Kerry's Tees up Keystone for Obama

For those in the business of reading political tea leaves the speech last week in Jakarta by Secretary of State John Kerry is an important milestone.

Ok so I'm mixing metaphors, its an important lump of tea leaves just doesn't do it and furthermore makes light of an issue far too important for us to make light of.

Kerry's speech was the strongest statement yet from an administration that has already made Climate change a cornerstone issue. Most important, Kerry did not mince words. He spoke more like a scientist than as a politician, noting that when 98.9 percent of the scientists say that the world is round, we don't give equal time to the Flat Earth Society and we should treat climate change the same way or we will destroy the only home we have.

Kerry did not polish the rough edges of his speech, he did not "put a shine on it" as some would say; he came right out and said that Climate change was a weapon of mass destruction that we were arming against our own future.

A speech like this is not done in a vacuum. The Secretary of State has plenty of latitude to do his/her job of course but when he makes a speech as powerful as this one, he has to have run it up the flagpole with the White House.

If John Kerry has not intentionally teed up the Keystone Pipeline for a veto by President Obama then he has at the very least put his hand on the scales. Kudos to him for that.

Keystone is bad for the planet but the root problem is not the pipeline, it is the harvesting of the Tar Sands themselves and until we find a way to address the root problem, a Keystone veto will only be a wrinkle in the rug that will pop up somewhere else in the house of cards we call Planet Earth.

~wdk

Rotary Park in Snow, Plymouth, NH
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Critical Thinking and the Paradox of History

Critical Thinking and the Paradox of History
Advice from a Lifelong Student (and sometimes Teacher) of History
Wayne D. King

Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and it is shameful to surrender it too soon or to the first comer: there is nobility in preserving it coolly and proudly through long youth, until at last, in the ripeness of instinct and discretion, it can be safely exchanged for fidelity and happiness.
George Santayana
US (Spanish-born) philosopher (1863 - 1952)

History and politics must be approached with a large dose of skepticism whether from the left or the right because, after all, history is generally written by the "winners" whether their cause was just or not. While I may have coined, or simply adopted, the phrase "The Paradox of History" neither the phrase itself, nor the thought, is unique or original.

Economist John Maynard Keynes coined the phrase the “Paradox of Thrift” to describe that point in a recession when the public is inclined to save as much as possible and spend as little as possible, while at the same time massive spending is the only way to alleviate the economic peril that the country faces. The Paradox of history is simply that history is written by the “winners” who have a vested interest in the narrative, while at the same time, history's greatest benefit to us is what might be learned from an unbiased narrative that provides us an opportunity to see both the good and bad in its events, personas and results. Stated more eloquently by Gordon Craig, “the duty of the historian is to restore to the past the options it once had.”

So, therefore, a good teacher's first responsibility to his or her students is to convince them that they should believe as little as possible of what he or she is about to tell them. Let's call that the "educators corollary" to the Paradox of History.

Having admitted to complete and utter fallibility, a good teacher must then impart his/her knowledge assertively, as if no other source was closer to the oracle of knowledge.

A worthy teacher, then, seeks not to serve answers or truths but to urge students toward the development of critical thinking skills and a healthy skepticism, from which they can derive their own narrative.

This does not in any way alleviate the burden upon you, the student. Quite the contrary in fact - it imposes a larger responsibility because you must find a way to demonstrate a modicum of deference to my years of experience and knowledge while, at the same time, double checking the veracity of everything you learn from me.

One of the first things that you will learn is that a good critical thinker does not mistake opinion or "common sense" for fact. Opinion, after all is just that; one person’s view of something. Common sense, that stalwart beacon of logic and wisdom with which your elders have urged you to imbue your thoughts and behavior, is an even more devilish force because it is empowered by the vast influence of majority thought.

Stephen Hawking, in his extraordinary "Science in the New Millennium" speech, said “. . . common sense is just another name for the prejudices that we have been brought up with.”

Facts, on the other hand, as Mark Twain said, are "stubborn things"
they may stand by themselves or they may be turned into thought, but without them thought has no basis in reality; and, ultimately, no power.

So, as we begin this term, make it your goal to keep both your eyes and your mind wide open. Take joy in the moments in which your notion of the world is turned upside down because that is the surest sign that something useful is happening to you.

The Best Leader

A leader is best
When people barely know
That he exists,

Less good when
They obey and acclaim him,

Worse when
They fear and despise him.

Fail to honor people
And they fail to honor you.

But of a good leader,
When his work is done,
His aim fulfilled,
they will all say,
'We did this ourselves.’

Lao-Tzu
Chinese philosopher

Wayne D. King 2009

A Glow of Lilies
Cards & Posters
Fine Art Prints

Fields of Lupine Festival

Spring Symphony of Lupine

The Fields of Lupine Festival is a regional event celebrating the blossoming of the Lupines in New Hampshire's Northcountry.

Nowhere else in New Hampshire does this flower figure so prominently into the landscape and the ethos of the region.

Early June sees roadsides and fields carpeted with Lupines and the view is serene and awe inspiring at once.

The communities of Bethlehem, Easton, Franconia, Sugar Hill, Twin Mountain, and Bretton Woods all join together to celebrate the coming of the Lupine and to showcase their region.

Every year they put together a host of great events around the flowering: Garden tours, historic inn tours, concerts, sidewalk sales, art exhibits.

If you are a photographer, painter, artist of any sort, you'll think you've died and gone to heaven as you wander the area and capture the beauty with your mind and your medium.

