What happens if no presidential candidate gets 270 Electoral votes?

In an extremely close presidential election it is possible that no candidate could get the needed majority of 270 Electoral votes. The Constitution of the United States makes provision for this scenario.

The Twelfth Amendment (ratified June 15, 1804):

This states in layman’s language that if no one presidential candidate gets the required majority, than the House of Representatives would choose immediately, by ballot, the President. However, it is important to note the vote would be by states, the representation from each state would have one vote. So each Representative does not get one vote, rather each state represented in the House gets one vote.

Again if no one vice-presidential candidate gets a majority of Electoral votes, then the Senate would choose the Vice-President from the two candidates with the most Electoral votes.

This system raises an interesting scenario. If both the presidential and the vice-presidential candidate did not receive a majority of Electoral votes, both would be elected by Congress, the House of Representatives the President, and the Senate, the Vice-President. This election if the Senate stays Democratic and the House stays Republican as expected then the likely scenario in this rare case would be President Romney and Vice-President Biden for the next four years.

What an interesting administration those would be. History consists of what-if scenarios. Some come true and others don’t. Watch closely to see what happens here.

B-17 Flying Fortress: Up close and personal with a legend.

Nose art featuring Betty Grable’s famous pinup. Photo: Steve Davis

Recently I had a chance to get up close and personal with a World War II legend, the famous American B-17 Flying Fortress.

The B-17 was a heavy, multi-engined (4) bomber used in the Allied strategic bombing of German war industries. The Flying Fortress was heavily armed and had a crew of 10, pilot, co-pilot, navigator, radio operator, bombadier, and gunners.

There was a tail gunner at the rear, a ball turret under the plane, two waist gunners at the midsection, top turret, and forward guns. Even with this impressive armament losses were heavy. The problem in the beginning was lack of fighter support all the way to the targets in Germany. Because of fuel constraints the fighters had to turn back and return to base, then the German fighters attacked. The B-17 was known for its ability to absorb damage and yet still limp home to base. Eventually long range fighters were developed such as the P-51 Mustang and the P-47 Thunderbolt which could escort the bombers all the way to the target and back home. This reduced the Allied losses significantly.

The Commemorative Air Force, Arizona Wing based out of Mesa, Arizona visited Calgary as part of the Calgary Aviation Expo. This particular B-17 is restored and flight ready, in fact, it flew all the way up to Calgary from Arizona.

It is known as the “Sentimental Journey” and is adorned with one of the most famous pinup pictures of World War II as its nose art. Permission was granted by Betty Grable’s widower Harry James to use the poster art. It is beautiful to say the least. Crews painted these on their planes as good luck charms.

It’s hard to imagine, but most of the crews of these fearsome craft were in their late teens and early twenties. It was not unusual for the commander to be only 18 or 19 years of age. Sadly many of these young men never came back.

The most famous movies made about these planes and the young men who flew them are “Twelve O’Clock High” with Gregory Peck, and “Memphis Belle” with Matthew Modine. Real B-17s along with actual wartime footage was used in both these films.

Some of the young men who flew in these planes later became famous, James Stewart and  Clark Gable, the actors, Tom Landry, NFL player and coach of the Dallas Cowboys, Norman Lear, producer of All in the Family, and Gene Roddenberry, creator of Star Trek.

It is wonderful to see these planes restored and used to tell the history of that era.

Facebook the destroyer of marriages.

Facebook as the cause of infidelity is on the rise. Why you ask? Remember the whole purpose of Facebook is to get or have “Friends”. It is now possible with the click of a mouse to reconnect with long lost loves, old flames or exes.

What may start out innocently enough as chatting, becomes flirting, becomes emotional cheating, becomes infidelity. Facebook makes it so easy to develop a relationship online. This can and often does lead to the desire to move the relationship to a face to face one.

A wife begins chatting with an old flame she discovered on Facebook. At first she just wants to catch up and be friends. Then the man begins flirting and telling her he still has feelings for her. She is flattered and pleased by the attention. It makes her feel good. She is stimulated and excited. She finds the feeling addictive and they take the chatting offline. Eventually they agree to meet. What began as an online reconnect has now blossomed into a full-fledged affair.

The reasons for this include boredom, excitement, titillation, attempting to recapture lost love. Whatever the reason Facebook facilitates more and more infidelity and divorces.

“Eighty-one percent of divorce lawyers say that the use of social media evidence in divorce cases has increased significantly in the last five years. Facebook lead the pack, followed by MySpace and Twitter.”

From “Infidelity From Facebook Cheating” by Dr. Frank Gunzburg, Marriage Counselling and Marriage Help, http://www.marriage-counselor-doctor.com/

Women are cheating as much or more than men says Michelle Langley, author of “Women’s Infidelity” (www.womensinfidelity.com). She goes on to state, “women’s relationships today follow a predictable pattern.

