Here is the finest piece of instrumental hard rock ever composed ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BcNy3oe1QU
Sunday, June 28, 2015
Thursday, June 25, 2015
Two Strange Ways Our Father Served His Country During WWII
Our Dad passed away at age 89 from carotid artery blockage. My memory of him is a vast array of stories and episodes. Here, briefly, are two of his stories about how he served his country in the ROTC Program during World War II.
At one point, the Navy was interested in how well mini-greenhouses could keep American soldiers warm in frigid lands.
So, in his classes in Dartmouth College, Dad and his classmates built a person-size greenhouse, and they took turns sitting in their bathing suits inside the person-size greenhouse on Dartmouth's front lawn in the middle of New England blizzards, recording data and waving to their laughing classmates.
At another point, someone in the Navy had heard that when a person eats ice cream, his or her body responds by warming-up. And so the Navy wondered if eating ice cream might abet survival in frigid latitudes.
As a result, Dad and his classmates built 3-sided lean-tos (to keep off the wind) and got into their bathing suits again and went outside into their lean-tos in the middle of New England winter blizzards and spent their classes sitting outdoors in bathing suits eating ice cream!
At one point, the Navy was interested in how well mini-greenhouses could keep American soldiers warm in frigid lands.
So, in his classes in Dartmouth College, Dad and his classmates built a person-size greenhouse, and they took turns sitting in their bathing suits inside the person-size greenhouse on Dartmouth's front lawn in the middle of New England blizzards, recording data and waving to their laughing classmates.
At another point, someone in the Navy had heard that when a person eats ice cream, his or her body responds by warming-up. And so the Navy wondered if eating ice cream might abet survival in frigid latitudes.
As a result, Dad and his classmates built 3-sided lean-tos (to keep off the wind) and got into their bathing suits again and went outside into their lean-tos in the middle of New England winter blizzards and spent their classes sitting outdoors in bathing suits eating ice cream!
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
DNA Doesn't Lie
After I signed-on with Ancestry.com, and started developing a pretty good Pedigree Chart showing the ancestors of my family many generations back, I took the DNA test.
So far, about 1,950 other people who took the Ancestry.com DNA test have turned out to be 8th cousins or closer. That includes several African Americans resulting from sex between slaves and their owners, in the Old South.
The more closely-related to you someone is, in the results, the more unambiguous the results are, within the computer program employed by the lab testing us.
In about 1.5% of the cases -- for me that currently comes out to 30 people -- the results are dramatically clear -- in effect, "The DNA makes it very, very clear that these folks are pretty darn closely related to you." I refer to those people as "98%ers."
A respectable proportion of the 98%ers have worked-out their ancestry the same way I did -- they pulled together mountains of evidence from a variety of sources to verify their ancestry many generations back.
The problem with those 98%ers is that, except for 3 Ancestry.com members, none of the surnames in my ancestry appear in the surname chains in their pedigree charts.
I thought about this for a year or so.
And then it dawned on me.
Adultery.
Some of the ladies among my ancestors [at least on the Eitelman side, right, Eitelman family members? ;-)], or among the 98%ers' ancestors, were fibbing when they told their hubbies that the Fuller Brush man only left a few new brooms behind. And their hubbies weren't quite as prolific as they thought.
Monday, June 22, 2015
An Accidental Witness to an Enormous Illegal Drug Transaction
Somebody over in Facebook reminded my of the following.
About 20 years ago, I was an accidental witness to one of the world's larger illegal drug transactions.
One of my Hispanic in-laws asked if I would drive her and her four little children from a residence in Cherry Hill, New Jersey to their home off 5th Street near Lehigh Avenue in Philadelphia. I hated the house where that kid and her children lived, because it literally rained roaches at night in all of the rooms, so that it gave me the creeps just to walk into it. But, the girl was a courageous little soldier, a loyal mother to her 4 little kids, all of whom she had borne out of wedlock to worthless Hispanic suitors.
I loaded the kids into the back. Their mom drove in the passenger seat next to me.
We crossed the Ben Franklin Bridge over to Philadelphia, then went north up 95 to Lehigh Avenue. I drove up Lehigh to 6th Street, I think, and then turned left onto 6th and proceeded south. I believe at 6th and York Streets, I came to a red light and stopped.
