Interesting Pick From Dara

At the Do It Yourself Scholar...

The Hebrew Scriptures in Judaism and Christianity, by Harvard historian, Shaye Cohen, is recommended by Dara, and when Dara recommends a religion course I always take a peek.

The two Yale podcast "prequels" she recommends sound like interesting Summer listening as well:

Introduction to the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible by Christine Hayes

Introduction to New Testament History and Literature by Dale Martin

Dara (who does not disclose her last name at her fine blog so far as I can tell) has a variety of tastes and interests I do not share (so many topics, so little time), but she runs a very thoughtful blog.  Her Do It Yourself Scholar offers links to year’s worth of study from the undergrad level and up, all of it free for downloading. 

As I have said before, give DIYS a look.

I've got a class to finish this week and another to start next week, but I'm going to add these to my listening list.

Don'ts and Do's

On the Superior Hiking Trail...

Cassie, Erik, and I decided to do a couple legs of the Superior Hiking Trail (aka the SHT; type carefully) for a weekend wilderness getaway.  We planned to start after an overnight stay at Cascade River State Park.  On Friday we would hike 9.5 miles to a campsite on the other side of Bally Creek Road.  On Saturday we'd hike 8.3 miles to Grand Marais; no, not to the delightful little resort community on the north shore of Lake Superior, but to a primitive campsite in the hills above the town.  On Sunday morning we'd hike 4.9 miles to the Cook County Road 58 trail head and catch a ride on the Superior Shuttle, which would take us back to our car at the Cascade trail head.  So, 22.7 miles in two and half days.  What could go wrong?

Well, to begin with the SHT is really scenic.  As with all things wonderful, the more scenic the view the more effort you must expend to get to it.  The Cascade River segment of the trail is really, really scenic.  I mean well and truly scenic.  In fact the net elevation gain over this segment is more than 1000 feet.  Maybe that wouldn't be so bad if there weren't all the descents in between the re-ascents.  The temperature was somewhere in the 80s, the heat index was well into the 90s.  

Somewhere along the ups and downs I began to sweat.  After a few more I began to huff and puff.  We drank a liter of water.  Thank goodness for hiking poles.  They makes ups less uppity and downs less of a downer.  Still, I started pausing at the peaks.  We drank another liter of glorious H2O.  Then I began to pause at the bottom of the descents.  The kids (okay they're 23 and 20) pounced from rock to rock, switchback to switchback, like mountain goats...young, healthy, mountain goats.  I began to pause frequently, chest heaving, leaning on my handy hiking poles.  While leaning over I noticed the sweat was running off the brim of my ball cap...drip, drip, drip.  We drank another liter.  Cassie and Erik offered to take the full water bottles so I could carry the lighter empties.  I chuckled, remembering their first backpack trips when all they carried in their backpacks were their favorite pillows.

We took a break for lunch.  Erik and Cassie had beef jerky, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and sports bars.  Tuna, salmon, and nuts for me.  A brief nap was restorative.  Away we went.

In short order came the muscle cramps.  They started with stitches in my left side.  Then as something that felt like a "Service Left Kidney" alert.  Ow.  Then they spread to include the right side.  Then up and down my back.  Then the tight muscle ache spread across most all of my chest, but was only noticeable when I moved, or breathed.  Hmmn.  Stretching helped, for a few moments.  So did sitting down on logs and rocks.  The kids disappeared for longer and longer stretches.  Each time I caught up with them we drank more water.  Then Erik insisted on taking my pack.  That looked like a lot of work.  Then Cassie and Erik tried carrying the pack together.  No joy.  We drank more water.  We were down to half a liter now.  Somewhere, a mile or so from our destination, I must have moaned or something.  "What's wrong, dad?"  "Cramps," I replied, "in my quads."  The kids said, "That's enough.  Sit here in the shade.  Drink the rest of the water.  Rest."

They doffed all three packs, and set out to find camp and the creek the map said was next to it.  They carried only the map, empty water bottles, and the water filter (they had edges and fire too, but they always have knives and flame in the woods).

I lay there in the shade, propped up against a log, amid the sun dappled greenery, kneading the cramps from my quads and hamstrings in one leg then the other.  In better circumstances it might have been nice (except for the thirst and the cramps).  I felt stupid.

