SERVING HENDRICKS COUNTY SINCE 1847
Page A-6
The Republican
Thursday, February 25, 2021
Voices
ASK MR. TRAFFIC
We offer Voices as a place to share a story, a memory, an idea, a comment, a criticism, or a solution. Contributors must include name, address & phone number.
By Chet Skwarcan, PE, President/ Founder of Traffic Engineering, Inc. Chet@TrafficEngineering.com
(Please keep submissions under 500 words)
Black History Month “More Than a Hashtag”
Crusin’ I had not had my license long and Dad was finally letting me go on dates. He had one stipulation however, “Do not go into Indianapolis.” Well, I had been in Indianapolis riding with my buddies and we would cruise around looking cool. There was a pattern everyone followed. You started by crusin the Pole Drive In Restaurant on West 16h St. Then you went south to Greenwood and cruised the South Side Tee Pee Restaurant on Madison Ave. Finally, you would go to the northside and cruise the North Side Tee Pee Restaurant which was on Fall Creek Parkway. If you had no action by this time it was back to the Pole. Well, it was Saturday night, and I had a date. I needed to impress her with my savvy, so off to Indianapolis we went in my 1957 Plymouth Belvedere. Luckily, I did not get lost (which was a miracle in itself). We had made a couple of rounds and we became hungry. Now the Pole was where all the cool cars cruised through, but the food was too expensive. So, we went to the Frisch’s Big Boy down the street, ordered hamburgers and fries to go and then went back to the Pole. We backed into a spot and ordered two cokes. After paying, we broke out the hidden burgers and fries. By this time my date was having second thoughts about me. We sat with the radio on listening to WIBC rock and roll and ate. Finally, I said it was time to go and tried to start the car. Bad news. It would not start. I could just see me calling by Dad to come and jump me. I would be grounded for the rest of my life. I turned everything off and we sat and prayed for about 15 minutes which seemed like and eternity. Finally, I tried it again and it started. Wow! There really is a God. I got my date and myself home on time, but she never went out with me again. I wonder why. Oh well, life at 17 can really be TOUGH. Noel Gatlin ______________________________________________
A Bark From the Past: Henry
[Editor’s Note: The Republican’s first four-footed correspondent was Henry, a mixed breed rescue dog, who made observations about small town life from a dog’s point of view. (From 2006, Henry shares his thoughts on how humans can be more humane.) I saw my friends Carmen and Petey on my walk the other day. They told me that there is a need for a more humane county, and I couldn’t agree more. Two of my half-sisters were abandoned on the streets of Danville, and there is nothing humane about that. Fortunately, there are some humans who are taking action locally, and they have named their group the Hendricks County Humane Society. They are now working with county officials to improve the quality of care given to my brothers and sisters who are dumped or just left behind by their humans. Possible ways in which the Humane Society may take over sheltering are going to be on the agenda (I went on the agenda until I was housebroken) of the Hendricks County Commissioners. And there is going to be a joint meeting of the County Commissioners and the Hendricks County Council, and the Humane Society will be discussed there, too. This is important for us, because it concerns how Hendricks County will treat its strayed and abandoned pets in the future and how those pets might have a better chance to be adopted. Thought for the Day: The question is not ‘can they reason?’ nor ‘can they speak?’, but ‘can they suffer?’ -Jeremy Bentham, in reference to animal welfare. ______________________________________________
[Editor’s Note: Elshadai Aberra, The Republican’s student intern from Avon High School, shared this piece on what Black History Month means to her. After graduation she will be attending the School of Journalism at Northwestern University.] A lot of people have only been exposed to the reality of being black in America starting this past year, but posting hashtags on social media or watching videos on Facebook just isn’t enough. Here’s what being black is to me– an Ethiopian immigrant, 17-year-old girl. Being black to me is starting to wonder why God burdened me with melanin at just the age of 5. Being black to me is only imagining characters of white skin in every book I’ve ever read. Being black to me is never believing in my potential as a human being because people of my skin color are predisposed to fail. Being black to me is never recognizing my shade of skin on a TV screen. Being black to me is worrying that people think I only got into my dream school because of affirmative action or my ethnicity. Being black to me is serving as the only if not one of 2 black kids in every class until intermediate school. Being black to me is straightening my natural curls every 2 weeks and begging my mom to buy me $170 Ugg boots just to fit in. Being black to me is getting called an African booty scratcher or “not actually black” by my own kind. Being black to me is getting asked if I speak African. Being black to me is applying fair & lovely skin lightening cream to my face every morning and night for years in hopes of even barely resembling those of privilege around me. Being black to me is having my first and only teacher of color my junior year of high school. Being black to me isn’t just hashtag black lives matter or hashtag police brutality. Being black to me is my entire life. My past, present, future - my reality. ______________________________________________
