OMD! Dogs Of Mine

Oh My Dog!

Moose & Elka, brother sister aged 5. Pure Chocolate Labs. Tons of fun.
Just don't get any slobber on yourself...

Click on any photo to scroll:

Guns In Oregon. Guns In The U.S.A.

Gun violence is a hot topic debate, inspiring and angering those who participate in that discussion. In America, the culture that exists around guns could not be any more polarized.

Recent waves of gun violence has made firearms a topic on the nightly news, football broadcasts, talk shows, and on the radio. In Portland Oregon, a senseless shooting at a shopping mall, is a reminder of Kip Kinkle and Columbine.

Today, I just offer my opinion. I mean to offend nobody.

As a first note, an important one in my opinion. The shootings by children in America, are of epidemic and catastrophic proportions. Access to firearms is never going to be "zero", therefore, owning a gun safe can limit some access to weapons.

From the 2nd Amendment on, America has been a culture of guns. The first documented school shooting was reported by the New York Times in April of 1854, six months after the actual shooting. Since that fateful day, kids with guns in schools, has not ceased.

If children do not have access to guns at home, school shootings become somewhat harder to execute. Safes at home that store firearms, are relevant.

The reality of the safe goes further than just restricting access to your guns by criminals(shooters have stolen guns to kill), restricting access in your own home prevents accidents as well. The entire idea of the safe is to prevent unauthorized and unsafe access to guns. Some will say that the 9mm or the .357 Mag that is the primary home defender cannot be in a safe, too far from effective service. Even still, safety locks on triggers & safe storage does not limit successful defense of one's home.

Pea shooter. Author's 9mm Luger, loaded.

 

Keep in mind that most responsible firearms owners have a safe, and keep guns in a safe and appropriate place. The changing demographic requires education on reality and safety in regards to guns.
 

The fact is, if a person wants a gun bad enough, that person will probably acquire a gun. Gun control laws and legislation do little to deny that access. To their credit, no laws will ever stop real criminals from using guns, and the rule-makers cannot be blamed for this. Gun control law is simply not followed by criminals.

 

There has been much debate about access to guns. But a ban on guns would only make the current status worse, and denying citizens the right to defense will never happen. Guns are here to stay.

Since our access to guns will never be zero, lowering existing statistics on gun violence is the best way to address the issue. Education about peer pressure, anger, counseling, depression, and suicide should be discussed and solutions must be sought. Education about gun danger and gun safety should be taught at a young age, and continued into adulthood.

In addition to limiting access to firearms, a keener eye may help deter or deny certain violent actions. Especially in regards to youth violence or any suicidal attempts with guns. Awareness is key here. In many cases of violent crime, simple awareness may have aided victims and even prevented the crime.

In theory, awareness and preparation, help the victim and first responder in their effective response to the situation. Before a tragic event, awareness may take the form of medical help or family intervention. During a violent event, awareness may help minimize the risk of injury or fatality. After an event, the informed responder can triage the scene and prevent further risk.

Knowledge of a person who is suicidal, angry, and potentially violent is not enough. Society must do something. Across the board, we have red flags. The murder-suicide in the National Football League(NFL) last weekend, had multiple reports of prior knowledge of distress and dysfunction. Columbine was recognizable. The Colorado theatre shooter, whose psychiatrist had reported the shooter's behavior in the weeks leading up to that tragedy, could have been stopped. Signs in Oregon, of trouble with the Clackamas Mall shooter, could have prevented him from stealing the deadly rifle and ammunition. These are all examples of  "Intervention Situations", and as a society, we should accept our responsibility and address a solution.

Most communities have local resources to help with suicide, depression, and rehabilitation. The following links are just a small number of resources. There are many...

National Suicide Prevention Hotline  : 1 800 SUICIDE, 1 800 784 2433
National JustTalk Hotline                 : 1 800 273TALK 1 800 273 8255

Community and State Health Offices, school counselors, and consortiums offer assistance as well. These outlets are online and in phone directories.

Notifying parents, law enforcement, employment supervisors, and friends- and whoever else is around, can address a problem before it becomes tragic. Restriction to guns, access to help...

