March 21, 2022
Hello Spring. Nowruz Mobarak, as well.
More on wine. Duckhorn was founded in 1976, three years before my migration. Dan and Margaret (Duckhorn) first specialized in merlots, long before the term was amusingly besmirched by Paul Giamatti in Sideways (2005). Paraduxx (1994), known for fabulous and inventive zinfandel and other blends, followed. Goldeneye (1996), a type of duck, ensued. Goldeneye specializes in heavy Cabernet-style pinots. Ducks migrate, and hence Migration Winery (2001), known for competent Chardonnays and more traditional, California-style pinots, from vineyards ranging from Dutton Ranch to Bien Nacido.
Let’s focus on migration. To migrate means 1) to move from one country or region and settle in another; 2) to change location periodically, especially to move seasonally from one region to another. (The American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition, 1982).
I have been exploring the theme of migration in my posts recently, largely, if not exclusively, due to the war in Ukraine and the concomitant refugee crisis. As many know, I am originally from there. In my last post, I shared an account of a harrowing journey from Kyiv to the Ukraine-Hungary border (and just beyond). More banally, our Sunday soccer crew is a hodge-podge of first-generation Americans, from Ukraine, Iran, France, Turkey, etc. A good soccer friend from Chile is a snowbird, migrating to the warmer San Francisco Bay Area during our summer and his winter. A good local friend migrated last year to Germany. This is human. I can assure you that no one stays in one place for too long. At nearly 43 years (in the San Francisco Bay Area), I am as close to a native as you will find locally.
Below is a recent letter. Regrettably, being more than six thousand miles away from Ukraine, I feel relegated to writing letters, raising awareness, and contributing time and resources to support those in need. Largely due to proximity, it seems, my friends in Europe are doing or seem capable of doing a lot more to impact the situation on the ground. I suppose we can quibble about President Biden’s leadership during the current crisis. We are being cautious, perhaps to a fault, and Putin seems to be taking advantage of this. Perhaps, we are leading from behind. Regardless, more leadership is needed.
Dear President Biden,
Thank you again for your leadership during the Ukraine crisis. I have two suggestions.
First, in 1979, 51,000 Soviet Jews entered the United States. Born in Kyiv, I was one of them. I am confused by our immigration policy as it applies to Ukrainian refugees displaced by Putin’s unprovoked war. TPS [Temporary Protected Status] is helpful, but only if you are in the U.S. right now. More than 3 million people have been displaced, and the UNHCR projects up to 15 million total. If there was ever a time to grant “humanitarian parole”, this is it. I urge your administration to support this initiative. This will set a good precedent, not a bad one.
Second, I am heartened by the recent $800MM security package. Regrettably, more is needed, especially in support of Ukraine’s air defenses. If a no-fly zone (NFZ) is out of the question, then more surface-to-air missiles and mobile air defense systems should be on the table and provided to Ukraine forthwith, either directly by the United States and from our friends in Eastern and Central Europe, to be backfilled by the United States. This, I hope, will help alleviate needless pain and suffering, especially by the most vulnerable populations in Ukraine.
In retrospect, I should have added that while appropriations are necessary, they are not sufficient; implementation and execution of logistics (i.e., getting the equipment into Ukraine and to its soldiers) is equally critical.
Here are a few more resources:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/03/16/united-states-open-doors-ukraine-refugees/
Comments welcomed.
The Peninsula Hiking Club 