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October 9, 2006 -- Vol. 6 Issue 34 Written by Jack R. Simpson (unless otherwise noted), owner of J.R. Simpson & Associates, Inc. and contributing editor to The Waterways Journal.
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 In This Newsletter:
Thought For The Week
The Scottish poet Robert Burns wrote: “The best-laid plans o’ mice an’ men Gang aft a-gley, An’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain For promised joy.” You might also have seen it in this form: “The oft laid plans of mice and men oft go awry.” So why is it that “best laid plans” oft “go awry” and “lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain”? I pose this question in light of what appears to be an error in judgement on my part. I take it up in the editorial portion of this letter. 
Editorial Comment From Jack
 Over the years I have been told that boat crews read nothing but girlie magazines. People other than cooks told me that. I always have been reluctant to believe that.
I have always believed that people who made their living at a certain profession would be interested in reading about the profession, i.e., doctors read about doctors, magicians read about magicians and, for sure, sportsmen read about sportsmen. Now what I believe is that some of what I believe is wrong. I still believe that doctors read about doctors and magicians read about magicians, etc. But I am not so sure about boat crews. A week or so ago I wrote in B&B about an experienced seaman whose livelihood had been taken away from him by the Coast Guard without his ever having accumulated a bad record or had accidents or even violated the drug-rule enforcer who illegally (in our way of thinking) wouldn’t let this former boat captain use an approved Coast-Guard alternative method for the random drug check. This man fought it out in court –- I’m sure at considerable expense — wrote a book about his experience, documented it and offered it for sale. The experience, we thought, was so horrendous that it needed to be exposed beyond what it already had been. Accounts had appeared in the New York newspapers, at least, and probably in others. Such being the case, and remembering that the Coast Guard drug regulations had been a super hurry-up job after the agency had already spent all of the funds earmarked for them, we decided to write an editorial about it in “The Waterways Journal.” Some will recall that the CG regulations were patterned after blue-water regulations. That is frequently the case with brown-water rules. Some office nerd simply drags out what has been mandated for blue water and adopts most of it. (By the way, we got that from an investigator who knew the guy who wrote them. We reported it years ago.) Well, we figured that boat crews, even boat company officials, would be really interested in reading about the good captain’s experience to find out how tough it can really get and how an innocent party can be railroaded when power-hungry people get their dander up. So we put the book on our web site and wrote about it at length in B&B. (We say all this in light of the fact that the towing industry is having a terrible time crewing its boats because of regulations coming out of the Homeland Security Department. Abuse of drug-rule enforcement can only make matters worse, can’t it?) Would you believe not one brown–water soul has purchased the man’s book. And that I find perplexing. If such detailed information about the overseers of one’s profession does not create interest, what will? Those girlie magazines? Does this demonstrate a serious change in our philosophy in this country? Well, I don’t know. Perhaps someone else does. I just find it perplexing.
For Those Inclined To Pray
 For those desiring prayer support for themselves or others, we invite you to join our Prayer Circle, which allows you to submit requests, thereby tapping into prayerful support of our 40 Circle members. There is power in prayer. Membership in the Circle and/or the submission of prayer requests is open to anyone and freë. Request lists are sent out via email, generally, on the day they are received. Come join us!
Newsletter News
Readers have no doubt noticed a stepped up campaign in our Bitts & Bytes newsletter to market the new book “$elf-Publish For Profit”, written by me (Jack Simpson) and based on more than 50 years of journalism experience, including 32 years writing for the WJ. Twenty-two years of it was as editor. Suffice it to say – as we have said before – it has been book sales that kept this letter free. I cannot, in all good conscience, ask people who have no interest in writing to buy a book they do not want. But anyone who has any interest at all in writing a book or has written one and is trying to get it into print can find this book invaluable. Avoiding booby traps in the publishing world can prevent the loss of hundreds, even thousands, of dollars. B&B readers could have friends that could benefit from this information. There is a way that all readers can help spread the word about the book. If every one of B&B’s 1,000 plus readers would share with a writer friend or two the fact that “$elf-Publish For Profit” (by avoiding booby traps) is available at www.littleriverbooks.com, it could direct hundreds to the web site. They could even pass along the message to their friendly neighborhood bookstore and say that the book is being distributed by Big River Distribution. 9870-D Big Bend Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63122, phone 314/822-1808. This gesture would be appreciated. — Jack
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$elf-Publish For Profit
 I was privileged to read this book [“$elf-Publish For Profit”] when it was in rough stages, in finished pages and a final rendition. As the leader of a writing group for emerging writers for the past five years, I’ve spent time with people of all ages who were writing a journal, beginning a novel, or writing something for their grandchildren. I tried hard to read everything I could on new trends that would help writers who wanted to share their work with others without breaking their bank account or waiting two years to see their work in print. I read book after book on how to publish your work. Most left me with a lot more questions than answers. I can’t wait to have this book available to my class members this Fall. Jack Simpson’s years of professional writing, editing and publishing experience contribute to his knowledge of both the author/publisher roles. His sense of fairness and his respect for the “bottom line” qualify him to share his “trade secrets” in a one-on-one way. This book starts where most books about publishing end: “I have a manuscript, now what do I do with it?” He most definitely answers that question. And Jack does it in a simple, straight-forward “Let’s talk” kind of delivery that makes you believe self-publishing doesn’t have to be the nightmare that some people have experienced. — Joanne Wiklund, publisher, The Great River Eagle Press, Ltd.