Of course stats like Great Britain and Germany leave much to be desired in the way of  gun violence. The rate of occurrence of violent gun crime is very low in those countries, and America's very high- of course. Crime in the U.S.A., in the way of drug trade, organized crime, and gang activity, is a gun culture. As is the American culture in general. The pride of the 2nd Amendment, of sportsmen, and of free men, is what drives the protection of gun rights.

Banning assault weapons will not change the future. Banning firearms will not change the violence in the U.S. Tragic gun violence in America will continue. To effectively change the status quo, Americans need to adjust priorities. Americans need to think critically. We live in a culture where we cherish power and guns. For some, that power lies in the barrel.

Columbine. Jefferson County Sheriff Dept. Photo

In my opinion, the public has not done enough. The people are content to let propaganda inform the masses. That propaganda says that banning weapons and creating useless rules is the answer. I say that giving the guns to only the government and the criminals is a huge mistake.

The National Rifle Association(NRA) responded to gun control rhetoric by saying that "...if the victim HAD a gun, she might have been able to defend herself...", and I happen to agree. The days of blindly going about our business, are over.

In another opinion, the risks that are listed could be overcome with education and common sense. There are many valid points to opposing gun rights. In my opinion, those points are weaker than the virtues of social reform and education about guns.

I am not implying that we all go out and buy a Sturm&Ruger .357 Mag, but I am saying discussion, awareness, and solutions should be sought out. Even an unarmed person can help society avoid tragic violence.

Even if you think I am wrong, and that is okay, you still need to change focus. Advocate safety awareness. You may believe that guns are wrong, but accept that guns are here to stay, and educate yourself and your kids about the culture and the mechanics of guns. Only then, will your children avoid, or even prevent, scenes with guns. And  only because they were educated.

The Study Bookcase. Notice the children's row. Educate and expand minds. Ignorance can kill.

In an informative and still relevant article about children and guns, The Future of Children discuss through various authors the social benefits of education and of restricting youth access to guns.

For those of you like myself, that own guns and have families- education and practice, are the answers. Responsible gun ownership includes moral rules, safety rules, and rules of engagement. Moral rules are things like respect for life, respect for people, and respect for self. Life is of course, never pointing a weapon at somebody. People means respect their property- we would never shoot out windows of a barn, for example. Respect for self, is the key.

I think Hunter Safety should be a general education requirement. But not for sportsmen, for everyone. And not "Hunter Safety", but rather Firearm Safety. Knowledge about firearms, and about their consequences, needs to be front and center in our development as a responsible "gun culture", and I certainly don't think that our present status achieves that responsibility.

Finally, Personal Defense, a topic as divided as the gun issue itself. I believe in my right to defend my life with a firearm. What comes with that "right", is a moral and ethical responsibility in owning a firearm. How to handle the gun and yourself is of the highest importance. Classes, both live and virtual, exist for these kinds of educational purposes. Consult local firearms dealers or community colleges about classes.

In review:
Three things really, and the first starts in your own home. Conversations and education about firearm mechanics, safety, and culture- does not empower kids to take up arms, but rather empowers them to be aware, avoid , and report concerns. The second is the current status quo. Change the public's awareness factor, and make it a defense mechanism for violence. The Colorado shooter could have been stopped, if the awareness and response was better. Columbine might have better prepared. In Oregon, if the weapon used at Clackamas had been locked...And finally third, BE PROACTIVE.  Tell your politicians you want better legislation. Tell your kids to be aware and be honest. Be active in civic duty, and get your neighbors to do the same. Some violence cannot be stopped, but help prevent the ones that can be stopped.

Make no mistake, guns are not going away. Do something real, and change our reality. Prevent the violence. Not the guns.

No Shoes, No Shirt, No Pants

No pants.

Yeah, all I had on was a pair of cut-off Levi's 501's. Not even a pair of shoes. And here I was, pulled over on a Friday, summer night, in front of my friends and more importantly- without my wallet.

Let me start at the beginning.

I got a job my sophomore year in high school, moving irrigation pipe on a farm in Buena Vista. I moved those snap-together pipes across muddy fields of bright fruits and tasty vegetables, one pipe after another. Until the pipes all looked EXACTLY the same.

I saved most of my money. I had no motor vehicle. And I wanted one.

