FREE WHITEWATER

Eleven Fifty-Nine

Eleven Fifty-Nine for 7-11-10

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Good evening,

It’s a cloudy night, with a low temperature in the mid sixties for Whitewater. Most of the day here was beautiful, as the day was, also, in the French Alps on Stage 8 of the Tour de France.

If you’ve been watching the Tour, you saw today how unpredictable cycling is. A race over weeks, and thousands of miles, could hardly be otherwise. Contador saw his chances of a second Tour victory fade, and Armstrong saw his (less likely) chances of an eight Tour victory vanish altogether. Armstrong was well behind after seven stages, and Contador hardly a sure bet, but todays’a racing changed the likely outcome in paris still more.

I’ve not been a great fan of Armstrong, to put it mildly, yet I still feel sorry for the day he had today. He feel three times, and he leave Europe a couple of weeks from now to bigger disappointments ahead. I know that there’s a certain kind of American cycling fan who’s quick to champion a European favorite (anyone, really) over an American. It seems sophisticated to them, as though to support a European makes them seem more knowledgeable and genuine.

I am not such a fan; it’s natural and customary to support competitors from one’s country. I have no favorite this year, but I would always prefer to cheer on a fellow American. We’ve also no need to favor a European in a futile, transparent attempt to appear sophisticated. More important still, America doesn’t need to look to Armstrong to find a great champion. We had a great champion, whose legacy looks better by the day, in Greg LeMond.

We can always feel good about that.

There’s a cycling race coming to Wisconsin, this Wednesday, in nearby Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. See, Bicycle races come to Walworth County about the Point Premium Root Beer International Cycling Classic/Superweek Pro Tour. From that story, here are the details of the Lake Geneva component of the tour:

The Lake Geneva race officially is titled the Keefe Real Estate Lake Geneva Criterium presented by Simple Café and the Geneva Lakes YMCA.

Criteriums are held on short courses, usually less than a mile long, and riders race dozens of laps to cover the total race distance.

The Lake Geneva course is eight-tenths of a mile. It heads north on Center Street, east on Main Street, south on Lakeshore Drive and west on Baker Street. Riders will zip along Geneva Lake, past Flat Iron Park and down Main Street. Spectators can line the barriers along the entire course.

The story also has links on competitive cycling information, Wednesday’s race, and even where to go for a good spot to watch.

Few better ways to end a day than with something from Duke Ellington. “It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing)” was composed in 1931; the embedded video is of a 1943 performance. Enjoy.



Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDQpZT3GhDg. more >>

Twitter

Recent Tweets, 7-4 to 7-10

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WSJ.com – Fowl Fans See Golden Eggs in Catering to Pet-Chicken Market http://on.wsj.com/9VRgKI
about 11 hours ago

Android Gains, Apple Wanes — Oh Yes, Yet Again – PCWorld http://bit.ly/9imcZr
6:42 PM Jul 9th

Two billion, five-hundred million reasons Wisconsin’s government needs true reform to return to responsibility: http://bit.ly/a4KtE3
2:08 PM Jul 9th

Secrets of Successful Cricket Spitters (as reported in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) http://bit.ly/dazWcs
3:27 PM Jul 8th

When gov’t budgets based on “needed” services, rather than need to deduce tax burden, there will be too many services, costing too much
2:35 PM Jul 8th

Right way to reduce bloated government budget: How much in taxes/fees should be returned to people for prosperity? Cut spending accordingly
2:30 PM Jul 8th

He’s very right Laffer: Unemployment Benefits Aren’t a Stimulus http://bit.ly/9apVa9 Laffer’s better idea: a federal tax holiday
2:23 PM Jul 8th

Lindsay Lohan’s not a libertarian; she’s a coddled & curdled mess One can see she still has money for a ghostwriter http://bit.ly/cqPPML
1:38 PM Jul 8th

RT @MSpicuzzaWSJ: Developers avoid millions in property taxes using a Wisconsin tax relief law for farmers http://alturl.com/9xywb Gaming!
12:42 PM Jul 8th

Sushi’s okay but raw milk isn’t Why? Because there’s no fish lobby fighting sushi as there is a big dairy lobby fighting raw milk
2:38 PM Jul 7th

