Dog Days of Summer Part 1

It is hot today.  85 degrees in the shade.  Our community has a lovely dog park.  It is fenced and grassy.  There are plastic chairs and a water spigot with dog bowl.The west fence borders a bike trail - a reclaimed railroad right-of-way that runs 35 miles from salt water to the base of Mt. Rainier.  The west fence is also shady and I sat there this afternoon watching my puppy play.  He is five months old.  He easily amused himself.  Bikers passed frequently along the trail.  For five or six seconds they were within earshot of my chair.  Here are a few snippets of conversation - each a short story.

"...his family.  Aren't you ever invited ?"

"..other things left in the car.  Do we need...."

Girl biker "... one more mile.."
Boy biker "..one more mile..."

" ...without the key we don't...."

Girl biker "..don't see why not"
Girl biker "Do I dare..."

Boy biker "What the *** is that?"
Girl biker "dog park"
Boy biker "Let's...."

Boy biker 1 "... which Lake?"
Boy biker 2 "we're headed the wrong way"

"... still at work with all those..."

Fast Draw Weed Killer

I watch television.  I am unapologetic.  I enjoy some of the programs, and many of the ads.  Sponsors pay dearly for market research, focus groups and product development.  The media offer expected audience broken down by sex, age group, education and occupation.  The ad that we see is expected to appeal specifically to the target audience.  I am curious about the ads for weed killer.  Over several years, in ads for several different products, the action is the same.  The weed, often a dandelion, usually animated, struggles up through a crack in the driveway concrete.  The homeowner, always male, often shot looking up from the weeds' vantage, readies, aims and fires.  He holds the spray-bottle of weed killer in a pistol grip.  Western drama theme music plays. Sometimes his neighbor, using a competitive product is vanquished.  The weed withers.  What do the advertisers know about male homeowners in the 35 to 50 age group?  Do they all harbor dreams of a shoot out in OK corral? Is weed management on their minds?  Apparently women don't yearn to shoot weeds.  In case you have not seen these ads, here is a classic:

Rape

I am reading about war again.  Two very good books:  "We Band Of Angels: The Untold Story of American Nurses Trapped on Bataan by the Japanese" by Elizabeth Norman; and "Quiet Hero; Secrets From My Father's Past" by Rita Cosby.  Cosby's father fought with the Polish resistance in the 1944 Warsaw Uprising.  These books are not about rape, but rape is always part of the story.  Rape is always part of war.  Rape is never given as a reason that we are moved to intervene in other countries' affairs.  We declare a national interest in geo-political stability, protecting strategic oil supplies, or protecting citizens from chemical weapons or ethnic genocide.  Rape should be reason enough.  What do we expect of the outcome of rape?  Do we think about the social instability of a woman raising the child of rape?  What does she say to her child?  How does she explain?  How are her values reflected in her loyalty to her child, her country, her conquerors or what we antiseptically call "civil society"?  First the violation of the act.  Then the life long consequence.  Can she overcome her outrage and mother her babe?  Who will she trust again?