On my way home one evening, as I crossed the clear, running low river, and entered downtown, the car lot on the east side of the Willamette Bridge glared white. The 1970 Chevy C20, with its white cab and white bumpers, looked every bit the used truck I had been saving up for. And there it sat, in the front row right next to the spiked iron fence that ran along the cracked sidewalk, in plain view for passersby to see.

I parked my father's Jeep on the car lot, got out twirling the keys, and headed to the beckoning, white, three-quarter ton truck. I had the hood up, and was up on the new, glossy black tire- peering in, when the "polo" shirt salesman arrived. Undoubtedly assuming I had little money, he chuckled as he noticed my young age and asked:

"Whatcha see there?"

"A Chevy 327," I said. "Three hundred and twenty-seven cubic inches of heaven," I thought out loud.

He smiled condescendingly. Not at all the friendly salesman.

"That is two thousand dollars," he said, more than just matter-of-factly.

I climbed down and Mr. Polo Shirt closed the hood of the shiny, almost new looking truck.

"I have money."

"How much," he asked, walking not-so-slowly back inside the sales office. I followed Mr. Polo through the tiled lobby and into his carpeted and tiny office.

I told him I had twelve hundred dollars. He told me that he would consult with his manager, and that I would know in a few minutes if that was enough. So I waited in the windowless, but nevertheless bright, family pictures on the wall, pale beige office.

In less than five minutes, Mr. Polo was back.

He said, "Sorry kid."

I knew what that meant.

I said "Thanks anyways," and I headed to the Jeep. He followed. "Can you go any higher?" His question was one with only one answer. I had no more money than the twelve hundred I had saved. The answer was no.

So I lied. "I can go to twelve hundred and fifty," I said as I stopped yards from the silver-brown Jeep, muddy from the farm.

"I'll go ask," the salesman said. I wasn't convinced. Doubtful I ever own that white truck, was my only thought.

He disappeared back inside and came out minutes later saying, "Congratulations, you are an owner." Not quite, I thought. I still had to borrow fifty dollars from my dad. Not an easy task, mind you.

But I did it. And so here I am, 10 o'clock on a summer night, pulled over in my prized white truck without any clothes or a wallet. This is not what I consider "optimum conditions", but here I am regardless of preferences or luck.

He is enormous. The cop I mean. I flinch, I'm sure.  He is like two men, seven foot tall and three feet wide.

He looks at me. Sternly. Studying. "How are you tonight," he asks. "I'm okay," I reply, impressed at my ability to even talk. "You were impeding traffic when you stopped to talk to the girls," he said, staring inside the white cab.

I had stopped to talk to some girls. Right in front of the bowling alley and Competition Hill. I drove dad's Jeep up there when it wasn't crowded. At this second, I'm not driving anywhere. Even in my own pickup truck.

Time seemed to stop here, at this moment. I cringed as the large, badge-wearing, pistol-toting cop peered inside my truck.

He looked at me. At my bare feet. Then again around the proud, clean white cabin. His eyes moved slowly back to me. Piercing.

"License and insurance please."

I handed him my insurance slip, a three by five card documenting coverage. "I just got off work and forgot my pants at the shop. My wallet and my license is in my pants," I said, unconvincingly. The oversized cop read the info. I am insured, he mentioned vaguely. He handed my insurance card back and crouched towards my tinyish open window. The buttons on his uniform filled the window space.

"How am I supposed to know that you are, in fact, Ronald Borst?" He asked right on queue.

At that very moment, a carload of girls drove by, waving and yelling, "Woohoo Ronnie! Woohoo!"

The giant cop and I both looked. I asked "Will that do?"

"Yeah. That will do. Have a safe night Mr. Borst."

Yes sir, you too.

10 Tips For A Winter Steelheader

The holidays are here. And while we wish the days pass quickly bye, we can avoid relatives and their homemade whatevers by preparing the Steelhead Gear.

As winter brings fish into the clear mountain streams of western Oregon, the days are short and the nights cold. Getting ready to catch fish is more than just loading the tackle into the truck...

These tips are meant to enhance the trip, catch more fish, and make the entire process enjoyable for all. Especially the kids.

1:   New Line.
      Last year's line is last year's line. Monofilament gets brittle, do not lose fish because your 10 
      Pound Test is not 10 anymore...