4 Black Innovations You May Not Have Learned About in School By Elshadai Aberra Hairbrush: A black innovator as well as women’s rights advocate fighting for woman’s suffrage, Lyda Newman is best known for inventing the modern hairbrush. While there had been hairbrushes and combs beforehand, Newsman’s hairbrush was specifically crafted for African American hair and made of synthetic bristles rather than animal fur. Newsman patented her hairbrush in 1898 at the ripe age of just 13 years old. Electric automatic traffic signal: As not only a black innovator in the early 20th century, yet also the first black person to own a car in Cleveland, Ohio, Garrett Morgan patented the first electric automatic traffic signal in 1923. Morgan was the first to think beyond just telling drivers to “Stop” and “Go” as his traffic system stopped traffic in all directions, using a t-shaped pole with three positions to do so. Morgan sold the rights of his innovation to General Electric for a whopping $40,000. Home Security System: Born in Queens New York in 1922, Marie Van Brittan Brown invented the world’s first home security system, patenting the innovation in 1966. Influencing the modern home security systems we use to this day, the system was first created to simply keep Brown and her husband safe as the crime rate in their neighborhood had been sky high. Scared and looking to increase her home’s personal security, Brown took matters into her own hands and invented a system that one, notified her of who was at her home at all times and two, could contact the authorities as quickly as possible. Ironing Board: Before Sarah Boone, clothes were simply ironed onjagged wooden blocks. While most may not hold so much appreciation for the modern ironing board, thanks to Boone, our ironing boards now feature narrower, curved designs making it far easier to iron clothes, especially women’s clothes. Sarah Boone accomplished this and patented her invention is just 1892, even after spending the early years of her life enslaved, she continued to make life, as miniscule as ironing clothes sounds, easier for those around her. ______________________________________________
Don’t Worry. Just Drive. Apps Know What You Need If you’ve ever used GPS apps while you travel, you’ve probably noticed location-specific advertising popping up (because after all, they know where you are and where you are headed). Also known as geo-fencing or location-based analytics, this technology creates a virtual perimeter — a dynamically generated radius around a point (i.e., “you”). Let’s fast forward to see where this technology is headed — remember, every place you go is recorded. This allows for some pretty interesting alerts — here are a few examples… Because you tend to eat lunch at Chik-fil-A about once a week or so and it’s now approaching lunchtime, and because you’ll be driving by a Chick-fil-A in about two minutes, your GPS announces, “Can I place a Chick-fil-A lunch order for you? It will be ready when you arrive.” Or, if you’re getting kind of low on gas, “The Sinclair gas station on your right has a better price than any other gas station along today’s route. And by the way, if you stop now, and I mean right now, you’ll get a free car wash if you mention this app.” And, based on your “history” of mid-morning coffee stops, at the perfect confluence of time and location, “For the next ten minutes, get 50% off your espresso at Java Joe’s — just mention the phrase: Running Latte.” The possibilities created when meshing location, time of day, travel history, and preferences, allow for a custom experience whenever you travel. It’s mimicking YouTube’s algorithm making recommendations based on your viewing history meshed with preferences from users with a similar profile, except now it’s being applied to your driving experience. Guess what? Do you need your weekly combo meal but you’re on a tight schedule — see that guy standing in the middle of the road? That’s for you. Roll down your window…NOW! ______________________________________________
A Squirrel About Town By Archy “You made the list.” Archy said when he paid an unexpected visit to The Republican office last week. I hesitated to ask which list, hoping he would continue the thought as he pulled the afghan from the back of the rocking chair and fashioned a cozy nest. “The Squirrel Salon rarely takes in new members, but after the last meeting, it was voted to make an exception in your case.” My thoughts bounced back and forth between feeling honored and puzzled. “The topic was history,” he said, “and we agreed you might have some interesting input to offer.” I asked the squirrel about the conversations at the last meeting. “Oscar opened the meeting with a quote from Pieter Geyl, ‘History is an argument without an end.’ I’m sure you would agree,” he said. I felt the tug of being reeled in. I said, “Geyl also said, ‘Imagination plays too important a role in the writing of history, and what is imagination but the projection of the author’s personality.’” “Precisely!,” Archy exclaimed. “Being one of authors of history’s first draft I knew you would fit right in.” I inquired how often the Squirrel Salon met and where. “We are utterly free-form, as Oscar would put it. When the mood strikes us, we send a message by telepathic telegraph. There is some back-and-forth discussion about the topic to be tackled.” He pause a moment, then added, “Of course, I’ll relay the discussion to you since you haven’t had telepathic contact with any of the other members yet. Besides, you won’t earn your voting credentials until you’ve passed muster.” A feeling of inadequacy started to creep over me. What if I weren’t up to the Squirrel Salon standards? I think Archy noticed. “Frankly, we have some legacy members I’d love to see booted out, but I’m sure you’ll meet our standards,” he said with a comforting tone. I asked where the meetings would take place. “When you join us, they meetings will take place here. More than enough room. And do you have anymore of these afghans? We’ll need more of them.” Not only was I hooked, it turned out I was a sucker.
