11/24/2022 Weirs Times

Our Annual Christmas Wishbook!

How To observe THanksgivingDon’T neglecT THe Punkins

by Chris Bosak For The Birds Columnist

Talking Turkey

Another Thanksgiving is upon us, and I want to ex press my gratitude for my family and friends.

I also want to say thank

you to readers of this col umn for making it so enjoy able to write for all these many years. Also, a big thanks goes to newspapers like Weirs Times for doing their best in an extreme

ly difficult environment to keep readers informed of important local happenings. And, of course, for running this column.

It wouldn’t be Thanks giving without a bird col

“ ...As regards returning thanks for blessings received, the Governor has already appointed a day for a gen eral thanksgiving all over the State, and if any man will read that “Proclamation” now, he will see that the Governor must have had a notion that in addition to good crops and good health, good sound con stitutional principles would be established- and now if all these aint worth being thankful for then we are most ungrateful. As a day then is appointed by the Governor, let us all as our good old fathers and grandfathers did before us, go to church and have a good sarmon and jine in the sarvices of praise and thanks giving and then come home and git the family together and invite in as many as there is room for. and who haint got no family, and if there be any punkins in creation I hope they won’t be neglected; and I hope no man of the rale grit will, on that day, fail to top off a thanksgivin dinner with a ginuine punkin pie, and do all in his power to see that his poorest neighbor has one too. I somehow feel sure things go right when punkin pies are re spected; our pious and patri otic fathers patronized themand no two things in my mind,

seem to hinge together so snug, and have hung together so long as patriotism and punkins.

Your friend, and ob’t serv’t, J. DOWNING, Major Downingville Militia, 2d Bri gade ”

That

THE WEIRS, LAKE WINNIPESAUKEE, N.H., THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2022

A wild turkey struts through a cemetery in New England this spring.

was from the New York Daily Express, but reprinted in the New Hampshire States

Sarah Josepha Hale who persuaded President Lincoln to make Thanksgiving Day an official yearly holiday.

by Robert Hanaford Smith, Sr. Contributing Writer

CHRIS BOSAK PHOTO

Lessons From The Ukraine War

To

The Editor:

After occupying the Crimea in 2014 without any pushback by world powers, President Putin decided to invade Ukraine in the east in 2022. He and his puppet advisors thought the Russian military would quickly vanquish Ukraine, but the Ukrainians, with equipment support from NATO, have put up a fierce re sistance.

The destruction of civilian infrastructure by Russia has infuriated the Ukrainians and hardened the resolve of world powers to help Ukraine. The Ukrainians are fighting to pre serve their country and have the advantage of territorial knowl edge. Also, elements of the Rus sian army have tortured, sexu ally assaulted and murdered Ukrainian civilians, which has stiffened Ukrainian resistance.

Ukraine is fighting an un declared proxy war for NATO, and the NATO military support could have a long term impact for peace in Europe by stand ing up to Russian aggression in Ukraine. The supply of military equipment to Ukraine by NATO, including massive amounts of military hardware and ammuni tion by the U.S., has enabled it to conduct operations to defend the country. Additional sophis ticated drones, anti-aircraft missiles, and long range mis siles should be added to the ar senal. We are obligated to help Ukraine because we convinced

Ukraine in 1991 to give up its arsenal of nuclear weapons and send them to Russia in return for U.S. security guarantees.

NATO countries now realize they have to increase their mili tary forces in response to Rus sian ambitions in Europe, and NATO should expeditiously ap prove Ukraine’s admission and then deploy defensive military forces into Ukraine.

The U.S. has gained valuable military planning information about the Russian military, including the use of our weap ons systems against them. This could help us in the future if we have to implement military planning and operations against Russian forces. Additionally, the Ukraine War is depleting Russia’s military equipment and bloodying its military per sonnel.

Donald Moskowitz Londonderry, NH.

Preserve Your Vote

To The Editor:

Now that NH state elections are over, it is time for our new ly elected representatives to submit Legislative Service Re quests, or LSRs for short, to be considered as bills for the next session.

One of the most important issues facing us is the state’s attempt at takeover of town gov ernance. This happens because of the ability to nullify the local vote of any town committee by

the rulings of just 3 appointees sitting in Concord.

Ask your new Reps and Sena tors to file an LSR to REPEAL the Housing Appeals Board (HAB).

- It is not warranted fiscally or constitutionally.

- It robs us of our local con trol by nullifying our votes.

- It favors tax subsidies and tax breaks for selected private entities.

- It creates an extra tax bur den which is then placed on single-family homeowners.

- It has already favored the above-mentioned private enti ties over town votes in 13/14 cases.

See more information and his tory here: https://bedfordresidents. com/bra/wp-content/up loads/2021/10/BRA_Hous ing_Policy_Paper7-29-2021.pdf

You can see who was elected/ re-elected in your area here: https://www.sos.nh.gov/ elections/elections/electionresults/2022-general-electionresults

Jane Aitken Bedford, NH.

Our StOry

This newspaper was first published in 1883 by Mathew H. Calvert as Calvert’s Weirs Times and Tourists’ Gazette and continued until Mr. Calvert’s death in 1902. The new Weirs Times was reestablished in 1992 and strives to maintain the patriotic spirit of its predecessor as well as his devotion to the interests of Lake Winnipesaukee. Our newspaper’s masthead and the map of Lake Winnipesaukee in the center spread are elements in today’s paper which are taken from Calvert’s historic publication.

Locally owned for 30 years, this publication is devoted to printing the stories of the people

and places that make New Hampshire the best place in the world to live. No, none of the daily grind news will be found in these pages, just the good stuff.

Published year round on Thursdays, we distribute 24,000 copies of the Weirs Times every week to the Lakes Region/Concord/ Seacoast area and the mountains and have an estimated 60,000 people reading this newspaper.

To find out how your business or service can benefit from advertising with us please call 603-366-8463.

PO Box 5458 Weirs, NH 03247 Weirs.com info@weirs.com facebook.com/weirstimes 603-366-8463

Snow has returned to the mountains. Bria on the south knob of Mount Paugus, elevation 3,100, in the Sandwich Range Wilderness. This peak is is on the popular 52 with a View hiking list. According to the AMC White Mountain Guide “Mount Paugus was named in 1875 by the poet Lucy Larcom for the Pequawket chief who led the Abenaki forces at the battle of Lovewell’s Pond in 1725.”

MounT Paugus wiTH snow

Winter made its first big appearance last week. It snowed all over the State and especially at higher elevations. Snow didn’t deter us from going hiking and I really enjoy accompa nying Bria as she works gathering her redlines. Redlining around here means hiking ev ery trail in the AMC White Mountain Guide. There are over 1,400 miles of trails described in the Guide. After com pleting a trail it is fun to take a red Sharpie to mark what you have hiked. I put the cap on

my red pen 7 years ago and Bria hascompleted over 60%. She jokes with me that I am go ing to finish a second round.

Mount Paugus is lo cated in the designated Sandwich Range Wil derness, west of Mount Chocorua. The Bolles Trail runs north-south between the Kanca magus Highway and Paugus Road between the two mountains.

Bria has the three trails to Chocorua from the Bolles Trail but had not made a dent on Paugus yet.

We started at the south end of the Bolles Trail from the gate on Paugus Road. There were already a cou ple cars parked there. There was a good inch of crunchy snow on the ground. We both wore boots, trail running shoes won’t cut it now.

Up the Bolles Trail we went and then we turned left onto the Bee-Line Cutoff. We rock hopped across Paugus Brook and con tinued hiking half a mile until we reached the intersection of the

griM griDsTer news— anD THanksgiving

on to the next steps— sooner rather than later.

by Mike Moffett Contributing Writer

College football shouldn’t be a deadly game. Not today. Sure, back in 1905 after around twenty football players were killed in action, President Ted dy Roosevelt—a former Harvard gridster—opted to get involved to help create the forerunner to today’s NCAA. Equip ment was improved and rules were changed and the dying stopped.

On the field anyway.

But two weekends ago three University of Vir ginia football players were gunned down by a former UVA player as a bus was returning from a field trip. Last month in Detroit, a Dav enport University defen sive lineman was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting. Earlier this year two Vanderbilt Uni versity football players were shot and wound ed in Nashville when they tried to retrieve a teammate’s missing cell phone.

Gun violence is noth ing new in our country but when high profile athletes are involved it really focuses attention on the mayhem.

Last month former NFL cornerback Antonio Dennard was shot and killed outside a sports bar in Reading, Penn. And a few years ago, former star NFL quar terback Steve McNair was shot and killed by a jealous woman. He’d earlier led the Tennes

see Titans to the Super Bowl.

It’s not just gridsters who are being shot to death. This past May former NBA player Ad reian Payne was gunned down in Orlando, Flor ida. Years earlier, 13year NBA star Lorenzen Wright was murdered by a friend of his ex-wife.

Baseball fans will recall the Roy Hobbs character, played by Robert Redford in the great baseball movie The Natural. Hobbs was shot by a crazed female fan, which kept him out of the Majors for 16 years. Sports film devo tees know how the story turned out. (Happy end ing!) But The Natural was based on the reallife story of Philadelphia Phillie star Ed Waitkus, who was shot and nearly killed by Ruth Stein hagen, a female stalker who was in love with him. He thankfully

vived and

World Series two years later.

(Ironically, Waitkus had earlier survived some very bloody fight ing as a soldier in World War II’s Pacific The ater, where he won four Bronze Stars.)

Anyway, the recent spate of violence involv ing sports figures reflects an increasing crime rate nationally. In 2020 the murder rate increased by nearly 30%. Sociolo gists and politicians can argue about causes (and cures) related to gun vio lence, but all agree that these statistics are bad news from the law-andorder front.

But the first step in volved in addressing any challenge is to acknowl edge that a problem ex ists. When the shooting victims are high profile athletes it helps to better shine a light on bad sit uations so we can take that problem-solving first step and then move

New Hampshire is rat ed as among the safest, if not the safest state in which to live—some thing for which to be grateful during Thanks giving 2022—as we also take note of the sports stars and all the others who won’t be around for Thanksgiving 2023.

