Dark Side of the Super Bowl

Aside from all of the hoopla and the game, which really wasn't too bad, I noticed that there was a dark side to the commercials. I got thinking about it today after I read an editorial and realized that as a society we are becoming a bit dark and depraved.

In reflecting about the commercials I saw, I was reminded that there was a dog covering up the murder of the family cat for some chips, a boy peeing in a swimming pool and then smiling when his sister jumped in, and there was the half time show which was a poster ad for talent past its prime and sex.

David Zurwick in his article titled Super Bowl TV: Good Game, Nasty Ads, Pathetic Halftime Show makes a lot of good points.

Here is what he wrote, and I have to agree with him: "The ads are a barometer of our culture. And what they said to me is that we have become a truly dumbed-down, crass, trashy and even cruel society -- and somehow proud of it."

Here is how he viewed the commercials:

A dog having killed a cat and trying to cover it up was supposed to be funny in a Doritos ad. A little kid urinating in a swimming pool and laughing when his sister jumps in was the punch line for an online tax service. The joke in a brain-dead, apocalyptic Chevy Silverado ad featuring a group of survivors is that one of the group died because he drove a Ford. Is this where the Obama bailout money went?

But I think the ad that best summarizes how debased our excessive commercialism has made us is the Go Daddy commercial that features two women using another woman's body as a billboard on which to write and draw the Go Daddy brand. There is something especially calculating about having two women do it to another woman -- when you know the intended appeal of the ad is male voyeurism.

I have to agree with him.

And I'm not going to bore you with his review of the halftime show, suffice it to write, he was unimpressed.

These ads are about the worst in us and appeal to our dark desires and sick sense of humor.

I believe we need to spend some time listening to Clint Eastwood in his piece, It's Halftime in America.

America--we need to change our direction or pretty soon we are going to be building coliseums and watching the gladiators for Sunday afternoon excitement.


-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - February 6, 2012

1. Today really is the morning after the night before.

2. The Super Bowl was a great game. I watched all of it and was impressed with the level of play. Congrats to the Giants for knocking off the Patriots.

3. It is hard to understand some decisions and late-changed plans--but in the end, they often make sense.

4. Super Bowl commercials did not disappoint this year. I enjoyed the Volkswagen dog with the Star Wars ending and the Matthew Broderick Honda commercials, but Clint Eastwood's "It's Halftime in America" was probably the best.

5. I'm still kind of upset at the groundhog for imagining to see his shadow last week.

6. It is less than two weeks to the start of baseball season. Orioles pitchers and catchers report to Sarasota on February 18th.

7. Check your tax bill--I have heard it said the the governor of Maryland never met a tax he didn't like.

8. I can't begin to express my frustration at another year of Federal Worker pay freeze, if only my costs to live were not continuing to rise. My idea to start balancing the budget--stop giving away money to foreign countries.


-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Making a Difference

An article in the New York Times on Saturday really touched me. It was about life in Maine during the winter living on a restricted income and unable to afford fuel oil to heat a home. The article titled, In Fuel Oil Country, Cold that Cuts to the Heart brought home the hard decisions that must be made by business owners when faced with needy and destitute people.

Although the article is about the hard decisions that the owners of a fuel oil delivery company has to make to keep his business solvent, it is also about how those hard decisions take a toll on him and those who work for him.

The real heartening part of the story though, is the last part where an anonymous donator has a standing agreement to provide 50 gallons of fuel oil for an emergency case.

I have heard of this before--a local auto repair shop told me of the generosity of one of my neighbors who anonymously pays much of the repairs for other more needy neighbors. This is the true nature of paying it forward. But it meets real needs far better than buying someone's dinner at the Fast Food window.

We really can make a difference.



