A few good words from the FBI

Intelligence Note

Prepared by the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)

August 9, 2011

FBI Officials Continue To Be The Target Of Spam E-mail

Various government agencies and high ranking government officials have been the target of previous spam attacks. In their attempts to lure victims, criminals continue to explore new avenues to obtain their goal.

A new version of the spam e-mail uses the names of FBI officials along with the names of specific units within the FBI. The e-mail alerts the recipient that two "Trunk Boxes" containing a large sum of money were intercepted at an international airport. The funds are allegedly from the Office of the Ministry of Finance, Federal Government of Nigeria.

The boxes contain documents bearing the recipient's name as the owner of the funds. The fraudsters advise an additional document called the "Diplomatic Immunity Seal of Delivery" is needed to protect the recipient from violating the Patriot Act. The recipient is required to contact the fraudsters, via email, for instructions to obtain the document. The fraudsters further inform the recipient of the consequences if they fail to comply and are told not to contact any bank in Africa, or any other institution.

Do not respond. These e-mails are a hoax.

Neither government agencies nor government officials send unsolicited e-mail to consumers. United States government agencies use the legal process to contact individuals.

Consumers should not respond to any unsolicited e-mails or click on an embedded link associated with such e-mails, as they may contain viruses or malware.

If you have been a victim of Internet crime, please file a complaint at www.IC3.gov.

For previous IC3 Alerts concerning e-mail scams targeting the FBI and other government agencies visit http://www.ic3.gov/media/2009/091027.aspx.

(Earlier blog entries at www.archibaldinsc.blogspot.com)

Reflection by FXA

Taken at Seaside Farms, Mt. Pleasant, SC, 2009

The Debt Ceiling: Is It Constitutional?

Here we are only three days from financial Armageddon for our country and elements in the Congress are not willing to work out a bi-partisan compromise. Every thinking person from New York to Santa Monica, from Seattle to Miami and all points in between has an opinion (ignore the quality of thought likely in such a diverse group) and judging by reports are sending those opinions to the congress in growing numbers.

I wondered how all this got started and found at Young Lawyers Blog.com an explanation of how we (the United States of America) got started down this debt ceiling road. It is illuminating reading, especially for those who slept through civics 101. In short, the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America prohibits anyone from questioning the national public debt. We have to pay our bills, regardless of what the Tea Party and any other "no tax pledge" signers think.

Last night Mary Matalin, CNN commentator, said these congress people were not interested in re-election, only in cutting federal spending. You show me a congress person who is not interested in re-election and I will show you either a senile congress person or one who knows an indictment is coming down.

The Young Lawyers Blog makes sense out of a complex topic. It is recommended reading.

Met a man from Lowell, MA, in South Africa

No trip to South Africa would be complete without looking in on Nelson Mandela's house in Soweto, Robben Island prison and the mainland prison where he was released to jubilant, cheering crowds. So in 2003, when my wife and I were on a two month self-conducted tour driving around South Africa we visited all three places.

All this comes back to mind as we approach July 18, 2011, and the 93rd birthday of Nelson Mandela, one of the most powerful, historical figures of the 20th Century.

Unless you have visited Soweto you cannot imagine the poverty that existed in that suburban black community outside of Johannesburg throughput the 20th century. I don't have any current knowledge of conditions there since my visit but if I had to guess I would say it is not much improved.


FXA outside Mandela's home in Soweto, Feb. 2003.

When we arrived at Mandela's single story, small brick house, down the street from the home of Archbishop Tutu, we were admitted by a guide who explained that the great man had lived there from about 1946 to 1962, when he was arrested and sentenced to life in prison. He served 27 years and was released in 1990 and the rest of the story needs no further telling here.

As we walked through the tiny rooms the guide detected an accent in my voice and asked where I was from originally. We had already told him we came from South Carolina. "Yours is not a South Carolina accent," he said, as my wife laughed. She said he came "from Lowell, Massachusetts."


Mary Archibald and guide at Mandela's home in Soweto,Feb. 2003.

"You know Kearney Square?, he asked excitedly." Yes, I said, "It was the center of life when I was a young man." With great relish he told us his remarkable story. He had been in the African National Congress fighting apartheid and was forced to flee South Africa or be arrested. He came to the United States and made his way to Lowell where he lived and worked for more almost fifteen years. We discussed favorite places, and neighborhoods. Despite all he had been through in his turbulent life he was so happy to meet someone from Lowell which held many good memories for him, he said. When Mandela was released, our guide returned to South Africa. He had been working at the home in Soweto for a couple of years.

I told him of our visit to Robben Island, seven miles out in the Atlantic ocean, where we were guided by a man who was imprisoned there with Mandela for 18 of his 29 years in prison and now worked as a guide in that infamous place, (which has become a tourist attraction and big money earner for South Africa.) The guide showed us Mandela's cell and shared stories about life there; we also visited the limestone quarry where Mandela worked.

It was obvious our guide, whose years in exile had been spent in the city where I was raised, loved and respected Mandela. My wife and I came away with a healthy respect for this man who had been a foot soldier in the fight to wipe out apartheid - segregation based solely on the color of one's skin and prejudice. (I regret that I have lost my notes made on that trip and have no current record of the man's name.)

Out for a Sunday stroll

What in Hell were grown men, stripped to the waist, sweating like fresh pork on a barbecue, doing in the middle of King Street lifting weights and 20 and 35 pound bags of sand when the real feel temperature was somewhere in the nineties on a sweltering, breeze-less Sunday afternoon?

It was all part of the latest effort by Charleston, SC, officials to lure more people downtown to experience the city. The city closes King Street from Calhoun to Queen to vehicular traffic on Sunday from 1 to 5 pm. Shops are open, light dining takes place in the street under massive umbrellas to block the sun. Musicians strum guitars and literally sing for their supper. Local artists set up easels and paint. Families and couples stroll in the middle of the street, although this day a majority favor the right hand sidewalk because it offers a bit of shade.

All of this and more took place with the real feel temperature approaching 97 degrees. An slow and easy stroll down the street left me with a shirt soaked in perspiration. A bottle of water from a street vendor was a necessity. Practically every police officer I saw at the multiple intersections was sipping from a large drink container. The combination of the heat and the humidity had everyone walking slow, wiping brows and breathing hard. And then there was an exhibition to defy all reason.

This was all part of a Crossfit exercise, an exercise program and competition that has gained momentum in the last few years and is used by some military special forces as a conditioning program. Suffice it to say, I considered it to border on insanity during the oppressive heat conditions on King Street, Charleston, SC, on July 10, 2011.

(More blog entries here.) Comment to: arch@archibald99.com

Looking at good and bad

Mirror Image...
An image which is like a reflection in a mirror...everything is the same, except reversed.
Snapped this interesting picture in Seasides Farms, Mt. Pleasant, SC while on an exercise walk. (Click pictures to enlarge.)


And then there was this:



It is heartwarming that some Seaside Farms residents celebrated the birth of our Declaration of Independence with fireworks, but then they spoiled it by not cleaning up their explosive residue. I found this ugly trash scattered on the road at the end of Canyon Oaks Drive, while walking early in the morning of July 7. Someone ought to clean that up, I said to myself, and then I remembered: I was someone. I went home, returned with the box and a plastic glove, and cleaned up after these thoughtless celebrants.

An old fashioned parade

Brother and sister, Charlie Geilfuss and Joan Mills, with FXA, July 4, 2011, Franke @ Seaside, Mt Pleasant, SC (click on picture to enlarge.)

Over the 4th my third son, Patrick, journeyed to visit his brothers in the nation's capital and was on Constitution Avenue for the 4th of July parade. Patrick, an avid amateur photographer, took these pictures:
After linking up, click on Slideshow in the upper left corner to enlarge. Hope you enjoy!