Sports Quiz

What Red Sox man ager was shot and near ly killed by a former girlfriend when he was earlier playing for the Chicago Cubs? (Answer follows)

Born Today

That is to say, sports standouts born on No vember 24 include NBA stars Oscar Robertson (1938) and Dave Bing (1943).

Sports Quote

“The Thanksgiving Turkey. The sweet po tatoes. The stuffing. The pumpkin pie. Is there anything else about which we can agree so vehemently?” – Writer Nora

Ephron

Sports Quiz Answer Billy Jurges.

State Representa tive Mike Moffett was a Sports Management Professor for Plymouth State University and NHTI-Concord. He coauthored the award-win ning “FAHIM SPEAKS: A Warrior-Actor’s Odyssey from Afghanistan to Hol lywood and Back” which is available on Amazon. com. His e-mail address is mimoffett@comcast. net.

Former star NFL quarterback Steve McNair.

F OOL

NEW

HAMPSHIRE

life lessons

There’s a popular ex pression that goes some thing like: “To day is the first day of the rest of your life.”

by Brendan Smith Weirs Times Editor

Being the kind of guy who like to live more in the moment, I find myself constantly adjusting this expression to fit my life at any particular time of the year.

Currently I have adjusted the expression to be: “Today is the first day of the rest of this year’s Christmas shopping season.”

Saying this to myself each morning going forward is very effective in convincing myself that it really is the first day and that there will be many days to follow and, if you are a gift procrastinator like myself, then you fill yourself with the false perception that you have plenty of time to get things done.

Yes, Christmas shopping is a lot like life itself in many ways.

Inevitably in Christmas shop ping, as in life, you will stop one day, look at yourself in the mir ror and say, “Where the heck did all the time go?”

It is usually around this point in the mental process that you will force yourself to take the time to sit down and make a comprehensive list of either which of your life’s goals which you have yet to obtain or what gifts you are able to buy within a five-mile radius of home be cause, well, time is now run ning out. (It was once an op tion to also pin your hopes and dreams on the Amazon two-day delivery promise, but that is now as dependable as planning your day on the WMUR weather forecast.)

Once you have written your lists you need to get to work. Whether it is that novel you have been meaning to write since the millennium, finally

taking those piano lessons, learning that language, los ing that hard to get rid of ten pounds, or finding that elusive unique gift of clothing that your wife has been hinting at since Labor Day at as a nice Christ mas gift, you realize that the time is finally now and today isn’t really the first day of the rest of your life (or Christmas shopping) any longer.

Once you have made this realization and procrastinated even a little longer while mak ing the lists themselves, it will come time to finally take some action – as painful as that can sometimes be. You now real ize that time is short and that there is much work to be done. You come to realize that even though your intentions are good, and you are getting down to the nitty gritty (whatever that means) there will still be many of life’s diversions to distract you from your goals.

Metaphorically speaking from my own experience, in life, as in Christmas shopping, there is always going to be an elec tronics store that you will have to pass though on your way to the women’s clothing section where you will have to search for that unique clothing item. If you can keep your eyes on your real goal and complete it, there may be time to come back and stare at that 64-inch smart TV which you know you don’t have any room for in the first place. (Once again, only metaphori cally speaking.)

In Christmas shopping as in life, you may have to put your nose to the grindstone now that you realize that time is running out and you need to kick it into gear for getting what you really want. You ignored the electron ics store (and even those cool kiosks with all that weird stuff that seems cool now but will most likely be collecting dust in a closet a year from now) and are focused on the prize but now that unique piece of cloth

ing is nowhere left to be seen; the racks have been picked clean by those who got an early start. (Do I have to keep saying metaphorically here or are you getting the idea? Plus, metaphorically takes too long to spell.)

Some may feel defeated, real izing that they gave too much, too late, and let it bring them down and admit defeat. Others may just pick another item or goal and simple settle for sec ond best.

The rest of us can use this as a learning tool.

Even though we may have succumbed to that procras tination in our lives, we can now understand that there still will be other opportunities in life (and Christmas shopping) to grab that elusive gold ring (unique piece of clothing) and that the next time we will be ready when the opportunity presents itself. We won’t sit back, but will take action and not fall into that “First Day” mentality that got us into so much trouble before.

As for me, I am hoping by writing this article that it will be read by the proper party and serve as the perfect ex cuse when that unique article of clothing, or whatever else I start out once again to late this year to buy, doesn’t appear un der the Christmas tree.

After all, it did take me most of the morning to write and it’s now too late, the football game has just started and, well, to morrow’s another day.

Order your autographed copy today for $16.99 plus $3 shipping. (Please include any inscrip tion you would like.) Make out checks or money orders for $19.99 to Brendan Smith and mail to: Socks Book c/o Weirs Times, PO Box 5458, Weirs, NH 03247

Or order online at BrendanTSmith.com (Autographed copies also avail. at the Weirs Times)

Brendan is the author of “The Flatlander Chronicles”,“Best Of A F.O.O.L. In New Hampshire” and “I Only Did It For The Socks Stories & Thoughts On Aging” All are available at Brenda nTSmith.com.

in Live Free or Die.

*A FLATLANDER’S OBSERVATIONS ON LIFE

5 THings TruMP MusT Do To win in 2024

by Adriana Cohen Syndicated Columnist

“LFG BABY!!!” Donald Trump Jr. said on social media alongside a photo and statement he posted of his father, former President Donald Trump, announcing his candidacy for president in 2024. The mis sive garnered over 436,700 likes in less than 24 hours. Not a bad sign, especially if one considers that Big Tech continues to censor and suppress conservative ac counts despite public outcry.

That nugget aside, Trump can succeed in becoming the 2024 Republican nominee and ultimately the 47th president if he does these five things:

FOCUS ON THE FUTURE NOT THE PAST

Elections are about the future -- not what happened months or years ago. If Trump continues to dwell on the 2020 election and make unfounded assertions it was “rigged” against him, he’s history. Voters of all political stripes care about kitchen table issues affecting our families today, such as the inflated cost of groceries, record-breaking gas prices and how we will heat our homes this winter with soaring utility bills headed our way under Team Biden. Americans care about high mortgage rates stressing their budgets, rising crime sweeping the nation and lethal fentanyl seeping into our communities killing over 100,000 citizens last year. Mil lions of parents are concerned about the poor quality of edu cation today, harming our children who are at the mercy of far-left teachers unions indoctrinating students with “woke” ideology rather than educating them with rudimentary basics such as math, reading, writing and science.

Voters also care about their 401(k)s and retirement ac counts, the escalating cost of prescription drugs, overall de cline of the U.S. health care system and many other issues impacting our lives -- not what happened years ago. Hence, Trump must focus on the future by articulating his vision to fix our nation’s problems, not live in the past.

PUT POLICY OVER PERSONALITY

Trump is known for personal attacks against his opponents. Although that tactic may have grabbed headlines and earned him wads of free media coverage in past elections, it won’t work as effectively this time around. Today, many Americans, including moderate conservatives and independents needed to win elections, are tired of the drama. They’re not inter ested in childish name calling and the soap opera theatrics surrounding politics. To the

THe fTX Dog THaT DiDn’T bark

In Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous Sher lock Holmes tale, “Sil ver Blaze”, the detec tive investigates the case of a murder of a horse trainer. At first, investigators presume that the murderer of the trainer must have been a stranger to him. But Holmes cracks the case with the revelation that a watchdog remained silent the night of the murder -- a “curious incident,” as Holmes puts it, if the watchdog had been confronted by a stranger. No, Holmes concludes, the murderer must have been known to the watchdog.

by Ben Shapiro Syndicated Columnist

We would do well to keep Holmes’ “curious incident” in mind when dis cussing the complete meltdown of FTX, the cryptocurrency exchange run by Sam Bankman-Fried, a man who looks like he emerged from a laboratory dedi cated to the manufacture of charlatans. Bankman-Fried was, at one point, worth some $26 billion; his exchange was the second largest in the world. But he also bragged about never reading books (“I think, if you wrote a book, you f---ed up, and it should have been a six-paragraph blog post”); he lived in a “polycule” -- a polyamorous semi-colony -- along with nine of his executives; he wore gym shorts and T-shirts to important com pany events with Bill Clinton and Tony Blair; he placed at the head of human resources the girlfriend of the director of engineering and as chief operating of ficer his own intermittent girlfriend and as head of his associated hedge fund yet another intermittent girlfriend.

The red flags were endless.

And yet the scam continued.

In the coverage of FTX’s meltdown, many in the media have been rather slow to ask a simple question: why didn’t anybody notice that SBF was one of the most obvious scam artists of all time?

Perhaps it’s the insanity of the digital age, in which those fresh out of college can be assessed as billionaires without actually showing a balance sheet. But there’s something else going on here: SBF was a key cog in a political machine dedicated to the proposition that a co alition of like-minded Left-wingers can seize the reins of capitalist enterprise and then work with friends in govern ment to reconstruct the world.

That, after all, was what SBF was publicly attempting to do. He dumped $40 million into the midterm elections in support of Democrats; he donated $5.2 million to then-candidate Joe Biden during the 2020 election cycle. He had pledged the FTX foundation to hand out $1 billion in 2022. He did all of this in the name of supposed “effective altru ism,” a philosophy in which Left-wingers seek to use capitalism in order to enrich themselves, then dump the money into favored causes. “I wanted to get rich, not because I like money but because I wanted to give that money to charity,” SBF told one interviewer.

“Effective altruism” is just another iteration of the World Economic Forumapproved “stakeholder capitalism” idea -- the idea that CEOs owe their share holders nothing, but the world at large their time, money and resources. There is a reason that FTX had partnered with WEF -- a fact that WEF has now ob scured by cleaning its website.