There, on the cross street in front of us, were two brand new white, windowless Ford Econoline vans. One was parked on each side of the intersection, backs pointed toward the intersection, back doors opened. It was about 5:00 p.m. There, right in front of us, two Hispanic guys came out of the back of the van on the right, each with a Kalishnakov
slung over his right shoulder, carrying a large, heavy bale of white powder wrapped in clear plastic ...
The two Hispanic guys looked up at me, through my windshield with alarm.
All of a sudden, the reality of my current situation came crashing down upon my psyche.
(1) I had accidentally stopped in front of one of the larger illegal drug transactions in American history. These Hispanic guys were cartel "soldiers" with the job of killing any witnesses.
(2) There would be no police around. They had been paid off. Otherwise, these guys wouldn't be doing the transaction in broad daylight.
(3) I had a car with a girl and her 4 helpless Hispanic children in it, and we were all about to die.
As one of the "soldiers" began to unsling his AK while he held the bale with his left arm, to machine gun my car, I realized that I suddenly had the most important job in the world in front of me -- keeping the girl and her kids in my car alive.
I quickly rolled down the window on the driver side door, and grabbed the shoulder of the Hispanic mom next to me, and yelled, with as much emotion as I could find with the purpose of making my words sound like begging, "NINITA !!! NINITA !!!" ["Little girl !!! Little girl !!!"] I grabbed the shoulder of my Hispanic in-law next to me. I figured that they couldn't see the four male children in the back.
What is odd about my use of that word is that earlier that day, at the Magnolia, New Jersey post office, as I was dropping off some mail for my law practice, an Hispanic dad had told me how to say the word for "little girl" in Spanish -- as though God were preparing me for that evening.
The Hispanic guy who wasn't unslinging his AK clearly understood my point -- "I've got a car full of little folks whom you don't want to shoot !" -- and looked crestfallen.
The other one continued unslinging his AK, and he was in the process of leveling it at the car as I began to drive through the red light, past them, south down 6th Street toward the kids' home.
Deep in my soul, I prayed a prayer that the soldier who understood my point would tell the other to stand down.
No bullets followed us. We made it.
_________________
I, Peter J. Dawson, of full age, hereby certify that the preceding allegations or fact are true to the best of my knowledge, information and belief. I am aware that if any are knowingly falsely made, then I am subject to punishment.
About 20 years ago, I was an accidental witness to one of the world's larger illegal drug transactions.
One of my Hispanic in-laws asked if I would drive her and her four little children from a residence in Cherry Hill, New Jersey to their home off 5th Street near Lehigh Avenue in Philadelphia. I hated the house where that kid and her children lived, because it literally rained roaches at night in all of the rooms, so that it gave me the creeps just to walk into it. But, the girl was a courageous little soldier, a loyal mother to her 4 little kids, all of whom she had borne out of wedlock to worthless Hispanic suitors.
I loaded the kids into the back. Their mom drove in the passenger seat next to me.
We crossed the Ben Franklin Bridge over to Philadelphia, then went north up 95 to Lehigh Avenue. I drove up Lehigh to 6th Street, I think, and then turned left onto 6th and proceeded south. I believe at 6th and York Streets, I came to a red light and stopped.
There, on the cross street in front of us, were two brand new white, windowless Ford Econoline vans. One was parked on each side of the intersection, backs pointed toward the intersection, back doors opened. It was about 5:00 p.m. There, right in front of us, two Hispanic guys came out of the back of the van on the right, each with a Kalishnakov
The two Hispanic guys looked up at me, through my windshield with alarm.
All of a sudden, the reality of my current situation came crashing down upon my psyche.
(1) I had accidentally stopped in front of one of the larger illegal drug transactions in American history. These Hispanic guys were cartel "soldiers" with the job of killing any witnesses.
(2) There would be no police around. They had been paid off. Otherwise, these guys wouldn't be doing the transaction in broad daylight.
(3) I had a car with a girl and her 4 helpless Hispanic children in it, and we were all about to die.
As one of the "soldiers" began to unsling his AK while he held the bale with his left arm, to machine gun my car, I realized that I suddenly had the most important job in the world in front of me -- keeping the girl and her kids in my car alive.
