Greetings one and all. Are you are sitting comfortably? Then I shall begin. Hopefully you are enjoying the spirit of the Holidays and may I take this opportunity for Hummingbird and I to wish you and yours the very best of health and happiness for 2016. OK— that’s enough sloppy sentimentality for any Turkey Vulture to express, so let’s move swiftly on with a few insights and hard facts as to what is going on in the world, “out there” beyond them there hills.
But before that, with all the excesses of the holiday season around me, I have come to the conclusion, like Alexander Woollcott, social commentator for “New Yorker” magazine, that almost “all of the things I enjoy doing are immoral, illegal, or fattening.” So, with the dawn of a New Year upon us, and with new resolutions bursting forth, the Quote of the Week by Gore Vidal: “Never miss a chance to have sex or appear on television.”
Now for a few end-of-year statistics that I have gleaned from perhaps the most objective source I know, The Economist magazine. “Spending reflects stereotypes, according to Eurostat’s household expenditure data: Russians splash 8% of their money on booze and cigarettes — far more than people in most rich countries — while fun-loving Australians spend a tenth of theirs on recreation, and ambitious South Koreans splurge more than most on education. In America health care (predominantly private) eats up over 20% of each household’s budget, whereas households in Europe, where public health care is widespread, spend only 4%. In Russia, government-subsidised housing and heating make living cheaper, leaving money to spend on the “jollier” things in life. “
Melbourne, Australia, remains the world’s most “liveable” city, according to the 2015 Global Liveability Ranking from the Economist Intelligence Unit. “Considering 30 factors relating to safety, health care, education, infrastructure and the environment in 140 cities, it shows that since 2010 average “liveability” across the world has fallen by 1%, led by a 2.2% fall in the score for stability and safety. The most pleasant places, notes the EIU, tend to be “mid-sized cities in wealthier countries with a relatively low population density,” which explains the low ranking of big cities like London and New York — and goes some way to explaining Melbourne’s continued place in the sun.”
Many countries have given up capital punishment: 101 had abolished it by July 2015, says Amnesty International, up from 59 in 1995. Some may be getting less keen: in America — the only rich country other than Japan still practicing the death penalty — 28 prisoners have been executed this year, the fewest since 1991. Yet plenty of enthusiasts remain, as we well know. The Economist writes, “The global toll is unknown, because thousands are believed to be executed annually in China, where official figures are a state secret and there are 55 capital crimes, including corruption and drug offences. The war on drugs is eagerly waged elsewhere too, accounting for half the executions in Iran and Saudi Arabia; Indonesia reinstated the death penalty for drug crimes in 2015. Pakistan reversed a moratorium on executions last December, after the massacre of 149 people, including 132 children, at a school. Since then over 300 prisoners have been put to death, by no means all for terrorist crimes. “
And finally, Tu casa es mi casa: Hispanic America. “In 1970 America’s Hispanic population was 7 million. Today it is 57 million. By mid-century it will double again; one in four Americans will be of Latino descent. America has seen proportionally larger migrations before. But the Hispanics’ rise is different. Never has such a large group lived so close to their ancestral homelands. And America is entering an era of white decline. By 2044 whites of European descent will make up less than half the population. That brings both challenges and opportunities. Today’s Hispanics are strikingly young, lowering the median age and offering to fill the labor market when other rich countries are graying. Politicians too often discuss Hispanics merely as victims or villains of immigration. But five-sixths are legal residents and recent growth has been mostly from births, not migration. Hispanics’ political clout will only grow: nearly 1 million reach voting age annually.”
Of course, here in the Valley, we already have an approximate 50-50 split, with the Elementary School showing close to an 80% Hispanic presence among the students. At this point, the ongoing integration of the variety of Valley folks and their cultures is seen on many levels in all aspects of Valley life and, despite the scaremongering and sometimes hate-filled rhetoric by certain people in this country, this mixture seems to be working perfectly fine to me in this part of the world.
On that more positive note, perhaps I should quit while I am ahead, before I get back to more distressing realities of the real world out there, way beyond the bucolic bubble that is Anderson Valley.
So, let’s turn to the home comforts of Public Service Announcements. #542. From Crab Feed Central: I can confirm that, with the Senior Center event being cancelled, there will be just one Crab Feed this year in the Valley. That will be “The Original Crab Feed” presented by the indefatigable Gloria Ross and her team of volunteers who will hold their event on Saturday, February 6 at The Apple Hall in Boonville. Tickets are $45 and will be available in the next week. There will be 300 for sale and these will definitely sell out. I shall keep you updated. #543. The Vets from the Mendocino Animal Hospital will be at the Anderson Valley Farm Supply on Highway 128, north of Philo, on January 14 and 21. #544. Need a burn permit? From 11am to 3pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays you can get one from the Firehouse in Boonville. Call 895-2020 for more information or stop by. #545. The Boonville Farmers Market continues every Saturday at its winter venue, outside The Boonville General Store, from 10am-12:30 pm. For more info call Cindy at 895-2949. #546. The AV Lending Library, run by The Unity Club, is open at The Fairgrounds on Tuesdays 1.30-4.30pm and Saturdays 2-4pm. #547. The County Dump is open from 9am-4pm Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday. Remember, no dead animals! 895-3569. Checking first to see that they are open is probably well worth the small effort. The Recycling Center in Boonville at The Fairgrounds parking lot is open Wednesday-Saturday, 9-4pm (489-2033). #548. Following the Holiday break, the Senior Center will re-open for lunch on Tuesday, January 5, 2016.## The Center asks for a $6 donation from seniors for both lunches and dinners and charges $7 for Non-seniors for lunches and $8 for the dinners. Next Tuesday, January 5, the lunch, served by Marti Titus and her crew at Noon, will be the always delicious Meat Loaf with Mashed potatoes and gravy, with Birthday Cupcakes for dessert. All meals include vegetables, salad bar, and fruit, plus milk, coffee, tea, and lemonade. What a deal. it maybe the best $7 you’ll spend all week! Hopefully you will be able to attend, and remember. ALL ages are welcome! Hope to see you there.
Well, even Turkey Vultures need to take a break for quality family time and so that’s all for now, besides I do have to see a man about a sheep. So, until we talk again, which will be next year. “Keep the Faith’; be careful out there; if you break a leg don’t come running to me; stay out of the ditches; think good thoughts; be wary of strangers with more dogs than teeth; show love to your pets; and may your god go with you. Oh, and of course, one final request, “Let us prey.” Sometimes poking, often stroking, but almost always humbly yours, Turkey Vulture. saddened but ultimately comforted in the knowledge that the old hare has safely moved to his new burrow in the sky.
p.s. You can contact me with words of support/abuse either through the Letters Page or by e-mail at <turkeyvulture9@gmail.com>
p.p.s. Hi, George. hope you and Sheila are well. Is that “lafter” I hear, Carroll?. Bobwhite Quail. keep up the knitting!
Great read this week, Mr. Vulture. I learned a few things of value.