world is one big story and we're all characters in it, each important in our way to the patchwork that makes up the whole quilt. Without our individual achievements and efforts, there would be holes.

Another person whom Beth nominated was Shannon at Going Crunchy, who wrote a very nice entry about her award. I was not familiar with this blogger so I was happy to be introduced.

The award came to Beth via June at Spatter, another blogger I read. June has a lot of interesting things to say.

Beth is a gentle blogger who takes vivid pictures and has a great sense of humor. I delight in her entries.

In the spirit of moving this award along, I would like to recognize and give the award to:

Jeff at Jefferson Street Realist. Jeff writes about life with his young family. Some of his entries tickle me when he talks about his boy. Others are reverent and sad, such as when G'Diddy passed away. His writing rings true to me.

Ms. E. at Ms. Eleneaous in Roanoke. Ms. Elenaeous has an interesting take on life in Roanoke. Wait until you read about her house haunting. She's also one of two bloggers I have met in person!

Becky at Peevish Pen writes about writing and rural life. She's the other blogger I have shaken hands with!

Happy blogging, everyone!

Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen reasons why November has left me tired:

1. A meeting on November 8 that only lasted two hours but which required another three hours of reading the file that went with it.

2. A meeting on November 13 that lasted from 6 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.

3. A meeting on November 27 that lasted from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

4. A meeting today which required a couple hours preparation and then several hours of attendance.

5. Thanksgiving, which required holiday stuff (and stuffing!)

6. Lots of work which required lots of thinking.

7. My husband had a cold. Every woman knows how tiring that is.

8. My husband was also home on vacation for two weeks.

9. It was deer season which meant I had men in and out of the house. They required a steady supply of lunch meat, bread and drinks.

10. I began shopping for Christmas.

11. The days grew shorter and the time changed, all of which seemed to mean I had less time than ever before.

12. Many people wanted to spend a lot of the little time I seemed to have talking on the telephone with me.

13. I hit my head on a shelf about four weeks ago and somehow damaged my neck muscles. I have been in pain ever since, despite three trips to the chiropractor, two to the massage therapist, one to the acupuncturist, and another to my primary care physician. This, in spite of everything else, has been the main reason this month has been tiring!

Books: Legacy of Silence

Legacy of Silence

by Belva Plain

Copyright 1998

Ready by Dana Ivey



Carolyn and Lore, story opens in 1939 pre-World War II.

The Quarry, Part II

It is hard sometimes to write about the things going on around me. Take this quarry thing, for instance, which I started writing about this morning.

A part of me wanted to testify. I wanted to say to the officials, "Don't do this to my neighbors."

I wanted to say don't make my neighbors have to run air purifiers that have filters that look like this within a day:




Don't make them worry about asthma and bronchial problems and wonder if the industry down the road is to blame.

Don't make them wonder if the red rainwater that falls around here sometimes comes from the industry down the road. It's preferable not to have red rain at all.

Don't put that quarry five miles from our historic county seat and then expect it to withstand 30 years of continuous blasting (I don't care if the blasting expert said that amounts to "only" 30 minutes of blasting. It still shakes the house.).

I wanted to say those things and more, but I did not. I could not because I write government articles for a living and it is necessary to maintain objectivity in my work with the paper.

What I did was write several articles about it, as professionally as I could. The first was what I normally write, a "hey folks, here's what's coming up before the planning commission." The second was an update with a slant that officials were doing something new - they were actually checking for endangered species. It was also news that they'd found some.

Then I wrote about the planning commission meeting and then the meeting yesterday where the proposal for a new quarry was denied.

I am fairly sure my articles were not slanted to show my opposition to the project, but I can never be sure and it is always something I watch for. I try to write objectively.

At least one person thought I was in favor of the project. But when you're writing about an emotional issue, people often think any mention of the other side means you don't favor them. It's not a situation the messenger can win in and I no longer try. I do the best I can.

My editor did write an editorial opposing the project. He opposed it when it first came about three years ago, too. I'm not sure he could have been objective about my work on this issue because he was very much against the project.

For my part, I conversed with people who lived far enough away (about five miles) from the proposed industry to think they would not be affected. I tried, and failed, to convince them that they were wrong. At least, they did not show up to voice their concerns as I'd hoped.

Fortunately this time the proposal fell through. But what about next time?

Because there will be a next time.

Actually none of this is what I originally sat down to write this morning. I wanted to write about this issue from the standpoint of business and how corporations are killing us.

I wished to point out that living near an industry, and "near" can be defined as next door or miles and miles away, is challenging. There are so many unknowns in the things people do to make money. It is all about the dollar and not the environment or quality of life for those who are already in residence.

Who cares about endangered spinymussels or historic buildings or people with asthma, anyway?

I do.

I guess that's really what I wanted to say.

The Quarry, Part I

(The above photo was taken Christmas Day, 2004. The smoke is from the cement plant. When the stakes let go, I can see it from my house.)

I live about four miles from a cement plant and quarry. The industry is on property that once belonged to my ancestors, who are also my husband's ancestors. His branch of the family ultimately sold parts of their farmland for this big hole in the ground.

While I can't do anything about that, since I wasn't even born, I do feel some responsibility for this environmental apocalypse.

On Monday as I worked, I was on the phone with a person who lives a similar four miles from this same industry, only in the other direction. As we spoke, there was a blast. "That was from the quarry," we both said as the sound came from all around us and also through the phone lines as we each heard it.

My house let out a resounding crack as something settled.

So over at least an 8-mile land area, that blast rattled windows. Living near such a thing has challenges. It's dusty, for one thing. Even four miles away. Fine white powder settles over the furniture within minutes of dusting. We run four air purifiers in the house to keep the dust down.

It was with horror that I saw that another quarry application was before the planning commission this month. As a writer covering government for the paper I try not to take sides on issues, but I do live here. This quarry would be about 9 miles away from me as the crow flies; about 11 by road.

I wrote my articles about this as straightforward and unbiased as I could. I am sure I did not succeed because at one point I was accused of being biased in favor of the developer.

Which of course was completely wrong. I thought this was a terrible project. Not just because I think quarries, which leave big gashes in the land, are bad. This particular quarry would be located within 100 feet of a major tributary to the James River.

The business people thought this was a fine idea and apparently were nonplussed at the idea of the stream vanishing in their quarry pit.

(I'll continue this later...)

