Category: Activities (Page 11 of 32)

Activities are gatherings that occur on a regular schedule, usually weekly, to enjoy a specific pastime.

Hike Trout Brook Valley Preserve Sep 30, 2021 at 10:00

September 13, 2021 /

 TROUT BROOK VALLEY HIKE

      WESTON, CT

          SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

                10:00 AM

On our first hike of the fall, we will return to the Trout Brook Valley Conservation area in Weston, an 1100 acre preserve that is part of the Aspetuck Land Trust, where we last hiked in 2019. Trout Brook Valley classifies their trails  as hard, medium and easy and your DMA hiking team discovered  that on our pre-hike where we tested a “hard” trail and found the description very accurate! We will not be using that trail for our hike of about 3 miles over easy and medium terrain. The preserve is still quite lush and green in September so it will be mostly shady. The trails are well maintained and the trail markings are excellent. There is some traversing of mostly flat rocky areas. This hike should be a great way to start off our fall season!

As always, friends, spouses, etc are welcome to join us. Dogs on a leash are permitted. There will be no lunch after the hike.

We will be using the Bradley Road entrance to the preserve in Weston. On Google maps or Waze enter Trout Brook Valley Preserve or 18 Bradley Road, Weston. The parking lot is not large so car pooling would be a good idea. If you let either of us know you will be joining us, we can arrange pools. The drive takes about 25 minutes from Darien.

Dave McCollum or Bob Plunkett

 

A small but enthusiastic group of seven spent a delightful two hours hiking the Green and Orange Trails at Trout Brook Preserve this morning, a cool and invigorating day to be in such beautiful woods. 

The 730 acre Trout Brook Preserve was purchased in 1999 by the Aspetuck Land Trust from the Bridgeport Hydraulic Company which was planning to sell it to a developer who wanted to construct over one hundred luxury homes and a golf course. The $11.3 million purchase price was raised jointly by the State of Connecticut and Aspetuck. Actor Paul Newman was among the contributors.

The trails we hiked were well maintained and of variable difficulty but nothing our group could not handle. We pretty much had the whole Preserve to ourselves as we saw very few other hikers which contributed to the quiet attractiveness of the trails. We crossed three brooks, one of which must have been Trout Brook, but saw no trout or other fauna other than a worm or two. So much for wild kingdom!

As usual on our hikes, the opportunity to talk to each other was a highlight. 

We hope a larger group of DMAers will join us on our next hike at Devil’s Den in Weston on Monday October 25.

 

Dave McCollum and Bob Plunkett

Book Club: Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe, Oct 13, 2021, 2:00

September 9, 2021 /

A grand, devastating portrait of three generations of the Sackler family, famed for their philanthropy, whose fortune was built by Valium and whose reputation was destroyed by OxyContin, by the prize-winning, bestselling author of Say Nothing The Sackler name adorns the walls of many storied institutions–Harvard, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Oxford, the Louvre. They are one of the richest families in the world, known for their lavish donations to the arts and the sciences. The source of the family fortune was vague, however, until it emerged that the Sacklers were responsible for making and marketing a blockbuster painkiller that was the catalyst for the opioid crisis.

Empire of Pain begins with the story of three doctor brothers, Raymond, Mortimer and the incalculably energetic Arthur, who weathered the poverty of the Great Depression and appalling anti-Semitism. Working at a barbaric mental institution, Arthur saw a better way and conducted groundbreaking research into drug treatments. He also had a genius for marketing, especially for pharmaceuticals, and bought a small ad firm. Arthur devised the marketing for Valium, and built the first great Sackler fortune. He purchased a drug manufacturer, Purdue Frederick, which would be run by Raymond and Mortimer. The brothers began collecting art, and wives, and grand residences in exotic locales. Their children and grandchildren grew up in luxury. Forty years later, Raymond’s son Richard ran the family-owned Purdue.

