Another School Shooting

It has happened again, and I can no longer stay quiet. There has been another shooting in another school, with 17 dead. How can we let this happen? How can we protect our children and ourselves? I don't pretend to know the answer, but I do know one thing:

ARMING OUR TEACHERS IS THE WORST AND MOST STUPID THING WE COULD DO!

Has anyone really thought this idiotic suggestion through? Can you imagine what would happen if a kid on drugs, or one  who decided he /  she  was going to show the teacher a thing or two, or someone didn't get his / her homework done, or if a kid was just having a bad day and that kid decided to take the teacher's gun? What if the teacher accidently left the gun in a bathroom or lounge? If any of these things happened, how many students and teachers would end up injured or dead? There are so many scenarios where this could go wrong, and none that would be right.


How can we possibly give this type of responsibility to our teachers, who are already overworked and underpaid? If carrying a gun were part of a teacher's job description, how many good educators would we lose, and how many good people would not become teachers?
Teenagers are by nature a bit volatile, they don't always think things through, and they don't always make the best decisions. We cannot do this to our educators; there has to be a better way.

There is no way that I would ever endorse Donald Trump for any political office. Having said that, maybe having Trump as the President of the United States is a good thing. I say this while at the same time hoping he doesn't destroy the world. People can now see his true behavior and how he lies and uses deception to make others look bad.  His failed health-care bill; his golf games; his time on vacations in Florida and elsewhere; his manipulation of trade to benefit his own businesses; his treatment of women, even women leaders around the world; his fake news; - it would be comical if it weren't so scary. He surely can't make himself look any worse.  These first few months in office show us just how much of a narcissist and egotist he is, and how much better it would be if we actually had someone in office who knew how to be diplomatic and courteous, someone who was a master of the art of the compomise.

Maybe it is a good thing that he is President because his policies could bring together the Republicans and the Democrats and even the Independents to work against his plans; and bring diplomacy, decency, and leadership back to the U.S. This could make us get more involved in the voting process, and more knowledgeable about who is running the country and what they have in mind for it and us.

It seems to be working to some extent; several Republicans joined the Democrats in not supporting the new health care bill.  We have also caught a glimpse of what the leaders and inhabitants of other countries think of our President. Don't you think Putin is laughing at Trump behind his back? What about French President Macron? Does he seem comfortable with Trump? And the U.S. cabinet appointments - are they leaders in their fields?

Maybe this farce of a presidency will actually result in making Congress work together to get us out of this hole into which we are currently sinking. The United States could be stronger for it.

Hatred

       

            What is wrong with us? What do we, the citizens of the United States, see in the man who is now President? How did we get to this point where hate is the greatest emotion of  U. S. citizens? Why do people think we need to make America great again? America has always been great, even though some unconscionable things happened in the past. Most of us have always striven for greatness for our country by being the best we can be.

          Part of this, and not the least part, is because we welcome all viewpoints. We believe everyone has the right to speak up and express their opinions and ideas. We don't hate people because they are different, or because they are women, or because they speak a different language. Americans don't hate. Please don't remind me about slavery, smallpox for Native Americans,  etc. We have recognized most of the wrongs of the past, and should now be moving forward. There will probably always be evil individuals, but they don't, or shouldn't, represent a nation supposedly founded on freedom and equality.

          Today, it seems we are being encouraged to hate  anyone who is not us. How did we let this current government talk us into hating everyone and everything that is different? Just as an example, our President has recently asked that the National Endowment for the Arts be stripped of its funding; because we need to build a wall between the U.S. and Mexico to keep our southern neighbors where they belong and out of this country.

          There are good reasons government needs to be reformed, but hatred is not, or should not be, one of them. More important would be to care for and respect the environment, provide good health care for all, and endow a good education for our children

How Did We Let This Happen?

 Global warming - a myth. That's why the year 2016 was the warmest in recorded history. We need to close off our borders. We need to build a wall. We need to start torturing people as a policy. Almost anyone can be made to confess to anything, whether they did it or not, if they are tortured enough.  

At this rate, there will be no country left for our children and grandchildren to inherit. Women, African Americans, gays, anyone who is not white skinned and does not speak English (American English at that) should be banned from the United States, or at least relegated to the bottom rung of society, and have no say in how this country is governed. They simply aren't good enough. This is the message the current administration is sending to the American people, and a lot of the population seems to agree.

Respect the office of the Presidency. That doesn't mean to not look at what the person holding that office is doing. Is he following the law? Is he keeping the promises he made? Or is he still lying  to us? is he respecting the office of the Presidency?

