Welcome to Tampa Bay Mensa! ....................................................3December Birthdays..............................................................................3LocSec Column........................................................................................ 4On Second Thought............................................................................... 5RVC Column for Region 10................................................................6As I See It.................................................................................................... 7Always Positive, Sometimes Right.................................................8A View from the Right........................................................................9Book Review........................................................................................... 10December Mensaversaries................................................................ 11Calendar of Events................................................................................ 12December 2013 Calendar.................................................................... 13Classifieds.................................................................................................. 17Cryptopoem............................................................................................ 20Suzaku™ #73........................................................................................... 21

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December 2013December 2013

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Page 2 Tampa Bay Sounding

A Publication of

Tampa Bay MensaTampa Bay Sounding (USPS 305­830)

Tampa Bay Mensa9091 St. Andrews DrSeminole, Fl 33777

Mensa is an international society whose sole qualification for membership is a score at or above the 98th percentile on a standard IQ test. Mensa is a not­for­profit organization whose main purpose is to serve as a means of communication and assembly for its members. All opinions expressed herein are those of the individual authors, and not necessarily those of the editors or officers of Mensa. Mensa as an organization has no opinions.  Tampa Bay Mensa serves Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, Hernando, and Sumter counties.

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Welcome to Tampa Bay Mensa!

December Birthdays12/02 Barbara Bishop, Raymond Celli, Don Morton, Stephen Page12/03 Alvin Nienhuis12/04 Robert Miller12/06 Susan Dunlevy12/07 Barbara Counts12/09 Dorothy Butler12/10 Larry Paradis, Janice Rickert12/11 Elliott Loyless12/12 Willard Baker, Samuel Trevena12/13 Michael Wenditz12/14 Susan Entringer, Charles Stewart12/17 Daniel Chesnut, James Clack, A Foran12/18 Geoff LeCain12/20 Thomas Bonner, Sherri McGarry, Steven Tedore, Ella Whalen12/21 Alvin Bedgood12/23 Nicola Hicks12/24 George Brooks, Joseph Juston, Edwin Kelley, Keith Kelly12/25 Rush Miller, Robert Shackton, Cynthia Weatherby12/26 Allen Garber, Corey Merenda

12/27 Stephanie Adelson, Richard Bachmann, Juana Harper, John Henderson

12/28 Don Davis, Fred LePiere

12/31 Robert Ayres, William Dennis, Jack Kauffman, Les Milewski, Carl Paleveda

December 2013 Page 3

✹ John CopelandRobert FarabeeKim Gladwin

✹ Taylor Gregory✹ Robert Shackton

Paul Vaitkus✹ New members.

LocSec ColumnRonan Heffernan

Page 4 Tampa Bay Sounding

Happy Holidays! (Note to anyone who thinks that those good wishes are a salvo in a war on anything: I will not play the Scrooge by trying to deny you the pleasure of venting your spleen.) It is that time of year when Floridians can finally venture outdoors without wilting. It is also, perversely, the warmest time of the year for most of us, since air conditioners in homes, shops, and offices can be turned off (ok, perhaps just turned down).

Our calendar has some interesting new events, including a Holiday Symphony Concert at Bok Tower Gardens and a Victorian Christmas Stroll in Tampa. Our Christmas Stroll is unlikely to have snow, but that is utterly authentic! The bitterly cold and snowy Christmases that we associate with Dickens and Victorian London are artifacts of Dickens living at the end of “the Little Ice Age”. In a normal year, London typically gets only a few days of snow, usually only a light dusting.

LOOKING FORWARD

Our Winter Social is coming up on January 11, 2014. A buffet lunch will be provided, and a speaker is being arranged. As with our picnics, I expect to have 40-70 members come to the social. As a member benefit, Tampa Bay Mensa holds picnics in the spring and fall, and indoor socials in the summer and winter.

The work of putting on Tampa Bay Mensa's next Regional Gathering, “Margaritaville 2014”, is well under way. We have a good location and a large selection of speakers already lined-up. Hospitality, Games, and Tournaments are in-the-works. The dates are 23-26 May, in Oldsmar. Registration is open on our website!

Executive Committee MeetingsThe next meetings of Tampa Bay Mensa's Executive Committee will be held:

December 8th at 1:30 PM, hosted by Barbara LoeweUniversity Village 12401 N. 22nd St., Tampa

All members of Tampa Bay Mensa are invited to all Executive Committee Meetings. For more information contact our LocSec (Officer contact info is on page 23).

On Second ThoughtBuck Beasom

December 2013 Page 5

Parting Thoughts

It’s nearly three years since I began writing On Second Thought. For the most part I’ve never known if it was exciting interest, disgust, or was just so much shouting down a well. Ronan Heffernan, our editor, has been kind enough to give me a voice and has tirelessly edited and corrected my work. We are all lucky to have him. With this piece, and a few last thoughts, I lay down my pen. None what follows would be easy and in this political climate all may be impossible. Still, equal rights for Gays seemed impossible not so long ago. The path upward is never a straight line.