Reaching for the sky

In the eye of the beholder

Book Reviews: Chopping Spree

Chopping Spree
By Diane Mott Davidson
Audio Book Read by Joyce Bean
6 hours abridged

A caterer turns sleuth in this series of books. Goldy the caterer has a murder on her hands. She has to find the killer before he decides she's a problem. While she's doing this she has to balance her work, her son, her husband, her friends...

Fun to listen to, except for the parts with the recipes. Since my cooking skills leave a lot to be desired, I haven't much interest in listening to recipes, but I suspect it is a draw for many women.

3.75 stars

The Gift
Richard Paul Evans
2007

5 stars

Agnes and the Hitman
Jennifer Cruise
2007

2.75 stars

Thanksgiving Thirteen

Today I am thankful for (not in any particular order):

1. My computer, which lets me access the world.

2. My husband, which lets me access, well, him.

3. Socks, which keep my feet warm.

4. The sky, which brings me light and fills the day with soft comforting color.

5. The earth, which feeds me and supports me and offers strength.

6. The moon, which guides me during long nights and ensures I know how small humanity really is.

7. The sun, which brings heat and energy and without which the world would be completely dark.

8. Food, of which I have plenty.



9. My home, which offers me security and peace and solace from the masses.

10. Nature, which delights me every day with the scenes outside my window.



11. My friends, who love me for who I am and in spite of myself.

12. My work, which stimulates me and forces me to
act.

13. The world, which in spite of flawed humanity and the terrible destitutions and depravities that go on every minute, still offers hope, love, goodness and kindness. Until those are also snuffed out, we have a chance.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Retail Therapy

My mother was a super shopper. There was no abuse my father could heap on her, no inconsideration her children could bestow upon her, that could not be solved by buying something.

She swallowed capitalism and merchandising hook, line, sinker. She owned trinkets that, had we lined them side by side, would have stretched at least across the state. Maybe into Florida, I don't know.

Her clothes closet would have outfitted about three high schools when she died. She had blouses and pants hanging in the closet with the tags still on them, things she bought and never wore.

Goodwill is probably still selling her clothes even though it's been years since I handed my half over to them.

She shopped in shoes that made my feet hurt simply to look at them. No sneakers for her - she went in heels. Sometimes her feet ached, so she'd slip her shoes off and roam the mall barefooted, putting her shoes back on to enter stores.

She bought what I call "sitty-around" stuff and clothes, mostly. She did not buy art or things that would acquire value; she bought mass-produced beauties, glass things that would one day be broken. She had a collection of glass bells and a collection of glass birds and a collection of cheap carnival glass.

She collected things that make you blink and wonder who ever thought of creating such a thing in the first place.

When she was alive my closet was much better equipped than it is now, because she was always buying me clothes too. I confess I mostly did not appreciate the clothes and I seldom wore them. This is because, while my mother dressed exquisitely, it wasn't my style. I look very conservative but have a bohemian heart while my mother dressed flashy and had a movie star heart.

The two us rarely agreed in the dressing room, I have to say.

I hated to shop and still do. My mother dragged me after her for years when I was a child and a teen. She spent hours looking at clothes on the racks. She knew where all the sales were and where to buy practically anything in Roanoke.

I know I stood and whined pitifully when I was 10 and stood mulishly silent when I was 15. I did not understand how tightly the grip of purchasing was wrapped around her throat, er, pocketbook.

She lost me numerous times. I learned at a very young age to find a sales clerk and ask her to page my mother on the loudspeaker when my efforts to locate her set my eyes to overflowing. "There's a little girl here who's lost her mother. She says her name is ...." the voice would magically yell across Leggett's or Woolworth's.

My mother would come fetch me, her mouth set tightly. She'd grab my hand and scold me for running off and embarrassing her. I think it usually ended up in a whipping that I never thought I deserved because I didn't run off. I just turned around and she was gone, off in her shopping zone, her nose sniffing out a clearance rack.

No wonder I don't like to shop.

As Black Friday evolved into a kind of post-Thanksgiving freak show, my mother took notice. When the stores started opening early, she started driving in to town in the wee hours.

If she were alive today, she'd be marveling at the fact that she could be at J.C. Penney's at 4 a.m. on Friday morning.

I will still be in bed at 4 a.m. on Friday morning.

Capitalism is not democracy, though in this country the two seem to be as married as any old farmer and his wife. However, we don't have to buy things. Going shopping does not save the country.

In this day and age, I think my main job is to hold on to my money, while the job of everyone else is to take it away from me.

I am outnumbered by a billion to one.

My mother thought her job was to spend money.

She and the other billion got along just fine.

Up Close and Personal

This little fellow - I think it's a "he" because of the bumps on his head, indicating horns, but I can't be certain - came visiting yesterday. I think it is the same young deer I've been seeing for several months.

I spied him first from the window in the room I use for my office. I grabbed the camera and followed him to the other side of the house. The above picture was taken through the garage window.

He was in the front door.

I slipped out the garage door at the rear and moved cautiously to the front of the house. I expected to scare him and not get a shot.

Instead, I slipped around the corner and he posed:



I am a little concerned because this deer is much too socialized. He never ran from me, and I think if I'd had an apple he'd have let me pet him. We do not try to make pets of the deer. This one certainly seems to feel at home.

November Scenes

With new Nikon lens in hand, I wandered the yard and took photos yesterday afternoon. It was balmy and rather pleasant for November.




The shots above are the Blue Ridge Mountains as I see them from the backyard, if I walk about 50 feet from the back door so I can look past the trees I normally see. I think one of those ridges is the Peaks of Otter, but wouldn't swear to it.



The trees above are poplars we planted in 1987. They are now a good 50 feet tall and are beginning to die. They were had 20-year lifespan, I recall. In 1987 that seemed like *such* a long time.

Below are autumn shots.

The Hat

This is the hat I bought my husband.

It is bright orange on top for hunting.



It also converts into a regular ol' hat.

24 Years (and counting)

Today is my 24th wedding anniversary.

On a cold and snowy Friday night in 1983, I stood before the altar in my wedding gown and a hat. My husband was dressed in silver tuxedo.




We married in front of a church full of people and attended a reception at the Country Club. We dashed off to a weekend honeymoon at a B&B in Bath County.

A funny addendum to our new life together happened two days later. We returned home on Sunday. That evening we went to Burger King, which I think was relatively newly opened at that time and one of the few restaurants open then.