Take Mexico and "the wall." Mexico will pay for it, we were told. Funny how that has evolved into us, the U.S. citizens footing the bill. Now it is to be paid for by a consumer tax, which always hits the poorest people hardest. So you and I will be paying for this wall, although we have no say in whether or not it should be built. It should not. This wall is not creating opportunities for knowledge or friendship, but is increasing isolationism and the fear of the unknown., to say nothing of the cost of living.

Will there be a country left for my grandkids? Or yours? I'm beginning to doubt that. We are fouling the air and the water, making enemies of a great part of the globe, contributing to global warming, and ticking off most of the other people in the world.  This President terrifies me.

Missed Opportunities

It seems the internet has finally caught up with real life. It now knows what kind of clothes you like, your favorite style of music, and what your favorite literature genre is. And on almost  every website you go to, you see the ads that prove your computer knows you better than you know yourself. Buy this shirt, it seems to yell, because you bought one just like it last month, and from the same seller. Or, download this book because it's just like the last one you read. And, buy this lawn ornament because it's the same one you bought last year, and from the same retailer. Somehow, "they" know whatever it was you bought last year didn't make it to this year.

At first I thought this was a really nice feature of being on the internet. I didn't have to search too hard for stuff I liked. But the more I thought about it, the less I liked it. How would I ever know what else was out there if I didn't look? Maybe there was a shirt I would like better; or a different style of music that would be interesting and  fascinating. Or a different type of literature that I would enjoy.

But, no, how could there be? The internet always directed me to what I liked. I never had to look at opposing political views, or non-fiction books about Asia, or anything to do with economics. All I had to do was click on the ad in front of me. But then I thought, how can you learn anything new if you just stay with what you are used to?

Maybe I got tired of not hearing about new ideas, of not learning new things. Maybe joining a book club was my first act of rebellion against being stagnant. I hope there's more to come.

New Year's Day

A new start, or just another day? A day for looking back, for looking forward, or just looking around. A day for letting go of bad thoughts; forgetting bad deeds, both those committed against us and those committed by us; looking forward to what lies ahead. Looking forward to doing good and living well.

Time to make resolutions which will probably be very similar to last year's, and which I will break today or tomorrow or next week , if I'm very determined. Lose weight, exercise, write more, be kinder, spend more time with family and friends and less time thinking only of myself. These good intentions always seem to hover around the edges of my  consciousness, but one way or another, are usually ignored. There seems to be a curtain drawn between my good intentions and my real life. Is this an iron curtain or a cotton one? Will I be able to get through it? Only time will tell.

After thinking long and hard, I have decided to make two resolutions only:
          1. Live well
          2. Live good

Per Olov Enquist: “One day we shall die. But all the other days we shall be alive.”

Are There Consequences?

Why doesn't Lake Erie just cave in? What's holding it up? Does anyone know how much salt has been mined from beneath the lake? And now someone is taking the natural gas from beneath the ground. With what are those spaces filling up? Are we going to have one big sinkhole someday? Or maybe a lot of smaller ones? It's not just here, either, it's all over the world. Pretty soon we may be walking around on a thin crust, hoping things won't cave in.

These are a few of the questions that show up in my head on nights when I can't sleep. People who know these things just laugh and tell me not to worry; nothing bad is going to happen. How do they know?

All this worrying is giving me a headache; I need to take a nap.

Huh?

The English language must be outgrowing me. I have trouble keeping up with the current usage of certain words and phrases. For example, hardly a day goes by that someone on some TV show asks someone else, "Mind if I join you?" I always think the correct answer should be "No, I don't mind," or just "No," if you would welcome the other person. But lately, the answer, at least on TV, has been, "Yes." The person asking then sits down next to the first person. To me, the answer "Yes," means, "Yes, I mind; please go away."

More and more, when a character in a book means yes, the author writes, "She shook her head yes." Don't you nod your head when you mean yes, and shake your head when the answer is no? When did this change?

And what about the phrase, "I could care less," when the person saying it clearly means, "I could not care less." This can be a bit confusing.

Then there's the double preposition - "From which he fully expected to wake from." What's with that?

I hate to admit to losing concentration when I'm reading, but, no matter how hard I try, when I come across one of these words or phrases, I get distracted thinking about whether it is proper English, and what the author really means. I can almost lose track of the story. Am I the only one this happens to?