1. REPEAL THE 2ND AMENDMENT

One could argue that we should scrap the entire Constitution and start over. Once widely admired, its weaknesses and the recent absurdities of our Supreme Court, have led emerging democracies to look elsewhere for a model. This may not be a bad thing: The driving motive behind our legislative architecture was protecting slavery.

But the absolutism of the 2nd Amendment – both in its language and interpretation – leaves no room for the logical control and regulation of firearms. Sensible efforts to do so have been struck down by the courts. Gun lovers and gun manufacturers claim that owning weapons of unlimited killing power and in unlimited numbers is, literally, a God-given right and they abrogate all responsibility for the carnage this causes every day. A functioning 21st century society has no room for 18th century thinking on weapons.

2. TAX CARBON

Broadly accepted as an important tool in the battle against greenhouse emissions, a carbon tax is regularly defeated by the fossil fuel industry. But carbon emissions are a classic case of shifting your production costs onto someone else or onto society at large, a practice that now puts the planet at risk. Polluters should pay for their harmful by-products and placing a true and measurable cost on them would allow market forces to balance those costs against the benefits they provide.

3. INSTITUTE A NATIONAL LIVING WAGE

Efforts to increase the minimum wage always meet with the same phony objections, the big one being that they will cost jobs. Businesses large and small lament the upward pressure such an increase would put on all wages. The main exploiters like Walmart and the fast-food industry complain that higher wages would raise prices and put pressure on their business model.

So be it! Recent studies indicate that the depressed wages of low-income workers simply come back to taxpayers, who pay some $7 billion a year to support underpaid workers through the Earned Income Credit, food stamps and CHIP. With income levels stagnant for all but the 1% over four decades, we could use a little upward pressure on wages. More and more people – not just the young – are being forced into minimum wage jobs because they are the only ones the “job creators” can’t ship offshore. If higher pay means that a Big Mac, or whatever you buy at Walmart, costs a little more, it also means you would be better able to pay for it. And as the post-war era proved,

Continued on page 18

RVC Column for Region 10Thomas George Thomas

On December 7, the American Mensa Board of Directors meeting will be hosted by Palm Beach County Mensa here in Region 10, at the Hilton Palm Beach Airport. There are a number of motions on the agenda this quarter, on topics including changes to the Handbook Development process, AG Registration rates, establishing Regional Ombudsmen, amendments to the weapons motion from the previous meeting, uniformed security for the Annual Gathering, differentiating Arbitrators from Ombudsmen in Local Groups, and changing the way members may participate in Board meetings. Details on these motions, on other programs for the day, and Board and Committee Reports can be found on the American Mensa website at LEAD > Board of Directors > Meeting Reports (select the top meeting: 2013-12-07 – West Palm Beach, FL.

I hope to see many of you at the meeting, as having it in our Region gives you an opportunity to see the Board and Committees in action. However, even if you cannot make the meeting, you can still participate via a number of available channels:

AML COMMUNITY – Otherwise known as the Community Forums, this is linked to the AML website at CONNECT > Online Community, or you can go there directly at community.us.mensa.org Under the Forums tab, there is a category called “Mensa and You”, and one of the six categories there is “Mensa Matters”, where many discussion threads can be found regarding Mensa governance and current topics for the Board of Directors.

American Mensa Facebook Group – While it’s easy to get lost in the wide variety of topics on this page, there are also a good number of participants discussing governance topics. I confess it’s not for the thin-skinned, as the group is not moderated, but many people do enjoy the spirited banter.

Region 10 Facebook group – This one I set up specifically for members of our Region to discuss topics of general interest to our region, as an avenue for input for national topics, and to promote various events such as Regional Gatherings or special local group events such as games weekends or local group anniversaries.

Finally, if you want to send your input but do not want to participate in any of the available discussions, you can email me directly at RVC10@us.mensa.org I’m interested in your feedback!

Page 6 Tampa Bay Sounding

As I See ItDuke Mader

December 2013 Page 7

In days of old when knights were bold, and that sort of thing, high-rises, pollution, mass transit, and gas rationing hadn’t yet been discovered.

As man's technology increased so did his ability to create new and more sophisticated problems.

I would guess that at the turn of the century there must have been a strong street-cleaners union. I would also guess that they must have gone on strike for better working conditions, and new shovels. After all horses do have their own way of littering. It was probably a long strike, and with management taking its usual steadfast position, the streets started getting pretty messy.

So man, relying on his genius, decided to kill two birds with one stone. He invented a machine that would replace the horse, and thereby eliminate the need for street cleaners. And so be it; he invented the motor car.

This solution was obviously too simple. So man started making bigger cars, faster cars, and more comfortable cars. Once

again technology got the best of man, and in his endeavor to build a more highly sophisticated machine, he forgot why he began building cars in the first place.

Alas, man has out done himself again. Automobiles are the largest single source of air pollution, and the single leading cause of death and disablement in this country. Junk yards are ruining our scenic highways, and anti-pollution control devices are draining our gas tanks.

