Morning Coffee (31)

Good morning. The weather outside is not frightful, and there is no fire, thus it cannot be delightful. I say, don't let it snow. Ever.

Sad news this week. Scientists report that the Chinese white-fin dolphin, a fresh water dolphin that has apparently been around for some 20-million years, has been driven to extinction. The dolphin had no predators in its Yangtze habitat, and it is believed that human activity led to its extinction. Boat motors may have interfered with the animal's sonar making it difficult to find food or mates. Pollution of the Yangtze may have also contributed, though scientists say that the pollution was of a low enough level to allow healthy living there. It was also hunted by local Chinese as various white-fin dolphin body parts were used medicinally by folk healers. They've known the dolphin was threatened for 30 years or so, but they didn't do much, obviously. It's too bad, but it happens. I also read that the orangutan may have but 10 years left in the wild.

The New York Times reports that many Americans living overseas are renouncing their citizenships after new tax laws were passed that sharply increases taxes for them. I find this interesting and disturbing. Apparently, the US is the only developed country that requires citizens living abroad to pay taxes. Not really sure what to think about this. I value my citizenship above most things in life; I'm not sure that anything could prompt me to give it up. Yet I understand their concerns. These people have to pay heavy US taxes and taxes in the country in which they are living. That's a lot of taxes.

Some days, I wonder why I even try to force the boiling water through the filter. The pot is largely hit or miss as far as making a decent cup.

Word of the Day: Futile (adjective): 1. incapable of producing any result; ineffective; useless; not successful; 2. trifling; frivolous; unimportant.

On This Day in History: The Battle of Trebia (Second Punic War) - Hannibal's forces defeat those of the Roman Republic (218 BCE). This would be the first in a series of poor showings by the Romans against Hannibal during the Second Punic War, and serves to illustrate how one event can lead to a chain reaction in history. The defeat at Trebia forced the Romans to elect two new consuls to lead the army and one of those consuls would lead the Roman army into utter disaster two years later at Lake Trasimene. Virtually all of the 30,000 Roman soldiers were killed, drowned or captured during that battle. Subsequently, the Battle of Cannae a year later (216) (which happened after another election of incompetent consuls) would be one of the costliest in all of recorded history. The Romans would lose at least 50,000 men killed, and 10,000 captured; another 10,000 would surrender to Hannibal in the next two days. Over 80% of the entire Roman army was destroyed. Hannibal would lose nearly 17,000. All told nearly 70,000 deaths in a mere day of HAND TO HAND fighting. No guns, no bombs. Just swords and spears. Remarkable. This casualty figure would not be matched until the first day of the Battle of the Somme in 1916, 2,200 years later. A battle fought over a 25 mile front with guns, bombs, and artillery. Rome's brilliance lies not in her tactical superiority, but her ability to overcome horrendous defeats and mitigate the effects of incompetence. Just imagine what she would have done had some of her generals not been so poor…

"When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called religion." - Richard Dawkins.

"With heavy breath awakened regrets. Back pages and days alone that could have been spent together, but we were miles apart. Every inch between us becomes light years now. Now time to be void or safe up on life. No, you've got to spend it all." - Lightyears.

"Alea iacta est." - Julius Caesar. And thus, we can never go back.