***6/14/2020-6/21/2020 Weekly Show, Tell, and Critique***

Dak on cam said:

Birddogman said:

abiquiuense said:

Developing story . Link to the local paper.

Wat ah tell you ?

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Very interesting - thanks for posting, David. It sounds like the local authorities got it right by arresting and condemning the "militia" nutjobs. It also sounds like the protests against the statue(s) were peaceful - a good thing.

I firmly believe in the right (duty even) of people to engage in peaceful protest. I get lost instantly when the protests or counter-protests turn violent, like this. Maybe this is wrong, but such actions totally destroy the credibility of the side that becomes violent in my mind; and often make me emotionally side with the opposite position, as is the case with the NM shooting incident. The looting of luxury goods, big screen TV's etc. that followed George Floyd's murder was just wrong and unjustified. In my mind, that rally hurt the otherwise very worthy cause. I wonder how many of the millions of dollars in looted goods went to the benefit of Floyd's family - I'm guessing none.

I struggle a bit with the whole Confederate statute issue, which may not be dissimilar to the NM statue issue. On one hand, we certainly should not glorify those who fought for or espoused discredited causes, whether it was actually for slavery or for so-called "states' rights." On the other hand, if we erase history, aren't we condemned to repeat it?

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I don't think it is "erasing history" when removing an object of glorification from the place chosen for that purpose. You can still put it in museums and make articles with photographs of them.

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Good point, Dak.

Dak on cam said:

You'll not find statues of Hitler in public display in Germany, but that's hardly what is condemning Germany to repeat its history. At the current point of time, it would seem other countries are more eager to repeat Germany's history than Germany is.

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Sadly, that is true - and scary.

Dak on cam said:

Dak on cam said:

Especially true in today's environment where so few young people seem to have any education in or understanding of history.

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And putting up glorifying statues of Confederate generals in exposed places will serve to make the young people more skeptical about secessionism and slavery?

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Of course not, but seeing General XYZ on his horse in the town square might at least make them understand that there was a history in the place. You do make a good point about the glorification, however. That's way, at the end of the day, and after much thought, I think we should follow Germany's model in this regard.

Dak on cam said:

Dak on cam said:

I was talking to a young person about D-Day recently (June 6). He asked "Wasn't that when the Japanese invaded the Germans?" Sigh. My real father landed with the 101st Airborne that day and remained a casualty of WWII the rest of his life - one of the reasons I was raised by my grandparents.

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"D-Day is an example of America's 'strong relationship with German government'", Trump State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said comparatively recently. You cannot really expect the average youth to be more educated on history than someone who gets paid to speak for the State Department.

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Sigh.

Dak on cam said:

Dak on cam said:

I guess on balance, the best thing is to erase symbols of hate. Having lived in Germany only about 20 years after the end of the war, I was amazed to see that virtually all of the countless symbols of the **** regime had been obliterated - for examples, many buildings had chiseled-off areas where once swastikas and **** eagles had been carved in stone.

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The university where I've been studying (click on the link for picture) has an abundance of eagles on its roof. Turns out that quite a few photographs of it are clipped such that they are chiseled off in print. And quite a few of its older professors felt like remnants from the Kaiserzeit.

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Those do look like generic eagles to me, or maybe even Imperial eagles, rather than the iconic **** eagle, but I'm no expert on such matters.

Dak on cam said:

Dak on cam said:

The modern German people seem to be acutely aware of their history and determined not to repeat it. Can we do the same in a Trumpian era?

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It's not just a Trumpian thing. When you think of "Henry Ford", the first thing you think of is cars rather than him funding the wide dissemination of the Antisemitic pamphlet https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Protocols_of_the_Elders_of_Zion . The one thing WWII did for the world is to make it think that antisemitism was a German invention and forget about the contributions of almost every modern country with some form of nationalism.

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That's true. It is a little know bit of local history (probably because it is embarrassing) that many people around here (this is a very German, i.e. PA Dutch area) were ravening supporters of Hitler before the war - the **** uniforms, flags, marches, etc. Once the war actually started, that pretty much ended.

Dak on cam said:

Unfortunately that makes almost nobody afraid of repeating history in that regard. It also makes people believe that the allies fought Germany because of the atrocities against humanity it committed, when the ugly reality is that the decision to fight Germany was not a humanitarian but a military one: Hitler was out to conquer the world and that made it imprudent to ignore him. Nobody was really too bothered about who he killed at home. Like nobody is really too bothered about who the Saudis kill at home these days, except of course that this makes them good customers for weapons deals.

