Why so much violence??

I, like you am horrified at the news of another tragic school shooting. How many children must we lose before we get serious in our search for a cause and a cure for this deadly scourge?I am a Public Health professional and have spent the last 30 years assisting in the design and analysis of research which seek to identify causes and cures for disease.

Since the latest school shooting, I have been searching the thousands of written words and hours of TV news and commentary, with little success, for any hint of support for my hypothesis on why we are experiencing these horrendous acts of public violence by our youth.

Consider this:We send our children to school where they are exposed to math, and we confidently expect they will learn math.At school our children are exposed to reading and we expect they will learn to read.We expose our children to science, logically expecting they will learn science.And we expose our children to a steady diet of violence and illogically expect a different outcome.Movies and TV portray violence hour after hour. And most often violence is portrayed as the appropriate and effective reaction to every real and imagined hurt. We are creating a society of violence.Thousands of video games glorify violence.A child can blow away a hundred people between supper and bed time. Then go safely to sleep, and all is well in the morning.And we are surprised when the result is violence?

Any observant parent can tell you when watching their children at play that there is a fuzzy line between fantasy and reality, and unfortunately there are a lot of emotionally and mentally handicapted adults that suffer that same challenge.

A wise man once said: “as a person thinks in his heart so is he”. 

My daughter, who is a Special Education teacher told me that a parent came to see her about the progress of her child. The parent said that she promised her child that if she learned to count to 10, She would buy her Grand theft Auto.

 70 years ago Dr. Theodore Woodward at the University of Maryland School of Medicine cautioned his interns: “when you hear hoof beats in the street, look for horses, not Zebras” In seeking a solution to this evil of violence, why don’t we start with the obvious?

Floyd Petersen, MPH  909-796-7440 (H), 909-754-4700 (C)

Assistant Professor (Bio statistics, Epidemiology) Retired

Loma Linda University

Petersen's Thailand Trip. July 2015

We are in Thailand where I am teaching a class (biostatistics) to nursing students who are doing their MS in nursing. This is an off-campus program by the Loma Linda University School of Nursing. We did the same thing in 2012. The students meet here at the Asia-Pacific International University (APIU). APIU is the former Mission College.  We are on a beautiful campus 2 hr. north of Bangkok out in the country. The students will come here for a month each year for 3 years + some online education. There are 35 in the class. They come from Malawi, Cambodia, China, Japan, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Papua New Guinea, Rwanda, Solomon Islands, Thailand, and Zambia. We have 6 students from Zambia. They are starting a nursing program at Rusangu University in Zambia. Rusangu University has recently been built on the same mission property where we spent our 7 years (69-76) in Zambia. Three of the Zambian students (all males) are getting their Masters in Nursing in preparation for teaching in the new nursing school.

Our travels:

Wed. July 8, 11 am: we leave our home in Loma Linda for our flight from LA to Bangkok with a 1.5 hr. stop-over in Taiwan. In addition to our bags we carry 4 large bags of text books for various classes in the program. Our 14 hr. flight on China Airways (C-A) to Taiwan is only half full so Eileen and I quickly each grab 3 seats to ourselves and sleep a lot of the trip. I had very briefly looked into getting business class seats, but at an extra $2,000 I gave up that idea. Glad I did with all that room in economy. Very good treatment on C-A.

Friday, July 10, 1:30 am: Arrive at the Suvarnabhumi Airport (got to get used to unpronounceable names here) in Bangkok. We have a total of 8 bags with us. I hadn’t thought about customs (all those new text books), and just took the line “Nothing to Declare” and was waived right on through.

A van from APU was waiting for us and we did the 2-hr. trip to the University. By the time we got to our guest room it was 5 am (we are 14 hrs ahead of Loma Linda) and crossed the International Date Line so we had made the whole trip in about 28 hrs. We gained a day on the way over which we will loose on the way back.

Eileen has requested the same guest room we had in 2012. It is a nice large room with everything we need for a month stay. All our meals are taken in the University dining hall, where they prepare special food and a reserved eating area for our class. We get very good food in a large variety (watch out for the HOT spicy stuff). Sometimes even cooked cucumbers!

We spend the next few days sleeping off our jet lag (Eileen tries Melatonin) and reacquainting ourselves here at APIU and meeting the students. We rent a motorbike for the duration of our stay ($3/day). Good way to take short trips around the country and to the market where you can find a huge array of fresh fruit and vegetables and deep fried crickets, grasshoppers, grub worms, every chicken, pig and other animal, foul, fish and toad parts imaginable. Also a health professional (he displays a certificate to prove it) with several dozen bottles of potions which contain labeled cures for every malady from the 7-year itch to mother-in-law troubles. Even one labeled “sex-love”. On inquiry, he instructed Eileen that just one drop on her wrist is enough to secure a complete cure! She tells him with a jerk of her thumb “that guy over there needs it”!!

