The Bosque Boys

The Missouri legislature earlier passed a new law that mandates most abortion clinics must meet the standards for an "ambulatory surgical center." Story here. Link from Layman Online.

This law sounds reasonable to me. Abortion is surgery, therefore abortion clinics should meet the same requirements that other outpatient surgery clinics must meet.

But no. Planned Parenthood is now suing in Federal Court to block enforcement of the law, saying it would impose hardship.

I guess in some quarters you may attack motherhood and perhaps even apple pie, but don't touch abortion or Planned Parenthood.

While in Savannah, we stopped and visited with a couple of black men on the sidewalk near the river working with palm leaves and sweet grass. One was making baskets, the other palm-leaf "roses." The older man, making the baskets, talked about the place of sweet-grass baskets in the local culture in the old days-- a skill brought over from Africa and used by the slaves to make storage containers and carriers for food and water. He harvested the sweet-grass himself on the coastal islands. However, getting the grass is becoming harder, he said. Rich people are buying up the islands for their own private use, and developers are putting in resorts and condos. Result, less sweet-grass, and that which remains often legally off-limits. In addition, the government is now trying to protect the remaining sweet-grass and frowns upon harvest. He confessed he did not know what the future held for people like himself. A small basket of his now sits on our coffee table.

This conversation reminded me that economic development, and government regulation, often hits the little guy hard. I've seen it in agriculture. Housing creeps out into the country, and suddenly the hog farmer whose family has been raising hogs for generations finds he has neighbors who object, sometimes in court, to the smells and sounds of hogs. And, government regulations often hurt small producers. Regulations are written to prevent feedlot runoff, or to up the standards for milk production; small producers find it difficult to meet the cost of the regulations, and so must either expand or get out of the business.

The irony is that the local environment might be able to handle a few dispersed small producers, but is strained by a collection of large producers.

The Washington Monthly has come out with a ranking of the nation's colleges and universities based on "what colleges are doing for the country."

We use three criteria that we believe best measure the impact schools have on the country. The first is social mobility: does the school do a good job recruiting and graduating poorer students? The second is research: is the school supporting the scientific and humanistic study that is key to our national strength, by producing PhDs and winning research grants? And the third is service: how effectively does the school foster an ethic of giving back to the country, either through military or civilian service?

How refreshing: analysis based on contribution to the common good, rather than merely what might be good for individual gain. Also, since good education involves the formation of good character, I think this effort at ranking is needed.

Top ranked National University: Texas A&M
Top Liberal Arts College: Presbyterian College (S.C.)
Top Community College: Atlanta Technical College

The Templeton Foundation also recognizes colleges on the basis of programs for character formation. The Templeton Honor Roll is here.

Scientists in Britain are asking permission to create animal-human hybrids for genetic research. Story here from The Guardian.

One of the foundation stones of our culture has been the idea/belief that humans are unique. We hold ourselves to standards we do not apply to animals--a dog may be put down for killing a person, but will not be put on trial. A man may be charged with killing a dog, but it will not be a murder charge. We may protest the construction of a new dam on a river, but will not hold a protest at the site of a beaver dam. If while driving, the only two choices are hitting an animal, and having a head-on with another car, we run over the animal. If we are stranded with another person and a dog, and have only enough food for two persons, we feed the other person and let the dog starve, or eat it. And so on.

Animal-human hybrids raise profoundly disturbing questions. But, science has no mechanism within itself to consider whether or not something that can be done should be done. Science cannot ask or answer "should" questions. We must turn to philosophy and religion.

Reader/Commentator Tocq sent this link that pertains to this issue.

Some newspapers, including the Washington Post, did not run a popular comic strip over the weekend because it might offend Muslims. The same papers have had no qualms about running materials that might offend Christians. I guess bombs and beheadings speak louder than words. Story.

Liberals said there would be more censorship if Bush were elected; there is, but not from Ashcroft, Gonzales, et al.

While in Georgia visiting our son in the Navy, we four (me, wife, son, son's girlfriendnowfiancee) made an overnight trip to Savannah. The old section truly is a beautiful city: Spanish moss, old buildings, streets laid out in squares, a waterfront along the river.

One thing I noticed was advertisements for "Ghost Tours" showing "Haunted Savanannah." We ran into one such tour while walking that night.

