President Bush recently made a very interesting announcement regarding the controversial phenomenon popularly known as "global warming." In a stunning about face, our chief exec has now acknowledged the reality of human generated greenhouse gases and their effect on overall global temperatures, a position that he had previously eschewed when rejecting the Kyoto Protocol. The only thing is, we are also being told by our POTUS that we must "adjust" to global warming rather than waste resources and inhibit big business in an attempt to reduce the threat involved.
    We at the Crusader have decided to weigh in on this rather divisive issue, but we are frankly becoming rather confused by it all. Is global warming simply a normal warming trend that has happened countless times throughout the history of our planet, or is it truly a serious threat to our future and thus something to be significantly worried about? And why has President Bush seemingly abandoned a core tenant of neo-conservative doctrine by acknowledging that global warming is really happening? Has he become privy to new scientific data on the question, or has he decided to soften his environmental image for purely political purposes? This newspaper did not endorse either one of the two major candidates in the last presidential election, and yet it is difficult indeed to imagine Al Gore proclaiming global warming to be a myth after all, simply to accrue political capital in the process.
    One thing is certain. Global warming is a very real fact of life at this time of the year here in Phoenix, and it has been for many, many years. And we have never seen a single politician lifting a finger to do a thing about it!

    Joan De Arc Avenue has been truly blessed throughout the years with the high quality of male parents that have resided on the street. Carl Bueker, with his single minded devotion to quality bridge playing and economic thrift, Bill Mitchell's woodworking wizardry, just to name a scant few. It is genuinely gratifying to look back at all of the great dads by whom we have been inspired, loved, protected, and on occasion, mercilessly and remorselessly punished. And who among us would have it any other way?
    We would like to take the opportunity on this Father's Day to salute all of the Joan De Arc fathers, past and present, who have striven to imbue our fair avenue with a quiet masculine dignity and forthrightness far above and beyond the call of duty. We cringe to contemplate what might have become of Joan De Arc Avenue had it not been for the uncompromising testosterone inspired leadership of these fine men, men who have wanted nothing more than a better and happier life for their families and their neighbors as well.
    Thanks, Dads. We love you. We salute you. Take an extra nap on us today.

    Those folks in Peoria did the right thing when they threatened that uppity teacher who didn't want to pass her student, just because the student didn't actually pass her class. This is exactly what's wrong with public education today, by God! Too many teachers think they know what's best for other people's kids, and they're always ignoring the parent's wishes in the name of "accountability" and "personal responsibility." Bullcrap. It's none of the teacher's damn business if parents want their children to graduate even if they didn't pass no stupid English class. I never passed English, and my writing is good, if not gooder, than anybody else's. We need to threaten more teachers, not less!

                                                                                                                                                         J. Dogholler

Time passages
      The durability of our popular media is a tricky thing.  It warps our perceptions and does nothing to prepare us for the rapid changes that occur naturally in our real lives.  Consider that Wally and the Beav have been living with June and Ward for nearly fifty years!  Most of the time, such is not the case in reality.  Like an old television series, however, our lives often come full circle and begin repeating oddly familiar themes.

     It was an afternoon in late May, just eighteen years ago, and the thermometer was already signaling the start of another desert summer.  A couple of first time parents were preparing to check out of the Scottsdale hospital with their newborn baby girl, and the panic was beginning to set in.  They rang for the nurse currently on floor duty.

     “What do we DO with this thing?” they inquired, clearly indicating the bundle of joy in question.  The nurse rolled her eyes, and gave the nervous parents a fifteen minute tutorial on the basics of childcare… bathing, feeding and changing.  All of the things they had read about over and over in the parenting books, but which suddenly seemed so terribly daunting in the company of this fragile little creature.

     Thus began a journey of caring for this child, an ever evolving procession of needs asserted and provided for.  Breast feeding gave way to bottled liquids, spoon-fed solids, and a seemingly endless lecture on table manners. Walkers became tricycles, which in turn became bicycles.  Dance lessons, piano lessons, organized sports activities and play dates were attended, with the necessary transportation provided by none other than mom and dad. The care of this child, and that of the baby brother that followed just a few years later, became the primary function of these parents.

     Fast forward to the present time.  The bicycle is now a used car, and the taxi rides from mom and dad are no longer necessary.  Graduation from high school rolls around, and the switch to college life is imminent.

     At the parent’s orientation at the university a couple of weeks ago, the recurring theme was “letting go."  There was no floor nurse to explain how this can possibly be accomplished, however. There are a few friends who have been through it, though, or are at any rate further along in the process.  They smile reassuringly, and let it be known that such things are survivable.

     Our helpless baby Wendy has clearly become the young woman Gwen.  Despite being some years away from financial independence, and at a time when she faces so many challenging hurdles, she begins the final transition to adulthood the only way it can be done… on her own terms.  Like guiding a balloon in a hurricane, the best thing Linda and I can do is to set her free and hope to track her progress.

     Gwen’s father remembers just how exciting that time in one’s life can be. He finds the events are more reminiscent, however, of a more recent time.  A time when the weather was hot, and two nervous parents were wondering how on earth they would ever manage the changes ahead.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________JDA