Gleaning Facebook: Three Quotations About Conservation

 

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

From Jerry Hightower, one of Georgia's premier environmentalists:

 “The preservation of parks, wilderness, and wildlife has also aided liberty by keeping alive the 19th century sense of adventure and awe with which our forefathers greeted the American West. Many laws protecting environmental quality have promoted liberty by securing property against the destructive trespass of pollution. In our own time, the nearly universal appreciation of these preserved landscapes, restored waters, and cleaner air through outdoor recreation is a modern expression of our freedom and leisure to enjoy the wonderful life that generations past have built for us.” — Ronald Reagan

“Conservation is a great moral issue, for it involves the patriotic duty of insuring the safety and continuance of the nation.” — Theodore Roosevelt

“Today, across our land, the National Park System represents America at its best. Each park contributes to a deeper understanding of the history of the United States and our way of life; of the natural processes which have given form to our land, and to the enrichment of the environment in which we live.” — George B Hartzog, Jr.

Jermey Salter for District Attorney

 Well, I do believe Jeremy Salter is a good guy. But as importantly Jeremy wants to make some much needed reforms to our jurisprudence in Floyd County. Special courts to deal with non-violent drug offenses have been shown to greatly reduce recidivism and to reduce the human and financial costs of unnecessary incarceration.

So don't vote for Jeremy because I say he's OK. Vote for him to help create better, fairer, and more effective courts.

This is important, my friends. And your vote and support are so important and so effective in local races like this. Please help if you can. Even very small donations are a big help.

Gleaning Facebook: Rose of Sharon

I remember Rose of Sharon (Althea) from my childhood. We have several in our yard. I did not know that Althea and Okra are cousins but, as John writes below, look at the flower and fruit!

From John Schulz's Facebook:

Flower for the day--white althea. I have found that it takes quite a bit of practice to get a good picture of a white flower. This is after several tries. The althea is a tree form plant related to the hibiscus. Hibiscus and althea are in the same family as okra. I refer to althea as "fancy okra." If you don't believe me, check out the leaf and the fruit.

Comments

George Barton

Remember rubbing the pollen on the girls noses at recess in grade school?

Hallie Plitman Marker
One of my favorites. As I know you know, some people call it Rose of Sharon, which is what Steinbeck named a character from The Grapes of Wrath, and which is a reference to The Song of Solomon, though biblical scholars disagree on both the translation to Rose of Sharon from Hebrew and the type of flower referenced. But I never knew that hibiscus was related to okra!

John Paul Schulz
So, Hallie, you got your information from reading and I added the other part purely from observation.

But, Hallie, you did give us an excellent insight into the name of the plant and its history. Thank you.

Hallie Plitman Marker
First I loved the plant; Then I read. 

Hallie Plitman Marker
And your picture is worth 1,000 words.

Bill Barker
Thanks John

Michelle Mazzucco
Well, you certainly nailed THIS photo of a white flower!

My Grandfather named me for this flower...my first name is Sharon. And now I have a daughter whose middle name is Rose.....she is the Rose of Sharon!

Claudia Kennedy
It looks like it's related to the cotton plant too. Is it?

Carol Young
Loving this! ... (love okra too)... wish I could smell it !

Jim Tighe
I believe you. Beautiful flower, as is the hibiscus.

Gleaning Facebook: Clinton Foundation Rated

There's been a lot of junk out there about the Clinton Foundation. Here's the rating from Charity Watch, a fiercely independent group that rates every major charity group on the percentage of their donations that actually go toward their stated goals. Charity Watch rates all sorts of groups from Planned Parenthood to the NRA to you name it.

Gleaning Facebook: Arrowhead in June

A Sweetgum tree fell across our gravel road near the beaver pond, so a took the opportunity to snap some pics of the immature fruit.

 

Don't know which black-eyed suzie-Q this is, but she's lovely. Richard Ware says it is probably Rudbeckia hirta, the other species here (such as R. fulgida) bloom later in the summer.

The Red Buckeye trees are beginning to bear fruit.

The boardwalk from our new lakeside trail.

The Hophornbeams are beautiful right now with their unusualnfruit? Ostrya virginiana (American hophornbeam)

Some entomological porn on Queen Anne's Lace.

Today we cleaned the absolutely yuckified tank of our three very aggressive, if diminutive, gators. I thought I'd expire from the olfactory assault.

Just when a few blackberries are ripening someone decides to do some major herbicide spraying --- not sure of the target --- so our blackberries should not be eaten. Grrrrr...

From Richard Ware: "This is either Cornus stricta (Southern Swamp Dogwood) or Cornus amomum (Silky Dogwood). According to Weakley C. stricta has 3-4 veins per leaf side and C. amomum has 5 or more. So, you probably need to look at several leaves to make a good id, but it's probably C. stricta, which seems to be more common here in Floyd Co."

A big clump of Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa)

Dumplin’, a very young Box Turtle, is a messy eater.

Thea and I model our Greek Fisherman hats…

Our four Gopher Tortoises enjoy some strawberries.