A lighted faucet in your life?

Judith Martin, Miss Manners to the socially conscious, answered three questions in a recent newspaper column and began each answer with "Where were you...", as in Where were you during history class? Where were you doing civics class? and Where were you during posture class? My question is, Where was her editor when these three Q&As were being combined to form one column?

NBA owners followed the NFL owners and locked out the players. Will we be without professional football and basketball in 2911? I'm taking a peek at the Canadian Football League on TV. Don't know all the players yet but that's a small problem. I did see part of a game last Saturday night and uttered a big "WOW" at one spectacular pass play. I am betting the NFL lockout will end first. There is too much money on the table to be ignored.

Given inflation and the dwindling value of the dollar, I have not for several years bent over on the street to pickup anything less than a fifty cent piece, but just to cover all bets in case the national debt ceiling is not raised and the country goes broke, I bent over twice this week and picked up a penny and a quarter. I will miss that Social Security check but probably not as much as China and Japan who won't receive the interest payments on the American bonds they hold.

This is what America has been waiting for: "The VuPoint Temperature Sensitive LED Faucet Light (FL-IW1-VP) is a lighted aerator for your faucet that makes your water glow. When the water makes contact with the temperature-sensing metal pin in the unit, it will trigger the red LED light for hot water and the blue LED light for cold water. The intelligent sensor activates with hot or cold water, making it fun for all ages to watch the water change color. The light fits most standard faucets, and is easy to install."

(For other blogs click here. To comment e-mail: arch@archibald99.com)

Ernest Hemingway - 50 years ago

Fifty years ago today, July 2, I picked up the Sunday News & Courier (name prior to merging with The Evening Post) and read that Ernest Hemingway had killed himself with his favorite shotgun in Ketchum, Idaho. I was shocked by the act of suicide. It was against God's law and against Catholic teaching. Back in those days I was probably more of a practicing Catholic than Hemingway, although he was also born into the faith.

I was shocked and felt let down that this bigger than life personality would take a "coward's" way out. Nothing could justify suicide, I thought. It was immaterial that I knew him only through a study of his life and reading his books and articles and watching movies based on his work. He was a young man's giant; he lived the kind of life lessor men only dreamed. The news of his suicide was just that; a story written less than 24 hours after he was found dead. No time for details. No time to explore why, although there were vague explanations: accident, cancer, money problems. Only in later years did we learn he suffered from terrible depression the last few years of his life.

He was laid to rest a couple of days after his suicide in a graveside service. No Mass in a Catholic church; he had too many wives it was said. It probably had more to do with the suicide than his wives.

And the world moved on. Something and someone else took center stage.

Over the years I have softened my views of Hemingway's suicide and the man. Somewhere along the line I recognized none of us really know what lies in the heart of another man or woman. We do not recognize the personal demons. Deep understanding is ever more difficult when our personal connection is remote to say the least. We regret the inadequacies years ago in treating depression. Even today it remains a challenge for the patient and the doctor.

Several years ago I went to Key West and toured Hemingway's house. It is a beautiful place stuffed with leather chairs made from the hides of big game he shot and full of memorabilia of a life well lived. Books abound. Those he wrote and those he collected. (Years after his death his wife Mary had to take his library to New York for controlled storage and chemical elimination of pests and insects that threatened to destroy the library.)

There is an elevated walkway from the house proper to his writing workshop. This overlooks the pool. There is a penny embedded in the concrete walk around the pool. Legend is that Hemingway put it there while the work was being done. He told the contractor "You have all the rest of my money. You might as well have this.

I went to Sloppy Joe's, Hemingway's favorite bar, a short walk from his house. Here I drank a beer in mid-morning as he might have done and sucked up the atmosphere and thought good thoughts about the man. I still have those thoughts.

(For more blogs click here.

A moment in the life of a cat

This is not the cat I saw, only an example of the species.

On my morning exercise walk I met a woman walking two small dogs on long leashes. I don't know what kinds of dogs they were. I am not big on identifying dogs. I don't have anything against dogs. I just don't want one and don't care to know too much about them. I will tell you each dog could double for a lady's hand muff on a snowy day.

As the woman turned onto the concrete driveway from the road I saw a white (with a bit of black) cat near the point where a walkway to the house intersected the driveway. The cat was lying on the concrete, probably enjoying the cool feel on his tummy. He eyed the woman and the dogs as they approached and was slow to rise. What does a cat think in such situations?: No worry, this is the lady who runs this house and puts out a meal for me. I am bigger than those two dogs combined so they are not a real problem. But maybe I ought to get up anyway, just in case. Never know when a dog (and there are two of them) will go off his puppy chow. I can get back down again when they pass.

And he did.

(More blogs here.)

Where's the beef (crust)?

Bergen as seen from a mountain top lookout. (Click to expand.)


Once upon a time there was a fast food commercial that was co-opted into a political tag line: "Where's the beef?"
A similar question crust could be asked about "the crust" when ordering apple pie and ice cream in Norway. On a trip recently, my friend and I ordered this dessert and each time there was no crust. We were served stewed apples and ice cream, more of an apple dessert than the pie Grandma used to bake. The apples were tasty, being properly and correctly spiced but the lack of crust left us shaking our heads. After the second experience even seniors can learn a lesson so we chose alternate desserts.

(More blogs here.)

Car Fire in our Building

As if it wasn't hot enough this afternoon we had a car fire in the (Franke at Seaside, Mt. Pleasant, SC) Trailside Apartment house garage around 2 pm. The owner had filled her gas tank earlier today, according to gossip among the evacuated residents standing out on the lawn. Speculation is that a fuel line leak dropped gasoline on the hot engine block and this ignited the blaze. The fire started under the hood. These pictures show some of the results.
In the top photo the arm of a Mt. Pleasant fire inspector can be partially seen after the fire as he examined several points to determine where the fire started. The middle photo shows how intense was the fire. Part of the front side of the car is destroyed. The interior was also affected by the hot burn. The car is obviously totaled.
I was returning to the garage within minutes of the beginning of the incident, the garage was filled with black smoke and people were evacuating the building. I backed away and parked behind an adjacent building and walked to the scene. Some residents are experiencing smoke in their apartments but this is expected to dissipate this afternoon.
The Mt. Pleasant Fire Department responded, as did several Franke at Seaside workers to help residents.
(Excerpted from my blog which can be found by clicking here.)

FBI will lie to you and then arrest you

If you are engaged in any illegal, criminal action or activity likely to attract the serious attention of the FBI, let me give you a tip: Don't come downstairs or leave your residence just because a caller says someone broke into your storage locker or your parked car has been hit in an accident. It is probably the FBI lying to you and waiting to arrest you.
On Wednesday, June 22, the FBI ran such a scam on James "Whitey" Bulger, who the Bureau had been looking for for the last fifteen years. Bulger was called on the phone and told his storage locker had been broken into. Would he come and see what was missing? Who wouldn't? When he got outside in the open he was arrested. Bulger will be tried at a later day on a variety of charges.
This old, time-worn Bureau trick was used years ago to lure the retired Navy communications Warrant Officer turned Soviet spy John Walker out of his room in a Montgomery County, Maryland, motel known to be used by prostitutes. A call was placed to Walker's room in the early morning hours and he was told his car had been hit in an accident and would he come down and check it out. Walker shuffled outside and was nabbed by the FBI. He is in the federal prison in Terra Haute, Indian, working on his life sentence.