I quickly rolled down the window on the driver side door, and grabbed the shoulder of the Hispanic mom next to me, and yelled, with as much emotion as I could find with the purpose of making my words sound like begging, "NINITA !!! NINITA !!!" ["Little girl !!! Little girl !!!"] I grabbed the shoulder of my Hispanic in-law next to me. I figured that they couldn't see the four male children in the back.
What is odd about my use of that word is that earlier that day, at the Magnolia, New Jersey post office, as I was dropping off some mail for my law practice, an Hispanic dad had told me how to say the word for "little girl" in Spanish -- as though God were preparing me for that evening.
The Hispanic guy who wasn't unslinging his AK clearly understood my point -- "I've got a car full of little folks whom you don't want to shoot !" -- and looked crestfallen.
The other one continued unslinging his AK, and he was in the process of leveling it at the car as I began to drive through the red light, past them, south down 6th Street toward the kids' home.
Deep in my soul, I prayed a prayer that the soldier who understood my point would tell the other to stand down.
No bullets followed us. We made it.
_________________
I, Peter J. Dawson, of full age, hereby certify that the preceding allegations or fact are true to the best of my knowledge, information and belief. I am aware that if any are knowingly falsely made, then I am subject to punishment.
Sunday, June 21, 2015
Try Reading "Laudato Si." It Is Very Easy -- and Absolutely Critical -- Reading !
Read the words of Francis I, who clearly loves humanity ... and the world we rely upon for our food, our water, our air!
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_20150524_enciclica-laudato-si.html
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_20150524_enciclica-laudato-si.html
Friday, June 19, 2015
GENTLE READERS! PUT YOUR KIDS TO WORK!
Have your kids
(1) Use crayons, magic markers, or paint to make a picture of Jesus;
(2) Scan it in; and
(3) e-mail the scan to me, with the kid's first name, age, municipality and state, at
peter.j.dawson.nj.us@gmail.com
and I will publish interesting works of art here, in this website.
(1) Use crayons, magic markers, or paint to make a picture of Jesus;
(2) Scan it in; and
(3) e-mail the scan to me, with the kid's first name, age, municipality and state, at
peter.j.dawson.nj.us@gmail.com
and I will publish interesting works of art here, in this website.
Thank You, Thank You, Thank, Pope Francis for the Encyclical on the Environment
Pope Francis' call for change respecting environmental issues will largely fall on deaf ears in the west, because we are a fat, stupid, spoiled people. ["Belch!"]
Here's an example of the problem facing us.
As the global atmospheric inventory of carbon compounds goes up, up, up, up due to human activity, the currents transfer heat generated by the gas increase to the polar regions, where all of the ice is, so that every 1 degree increase in ocean temp at the equator yields a 4 degree degree increase at the poles.
Greenland, and Antarctica, and all other land-bound ice on Earth, are melting faster and faster and faster.
The annual increase in ocean depth is becoming measurable with an ordinary ruler. No joke.
Now, the average modal elevation of cities like Miami above sea level is 6 feet.
Skeptics would say, "HO, HO, HO, YOU POOR IDIOT, IF THE OCEANS ARE INCREASING IN DEPTH BY, SAY, 1/32 OF AN INCH PER YEAR, IT WILL TAKE [72 INCHES x 32] YEARS, OR 2,304 YEARS, TO DROWN MIAMI ! HO, HO, HO !"
But it doesn't work like that.
6 feet in elevation is a numerical average running from 0.00 feet at the beach to a peak of 12 feet at the highest statistically-significant point.
In Miami's case, we can represent the slope running from the Atlantic beaches on the east to the western edges of the metropolitan area 10 miles to the west as a right triangle with a base of 633,600 inches and a height of 144 inches on the left side and 0.00 inches on the right side.
If we divide the base by the height, we get 633,600 inches / 144 inches = 4,400. See illustration ...
What that actually means is, For every additional 1 inch in ocean depth from global ice melt, the beach where the waves are crashing every minute in good weather moves inland by about 4,400 inches, or about 400 feet.
Now that 400 feet assumes a perfectly flat up-slope from the beach.
But it doesn't work like that. What's really going to happen is that at some points, the water is going to be coming inland a full mile with the first 1 inch increase in ocean depth.