Cassie and Erik returned in an hour and a half, wearing smiles and bearing full water bottles.  The camp was better than they expected and there was plenty of water in the creek.  Restored by the news, the water, and their company, I donned my pack and we pressed on to the Sundling Camp spur trail camp.

We rethought our plans and agreed Erik and Cassie would retrace our steps back to Cascade River.  This time they would descend on the east side of the river which they had not seen before.  They'd get the car and come to this end of the trail.  I'd rest and hydrate.  We'd spend another night and on Sunday head home to Minneapolis a little earlier than our original plans predicted.  That is what we did.  I threw in an "anything you see on the menu" breakfast at the Cascade Lodge Restaurant.

So, the Don'ts and Do's for middle-aged men who aspire to best the Superior Hiking Trail:

Don't go if you're seriously overweight.

Don't go if you've neglected your cardio for several months, or six.

Don't go if you're doing the Induction phase of the Atkin's low carb diet.

Don't go if you're going to pass any and all water supplies without refilling any and all empty water bottles.

But if you choose to hike the SHT despite all these contraindications then...

Do take two smart, loving children who have been camping, hiking, and canoeing since they were born.

Do take two thoughtful, insistent young people who have trained as high performance athletes.

Do listen to them when they say, "That's enough.  Sit here in the shade.  Drink the rest of the water.  Rest."

They have always been loving, but when did they get so damn smart?

Tail Wags Dog, Part 2

It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it...
 

Smart guy, Aristotle.

The discussion at LinkedIn drew another participant who observed with regard to Michael Carmichaels' article at the Global Research blog:

"First off, this 'news' website is an advocacy site with a particularly anti-western, anti-US perspective. I would not consider it reputable."

I replied as follows:

Everyone has an agenda, the trick is understanding the author's world view or his publisher's editorial policy so that it can be factored into our evaluation of the information and its presentation.

For example, Right Web (which also has an agenda) describes the reference you linked to, The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, as follows:

"The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP) is one of a handful of influential U.S. policy institutions—sometimes referred to as the “Israel Lobby”—whose central aim is to push an Israel-centric Middle East agenda. Many of WINEP’s current and former scholars have been closely associated with neoconservatism, and the organization has been supportive of many of the same “war on terror” policies pushed by groups like the American Enterprise Institute (AEI).

Founded in 1985 by Martin Indyk, a former research director of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), WINEP was conceived as a think tank focused primarily on influencing the executive branch while AIPAC remained focused on lobbying congress."

Does that invalidate their assessment? No, and I look forward to reading the analysis you linked to. May we assume their world view colors their perceptions and informs their agenda and editorial policy? Of course.

According to his bio at HuffPo, Carmichael is an academic, author, and media talking head with a left-progressive agenda.  Does that invalidate his assessment? No. May we assume his world view colors his perceptions and informs his agenda and the editorial policy at his Planetary Movement blog? Of course.

I tried to find other sources that support Carmichael's claims that Israel intends to deliberately influence the outcome of US elections and found none. I conclude, for now, that he lapsed into editorial mode while claiming to be in reporting mode (but I have sent him an email requesting clarification). My additional reading yesterday uncovered a variety of more mainstream sources that claim a decision to attack Iran has been made and that the attack will occur before the US elections. Some sources claim that the attacks will be timed to coincide with either the nominating conventions or the election itself, when the US political establishment will be distracted, maximally concerned with public opinion, and less likely to act decisively to the detriment of Israel's plans.

I presume that in your career as an information security professional you have learned to assess the accuracy, integrity, and credibility of all your sources and interpret the information they provide accordingly. As Aristotle told us, “It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” It is a shallow mind that only trusts sources it agrees with.

Image Credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_Air_Force

Israel Plans to Spike the 2012 Presidential Election?

We have a word for that...

According to an article by Michael Carmichael at the The Centre for Research on Globalization, 

"Senior Israeli officials now confirm that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has, 'decided to attack Iran before the U.S. elections in November.'

Netanyahu's agenda is much broader than knocking out Iranian nuclear installations for his aim is to reshape the political landscape in the USA and Israel shifting everything to the far, far right in order to create a new comfort zone for religious fundamentalists.