During this time of an international energy crisis, man must once again call upon his genius to invent a mode of transportation that ideally won't exceed 50 mph and doesn't need anti-po11ution devices. As long as we are building the perfect mode at transportation we need one that can sustain an impact of 5mph without needing repairs, and could be negotiated by intoxicated drivers at no risk to others.

It seems to me, that what we really need to do is to start all over – with the horse and buggy.

Think about it.

Dolores Puterbaugh, Ph.D, LMFT, LMHC, PALicensed Mental Health Counselor

Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist

801 West Bay Drive, Suite 436Largo, Florida 33770

The Wachovia Bank Building

727-559-0863puterbaugh@mindspring.combalancedlifestylecoaching.com

Services Include:• Individual counseling• Family & couples counseling• Anxiety, depression, grief, stress, anger• Children’s behavior problems• Personal growth/development• Consulting/Coaching services• Presentations for organizations

Memberships:Clinical Member of American

Association for Marriage & Family Therapy; American Counseling

Association; Mensa; TNS

Always Positive, Sometimes RightJim Stillman

xkcd.org

Page 8 Tampa Bay Sounding

The government shutdown has ended.

It would be more accurate to report that the conditions and attitudes which created the shutdown remain unchanged and the consequences have been kicked down the road for three or four months when we will have a repeat performance.

Unless we have all learned something and the Tea Party denizens have left their bubble of reality and learn their news from other than Fox News exclusively, Senator Ted Cruz actually reads the Constitution and has it explained to him, the Republican Party leaders write off the fringe obstructionists and those latter folks realize that they were elected to govern the government and not solely to dismantle it.

Will this, or any of it, happen? When pigs fly. So far I have witnessed nary one pig in the skies.

The Tea Party faction of the Republican Party is not a minor player in Republican politics.;it is the party. Any hope that the lessons of the past several weeks would make the GOP more centrist is just plain silly. Senator Cruz, according to the polls,

has lost favorable ratings nationwide, but among the core of the Right, his popularity has improved. There is no indication that Speaker Boehner will use his position to advance responsible opposition to the administration rather than allowing the shrill whining of the Right to control.

The attitude of our legislators has not changed. The most offensive images to come out of Washington portray senators and representatives giving each other congratulations and fist-bumps to celebrate the end of the shutdown.

Exactly what have our legislators done to warrant such self-congratulations and pride? They finally did their job after messing up enough to close the government, lay off government employees, create havoc in financial affairs, and wound our credibility. They have nothing of which to be proud.

So, we await the next financial deadline with trepidation. Nothing has changed and we will endure another and continuing crises until the voters – all of us – come to our senses.

And pigs will be seen overhead...

A View from the RightRonnie Dubs

December 2013 Page 9

The LAX Airport shooting

The question is; how did a single mentally-disturbed man with a gun but no training, helmet, or body armor shoot his way into an airport concourse? After all the money we have spent and all we’ve witnessed since the events of 9/11, including Columbine, Newtown, the Mumbai hotel attack, and most recently the Kenya mall massacre, how could our TSA checkpoints still be so vulnerable? How is it, not a single armed person was there to shoot at the attacker, slow him, or to even pin him down with gunfire?

It has been known for years that these TSA checkpoints represent a golden opportunity for those obsessed with mass murder, daily trapping hundreds maybe thousands of people between the unsecured airport entrance and the TSA checkpoint.

So how did this happen? The TSA is an agency under the Department of Homeland Security which we know has had plenty of money to contract out 1.6 billion rounds of hollow point ammo, 6 rounds per every single living American. They have purchased light tanks, 240,000 pepper-spray projectiles and launchers, and reports are they spend $19 million dollars on a secret security force in Wisconsin and Minnesota, an armed unit of clandestine operatives with “Top Secret” security clearance in America, yet they didn’t have the money for a single armed man to watch over people trapped between the airport entrance and TSA check point? I find that hard to believe.

I contend these TSA checkpoints have been deliberately allowed to remain as soft targets, inviting to terrorists and others wanting to do this nation harm. I contend there are in fact leftist totalitarians within our own government who put their own agendas over national security and have been secretly hoping for an incident of Muslim-created carnage with firearms purchased within the US for the sole purpose of advancing their freedom-stealing gun control agenda.

If you doubt what I say, that people could be so evil as to allow others to be hurt or killed just to advance an agenda, ask yourself what was the purpose of the Fast and Furious guns, President Obama and Eric Holder sent down into Mexico, if it wasn’t to cause further violence they could then blame on America’s loose gun laws? Have you ever heard any other satisfactory explanation for their actions?

Just look at Obama’s actions on healthcare, the lies he told this nation for 3 years knowing full well up to 95 million people were going to be hurt, to lose their coverage. He doesn’t care about individuals; only the collective matters to a true leftist-totalitarian.

So I’ll ask again. how in this day and age was it so easy for a single mentally-disturbed young man, with no training, helmet, or body armor, to shoot his way into an airport concourse?

Book ReviewJim Perry

Page 10 Tampa Bay Sounding

Dan Brown’s Inferno

Is humankind a cancer grown out of control, consuming its host, the ecosphere that sustains all life? This is a question explored at length in a recent book by Dan Brown, author of The Da Vinci Code. In Inferno, his latest work, Brown presents and analyzes data from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN to support an affirmative answer to the question.

