Remember last week when Sen. Joe Biden predicted an international crisis if Obama was elected? "Mark my words, it will not be six months before the world tests Barack Obama like they did John Kennedy" (Actually, Kennedy's test came 22 months after taking office.)

Although the idea that an Obama presidency would generate an "international crisis, a generated crisis, to test the mettle of this guy" is troubling, yet the comparison of Obama being like John F. Kennedy is flattering. Unfortunately, there is no comparison.

Yes, both men were young, but that is pretty much where the similarity ends.

JFK was a war veteran. He was squarely behind defending liberty throughout the world. From his Inaugural Address:

Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty.

This much we pledge--and more.

JFK did not spurn the use of technology to keep the world safe as Obama has. In fact, the technological breakthrough of the solid rocket fueled Minuteman missiles served as a deterrent to the Soviets during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

We learned about the Minuteman deterrent when we visited an actual Minuteman II Missile Site while on vacation 2 years ago.

The National Park Service preserved this last remaining facility for its historic significance, and we were privileged to have Kerry Davis, a former Minuteman employee, as our tour guide.

(Photo is of huge bank style vault door)

Ranger Davis (pictured, but my family is photoshopped out) used to work in a Minuteman II facility just like this one. We were far below the surface of the earth in this vault-like bunker command station. Davis told us how he belted himself into the red rolling chair on tracks during his shift. They did this so in case of nuclear attack, he could still launch our missiles, God forbid, if needed.

He also told us why the Minuteman was nicknamed the Ace in the hole during the Cuban Missile Crisis. President Kennedy knew he could launch in 5 minutes, if needed. Presumably Khrushchev and Castro knew it too.

No longer did our offensive nuclear missiles require time consuming fueling before take off. Prior to the Minuteman, the fueling process took so long that missiles from Russia would already be blasting America before our liquid-fuel rockets could get off the ground. The Minuteman was a solid rocket system--always at the ready in 5 minutes, hence the name Minuteman.

If you look at the Minuteman Missile History, you see that Minuteman I became operational just 8 days after the crisis began...

and 1 DAY before we went to DEFCON 2.

(My emphasis throughout) 

LGM-30A/B Minuteman I:  In the late 1950s advances in solid-fuel propellants enabled the Air Force to develop its first solid-fuel ICBM, the Minuteman I (LGM-30A/B). Formal development began in September 1958, and after an extraordinarily rapid development program, the Air Force put its first ten Minuteman ICBMs on operational alert at Malmstrom AFB, Montana, in October 1962. Deployment proceeded at an equally furious pace, and within 5 years 1,000 of the solid-fuel missiles stood poised in their silos.

... On October 22, 1962, SAC placed its first flight of ten Minuteman missiles on operational alert.

On the night of October 23, the Joint Chiefs of Staff instructed Strategic Air Command to go to DEFCON 2, for the only time in history. The message, and the response, were deliberately transmitted uncoded, (unencrypted), in order to allow Soviet intelligence to capture them.^[3] Operation Falling Leaves quickly set up three radar bases to watch for missile launches from Cuba.^[clarify] The radars were experimental models ahead of their time. Each base was connected with a hotline to NORAD control.

NORAD was the central control for the 10 new Minuteman I stations. America played a gut-wrenching game of chicken with the Soviets and Cuba. By the grace of God, the crisis passed.

 ...After much deliberation between the Soviet Union and Kennedy's cabinet, Kennedy agreed to remove all missiles set in Turkey on the border of the Soviet Union in exchange for Khrushchev removing all missiles in Cuba.

If America did not possess the capability to launch before Russia or Cuba could, or if we had not developed new weaponry, would the Cuban Missile Crisis have resolved peacefully?

I doubt it.

Countries that were weak militarily in Europe were taken over by the Soviet Union.

I believe it was only Providence that caused the Soviets to believe America was a force to be reckoned with, that the situation resolved as well as it did.

Now contrast Kennedy's attitude toward military technology with Obama's on military spending and technology:

...I will cut 10s of billions of dollars in wasteful spending. I will cut investment in unproven missile defense systems. I will not weaponize space. I will slop our development of future combat systems...

I will set a goal of a world without nuclear weapons. To seek that goal, I will not develop new nuclear weapons. I will seek a global ban on production of fissial material and I will negotiate with Russia to take our ICBMS off hair trigger alert and to achieve deep cuts in our nuclear arsenals.

Obama's naivete' on military technology and preparedness is frightening. Where would we be today if President Eisenhower and Kennedy had not embraced military technology? Maybe part of the Soviet Union?

President Kennedy might have been young and tested just 22 months into his presidency. At least he was realistic about the importance of new technology. Obama is not. 

