Titanic link
Millvina Dean was nine weeks old when her mother lowered her into one of the Titanic’s lifeboats in a canvas mail sack. For most of her 97 years on this earth she struggled with the fascination others held for her story. Dean died Sunday in Southampton, England — the Titanic’s port of departure in 1912 — the “unsinkable” ocean liner’s last surviving passenger. She also was the final human link to an era of hubris, before two world wars and the Holocaust, when people believed they could solve the world’s problems — embodied in a ship of steel that couldn’t be sunk.
Dean lived in obscurity for decades after the tragedy. She lived quietly mainly because she didn’t want to be seen as attracting attention to herself and because everything she knew about the Titanic disaster was told her by her mother. “Nobody knew about me and the Titanic, to be honest, nobody took any interest, so I took no interest either,” she told The New York Times last month. “But then they found the wreck (in 1985), and after they found the wreck, they found me.”
It was a bittersweet sea change in the life of a woman who considered herself “such an ordinary person,” as Dean told The Times. The wreck’s discovery, then the blockbuster 1997 movie (which she never saw) raised her profile but also brought painful reminders of the loss of her father, one of Titanic’s 1,517 fatalities. Like the sinking’s other victims, he lost his life as part of the quest to build bigger, faster and stronger — in the mistaken belief nothing could outsize the ingenuity of mankind.
California’s Prop 8 stands
The will of the people, expressed in a free and fair election, still means something in California. On Tuesday the state’s supreme court upheld passage of Proposition 8 last fall that banned same-sex marriage in the state. Basically, the court rejected arguments from gay marriage supporters that a majority of voters aren’t allowed to revoke equal rights intended for everyone. Prop 8 opponents said last fall’s 52 percent to 48 percent vote was a “revision” to California’s constitution and thus required a two-thirds vote in the legislature before going to the people. State justices disagreed and Prop 8 stands. At least for now. Gay marriage supporters say they’ll have their own proposition on the ballot next year. Sort of a gay marriage mulligan, apparently. Meanwhile, about 18,000 marriages performed before Proposition 8’s passage were left intact. Stay tuned.
Same-sex hot potato to Congress
The same-sex marriage debate moved to another level Tuesday with the City Council in the District of Columbia voting 12-1 to recognize such unions from states that allow them. Although Vermont, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Iowa permit same-sex marriage, the District’s vote lands the issue squarely in the lap of Congress.
Federal lawmakers have 30 days to review and overturn the council’s decision. That’ll be a debate worth watching, as members of Congress and President Barack Obama are forced to take sides on the issue.
Tuesday’s D.C. council meeting was emotional, with a number of black ministers vowing to work for reversing the decision. There’s evidence suggesting the preachers may reflect public attitudes in the District. Although it’s overwhelmingly Democratic, it’s also majority-black. Exit polls in California last fall showed seven in 10 African-Americans opposed gay marriage in a vote there.
By the way, the lone dissenting council vote was cast by former Mayor Marion Barry.
Aporkalypse now
Nothing like a pandemic scare to bring out the capitalists and the scam artists. One man’s swine flu symptom is another’s fatter pigskin wallet. Stores and Web sites have sold out of masks and hand sanitizers. Web sites created overnight are offering illegal and counterfeit flu drugs. Investment advisors are pointing out how to leverage swine flu into market gains. Designer breathing masks are on order, along with T-shirts that say “My folks went to Mexico and all they brought me was the flu.” Swine flu video games invite players to fatally inoculate pigs. An Australian newspaper dubbed this “aporkalypse humor,” but the flu is no laughing matter to pork producers and the capitalists who’ve been hurting due to curtailed travel and sick employees. Not to mention the survivors of those killed by this outbreak.
A special salute by Thunder
Kudos to fans of the Oklahoma City Thunder for their support of our men and women in the military.
The team held Military Appreciation Night on Wednesday for the game against the Washington Wizards. The invocation was delivered by a military chaplain. The honorary captains and game ball presenters were the children of parents on active duty. Fans were given the opportunity to buy Thunder gear and souvenirs to be sent in a military care package.
And, team sponsors and season-ticket holders were asked to donate their seats so active members of the armed forces could use them – about 1,800 tickets were made available. Well done by all involved.