How many scam artists are using such “bluewashing” in order to cover for mal feasance -- all the while colluding with government figures to redraw regula tions that benefit them? That, after all, was SBF’s biggest scam: He was an advo cate of particular types of regulation that benefitted him and used both familial and business connections in order to protect his corporatism.

And that’s the dog that didn’t bark here: Where were the regulators with whom SBF was close? Where were the

Politicians praise electric cars. If ev eryone buys them, they say, solar and wind power will re place our need for oil.

But that’s ab surd.

Magic cars

But here’s inconvenient fact 3: Batteries are lousy at storing large amounts of energy.

“Batteries leak, and they don’t hold a lot,” says physicist Mark Mills.

That’s inconvenient fact 4. Miracle batteries powerful enough to replace fossil fuels are a fantasy.

they promise every car will be elec tric. They also don’t mention that the electric grid is limited.

by John Stossel Syndicated Columnist

Here is the rest of my list of “incon venient facts” about electric cars.

“The future of the auto in dustry is electric,” says President Joe Biden. He assumes a vast improve ment in batteries. Better batteries are crucial because both power plants and cars need to store lots of electric power.

Mills thinks electric cars are great but explains that “oil begins with a huge advantage: 5,000% more energy in it per pound. Electric car batteries weigh 1,000 pounds. Those 1,000 pounds replace just 80 pounds of gasoline.”

But future batteries will be better, I point out.

“Engineers are really good at mak ing things better,” Mills responds, “but they can’t make them better than the laws of physics permit.”

“Because nature is not nice to humans,” explains Mills, “we store energy for when it’s cold or really hot. People who imagine an energy transi tion want to build windmills and solar panels and store all that energy in batteries. But if you do the arithmetic, you find you’d need to build about a hundred trillion dollars’ worth of batteries to store the same amount of energy that Europe has in storage now for this winter. It would take the world’s battery factories 400 years to manufacture that many batteries.”

Politicians don’t mention that when

This summer, California officials were so worried about blackouts they asked electric vehicle owners to stop charging cars!

Yet today, few of California’s cars are electric. Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered that all new cars must be electric by 2035! Where does he think he’ll get the electricity to power them?

“Roughly speaking, you have to double your electric grid to move the energy out of gasoline into the electric sector,” says Mills. “No one is plan ning to double the electric grid, so

aMerica was builT on coal now biDen wanTs To abolisH iT

John Metlzer is off this week.

The one prom ise that Presi dent Joe Biden has faithfully kept is his pledge to “close down” fossil fuels. We get two-thirds of our energy in America from fos sil fuels, and almost one-third of our power comes from coal. That’s quadruple the amount of energy we get from wind and solar, which are niche forms of energy.

“No one is building new coal plants because they can’t rely on it,” Biden said on Nov. 4 while in California. “We’re going to be shut ting these plants down all across America and having wind and so lar.”

monious Europeans are turning to coal because their natural gas supplies from Russia are no longer reliable.

more than 1 billion people is con cerned about climate change?

by Stephen Moore Syndicated Columnist

I hope the people in Ohio, Penn sylvania, West Virginia and Wyo ming are listening because thou sands of mostly union jobs are associated with the coal plants he wants to shutter.

Germany is even burning wood now for home heating, which is about the most environmentally damaging way to get energy.

White House climate envoy John Kerry has to explain how we are re ducing global warming if every time we shut down a coal plant, China builds a new one or two or three.

But Biden doesn’t see it that way. He recently reiterated his pledge to end coal production altogether.

Biden says we need to “shut down” these plants and the jobs that come with them because we need to combat climate change. One problem: Most of the rest of the world is using more coal even as we use less. Even the sancti

But the biggest polluting villain by far is China. Beijing is now powering its rapid industrial ex pansion with fossil fuels. The Chi nese have more than doubled their coal production and consumption over the last decade, even as we in America have cut our domestic coal by almost half. Beijing recently announced it is building dozens of massive new coal plants.

Does it sound like this nation of

Coal was the critical fuel source that powered the industrial revo lution in America, which made our economy the strongest in the world. Back then, coal was dirty, and the constant gurgling of emis sions from massive coal plants turned cities like Pittsburgh into 50 shades of gray smog.

That was then. Now, American coal plants are cleaner all the time. In 2020, the Department of

Letters From God

This series of Letters From God is an attempt to put the thoughts of God as revealed in the Scriptures as they re late to individuals and the nation of the USA.

Letters From God

QUESTION: Why Are You And Christians So Judg mental?

I know that the rest of your question is, “didn’t you say, do not judge or you too will be judged.”

Yes, I did in my Book, the Bible. However, in its context there was no contradiction be tween “do not judge or you too will be judged” and judging righteous ly (Matthew 7:1-5).

If you look carefully at the text, you will see I was never say ing to never judge. In it, I addressed those who were trying to take a speck out of the eye of another but were blind to the log in their own eye.

In other words, they wouldn’t acknowledge their own wrongdoing that was egregious but were quick to point out minor flaws in others.

It was self-righteous ness and pride in their judgment that put people down to build themselves up. And so, in this case it was unrighteous judgment that I condemned, and this should never be practiced.

In the context, I also asked the one who is judging unrighteously, to first deal with their own sin before they ever sought to bring judgment on others,

because only then could they judge prop erly. Finally, in the context I also made it clear that if you judge others in this way, un righteously, you will be judged by me, a righ teous judge, and suf fer greatly. So, as you can see, in its context I am not only rebuking wrong judging of other but also encouraging righteous judging of self and others. I drove this home when I also said, “do not judge by the outward appear ance, but judge with righteous judgment.” (John 7:24). This leads me to explain why judging righteously by me and other, including godly Christians, is so vitally important.

First, I must remind you that I created you and when I did, I es tablished laws that told you what was right and what was wrong. These standards were not arbitrary nor were they unjust or capri cious. I knew that if you obeyed them, they would cause you to experience the fullness of life even for eternity (Psalm 119:75). I also knew that if you didn’t obey them, they would bring suffering and death, even eternally (Genesis 2:16-17). As a Loving Father , I had to allow you to choose to either enjoy the blessings of obe dience or suffer the consequences of sin through disobedient. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be a loving Father. I would have created robots who had to obey.

At the same time, as a Righteous Judg e, without consequences for disobedience you would have no incen tive to turn from wrong behavior and continue, “going to hell in a hand basket,” as you often say, with no hope of life in time and for eternity (Isaiah 26:9,10).

So, you see, I must judge but it must al ways be righteous. For tunately for you, I am without sin or evil and therefore can’t judge unrighteously (Psalm 5:4-5).

Before I leave this top ic, I want to assure you that each of you will one day stand before me and give an account of your adherence to my laws. When you do the standard will be per fection, having never violated even one law (James 2:10). It was the original standard for re lationship with me the source of life and I have never changed. You will stand before me and give an account. I’m sure you know how that will go, since the stan dard is perfection. Un less you avail yourself of a provision, I have made for you. I knew all of you have sinned and are no longer per fect. But because I love you, I sent my son, Jesus, who was without sin, to walk among you. But I also sent him to die in your place. When he hung on the cross, he died not for his sins but for all of yours (Romans 5:8). His blood, as God, was eternal and without sin. When he died for you, he paid your eternal

penalty of death so that even though you have transgressed my laws, you could live with me forever (2 Corinthians 5:21).

So, as you can see, not only have I judged you righteously, I have also made a way for you to be forgiven and restored to me, the “author of life.” If you, like many before you, bow in humil ity and ask me to be your savior and for give your sins, I will hear and answer and deliver you from you well deserved conse quences (John 1:12).

So, I hope you can see the need for righ teous judgment. I also hope that you will receive my gift through my son, Je sus.

Before I leave you, I also want to re mind you, that as the Righteous Judge of heaven and earth, I also hold nations ac countable for obedi ence to my laws along with temporal conse quences for disobe dience. In my next letter, I will share my thoughts on your current condition.

I will only say now, that you have depart ed far from my laws and unless you turn back soon my judge ment must come!

Oh, how I love and long to restore you to me and my love. God

These letters are written by a New Hampshire pastor.

self care is THe besT care

learning the differ ence between health and wellness. At first I thought they were very similar and almost in terchangeable, but now as a therapist I think about these differences every day in my career.

occupational states of being. While both are valuable, I tend to look at someone’s wellness vs just health when I have them on my table.

by Megan Gilpatric Meredith Whole Living Center

What is self care, and how can we achieve these goals in our day to day lives? First I’ll start with what I think is an important build ing block of one’s state of well-being, health vs wellness. While in school I remember

Health looks at one’s physical state, which can include disease, muscle mass, and over all functionality as ex amples. Wellness on the other hand looks not only at one’s physi cal health, but also at their social, intellectual, emotional, spiritual, en vironmental and lastly

Of course as a massage therapist the work I do would be consid ered more on the physi cal level- manipulating muscles, moving limbs, looking at medical his tory. However I’ve found that talking with a cli ent to find out what is causing their imbalance is just as important to their recovery.

Stress is one of the biggest causes of these

imbalances that I see in my clients. Stress comes in many forms and by many causes. Allowing my clients a safe space to chat can not only allow for emo tional relief, but I’ve seen many times that it can help with the physical release of tight muscles. All the tension you’re holding in your shoulders and neck can begin to work its way out by acts of self care, including connecting with an empathetic lis tener.

Some other examples of self care that I find to be helpful are go ing for a walk outside to get some fresh air, taking time for your self in the shape of a relaxing bath, doing a facial, or reading a book you’ve been putting off. Simply taking the time to reflect on your day by journaling, chatting with a friend, drawing, making lists of things that made you happy or that you’re grateful for can also work wonders for your overall wellbeing.

