Labor Day Weekend

      Summer's swan song is upon us: Labor Day weekend.  Have you enjoyed your vaca?   Hope so.
Seems like we hardly got started and it's over.  Oh, well.  We did a lot:  worked on the house(of course), partied a lot w/ friends and neighbors, traveled across the deep blue sea(flew)(3X), and married off one of the kiddies.
    And you?  Was your tahoe experience up to par?  It wasn't tainted by some idiot's tweets?  The smoke from the various fires in the north state did not help the air quality, but at least they were far enough away that we could still breathe(barely).  Maybe next year we'll see fewer fires.  
     Obexers held the Wooden Boat Classic this year and had a good turnout with minimal disruption.  It's always good to see those folks turnout who appreciate fine nautical craftsmanship as displayed by these lake boats.
      The bike path on Hwy 89 has begun to be extended-what a project!  Where do they get the funds to make this massive effort for a few seasonal recreation bike riders?  It is mind boggling to see what's going in at Meeks Bay Resort.  It looks like a regular highway from the roadway to the lake.  It's designed to make the transition as easy as possible and they have.  Heavy equipment continues to put in the rock rip/rap on the edges to stabilize the pavement.  The blacktop will soon follow.
     Enjoy the weekend-be safe-wear a life jacket on the water wherever you find yourself.

Matthew Turner Update

     tall ship Matthew Turner, currently dockside in Sausalito at the Army Corps pier, continues to ready herself for sea trials.  Progress has been slow but steady this year, with internal components and systems being built and installed.   Above deck additions and installations are ongoing as spars, yards, and fixed and running rigging are added.
      I've added quite a few photos taken Monday of this week to show some of the improvements.

new bunk space

engine space for diesels(2)

new windless adj. foremast

deck view looking aft

pad eye detail

at dock

rigger on the rail

sails furled in place

new blocks ready for install

Apple Announces New iphone

   Theiphone 9 will make its debut in another week or so, setting the stage for another run up of the company's flagship product.  What will it cost?  Nobody is talking, but I believe that the price will not break the $1000 ceiling-too risky.   Other phone companies have already put new items on sale in anticipation of Apple's release.
     Can't wait- I'll be a buyer this year for sure.  And you?

Senator John McCain: RIP

       The US Senator John McCain passed away this past weekend.  After battling brain cancer for over a year, he finally succumbed to the disease.  He will lie in state at the rotunda of the Capitol tomorrow.  He will be interred at US Naval Academy Cemetery where the graves of his father and grandfather are located.
      Much has been written of his service to the country,, not the least of which was his time as a prisoner-of-war for 5 years in Hanoi during the Vietnam War.  He had been shot down in 1967 over Hanoi and was captured by locals who pulled him from a lake in the center of the city.  His years of torture and beatings would have killed an ordinary human being.  He was anything but ordinary.
      More will be written about this American icon and he will add his name to the long list of American heroes.

Russya Jails Opponent: Again

       Well, no surprises here: Mr. Mad Vlad decides he doesn't want the opposition to become self evident: he wants the opposition to disappear.  So, how does he do that?  He jails the opposition without fear of repercussion.  He silences the opposition without any political pushback.  He runs the country, controls the media, pays off his supporters, and makes life unbearable for his outspoken opponents of every stripe whether they be in Ukraine, Crimea, London or Washington, DC.
      His latest target is one of his regular targets:  Alexei Navalny.  He was jailed over the weekend for "unauthorized protest".   He was sentenced to 30 days in jail.    The protest happened When?  Why last January to be exact.   Swift Justice, Kremlin style.   Once again the Russyan peoples are slammed by a twisting of words and their meaning(s).   Up is down, black is white, prison is freedom, and success is failure.
     Mr. Navalny can rest assured this will happen again as long as Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin runs the Kremlin.   Poor Russya, it just can't seem to shake its demons.   We know about epigenetics: the DNA that carries the guilt from one generation to the next.  Hence, the crimes of Stalin are perpetuated for years to come.  How sad!   When will the break come?   Noboby is forecasting that time frame.   Perhaps by the end of this century, perhaps not. 
    Meanwhile, the government protests will occur without the presence of Mr. Navalny who remains behind bars.   The district judge who ordered his arrest must sleep well at night or whenever he dozes off into a slumber.   How much is this lacky paid, in dollars and/or rubles?   Speaking of which, we know for certain that the ruble has suffered greatly this year as the rapid rise of the dollar has forced the ruble into the toilet, losing 16% of its value relative to the dollar.   This helps explain the attitude of Mr. Putin towards overseas adventures of late: there aren't any.  As further sanctions enter the pipeline, local businesses and workers begin to squirm as orders fall and assembly lines close.  Look what has happened in Venezuela.  Soon, Russya will resemble Venezuela, sans Maduro.
       Enjoy the rest of summer: winter is just around the corner, and we know about Russya winter: cold.

