Tuesday, July 03, 2007

Boy Named Diana


Some of you folks know about Whites Creek gorge and what a special place I think it is. The coolest thing about the gorge is the abundance of life sheltered within its rims.

The bald eagle family has moved up the creek this year, which indicates a good food supply. Normally they would be out on the lake by now.

The American anoles that run around the deck may be a "species of concern" but there's lots of them here. I've watched two male showdowns so far this year. One male will set up and start displaying his red throat pouch and bobbing his head to announce his dominance. Then another one with a differing opinion of the lizard hierarchy will show up running at full speed and try to throw the first one off the deck. I actually filmed one getting tossed from 20 feet up in a dogwood tree...hit the ground and wandered off with no apparent damage, other than to his "chances."

We have rare butterflies that fascinate me. The one I've been watching lately is the Diana, which is only supposed to occur in the Smokies. I took a picture of a beaten up old girl last fall, but I had yet to get one of the male, who looks completely different. They seem to be hyperactive and will absolutely not sit still for a glamour shot.

Then, one day when I had the garage door open, one flew inside and cornered itself on a window long enough for me to document it.

Not exactly your true nature shot but there he is.

I took him as gently as I could, let him go outside, and closed the garage doors. He's got a girlfriend to impress.

Peace,

Steve


*****

At a recent media conference, the President made this statement:

"The media has to change if our society is to advance. The most powerful force that raises the standards of the media is no other than the participation of alert citizens. The standards of the media and quality of its products can improve when more citizens participate in the production and distribution stages and use their responsible criticism to act as a check against the possibility of the media morphing into a political power."

Wow! Does that sound like kudos to bloggers and a slap down of the main stream media by the President?

Dang Straight!

Only it was the President of South Korea. What an impressive idea..."decoupling the collusion between the government and the media."

Here's an overview of the International conference that shows what the media must become if we are to have free societies on this planet.

*****

Do you think the timing of the Scooter commutation outrage was helped by the release of SiCKO?

I do, intentional or not.

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