Cars still rule
High gasoline prices last year contributed to a 4 percent decline in vehicle miles traveled, but public transit didn’t capture all of the traffic that was lost to the roads. Sam Staley, Reason Foundation’s director of urban growth, testified before Congress recently and urged lawmakers “to prioritize transportation solutions that increase our mobility and decrease traffic congestion,” according to the libertarian foundation. Staley asked Congress to keep public transit in perspective when designing a stimulus package. Public transit is responsible for a tiny share of mobility in this country; increasing transit ridership significantly would require “a dramatic and largely involuntary relocation of people and families into housing they do not want,” Reason says. People still like to commute by car. One factor is time: On average, public transit riders spend about 36 minutes traveling to work while private automobile travelers commute about 21 minutes.”
Another bad splash by Michael Phelps
The latest embarrassing story about Olympic swimming great Michael Phelps should remind parents why holding up athletes as role models is a dicey proposition at best.
After the 2004 Athens Games, Phelps – underage at the time – was arrested for drunken driving. He pleaded guilty and apologized, saying it wouldn’t happen again. And in fact, he hasn’t gotten popped for drinking since.
Instead, Phelps made news this week when a British tabloid published a photo of him taking a hit from a marijuana pipe. The newspaper said the picture was taken during a house party in November while Phelps was visiting the University of South Carolina. Phelps and his handlers didn’t dispute the authenticity of the photo.
“I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment,” Phelps said. “I’m 23 years old and despite the successes I’ve had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way …”
Using age as an out is lame – a 23-year-old is an adult by any measure. If you’re going to swim with the big boys, you need to act like one.
Phelps’ remarkable drive to succeed was clear in his stirring come-from-behind win in the 100-meter butterfly at the Beijing Games, where he won a record eight golds. That drive and his work ethic are to be admired, even emulated. Everything else? Not so much.
The age of foolishness
This is a tale of two Arkansas River cities and we’ll get to the moral immediately rather than saving it for last: Let sleeping rocks lie! The capital of Arkansas, named for a rock, wants to showcase the piece of sandstone that once served as a river dock. The Wall Street Journal reports that over the years the rock was whittled away, hidden by weeds and mud and covered by graffiti. Planned is a $650,000 restoration project to give the rock its due. The problem is there might not be much left to see after excavation. Upriver from Little Rock is Tulsa, which unearthed its own buried treasure 18 months ago. A 1957 automobile, encased in a time capsule for 50 years, was pulled out of the ground amid much fanfare but the Plymouth (the car, not the Rock) was a veritable rust bucket. Whether in the best of times or the worst of times, nature doesn’t give the dickens about things of value to people.
Gene Roddenberry’s last frontier
Pithy commentary is difficult to avoid when it comes to Star Trek stars wanting to make space their final resting place. It is, after all, the final frontier. And while they’re not quite going where no man has gone before, they are planning to stay there. Part of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry’s remains was launched into space in 1997. His wife, Majel, died last year. Her remains and the rest of her husband’s will be sent into space in 2012, via a rocket-launched spacecraft, according to a message from the couple’s son left on the Web site of Celestis Memorial Spaceflights. The company said the mission fulfills Majel Roddenberry’s wish for the couple’s own “personal star trek … deep into the final frontier.” We wonder if the price list that ranges from about $700 to more than $37,000 includes a frequent flyer discount.
Snow bound
It’s common knowledge in Washington, D.C., that the mere presence of a snowflake is sufficient for schools to cancel classes and for the entire region to go into a panic. Check that. Even a weather forecast mentioning the possibility of snow causes a conniption in the capital.
Tuesday brought Washington its first snowfall this winter, two to four inches in some places, which was followed by some sleet overnight. The list of cancellations would make you think the Capitol dome was buried under a drift. The hysteria caught the attention Wednesday of President Barack Obama, who said Washington could use some of Chicago’s flinty resolve when it comes to weathering the winter elements.
Obama’s daughters stayed home from school, “Because of what?” the president asked, “some ice?” Schools in Chicago not only have classes in bad weather, he said, they have recess outdoors. The Washington Post did some checking, and the last time Chicago’s public schools were closed because of the weather was 1999. Alas, the Obamas and other newcomers to Washington soon will learn something else about their new city: It’s mostly impervious to shame.