On p. 138 Brown depicts in a single graph eight variables he describes as symptoms of the disease of over-population: northern hemisphere average surface temperature; CO2 concentration; Gross Domestic Product (GDP); loss of tropical rain forest and woodland; species extinctions; motor vehicles; water use; paper consumption; fisheries exploited; ozone depletion; and foreign investment. The WHO graph shows that all of these variables have been rising over the past century, but now they are “accelerating at terrifying rates.”

Brown introduces (p. 145) the famous theory and dire prediction of Thomas Malthus (1766-1834):

“The power of population is so superior to the power of the earth to produce subsistence for man, that premature death must in some shape or other visit the human race. The vices of mankind are active and able ministers of depopulation…. But should they fail in this war of extermination, sickly seasons, epidemics, pestilence, and plague, advance in terrific array, and sweep off their thousands and ten thousands. Should success still be incomplete, gigantic inevitable famine stalks in the rear, and with one mighty blow levels the population with the food

of the world.” Essay on the Principle of Population, 1798

One of Brown’s characters offers a celebration of the bubonic plague that killed one-third of the population of Europe in the 14th century, and in so doing concentrated wealth and resources in fewer hands, leading, according to many historians, to the Renaissance.

Brown cites a 1967 novel titled Logan’s Run, about a future society in which everyone agreed to commit suicide at the age of 21 to keep from exhausting the earth’s resources. He has one of his characters lament a failed effort to respect her elders: “…but most adults seemed like nothing more than aging children, lacking even the most basic understanding of the world around them, and, most troubling, lacking any curiosity or concern about it.” (p. 349)

Brown has a solution for this existential threat. The solution he proposes is, unlike the bubonic plague, neither violent not grotesque nor physically painful. As he reveals in the book, after many long digressions into the architecture of Florence and Istanbul, coincidences beyond counting, and a great deal of inexplicably stupid behavior on the part of people no sane person would ever want to meet, Brown proposes a virus that would magically sterilize one-third of the world’s population in perpetuity. If only two-thirds of us can reproduce, he reasons, the number of births will start to decline and a sustainable level of population will be achieved without war, without disease, without famine, without shortages of water, food, energy, and useful natural resources.

If only. Margaret Atwood wrote a logical rebuttal in her 1986 novel, The Handmaid’s

Continued on page 17

December Mensaversaries

December 2013 Page 11

44 years Betty Taylor36 years John Kane34 years John Emerson32 years David Goodrich26 years Leo Reilly25 years Matthew Snook23 years Susan Anderson20 years Michael Clifford, John Henderson17 years John Olmstead16 years Maureen Brush, Paul Sharp, Tanya Stay, Morgan Tyler15 years John Roberts14 years Michael Garrett, Lana LaForest13 years Jackson Daugherty, Ronald Dubs12 years Dennis Wilcoxon7 years Cassandra Cox, Brian Ourso6 years Madeleine Jousou

5 years Keeyoung Lee, Michele Mourer, Joseph O'Reilly, Thomas Richards, Ryan Southwell

4 years Dakota Cash, Lawrence Maler, Claire Modarelli, Cheryl Pohley, Jayde Reid, Kyle Reid, Steven Woolheater

3 years Willard Baker, Robert Birrenkott, Belinda Nemeth, Ralph Pritchard, William Trudel

2 years Shrey Agarwal, Andrew Dassing, Sophia Hachey, Summer Haura, Cynthia Trautmann, Charlotte Walker

1 years

Paxton Clubb, Calvin Gross, Lucy Haura, Elizabeth Iadarola, Jack Kauffman, Anthony Lister, Helena Panuthos, Jodi Pecoraro, Debra Seyle, Alexander Zicchino

Note: Years are for continuous membership.  Members who let their membership lapse start from the date of reinstatement.

Calendar of Events

Page 12 Tampa Bay Sounding

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December 2013 Calendar

December 3 6pm The Dali Museum: SciCafe St. Pete - Soylent BlueLocation: Dali Museum One Dali Boulevard St. Petersburg, FL 33701

Join Tampa Bay Mensa at another fascinating community lecture at The Dali Museum. The Dali Museum says: SciCafe is an informal discussion series for adults created by The Pier Aquarium in 2009 as a collaboration between the University of South Florida of Marine Science, the American Chemical Society and NOVAscienceNOW (WGBH Educational Foundation). Its purpose is to raise awareness and satisfy a person's curiosity about things scientific. The Dali Museum is a proud host of the 2013 Tuesday evening series. This panel will discuss the issues surrounding genetically modified food, specifically the fish farming industry. Moderator: Rob Lorei, Managing Editor of Florida This Week on WEDU and a co-founder of WMNF Community Radio For more information, please contact the Pier Aquarium. Cost: FREE with RSVP to the Dali. Event takes place in the Dali Museum's Raymond James Community Room. Please ALSO RSVP to MelissaLStephens@aol.com

December 4 6:30pm Mensa TestingLocation: Southwest Pasco County

For information, contact testing@tampa.us.mensa.org

December 4 7pm Reading GroupLocation: IHOP, 4910 West Spruce Street, Tampa

Read whatever you like and bring books you'd like to recommend, discuss, exchange, or give away.