Click here for more information.
On The Waterfront
Continuing Resolution Funds Civil Works We all know by now that Congress has postponed consideration of the Water Resources Development Act for at least another six weeks, that is, until after the November elections. In the meantime, according to the Waterways Council, that August body will reconvene on November 9 and begin consideration legislation no sooner than November 14. Before taking its recess, however, Congress passed a Continuing Resolution that funds Corps Civil Works programs just as it does other federal programs. In May, the House voted $4.984 for Civil Works for fiscal 2007. In late June the Senate Appropriations Committee reported its companion bill that included funding totaling $5.139 billion. The Council reported that under the terms of the Continuing Resolution, the Corps will allocate funds, under most circumstances, equal to no more than 90 percent of the lessor of the fiscal 2006 appropriations or the House-passed fiscal 2007 level. Funds carried over from fiscal 2006 or earlier are subject to programming restrictions. The current Continuing Resolution expires on November 17 but can be extended, the Council said.
Waterways Council: Inland Waterways Expenditures Set FY 2006 Record (Plagiarized from the Waterways Council “Capitol Currents” newsletter.) Federal expenditures on priority lock-and-dam projects set a record in FY2006, which ended last weekend [the beginning of October.] Final figures for the fiscal year aren’t yet available but, through the end of August, transfers from the Inland Waterways Trust Fund to 15 navigation construction and rehabilitation projects totaled $155 million, surpassing the previous record of $148.6 million which was set in FY 1991. Since the Trust Fund pays one-half of shallow-draft navigation construction and rehabilitation costs, this would indicated FY 2006 expenditures of about $310 million during the first 11 months of the fiscal year. By the time the FY 2006 books are closed, Washington observers expect spending on inland construction and rehabilitation projects to amount to about $360 million.
Missouri River Plan Cuts Navigation Season Early We reported in recent weeks that the Corps had released its draft Missouri River Operating Plan for 2007 and that it will be considered during various public hearings. What we did not report was specifics. The season actually will end in St. Louis on October 17, some 44 days earlier than in past years.
“Wall Street Journal”: Fish Recovery Program A Failure The “Wall Street Journal” reported recently that the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) has spent $8 billion since 1980 on fish restoration projects and has very little to show for it. The money went for fish ladders, electronic tags and special barges in an effort to restore 13 species of endangered salmon and steelhead on the Columbia, Snake and other Pacific Northwest rivers. According to the paper, it is the most expensive wildlife restoration program and called it “a failure.” According to the WSJ, the electronic tags cost $270 each. After all this effort, less than 3.5 percent of the fish complete the long journey down the river system. Of that number, those who survive the high dams, predatory birds, fishermen and sea lions attempt to return upriver two or three years later to spawn. In related news, the Waterways Council reports that several Indian tribes want PacifiCorp Energy to remove its four dams along the Klamath River, which rises in southern Oregon and flows into northern California, to restore historic salmon spawning habitat. PacifiCorp is trying to relicense the four hydroelectric dams for 50 years. A federal administrative law judge has ruled that PacifiCorp must install fish ladders costing an estimated $220 million. The Indian tribes argue that it would cost the company only $100 million to demolish the dams. What about the loss of less-costly, renewable electricity produced by those dams?
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“Wendy The Whale”
“Wendy The Whale” is a book that portrays how love and kindness positively impacted the life of a girl who suffered irreparable brain damage (Hypoxia) due to a difficult birth. This gracious and pretty woman presently earns her own living, a moderate success to be sure, but it is an enduring credit to her and her family. Soft cover, 157 pages. Price $10.50 including S&H. Send checks or money orders to the author: A. Lawrence Bates, Dept. B&B., 2040 Sherwood Avenue, Louisville, KY 40205-1112. Inquiries can be emailed to riverbates@juno.com.
