Still same ol Madison

The smell of teargas on State Street brings back memories of the early 70's. Going to the Capitol to be with the Guardsmen that had just come back from Vietnam. They were worried that they would shoot the protesters since they even admitted they were triggerhappy from their year in Vietnam. They figured that if there were people they knew in the crowd, they could resis the temptation to fire. Fortunately, that worked.....

Are we getting close to this again? I imagine this is just too much liquor before the snows come. This can be the most beautiful time in Wisconsin. The time of year I actually miss....

Hundreds arrested in raid on Halloween revelry crowds MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Police used repeated bursts of pepper spray early Sunday to break up a crowd of Halloween celebrants, part of a weekend of revelry in which more than 400 people were arrested.



Police made hundreds of alcohol-related arrests over two days of Madison, Wis. annual Halloween bash.

No serious injuries or property damage were reported. Police declared an unlawful assembly early Sunday and used officers on horseback to move chanting and beverage-tossing revelers off State Street. The pepper spray was used after cups filled with beverages and ice were thrown at officers. Most arrests were for alcohol-related offenses, said Lt. Pat Malloy. He said the local detoxification center was filled to capacity and some people had to be taken to emergency rooms. There were 269 arrests overnight and 178 the night before, Police Chief Noble Wray said. Madison is the home of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Elsewhere, police in Athens, Ohio, home of Ohio University, made 95 arrests at a Saturday night Halloween block party. Police described the crowd as belligerent but smaller than in previous years. Forty-eight of those arrested are college students, officers said. One man was stabbed in the hand and a woman was injured escaping from an attempted rape, Athens police spokesman James Mann said.

Time to impeach Bush?

I suspect things are looking very, very, grim at thw White House.

The indictment of Libby for lying is huge. Why was he lying. Who was he lying for? This certainly brings Cheney under the gun of directing Libby on this whole thing. However, the real direction could have come from the top. Time will tell. It would be ironic if tapes get them too, but it will probably be emails....

Then today came news that Saddam had accepted an escape plan from Iraq. The only thing that didn't occur was the meeting of the Arab nations. The offer was not submitted properly so they could not consider it. The war started before the next meeting.

There you have it. Saddam was out. Elections would have happened sooner if the country did not stumble into civil war. 2000 juds wiykd not have died. Billions would not have been spent. Lies would not have had to be told....

Clearly, the people involved in this lie should not be in power. The honorable thing would be for the administration to resign. However, pride will force them to hold on until impeachment.....

We are on the trek to that horrible showdown....I notice McCain is not standing for his 'old' friend. Like Goldwater, will he have to tell the President to hit the road, Jack?

Another racer gone

Manzanita is a local racing legend track here in Phoenix. A great dirt track that is being pressed by subdivisions that will probably soon gobble the land up. It will be a great loss to those of us that like dirt racing....


Reidus Gene Gunn

Reidus Gene Gunn passed away on October 18, 2005 at his home in Gilbert. He was born March 21, 1925 in Alva, Oklahoma. Gene, who has lived in Arizona since the 1940s, was a pioneer in the auto racing community in Arizona. He was one of several individuals instrumental in converting what was a dog track into Manzanita Speedway. He raced in the very first race at Manzanita on August 25, 1951. During his career he raced throughout Arizona, California and surrounding states, and for many years held the record at Manzanita for the 100-lap race. Gene worked throughout his life as a heavy-duty mechanic and retired in 1987 as shop superintendent for Calmat Cement (now Vulcan Materials). He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather. He was preceded in death by his wife, Joann and son, Gary Reeves Gunn. Family members who will miss him greatly are children: Richard (Linda) Gunn from Oregon, Deborah (Elden) Letner from Gilbert, Jana Gunn from Glendale, and David (Teresa) Gunn from Utah. Other surviving family includes: brother, Glenn (Donna) Clary from Utah and brother-in-law Roger (Babe) Netz from Phoenix. He had 10 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. Gene miraculously survived a severe brain injury in 1987 and spent five months in Barrow Neurological Center. The family asks that donations be made in Gene's name to the Barrow Neurological Foundation, 350 W. Thomas, Phoenix, AZ 85013. Funeral services will be held on Saturday October 22, 2005 at 10:00 AM with a visitation one-hour prior at the LDS Elliot Ward Building, 10256 S. Greenfield Rd in Gilbert.

Race those offy's Wayne....

I happened to meet Wayne a few months ago in connection with the improvement of a street. We talked briefly about racing, but he lived a fine life on a farm. Development was beginning to encroach onto their rural lifestyle. Subdivisions were going to become their view and ultimately overtake their farm.....

Ex-Indy driver diesWayne Weiler, a two-time starter in the Indianapolis 500, died of an apparent heart attack near his home in Phoenix, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway said Friday. He was 70.Weiler, who died Thursday, first drove at Indianapolis in 1960, when he finished 24th in a car co-owned by Mari Hulman George, daughter of the late Speedway owner Tony Hulman and mother of current Speedway boss Tony George. Weiler was 15th in his final race at Indianapolis in 1961. Two weeks later, he suffered serious head injuries in a USAC sprint car race at Terre Haute, Ind., which ended his racing career except for a brief comeback on the West Coast in the late 1960s.

Pi for geezers

Fun with numbersThe numerical value of pi has baffled scientists and mathematicians for many years. Pi is the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter. For most calculations, the numerical value has been assigned as approximately 3.14. Scientists and mathematicians have used computers and algorithms to calculate millions of digits beyond the decimal point.Eighty-year-old Oscar Dorr of Punta Gorda thinks back to earlier times in mathematic history, eons before he taught Navy students the physiology of aircraft systems. He's been a member of Mensa for more than 35 years and working with numbers since he was no more than single digits old.He said, "You know, I remember when math was simple. I remember when the value of pi was only 1.75..."

How cool is this?

One of my favorite sections in Newsweek is the Perspectives Section that lists unusual quotes from around the country. The last couple of months, they have asked readers to send in a quote and get attribution for it. Well, when I was doing my program on Sunsounds of Arizona http://www.sunsounds.org a couple of weeks ago, I saw a great quote from a legislator. It was about the controversy where the government wants, in fact they have banned machines in grade school, middle school, and junior high; to ban fast food machines in schools. Some legislators want to extend the ban to high schools. Common sense tells you that this is rediculous. However, Republican common sense apparently dictates putting their nose in the midst of a lot of other peoples business.

So, I sent the quote in. They called late Friday and said it should be in the Newsweek that hits the stands tomorrow, monday, morning. How cool is that?

Here is the request from the guy at Newsweek. Nearly dumped it since I did not know who he was. He had left a message on my work phone....

Hi Mike, We're interested in using the quote you submitted for next week's Perspectives page! I left a message on your voicemail--I just need to confirm your information (name, hometown, source). Thanks for replying soonest.
Nick Summers Newsweek
perspectives@newsweek.com Subject: quote from Arizona
"We trust 16 year-old students to drive a 4000 pound vehicle on the highway, but not to eat a Snickers? They can join the Army and handle an M-16, but they can't handle a pack of Skittles?" Senator Dean Martin, R-6 commenting on proposed Snack ban in High School. www.Arizona capitoltimes.com

How weird our world is.....