Continued from previous message.

insect protection and repellent on all stargazing in or near woody or 
watery areas. 
    On Sunday the 22nd a dozenish members of national Space Society 
were treated to a special presentation by its past president Elaine 
Walker. She came to the City on business and got us together at Life 
Cafe' in Alphabet City. (Yeah, I make up these names! Like No Frills 
Star Party?) Over brunch she gave a laptop slideshow of her summer 
stay at NASA's Devon Island arctic base.  
    August closed with the Republican national Convention at Madison 
Square Garden. I urge that you simply stay clear of the area around 
the garden out to a half kilometer radius. There are street closings, 
traffic detours and reroutes, rail delays and service shuffling. 

THAT Section (formerly Astropolitics) 
 -----------------------------------
    With the brouhaha within Amateur Astronomers Association shifted 
to the Yahoogroups forum 'AAA_Politics', there's no need to engender 
that business here. Of course, any news about the club can be deemed 
political. If that's your take, get over to AAA_Politics and bleat out 
your inane intonations. It's just as free for all and free-for-all as 
NYSkies allowed in former months. I seeded the forum with copies of 
the rants in NYSkies since June. That gives you some continuity and 
background. 
    The heightened security in the City for the Republican National 
Convention found our Carl Schurz Park session a bit suspicious. On 
Saturday the 28th for the noontime sunviewing, a Coast Guard patrol 
boat parked in East River off of 86th Street to watch us. On the 
esplanade, a police car buzzed by every ten or so minutes to see 
what's going on. Police helicopters hovered overhead as we were 
packing up to leave. When we were walking out of the park, the 
choppers followed us to make sure we were really going home. 
    The Observing Group continues with its shortened two-hour 
sessions, with one more left this season. Then it reverts to the 
earlier start hour and full-length meeting. For next year, the OG may 
convene the sunviewing at 11h and the OG meeting at 13:45. That will 
restore a three-hour meeting and still have adequate sunviewing. 
    Club president Michael O'Gara in August gave up his attempt to get 
Seminar member Stewart Rorer arrested. Seminar chair Frank Schmidt on 
the two previous instances disregarded O'Gara's commands for this 
action. Nver the less, O'Gara continus to assert that Rorer in fact 
was the  criminal who stole club items in January 2004. Rorer's case 
was good and closed by adjournment contemplating dismissal in June! 
    The club's Staten Island Chapter may fold tent after this season. 
It works with the National Park Service for starviewing at Great Kills 
Park. There is a session for September 18th, noted by the Great Kills 
Pk management as only tentative. It seems that chair larry Ventura is 
winding down his activity with the chapter and there may no other 
person to continue it. 

NYSkies
 -----
    Astronomers are exploiting NYSkies as a quick, handy, friendly, and 
potent source of astronomy news relating to the City. And there is 
LOTS of astronomy stuff going on around New York! Since it revived on 
28 September 2001 (it was interrupted by World Trade Center) NYSkies 
became the definitive forum and public record for matters bearing on 
home astronomy in and around New York. 
    The 'AAA_Politics' forum in Yahoogroups is getting up to speed. It 
pays to listen there to the rants, blusters, tirades in 'AAA_Politics' 
even if you opt out of playing in them. At the least, you take into 
account the words of the senior members before joining the 
Association. Or you can let its dialog modulate your choice to renew 
AAA membership. 
    Joining NYSkies is easy. Send an empty email to this Yahoo maillist 
at 'nysky-subscribe{at}yahoogroups.com'. Its posts are sent to you in 
your email and you post to it by email. It's that simple! 
    Or you may go to 'groups.yahoo.com/group/nysky'. If you are already 
signed up with Yahoo, you go and sign in and then 'join' NYSkies. If 
not, you have to go thru a silly 'registration' that's a oneshot 
chore, valid for all groups you may eventually join. The files area of 
NYSkies are accessible only thru the website. 


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