Veteran's Day Syllabus: From My Bookcase

Taking stock of my bookcase on this rainy day off--a day to remember those who have fallen in the defense of our freedoms--I offer a syllabus for Veteran's Day:

Carnage and Culture: Landmark Battles in the Rise of Western Power by Victor Davis Hanson.

From the chapter on the Battle of Midway:

"In less than 12 hours, 2,155 Japanese seamen were dead, 4 fleet aircraft carriers were were wrecked and soon to sink, and more than 332 aircraft, along with their most skilled pilots, were gone...In six minutes, the momentum in the Pacific naval war had swung for good to the Americans as the worst fears of the Japanese admiralty of massive American retaliation were realized after only six months of fighting."



The Soul of Battle: From Ancient Times to the Present Day, How Three Great Liberators Vanquished Tyranny by Victor Davis Hanson

General Omar Bradley on General George Patton's death:

"It may be a harsh thing to say, but I believe it was better for George Patton and his professional reputation that he died when he did...He was not a good peacetime soldier; he would not have found a happy place in the postwar Army."



The Longest Winter by Alex Kershaw

An excerpt from the fierce fighting the Battle of the Bulge that cost 20,000 American lives in the month of January, 1945 alone:

"To the left of the dugout, a German paratrooper crawled along the rock-hard ground. He got to within thirty yards of Kalil and Redmond and then quickly aimed his rifle, loaded with a grenade, and fired. It was a superb shot. The grenade entered the dugout through its eighteen-inch slit and hit Kalil square in the jaw. But it did not explode. Instead, it knocked Kalil across the dugout to Redmond’s side. Kalil was half-stunned as he lay sprawled on the base of the dugout. Redmond dropped his rifle, grabbed some snow, and rubbed it in Kalil’s face. Blood gushed from Kalil’s jaw. The force of the impact had forced his lower teeth into the roof of his mouth, where several were now deeply embedded. His jaw was fractured in three places."



The Battle of Alamein: Turning Point, World War II by John Bierman and Colin Smith.

German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel (The Desert Fox) vs.British Lieutenant General Bernard "Monty" Montgomery. From Call of Duty 2: The Battle of El Alamein--Holding The Line.



D-Day June 6, 1944: The Climactic Battle of World War II by Stephen Ambrose.

In this C-SPAN interview, Ambrose talks about how he walked every inch of the landing beach and went swimming in the surf as he researched the book.



An Army At Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942-1943 & The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944 by Rick Atkinson

The first two volumes of Atkinson's Pulitzer Prize winning Liberation Trilogy consumed many cigars and sips of George Dickel on my back patio. A description of the oncoming Germans at their counter-attack at Anzio:

"At 6:30 on a cold, foggy Wednesday morning the curtain rose to the percussive roar of German artillery. For 75 minutes, shells fell in sheets on either side of the Via Anziate, the detonations melding "like the rolling of a drum." Birds tumbled from the trees, killed by concussion. Then from the swirl of smoke and mist came whistles and shouts and thrum of panzer engines that reminded GI of "so many coffee grinders." Gray-green waves of shouting, singing German infantrymen in ankle-length coats spilled down the road and across the fallow fields."





The Fall of Berlin 1945 by Antony Beevor.

A brutal depiction of the Russians and Americans crushing Berlin at the conclusion of WWII. The end, for Berlin when the Russians arrived, wasn't pretty:

"In the cellar, Ellen Goetz, who had sought shelter there when she escaped from Lehrterstrassed prison after a heavy bombardment, was also dragged out and raped. When other Germans tried to explain to the Russians that she was Jewish and had been persecuted, they received a terse retort, "Frau ist Frau."



There are many, many more--on the Pelopennesian War, at least a dozen or more on the Civil War, and several hefty volumes on the Israeli conflicts and the Vietnam War. Military history is replete with death, destruction, failure, and evil. But it also honors the brave and those who have given their lives to fight for freedom. I salute every one of them.

Seas Rise, Accuracy Sinks

According to the front page this morning, the seas are rising and large area of currently dry land will be under water within the century:

"Sea level rise could put as much as 50-100 square miles of currently dry land - an area about 20-40 times the size of Tybee Island - under water in Georgia this century."

This dire warning, as reported, is from a new study from Environmental Research Letters and it almost had me going to Home Depot to stock up on sandbags and one of those blow up life rafts. What wasn't reported, though, was the large disclaimer that is attached to the report--identified by the looming asterisk at the end of the title. Here is what the disclaimer says:

"The opinions expressed in this letter do not necessarily reflect the official positions of either the US Environmental Protection Agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, any state or national Sea Grant Program, or the US Government."

