Monday, July 28, 2014

Defense?

In sport, such as football, the meaning of he word is clear. It opposes the other team,'s offense. When it comes to politics, George Orwell would have appreciated the distortion of the word's meaning. We have a Defense department, successor to the former War Department. In the UK, although the word is spelled "defence", it is the same concept: it refers to all the armed forces. The Israeli force that has destroyed much of Gaza's infrastructure is the IDF, the Israeli Defense Force. Lately, a more appropriate name might reflect its role in aggressive actions against Palestinians.

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Death Penalty

A federal judge in Southern California has said that the death penalty in California is unconstitutional, on the grounds that it causes cruel and unusual punishment. I think that it is about time for such a decision, with well over 400 people (mostly male "minorities") on "death row". There is probably still a majority of voting Californians who approve of the death penalty, despite the views of most state legislators, etc. Although I personally oppose the death penalty, I continue to believe that this is a decision for the majority of voters. However, when I read that it may take as long a twenty-five years to exhaust all the appeals and other delays, I agree with the judge's reasoning. Most developed countries have done away with the death penalty. If it needs to be retained in the USA, there also needs to be a limit to delays because of appeals, etc. I don't expect such legislation to pass, and so I strongly hope that the judge's decision will hold up against any appeals.

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

A federal judge in Southern California has said that the death penalty in California is unconstitutional, on the grounds that it causes cruel and unusual punishment. I think that it is about time for such a decision, with well over 400 people (mostly male "minorities") on "death row". There is probably still a majority of voting Californians who approve of the death penalty, despite the views of most state legislators, etc. Although I personally oppose the death penalty, I continue to believe that this is a decision for the majority of voters. However, when I read that it may take as long a twenty-five years to exhaust all the appeals and other delays, I agree with the judge's reasoning. Most developed countries have done away with the death penalty. If it needs to be retained in the USA, there also needs to be a limit to delays because of appeals, etc. I don't expect such legislation to pass, and so I strongly hope that the judge's decision will hold up against any appeals.

Monday, July 14, 2014

Watches

It's hardly a vice, but perhaps it is a bad habit: I seldom decline to respond to a survey online. Some of these ask questions about income and/or assets and my honest responses lead me to questions about such luxuries as expensive watches or upmarket clothing. I'm really not interested in either of these items. Longines is the name of a long-established Swiss watch maker, and I do have a relatively inexpensive Longines watch that I bought many years ago for perhaps $20. I'm really not interested in gold watches, and I am absolutely content with the silver case of my Longines. However, it needs to be wound up daily, so it is now my "spare". In its place, I use an inexpensive Casio wristwatch, which never needs winding. It keeps perfect time, as I know when I check the time on my cell phone. I used to own a beautiful gold pocket watch, which had belonged to my father. It is a luxurious object, which was presented to him on some special occasion. It has become an heirloom, to be passed down to one of my sons. There must be very few American men who still make use of pocket watches. Wristwatches are also often not found on the arms of younger men. Personally, I still prefer to lift an arm to tell the time, rather than reach into a pocket to see the time on my cell phone. Perhaps in fifty years' time, my Longines will be treated as an heirloom in its turn. What fate is in store for my inexpensive Casio?

Monday, July 7, 2014

At work on a Holiday

I am writing this on July 4, and for good reasons, more than one person is working here today, by choice. It brings back a happy memory from 1949, when I was one of four officers in a Wreck Dispersal vessel. (Our job was to blow up ships that had been sunk in shallow waters, in order to allow for unfettered navigation.) We would always return to harbor for holidays, such as Christmas, Easter, and Whit Monday, traditional holidays in the UK. Two of my fellow officers were married, and the third was "dating", as we would say these days. I was very popular, because we always needed to have one officer on board, and I would volunteer for this, to allow the others to spend the holiday with their loved ones. The task on which we were engaged required many long hours, seven days a week, and so we were allowed sixty days of "leave" (vacation) in a year. I was the Navigating Officer, and rather enjoyed the work. When we were within sight of land, we referred to my work as "pilotage", a task which was greatly assisted by what was then a new invention, allowing us to fix our position within a hundred yards or so, thanks to the intersection of three radio beams from shore-based positions. I greatly enjoyed the quiet days when I was in charge of the ship while the other officers were on leave. I spent most of my time reading, with minimal interruptions.When working on a wreck, HMS Annet could carry out its task in coastal waters without me, so I took my leave when it suited me. However, I did envy my colleagues who had female companionship when they were on leave. My first "relationship" was still over a year in the future.