• They push men for commitment
• They get what they want
• They lose interest in sex
• They become attracted to someone else
• They start cheating
• They become angry and resentful
• They begin telling partners that they need time apart
• They blame their partners for their behavior….and eventually, after making themselves and everyone around them miserable for an indefinite, but usually long period of time, they end their relationships or marriages.”

Infidelity has always been around, but with modern technology has become easier. Facebook is now the preferred method of cheating.

The old saying, “the grass is greener on the other side” drives men and women to be constantly searching for something better. It’s harder to stay in a marriage and do the work to make it better, than it is to logon to Facebook and find something new, which may or may not be better. The easy way is a cop-out in this writer’s opinion.

I was raised to take the marriage vow, “I do promise to take you for better or for worse, in sickness or in health, til death do us part” seriously. Many spouses today stay in the marriage only  “til Facebook do us part.”

Stand By Me: Classic coming of age tale.

Stand By Me, deluxe version

I rewatched Stand By Me the classic coming of age film by director Rob Reiner, based on a Stephen King novella ” The Body”. I was so moved once again by this film I had to write about it.

The story concerns four friends living in a small town of about 1200 people. One hot summer a teenage boy, Roy Brower disappears. It seems the rumour is he was struck by a train and is out by the Royal River. The four boys decide to set out to find the body and become famous or at least heroes in the process.

The story this film is based on, The Body, can be found in a collection of Stephen King stories called Different Seasons published in 1982. The collection also includes a story title Shawshank Redemption which later became an award winning film The Shawshank Redemption.

Their world is one of relative innocence, but their journey to find the body, their encounter with Ace Merrill (Kiefer Sutherland), the local bad boy and his gang, and finding Brower’s dead body put an end to that innocence. In the end the boys find out about reality and how it isn’t glamorous.

The line that best sums up the entire movie is typed on the computer screen by The Writer (Richard Dreyfuss) at the end of the movie,

“I never had friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus does anyone?”

The four friends are played by Wil Wheaton (Gordie Lachance), River Phoenix (Chris Chambers), Corey Feldman (Teddy Duchamp), and Jerry O’Connell (Vern Tessio). Gordie Lachance is the writer. The story begins with the death of his friend Chris Chambers on the headline of a newspaper. He then takes us back to tell the story of their adventure that one summer so many years ago.

This movie makes you laugh one moment and cry the next. Most of all it makes you think back to your own childhood and the friends you had and the adventures they shared with you.

A warning this movie does contain bad language including the F-word, but it is too good not to let your young son or daughter watch it with you. Made in 1986 it stands the test of time very well. Definitely a movie to rent, or even better to own.

Alberta Lawman: Stephen Lawson – His Life and Times

Steve Lawson being laid to rest with full military honours. Photo A4826 Provincial Museum of Alberta

Ninety years ago this September, in fact on Monday September 25, 1922, a somber event took place at Macleod, Alberta. It was the funeral of Stephen O. Lawson. The town said goodbye to its former Chief of Police. His wife Maggie and their five young children Stephen, Peggy, Mary, Pearl and Kathleen said goodbye to their husband and father. Never again would his loving wife Maggie have her life partner to hold and confide in. Never again would his children have him to love and cherish.

Constable Steve Lawson of the Alberta Provincial Police was gunned down in cold-blood on the previous Thursday evening September 21, 1922 outside his home and office at Coleman, Alberta. His wife and children witnessed his murder. When he collapsed fatally wounded and bleeding his family saw it all. They watched in horror as the life left his body.

The so-called rum runners of the Crowsnest Pass killed him in their thirst for profit in the illegal liquor trade of the Prohibition Era.

That Monday at Macleod, where Steve had been on the police force from 1908 until 1920, and chief for most of those years, the town and his family buried him in Union Cemetery with full military honours. Flags were flown at half-staff, most businesses closed, and schools dismissed such was the respect they had for one of their own.

During his time in Macleod he met and married Maggie Rae McKenzie. There beginning in 1908 they had five children. The older children attended school in Macleod. Steve and Maggie took active roles in the community belonging to the Masons and other organizations.

In Alberta history Steve Lawson seems to be only a footnote, but there was much more to this man. He emigrated from England in 1903. Settling in Macleod he worked briefly for the RNWMP as a Special Constable, Teamster, then he joined the Macleod Police force as a night constable and later became its chief.

In 1916 he volunteered and went overseas with the CEF in World War I. He attained the rank of Sergeant, was wounded, and won the Military Medal for valor. He returned to Macleod as Chief of Police in 1919, but left to take the same position in Fernie, BC in May 1920. Then in March 1922 he was hired by the Alberta Provincial Police and posted to Coleman in the Crowsnest Pass. There he met his demise at the hands of the smugglers.