RT @IJ: IJ op-ed: The McDonald case was not just about guns, but about all of our rights. Find out why: http://iam.ij.org/9QyuWj
12:16 PM Jul 6th

Running for governor (of WI) with hope — but without much money or recognition http://bit.ly/9jr4vP
9:08 AM Jul 5th

The Volokh Conspiracy » “If they are endowed with inalienable rights, that is final.” http://bit.ly/bSARB0
7:56 AM Jul 4th

Laws/Regulations

Wisconsin State Journal: Proposal Would Ban Dogs (and Other Animals, Too) from Many Madison Events

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There’s a proposal, offered at the request of a Madison businessman, to ban dogs, etc., from some public events, like fairs, in Madison. The businessman (Keith Peterson of Madison Festivals) runs some of these events, like the Taste of Madison. See, Proposal Would Ban Dogs (and Other Animals, Too) from Many Madison Events.

That the businessman who runs the events, rather than patrons, asks for the legal ban on dogs should trigger suspicion. That’s because it’s a classic case of special interest pleading, in which a private, well-connected party asks for a change in the law that benefits and makes its own endeavors easier.

Here’s the contention:

The proposed city ordinance would prohibit dogs and other animals from any Madison event where a street use permit is required and there are 10 or more food vendors.
“We love pets, but we just don’t think it’s appropriate to have them around 50,000 people and small children and food,” said Keith Peterson, event director for Madison Festivals Inc., which puts on Taste of Madison and requested the ordinance.

The tip off is Peterson’s use of the word ‘appropriate‘ — he doesn’t quantify harm or risk, just offers a justification not far removed from ‘we just don’t think it’s polite,” or ‘it’s not what proper people do.’ Perhaps he’s right, but one needn’t care, as it’s not law’s place to establish rules of mere politeness. The law should be used for bigger things.

One can guess that Peterson’s patrons disagree with him, as they’re the ones bringing dogs to his events. So what he really should admit is that some of his patrons are vulgar and inappropriate in his eyes, and he’d like the CIty of Madison to make unlawful their ongoing conduct (and his failure to discourage them).

Event organizers can ban pets now, of course, and if they can’t prevent patrons from bringing dogs, and they can’t show violations other existing criminal statutes, Peterson should be out of luck.

Government owes this private businessman no ordinance; a municipality should not extend legislation for him, or his festivals. If he can’t manage the area now, from the profits he derives, then he should find another line of work.

Legislation should have a broader origin than this.

Free Markets, Libertarians, Planning

Reason.tv: Lessons From LeBron – What Clevelanders Should Really Be Pissed About

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I’ve posted before about libertarian Drew Carey’s series for Reason.tv on ways to revitalize Cleveland (“the mistake on the lake.”) Those ways did not, and never will, include demonizing LeBron James for taking a job in Miami.

Here’s a follow-up to the Reason Saves Saves Cleveland with Drew Carey series, entitled, Lessons From LeBron:



Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yP7HCKweZiY.

Here’s the description accompanying this latest video:


LeBron James has decided to move to Florida and play for the Miami Heat rather than bear another season with the Cavaliers.

Everybody is piling on: How could a dude with a tattoo of the word loyalty on his chest abandon “the mistake on the lake?”

But LeBron is only doing what more than half of Cleveland’s population has done over the in the last 60 years: Getting the hell out of the place.

He didn’t leave because of money, though some analyses show that he can take home more in pay in Florida despite a lower salary. Ohio used to be one of the lowest-tax states in the country. Now it’s one of the highest.

That’s what Clevelanders should be outraged about. Their economy has enough to deal with already without being put in a full court press by high taxes.

Cleveland needs to get rid of its savior complex. LeBron James could never have saved Cleveland–no single sports star or entrepreneur or bailout can–but there are definite, proven steps that any city can take to improve life for its citizens.

Reason.tv highlighted a whole host of possible steps in our series “Reason Saves Cleveland” available at www.reason.tv.

“Lessons from LeBron” was produced by Dan Hayes and Nick Gillespie. Production Assistant Joshua Swain.
more >>

Eleven Fifty-Nine

Eleven Fifty-Nine for 7-9-10

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Good evening,

It’s a cool and clear evening ahead, with a low of fifty-nine.

If you’ve been following the Tour, it’s been a very good couple of days for Mark Cavendish. He had his second consecutive stage win on Stage 6, and Cancellara is still in yellow.