We have come a week early to do some traveling in Thailand. We explore several ideas for an excursion and settle on a trip to  Kanchanaburi. It is here that the WW2 historic “Death Railway” traversed the “Bridge Over the River Kwai” and through the “Hellfire Pass” (Google those if you have forgotten your WW2 history, how thousands of POWs died). Kwai is pronounced like “way” with a k in front.

Tuesday, July 14: We catch a van ride to the Victory Monument in Bangkok then get a taxi to the Bangkok Adventist Hospital (formerly Mission Hospital) where we will stay overnight. The Hospital is closely associated with APIU. When we reach the hospital, I am in the back seat and take my wallet out of my pocket to pay the fare. While counting the money I lay the wallet on my lap. I then get out of the taxi and do not notice my wallet falls to the ground. There are several attendants there to welcome people to the hospital. One sees my wallet fall and picks it up and hands it to me. Wow! A close call! Got to be more careful ( he did get a tip). We have a nice room in the hospital on one wing of the OB floor which appears to be empty. In the afternoon we visit a huge near-by outdoor market and buy some ripe mangos. These markets are something we wish everyone could experience.

Wednesday, July 15, 6:30 am we are picked up for our tour. This will be a 2-day private tour, so we have a tour guide and a driver. Our tour is booked through mybangkoktours.com

Our first stop is the grave yard in Kanchanaburi where the British, Dutch and Australian POW’s who died building the railway are buried. The USA POW’s who died were brought back to the states after the war. Then to the bridge over the River Kawi. There actually were two bridges built over the river by the POW’s (A steel one and a wood one which were continually bombed by the Allies). We then get on the train and cross the bridge and travel for about 45 min where we detrain and have lunch. This is a huge tapioca growing area.

Next stop is the elephant farm where we get to ride Kip, a very well-behaved elephant (which Eileen declared much more interesting than she had anticipated) who even takes us down and back up a steep flight of steps to the river. We then do a short bamboo raft trip on the river (no elephants allowed on the raft).

We then go to a beautiful resort (pungwaanriverkwai.com) where we are to spend the night. It is out in the country on the banks of the river. A most beautiful place to celebrate our 48^th anniversary year – we actually first met 50 years ago this month.

Thursday: July 16 we visit Hellfire Pass museum and then hike to the pass. After knowing what happened here we feel like we are walking on sacred ground.

When you enter the museum you are asked to remove your shoes.  On our way out, when Eileen is trying to put her shoes on she has a hard time – can’t figure out why.

Our last stop of the day is the Tiger Ranch where we get to take Jupiter, a full-grown tiger, for a walk. Quite an experience. We actually got to pet a dozen tigers of all sizes.

While at the Tiger Farm, suddenly Eileen remarks “these are not my shoes”. She tells our guide that she thinks she put on the wrong pair of shoes back at the museum. Our guide calls back to the museum and asks if anyone has reported missing shoes. Someone has! Our guide tells them where we are and fortunately they will pass near in an hour. The shoe mystery is solved. They come by and exchange shoes – which look about the same. I chide her a bit about getting the wrong shoes – which she chalks up to “a senior moment” – and then pointedly reminds me that carelessly losing one’s wallet in a foreign city is much more serious then getting the wrong shoes!  She is right, I suppose.

Now on to Bangkok where we will spend the night before heading back to APIU on Friday. It was well worth the trip.

Friday: July 17. We get a taxi to Victory Monument and find the van which will take us back to APIU. The first thing you will notice on the highway here in Thailand is the huge billboards. When I say big – I mean at least 6-10 times as large as anything in the states. These things are monsters. Tonight we will be back on campus.

Saturday: July 18. In the afternoon we accompany the students to see the big Buddha up on the mountain about an hour from APIU. This is a huge Buddha up on the side of a mountain – 626 steps up and 626 steps down. A good cardio-vascular workout! Wonderful view of the valley from up there. Eileen is the oldest in our group but not the last one to reach the top – Bravo!

Sunday: July 19 we go for a long motorbike ride and I spend some time preparing for my class. This is supposed to be the start of the rainy season but this part of Thailand is in the second year of a serious drought. Lots of the green plants are beginning to show obvious stress.

Monday: July 20 I spend in class prep as tomorrow I begin teaching. I will teach mornings from 8-12 for the next 10 school days.

So what is Eileen doing while I am teaching and working on lessons? Well- she brought along a large stack of papers and notes that she has been making/collecting over the past few years (she says I exaggerate). These need to be reviewed and acted on! Also her e-mail in-box containing 1,100 items – some from years ago need to be answered. So watch out – you may be getting another e-mail to read. There is good internet in our room and a washing machine near. Workers come by and clean our room 3-times a week. Eileen also spends a lot of time in the beautiful university library. Oh – Eileen also spends a lot of time at war with ants. Twice she has woken up in the middle of the night to find tiny ants crawling on her and in the bed. They are so small it almost takes a magnifying glass to see them. They seem to be attracted to her more than me – I guess it’s because she is so sweet!