The template Arthur Sackler created to sell Valium–co-opting doctors, influencing the FDA, downplaying the drug’s addictiveness–was employed to launch a far more potent product: OxyContin. The drug went on to generate some thirty-five billion dollars in revenue, and to launch a public health crisis in which hundreds of thousands would die. This is the saga of three generations of a single family and the mark they would leave on the world, a tale that moves from the bustling streets of early twentieth-century Brooklyn to the seaside palaces of Greenwich, Connecticut, and Cap d’Antibes to the corridors of power in Washington, D.C.

Empire of Pain chronicles the multiple investigations of the Sacklers and their company, and the scorched-earth legal tactics that the family has used to evade accountability. The history of the Sackler dynasty is rife with drama–baroque personal lives; bitter disputes over estates; fistfights in boardrooms; glittering art collections; Machiavellian courtroom maneuvers; and the calculated use of money to burnish reputations and crush the less powerful. Empire of Pain is a masterpiece of narrative reporting and writing, exhaustively documented and ferociously compelling. It is a portrait of the excesses of America’s second Gilded Age, a study of impunity among the super elite and a relentless investigation of the naked greed and indifference to human suffering that built one of the world’s great fortunes.

Current Affairs: Income Inequality, Oct 28, 2021

September 6, 2021 /

October 28th at 11:30am (new date & time) Current Affairs: Income Inequality-Is it a problem? If so, what are the solutions? What are the Chinese doing to address their income inequality? Mike Wheeler will moderate the discussion. Gary Banks will argue for the proposal and Mark Nunan will argue the opposing side.

Study Materials

Based on Washington Post Series “Sharing the Wealth” and the IntelligenceSquared Debate 

“Economic inequality has become a linchpin of modern politics. As nations around the world face a reckoning on racial and social justice and work to combat the economic impacts of the pandemic, we ask: Is it time to redistribute the wealth? Should we address growing inequality by overhauling our tax system, expanding our social safety nets, and investing more in public initiatives like universal health care, education, and infrastructure? Or would a wealth transfer unduly punish the economic elite, destroy the promise of a meritocracy, and inevitably lead to excessive government intervention in our social and economic lives?” 

Washington Post Series on “Sharing the Wealth”

Backgrounder from the Council on Foreign Relations

Is Economic Inequality  Really a Problem? 

Intelligence Squared U.S. Debate:  It’s Time to Redistribute the Wealth

It’s Time to Redistribute the Wealth-Research Brief

Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/intelligence-squared-u-s-debates/id216713308?i=1000529064442

Warning of Income Gap, Xi Tells China’s  Tycoons to Share Wealth

A Distorted View of Wealth Inequality

6 facts about economic inequality in the U.S. 

How the Left Exaggerates Income Inequality -WSJ

How to Distort Income Inequality-WSJ

A Bipartisan consensus on Income Inequality-WSJ

6 Policies to Combat Inequality-Center for American Progress

Income Inequality Isn’t the Problem-Hoover Institution 

Fixing Income Inequality-Hoover Institution 

Middle-Class Pay Lost Pace-Is Washington the Blame-New York Times 

This Viral Video is Right: We Need to Worry About Income Inequality

Corporate Revenue Keeps Shrinking-Scott Galloway

Americans know Wealth inequity is a problem, but what does it look like? 

The Problem with the Peloton Economy

Why Do People Tolerate Wealth Inequality? 

 

DMA Golf Outing: Sterling Farms Tuesday, 14 September 2021

September 1, 2021 /

Our third 2021 outing is at Sterling Farms, Stamford,

Tuesday 14 September starting at 10:30 AM.

Tee times will be assigned once registration is complete.

To sign up, email Peter Carnes, picarnes@gmail.com.

Provide your handicap to facilitate pairing.

Fee is $46 (includes cart) payable when you arrive.

Confirmation and coordination will be via email during the week prior to play.

