https://youtu.be/YY_8WzcHqMQ?is=HbAU3Cg5-GBML7Jt

As if history of US government agencies placing “agents” in houses of worship in the past was not bad enough (ML King and others surveilled in the 1960s for example), it seems that the current administration extends its oath violations to houses of worship again

https://religionnews.com/2026/08/20/11-faith-groups-accuse-trump-administration-of-violating-court-order-while-spying-on-churches/?lid=3gv9folpdyol

Some of the notable ones (in no particular order):

• Assignations of Robert “Bobby” Kennedy and Rev. Martin Luther King

• The Woodstock music festival (albeit as an observer from afar rather than as a participant)

• The Kent State tragedy where Ohio State National Guard soldiers fired on and killed students protesting

• The Apollo missions

• “Dolly” the cloned sheep

• The comic and uplifting genius of Mel Blanc, Bob Newhart, Jack Benny, Bob Hope, Jonathan Winters, Robin Williams, Steve Martin and so many others

• The spirit lifting art and music of the cartoons and cartoonists including Huckleberry Hound, Looney Tunes, Mickey Mouse and friends, The Flintstones and other Hanna Barbara, and Jay Ward and company (do not know how I could have survived without the toons from the Rocky and Bullwinkle Show)

• The stead drumbeat of extractive greed worldwide along with wars to get or keep or terrorize or protect

• Elementary school air raid drills and the never ending fear of nuclear war—along with the age of reason where we all realized the probably futility of hiding under a school desk in the event of such

I was taught by the examples of lived lives of people with clear and present moral values—teachers do not teach insomuch as they enable others to learn

At an early age I underwent a transformation from being a boy who relished the gung-ho and comradeship of soldiering and combat against the unknown and known foes to becoming a man embracing the ethos of “Thou shalt not kill” and the God-given value of life from beginning to end as well as the admonition to “judge not lest you be judged by the same measure” (one Way with innumerable paths)

And so, I woke up this morning with the memory of one of the most powerful anti-war messages in song that I believe could help many others struggling in this present day—One Tin Soldier—Craven—YouTube

Peace

I admit that I was too young to really be aware of the early Mercury flights and I do not really recall much about the Gemini flights other than the space walks

And when Apollo missions started to fly I guess I was just at that age where magic became real

I also remember how we listened as a family to the Christmas greetings from the astronauts and I remember how our teacher brought a television into the classroom (the only time that I remember that in a classroom before college) in order to witness live the splashdown and retrieval of the first crew returning from the surface of the moon

I remember going with a friend to see the roll out for the first Space Shuttle craft in 1978—being close enough to it to all-but touch it

I watched in horror and with deep sadness when the Challenger mission exploded after liftoff

I have watched and witnessed the missions on the ISS—a planet-bound voyeur as those crews gathered more and more information on living in near weightlessness—and the lessons to apply to my own physical training (micro fracture; micro tear; body recovery with new and better bone and muscle)

Heady times—and yes I and a full throated Star Trek geek as well

Today I watched the Artemis II launch with apprehension and pride

And I felt some little sadness in that I anticipate the current POTUS using the Artemis crew’s success in the same manner that POTUS Richard M Nixon did—basking in the light of their glory so as to bolster his own image (phony then and still phony today)

Why are we cursed by men so small that they count themselves “great” by serving as the President of the United States when by the luck of timing they have the opportunity to congratulate people of real accomplishment

Today I am reminded of the wonder-filled universe where we abide and the feats of discovery that lay ahead for those who dare as well as the learning for all who pay attention

Even as these past few years I have been reminded that some persons with limited vision and self-limited spirits can cause me great sadness if I let them

Pay attention to the wonders

Pay attention to those to seek better—not just the astronauts but also those here on Earth of “love fiercely” in a time where «Love is the answer» (Love is always the answer—what is the question)

Peace

I admit that I was too young to really be aware of the early Mercury flights and I do not really recall much about the Gemini flights other than the space walks