Here’s the list of General Classification leaders (that is, overall leaders) after six stages:

1 Fabian Cancellara (Swi) Team Saxo Bank 28:37:30
2 Geraint Thomas (GBr) Sky Professional Cycling Team 0:00:20
3 Cadel Evans (Aus) BMC Racing Team 0:00:39
4 Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Garmin – Transitions 0:00:46
5 Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Quick Step 0:01:01
6 Andy Schleck (Lux) Team Saxo Bank 0:01:09
7 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Cervelo Test Team 0:01:16
8 Alexander Vinokourov (Kaz) Astana 0:01:31
9 Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Astana 0:01:40
10 Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) Omega Pharma-Lotto 0:01:42
11 Nicolas Roche (Irl) AG2R La Mondiale
12 Johan Van Summeren (Bel) Garmin – Transitions 0:01:47
13 Denis Menchov (Rus) Rabobank 0:01:49
14 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Professional Cycling Team
15 David Millar (GBr) Garmin – Transitions 0:02:06
16 Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Liquigas-Doimo 0:02:24
17 Luis León Sánchez Gil (Spa) Caisse d’Epargne 0:02:25
18 Lance Armstrong (USA) Team Radioshack 0:02:30
19 Jose Joaquin Rojas Gil (Spa) Caisse d’Epargne 0:02:32
20 Thomas Löfkvist (Swe) Sky Professional Cycling Team 0:02:34

One hears that there’s much left — and there is, for if there weren’t the many stages ahead would be dull and insignificant — but I think one will find the probable top finishers in Paris near the top of this. list.

Versus, on which American viewers can watch the Tour, has embeddable video highlights of each stage, and there’s a sample from Stage 6 at their website. See, http://www.versus.com/shows/tour-de-france/.

Perhaps that’s not enough for them, just the Tour, for the ratings they need. I suggest as much because in their cable coverage and on the web, they offer other programming segments interspersed during the day and evening.

There’s an example, as sponsored from RadioShack, on ‘Training.’ An illustration, one imagines, of the many benefits of exercise, yet — or perhaps because — of this, RadioShack’s still in 18th place.

In Madison, there’s a bike-friendly, bike-exclusive restaurant proposal: “Proposed bike path restaurant would be inaccessible by automobile.”

A Madison restaurateur wants to pioneer the antithesis of the drive-in restaurant.

Chris Berge, co-owner of Restaurant Magnus, the Weary Traveler and Natt Spil and cofounder of Barriques and the Blue Marlin, plans to build a bike-path-bound cafe on the city’s Near West Side that would be inaccessible by car, serve local food, produce zero garbage and cater to the city’s burgeoning bicycle population.

Described as “a hobbit hole meets the American Players Theatre meets a 1950s National Park recreational area,” the “Badger Den” would be a “bike-in” bar and grill open from April through October.

Food would be served on plastic or ceramic dishes at seating made from tree trunks. Coffee and juice would be dispensed in purchasable mugs that would fit in a bike holder. And to capture the zeitgeist of the Wisconsin north woods, beer and wine would also be on the menu.

If the restauranteur can make this work, good for him. If it comes to pass, I’d stop in, to see what it’s like.

Seating on tree trunks, with beer and wine? Sure, I’m in.

Government Spending

Journal Sentinel: Property Values Go Down, but Tax Rates, Levies Go Up

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The story shows that as property values take a drop, the absolute amount of tax revenues sucked from the productive, private economy keeps growing.

Reporter Tom Kertscher correctly notes that even in good times politicians were disingenuous when they talked about tax rates going down – the absolute amount of tax levy dollars taken would typically rise.

There was an underlying dishonesty and danger in a growing levy that cannot be rationalized simply because home prices might have been climbing (as they are not doing now).

One might just as well say that it’s fine for a man to be morbidly obese, and grow larger still, so long as he keeps putting new additions on his house. Even if the house grows faster than the man, his sheer size represents an inherent health risk.

See, Journal Sentinel: Property Values Go Down, but Tax Rates, Levies Go Up.

Comment Forum

Friday Open Comments Forum: Private Ownership to Protect Endangered Species

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Here’s the Friday open comments post.

