Friday Tidings

WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange    The Guardian-UK We’ve heard there is no honor among thieves, but when the infamous Julian Assange (WikiLeaks) protects his hacker’s identities, one wonders if that’s true or not.  Listening to an Assange interview, I get the impression he thinks he’s a computer-age Robin Hood.  His timing to release 20,000 emails hacked from the Democratic National Committee was telling enough, but his promise to release more reveals an attempt to control the outcome of an election.  For those in sensitive positions, I offer a new adage:  If you want to keep a secret don’t use a computer. Even more critical, this latest WikiLeaks episode reveals that we’re not secure enough in a cyberattack world. Our nation’s sensitive computers need to be resilient to hackers. What if enemy hackers got into our power grids and nuclear facilities? A good firewall is not enough....

Just in time for the Democratic Convention, Dinesh D’Souza's latest film, Hillary’s America comes to movie theaters across America.  According to D’Souza, the once pro-slavery Democratic party has merely transitioned to one of pro-enslavement.  The movie traces America's unsavory racist and greedy history perpetuated by the hands of....wait for it....the Democratic party. The 2016 election highlights the discord in our nation and D’Souza adds fuel to the inferno. He claims that Democrat's political self-interest rises above national interests. I suggest that some Republicans are not immune to this either. The 3-minute movie trailer gets to the heart of D’Souza’s warning: be wary of the Democratic party’s true intent—they want to "steal" America. The movie is only showing in limited theaters, but I wonder if it really matters. When the political shouting gets this loud, people can't hear and it's easier to stop listening. Which...

Okay, this might seem judgmental. But allow me a bit of commentary on what I observed.  It was a balmy July weekend afternoon on the ferry. Who could complain with sunny skies and blue waters?  Almost immediately I noticed a curly-headed boy of about 11 and his dad. As they walked by, the dad gently placed his hand on his son’s back, pointing to what appeared to be a dorsal fin popping up in the Puget Sound waters. They quickly went to the outside deck to get a closer look. That’s when I saw another dad and son, roughly the same age as the other duo. But they were seated opposite one another on bench seats.  The dad, with his back to me, was talking on his cell phone. His son sat solemnly—never interrupting or moving from his seat to check out the passing scenery. The dad’s conversation was audible to all close by. He talked about his personal trainer and his intense work-outs, an upcoming business trip to New Orleans, those going on the t...

No need to bother you with statistics. They’re grim. Just like everyone knows someone with cancer, we all know someone dealing with drug addiction.  The one thing science is clarifying is that drug addiction is a disease. While it’s easy to sermonize about choices, once addicted, the choices are much tougher. Many opiate addictions stem from an original prescription for pain. People unwittingly exchange their pain for an addiction.  For the addicted, drug tolerance builds up and more drugs are needed to prevent the onset of agonizing withdrawal symptoms.  Non-drug users see the addict’s mood-swings, manipulative behaviors, lying, and lack of responsibility. While the addict just seeks relief.   Nationwide, communities are dealing with increased crime from addicts stealing in order to fund their relentless habits. Whether we’re crime victims, or family members dealing with loved ones in addiction’s grip, we’re all p...

I’ve run out of words. It’s not exactly writer’s block. It’s more like writer’s fatigue. April through June is my grant-writing season.  Think of it like begging, but with convincing paragraphs. Goal: get money for school kids. I love our rural school. You couldn’t ask for a more pristine setting, or for dedicated teachers with small class sizes. Kindergartners through twelve grade all on one campus—most kids say it’s like a family. But we’re a relatively poor family.  In grant writer’s lingo we’re called “underserved”.   That’s a gracious way of saying we have our fair share of poverty and not enough resources to help alleviate some of its consequences.  Grant funding can bring a bit of nifty technology to classrooms, provide rural kids with the chance see the big city theater and science center, or even buy them boots and a coat for winter. Besides summer heat, July brings polite grant rejection letters. Foun...