Winter Reading

Book Review: Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea, Gary Kinder, 1998

     Here's an old story, almost 30 years old to be exact.   It's a story of one man's determination and how he was able to enlist the support of a multitude of experts in many disparate fields of science and engineering.  A young engineer from Defiance, Ohio, hears of a sunken ship with untold riches aboard.  The ship, the SS Central America, sunk with most of her 500 passengers off the North Carolina coast in 1857.  She carried what was believed to be $1,500,000 in gold coins and gold bullion.  No one knew where it exactly was located.  Tommy Thompson, a 33 year old engineer would look for it.
      He looked for a few years, working during the summer season on the Atlantic Ocean about 200 miles off the coast of Cape Hatteras.  After months of searching over several years, his efforts were rewarded with the discovery of the wreck in 8000' of ocean waters, spread over hundreds of yards of flat sea bottom.
     His task:  develop the technology and expertise to achieve what nobody had done until that time.
More later

Bike Path Extension At Meeks Bay

bike path extension at Hwy 89/Glenridge Dr.

     Finally, the powers that be have taken some action on the proposed bike path south of Tahoma.   After years of waiting , locals can see results of work that has finally begun near the Meeks Resort and campground.  The bike path will complete the path that extends all the way to tahoe City down the Truckee River to Squaw Valley.   It's a great ride and will now be even better when completed next year, if not sooner.
      The pathway will be paved and does a turn just beyond the above scene.  It will twist and turn its way to the Meeks Bay Resort and campground after about 1 half mile.  The engineering is impressive-and the cost is significant.  Major equipment is on site and continues to perform, moving granite boulders into position on the downhill side of the path.  It is without a doubt the most expensive part of the entire project( Tahoe City to Meeks Bay.   They may finish by November first, but that's doubtful.   Many trees were taken down along the route, and many more will go, most of them dead snags.
     At the same time, a major road improvement project is going on next door as developers construct a road to a parcel called Chinkqapin Area.   This is a road being built to access a minor subdivision on an old lakefront parcel(s) sold recently.  It has the effect  of doubling the apparent work being done in the area.

Football-American Style

Are you ready for F-O-O-T-B-A-L-L?   Neither am I.  Here it is August already and the gridirons are heating up.  Alabama looks like they are already favored to win the NCAA Championship again.  Ho-hum.   Will Tom Brady prevail this year?  Who cares?  What about concussion protection?  Ho-hum, the medical community enjoys the sport as much as anybody.  Oh well.  Watch if you dare.   Meanwhile, watch the Mets, they're more fun.

Ruble dives, Putin Scoffs, Kremlin Remains Silent

      Well now: new sanctions against the Siberian Disrupter: Vladimir V.

Putin.   President Trump's Russyan bro has taken an economic hit despite recent improvements in the price of oil, the No.1 export money maker of the Federation.   What next?   Further sanctions which promise to bring the arrogant former KGB agent to his knees.   Those sanctions will include a severe restriction of Aeroflot's access to the American/European markets.  All those oligarchs will have to drive their Ferraris from Moscova to London to get pounds out of the City of London's banks.  Won't that be fun?   The value of the rouble has dropped about 10% in the last day, making its losses equal about 24% for the year.  Too bad for the Kremlin.  Maybe they will get the message: NO MOre International Assassinations with restricted poisons as per the agreements signed by your own representatives(see Skripal story).  The most recent deaths in the UK has put the world on notice that Russya continues to be Russya.   The sad decline of Russya under Vova's rule continues unabated. 

Mr. Maduro, Venezuela's Own Dictator, Receives Bad News

      Judge Leonard Stark of Delaware, has issued an order allowing a creditor to seize shares of Venezuela's US based Citgo Oil Co.  The lawsuit was the first successful bid to take control of the country's foreign-based oil company, one of the few tangible assets providing revenue to the bankrupt South American country.  The Cuban stooge leader, Mr. Maduro, is currently facing the aftermath of a drone attack that dropped a couple of grenades nearby while the idiot was speaking to a crowd of other idiots, who are too weak to flee the country.   The Socialist successor to the other idiot, Cesar Chavez, the late president, continues to obstruct justice as he tries to cope with high inflation, a violent crime wave,  massive flight by the population to Ecuador and Colombia, horrific food shortages that has left the population literally starving, and general unrest across the landscape.
      The judge's decision will open the gates to the claims of other creditors who will search for other assets owned by the Cuban-backed government of what used to be one of the most prosperous countries in Latin America other than Brazil.   Recent arrests indicate that Mr. Maduro has few workable solutions to his problems and his advisory staff are at best a bunch of fools.