Links and Details

Franconia Chamber of Commerce Lupine Festival

http://www.franconianotch.org/things-to-do/special-events/lupine-festival.aspx

Lupine Dreams Gallery

Images of Wayne D. King
Cards, Posters, Art Prints of Lupine

http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/wayne-king.html?tab=artworkgalleries&artworkgalleryid=302229


Lupine Dreams Calendar

Fields of Lupine Poster

Lupine Postage Stamp

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Special: Best Friend's Song Cards, posters and print. Reduced 50%. This beautiful piece with a quote from an unknown author makes a great gift as a poster, a print or cards. The quote "A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart and sings it back to you when you have forgotten how it goes."

http://bit.ly/1k5s16Z

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The White Oak

From an acorn, no bigger than the tip of my thumb, the mighty oak - wamed by the sun and fed by the minerals of the earth converts these nutrients and the sun’s energy into growth.

Inch by inch, ring by ring, summer and fall feeds the promise of spring

While the winter’s sleep cast an ever more crooked and majestic shadow

upon the drifting snow.

This oak, the white, growns in a manner so different from its brother the red oak. Where the red reaches tall and powerful into the sky, putting every bit of its energy into a quest for the sun, this tree sends its branches in all directions, a gnarled and spidery look where each limb becomes the equal of a lesser tree. Where the Red Oak speaks of power and strength, this tree speaks of wisdom and an intimacy with its surroundings.

The Red Oak in only a few years will forbid all but the winged from its branches but this tree - even now – beacons to the children who are  drawn to its branches and welcomed there with cool shade and the warmth of its embrace, an old friend watching over all as they  too grow older and more gnarled . . .   and perhaps, perhaps more wise.   

The Perley Oak, Laconia NH Estimate to be more than 400 years old.           

Purchase this image from Red Bubble in cards, and open edition, digitally signed fine art prints

http://www.redbubble.com/people/waynedking/works/9408152-perley-oak-mindscape

A simple color image of this magnificent tree is located here:

http://www.redbubble.com/people/waynedking/works/9408177-the-perley-oak-laconia-new-hampshire

This image in tones black and white

http://www.redbubble.com/people/waynedking/works/9408207-the-perley-oak          

Elizabeth Warren's American Indian Heritage

I can empathize with Elizabeth Warren. I don't know all of the details of how she did or did not use her Cherokee and Delaware bloodlines during the course of her life but as the grandson of a Grandfather who was Algonquin and a Grandmother who was Oneida (Iroquois) I know that I proudly embrace my heritage.  My mother's family came on the Mayflower yet when asked about my heritage I am most proud of the one that ties me most closely to the land. I'm an all American mutt but if forced to choose one box into which I am willing to be placed it is Indian and by God or the Great Spirit I will continue to proudly fly the Iroquois Flag along with the American one.

By the way, for those who wonder, the correct reference is now once again American Indian, not Native American. I have not taken the time to understand why yet but once I do, I will share it with my friends here.

The Whisper of Wind

For almost six months I have watched the ridge across from my home as a wind farm has slowly but surely taken shape there. To some - the purists and the not-in-my-back-yarders - its presence is an annoyance, a scar on the land, but to me it is a thing of beauty to behold. A powerful symbol of our ability to harness the resources of nature in a way that will sustain my family, my son’s family and many generations to come.

They speak of a respect for the land and for those from whom we have borrowed the future. No poisons lie hidden in their framework, no monolithic corporation has marred the land elsewhere to set their stage, no fire or explosion or meltdown hides within their arms reaching to the sky and soon to be spinning as they welcome the wind that is a nearly constant force moving eastward along the valley . . . of what my forebearers called the Asquamchemaukee before Colonel Baker paddled his way into history and ravaged their peaceful village along the riverbank. What this wind farm portends is almost an act of penance for a thousand acts of violence perpetrated by both sides in the years that brought us to this time and place. No terrorist - modern or ancient will find purchase here again.

The Whisper of the wind speaks freedom and peace in a thousand tongues.

~ Wayne D. King

Two Important Conservation Projects

A Campaign to Raise $2.5 Million to thwart Northern Pass

Every generation has a chance to create a legacy.


McAllaster Farm. Photo by Jerry and Marcy Monkman, EcoPhotography.

For every generation, there is a moment that defines us. A moment when we have a choice about what our legacy will be. A test of our willingness to stand up for our values.

Today is such a moment. Today the Society for the Protection of NH Forests has an opportunity to defend the state's greatest asset, our scenic working landscape, from the biggest threat of our generation.

The Forest Society is working with four landowners in New Hampshire's North Country to permanently protect more than 1,500 acres of forests, fields and views through permanent conservation easements. These lands lie directly in the obvious intended path of Northern Pass, and thus disrupt the project's ability to move forward with that route.

http://www.forestsociety.org/howyoucanhelp/special-projects.asp#sp32

Hazelton Farm on Newfound Lake

Reminiscent of earlier centuries, the picturesque and historic Hazelton Farm is a well-known local landmark in Hebron. The land features extensive frontage along the Cockermouth River, and its forested hillsides on Tenney Mountain are visible from Newfound Lake and the surrounding hills and shoreline.

The Hazelton Farm contains approximately 35 acres of open hayfields that have important agricultural soils, as well as 235 acres of forested hillsides on Tenney Mountain. Photo by Brian Hotz.

thcentury,” with gravity-fed water, no plumbing, a crank phone, and a one-room schoolhouse. The farm was left to Paul and his brothers a few years ago by their parents, and they hope to preserve the land as working forest and farm for future generations of the family.

http://www.forestsociety.org/howyoucanhelp/special-projects.asp#sp38