Something made us both sick. This was our first illness together. My husband was really more ill than I and he didn't want me around him. He was really missing his mother, as I recall. We had no medicine because, well, we'd just joined our households and we each came from our parents' house. I trotted out to a 24-hour convenience store for some very expensive Pepto. Upon my return he told me he couldn't sleep with me in the bed.

Our first night in our new home, I ended up sleeping on the couch!

Now when he gets sick, which is seldom, he wants me to take care of him. Which I do, although I try to do it from far away because I am very susceptible.

Last year I made a list of 23 reasons I love my husband. I won't repeat it but here's reason number 24:

24. He is considerate.

It could be a very long list because he's a great fellow. He's not without his faults, but who isn't?

We weren't supposed to exchange gifts this year. The dishwasher went clunk a while back and we replaced it and then I bought him an expensive gun safe because the lock on his other (cheap) one went bad.

However, I bought him several pairs of jeans and a very expensive hat because I couldn't help myself. The hat cost $50, which for us is a phenomenal amount of money to spend on a hat. We just don't make such purchases. But he'd been looking for a new "go to hell" hat to hunt in, one with blaze orange. I ran across this hat while shopping yesterday and, knowing he'd been seeking just such a thing (only for like, $3.99), I made the purchase. I haven't told him what it cost.

So I wasn't expecting anything, but when he came in from work this morning he handed me a bag.

He bought me a new Nikon lens for my D40. This is a 200mm lens for shooting shots of animals around the house, he said. It's something I've been wanting and thought I might get for Christmas so this was unexpected.

I am very anxious to get outside and shoot some pictures!

Forgive Me

Wednesday afternoon around 5 p.m., I pulled in the driveway and spied this:



We haven't seen very many nice bucks this year. I rolled down the car window and took a couple of pictures.



Alas, I showed them to my husband. It is hunting season. Today is the first day of rifle season but yesterday hunting with a muzzle loader was legal.

My husband lay in wait for this animal yesterday, and now the spirit of the majestic deer seeks fodder in the heavens.

I feel quite guilty because the deer is dead, even though I did not shoot it. I had a role in his demise simply because I saw him.

I am hoping the great spirit will forgive me. I hate that I played a part in this.

I honor the deer that gave his life so that we may eat. The meat will not go wasted.

I will spare you the obligatory and gory "mighty hunter with dead deer" photos. It is far better to remember the animal in his glory, free and alive and prancing through the field.

Weather Changes

Yesterday it went from this:



to this:



all in a matter of hours!

The temperature dropped, too, of course, since we had snow showers.

This past weeks seems to have been the peak for fall colors, finally. It's the latest I think I've ever seen it. The oak trees on the farm, as you can see, are just now turning.

Unfortunately we still need rain very badly.

Also, the governor last night released the state wide burn ban. It remains in effect in my county, though, as far as I know. Be sure to check your local laws and use common sense if you burn outside. The ground is still really dry.

Thursday Thirteen

13 things I love about my husband:

1. He calls me several times a day.

2. The way he likes to hold hands when we watch TV together.

3. The look in his eye when he sees me.

4. The way he trusts me to pay all the bills.

5. The fact that's he 6' 2" and he towers over me.

6. His patience with me when I'm all excited about some silly something or another.

7. The way he lets me find my own way.

8. His tolerance for my cooking (or lack thereof).

9. His willingness to do home repairs.

10. His willingness to help sometimes with the housework.

11. His intelligence about issues great and small.

12. His passion when he gets on a roll about some particular incident about which he has an opinion.

13. The fact that he loves me back!

This One Got Away

The Mad Gasser

Around Christmas 1933, in my county, not far from where I live, actually, reports began trickling in of an intruder who entered people's homes and then left a noxious gas that made people ill.

After the first incident, more appeared. The intruder made the rounds of the county, apparently sickening first one household and then the next.

Police couldn't catch him.

The phantom gasser was never identified. Nor was the gas he allegedly used identified.

This was during the Great Depression. Times were hard. Folks were facing a new year without knowing if they'd be able to eat.

Local media, which consisted of newspapers at the time, wrote about the story for months. Then it went away.

In 1944, similar events took place in Mattoon, Illinois. People panicked.

The media picked up that story, too.

This last incident occurred during World War II. Times were hard.

Both incidents have been attributed to mass hysteria.

Mass hysteria is a condition where unexplained physical symptoms arise in many people in a region. It's a collective delusion with visible symptoms.

Incidents involving mass hysteria are catalogued throughout history. There's the Salem Witch Trials, , possessed nuns in France, poisoning scares, the War of the Worlds incident with Orsen Well's radio show.

It's not unheard of at all.

Why do I bring this up?

I am wondering if the incidents at a local high school, where students are experiencing "twitching" and other unusual symptoms for which there are no explanations, might indeed be a case of mass hysteria.

I have heard a few news organizations wonder if it is a hoax, but I think that mass hysteria better describes it. It likely is a reaction to the state of the world today.

Think about it. On April 16 there were multiple murders at Virginia Tech. Combine that with the recent reports of MRSA that have had everyone scrambling to wash every surface with bleach.

Add to that the constant fear mongering from the federal government (war with Iran, flu pandemic, Orange alerts, etc.), religion (it's the end-time, after all), and concerns about drought and forest fires and who is bullying whom via text messaging, and you can see how everyone might be suffering from a bit of PTSD or hysteria.

According to Wikepedia, here are six things that must be in place for mass hysteria:

1. "Regional conditions must be conducive" to the mass hysteria's plausibility.
2. "Channels of communication must be available for the reports to spread."
3. "Social and economic stress, as well as a lack of faith in the authorities,predispose people to embrace unconventional interpretations."
4. "[E]very culture has marginal traditions that offer alternative explanations."
5. "A triggering episode often serves as the pebble that commences an avalanche of reports."
6. "[O]utbreaks of unusual manifestations are aided by breakdowns in official control."

I think we can make a case for every one of those six conditions. First we had the Tech shootings and then MRSA (1). Both were widely reported ad nauseum (2). We have high gas prices, and the price of food is skyrocketing; it's going to be a lean Christmas for a lot of people this year. Nobody is expecting the government to do anything to help the lower classes (3). We're looking for the "other explanations" right now - toxins, in particular, are thought to be the problem at the moment (4). As best I can tell, it started with one report among the students and then spiraled (5). The officials so far aren't able to figure out what is happening, and as for other societal breakdowns, well, take a look around at invasions of privacy, the police state atmosphere at airports, the inability to attend a sporting event without being searched, etc. See if that doesn't make (6) sound likely.

