Chasing the Blues

Co2 Readings Hitting Critical Mass

The most important, and ominous, story appeared inside The AJC today, not on on the front page as the article's significance warranted. Scientists have found that the carbon dioxide level in the Arctic's atmosphere has reached 400 parts per millon. That level, the highest in centuries, will soon be measured across the Earth.

Scientists have said the critical point of no return for irrevocable climate change is 450 parts per million. The 400 level has been reached sooner than expected. The Arctic reading is more irrefutable scientific evidence that human activity is causing the buildup of Co2 in the atmosphere, leading to warming and permanent environmental changes.

In the last presidential election, the reality of climate change was widely accepted. In President George W. Bush's presidency, Republicans as well as Democrats called for climate change action, supporting cap and trade legislation. In this electon, climate change is not mentioned except for Republicans claiming that climate change is a hoax. Republicans who once accepted the scientific truth have joined the deniers.

Each day, cars and businesses spew more Co2 into the already overloaded atmosphere. The denial and inaction bring the world closer to crisis. The crucial 450 reading is not far away.  

Wildlife

Four crows congregate in my back yard, carrying out a tribal ritual of some sort, perhaps sexual, or terrotorial. They stab at each other with their black beaks; the pecking order enacted, I suppose, a contest to show power. Or, they could be dancing or engaged in primitive theater.

Years ago, a flock of crows lived near our home, then disappeared. In the last few weeks, crows have come back. The birds possess a sinister quality, as Poe understood. They are raucous, conspiratorial, mocking. Their screeching call is distinctive, unsettling. They either trumpet their presence or communicate with each other, probably a combination of both. Reviving my childhood horror at Hitchcock's "The Birds," they place me on guard, half-expecting them to attack. The crows appear to be predators, and if they eat the chipmunks that scurry around the yard, I will see them as a useful evil.

Along with the crows, we have a fat red cardinal or two. One banged into the window the other day as I played the piano, learning the bass line to "Stand By Me," and it, or another one, was flying yesterday near the rose bush, where a fresh set of blooms has arrived.

Although we live in the city, we have an interesting selection of wildlife. A snake, it looked like a copperhead, crawled down the driveway one Sunday afternoon. One day, I saw a turtle crawling behind a condominium community, near Nancy Creek. Recently, I understood why turtles leave the water behind. Beside another condominium community, I saw a round, cagelike structure with a sign above it that said Turtle Nest Eggs/Do Not Disturb. I walked over to it to see if I could see the eggs, which were too well-hidden, then walked on through the twilight, in which fireflies flashed their messages of love.

The New York Times recently had an article about how zoos are having to make tough choices about which endangered species to preserve. When I see animals close to our home, even the pesky, multiple squirrels, I have a sense of loss, that I am witnessing the final act of a long drama. I hope the cardinals and turtles survive. Even the crows.

August, the Dog Days, or is that old man wolf howling at the door?

Another long assumed certainty crumbles: the U.S. no longer has a AAA credit rating. Chatterers on CNN say don't worry, it really means nothing. The Wizard of Oz scenario once more; pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.

Nothing better to do while waiting for the Apocalypse and or the start of college football season than to deeply engage with the Braves. Now they are playing at the Mets' Citi field. Although the Mets are severely diminished, another victim of the financial crash except for the splendid Reyes, the Braves playing there always seems more like real baseball than when they're playing against a team like the Arizona Diamondbacks, which could disappear tomorrow and I wouldn't care. New York among other things means baseball to me. 

Of course, watching the Braves on TV pushes my tolerance for the cornball announcer Chip Caray, who shows little of the talent for low-rent humor of his dad, Skip, or his grandad, Harry. Recently, I escaped Chip by listening to the Braves on the radio with Don Sutton and whoever his partner is. Sutton and pal give more insightful analysis and a more pointed, adult humor. But, I like to watch on TV. Perhaps I'll turn down the sound and listen to the radio.