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I agree that the war was not fought to save the Jews from Hitler from the US point of view. There was plenty of anti-Semitism here back then.

Dak on cam said:

In other words: there is considerable interest in keeping people dumb, and so there is little wonder that to some degree that is successful. Symbols of veneration in uncommented contexts can easily backfire eventually for that reason.

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Agreed. Another basis for me coming out where I finally did on this issue.

--
Check out my photos at: https://www.flickr.com/gp/137747053@N07/4M38jj

Whenever I hear a Meadowlark my mind takes me back to my grandparent's home in the east Texas countryside. These birds were constantly singing but I never saw one. Wasn't until a few years ago I saw one singing in a park and had the flashback to long ago.

I mean long ago. Grandpa and grandma didn't have running water or electricity for the first 50 years or so in that house. By the time I was a grandkid running around they had electricity. My dad and uncle eventually dug a well, plumbed the place, and then added a bathroom to the house.

Test question as long as I'm going back in time: anyone old enough to remember a slop jar?

--
Every new day is a gift!

Just a small detail:

Birddogman said:

Birddogman said:

Birddogman said:

I guess on balance, the best thing is to erase symbols of hate. Having lived in Germany only about 20 years after the end of the war, I was amazed to see that virtually all of the countless symbols of the **** regime had been obliterated - for examples, many buildings had chiseled-off areas where once swastikas and **** eagles had been carved in stone.

Click to expand...

The university where I've been studying (click on the link for picture) has an abundance of eagles on its roof. Turns out that quite a few photographs of it are clipped such that they are chiseled off in print. And quite a few of its older professors felt like remnants from the Kaiserzeit.

Click to expand...

Those do look like generic eagles to me, or maybe even Imperial eagles, rather than the iconic **** eagle, but I'm no expert on such matters.

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Better than me. Apparently they have been commanded to the roof by royal decree, so they do predate the **** time considerably, being from around 1870ish.

Personally, I'd wish Germany had more success at preserving live eagles rather than stone ones.

Busbob said:

Whenever I hear a Meadowlark my mind takes me back to my grandparent's home in the east Texas countryside. These birds were constantly singing but I never saw one. Wasn't until a few years ago I saw one singing in a park and had the flashback to long ago.

I mean long ago. Grandpa and grandma didn't have running water or electricity for the first 50 years or so in that house. By the time I was a grandkid running around they had electricity. My dad and uncle eventually dug a well, plumbed the place, and then added a bathroom to the house.

Test question as long as I'm going back in time: anyone old enough to remember a slop jar?

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Under the Bed? Ha

--
Bill
"Life's Too Short to Worry about the BS!"
So I Choose my Battles
Click for Wild Man's Photos
Using Rx10 IV at Present

Bill Borne said:

Busbob said:

Whenever I hear a Meadowlark my mind takes me back to my grandparent's home in the east Texas countryside. These birds were constantly singing but I never saw one. Wasn't until a few years ago I saw one singing in a park and had the flashback to long ago.

I mean long ago. Grandpa and grandma didn't have running water or electricity for the first 50 years or so in that house. By the time I was a grandkid running around they had electricity. My dad and uncle eventually dug a well, plumbed the place, and then added a bathroom to the house.

Test question as long as I'm going back in time: anyone old enough to remember a slop jar?

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Under the Bed? Ha

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That is a nice picture of those "gun shy" birds.

"Under the bed?" Try on one of the most desolate mesas around here. Yes, "mesa" translates "table." "Ha."



This is not an actual, actual porcelain potty. The more expensive copy had a curved lip. I don't know what this version was doing way up there. Best I can figure is that there was a piñón crop, it lost the handle, and someone just left it behind. But, it was a consolation prize for having hiked up there. I did manage to find a really nice arrowhead.

It is in actual, actual use, at the moment. Odd looking plant grows in it.

abiquiuense said:

Bill Borne said:

Busbob said:

Whenever I hear a Meadowlark my mind takes me back to my grandparent's home in the east Texas countryside. These birds were constantly singing but I never saw one. Wasn't until a few years ago I saw one singing in a park and had the flashback to long ago.