I am not making light of the symptoms or what is going on at this local high school. I think it is every bit as real as any labeled disorder and these children are indeed sick.

Parents certainly have a right and a responsibility to do what they think they must to protect their children. The reactions from everyone appears to be warranted.

But we often discount how stress can manifest itself and how the psyche deals with issues that people, especially young people, cannot easily assimilate.

It has to come out somewhere.

What I'm wondering is if we're looking in the wrong place. Maybe it's not a sick building.

Maybe it's a sick society. Maybe these children are like the canaries in the coal mine.

Maybe we should listen to them chirp.

The Idiot Award

I gave myself an Idiot Award today.

Here's what happened.

My husband phoned before 9 a.m., mad as a hornet because a hot air balloon had drifted over the farm while he was trying to round up cattle to take to market.

The cattle stampeded and ran all over the place, causing him untold misery while he huffed and puffed and chased them every which a way. Hot air ballooning can be a problem sometimes for farmers.

He was not a happy camper.

When he called, he wanted the number of the county administrator's office so he could lodge a complaint.

"They're probably not in, today is a holiday," I told him. (This is very important to note for my Idiot Award.)

After listening to much muttering and fussing from him, I hung up the phone. I had to be at a ground-breaking ceremony for an article for the newspaper at 10 a.m. It was about a quarter to nine.

I decided to hustle to the newspaper office, which is five miles away (and in the other direction) to quickly take care of some business.

I breezed in the office just after 9 a.m. The editor was not yet in and I needed a word with him. I made some copies, bothered the typesetter, and then decided to leave.

I thought I'd go to the library and get a new book on tape.

I pulled in the library lot. Silly me. The library was closed.

Of course! It's a HOLIDAY.

What to do, what to do. I had 45 minutes to kill until I had someplace to be.

I know, I thought, I'll go to the grocery store and just not buy anything that needs refrigeration. So I sped down the road.

A few miles passed and I thought, Oh! I forgot the checks I need to put in the bank! I'd better do that.

So I turned down a road that would take me back towards my house, and off I went to home. I had just enough time, I thought.

I raced in the house and began filling out the bank deposit slips. As soon as I dated the form, I realized ... the banks are closed.

IT IS A HOLIDAY.

(I realize I could have used the ATM but I am old fashioned in that way. Don't use the ATM, don't pay the bills online. Hard to change my ways.)

So. By this time I was pretty sure I had the Idiot Award sewed up.

I hustled off to my ground-breaking, took my pictures, talked to the folks. Headed back home, stopped by the grocery, ran through there quickly.

I was home by lunch time.

My husband came in, still muttering about the hot air balloon. He asked about my morning and I told him, somewhat exasperated, about my forgetting about the holiday.

Then, as he was leaving, I reminded him to check the mail.

He looked at me funny. "The mail doesn't run today," he reminded me.

IT IS A HOLIDAY.

At that point, I gave myself the Idiot Award, and he laughed at me.

I laughed too. What else was there to do?

Veteran's Day

My father is a veteran of the Korean War. He served in the U.S. Army. He used to tell a story about serving meals somewhere far away from home. As he dished out potatoes, he spied his older brother, a higher ranking officer, coming down the chow line. When Jerry reached him, my father put just a dab of 'taters on his plate. When Jerry started to bark out the order for more potatoes, he looked up and found himself bellowing at his brother.

He jumped over the serving line to hug him.

Two of my uncles on my mother's side served in the Air Force. One served in the Gulf War; the other did his duty in Germany. I do not know either of them very well.

My grandfather on my father's side served in World War II. Grandpa died in 1989. He had black lung from working in the West Virginia coal mines in his younger days.

My grandfather had hopes of being a writer but never published. Prior to his death he sent me about 100 pages of writings and asked me not to share them with anyone else until he died. I respected his wishes and eventually made a little book which I gave to my father and other relatives. He told me just before he died that he had more things to send me but I never received them and I don't know what happened to them. He lived in California when he died.

In my grandfather's writings, the only pieces he wrote in third person were those he wrote about the war. I think it was too difficult for him to use first person because he didn't want to acknowledge what he had been through.

He served in France and was part of the push into Germany in 1945.

So in honor of those who fought to defend a better way of life, I present to you a small piece of my grandfather's memories about what it was like to have served in World War II. His name is Joe.

Warning: Some of this is a little gruesome, but then, war is.

The War

On February 7, 1945, a young man of about twenty six was ushered before an army captain in Hatviller, France, a small town west of the German border. He had been in the army approximately six months, going through infantry basic training, and had been sent over seas. As an infantry soldier he had left behind a wife and three small boys. After proper salutes and the briefing, he was sent to the front lines, where he joined two other guys in a muddy foxhole.

Tony Stokes and John Grindle looked him over, and decided they liked what they saw. He was sort of a quiet fellow, about medium height with gray eyes and a shock of brown hair. John was a regular army guy with about eight years and he had been on the line for about three months. Prior to that he had been in the transportation department, but had got butted from a staff sergeant to a private and sent to the front because of a drunken brawl, where he had sent a first sergeant to the hospital with a broken nose. Tony, like Joe, had been in the army about six months and also left a wife and two daughters at home. All three men were from the south, and all had strong feelings about America.

Joe had been a coal miner from West Virginia. Tony had been a warehouse long shore man from Mobile, Alabama. John had been a peanut farmer from Georgia, and all were prejudiced toward yankees and black men. After being together about three days and exchanging information about each other, they were beginning to form a friendship that would last the rest of their lives.

They were in the 100th Die 3971 of Regiment, 3rd battalion. COK third platoon and third squad. When Joe had arrived the third squad had been dug in on a small hill overlooking a valley. The foxhole had been enlarged enough to accommodate a 30 caliber machine gun with a field telephone. The hole had about eight inches of water in it from the melting snow and rain.

John and Tony was sleeping outside in raincoats and shelters houses, only using the hole when the artillery started. Joe took one look at the water, took out his shovel and dug a small ditch at the bottom of the hole and drained the water out. He then, with his bayonet, cut several armloads of pine boughs, laid them in the hole, spread out his shelter house and made a dry bed. In the meantime, John and Tony was watching all of this. Tony said to John, "why in the hell didn't we think of that?"