Last night, the Braves at last bested the Mets behind Dan Uggla's amazing revival. The Braves broke through when the Mets removed their young knuckleballer R.A. Dickey, one of the traditionalists who wears his uniform trousers above his stockings. Watching Dickey's knuckleballs, I wanted the pitch to be banned, like the spitball. Although I loved Phil Niekro, and even Hoyt Wilhelm, the knuckleball seems bogus, based on trickery more than skill. Dickey appears to be an OK guy, a bit nervous, but I say throw the slider, the fastball, the curve or get out of the game. Ban the knuckleball!

Even my TV viewing's lost, after the end of "Treme." I watched the three episodes of a strange little show on PBS, "Zen," which starred Rufus Sewell as a detective in Rome. I liked the depiction of the ancient, corrupt Italian city, and a luscious Italian actress who after making it as a Bond girl to Daniel Craig now does three-episode Masterpiece series shows. I'm unable to get back to "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and "Entourage," both of which I've already buried. 

So, after long days of eyeball-searing work, I ruin the old orbs even further with reading. Faulkner's "The Hamlet," a long tome on World War I, books on Huey Long, Jonathan Yardley, the New Yorker, Commonweal, the Kenyon Review, the New York Review of Books, The New York Times. At times, I'll sit down and play the piano, lately I've been practicing on "Rally Round the Flag Boys."

 

Mid-October

Another October drifts away. After Halloween and baseball's end, we'll be on the fast track to the holidays and winter. Summer, its dreadful heat, feels long behind us. Before Thanksgiving and Christmas, we'll have the huge national elections, with a lurch to the GOP in the offing.

Fall; someday soon will come the day when I'll be moved to reread Keats' "To Autumn," as I've done for years when a certain November Day matches the poem's mood of grand weather etched with foreboding. The college football season is already past its halfway point, only a month or so of games left.

The leaves have not yet changed. Two weeks or so left in another gorgeous October. Another year hurries into the past.

 

Coral Reefs Endangered, New York Times Reports

New York Times Executive Editor Bill Keller appeared on Tom Ashbrook's "On Point" radio show the other day, saying he expected the print newspaper to survive for a few more years. He wryly mentioned the committees and subcommittees at the newspaper trying to come up with a plan for "monetizing" the newspaper's online offerings. It sounded as if casual readers wouldn't have to pay, but more serious in-depth readers would be charged for subscriptions. Penalizing regular readers over more casual ones didn't sound like a good business model, but all of those committees surely know what they're doing.

A guy called in and said he didn't need his daily print newspaper with all of its long, in-depth articles and that he gets all of the news he needs from a 15-minute Google search of news headlines from around the world. Also, he pointed out that the Internet allows him to be exposed to a variety of voices and viewpoints that he wouldn't get subscribing to one daily newspaper.

That very day, however, the Times printed a disturbing, in-depth story that showed how reading a daily print newspaper can give in-depth knowledge that might be missed in a cursory Google search of a variety of news sources. The newspaper reporteed that this summer's extremely warm temperatures are severely damaging the world's coral reefs, leading to "bleaching" and possible death for many of them.

The coral's poor condition is truly frightening, since the reefs provide protean feeding grounds for fish and are a foundation of the food chain.  They are like the oceans' rain forests, and their condition is an indication of the health of the rest of the ocean. The article was supported by in-depth scientific reporting. This in-depth, focused story is just the latest evidence of the poor condition of the world's oceans and fishers. The Times also had an editorial about overfishing of krill, the small fish that are a primary link in the food chain, supporting the lives of many much larger species.

As evidence mounts of the severe changes caused by climate change, the United States is totally igoring the crisis. The weak cap and trade bill is all but dead, and the GOP has succeeded in taking the issue off the table. The Times report shows that Nature is not waiting, however.

BP Well Declared Dead

The BP well that spewed oil into the Gulf of Mexico was declared officially dead Sunday by Thad Allen, the former Coast Guard officer who led the government's response to the crisis. The apocalyptic images of the seemingly unstoppable leak now have receded into the collective memory banks. Yet, despite government claims that most of the oil has dissipated, reports keep rising that the oil is coating the bottom of the gulf, that significant amounts remain to threathen marshlands and beaches. All in all, though, the oil leak appears less damaging than initially feared. The gulf coast's fishing and tourist industries will rebound. Gulf coast residents hurt by the crisis will receive payments from BP's billions set aside.