Such tours are not unique to Savannah. I've noticed such in other cities, and any bookstore can sell you print versions of regional ghost stories. Why the popularity? Here's a speculation. Modernity is ultimately dissatisfying to a human being. We need mystery, depth, connection to a larger universe than provided by the senses. Most folks, even moderns, have needs that basically are religious. If you don't participate in a religious community, who ya gonna call to have some sort of numinous experience? I'd like to know the background and belief-systems, and religious participation of those who take the tours, especially those who take more than one tour.

Decades ago Chesterton wrote in one of his Father Brown stories that the decline of Christianity was not being accompanied by a rise in strict atheism, but by a rise in superstition.

From the Atlanta Journal Constitution online, a new Hindu temple will open.

Almost all Hindus are Indian, or of Indian descent. And they have made very good additions to America. Welcome folks. Though I will pray for your conversion to Christianity. But, you are welcome to pray for my conversion to Hinduism if you choose. We'll respect each other's beliefs and affirm our own.

Entering Arkansas we noticed a sign urging us to visit the Wineries of Arkansas. Along I-40 in the western part of the state we saw billboards for this or that winery, inviting us to stop in for a tasting. Same thing in Tennessee. And earlier this summer, believe it or not, in Iowa.

I'm guessing that wine-tasting tourism must be the latest boomer thing.

While we passed on the wineries, we did stop almost daily for a mid-afternoon break in a coffeeshop, both Starbucks and independents. Even in the mountains of western North Carolina we found a coffee shop with wi-fi in a small town along the highway; and we were not the only customers.

It seems to me that Americans, as a whole, must be in pretty good shape financially. And must have confidence in their economic future. I'll believe the contrary to be true when I see coffee shops closing and wine sales going down.

I have heard rumblings from members of our small but dedicated reading community in re their expectation that the Okie Gardener might offer some words of wisdom concerning Barry Bonds and his record-breaking 756th career homerun.

Reminder: Last spring, the Gardener penned a very fine mini memoir in re Baseball, which reflected in part on Barry Bonds and 713 (review here).

Roger Angell, in the New Yorker, offers an instructive look at the latest chapter of the story here. Angell points out that the baseball purists who bemoan the steroid-assisted record as violating the sanctity of baseball seem to assume erroneously that baseball existed undefiled. Angell is right to remind us that baseball never really was a "kid's game."

My thoughts: Like the Gardener confessed last year, I cannot care about Bonds or his contemporaries. Although my lack of concern springs from slightly different grievances, my apathy for modern baseball nevertheless overrides any feelings of excitement or disgust.

One personal note: I am glad Bonds did not break the record in Dodger Stadium. There was speculation that Dodger fans were set to "boo" the "surly cheat" from the detestable Giants. I am glad the historic ball field at Elysian Park played no role in this culmination.

Apropos in the most general sense, below are some recycled thoughts on my youth in Southern California and winning (and losing) the Dodger way (originally written in reaction to a piece in defense of rowdy "free speech" at publicly financed stadiums--the original in full here).

Perhaps the game wasn't purer back then--but I certainly was. Thoughts on the game from when I was a kid:

I love West Coast baseball.

I grew up going to Dodger games in Chavez Ravine. I still hear Vin Scully in my dreams.

An aside: different sport, but I continue to mourn the death of Chick Hearn. I came of age during a glorious period of sports broadcasting in the City of Angels.

My dad took me to my first baseball game when I was five or six. Someone told him that one-dollar tickets were available--but upon inspection of the grandstands, we opted for the three-dollar loge seats (FYI: those seats are now $45.00 per customer for walk-ups on game day).

There were no banners back then (or facial hair on the players, for that matter). The O'Malley's didn't allow that sort of thing; it wasn't in keeping with "winning the Dodger way." I can't remember anyone selling beer--but I know it must have been for sale. People must have been imbibing--but I can't remember any drunks.

I rarely sat close enough to see balls and strikes--or near enough for the ballplayers to hear anything I yelled--but I don't remember riding the umps or taunting the opposing players.

Undoubtedly, my memory has filtered out much ugliness; my mind tends to work that way. On the other hand, California was a more laid-back place back then.

