Update 4-6-04


Hi,

On the theory that weddings and babies lead:

First, from Jerry Bittman: I just wanted to send my congratulations to Barnett Zinger and his new bride Helen. They just got married this past Sunday, April 4th. I have seen pictures of the bride, and Zinger lucked out -- he really did get the better deal. Hope you two have lots of happiness and about 10 kids!

Next, Linda Cohen Greenseid and I had lunch last week when Linda was in LA visiting one of her recently-born grandkids. This one's named Kyle Kelman (perhaps Keil), son of Jamie and Natasha, and, of course, he's cute as a baby. I had to say that or, the next time, Linda would make me pay for lunch. (Nah, he's cute.)

As a segue, from Ray Staley: What a wonderful letter from Mr. Gibson to Lynn Nudelman Villagran. Thanks for sharing!  
    
And a follow, from Peggy Cooper Schwartz: To endow a scholarship in honor of Booker Gibson is a great idea and count me in as a contributor. My lifelong love affair with opera started in Mr. Gibson's classroom. Several weeks ago, my husband Les and I saw the Palm Beach Opera do Dialogue of the Carmelites, and this Saturday night, we will be seeing Manon Les Caut. I've been to many great opera houses -- the Met, Chicago Lyric, New York City Opera, and the Paris Opera Bastille. But wherever I'm sitting, I recall Mr. Gibson teaching us the first bars of many great arias, which have remained with me till this day. His music classes were such a happy part of growing-up. So Mr. Gibson, thank you, Maestro!

Similarly, from Zelda White Nichols: How wonderful to have a scholarship honoring the wonderful Booker Gibson. You have touched so many lives in the most wonderful way. My parents were thrilled that you were teaching your students opera, as they always had seasons' tickets to the Met. Your teachings have stayed with me through the years. Some people thought courses like music were "fluff," but where would we be without music in our lives? It also wasn't just the music, but the person who taught it that stayed with me.
And I am, once again, putting in a suggestion for a reunion in San Diego -- it hit 90 yesterday as the Santa Ana winds were blowing. This is what we moved here for, except that the air conditioner in my car died, so it was a little toasty on the way home from work.
Happy Spring everyone.

From Neil Guberman: You may include me on the annual list for Mr. Gibson's fund.

And Marc Fishman: Could you send me Mr. Gibson's e-mail address, please?
Also, we have had a great winter. The weather has been consistently pleasant and a little cool. Great weather for being outdoors. In a few weeks, my wife finishes her Master's degree. Our son Richard is in his third year at Clark University, and our daughter Danielle starts college next fall. She still doesn't know where she wants to go, but has been accepted at Boston University and the University of Miami. I'd love to see her stay in Florida.
I hope all remains well with everyone.

[Rich -- There seems to be enough interest in a Booker Gibson scholarship, paralleling the Vince Tampio scholarship for $500 each year, for at least 10 years, that I'll contact the folks at South and see what they think. Then I'll let you all know. Still, Booker, I have to admit: I didn't like opera then, and I don't like opera now.]

From Donald Faber: Res Ipas Loquitar: Latin, indeed. "The thing speaks for itself."

More from Terri Donohue Calamari's adventuresome daughter Trish: I'm writing this as an official Peace Corps volunteer. Our swearing-in ceremony took place, as scheduled, on Friday in Tashkent. While I trust the judgment of the US Embassy and Peace Corps Safety and Security officer, I felt very uneasy about attending a high profile event in the capital (in attendance were the Ambassador, state media, and some government officials, and it just screamed 'moving target' to me). Fortunately, the ceremony went off without incident, which made me appreciate the day even more.
Yesterday, I left Tashkent for Samarkand and arrived safely. I'm happy to finally be at site, and I look forward to moving in with my host family, settling down, and working. I'll write again soon.

Happy birthday, Lynn, Ellen, and Nancy.

Finally, more of that homework Mr. Fiveson hates, this time forwarded by Larry Rugen: Sometimes politicians exclaim, "It's just a tax cut for the rich!" But what does that really mean? Here’s an explanation by David Kamerschen, professor of economics at the University of Georgia. Suppose that ten people go out for dinner every night. The bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go like this. The first four (the poorest) would pay nothing. The fifth would pay $1. The sixth would pay $3. The seventh $7. The eighth $12. The ninth $18. The tenth (the richest) would pay $59. One evening, the owner said, “Since you are all such good customers, I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily meal by $20." Now, dinner for the ten only cost $80, but the group still paid their bill the way we pay our taxes. So, the first four people would still eat for free. The other six realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth and sixth person would each end up being 'PAID' to eat their meal. Instead, they decided to reduce each person's bill by roughly the same amount. So, the fifth, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings). The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33% savings). The seventh now paid $5 instead of $7 (28% savings). The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings). The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings). The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings). Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to eat for free. Then people began to compare their savings. "I only got a dollar out of the $20," declared the sixth. “But the tenth got $10!"
"That's right," exclaimed the fifth. "I only saved a dollar, too. It's unfair that the tenth got ten times more than me!"
"That's true!" shouted the seventh. "Why should Ten get $10 back when I got only $2? The wealthy get all the breaks!"
“Wait a minute," yelled the first four people in unison. "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!" The nine people surrounded the tenth, angry, and making threats.
The next night the tenth person didn't show up for dinner, so the other nine sat down and ate. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important: they didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill. And that’s how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up at the table anymore.

The home page: http://hometown.aol.com/vssouth65


Rich