Today’s suggested topic is ‘private ownership to protect endangered species.’ That might include private purchases of land, ‘adoption’ of animals, our even reductions in restrictions on owning and eating otherwise endangered animals.

The use of pseudonyms and anonymous postings will be fine.

Although the comments template has a space for a name, email address, and website, those who want to leave a field blank can do so. Comments will be moderated, against profanity or trolls. Otherwise, have at it.

I’ll keep the post open through Sunday afternoon.

Daily Bread

Daily Bread for Whitewater, Wisconsin: 7-9-10 (Red Panda Edition)

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Good morning,

Whitewater’s forecast for today calls for a mostly sunny day with a high of eighty-five degrees.

There are no municipal, public meetings scheduled for Whitewater today. The path to the weekend is unobstructed.

It’s the anniversary of the birthday of Nikola Tesla, who was born at the stroke of midnight. Wired has a description of his many achievements, and even greater number of theories. See, July 9–10, 1856: Visionary Tesla Born at Midnight.

I wrote in late June about a baby red panda that was born at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. See, Baby Red Panda Born at National Zoo | Wired Science | Wired.com. The post included a link to adopt a (part of ) a red panda from the National Zoo.

The adoption went through recently, and I am now the proud adoptive owner of a red panda. A photograph of my panda arrived this week, and he’s very sharp-looking:

Animal adoptions like this come with a certificate and a fact sheet on the adopted animal. They make fine gifts, as the certificate can be personalized with a recipient’s name and message. (In my case, I’ll make sure I provide all the enriching resources my red panda needs to grow up right.)

Although it’s not my panda, so to speak, here’s a video from Australia about red pandas at a zoo in Sydney:



Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmSYhUTuB3A. more >>

Eleven Fifty-Nine

Eleven Fifty-Nine for 7-8-10 (Famous and Not-So-Famous Canines Edition)

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Good evening,

It’s a humid and cloudy evening, with a low temperature for tonight of about sixty-four in the offing.

I’ve written before about a police dog tiny in Edgerton, Wisconsin that twice bit people, and was returned to be resold rather than continue serving that Wisconsin community. The dog, named Ash, has been sold for $3,000 to a Albuquerque, New Mexico facility. See, Edgerton sells K-9 Dog.

There’s an unintentionally funny comment that an intermediary made about training the dog still needs:

In the next few months, K-9 Services plans to put Ash through a training program for criminal apprehension and drug detection, Wierenga said. He said Ash is ready for narcotics work, but needs more work in the area of bite training. “As far as the understanding to go in and do full mouth bites and grips during apprehension, I had recognized (Ash) didn’t have a lot of training in that area,” Wierenga said.”

He’s referring, of course, to deficiencies in how the dog can properly bite and grip; it’s obviously more than capable of improperly biting.

Police dogs require lots of specialized care and discipline. They’re not pets, but service animals to assist police officers in defending officers and protecting citizens. To see how foolish it was for tiny Edgerton to buy a police dog, one need only read about how much care they require. In a recent story in the Janesville Gazette, one learns that for the much larger Rock County Sheriff’s Office, a new dog required

When the decision as made to bring back K-9s, the sheriff’s office and union agreed on a compensation package, Spoden said. The contract addresses the handler’s responsibilities and pay outside of normal duty.

To create the K-9 program, Capt. Jude Maurer said the sheriff’s office spent:

— $10,000 to buy the dog using federal grant money.

— $22,600 to buy a dedicated squad car using fees paid by the state for sheriff’s office patrol of UW-Rock County.

— $11,000 to outfit the squad car using federal grant money.

— $484 for training equipment using federal grant money.

— $541 for dog supplies using donations.

— $1,610 for Nolan’s meals and lodging during four weeks of training in Campbellsport using a state training grant.

The addition of Dex boosts to five the number of police dogs on duty at law enforcement agencies in Rock County. Janesville has two German shepherds, and Beloit has two Belgian Malinois. Edgerton had a German shepherd for a few days until it bit a police department employee May 10 and was deactivated.

The sheriff’s office selected Nolan to be Dex’s handler after the sheriff’s office found a need for a K-9 and had difficulties borrowing dogs from other agencies, Maurer said.

See, New K-9 Officer Reporting for Duty.