After our tour of the Minuteman command bunker, the Ranger took us to an actual missile silo. We were told about how many warheads have been dismantled since the end of the Cold War and how the military was doing a soft standing down of Cheyenne Mountain/NORAD command center--they felt they didn't really need it anymore. Since North Korea had just fired a test long-range missile, I was not so sure a soft standing down was wise. Are there other Minutemen missiles I asked? Yes, the Minuteman IIIs are in service. I felt a little better. (Photo is of missile in glass topped silo)

The world is a much more dangerous place since our visit 2 years ago. North Korea and Iran continue to work on developing nuclear weapons. Russia is becoming more aggressive. Can we afford to "slow our development of future combat systems?" or "cut investment in unproven missile defense systems?" or "take our ICBMs off hair trigger," as Obama promotes? I would say, no, not in today's dangerous world. At least not if America wishes to remain a superpower.

P.S.--A serendipitous find: We stumbled on the ATK Corporation, out in the middle of nowhere in Utah. The T stands for Thiokol Chemical Corporation, the maker of solid rockets. Their entire front lawn held a collection of solid rocket history. Very interesting.

Please, comment content should relate to the subject of the post. Although I try to respond to many, do not interpret my lack of a response as agreement.

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We rekindled our love affair with road trip vacations in 2001 when our son was finally old enough to endure 3 days of driving at a time, and we were able to afford more dependable transportation. Instead of our usual 2 hour drive to some favorite State Park for 2 weeks of camping, we graduated to visiting various National Parks out west. It has been great.

Because of our road trip habit, I've payed attention to gas prices. Beginning in 2001, when prices spiked in late spring, I would wring my hands with everyone else and worry how high they would go by August (the time of our departure.) But it seemed every year, gas prices went down about 40 - 50 cents/gal by the time we hit the road. (Good reason to plan your driving vacation late in the summer.) Photo shows $3.79/gal on July 25, 2008 at Speedway on Greenfield and Sunny Slope Road, that is about .50 cents lower than earlier highs this summer. 

Experience taught me to not fret too much about what would prices be by the end of summer? I would assure myself the price would come down later in the summer, and they did. Unfortunately, the lower price of August was usually .25 to .50 cents/gal higher than the year before! 

I checked my travel journal for some past August price examples*. You can see the prices increases nearly every year:  2003 - $1.59/gal, 2004 - $1.83 to $1.93/gal, 2005 - $2.53 to $3.47/gal (California' price), 2006 - $2.99 to $3.19/gal, 2007 - $2.85 - $3.09. Notice the prices in 2007 were cheaper than 2006, but that was the exception to the norm.

The AAA agent told me Monday, the price this summer is $1.19 higher (nationwide) than last year's gas prices. That is a higher jump from years past. Some other market forces are at work.

USA Today attributed the oil prices drop to fewer miles driven in, Cost at pump dips as demand, oil prices fall,

Drivers in the USA logged 9.6 billion fewer miles in May than in May 2007, the government reported Monday. It was the third-largest monthly drop in 66 years.

But to me, that alone cannot account for the downturn in oil prices. If you look at the graph to the left, you see that oil prices started declining more steadily around the time the President announced he was removing the moratorium on offshore drilling. I believe if the Congress would approve domestic drilling, we would see more declines. 

If you look at the chart from this 2nd article, US drivers Log 9.6 B fewer miles in May, you see that Americans have been driving significantly less all year. May did not even mark the largest downturn, March did. If the price of oil was so dependent on driving alone, March's decline should have triggered a crude oil price reduction, shouldn't it have?

The data released Monday show that Americans drove 29.8 billion fewer miles in the first five months of this year compared with the same period last year, a 2.4% drop. The dip continues a seven-month trend beginning in November. Americans have driven 40.5 billion fewer miles from November through May compared with the same period a year earlier.

I believe we must start drilling in America if we want to see oil prices really decline. (Domestic drilling would also keep  billions of US $ at home, but that is another subject!) We are on a hair trigger as it stands now, where any natural or man-made disaster could push prices up. 

Unrest in non-OPEC countries, such as Nigeria, could push prices higher. Militants in that country sabotaged two oil pipelines Monday, driving crude prices for September delivery up $1.47 a barrel. A major hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico also could send oil prices higher.

"We could always have a spike to $150 a barrel," Smith says.

For right now, we can relax just a tiny bit and enjoy the typical price decrease of .40 to .50 cents/gallon in August. Too bad it is still .70 cents a gallon more ($1.19 nationwide) than last year!

*In 1979 gas prices were under 50 cents a gallon in the early summer! (Good thing.This was our 5 1/2 week, 8,000 mile Way Out West camping trip.)