I appreciate that there are actual people who are undertaking studies of this nature to help folks who wake up one morning with the surf on their doorstep and realize that they probably need to move inland, but sometimes, in order to make front pages of the local newspaper a little extra sexy has to be thrown in. Like the seas rising 1 meter in a century--where did that come from? From an EPA study in 1995 that the author quoted in a previous paper:

"Estimating that a 1-meter rise has a 1% chance of occurring by the year 2100 and a 50% chance of occurring by the year 2200, along those coasts where sea level is currently rising 18 cm per year, which is the global average rate."

A 1% chance? That means there is a 99% chance that it won't happen in the next 91 years and only a flip of a coin chance in the next 191 years. I don't know if that deserves front page treatment when the Cross Dressers For A Cause story was buried to 6A. I'll keep the sandbags and life raft though--my great, great, great grandkids might need them.

Maybe.

You Sank My Battleship: Same Sex Marriage Defeated In Maine

The little cartoonist guy at the bottom of Mark Streeter's Tuesday election results cartoon is standing beside two guys (one who is holding a gay flag) with their fists upraised, shouting "Remember The Maine!" Streeter is referring to Maine voters overturning the state's new same-sex marriage law:



The U.S.S. Maine, which blew up in Havana Harbor in 1898, was used by the journalists of that day as a prelude to the Spanish-American War. Spain, at the time said it was "internal combustion" that caused the explosion that killed 260 sailors. The US maintained it was "external combustion" and the work of an enemy and within about 2 months of the U.S.S. Maine explosion, Spain and the USA were at war.

So what do gay marriage advocates want to remember about Maine? That a same sex marriage law legislated from the bench was rejected by popular vote? Activists need to remember more states than just Maine:

"For the gay rights movement, which has gained a foothold in New England, it was a stinging defeat. Gay marriage has now lost in every state — 31 in all — in which it has been put to a popular vote."

Next door, New Hampshire voters took notice of Maine's cultural explosion:

"Now that gay marriage has been defeated in Maine, attention again shifts to New Hampshire, where lawmakers say momentum from Tuesday's vote may fuel legislation to repeal the state's law and give voters a say."

Giving actual voters a say. A novel idea. For same sex marriage advocates there will be less cries of "Remember The Maine" and more of "You Sank My Battleship!"

Tight & Focused: Buddy Carter Campaign Much Like Bob McDonnell's

Over on the Savannah Politics site, there is a reprint of the Savannah Morning News story on how Dave Simons (political consultant to the Low Country!) helped Buddy Carter win the election--basically by carpet bombing likely voters with mailings and robo-calls:

"Simons said going after frequent voters is the best use of a candidate’s money in a special election, where turnout is historically low. “Let me put it this way,” Simons said. “If I made widgets and someone could tell me who used widgets and who wanted them, why would I advertise to anyone else?”

I must be on one of the voter lists Simons purchased because I got a Buddy Carter communication at least twice a week. Voters interviewed for the story said these mailings and calls mattered--the material was "positive" and "well-designed" and Billy Hair, Carter's opponent didn't send out anything. I agree with the impact of these well-designed, positive mailings making the difference in the election-- but not 100%. A well-designed mailing matters, but for me, a well-designed, focused message matters more. Buddy Carter simply got his message (which I agreed with) out to me whereas Billy Hair did not. This strategy mirrors the strategy from Bob McDonnell's winning campaign for VA governor:

"The McDonnell campaign dominated the issue agenda in the campaign. Creigh Deeds, whose last ad ironically talked about substance over style, hardly ever talked about issues during the campaign. His was a campaign devoid of reasons why he should be governor, whereas the McDonnell campaign – from the candidate to the ads to the website – clearly communicated that Bob had a plan."

Billy Hair did a couple of TV interviews, where he looked like he had just come from crabbing in the marsh or maybe from a golf course and he never really articulated a plan except that Atlanta had screwed the budget up. Well, duh. Now what? Of course the size of a candidate's war chest matters and how the cash is used--but to me, and many voters I spoke with, the message inside the glitzy package matters most.

Small Businesses Relocating To Savannah Will Need More Than A Drink

I got an email invite from the Creative Coast Alliance to a welcome wagon-like event for two small knowledge-based businesses that are relocating from Atlanta to Savannah (not because I have any knowledge about anything creative, but because I signed up to be a CCA friend). The CCA is feeling very positive about these two small businesses:

"It's one thing to bring a small businesses to Savannah. It's quite another to bring two that both have positive growth potential. And we should know. We do our due diligence, too. In Savannah, we're not just looking for heads in beds. We're also looking for the right heads."