We were blessed with a beautiful day on 14 September at Sterling Farms where 24 members arrived for 18 holes of golf on the Stamford course. Remarkably there were no last-minute cancellations; since the event was oversubscribed, this meant that at least half a dozen members were not able to play.  There were no reports of unusual accomplishments, good or bad, which is probably more attributable to modesty or embarrassment than reality. The course was in excellent condition which is a tribute to their staff to which we are again grateful for their annual hospitality to the DMA.

Peter Carnes

 

Postponed: February 17, 2022 at 11am Current Affairs: Ric Grefé leads an interactive design session on Immigration

August 24, 2021 /

February 17th  at 11am: Reimagining immigration policies. Ric Grefé will lead an interactive workshop using design thinking techniques to capture observations and ideas from all those attending. Participants will need to see the problem from many perspectives. According to the Interactive Design Foundation, design thinking is a non-linear, iterative process that teams use to understand situations,  challenge assumptions, redefine problems and create innovative solutions to prototype and test. The session will last 1.5 hours.

DMA GOLF OUTING: COUNTRY CLUB of DARIEN, THURSDAY, AUGUST 26, 2021

August 4, 2021 /

The DMA golf season began at Oak Hills in July with 32 DMA members participating in a wonderful golf outing. The golf course was in great shape, everyone enjoyed the camaraderie, and there were no rain delays. Golf results remain privileged information.

The next golf outing of the season will be held at the Country Club of Darien at 9:00 AM on Thursday, August 26th. A buffet lunch will be served after play is completed. Cost for non CCD members will be $115 for golf and cart; the buffet will be $25.  Please email Peter Carnes at picarnes@gmail.com  if you wish to play. Make sure to include your email address and handicap for communications and pairing purposes.

We look forward to another great turnout of DMA golfers at CCD in August.

Peter

Book Club: The Quiet Americans: Four CIA Spies AT The Dawn Of The Cold War – A Tragedy In Three Acts by Scott Anderson, September 8, 2021

July 19, 2021 /

A probing history of the CIA’s evolving role from the outset of the Cold War into the 1960s, viewed through the exploits of four American spies. On the heels of Germany’s defeat in World War II, European leaders and intelligence agents were shifting focus to the Soviet Union’s dominance over Eastern Europe and threatening pursuit of influence in Asia. Under a recently sworn-in President Harry Truman, the American government was slower to gauge early. signals but eventually responded with often disastrous covert tactics. Anderson delivers a complex, massively scaled narrative, balancing prodigious research with riveting storytelling skills. He tracks the careers of four agents. In the Philippines, Edward Lansdale was instrumental in combatting the Hukbalahap uprising, lining up Ramon Magsaysay, the secretary of defense, to become president in 1954. Peter Sichel, a German Jew whose family escaped the Nazis, ran the CIA’s Berlin office for more than a decade. Former naval officer Michael Burke headed the paramilitary operations in Albania and elsewhere. Frank Wisner, the CIA’s deputy director of plans, had key roles in the Office of Policy Coordination until its full merging with the CIA in 1950. Though all four men began their careers with the strong desire to defend American freedom, the author
engagingly demonstrates how their efforts were undermined by politically motivated power grabs within the
U.S. government; poorly planned covert operations; and duplicitous scheming by the likes of J. Edgar Hoover
and Sen. Joseph McCarthy, who were espousing anti-communist rhetoric to advance their own careers. “By
the end of Eisenhower’s second term,” writes Anderson, “the geographical spread of governments that his
administration had undertaken to overthrow or otherwise subvert suggested an almost purposeful design, as if
it sought to alienate the citizenry of most every region and subregion of the globe.” Over the course of the
narrative, the author amply shows how the CIA was increasingly pushed to function as an instrument of
politically charged ambitions.
An engrossing history of the early days of the CIA.

September 16th at 11am Current Affairs: Real Life as a Palestinian-Has America gotten this one right or wrong? As a successful international lawyer, some two decades ago, David Maloof asked: “How could he make the biggest difference in this life. He decided that the biggest challenge he could undertake was to try to solve the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.

June 7, 2021 /

Real Life as a Palestinian-Has America gotten this one right or wrong?  David Maloof will moderate the discussion.