Click here to sign the DRILL HERE. DRILL NOW. PAY LESS domestic drilling petition and see the latest links to related oil news (updated every day).

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As I mentioned yesterday, I made my 2008 Yellowstone reservations too late in the season. (I never dreamed mid September 2007 was too late!)

I should have known better. We have gone several times in recent years. The first time we went with our son in 2001, I trusted the information from the Travel section of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and made late August/early September 2001 reservations in Dec. 2000. I could get all of our dates except one. I made the reservation anyway and booked a cabin across the park for the one problem date. Despite checking at the desk every day for a early cancellation (once we were there), I never caught it. We had to move for one night and then come back, which ate up at least an entire day. Argh.

The next time we went I reserved in October. No problem.

But now that our son is no longer homeschooled, we have to go during the more popular time of year and getting all the dates is tough.

So old so soon, so late so smart? The light bulb finally lit. I just made my summer 2009 reservations now. Starting May 1st, you can do that for the following year. For the first time ever, you can even reserve the actual cabin number if you know it. Pretty great.

If you are at all thinking of going to a National Park next summer, consider reserving now. They will bill your credit card for one night, but they will give you a full refund if you cancel within 48 hours of arrival. (This might vary with each park.)

The internet makes it very easy to reserve through Xanterra, however, not every National Park uses Xanterra. Other park concessioners have online reservations too. Check with the park website; they usually have a link to lodging.

Another thing to keep in mind is that these accommodations follow the 3 rules of real estate: Location, Location, Location! The rooms vary from quaint to I can't believe they can get $145 a night for this!  But the setting (location) cannot be beat.

Believe it or not, bathrooms are an option. Being cut from camping stock, we often opt for no bathroom. It saves about $30 - $40 a night. I was glad we decided on a bathroom in Yosemite though. There was a visiting bear outside our bathroom window two nights while we were there. I don't think I would have had the nerve to make the midnight trip outside to the little house with him or her around! 

Even though frugal is my middle name, there is something very special about staying right in the park. It makes a big difference in your total park experience. We enjoy attending the evening ranger programs in the parks, so adding sometimes 2 hours travel time to that is difficult. Park roads are usually very narrow, dark, and winding. So we tend to cut back in other areas (food is one) in order to afford staying in the park. Plus, it saves on travel time in and out and gas. 

If you are planning on going to a specific park, feel free to comment or email me. I have been to many National Parks and Monuments west of the Mississippi, plus Mammoth Cave, Smokey Mt. and Everglades. I am happy to share information.

Past Posting: Make Reservations Now For Summer 2008 Includes park websites and helpful book titles

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Last spring, at the Mary Knoll Weed Out, I was talking with Gary Majeskie (Brookfield Park & Rec.-Forestry) about reports of an alleged cougar siting along I-94. We both thought it pretty unlikely, yet a cougar is a rather unique looking animal. Some people easily confuse a wolf with a German Shepherd or coyote, but a cougar is too large to confuse with a domestic cat and does not resemble a canine.

There were other reports of cougar sitings around this same time. One came from Franklin. This report was dismissed as a mistaken coyote siting. As time went on, people pretty much forgot about the whole thing.

But a few minutes ago, I heard on the news that a real, live cougar was shot dead in Chicago! So, were those alleged sitings last year real? We will never know. But it does point to the possibility that these animals do sometimes live among us.

Cougars are often present in more remote areas and in our National Parks. I remember when we were at Zion National Park a few years back, they actually had instructions on how to deal with a cougar encounter. Their instructions to hikers went something like this: Look Big. Raise your arms above your head. IF you had a jacket, put it over your arms above your head to make yourself appear very tall. Wave your arms, shout, throw rocks at the cougar, etc. (The cougar  s h o u l d  run away.)

Anyway, now you know what to do should you encounter one of these large cats.

While I have your attention, I would like to remind you that the 4th annual Weed Out is scheduled for Saturday, May 3rd at Mary Knoll Park--rain or shine. (I will be reminding you again closer to the date.) 

In the meantime, you may wish to look at these past postings with photos about Garlic Mustard:

Last year's notice, instructions much the same, only date is different: 3rd Annual Weed Out at Mary Knoll Park

It is worth saving

Oh, the shame!

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Technology can be a wonderful thing. Two weeks ago, we had that snowstorm warning on Sunday and the weatherman cautioned people to stay home. We were rather torn as to what to do, but since we just had 2 weather related fender benders that week, we chickened out and stayed home. The great thing was though, we did not need to miss our church service.

Thanks to the internet and some tech. minded members, we sat around the computer screen and watched the live sermon  from the comfort of our home! Not quite as good as being there, but we did virtually see and hear the LIVE service. I can also go back to the church website and review a sermon if I want to.