The good news shouldn't let us forget the  constant disappearance of wetlands and other problems threatening the Louisiana coast. When the oil-leak crisis was at its height, President Obama appointed a panel to come up with ways to preserve the wetlands. Such panels frequently issue reports that sit on shelves with no further action. While not as visually dramatic as shots of oil spewing from a broken pipe, this is a major ecological catastrophe that demands action.

While the oil spill's damage is less than feared, so are the effects of the government moratorium on deepwater well drilling. Sen. Mary Landrieu and others claimed a huge loss of jobs from the moratorium and that oil drilling rigs would abandon the gulf. So far, these dire predictions haven't occurred.

...In a recent post, I said that Delaware GOP Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell hadn't received a big turnout in her surprise victory over establishment candidate Mike Castle. According to The Wall Street Journal, the race actually inspired a large turnout for a GOP primary in the state. I was relying on a statement by Vice President Joe Biden, former Delaware seantor, who told Rachel Maddow that Delaware has 130,000 Rpublicans, but only 30,000 voted for O'Donnell. Many Republicans did stay home, but the turnout was still comparatively large. O'Donnell faces big odds in inspiring a larger share of votes, including those who voted for Castle.

Delta Salutes Bobby Cox

Nice gesture for Delta Air Lines to give Braves manager Bobby Cox a royal sendoff on his final regular season road trip. It's fitting that the Braves are headed to New York to play the Mets. The two teams engaged in some heart-pounding pennant battles in the '90s. Atlanta fans hope Bobby and the Braves make a few more trips in the playoffs, but the starting pitching looks shaky as they head to New York, then Philadelphia to face the division-leading Phillies before ending the trip with the Nats. ... The starters haven't been sharp, but the Braves offense has fallen off too. Mike Minor gave up four runs to the Nats at lost 4-2, but Phils ace Roy Halladay notched a win giving up five runs ... Here's a radical thought for Cox; start Jonny Venters in a game. If the Yankees can do such stuff with Jorba Chamberalin, why not try it with Jonny, even if he lasts only three or innings? Or, take a look at Cristhian Martinez....I'm all for baseball gamemenship, but Yankee smugster Derek Jeter's pretending to be hit with a pitch was over the line.The ESPN video clearly showed the ball hit the bat. The play raised all of the paranoid beliefs that the umps favor the Yankees.  Under the present rules, instant replay is only used for disputed home run calls. I've been skeptical about the use of instant replay in baseball, but it would have been worthwhile in the Jeter incident.

...Big foot conservative columnist Charles Krauthammer could at least make an effort to make his column fresh. His Friday piece on Tea Party candidate Christine O'Donnell's surprise win in the Delware Senate primary matched nearly word for word his commentary on Fox News two days ago. Actually, Krauthammer apparently stole a William F. Buckley anecdote from Fred Barnes...Michelle Obama didn't tell France's Carla Bruni-Sarkozy that being first lady is hell. She was really discussing a Jean-Paul Sartre play...You'd be upset too if all you graduated from Princeton and law school, and now all you have to do is plant a garden in the backyard. Plus, everytime you want to take a trip to Spain, people go crazy...It's September and the 90-degree days continue. Of course, global warming is just a myth. Right, tell it to the walruses, who're seeing their ice disappear. It'll be good for them to learn to swim. They look a bit obese.

 

No Bullet Holes in Louisiana State Capitol From Long Shooting

Among fascinating revelations in Times-Picayune reporter Robert Travis Scott's second article marking the 75th anniversary of Huey P. Long's asssassination is that the identations in a State Capitol hallway pointed out for years as bullet holes from the eventful night turn out to be just irregularities in the marble. Another myth collapsed.

While Scott mentions medical controversties in passing, the gist of the article is the continuing controversy over Long's death, about whether he was shot by the young doctor Carl Weiss or killed by a stray bodyguard's bullet. Scott uncovers fascinating evidence, incluind the late discovery of the .32 caliber pistol owned by Weiss. Weiss' son, Carl Weiss Jr., three months old at the time of the assassination, says his father didn't kill Long. In the 1980s, he had a cordial lunch with Huey's son, Sen. Russell Long.