To be continued

Has it been 45 years?

September, 1969 I walked into Mac High (the Public High school in Milton Freewater, OR) as a student physical science teacher. The real science teacher said "The class room is right down there on the right. It's yours. If you need me I will be in my office". I didn't see him again until the end of the term.
Today, September 8, 2014 , forty-five years and thousands of students after entering that "room right down there on the right", I walked out of Nichol Hall on the campus of Loma Linda University after meeting with my last student and turning in my last grades. What a trip!
A huge thank-you to those who taught and mentored me. Thanks to those who took a big chance and hired me.
Thousands of thank-you's  to the students around the world who were brave enough to take my classes. I hope, in some small way, it was a positive experience.  I beg your forgiveness for the times in which I may have appeared impatient. I did really want you to appreciate at least a little of that physics, chemistry and statistics.
And a huge thank you to my perfect dream, Eileen and  two wonderful daughters, Lucyndi and Sharlane, who lived with me through all that.

With much love and so many invaluable memories,

Floyd, Mister Floyd, Professor Floyd, Mr. Petersen, Professor Petersen

Now to begin the next trip!

Robert and Ted

Floyd Petersen, 2005

Though it happened in 1960, I remember it like it was yesterday. The late fall Sunday in rural Wisconsin was cold and blustery.  The old farmer a mile down the road had died and today was the auction. As a kid,  I loved to hear the auctioneer, so I walked down the road and listened to a lifetime collection of possessions being sold to the highest bidder. After an hour I tired of the sale and headed home. Standing at the end of the drive were two figures hunched in their overcoats and rubbing their ears to ward off the biting cold. They were handing out some papers and talking to anyone who would listen. I asked them who they were. Robert said one; Ted said the other. They were campaigning for their brother John, they said. He was running on the Democratic ticket for president, the paper they handed me, said.
My dad was Protestant and  Republican. They were Democrat and Catholic, so I didn't shake their hand. 

Floyd Petersen. 2005

Trust and Freedom

Floyd Petersen, 2013

Dear Editor;

I am a professor and research consultant In the School of Public Health here at Loma Linda University. In this capacity I have been fortunate to have traveled to many parts of the world.  I also served on the Loma Linda City Council for 20 years, 10 of those years as mayor.

Several years ago I was teaching a graduate level class in biostatistics at a university in Kenya. My students were from 22 different African countries. Since some students were from French speaking Africa, all my lectures were interpreted into French. My interpreter was Yenge Yenge Yenge Isaac, a business administrator from the Cameroons.

One day during a break, our conversation turned to global economics.  Mr. Isaac speculated on how nice it would be if Bill Gates gave each African a million dollars. Mr. Isaac knew that I had some understanding of African culture as I had taught and lived in Zambia  for 7 years in the early 1970's.   He then turned to me with a serious questioned look and asked; "Why are you rich and we are poor"?  And by "you" he didn't mean me personally, of course, but we as Americans

Wow! A profound question.  A question that everyone must have pondered at some point in their lives: why are some peoples rich and some poor”. I replied that many books had been written on that subject including the 500 page “Guns, Germs, and Steal" by ULA professor, Jared Diamond . "But", I said, "I have a simple answer":  We have a famous American by the name of Thomas Jefferson who wrote our most famous document - our Declaration of Independence. In the last sentence of that document Jefferson wrote this: " We pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor". I said: "I believe It is this pledge of "Sacred Honor" that has made us rich as a nation". "We are rich because we trust each other, and when that pledge is broken, we will be poor".  He said "Now I understand ".

Why are we rich? Because we can borrow capital to start a business, and the lenders trust they will be paid back. We call the police and trust they will come to our aid. We put our money in investments and trust it will not be absconded with. We trust in fair elections to choose people to represent us in civic affairs, and we trust they will make and enforce fair and equitable laws for our city or county or state, or country that will protect us from those who would betray our trust for their own selfish greed.  Knowing, full-well, however, the most well-intentioned law cannot substitute for trust between people

 We can have as many open government laws as we can write but if it is an elected person's studied intention to rip us off, it can be done. We have seen it too often. Over and over, in the last several years, big business has betrayed our trust, in spite of myriad laws.  Trust cannot be legislated.

Perhaps we have spent too much time perusing our second most famous document - the constitution - to discover our rights as citizens, and too little time re- reading that last sentence in the  Declaration of Independence, reviewing our responsibilities inherent in that pledge of our sacred honor we made to each other.

The continued success of our treasured experiment as a free people is based on trust. For without trust there is no freedom. Trust is our only real currency.

Floyd Petersen

Educating Violence

Floyd Petersen, 2014

Dear Editor;

Since the Isla Vista rampage, I have been searching the thousands of written words and hours of TV news and commentary in vain for any hint of support for my hypothesis on why we are experiencing these horrendous acts of public violence.

