So Jimmy Carter has died. He had the no-nonsense focus of a submariner coupled to the good aw shucks kindness and honesty of a country farm boy. Logic and probity made for an unusual - and not always easy - political mix. Who today remembers Brezhnev and the Russian Politburos fury when Carter met the humans right activist Vladimir Bukovsky in the White House ? He initiated great changes that his successors built on and benefited from. The world - and the US - were very different places when Carter was President. What must he have made of recent events ? With Clinton ill we wonder which former Presidents will attend the funeral.
More life in town. The hotel car parks filling up rapidly with folks here for the Hogmanay celebrations. Large London registered Range Rovers ten a penny. No wonder they're called Chelsea tractors. Reservations in the restaurants are absolutely impossible until the 5th. On Sunday afternoon as we drove home there was a solid stream of large cars streaming into town from the South. It seems the golf courses and spas are going to be busy.
This morning we stop and listen to a chatty raven. It's sitting in the branches of the larger of the two fir trees at the estuary end of the golf course. Ravens can make the most unusual noises: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Raven/sounds Few trees manage to survive the windy conditions but these two are resolute but scrawny things. For trees, when everything else fails, just holding on is all that matters.
Some more pre-Hogmanay music :https://youtu.be/78f6o77_OKE?t=166
Pets in Ukraine :https://hachikofoundation.org/
Figure 8 intriguing. Apart from guns America isn't so different :https://www.brookings.edu/articles/why-did-u-s-homicides-spike-in-2020-and-then-decline-rapidly-in-2023-and-2024/?
8 comments:
Thank you Angus. That article on the correlation between poverty, education and employment as it relates to homicide was fascinating. With the exception of the availability of guns, NZ is in a very similar position. Unfortunately, the current rightwing government is taking a very punitive approach to education dropouts/absenteeism and cutting back on support services for those most at risk. And they don’t care because their votes come from the more wealthy, right wing. Sad. Short sighted.
Hari OM
The report was indeed interesting reading...although, anecdotally, it has long been known that young men with no focus often end up on the dark side of life and was one of the arguments for national service.
And you are a mind reader, Angus, for yesterday I was thinking how I enjoyed the Runrig and all that was needed to complete the year was some Skippinish and a burst of Ali Bain... chance of the latter??? YAM xx
I enjoyed the gentleness of Skippinish the sort of singing that encourages everyone to think they can sing, too.
Jimmy Carter will be missed, by the world. He hung on like those trees in the wind.
How they could sing this song without tears streaming down their faces...what a beautiful song.
Thank you for highlighting Nate Mook's work in Ukraine.
Jimmy Carter wasn't flawless but he was a truly good man. I hope we won't lose sight of the high standard he set as he becomes part of all our yesterdays. I'm always happy to see into the vase house window.
Jimmy Carter was a good and decent man, the world needs more leaders like him. We have a lot of ravens around our home in Eastern Washington, they are quite the conversationalists.
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