Ronan Heffernan 727-537-6626 ronansan@gmail.com

December 5 12:30pm Lunch BunchLocation: Piccadilly Cafeteria, 11810 North Dale Mabry Highway, Tampa

We meet at Piccadilly Cafeteria (next to Barnes and Noble Bookstore), in Tampa. For directions, descriptions, and/or encouragement to attend, call:

Jim Perry 813-837-3473 philart@gte.net

December 7 10am Caravan leaves for Bok Towers from University Square Mall

Location: 2200 E Fowler Ave, Tampa, FL 33612OPTIONAL Caravan/ Carpool

December 7 11am Sunset & Symphony Holiday Concert - A Family Friendly Event

Location: Bok Tower Gardens 1151 Tower Blvd, Lake WalesOut'N'About Tampa Bay Ms are joining up with Orlando Ms to as we stroll Bok

December 2013 Page 13

Except for rare cases that hosts will make clear, all events listed in our Calendar of Events, whether hosted in private homes or public venues, are open to all Mensans, their spouses, and accompanied guests.

While kitty amounts are mandatory, hosts often spend far more than the specified amount. Donations in excess of the kitty amount will be appreciated. If you have special needs or restrictions, it is prudent to discuss them with your host before attending an event.

Tower Gardens and explore the decorations of Pinewood Estates before coming together for our sunset potluck picnic concert as the sun sets atop Iron Mountain. "The Plan" 10:00am Caravan/ Carpooling leaving from 1st floor parking garage behind Dillards at University Mall in Tampa. Independent travelers may meet up with us at their leisure. Arrive by 11:30 Bok Tower Gardens where we will casually explore the landscaped gardens of Frederick Law Olmsted Jr.. Tucked away throughout the Gardens are "secret" garden paths and picture rubbing posts. Now in its 19th year, the Holiday Home Tour at Pinewood Estate is one of the highlights of the holiday-themed events. The 20-room, Mediterranean-style mansion is decorated by volunteers and sponsored designers. Each room has a different focus, but they all coordinate with the master theme of Family Traditions, as the designers concentrate on touches to bring out that special feeling we all get around Christmastime. Every room is decorated by a different sponsored designer and the hallways, entrances and other spaces are adorned by Pinewood volunteers who have handcrafted many of the decorations. Kids & kids at heart may enjoy feeding the schools of Koi at the base of the Singing Tower, and perhaps a Frisbee game or two. We will try to locate the three geocache locations onsite. Later, families can try their hands at a variety of instruments with the help of Orlando Philharmonic musicians on the Olmsted House lawn as we explore the Instrument Petting Zoo; a chance to meet the musicians and learn about their individual instruments starting at 4:30 p.m. As the sun sets, we will enjoy the sounds of the season performed by the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra and the Singing Tower carillon together during one of Central Floridas favorite outdoor concerts. Flaming torches will illuminate the Olmsted-designed pathways leading up to the 205-foot Singing Tower, housing one of the worlds great carillons and featuring Carillonneur Geert Dhollander. Bok Towers encourages everyone to prepare elaborate picnics that evening. Judging takes place at 5:30 p.m. and winners will be announced during intermission. By vote of those who RSVP, we can choose to participate in a themed picnic contest. Kitty for our potluck picnic will be contributions of dishes to share, and perhaps contributions to joint main dish(es) - RSVP for details and to help with planning and possibly a pre-event cooking party. They will award prizes for Most Most Original, Best Holiday themed, and Best Overall. But, if you are not interested in all that, you can pre-order boxed picnic selections from the Blue Palmetto Caf. Other food & beverages will be available for sale at the Hilltop Caf from 3:30 to 8 p.m. Admission to the gardens is $20 per person. $8 per child ages 5-12. Children under 5 free. Day of: $25 per person. $10 per child ages 5-12. Concert tickets include general admission so guests may enter anytime during the day. THIS IS AN OUTDOOR EVENT: Suggested items for this trip include blankets & lawn/beach chairs, lawn games, picnic items for lunch and or dinner AND PLENTY OF COOL DRINKS. Please be aware that pets are not allowed in the gardens. A shaded, open-air pet pen with water is available for a nominal fee. Visitors are encouraged to bring lawn chairs or blankets, insect repellent and flashlights. Handicapped parking and shuttle service will be available. Please RSVP.

Melissa Stephens 813-476-5405 MelissaLStephens@aol.com

December 11 1:15pm MHUNCHLocation: Miller's Ale House, 5650 S Florida Avenue, Lakeland 709-9262

Join us for lunch. Your RSVP is important! Please either email or call me so we can save a seat the the table for you!

Merrell Fortner 863-701-7109 mini@mindless.com

Page 14 Tampa Bay Sounding

December 12 12:30pm Lunch Bunch

December 13 7:30am Breakfast GatheringLocation: Village Inn at the corner of Walsingham and Vonn Roads in Largo.