A remembrance - Charles Archibald

My brother Charlie (on the right) died on May 22, 2011, while I was on a trip overseas. He was the youngest of five children in our family and had battled throat cancer for about two years. I found it very difficult to talk with him on the phone a few weeks earlier. It seemed so heartless to talk about how good my life was to someone who I knew was facing the end of his life. Instead, I wrote him a loving e-mail remembering some of the special events in our lives and how he was a favorite of my late wife, Mary (Died - December 29, 2010). After my e-mail he called me from the hospital and we were able to talk on the phone. I reminded Charlie we came from poor and humble circumstances, but it was not how you started but how you ended up. By that standard Charlie did OK. My two oldest sons went to Massachusetts and represented my wing of the family at the graveside services. Charlie was a quixotic personality in many ways but he will be missed when the family gathers and reminisces.

May 8 - Major Event Day

Tomorrow we will celebrate Mother's Day in South Carolina and also observe the 66th anniversary of VE Day - the day the allies accepted the surrender of the German forces to end World War II. For many of us our mothers have died and we remember them with love and affection. We hope that those whose mothers are still alive will treasure them in their hearts and in the lives they lead. We also remember fondly those brave men and women who gave their lives to bring about the end the war in Europe, and we salute the veterans of that war who are still with us today.

Well Done! CIA kills bin Laden

A hearty "well done" to the Central Intelligence Agency and its dedicated men and women who found and killed Osama bin Laden,architect of the 9/11 bombings in New York and Washington almost ten years ago. President Obama confirmed the operation in a nine minute speech Sunday evening from the White House. The President said the United States developed a lead on bin Laden last August and had painstakingly run the thread out to the village and compound where bin Laden was hiding. The President authorized an attempt to capture bin Laden but he put up a fight and was killed in the action.

Born in the USA

As Ronald Reagan used to say,"Well," he finally did it. President Obama citing the totally unnecessary distraction from the country's real problems among TV talking heads, wannabe presidential contenders, and the simply stupid (my phrase, not the President's)put a copy of Certificate of Live Birth on the White House web site today. This certificate is certified by the State Registrar in Hawaii and shows the President being born on August 4, 1961, in a Honolulu hospital.

Light a candle in the fight against AZ

Please consider going to this web site and take Option 2 to light a candle in memory of someone who suffers from or died from Alzheimer's. Option 1 offers the opportunity to make a donation in the fight against AZ and light a candle. I am proud to have joined more than 4100 people who have lighted candles as of midnight 4/18/2011...a tribute to Mary C. Archibald is there. You can reach it by scrolling through the pages under the letter "A".
Thank you.

Tough Without a Gun - Review

Hanging on the wall at the end of the brown leather sofa in the living room of my small apartment in the active lifestyle community on the Franke at Seaside campus in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, is a black and white print of Rick Blaine seated at a table wearing a white dinner jacket and black bow tie holding a drink in his hands and muttering to no one in particular, “of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine.”

This, of course, is the classic image of Humphrey Bogart, star of the still widely acclaimed greatest picture of all time, Casablanca. Bogart was in 75 movies and did his journeyman work on Broadway in dozens of plays, but he is best remembered in my mind for five films: The Maltese Falcon, Casablanca, Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The African Queen (he won the Oscar) and The Caine Mutiny.

Stefan Kanfer has written Tough Without a Gun, The Life and Extraordinary Afterlife of Humphrey Bogart, for people like me and millions of others around the world who remember the man The American Film Institute ranked as the greatest male star in cinema history. Entertainment Weekly designated Bogart the Number One Movie Legend of all Time and the U.S. Postal Service issued a stamp bearing his likeness in 1997. In 2006, a portion of 103rd street and Amsterdam Avenue in New York City was designated Humphrey Bogart Place to commemorate his birth and early life in that city.

This biography is a taut telling of Bogart’s life and career. In his life, as in his films, Bogart was not one to kneel obsequiously to authority. He respected it in his own way but always there lingered the suspicion that man was not on this earth to be told what to do all the days of his life.

In Bogart’s life, there were two kinds of people who acted in Hollywood: the professionals, who came to the job every day, knew their lines and were ready to work. The rest were bums. He was the ultimate professional in the judgment of his peers.

Bogart was a somewhat of a straight moralist, despite four marriages. When he was married, he did not stray, and in his private and public life, he did not do drugs or lay on the psychiatrist couch. He consumed a lot of whiskey (the story is he, and director John Huston – another big imbiber, were the only members of the cast and crew making The African Queen on location in the Congo who did not get sick.)

Tough Without a Gun is replete with tidbits of information about the making of Humphrey Bogart’s greatest films, the ones he was proudest of, and the ones over which he despaired. This 239-page tribute lists all of his Broadway performances and movies and includes a collection of black and white photos designed to recall these classic moments in film history. It will resurrect memories of a golden era in American filmmaking. More than that, it will delight Bogie fans around the world.

(If you received this twice, please excuse. Computer and I having a bit of conflict tonight.)

A morning walk on the beach

I was on the beach at "Isle of Palms SC" at 5:35 this morning. It was a solid black morning. The sky was devoid of any clouds and it seemed there were thousands of stars. The tide was low and I walked up the beach for 35 minutes before I met anyone. I kept the same distance between the incoming tide and my path to stay on a straight line. I encountered a woman and her dog. We chatted for a few minutes and she used the light on her cell phone to let me read the time on my watch. I then turned and headed back the way I came. When I reached the point where I had entered the beach I stopped and looked back to the East. The sun was not visible but its rays were lighting the horizon and I knew it would be soon be daylight.

How to hook up a wireless router - 2nd time

Well, the first try didn't work too well, so let;'s give it a second shot on how to hook-up a wireless router.

As usual kick on the blue highlighted words and you will be taken to Youtube for a six minute video. Quite easy to understand.

(If you do not wish to receive future blog entries reply with an e-mail. Your address will be deleted.)

Hooray for the USA

From Warren Buffet's recent annual letter to the shareholders:

“Money will always flow toward opportunity, and there is an abundance of that in America. Commentators today often talk of ‘great uncertainty.’ But think back, for example, to December 6, 1941, October 18, 1987 and September 10, 2001. No matter how serene today may be, tomorrow is always uncertain.

“Don’t let that reality spook you. Throughout my lifetime, politicians and pundits have constantly moaned about terrifying problems facing America. Yet our citizens now live an astonishing six times better than when I was born. The prophets of doom have overlooked the all-important factor that is certain: Human potential is far from exhausted, and the American system for unleashing that potential—a system that has worked wonders for over two centuries despite frequent interruptions for recessions and even a Civil War—remains alive and effective.

“We are not natively smarter than we were when our country was founded nor do we work harder. But look around you and see a world beyond the dreams of any colonial citizen. Now, as in 1776, 1861, 1932 and 1941, America’s best days lie ahead.”

Gingrich won't be president

In today's local paper (The Post & Courier, Charleston, SC)I saw a picture of Newt Gingrich talking with a couple at the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition in Waukee Iowa. The former Speaker of the House was photographed at a side angle by Charlie Neibergall for the AP and I can tell you that Americans have not elected a man this fat since Warren Harding.

Turtle is a tortoise

My turtle is a tortoise. (See Mr. Turtle below.) I learned today a major difference between a turtle and tortoise: The former has web feet for swimming. The tortoise is a land-dweller that eats low-growing shrubs, grasses, and even cactus. Tortoises do not have webbed feet. Their feet are round and stumpy for walking on land. So my Mr. Turtle is undoubtedly a tortoise. So who knew?

Turtle on the move

This turtle was considering crossing the Isle of Palms, SC, connector on March 1. He was at the edge of the highway watching four lanes of cars moving very fast. I made a decision for Mr. Turtle: I turned him around and headed him back to a grassy area and a drainage ditch. I continued on my walk and when I returned he was no where in sight.

Extraordinary fidelity — Central Intelligence Agency

This is a link to a fascinating story of courage and fidelity by two men who survived more than 20-years of captivity in China. They were young CIA officers when betrayed and captured. They came out grown men still in love with their country and demonstrating "extraordinary fidelity." This is a great story, better than most spy fiction.

