What Would Jimmy Do?

Well, here it is June already — and carrying on this year’s practice of talking a bit about each upcoming month, let’s discuss June.

June’s full Moon will occur in a couple of days (nights) on June 3, reaching peak illumination  at 11:43 p.m. (EDT.) June’s full Moon is known as the Strawberry Moon. It’s also considered both the last full Moon of spring and the first full Moon of summer.

June used to be — maybe still is — the most popular month for weddings. That’s kind of curious because ancient Romans believed that the period between the middle of May and the middle of June was an ill-omened time to marry. As the story goes, the Roman poet Ovid consulted with the high priestess of Jupiter as to when his daughter should marry and was told that she must wait until after the 15th of June. So if you’re planning a wedding during the first part of June and it doesn’t work out, you should have paid attention to this blog.

The Summer Solstice occurs near the end of this month, marking the day with the most hours of daylight — and — the beginning of summer.

The month of June is one of the few, if not the only, month that has a bug named after it — the June bug (sometimes called the June beetle.) They’re only found around May and June in the US.

If you’re into astrology, June has two signs — if you were born on or before June 20th, you’re a Gemini, often characterized as passionate, adaptable, and intelligent. If you were born on the 21st of June or later, you’re a Cancer, considered to possess a depth of emotion and a great sense of loyalty.

The month of June is unique in that it begins on a different day than every other month of the year. I checked a number of calendars and that seems to be true. As to why this is, I think it’s complicated….
So this month is full of lots of holidays and events that we’ll be talking about the next few weeks.
Welcome, June!!
— 30 —

On this day after Memorial Day, I was thinking about our last winter golf session. We always cover a number of subjects and one that seems to come up often in these sessions is “wars.” Of course there’s always been a war to talk about — the world has never been completely at “peace.”
But one “war” we all remembered wasn’t a war — it was a conflict, or maybe a police action or something else. It was the first war that couldn’t be called a war because Congress never declared it to be one. 

But what I wanted to talk about today is that during our discussion we remembered that some of the terms and phrases we use today actually originated during the Korean “war.”
The term “bamboo curtain” was coined by Time magazine — it referred to the barrier of mistrust between China and its allies on one hand and the noncommunist nations of Asia and the West on the other. The bamboo curtain was equivalent to the iron curtain between the Soviets and the West.

When Communist North Korea attacked Haesong, South Korea, in 1950, the United Nations demanded the attackers withdraw completely. When that demand was ignored, the Security Council decided to send in the troops. The problem was that the U.N. didn’t have a police force as such, but they recommended that member nations take action, and 30 of them agreed to do so. President Harry S. Truman called out U.S. air and sea forces. The President was acting without a vote of Congress because he was responding to a security measure recommended by the U.N. At a press conference, a reporter asked the president if the war could be called a police action under the United Nation’s supervision, and Truman agreed that it could. 

Someone mentioned that the term “to bug out” originated during the Korean conflict and no one disagreed, but later I checked, and it actually originated during World War II, but it was popular during the Korean War and it’s meaning changed a bit — it didn’t just mean a retreat or withdrawal, but a fast pulling out, to avoid being killed or captured. Since the war, it’s been used more loosely for any rapid departure.

Airstrike became popular in Korea — this was the first war in which jet fighter were widely used and that gave rise to the term airstrikes for attacks on enemy positions.
This was also the first war that helicopters saw a lot of action — they were nicknamed choppers, probably from the “chop-chop” noise made by helicopter rotors.

An interesting term that most of us hadn’t thought of was “buy the farm.” Since Korea was partially an air war, it required training flights — those were generally carried out in American rural areas. When an air force training flight crashed on a farm, the farmer could sue the government for damages sufficient to pay off his mortgage and therefore buy the farm outright. Since the pilot in these crashes usually died, he “bought the farm” with his life.

Even though aircraft were used extensively, Korea was primarily a ground war. When General MacArthur’s headquarters sent a dispatch to the Twenty-fourth Regiment to ask if they had contact with the enemy, they responded, “We is eyeball to eyeball.” The message was widely quoted, and later it was used with reference to the Cuban Missile Crisis — when the cold war threatened to become a hot one.

During the conflict, some four hundred thousand casualties were inflicted on U.S. troops. Treating casualties was the job of the mobile army surgical hospital, M.A.S.H. — a new term at the time that inspired a motion picture and television series of the same name.