  1. Background

I am pleased to lead an in-house conversation on “Real Life as a Palestinian: Has America Gotten This Right or Wrong?” on September 16th  from 11am-12 noon.

To save on time, let me start by providing my personal vantage point.

As a successful international lawyer, some two decades ago I asked: how could I make the biggest difference in this life?  I decided that the biggest challenge I could undertake was to try to solve Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.

I then undertook the following tasks, among others:

1.  Visiting Palestinian refugee camps in the West Bank and Lebanon to participate in real life; funding recreational facilities and a basketball court at a Palestinian refugee camp; serving on the national board of a Christian organization (“Churches for Middle East Peace”) dedicated to this cause, still a member; taking out a ½ page ad in the New York Times; paying for highway billboards; attending international Jewish organization’s peace conferences and lecturing on college campuses about my experiences; reviewing legal brief for US peace activist NGO.

2. Meeting with Middle East Christian Leaders; Palestinian leaders in Ramallah; Chief Palestinian negotiator (Saeb           Erekat) and Palestinian and Arab leaders and ambassadors in Washington and London; Israeli Foreign Ministry in Tel Aviv; members of Knesset in Tel Aviv; Israeli Settlement leaders; and Israeli media elite.

3. Meetings with US Senators, their staffs, and officials in the State Department; meeting with National Security Council Staff in the Obama White House; meeting with US Consul General in Jerusalem; providing informational documentaries to the same National Security Staff; meeting with George Mitchell, U.S. peace envoy.

4. Interacting with US media to place Palestinian peacemakers on US television and radio programs, such as CNN International and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (2009).

5. Arranged for the President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, to directly address the American people in English on a college campus (The Cooper Union) and call for peace (September 22, 2014).

Notes on the parameters of the September 16, 2021 discussion given the potential breadth of the topic and the limited time:

1. I would like to hew closely to the subject of: “Real Life for a Palestinian.”

2. I suggest that given time restraints we avoid discussion of historical events and try to stick to the current situation in 2020-2021.

3. I suggest that it would also probably be useful to focus on current living conditions in 2020 and 2021 in Palestine and in Israel.

4. suggest that we should focus more on current and possible future US policies than past ones.

Media

 I suggest that you might go online and watch some of the two following media:

1. “John Oliver – Last Week Tonight” Israel v. Palestine (5/17/21)

https://www.dropbox.com/s/jgbw2g1hobvpevv/John%20Oliver%20-%20Israel%20v.%20Palestine%20Conflict.mp4?dl=0

2. “Budrus” (2009) (1 hour, 22 minutes)

https://www.amazon.com/Budrus-Ayed-Morrar/dp/B00B1Z20UQ

3. “Five Broken Cameras” (2011). (Nominated for an Academy Award in 2013 for “Best Documentary.”) (1 hour, 34 minutes)

https://www.amazon.com/5-Broken-Cameras-English-Subtitled/dp/B00B03Z858

4. “The Daily Show” (guest Mustafa Barghouti) (2009)

https://www.cc.com/video/l00143/the-daily-show-with-jon-stewart-exclusive-anna-baltzer-mustafa-barghouti-extended-interview-pt-1

5. Anna Balzer, “Life in Occupied Palestine.” (2008)

https://www.amazon.com/Life-Occupied-Palestine-Eyewitness-Stories/dp/0930852478

6. Written Materials

I also suggest reading some of the following written materials:

Daily Life/Human Rights in Israel

  1. B’Tselem, “A Regime of Jewish Supremacy from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea: This is Apartheid,” (2021)https://www.btselem.org/sites/default/files/publications/202101_this_is_apartheid_eng.pdf
  2. B’Tselem, “This is Apartheid,” (2021) https://thisisapartheid.btselem.org/eng/#1
  3. Human Rights Watch, “A Threshold Crossed: Israeli Authorities and the Crimes of Apartheid and Persecution,” (2021) https://www.hrw.org/report/2021/04/27/threshold-crossed/israeli-authorities-and-crimes-apartheid-and-persecution
  4. Amnesty International, “Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territories 2020” (2020) https://www.amnesty.org/en/countries/middle-east-and-north-africa/israel-and-occupied-palestinian-territories/