We expose our children to math expecting they will learn math. We expose our children to reading expecting they will learn to read. We expose our children to science, expecting they will learn science. We expose our children to a steady diet of violence and illogically expect a different outcome.

Thousands of video games glorify violence. Movies and TV portray violence hour after hour. A child can blow away hundreds of people between supper and bed time, then go safely to bed, sleep the night and all is well in the morning. We shouldn’t be surprised when the result is violence. Any observant parent can tell you after watching their children at play that there is a fuzzy line between fantasy and reality and unfortunately there are a lot of emotionally and mentally handicapped adults that suffer the same challenge.

I see that Jack Dangermond, the founder of ESRI has pledged 1 billion dollars to get geographic mapping software in our schools. Well, a lot of education happens outside of schools. Here is a challenge: Let those creative programmers at ESRI create a mapping video game that is even more exciting than stealing cars and killing people. Why should violence be more attractive and interesting then mapping?

Why is violence so attractive?

A Story

Floyd Petersen, 2009

While glancing through the local newspaper recently, I came across an obituary. Along with the obituary was a picture of the deceased.  The picture was of an elderly African American woman. Nothing unusual about that, except, well, let me tell you the story.

We had arrived at the Reagan International Airport in D.C. a bit early. Our flight to California via Chicago would leave in an hour. The waiting area near the boarding gate was almost empty as we settled into a seat among our carry-on’s.

In addition to being a university professor I am the mayor of a small city and chairman of the board of directors of a regional public transportation agency in Southern California. Once or twice a year I make a trip to Washington D.C. on business. My wife, Eileen, had accompanied me on this trip and now with an hour to spare she said she wanted to look around the airport.

Eileen had been gone only a short time when an elderly African American lady appeared and, actually pushing one of our bags aside and, seeming not to notice me, proceeded to occupy the seat Eileen had just vacated.

Well now! With so many empty seats in the waiting area,  did she have to sit right here in my wife’s place, I thought to myself. This was an intrusion into my personal space. Why hadn't she occupied one of the many other empty seats where she could spread out her bags and be comfortable?

She had on a funny knit black cap and was wearing glasses. Not just ordinary glasses but thick glasses. The kind of thick glasses that makes the person wearing them seem to be peering about in a strange disoriented sort of way.

Now, I like people. To be a mayor, one should.  I also like nothing better than a good conversation with interesting people.  I like new ideas. But an 80 year old lady wearing a funny cap and peering through thick glasses? To be honest, she would not have been my first choice to spend an hour with in an empty airport.

Pardon me, she said. Could you tell me what time it is? She adjusted her glasses to better see the ticket she held in her hand. Her question was my first indication that she  knew I existed.

Eleven O'clock, I answered glancing at my watch. And then trying to appear friendly I added, "where are you going"?

      "Chicago" she said, "My plane leaves at one o'clock and I wanted to be on time".

Since my wife and I were going through Chicago and our plane left at twelve,  I thought that she might be mistaken about the time of her flight. Asking to see her ticket I took it up to the attendant at the desk to verify her departure time and flight number. Her plane did indeed leave one hour later than ours. On returning to my seat, I assured her that everything was correct and that she had plenty of time to rest before her flight was called.

Well, if I was going to share my space with this stranger I may as well find out who she was. I asked her if she lived in Chicago.

"Yes", she replied, "a good many years".

"What brought you to Washington, D.C. - were you here to visit family", I inquired?

"No", she responded, "I came here to receive an award".

"An award" I said?  I probably looked a little surprised though she didn't seem to notice.

"Yes" she said. 

"Have you seen the morning paper"?

"Here, I have one", she added,  pulling from her bag a copy of the Washington Post.

As she held up the morning news paper, the first thing that caught my eye was that part of a large headline containing the words "First Lady".

Well, what is this all about, I wondered?

 "You can read about it in my paper if you like". And: "Oh, I have a copy of the program, too" she offered.

"I'd love to see it", I replied.  A boring hour in the airport was suddenly turning interesting.

"First Ladies Salute first Women" the title on the richly decorated program announced.

 As I flipped it open I immediately began to see names that I recognized - Barbara Walters, Mistress of Ceremonies; Hillory Rodham Clinton; The Honorable Madeleine Albright; The Honorable Dianne Feinstein, senator from my state; The Honorable Shirley Chishlom; The Honorable Sandra Day O'Connor.

Whoa! What do we have here? The program went on to list more 'Honorables' then I knew existed.

And then the five women who had received the National First Ladies Library Award the previous evening were introduced.  Second on the list after the Honorable Madeleine K. Albright appeared the name Gwendolyn Brooks.

 "That's me" she said. "It was so much fun".