Citing a variety of sources, the article ends without a definitive answer. Among the links in the Picayune report are a gallery of Long photos; a report by the MONY Life Insurance Co. that found the shooing "accidental";  a State Police report issued years after the slaying; and the newspaper's coverage of the shooting.

...An LSU fan's sign at the Chick-Fil-A game against North Carolina at the Georgia Dome: "Thanks to BP, we're Tarheels too."

...LSU will play the Oregon Ducks at Jerry Jones' palace in Dallas to open the 2011 football season. LSU will receive up to $3.5 million, and it will be a chance to expose the "LSU brand," according to an athletics department official. Glad to hear LSU is a brand, and that the football team remains profitable as the state slashes funding to the school's academic programs. If the school eventually closes its doors, at least the LSU football brand will remain. The Oregon Ducks are a brand too, if frequent appearances of their cute Duck mascot on ESPN is any indication. Of course, Oregon receives a bunch of money from another famed brand, Nike, which also gives equipment to LSU. So, "the Cowboys Classic" should be a great branding moment for all involved. 

New Orleans on Upswing, Five Years After Katrina

Five years after Katrina's devastation of New Orleans, the images remain unbelievable of the city's flooding and people abandoned on rooftops, crying for help. The most heart-wrenching piece I've seen was Larry King's interview with Harry Connick Jr., in which those horrible days after Katrina were revisited and optimism for the future eloquently expressed.

Many things look on the upswing for the old city. President Obama in his speech at Loyola gave a strong vision for New Orleans' future. Public education is reportedly being revitalized, new businesses are moving in and the health-care system is under reconstruction. The Saints' Super Bowl championship gave the city a strong model of hard work, community dedication and success.

Even before Katrina struck, New Orleans, like most of the lower Mississippi River towns, was a failed city. Some see Katrina as a blessing in disguise, giving the "shock" needed for a true resurgence. Once New Orleans had real industries like shipbuilding and a vibrant local economy with a host of breweries, bottling companies, banks and financial companies and food manufacturers. The music and entertainment industries were always strong, but too small and insular to support a major city. Slowly, with the decline of the city's ports, manufacturing and trade, the economy turned to a narrow dependence on tourism, along with the continued if declining presence of the oil industry.

 Reports about memorial cermonies in the devasted lower Ninth Ward said that the neighborhood is being rebuit as a "green" community. From that base, New Orleans can perhaps turn itself into a center of the green industries that Obama touts, supplanting its oil economy.

Another posititve sign is the strengthening of the city's levee system, to prevent future tragedies like Katrinia, although the city will always be geographically vulnerable  to hurricanes. Another huge threat is the continued destruction of the Gulf fo Mexico wetlands south of the city, a problem given attention during the oil spill. Again, Obama promises action to stop wetlands loss.

After five years, many New Orleanians remain displaced and lost. Violent crime is stills high and poverty ingrained. Yet New Orleans shows a vibrancy and productive spirit that had eroded long before Katrina.

Moving on From the Oil Spill

BP's stuffing concrete down the the well to at last stop the oil leak was greeted with little fanfare. Louisiana coastal residents dispute the government and BP's claims that most of the oil has disappeared. With the horrible August heat and the dog days here, America will yawn and move on.

It's even hot in Russia. So hot and dry the wheat is dying. Putin goes all Joe Stalin and stops the wheat exports. Russia hasn't seen such climate change Stalin turned against Trotsky. Even the wax on Lenin's corpse is melting.

With Elena Kagan confirmed, those Supreme Court meetings will be interesting. When Sonia Sotomayor and Kagan sit down with Alito, Roberts and Scalia, the small talk will be fascinating. Perhaps they can chat about baseball, Harvard and Princeton football and Georgetown basketball. With Ruth Ginsburg, Elena and Sonia will request a larger ladies' lounge. Those court cocktail parties will be a blast. Imagine the impromptu dancing that'll break out.

With the economy tanking, Michelle in Spain (The rain falls softly on the plain! I think she's got it, my George she's got it!), and Barack Obama hititng another birthday, America turns its lonely eyes to Brett Favre. The Vikings will give him a few million more to come back, never mind those pesky intereceptions. When Brett is 60, we'll still be spending August wondering whether he'll retire.