Gather for food and conversation. Please call before Friday for headcount.Lori Puterbaugh 727-399-2419 puterbaugh@mindspring.com

December 14 7pm Games NightLocation: 651 Timber Bay Circle West, Oldsmar

We play fun board and table games. Snacks and sodas provided ($2 kitty helps defray refreshment expenses). No smoking indoors.

Sylvia Holt Zadorozny 813-855-4939 sylviachocolate@gmail.com

December 18 6:30pm Mensa Testing

December 18 7pm Reading Group

December 19 12:30pm Lunch Bunch

December 21 4pm Victorian Christmas StrollLocation: The Henry Plant Museum, 401 W. Kennedy Boulevard Tampa

Join Out & About in Tampa Bay as we experience the warmth & charm of an old-time Christmas at Henry B. Plant Museums 31st annual Victorian Christmas Stroll. Beneath towering silver minarets, an extravagantly adorned former Tampa Bay Hotel captures the spirit of the season Victorian style. There are 14 exhibit rooms; each dazzling with trimmed trees uniquely designed in 19th century themes and antique holiday accessories. While strolling down the Grand Hallway, your spirits will soar as you become immersed in carolers singing, Charles Dickens, much loved toys and wrapped gifts, Christmas stockings and Old Saint Nick. On display is a special exhibit of antique toys dating from the 1890s to 1930s. During this era, the most popular gifts include dolls and dollhouses, board games, wind-up toys, rocking horses and sleds. Toy soldiers, wooden carved animals and tin toys will also delight those who truly appreciate toys that stimulate the imagination. Strategically placed in each exhibit room, amid the myriad of decorations, is an image of Henry Plant, the founder of the Hotel. If we locate him, we may earn a prize. The Victorian Christmas Stroll preserves the essence of an old-fashioned Christmas and is treasured as Tampas most popular family tradition. Complimentary spiced cider and savory cookies will be served on the veranda every day, and each evening carolers will perform from 6:00 pm to 7:45pm. Visitors are invited to sing with the carolers in front of the 15-foot tree in the hallway. Admission is $13 for adults, $11 seniors and $7 youths (4-18 years). Proceeds from the Victorian Christmas Stroll fund significant museum restoration and preservation projects, as well as educational programming. http://plantmuseum.com/event/victorian-christmas-stroll/2013-12-01 Please RSVP to MelissaLStephens@aol.com or 813-476-5405 so our group can meet up together. Afterwards, we can carpool/ caravan through one or more of the many Christmas light displays in our area.

Melissa Stephens 813-476-5405 MelissaLStephens@aol.com

December 2013 Page 15

December 26 12:30pm Lunch Bunch

December 26 1:15pm MHUNCHLocation: Peebles Bar-B-Q, 503 Dixie Hwy, Auburndale (967-3085)

Join us for lunch. Your RSVP is important! Please either email or call me so we can save a seat the the table for you!

Merrell Fortner 863-701-7109 mini@mindless.com

December 28 5pm Shakespeare WatchLocation: 320 19th St, Palm Harbor

Bring your own favorite Shakespeare or Shakespeare-inspired DVD and the group will choose which movie to watch. Please RSVP. Call/e-mail for directions. Smoking outside.

Maran Fulvi 727-7891390 serakh@gmail.com

xkcd.org

Page 16 Tampa Bay Sounding

'Will [ ] allow us to better understand each other and thus make war undesirable?' is one that pops up whenever we invent a new communication medium.

Book Review (cont)

Classifieds

December 2013 Page 17

Wanted: empty aluminum cans (up to 20-pounds or so) for craft projectsronansan@gmail.com

Wanted: costume jewelryEspecially older vintage pieces If you have any you want to show, sell, trade or talk about it. Sapir schwartz 813-343-8850 sapirschwartz@yahoo.com (only checked occasionally)

Wanted: microscopes and/or accessories to borrow for Gifted Youth eventsmelissalstephens@aol.com

Tale. Atwood imagined a world-wide plague of random sterility long before Brown started writing, and she figured out that what would then happen would be that the sterile partners would simply hire or enslave fertile surrogates to create children for them. As long as we live in a world in which at least two major religions and many governments promote population increase, and unless Hans Rosling’s TED lecture on global population growth is right, the world’s population is always going to increase, with all the adverse effects described by Malthus, Brown, and the WHO.

In conclusion, as a reminder of the glories of those two cities, to those who have visited Florence and Istanbul, and as an

introduction to Dante’s The Inferno, Brown’s Inferno is informative and inspiring. As a set of hints about what to expect when you see the movie version of the book, starring Tom Hanks of course, Inferno is worth considering. As an exercise in guessing which side of several conflicts each character is on at the moment, chapter by chapter, Inferno might be considered entertaining. As a solution to the problem of over-population, however, Inferno fails. But as a conversation-starter, Inferno might persuade people to start paying attention to this vital global issue, and perhaps even to read Al Gore’s 2006 book about it, An Inconvenient Truth.