I quickly began to skim the biography. But when the words 'Pulitzer Prize' appeared in the first sentence, I started again, reading more slowly now:

Gwendolyn Brooks; first African-American female Pulitzer Prize winner for poetry; the second Poet Laureate of Illinois, succeeding Carl Sanburg; 1997 recipient of the Lincoln Laureate medal; current writer-in-residence at Chicago State University where the Gwendolyn Brooks Center for Black Culture and a Chair has been named in her honor.

And there was lots more: Miss Brooks, the recipient of more than 75 honorary doctorates; a member of the National Institute for Arts and Letters; appointed to the Presidential Commission on the National Agenda for the Eighties; Consultant-in-Poetry to the Library of congress; named Jefferson Lecturer by the National Endowment for the Humanities; and in 1995, awarded the prestigious National Medal of the Arts. Gwendolyn Brooks, author of more than twenty-six books.

My wife returned to find her seat occupied. I introduced her to my new friend.

Miss Brooks was a delightful person, a great conversationalist and well informed on a wide range of topics. We talked about poetry. She asked what had brought us to Washington.  I told her about my job as a mayor and university professor.

"I'm so impressed to be sitting here next to the mayor" she said.

What? Gwendolyn Brooks, a Pulitzer Prize winner with 76 doctorates, glad to be sitting next to me?

 "You can keep that copy of the program - here, I'll sign it for you" she offered. Then she added: "if you write to me I will send you an autographed copy of my latest book of poetry". She kept her promise.

All too soon our flight was called. I lingered, not wanting to break the spell. As we walked toward the gate, I turned to look at her again; old, wrinkled, funny knit cap, thick glasses. Somehow that didn't matter now.  I had just spent an hour in the presence of Royalty.

Thank you Gwendolyn Brooks for intruding. And thank you for reminding me again to never judge another.

The Cricket

My 86 year old sister decided to give up her house in Central California and move into a retirement suite. My wife and I drove up from our home Southern California, and spent a week helping her sort through her life-time collection of stuff.

Outside near the front door on the veranda where my sister now lives is a row of chairs where residents often sit and watch the local comings and goings. The chair nearest the door is usually occupied by a rather sober looking elderly gentleman. I am a person who likes to make verbal contact with people I meet and so every time I passed by I would make some comment to him about the weather or the news – to see if I could get him to talk. Every comment I made was either met with a small unemotional grunt or just a blank stare.

On the last day while sorting through a box of junk, I came across a small item which I had not seen in at least 50 years. It is a small toy made from two pieces of metal. The top piece is shaped like the back of a large bug and the other is a small spring-like flat piece. When the device is squeezed between your finger and thumb, it makes a loud clicking sound. It used to come in boxes of Cracker Jacks and breakfast cereal. I can still hear my dad say “would you kids stop clicking that noisy contraption, it’s driving me crazy”.

I showed the toy to my sister and slipped it into my pocket.

On the morning we were leaving to return home, we stopped at her new home to tell my sister good-bye. On the way out, three gentlemen – including the quiet one – were sitting by the door. I reached into my pocket and said: “gentlemen, I found something while sorting my sister’s stuff yesterday, and I wonder if you know what it is”. I pulled out the toy and clicked it a couple of times. Two of the men who were usually talkative remarked that - yes they had played with it as a child. 

Suddenly the quiet one perked up, and leaning forward and pointing at it, spoke with considerable emotion and authority: “Sir that is a cricket.  It is what we used during the Battle of Normandy to identify ourselves to our fellow soldiers”.  He then lapsed into his usual silence – but with a far-away look in his eyes and a smile on his face. It was, after all,  just a cricket. 

Petersen’s 2010 South-West Pacific Adventure

Chapter 1
Well, it is about time I catch you all up on our travels. But first a bit of background: Loma Linda University School of Public Health – where I teach – is doing an off-campus MBA in Hawaii and in Guam. One of the required courses is biostatistics – which I teach. So I get the tough jobs!

In Hawaii I will teach Sunday from 9 AM to 6 PM and Mon – Wed from 5-10 PM. Then on to Guam and do the same the next week. We will then go on to Palau for a week of vacation. So on Jan 7 Eileen and I leave LAX (Los Angeles International airport) for Hawaii on Continental Airlines. Actually, we drive down to LA Wed evening and stay in our daughter’s condo down town and she (Lucyndi) drives us to the airport in the morning. She has this neat condo on the 23d story with great floor to ceiling views of LA. Between us we have 3 checked bags and two carry-on’s each. We expect security to be tight, but we noticed no change. We did this same trip two years ago.

Eileen does not leave our traveling nutritional needs completely in the hands of the airlines. She had packed a lunch for our trip to Hawaii – kept cool with one of those jellied ice packs you put in the freezer overnight. Guess what – the ice pack went through security with no problem. After getting there, I questioned TSA about that – and was told that recently the TSA has determined that frozen liquid is not a security risk – just don’t let it thaw out! OK!