And what that means is that within 20 years, there are going to be calls to evacuate southern Florida, and all of this ...
... will have a value of $ 000,000,000,000.01.
That's what we're facing, on all 3 coasts of the continental united States.
Here's an example of the problem facing us.
As the global atmospheric inventory of carbon compounds goes up, up, up, up due to human activity, the currents transfer heat generated by the gas increase to the polar regions, where all of the ice is, so that every 1 degree increase in ocean temp at the equator yields a 4 degree degree increase at the poles.
Greenland, and Antarctica, and all other land-bound ice on Earth, are melting faster and faster and faster.
The annual increase in ocean depth is becoming measurable with an ordinary ruler. No joke.
Now, the average modal elevation of cities like Miami above sea level is 6 feet.
Skeptics would say, "HO, HO, HO, YOU POOR IDIOT, IF THE OCEANS ARE INCREASING IN DEPTH BY, SAY, 1/32 OF AN INCH PER YEAR, IT WILL TAKE [72 INCHES x 32] YEARS, OR 2,304 YEARS, TO DROWN MIAMI ! HO, HO, HO !"
But it doesn't work like that.
6 feet in elevation is a numerical average running from 0.00 feet at the beach to a peak of 12 feet at the highest statistically-significant point.
In Miami's case, we can represent the slope running from the Atlantic beaches on the east to the western edges of the metropolitan area 10 miles to the west as a right triangle with a base of 633,600 inches and a height of 144 inches on the left side and 0.00 inches on the right side.
If we divide the base by the height, we get 633,600 inches / 144 inches = 4,400. See illustration ...
What that actually means is, For every additional 1 inch in ocean depth from global ice melt, the beach where the waves are crashing every minute in good weather moves inland by about 4,400 inches, or about 400 feet.
Now that 400 feet assumes a perfectly flat up-slope from the beach.
But it doesn't work like that. What's really going to happen is that at some points, the water is going to be coming inland a full mile with the first 1 inch increase in ocean depth.
And what that means is that within 20 years, there are going to be calls to evacuate southern Florida, and all of this ...
... will have a value of $ 000,000,000,000.01.
That's what we're facing, on all 3 coasts of the continental united States.
Try the "Prayer Experiment"
Years ago, I joined the website "Ask an Atheist" to evangelize to them.
While I was there, I developed an on-line friendship with one of the ladies there. She was a Lesbian atheist, and at first was embarrassed by me, and wished that I would go away. But, she was friendly, and ultimately came to be viewed, in the atheist website, as the member who would talk with patience and friendship to "that Christ-er Pete" who liked to read "The Babble."
One day, my atheist friend announced on-line that she had some kind of personal problem chasing her down the street like a huge, deadly junk yard dog ...
http://www.sportwaffenk9.com/images/teeth.JPG
She said that the problem, which she did not want to describe on-line, had nearly caught up to her, and would shortly knocked her down and rip-out her throat.
I commented, "Look, God doesn't view problems as problems. For God, your problem is not a problem. It is a talking opportunity -- it is a chance for relationship.
"I know that you don't believe in God, but you can't be absolutely, positively SURE that He isn't out there, in the darkness.
"So, do this: First, say a brief prayer for the strength to at least have doubts about the non-existence of the 'Unprovable Loving One Who Might Be Out There in the Darkness.' You HAVE TO do this with at least that much faith, kid, otherwise it just doesn't work. When you say that prayer, that much faith WILL jump into your heart. I promise.
"Then, say a single prayer for help to the 'Unprovable Loving One Who Might Be Out There in the Darkness.' Tell Him your problem, and ask Him for help. Don't tell Him how to help you. He doesn't need your instructions. Just ask Him for help.
"But I want you to do two more things. First, I want you to promise that you will make a public announcement, here in this atheist website, that the prayer I am telling you to pray worked, when it works.
"And, I also want you to ask God to tell you WHEN your help arrives, that it has arrived. When He tells you, you will hear a voice jump into your head, using your own mind's voice and your own first name, saying, 'This is the help you prayed for, [name].'
"And at that moment, your problem will evaporate magically. I swear this."
She agreed to do exactly as I instructed.