Treatment of Children in Palestine

  1. UNICEF, “The Situation of Palestinian Children in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon,” (2010)https://www.unicef.org/oPt/PALESTINIAN_SITAN-final.pdf
  2. Human Rights Watch, “Second Class: Discrimination against Palestinian Arab Children in Israel’s Schools,” (2001)https://www.hrw.org/reports/2001/israel2/ISRAEL0901.pdf

Life in Gaza in 2020-2021

 1. Ghalayini, Basama, “A Gazan’s View on Hamas: It’s Not Complicated,” (2021) https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/24/opinion/israel-hamas-gaza-ceasefire.html

2. Save the Children, “Denial of Healthcare outside Gaza Is a Death Sentence for Children,” (2020) https://reliefweb.int/report/occupied-palestinian-territory/denial-healthcare-outside-gaza-death-sentence-children-save#:~:text=oPt-,’Denial%20of%20healthcare%20outside%20Gaza%20is%20a%20death,for%20children’%3A%20Save%20the%20Children&text=Children%20in%20Gaza%20are%20dying,Save%20the%20Children%20is%20warning

3. Al Jazeera, “‘Staggering’: WHO Says 200,000 Palestinians in Need of Health Aid,” (2021) https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/6/2/who-says-nearly-200000-palestinians-in-need-health-of-health-aid

4. BBC, “Israel-Gaza Violence: The Conflict Explained,” (2021) https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-44124396#:~:text=A%20ceasefire’s%20been%20agreed%20between,240%20people%20have%20been%20killed.&text=Israel%20and%20Hamas%20both%20claimed%20victory%20in%20the%20latest%20conflict

5. Conley, Julia, “This Is the Price of War,” (2021) https://www.commondreams.org/news/2021/05/27/price-war-israeli-newspaper-publishes-photos-all-67-palestinian-children-killed-gaza

6. Balousha, Hazem and Berger, Miriam, “The U.N. Once Predicted Gaza Would be ‘Uninhabitable’ by 2020.  Two Million People Still Live There,” (2020)https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/01/01/un-predicted-gaza-would-be-uninhabitable-by-heres-what-that-actually-means/

7. Hearst, David, “Gaza 2020: How Easy It Is for the World to Delete Palestinian Pain,” (2019) https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/gaza-2020-un-report-history-forgotten-israel-blockade

8. Kuttab, Jonathan, “Israel Has Effective Control over Gaza,” (2020) http://arabcenterdc.org/viewpoint/israel-has-effective-control-over-gaza/

9.  Mahmoud, “Speech at The Cooper Union: Rethink Palestine,” (2014) https://oldwebsite.palestine-studies.org/jps/fulltext/188331

 Anthologies

a.The Electric Typewriter, “8 Great Articles about Israel/Palestine” (2019) https://tetw.org/IsraelPalestine

b. Foote, Jilliam, Jensen, Kristen, and Wintz Neighbor, Tese, “Understanding the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: A Resource Packet for Educators” (2009)https://www.elon.edu/u/academics/csrcs/wp-content/uploads/sites/478/2017/08/Israel-Palestine-Resource-Packet.pdf

 

Current Affairs: June 17th Universal Basic Income in Europe-Jamie Cooke, Head of RSA Scotland and Leading figure is in the global basic income discussion. Appearance courtesy of Ric Grefe Time: Jun 17, 2021 10:00 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

