I happened to have my driver’s license out for some reason earlier this week and, upon looking at it, was reminded that I have elected to be an organ donor. Oh my. Given the dilapidated condition of my organs, I pity anyone who is so in need of a replacement to opt for one of mine. I am doubtful as to how much further they are going to carry me, much less anyone else. They will probably end up in the trash when I am finished with them.
[Mom passed at the age of 89, and about two years after this essay was written.]
My Dad loved music. When he was a boy, my grandfather bought him an accordion. He took lessons. He got, well, so-so good at it. We have a photo. Standing in the backyard with that contraption strapped to his chest: skinny, hair slicked back, and a big toothy smile. 1938.
And then he managed to win the affections of the prettiest and smartest country girl for a hundred miles around. And, guess what – she loved music too.
Polity: A particular form of political system or government
Did you know that France is going forward with a $1.6 billion sale of two Mistral-class amphibious carriers to the Russian Navy, ignoring objections by NATO allies and the Pentagon and in spite of what is happening in Ukraine? Did you know that France has opposed an effort by the EU’s Eastern European countries to include an arms embargo in the next round of sanction in response Russia’s attack on Ukraine? I cannot help but wonder how long it will be until France appears at the doorstep of NATO and the U.S., hat in hand, asking for protection from the imperialistic adventures of an emboldened Vladimir Putin.
Pennies and nickels and dimes and quarters. No more Canadian pennies out there with the little maple leaf, though – they quit making them long ago. Same with our fifty-cent piece. The coins that remain in our financial system are a pain in the neck. At the grocery store: “That’ll be four dollars and seven cents, sir.” Dang. Forgot to stuff any change in my jeans. Now I have three more quarters, a dime, a nickel and three pennies to add to my swelling collection of bits of metal.
Paper money stopped having any intrinsic value back in 1971 when then-president Richard M. Nixon unilaterally and via executive order abruptly ended the direct convertibility of the U.S. dollar to gold. Since then, it’s been pretty much just scrip. So, as long as we don’t run out of trees, Ms. Yellen at the Federal Reserve Bank can print as much of it as she needs, or so she would lead us to believe.
Polity: A political form of political system or government
Been watching the latest news reports on the Syrian conflict: Important to note that the treaties of the Fourth Geneva convention of 1949, ratified in whole or in part by 195 countries following the end of WWII, established standards for humanitarian treatment in war – an oxymoron, in my book. Earlier, in 1928, the League of Nations accepted the registration of the Hague Protocol, which prohibited the “first use” of chemical and biological weapons in war. Silly me, but I’ve always wondered how these wise men came to the conclusion that it was somehow acceptable to massacre any untold number of innocent people with bullets, bombs and scimitars, but killing those same people with a nerve gas was beyond the pale. Go figure.
[Written in August 2013]