Two CIA Prisoners in China, 1952–73 — Central Intelligence Agency

For the child in all of us

In all of us, I believe, is a child's fascination with trains. This weekend myself and a friend went to the Citadel Mall, Charleston, SC, and visited the Charleston Railroad club house and The Best Friend of Charleston temporary museum. Both of these are in former stores' spaces and a delight to visit and spend time. The RR club has a great display of all scales* of tracks and trains on hand and the museum is dedicated to preserving the history and memory of the Friend of Charleston, the first railroad engine to see service in South Carolina back in 1830.

*Scale is the reduced size relative to the original item being reproduced. The most common model railroad scale is HO. This is 1:87 in relation to the real thing. This scale is used by maybe 70% of model railroaders out there.

Other common and easy to find scales include N(1:160), O(1:48), G(1:24) and Z(1:220).

Clicking on the link above will take you to some pictures we took during our visit. You may view these as a slide show by clicking on the appropriate term on the left above the first picture.

Don't redefine rape - sign the petition

Hi,

I just heard about a horrible bill that could redefine rape and
set women's rights back by decades.

Here's the deal: Right now, federal dollars can't be used for abortion
except in cases of rape, incest, or when the woman's life is in danger.
But the bill, introduced by Republican congressman Chris Smith, would
narrow that use to "cases of 'forcible' rape but not statutory or coerced
rape."

I personally believe that when a woman says "No" anything beyond that is rape.

As far too many women know, bruises and broken bones do not define rape -
a lack of consent does. This bill is scary - so I signed a petition
telling Congress to stand up and oppose the bill. Can you join me at this
link?

Thanks.


Archie

Mary Frances Cooper Archibald - Obituary

Mary Frances Cooper Archibald MT. PLEASANT - Mrs. Mary Frances Cooper Archibald, wife of Francis X. Archibald, died peacefully Wednesday in her sleep at the Skilled Nursing facility in Mt. Pleasant, S.C., where she had lived for the last three years. Mary was born in Georgetown, S.C., October 13, 1931, the daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Edward Cooper, also of Georgetown. She was educated in the Georgetown public schools and graduated from Winyah High School. During her teens she worked at the usual teen-ager type jobs, including a stint as a waitress at the Screven Hotel. She was taken to a commercial college in Columbia by relatives but arrived back home in Georgetown by bus almost before the relatives who traveled by car. Mary joined the United States Air Force and took basic training at Lackland AFB, Texas. She went on to specialized secretarial training at Okalahoma A&M and was then assigned to Headquarters, USAF Office of Special Investigations, Washington, D.C. It was there she met her future husband, Francis X. "Archie" Archibald and they were married in a Catholic wedding at the chapel at Bolling AFB on September 4, 1954. Mary and Archie had five children and lived in Washington, Charleston and again in Washington before moving to the Charleston area for what would become the family site. They settled in Hanahan in 1960 and lived there until three years ago. Mary was a most loving wife, devoted mother, caring grandmother, and friend of many people. She earned a college degree from New York State University through classes and study in the Charleston area. During the early years of her marriage she worked briefly from time to time at Charleston AFB, the Naval Base and later with the Department of Mental Health in Columbia. In 1980 Mary was a campaign leader in her husband's successful campaign for the Statehouse. She later bought an 80-year old Dutch Colonial house in Columbia, S.C., and restored it to its original likeness. Much of the work she did personally and supervised the rest. Mary was a devoted viewer of the Discovery and Travel television channels and yearned to see many places around the world. After Archie retired in 1993, Mary and he traveled by car throughout the United States, Canada and Alaska. In 1994 they went to China and taught at Taishan Medical College, Tainan. Mary had approximately 200 college students in Basic English classes. Following this, Archie took Mary on a six months trip to foreign countries to visit some of the places she had seen in films and on TV. They drove across Western Australia in nine days, a trip many Aussies will never undertake. In 2003, they traveled to South Africa on a self-guided tour for two months and in 2005 made a trip to Malaysia. Mary was a member for many years of the Berkeley Hills Garden Club and worked hard in her home garden and on club projects. She enjoyed sitting in her swing on the back porch her husband constructed for her at their Hanahan home, especially in the spring and early summer, and taking in the beauty of the yard and nature in bloom. Mary is survived by her loving husband, Archie Archibald of Mt. Pleasant, SC; five children, Francis "Frank" X. Archibald, Jr. and his wife, Lisa, of McLean, VA, James E. Archibald and his wife, Lisbeth, of Arlington, VA, Patrick L. Archibald and his wife, Donna, of Goose Creek, SC, Martha Archibald of Goose Creek, SC and Wynn A. Godbold and her husband, Rett, of Myrtle Beach, SC; nine grandchildren, a sister, Bertha Westbury of Georgetown, S.C. and a brother Edward Cooper, Marietta, GA. She was preceded in death by her sister, Lee Benton. Mary was a convert to Catholicism in the early 1960s and a devoted communicant at Divine Redeemer Catholic Church in Hanahan. The Liturgy of Christian Burial will be celebrated in Rodenberg Hall, Franke at Seaside, 1885 Rifle Range Road, Mt. Pleasant on Saturday, January 1, 2011, at 1:00 p.m. with military honors. Her family invites all neighbors, friends and those who were touched by Mary's life to attend. Visitation will be held Friday, December 31, 2010, at J. HENRY STUHR MOUNT PLEASANT CHAPEL from 5:00 until 7:00 p.m. Final commitment will be private to the family. The family wishes to thank the staff at Skilled Nursing, Franke at Seaside, for the loving and caring they showed Mary while she was living there. Also, Hospice of Charleston was a big assist to the family in Mary's final days. Flowers will be accepted or memorials may be made to the Alzheimer's Association Alzheimer's Association Alzheimer's Association , 2090 Executive Hall Road, suite 130, Charleston, SC 29407. A memorial message may be sent to the family by visiting www.jhenrystuhr.com. Visit our guestbook at www.postandcourier.com/ deaths

Mary Frances Cooper Archibald, R.I.P.

The Post & Courier
Charleston, SC
Thursday, December 30, 2010

ARCHIBALD, Mary Frances Cooper, of Mount Pleasant, wife of Francis X. Archibald, died Wednesday. Arrangements by Stuhr's Mount Pleasant Chapel.

(Full obituary to follow on Friday. Visitation at Stuhr's Mount Pleasant Chapel, Mathis Ferry Road, on Friday, December 31, 2010, from five to seven in the evening. Funeral Mass on Saturday, January 1, 2011, in Rodenberg Chapel, Franke at Seaside, 1885 Rifle Range Road, Mount Pleasant, SC, at one o'clock in the afternoon. Interment later will be private to the family.)

Note: This blog entry is primarily for friends and extended family outside the Mount Pleasant area, although the publication mechanism of necessity includes a wider audience.

A daugher's "feel good" blog

This click here blog is written by my daughter and I am so proud of all she has become I want to share it with you. I hope you will enjoy it and click on the different headings (home, blog, testimonials, etc) to learn more about this remarkable woman and SC kindergarten teacher who loves her work.

DADT to end

Newspapers report this afternoon the Congress has voted to end the "Don't Ask, "Don't Tell" discriminatory practices in the armed services. The bill goes to the President who is expected to sign it and then the Department of Defense will have to take action within 60 days for repeal to be final. Gays and lesbians will then be able to serve in the military without fear of persecution and prosecution. I believe this is only right.
When I was in the Air Force (1951-1959) two of my friends were kicked out of the service having been revealed as homosexuals. I never suspected either one of being gay and considered them along with the hundred others in our office loyal and hardworking members of the Air Force dedicated to serving our country in good times and bad.
Other nations since the days of the Roman Empire have had gays and lesbians in their service and now our country will join their ranks. We will still be the best damn military machine in the world today and tomorrow.

