Idiomatic Expression

Three articles everyone should read.
Split

Red vs. Blue

Most people aware of politics in the U.S. surround themselves with like-minded people, and take very little effort to understand the rationale of the “other side”. Intelligent well-educated people have been disagreeing for thousands of years; rarely does it make either side completly wrong.

The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands is in the news for threatening air travel in the North Pacific. More specifically, the Anatahan Volcano is spewing smoke and creating a possible navigation hazard.

I have been reading The Last Full Measure by Jeffrey M. Shaara. I finished the book yesterday, and the second to last chapter includes a mention of Abraham Lincoln’s death. Strangely I read that chapter on the 139th anniversary of the President’s death. Coincidence? I think not!

I spent Thursday through Saturday of last week in Vancouver. I don’t have much bad to say about the city. The public transportation is convenient and easy to use, the city is easy to drive in, and there is a lot to see and do. Below are a couple of quick notes on the trip. See the pictures here.

Wednesday
I took a late night flight into YVR, and Katherine picked me up in the gas guzzling Ford Taurus wagon that Budget Rentals had given her. We grabbed a late night dinner at a 24-Hour Chinese place in Richmond, BC which was quite good, and headed back to The Inn at Westminster Quay in New Westminster, BC for the night.

Thursday
I Rode with Katherine to the RMH Call Center in Surrey. I walked to the Surrey Skytrain stop, bought an all day ticket for $8, and rode the Skytrain to the Waterfront station. Then I took the SeaBus across Burrard Inlet to Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver, BC. One of my favorite things about the Vancouver area is the numerous public markets where small vendors sell fresh produce, fresh fish, crafts, prepared food, and other sundries. While in Vancouver I got a chance to go to the Lonsdale Quay, Granville Island, and Richmond public markets and passed by the Westminster Quay Public market.

This article does a better job than I could of describing my opinion on the matter.

I am sure that most of the people reading this have a strong understanding of the 50 US States, but can you name all of the unincorporated territories of the US?

I am sure you know Guam and maybe Puerto Rico, but here is a bit of information, and related maps for all fifteen US territories.

American Samoa
Map1, Map2
Settled as early as 1000 BC, Samoa was “discovered” by European explorers in the 18th century. International rivalries in the latter half of the 19th century were settled by an 1899 treaty in which Germany and the US divided the Samoan archipelago. The US formally occupied its portion - a smaller group of eastern islands with the excellent harbor of Pago Pago - the following year

Baker Island — (uninhabited, administered from Washington, DC)
Map
The United States of America took possession of the island in 1857, and its guano deposits were mined by US and British companies during the second half of the 19th century. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization was begun on this island - as well as on nearby Howland Island - but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. Presently the island is a National Wildlife Refuge run by the US Department of the Interior; a day beacon is situated near the middle of the west coast.

Federated States of Micronesia
Map1, Map2 (far right)
In 1525 Portuguese navigators in search of the Spice Islands (Indonesia) came upon Yap and Ulithi. Spanish expeditions later made the first European contact with the rest of the Caroline Islands. Spain established its colonial government on Yap and claimed sovereignty over the Caroline Islands until 1899. At that time, Spain withdrew from its Pacific insular areas and sold its interests to Germany. German administration encouraged the development of trade and production of copra. In 1914 German administration ended when the Japanese navy took military possession of the Marshall, Caroline and Northern Mariana Islands. Japan began its formal administration under a League of Nations mandate in 1920.

The United Nations created the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI) in 1947. Pohnpei (formerly Ponape), Kosrae (formerly Kusaie, and at the time a part of Pohnpei), Chuuk (formerly Truk), Yap, Palau, the Marshall Islands and the Northern Mariana Islands, together constituted the TTPI. The United States accepted the role of Trustee of this, the only United Nations Trusteeship to be designated as a “Security Trusteeship,” whose ultimate disposition was to be determined by the UN Security Council.

Guam
Map1, Map2 Top left to the right of the Philippines
As a result of the Spanish-American War, Guam was ceded to the US by Spain in 1898.
Guam was captured by the Japanese in 1941, and retaken by the US three years later. During World War II the Battle of Guam started on July 21, 1944 with an American troop landing and ended on August 10 in an Allied victory.

Howland Island — (uninhabited, administered from Washington, DC)
Map
American civilians evacuated in 1942 after Japanese air and naval attacks during World War II; the island was occupied by the US military during World War II, but abandoned after the war. Public entry to the island is by special-use permit from the US Fish and Wildlife Service only and is generally restricted to scientists and educators, though the island is visited annually by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Defense is the responsibility of the US, the island is visited annually by the US Coast Guard.

The island has no economic activity. It is perhaps best known as the island that Amelia Earnhart never reached.

Insert wacky April Fools prank here.