When Apollo missions started to fly I guess I was just at that age where magic became real

I remember how we listened as a family to the Christmas greetings from the astronauts and I remember how our teacher brought a television into the classroom (the only time that I remember that in a classroom before college) in order to witness live the splashdown and retrieval of the first crew returning from the surface of the moon

I remember going with a friend to see the roll out for the first Space Shuttle craft in 1978—being close enough to it to all-but touch it

I watched in horror and with deep sadness when the Challenger mission exploded after liftoff

I have watched and witnessed several missions on the ISS—me a planet-bound voyeur as those crews gathered more and more information on living in near weightlessness

Heady times—and yes I am a full on Star Trek geek as well

Today I watched the Artemis II launch with apprehension and pride

Today I am reminded of the wonder-filled universe where we abide and the feats of discovery that lay ahead for those who dare as we as the learning for all who pay attention

Be in awe of the wonders

Pay attention to those to seek better for us—not just the astronauts but also those here on Earth who “love fiercely”

Love is the answer

Peace

These are some of the most anxious times that I have experienced in more than 6 decades as a US born citizen

How can I keep myself and my loved ones safe?

On the Flag of United States of America

All whom I have known who have been engaged on a field of battle tell me that it is one of the most disorienting experiences.

Hyper-vigilance is the means to survival

Who is friend?

Who is foe?

Where is danger?

Where is safety?

One ancient and venerable means for knowing where “your people” can be found is the display of the “battle banner”—held aloft so that comrades will know where it is safe to return to

My flag for six plus decades has been one that contains 50 stars in a blue field and 13 red and white alternating stripes

We started school each day with a salute to and pledge of allegiance to that flag—with solemn remembrance for those who have sacrificed and who are sacrificing for the sake of that flag **and the country for which it stands**

As I drive through town in recent years I see some variations on that flag:

* a blue line under a stripe meant to commemorate fallen public servants especially peace officers—so called “blue lives matter”

* a red line under a stripe denoting support for fire fighters

* a green line under a stripe announcing support for border patrol

None of these variations are official United States of America flags as described in the US flag code—and in my understanding of that code they trespass

My ancestor Israel rallied to a flag with 13 stripes and a field of 13 stars—Old Glory

Other ancestors and kin and kith rallied to later adopted banners representing our changed nation state

On My Question

In times of distress my instinct is to rally with the current US flag

Unfortunately I believe that some that may wave that banner may consider me an “outsider”—supporting the “wrong” ideology or the “wrong” party or the “wrong” leader

And added to that ”identification“ I am concerned by the recent actions of some government personnel who may use deadly force in order to install fear and control even when their safety is not actually threatened

When agents of any type become “trigger happy” or give the impression that they may be

And

When the national leadership over said agents immediately jumps to broadcast support for agent action before any reasonable investigation

And

When national leadership pronounces that all actions by said agents are “absolutely immune” from any consequences

Then

Who is safe?

When are we safe?

Where are we safe?

Asking for all of my friends and kith and kin

A few years ago now I noticed a stream of female “friend” requests on a social media platform where the requesters were not someone that I knew and they seemed to use a similar (if not identical) headshot or other photo of the same woman. Shortly thereafter I noticed some TV commercials with an actor or model having a remarkable resemblance to these “friend” requests.

“Hmmm” I said to myself.

And I made a note to use more caution in my social media “friends” than I had before.

Recently I have also had other “friend” requests with an offer to “chat” and even one requesting telephone or other channel contact.

In truth, some of these may be innocent and just lonely women lacking caution looking for someone else with the same.

Not me.

I try to be nice, be sociable, be helpful, be kind—and I have healthy boundaries. (And I encourage everyone else to develop them for yourselves.)

Do not expect me to engage in chats with persons not known by me.

**The Risks**

Despite my cautious stance and attempts at self protection I may look like a target to someone with ill willed intentions.

In my past work life the security teams made sure to regularly emphasize that each of us was a “whale”—a target that when landed (compromised) might yield some great value to an attacker.