It sounds easy enough, right? Unfor tunately many people have a very hard time setting aside the time for themselves, al though we find time for work, chores, and other obligations. If you can rebate to this, tak ing a moment to plan your day to give yourself 15 minutes of yoga in the morning, 5 min utes to write down your thoughts for the day or to make a plan with a

by Leslie Gray, LCMHC Gray Matters Counseling & Wellness

It’s a wonderful time of year. Crisp tempera tures, colorful foliage against the bright blue sky, leaves crunching under foot. Fall is here. Kids go back to school, tourists flee to their primary homes, and life slows down a bit.

As the season pro gresses, there are holi days at every turn. Gettogethers with friends and family sharing traditions, food, and cheer. Halloween deco rations come down as Christmas lights go up, all tied up in a neat little bow by reigning in a brand-new year full of hope and the promise of a fresh start.

There’s so much go ing on this time of year, the shortest day comes and goes without much ado. By the time we ring in the new year, it’s time to start count ing down the days un til Punxsutawney Phil makes his annual ap pearance to predict the arrival of spring. (Fin gers crossed he doesn’t see his shadow.)

It is, at best, a fortu nate coincidence that

fall inTo winTer

most major holidays occur during the dark est period of the year: a welcomed distraction from what lies ahead.

Enter scene: Old Man Winter. Just the thought of it can elicit a sense of dread, even when the sun is still rising high and shin ing strong, signifying the true power of mere thought as the body responds as if it is al ready happening. Al though it is normal to feel a little ‘down’ this time of year, some suf ferers experience this natural decline in mood and energy to a much greater degree, even to the point of depression.

Symptoms of winter depression can range from mild to severe and can certainly meet the criteria for a clini cal diagnosis known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (affectionately coined SAD). And while I take nothing away from the reality of this, I am genuinely curious if we sometimes take it too far, pathologizing a naturally occurring phenomena thereby de monizing nature’s way. Developing a deeper understanding of emo tions such as winter depression and discov ering the positive in tentions behind it can make it seem far less daunting.

But how on earth can depression have good intentions? Depression feels terrible. It’s dif ficult to get out of bed. Every little task seems like a major project. And yet, this powered-

down state can do something very valu able for us.

Let’s start by peeling back the label of de pression. Actually, let’s peel it back and stretch it out. Depressed, when said slowly and hy phenated comes out deep-rest. By getting curious with this pho netic play on words, we can immediately iden tify what depression motivates us to do… or stop doing (maybe both simultaneously). It makes us want to rest more and do less. So how might this be beneficial, particularly in the winter months?

It’s often helpful to look to nature to get a better gauge on what might be happening. According to the State of NH Fish and Game, North American black bears ‘den’ (a reduced state of physiological functioning called tor por). The purpose is to avoid harsh tem peratures and scarcity of food in the winter months. They enter their dens as early as mid-October and don’t typically emerge until April.

This schedule sounds like the ones practiced by snowbirds in the hu man species who travel to the Deep South dur ing the winter months. Maybe the bears are onto something. After all, if survival and lon gevity is the goal of all species, why not avoid the harshest time of the year?

Darkness activates the natural sleep cycle

which makes it possible to fall asleep at night. It’s also generally safer to be inside after dark. Furthermore, there is less to do outside in the winter months and with temperatures typi cally plummeting at night, being outside after dark can be even more treacherous due to icing conditions.

Our nervous systems certainly mean well by providing us with less energy than in the summer months there by allowing us to rest and recuperate when it is less desirable to be outside. And yes, it can certainly feel really frustrating to power down a bit as we fall into winter. But even the natural inclination to ‘nest’ this time of year cannot be denied and may be one way humans create their own den of sorts in preparation for winter, creating a warm invit ing space to settle in for a long winter’s nap.

Leslie A. Gray is a Licensed Clinical Men tal Health Counselor and operates Gray Mat ters Counseling & Well ness, PLLC in Laconia NH. Feel free to submit responses or requests for subject content to: askgraymatters@gmail. com.

seniors

anD sunDowning: wHaT iT is

anD

By Martha Swats, Owner/Administrator, Comfort Keepers

Sundowning is a symptom of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, most often affecting people who have mid- and latestage dementia. Con fusion and agitation worsen in the late after noon and evening when the sun goes down, and symptoms are less pronounced earlier in the day. Sundowning is also called “late-day

Hearing Loss Leads to Lost Cognitive Function

Austin wants to tell you about a very import ant finding in medical research. Any decline in hearing results in declines in cognitive perfor mance and brain function.

Audiology Specialists provides cognitive screening that can measure some aspects of cognitive performance. This is an in-office, computerized screening. This is not an IQ test or list of questions. It is a simple, automated assessment that takes about ten minutes to complete.

The results of this screening are not affected by hearing loss. The results help your audiologist determine which hearing aid is most appropriate and ensures your hearing solutions are right for you. The screening can be repeated at any time in the future to identify changes in cognitive performance.

Please call for more information or to schedule an appointment at 603-528-7700.

How To coPe wiTH iT

confusion.”

Sundowning behav iors can be verbal or physical. They can oc cur suddenly, with no apparent reason, or predictably result from a frustrating situation. While it can be hard to cope with, it can help when you realize that the person with Alzheimer’s or demen tia is not acting aggres sively on purpose.

Factors that may ag gravate sundowning

•End-of-day exhaus tion (both mental and physical)

•An upset in the “in ternal body clock ,” causing a biological mix-up between day and night

•Reduced lighting and increased shad ows, causing people with Alzheimer’s to misinterpret what they see, so they become confused and afraid

•Disorientation due to the inability to sepa rate dreams from real ity when sleeping

•Change in the nor mal routine

• Reactions to non verbal cues of frus tration from family caregivers who are ex hausted from their day

Strategies for manag ing the symptoms of sundowning

•P rovide comfort and familiarity . For loved ones with demen tia, the world can be scary. Surround them with comfortable pil lows and blankets, family photographs,

figurines, and other familiar objects.

•Light up the home in the evening. Ad equate lighting may reduce the agitation that occurs when sur roundings are dark or unfamiliar.

•Make a comfortable and safe sleep environment. Keep a comfortable room temperature. Provide nightlights and appro priate door and window locks. Door sensors and motion detectors can be used to alert family members when a person is wandering.

•Maintain a sched ule. As much as pos sible, encourage the person with dementia to adhere to a regular daily routine of meals, waking, and going to bed.

•Avoid stimulants and large dinners. Avoid nicotine and alcohol and restrict sweets and caffeine to the morning hours. Turn evening meals into more of a light snack.

•Plan more active days. Discourage af ternoon napping and plan activities for the morning or early after noon. Encourage daily exercise, but no later than four hours before bedtime.

•Minimize Stress. Try to stay calm in the evening hours. Stick to simple activities that aren’t challenging or fear-inducing. You might put on soft music to create a calm envi

ronment. Watching TV or reading a book may be too hard to follow and frustrating for the senior.

•Try to identify triggers and write them down. Limit distrac tions during the eve ning hours such as loud music, people coming and going, etc. Keep a journal of ac tivities, environment, and behavior to identify triggers. Then you can avoid those situations that promote agitation and confusion in your loved one.

•Be mindful of your own mental and phys ical exhaustion. If you are feeling stressed by late afternoon, the per son may sense it and become agitated or con fused. Get plenty of rest at night for more energy during the day.

Comfort Keepers® can help. Sundown ing syndrome can be exhausting for seniors who suffer from Al zheimer’s and other forms of dementia, as well as their families.

Comfort Keepers not only understands this challenge, but we also offer respite care for family members so you can remain pa tient and supportive for your loved one. Call us today.

To your gooD HealTH

by Dr. Keith Roach M.D. Syndicated Columnist

DEAR DR. ROACH: I’m 72, and I have had arthritis for three years: two years in both knees, and one year in my right hip and the base of my spine. I am 5’3” and weigh 221 pounds, with a body mass index (BMI) of 39. I lost 23 pounds from January to June.

What is the BMI needed for an orthope dic surgeon to do a hip replacement for some one with osteoarthritis -- without a broken hip? I recently had an assessment of my hip X-rays. I was told I’m at the outer cutoff of a BMI of 39, so I’m eli gible for a hip replace ment operation. Then, a few weeks later, I saw the surgeon, who ended up rejecting me -- claiming that 39 isn’t the outer limit, 35 is.

After a long talk, the surgeon said he’d do it for me, but I’d get a better result if I lose 20 more pounds and get my BMI down to 35. I felt jerked around, but said I’d wait and lose weight. I’m also trying to find a surgeon I like more than him.

So, what is the BMI needed for knee sur gery: 35 or 39? -- L.C.

ANSWER: There is no standard cutoff BMI

for joint replacement surgery. It is true that people with a BMI over 40 are at higher risk for medical complica tions; however, it is also true that people with severe arthritis and a high BMI still get improvement in their quality of life with sur gery. Denying a person a cost-effective surgery that can greatly im prove their quality of life simply because of a BMI number (which, in itself, is a flawed met ric) is inappropriate.

I can understand why you would want to see a different surgeon, as it sounds like you were not treated well. However, the surgeon was right that surgical outcomes are better if a person can lose at least 20 pounds, according to a 2019 study. This included shorter lengths of stay in the hospital and a lesser chance of need ing surgical revision. I wonder, though, if part of the benefit seen in the study was due to increased exercise prior to surgery, which is known to be beneficial in surgical outcomes.

DEAR DR. ROACH :

My 45-year-old son has hemochromatosis. The treatment is phleboto my of a pint of blood, sometimes every two weeks, until the iron level is normalized. My understanding is that the blood is discard ed. Is there anything wrong with the blood? If not, I would think blood banks would welcome the donation. What are your thoughts on this subject? -- E.B.

ANSWER: Hereditary hemochromatosis is caused by the body ab sorbing too much iron due to a genetic defect. With no way to get rid of iron, it builds up and damages many organs, especially the heart, bone marrow, joints and adrenal gland. As you say, the best treat ment is to remove iron in the form of red blood cells. This is effective at preventing most of the See ROACH on 14

Dr. Kenneth Rafferty, Chiropractor

from 10

friend to go for a walk on the weekend can change your life drasti cally.