That’s just not a lot of money; it’s a sign of how much work responsible officers have to do to keep a dog properly cared for and conditioned. These are not show dogs to be paraded around an office, or ornaments for a leader’s pride.

For a show about a famous German Shepherd, but not a real service dog, there’s always The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin. The original canine star has been portrayed by successor dogs for almost a hundred years. See, The Rin TIn TIn Website. (“Since 1918, eleven generations of RIN TIN TIN.”)

Here’s a clip from a television show. Enjoy.



Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnxjsCXThKU more >>

City, Economy, Planning

Meeting with Confidence the Challenge of the Hard Economic Times Likely Ahead

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It’s seems ever clearer that there is no “Recovery Summer” in store this year for America’s economy. The problems of the last few years haven’t been solved. What will happen next is disputed, between those who see a second recession, those who see growth so weak it will feel like a recession, and those who speculate about a depression. This last group is in the minority; then, those politicians who were talking about a summer of recovery are fewer in numbers each day, too.

Over at CNBC, there’s a story about major banks, entitled, Banks Too Big to Fail, Too Big to Bail Out: Roubini that considers some of these predictions.

Reading the story, and watching the embedded video at the CNBC website, for example, one sees that among the panelists there’s no consensus other than that there are rough times ahead.

Governments are running out of ways to counter a “massive slowdown” or the risk of a double-dip recession, [economist Nouriel] Roubini said.

“A year ago we had all these policy bullets,” he said. “We could push down rates to zero, we had (quantitative easing), we could do a budget deficit of 10 percent of GDP (or) backstop the financial system.”

“Banks at this point are too big to fail, but also too big to be bailed, especially in Europe where the sovereigns are in trouble and therefore the ability to backstop the financial system is not there,” he said.

Roubini said he was unimpressed with the June US employment report, pointing out that the jobless rate fell because of a large number of discouraged workers leaving the labor force, and also noted recently weak data on manufacturing, retail sales and housing….

While not predicting a double-dip recession, with economic growth at a rate of 1.5 percent [Roubini’s prediction for the second half of 2010] “everything becomes worse,” Roubini said.

The unemployment rate goes higher, the budget deficit is larger, home prices don’t stabilize, but fall further and trade tensions with China will be bigger, he said.

“You don’t need to have a double dip recession to have a situation that is dismal,” he said.

It’s a genuine test of determination and ingenuity — an economic problem where conventional solutions have proved ineffective. It’s more than that, however — many politicians and bureaucrats will have to discard previous methods if they wish to preserve their local economies and assure a solid return to prosperity.

I think it’s a test that some will fail, but that others will decline to take, so to speak. To change course would be to admit that years or decades of thinking one way were always mistaken, or no longer effective. It would mean the abandonment of big projects with small rewards. many communities will have leaders who shift course; others will stay on their current path.

They’ll not continue doing more of the same because it’s best for community prosperity, but because their pride will make any other course inconceivable. They’ll choose relative poverty and ignorance for their communities over an honest admission of mistaken economic meddling.

In this effort, they’ll make every effort to blame the national economy for their cities’ and towns’ misfortunes. As not all towns will suffer equally, this effort at blamecasting will prove deceptive. Problems felt locally will have many local, and not merely national, origins.

There are many solid ways out of this predicament, beginning with a municipal government about a third smaller, the end of tax incremental financing schemes, and the abolition or suspension of countless fees and fines. There’s much more to write in this regard during budget season, but we can be optimistic that a permanently smaller and more reasonably limited government would be more stable and less burdensome to community prosperity.

Public Meetings

Alzheimer’s Association: Learn About Early Signs of Alzheimer’s Disease, Tuesday, August 3, 2010

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LEARN ABOUT THE EARLY SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE

With 10 Million Baby Boomers at Risk, Early Detection is Critical to Future Planning

Current data suggests that less than 35 percent of people with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias have a diagnosis of the condition in their medical record (Boise et al., 2004; Boustani et al., 2005; Ganguli et al., 2004; Valcour et al. 2000).

While there is currently no cure for Alzheimer’s, a fatal brain disease that gets worse over time and causes changes in memory, thinking and reasoning, early detection and diagnosis is critical to ensuring the more than 5 million Americans living with Alzheimer’s have the power to plan their own healthcare and future.

