Visiting Petra

Located in Jordan, south of the Dead Sea, Petra is one of those archaelogical wonders THC would very much like to see but is confident he will never visit.  Founded by the Nabataean tribe in the 4th century BC it served as a important point for caravans traveling the desert and the tribe was skilled in managing the meager rainfall through dams, conduits, cisterns and irrigation.

The approach to the city was guarded by a narrow approach through a gorge which brought a traveler to the famous structure called (incorrectly) the Treasury and best known to most of us as the setting for the final scene in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.(from bazaarplanet)

What is less well known is the full extent of the ancient city which reached its peak between 100 BC and 200 AD.  In 106 AD, Petra came under direct Roman rule.  As trade routes changed the city underwent a long period of decline marked by a large earthquake in 363 and was finally abandoned in the 7th century.  The European "rediscovery" of the site occurred in 1812.

Now, thanks to Google Map & Treks we can visit Petra and get a much better appreciation of the size and scale of the city and observe areas usually only seen by tourists.  You can find the link to the guided tour here.  Enjoy.

What Is The Iran Deal?

We've discussed the Iran deal on two occasions (The Iran Deal: It Was Never About Nuclear Weapons and Let's Not Forget About the Iran Deal), but what is the legal effect of the deal for the United States?

The position of those opposing the deal was that because it was not a treaty, it was not binding and a future President could revoke the agreement.  Back in September, liberal law professors Bruce Ackerman and David Golove took Senator Marco Rubio to task in The Atlantic for making this claim, stating flatly, "Rubio is wrong".  Their view was that this is a Congressional approved Executive Agreement and thus the Senator's position was nothing more than:

an unprecedented pledge to inaugurate his term by repudiating the constitutional command to “take care that the laws be faithfully executed.” There has already been too much lawlessness from the presidency since September 11th; Rubio’s celebratory anticipation of further illegalities represents a new low.

What irresponsible ignorance from the Senator!   We are shocked!

Of course, one thing to keep in mind about any statements from law professors about the state of the law is that they are very prone to describing the current state of the law according to what they think it ought to be rather than what it is.  Since the legal academy leans left most such assertions lean in that direction (see for instance, the embarrassing performance of law professors when predicting outcome of the commerce clause arguments around the Affordable Care Act).

Thankfully, the matter has now been clarified and the Obama Administration has made it clear it agrees with Senator Rubio and not with the distinguished professors.  In response to a letter from Representative Mike Pompeo (R-KS) regarding the status of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) or "the deal" in which he noted that none of the parties to the JCPOA had actually signed it, the State Department responded on November 19 stating that the JCPOA is:

Not a treaty
Not an Executive Agreement
Not a signed document
Not legally binding

According to the State Department the JCPOA is merely a "political commitment".
We are not making this up, read it for yourself.

Roman Theater, Taormina

The French artist Louise Josephine Sarazin de Belmont (1790-1870) painted two versions of the ruins of the Roman theater at Taormina in Sicily during the 1820s.  Little known today, Sarazin, was born in Versailles and studied under Pierre Henri Valenciennes, who was attempting to revive classical French landscape painting.  Lacking a patron, Sarazin lived by auctioning her paintings to finance her travels becoming the first female artist to have her works sold at a solo auction (for more on her background and career see the Master's Thesis by Alexandria Samantha Guillory (Louisiana State University, 2014).


From alafoto.com.  That's Mount Etna in the background.

(from flickr)
In this version we have different figures in the foreground, two of them apparently monks, and Mount Etna seems more active.

Taormina was founded in the 8th century BC by immigrants from the Greek island of Naxos.  By the late third century it had fallen under the rule of the Roman Republic and thereafter was part of the Empire (both the one centered in Rome and then part of the Byzantine) for most of the next 1100 years until it fell to Arab invaders in 902 AD.

Theaters were an essential element of Roman cities and can be found from Spain and Morocco to Syria.  The haunting ruins remind us of the scale of classical civilization.

The modern Taormina is a popular higher end resort.

U.S. Climate Policy

THC sure hopes President Obama resolves the contradictions in our climate policy as part of the ongoing climate summit:

President Obama:  We need to stop the Keystone pipeline project of our ally and neighbor Canada because “America’s now a global leader when it comes to taking action on climate change. Frankly, approving this project would have undercut that global leadership. That’s the biggest risk we face.  Not acting. Today we’re continuing to lead by example. ‘Cause ultimately if we’re gonna prevent large parts of this earth from becoming not only inhospitable but uninhabitable in our lifetimes, we’re gonna have to keep some fossil fuels in the ground rather than burn them.”

President Obama:  We need to lift the sanctions on the “Death To America” regime in Iran to enable them to pump and sell oil in order to rebuild their infrastructure and economy.

Just sayin'.

Dream, Dream, Dream

Dreamt I was at Pete Townsend's house.  Pete and I were sitting around the table chatting when Carl Yazstremski dropped by to talk with us.  Woke up refreshed.

(Townsend, The Guardian)

(Yaz, SIKids)

Don't Dream It's Over

New Zealander Neil Finn is one of the best pop singer-songwriters in recent decades.  His band, Crowded House, was responsible for a lot of melodic and lyrically strong tunes in the 1980s.

Don't Dream It's Over is one of THC's favorite songs.  This version is from the last concert of Crowded House in 1996 (they reformed in 2007) and Don't Dream It's Over is the closing song.  The setting is Sydney Harbor.

There is freedom within,
There is freedom without,
Try to catch the deluge in a paper cup

There's a battle ahead,
Many battles are lost,
But you'll never see the end of the road
While you're travelling with me

Hey now, hey now
Don't dream it's over
Hey now, hey now
When the world comes in

They come, they come
To build a wall between us
We know they won't win

Now I'm walking again to the beat of a drum
And I'm counting the steps to the door of your heart
Only the shadows ahead barely clearing the roof
Get to know the feeling of liberation and release

Hey now, hey now
Don't dream it's over
Hey now, hey now
When the world comes in

They come, they come
To build a wall between us
Don't ever let them win.

The song was the Crowded House's biggest hit in the U.S.  Their follow up album Temple Of Low Men contained several gems but didn't sell well.  Here are three to sample:

Never Be The Same

Don't stand around
Like friends at a funeral
Eyes to the ground
It could have been you

We might still survive
And rise up through the mess
If you could change your life
And never be the same 

The countrified Better Be Home Soon

"People are strange
God only knows
I Feel Possessed
when you come round"

The video for I Feel Possessed shows a live performance but the album soundtrack is overdubbed