Summerfest 2002 at Precious Moments.

Summerfest 2002, a festival of acoustic music, will be held July 11,12 and 13 at the Precious Moments North Convention Center, located within the Precious Moments Complex.

Over 55 different workshops will be held Friday & Saturday on the Mountain and Hammered Dulcimer, Autoharp, Fiddle, Accordian, Guitar, Mandolin, Banjo, Psaltery, Saw, Spoons, and Mouth Bow. Nine different national champions of the mentioned instruments will be giving workshops and performances.

The stage will be open Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. There will be continuous music for twelve hours each day. Music jam sessions will begin when the stage closes. The cost is $5 per day without workshops and $20 with workshops. Children under 12 are free except it they take workshops. No alcoholic beverages will be allowed.

Groups performing include: the Hammer Sisters, Johnson Family, Kentucky 31, Plainsfolk, Whisman Family, Woodsong/Sounds, Elaine Smith, Stringdancer, Lee Rowe, Stephen Seifert, Linda Thomas & Dan DeLancey, Jim Curley, Karen Daniels, David Moran & Joe Morgan, Neil & Coleen Walters, Kelly & Diana Werts, Princess Harris, Karen Muller, Tom Schroeder, Don Pedi, Russell Cook, Scott Odena, Larry Conger and many others.

The festival will also include music and food vendors inside the Convention Center. Many old time crafts will be demonstrated. The festival will be held in air conditioning. Summerfest 2002 is a non-profit organization interested in promoting acoustic music of all kinds in the Four State area and beyond.

Commentary

Martin "Bubs" Hohulin
State Representative, District 126

With July 4th just around the corner, I would like to use this week’s column to write some things that have been bouncing around in my head the last couple of weeks. I have been spending quite a few hours each day in the tractor and that always gives me a lot of time to think.

Ever since the tragedy of September 11 there seems to be more emphasis placed on not offending anyone than there is of common sense and standing up for the good old US of A.

First, we heard that there would only be random checks at airports, not selective checks of someone that might look like a potential terrorist. We can’t have racial profiling, you know.

I want to know why not?! If a young Muslim man and a grandpa in a wheelchair are both in line at the airport it is totally insane to search down grandpa and let Abdul stroll right by.

However, in the name of political correctness, that is what we have come to.

I read where former Vice President Al Gore got stopped and searched by airport security. Understand, I am no fan of Al Gore, but I would never think he would board a plane with terrorism on his mind. As usual, he gave the correct answer when asked about it.

He said he was glad to do his part to cooperate. I would have had more respect for him if he had blown up and said, "I am the former Vice President, this is stupid. I have no intention of hijacking this plane or any others". From a practical standpoint, every minute spent checking out a person that everyone knows is not a danger is a minute spent not checking a bearded man with a turban that could be a danger. Do you think an American would be afforded the same courtesy in the Middle East?

Even though I don’t listen to a lot of country music, I understand there has been a song written by a well known artist that refers to Sept. 11 and stands up for America. It would figure that it has caused some controversy. Apparently, some of the executives in the music industry are afraid it might offend someone that doesn’t bleed red, white, and blue. Well, you know what? That is just too bad. If they don’t like what this country stands for, they can leave. Unlike some other countries around the world, the door isn’t locked from the inside.

As you may remember, I had my own go around with the University of Missouri about whether journalism students should be allowed to wear red, white, and blue ribbons. The University never did back down from the ban and even bragged later how they had won an award for such ‘journalistic integrity’. What was really scary was the number of emails I received from students that were upholding the University’s position. You and I are funding these institutions that are filling our kids’ heads with this garbage, but if we dare question it we are the bad guys. We are the censors, the interferers of academic freedom.

Well, I guess I can wear that label and wear it proudly. I honestly don’t care if I offend someone that is a guest in this country. I don’t care if I offend some high-minded professor. This country was founded with a love and respect of our ideals. If you don’t like what we stand for, LEAVE!! There are plenty of others literally dying to take your place.

As usual, I can be reached at House Post Office, State Capitol, Jefferson City, 65101, or 1-800-878-7126, or mhohulin@services.state.mo.us for your questions, comments, or advice.

It’s always handy ta have a few nails around the house. Ya never know when ya might want ta hang a picture or fasten that porch rail. I still feel comfortable with the old fashioned eight penny for nailin’ to 2x4’s and a couple of finishin’ nails for trim work. Havin’ a few sixteen penny spikes come in handy for those heavier repairs or light construction. Now I’ve had ta add a new dimension to my collection, a variety of fasteners for my battery powered screw driver.

Havin’ a few tools and gadgets around in case of emergency was just part of my upbringin’ I suppose. I’d have ta guess that it comes from a heritage of rural "root cellar" dependent ancestors. ‘Course such thinkin’ can lead to just havin’ a lot of useless junk ya have ta trip over. At least if ya got a few nails and little lumber, you can build a box ta keep it all in.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

McCune- Brooks Hospital

by Judith Sheldon

POTPOURRI - A University of Alberta team is set to test a new genetically engineered cancer vaccine on brain and skin cancers labeled incurable. The clinical trial of this new immunogene therapy, which is designed to boost the patients’ immune systems to fight the cancers, could begin later this year at University Hospital.

The artificial liver, which we discussed in this column some weeks ago, is also undergoing trials as part of a new study at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC). Patients to be evaluated in this study are waiting for liver transplants and have encephalopathy, a complication of their disease, whereby toxins circulate in the bloodstream to the brain. The mildest form can cause confusion; the more severe cases can result in coma.

Obesity has been found to cause still one more complication that had been largely overlooked in previous studies, to wit: Cataracts in overweight men. According to a study published in the Archives of Ophthalmology, and reported on in the University of Texas Lifetime Health Letter, men with a body mass index (BMI) between 22 and 27.8 were at a 1.5-fold higher risk for developing cataracts than men with a BMI of less than 22. Men with a BMI of 27.8 or higher, which is 20 percent above normal weight, had a more than two-fold risk. BMI strongly influences blood glucose levels - which have been linked to cataract formation in other studies. Higher BMI increases uric acid levels and the risk of gout, which is also cataract-linked.