Once you begin to value the time you put aside for yourself, not only will your physical self thank you but also your mental self. Mak ing time for YOU every day is how you stay in a balance of well ness not just health. Listening to what your mind and body need, allowing yourself grace and patience along the journey of self care is life changing. You to day and future you will

thank you. Starting with small goals that are achievable will help you stay on top of your self care, as well as give your body time to tell you what it needs most. Self care is the best care, and you owe it to yourself to work to wards living a life you’ve dreamed of. Take the time today to set your self up for success in your wellness journey.

Megan Gilpatric is the Lead Massage Therapist at Meredith Whole Living Center.

ROACH from 13

organ damage if started quickly enough.

There has never been anything wrong with the blood of people with hereditary hemo chromatosis, and the FDA here in the U.S. has always allowed the blood to be donated. However, until recent ly, the American Red Cross has not accepted blood donations from people with hereditary hemochromatosis. I am pleased to say that they have just changed their policy and will now be using this precious re source to help others,

so long as the person meets all the criteria for being a blood donor. The blood will undergo all the standard and rigorous testing prior to being pronounced safe for use.

DEAR DR. ROACH: I have a friend with mul tiple health problems, mostly digestive and throat issues, who has recently discovered the supplement astaxan thin through his treat ment with a nutritionist. He is extremely opti mistic that this supple ment is his ticket to bet ter health. He said it was developed by a biochemical engineer. As a doctor, would you recommend this for your patients? He says it is a powerful antioxidant and reduces inflamma tion. He also believes it will destroy any cancer cells. -- N.H.

ANSWER: Astaxan thin is a naturally oc curring pigment related to vitamin A that was first isolated from a lob ster in 1938. It indeed has both anti-inflam matory and antioxi dant properties. It has been used as a coloring agent in salmon, and is also naturally found in salmon. Most astaxan thin sold commercially is synthesized from pe troleum products.

As a supplement, astaxanthin has been best studied to treat and prevent skin dam age from aging. Mul tiple small studies have shown that it can im prove skin appearance and function when used orally or topical ly. There is also some evidence it can reduce DNA damage from ul traviolet light.

The ability to reduce

celebraTe + suPPor T lasT nigHT wolfeboro 2022

Last Night Wolfeboro 2022 features a familyfriendly celebration. Festivities begin with a week-long scavenger hunt encouraging people to experience Wolfeboro shops and businesses December 24 through noon December 31. Led by Wolfeboro Boy Scout Troop 165, participants of all ages can register in mid-December on Face book @LastNightWolfe boro. Local trivia and history questions can be answered by visiting Wolfeboro shops and other locations. Scaven ger hunt forms will also be available (by midDecember) at Wolfeboro Town Hall, (84 S. Main Street), Wolfeboro Parks and Recreation (390 Pine Hill Rd.) and Wolfe boro Chamber of Com merce (Railroad Ave.).

Prizes will be awarded at Great Hall at Town Hall around noon on New Year’s Eve; contestants do not need to be pres ent. Event assistance from Boy Scout Troop 165 is helping make this event happen.

Outdoor ice skating is new this year for Last Night Wolfeboro. Two free sessions will take place (weather permit ting) at the temporary Brewster ice rink on

campus located just off S. Main Street behind Anderson Hall (parking available). Skaters of all ages can enjoy sessions at 1:00-2:30 p.m. and 6-8 p.m. Signed waivers for children and adults are required as are hel mets. Ice skates only; capacity may be limited.

Last Night Wolfe boro daytime events at Town Hall December 31st will feature nearly two hours of interactive games, crafts, commu nity displays and more. Afternoon events and live performances being scheduled include: Local

singer-songwriter and recording artist; Stacey Kelleher; Folk perform ers Peter Heimlich and John Petruzzelli; Pup pets, music and stories by ‘Just Bob and Marla’; Wildlife Encounters live animal show at Great Hall; BINGO sessions led by Wolfeboro Lions Club at Brewster Es tabrook Hall; Magic by Brewster alumnus Yu Koriki (streamed via WCTV/YouTube) and more.

Programming and event times are being updated as they become available. The sched ule is being updated @ LastNightWolfeboro on Facebook as events are finalized and are subject to change.

Fireworks over Wolfe boro Bay will take place – weather permitting – on December 31st at 6 p.m. The weather postponement date is Saturday, January 1 at 6 p.m. Sponsorships and donations to de fray programming costs are welcomed by con tacting Wolfeboro Parks and Recreation Director Christine Collins, (603) 569-5639, parksdirec tor@wolfeboronh.us.

PeMigewasseT cHoral socieTy

celebraTes THe HoliDay sPiriT

The Pemigewasset Choral Society (Pemi Choral) invites you to begin your holiday sea son with this year’s con cert series, Sing Out My Soul. Join us in Gilford at the Gilford Commu nity Church on Thurs day, December 1st at 7:30pm; at their new location in Moulton borough at Moulton borough Academy High School on Friday, De cember 2nd at 7:30pm; and in Plymouth at The PSU Silver Center on Sunday, December 4th at 4pm. Entrance is by donation.

Pemi Choral is one of the oldest commu nity choruses in New Hampshire with mem bers from all over the Lakes Region and Cen tral New Hampshire. With the number of singers back to its prepandemic member ship, Pemi Choral is once again 90-voices strong. Music Director Will Gunn, says, “The pandemic has taught us many lessons, but I believe the biggest one is to show gratitude for those things that we often take for granted, like singing in person!”

Sing Out My Soul is a holiday-themed concert that incorporates a mix of traditional Christ mas classics with newer pieces. The concert title is taken from one of the

newer pieces, based on a poem by Welsh poet William Henry Davies. The opening line of the poem calls us to let joy come from deep within, and to sing your song of joy.

A focal point of the concert is three ver sions of Ave Maria, a traditional Catholic prayer often sung at Christmas. Director Will Gunn has selected three different settings: one by R. Nathaniel Dett, a Black AmericanCanadian composer, who uses jazz harmo nies; one by Spanish composer Javier Busto, whose setting is more

ethereal and modern; and finally, an energet ic version by Estonian composer Arvo Pärt, sung in Russian.

Also included in the concert is a gospel Hal lelujah, a Choral Reflec tion on Amazing Grace, variations on traditional classics such as An gels We Have Heard on High, and several favor ite audience sing-alongs. Violinist Ca terina Yetto accompa nies the chorus on sev eral numbers, as do Plymouth Regional High School students Dash Ough on drums and Quinn Amsden on bass.

The Pemigewasset

Choral Society, cele brating its 50 th sea son, is a regional com munity chorus based in Plymouth, NH, with a wide-ranging musi cal repertoire. Members come from communities throughout the Lakes Region and the White Mountains and include a diverse range of ages from high school stu dents to those in their 80s. They perform con certs in December and in the Spring, and wel come new members at the beginning of each semester. For more in formation, please visit pemichoral.org

wHere rock MeeTs bacH sounDs To oPen THe cHrisTMas HoliDays

Sunday, Decem ber11th at 4pm, re nowned trio, TAKE3 will come to Wolfeboro as part of their 2022-23 United States Tour. This concert will take place at First Congregational Church, 115 S Main St., Wolfeboro.

With a flair for the wild and unexpected, the genre-defying trio, TAKE3, brings the re finement of a rigorous classical music back

ground and infuses it with rock-star cha risma. Trained at the world’s top conserva tories, TAKE3 has expanded their repertoire from Bach and Beethoven to Bieber and The Beach Boys. The Nevada Sage brush says of TAKE3 “…. this group gave us a tremendous night of undisputed tal ent from some of the most passionate musi cians around.” Known for their infectious and down to earth onstage personalities, this three some leaves their in delible mark on capti

vated crowds around the country performing their arrangements of top pop hits, Americana, and their signature classical mashups. Highlights from recent perfor mances include appear ances with the North Charleston POPs, Cape

Symphony, Boul der Chamber Or chestra, and the Symphonies of Victoria, Mid land and Spring field as well as at Music in the Mountains, Red lands Bowl, OK Mozart Festival, Festival Mozaic, Herb Alpert’s Vi brato Grill, and Bear Valley Mu sic Festival. The trio keeps a busy tour schedule, performing over 60 per formances around the globe each season.

TAKE3’s interactive lighting shows, comedic stories of their journey from scales in conser vatory practice rooms to pop music in packed stadiums, come togeth er in unforgettable expe riences that have fired up concert goers all over the nation.

TAKE3 offers shows with dancers, full or chestra, small backup band, as well as trio only. In addition to ex tensive touring, the group has earned ac colades for its outreach programs for children of all ages, delivering a message of hope, in spiration, and the im portance of following dreams with vigorous tenacity.

Wolfeboro Friends of Music invites all people of the greater Lakes Re gion to enjoy TAKE3’s concert as they display their tour repertoire mixed with holiday mu sic.

Ticket are available for $25 in Wolfeboro at the door or at Black’s Paper Store or Avery Insurance, by visiting www.wfriendsofmusic. org, or by calling (603) 569-2151.

5 screen-free HoliDay gifT iDeas for faMilies

(StatePoint) Holiday shopping for families with children? Check out these five totally screen-free gift ideas that are sure brighten the season by getting families to spend some much-needed quality time together.

1. Upgraded outdoor games: Give out door play an upgrade with KidiGo NexTag

from VTech, designed for ages 5 and up. Way more than just tag, it’s a high-tech spin on 20 different back yard games including capture the flag, freeze tag and hide-and-seek. To play, all you need are the four included electronic units and ad justable arm bands. A friendly voice explains the quick and easy-tolearn rules and no ref

eree is required -- the game lets you know who got tagged, who’s safe and who’s it. With single- and multi-play er options, the whole family can get in on the fun, especially when you combine two sys tems. Play indoors or out with a 135-foot range between units. All you have to do is press the big button and tag, you’re it!

children, look for a fa cility that offers splash pads and swim lessons. For those with older kids who are already proficient swimmers, check for amenities like water slides and wave pools. Want to take it a step further? Sign your recipients up for an in door pool membership until summer returns.

