Tree Hugger

What about nature’s worth

It’s our planet’s womb

What about forest trails

Burnt despite our pleas.”

    “Earth Song,” Michael Jackson

1992 was the year a Baby Boomer first won a Presidential election, with Clinton ousting Bush the Elder, the last of our WW II generation chief executives.  Sadly Congressman Jim Jontz lost his seat that year in large part over an environmental issue outside his district, protection of Oregon’s Siskiyou National Forest and numerous endangered species, including the spotted owl.  While opponents of conservation sometimes use “tree hugger” as a pejorative label, Jontz proudly embraced the cause and was arrested while protesting the 1995 Sugarloaf timber sale that spelled doom for thousands of trees.  He and others were handcuffed and chained to others protesters for over 12 hours before herded roughly into a van and thrown in a crowded holding cell overnight.

In a chapter entitled “Fighting the Good Fight” Ray Boomhower mentions that while on a subcommittee overseeing the U.S. Forest Service, he was appalled to learn that timber companies were able to lease thousands of acres, clear-cut old-growth forests, and reduce them to biological wastelands.  Jontz’s subsequent sponsorship of the Ancient Forest Protection Act led timber companies to fund his Republican opponent, 33 year-old Iraq War veteran Stephen Buyer.  In defending his position to Hoosier farmers and factory workers, Jontz argued that the Indiana Dunes would not have been saved had it not been for outside forces from Illinois.  Hurt as well by redistricting, Jontz lost by two percentage points.  Lake County Democratic boss Robert Pastrick was surprised the vote was that close in an overwhelmingly Republican district.  “He hung from his knuckles for a long time,” Pastrick concluded.  For the rest of his life Jontz continued to work to forge a Green/Blue alliance of environmentalists and workers in efforts to prevent corporations from despoiling nature.  Shortly before he died, he told friend Scott Paul that he had taken a walk in the woods, said goodbye to the trees and felt at peace.

Already Republicans are feuding over whom to blame for Romney’s loss. One wag compared the difference between Republicans and Democrats to “Mad Men” and “Modern Family.”  Echoing a common sentiment, Ray Smock wrote: “Now is the time to see if Congress has the WILL to be partners in governing this country along with the President. The Checks and Balances in our Constitution were never meant to be Checks alone. To check is to prevent. We need a Balanced approach to governance that involves both sides of Pennsylvania Avenue.”  He expressed interest in the Jontz biography for the Byrd Center, and Boomhower agreed to send him a copy.

About 16 retired emeritus professors showed up for the chancellor’s annual lunch.  I sat between Fred Chary and John Ban and feasted on chicken, mashed potatoes, beans, salad, rolls, and a cookie for dessert.  Bill Lowe reported on the green space where Tamarack Hall once stood, on prospects for rebuilding on the northeast corner of 35^th and Broadway, and that a traffic light will finally be installed at 34^th and Broadway.  When he joked that it might be his legacy, someone suggested that it be named the William J. Lowe Crossing.  He fielded questions for a half hours on topics ranging from the athletic program to the need to hire more replacement faculty.  Ron Cohn asked why emeritus faculty won’t get free parking tags next year, and he acted like that was news to him.

Thursday my computer froze while I was deleting junk emails.  When I attempted to reboot it, all that came on the screen was the Apple icon and a small image that came going round and round.  Augie from IT spent a couple hours doing diagnostic tests before taking it off and leaving me with a temporary one while they try to see if it is salvageable.  It’s just slightly more than three years old.  The warranty ran out October 1.  I am trying not to stress about possible things lost since I tend to forget to save things on my hard drive.  Fred McColly cheered me up some with a photo entitled “living room spontaneous art.”

When I ran into Mark Hoyert, he said, “Great news.”  I thought he was referring to the election, but he just learned his son made the Valparaiso H.S. varsity basketball team.

A full house was on hand for the afternoon showing of the new James Bond movie, “Skyfall.”  I’ve never really gotten into Bond flicks, but both Roger Ebert and Rolling Stone raved about Daniel Craig, and anything with Judi Dench is worth the price of admission.  She had a major role as M, head of the British version of the CIA.  The movie didn’t disappoint, and Albert Finney (so good as the reclusive writer Kilgore Trout in “Breakfast of Champions”) in a cameo role was a bonus as the ancient caretaker of Skyfall.  After Bond introduces him to M, he starts calling her Emma.  I recognized Istanbul landmarks in the opening chase scene, and Javier Barden was deliciously tormented as the evil genius and the scenes shot in Scotland are breathtaking. 

In Skyfall after Bond kills an assassin, he finds a chip from a Macau casino that he realizes is the dead man’s reward for his most recent killing.  When Bond cashes it in, he receives a briefcase filled with Euros.  This reminded me of when Dean and Joanell took me to a Macau casino, we visited the high rollers floor, and I spotted a chip on the floor.  Just as I was reaching for it, someone put his foot on it to claim it.  I’ve often wondered how much it was worth.