(For other blog entries visit: archibaldinsc.blogspot.com)

Four out of five major newspapers endorse Sheheen

Four out of five of the major newspapers in South Carolina have endorsed Sen. Vincent Sheheen for Governor. The fifth, The Post and Courier, Charleston, endorsed his opponent Rep. Vicki Haley.
The Greenville News, The Florence Morning News, and The Myrtle Beach Sun News endorsed Sheheen Sunday morning. Earlier The State, (Columbia), endorsed him.
Voting is Tuesday throughout South Carolina and everyone who is eligible and has not yet voted is urged to go to the polls on Tuesday.

The Rent is Too Damn High

Jimmy McMillan of The Rent Is Too Damn High Party during the New York gubernatorial debate Monday.

On the question of same sex marriage, Mr. McMillan said anyone could marry a shoe as far as was concerned. He always answers his campaign phone in the same way: The Rent is Too Damn High. He is running for governor of New York.
You have to love this guy a little bit. BTW: He has $26.05 in his campaign fund.

The web site from hell

Have you ever tried to use the US Postal Service web site for the second time? It has become the web site from hell. After several attempts to buy some stamps I gave up and contemplated going to the tallest building in Charleston, drinking a cup of hemlock, slicing my wrists and jumping off. Then I remembered I had to do my laundry.
I used the postal service web site some time ago to buy stamps. It was an easy task. Now, I wanted to buy some more. Since my first usage they have changed the criteria for passwords and even after they e-mailed me my old one and told me to use it their computer would not accept it. I tried to register as a new user but their computer rejected me because it already holds my name, address and, I suppose, date of my graduation from kindergarten.
It could be simple. Go to the site, select what you want, type in where to send the stamps, and tell them your credit card number. Why do they need everyone to register and to keep all this data on file until global warming destroys the planet? The postal service is not a secret nuclear military base.

Heated Warning

Letter to the Editor
The Post & Courier
Charleston, SC
Published Sunday, Sept 12, 2010

Heated warning

Book burners would do well to recall that German philosopher Heinrich Heine wrote: "Whenever they burn books, they will also, in the end, burn human beings."

Francis X. Archibald
Franke Drive
Mount Pleasant

(To view other blog entries click here.)

I am passing this along because it is another good deed done without any self-interest by the Southern Poverty Law Center. I hope you find it so.
Archie

From: Morris Dees

Southern Poverty Law Center

Aug. 30, 2010
Dear Friend,

I'm proud to tell you that we've settled the lawsuit we filed on behalf of Louise Marie Monroe, the widow of a black man who was shot to death by a police officer in Homer, Louisiana.

Bernard Monroe

Earlier this year, we filed a civil suit against the town of Homer, seeking damages for the wrongful death of Bernard Monroe. The 73-year-old retiree was enjoying a family reunion on Feb. 20, 2009, when two white police officers came onto his property. Our suit claimed that the police officers created a volatile situation when they chased Mr. Monroe's son into the family home and shot the young man in the back with a Taser gun.

During the commotion, Mr. Monroe went to check on Louise Marie, his wife of 49 years. As he was climbing his porch stairs, one of the police officers in his home shot him several times through the screen door. Because he had lost his voice to cancer, Mr. Monroe was unable to call out during the incident. The officers said they thought he had a gun; several witnesses said he did not.

The settlement will allow Bernard Monroe's family and the town of Homer to move forward from this terrible tragedy. The town's attorney, Jim Colvin, agrees that the settlement will help heal the community. "The town needs an opportunity to recover from this unfortunate event. This settlement is a key step in that healing process."

Because of the nature of the settlement, I'm not allowed to disclose the amount of the monetary damages, and the town did not admit liability. Both officers have left the police department.

One of Mr. Monroe's family members told me how grateful they all were for the SPLC's help, saying that "everyone we met at the Center was kind and considerate" and that the attorneys were "real people who cared about our family."

But we could never have won justice for Mr. Monroe's widow and family without your support. As you may know, the SPLC takes no portion of the damages we win for our clients. Your dedication to fighting injustice and intolerance enables us to take on cases like this. Please accept my personal thanks for standing with us in this important case and all the other work we do.

Sincerely,

Morris Dees
Founder, Southern Poverty Law Center

You can donate to the Southern Poverty Law Center online.

Or by mail:
Southern Poverty Law Center
400 Washington Ave.
Montgomery, AL 36104

(For other items in the blog click here.)

Building permit granted

A friend sent this along earlier tonight:

I recently applied for a building permit for a new house.

It was going to be 100 ft tall and 400 ft wide with 9 gun turrets at
various heights and windows all over the place and a loud outside
entertainment sound system. It would have parking for 200 cars and I
was going to paint it dark green with pink trim.

The City Council told me to go to hell.

So I sent in the application again; but this time I called it a Mosque.

Work starts next Monday...

(See full blog here.)

Spies of the Balkans - A novel reviwed

“The Salonika communications unit was at least indoors; having bivouacked in the local school along with other reservists. They’d stacked the chairs against the wall and slept on the floor. Dry, but bored. Each member of the unit had been armed for war by the issue of a blanket, a helmet, and a French Lebel rifle made in 1917. The captain took Zannis aside and said, ‘Ever fire one of these?’

‘No, never.’

‘Too bad. It would be good for you to practice, but we can’t spare the ammunition.’ He chambered a bullet, closed the bolt, and handed the weapon to Zannis. ‘It has a three-round tube. You work the bolt, look through the sight, find an Italian, and pull the trigger. It isn’t complicated.’”

This is one of the grim humorous passages in Alan Furst’s latest historical spy novel, Spies of the Balkans. The story incorporates Mussolini’s strutting invasion of Greece, to demonstrate his power and value to Hitler, but the Greeks drive his divisions back Albania and Hitler has to send his army to Greece.

As the events unfold Costas Zannis, a senior police official who works only special ‘political’ cases, finds himself being drawn into the lives and acts of spies, wives, lovers, and criminals from Turkey, Britain, Germany, and Bulgaria. He cautiously develops an escape route from Berlin to Salonika to Turkey.

The Underground Railroad in America, an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by black slaves to escape to free states and Canada between 1850 and 1860, was a piece of cake compared to creating escape routes for Jews and others important to the Allies from Nazi Germany and the Gestapo. Being caught on the run in Europe meant death for those fleeing and anyone who helped them. Yet there were those who fled and those who stepped up to rescue them. Zannis is one of these rescuers and his actions put him on the Gestapo’s list of scores to settle.

Spies of the Balkans takes the reader on a suspenseful journey through the labyrinth of Eastern Europe in 1939-1940 and keeps the tension at a maximum peak as the Germans march into Greece. With all other routes closed Zannis reaches the Turkish border where, because he lacks a visa, he is told, “You will return to Greece.”

This is the 11th historical novel written by Alan Furst centered on spies, intelligence operations and ordinary people during the pivotal years 1933-1945. I have read them all and consider this one as enjoyable and engaging as the first one and all the others. His novels have been translated into seventeen languages.

(Furst, Alan, Spies of the Balkans, Random House, New York, 268 pages.)

(For the complete blog click here.)

Intensify the fight against Alzheimer's

Dear friends,

Alzheimer's disease steals the future from millions of Americans. It robs spouses of their companions and children of their parents and grandparents; it erodes the health and financial resources of caregivers.

I just signed a petition calling on Congress to make Alzheimer's disease a national priority. Will you add your voice?

http://www.alz.org/petition

Your signature will be delivered to Congress on September 21, 2010 World Alzheimer's Day.

Together, we can make Alzheimer's a national priority.

Thank you.

Archie
(For the complete blog click here)

How Millennial R U?

