THE SENIOR MEN'S CLUB OF NEW CANAAN
Minutes of the Regular Meeting of January 11, 2002
President Lee Hindenach opened the business meeting with 176 members present.
Current membership is 499 with 1 invitee and 37 on the waiting list. New member Tom
Donelan was introduced and welcomed.
Announcements: Dick Depatie reported with sadness that Ted McPherson passed away on
January 3rd., 2002. To date some 340 members have paid their 2002 dues. SMC dues are
payable on or before February 28th. President Hindenach asked members to exercise
parking sensitivity. Please do not block fellow members egress! Frank McGarey bids
all the members farewell as he moves to Pinehurst. Sherlock Holmes Sweet reminded us
of the case of the long missing Greek fisherman's cap. His agent in Greece returned
the cap to NC and its rightful owner.
Activities: Bowlers will convene at 1230 today, and the Bridge players will
meet in spite of the terrible weather. Paddle tennis continues M/T/TH, 9-11 am, in Waveny.
Racquetball is alive and well. Eric Petschek announced that "Nino's" will host the
Jan. 4F luncheon. And, believe it or not, there are no words from Trailblazers.
Couth: January 17th, it's Mohegan Sun with a shuttle bus to Foxwoods Native
American Museum. On Feb. 22nd, we may go to the Bridgeport Cabaret Theater to see Dr.
Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, includes a box dinner; cost is $60. BYOB. On March Sth, for $45
you get to go and see the Philadelphia flower show. April 23-25, is the rescheduled
date for the Washington, DC trip with a few openings remaining.
Resident Humorist: John Berg spoke of feminine preferences for the male body, as well as,
the role drapes play in getting women really, really, really, excited.
SPEAKER
Vice President Bert Libelt introduced Gil Dunham an esteemed member of the SMC
who commutes between Paris and New Canaan. Gil Dunham discussed the European
Union and the world of Islam. He began by reviewing the spread of Islam through
the Byzantine Empire and stating that our world today would probably
follow the Islamic religion, if the Muslims had not been defeated by Charles Martel
at the Loire River in 732, and their siege of Vienna broken in 1683. During
the 18th and 19th centuries the Ottoman Empire declined gradually right up until
the end of WW1 when the Turkish Republic was founded. The steady influx of Muslims
into the European Union since WW2 has increasingly caused problems for countries
like Germany and France because of the Muslims' reluctance to give up their Islamic
customs and assimilate into a European Christian population. The
European Union is now preparing to accept new members from eastern Europe, perhaps
as early as 2004. The historic tendency for Europe to solve its racial and religious
problems with ethnic cleansing will no longer be tolerated, and this is reflected
in the Dayton Accords for Bosnia in 1995 and the NATO intervention to avoid genocide
in Kosovo. Gil Dunham ended his most interesting presentation by expressing the belief
that the WTC attack should encourage the U.S. government to join with the EU in seeking
to establish broader international cooperation, rather than unilateral actions, in
responding to renewed militancy on the part of radical Muslim sects.
Stan Stanziale, Assistant Secretary