Jan 7: Hawaii. We have booked a very nice B&B just a 5 min drive from Castle Hospital, where I will teach my class. We have some very good friends in Hawaii (Pete and Jane Cheeseman) that we lived next door to and taught within Canada during the 80’s. Jane’s sister is the former First Lady of Hawaii, so on Sat we have lunch with Pete and Jane and the former Governor and his wife. There are 38 students in my class here – all professional people. Teaching statistics in 4 days is a challenge for both the teacher and students, but all goes well.

Jan 14: Thursday afternoon we leave Hawaii for Guam. We will cross the International Date Line, so this week will only have 6 days. We arrive in Guam 10 PM Friday evening. Not to worry, on the way back our week will have 8 days. We are staying in the SDA mission guest house. Very convenient to the Bank of Guam building (3-min drive) where the class will be held, and very good internet connections. Our cell phones would be very expensive to use here in Guam but we can buy long distance calling cards to call the US for 4 cents/minute, and we have a phone in our room. We rent a car for $35/day.

There are 22 students in the Guam class – again all professional people – nurses, engineers, and insurance industry people. Very good class with lots of personality. We spend or off-teaching hours touring the island and snorkeling. It rains often during the day – but no mind, it is warm – and this is the dry season of the year, we are told. 10 min heavy rain, then 30 min of hot sun. It is very windy the whole time we are here. While here we are warned of an impending cold snap. It is predicted to get down into the high 60’s – the worst cold in 20 years. When things get that cold you worry about survival!! Should have packed my long-johns!!

We were treated to a dolphin watching trip (saw lots) and a banana boat ride and a try at kayaking on the ocean. Hope to do more of that in Palau, next week. Lots of WWII history here. Also a very big military presence. In the next couple of years all the Marines (17,000) from Okinawa will be moving their complete base here. The economy is expected to boom. Guam is a USA protectorate (like the District of Columbia and Porto Rico).

Jan 21; 8 pm we leave Guam for Palau. Our plane will stop for an hour in Yap. Palau is south-west of Guam and close (450miles) from the Philippines. We get off the plane in Yap to say we have actually been there! We get to Palau about 10 PM. We have made arrangements for someone from the SDA mission to meet us. We will be staying in a mission guest house. So here we are in Palau.

The population of the Republic of Palau is 20,000 souls – about the same as Loma Linda. It consists of 10 islands with a land area of about 200 sq miles. However, we quickly learn that Palau has something that Loma Linda does not have - as many wild chickens as people. Half are roosters and at least 500 of them have set up camp directly under our bedroom window. These roosters have determined that about 3:00 AM is the appropriate time that visitors from California be awakened, and believe me they take their assignment seriously.

Now Eileen has a very low tolerance for discomfort, and also likes to sleep in – especially on vacation. So about 5 AM I am searching for my pillow when I spot a stack of pillows on her side of the bed with a body and legs protruding. I look under the stack of pillows only to find my wife with ear plugs stuffed in her ears and a thick bath towel wrapped around her head. She is muttering something. The only words I can make out are “those Roosters”. Guess she is too long from the Saskatchewan farm where she grew up to remember the enthusiasm they can generate before sunrise.

Oh, I failed to mention that the house we are staying in is right in the center of Koror, the largest city in the Republic – just behind the post office, right next to the central police station and fire department and two blocks from the national ministry of education and the Supreme Court.

So long until Chapter 2 from the South-West Pacific

Eileen and Floyd
Petersen’s Western Pacific Adventures #2What we have learned:

1. Prices of food and other consumer goods is very expensive in Hawaii

2. Prices in Guam are about half that in Hawaii. Casual men’s clothes are less expensive in Guam than in CA. I inquired about the difference in prices between Hawaii and Guam and was told (in Guam) that it was because Hawaii is the most unionized of any state. I thought Guam would be more expensive because of extra shipping.

3. Guam has a lot of dogs. Palau has almost as many dogs as chickens. The dogs all seem very docile.

4. People are friendly in Hawaii. People are very friendly in Guam. People are VERY VERYfriendly in Palau. Everyone greets you, and tries to help you. People wave as you drive by. Kind of like it was 60 years ago where I grew up.

5. Lots of reminders of WWII in Guam and Palau. Peleliu – a small island a few miles south of here is where the fiercest battle in the Pacific took place. In Sept 1944, 15,000 men were killed on this 5 sq. mile island.

6. Word on the street here in Palau is that the US recently paid Palau $55 million to take 4 Guantanamo detainees. The presidents Brother-in-law who was recently released from prison here in Palau was put in charge of them, is the story I heard.

7. Babeldaob – the largest island (153 sq. miles) has a population of 5,000. Most of the 153 sq. miles interior consist of large rolling hills covered by dense tropical jungle and is not inhabited. The people live in small coastal communities. The vast stretches of uninhabited land are impressive.

8. Lots of birds in Hawaii, few in Guam and Palau. Rare to see a cat in Guam and Palau. Maybe the wild chickens ate all the cats! Maybe the birds are all hiding in the jungle.

