the assassination wasn't "solved"

     People remain interested in the assassination of John F. Kennedy because, in a way, it couldn't be "solved".  After Kennedy was shot, a suspect was arrested--Lee Harvey Oswald. While moving Oswald from one jail to another, Oswald was shot and killed by a man--Jack Ruby--standing among the spectators. Here in the United States, we can't try the dead, and Oswald was dead. We have the right to be confronted with the witnesses against us, which can't occur if the accused is absent or dead. So there was no trial for Oswald--just the Warren Commission, which did investigate the murder. Conspiracy theorists have been busy ever since.

the iron curtain

     World War II ended in 1945, when the Americans and the Russians met in Berlin. Germany was defeated, and its territory was divided between the Russians, in the east, and the Americans, British, and French, in the west. Although the Americans and the Russians had been allies during the war, the Americans distrusted the Russians, and disapproved of their communist government. This was the beginning of what came to be known as the "Cold War" between the United States and the Soviet Union ( Russia ). Europe was divided, along an east-west line, with the Soviets having great influence in the east, and the United States ( America ) in the west. The Americans tried to broadcast by radio into the countries of Eastern Europe, but were eventually blocked by an "iron curtain".  The term "iron curtain" was more literal than figurative. Planes carried iron chains back and forth along the borders to block the unwanted radio transmissions. The Americans believed they were broadcasting messages of freedom. The people in Eastern Europe thought that their own attempts to communicate with one another were being blocked by a form of pirate radio. This was all part of the "Cold War" that had a generation fearing a real war, possibly a nuclear war.

when you read you begin with ABC

     Unfortunately for the many adults who need basic literacy classes, there are no real shortcuts to learning to read.  It may take less time for an adult, but the beginning is still the ABC's--learning to write them, both upper and lower case, learning to recognize them, and learning the sounds that they represent. Any adult who does this is more than halfway to literacy. Adults who try to skip this don't learn to read--and the teachers who have told them that there is a "shortcut" have done them a disservice, and worse than a disservice.

the federalist papers

     If you just can't stand to listen to people arguing about the "original intent" of the framers of the United States Constitution, you might try reading The Federalist Papers.  It's quite an undertaking, but you might find it worthwhile. The original papers were written as letters to the editor, and published in the newspaper, while the constitution was still being written and discussed. Ordinary citizens could read in the newspaper the arguments for each decision made, and why some alternatives were rejected. If you are interested in a particular article or amendment, you can use the book's index to "search" for it, instead of reading the entire book.

why we argue about nuclear power

  People spend a lot of time arguing about nuclear power--you may have read some of their comments on the internet. Nuclear power, also called atomic power, can be used to generate electricity. Electricity is the same no matter how it is generated--by a nuclear power plant, a windmill, a coal-burning power plant, a hydroelectric ( a dam over running water ) plant, or by solar panels. All the electricity reaches your home to turn on your lights in the same way. Different methods of generating electricity have different effects on the environment, and on the people ( us ) and creatures who live in it. Solar panels, windmills and hydroelectric plants produce little or no pollution. Coal-burning plants make smoke and smog, and release chemicals into the air. Nuclear power produces radiation, including radioactive waste--the same radioactivity that killed many people who survived the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II. No one really knows what to do with this radioactive waste--a lot of it is put in steel drums and dumped in the ocean.We do know that radioactive waste remains potentially harmful for thousands of years. That's what everyone is arguing about.

a featherless biped

     When asked to define a human being, a famous ancient philosopher said that man is a "featherless biped" ( walks on two legs, no feathers)--who can argue with that?

"dirty" electricity

     A woman wrote a comment on a website recently about "dirty" electricity. She was sure that the electricity in her house was dirty, because she heard that coal was burned to make it. She was misinformed about the electricity, but not about the dirt--not exactly. The electricity made from burning coal is the same as any other electricity. The electricity made from a nuclear reactor is the same as any other electricity. When it gets to your house, it's just electricity, and all of it is the same. The "dirt" happens where the electricity is made--where the coal is burned. There may be more smog there, and more air pollution. When people talk or write about "clean" electricity, they are promoting sources of electricity that don't pollute the air as much as burning coal does, and that don't leave nuclear waste behind. The burning of coal may be miles from where the electricity is consumed, but it still pollutes the air, so many people are opposed to it--because of its "side effects" or "marginal costs"--not because the product ( electricity ) is any different.