Grumpy Editor

Obama hustles to North Korea border for photo op

Within hours of Air Force One’s landing in South Korea, President Barack Obama --- sensing a photo op with the presidential election less than eight months away --- was peering through binoculars toward North Korea yesterday in his first visit to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) which has bisected the peninsula since the Korean War cease fire almost 59 years ago, notes Grumpy Editor. 

Chances are North Koreans had binoculars trained on the president who wore an identification badge reading:  Barack Obama, Commander in Chief. 

Reuters said Obama “spent about 10 minutes on a viewing platform at the DMZ, talking with some of the soldiers on guard as the flags of the United States, South Korea and the United Nations flapped loudly in the brisk, cold wind.” 

With print and broadcast media trailing his movements, the president visited the DMZ on the eve of a global summit on nuclear security hosted by South Korea. 

“You guys are at freedom's frontier," Obama told about 50 troops crammed into a dining hall at a U.S. camp near the DMZ, one of the world's most heavily fortified frontiers. 

The Korean War remains open ended with no peace treaty signed. Battles ended with a cease fire on July 27, 1953.  

The Korean War, also labeled the “forgotten war,” erupted when 135,000 communist North Korean troops crossed the 38th parallel into South Korea in pre-dawn hours of June 25, 1950. 

For the U.S., the war resulted in 36,940 military deaths, 103,000 wounded, 8,142 missing in action and 3,746 prisoners of war.  

Prolonging the war were entries of communist Chinese soldiers battling U.S. troops on the ground and Russian pilots in Soviet-built jets fighting U.S. airmen.

Chinese troops killed or captured thousands of U.S. military personnel and managed many prisoner of war camps in North Korea. 

Obama was threatening to cancel planned U.S. food aid to North Korea following its announcement that it plans to launch a long-range rocket next month.

 

Details from 1940 U.S. census go on Internet April 2

Not as speedy as the monthly U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ employment figures currently released for the previous month, the U.S. Census Bureau on April 2 makes available --- via the Internet --- details of the 1940 census from the National Archives, notes Grumpy Editor.

Why the extra long delay?

Official reason:  “Strict confidentiality laws ensure that census records are only unsealed after 72 years have passed."

The 1940 census involved more than 120,000 enumerators who tallied information on 132 million people of which an estimated 21 million are alive today.

Compilation was done the old-fashioned way --- without computers.

It wasn’t until 1951 that the first large-scale computer --- a UNIVAC 1101 with a price tag close to $1 million --- was delivered to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The UNIVAC, short for Universal Automatic Computer, was considered to be the first capable of storing and running a program from memory.  (UNIVAC became a division of Remington-Rand Inc.)

The census form in 1940, a year before the start of World War II, contained 34 questions directed at households plus 16 others aimed at 5 percent.

After the lengthy Great Depression (which started in 1929), one of the most sensitive questions in 1940 dealt with personal income.

So it was placed at the end of the survey.

 

It’s adieu to ‘mademoiselle’ on official French forms

Using “mademoiselle" on official documents in France is now banned and will be replaced by “madame,” learns Grumpy Editor.

Mademoiselle, since around 1635, was regarded as a title of respect, equivalent to “miss” and used in speaking to or of a girl or unmarried woman. 

This week, the French prime minister’s office --- after a campaign by feminist groups calling the word sexist --- announced mademoiselle will be gone from official documents and advised that all women should be referred to as madame, whether they are married or not. 

Now, while madame (or madam in the U.S.) is a polite term in addressing a woman, it also is defined as “the woman in charge of a house of prostitution.” 

French feminist groups, including Osez le féminisme and Les Chiennes de Garde in their campaign to ban mademoiselle, probably didn’t think of that. 

The alternative could have been the English word going back to the 1150-1200 era:  damsel. 

Damsel is defined as “a young woman or girl; a maiden, originally one of gentler or noble birth.” 

In the U.S., Mademoiselle was widely seen on newsstands since 1935.  But the popular Condé Nast magazine, socked by the economy, rolled out its final issue in November, 2001.

 

Will Feb. 23 North Korea nuclear talks make progress?

Look for media to play the long-running six-nation talks --- tomorrow in Beijing --- focusing on North Korea nuclear disarmament like something is finally going to break, but Grumpy Editor feels it’s likely to be ho-hum time again.

Nuclear talks regarding North Korea have been going on for years.

The only hope is the change in North Korea’s leadership since Kim Jong-il died in December.

The latest session will measure if Kim’s son and successor, Kim Jong-un, is more open to diplomacy.

The six nations --- South Korea, North Korea, Japan, Russia, China and the U.S. --- have been sitting around tables, off and on, for more than nine years trying to persuade North Korea to give up its nuclear ambitions.

Recent talks (last July in New York and three months later in Geneva) made no progress.

North Korea’s routine has been to talk, followed by pauses, then more talks, followed by no resolution. 

That’s been the Communist nation’s procedure since 1953 when the Korean War ended with a cease fire.  North and South Korea technically remain at war with no peace treaty.