Book Review: The Great Halifax Explosion, author John U. Bacon

     Professor Bacon has done the research of an event that occurred 100 years ago on the east coast of North America.  At the height of WW I, the Allies were desperate for more artillery shells, more bombs, more bullets, more explosives in general.   England and France could not produce the amounts necessary to stop the Kaiser's troops in the various battles on the Western Front.  In April of 1917, President Woodrow Wilson of the US decided that it was time to join the fight.  The infamous Zimmerman Telegram was the tipping point.
      In December of 1917, a French ship was loaded with tons of explosives that were destined for the European conflict.  The SS Mont Blanc, manned by a French crew, was stacked from stem to stern inside and out with a cargo of TNT, Picric acid, gun powder, and shells.   This loaded vessel ready to brave the North Atlantic which was home to the German U-Boat, the undersea submarine that was causing havoc to transatlantic shipping.  Hundreds of ships had already been sunk after 3 years of war.
      After leaving Boston Harbor on December 1st, 1917, the next port of call was Halifax, Nova Scotia, one of the maritime provinces of our northern neighbor Canada.   The winter weather was always questionable at this time and the captain and crew of the Mont Blanc were concerned, not only for U-boats, but foul weather.
      The ship arrived at the entrance to Halifax harbor 4 days later, but too late to enter the harbor because of the closing of steel nets designed to protect from U-boats sneaking into the space.  The captain would enter at first light.  Inside the harbor was the freighter Imo, a 430' freighter, that planned to exit the harbor at first light.   The stage was now set for a disaster.
     The author proceeds to describe the actions that resulted in a collision that was followed by a fire that was followed by the largest man-made explosion in history to that time up to Hiroshima in 1945.
6 million pounds of explosives detonated in 1/15th of a second, creating shock waves, heat and fire, and ground shaking that rivaled a substantial earthquake.   Over 1900 citizens were killed, many of whom died of wounds before help could free them from their trapped situations.  Many of the masonry buildings collapsed immediately, trapping helpless occupants.   Wooden structures were set afire which consumed blocks of central Halifax.  The city of 60,000+ residents was stunned in disbelief.  Many people thought the Germans were responsible in that many Canadian soldiers were then fighting the Germans in France and Belgium.   Troops ships had often been departing from these same docks.   25, 000 people were homeless; hundreds of children were now orphans; hundreds of parents were now childless.   Countless others were traumatized and would never forget the day.  It was their version of our Pearl Harbor in 1941 or 9/11/2001.
      More than 9,000 victims were wounded, many with horrible disfiguring wounds caused by broken glass that was sent flying as shrapnel when the ship exploded.  It would be hours before the world would learn what happened, but remarkably, within hours help would be on the way in the form of doctors and nurses with equipment and medicines from Boston, MA, to help with the necessary aid required to treat the casualties.

Manafort Trial: Second Phase

    International crook Paul Manafort seems to think he'll beat the rap.  Reorters observing the defendent at trial say the man appears overly confident in his defense.  Prosecution witnesses(members of his staff), paint a picture of a man without a conscious, without a scrouple, without a memory, and maybe without a brain.
      No doubt his idea of business does not reflect reality.  He believes he's the smartest man in the room, any room.  The jury will have fun with his verdict.   The judge will have fun sentencing this dirt bag to a long prison term.  Maybe he thinks he'll get pardoned by his high placed friends.  But those friends usually disappear after the verdict is in.

Weekend Meteor Shower

      It's that time of the year: Summer.  And one of the signature events of summer in the northern hemisphere is the meteor shower.  That event will occur this weekend: Aug. 10,11,12.  The nightly show begins before sundown but is most visible after dark.  Our relative lack of night light in the Tahoe Basin means that our views will be the best.
      So, get outside tonight, stare heavenward, and look for those streaks of cosmic dust that penetrate a portion of our upper atmosphere.  Enjoy

MInister Of East Asian Affairs Looks At AQI

Chengdu at Sunset through smog: Aug. 6th, 2018

     Our able Minister is East Asia has been on the ground for awhile now and is adjusting to conditions.   While he has been warned of environmental conditions around the various Chinese provinces, it seems the reality is a bit different.  The AQI, or air quality index is a well established key to local air quality measurement.  In Chengdu , an urban area that hold about 15 million people, the AQI can vary  dramatically day to day.  A good day anywhere has an AQI of 50 or less.  Recently, the AQI in Chengdu was 138. (see above photo).
    Our Minister is traveling around the country and more reports will be forthcoming.  Stay tuned.