2:   Tackle.
      Some gear has to be re-supplied. Terminal Tackle like hooks, snap-swivels, and sinkers- have
      to be restocked. On the river without certain gear will cost time & fish!

3:   Gloves, Mittens, Beanies, Hand-Warmers...keep the kids warm!

4:   The Net. Don't forget it. Matter of fact...put it in the rig right now.

5:   Cooler. Plenty of electrolyte drinks and snacks for the kids. Pretzels and Grandma's Tuna Salad
      Sandwiches...

6:   1 Gallon size Ziploc Bags. For fish fillets, fresh roe, found rocks, Chanterelles, and whatever
      else we might find...

7:   Survival Ziploc. In it is a First Aid Kit, Compass, Survival Blanket, and T.P.- obviously...

8:   Things to not Forget:  Dog Food, Fillet Knife, Hook Sharpener, License & Tag, 2 Ball Pt. Pens.
      Oh yeah...the Thermos!

9:   Rain Gear. This can be more than just pants and coats. In cold and wet winters here, I ziplock
      tackle(to keep unused stuff dry), I grocery bag(plastic) the kid's feet- a plastic layer between
      socks inside rubber boots does wonders...

10: Teach. Teach the kids about knot tying. And how to "read water", the flow. Teach the children
      the virtues of NOT littering. Teach them how to cast when underneath a tree, and how to rig a
      'Bobber & Jig'. Teach our kids to love nature, and all her critters. And most of all, show them the
      joys of fishing!

The author, with a dandy Alsea River Coho Salmon, released.

 

Moonset at daybreak on the Alsea.

 

 

Roe rigged on a 1/0 hook w/ Yarn & Lil' Corky.

 

Moose, on the Upper Siletz River, Western Oregon Coastal Mountains

 

Thank-You for reading this, and for not littering.

A Poem by Ronald Borst---"The COMMUTER Paper"

The COMMUTER Paper

by Ronald Borst 12-6-2012




It was a ticking clock and a laugh,
Typos and graphs.
It was "Gamer's Log" and movies,
"From the Sidelines" and stories.
Thin paper...

'Cept one week heavy as bricks,
Stories on Bowling, and "Gettin' Down In Sick Town"
Articles about Veteran's access to the G.I. Bill,
And the Best Movie Reviews around-
Whoa! Thick Paper The Seventeenth.

A headline read: It's a Strike!
But Not Labor but Rather A Lane
Fried Bananas Tonight!
A TED Talk from a woman called Jane
Remember the thick paper, 16 pages.

There were Great Editors and Missed Typos
Locked Offices & Hot Women(don't ask)
Awesome Writing and Spectacular Photos
Deadlines and Multi-Tasks
Thin Paper again, Probably Forever

I saw Zombies,
And everybody saw "Advice From Weiss"
The Lady RoadRunners Showed Up-
Just In Time with Fire & Ice
12 pages...Thin Paper.

Farmer's Markets
Hated Co-Workers and a final in Math
Ear Candy & Chasing Mavericks
Crazy Good Seven Psychopaths
16 Sounds Better

There was an Election,
Candidates and Campaigns.
And Not Much Mutual Attraction
Just Lies and Suit Stains
Pages Galore, We Got 16!

On the cover StoryBook Land
Awesome Halloween Art, and Lakeshore Lanes
Oh yeah, and a "Fright Town" Feature
And Civil War Shots from the bleachers.
A little 12, a little 16.

Sunday deadlines are
Monday Headlines!
Tuesday is Soup & Rolls on a cart
A Reporter's Beat and Odd Finds
C'mon 16...

We saw Old Hot Rods and Floats,
And Veterans with Flags and Smiles.
The Online Commuter Scrolls
Like A Train Rolls Track For Miles
We're off for the Holiday,
16!

Ray's Automatic Weapon: An Essay About A Song By DBT

Another high quality sound from one of my favorite bands.