On Second Thought (cont)

Page 18 Tampa Bay Sounding

true prosperity starts at the bottom of the economic ladder and NOT at the top.

4. EQUAL PAY FOR EQUAL WORK

The countless excuses for paying women less than men for the same job are just that, excuses. Equal pay for equal work should be legislated at the federal and state levels and violators should pay a penalty of at least twice the amount of under-compensation.

5. REMOVE THE CAP ON FICA TAXES

Politicians from both parties have been treating FICA taxes as general revenue for decades. FICA is the largest tax paid by many Americans and is also regressive, landing predominantly on lower income workers. This injustice should end – as should preferential tax rates for carried interest.

6. BRING BACK THE DRAFT

One of the things that made “The Greatest Generation” great was it shared sense of sacrifice and achievement in saving the world from the aggression of Germany and Japan. In our century it’s been far too easy for people who never served a minute in combat – or even in uniform – to embroil us in pointless wars. Military service, indeed public service, is now confined to a thin sliver of the population. The well-off rarely share the burden. The notion that every citizen owes an obligation to the nation would provide a host of benefits, not least to those serving.

7. RESTORE GLASS-STEAGAL

The repeal of this little-known law was the gateway to the financial crisis whose frightful harvest still plagues us. In sum, this law said that the banks where we entrust our savings could not gamble with our money in the derivatives market.

Had Glass-Steagal been law in the past decade much of the financial disaster we have just lived through might have been averted. It was a good law, a good idea and we still need it.

8. GREEN CARDS FOR EVERY IMMIGRANT

Casting immigrants – legal or otherwise – as the source of all our problems is popular in the Tea Party and among many in the GOP. Pull back the covers and these folks happily employ undocumented house-keepers, au pairs or employees. No doubt there are some bad people among illegal immigrants and no doubt many broke the rules to get here, lured by the promises engraved on the Statue of Liberty, but there are just as many bad people among legal citizens as there are among undocumented immigrants and arguably more. Instead of blaming them for all our problems we should find a way to assimilate them into society.

9. INSTITUTE A PUBLIC OPTION

A “Single Payer Plan” – that nefarious institution that keeps health care costs in the rest of the civilized world at around half of what we pay – is still a generation away. Facts and arithmetic will eventually drive us there. Meanwhile, a Public Option, the lost opportunity of the Affordable Care Act, would be a step in the right direction. Regulating for-profit industries like health insurance companies is a great idea, but it is only as effective as the regulating mechanism. In this country, that mechanism is constantly hamstrung by legislators on the take. A more effective tool would be a viable competitor – the thing “Big Health” fears the most. We should deliver that fear to them.

xkcd.org

December 2013 Page 19

10. EQUAL RIGHTS FOR VOTERS – AND THEIR VOTES

Our Supreme Court is so disconnected from reality that it recently decided the Voting Rights Act is no longer necessary, this while states all over the country are laboring to deny the vote to minorities, the young, the elderly and anyone else statistically likely to vote Democrat. But an even more nefarious plot has long been employed by the GOP, who knows it can’t win elections without putting its thumb on the scale. It goes beyond gerrymandering. It is the conscious, deliberate effort to make the votes of likely GOP voters worth more than those of likely Democratic voters. The Democrats won over a million more votes for Congress in 2012 than the GOP, yet the Republican majority remained untouched. The general estimate is that to regain the House, Democrats would have to poll around 55%. This number does not seem out of reach today, but this is not Democracy and we should not tolerate it. We should demand – and our courts should enforce – rules requiring legislative districts of approximately equal size, whether at the national, state or local levels.

Every 10 years we redistribute Congressional seats among the states based on population, but we let the states pack whomever they want – in whatever numbers they want – into the individual districts. We thus have Michigan, where Democratic Congressional candidates outpolled Republicans 52-47%, yet it sent 9 Republicans and 5 Democrats to the House in 2012.

This is disenfranchisement – to say nothing of a violation of equal protection. It gave us the 80 or so petty tyrants who again brought our nation to the brink because they only need concern themselves with keeping the Koch Brothers and the Tea Party happy. Left unchecked, this strident minority will deliver an endless succession of political Groundhog Days, where we relive the same tragedy over and over. But in this case we never learn anything from the experience.

My thanks to any who took the time to read On Second Thought, which I hope provided occasional stimulation, interest at least moments of humor. I may again have second thoughts but for now I will simply say good night and good luck.

CryptopoemSylvia Holt Zadorozny

Page 20 Tampa Bay Sounding

JYDV INY NOHHF XZIN MUSBNF UG NUHHA, ...

‘IZF INY FYOFUL IU MY PUHHA, ...

JUL XY LUX UST BOA OEEOTYH, ...

ITUHH INY OLDZYLI ASHYIZJY DOTUH, ...

FYY INY MHOWZLB ASHY MYGUTY SF, ...

FITZVY INY NOTE OLJ PUZL INY DNUTSF,

GO HO HO HO HO HO HO HO HO!