Joe, in his West Virginia hillbilly way, replied, "You all didn't have sense enough." They didn't know Joe had been wrote up in this camp Joseph T. Robinson team camp news as being the best camouflage fox hole expert in the camp.

On about the third day, about 4 a.m., Joe was standing guard at the machine gun. The phone clicked and Joe lifted the receiver. The low voice of Lt. Nolon came over the wire telling Joe to be on the alert, as there was some kind of commotion down by the river. Joe strained his eyes trying to see through the fog and mist, but could see no movement of any kind. Suddenly a flare shot up from the other end of the line, and a gun opened fire, staffing along the riverfront.

Then all hell broke loose as the whole platoon opened fire, showering the valley with a wall of fire. The command came down to stop firing. When daylight came and the fog lifted, you could see a flock of sheep had drifted down from the hills, and that was what was making the noise. After that the third platoon was called the sheep brigade.

The water the men had been drinking came from a small mountain stream that was flowing approximately 20 foot from their hole. The snow had started to melt, and John had went upstream to relieve himself. Joe and Tony heard a loud yell from John. Grabbing their weapons, they started up to see what the matter was.

John was sitting down throwing up and at his feet laying in the water was a dead German soldier with the top of his head blown off. The small stream of water the men had been drinking from was flowing overtop of his half blown off head. The thought of drinking that water was just too much for John.

The next morning orders came down to get ready to move out, as a push was starting to crack the ziefreig line after loading up the machine gun and a weapons carrier, we had removed the phone and everyone mustered up.

The push started about 8 a.m. Joe and Tony had discarded everything but their shelter houses and raincoats. John had decided he was going to wear his heavy overcoat. As they proceeded up the muddy road, balls of mud would accumulate on John's overcoat, and he would cut off about six inches of the bottom. After a while it was cut off up to his waist, which left him with a good heavy top jacket.

That started a trend, and it wasn't long before the whole platoon was wearing the top half of their army overcoats. They named them after John and called them Johncoats.

D&E: Week 1

So, a week after lamenting my lack of weight loss, let's see how I'm doing.

I exercised six of the last seven days. Every morning at 7 a.m. during the weekdays I kept an appointment with Denise Austin and her Lifetime TV exercise show, and I have done the exercises to the best of my ability.

Then the next half hour I have either lifted weights, laid in the floor or on the exercise ball for various exercises, rode the exercise bike, or walked on the treadmill.

I missed Saturday morning. This morning I lifted weights, used the exercise ball, and did 10 minutes on the bike. I need to do more on the bike and with walking.

I made minimal changes to my diet all week. This is where I am hurting. To my credit, most of the things I put in my mouth are healthy so at least I am fat on healthy food. If that makes a difference. It probably doesn't.

My feet are still a bit sore. I saw the podiatrist Wednesday and she urged me to take an anti-inflammatory medicine. She had given me a sample of Celexa which I had refused to take, but I gave in and started it Thursday night. It does seem to help, and so far no stomach upset like I get with ibuprofen.

I also want to note for my own reminder that I have read that the medicine I take for asthma can cause weight gain. I need to ask my doctor about this next time I am in.

Weight loss: 0 ZERO, NADA, NOTHING. (At least I didn't gain anything.)

A Whiter Shade of Male

However the elections went this week, there will be no women on my county Board of Supervisors.

That’s because no woman stood for election. And none of the supervisor incumbents are female.

With the retirement of the lone woman on the Board of Supervisors, the higher octaves will resound within the county courthouse only from “assistants.”

I always felt better knowing a woman was on the Board. I hoped she pulled strings and made passionate arguments behind the scenes to ensure that the females of this community were heard.

I hoped that as our white county fathers looked at economic development opportunities, she made them think about the employment situation of all of the county’s citizens, not just those able to grow a beard.

I was dismayed that so many incumbents ran unchallenged on the ballot (write-ins not withstanding), because we deserve a choice. I was also unhappy because no female chose to run for office. When the polls closed Tuesday night, for sure we knew we would start 2008 with a slate of five male supervisors. The good ol’ boy network is in place at least until the next election.

This lack of diversity runs throughout county government.

We have a male county administrator and two male deputy county administrators.

The Finance Manager is a guy, too, as is the head of Public Works, the Zoning Administrator, the Building Inspector, the Director of Parks and Recreation, the Library Director, the Emergency Services Director and the County Attorney.

All five members of the Planning Commission, appointed by the supervisors, are dudes, not dudettes. So too are all five members of the Board of Zoning Appeals, also appointed.

The county’s Constitutional Officers – Treasurer, Sheriff, Commissioner of Revenue, County Clerk, and Commonwealth’s Attorney – do not shave their legs.

The General District Court and Circuit Court judges, as well as all of the county’s magistrates and the members of the Electoral Board, are men.

The school superintendent shaves his face in the morning.

The mayors of all three towns – Buchanan, Troutville, Fincastle – could walk around shirtless and not receive a citation.

Women turn up in county government in appointed positions which have little notoriety – Library Board, of which I am currently chair, Social Services, and the Industrial Development Authority.

Women run mowers for Parks and Rec – I have seen them – but do not serve on that board. Nor do they serve on the county’s transportation committee.

We serve the men in charge. We are the county administrator’s administrative assistant, the assistants to the deputy county administrators, the deputy court clerks, deputy sheriff’s or investigators, deputy treasurers, deputy commissioners, assistant attorneys, administrative assistants.

We do not hold the power.

The major exception is the School Board, where two females (only males ran as write-in candidates in one district and two other male-held seats ran unopposed) help mould the policies that define how we bring up our children. The School Board, I must point out, has no taxing authority and cannot do something major, like build a school, without permission from the five (male) county supervisors.

Several of the towns also have a council woman or two. Perhaps smaller government allows for more diversity.

The other exceptions are Director of Social Services, county voter registrar and the county Health Department Director, positions held by women. Those are state jobs, however.

Essentially the county is (not quite) a microcosm of the country. We have a female Speaker of the House (Nancy Pelosi) and Head of the State Department (Condoleezza Rice) in the federal government and a smattering of female congressmen and senators with a similar number at the state level. (The state has a male governor. Our county’s state representatives, whoever won, speak in baritones, too. In case you hadn’t noticed.)

The supervisors, including the lucky winner in the one seat that had a race, seem like nice guys. I have worked with the incumbents for several years and recently interviewed the hopefuls. None strike me as being petty or indifferent to women.