And these security teams sought to keep us up to date on how to prevent becoming a victim and, even worse, a gateway to other victims.

**The Stance**

If we are not already friends in the physical world then I am unlikely to become your friend in a social media setting.

If you post something that I agree with and want to amplify then I am likely to repost and I may add a comment in that.

On a rare occasion I may DM my support for you where I feel that a more private setting is appropriate.

My reason for being active on social media is to uplift those who I can and amplify where I believe appropriate and maybe help bring a little bit more justice and peace into our fragile and discordant world.

**Peace**

I am an American.

Don’t try to pigeon hole me.

Don’t ask me to betray those principles as laid out in the Declaration of Independence

Don’t tread on my rights as laid out in the US Constitution and upheld by 250 years of jurisprudence

Don’t Eff with me and we’ll be fine

Eff with me and I will remind you—I am an American

On Identity

Identity, noun, singular

1. The condition of being a certain person or thing

2. The set of characteristics by which a person or thing is definitively recognizable or known.

Perhaps it is because I was raised in a certain faith and went on to study math and science, and engineering that I think of identity in terms of the definitions above (thank you DuckDuckGo and American Heritage Dictionary and wordnik).

Each person or thing is a unique entity even when they are constructed with the same model and instructions and seeming same components with very similar characteristics.

If I had a genetic twin (same DNA) then folks might see us and confuse us one from the other and yet each of us is a unique person with different (and very similar) fingerprints.

Perhaps because of my faith and family and schooling I realized early in life that the term race could not be applied accurately to human beings. When you asked my race at an early age I might have responded “human” and later “homo sapiens”. Hair texture, skin color, hair color, and the other usual mistaken “racial” markings are at best signatures for mammalian breeds and varieties in the same way that when one breeds, say, Collies wherein a litter may contain shaggier coated pups (roughs) and short hair coated pups (smooths) and each will have a distinctive coloration and pattern in both their skin and hair—and each will be a canine Collie.

Folks who have a “white race” orientation will struggle with this. To some a “white person” seems to be a breed apart that cannot contain a lineage that is not a “white person” (I would be surprised to find that such a critter exists nor any verifiable source parentages than line up with that.) Others will “allow” some “other” inclusions in the lineage assuming they are “pure” (again a construct that seems meaningless from my study of such groups as the German NAZIs).

Of course, folks who want to create keep statistics regarding human variation have forced me on occasion to check the “White” or “Caucasian” box and I sometimes have used “Other” or “Mixed” because these distinctions do not have any meaning to me (and I want to resist to imposed definition)

On Group Identity

Identity, noun, singular

3. The awareness that an individual or group has of being a distinct, persisting entity.

4. The fact or condition of being the same as something else.

5. The fact or condition of being associated or affiliated with something else. The condition of being a certain person or thing

These group identifying definitions relate to how I choose to view myself in my world space. I have been a member of certain civic groups. I have selected a political group for purposes of elections in a ”primary” or party-affiliated election. I am a baptized member of a church. I have a birth relationship to my parents, siblings, cousins, nephews, and nieces. I live on a certain block in a certain community. I pay taxes to certain legal entities. I have had medical procedures for certain conditions performed at certain clinics by certain health professionals (and nurses are health professionals no matter what some folks in a certain capital may say). Ad nauseam.

None of these are me but rather aspects of who I have been, am, and maybe will be. These aspects do not define me in any way even as I agree that they may influence certain biases or perspectives—just like every other human on the planet.

On “Woke”

In my upbringing and schooling I was told that I need to choose and work from the basis of “an informed conscience”—a moral foundation coupled with an awareness of truth.

When I encountered the “woke” phenomenon a few years ago I saw core principles that fit well into my moral foundation:

• Diversity as opposed to a bias toward selecting from one group or another

• Equity as opposed to unequal opportunity or reward for some group over another

• Inclusion as opposed to excluding any group

When the political zeitgeist pronounced woke as being some sort of evil I had a visceral reaction—these ideas seemed moral and good and thus those protesting them must be looking to engage in some malicious mischief.