The sick and wounded that were taken prisoner by the Chinese were subjected to brainwashing to indoctrinate them with Communist beliefs. The technique involved both physical and mental torture to break down a soldier’s loyalties and family ties. The word itself is a translation from a Chinese term for “thought reform.” The term is used today to mean changing someone’s outlook or opinions, usually by underhanded means. 

While we were on the subject, someone mentioned that General Douglas MacArthur had been “fired” during the Korean conflict — and that led to his famous “old soldiers never die, they just fade away” statement. Most people can sympathize with MacArthur’s plight….. The U.N. instructed its forces to only expel the aggressors and to do nothing more. Supplies were flowing to the communists from Manchuria, behind the Chinese border, but the U.N. troops were not permitted to bomb enemy bases, airstrips, or supply centers because it might provoke an all-out war with the Soviet Union. Commander-in-chief MacArthur voiced his frustration loudly and publicly. In response, President Truman replaced him with General Matthew B. Ridgway — in effect ending MacArthur’s military career. In a farewell speech to Congress, the general quoted a barracks song about old soldiers like himself.
The Korean War, or conflict, was the first war the U.S. fought with such constraints assigned by another party. It added a few new phrases to our language, but it took the lives of nearly 4 million Korean people — 10% of the population at the time, while the Chinese suffered about 1 million casualties.
Nearly 55,000 Americans died in the conflict.
— 30 —

Every year at this time, Americans are called to pause to remember the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to this country in wars both at home and abroad. People tend to think of the Memorial Day weekend as the unofficial start of summer or the weekend of the Indianapolis 500, but we should never let these events and activities overshadow the the real meaning — and significance — of the holiday.

I realize that if you read this blog, every year, this Memorial Day entry sounds the same, but I think it’s important to stop and think about the importance of today, probably one of the most somber days on any of our calendars….

In the years following the Civil War, Americans across the country were still mourning the deaths of more than 600,000 men who died during four long years of war. All across the country, in both the North and the South, veterans would decorate their comrades’ graves with flowers. 
On May 5, 1868, three years after the end of the Civil War, John Logan, a veteran of the war and head of the Union veterans organization — the Grand Army of the Republic — established Decoration Day to be recognized on May 30. On that date, people on both sides of the war would be encouraged to place flowers on the graves of their relatives, friends or comrades who fell during the war. He supposedly picked May 30 because the flowers would be in full bloom during that time. So on May 30, 1868, the first official National Decoration Day ceremony was held at Arlington National Cemetery, where the Grand Army of the Republic placed flowers on the graves of both Union and Confederate soldiers buried there. General Ulysses S. Grant presided over the ceremony. 

World War I was responsible for establishing many American traditions like Veterans Day and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. But it also changed how Decoration Day became to be known as Memorial Day. Decoration Day only recognized fallen soldiers of the Civil War until World War I. After World War I, the tradition of Decoration Day evolved from remembering only the fallen of the Civil War to remembering all soldiers who died during the country’s wars at home and abroad. 

Memorial Day has its own unique flag etiquette — at sunrise, anyone flying a flag should raise the flag briskly to full-staff then slowly lower the flag to half-staff. This is to honor the men and women who have fallen in the line of duty. At noon, the flag should be briskly raised to full-staff. This is to salute all of those who have served.

At 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day, Americans are asked to pause for one minute to pay tribute to America’s fallen soldiers. This practice was instituted by the passage of the National Moment of Remembrance Act in 2000. The National Moment of Remembrance program was established to remind Americans of the sacrifices made by members of the Armed Forces as well as others who have died as a result of service to the United States.
I think we can all spare a minute today….. have a nice Memorial Day.
— 30 —

We went “shopping” a few days ago. I needed a couple of things that I use up and have to replenish from time to time — I was looking for furnace filters, some sandpaper and a particular type of finish I use for my woodworking projects from time to time. All pretty standard items. Well, we must have driven about 30 miles and visited 4 different stores to get those three items. It’s bad enough that all of them cost at least twice what they did the last time I bought them, but the fact that the stores just didn’t have them made it even worse. I decided that I really don’t like shopping.