Crossing The Bar
As reported in “The Waterways Journal”: Robert L. Miller, 83, of Keokuk, Iowa, who for about 54 years contributed the “Upper Mississippi” and “Keokuk News” columns to “The Waterways Journal”, died October 2 of complications from a broken hip and Alzheimer’s Disease. Miller served as traffic manager for Hubinger Company, but was best known as the curator of the Geo. M. Verity Riverboat Museum in Keokuk. He was involved in bringing the Verity to Keokuk in 1960 when Armco Corporation donated it to the city. He served as assistant curator and then curator of the Verity Museum from 1977 to 1997, and in 1980 worked successfully to have the towboat museum declared a National Historic Landmark. Always connected with the river, he made many trips on the Mv. Laguna, the Alexander MacKenzie, Golden Eagle, Gordon C. Greene and others. He was a longtime member of the Midwest Riverboat Buffs. Memorials are requested to the Midwest Riverboat Buffs for river history preservation. As reported earlier in less detail by B&B: Gordon Kilgore, 81, of Elizabeth, Ill., president of the National Rivers Hall of Fame and the Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium, died September 19 at Dubuque (Iowa) Nursing & Rehabilitation Center. He began a radio career in the late 1940s in Dubuque, and reported during the 1965 Mississippi River flood. The city named a one-block street along its floodwall for him. He retired from radio station KDTH in 1993. As president of the Rivers Hall of Fame, he presented countless Achievement Awards to river leaders over the years. He received the John Bickel Award earlier this year from the Hall of Fame.
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You can contact the editor dírectly at jacksimpson@littleriverbooks.com.
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The River School - Deck and engineer licenses, radar observer, tankerman, fire and water safety courses, video programs. Travel classes in convenient locations. (800) 238-7113 www.riverschool.com
From Our Readers
Re: Help Us Find A Person Finding long lost friends is a service B&B is pleased to provide when we can, but it takes helpful readers to get the job done. Marvin “Moe” Laufer of Florissant, Mo., has called to ask us to locate a college friend, Alvin D. Osborne III, whom he knew in the Pittsburgh and Chicago area. He last was in communication with Osborne in the late 1980s. He had known him in college in the 1970s and for some time was able to remain in touch with him. The one clue we have is that Osborne used to discuss his work with American Commercial Barge Line Company. We ask anyone who can give us a clue as to Alvin Osborne’s whereabouts to please contact B&B via email or phone Marvin Laufer directly at 314/838-2265.
Boat Photo Center
 This week we carry 10 new pictures in the Photo Center, including one of a dear departed friend, Robert L. Miller, standing near the pilothouse of the Mark Twain many years ago. They are: the Mark Twain from John Miller; Cindy Celeste, President, Bob Blocker and Ryan Cenac from Ed Rahe; Carl L. Johnson from Eric M. Johnson, Hamilton and Leviticus from Jim Mihalek; Loyd Murphy from Ron Richardson; and the original Clare E. Beatty from Dan Owen and the Boat Photo Museum.
Click here to see the latest pictures.
Recipe Box
Do you have a good recipe you’d like to share? Submit your recipes here!
The Book Beat
“Wendy The Whale” is not a river book. It isn’t even about boats. And it is fiction. But it is one of the most inspirational books I have read about how love and kindness can impact people — in this case a woman who, at birth, suffered a serious handicap as the result of a difficult birth. I must tell readers, as I told him, that I sat down one day, intending to read only a few pages, and the first thing I knew, I was 100 pages into the book. I had no other choice than just to finish it. Author Alan L. Bates, “Old Boat” columnist for “The Waterways Journal”, was inspired to write it after visiting the home of a handicapped lady who learned to swim as a therapeutic effort. His wish is that “it will help the more fortunate to understand and sympathize with the mentally handicapped, and possibly lend hope to those who must meet similar challenges." To obtain the book, refer to the classified ad, which has appeared previously in this issue of B&B.  Another book by Bates is “McBride’s River", which is available on our web site.
119 pages. Soft cover. Nonfiction. Generously illustrated. This is a
heartwarming story of a riverboat family spanning 142 years of American
river history. The McBride Family began river work on the fabled Victorian
sidewheel packets of story and song. They took in stride the transition from
Steamboat Gothic to the days of gigantic coal tows between Pittsburgh and
New Orleans. When excursion steamers were the kings of the rivers, the
McBrides were there, and when the diesel towboat replaced the steamers, they
adjusted once again. Today they operate one of the busiest harbor towing
services in the Mississippi River Valley, with more than 20 powerful
towboats in constant operation. You will enjoy the antics, the trials and
tribulations, and the success of this colorful and charming river clan.
Usually same-day shipping!
Our Price: $9.50
Tow Talkin'
October 9, 2006 By Kathy Flippo  The Rock Island District Corps of Engineers boat Clinton went down late Monday morning, October 2, with three deck barges. The first was loaded with two earth movers, the middle was loaded with rip rap, and the last had a big Manitowoc crane on it. A pretty hefty load for a little boat! She was built in 1974 by SteelShip Corp. of Pine Bluff, Arkansas (and yes, that is the way the company writes its name) and is 50 feet by 20 feet, with a pair of Cat diesels in her turning out 500 horsepower.
Next down was Ingram’s Mv. Virginia Ingram with 15 loads. One load was scrap metal, another load…to continue reading, click here. Click here to read previous columns. See you on the Web, Jack Little River Books jacksimpson@littleriverbooks.com Don't forget to visit our web site! |
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