But they have little clue about what women face in the workforce or elsewhere – just like I can only speculate how difficult, or not, it is to be a man. We may not like it, but gender plays a role in everything we do, from the way we’re perceived at the grocery store to the amount of respect we garner when we step to the podium to object to some big developer’s project.

I know there are witty and intelligent women in this county. I meet them every day; they are the same women I described who work in the lower levels of government. Some are moms at home taking care of their children. Many run small businesses here. Others volunteer at school, strive to conserve county resources and historical structures – or drive to work in the city.

But on the whole we do not lead and we do not hold positions of power.

I wonder why.


**A version of this ran as a column in The Fincastle Herald on November 7, 2007. I made some editorial changes for the blog which consist of eliminating a name or two, mostly because I think I would be unhappy to find my name unannounced on somebody's blog and don't want to subject someone to that.**

Scared Yet?

I'm sure I will be accused of a radical reading, but it seems to me if House Resolution 1955 passes, and I am sure it will, anyone who says (or maybe even thinks) "somebody should to go to Washington and kick Congress's a** for making such stupid decisions" may as well hold out their wrists for the handcuffs.

Joe McCarthy is probably wriggling with joy in his grave.

You might also check out this article:
When Does the Lesser Evil Become Just Evil?

And while you're at it, read this:
A Paper Coup
and this:
Rapture Rescue
and this:
Midnight in America
and this:
Blackwater: Are You Scared Yet?

At this point I am more afraid of my "government" than anything else.