To increase public awareness on this issue, the Alzheimer’s Association will present a community workshop called “Know the 10 Signs – Early Detection Matters,” on Tuesday, August 3, 2010 from 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at the Eagle Municipal Building, 820 E. Main Street, in Eagle. This interactive workshop will identify the key signs of Alzheimer’s disease and offer first hand experiences from people who have the disease, and the steps they took after diagnosis.

The program is ideal for individuals and families who may be witnessing memory loss or behavioral changes, and want the facts. The presenter for this program is Judy Gunkel, Regional Services Coordinator, Alzheimer’s Association. This program is being offered at no charge to the community, in collaboration with the Alice Baker Memorial Library.

The Alzheimer’s Association is a national non-profit organization whose mission is to eliminate Alzheimer’s disease through the advancement of research, to provide and enhance care and support for all affected and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health. For more information about Alzheimer’s disease and local services visit www.alz.org/sewi target or call the Alzheimer’s Association 24/7 Helpline at 800-272-3900.

Daily Bread

Daily Bread for Whitewater, Wisconsin: 7-8-10

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Good morning,

Today’s forecast for Whitewater calls for a day of scattered showers, with a high temperature of 83 degrees.

There’s a production of Oliver! showing at our high school tonight through Saturday night at 7 p.m. each evening.

Wisconsin has the distinction of being the only state in America where an American citizen declared himself (at least publicly and officially) a king.  The Wisconsin Historical Society has the details:

1850 – James Jesse Strang Crowned King

On this date James Jesse Strang, leader of the estranged Mormon faction, the Strangites, was crowned king; the only man to achieve such a title in America. When founder Joseph Smith was assassinated, Strang forged a letter from Smith dictating he was to be the heir. The Mormon movement split into followers of Strang and followers of Brigham Young. As he gained more followers (but never nearly as many as Brigham Young), Strang became comparable to a Saint, and in 1850 was crowned King James in a ceremony in which he wore a discarded red robe of a Shakespearean actor, and a metal crown studded with a cluster of stars as his followers sang him hosannas.

Soon after his crowning, he announced that Mormonism embraced and supported polygamy. (Young’s faction was known to have practiced polygamy, but had not at this time announced it publicly.) A number of followers lived in Walworth County, including Strang at a home in Burlington. In 1856 Strang was himself assassinated, leaving five wives. Without Strang’s leadership, his movement disintegrated. [Source: Wisconsin Saints and Sinners, by Fred L. Holmes, p. 106-121]

Wired recalls an anniversary of national and international renown — the controversy beginning on July 8th, 1947 of the Roswell incident.  See, Roswell Incident Launches UFO Controversy

1947: Days after something shiny crashed in the New Mexico desert, the Roswell Army Air Field issues a press release that says the military has recovered the remains of a “flying disc.” Although quickly discounted as erroneous, the announcement lays the groundwork for one of the most enduring UFO stories of all time.

The military’s initial press release was straightforward in its handling of the discovery of wreckage by rancher W.W. “Mac” Brazel.

“The many rumors regarding the flying disc became a reality yesterday when the intelligence office of the 509th Bomb Group of the Eighth Air Force, Roswell Army Air Field, was fortunate enough to gain possession of a disc through the cooperation of one of the local ranchers and the sheriff’s office of Chaves County,” the press release read.

“The flying object landed on a ranch near Roswell sometime last week. Not having phone facilities, the rancher stored the disc until such time as he was able to contact the sheriff’s office, who in turn notified Maj. Jesse A. Marcel of the 509th Bomb Group Intelligence Office. Action was immediately taken and the disc was picked up at the rancher’s home. It was inspected at the Roswell Army Air Field and subsequently loaned by Major Marcel to higher headquarters.”

The Roswell Daily Record headlined the story “RAAF Captures Flying Saucer on Ranch in Roswell Region,” providing a historical artifact that, in retrospect, seems ready-made for fueling an episode of The X-Files.

But press accounts the following day told a much more mundane story: The military had determined the recovered debris to be the wreckage of a weather balloon and related equipment. No flying saucer — a term that had just been coined by newspapers to describe the first widely publicized UFO sighting — had been found.

Here’s a Voice of America video with information on Roswell (from the 60th anniversary of the supposed crash:



 

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2otZn_rl1-E more >>