It wasn’t until later that I discovered the notion of “identity politics”—the idea that a citizen would vote based on the group that they “identified with” seemed so un-American, so foreign to me that I had trouble seeing in front of me.

(Yes, I do have a bias that says that people are basically good and smart enough to not fall for such nonsense.)

On Popular Group Identities

In serious study of American History I became exposed to the past and present ways that folks came/come together behind an idea and/or person. It seems natural as we humans are social beings right from birth. It also seems foolish in how folks let themselves be suckered into believing that this or that would “solve everything”.

(Oh, to be sure, I can offer my ideas on what it takes to solve everything and I know that too few are interested.)

As such, I try to avoid really becoming identified with any political grouping—although certain questionnaires may try to create a false identification based on my answers to a certain set of questions. (They never really know whether I am answering truthfully or playing at some game of my own.)

On Being American

I enjoy the privilege and responsibilities of a lineage that traces back to colonists in Massachusetts settling in around 1640 (Salem Village-present day Danvers). As I look on the map in various locales I see counties and such named for my ancestor Israel Putnam. My fore-bearers migrated from the east to south eastern Illinois (Wabash county) in the early 19th century and my ancestor William Hugh Putnam served with the Illinois Volunteer regiment during the Civil War.

My parents were each born just before the economic collapse known as the Great Depression of the 1930s and each of those families migrated to Danville Illinois to find work.

My immediate family relocated to Los Angeles in the late 1950’s seeking better employment opportunities and homesteading in North Hollywood shortly before I was born.

In my first three decades of life I grew and learned and worked and married in the Los Angeles area. Afterward I and my wife relocated to Sonoma County in California seeking better employment opportunities.

The economists would probably categorize us as “working middle class”.

Over the course of more than five decades I have learned that “being American” is probably not a matter of birth or lineage, certainly not a matter of wealth, not related to any set of “merits” that anyone might choose other than perhaps the “grit, determination, courage. A desire to forge a better life.” that Jay NordLinger describes in ‘Heritage Americans’ and the American Heritage.

Americans take care of themselves and their kin and kith and they don’t like it when someone comes along to mess with that.

Americans desire a clear view to a better future for themselves and their children and grandchildren so long as those children and grandchildren apply the grit, determination, and courage that their ancestors did.

Americans celebrate peoples everywhere becoming more free and look forward to a larger community of free peoples in the world.

Americans deeply value their ability to choose what and how to worship without any government involvement in religion.

Finally, Americans make their own decisions based on real truth instead of the codswaddle of foolish opinions packaged as “breaking news” and “influencer” campaigns.

(In past times a person who spread lies because “someone paid them to lie” would learn how difficult it is to remove tar and feathers from their bodies and clothing.)

I am an American—darn proud and blessed to be one.

She selected to be the first witness, the first disciple, the one who would know the man Jesus from his days in her womb until his crucification and burial and even unto his ascending into heaven after his rising from the tomb.

Her’s was a three decade journey of pain, of wonder, of mothering, of sorrow, and of rejoicing as she watched her son grow, learned, stub toes, craft alongside Joseph, travel and teach as an itinerant rabbi, pray, heal, die at the hands of the civil authorities, and rise from the grave before returning to his heavenly father

As Christians we are called upon to witness in our own day to the repentance for trespass and the glory of redemption and to care for the least amongst us as servant children of the same heavenly father

Witness is more that watching and hearing and feeling—it requires crying out “in the desert” and the acts of kindness and mercy that demonstrate that we carry forth the mission to heal a broken world

When I was a youngster my school was within a mile of the engineering facilities and factory that build machines of aeronautical defense. As a result, we had regular “air raid” drills in addition to “fire drills” and “earthquake drills” (southern California). As a young adult we thought we might have a “peace dividend” wherein youngsters may never have an “air raid” drill again

