September 2008

One Reporter’s Opinion – George Putnam – RIP

It’s with sadness that we re-post this piece we did in December 2005 – the great George Putnam passed away over the weekend. Even late in his life, he was busy writing his unique “One Reporter’s Opinion” columns at NewsMax. We will miss George Putnam.


No one who lived in the Los Angeles area between the fifties and the seventies, will forget the iconic television newsman, George Putnam. One of the regular features on his newscast was “One Reporter’s Opinion,” during which he would editorialize on a topical issue. I enjoyed watching Putnam’s newscast, primarily because of his conservative point-of-view in spite of the liberal Times-Mirror‘s ownership of the television station, KTTV.

Well, I’m happy to report that George Putnam’s “One Reporter’s Opinion” feature is alive and well at NewsMax on line. Better yet, his politics are still in line with reality:

One Reporter’s Opinion – Americanism Left ‘Cold in the Night’

It is this reporter’s opinion that the very heart of America is under attack. There are those, foreign and domestic, who actually HATE this great nation and all it stands for. Led by atheists and the ACLU, there are groups who would love to destroy the promises on which our nation was founded – our very way of life.

Aided and abetted by strange court decisions and oddball judges, each day brings a new shocker. We find federal judges ruling against the Pledge of Allegiance as unconstitutional, finding that “one nation under God” violates schoolchildren’s right “to be free from a coercive requirement to affirm God.”

The latest target of the atheists is to remove “in God we trust” from our currency, claiming that this phrase violates the so-called separation of church and state.

Continue reading George Putnam’s article on NewsMax: One Reporter’s Opinion – Americanism Left ‘Cold in the Night’

Looking Back

We had a wonderful three days on Catalina Island. We were married ten years ago in the city park in Avalon and we have gone back on our anniversary for the last five years. We should have started that pilgrimage sooner in that it’s just so much fun. This is a look back at the terminal as we depart Avalon Bay for the mainland.

A look back

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Casino and Catalina Yacht Club

We took a hike up the road to the Avalon Chime Tower today and enjoyed the views looking down on the bay. The Casino and the Catalina Yacht Club are prominent in this image. Click to enlarge.

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Wrigley Memorial

We visited the Wrigley Memorial today. What a beautiful place . . .

From the Catalina Island Conservancy Website:

memorial-tower.jpgThe Wrigley Memorial honors the memory of William Wrigley Jr., who lived from 1861 to 1932. Although best known as the founder of the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company, largest manufacturer of chewing gum in the world, he also played an instrumental role in the history of Santa Catalina Island. He truly loved the island, and with undying enthusiasm and energy, he brought numerous improvements: public utilities, new steamships, a hotel, the Casino building, and extensive plantings of trees, shrubs and flowers. William Wrigley Jr.’s greatest legacy was his remarkable vision and plan for the future of Santa Catalina Island — that it remain protected for all generations to enjoy.

With its commanding view of Avalon Bay, the Wrigley Memorial is the centerpiece of the Botanical Garden. It was built in 1933-34 with the goal of using as much Catalina materials as possible. Quarried Catalina stones can be seen in the reinforced concrete construction — the facade having been sandblasted to hide the cement and highlight the native crushed stones.

The blue flagstone rock on the ramps and terraces comes from Little Harbor, on Catalina’s “back” side. And the red roof tiles and all the colorful handmade glazed tiles used for finishings came from the Catalina Pottery plant, which was in operation from 1927 to 1937. The marble inside the tower was quarried in Georgia.

Damsel liked this photo I took of the tiles in the arch at the top of the tower from inside. Click either photo for a larger view.

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Approach to Avalon

Once again, we’re in Avalon to celebrate our wedding anniversary. Blogging will be light while we’re here but we’ll try to post a pic a day. This was taken from the helicopter on approach to the island. Click for big.

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Remembering Zep Again – Patriot Day 2008

In the true spirit of “Never Forget” we re-post our original tribute to Mark Scott Zeplin, one of the 2996 victims killed in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. There were 2996 victims killed, but we were all victims of the pain inflicted by the attacks. Here’s our original “2996” tribute on this Patriot Day, 2008.


Damsel and I are very proud to be able to honor Marc Scott Zeplin on the fifth anniversary of 9/11/2001 and to be part of the 2996 Project.

Zep” is what his friends called him. Zep was one of the 2996 victims who perished in the attacks of September 11, 2001.

Marc Scott Zeplin, age 33.

Place killed: World Trade Center. Resident of Harrison, N.Y. (USA).

Marc Zeplin worked in the World Trade Center offices of Cantor Fitzgerald, a financial services company. Reading what Marc’s friends and family have written about him, Marc was well-liked and respected by peers, friends and others who wrote words about him following his death.

The following is from Zep’s tribute at the memorial site that his company set up to remember their employees that were lost in the attack:

Date of Birth: January 12, 1968

Department: Equity Sales

A group of friends named and registered a star in the heavens in memory of Marc Zeplin. How fitting as he was a star in the eyes of so many.

Successful as an equity trader, he formed close relationships with his clients but he was foremost a family man. Marc was very caring and devoted to his wife Debra, sons Ryan (3 yrs old) and Ethan (10 months), parents, sister and in-laws. He adored his children and treasured the time he spent with them. Marc was very proud of the new home he and his wife built in Westchester and enjoyed the change from urban to suburban living.

Raised in Long Island, Marc attended Oceanside High School and the University of Michigan where he also continued to earn a master’s degree in the acclaimed business school. Marc’s first career calling was sports casting. He loved sports of all kinds and enjoyed broadcasting games in Michigan during his college years. However, when he returned to New York, he found immediate employment in the financial world and soon after started at Cantor Fitzgerald where he became a partner.

Marc was truly a “master of the word.” He knew how and what to say in order to put you at ease, make you laugh or help you resolve a problem. Marc loved people. He had many friends and demonstrated a zest for living life to the fullest. He was tops in every way. He even worked at the top. The right position for so many years unfortunately was wrong on only one day – September 11, 2001.

Debra Zeplin and Leora Zeplin, Marc’s Wife and Mother.

New NRA Website

There is a new website up to address the political views of Barack Obama. The NRA makes information available that highlights Obama’s anti-second amendment views and the lies he tells to ‘make them go away’. From the new site GunBaNObama.com:

“So it’s not surprising then that they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them….” — Barack Obama, April 2, 2008

Barack Obama has made it clear – he believes gun owners are dangerous and that guns should be banned. If he is elected President, he could name new Supreme Court Justices who will try to overturn the recent court decision and strip our rights away.

I like the good photos they posted of the Democratic Presidential Candidate:

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