9. Traditionally Palau was a matriarchal society – the women owned the land and managed the money and picked the men who ruled.

10. One feels like taking a cool shower every half hour.

11. Internet is slow here in the evening. The internet café a block from our house opens at 6 AM and has a special for $1/hour until 9AM. It is quite fast in the morning.

12. About half of the population of Japan is here in Palau on holiday.

13. You think restaurant servings are big in CA? Come to Palau! You can hardly see your significant other over the pile of food here.

14. Beetlenut! It’s the thing to chew here. What a mess!. I asked a lady in the store what it would do for me. She said “the first time you would feel a little Dizzy – a real good feeling – you must try it”

Yesterday we did a day trip to the Rock Islands. Spectacular! The Rock Islands are a group of about 200 small Jungle-covered limestone islands that look like green mushrooms rising out of the ocean; Some as small as an acre and some several sq. miles. Many have small lakes in the middle. Jellyfish Lake contains thousands of jellyfish which don’t sting. We swam among them (for an extra conservation fee of $15). We did a lot of snorkeling on the reef. Lots of sharks here we have heard.

When Eileen asked our guide what she should do when encountering a shark, he said not to worry, all sharks in Palau are taught to be vegetarian. I saw one small shark which paid me no notice. They seem not to annoy people here. Tomorrow we want to be dropped off among the islands with a kayak and just paddle around and snorkel at our own pace. The water is warm –around 83 degrees – and very clear.

Jan. 25: Today we played Survivor. We had a boat drop us off on an uninhabited tropical Island with a nice beach (uninhabited until 11 boatloads of Japanese arrived at noon) . We had a 2-person kayak with us and our lunch. Wanting to survive alone, we quickly paddled to another island. We did a lot of snorkeling. Suddenly we discovered we had some company who seemed unusually interested in us. Sharks! Had about half dozen circling us. Strange feeling to have one about 4 ft long charge right up to me. I put out my hand and with a flick of his tail he was gone. Glad Eileen was with me out there! She is a great adventurer. These are all small sharks – up to about 5 ft long. Nothing to worry about we were told. Saw giant Clams weighing 200 lb we were told.

We have two days left. Back out into the tropical waters tomorrow. Will keep you up to date

Eileen & Floyd in Palau

Petersen Adventure in the Western Pacific #3Jan 26: Today was the best ever. Palau includes about 200 uninhabited small islands called the Rock Islands. The islands are limestone and many look like a toad stool. They are high and covered with very dense Jungle including many large trees. There is almost no soil on the islands and all the jungle grows right on the rocks. The limestone is very porous. Much of the jungle is great vines. Most of the islands are 1-500 ft high with almost vertical sides. The base of the islands are smaller than the tops due to the wave action of the sea. Many large sea caves along the sides. Very few beaches. They are all close together with channels going everywhere. Just a boat ride through them is an incredible experience.

We had the diving company drop us off on a small sand beach in this beautiful lagoon. Everything was just perfect. Warm day with a little cloud cover. Not much wind. Quiet – no other people around. No commercial noise. Wonderful snorkeling among the beautiful coral. Water was calm (mostly) and very clear. We kayaked to a couple of nearby sea caves. We could actually paddle right in. We learned later that one episode of Survivor was actually filmed here. It was everything one envisions about an off-the-beaten-track South Sea paradise. A place and experience one wishes would never end.

But on that little beach among the incredible natural beauty, were grim reminders that this now peaceful paradise was not always so. Several Japanese concrete pillboxes with large holes blasted through the sides silently tell of a death struggle here 65 years ago. A small episode in a giant clash of ideas ending in violent death, happened right where we stand. Nature has made a valiant attempt to cover over the madness of man, but only with limited success. The words of a 1960’s song came to mind: “Where have all the young men gone?...Gone to graveyards everyone. When will we ever Learn? When will we ever Learn?”

Things we have learned while here:

1. During the WWII battle for Peleliu, from the Japanese garrison of 15,000, only 240 solders made it off the island alive. The US lost over 7,000 men. The US had vastly underestimated the size and tenacity of the foe.

2. Palau, now an independent nation of about 22,000 people (plus 5,000 foreign workers and a lot of visitors – especially from Asia) live on 10 inhabited and 200 uninhabited islands consisting of 196 sq miles of land. Palau also claims 1.5 million sq miles of ocean as territorial waters. Territorial waters extend 200 miles beyond the outer reef. So how does 22,000 people (GDP/person = $10,000/year) maintain a nation – not to mention supervising 1.5 million sq miles of ocean? Massive foreign aid. The US gave Palau $450 million over the past 15 years, partly in exchange for permission to locate nuclear weapons here – which I am not sure they actually ever did. Japan along with other Asian nations pour in money. Australia provides a patrol of the 1.5 million sq miles of ocean with one small navy boat. Last year they caught a fishing boat with 200 illegal headless shark Carcasses on board.