To Dream or Not to Dream

A recent commentary on NPR pointed out that, today, there is little chance for anyone to be bored.  Our time is constantly filled with electronic games, texts, even movies and TV shows which can be downloaded onto devices small enough to carry in our hand or pocket.   Back before cell phones, iPads, or computers, there were times when people actually had nothing to do. Now, if you're standing in line waiting for a table, waiting for the store to open, or even on hold on the phone, there is always a distraction waiting to be accessed. We no longer have to be bored.

The commentator's point was that we are missing out on the times when our imaginations were allowed to soar, or when we could  dream of what might be, or even develop a plan for the future. According to her, this is where our minds went when we were bored. Now, there is a lack of daydreaming, perhaps of creativity. She believes we need these times of boredom to dream, and dream big.

If that is the case, then I have always wasted my time.  Since about the age of 6, I have never gone anywhere without a book. If I had to wait for an appointment, my book was there. If someone ran an errand and left me in the car, I had a book to read. Even when I was put on hold, or during TV commercials, I  had a book in front of me. Now I have to wonder just how imaginative I could have been if I had put the book down and filled the empty time with daydreaming. Would I already have had that novel published?

Do I still have time to learn this art of daydreaming?

Journaling

Journaling - defined as "a form of psychotherapy." I wasn't even sure it was a real word when I started doing it, but there it is. I do keep a journal, maybe better described as morning pages. I don't write in it every day, but I figure if I managed my time better (my one and only New Year's resolution), that journaling time would increase. The difficulty is, my great-grandson also likes to write in my journal. Since he just turned 5 and is only now learning his letters, this can sometimes be a problem. He didn't seem to notice that he was writing his thoughts down on top of mine, effectively making it impossible for me to go back and see what magical ideas I had had.

There is no way I can yell at him, or tell him he cannot write in my journal; really, I'm glad he wants to do this. So I decided I would put my current binder where he would be unlikely to find it, but where it would be easy for me to get at. I'm sure you can guess what happened - I forgot where I put it! Days went by and I looked in all the desk drawers, on all the book shelves, everywhere and anywhere I thought it would have been logical to put this binder. Not there, or there or there! Yesterday, I finally found it! Right where I put it, on top of a bookcase, under a beautiful wooden bowl made and given to me by a friend. It is now back in plain sight, on top of the table in the pool room,

And yes, my great-grandson is again writing in my journal, But he has assured me that he is only writing on the pages I haven't used yet! I think that is very thoughtful of him, don't you?

Good People

If you get a chance to read the book, In the Garden of Beasts : love, terror, and an American family in Hitler's Berlin, by Eric Larson, I hope you take the opportunity. It is the true story of the American Ambassador to Germany and his family in 1933 and 1934.  Very easy to read, this book is a true eye opener. 

How did this happen? you will ask many times as you read through. Why wasn't something done to stop this? I don't know the answers to these questions, but, for me, the story raised a lot of other questions. Are we living in a comparable time, where evil is breeding in different parts of the world? Do we have an obligation to combat this evil, to try and stop it?

I have always believed that we should never have sent troops to Viet Nam, Afghanistan, or anywhere in the Middle East. This is not a reflection on the men and women who were sent to fight; they are truly the heroes in all of this, doing their best to protect our country. I think the boys and girls in Washington are to blame for most of the wars we have been involved in. But it doesn't seem to matter who is in power in Washington, the wars drag on.

This book has given me serious pause. There were several times I said to myself that the rise of Hitler should never have happened. What happened to the good people of the world? Is our situation today analogous? What should we do about it? Should we bring all the troops home? My answer to this question for the last several years has been Yes. But now I wonder, if good people do nothing, who will? If good people do nothing, are they good people?

It reminds me of the poem attributed to Martin Niemõller:
              

First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.

Maybe you shouldn't read this book. It could raise serious questions for you, too.

Mom's Banjo

Mom's banjo has been around as long as I can remember. When she moved into her condo, the banjo came home with me. Since then, it has floated between the living room wall, the attic, and the office, which used to be my son's bedroom.

All I know about the banjo is that it is a B&D Symphonie Silver Bell, and it is heavy. The B&D stands for Bacon & Day; and Symphonie is spelled that way right on the banjo. My grandfather was somehow able to get this beautiful banjo for mom in the 1930s, in the heart of the Great Depression. That she managed to hang onto it for all those years seems unlikely, but she did. Now it is mine.