For example, living our lives in the world's foremost car culture, hearing a car horn was extremely rare. And it was almost always friendly or essential (employed for the elevated purpose of avoiding an accident). People who drove around honking their horns were looking for trouble. The dominant Southern California subculture back then was "Okie" or Southern. Honking your horn, yelling coarse insults and/or obscene gestures was tantamount to "calling out" another motorist. The recipients of such calumny were honor bound to answer these insults with physical violence. One might reasonably argue that such retaliation was the opposite of civility--but, in effect, the strict code automobuello kept most folks relatively docile and polite. The influx of "New Yorkers" (meaning all East Coasters and Yankees from the "Old Northwest") and later Middle Easterners and other international cultures changed all that. Now there is plenty of honking, yelling and "flipping people off." Forgettaboutit! Of course, the one exception to all this communication involves motorists who look like they may be gang-bangers. For fear of lethal retaliation, most Angelinos mind their manners in confrontations with "dangerous looking" young people.

Having said all that, I can imagine Dodger Stadium is a much rowdier (and probably more dangerous) place than it was when I was growing up. Back then we were the guests of the O'Malley family; if we didn't treat their facility with respect, I think we expected to be asked to leave. We certainly would have never questioned the ownership's right to tell us to go home. Perhaps, such a request might have elicited an "easy, dude, I'm going" sort of huff--but I can guarantee none of us would have reached for our First Amendment lawyers.

We live in interesting times.

Disclosure: I have not actually been back to Dodger Stadium since the O'Malleys sold the club to Newscorp in 1998, which subsequently sold the team to some guy from Boston.

The Bourne movie franchise is an astounding money-maker. Well-made and exciting, these movies are entertaining. But, are they good for us?

In these movies the enemy is our own CIA: a plot from far, far too many movies. Hollywood keeps casting the CIA as villains; and I assume that American public perception is thereby influenced.

The CIA helped us win the Cold War. And now, in this age of Islamic Terrorism, we need a smart and efficient CIA in the worst way. We need the CIA to recruit the best and brightest, to be well-funded, so that it can successfully take its place in our first line of defence. Can the CIA recruit successfully, receive adequate funding, and function with purpose and good moral, if the Agency is demonized continually by Hollywood? If the American public is taught not to respect those who labor on our behalf, indeed to assume that they are the enemy?

Don't bother leaving a comment about some past excesses. I am talking now. I would rather my family not be blown up tomorrow by some fanatic shouting the praises of Allah.

I don't plan to buy a movie ticket to see the CIA trashed, again.

The next morning after our day in the Smokies, we took a sidetrip to Dillsboro, North Carolina, home of the Dogwood Crafters cooperative (website). In a small house in a small mountain town, crafts from many, many high country crafters are for sale: corn shuck dolls, tatted lace, quilts, pottery, baskets, and more. We left with a wood-split basket and a ceramic bowl. Since the items are sold through a cooperative, not a commercial gallery, almost all the purchase price goes to the artisan.

Farmers get less than a dime for each loaf of bread you buy. Factory workers, especially in countries without unions, get a pittance from each item you purchase. For this, and other reasons, I like to buy directly from artisans/coops and farmers/farmers' coops. It seems to me that the producers should enjoy more of the fruits of their labor.

So check out your local farmers' market, roadside vegetable stand, artisan. Check into buying from coops. Viva localism.

The doctor comes into your hospital room. You assume he is there to heal you, or at least to help ease your suffering if healing seems impossible. You view the doctor as an agent of life. But, if euthanasia becomes legal and more common, then when the doctor walks through the door you will not be sure that she is an agent of life. She might be the agent of death. Without your consent? Sure. Your money is running out; the insurance company does not want to continue payments; your children are distressed at your suffering and decide they can't take it anymore . . . The doctor agrees, and assures the family that the end will be painless; and, oh, don't tell the patient what is in the syringe, that would only cause mental anxiety and distress. The doctor enters: is he an agent of life or death? You don't know.

Some related thoughts from Cardinal George Pell.

Leaving Smoky Mountain National Park on the North Carolina side, we traveled US 19 from Cherokee to Bryson City where we stayed the night. Along the way we met few cars, and the motels were older and sometimes showing decay. Bryson City was almost empty of tourists, though obviously set up to cater to people coming and going from the Park. Leaving the next morning we discovered the reason: another highway, four-lanes, had bypassed the town by a couple of miles, US 74.

The economic paths of America have always been changing. Centers become margins and back again. In early Missouri, my home state, the best roads in the state 180 years ago led to the rivers. Commerce flowed along them. Until the railroads. Then the centers changed as new economic pathways flowed with goods and people. Interstates and highway upgrades do the same thing today. Build a nice motel in 1947 and it may not have much traffic by it in 2007. Should the state compensate the owners?