I say kudos to the CCA for doing the legwork and for these two businesses that are experiencing positive growth potential for relocating here because, right now, during this recession, entrepreneurship is getting the crap kicked out of it:

"Business failure rates have jumped. Business bankruptcies increased 79 percent from the fourth quarter of 2007 to the first quarter of 2009, and employer firm terminations rose from 2007 to 2008. Perhaps because of the rise in the small business failure rate, the number of entrepreneurs in the economy has fallen. The self-employment rate is now below pre-recession levels. Moreover, those self-employed who have managed to remain in business have had to reduce their work hours."

I'm not sure how the creative types vote, but I'll guess progressively hope and changey. Guessing that, I'm curious as to how knowledge-based entrepreneurs and the good sheperds at the CCA feel about the new healthcare bill that the House just published with its European-style taxation:

"Under another new tax, businesses would have to surrender 8% of their payroll to government if they don't offer insurance or pay at least 72.5% of their workers' premiums, which eat into wages. Such "play or pay" taxes always become "pay or pay" and will rise over time, with severe consequences for hiring, job creation and ultimately growth. While the U.S. already has one of the highest corporate income tax rates in the world, Democrats are on the way to creating a high structural unemployment rate, much as Europe has done by expanding its welfare states."

The CCA recognizes in their invitation to meet and greet these two new entrepreneurs at the Cha Bella Patio & Grill that they focus on small business here in Savannah:

'Small companies make up more than 90% of the business mix here in Savannah and they tend to be the ones we focus on. After all, it takes all kinds. Can't plant trees without healthy soil, we like to say."

I hope focusing on small business here in Savannah means voting and lobbying for pro-business policy. Otherwise the next drink these entrepreneurs might get is a farewell toast.

Interim Chief Willie Lovett Needs To Apply--ASAP

Interim Chief Lovett needs to get serious about chiefdom. It might be a small thing not to have applied for the police chief job yet--but it can also be perceived as very meaningful and telling.

"Interim Chief Willie Lovett has not yet applied, but said he will. Human resource officials expect more applications to come, and are planning to have a narrowed list of candidates to present to the committee in November."

Maybe the HR guys mean late November, but November could mean early November too. Like Monday. Like in 3 working days from now. Maybe he already has an application on file. I hope so, because the Personal History Questionaire, by itself, is 33 pages long. (Curiously, considering the alleged incident of gay discrimination at the Creative Coast soiree by the SCMPD, the Personal History Questionaire has a place for the name of a Registered Domestic Partner). But more importantly, the description for what Savannah/Chatham is looking for in a police chief is quite clear in the description of the executive search for police chief:

"The ideal candidate will be a highly capable police leader with strong interpersonal and communication skills, and someone who can quickly engage and develop effective community partnerships."

No application in yet? 27 others seem more eager. Is that quick engagement? No.

"Organizationally, the Chief must set objectives, implement innovative crime reduction and prevention strategies, and achieve improvements in public confidence by being a forward thinking individual who can leverage technology and information to maximize crime fighting resources within the community."

Is not applying for police chief job yet mean a lack of interest? Does it mean that there is an expectation of the job being given to Lovett (like some have expressed)? Does it improve the public's confidence in Interim Chief Lovett if he hasn't even applied for the job yet? No.

Come on, fire up the laptop and hit SEND on that 33 page sucker.

One Decent Bar On Derenne Worth A Dozen Design Charrettes

I saw a reminder today of the design charrette hosted by Project Derenne that will be held next week (11/2-11/6) to kick start the planning for Project Derenne. I don't know what a design charrette is. I know who Maurice Clarett is though:



I think Benny Goodman used to play a charrette:



Whatever the design charrette is (and I'm refusing to look it up out of a general stubbornness and unwillingness to put one more word of French origin into my head), it promises to put interested parties together in focus groups to plan the Derenne corridor's traffic, bikes, pedestrians, neighborhood encroachment and needs, economic investment, and business development (among other things). Really, I think this will be a very cool week with a lot of good ideas and designs for the future of the Derenne corridor (even though I don't see a focus group listing on how to pay for any of it). I hope someone, in the economic investment group or the urban design/placemaking group takes up the necessity of a good bar (or even two or three) on Derenne.

There is NOTHING on Derenne right now that draws one to the area (except for maybe Shooter's and I don't even know if that's still open). Don't you think something like The Globe Ale House or the Derenne Distillery (located in what is fancifully called the Derenne Shopping Center) would be a draw for folks who aren't necessarily on Derenne for Bojangles and/or a tattoo? Make it a live-music venue. There is plenty of parking and I don't know how there could be any more traffic than there already is around there.



Before bike paths, before sustainable solar-paneled parking garages, before a double-decked roadway, Derenne Avenue needs a good bar.

Please design that.