Netanyahu's major backer, Sheldon Adelson, is now firmly behind Mitt Romney, and they are known to believe that an Israeli attack on Iran in September or October will displace Obama and many dovish Democrats in Congress and establish a hawkish regime in Washington." 

The second two paragraphs may be editorial opinion on the part of Mr. Carmichael, but that sort of activity sounded familiar, in a Madrid Train Bombing sort of way.  Isn't engaging in violence to affect the outcome of government elections considered terrorism in some circles?  Turns out it is, right here in the good old U.S of A.

18 USC § 2331

(1) the term “international terrorism” means activities that—

(A) involve violent acts or acts dangerous to human life that are a violation of the criminal laws of the United States or of any State, or that would be a criminal violation if committed within the jurisdiction of the United States or of any State;

(B) appear to be intended—

(i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population;

(ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or

(iii) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping

If these serious allegations are true how shall America respond to the threat of transnational military action intended to influence the outcome of national elections?  Cutting off aid to a  country threatening to interfere with our domestic politics through the use of force, or preparing to join in a preemptive strike on Iran's nuclear program since we can't control our titular ally in the region?  

Who is the dog and who is the tail?  

And who sold the tail the most sophisticated, long-range F-16s in the world?

UPDATE: I was called into question for describing Israel as a "titular" ally.  My response:

I think the US has been a strong ally of Israel, even when it could be argued that is was not in our interest, at least in the short term. This would appear to be driven either by high minded altruism or blind loyalty until one considers the efforts of AIPAC and other lobbying organizations. Israel is an ally of America when it suits them. When it doesn't, they go it alone. From one of the articles [...] cited [in this discussion]:

"Which brings us to the most important factor in the October timing of an Israeli strike: the November 2012 presidential elections in the United States. Netanyahu sees a moment of opportunity that will likely not be repeated for years to come. From late September to early November, White House decision-making will be driven by President Obama’s electoral needs — not his diplomatic policy. The mullahs are unloved in America, and many American pundits and politicians are on record supporting Israel’s right to defend itself militarily against an Iranian threat. If Israel goes ahead with a strike, can Obama afford to be seen as trying to prevent it, effectively protecting the mullahs of Teheran in the process?"

Machiavellian survivor in a tough neighborhood, yes. Principled ally, not so much.

The response to my response:

"I'm happy to concede the point that Israel acts in its own self-interest....as do all countries."

My response to the response to my response:

I submit that when it comes to Israel the US does not always act in its own best interest, sometimes to the detriment of its other commitments and objectives around the world. Rather, US politicians vulnerable to leverage applied by AIPAC and other like-minded lobbyists act in the interest of getting elected and reelected. That's not so principled either, or anything new.

All in all, a fine and surprisingly civil dialogue.

Image credit: Photo of American F-16I aircraft built for the Israeli Air Force from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-16_Fighting_Falcon_variants#F-16I_Sufa

Cassie's First Tri-Loppet

Was an awesome athletic adventure...
 

Our daughter Cassandra, ever on the look-out for a reason to stick to a training schedule, signed up for the 2012 City of Lakes Tri-Loppet.  The Tri-loppet - one of three Hoigaard's Challenge courses - features an 8k paddle, a 5k trail run, and an 11k mountain bike course.  

Cassie chose a solo sport kayak for her paddle, which may have cost her a place in the top ten, if not a spot on the platform.  Top finishers used two-person racing canoes (that may change next year).  Many other loppet participants, who appear to be generally fit runners and bicyclists, don't seem to invest much effort in the paddle portion.  Cassandra was run off the course, and into a wall, by two competitors who exhibited more enthusiasm than skill.

All that said, she blew through the course - which ranged from Lake Calhoun to the Theodore Wirth Golf Course - in great form for a 2:14:21 finish.

Cassie required a brief touch up at the medical tent after the finish line.  Seems there are a few places where you can crash a bike on the course.

Out of 550 starters Cassandra came in 23rd overall for women!  If she can find a seat in a fast, but standard, two-person canoe next year she'll easily attain her sub-two hour goal in 2013.

Well done, Boo!