Gleaning Facebook: Ridin' On the River

Brannon posted this today:

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I don't want you to take my word for it. I want you to look at the evidence. And there is no surer evidence (if you are a kid-detective in the 90's) than old newspaper clippings.  Terrell Shaw is my father. Happy Dad's Day, Pops! Thanks for using your Chamber of Commerce member status to take me and my Cabbage Patch on pontoon boats!

Gleaning Facebook: Turn Your Back On Hate

We got soaked tonight with a couple of hundred other folks out in the deluge to stand in support of the survivors of hate and to remember those lost to hate in Orlando a few days ago.

 

We got soaked tonight with a couple of hundred other folks out in the deluge to stand in support of the survivors of hate and to remember those lost to hate in Orlando a few days ago. This is from my iPhone. Andi Beyer got a much better pic.

From Andy Beyer's Facebook: 

Good to see the Shaw family tonight!

Gleaning Facebook: Our President

From Hillary Clinton's Facebook:

You may have noticed a letter that went viral on the internet this week. The letter is from George H.W. Bush’s presidential library. I hadn’t read it in a long time, until yesterday. It moved me to tears, just like it did all those years ago. It’s the letter that President Bush left in the Oval Office for my husband, back in January of 1993. They had just fought a fierce campaign. Bill won, President Bush lost. In a democracy, that’s how it goes.

But when Bill walked into that office for the very first time as President, that note was waiting for him. It had some good advice about staying focused on what mattered, despite the critics. It wished him happiness. And it concluded with these words:

“You will be our President when you read this note. I wish you well. I wish your family well. Your success is now our country’s success. And I am rooting hard for you. George.”

That’s the America we love. That is what we cherish and expect.

 

Gleaning Facebook: Jeremy Salter for District Attorney

Sheila and I are honored to co-host this with our friends Ralph Davis, Donald & Helen Starr, and Governor Roy Barnes and his wife Marie. Y'all come! There will be great barbecue and fellowship and a chance to learn more about how the District Attorney's office can be reformed to make Floyd County safer WHILE we incarcerate fewer of our citizens AND we save taxpayers' money. We have some good folks working in our courts, but incarceration and recidivism rates are too high. Come hear about some ways to change that.

Call Jill Salter at 256-762-5076 to RSVP

Or go to the event page, then choose "Going".

Everyone welcome!

 

Gleaning Facebook: Blackberries and Dogwoods

A big clump of Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa)

Richard Ware
This is either Cornus stricta (Southern Swamp Dogwood) or Cornus amomum (Silky Dogwood). According to Weakley C. stricta has 3-4 veins per leaf side and C. amomum has 5 or more... 

...So, you probably need to look at several leaves to make a good id, but it's probably C. stricta, which seems to be more common here in Floyd Co.
Terrell
The leaves are definitely dogwood like. There is a lot of it here. You oughta drive up here and botanize with me from the truck along our trails ... I need a refresher! 

Just when a few blackberries are ripening someone decides to do some major herbicide spraying --- not sure of the target --- so our blackberries should not be eaten. Grrrrr...

 

Gleaning Facebook: Nothingburgers

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I am sick of the right-wingers' failure to deal with real issues but instead trying to smear this good woman. She is not perfect. She will tell you about some of her mistakes. But her so-called "scandals" have all turned out to be, as Mike so eloquently labels them, "nothingburgers".

From Mike Luckovich and Kevin Drum:

For the record: Whitewater was a nothingburger. Travelgate was a nothingburger. Troopergate was a nothingburger. Filegate was a nothingburger. The Vince Foster murder conspiracy theories were a nothingburger. Monica Lewinsky was Bill's problem, not Hillary's. Benghazi was a tragedy, but entirely non-scandalous. The Goldman Sachs speeches were probably a bad idea, but otherwise a nothingburger. Emailgate revealed some poor judgment, but we've now seen all the emails and it's pretty obviously a nothingburger. Humagate is a nothingburger. Foundationgate is a nothingburger.

Bottom line: Don't let Donald Trump or the press or anyone else convince you that Hillary Clinton is "dogged by scandal" or "works under a constant cloud of controversy" or whatever the nonsense of the day is. That constant cloud is the very deliberate invention of lowlifes in Arkansas; well-heeled conservative cranks; the Republican Party; and far too often a gullible and compliant press. Like anybody who's been in politics for 40 years, Hillary has some things she should have handled better, but that's about it. The plain fact is that there's no serious scandal on her record. There's no evidence that she's ever sold out to Wall Street. There's no corruption, intrigue, or deceit. And if anything, she's too honest on a policy level. She could stand to promise people a bit of free stuff now and then.

If you don't believe me, then for God's sake, at least believe Jill Abramson. If she thinks Hillary is "fundamentally honest and trustworthy," then you can probably bank on it.

Comments

Howard Smith
You can't oppose Trump's racist and sexist statements and still support him. He's not your crazy old uncle who thinks the past was the "good old days". He wants to be president of the United States. That's scary.

Ruth Baird Shaw
Hillary Clinton major problem is Pres. Bill Clinton. I am not
up" on Politics but do you think a majority of voters will want to put Bill Clinton back in the White House?