EXPLICITAVE/ANALYTICAL ESSAY: Drive-By-Truckers/Ray’s Automatic Weapon
By Ronald Borst

Lyrics: 

Ray I got to tell you

You got to take that gun back

Cuz these things that I been shooting at are getting all too real

Don’t want to hurt nobody, but I keep on aiming closer

Don’t think that I can keep it feeling like I feel

Ray I know I told you

That I’d keep it for you

I know I said I trusted me with it more than you

But something happened last night that made me reconsider

I need you to drive out here and relieve me of it too

I figured after forty years, I wouldn’t still be having nightmares

You’d think that now that we’re older, that war would finally be over

Ray, I’m in my sixties and the nights ain’t getting shorter

Only my patience and checkbook and fuse

Ray I got to tell you

You got to come take that gun back

Cuz these things that I’ve been shooting at are getting all too real

Lyrics, Patterson Hood/Music Cooley, Hood, Neff, Tucker, Morgan and Gonzalez

©Soul Dump Music (BMI)

It is the Drive-By Truckers song “Ray’s Automatic Weapon”, from the latest record “Gogo Boots”(2011).

In my opinion, to get a qualitive view of this writing(the song), one must both explicate and analyze the words of this song. There is no official video, which is good as I think they can be a distraction, especially if creative control is passed to a producer or director.

Reading the lyrics without the song playing gives the same effect as with, a longing to rid one’s self of a nightmare, in this case the memories of war. The deepness of that quest is front and center at the beginning of the lyric: “Ray I gotta tell ya…ya gotta come take this gun back...Cuz these things I been shooting at are getting all too real...”. Immediately the reader is aware of a pain or tragedy. As the first stanza continues, the words evoke a sense of wanting to do good while haunted. “Don’t want to hurt nobody, but I keep on aiming closer…” The line speaks intensely of the pains of wars. The stanza ends “Don’t think that I can keep it, feeling like I feel.” A five line verse, with 3 and 5 rhyming.

If we examined lyric poetry, this is it.^2  (A lyric written to be sung) One could also argue that it is dramatic poetry, and that too could be true. The tone of the verse tells us about the nightmare of Vietnam and the residual effects, especially the entire line 3. Even though the reader is not yet aware of the causes(Vietnam), this line leaves no doubt as to what is happening in this fella’s life. The line explains the reality and the seriousness to the reader as “real”. In spite of this, some will not realize this fact, even with the nightly news reporting daily of gun violence in America and of American men and women at wars in foreign lands. There is no metaphor or simile, no personification or apostrophe, and no hyperbole or litote. In my opinion the verse’s words are much an observation of events, truths…

The only backround information on this that I have is a story about writing the song, told by frontman Patterson Hood. The two characters are real, one living on the east coast and one on the west. They obviously both suffer some form of PTSD. And one is getting too far out of hand.

As the reader progresses into the second stanza, the conversation about the gun continues: “Ray I know I told you…That I’d keep it for you…” – Notice the same word as rhyme, sometimes typical in song. This line tells the reader of the plurality of the core issue, and that is the effects of war affect both characters, and the reality is that it cripples many veterans. So far the lyric seems to follow a dactylic rhythm.

The song verse goes on to state the battle: “I know I said I trusted me with it more than you…” and this line implies both veterans are scarred. A reasoning of who is safer with the weapon is a scene of imagery that is allusion, meaning the conversation either apparently or obviously took place. This is a sort of metaphor in the sense that it typifies the veteran somewhat and implies empathy, and is a typical social conversation about deciding a better choice- an almost moral metaphor. They understand each other, and depend on that. In my opinion the song is about the reader having empathy rather than sympathy but that subject is later…

As we finish the stanza:

But something happened last night that made me reconsider

I need you to drive out here and relieve me of it too

The reader now has been informed of the inevitable, last night he shot “too close”. The verse(stanza) uses one rhyming word, “you” for the first three lines and ends line 5 with “too”, but the verse does mirror the first with 5 lines with some rhyme. So far the song has some consonance and is mainly masculine rhyme. But what about “message”? Is there one? Or just not yet? At this point the reader has two expository rhyming verses with a dilemma. And the words certainly don’t have Ballad Stanza, so the reader is somewhat aware(in my opinion) that this is a prescriptive approach as the lines invoke a silent prescription about how the world should be, meaning 1) The world should not have people shooting people; and 2) Can we help veterans of wars with psychological problems in a more successful manner? Here, as a reader the only sound I can hear is a euphonic sort of “click” from the crispness of the words. The crispness reminds me of an action of a rifle being engaged. I must admit that I have read the lyrics 1000 times to get rid of the music that came with the words- and that is hard, but manageable.