Russya Wants Laborers: Hello North Korea

      So, Mr. Putin's oligarchs mention the high cost of labor toiling away in their various occupations  serving up the needs of the elites.  They mention also that locals are demanding-and getting- higher wages, cutting their profits.   We need cheap labor they say.  Now where can we find cheap labor?  Chechnya?  Belarus?  Poland? Romania? USA?  Germany?  Ahhhh, maybe China.  They want rubles, too.   But, the Chinese oligarchs want fees, kick backs, bribes, and they don't follow rules like we Russyans do.  And President Xi J.P. can't be trusted to provide the actual numbers promised.
    Oh, what a world!  How can we gain our rightful place in this world if we can't get cheap labor?  Wait.  Wait a minute.   I read on the internet(not blocked today)  that North Korea has workers for hire-cheap workers, that is.  Let's call Pyongyang right now.
    "Hello,  Is this Mr. Kim?  Yes, Kremlin calling.  How are you today?  Enjoying a nice summer?  By the way, we need a few thousand workers, and we pay well, in cash.  Can you help your Russyan friends?  Don't forget-we supply plenty of crude oil to feed your needs despite those pesky UN sanctions.   So, how many?  What?  That's it?  But we need twice that number.  Ok.  We'll settle for that.  And when will they arrive?  Oh, they are en-route.  Wonderful.  You are the best.  We here in Red Square knew we could count on our dear friends in North Korea.   And we'll be sending to you directly the contract amount so as not to disrupt your salary schedules and pay scales.  We wouldn't want to cause any inflationary events back home.   Thanks again, Mr. Kim.  Always a pleasure doing business with you.   Let us know when you need some more weaponry.  Our weapons are always available to those who oppose the Trumpster."

Local Hero Passes

      Tahoma mourns the passing of one her stalwart citizens: Colman Foster.  Colman and his wife have been regulars here for over 45 years.  They first came in the 70's, bringing student athletes to train in the fresh mountain air of Lake Tahoe.  As track coaches, they understood the benefits of fresh air as opposed to the smog and pollution of Southern California that had become a significant problem in the 60's and 70's.
      Colman brought with him his abiding faith in his Lord, Jesus, and he identified as a man of the faith, preaching his philosophy of life on a regular basis.  He was a generous man with his time and thoughts.  He was caring and thoughtful to all.
     Despite his health problems over the last few years, he maintained a positive outlook, and looked the future right in the eye.  He leaves a daughter and son-in-law, and his beloved grand daughter, Liz.
A memorial service was held yesterday, August 1st, in Tahoma's local park.  It was well attended and kind words were spoken by the many.
     He will be missed and long remembered by family and friends.  Donations to your favorite charity are appreciated.