On a Sunday morning when it continues to rain as it has since long before dawn I went to the Pew Research Center and looked at a few studies and issues currently under scrutiny. Among these was a short quiz, How Millennial Are You?
The quiz measures how much the quiz taker has in common with the Millennial generation, i.e those born since 1981. It also measures your standing with other groups: Silent generation (born 1928-1945), baby boomer (1946-1964), gen Xer (1965-1980).
I scored 52 which put me closer to the Millennial generation than any other group. My basic group, based on date of birth, would have been the silent generation and I was separated by 48 points from that group. The Pew researchers conclude that the higher your score, the more you have in common with the Millennial generation.
Who is to say if this is all good or bad one way or the other, but it does make me feel good to realize I am closer to the generation which will carve our future than tied to the past.
I also took the Science Knowledge Quiz and answered only eight out of twelve questions correctly. This tells me I need to spend more time watching PBS than HBO.
(To tour the complete blog click here.)

Death toll - Letter to the Editor

Published: August 11, 2010

July 31, 2010

Letters to the Editor
The Post & Courier
Charleston SC

Dear Sirs:

It is more important to keep the total cost of American lives lost in Afghanistan before the American people than it is to report the total number of failed banks in the U.S. this year.
The recent Associated Press story (Sat. July 31) "'Tough fighting' takes toll" shed light on monthly figures of servicemen and women killed in Afghanistan since the end of February but did not report how many brave American men and women (and other coalition forces) have been killed in this nine-year war.
Elsewhere in the paper it was reported that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. had a day earlier seized 3 more banks and that brought to a total of 106 banks which have failed in 2010.
I acknowledge it is highly likely, as the AP reported, "the rise in causalities is likely to erode support for the war in Washington and the capitals of the 45 other countries that provide troops" in Afghanistan. This happened in the Vietnam War. So be it. We at home need to constantly have before us the terrible cost of this nine-year war. Otherwise it will go on and on.

Sincerely,

/s/Francis X. Archibald

Click here for the entire blog.

Readers' responses

Sometimes I get responses to a blog entry so fast it makes me think I touched a sensitive nerve. Such was the case on Sunday, August 6, when I blogged against some lawmakers expressing an inclination to change the Constitution (see below)to deny citizenship to children born in the United States of parents who are illegal immigrants. These were some of the early comments, in agreement with and opposed to my views, including a boilerplate response from Senator Lindsey Graham, (R-SC). (References to the baby refer to the picture which accompanied the blog entry. I alternated the typeface to make it easier to read.)

I am p....d off at Lindsay Graham also. I think he is a blockhead for supporting Kagan.
(Semi-retired businessman in Virginia.)

Just a quick line to applaud your latest. I spent an hour last night trying to prove Obama was born in the U.S. I always try to remember what my Dad use to say "sometimes the best revenge is to leave them stupid." Hang in there pal.
(SC Businessman)

I hope you sent this to those chowder heads!!
(Retired SC physician)

Thank you for taking the time to contact me. I appreciate the opportunity to hear from you.
In spite of the high volume of mail I receive daily, I look forward to reviewing your correspondence and providing a personal response as soon as possible.
As we continue our work in the 111th Congress, I look forward to supporting our troops in the War on Terror, repairing our economy and creating jobs, strengthening Social Security, lowering the tax burden on American families, and making the federal government more accountable and efficient.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if I may be of further assistance to you or your family, and if you need immediate assistance, please call my office at 202-224-5972. If your correspondence pertains to a scheduling request, please fax your request to (202) 224-3808.
Sincerely,
Lindsey Graham (U.S. Senator)

I am P......d too! Loved the PHOTO! Keep your COOL... (SC Lady)

Thanks again for your views and comments. I agree with you completely. I like the photo!
(Retired SC man)

If they are the children of illegal immigrants. they are illegal ,also. And I'm totally exasperated with that blockhead, Obama, who is burdening our children, grandchildren and ,probably, great, great, great grandchildren with enormous debt. I'm p****d off, too!!!!!!!!!!!!
(SC Lady)

Could not agree more. Lindsey Graham has made some courageous decisions to cross party lines but in this case I think he is simply seeking a gimmick to pander to the right. Love that baby!
(SC Lady)

Welcome to the club. All the guys you named should be out on the street as far as I am concerned, especially Graham. P.S. Moreover, I think this jerk pictures himself as President!
(Former federal employee)

Well, there ARE those of us who are NOT "blockhead" (I AM, after all, an ex-cop who feels just as strongly about cop killers and the like) but remain equally as pissed off at this "INVASION" of illegals into our...OUR...sovereign nation! Just because our gutless, inside-the-beltway, totally PC'd, so-called leaders (on both sides of the aisle) refuse to do what it'll take to stop this tidal wave of immigrants flooding over the border, doesn't (shouldn't) mean we cannot WISELY, in my view, amend things such that by sneaking across our border to "drop a kid" no longer REWARDS these illegals with granting their newborn fetuses with automatic, constitutionally protected US citizenship! That's NONSENSE and absolutely NOT in the spirit of what our Founding Fathers had in mind nor could've possibly foreseen the times we now face. The drain on our economy (ask California), the effect on our diminishing culture ("press one for English, two for SPANISH!!!), not to mention the dangerous ease of passage for WHOEVER wants to jump aboard this American bandwagon - - be their intentions good or evil (even draconian) - - is one of the biggest threats we face in my opinion. We OWE our children and grandchildren better...much better...than what we're leaving behind.
Just another point of view...from one who's actually made hundreds and hundreds of felony arrests in his day of the other criminal filth in this country you rightfully mentioned. There are American citizens down near the border, on US soil, being slaughtered by illegals involved with the Mexican drug cartels...I care more about THEM and THEIR constitutional rights than I do ANY of these ILLEGALS, who show none of us an ounce of respect nor regard for our sovereignty...and then laugh at us by hiding behind such an out-of-step, antiquated law and DEMAND their "rights???" That's crap and WHY the Founding Fathers established the process to amend things in the first place.
So, I do not consider as "blockheads" those you mention just because they wish to address - - LEGALLY - - an ever growing, serious problem!
(Retired federal employee)

I am totally exasperated with SC Senator Lindsey Graham. Yes, and just when he was about to get on my good side for supporting Elena Kagan! If we want to punish evil doers let's start with some real, honest-to-God criminals and not pick on new-born babies simply because moma and papa came across the Rio Grande to cut lawns in Southern California, wash dishes at Aspen, Colorado or pick tomatoes in South Carolina. What the h@^l makes us think it's "our" country, anyway - just because we had the good sense to pick 'mericans for parents? And . . . .if we could bother to send some agricultural, educational, economic and health care foreign aid to countries that really need it (not talking bombs and guns here), most people would be happy staying where they are, if there was a way to have a meaningful life!
Yeesh!
(A SC Lady in the ministry)

That's the problem that RR, GB 1, and GB 2 left us who care about exploitation, justice, and mercy. The Democrats cannot ignore those problems just because the Republicans care to. All of us have quite a few tigers by the tail. I, for one, sure as hell don't have the answer. It seems to me there a’int no quick fix.
(Retired college president)

This little baby expresses my sentiments exactly!!!
(Graduate of my High School)

(See the complete blog here.)

I am p****d off!

I am totally exasperated with SC Senator Lindsey Graham, John McCain and the other blockheads for even thinking about changing the Constitution of the United States to deny citizenship to children born in this country to parents who are illegal immigrants.
Is it because they want to punish lawbreakers and lawbreaking? There is no question illegal immigrants are breaking the law? Here's a surprise. The penalty for such lawbreaking is six months for a first offense and two years for subsequent offenses.
If we are going to punish people for breaking the law let's start with some real SOBs: murderers, cop killers, burglars, rapists and the white collar criminals who steal people's retirement and wreck havoc through their shady dealings. Let's deny citizenship to the off-spring of these criminals. That will cut down on crime about as much as denying citizenship to the baby born of illegal immigrants will cut down on the number of illegal immigrants.
If we want to punish evil doers let's start with some real, honest-to-God criminals and not pick on new-born babies simply because moma and papa came across the Rio Grande to cut lawns in Southern California, wash dishes at Aspen, Colorado or pick tomatoes in South Carolina.
Get some damn common sense, Lindsey and John and the rest of you bloating blockheads.
I am p****d off!.