As an older adult, I am deeply saddened to witness my youngster friends engaged in “active shooter drills” and such. As Pogo stated when crossing the hurtful garbage that polluted his swampy home “We have met the enemy and they are us”

I am even more deeply saddened to learn of all of the young girls and boys who bodies and spirits were molested by adults that they had trusted to care for them. Unfortunately that seems to be a worldwide tragedy having occurred repeatedly over too many generations

As witnesses we are called to uncover as much as possible and shine light upon the infection and give care to the wounded. Pretending that it did not happen or excusing the perpetrators or keeping these vile secrets hidden in darkness cannot be allowed

Similarly we must witness to the evil being carried out by persons who have been entrusted with the highest degree of trust in our land:

* The pretense that an office puts the holder of that office above the laws that govern the rest

* The performatively aggressive assault on immigrants who have committed no wrong and comply with every law and regulation of their status whilst others who are dangerous are left alone

* Constitutionally forbidden taxation of the people by the highest office holders without representation from the people

* The failure of high office holders to uphold and follow the laws as laid out by the legislature as representatives of the people

* The outright oppression of speech and thought and artistic expression that any high office holder disagrees with or finds objectionable

Like Jefferson’s declaration we may be able to go further with this list

Stating by quietly, meekly, in subservience is not an option for any Christian or anyone who loves our country or anyone who is honorable—now is the time to call out the wrongs and raise our banners of resistance and oppose the evil actions of those who commit and support them

Peace

In this season where we live in the shortest daylight days of this year, I want to extend to all who “subscribe” or “follow” here my sincere wish for you and yours to enjoy whatever seasonal celebration you have—for me it is the welcoming of a new dawn in the spirit of Christmas—and best wishes for the time ahead

A Christmas Carol

A few years back I stumbled upon an annotated version of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens—annotated to explain the times and habits of the period of London wherein Dickens set his tale

For me, CC is a tale of redemption—Scrooge is a lost soul weighed under by finances (debts, loans, accounts, money changing, the ‘change) and his own personal disappointments. May all who need to find their way be so blest as he is

In the annotations we learn that:

• A popular entertainment for the Christmas gathering was the sharing of a ghost story—Dicken’s wrote more than one

• Families like the Cratchits obtain a Christmas goose by way of a penny-a-week subscription with a local farmer or merchant

• Bob retrieves the cooked goose from a local bakery because their home did not have a suitable baking oven and the bakers of that time and place were legally required to stoke their oven before leaving for the day so that poor families like the Cratchits could bake something for themselves

• The Christmas pudding, like all English puddings, is either a savory or sweet mixture of dough and other that is then steamed—hence the aroma of laundry when Mrs Cratchit retrieves it from the back porch where her laundry kettle lived

Followers? Subscribers?

I am humbled that anyone decides to follow the little bit that I write herein—but I do feel it as balm for the soul when these days get dreary

I am amused and grateful for those who have DM’ed—I seldom reply and then only to persons who can assess as being “real” and not some ‘bot or having some ill will that I may discover later

If I don’t reply, please just chalk it up to paranoia—“just because I am paranoid doesn’t mean that someone is not out to get me

I do appreciate the DM but I will probably not respond

Peace

For those not familiar with John Griffin, he may be most well know for his 1961 book Black Like Me in which he transformed his skin pigmentation (and that alone) and then entered into the Deep South in order to experience first-hand the experience of a man with dark skin.

I had read Black Like Me as a teenager in order to seek to understand the world where I grew up—1960s Los Angeles suburb North Hollywood—and the American story writ large that I could and could not experience myself.