Book Review: Churchill and Orwell by Thomas E. Ricks

      This book covers the personal histories of two famous writers: George Orwell and Winston Churchill.  The focus is on the critical years of their experience and their most renowned writing efforts.  Churchill has long been known for his wartime leadership of Great Britain during the years of World War II when the British had their backs to the wall as the Nazis swept through western Europe and they appeared to be unstoppable.   Had the British Isles not been 20 miles off the Brittany Coast, the Nazi Panzers would have come knocking on the door of 10 Downing St. and Buckingham Palace.
     George Orwell was a young writer, not widely read or widely known.  As a young man, he sought out his own experience and his own examination of conditions in Spain during the civil war being conducted by Franco's rebellious troops and the elected left wing government that had begun profound changes that had existed in Spain for hundreds of years.
     Author Ricks delves into the parallel lives of these two men, both Brits(Churchill of course, half American).   Both were well educated and both pursued writing as one of their goals.   Journalism was the common link between the two.   Churchill also loved politics and believed that his future was to be a player in the highest offices of Britain.  Orwell sought to explain difficult political theories, many of which had only recently been born on a global scale: Marxism, Communism, Fascism, and Socialism were among the most prominent new forms of government that were ikely to be chosen to replace monarchies around the European landscape.  MOdern communication enabled writers to expand their audience and promote their ideas like never before.  Radio was among those new media that could change minds and opinions.   Movies could also add a visual dimension to written facts to emphasize an argument.
     As the 1930's progressed, war appeared to be the next great global threat.  Japan had invaded China, and began a takeover of large sections of the country.  Germany began to expand its territory by absorbing nearby land in other European countries.  Spain was fighting against itself as the elected government tried to fend off forces supported by Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany.  The elected government was supported by volunteers battalions from all over, including America and Great Britain.  These volunteers were in turn supported by the Soviet Union and other Soviet volunteers.
However, the Communists disagreed among themselves and could not put up a united front to oppose Franco's forces who eventually won a victory over the left wing government.  Orwell's first major success came from his memoir of his service in Spain-Homage to Catalonia.
     In this book, he analyzed the left wing forces of the Nationalist government: the Soviet backed leaders; the Trotskyites; the Marxists; the anti-fascists; and land reform proponents allied w/ whoever had control(certain members of the Catholic hierarchy).  Franco's anti-government army had the support of Hitler's Nazis who had taken over in Germany at that time; and Mussolini's military Fascist army.  His work identified for the world what was happening in Europe as the fascists came to power.   His work resonates to this day as the reference source for the Spanish Civil War.
      Churchill, on the other hand, gained invaluable experience as a writer and military analyst in South Africa during the Boer War of 1899-1902, when British troops confronted Boers(Dutch colonialists) who objected to the British acts that banished slavery in South Africa.  While the Afrikaners had been in place for several hundred years, they did not appreciate the Brits who came in and disrupted the status quo, ie, slavery.  Churchill became an overnight sensation when he was captured by the Boers, imprisoned, then made a daring escape to return to front.  He then wrote extensively about the experience.  He was heralded at home and was promptly elected to Parliament upon his return, launching his political career.
      Author Ricks does not gloss over the weaknesses of both authors, nor does he leave out important details.   Churchill is long remembered for his wartime service as Prime Minister, but his decline began near the end of the war, and he was turned out by the electorate before hostilities ended.  Orwell contacted TB, and suffered for years until his death at age 46, just prior to his ascension as the world class writer he has become.  Still quoted today, his books 1984 and Animal Farm are classics, and are still widely read.   Churchill's 6 volume history of WW II placed him in the pantheon of historians, although his work has not had the staying power of Orwell's.
     A great read, worth the time and effort.
5 ***** rating 
 

Paul Manafort Goes to Trial

     Today marks the second day of the jury trial for former campaign chairman Paul Manafort.  The former White House insider is now being prosecuted for a variety of crimes related to some of his international consulting business, primarily that business related to Ukraine and the leaders there of.
The government states that Mr. Manafort attempted to evade income taxes on 10's of milions of fees he collected as part of his income.  He did this by buying real estate in the US with loans secured by other properties that were appraised at inflated amounts.
     The defense says that his accounting for these dollars is correct and that he paid the requisite taxes on his earned income.   He has been in jail for some time prior to the trial as a flight risk.  The trial will take another 3-4 weeks.   This trial is only the first and no doubt he will have to answer for more perceived crimes related to his serving Donald Trump during his campaign for president in 2016.   When in Ukraine, he served in a capacity as media consultant to the then president who was ousted soon after when citizens demanded that he resign.
     Mr. Manafort is also a subject of investigation by Robert Mueller, the special investigator appointed by Asst. Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.  This is not the first trial put forward by Justice Dept., nor will it be the last.

The Fire, The Smoke: It's Summer

      It doesn't take long before the West winds carry the smoke and ash from wild fires around the north state into the basin.  It seems that this is the new 'summer' weather we have to endure here in Tahoe.  A big fire near Yosemite national Park has forced tourists and guests to evacuate the park.  Campers and hotel guests were required to leave immediately on Thursday, the 26th.
     Two more fires are burning near Mount Shasta.  Many structures have been burned and 2 firefighters have died, adding to the cost of the blaze.  It is believed to have been started by a vehicle's catalytic converter in high grass and windy conditions.  The Carr Fire has spread to 45,000 acres and is only 3% contained( meaning crews are still being deployed before an attack by marshalled forces can hope to contain it.
Update
    As of August 1, 8am, the fire is now at 115,000 acres, and is 35% contained.  Firefighters have been aided by lower temperatures and a decrease in local winds.  The winds have shifted and the city of Redding is allowing some residents to return to their homes.  According to Cal Fire, 17 major blazes are being fought statewide at this time.