One week later, my on-line Lesbian friend posted, "Everybody, greetings. I am going to keep my promise. I had an utterly terrifying problem. You all read Peter's advice to me. I agreed to do what he said. I did it.
"Well, it worked. I did exactly what Peter told me to do. When my giant problem caught up with me, everything happened exactly as Peter said it would. It was a miracle. I thought that I was about to die. But ... the problem just ... evaporated. I can't tell you more. All I know is, the prayer worked."
Try it yourself. Give it a shot.
Just remember that God doesn't solve your problems to solve your problems.
He wants Relationship.
And there's no better way to do that than through the Catholic Church with its sacraments.
While I was there, I developed an on-line friendship with one of the ladies there. She was a Lesbian atheist, and at first was embarrassed by me, and wished that I would go away. But, she was friendly, and ultimately came to be viewed, in the atheist website, as the member who would talk with patience and friendship to "that Christ-er Pete" who liked to read "The Babble."
One day, my atheist friend announced on-line that she had some kind of personal problem chasing her down the street like a huge, deadly junk yard dog ...
http://www.sportwaffenk9.com/images/teeth.JPG
She said that the problem, which she did not want to describe on-line, had nearly caught up to her, and would shortly knocked her down and rip-out her throat.
I commented, "Look, God doesn't view problems as problems. For God, your problem is not a problem. It is a talking opportunity -- it is a chance for relationship.
"I know that you don't believe in God, but you can't be absolutely, positively SURE that He isn't out there, in the darkness.
"So, do this: First, say a brief prayer for the strength to at least have doubts about the non-existence of the 'Unprovable Loving One Who Might Be Out There in the Darkness.' You HAVE TO do this with at least that much faith, kid, otherwise it just doesn't work. When you say that prayer, that much faith WILL jump into your heart. I promise.
"Then, say a single prayer for help to the 'Unprovable Loving One Who Might Be Out There in the Darkness.' Tell Him your problem, and ask Him for help. Don't tell Him how to help you. He doesn't need your instructions. Just ask Him for help.
"But I want you to do two more things. First, I want you to promise that you will make a public announcement, here in this atheist website, that the prayer I am telling you to pray worked, when it works.
"And, I also want you to ask God to tell you WHEN your help arrives, that it has arrived. When He tells you, you will hear a voice jump into your head, using your own mind's voice and your own first name, saying, 'This is the help you prayed for, [name].'
"And at that moment, your problem will evaporate magically. I swear this."
She agreed to do exactly as I instructed.
One week later, my on-line Lesbian friend posted, "Everybody, greetings. I am going to keep my promise. I had an utterly terrifying problem. You all read Peter's advice to me. I agreed to do what he said. I did it.
"Well, it worked. I did exactly what Peter told me to do. When my giant problem caught up with me, everything happened exactly as Peter said it would. It was a miracle. I thought that I was about to die. But ... the problem just ... evaporated. I can't tell you more. All I know is, the prayer worked."
Try it yourself. Give it a shot.
Just remember that God doesn't solve your problems to solve your problems.
He wants Relationship.
And there's no better way to do that than through the Catholic Church with its sacraments.
Wednesday, June 17, 2015
Really, Really Cool! A Greek Choir Gets Permission to Fill the Hagia Sophia with 1,500 Year Old Byzantine Christian Music !
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lobgieX4rKg
Thank you, Turkish government! Thank you!
Teşekkür ederim!
Barış seninle olsun!
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A Joke
Pilot: Control tower, what time is it?
Control tower: What airline is this?
Pilot: What difference does that make?
Control tower: Well if it is UA, it is 6:00p.m.; if it is TWA, it is 1800 hours; if it is Ozark, the big hand is on the…..”
Control tower: What airline is this?
Pilot: What difference does that make?
Control tower: Well if it is UA, it is 6:00p.m.; if it is TWA, it is 1800 hours; if it is Ozark, the big hand is on the…..”
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
Friday, June 5, 2015
What Is the Problem with This Target Ad from Australia?
Answer:
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RVR JH HXNNKDJLT NDBG
QBEAGKEJV, POKL POK
QDKPPA GBG JH GVFJLT V
WKDA XLMVDDVLPKR
VHHXGQPJBL POVP RVR JH
OBERJLT BLPB OKD DJTOP
HOBXERKD.
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