***
Here's HR 1955 - Read it carefully.

110th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1955

←→
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
October 24, 2007
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
AN ACT
To prevent homegrown terrorism, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the `Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007'.
SEC. 2. PREVENTION OF VIOLENT RADICALIZATION AND HOMEGROWN TERRORISM.
(a) In General- Title VIII of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 361 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new subtitle:
`Subtitle J--Prevention of Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism
`SEC. 899A. DEFINITIONS.
`For purposes of this subtitle:
`(1) COMMISSION- The term `Commission' means the National Commission on the Prevention of Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism established under section 899C.
`(2) VIOLENT RADICALIZATION- The term `violent radicalization' means the process of adopting or promoting an extremist belief system for the purpose of facilitating ideologically based violence to advance political, religious, or social change.
`(3) HOMEGROWN TERRORISM- The term `homegrown terrorism' means the use, planned use, or threatened use, of force or violence by a group or individual born, raised, or based and operating primarily within the United States or any possession of the United States to intimidate or coerce the United States government, the civilian population of the United States, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.
`(4) IDEOLOGICALLY BASED VIOLENCE- The term `ideologically based violence' means the use, planned use, or threatened use of force or violence by a group or individual to promote the group or individual's political, religious, or social beliefs.
`SEC. 899B. FINDINGS.
`The Congress finds the following:
`(1) The development and implementation of methods and processes that can be utilized to prevent violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence in the United States is critical to combating domestic terrorism.
`(2) The promotion of violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence exists in the United States and poses a threat to homeland security.
`(3) The Internet has aided in facilitating violent radicalization, ideologically based violence, and the homegrown terrorism process in the United States by providing access to broad and constant streams of terrorist-related propaganda to United States citizens.
`(4) While the United States must continue its vigilant efforts to combat international terrorism, it must also strengthen efforts to combat the threat posed by homegrown terrorists based and operating within the United States.
`(5) Understanding the motivational factors that lead to violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence is a vital step toward eradicating these threats in the United States.
`(6) Preventing the potential rise of self radicalized, unaffiliated terrorists domestically cannot be easily accomplished solely through traditional Federal intelligence or law enforcement efforts, and can benefit from the incorporation of State and local efforts.
`(7) Individuals prone to violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence span all races, ethnicities, and religious beliefs, and individuals should not be targeted based solely on race, ethnicity, or religion.
`(8) Any measure taken to prevent violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence and homegrown terrorism in the United States should not violate the constitutional rights, civil rights, or civil liberties of United States citizens or lawful permanent residents.
`(9) Certain governments, including the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia have significant experience with homegrown terrorism and the United States can benefit from lessons learned by those nations.
`SEC. 899C. NATIONAL COMMISSION ON THE PREVENTION OF VIOLENT RADICALIZATION AND IDEOLOGICALLY BASED VIOLENCE.
`(a) Establishment- There is established within the legislative branch of the Government the National Commission on the Prevention of Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism.
`(b) Purpose- The purposes of the Commission are the following:
`(1) Examine and report upon the facts and causes of violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence in the United States, including United States connections to non-United States persons and networks, violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence in prison, individual or `lone wolf' violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence, and other faces of the phenomena of violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence that the Commission considers important.
`(2) Build upon and bring together the work of other entities and avoid unnecessary duplication, by reviewing the findings, conclusions, and recommendations of--
`(A) the Center of Excellence established or designated under section 899D, and other academic work, as appropriate;
`(B) Federal, State, local, or tribal studies of, reviews of, and experiences with violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence; and
`(C) foreign government studies of, reviews of, and experiences with violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence.
`(c) Composition of Commission- The Commission shall be composed of 10 members appointed for the life of the Commission, of whom--
`(1) one member shall be appointed by the President from among officers or employees of the executive branch and private citizens of the United States;
`(2) one member shall be appointed by the Secretary;
`(3) one member shall be appointed by the majority leader of the Senate;
`(4) one member shall be appointed by the minority leader of the Senate;
`(5) one member shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives;
`(6) one member shall be appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives;
`(7) one member shall be appointed by the Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives;
`(8) one member shall be appointed by the ranking minority member of the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives;
`(9) one member shall be appointed by the Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and
`(10) one member shall be appointed by the ranking minority member of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate.
`(d) Chair and Vice Chair- The Commission shall elect a Chair and a Vice Chair from among its members.
`(e) Qualifications- Individuals shall be selected for appointment to the Commission solely on the basis of their professional qualifications, achievements, public stature, experience, and expertise in relevant fields, including, but not limited to, behavioral science, constitutional law, corrections, counterterrorism, cultural anthropology, education, information technology, intelligence, juvenile justice, local law enforcement, organized crime, Islam and other world religions, sociology, or terrorism.
`(f) Deadline for Appointment- All members of the Commission shall be appointed no later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this subtitle.
`(g) Quorum and Meetings- The Commission shall meet and begin the operations of the Commission not later than 30 days after the date on which all members have been appointed or, if such meeting cannot be mutually agreed upon, on a date designated by the Speaker of the House of Representatives. Each subsequent meeting shall occur upon the call of the Chair or a majority of its members. A majority of the members of the Commission shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may hold meetings.
`(h) Authority of Individuals to Act for Commission- Any member of the Commission may, if authorized by the Commission, take any action that the Commission is authorized to take under this Act.
`(i) Powers of Commission- The powers of the Commission shall be as follows:
`(1) IN GENERAL-
`(A) HEARINGS AND EVIDENCE- The Commission or, on the authority of the Commission, any subcommittee or member thereof, may, for the purpose of carrying out this section, hold hearings and sit and act at such times and places, take such testimony, receive such evidence, and administer such oaths as the Commission considers advisable to carry out its duties.
`(B) CONTRACTING- The Commission may, to such extent and in such amounts as are provided in appropriation Acts, enter into contracts to enable the Commission to discharge its duties under this section.
`(2) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES-
`(A) IN GENERAL- The Commission may request directly from any executive department, bureau, agency, board, commission, office, independent establishment, or instrumentality of the Government, information, suggestions, estimates, and statistics for the purposes of this section. The head of each such department, bureau, agency, board, commission, office, independent establishment, or instrumentality shall, to the extent practicable and authorized by law, furnish such information, suggestions, estimates, and statistics directly to the Commission, upon request made by the Chair of the Commission, by the chair of any subcommittee created by a majority of the Commission, or by any member designated by a majority of the Commission.
`(B) RECEIPT, HANDLING, STORAGE, AND DISSEMINATION- The Committee and its staff shall receive, handle, store, and disseminate information in a manner consistent with the operative statutes, regulations, and Executive orders that govern the handling, storage, and dissemination of such information at the department, bureau, agency, board, commission, office, independent establishment, or instrumentality that responds to the request.
`(j) Assistance From Federal Agencies-
`(1) GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION- The Administrator of General Services shall provide to the Commission on a reimbursable basis administrative support and other services for the performance of the Commission's functions.
`(2) OTHER DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES- In addition to the assistance required under paragraph (1), departments and agencies of the United States may provide to the Commission such services, funds, facilities, and staff as they may determine advisable and as may be authorized by law.
`(k) Postal Services- The Commission may use the United States mails in the same manner and under the same conditions as departments and agencies of the United States.
`(l) Nonapplicability of Federal Advisory Committee Act- The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the Commission.
`(m) Public Meetings-
`(1) IN GENERAL- The Commission shall hold public hearings and meetings to the extent appropriate.
`(2) PROTECTION OF INFORMATION- Any public hearings of the Commission shall be conducted in a manner consistent with the protection of information provided to or developed for or by the Commission as required by any applicable statute, regulation, or Executive order including subsection (i)(2)(B).
`(n) Staff of Commission-
`(1) APPOINTMENT AND COMPENSATION- The Chair of the Commission, in consultation with the Vice Chair and in accordance with rules adopted by the Commission, may appoint and fix the compensation of a staff director and such other personnel as may be necessary to enable the Commission to carry out its functions, without regard to the provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing appointments in the competitive service, and without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title relating to classification and General Schedule pay rates, except that no rate of pay fixed under this subsection may exceed the maximum rate of pay for GS-15 under the General Schedule.