Of course, if you read this blog, you know that I’ve been labeled a curmudgeon, and there’s a lot of thing I don’t like….
I don’t like people that cut grass and blow it into the street. 
And here’s some more things I don’t like:
Hot-air hand dryers in public restrooms
Carts in stores with wobbly wheels
People that take up two parking spaces with one car
Spaces that are too small on forms where I’m supposed to put my signature
Telephone answering messages that are too long or too cute
The middle seat on airplanes
People who stand too close to my face when they’re talking to me
Personalized license plates with the owner’s nickname on them
Phone calls and mail that announce I’m the potential winner of a million-dollar sweepstakes
Religious quacks on TV thinking up new ways to take money from ignorant viewers
Waiting in line

Well, you get the idea…. seems like I don’t like much of anything anymore. Maybe next time I go “shopping” I’ll be able to just go into the store, pick up the item and buy it. Then I’ll write a blog about all the stuff i do like….
— 30 —

Claire has a brother that believes the Moon affects the body even down to specifically what body parts are affected during various phases of the Moon and the Moon sign. Of course, he’s not alone — a lot of people believe the Moon has a significant influence on human behavior.

There is a profession called Medical Astrology — apparently part of a larger category of celestial science that studies how the influences of constellations, zodiac signs and the planets affect body parts.

According to “medical Astrologists” the Planetary positions at your birth indicate the nature of the disease(s) you will suffer from and when and how they will affect you. I would assume that they also recommend how we can best alleviate them.
Seven planets (Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn) possess control over the different organs of the human body and their peculiarities. Each planet also rules certain anatomical structures and certain diseases.

So how about the Moon — my extensive research uncovered the following:
Moon is the feminine planet which is cold, moist, phlegmatic, watery and nocturnal. The Moon rules over the zodiac sign Cancer. The organs of the human body governed by the Moon are breast, saliva, womb, water, blood and lymphatic and glandular system. The anatomical structures governed by the Moon are Pericardium, veins, lymphatic vessels, intestinal functions, eyes, alimentary canal and membrane. The diseases related to the Moon are genital and urinary derangement, testicles, wind and colic, bronchial catarrh, dropsy, tumors, insanity and defective eyesight.
So there you have it — even though I don’t know what all those parts of the body are, they are majorly influenced by the Moon. 

But it seems more complicated than that — depending on the Moon Phase and the Moon Sign, certain organs are more sensitive at certain times and any surgical operations involving those particular organs should be undertaken with care, or better yet, postponed.

To get you through the rest of the month, here’s some valuable Moon information:
Tonight, May 26, the Moon Sign is Leo and the Moon Phase is Waxing Crescent
Tomorrow night, May 27, the Moon Sign is Virgo and it’s the First Quarter Moon Phase
The Moon Sign continues in Leo May 28 and 29 and the Moon Phase is Waxing Gibbous
May closes out the last two days with Libra as the Moon Sign and the Moon Phase is Waxing Gibbous

There is no absolute proof that the Moon affects human mental and physical health. But most “experts” hedge their bet by saying something like, “we can be confident that the Moon does not have a noticeable impact on most people’s lives most of the time, but we cannot rule out the possibility of its role among various environmental factors that might affect our sleep, moods and vitality.”
So like a lot of things, believe what you want — just keep the Moon in mind if you find yourself needing a good excuse sometime….
— 30 —

Today’s question is who invented wine? Even employing my extensive research techniques, I couldn’t come up with a definite answer — but whoever is responsible deserves some kind of award. Wine has certainly become a part of lives. One of our friends gave us a coaster that reads, “A dinner without Wine is like a day without sunshine.”

Today — May 25th — is National Wine Day, at least in the United States. But a word of warning…. don’t confuse today with National Drink Wine Day — that’s celebrated on February 18th. Totally different than today. 

My extensive research didn’t turn up any historically significant reason for today — but don’t let something like that stop you from celebrating. 
Years ago, Gallo Wines did a lot of TV advertising and their ads featured the Gallo brothers, Ernest and Julio. The commercials always ended with Julio (or maybe Ernest) saying, “I like talking about wine, but I’d rather be drinking it.” Actually, I prefer drinking it too, but what the heck, let’s talk about wine…..