One reason nuclear disarmament talks get nowhere:  North Korea, Russia and China are on the same side.

It’s been that way since the Korean War, in which Russia and China joined North Korea in fighting American and South Korean troops, among other allied forces.

After this week’s Beijing discussions, it will be interesting to see if media reports include (again) these words: deadlocked, impasse, inconclusive and recessed without agreement.

 

Lincoln’s birthday gets less attention as years go by

Few readers of Sunday newspapers were aware that yesterday marked Abraham Lincoln’s birthday ---  a sad reflection on modern editors who usually relish anniversaries as easy ways to fill up columns around ads throughout the year, notes Grumpy Editor. 

Just last week, much editorial space was filled with two lengthy Associated Press stories on English novelist Charles Dickens birthday --- three years after Lincoln’s in 1809. 

Marking Lincoln’s birthday, once widely celebrated on Feb. 12, is now combined with all other presidents on next Monday’s Presidents’ Day.

However, Illinois, in observance of the 16^th president's birthday, closes  government offices, courthouses and libraries today (since Lincoln’s birthday falls on Sunday this year).  Even there, though, honoring the occasion is limited.  A banquet, organized by the Abraham Lincoln Association, was held last night at the President Lincoln Hotel in Springfield.

In New York, the state designated Lincoln's birthday as a floating holiday in 2012 for state employees in certain bargaining units. 

Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., yesterday celebrated Lincoln’s birthday and the opening of the Center for Education and Leadership with a day of free programming and activities that started with the National Park Service commemorating the occasion with wreath-laying in front of the theater.

One of the noteworthy tributes to Lincoln came yesterday in a Christian Science Monitor story by Peter Grier, who reminded: 

“Abraham Lincoln may be the greatest of all U.S. presidents. He ended slavery, won the Civil War, and ensured that the United States would remain united in the modern world. His face is printed on the five-dollar bill and stamped on the penny. The Lincoln Memorial is one of the nation’s iconic sites. 

“But Lincoln’s Birthday on Feb. 12 is not a national holiday, and it never has been.”

In one of the few mentions on television, Sarah Palin, former Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential nominee, interviewed by Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday, greeted the host with “Happy Abraham Lincoln birthday.”  He responded by noting her birthday was the day prior (in 1964, at Sandpoint, Idaho).

 

Postal Service seeks to end overnight mail delivery

In a bid to avoid insolvency, the Postal Service today officially proposes eliminating overnight delivery of first-class mail to many destinations --- which is nothing new considering for years it has taken a sluggish two days to get many letters from point A delivered to point B, notes Grumpy Editor. 

For example, for years mailing a letter in Los Angeles for delivery in  Las Vegas --- a distance of about 230 miles --- takes two days. 

The Postal Service wants to change what it calls “overnight standards.”  Officially, that means it would take first class mail more than one day to reach destinations. 

The agency says it needs to overhaul service standards as it closes hundreds of processing facilities. 

Delivering first class mail in two to three days instead of one to three days could save about $3 billion by 2015, claims the Postal Service. 

That comes close to Pony Express standards. 

And it gets closer to the Postal Service's unofficial label, “snail mail.” 

Lowly speed contrasts with 70 years ago when the postal operation was swift.  Two mail deliveries a day were common.  A mailing in the morning was delivered by afternoon in the same city. 

Modern mail operations struggle to offset falling mail volumes as more people and businesses communicate by email and pay bills online. 

Adding to the decline in mail activity is the periodic increase in cost of postage. 

Another boost comes on Jan. 22. 

Cost of a first-class stamp, for a one-ounce mailing, rises to 45 cents from the current 44.

 

Historical marker goes up at ‘Deep Throat’ garage site

A newly-erected historical sign, outside a parking garage in Rosslyn, Va., cites its link to (ready for this?) where “Deep Throat” of Watergate investigation fame met with Bob Woodward, Washington Post writer, almost four decades ago, notes Grumpy Editor.

The marker, created by Virginia’s Arlington County, attempts to put the site on par with other historial spots around the U.S.

The concrete garage now likely will be promoted widely in efforts to gain more attention than, say, Plymouth Rock in Massachusetts where the Pilgrims landed in 1620.

Grumpy Editor envisions journalism students bussed in to see the concrete structure where Washington Post history was made.

The wordy marker, installed Friday outside the garage, reads:

_________________________________________________

WATERGATE INVESTIGATION

Mark Felt, second in command at the FBI, met Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward here in this parking garage to discuss the Watergate scandal. Felt provided Woodward information that exposed the Nixon administration's obstruction of the FBI's Watergate investigation. He chose the garage as an anonymous secure location. They met at this garage six times between October 1972 and November 1973. The Watergate scandal resulted in President Nixon's resignation in 1974. Woodward's managing editor, Howard Simons, gave Felt the code name "Deep Throat." Woodward's promise not to reveal his source was kept until Felt announced his role as Deep Throat in 2005.