‘Tis The Season to be Knitting Warm Hats, Mittens & Socks for Christmas Giving! Stop by to see a big selection of worsted & Chunky weight yarns for all of your projects.

2. Kitchen assistance: Introduce adults and kids alike to the fundamentals of baking with a family-friendly baking kit subscrip tion. Each month, a new kit is mailed to your recipients’ home with recipes, activity booklets and all the ingredients needed to create something deli cious.

3. Swim time: The weather may be fright ful, but that’s no rea son why families can’t enjoy a delightful day at the pool. Consider gifting your favorite family with a day pass to an indoor aquatic center or water park. For families with young

4. Inspiration: Give families all the ideas and inspiration they need to beat boredom, create new traditions and make memories with “The Adventure Challenge: Family Edi tion.” This journal of fers 50 adventures in different categories, along with space to share thoughts and photos about each ex perience.

5. Board--not bored: Encourage some good old fashioned family fun with board games. From chess and check ers to modern clas sics to the latest trendy games, this is a gift option that’s sure to engage family members of all ages.

brigHTen THe HoliDays wiTH colorful PlanTs

by Melinda Myers Garden centers, flo rists and grocery stores are filling their shelves with a variety of holiday plants; a sure sign the holidays are approach ing. This is the time of year to give, receive or fill your home with colorful poinsettias, Christmas cactus, cyclamen, and other holiday plants. Extend their beauty and longevity with proper care.

Start by selecting healthy plants that have been receiving proper care. The plants should be free of insects, dis ease and have no yel low leaves, brown leaf edges and spots. Flower ing plants should have just a few open flow ers, some buds show ing color, and the rest healthy plump buds. You will enjoy watching the flower buds open, blooms expand, and a longer flowering period. Always protect your gift plants from the harsh outdoors. Profes sional florists and gar den center staff should provide a care tag and wrap your plants in a plastic or paper sleeve for the ride home.

Carefully remove the wrap as soon as you get home. This is especially important when caring for poinsettias. The up turned leaves emit ethyl ene, a ripening hormone that can shorten the longevity of your poin settia’s colorful display.

Rewrap your holi day plant anytime you move it outdoors and never leave it sitting in a cold car while run ning errands. A chilled plant looks fine until it warms. By the next day, the plant turns grayishgreen, wilts and may die. Not such a nice gift or addition to your holi

day décor after all.

Once home, place it in a cool, brightly lit location. The cool tem peratures and indirect light help the blooms last longer. Remove or fold down the foil wrap, if present, to allow sun light to reach all the leaves. Avoid drafts of hot and cold air. These can dry or chill the plant resulting in leaf and blossom drop.

Check the tag for wa tering instructions. Most holiday plants prefer moist but not wet soil. Use your finger as a moisture meter. Water thoroughly whenever the top few inches of soil are crumbly and just slightly moist or accord ing to the directions on the care tag.

Pour out any water that collects in the foil, basket, decorative pot or saucer. Or place peb bles in the bottom of these or the saucer to

elevate the plant above sitting water. This re duces the risk of root rot and makes care much easier.

Lengthen the time between watering and increase success by amending the potting mix with a moisture-re taining product like wool pellets (wildvalleyfarms. com). This organic and sustainable product re duces watering by up to 25%. Just spread it over the soil surface and push it into the soil around the plant.

Keep your floral dis play looking its best by removing spent flowers from azaleas, Christmas cactus, cyclamen and kalanchoes. This keeps the plant looking fresh and often encourages more blooms.

Once the holidays have passed, keep enjoy ing these plants through the gray days of winter. Move the plants to a

sunny window, fertilize with a dilute solution of complete or flowering plant fertilizer, and wa ter as needed.

Add some artificial berries, cut flowers in water picks, or silk blooms to replace the faded flowers. Use col orful stakes or natural twigs for added beauty and to support floppy leaves and stems.

Boost your spirits and those of family and friends this holiday sea son with a few colorful plants. Giving them as gifts and using them to decorate your home is guaranteed to brighten your holiday celebra tions.

Melinda Myers has written more than 20 gardening books, includ ing the recently released Midwest Gardener’s Handbook, 2nd Edition and Small Space Gar dening. She hosts The Great Courses “How to Grow Anything” instant video and DVD series and the nationally syn dicated Melinda’s Gar den Moment TV & radio program. Myers is a col umnist and contributing editor for Birds & Blooms magazine and was com missioned by Wild Valley Farms for her expertise to write this article. My ers’ website is www. MelindaMyers.com.

WEIRS TIMES’ BEER FINDER The Simple Feast

offal is awful

The Simple Feast Simple

by Eric N Gibson Contributing Writer

While poking through an old barn one day I came upon a can of “Swift´s Selected Lamb Brains.” It got me ask ing, why would any one want to eat lamb brains? And not just one, a whole 10 pound can of them. My stom ach turned just think ing about it. But it did start me thinking about Variety Meats. Offal is high in vitamins, min erals, and Omega 3’s, but it takes a sturdy person full of “pluck” to be able to stomach… well… stomach. Now before you stop read ing, fear not, this is one article where I have not offered a recipe but merely some observa tions and reflections on my introduction into the world of organ meats.

The Simple

in their early senior years.

Not so long ago things like Lamb Brains, Calf Liver, Tripe, and Sweet breads were staple foods of the rural Amer ican diet. It was con sidered simple home style fare good enough to be on the menu of roadside restaurants and diners. I can even remember seeing Liver and Onions listed as a lunch special back when these places were still frequented by the “Greatest Generation”

Organ meats had fallen out of vogue for a time, but now are making a resurgence, only this time it is in upscale, trendy res taurants, with prices to match. Not so long ago, meat packers were selling all sorts of or gan meats as part of their offerings. Today, however, when some one says variety meats, most people think they misspoke meaning to say “a variety of meats” but actually Variety Meats is one of sev eral proper terms along with offal and pluck. Some may argue that these really are not meats, but are edible organs. Brains, heart, liver, kidney, sweet breads (Thalamus and Pancreas), tripe (stom

ach lining), tongue, and yes, even “Rocky Moun tain Oysters” (that one you can look up) are all Variety Meats.

Some claim that Va riety Meats are a deli cacy, while others stay quite far away from this category of edi bles. However, pluck was, at one time, the cheapest of the cheap meats. Around the time Columbus was sail ing the ocean, these ¨meats¨ (organs) were considered peasant food plucked from the butcher’s pile of “dis cards” (to be polite), and fit only for the low est of the lower class. Some dishes such as Haggis have stood the test of time to be re vitalized, reinvented, and elevated to near delicacy status. Oth ers still have a strong

regional following. And still others have suc cumbed to the march of time due to a dwindling population that once consumed these edible curiosities on a near weekly basis.

My first exposure to variety meats was at the age of five. I can remember to this day pushing the kitchen chair over to the stove and watching mom heating a fry pan with a dab of margarine in it. I watched as the pale yel low blob melted away into a glossy translu cent puddle. Then tak ing some sliced onions from the counter, she told me to back up a bit so as not to get burned by the spatter. She then placed the sliced onions into the pan and it let out a protracted subtle hiss ing as the slices began to fry. Bringing them to a browned state the pungent smell of fried onions was so yummy!

Next, she took up a slice of “steak” from a meat wrapper and lightly dredged it in a plate of flour mixed with a dash of salt and pepper, coating it on both sides. We didn’t have steak often in our house but this one looked different, it was darker than others I had seen in the gro cery store packages. It must have been a treat for mom. That must have been why she was cooking it for lunch. Again a dab of mar garine into the already hot pan, no need to tell me to back up this time, I had seen how this works. And as be

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fore, within seconds, the dab of pale yellow disappeared leaving a bubbling puddle in its stead. With a little push from the spatula mom spread the bubbles and then placed the “steak” into the pan. Again, a hiss, but this time with a more aggressive men acing tone and all at once my nostrils were filled with a nearly in describable smell. Hav ing spent long enough in the kitchen these many years later I now know it was the smell of searing beef blood; metallic, iron-like, and browning flour mixed with that dab of oleo. Not a holy awful nor fully pleasing smell, but certainly any ap peal it may have had at that time was lost on me, nearly fifty years

ago. After watching her sear it on both sides, plate it with the on ions, and bring it to the table, I just about begged her for a piece of ¨steak¨. It didn’t take long for mom to cave. She cut a small piece, not nearly a bite, but a mere fraction. I think she knew what I was about to discover. It went into my mouth in an instant and came out nearly as quick. It was the most disgust ing thing I had ever tried to eat up to that point in my life. “That steak is yucky!”

“It´s Liver.”

“Liver is yucky!”

It was then that I de cided liver was a delica cy best left to old people like parents.

About fourteen years later I was introduced to Rumaki. It was at a graduation party that I saw these little meat balls wrapped in bacon on toothpicks and they were fresh from the oven. With a little hint of smoke mixed with a funny nondescript cooked meat smell they were enticing so I tried one, then two, then three, and so on. I think I must have eaten a dozen or more of those things. They were that good! But then again, most guys my age would have agreed, you could wrap just about anything in bacon and fry it, sear it, or broil it, and it would taste delicious. I de cided Rumaki was the best thing on the buffet table that night and I have never again

FEAST from 16

Rumaki that tasted so good. This is because I have never again had Rumaki.

Apprenticing as a Meat Cutter was a real education on Variety Meats; at that time Beef Liver, Tripe, and Chicken Livers were usual items for sale in our meat case. Being a specialty shop, once in a while, the Lead Meat Cutter would make items for sale when we had a hole to fill. I noticed this particular day he had cut up a case or more of whole chickens. Setting the ¨giblet bags¨ aside, he was now opening each bag and removing the livers. Into the cooler he went and reappeared a moment later with a pound of bacon. My at tention turned to wait ing on a few customers and when I turned back he was wrapping a few trays of Chicken Livers wrapped in Bacon. For some reason I asked him what it was. I ex pected the obvious re ply laced with his nor mal colorful sarcasm. Instead he said, “Ru maki.” I think I turned three shades of green.