My Guitar

Good songs are hard to get rid of in your memory.

So far the lyric contains two stanzas with five rhyming lines, of an apparent conversation or request between the two characters. The third stanza brings the reader closer to the person un-named- Ray’s war buddy. The first line starts: “I figured after 40 years,…”, and to me this directly implies Vietnam only because of the timing of the line(today) and the end of the Vietnam War, 40 years ago. In poetry this is called ‘allusion’.  The line proceeds: “…I wouldn’t still be having nightmares.” The internal rhyme makes the lines flow and seem poetic, and that continues for the rest of the stanza. This stanza has the two longest lines of the lyric, but changes to 4 lines with this verse. The 4 lines end with “nightmares”, “over”, “shorter”, and “fuse”. The consonance rhymes flow and mesh with each other to give the reader an idea of the scene at this point with the third line “…and the nights ain’t getting shorter” representing the sleepless mind in a perfect, truthful, accurate picture. That picture is further viewed in line 4:

“Only my patience and checkbook and fuse”

The reader can see the irony here, and I would assume anyone could relate to that, nights shouldn’t be sleepless, neither should checkbooks or fuses be short. This expands on the first two stanzas with a personal reflection, which is crucial to not only understand the character, but to feel empathy for Ray’s friend AND any other veteran suffering the effects of war memory and social dysfunction. The nights are long and sleepless, as opposed to long and restful. The fuse short, rather than patient and long. The implication here also is that if nights are sleepless, then shorter nights are better.

Most critics of lyrics would have noticed by now that there hasn’t been a refrain in Ray’s Automatic Weapon. The fourth stanza is the first three lines of the first stanza. In my opinion this “bookend” refrain helps to solidify and summarize the song. Even when read without the music, this approach reminds the reader of the insides of this story, and at the end helps to complete the lyrical verse.

Wes Freed's DBT art. (Author's home)

The song itself sounds great. It is a pleasing sound to my musical tastes. I played it for a friend and the song AND the lyrics struck him as very good. But because of the lyrics, this song “means” something. In my opinion, it is a social message as well as artistic, very common for musicians and writers. The words are exquisite while being poetry and song. The rhyming and stanza construction relay a sense of purpose and urgency by getting less lines as the reader progresses, almost a projective verse in a sense of dwindling time. The musical tone of the song portrays that as well, with a sort of ripping, whining guitar sound and a Hammond B3 sounding off the hours as minutes and minutes as seconds. So, in my opinion, the lyric or song, was written with a certain caring and quality that makes it readable and listenable, if not pleasurable. The lyrics are very good as is the rhyming scheme and flow. The story and characters are well developed in a short time, and the story is conveyed with a moral message. The story provokes one’s mind to “solve” these vet’s issues, or at least help by showing empathy and thinking critically. I truly think this song IS poetry. The song was dissected, explicated, and analyzed for technical soundness and poetic story quality. This reader thinks it a successful song for it is beautiful poetry and a good story with a message; and definitely for the ears as well as the eye.

For further review:

Ray’s Automatic Weapon, acoustic:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaYak7Rs8MA&list=HL1344839059&feature=mh_lolz

Drive-By Truckers website:

http://www.drivebytruckers.com/

The CD “Gogo Boots”, Drive-By Truckers 2011, or any DBT recording.

Sources:

^1:pg629; ^2:pg10. An Introduction to Poetry by X.J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia: Technical terms.11^th Edition 2005

Wikipedia: Poetry and specifically Greek history for a brief “song” review, not used literally in the essay, but more for critical thought.

Drive-By Truckers: Gogo Boots and lyrics for Ray’s Automatic Weapon, 2011

Interview: Derick Johnson, songwriter and guitar man, asked to listen and only give a “thumbs up” or “thumbs down”, to gauge impact of the song and lyrics. Aug2012.

YouTube: Acoustic version, specifically to gauge mood and tone.(link above)
Definitions:

•             hyperbole- exageration or rhetoric, a figure of speech
•             litote- opposite of hyperbole, an understatement
•             euphonic- pleasant sounding consonance
•             consonance- flowing and stable harmony/chord

           

November: A Haiku

fall leaves, dead till spring
autumn brings rain, and steelhead
hot cocoa steaming

by Ronald Borst
     12-04-2012