About The Lee County ledger. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1978-current | View Entire Issue (July 10, 2019)
Page 4A,The Lee County Ledger, Wednesday, July 10, 2019 Start World War III Without Really Trying HowTo Special to the Ledger By Kate Scarmalis It was the second shot heard around the world, the first taking place at Lexington and Concord. The colonies took the first steps in securing liberty for what would become the greatest na tion on earth. The second shot was the disaster wrought upon Japan on August 6, 1945, as the Enola Gay dropped a five-ton bomb over Hiroshima. It was a second stab at the world in defense of liberty. The world was changed for ever. The world around us was now “nuclear”. Like good little duck lings, a whole generation of baby boomers learned how to survive a nuclear holocaust by ducking under their desks at school. Kids aren’t that stupid. We knew that any atom bomb that went off close enough would fry our bacon. Since so many adults were taking atomic preparations so seri ously, we did as well. By the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis, Cold War indoctrination did the trick. The world came to a halt, as people did nothing but talk about an inevitable nuclear war. People were scared out of their boots, with reason. The United States and Russia were a spit away from unleash ing the nuclear demon against one another. Fortunately, President John Kennedy and Russian Premier Nikita Khrushchev capitulated to negotiated terms and Armageddon was averted. History does so love to repeat itself. On July 1 of this year, Vladmir Putin ordered Russia’s most advanced warship to Cuba in a show of military might. The Admiral Gorshkov is a 4,500-ton warship, equipped for anti-air, an ti-surface and anti-sub- marine warfare battles, boasting of a potentially deadly supersonic cruise missile as its primary weapon. The Russian frigate is armed with the 5P-42 Filin “electro optic countermeasure” device, a new non-lethal light-based optical in terference system. This “weapon of mass dis orientation” temporarily impairs optical systems, interfering with the abil ity for enemy operators to aim correctly, causing vomiting, nausea, and sometimes hallucinatory symptoms. How things have changed! Where is the panic over the close proximity of Russian missiles that could reach the U.S. within 6.1 min utes? According to news reports, “S-no big deal.” Big Brother NORAD is watching. Case closed. Fear of a nuclear weapon of mass destruc tion has traditionally been the animating force motivating our citi zens to prepare for war contingencies. However, studies have shown that nuclear fears have faded across generations. Chil dren born after the Cold War tend to show little concern over the possi bility of nuclear warfare. Say what? The world has never been so prepared for to tal annihilation. Accord ing to a report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), nine countries around the world have access to 16,300 nuclear weapons. Iran is chomping at the bit to take its place on the nuclear stage. North Korea has been acting in concert with Rus sia since the Cold War. The USSR provided the technology and train ing to help North Korea to locate deposits of graphite and uranium ore needed to produce nuclear weapons. Under Kim Jong Un, North Korea has developed nuclear technology, and a ballistic missile system which enables them to launch its weaponry. True enough, during the Cuban Missile crisis, nuclear disaster was averted as an outcome of negotiations between the USSR and the United States. It might be our salvation today. All depends upon the rea soning power and skill embedded in the minds of the powers that be. Or, within the minds of men and women in the field, in the air, or at sea. . . During the Cuban cri sis, without the interven tion of one sane man, Russia and the United States may have engaged in war. On October 27, 1962, U.S. Navy warships enforcing the block ade of Cuba attempted to surface four Soviet B-59 submarines that surrounded the island. Three of four were sur faced, but one remained below. The submarine had lost contact with Moscow for several days. With battery fail ing and air conditioning broken, temperatures inside the submarine soared above 100°F. American warships began dropping depth charges on either side of the sub as a warning. The crew, unaware of the blockade, consid ered that war had been declared. The B-59 was equipped with a nuclear- tipped torpedo. Without a direct order from Moscow the torpedo could only be fired with the consent of all three senior officers aboard. Captain Valentin Savitsky and Political officer Ivan Semonovich Maslennikov agreed to Special to the Ledger By Harry R. Martinez, Ph. D What’s in an “IF’? As an educator, one hears of the difficulties encountered by those who are try ing to learn English as a second language. There are words that are spelled the same but pronounced differently. Then, other words do not sound as spelled, and added to these are changes in the meanings and use of words over many centu ries. Apparent inconsis tencies seem abundant and present a challenge to the learner. No doubt such issues exist in other languages, but precise meanings of words are critical in understanding accurately what is being said. Scripture, God’s revelation to mankind, demands absolute preci sion in communicating divine thought. Paul wrote to Timothy... “All Scripture is God- breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim 3:16-17 NIV). “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Heb 4:12 NIV). Thus, the Apostle Peter states ... “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scrip ture came about by the prophet’s own interpre tation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” 2 Peter 1:20-21 NIV). There fore, as inscribed in the original languages of Scripture, God’s Word is inerrant and infal lible. The most ancient manuscripts found to date verify the consis tency of Biblical content. Even today’s translations are highly accurate in the launch. One lone man, Second Captain Vasili Alexandrovich Arkhipov, dissented, arguing that they should surface and