Last Christmas, Adam and Beth gave me the gift of banjo lessons. I had been making noises for several years that mom's banjo needed to be played, so they thought I should learn. I took my first lesson about six weeks ago, and have now been through three hours of frustration, laughter, anxiety, and pain. Usually the frustration wins out. How long will I keep up with the lessons? I haven't the foggiest. I was ready to quit after the second lesson, but then I remembered why I wanted to take the lessons in the first place. This banjo needs to be played; and I need something that takes me out of my comfort zone.

I now know two chords, the C chord and the G7 chord. Actually, I know three because I peeked ahead in the lesson book at the F chord, but don't tell Andre.) I have not yet figured out where my fingers go on the frets or strings (the banjo is a four string tenor banjo), or how to slide them up and down the strings, or what frets equal what notes.
Until my next lesson, in two weeks, I will be practicing the chromatic scale on all the strings. So if you happen to be in my neighborhood and hear what could be an animal in distress, please don't get too upset. I will just be me, practicing.

Wish me luck.

Spring Cleaning

Does anyone spring clean anymore? It used to be a time when my mother washed walls, cleaned out closets and cupboards, sent the winter clothes up to the attic in boxes, and brought the summer clothes down from the attic. Of course,she didn't do all this herself; she had three daughters to do it for her.

I started my spring cleaning this week. I managed to get the cabinet that holds rags, extra Coke, Pepsi, Perrier, juice, and catalogs done in one day. It took several hours, because I had to decide which catalogs to keep and which to throw out. I could only make this decision by looking at every catalog, not just the cover to see when it was dated, but inside to see if there was something I needed but had forgotten about. Luckily, I didn't need anything.

The next day, Tuesday, I took all my cookbooks down off the shelves, washed the shelves, dusted the cookbooks, and put them back on the shelf.The cookbooks take up three shelves, each one about two feet long, so you know this took me quite a while. I had to look in most of the cookbooks, especially the ones in which my mother had written recipes. I don't remember her ever making any of the recipes she had so carefully copied into the spiral notebooks and the binder, but I had to see what she thought was worthwhile saving. Then there were all the church and community cookbooks I had collected over the years. I was amazed at how many I had, all the way from Fairport Harbor, Ohio, to southern California.  These cookbooks hold a lot of traditional Hungarian, Finnish, and other nations' specialties.

You know it took several hours to clean these three shelves. At this rate, I should get my spring cleaning done by Christmas.But that's okay because I found a recipe that my son had asked me about several months ago. Today, I think I will skip the cleaning and attempt to make Verna Lepisto's torte.

A Review of the Book, "This Town"

Did you know that most elected senators and congressmen never come home again? They may visit and establish offices locally, at least as long as they are running for election; but once their political career is over, they seem to lose all ties to the locality that elected them in the first place. And their political career is never really over. This book tells all.

This Town was written by Mark Leibovich in 2013. It starts with a funeral, that of Tim Russert, and ends with a party hosted by Ben Bradlee and Sally Quinn. In between, Mr. Leibovich describes the insider goings on in Washington, D.C. The first word that came into my mind while I was reading this book was silly.

Washington is no longer populated by Democrats or Republicans, but by millionaires, all out for the same thing - fame and fortune. The job D.C. seems to do best is to celebrate itself.  The players in D.C. have been heard to call the voters stupid, and maybe we are for electing such dolts; but I think the voters are getting smarter and elect the idiots to get them out of our neighborhoods.  We know that D.C. doesn't care about us, and that one person will have a hard time making a dent in the insider goings on.
The voters are wising up to the players, and prefer to ignore them by banishing them to D.C.

More and more of the people elected to Congress, elect to become players for real after they leave public office. They stay in D.C. and get jobs with lobbying firms, law firms, super PACs, and anyone else who will pay for the privilege of having a former politician, elected or not, on their team. It doesn't seem to matter what beliefs the politician had when he or she was elected; all that matters is who will pay him or her the greatest sum of money.

And the media plays along. On page 302, Mr Liebovich states, "The media seems less concerned with being in tune with America than they are with promoting their own brands and worshipping celebrities."

Our so-called leaders haven't a clue as to what is happening in Ohio, or Iowa, or even California or New York. All they seem to care about is who will be at the next party; who can they get to know better; how can they get to be insiders. One statistic that really struck me was this: In 1974, 3% of retiring members became lobbyists in D.C. ( per The Atlantic). Now 50% of senators and 42% of congressmen do. Which asks the question - what are these people in Washington for, to serve the people who elected them or to get rich and powerful? Maybe we should wall off the city and start a new Capital somewhere else, like in Oklahoma.