I mean long ago. Grandpa and grandma didn't have running water or electricity for the first 50 years or so in that house. By the time I was a grandkid running around they had electricity. My dad and uncle eventually dug a well, plumbed the place, and then added a bathroom to the house.

Test question as long as I'm going back in time: anyone old enough to remember a slop jar?

Click to expand...

Under the Bed? Ha

Click to expand...

That is a nice picture of those "gun shy" birds.

"Under the bed?" Try on one of the most desolate mesas around here. Yes, "mesa" translates "table." "Ha."



This is not an actual, actual porcelain potty. The more expensive copy had a curved lip. I don't know what this version was doing way up there. Best I can figure is that there was a piñón crop, it lost the handle, and someone just left it behind. But, it was a consolation prize for having hiked up there. I did manage to find a really nice arrowhead.

It is in actual, actual use, at the moment. Odd looking plant grows in it.

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Funny. Great place to hide your head!

--
Bill
"Life's Too Short to Worry about the BS!"
So I Choose my Battles
Click for Wild Man's Photos
Using Rx10 IV at Present

[No message]

abiquiuense said:

Bill Borne said:

Busbob said:

Whenever I hear a Meadowlark my mind takes me back to my grandparent's home in the east Texas countryside. These birds were constantly singing but I never saw one. Wasn't until a few years ago I saw one singing in a park and had the flashback to long ago.

I mean long ago. Grandpa and grandma didn't have running water or electricity for the first 50 years or so in that house. By the time I was a grandkid running around they had electricity. My dad and uncle eventually dug a well, plumbed the place, and then added a bathroom to the house.

Test question as long as I'm going back in time: anyone old enough to remember a slop jar?

Click to expand...

Under the Bed? Ha

Click to expand...

That is a nice picture of those "gun shy" birds.

"Under the bed?" Try on one of the most desolate mesas around here. Yes, "mesa" translates "table." "Ha."



This is not an actual, actual porcelain potty. The more expensive copy had a curved lip. I don't know what this version was doing way up there. Best I can figure is that there was a piñón crop, it lost the handle, and someone just left it behind. But, it was a consolation prize for having hiked up there. I did manage to find a really nice arrowhead.

It is in actual, actual use, at the moment. Odd looking plant grows in it.

Click to expand...

Good grief that is funny, and you are right, the real thing had a curved lip for comfort. As a kid I was so grateful for that porcelain throne. No way did I want to cross that pitch black backyard to get to the outhouse. There wasn't a flashlight big enough to give me the courage to go out there!

--
Every new day is a gift!

Figured we needed to start stepping up the conditioning level of dogs and old folk for the fall, so we went up high yesterday. Saw this cute tiny fawn on one of the lower trails. It's that time of year.



This was a part of the trail up. It was all loose rocks and nearly vertical in places. Like walking on marbles. Maybe not the wisest choice for two old folks, especially one approaching his mid-70's.





We each took a pretty good fall and it took a while to stop tumbling on the steep ground. No real injuries - a few scrapes and bruises. The dogs had no such problems, as you can see. Nancy on a downslope.





Oh well, we need to get conditioned to hunt the places we hope to go this fall - including the western high country - all while carrying a gun and all sort of other stuff, too.





The dogs taking a drink from a cold, clear mountain brook:



Bliss looking out over the valley:



Greg

--
Check out my photos at: https://www.flickr.com/gp/137747053@N07/4M38jj

Believe the first two are a youngster.







The next one is keeping an eye on the youngster.



Sunday was a good day to be out. Had no idea swallows were blue like this.

--
Every new day is a gift!

Birddogman said:

Figured we needed to start stepping up the conditioning level of dogs and old folk for the fall, so we went up high yesterday. Saw this cute tiny fawn on one of the lower trails. It's that time of year.

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No problems with the dogs?

Birddogman said:

This was a part of the trail up. It was all loose rocks and nearly vertical in places. Like walking on marbles. Maybe not the wisest choice for two old folks, especially one approaching his mid-70's.



We each took a pretty good fall and it took a while to stop tumbling on the steep ground. No real injuries - a few scrapes and bruises. The dogs had no such problems, as you can see.