-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

The Secret of Life

I do not often use the stuff from the countless chain emails I receive, but the other day a story was sent to me which at the same time made me cry--because I've been there; while also making me realize--yeah, that is so right! And so here is that story from my email--
A Dog's Purpose?(from a 6-year-old).
Being
a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish
Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, his wife Lisa, and their
little boy Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping
for a miracle.
I examined Belker
and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do
anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for
the old dog in their home.
As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa
told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe
the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the
experience.
The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat
as Belker 's family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the
old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was
going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.
The
little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty
or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker's Death,
wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than
human lives.
Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, ''I know why.''
Startled,
we all turned to him.
What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I'd never heard a more
comforting explanation. It has changed the way I try and live.
He
said,''People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life
-- like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?'' The
Six-year-old continued,
''Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long.''
I love my dog--everyone knows that and now, I know why. She is an example for me to emulate.
-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Groundhogs and daffodils

I was not amused by Punxsutawney Phil's prediction yesterday about six more weeks of winter. I think he was seeing things when he reported that he saw his shadow.



All things considered though, given the weather we are having, how can we be afraid of six more weeks of mild winter? I walked through the gardens yesterday and noticed that the daffodils were already budding--as if March were upon us already. I have also seen buds on some of the trees ready to burst forth and soak up some of the warming Springtime sunlight.

I expect the daffodils will be blossoming with their yellow blooms very soon.

Harbingers of Springtime despite what that rodent in Pennsylvania predicted.

Groundhogs--how did they become the predictors of the weather, anyway?

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Famous Airplanes and their Names

As I reflected upon Sunday's visit to the Air and Space museum, it occurred to me that there are some very famous named aircraft which have made a significant mark upon history.

Often, I think in terms of series of aircraft--like the Boeing 707, the first successful jet passenger plane (the actual first jet passenger plane was the Comet); or a call sign, like Air Force 1; but there are some individual aircraft which were named and their names are a significant part of history and they need to be remembered.



Of course, one of these most famous named aircraft is on display at the museum and that would be the Enola Gay, a B-29. The Enola Gay is remembered for dropping an atomic bomb which caused wide spread devastation in Japan that hastened the end of WW2 in the Pacific and likely saved millions of American AND Japanese lives.

There are other named aircraft that I am familiar with, like the Pride of the Adirondacks, a B-47 bomber which used to grace the main gate at Plattsburgh AFB in northern New York. But that aircraft is not famous for doing anything other than being lucky enough not to be scrapped and being relegated to standing guard over a now closed Strategic Air Command installation.

As I thought about the names of famous aircraft, I was surprised by the relatively short list of less than 10 that I discovered.I wrestled with the number 1 position, but in the end had to succumb to the pressure that it was the aircraft which reliably ushered in the air age over 100 years ago. So here are my top named famous aircraft--in my personal order of precedence.

1. The Wright Flyer - the airplane built by Orville and Wilbur Wright,

2. Enola Gay. Nuff said!

3. Spirit of St Louis - which Charles Lindbergh flew across the Atlantic.

4. Voyager - the first aircraft to fly around the world without stopping or refueling.

5. Memphis Belle - the first B-17F to complete 25 combat missions over Germany during WW2. And it was a good movie, too.

6. Glamorous Glenn III - The Bell Aircraft Company Model X-1 that Charles Yeager flew faster than the speed of sound in 1947.

7. Spruce Goose - the airplane built of wood by Howard Hughes which was the largest aircraft of its time. Sadly, it only flew once, but it is a tribute to the power of thought and achievement. I'm not sure why this aircraft is so famous other that it is a relic to a genius who eventually lost himself.

So there they are--100 years and only seven named famous aircraft. But history, nonetheless.

I guess I have three additional spots--and there are some other's out there but somehow their comparison's pale to those on the list.


-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Out of Touch -- Legislators and Taxes

I read an interesting article in the Baltimore Sun the other day about a proposal in Congress to address back taxes owed by some government workers. I couldn't find the Sun article so here is the one from the LA Times titled Fire Them? Federal employees, retirees owe $3.4 billion in taxes.

It seems many of my federal co-workers are slugs (yes, I wrote it) and do not pay their taxes. This includes military personnel. I believe paying taxes is a responsibility that good citizens of our country need to accept--that does not mean that I like paying taxes, because I don't. But, as a citizen, I must accept the responsibility for doing my part to contribute to the operation of our government.