As a side note, our former congressman, Steve LaTourette, has established a Super PAC, Defending Main Streeet. Does anyone know if he still has a home in Lake County?

Procrastination

Procrastination - putting off what should be done today until tomorrow, or maybe even the next day.

I don't think I have always been a procrastinator, but maybe I have. Right now, as I was looking up the dictionary definition of procrastinate, I got sidetracked by another word on the same page. You know, the one in large type at the top of the page that tells you what the last word on the page is. This word is proctodaeum, and, no, I'm not going to tell you what it means; but it's probably what you're thinking. You're going to look it up, aren't you?

A few weeks ago, I decided I needed more to do to keep me busy, or I might just sit on the couch all day reading. So I signed up for a creative writing course, bought and loaded new accounting software for the Finnish Heritage Museum, took a weaving class, borrowed lots of books from the library (along with some great BBC mystery videos), increased my knitting time and ambitions, promised I would brush the dogs more often - you get the idea. The picture on this page is Rebecca, weaving instructor, and Linda learning how to string the loom. I don't think "string" is the correct technical term, but close enough. Can you guess what I've been doing most of lately? Watching TV! After all, the Olympics are on, and they only come around once every four years, well every two if you count both the Summer and Winter Olympics.

Then there's Den. He really helps out a lot, does most of the cooking, and looks after the dogs. But he has this stereo. It is somehow attached to the computer, and to the TV, and he loves to spend time trying to make it sound incrementally better. In his experiments, he comes across all sorts of music styles and videos, and I have to listen to and watch them. Is this procrastination? I hope not, because it's really very interesting and entertaining. Just because I get nothing else done doesn't really matter, does it?

Oh, wait - I don't have any books or videos overdue at the library, and we did finish the weaving class, so, maybe I'm not such a procrastinator after all. In fact, I think I will work on my writing for my class right now. Just saying it makes me feel better.

Dialogue With My Sewing Machine

Below is a writing exercise assigned by the instructor of an online creative writing course I'm taking. It seemed like a fun exercise at the time, but maybe it's just silly.

Me: I really should put you back in the cabinet.

Sewing Machine: Why? I couldn’t see anything in there.

Me: But you are taking up space that I could use for something else.

SM: So what? This cabinet top is a mess anyway.

Me: I know. But if I put you away, I could straighten it up.

SM: You know what’s here; you don’t need, and probably won’t, get it in any sort of order,

Me: You’re right. But Den thinks you look messy. Besides, if I put you away, you will stay cleaner.

SM: I’m not so sure that would happen. What about all the dog hair flying around? It would just catch in my parts and never get dusted off. At least now there’s a slight chance I’ll get wiped down every couple of weeks. Now I have a question for you – why don’t you ever use me anymore?

Me: No time.

SM: You could make time. You’re making time for this course; you make time to knit. Why can’t you make time to sew?

Me: I don’t know. I used to sew a lot.

SM: I know. We made lots of things together; I bet we could again.

Me: But I was never very good. Well, maybe the down vests and jacket were good, but those were kits. I don’t really know how to sew very well.

SM: And you never will if you don’t practice. Think about it.

Human Hibernation?

It seems that all I want to do this time of year is sleep. And eat, but we won't talk about that. If I ignore it, it will go away, right? Is this always being tired a way of coping with the cold and dark? Or do I suffer just a bit from SAD?

I have always liked winter, or at least I did after I learned to cross country ski (Thanks, Ginny). It is the perfect time to get outside and enjoy the trees and bushes stripped of their greenery, with the bare branches dark against the snow. And the snow - sparkling like crystals; nothing is more beautiful.

But this year, I haven't even thought about skiing, probably because I now have a tendency to break something when I fall. The snow is still beautiful, the stars seem to shine more brightly than at other times of the year, but I just don't seem to want to be outside as much. The couch next to the fireplace is very comfortable, and there are lots of books just waiting to be read. The problem is, my eyes want to close, all on their own, when I get warm and cozy in the living room. I think it has to do with hibernation.

It wouldn't surprise me if, thousands of years ago, humans were able to curl up in caves and take a long winter nap, just like bears. How else were they going to survive the freezing cold? Those skimpy animal loin cloths certainly weren't going to keep them from freezing their tushes off. And did you see the article about the Swedish snowmobilers who found a man who had been trapped in his car for two months? He was still alive! Doctors think that because his core body temperature dropped to 88 degrees F. and he kept very still, he was able to survive.

