This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287. Due to the way Jupiter's gravity tugs on Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again.

The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide. At a modest 75-power magnification Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye.

Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m. By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30a.m. That's pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month.

"The national government will maintain and defend the foundations on which the power of our nation rests. It will offer strong protection to Christianity as the very basis of our collective morality.

Today Christians stand at the head of our country. We want to fill our
culture again with the Christian spirit. We want to burn out all the recent
immoral developments in literature, in the theatre, and in the press - in
short, we want to burn out the poison of immorality which has entered into
our whole life and culture as a result of liberal excess during recent years."

Adolf Hitler. ( in his first radio address to the German people after
coming to power July 22, 1933; from "My New Order, The Speeches of Adolf
Hitler, 1922-1939", Vol. 1, pp. 871-872, Oxford University Press,
London, 1942.)

The Odyssey presents:

"Writers of the Storm: Fake News, and Public Decency, in the Age of Terror"

A Panel Discussion brought to you by

Writers-at-Large
Writers-at-Large, a California-based writers' advocacy group which operates under a small grant from the California Arts Council, is delighted to bring you "Writers of the Storm: Fake News and Public Decency in the Age of Terror." The panel will deal with our role, as writers, in speaking to what the concept of decency means, who gets to decide that, and why, as well as whether that decision diminishes the power of the pen, the dignity of writers, as well as the importance of diversity of opinion.

Those Writers-at-Large members on the panel include prominent journalist, and visiting professor at Beijing Foreign Studies University, Joseph Bosco, author and political satirist, Paul Krassner, author/environmental journalist, Dick Russell, award-winning playwright and screenwriter Cathrine Ann Jones ("Touched By An Angel" series), TV writer/producer and novelist, April Smith, novelist and poet Deena Metzger, poet, screenwriter, and dramatist, Jervey Tervalon, and Los Angeles political writer, and activist, David Koff. Moderator: Past President of the Southern California chapter of the ACLU, author, Co-Chair of the Freedom to Write Domestic CoDomestic Committee of PEN USA and constitutional lawyer, Stephen F. Rohde. Hosted by project director, founder, of Writers-at-Large: Jayne Lyn Stahl. Co-sponsors: City Lights Books, PEN USA, Dutton's Books, Poets Against the War, and The Odyssey Theatre.

Tuesday, August 9th, 6:30 to 9 p.m.

at The Odyssey Theatre, 2055 So. Sepulveda Blvd. West Los Angeles.
Reception: 6:30 to 7 p.m. Join us for hors d'oeuvres and beverages courtesy of
Dutton's Books.

Admission: $30- regular admission ($20 students and seniors)
$45 -- Golden Circle -- first 3 rows

Contact: Jayne Lyn Stahl
Project Director, Founder
Writers-at-Large
jayne.stahl@gmail.com
(925) 899-4739
Writers-at-Large is a proud member of the Intersection Incubator, a program for the Arts providing fiscal sponsorship, networking, and consulting to artists: www.theintersection.org, and is funded by a grant from the California Arts Council.