Wine is (maybe) about 8,000 years old. Most historians tend to agree that wine was discovered by accident. That’s probably why it is thought to come from the gods — it’s a natural product since it doesn’t have to be manipulated in the same way as beer or whiskey. Most any grape that falls from vines can eventually become wine — maybe not 90 points, but wine, nonetheless.

Wine production and wine trade were an important part of life and commerce in the Mediterranean by about 3100 BC. Back then wine wasn’t considered a drink for the masses —only royals and those in the Church drank wine when it first started to be produced (remember, it was considered a gift from the gods.) Everyone else was relegated to drinking beer.

My ER (extensive research) found that the first known wine bottle dates back to 325 AD. It was found in 1867 near a vineyard in Speyer, Germany. Today, a standard wine bottle holds 750 ml and most jurisdictions in the U.S. impose a tax by the gallon. Kentucky has the highest wine excise tax rate at $3.18 per gallon, followed by Alaska ($2.50,) Florida ($2.25,) Iowa ($1.75,) and New Mexico ($1.70.) The five states with the lowest wine excise rates are Louisiana ($0.11,) California ($0.20,) Texas ($0.20,) Wisconsin ($0.25,) and Kansas and New York (tied at $0.30.)

The growth of the wine industry exploded in Europe at the end of the Middle Ages. One reason was health related — in 1400, due to the Black Plague, which claimed more that half of Europe’s population, wine was considered safer to drink than water…. Claire still believes that today. (Don’t laugh — Claire may be on to something.) The famous scientist Louis Pasteur who studied micro-organisms and their effect of foods and beverages, seemed to confirm Claire’s theory, saying, “Wine can be considered with good reason as the most healthful and hygienic of all beverages.”

I mentioned that historians believe wine was discovered by accident. Obviously, a lot of “stories” go along with that theory, but my favorite is that a Persian princess who had fallen out of favor with the king decided to end it all by eating a jar of spoiled grapes. Instead of dying, she suddenly felt a lot better. The king liked her new happy attitude so much that he brought her back into his good graces. So today is a day of celebration of wine…. after signing the Declaration of Independence, our forefathers toasted each other with glasses of Madeira — let’s keep their tradition going — Happy National Wine Day!!
— 30 —

Here it is May 22nd, or better known as Anniversary Day around here. If you’ve been following this blog, you know that both Kelly and Chris and Sue and Mike celebrate their wedding anniversaries today. 

Mike and Sue were married on Saturday, May 22, 1999 — the high temperature was 65 degrees, the low was 56 degrees, there was 0.33 inches of precipitation, but no snow.
The Moon was in first quarter phase and 1999 was not a leap year.

Chris and Kelly were married on Saturday, May 22, 2004 — the high temperature was 89 degrees, the low was 65 degrees, there was 0.00 inches of precipitation, and no snow.
The Moon was in a Waxing Crescent phase and 2004 was a leap year.

So today Sue and Mike will be celebrating their 24th anniversary and Kelly and Chris are celebrating their 19th anniversary. Not that this year isn’t, but next year will be a major one for both.
Happy Anniversary to Kelly and Chris and Sue and Mike!!!
— 30 —

One of Maysville High School’s most feared teachers was the high school history teacher. Her name was Miss Brown. Her first name was Jewel, but most people didn’t know that until after they’d graduated. It turns out, in hindsight, almost everyone gave her credit for being one of their best teachers. I have to admit she gave me an appreciation of history when I didn’t even want one. Anyhow, I credit my interest in history almost totally to her. 

I once heard it said that the past is what actually happened — history is what someone wrote down. I guess that’s true, at least to some extent. If you’ve been keeping up with the news lately, there’s a lot of controversy about what is being taught in out schools as “history.” 

I suppose history has always been a little controversial, and apparently some people can be downright cynical about it. I did a little extensive research on what various people have said about history….these are all quotes by the person listed — I’d say they do sound a bit cynical.