During my time as a meat cutter, with each generation sales of organ meats seem to dwindle. Pickled Tripe was once a big seller, my boss told me. At that time he had been in the business since he was a kid back in the 40´s and could re member families who served tripe as regular as ¨Fish on Friday¨ and ¨Saturday night Beans and Hotdogs¨. He even

convinced me that Pickled Tripe was ready to eat ¨as is¨ without cooking. He cut off a small piece of the large comb (more desirable than the less tender smaller comb, so they say) and handed it to me. “Try it!”

We certainly eat with our senses. It was a challenge to even get that small piece of tripe past my nose, the strong vinegar brine was all I could smell. And there is a reason we eat stuff like this with a fork. The tactile senses cause the brain to go haywire when touching something you are about to eat

seems to want to shake your hand. Eventually I got it past my nose, off my fingers, and into my mouth. But, I couldn’t do it. The vinegar taste alone was so strong it was already turning my stomach and it hadn’t even yet barely passed my teeth. Try as I may, I could not chew it.

Every time I tried to bite it, it grabbed at my tongue to hang on. There was no way this was going ¨down the hatch¨ without coming back up!

My boss chuckled as I rushed past him and out the back door. With a strong “Put-Too!!!” that piece of tripe was

on its way to the puck erbrush. I don’t think it even hit the ground before I had a Moxie cracked open to wash that awful taste out of my mouth. My boss looked at me and said, “It´s an acquired taste.” Indeed it is, and one that I hope never to acquire. It was at that moment I decided “Of fal is Awful!” and defi nitely was not worthy of a recipe for this Simple Feast. Enjoy!

NH Gov.John Langdon- (1810-1812).

SMITH from 1

man and State Jour nal on November 25, 1837. One thing that this tells us is that spe cial Thanksgiving Days were held in this coun try long before Abraham Lincoln signed the law that made such a day a national holiday to be observed every year.

President George Wash ington issued a thanks giving proclamation and Colonial leaders did so before we had a country independent of Great Britain.

New Hampshire Presi dents and Governors also issued their own proclamations calling on the residents of the Granite State to ob serve a day of thanks giving before there was a union of united states.

We also see in Major Downing’s treatise that Thanksgiving Day tra ditions that we con tinue to observe today go back many years

ago. Many of us think back to November of the year 1621 and the feast of the Pilgrims dur ing which they wanted to give thanks for the corn crop and other blessings, maybe even pumpkins, of that sum mer.

We find the immigrant Pilgrims being joined by the American Indi ans for a feast, though some try to minimize the importance of that event and portray the Pilgrims, not as immi grants but as invad ers who brought only harm to the natives. We do know for sure that those forefathers and mothers were Christian men and women who worshiped and sought to serve God and be lieved, despite the hard ships they endured, and the mistakes they made along the way,that God had led them to this New World.

As I write this I can

find no Thanksgiv ing Proclamation yet from the Governor of New Hampshire for the year 2022, but I find in his proclamation for Thanksgiving Day of the year 2021 one big difference from the proclamations of the Governors of many past years.

He mentioned the feast of the pilgrims in 1621, and the fact that it was Sarah Josepha Hale who persuaded President Lincoln to make Thanksgiving Day an official yearly holi day, but there was no mention of God except in the date indicating that it was issued in the year of our Lord 2021.

It has been suggested that the thanksgiving observances in the early years of our country’s existence were no fun because the emphasis was put on faith rather than feasting. It does appear that those days were observed with more solemnity than today’s festivities, but some of our Granite State governors in proc lamations of the 1800’s seem to think that those who came before them did enjoy the day even with the fasting and prayer which in reality are not acts of punish ment and gloom.

Governor Frank Rol lins, in his 1899 procla mation told New Hamp shire citizens to “Make merry in the good old ways. Roll back the burden of the years.”

Those proclamations of old instructed New Hampshire citizens as to how they should observe Thanksgiving Day. First came the ap peal to thank and praise God for His blessings.

John Langdon wrote from the Council Cham ber in Portsmouth in 1805 that it had been customary for the citi zens of this state to set apart a day “near the close of the year for

the purpose of publicly recognizing their depen dence upon Almighty God for protection, and that they might express their gratitude to Him for all blessings and mercies received and implore a continu ance of them...” He exhorted “the people of all sects and denom inations to assemble with their pastors and religious teachers, at their respective places of public worship on that day, and devote a reasonable part thereof in praising and adoring Almighty God, and in offering up our thanks to Him as the great au thor of every good and perfect gift...” John Langdon went on to ask the citizens of the state to pray on Thanksgiving Day for God’s continued blessings.

Governor Rollins asked the 1899 citizens to spend the morning in public worship of thanksgiving and prayer and the afternoon in do ing charitable deeds. He advocated “ visit ing the sick and needy, sending flowers and delicacies to the hospi tals, and bringing the joyousness of the day to the inmates of our

charitable and reforma tory institutions. ‘Give back the upward look ing and the light’ to some sorrowing soul... Let the evening be de voted to the children, who always seem so much nearer to God than the older ones... A day thus spent will not only be a loving service to God, but a blessing to others and a benedic tion to ourselves.”

Governor Hiram A. Tuttle in a Thanksgiving proclamation recom mended “..that on that day the people abstain from their usual voca tions, and with grateful

hearts assemble in their accustomed places of worship. In the recre ations of the day, in the pleasures of the fire side, and in the reunion of the family, let none withhold a full measure of reverent praise... Re joicing in our prosper ity, let us remember, with offerings from our abundance, those who have been less fortu nate then ourselves.”

May your day be rev erent and fun; they do mix.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Bee Line Trail. Then we turned right and hiked steeply down to Pau gus Brook. The cross ing here was not easy and we had to step on rocks that were under water an inch or two. I looked up and yelled out a greeting to two

gals that were running down the Bolles Trail! We were surprised to see anyone else out here on a cold Thurs day morning.

Bria needed this sec tion ofthe Bolles Trail because when she came down Chocorua she went back to the Kanc. We tidied up

this loose end by hik ing back down to where we started up the BeeLine Cutoff and then we hiked this half mile again.

Redlining requires a lot of repeating to get all the trails.

This time we went left to follow the other end of the Bee-Line Trail up

to meet the Old Paugus Trail. As we climbed the crusty snow got deeper. We were pleas antly surprised that this surface was grippy and not slippery as the trails were covered with deep leaves last week.

A few times a snow shower passed by and we had some obstruct ed views of Chocorua through the leafless hardwood forest. The small brooks were flow ing. We worked our way up the steep trail.

Just before we reached the Old Pau gus Trail intersection we met two people com ing down the trial. They were mak ing the same loop as we were but in the oppo site direction but they skipped going to the summit. They said they had to go to work and had run out of time.

Here the snow was a crusty three inches deep but on some of the steep rock scrambles bare rock poked through and it was dry and

Bria making her way down Mount Paugus. The snow was crunchy and good for walking on and where the rock wasn’t covered with snow it wasn’t icy and the footing was better than it looked.

lucky for us not icy. We used our hiking poles to keep our balance and grabbed onto snow covered trees to haul ourselves up a steepest ledges. We were rewarded after a dif ficult climb to the top of a ledge with a nice open view. We could see the Ossipees, the Big Lake and further away we even spied the slopes of Gunstock.

Oooweee we’ll be ski ing soon.

The sun would peek out now and then and we enjoyed its warmth and then a snow show erwould come by again.

The trail ends at the top of the south knob of Mt. Paugus where it meets the Lawrence Trail.

From here we hiked down to the top of the big view ledge as de scribed in the Guide. We could look down and see the fields of Ferncroft and west over

to Mount Passacon away through the light clouds. But we didn’t stay long on the snowy summit and chilly open ledge. It really felt and looked like winter.

We didn’t bushwhack to the true summit of Mount Paugus. We didn’t plan on it anyway and it was easy to skip because the trees were loaded with snow. Any way Bria would have to return here again to redline the Lawrence Trail up from the other side of the mountain. Plus I had to get back home in time for my haircut (Bria you didn’t think I’d confess that, ha ha).

Hiking down went by quickly because we didn’t have to pay at tention to route finding. We followed our tracks back to the trail inter section. Did I say these trails are in a designat ed wilderness area so there are no blazes to

Yours truly and Bria on the open southwest ledge of Mount Paugus. It really felt like winter had arrived!

PATENAUDE from 3

Yours truly admiring the rock. The Old Paugus Trail follows along the base of this large cliff before it descends down a rocky gully.

PATENAUDE from 20 We successful ly crossed the brook again. Was it my imagi nation that the water was higher? Or maybe some snow melted.

follow because for some insane reason a trail is okay but painted blazes aren’t in these areas.

We put on our down jackets when we cooled because our hearts weren’t pumping hard like they were when we were climbing. Back at the trail intersection we continued down the Old Paugus Trail and we were able to follow the other hiker’s tracks all the way to the Pau gus Mills intersection. In some places the for est floor looked like the Pick Up Sticks game from the result of a long ago ice storm.

Near where the Old Paugus Trail meets the Bolles Trail, Bria spot ted the remains of a foundation and there were lots of old bricks on the ground with the word Portland pressed into them. A barrel, some metal pieces and a sign reminding people not to take anything and to preserve the Paugus Mill’s history.

When we returned to my car a man was there looking at the trail signs. He asked us many questions about the trails that went to Chocorua. Bria an swered since she had just done them this past summer.

We hiked over eight miles and more than 2,300 vertical feet in about four and a half hours. I made my hair cut appointment with time to spare and Bria happily got to use her red Sharpie marker on her trail map.

Happy Fall and wel come Winter, Have Fun.

