RANDOM THOUGHTS - Thursday, Oct 8, 2026

 RANDOM THOUGHTS - Thursday, Oct 8, 2026

I’ve discovered that the less I do, the less I can do … AI has some promise, but so far the biggest promise is turmoil … line from song “Oh, Lord, don’t let that cold wind blow til I’m too old to die young” … We took our flu and covid shots the other day - no excuse for the measles outbreak in some parts of the country … My mantra could be “Octogenarians, unite “… You cannot think any deeper than the size of your vocabulary allows you to … C. M. Russell, the great painter of western scenes, died 100 years ago this month … When we sit around at night watching some TV, I’ll find the Dutchman Andre Rieu concerts on Youtube (I wonder if our Dutch friends watch him) … I’ve been writing a few posts I call “Stories Under a Stone” featuring people buried in my hometown cemetery. Find them sprinkled throughout my blog site - lynnbueling.blogspot.com …   On this day in 1871, a huge fire in Chicago began in O’Leary’s barn, and, by the time the blaze died out two days later, a large portion of the city had been destroyed with the death of some 300 people …

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David McCullough (1933-2022) took his place as one of my favorite historians with great written works about John Adams, Truman, The Wright Brothers, and several more. My recent purchase of one of his books - HISTORY MATTERS - has been opened and read from countless times. It was produced after his death by his daughter and another close associate who selected and compiled some of his works into one volume. First thoughts about it, what is the meaning of the title that can take on two different meanings: is the word “Matters” a verb or is it a noun. Either one would certainly be correct usage of the word; however, I choose to lean toward the verb form, since I believe that it does matter.

     Here is what McCullough says in one place, “It is sad but true that we are raising a generation of young Americans who are to a large degree historically illiterate.” He gave a disturbing illustration of an encounter with someone he’d met who told him she had no interest in history. When asked why she told him you never know what’s true and what isn’t, and when queried a bit further, went on to say she didn’t believe the Holocaust happened! For the intellectually curious person, it is easy to find and read hundreds of testimonials by survivors who certainly disagree.