_________________________________________________

Now, compare that to the less wordy marker at the Plymouth Rock site in Plymouth, Mass., that commemorates where the 102 Pilgrims from England landed in 1620 after crossing the Atlantic aboard the Mayflower sailing vessel.

That event’s historical marker simply reads:

________________________________________________

 PLYMOUTH ROCK

 

LANDING PLACE OF THE

PILGRIMS

1620

________________________________________________________________________________ 

Chances are that few journalism students now will make it to Plymouth. 

 

Almost forgotten: Korean War remains open-ended

News junkies, including journalists, are aware that the U.S. currently is involved in three military actions --- in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya --- but most overlook a fourth, rather silent, that remains open-ended after 58 years, reminds Grumpy Editor. 

That’s the Korean War.  Battles ended with a cease fire on July 27, 1953. 

So it’s interesting to note that North Korea this week, on the 58th anniversary of the truce, is "eager" to sign a peace treaty that puts the cap on the 1950-1953 conflict that, for the U.S., resulted in 36,940 military deaths, 103,000 wounded, 8,142 missing in action and 3,746 prisoners of war. 

The Korean War, also labeled the “forgotten war,” erupted when 135,000 communist North Korean troops crossed the 38th parallel into South Korea in pre-dawn hours of June 25, 1950. 

The conflict was extended with the entries of communist Chinese soldiers battling U.S. troops on the ground and Russian pilots in Soviet-built jets fighting U.S. airmen.

Chinese troops killed or captured thousands of U.S. military personnel and managed many prisoner of war camps in North Korea. 

North and South Korea technically remain at war with no peace treaty. 

A North Korea-U.S. diplomatic meeting that continues today in New York is slated to include discussions on signing a peace treaty that ends the Korean War. 

In addition, talks are expected to focus on a resumption of six-nation (China, Japan, Russia, South Korea, North Korea, U.S.) nuclear disarmament talks, something that has been going on for years. 

Don’t count on progress. 

Over the years, North Korea’s routine has been to talk, followed by pauses, then more talks, followed by no final action.

 

Only 65 percent say July 4th one of important holidays

Lost in the shuffle of this week’s holiday news reports (and newsroom short staffs) was a Rasmussen Reports national survey, released on July 4, that finds only 65 percent of the 1,000 adults sampled consider Independence Day --- the Fourth of July --- one of the nation’s most important holidays, notes Grumpy Editor.

That’s troubling.

Amazingly, three percent of those surveyed consider the Fourth of July as one of the least important holidays while 31 percent see the observance as somewhere in between.

The Fourth of July, a federal holiday, commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence (from Great Britain) on July 4, 1776.

Perhaps, as recent reports indicated, growing lack of knowledge of U.S. history was a factor in not getting a figure above the 65 percent who consider the observance as one of America’s most important.

This week’s holiday marked the 235^th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence’s adoption.

Independence Day this year was mostly associated with fireworks displays (yet disappearing in many communities), backyard barbecues, picnics, fairs, family reunions and even political speeches, among other events.

But patriotic parades, still popular in many small towns, seemed to be fading as attractions.

 

Obama, media fail to note legal vs. illegal immigrants

Some print and broadcast media plus many politicians --- extending all the way to President Barack Obama --- seem to have an increasing problem in making a distinction between legal and illegal immigrants, finds Grumpy Editor.

Simply put, “legal” means much time and many steps some immigrants take to achieve U.S. citizenship, also known as naturalization, that allows individuals the right to participate fully in the U.S. democratic system.  Others who hold “green cards” are lawful permanent residents.

On the other hand, “illegal” stems from entering the U.S., including crossing northern or southern borders --- often under the cover of darkness --- against the law with no papers, no passport, no documentation. 

For Obama, in a speech at the National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast Thursday, he referred to "immigrants" six times and "immigration" seven times while declaring the United States is a "nation of laws” --- but he did not use the words “legal” or “illegal,” observes writer Penny Starr at CNSNews.com. 

Starr notes the president said we should “look at that migrant farmer and see our own grandfather disembarking at Ellis Island, or Angel Island in San Francisco Bay and to look at that young mother, newly arrived in this country, and see our own grandmothers leaving Italy or Ireland or Eastern Europe in search of something better.” 

However, one cannot compare those who legally passed through Ellis Island in Upper New York Bay, site of the nation's busiest immigrant inspection station from 1892 to 1954, with those who now illegally enter the U.S. 

“People who immigrated to the United States through Ellis Island had to have proper documents and have the ability so they would not become ‘a public charge or an illegal contract laborer,’” reminds Starr. 

Indeed, U.S. Public Health Service doctors on Ellis Island inspected all the millions of immigrants processed through the facility.  Passing a health examination was the first of many hurdles every immigrant had to clear. 

Obama is pushing for immigration reform that he says should involve a “pathway to citizenship” for the 14 to 20 million illegal aliens estimated to be in the U.S.