June 6, 2021 /
Hosts: Mike Wheeler and Mark Nunan
Note the time is 10am EDT for the Current Affairs. One hour earlier than usual. Mr. Cooke is joining us from Scotland.
June 17th   Universal Basic Income in Europe-Jamie Cooke, Head of RSA Scotland and Leading figure is in the global basic income discussion. Appearance courtesy of Ric Grefe
As the COVID19 pandemic has thrown the world into turmoil, pre-existing issues of economic insecurity, the changing nature of work, and the impact of climate change have been accelerated and deepened.  This has brought a significant challenge for the public and businesses, yet it has also opened up space to consider new ideas for changing the social contract of countries around the world.
One of these ideas to have sprung to prominence is that of a basic income, a regular, secure, and unconditional payment made to each eligible person.  Cities across the US are considering piloting examples of the policy to test its impact, and countries such as Scotland are actively exploring opportunities to introduce the idea on a national level.
Join Jamie Cooke, Head of RSA Scotland and a leading figure in the global basic income discussion to explore the history of this old idea; the reasons that it has gained such traction in recent years; and what the future might look like.  It will be an opportunity to explore your questions, reflections and critiques of basic income; and to potentially identify steps for getting involved if that is of interest.”
Jamie Cooke’s global references
Mike Wheeler’s US references

Link to Famie’s presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7R4gvZdicQY

 

 

Current Affairs: Universal Basic Income in Europe, June 17, 2021 10:00AM EDT

June 6, 2021 /
Hosts: Mike Wheeler and Mark Nunan
Note the time is 10am EDT for the Current Affairs. One hour earlier than usual. Mr. Cooke is joining us from Scotland.
June 17th   Universal Basic Income in Europe-Jamie Cooke, Head of RSA Scotland and Leading figure is in the global basic income discussion. Appearance courtesy of Ric Grefe
As the COVID19 pandemic has thrown the world into turmoil, pre-existing issues of economic insecurity, the changing nature of work, and the impact of climate change have been accelerated and deepened.  This has brought a significant challenge for the public and businesses, yet it has also opened up space to consider new ideas for changing the social contract of countries around the world.
One of these ideas to have sprung to prominence is that of a basic income, a regular, secure, and unconditional payment made to each eligible person.  Cities across the US are considering piloting examples of the policy to test its impact, and countries such as Scotland are actively exploring opportunities to introduce the idea on a national level.
Join Jamie Cooke, Head of RSA Scotland and a leading figure in the global basic income discussion to explore the history of this old idea; the reasons that it has gained such traction in recent years; and what the future might look like.  It will be an opportunity to explore your questions, reflections and critiques of basic income; and to potentially identify steps for getting involved if that is of interest.”
Mike Wheeler’s US references

Jamie Cooke’s global references

 

 

Wander Roosevelt Memorial on Roosevelt Island, June 23, 2021

June 5, 2021 /

Joe Spain and David Mace will lead the Happy Wanderers in their final outing of the spring/summer season on Wednesday, June 23, the first trip to Manhattan on Metro North since the fall of 2019! The group will be leaving the Darien station on the 8:33 AM express to Grand Central (8:37 AM out of Noroton Heights); masks are required on Metro North. You should buy your tickets for the train at the machines on the Darien  or Noroton train platforms. A Metro Card will be needed for the Tram to Roosevelt Island. If you don’t have a Card, you can buy your train ticket from the machines with one Metro Card ride included.  The group will congregate at the information booth on the main floor upon arrival in Grand Central. The walking destination is the 59th St. Tram to  Roosevelt Island, and then to the Four Freedoms Roosevelt Park at the south end of the Island. From there, the group will take the East River ferry to 34th Street, and have lunch. We then will walk back to Grand Central, with a short stop at the Morgan Library, and an afternoon train back to Darien. Please get in touch with Joe (203-554-4201) or David (203-505-9693) if you would like to join this excursion.

The History of Collecting, June 14, 2021, 10:00

May 15, 2021 /

The History of Collecting. What do you Collect? Is it for Fun or Profit?

Doug Campbell will share some history. DMA members are asked to share stories and insights into what, why and how they collect.

Topic: MONEY MATTERS  The History of Collecting. What do you Collect? Is it for Fun or Profit?
Time: Jun 14, 2021 10:00 AM

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