Steve B. Davis
Calgary, AB, June 2012
Synopsis from his soon to be published book,
“Alberta Lawman: Stephen Lawson – His Life and Times”

Choreographed death: legal execution in the United States

Lethal injection gurney-AP Photo

The death sentence is an acceptable punishment in the United States. It is the ultimate sentence that can be given to a criminal. Once a person is convicted and sentenced to die they are sent to death row to await their execution. Because of the appeal process the sentence may not be carried out for many years. There are thousands of prisoners languishing on deathrow in the United States awaiting their time.

The accepted method of execution in most States now is lethal injection. This usually consists of the administration of three drugs given is stages. The prisoner is strapped down on a gurney in the execution chamber and an IV is started. The first drug given is a sedative, then a saline flush is given to clear the lines. Next a drug is given which paralyzes the inmate. Finally the last drug given stops the heart resulting in death within seconds. The execution is deemed completed when a doctor pronounces the inmate dead. All in all I pretty relaxing way to die for these violent offenders who in most cases killed their victims in the most callous and evil ways.

Other methods still exist in some States. These are usually alternative measures which the inmate can select instead of lethal injection. They include the gas chamber, the electric chair, hanging and firing squad.

Electric chair:
Before lethal injection this was the most common method of execution. First used in 1924. The first night 5 men were executed using the chair or “Old Sparky” as it is sometimes referred to. Improper use of the chair resulted in painful death.

Gas chamber:
This was another very common method used in many States. The gas used was hydrogen cyanide. Execution was in a sealed chamber which in some cases could be used to execution two individuals at once. It was expensive because of the maintenance needed to ensure the chamber didn’t leak. Death in the gas chamber was slow and painful.

Firing squad:
Not a common method it is still legal in Utah. It consists of a firing squad of five shooters, four have loaded rounds, and one has a blank round. The shooters don’t know which one has the blank. The inmate is seated and strapped in with a target placed over his heart.

Hanging:
Little has changed with this method since the 1800′s. A noose is placed around the inmate’s neck, he is bound and dropped through a trap door. He drops until the rope snaps his neck. Proper executions using this method rely on an accurate calculation of the prisoner’s weight and length of rope needed. The noose should break the neck resulting in death. Improper calculations resulted in decapitations and injury without death.

Because the death sentence is mandated by the court proper legal and application procedures are always followed. Unfortunately it is likely that innocent prisoners have been executed in the past. Over the last few decades since the advent of DNA testing many prisoners on death row have been exonerated of their crimes. Without this recourse they would have been legally killed.

In the case of a death sentence the prisoner is entitled to all appeals available to him or her. Some States like California have separate penalty phases of trials to determine the appropriateness of the death sentence once the person has been found guilty. The prosecution and the defence both have the opportunity to present evidence and witnesses related to whether the prisoner should receive the death sentence for the crime.

Some interesting facts:

• last public execution in the U.S. was in 1936 in Kentucky when 10,000 attended
• Texas, Virginia, and Ohio are the States carrying out the most executions
• the last hanging was in Delware in 1996
• in Texas victims families have been allowed to witness executions since 1995
• it is illegal to record and execution with camera, camcorder, audio recorder or any other method
• usual witnesses to executions are lawyers, relatives of the inmate, and media

Natural gas is the answer, maybe.

Natural gas is the  answer, maybe.

Jet fuel and diesel fuel are usually derived from crude oil. With crude oil at all time highs the result is much higher prices at the pump. The biggest users of diesel fuel are truckers. Those semis we all see roaring down the roads and rely on for everyday products, groceries and consumer goods burn diesel.

A technology exists for converting natural gas to diesel and jet fuel. The “gas-to-liquids” plants have been built most recently in the Middle Eastern country of Qatar. These plants cost billions to build and require reliable access to relatively cheap supplies of natural gas feedstock over the long-term. Some of the major energy companies are now seriously considering building such plants in North America.

North America, especially Canada and the United States, have abundant and under-utilized reserves of natural gas with more coming on stream rapidly.

This technology might be able to assure us of a reliable supply of diesel and jet fuel but the prices may still be relatively high, at least over the short-term until the cost of constructing the plants is  paid out.

The big kicker for most consumers – this technology will not convert natural gas to gasoline. Consumers would still benefit but primarily by lowering the trucking industry’s costs.

We’ll just have to watch and see if someone takes the plunge and gets into this business.

Further reading:
“Turning natural gas into diesel fuel” by Steve Hargreaves @CNN Money May 9, 2012 (http://money.cnn.com)