Doesn't this prove humans can hibernate? Not that I would want to try to survive an ordeal like the Swedish man, but maybe I can use this human hibernation as an excuse to take my afternoon nap every day without feeling guilty.

Dogs

It has been far too long since my last blog. I can blame that on too much happening in the world. Women are still being treated like chattel in several countries; children are still starving; religions are still fighting against other religions; nature seems to hate us (can you blame her?); and politicians are still playing politics. It is very hard to pick out one injustice to write about, especially now when the days are short and the sun doesn't shine very often. This contributes to SAD, and makes it hard to even have the energy to get out of bed. So with all these enervating things going on, I have decided the only sensible thing to blog about is - dogs.

Dogs offer so much to us, and ask so little in return. They are always glad to see us; they never complain if the house isn't clean; they'll eat anything we put in front of them; and they let us know if there is someone or something around that shouldn't be. If we need to get out of the house, they are always ready to go for a walk. If we need to sound off about someone or something, they always listen but never talk back. And if we need to sit and cry, they are always there offering support and love.

Then there are the dogs who do more, not that the list above is not enough. But some dogs can smell out cancer, or tell if someone is going to have a seizure. These dogs are truly life saving.

Some dogs are now teaching children to read. Many libraries support the Paws to Read and similar programs to help someone learn reading skills. I know this works because an Airedale terrier taught me to read many years ago.

Dogs have been trained to sniff out drugs or bombs. They have learned to guide the sightless through the city streets. They go into the schools with children who would otherwise not be able to negotiate the school hallways or classrooms. They have proven invaluable in war, and have made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. This last is probably not quite right; I don't think dogs are willing to die for a country or a certain regime. But they are willing to die for their human, no matter what color or religion the person is.

As the saying goes, if you are lucky enough to have a dog, you are lucky enough. If you don't have a dog in your life, think carefully before acquiring one. Do NOT buy one from a pet store. Most of these dogs come from puppy mills, although a few stores are now working with animal shelters to place homeless dogs in good forever homes. And please remember that a dog will need food, shelter, love, and, sometimes, the care of a good veterinarian. If you are not able to make these commitments, in both time and dollars, please do not get a dog. You will do more good donating to a shelter.

Malala

Today's blog was intended to be a humorous look at fireworks, but I made the mistake of watching a video on CNN on my way to Blogspot.

The video I watched was of Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani girl who was shot by the Taliban because she dared to speak out for education for girls. In this video, she was addressing the United Nations, and showed a stunning sophistication and a conviction that what she had to say was crucial in helping the world's people to find peace. What an amazing young woman she is; if you get the chance, please try to watch and listen to her speech.

This video was an almost 17 minute long message to the world that women and girls need to unite against oppression and persecution. That we need education for all, equality for all, and there should be no fear of reprisal when working for this goal. We can only hope that the leaders of the world listen and learn from this young lady.

We also need to realize that Ms. Yousafzai was not talking about just the women in the third world. What she said, what she demanded, is very relevant even to the "enlightened" west, where women are still too often treated as second class citizens.

Another Book Review

It has been quite a while since I commented on a book, but I just finished one that needs to be talked about. Human Smoke: The Beginnings of World War II, the End of Civilization, by Nicholson Baker was written in 2008. I am not a big fan of war stories, except for the Civil War, and really did not want to read this book when I saw what it was about. But since the book was recommended to me by someone I respect, I decided to read it.

Everyone should read this book. It has no chapters, and no continuing war stories;  just 470 pages of disparate paragraphs, each drawing us closer and closer to the war. As we get farther in time away from the horror of WWII, it is important that we not forget what happened during that awful period.

There was very little regard for human life by the leaders of some of the greatest countries of the world. To read about the killing of children locked in a room is horribly revolting, and completely unbelievable, except that it really happened. It seemed as though everyone hated everyone else.

I don't believe we were any more civil before the war. Mr. Baker calls WWII the end of civilization, but I believe we humans have always hated and killed each other, probably going all the way back to the beginning of man. It's just that now we are so advanced that we can kill each other on a huge, world-wide scale, even more so than in WWII.  There are more people, a better means of communicating the atrocities committed, and better technology/weapons to commit these atrocities. We could be on the way to eliminating the human race from the earth if we do not learn that hatred and wars only hurt mankind, and no one is ever better off afterwards.

Santayana said, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."  This book will help us to remember. Maybe it will help to prevent an apocalypse.