Opinions

The sea level is rising. We are in an “interglacial period” within the Pleistocene Ice Age, according to the learned. It has been melting ice for the last ten thousand years. So, we miniscule Earthlings are fighting an uphill battle.

To put it in perspective, most of us are not worrying about the inexorable melting of icebergs for the next 100, 1000, or 10,000 years. That’s not necessarily good, it’s just the truth.

The majority of meteorologists agree the sea is rising. They don’t all agree on the cause or how to stop it. Rather than stupefy you with statistics of the greenhouse gasses, their source and who’s to blame, let us examine the future: In the last 21-odd years the sea level has risen an average of 1/8 inch per year, which is above the 19th century average. Based on this, from 2020 to 2028, it will rise 1 inch, by 2036 it will have risen 2 inches, etc., until by 2108 it will reach one foot in 4 generations.

Col. William T. Johnson, the powerful promoter who turned rodeos into a big business, was blindsided by a cowboy walkout minutes before a show at the Boston Garden on Oct. 30, 1936. At the end of the nineteenth century, the rodeo had not strayed far from its traditional roots in Texas, the Southwest and parts of the West. Most Americans east of the Mississippi had never seen a real rodeo even though they were avid fans of Wild West shows put on by the likes of Buffalo Bill Cody.

Tex Austin was the ingenious Texan, who went about changing the distinctly western form of entertainment to suit eastern tastes. It must be admitted, however, that calling him a native of the Lone Star State may be based more on his choice of nicknames than the murky details of his early life.

A Hundred Years From Now

Life has always been a balancing act between the haves and have-nots.

Less populated industrial countries use the major portion of fossil fuel while third world countries still farm by hand and recreate. The world population is expected to increase by a billion every upcoming decade.

If we could snap our fingers and by magic, make some change that might save the earth from its inhabitants, what would we do?

"Birth control," said Steve.

"You mean anything?" asked J.D.

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Mankind from prehistory to space exploration has always depended on animals for help in their quest for advancing civilization. Granted, often as bait or as guinea pigs but we have depended on them, nonetheless.

After extensive research of my cerebral micro files I've discovered several remarkable casehistories that have affected the course of our world.

For instance, Admiral Perry carried a Canadian goose on his Arctic trek to find the North Pole. Whenever the magnetic field messed up his compass, he would tie the goose to a sled runner with a 50-foot piece of baler twine. The goose, being the only one with enough common sense to fly south would try and take off. Perry and his parakeets would mush in the opposite direction.

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The English author of The War of the Worlds and the brash “boy wonder,” whose broadcast version of the book scared Americans out of their wits, met for the first and only time in San Antonio on Oct. 28, 1940.

Lecture tours brought Orson Welles and H.G. Wells to the Alamo City on the very same day, an incredible coincidence that presented a local radio station with an historic opportunity. To the station manager’s delight, the two famous figures, who never had laid eyes on one another, accepted his invitation to a live, on-air meeting.

The younger guest had good reason to worry whether he would be on the receiving end of a stern talking-to. Welles had not sought permission for his “Mercury Theater” adaptation of The War of the Worlds, a tactless oversight that angered Wells to the point of threatening a lawsuit.

This Week In Texas History

On Oct. 22, 1952, a leading Lone Star daily newspaper asked the election-eve question, “Can Parr tilt the vote for Adlai?”

If the infamous “Duke of Duval” could select a senator, it stood to reason that he just might be able to pick a president, too. The Anglo clique that ran Duval County at the turn of the century relied upon violence to preserve their ruthless regime. The key to maintaining their political monopoly was keeping the massive Mexican majority away from the polls.

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Tumbleweed Part Owner of Texas

When Cynde Aguilar was growing up in Colorado City she had thoughts of becoming a teacher. But when her mom became a police dispatcher she had second thoughts. “These law enforcement guys were so nice,” says Cynde.

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I was just about to cull the cow when the boss sees me swingin' the gate.

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The apprehensive Kickapoos watched the surveyors’ every move on the morning of Oct. 8, 1838, knowing from bitter experience that when white men came to measure the land, settlers were not far behind.

A ghost town now for more than a century, Old Franklin was in the early days of the Texas Republic a jumping-off place for the central frontier. A steady stream of surveyors stocked up on supplies at the outpost before plunging into the trackless wilderness to lay out homesteads for impatient pioneers.

Two days out of Old Franklin in October 1838, a surveying party camped for the night at Parker’s Fort, site of the recent Comanche abduction of Cynthia Ann Parker. Forced by a defective compass to retrace their steps, two members of the expedition escaped the fate of their 25 companions.