`(2) STAFF EXPERTISE- Individuals shall be selected for appointment as staff of the Commission on the basis of their expertise in one or more of the fields referred to in subsection (e).
`(3) PERSONNEL AS FEDERAL EMPLOYEES-
`(A) IN GENERAL- The executive director and any employees of the Commission shall be employees under section 2105 of title 5, United States Code, for purposes of chapters 63, 81, 83, 84, 85, 87, 89, and 90 of that title.
`(B) MEMBERS OF COMMISSION- Subparagraph (A) shall not be construed to apply to members of the Commission.
`(4) DETAILEES- Any Federal Government employee may be detailed to the Commission without reimbursement from the Commission, and during such detail shall retain the rights, status, and privileges of his or her regular employment without interruption.
`(5) CONSULTANT SERVICES- The Commission may procure the services of experts and consultants in accordance with section 3109 of title 5, United States Code, but at rates not to exceed the daily rate paid a person occupying a position at level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5, United States Code.
`(6) EMPHASIS ON SECURITY CLEARANCES- The Commission shall make it a priority to hire as employees and retain as contractors and detailees individuals otherwise authorized by this section who have active security clearances.
`(o) Commission Personnel Matters-
`(1) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS- Each member of the Commission who is not an employee of the government shall be compensated at a rate not to exceed the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay in effect for a position at level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5, United States Code, for each day during which that member is engaged in the actual performance of the duties of the Commission.
`(2) TRAVEL EXPENSES- While away from their homes or regular places of business in the performance of services for the Commission, members of the Commission shall be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for employees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while away from their homes or regular places of business in the performance of services for the Commission.
`(3) TRAVEL ON ARMED FORCES CONVEYANCES- Members and personnel of the Commission may travel on aircraft, vehicles, or other conveyances of the Armed Forces of the United States when such travel is necessary in the performance of a duty of the Commission, unless the cost of commercial transportation is less expensive.
`(4) TREATMENT OF SERVICE FOR PURPOSES OF RETIREMENT BENEFITS- A member of the Commission who is an annuitant otherwise covered by section 8344 or 8468 of title 5, United States Code, by reason of membership on the Commission shall not be subject to the provisions of such section with respect to membership on the Commission.
`(5) VACANCIES- A vacancy on the Commission shall not affect its powers and shall be filled in the manner in which the original appointment was made. The appointment of the replacement member shall be made not later than 60 days after the date on which the vacancy occurs.
`(p) Security Clearances- The heads of appropriate departments and agencies of the executive branch shall cooperate with the Commission to expeditiously provide Commission members and staff with appropriate security clearances to the extent possible under applicable procedures and requirements.
`(q) Reports-
`(1) FINAL REPORT- Not later than 18 months after the date on which the Commission first meets, the Commission shall submit to the President and Congress a final report of its findings and conclusions, legislative recommendations for immediate and long-term countermeasures to violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence, and measures that can be taken to prevent violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence from developing and spreading within the United States, and any final recommendations for any additional grant programs to support these purposes. The report may also be accompanied by a classified annex.
`(2) INTERIM REPORTS- The Commission shall submit to the President and Congress--
`(A) by not later than 6 months after the date on which the Commission first meets, a first interim report on--
`(i) its findings and conclusions and legislative recommendations for the purposes described in paragraph (1); and
`(ii) its recommendations on the feasibility of a grant program established and administered by the Secretary for the purpose of preventing, disrupting, and mitigating the effects of violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence and, if such a program is feasible, recommendations on how grant funds should be used and administered; and
`(B) by not later than 6 months after the date on which the Commission submits the interim report under subparagraph (A), a second interim report on such matters.
`(3) INDIVIDUAL OR DISSENTING VIEWS- Each member of the Commission may include in each report under this subsection the individual additional or dissenting views of the member.
`(4) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY- The Commission shall release a public version of each report required under this subsection.
`(r) Availability of Funding- Amounts made available to the Commission to carry out this section shall remain available until the earlier of the expenditure of the amounts or the termination of the Commission.
`(s) Termination of Commission- The Commission shall terminate 30 days after the date on which the Commission submits its final report.
`SEC. 899D. CENTER OF EXCELLENCE FOR THE STUDY OF VIOLENT RADICALIZATION AND HOMEGROWN TERRORISM IN THE UNITED STATES.
`(a) Establishment- The Secretary of Homeland Security shall establish or designate a university-based Center of Excellence for the Study of Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism in the United States (hereinafter referred to as `Center') following the merit-review processes and procedures and other limitations that have been previously established for selecting and supporting University Programs Centers of Excellence. The Center shall assist Federal, State, local and tribal homeland security officials through training, education, and research in preventing violent radicalization and homegrown terrorism in the United States. In carrying out this section, the Secretary may choose to either create a new Center designed exclusively for the purpose stated herein or identify and expand an existing Department of Homeland Security Center of Excellence so that a working group is exclusively designated within the existing Center of Excellence to achieve the purpose set forth in subsection (b).
`(b) Purpose- It shall be the purpose of the Center to study the social, criminal, political, psychological, and economic roots of violent radicalization and homegrown terrorism in the United States and methods that can be utilized by Federal, State, local, and tribal homeland security officials to mitigate violent radicalization and homegrown terrorism.
`(c) Activities- In carrying out this section, the Center shall--
`(1) contribute to the establishment of training, written materials, information, analytical assistance and professional resources to aid in combating violent radicalization and homegrown terrorism;
`(2) utilize theories, methods and data from the social and behavioral sciences to better understand the origins, dynamics, and social and psychological aspects of violent radicalization and homegrown terrorism;
`(3) conduct research on the motivational factors that lead to violent radicalization and homegrown terrorism; and
`(4) coordinate with other academic institutions studying the effects of violent radicalization and homegrown terrorism where appropriate.
`SEC. 899E. PREVENTING VIOLENT RADICALIZATION AND HOMEGROWN TERRORISM THROUGH INTERNATIONAL COOPERATIVE EFFORTS.
`(a) International Effort- The Secretary shall, in cooperation with the Department of State, the Attorney General, and other Federal Government entities, as appropriate, conduct a survey of methodologies implemented by foreign nations to prevent violent radicalization and homegrown terrorism in their respective nations.
`(b) Implementation- To the extent that methodologies are permissible under the Constitution, the Secretary shall use the results of the survey as an aid in developing, in consultation with the Attorney General, a national policy in the United States on addressing radicalization and homegrown terrorism.
`(c) Reports to Congress- The Secretary shall submit a report to Congress that provides--
`(1) a brief description of the foreign partners participating in the survey; and
`(2) a description of lessons learned from the results of the survey and recommendations implemented through this international outreach.
`SEC. 899F. PROTECTING CIVIL RIGHTS AND CIVIL LIBERTIES WHILE PREVENTING IDEOLOGICALLY BASED VIOLENCE AND HOMEGROWN TERRORISM.
`(a) In General- The Department of Homeland Security's efforts to prevent ideologically based violence and homegrown terrorism as described herein shall not violate the constitutional rights, civil rights, or civil liberties of United States citizens or lawful permanent residents.
`(b) Commitment to Racial Neutrality- The Secretary shall ensure that the activities and operations of the entities created by this subtitle are in compliance with the Department of Homeland Security's commitment to racial neutrality.
`(c) Auditing Mechanism- The Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Officer of the Department of Homeland Security shall develop and implement an auditing mechanism to ensure that compliance with this subtitle does not violate the constitutional rights, civil rights, or civil liberties of any racial, ethnic, or religious group, and shall include the results of audits under such mechanism in its annual report to Congress required under section 705.'.
(b) Clerical Amendment- The table of contents in section 1(b) of such Act is amended by inserting at the end of the items relating to title VIII the following:
`Subtitle J--Prevention of Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism
`Sec. 899A. Definitions.
`Sec. 899B. Findings.
`Sec. 899C. National Commission on the Prevention of Violent Radicalization and Ideologically Based Violence.
`Sec. 899D. Center of Excellence for the Study of Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism in the United States.
`Sec. 899E. Preventing violent radicalization and homegrown terrorism through international cooperative efforts.
`Sec. 899F. Protecting civil rights and civil liberties while preventing ideologically based violence and homegrown terrorism.'.
Passed the House of Representatives October 23, 2007.
Attest:
LORRAINE C. MILLER,
Clerk1st SessionH. R. 1955AN ACTTo prevent homegrown terrorism, and for other purposes.

Dona Nobis Pacem

The Peace Globe initiative is a blogger movement to promote world peace. Many bloggers are participating in the hopes that things will change.

Poverty. Hunger. Cold. Wars. Global Warming. Health. Wrongful imprisonment. Greed. Corruption. Ignorance.

It's a long list of troubles. The issues circle this ol' globe and not a single area, including my own, is immune.

I believe there can be a better world. A world where resources are shared and not hoarded by the few. A world where the land is respected, not raped. A world where the small and weak are regarded with wonder, not tramped on and forgotten.

There must be another way. The one we're using isn't working very well.

Seemingly one little voice crying out amidst the turmoil won't be heard, but maybe the hundreds, thousands, millions of us who know that the world can be a nicer place if we only decide it will be can raise our voices until the sound smashes the sound barrier.

Maybe then those with the authority will listen. Because that is the power of prayer, and I pray every day for a better and more just world. Please join me.

Amen.