Suzaku™ #73Thomas George Thomas

Suzaku™ (from Japanese sousaku: search) is a compound puzzle. The first step is to solve it as a traditional sudoku puzzle, using letters instead of numbers. The second step is to search for words in the solved sudoku. Start from any letter, moving up, down, forward, backward or diagonally in any direction, changing direction as needed without reusing the same square for a word. Although there are nine letters in this puzzle, words can be longer if you can find them. (There is a hint for this puzzle on page 22.) For extra credit, score the words using their associated number values to try to find the highest word points.

December 2013 Page 21

Suzaku™ (cont)Last month's puzzle used the 14-length phrase "strategy games", which used eight letters and a space for a total of 62 points. The theme for this month's Suzaku™ is again a two-word phrase consisting of 13 characters and one space, using all eight letters and the space in the grid, for a score of 70 points. The shaded square is the starting position for the theme phrase. The solution will be provided in next month's issue of Tampa Bay Sounding.

You could also search for a list of words and phrases and accumulate additional points. What is the highest cumulative score you can achieve?

Answer to the November Cryptopoem:

Page 22 Tampa Bay Sounding

Answer to the November Suzaku™ (#72)

There was a young fellow named Hall

Who fell in the spring in the fall;

‘Twould have been a sad thing

Had he died in the spring,

But he didn’t, he died in the fall.

~Anonymous

A limerick’s never averse

To expressing itself in a terse

Economical style

And yet, all the while,

The limerick’s always a verse.

~ Laurence Perrine

2013-2014 Tampa Bay Mensa Officers

December 2013 Page 23

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

➢Local SecretaryRonan Heffernan 27504 Breakers Dr. Wesley Chapel, FL 33544 727-537-6626locsec@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢Deputy LocSecArt Schwartz1909 Dover CTOldsmar, FL 34677813-343-8850asstlocsec@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢TreasurerKathy Crum 7164 Quail Hollow Blvd. Wesley Chapel, FL 33544 813-907-0526 treasurer@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢Circulation OfficerArt Schwartzdistribution@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢EditorRonan Heffernaneditor@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢Programs OfficerMelissa Stephens 2023 Blue Rock Rd. #301Tampa , FL 33612813-476-5405 programs@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢Calendar EditorSylvia Holt Zadorozny 651 Timber Bay Cir. W. Oldsmar, FL 34677 813-855-4939 calendar@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢Membership OfficerVacantmembership@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢Gifted Youth Coordinator

Melissa Stephens giftedyouth@ tampa.us.mensa.org

➢ScribeSylvia Holt Zadoroznyscribe@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢Testing CoordinatorThomas George Thomas27647 Sky Lake Circle Wesley Chapel, FL 33544 813-994-3981testing@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢Volunteer CoordinatorHillary Miller1700 66th St NSt Petersburg, FL 33710volunteer@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢Publicity OfficerJay Johnsonpublicity@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢AuditorDan ChesnutP.O. Box 1839St. Petersburg, FL 33731727-434-0353chesnut314@gmail.com

➢WebmasterRonan Heffernanwebmaster@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢Scholarship ChairDan Chesnutscholarship@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢Members-At-LargeBarbara Loewe 12401 N. 22d St.Apt #C111Tampa, FL 33612 813-968-3343bloewe@juno.com

OTHER OFFICERS

➢OmbudsmanEloise Hurst 3615 W Renellie Cir Tampa, FL 33629 813-839-2695 ombudsman@ tampa.us.mensa.org

➢SIGHT CoordinatorSusan Anderson 10733 Dowry Ave. Tampa, FL 33615 813-494-6517 sight@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢SIG CoordinatorDavid Schwartz1909 Dover ctOldsmar FL 34677

813-965-0370davidsdover@yahoo.com

➢Election SupervisorJay Johnson 5051 Cardiff Dr Holiday, FL 34690 727-934-9575election@tampa.us.mensa.org

➢PublisherSylvester (Les) Milewski 727-397-8483 LesMiles@aol.com

➢ProctorsJay Johnson Kay ShapiroThomas George Thomas

➢Editorial BoardJay JohnsonMelissa StephensAudrey SilverThomas George Thomas

➢Election CommitteeJay JohnsonAudrey SilverEloise Hurst

ASSISTANT OFFICERS

➢Asst TreasurerDan Chesnut, Jay Johnson

➢Asst Programs OfficerArt Schwartz

➢Asst WebmastersArt Schwartz, Thomas George Thomas

➢Asst Membership Off.Art Schwartz

➢Asst Scribe, Asst Editor, Asst Testing Coordinator

Jay Johnson

NON-TBM CONTACTS

➢RVC, Region 10Thomas George Thomas27647 Sky Lake Circle Wesley Chapel, FL 33544 813-994-3981rvc10@us.mensa.org

Tampa Bay Sounding (USPS 305­830) is published monthly by Tampa Bay Mensa at 9091 St. Andrews Dr., Seminole, FL 33777. Periodicals postage paid at St. Petersburg, FLPostmaster: Send address changes to: Tampa Bay Sounding, c/o American Mensa Ltd. 1229 Corporate Dr. W., Arlington, TX 76006­6103.

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