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Four legs beats two. When I was in Greece a long time ago on a climbing vacation, there were two Poles (I climbed with the man a few times) who made the mistake of petting a young stray cat before going on a climb rated IV. The cat followed them up the whole first pitch, so the woman rappeled down to the ground from there with the cat around her neck (and she's allergic) and tied the cat to a tree to keep it from following her up again. I think it was this climb, at about the height of the lowest climber:







So not really vertical, but also not the kind of thing you want to fall down from. I am not quite sure: I think this image was taken later the same day with my camera, but from her (there is a theatrical crossover between the peaks which I blundered a whole lot, with photographic evidence). She also took this photograph at the same spot on the ground:





So actually tying that kitten to a tree here at the morning of the day might not have been the best move but it was fine when they finally came back down.

Birddogman said:

Nancy on a downslope.



Oh well, we need to get conditioned to hunt the places we hope to go this fall - including the western high country - all while carrying a gun and all sort of other stuff, too.



The dogs taking a drink from a cold, clear mountain brook:



Bliss looking out over the valley:



Greg

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There really is no reason I could cite for that, but this is one image for which B&W does not work at all for me. Maybe because it helps neither with identifying the perspective nor with constrasting dog with background (or green with brown) when one knows that they are more contrasting than that.

Anyway, your camera makes us live vicariously in your wide ranges.

--
Dak

Looks like one amazing trip!

Evenstar606 said:

Looks like one amazing trip!

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It was and she was my soulmate! Did you like the Lewis and Clark trail shots or didn't you get that far?

Bill Borne said:

Evenstar606 said:

Looks like one amazing trip!

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It was and she was my soulmate! Did you like the Lewis and Clark trail shots or didn't you get that far?

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Those were the ones that caught my eye the most. I loved learning about Lewis and Clark in school! I also like the South Dakota photos, since my mom was born there.

--
Courtney

Busbob said:

Believe the first two are a youngster.





The next one is keeping an eye on the youngster.



Sunday was a good day to be out. Had no idea swallows were blue like this.

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Nice shots! The tree shallows around here are the most beautiful blue.







Local bluebirds are also very pretty and have a slightly different shade of blue:





Greg





--
Check out my photos at: https://www.flickr.com/gp/137747053@N07/4M38jj

Wow! That's a real climb - pitons, ropes, etc. - ours was just a steep walk. I've never done any real climbing. Too old and fat to start now.

When I start to get tired, I think of what my 105 pound granddaughter is doing that day as a Marine and keep goin'.







Thanks for the comments on the B&W pic. I did it mainly to hide the fact that the bottom half of Bliss was thick with mud (of course!). Here's a color version.



What think?

--
Check out my photos at: https://www.flickr.com/gp/137747053@N07/4M38jj

So I just threw this together!

Evenstar606 said:

Bill Borne said:

Evenstar606 said:

Looks like one amazing trip!

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It was and she was my soulmate! Did you like the Lewis and Clark trail shots or didn't you get that far?

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Those were the ones that caught my eye the most. I loved learning about Lewis and Clark in school! I also like the South Dakota photos, since my mom was born there.

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Actually, Courtney I have been to every state but 2 and I have to say they are all BEAUTIFUL

That is a great tribute to your late wife, Bill! I note you have a lot of photos of Col in her later years. I'm sure you are glad you have those.

Sadly, I have very few photos of my wife later in life. I have plenty of old film prints from when we were young, but as she got ill (and she was ill for many years with MS before the stroke that destroyed her and killed her after a decade of suffering) she reused to allow me to take pictures. She was a striking pretty woman when young and I think she did not want any images of herself looking less than good. Maybe I should have pushed the issue with her?

This was one of the last ones - Patty, her Dad just before he died, our two daughters, and four of the grandkids.



The little girl in the middle now look like this:









Greg

--
Check out my photos at: https://www.flickr.com/gp/137747053@N07/4M38jj

Birddogman said:

Wow! That's a real climb - pitons, ropes, etc. - ours was just a steep walk. I've never done any real climbing. Too old and fat to start now.

When I start to get tired, I think of what my 105 pound granddaughter is doing that day as a Marine and keep goin'.



Thanks for the comments on the B&W pic. I did it mainly to hide the fact that the bottom half of Bliss was thick with mud (of course!). Here's a color version.



What think?

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Works better for me. I've tried putting on a red-yellow filter before B&W conversion in order to better preserve the soil/foliage contrast.





That also works somewhat better for me than pure desaturation but it does a worse job of masking the muddy Bliss, possibly worse than the color photograph you started with.

--
Dak