History is more or less bunk
~ Henry Ford
God cannot alter the past, but historians can.
~ Samuel Butler
History is indeed little more than the register of the crimes, follies, and misfortunes of mankind.
~ Edward Gibson
I often think it odd that (history) should be so dull, for a great deal of it must be invention.
~ Jane Austen
History is a pack of lies about events that never happened told by people who weren’t there.
~ George Santayana
History (n.): An account mostly false, of events mostly unimportant, which are brought about by rulers mostly knaves, and soldiers mostly fools.
~ Ambrose Bierce
Historian: an unsuccessful novelist.
~ H.L. Mencken
Happy the people whose annals are blank in history books.
~ Thomas Carlyle

These comments are certainly a little cynical, but the fact is history does exist. Maybe the historians don’t always get it right, but the fact is that everyone and everything does have a history.
And — it’s important. A generation which ignores history has no past and no future.
— 30 —

Yesterday’s blog was about someone called Brandon and how the name had become synonymous with a hidden meaning. There’s another name that I’ve heard a lot lately that seems to have joined a trend, especially on the Internet, of using a first name to make fun of certain kinds of people — Karen.
In recent years, “Karen” has become a widespread “description” of a specific type of middle-class white woman, who exhibits behavior(s) that stem from privilege. 
The origin of this use of the name Karen is uncertain, but the use of “Karen” became popular a few years ago as a way for people of color, particularly black Americans, to satirize the class-based and racially charged hostility they often face.

Why the name Karen? One of the most popular theories is that Karen has been credited to Black Twitter in the 2010s. Another explanation is that it comes from a 2005 bit by Dane Cook called “The Friend Nobody Likes.” (The friend was named Karen.) Another suggestion is that it comes from the character Karen in the 2004 film Mean Girls, who’s the subject of the popular quote: “Oh my God, Karen, you can’t just ask someone why they’re white.” Some even say that Karen comes from the 1990 film Goodfellas, in which one of the characters is named Karen.

Karens have been closely associated with Baby Boomers. Some millennials and members of Generation Z have called out boomers for being close-minded and behind-the-times, especially when it comes to unprogressive views on such things as gender, sexuality, and youth culture.
Lately, Karen has become more generally used to insult white women accused of taking advantage of their white privilege. 

Although I haven’t heard it too much, apparently a male version of the Karen name has emerged — Ken. Patrica and Mark Mccluskey were pictured pointing guns at protesters passing by their home in St. Louis and they were dubbed “Karen and Ken.”
Mean what you say and say what you mean has apparently fallen out of favor……
— 30 —

We were in Winchester a few days ago and driving home I noticed several banners and flags bashing President Joe Biden using obscenities. Not that long ago, people displaying those flags would have been encouraged to remove them or maybe even faced a fine or jail….

America’s presidents have always endured meanness — Grover Cleveland heard chants of “Ma, Ma Where’s my Pa?” over rumors he’d fathered an illegitimate child. Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson were subjects of jabs about racism and bigamy. 
The office of the president carries with it a sense dignity hat has been violated throughout our history. The biggest difference between the insults/criticism hurled at past presidents and the current office holders is the open use of profanity — and — the amplification it gets on social media. 

Thinking back, it seems like a bigger and bigger portion of the population are getting angrier and angrier. Just a few years ago, when you thought of anger, you thought of the die-hard Trump supporters, but that anger has now mover beyond that. Just think about the reactions to the Afghanistan withdrawal, the southern border and even all the school board debates. 

Even those not blatantly flying obscene flags have found a way to express their “anger.” “Let’s go, Brandon” isn’t a cheerleader phrase to motivate some guy name Brandon — It’s code for searing at President Joe Biden. It’s appearing more and more online, in social media, and even from some notable politicians. Former President Donald Trump’s coarse language expanded the boundaries of what is considered a normal political speech. 

But enough of this — what I really started out to write about today, was how did “Let’s go, Brandon” become a code for something more vulgar and a kind of not-so-secret handshake to bash the president? Well, my extensive research discovered that during a NASCAR race at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama, a driver named Brandon Brown won a race and was being interviewed by NBC Sports. The crowd was chanting something in the background that the sports reporter assumed was “Let’s go, Brandon” to cheer on the driver. However, the crowd apparently was chanting “F—Joe Biden.” So, for the wrong reason, Brandon has become famous…. while doing my research, I checked on the real Brandon and it seems like this notoriety hasn’t helped him too much. The team he drives for is owned by his father and it appears to be underfunded and short-staffed. His famous win was his first career victory, but his team has struggled for sponsorship and since the slogan, existing partners haven’t been marketing the driver. 

So anyhow, it appears that we might as well get used to these not -so-secret handshakes that signal people are in sync with whatever party or movement they’re a part of. 
Welcome to the new face of civilization…..
— 30 —