Bria rock hopping across Paugus Brook, some of the rocks were under water an inch or two. During our redline adventure we crossed Paugus Brook at least four times and Whitin Brook once and thanks to our boots our feet stayed dry.

MOORE from 7

Energy issued a report that found: “Coal-fired electricity generation is cleaner than ever. Research shows that a new coal plant with pollution controls re duces nitrogen oxides by 83 percent, sulfur dioxide by 98 percent, and particulate mat ter by 99.8 percent compared to plants without controls.”

That’s a giant reduc tion. It’s one of the ma jor reasons why the air that we breathe today in America has been getting cleaner for 50 years. We’ve reduced levels of lead, carbon monoxide, sulfur and other pollutants by more than 50% — not bad, given that our economy is four times bigger.

The same DOE re port found that “over the next 30 years, new coal production of 145-345 million tons could result in 47,500 coal mining jobs. The carbon products could also result in product value of near $139 billion and 480,000 manufacturing jobs tied directly to car bon products.” That’s a lot of jobs, but the operative word here is

could.

Will we? Not if Biden has his way.

That would be a damn shame. Under the Biden plan, we would move techno logically in reverse in our energy sources. America got rich by re placing windmills with coal plants, and now, 150 years later, Biden wants to replace coal with windmills.

That’s a strategy for energy poverty and cold, dark nights. If you don’t believe me, ask the Europeans who are back to using candles to light their homes during rolling power blackouts.

Stephen Moore is a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation and an economist with FreedomWorks. His latest book is “Govzilla: How the Relentless Growth of Government is Devouring our Econ omy.”

BOSAK from 1

umn listing fun facts and figures about the wild turkey. But first, I want to share some of my personal favorite experiences with wild turkeys.

One of my more re cent sightings came this summer while I was on my commute to work. I drove past a small cemetery and noticed a few turkeys walking among the grave markers. I turned into the cemetery and was able to get a few interesting photos of the spectacular birds.

I took two trips up north this summer and fall to look for moose. While I was shut out on the moose search, I did come across other interesting wildlife. On both trips, I found large flocks of wild turkeys that kept me enter tained.

I recently changed jobs and now work from

home, but my previous place of employment had a flock of wild tur keys that was frequent ly seen on campus. The turkeys would show up at the strangest places such as right next to buildings or in park ing lots or otherwise among people. This flock seemed to have no fear of humans, or anything else for that matter.

Although I’ve never had turkeys visit my birdfeeder like so many photos I have seen over the years, I have had turkeys in my yard, and it is al ways jarring at first to see such large animals walking across the grass. When I lived in a house in the woods, it was interesting to see them slowly disappear into the endless forest. This seems like a good place for one more mention of grati tude. All these sight ings would not be pos

sible without the hard work of the states and wildlife biologists who championed the re-in troduction programs for wild turkeys. Wild turkeys were extirpat ed from many states before re-introduction measures were taken. Obviously, those efforts have paid off and the wild turkey population is thriving throughout New England again.

Now on to a few wild turkey facts: A male turkey is a tom; a young male is a jake. A female turkey is a hen; a young female is a jenny. A baby tur key is a poult. A group of turkeys is a flock.

Wild turkey meat is packed with protein and is low in choles terol and harmful fats. Store-bought turkeys are also healthy, but may also contain ste roids, antibiotics or other man-made chem icals.

Despite the tame na

ture of some, their sur vival instincts and keen eyesight make wild tur keys difficult to hunt, both for wild preda tors and humans. Tur keys also have excellent hearing, so sneaking up on a turkey on the leaf-covered floor of the woods is not a good hunting strategy.

Finally, one of my favorite facts about wild turkeys is they eat ticks. The tiny crit ters that can wreak so much havoc on hu mans are part of a var ied diet for turkeys, which also includes acorns, fruits, corn, and a variety of seeds.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Enjoy your turkey.

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contrary, we want solu tions to our problems. As such, Trump must be disciplined and stay focused on policies he’ll put in place to address voters’ concerns and refrain from wallowing in personal grievances or engaging in unnec essary attacks against others, which is repel ling even his once loyal supporters.

UNIFY THE REPUBLICAN PARTY

Trump can rise to the top of his party once again if he’s able to unify the Republican Party that’s in disarray after the underperform ing midterm elections. Right now, the GOP is rudderless, look ing for a party leader heading into the 2024

election. If Trump can unify the party and de velop a cohesive strat egy and messaging to win over voters, par ticularly independents they lost to Democrats in the midterms, that will strengthen the party and increase his chances.

APPEAL TO SUB URBAN WOMEN, THE GAY COMMUNITY AND COLLEGE STUDENTS

These powerful and energized voter blocs don’t get enough focus from Republican candi dates at their own per il. Trump must make inroads and calibrate effective messaging that appeals directly to these constituencies. What kind of president do they seek? What is sues are important to

them? Millions of votes, and ultimately elec tions, hinge on asking these basic questions and delivering the right answers.

RUN A POSITIVE AND HOPEFUL CAM PAIGN

No one likes a Debbie Downer. Trump must deliver a positive and uplifting message of hope that America’s greatest days lie ahead -- not drag the country down with negativity, personal grievances or criticisms. Anybody can insult another, but what differentiates a successful political candidate from a failed one is whether he or she can uplift and in spire others. Can they earn voters’ trust and convince them they

are the best candi date to solve America’s problems and lead our nation? Former Presi dent Barack Obama ran a highly success ful campaign of “Hope and Change.” Voters will always seek hope, but whether they seek change will depend on whether Trump is able to adjust his sails and improve. That remains to be seen.

A driana Cohen is a nationally syndicated columnist with Creators Syndicate. To find out more about Adriana Co hen and read her past columns, please visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.cre ators.com.

supposed advocates of “ethical capitalism,” who posit social re sponsibility but whose friends seem to repeat edly be caught with their fingers in the cookie jar, dating all the way back to Bernie Madoff?

Maybe, just maybe, the problem isn’t with capitalism per se, and its chief admonition caveat emptor, its be lief that trust is to be earned rather than granted freely. Maybe the problem is with a cadre of supposed protectors of the pub lic who aren’t out to protect the public at all, but to hobnob with other “change agents” from Bahamian es tates while patting themselves on the

back for all the good they’re doing.

Ben Shapiro is a graduate of UCLA and Harvard Law School, host of “The Ben Sha piro Show,” and cofounder of Daily Wire+. He is a three-time New York Times bestsell ing author; his latest book is “The Authori tarian Moment: How The Left Weaponized America’s Institutions Against Dissent.” To find out more about Ben Shapiro and read features by other Cre ators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.cre ators.com.

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STOSSEL from

they’ll be rationing.”

Rationing. That means some places will simply turn off some of the power. That’s our final inconvenient fact: We just don’t have enough electricity for all electric cars.

Worse, if (as many activists and politicians propose) we try to get that electricity from 100% renewable sourc es, the rationing would be deadly.

“Even if you cover the entire continent of the United States with solar panels, you wouldn’t supply half of America’s electricity,” Mills points out.

Even if you added “Washington Monu ment-sized wind tur

bines spread over an area six times greater than the state of New York, that wouldn’t be enough.”

This is just math and physics. It’s amazing supposedly responsible people promote impos sible fantasies.

“It’s been an extraor dinary accomplishment of propaganda,” com plains Mills, “almost infantile ... distressing because it’s so silly.”

Even if people invent much better cars, wind turbines, solar panels, power lines and bat teries, explains Mills, “you’re still drilling things, digging up stuff. You’re still building ma chines that wear out ... It’s not magical trans formation.”

Even worse, today politicians make us pay more for energy while forcing us to do things that hurt the environ ment. Their restrictions on fossil fuels drive peo ple to use fuels that pol lute more.

In Europe: “They’re going back to burn ing coal! What we’ve done is have our energy systems designed by bureaucrats instead of engineers,” complains Mills. “We get worse energy, more expensive energy and higher envi ronmental impacts!”

I like electric cars. But I won’t pretend that driving one makes me some kind of environ mental hero.

“There’ll be lots more electric cars in the fu

ture,” concludes Mills. “There should be, be cause that’ll reduce de mand for oil, which is a good thing. But when you do the math, to operate a society with 5 or 6 billion people who are living in poverty we can’t imagine, when you want to give them a little of what we have, the energy demands are off the charts big. We’re going to need ev erything.”

That includes fossil fuels.

Every Tuesday at JohnStossel.com, Stos sel posts a new video about the battle be tween government and freedom.

ROACH from 14 would say this supple ment has potential, but I can’t recommend it until it has been better studied.

the type of damage that may ultimately lead to skin cancer is a far cry from the ability to “de stroy any cancer cell.” There is no secret or hidden cure to cancer.

The Food and Drug Administration catego rizes astaxanthin as “generally regarded as safe.” As I have often said, since supple ments are not tightly regulated in the United States, you must rely on the manufactur er providing you with what they say they are, and there have been many, many instanc es where that has not been the case (in gen eral, not about astax anthin in particular).

Being conservative, I

(c) 2022 North Ameri ca Synd., Inc.All Rights Reserved

Super Crossword

PUZZLE CLUE: A STUDY IN SCARLET

B.C.

by Parker & Hart

Maze

Caption Contest

CAPTION

Runners Up : Election officials count votes in Arizona - Day 15. - Robert Ferlito, Lynbrook, NY.

Why won’t the block fit in the wall rack?William Elwell, Rochester, NH.

PHOTO #937

The worlds’ best chess players calculate each move in precise microscopic detail to stave off their opponents!

Jean Cram,Pittsfield, NH.

Looking closely for the nuance in this week’s Photo Caption contest photo. -James Aufort, Melrose, Mass.

PHOTO #939

Send your best brief caption to us with your name and location within 2 weeks of publication date... Caption Contest, The Weirs Times, P.O. Box 5458, Weirs, NH 03247 email to contest@weirs.com

The Winklman Aeffect by John Whitlock