3. Car theft in Palau is almost unheard of. Everyone leaves their keys in their car, we were told. Well, think about it – only one paved 55 mile long road around the country. Not too many places to drive a stolen car without being noticed. Besides, everybody knows everybody.

4. Keep a close eye on your wife if she is alone in the Kayak. Above, I mentioned that the water was mostly calm today. Well we were at the place where the lagoon joins the open ocean. I am out of the kayak prospecting for some good snorkeling. I look up in time to see a stiff breeze taking Eileen in the kayak around the corner of the cliff and headed straight for Japan. She wasn’t used to solo paddling the kayak. Some franticly shouted instructions on which side to paddle righted the situation. But the experience gave both of us a bit of a scare. Actually, the water was only waste deep but we didn’t think about that at the moment. We then took some time to practice paddling.

5. There is a lot of water out here.
Friday, Jan 29 at 1:10 AM we leave Palau. We will leave the rental car at the airport with the keys in it. We stop for 1 hr in Guam, and then on to Hawaii where we arrive Thursday evening, Jan 28 at 5:50 PM. So after traveling 4,800 miles, we arrive about 6 hours before we left! This week will have 8 days.

Until Chapter 4; Eileen and Floyd having fun in the Western Pacific
Chapter 4: Petersen’s Western Pacific Adventure

Monday, Feb 1. Back in Hawaii.

When we left LA for Hawaii a month ago, before we boarded the plane, the airline (Continental) announced that the plane was overbooked by 23 people. They were looking for people to give up their seats for a price. After boarding the plane, I noticed a lot of empty seats. When we got to Guam I asked the pilot about the overbooking and the empty seats. He said that we had 120 mph head winds the whole way and we needed the extra fuel so with all seats full we would be overweight. On the way back from Guam to Hawaii, we had 100 mph tail winds the whole way.

The day before we left Palau, we were driving around the countryside and came upon a new building with a very substantial high fence around it. First I thought I might be a prison, but then I noticed a US flag flying above. I said to Eileen that this must be the US embassy. We drove past, and then I said to Eileen “I wonder if the ambassador is in?”. We turned around and went up to the guard house at the gate, and I asked the guard if we could meet with the ambassador.

The guard asked me if I had a business card. I gave him my city council card. He phoned someone and in a few minutes we went through security and up to the front door of the embassy. The guard at the door said to the secretary “tell the ambassador the congressman is here”(he read councilman as congressman –or maybe he didn’t know the difference).

The Ambassador came out to welcome us into his office where we chatted with him for an hour. He had been stationed many places in the world, and knew about Loma Linda University and SDA’s. It seemed he was glad to have visitors to relieve the boredom. The Palau US embassy is the smallest US embassy in the world, he told us. He is the only person there from the US – of course he has a staff of local people. Actually, I had seen him in a local grocery store the day before – but didn’t then know who he was.

What we learned:

1. 17 years ago the US negotiated a 15 year ‘Free Association Agreement’ with Palau. The deal went something like this: In exchange for $15 million/year, the US could if needed, locate nuclear weapons and military personal in Palau. In addition, any Palauan could move to and work in the US permanently without a visa. Actually a number of Palauans serve in the US military. Remember, Palau is an independent sovereign nation. The same privileges do not extend to US citizens going to Palau, however. To be a citizen, or even own land in Palau, you must have one parent who is a Palau citizen. Being married to a Palauan or being born in Palau doesn’t work. That ‘Fee Association Agreement’ expired in 2008. A new one is right now being negotiated here in Hawaii.

2. Last Friday, the president of Palau signed into law a measure to increase the tax on a pack of cigarettes from $1 to $3. That is higher than all but 1 US state. The ambassador told us that there is also a move afoot to ban the sale of club soda. I asked why. He said that the government wants to get Palauans to cut down on alcohol use, and since club soda is the most common mixer for alcoholic drinks, the thought is by banning it, less alcohol will be consumed.

Now, back in Hawaii: Today we spent the day on the battleship Missouri. Cost: $40 each. It was worth it. Actually the cost to get on an wander around on your own is $20, but ours included a guided tour of many parts of the ship you don’t get to see on your own. Hard to describe the massiveness of the ship. The wheel house is enclosed in 16 inches of solid steel. The wheel house was off limits to visitors, but when no one was looking I snuck in and stood at the wheel.

Interesting to stand where General Mac Arthur received and signed the instrument of surrender which ended the WWII in the pacific. The person who signed on behalf of Canada, was a corporal – the highest ranking Canadian they could find nearby. He was so nervous, he signed on the wrong line on the Japanese copy of the document. When they got to the US copy, Gen. Mac Arthur stood by and made sure he got it on the right line.

Tomorrow we leave for home at 7 PM and arrive in LA at 5 AM.

It has been fun telling these stories. You couldn’t have enjoyed reading them nearly as much as we did living them.

Until our next adventure – Eileen & Floyd