await orders from Moscow. But for that one man with his minority opin ion, a very disastrous war might have been declared. The question remains. How did this country become so complacent to the possibilities of nuclear warfare, espe cially where millennials are concerned? In the first place, schools do not teach American history in any in-depth manner. Students today barely know about the Cuban Missile crisis, much addressing word usage compatible with present day languages. The sci ence of textual criticism has permitted translators to resolve any discrep ancies that could occur as a result of transla tion. Some languages may pos sess greater specificity and use of nuances than others, but God’s Truth is still discern ible and understandable. God is faithful to preserve and protect His Word. “The Psalmist wrote ... “I will bow down toward your holy temple and will praise your name for your love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word” (Ps 138:2 NIV). Peter contrasted that which is temporal with that which is eter nal ... “For all men are like grass and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever” (1 Peter 1:24-25 NIV). This article will exam ine an extremely power ful two letter word, “if’ to demonstrate God’s intent for His word to be clearly communicated. While in English, this word is used to state potential, probability, possibility or uncer tainty, its use in the New Testament is very specific as evidenced in the Koine Greek devel oped by Alexander the Great. His effectiveness in governing the empire demanded precision in use of words. Thus, the Greek of the New Testament fulfilled the demands of accuracy in Scripture. An example of an “if “clause is found in Matthew’s gospel. The English translation reads ... “The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself less what would be the consequences of nuclear engagement between nations. More im portantly, fear of nuclear an nihilation has been displaced by a new concern in the minds of our young - fear of climate change. Groups such as the Union of Concerned Scientists along with the Natural Resources De fense Council (NRDC), Sierra Club, and Green peace in the past railed against nuclear energy. Today they inject fear down” (Mt 4:3, 6 NIV). It appears that Satan is questioning whether Jesus is the Christ, the One sent by the Father to go to the Cross and pay the sin debt of man kind, so that by faith in His accomplished work on the Cross, anyone could have eternal life. However, this use of “if’ actually leaves no room for doubt as to the Person of Christ. Satan actually knows that Jesus is the Son of God and uses the “if’ indicating that which I am seeing a lot of fall webworms this year. Webworms will feed on basically any deciduous tree. The female moth lays a few hundred eggs in clusters on the under side of leaves. The eggs hatch in about a week. The webworms produce a web structure that protects the caterpillars from predators as they feed. This web is en larged as the caterpillars feed. This insect is in the lar val, or caterpillar, stage for four to six weeks. It then pupates into a moth. In the south, there are multiple generations of webworms each year. In the north, there is only one generation per year. Fall webworms should not be confused with tent caterpillars, which occur in the spring and produce a neater look ing web structure in the crotch of tree limbs. Fall webworms have their structures on the tips of branches. This insect into our young minds, that global warming will eventually destroy the planet. Millenni als have been raised to be afraid, not of nuclear war, but rather climate change. Call me crazy, but the white- hot heat of a nuclear blast still trumps a few extra hot days in winter. Kate Scarmalis retired from teaching in the Lee County School System. She has a B.A. in Foreign Languages, Elementary and Gifted Education, and an M.A. in Forensic Psychology. is true. Though Satan acknowledged that Jesus is the Son of God, he remained locked in unbelief in the very presence of the Savior. How tragic—so close, yet so far! Editor’s note: Dr. Martinez is an ordained minister and was a professor and head of the music department at Florida State University School from 1975 to 2003. He is the father of five adult children and resides in Lee County with his wife, Sara. overwinters in the pupal (cocoon) stage in bark and leaf litter at the base of the tree. Although this insect has “fall” in its name, it is very common during the summer in our area. Fall webworms usually do no serious damage to mature trees in good health. People have tried to control the insect with burning newspapers. This will do more harm to the tree than the web worms will. If an insec ticide can be applied to the webworms (they can sometimes be difficult to reach with a sprayer), they can be controlled rather easily. Use only insecticides labelled for this use. As with all pes ticides, always read and follow all label instruc tions. It may be easier just to wait a few weeks and let them cycle out. For more information, call the Lee County Extension Office at 759-6025 or email me at collinsd@uga.edu The Lee County Ledger Established August 24,1978 lcledger@bellsouth.net P.0. Box 715 (126 4th Street) (229) 759-2413 Leesburg, Georgia 31763 USPS 470-310 Official Organ of Lee County SUBSCRIPTION RATES Lee and surrounding counties $20.00 year Elsewhere $25.00 year Publisher Derryl Quinn Editor Jim Quinn Layout and Design Zan Twiggs Advertising Manager Tina Maples (USPS 470-310), is published weekly for $20.00 per year in Lee and surrounding counties, and $25.00 per year else where by its offices at the May Office Building, 124 - 4th Street, Leesburg, Georgia 31763. Periodicals postage paid at Leesburg, GA. POST MASTER: Send address changes on Form 3579 to, P.O. 715, Leesburg, GA 31763. §®p) Printed On member of Georgia Recycled Paper press association Sharing Harry R. Martinez the Word Kate Scarmalis The University of Georgia • Cooperative Extension Service Fall Webworms Doug Collins, Lee County Extension Coordinator P utting J^nowledee to\Vork'j ^ Fall webworms commonly infest pecan and persimmon trees. Fall Webworms