But here is my take on this emotional, election year issue. If they fire the workers who owe the taxes--which means they know who they are, then how do they reasonably expect the people to pay their back taxes--plus penalties and interest.

Yup, they owe the money. And according to the article we are talking about 280,000 people.

My answer is to take the money out of their wages and make them keep working until the debt is paid.

Why is that hard?

Hello, Congress!

Admittedly, the article says pretty much the same thing: "Critics of the legislation have said that firing employees who owe taxes would make it more difficult to collect the money. The unemployed hardly make for very good taxpayers, the Federal Managers Assn. said in a letter to lawmakers last year."

So if I can see the problem with trying to collect taxes from unemployed people (who then begin to receive benefits which may compound the problem) and the Federal Managers Association can see it, why is Congress wasting time trying to pass legislation that is counter productive to what they want to do?

Of course--we've been there before, haven't we?

Wake up and let's move on.

Next issue?

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

The Fastest Plane, Ever

SR-71 Nose On

Standing in the entrance to the Udvay-Hazy National Air and Space Museum near Dulles Airport I heard a question from an excited Ethan, "Poppop? What was the fastest plane ever?" Although I know he knew the answer I replied "Why, the SR-71 Blackbird"

How fast, he wanted to know. So we looked it up on the internet and gave him a number that was totally meaningless--because none of us could really comprehend how fast 2,600 plus mph really was.

Fast.

SR-71 at Udvar-Hazy Air and Space Museum

The boys were fascinated with the aircraft, which is the center piece exhibit at the National Air and Space Museum near Dulles Airport.

For a Sunday afternoon there is not a better way to spend time with the boys that reveling in aerospace history.

The missiles, the bombs, the Space Shuttle and satellites, and of course the aircraft--from the early propeller planes to the fastest jet ever conceived.

Ethan, especially was impressed when he realized that when missiles were shot at the SR-71 that the best tactic was to just fly faster and  outrun the missile. That's fast.

How fast?

Faster than a speeding bullet, fast.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - January 30, 2012

1. Airplanes, rockets, missiles, and spaceships go together very well with grandsons.

2. Who would have believed that the two front running Republicans would have names like Newt and Mitt. Makes me think of salamanders and baseball but not Presidents.

3. Why does the NFL actually play the Pro Bowl exactly? Oh yeah--show me the $$. And who cares?

4. Baseball is on the way to create some actual sports interest for a bit.

5. Evening television is becoming very spotty, despite the huge numbers of channels we have access to.

6. Given the warm weather, relatively, I keep looking for the crocus to bloom. Alas, they apparently are smarter than I am.

7. Groundhog day is this week--I wonder if we can receive a repeat of last years early Spring forecast? No matter, I think Spring is here already.

8. Today is National Croissant Day! It is also FDR's birthday (1882). I'm not really sure why or if those two pieces of trivia really go together.

9. Mornings when I wake up well before I need to are difficult. I long for sleep, but I also enjoy the quiet of the house and the attention that Makalya gives me as she too wonders why I am awake so early.

10. I met an interesting retired AF colonel at the museum yesterday. Wolfgang W.E. Samuel was there signing his books, I bought one, about war and life. I bought the autobiography about growing up in post-WWII Germany. He wrote a nice inscription to me on the cover  page of the book.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Reflections on January 2012

We have managed to survive the New Year party celebrations and are already ending the first month of 2012. Where did the time go?

This has truly been a January to remember.

It has been warmer  than normal, and there has been almost no snow.

Sometimes the lack of winter snow results in low water supplies for the subsequent summer, but we have seen some rain, so I do not believe there is a threat of drought. .

I saw a guy driving a Porsche convertible yesterday, with the top down. Although it was a bit cool, driving a convertible with the top down in late-January is not something that happens much here.

I was, I admit, a bit envious that I had not had the same idea. 

I am hopeful of getting through February without a major school-closing snowfall. And then Mach will be close on its heels along with the first lawn mowing of the year. I am truly a crazy by longing for the sound of my mower in the afternoon sun.

But then two days remain in January.  Who knows what can happen?


-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD