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June 20, 2008

While most people think of the U.S. Marines as America's premier fighting force, the Corps also provides humanitarian assistance around the world in the wake of disasters. That includes right here at home, as historic flooding devastates large swaths of the MidWest.

(The same is true about our client, the Marine Corps League, who aid other Marines and their families, as well as communities and children engaged in their own battles against crippling illnesses.)

Here's part of the story; click on the headline to read the rest and see the photos of your United States Marine Corps in action.

Marines, Ind. Nat'l Guard fight back storm waters, help save local town

6/11/2008 By Cpl. Jason D. Mills , 26th MEU
ELNORA, Ind. — Approximately 140 Marines and sailors from the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit were called into action here after state and local agencies requested their assistance to fortify a levee in imminent danger of being overrun by the floodwaters which have devastated the area.

The Marines, who were later joined by soldiers from the Indiana National Guard, prisoners incarcerated at the Wabash Valley Correctional Facility in Carlisle Ind., townspeople, Mennonites, Amish farmers and local volunteers reinforced nearly a mile of levee in Elnora, Ind.

After receiving the word to mobilize, the Marines rushed out to Elnora via CH-53E Super Stallion and CH-46E Sea Knight helicopters and began filling sandbags and building and reinforcing levees shortly after arriving at 3 a.m. and continued their efforts until 5 p.m. when they were called off due to more thunderstorms in the area.

The Marines worked with a feverish determination throughout the night and into the morning, most of the time with smiles on their faces, because they had the knowledge they were doing something of real good for those they are sworn to serve.

“It’s good to know that we can go out there and help these people, and I think it’s going to be a real rewarding experience, just being able to help and know that we’re doing something good for this town,” said Lance Cpl. Alex Nelson, Evansville, Ind., native and Marine with the 26th MEU.

February 11, 2008

In researching an article on calendars for an upcoming issue of American Spirit Magazine, I ran across a fun conundrum that's particularly apt right now: When was George Washington born?

According to the Washington family Bible at Mt. Vernon: “George Washington, son to Augustine and Mary his wife, was born ye 11th day of February 1731/32 …”. Astronomer Duncan Steel, author of In Marking Time; the Epic Quest to Invent the Perfect Calendar, says that Washington always celebrated his birthday on February 11, although our calendars (and history books) say it was February 22 … and both dates are correct, Steel says.

February 11 on the Julian calendar then still used in the American Colonies (and Great Britain) correlated with February 22 in countries using the Gregorian system. At the time of Washington’s birth, the Julian calendar pegged March 25 as New Year’s Day. So February 1731 was actually very late in the year, about six weeks before New Year’s Day on March 25, 1732. However, on the Gregorian calendar we use today, Washington’s birth occurred in early 1732. (The reference to “1731/32” is called “double dating" and was used to try to eliminate confusion.)

Somehow, I like the idea of starting the year around the approximate start of spring. It has always seemed odd that winter begins right before year-end and then carries over. It would also divide the year-end holidays so we could recover from one and better enjoy the next. As a friend of mine used to say, when I'm king, it'll get fixed.

January 30, 2008

We Hammockians (there has to be a better term than that!) find all kinds of media fascinating. One constant refrain in discussing any medium these days is involving the audience, making the medium more interactive.

That's not new, of course. Recently, in a box of miscellaneous items that belonged to my late in-laws, I ran across an example from the 1970s. Ron Kaiser, who was then the reigning weather god at WTVF News Channel 5, put together a Snow Probability Calendar for the winter of 1973-74.

Kaiser went through weather records dating back to the 1880s, logging days on which snow fell. To his surprise, snowfall seemed to cluster around certain dates from November through March.

Kaiser didn't provide specific numbers, but grouped dates according to high chance of snow, moderate, and little or none. In the calendar, high chance dates were printed in white, moderate in blue, and little or none, red. The calendars also plugged the "EyeWitness 5" news and weather forecast times and upcoming holiday specials.

Distributed free and by the thousands to loyal viewers, the calendars were a (deceptively) simple and fun way to engage the audience's attention for five months. I'm sure many viewers logged snowy days on them and compared the results.

Now, I'm not qualified to offer an opinion on global warming (not that that seems to deter too many people), and my time in Nashville goes back only to 1982. But my memory is of colder winters, and my Nashville-bred colleagues here recall the same thing, as well as lots more snow.

So, just check the calendar pages and make your own call. Hint to Lelan Statom: How about updating this calendar - with today's computer power, it should be pretty easy.

Bill Hudgins

Editor

o: 615.690.3403

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