I came away from that reading with a deep sorrow over the past (recent) history of that part of the nation and its peoples—black and white and other—hoping that the wind of the civil rights movement and changes to law would break the stone coverings of the eyes of those who were in my mind obviously blinded by racism as they could not reconcile that word with their own behaviors

One of the contemporaries of John Griffin who also spoke out against the injustices in that time was the Trappist Monk Father Tom Merton. After the publication of Black Like Me they met and formed a brotherly bond that lasted until their deaths. After the death of Father Merton, the Trappist community asked John Griffin to prepare a biography for them

In light of the current up swelling of the darkness in our society with the seemingly broad support of a clear racist occupying the White House as well as the seats of power in the US Congress and the US Supreme Court I decided that I needed to re-read Black Like Me as an adult

That re-read of Black Like Me along with my own prior reading of some of the Merton works led me to The Hermitage Journals in order to deepen my understanding of both men. It was pure joy to follow John in his deepening discovery of the life of his dear friend and I recommend both books.

George Wallace was shot on May 15 1972 and in The Hermitage Journals we read the thoughts that John records as relates to the work for social justice that he shared with Tom Merton:

(( I paraphrase below except for where I have used double-quotation marks as I have not yet asked for permission to copy from the copyrighted work))

«

May 16 1972

I was too distressed to write in my journal yesterday. George Wallace was shot and that is lamentable. More disheartening however was to see how this unmasked many people with whom I am acquainted. I was the Westcliff shopping mall when the news was announced and the immediate reaction of people who would never admit otherwise was a wail that someone tried to kill the only public figure who could “save us from the niggers and liberal Commies.” The great hope for white supremacy had been downed. The law-and-order demagogue who contributed to the hatred in the nations soul, who didn’t hesitate to set an example of violence (Wallace had said that any protester who lay down in front of his car would not lay down in front of another.)

Lord, I see and hear all around me the same insane rationalizations that I heard when I was a student in France and witness the rise of Hitler in Germany. The Germans were willing to leave the door open to unspeakable abuses against Jews and many others in order to support a man who promised to rid them of the most superficial abuses. We are willing and eager to leave the door open to unspeakable abuses in order to avoid busing. What does this amount to? They can deny it until they turn blue but the great underside of Wallace’s is a manifestation of racism and nothing more

»

In light of the recent murder of Charles Kirk in Utah I was struck as I read this text from over 50 years ago.

I knew very little of Mr Kirk before the murder

As I made myself aware of his “mission” and the words that he used I encountered clear echoes from George Wallace.

As I watched the broader public response—with lamentation and “tearing of garments” and some who clearly would seek to dance on Mr Kirk’s grave—I saw clear echoes of the response to the shooting of George Wallace

As a youngster just becoming aware of this broader world and politics and violence and hatred and riots and persons of goodness who persisted and engaged in efforts to bring about a world of peace and prosperity and opportunity for all. The world was a mess.

And it still is

In my brief span of years I have sought to be a mirror for the Light that is the Truth

There are no races other than the one human race—in all its different expressions and experiences and beauty

There is no culture other than the one we each explore and experience with each other as we encounter each other “on the stage” of living

Assuredly I am “a dreamer” raised with the notions of Faith and Hope and Love—with Love being the prime.

Evil comes from within us—and thus it is up to each and every d*mn one of us to do our best to be good

Be well

Peace

https://app.sosha.ai/toolkit/23453c9d-c0c8-4522-841f-497b5b7d4edc?filters=eyJsYWJlbHMiOltdLCJzb2NpYWxOZXR3b3JrcyI6WyJ3aGF0c2FwcCIsInRpa3RvayIsImFsbCIsInRocmVhZHMiXSwic3RhdHVzIjpbXSwibWVkaWFUeXBlcyI6W10sInRleHQiOltdfQ%3D%3D

https://www.milforddailynews.com/story/news/crime/2025/06/02/immigration-officials-defend-milford-ma-high-school-student-arrest-tout-operation-patriot/83992688007/

Enough is F*CKING ENOUGH

Free Marcelo!

I received a “phishing” text this morning (you know, the “you owe the DMV money—click here to pay up” scam)

And the phone number was from country code +63

I told my wife that a person would have to be a special kind of “stupid” to fall for a phishing from out of country phone number related to a state DMV payment issue

In fact I coined a new phrase for that level of stupidity—“cabinet member working for DJT” or just “47 stupid”

As in that is “so 47”

#so47

Peace