Monthly Archives: May 2011

The Watering Hole: May 7 – Endeavour

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I had hoped that the Endeavour would be in orbit today. The Endeavour first went into orbit for mission STS-49 on this date in 1992. The current plan for the launch of mission STS-134 is scheduled for May 16th (as of yesterday), its last flight into orbit. It will then be transported atop a specially modified Boeing 747 to go on display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles, its final flight.

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The Watering Hole: May 6 – Chinese Exclusion Act

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1882 marks the beginning of racially based discrimination in the United States. The Chinese Exclusion act was signed into law into law by President Chester A. Arthur (Rep) on May 6th.
Not to be outdone, Governor Jan Brewer (Rep – Ariz.) signed a new racially motivated law in 2010. Parts of the Arizona law have been ruled unconstitutional. Still Republican governors in other states are trying to follow the same ugly path.

The former act was repealed in December, 1943 which was a bit late considering the help provided to airmen who participated in the raid on Tokyo in April 1942. The Chinese actually built airfields and backpacked fuel to those airfields.

The aircraft carrier USS Hornet was spotted by a Japanese picket boat a day before and two hundred miles from the planned starting point which caused an immediate start to the raid.

None of the aircraft made it to the Chinese built and provisioned air fields. After the raid Chinese citizens helped to shield the air crews on their way out of a very sticky predicament (250,000 Chinese civilians were massacred by the Japanese Army in eastern China in retaliation for Chinese assistance to the attacking American air men.)

Never forget that we are a nation of immigrants who never lived in a long house, a hogan, a cliff, an igloo or a tepee sometime prior to April 2, 1513.

This is our Open Thread. Please feel free to present your thoughts on any topic that comes to mind.

The Watering Hole: May 5 – Bay View, WI

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On May 5th, 1886, the Wisconsin governor set a militia upon labor protesters in Bay View. Six adults and a sixteen year-old boy died as a result of a fracas over labor rights at an iron rolling mill there.

Labor rights are still an issue with the governor of Wisconsin.

This is our Open Thread. Please feel free to present your thoughts on any topic that comes to mind.

The Watering Hole: Wednesday, May 4, 2011: HUMP DAY

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People around the world are rejoicing that Osama bin Laden was killed.

I am not. And I find it disconcerting that we celebrate anyone’s death.

“Everyone” knows we killed the mastermind behind 9/11. Or did we? Since there was no investigation, no trial, are we not supporting vigilante justice?

Meanwhile, the noise machine on the right is giving credit to Bush II, and his policies of torturing suspects as the reason Obama was finally able to track Bin Laden down to a mansion in Pakistan.

But if torture is so effective, so able to learn the location of the ticking time bomb in time to diffuse it, why didn’t 7 years of torturing people under Bush II lead to the whereabouts of Bin Laden?

One thing is certain, Bin Laden could not have been tried for the crimes of 9/11. A trial would have revealed the jumbo-jet sized holes in the official story, the physical and technological impossibilities one has to swallow in order to belief the official explanation into the events of that day. I believe a trial would have resulted in acquittal.

But Bin Laden had to die, and he is dead. But the cause he championed lives on, and will continue to live on, as long as the very few prosper at the expense of everyone else. To the extent Bin Laden fought against the great disparity of wealth in this world, that fight continues, and will continue until we decide we no longer need to heap vast amounts of wealth on a very few families to ensure the survival of our species.

To the extent he fought to instill Islam as the world’s religion, that cause will eventually fade as we, as a species, realize we are all connected, and no longer care for the religious zealotry that divides us and pits us against each other.

(The views expressed in this article are the author’s alone, and not reflective of everyone at the Zoo.)

This is our Open Thread. Feel free share your thoughts on this, or any other subject.