Terrell Shaw
Bill Clinton was re-elected in 1996 with 379 electoral votes a larger total than 1992. His average second term approval ratings were the best of any president since Gallup got started. He left office with 65% approval.
But he isn't running for President. Hillary is.
Remember, you asked. 

Wendy Davis
good stuff!

Ray Barton
Bill Clinton's presidency were the best economic years of my lifetime. I'd love to see him back in the White House!

Terrell Shaw
Hillary has indicated that she would ask Bill to make the economy his primary "cause" as First Gent.

Ray Barton
I think that would be a brilliant idea as I have heard many people express the same sentiment about the economic prosperity of his presidency.

Keith M. Padgett
It's no secret I have no love for Hillary. That being said. I will support her as long as Bernie doesn't run 3rd party. However, I understand that presidential spouses always have causes and are doing things. Which is great. But, I do believe that there should be a nepotism clause stating that the president cannot appoint any family member (including spouse) to an official position. I've heard that she may appoint him to a position which i disagree with.

Ruth Baird Shaw
President Bill Clinton was also impeached. He also lied about it , but it was proven that he had sexual relations in the Presidents office with a girl only a couple of years older than his daughter also...etc...

Terrell Shaw
Mother, I hate to disagree again with someone who is my heroine, but I must respond.
Yes, those things are true. And they are irrelevant to this campaign, in my opinion. Hillary Clinton is not responsible for her husband's misbehavior decades ago.
We have two remaining choices for president and "first spouse".

• We have the personally and publicly honorable Hillary Clinton and her reasonably self-aware and publicly repentant sinner husband.
• Our other choice is the proud womanizer, racist, misogynist, xenophobic ignorant (Two Corrinthians!!) Donald Trump and his publicly nekkid third wife. 

Many of our American leaders, some huge heroes of mine, have been guilty of sexual misconduct. Jefferson, Franklin, Cleveland, FDR, Ike, JFK, John McCain, Newt Gingrich, and (the grand champ of them all) Donald Trump have all been involved in affairs outside of marriage. Bill Clinton is the only one of these who has expressed regret, as far as I know. He & Hillary Clinton managed to work through his infidelity and save their marriage. Bill Clinton was (in my opinion) a near-great president whose personal life was a royal mess. He wasn't the first, nor likely the last. Unfortunately for him he was president during an age of 24 hour news and a very different press corps than the one that looked the other way for Ike or JFK.
I can't believe we are rehashing this, but Bill Clinton is not running, Hillary is.
The real question is whether we want Nekkid Melania's husband, who has spent decades bragging unabashedly about his sexual conquests and who has never to my knowledge expressed regret for ANYTHING he has done, and who has an explosive, narcissistic, and psychologically fragile personality, in charge of the nuclear codes.
As you know I love my country and take my citizenship very seriously. I will not be quiet with anyone, even my beloved mother, who suggests that we allow a man I consider something mighty reminiscent of a fascist to become president. As much as I bitterly oppose his policies, I would vote for a George W. Bush over a dangerous and unstable man like Trump.
Luckily I admire the person and the program I have already voted for in the primary and will vote for again in November.

Ray Barton
I didn't vote for Clinton as the religious leader of this country, only as the business leader. At that, he did an incredible job.

Ray Barton
Donald Trump keeps making lustful comments about his own daughter. I find that much more revolting
TRUTHORFICTION.COM
Donald Trump Joked About Dating His Own Daughter-Truth!
Donald Trump Joked About Dating His Own Daughter-Truth!

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Gleaning Facebook: Pearl Rush

 

This is a fascinating story about a "pearl rush" on freshwater mussels in the Oostanaula River in 1897. At one time the upper Coosa was home to 43 species of mussels. Today, there are only 27, and several of those are federally protected. It is likely that this "pearl rush" contributed to the decimation of mussel populations in the river. Now, mussels can be hard to find, much less mussels with pearls. The article also references accounts from DeSoto's travels in the 1500s in which Native Americans presented him with a six-foot strand of pearls. These accounts make you realize just how much we have lost and just how productive our river systems were before we fouled them up. Coosa River Basin Initiative Coosa River Basin Initiative

Gleaning Facebook: A June Walk at Arrowhead

 

A Sweetgum tree fell across our gravel road near the beaver pond, so a took the opportunity to snap some pics of the immature fruit.

Don't know which black-eyed suzie-Q this is, but she's lovely.

Richard Ware
probably Rudbeckia hirta, the other species here (such as R. fulgida) bloom later in the summer.

The Red Buckeye trees are beginning to bear fruit.

More Sweetgum balls.

The Hophornbeams are beautiful right now with their unusual flowers blooming ... or maybe these have graduated to fruit? Ostrya virginiana (American hophornbeam) (Richard Ware tells me these are indeed the fruit of this tree.

The boardwalk from our new lakeside trail.

Some entomological porn on Queen Anne's Lace.

More Queen Anne's Lace.

Today we cleaned the absolutely yuckified tank of our three very aggressive, if diminutive, gators. I thought I'd expire from the olfactory assault.