Capitalism has risks as well as rewards. Take away the risks and we have created another system, one that probably will not reward anyone. In the last week some financial institutions have taken a hit in the mortgage industry. Some borrowers are defaulting. There have been a few calls for bailouts. Sad, but these are adults, who should have known the risks. Life does not come with no-risk guarantees.

We spent some time in the glorious Smoky Mountains. Staying the night just east of Knoxville, we traveled down US 441 from I-40 the next morning. Mile after mile of tourist traps and outlet stores and real estate offices. Most of the time I despise such places, but that day they struck me differently. I saw the tackiness, but it seemed appealing: American opportunism and ambition at work. We even stopped at two of the outlet stores: the wife needed new sandals and I needed a new wallet--since we don't buy Made in China, we must make an effort to find such things, and that day were successful.

The commercial activity ceased as the terrain grew rougher and the ridges higher. Then into the National Park. No entry fee! A free wonder. Green comes in a lot of shades: ferns in the shadows, maples and hemlocks; water drips and flows and falls. We took a few short hikes: within fifty yards of the road the vegetation silenced the motors of our fellow tourists. Steep slopes, high ridges, shadowy ravines, clouds above, below, and all around with occasional rain. The view from Clingman's Dome was grey. When the sun did break through at lower elevations the distant views were blurred by the "smoke" of moisture from the vegetation.

And, "smoke" from pollution. The highest ridges of the park have trees dead from acid rain, much of it caused by automobiles. We are driving ourselves to death. Including my wife and I. Interstate highways are ribbons of individual freedom--get up and go--but do carry costs. We are no longer a nation tied together by steel rails. We really had no choice if we wanted to visit the Smokies and see our son in Georgia, drive we must. When I was a child my father would take my mother and sister and I to the train station in Brookfield, Missouri. We took an early morning passenger train to Kansas City, about a 120 mile trip. After shopping and seeing a medical specialist we returned in the evening. That passenger line runs no more.

Driving from Nashville to Knoxville on I-40 I saw an information sign reading "Appalachian Center for Craft" at the next exit. We made the exit and drove the winding 6 miles to the small campus overlooking the Tennessee River.

The Center, a part of Tennessee Tech, brings together students, resident artists, faculty, and regional artisans, to learn and to produce. Web site. While traditional skills are taught and learned, many of the pieces on display and for sale have moved Appalachian artistry into the 21st century. Lots of wonderful stuff. A ceramic bowl from there now sits on our dining room table.

Schools can do wonderful things for communities, and for the nation. Our Land-Grant universities have had tremendous impact in agriculture and engineering. Law Schools shape future judges and politicians. Our national investment in education--going back to colonial days--has made our country a leader in most fields. There is a reason so many foreign students want to attend college in the United States.

But, education is broader than "book learning;" more than learning skills artistic or mental. Education, at least education that is worth while, is also about character formation. It is not enough to have an artistic eye. A student must learn the discipline of working the clay and shaping it. Rejecting attempt after attempt until a satisfying piece is made. Patience and determination as well as skill must be developed. Education cannot be value-neutral. What sort of boys and girls, men and women do your local schools seek to create?

Recently my wife and I took a trip to Georgia to see the son in the Navy. This post and others to follow will offer random thoughts from our travel.

American radio is too homogenized. FM radio from Oklahoma to Georgia and back was pretty much the same. "Country" stations played the same stuff in Tennessee and South Carolina. "Urban" stations all sounded alike. "Classic Rock" (aka Geezer Rock) played the same rotations. Depressing. Coming into Memphis on the first night I vainly scanned the FM dial for some "Memphis Music;" you know, blues or even Rockabilly. No luck. AM radio has some regional variety: usually I could find one AM station playing music I associated with its locality--"Mountain Music" in the hills, older Country near Nashville, etc.

In only a couple of short stretches could I pick up no Spanish-language radio.

Along the Interstate we had to look for regional cuisine amid the McDonald's and Arby's and Flying J's. We were able to find local, independent places, but had to look for them.

When did we begin the process of eroding regional cultures in America? With the Sears & Roebuck catalog or the A&P Grocery? Later with the radio networds? Earlier as we developed from a nation of states into a nation-state? I am not so foolishly romantic as to wish for regional cultures to come back in all their details, but I think we are losing something.

I did find that regional accents remain. Tennessee has at least three. Viva localism.