A bit over the top

I believe it is a bit over the top for the government to send BP an $75,000 nonitemized bill for a one-day visit to the New Orleans crisis center by VP Joe Biden, as reported in The Wall Street Journal on-line edition, July 21.
I like Biden and he is a nice guy, but what did he actually contribute to solving the crisis besides bringing himself up to speed, something he could have done with a video conference at a cheaper price. (Disclaimer: I support this administration and am a former BP stockholder.)

It came in the mail

Today I received a canvass survey document from the National Republican Congressional Committee asking my view "as a Republican leader" on 20 questions ranging from Obama and Nancy Pelosi's alleged "soft-on-defense, reckless spending, higher taxes, and expansive Big Government policies" to whether or not I believe it important "to remove Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the House."
It cost the NRCC eight-cents to mail this survey to me, although in the part where they asked for money they said it would cost $11 to tabulate and process my survey.
They asked for this amount and another $100 so they could mail 211 more survey documents to registered Republicans.
On the oft-chance they might have hit the mother load they also had a place on the survey where I could checkoff and send $1,000, if I was so inclined. And of, course, if I wanted to, I could put this contribution on my credit card, (and probably earn frequent flier miles and pay 18% interest on the outstanding balance.)
Wouldn't you know it, however, this survey arrived just a few days after I had planned to send the same $1,000 to Nancy Peolsi to help her continue her sterling leadership in the House of Representatives.
As to the policies of the Obama administration, they may not all be 100% right or perfect but in the past two years they have been a breath of fresh air.
This canvass survey is so loaded with pre-judged, anti-Obama, anti-Democrat, unfair and biased questions that I checked the box saying I supported Peolsi and sent it back to the NRCC in their postage paid envelope. It will cost them about 49 cents to open that envelope.
(From my blog.)

A grandson's note to grandma

Our grandson was graduated from high school in Myrtle Beach in June and like all grandparents we sent along a little something to commemorate the event. Our grandson then wrote the following note to his grandmother:

Dear Grandma and Pepaw,
I wish I could find the words to describe all of my emotions for the two of you. Since day one you have taken care of me and I will always remember that. When me and my mom would come and stay with ya'll that was when life was at its best. Everything was so simple and the only worry I had was when was grandma going to make dinner. I love you both very much and everything you have done will never be forgotten.
Love
Matthew

Clamp on Picnic Table Canopy

Every once in a while you see a great idea and say, "wow." I had a "wow" moment today while looking at the on-line Hammacher Schlemmer catalog. It is a picnic table canopy. Here is the on-line description:

The Clamp On Picnic Table Canopy.

This portable canopy clamps to any rectangular wooden table and provides up to 75' sq. of shade. The unit's adjustable bracket clamps latch onto picnic tables, the three-piece frame sets up in seconds, and the canopy simply slides over the frame. The canopy tilts 20º in either direction, adjusts up to 9' high, and locks into place at the desired position. Made from a durable polyester fabric, the canopy filters the sun's UV rays and provides reliable shelter from rain. The powder coated steel frame, high impact injection molded connectors, and rip-stop canopy ensure years of reliable use. The entire unit folds to fit into the included duffel bag. Minor assembly. Fits tables 4' to 10' wide. Open: 58" H x 90" W x 120" L. (27 lbs.)
Item 11679
$129.95
Please allow 1-2 weeks for delivery.

Makes me wish I had a picnic table out in my backyard!

Spare me your "mercy"

I believe most people today are like myself; poorly informed about gladiators. When I visited the Rome Colosseum a few years ago I found it much smaller than I had imagined in my mind. After all what I know about gladiators I learned from the silver screen and actors like Victor Mature, Kirk Douglas and Russell Crowe, all of whom vanquished large animals and brutes bigger than themselves, won their freedom and made off with some busty woman.
Thus, I was intrigued when I saw a headline in the local paper about a possible gladiator graveyard being uncovered in England. The article reported new forensic evidence suggests bones belonged to gladiators. It cited men larger than the average Roman, arm-muscle stress indicating possible weapons training at an early age, and carnivore marks on bones, all suggesting an arena connection. It was a shock to read that gladiators were often beheaded as an "act of mercy after suffering horrific injuries during their fights." You would hope they would have been given some hemlock or a tainted mushroom.

Get this message

(Published June 5, 2010)

Letters to the Editor
The Post & Courier
Charleston, SC

Dear Sir

It was inspiring to read about the 830 students who graduated from MUSC into the health care field last week. I wish them all a lifetime of career satisfaction as they attend to the medical needs of their patients.
I recently sent a one-paragraph to a doctor whose name I omit out of courtesy. If the 830 were smart enough to graduate, they ought to be smart enough to get this message:

"Dear Dr. Name Omitted

"Today, Thursday, May 20, 2010, I arrived at your office with my wife, Mary Archibald, at 10:35 for a 10:50 appointment. At 11:30 we were still waiting in the outer office with the prospect of being there at least another hour. Two other patients had gone into the inner office ahead of us and neither had come out. A third patient was also ahead of us in the outer office. During this wait a drug rep came, was admitted to the inner office and left after about twenty minutes. Another person came delivering three large bags (it looked like lunch). All this time Mary was in her wheel chair. I know when she is tiring and the likelihood of another hour’s wait was obviously going to be too much for her. (I had picked her up at Franke’s Skilled Nursing unit at 10:15.) We left."

Sincerely,

/s/ Francis X. Archibald

(From my blog.)

Where to play the game

Moderate weather fans were thrown a bone this week when the NFL announced the 2014 Super Bowl will be played in New Jersey.
On cue came the cries of the purists who believe that weather ought not to play a role in determining the outcome of the game. Since the first game was played back in 1968 the league has always chosen a warm climate – California, Florida, New Orleans, Atlanta - for the game.
The decision to play in New Jersey where the forecast for game day in 2014 is temperature in the low thirties, strong winds, and maybe snow, was in part a reward for the new stadium in New Jersey.
All of this is much ado about nothing. To really even things out for having favored warm weather teams these past 43 years the league should put the game in Green Bay.
Remember the NFL championship game between the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys played on the frozen tundra on December 31, 1967, when the pre-game wind-chill was minus 70 degrees? By kickoff time knowledgeable weather men in Green Bay were on the plane to the Fijis. The stout-hearted were in Lambeau Field.
With a little over four minutes to play in the fourth quarter, Bart Starr started the Packers on a drive to the end zone 68 ice covered yards away.
Did the weather influence the game? Green Bay fans say, nah: ‘both teams had to play in the same conditions.’ Dallas fans respond: ‘that’s like saying the swimmer and shark were equal since they were both in the water.’
When Starr dove into the South end zone with 13 seconds on the clock his winning touchdown created one of the most memorable moments in NFL history for the Packers, Starr and the fans.
This is what football is all about. Regular season games are played in warm climates, moderate (for football anyway) places like New Jersey and Pittsburgh, and then where real men get tested: Green Bay, Wisconsin.
The Super Bowl ought to get the same billing.
(From my blog.)

Woody Woodpecker is alive and well

Yesterday while walking from the dining room to my apartment building I heard a woodpecker. I paused and look up in a tree but did not see him. I took a few steps and heard him again and I stopped and looked. I thought he wants me to see him. After a minute or so I spotted him about 30 feet up the side of a tree. He commenced his rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat pecking as I stood there watching and listening. Then he moved about 90 degrees to a new position on tree but hit a soft spot and though his beak was moving in and out, or up and down, there was no noise. He flew away and I walked on to my apartment.
(From my blog.