This technology has hit our beloved Yellowstone National Park too. We are what is kindly referred to as Geyser Geeks*--people who love to sit and observe geysers. If all goes according to plan, this summer we'll make our 5th pilgrimage to geyserland in 7 years.

To help us bide our time until the day we set foot on the Upper Geyser Basin, we now have the option of watching some of the geysers LIVE on the park's newly installed geysercam. Just this afternoon we watched Old Faithful and Plume go off. Pretty terrific.

As time goes on, I believe we will see more and more of this type of LIVE broadcast technology. It will enable people to "attend" events from the comfort of their own homes.

Currently, our Elmbrook School District is proposing a $62.2 million dollar high school referendum. The District states this is needed to solve our future facility needs. But I believe, because of technological advances, we can implement this type of live, virtual broadcast technology in our schools and thereby reduce our classroom space needs.

Virtual live broadcast could be used for some classes for all students, and virtual technology could also be used for all classes for some students. Either way, virtual education reduces the burden on classrooms. It also reduces the need for having a teacher for every class.

Virtual, live broadcast and virtual school should be looked at BEFORE we commit to 20 years of higher taxes.

*The official geyser watchers are called Geyser Gazers.

Links: Betterbrookfield,  Vicki Mckenna 

The countdown begins: Just 29 days until MILLIONS OF DOLLARS Tuesday!

Email me your thoughts on the $62.2 million dollar referendum.

Be sure to read Representative Rich Zipperer's Legislative Update: Right to Bear Arms, Tax Relief, Ending Sanctuary Cities, Banning Partial Birth Abortion, and Virtual Charter Schools.
 

Although summer 2008 seems a long way off, it is already getting late in the season for making National Park lodging reservations! Popular parks fill up faster than the lesser known parks.

Yellowstone (our family favorite) is already showing no vacancy dates for various days throughout next summer. Don't let that discourage you, sometimes you can still work out your itinerary by staying in two locations. This happened to us our first trip in 2001--we had to move for one night in the middle of a 2 week stay. That was a huge waste of time though, and time is money when you are on vacation.

I recommend, if you are even just thinking of going, that you make your reservations now. It is easy to do. Most parks have online registration. They will charge your credit card the first night's rate but will refund it in whole if you cancel within a certain time frame (usually 48 hours prior to reserved date).

Our favorite place to be at Yellowstone is right on the geyser basin at Old Faithful Lodge cabins. We stay in the budget cabins (no bathroom--much like camping) but they do have other cabins with a bath. These accommodations are rather simple, but fit the three main rules of real estate: location, location, location! Last summer we must have seen Old Faithful erupt 100 time from this superb location. Can't beat that!

So mouse around on the National Park website and find the park of your choice. If the park has in-park lodging, there is usually a link to it. Park hotels and lodges are managed by a private company, not the National Park Service. These private companies usually manage several of the parks in a region. Yellowstone, for example, is managed by Xanterra.

Sometimes it is fun to stay in one of the more famous historic lodges, but they are too pricey for my budget. Their room rate did not prevent us from enjoying a meal, sitting by the fire in the lobby, or enjoying a tour though. There was a PBS series called Great Lodges of the National Parks, which gave detailed information about the famous lodges and their history. It is a wonderfully done production with a companion book that is a treat to page through. Our CAFE library system has both the book and the DVD.

I also own 2 very helpful books by David and Kay Scott. Their Complete Guide to the National Park Lodges book gives very practical advice on what each park accommodation is like and even includes their exact room or location preferences. I've found their suggestions helpful. Their other book, Guide to the National Park Areas gives a thumbnail sketch of each park, with map, and other helpful planning information. Our library system has both books. 

Just writing this post makes me want to start planning my next trip and packing my suitcase!

Again, if you have any questions or want any other information, just email me. I enjoyed hearing from you regarding my Mammoth Cave post--hope to hear from some of you again.

You can also reserve campground sites, mule rides or other special activities in advance too. Be sure to check the cancellation policy first.

PLEASE BE AWARE that as a rule, the cabins, hotels, lodges, etc. are NOT luxury accommodations. They usually do not have a TV or phone and often no air conditioning. In fact, hotel owners in the private sector would never get away with what they offer if it was in any other setting. The most we ever paid for a room--ever--was in Yosemite at Curry Village. The cabin was $145/night. OUCH--painful for a frugal girl like me. It had the worst, ratty bathroom I ever saw, but we were right in the valley with the granite bluffs just outside our cabin door. Can't beat that view--remember the 3 rules of real estate? It also had a black bear that visited at 2am. Staying on grounds in the park really does enhance the whole experience--after all, you aren't going there to spend time in the room! The lobbies and common areas of the lodges are usually quite charming.