Matterhorn – A tale of courage and survival

It has been a long time since a novel was so compelling I hated to put in down and yearned to pick it up again as soon as I could. This is "Matterhorn." It has nothing to do with that fabled mountain in the Swiss Alps which attracts professional climbers every summer. It is a story about a hill in Vietnam that a company of Marines took, abandoned, and re-took in 1969.

 

I picked up this novel about the same time I was watching the ten-part HBO series "The Pacific," the heroic struggle of the United States Marines during World War II. I was struck by the similarities in both wars.

 

The author, Karl Marlantes, a graduate of Yale University and a Rhodes Scholar, served as a Marine in Vietnam. He was awarded the Navy Cross, the Bronze Star, two Navy Commendation medals for valor, two Purple Hearts and ten air medals. He brings to this first novel a wealth of first-hand experience about men in war. One wonders if Matterhorn is more auto-biographical than imaginary. In any event it ranks very high among the tales told of the Vietnam experience which I have read over the years. Marlantes says he worked on this, his first novel, for thirty years.

 

This gritty tale has been widely praised and nit-pickingly criticized. Some thought it over-written; others get hung-up on little things like explaining the military lingo in the narrative despite a glossary of weapons, technical terms, slang and jargon, in the back of the book. I did not find this distracting. To the contrary, it helps the uninformed understand immediately without having to flip back and forth.

 

The one thing I believe comes straight at you is the oft told tale about why men fight as they do in battle. They aren't fighting down on the ground in Vietnam for some noble purpose laid down by politicians back home (stop the spread of Communism) or by senior officers way behind the lines (body counts are a measure of progress); they are fighting for their lives and the man at their side.

 

The perspective of the "snuff" (a young Marine of low rank) is always going to be different from that of the career senior officers, "lifers" – quite often a derogatory term implying one who puts career, military rules and decorum above the welfare of the troops. In between these two groups are the young 2^nd lieutenants who live and die with the snuffs but are charged by their seniors to lead them to fight.

 

The battalion commander drinks too much for anyone in charge of troops and is quick off of the mark to find fault and suspect the worst. Marlantes gives us hope at the regiment and division level. The future is not addressed in the novel, but it is reasonable to expect that very shortly an officer's fitness report will put the battalion commander out to pasture.

 

In Vietnam this hierarchical system worked as it has for two-hundred years. It never is pretty, but the job gets done and young Americans rise to the occasion over and over again.

 

It is not going to happen but every American ought to read this tale and imagine himself in the First Squad, First Platoon. Matterhorn will not be a novel you will quit on half-way through. To do so would be deserting the boys in the sweltering mountains and jungle of Vietnam.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why Youth Join al-Qaeda

The recent bombing attempt in Times Square has renewed questions about what motivates young people to join violent extremist groups. In a new Special Report, United States Institute of Peace Senior Fellow Col. John M. "Matt" Venhaus examines how the terrorist group al-Qaeda recruits young people, who signs up and why, and ways to prevent al-Qaeda from growing its ranks.
Read the Special Report
Click on the Download Now link beneath the image of the report (on the USIP site) or read the summary on the opening page.
(From my blog.)

Shopping at The Pig

In the days when Jesus trod the earth many men drank wine from goatskins. The richer ones had urns which they sometimes filled with water and we all know what happened at that wedding feast. Later on came bottles and real corks, most of which came from Portugal. Enterprising people took this a step further and introduced plastic corks. Time moves on and wine today is being sold in cardboard boxes equal to four 750 liter bottles. It is claimed the wine will stay fresh for a month after being opened. (I guess this is a natural progression to being able to have dog food delivered to our doors.)

If you pass on the wine in the cardboard box, as I did after picking up some apples and bananas at The Pig in Seaside Shoppes, watch yourself at the register, or better yet check the register receipt. I shopped on Saturday. My bill came to over $12. After putting the food away at home I looked a bit closer at the receipt and thought that was a lot of money for three items (I also bought some cow's milk). The apples cost $8.74. WHOA, wait a minute. I didn't buy that many. I got out the scale I use to weigh kilos of coke (that's an attempted funny, don't call the DEA) and had about 20 ounces of apples. Having learned elementary math at the hands of Miss Seed in the Hugh J. Molloy school, I returned to The Pig. The customer service rep weighed the apples and gave me a refund of $5.66. I asked what he intended to do about the scale and register where I checked out and he said "they are OK. The checkout girl probably leaned on the scale" and he would speak to her about it. And since my cash back was over $5 would I please sign the chit he put before me.

How the government spends some of your money

At one time or another we all wonder about how the government is spending our money. A portion of that money goes to maintaining and operating the FBI in Washington, across the country and in some foreign lands where we have embassies. One way to get an idea of what you are receiving for your money is to go to www.fbi.gov/ and look in the left hand column. You will find links to receive daily e-mail updates from the Bureau covering activities throughout the country and you can submit your e-mail address for press releases from the Columbia, SC, office (or other field offices in areas you are interested in). The daily e-mails come bullet-like with a summary of the issue and a link to the details. I have looked at these for a few weeks now and find them as interesting as any news magazine I read. One category of crime that surprises me is "public corruption" which gets much attention from the Bureau because of its effect on citizen respect for government, as well as betrayal of public trust for money or other favors. (Corrected copy.)

How not to dress for a flight

Michael Lombardi runs a financial investment in New York and threw a personal gripe into a recent e-mail that hit home with me and I want to pass it along:

“My gripe today may be a silly one, but I want to share it with my readers anyway.
“Back in the 1950s, 1960s and even for the majority of the 1970s, men would wear suits to work, women would wear dresses.
“(Remember The Dick Van Dyke Show or The Lucy Show. The men would come home from work in suits and wear them around the house until they went to bed, while women would wear dresses.)
“Putting work and the office aside, people originally dressed up to go onto an airplane. As a frequent traveler, I've become quite disgusted (sorry for the hard words) about how people dress on an airplane these days. I don't want to sit next to someone (male or female) who is wearing
“flip flops on a plane. Nor do I want to sit next to a man wearing short pants and an undershirt or a woman wearing a tank top, shorts and sun glasses.
“Sure, society has changed and dress today is much more casual. And while I don't expect people to get "dressed up" to go onto a flight, I do expect people to have respect for the way they present themselves and for their fellow passengers. I'm all for being ‘comfy’ on an airplane, but I have a big problem with people dressing as if the plane is a stepping stone to the beach or the gym.”

(From my blog.)

Sovereign Citizen Movement

Sovereign citizens "believe that even though they physically reside in this country, they are separate or 'sovereign' from the United States."They believe they don't have to pay taxes, can ignore the courts and thumb their noses at practically every organ of government federal, state and local. The FBI has released a summary of this movement in the United States and I found it interesting to say the least. They have even gone so far as to create their own license plates, some of which are shown in an FBI photo.
(From my blog.)

Madam Speaker…

Gavin Newsome, Mayor of San Francisco

According to news reports House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is the Republican Party’s top target, but the only way they can kick her out of the speaker’s office is to take control of the Congress in November.

Mrs. Pelosi got 72 percent of the vote in her District in 2008. San Francisco is her home base and the mayor of that city by the sea said on Bill Maher’s show a couple of weeks ago that his city already has a health plan in place which mirrors the bill passed by the Congress in March which has stirred up so much opposition in the GOP.

The main reason they have betting windows at race tracks is because people disagree on who is going to win. As of now, I believe Mrs. Pelosi will be with us as Speaker of the House in the 2011-2012 term. Political buffs stayed turned.

(From my blog.)