Trail West Dispatch #11 November 22, 2025

“Investigate.  Figure things out for yourself.  Spend more time with long articles.  Subsidize investigative journalism by subscribing to print media.  Realize that some of what is on the internet is there to harm you.  Learn about sites that investigate propaganda campaigns (some of which come from abroad).  Take responsibility for what you communicate with others.”                                   –Timothy Snyder

I’ve had my share of comeuppances for not doing enough investigation, at least by some other people’s standards.  One that comes to mind is the time when I reposted a meme that was supposedly a quote from the newly elected Pope Leo XIV.  I thought he sounded like an Anabaptist and I liked what he said, but he apparently never said the words that others attributed to him.  One of the people who pointed this out is a professor from a Mennonite college.  Our daughter-in-law is his first cousin, so I felt the rebuke somewhat personally.  He invoked “Thou shalt not bear false witness” as a justification for his position.  I acknowledged my error but said that I thought it represented his viewpoints accurately, and I would probably leave it in place for people to see the whole thread.  I saw it as needful transparency on my part, and an opportunity for others to wrestle with the matter itself (treatment of foreigners).  He didn’t think that was a good idea, and I eventually removed the post—under some inward protest. 

Recently the pope expressed publicly some of the same sentiments that appeared in the fake meme.  I may have felt a tiny bit vindicated for having spied a truthful sentiment early on, even though I got some of the details wrong.  I’m afraid this is the story of my life, at least in relation to missing too many details, and I am not proud of it.  

But Timothy Snyder says we should investigate.  I do a lot of it, too much, in some people’s minds, or the wrong kind, or for the wrong reasons, or with too little tact in relaying what I learn.  Considering the difficulties, why should I investigate, especially to the extent of ticking off every one of the subpoints under the main injunction—and in a different sense ticking off people around me in the process?  Because somebody’s gotta do it.   That’s my simplest take on the matter.

Snyder is saying that investigation is a means for resisting tyranny, which is something that all of us idealize.  Since we also idealize non-violence and the avoidance of deception, I personally think investigation is a good fit for people like us if we have the technical and critical thinking skills to do so, and if we are at a stage in life where we can invest the necessary time.  I see it as a stewardship decision, an opportunity to make the best use of the resources that God gives us.  Does that mean that all of us have an impossibly time-consuming obligation to investigate?  Does it mean that we will always get things exactly right?  No and no.  All of us must rely on people wiser than we are to do some of the investigating for us, and we stand to benefit a great deal from what they learn and share. 

I am particularly grateful for the people who acquire information by wading through a lot more muck than I could navigate with any sense of optimism intact.  We do it so you don’t have to are the words I sometimes hear from them.  Perhaps only people who get paid for it can afford this level of commitment to the task of investigation.

The important task that remains for all of us is to take what we learn and expose it to the light of truth as found in Scripture and then to ask What wilt thou have me to do?  Being as faithful to the facts as we know how to be and then being transparent before others are important as well.  I feel sure that, on some level at least, all of us can find a way to incorporate investigation into a life of faithful discipleship.           –Miriam Iwashige    

Trail West Dispatch #10 November 15, 2025

 “Believe in Truth.  To abandon facts is to abandon freedom.  If nothing is true, then no one can criticize power, because there is no basis on which to do so.  If nothing is true, then all is spectacle.  The biggest wallet pays for the most blinding lights.”                                                          --Timothy Snyder

Unwillingness among Christians to face the facts has been one of my greatest personal disappointments in recent national events.  This is especially the case when “fact-blindness” is coupled with partisan political loyalties, political processes, and support for political figures.  As Snyder puts it, “You submit to tyranny when you renounce the difference between what you hear and what is actually the case.”

All of us have probably believed and even passed on something that proved later to be untrue.  When that has been the case, I hope that we have responded by making our acknowledgement of error as public as we have made our original falsehood—even if the original mistake has happened unwittingly. 

What is of far greater concern than unwitting errors, however, is conscience-compromising errors.  For example, when we have become invested in a certain false political narrative, we might fall into the trap of disbelieving everything that counters that narrative.  Then every “disbelieving” choice further erodes our conscience--until debasement of all kinds no longer triggers even a flicker of recognition or regret.

In national news, several major shifts took place during the past week.  The longest government shutdown in history ended, and a vote to compel the release of the Epstein files passed in the House of Representatives.  Without delving into the details of those news bits, two main takeaways are that many people’s food assistance and health care funding is taking a major hit, and that concerted efforts to conceal the leader’s past entanglements with a deeply immoral individual (Epstein) have taken a hit as well.  Many former supporters of the regime feel wronged because of their loss of benefits.  Others feel betrayed by the president failing to keep his campaign promise to release the Epstein files immediately after taking office. While it’s too early to tell, these events may signal a shift as well in partisan loyalties and voting. 

Next Sunday’s SS lesson is taken from Matthew 25:31-46 where Jesus gives us details about the final judgement.  I think of this judgement as the ultimate repudiation of falsehoods, and the occasion of facing ultimate consequences for believing lies instead of truth.  The passage also provides reassurance for those who embrace truth as revealed in Jesus.  This window into the certainty of judgement and the means for determining one’s eternal destiny seems like the most trustworthy basis possible for a critique of power.  Otherwise, the “blinding lights” will predominate and empty spectacle” will proliferate, and too many people will have consciences too blighted to recognize the black-and-white realities before them. 

One thing that has not shifted recently is that many “foreigners” still live in fear, regardless of their legal status.  Jesus sees the strangers (foreigners), the hungry and thirsty, and those who are imprisoned.  He tells us that how we treat them is a determiner of our fate in the final judgement. Matt. 25 quote below:

“³⁴Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. ³⁵ For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, ³⁶ I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.... ⁴¹Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. ⁴² For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, ⁴³ I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.”                                                                                      --Miriam Iwashige

Trail West Dispatch #9 November 8, 2025

 “Be kind to our language.  Avoid pronouncing the phrases everyone else does.  Think up your own way of speaking, even if only to convey that thing that everyone is saying.  Make an effort to separate yourself from the internet.  Read books.”                                                                                           –Timothy Snyder

“She’s reading that James Herriot book again” my boys would tell each other when they saw me reading, and giggling unaccountably.  I haven’t read any of those books recently, but I have no trouble remembering the delight of the language in those books.  Herriot wasn’t just kind to the English language.  He made it sing and dance and erupt in paroxysms, always wrapped in a Yorkshire accent.  After Herriot had become a very successful writer, journalists in search of a story would sometimes look him up and ask him to introduce them to some local characters like the ones in his books. 

Herriot always replied, “I can’t.  There aren’t any.”  He went on to say that after the advent of radio, there was a great “flattening” in people’s lives.  Being exposed to the same broadcasts shaped everyone similarly.  No longer did the peculiarities of life in the family, farm, and village form people’s speech and character in colorful variations. If Snyder had observed what happened, he might have described it as everyone “pronouncing the phrases everyone else does” and no longer thinking up their “own way of speaking.” Perhaps we are in more danger of becoming like Englanders in the 1930s-1950s than we know.

Why is it important to be kind to our language in the context of standing against tyranny?  I think it’s likely that speaking and listening thoughtfully helps prevent the “flattening” of our own thinking.  If we hear something said a certain way often enough, we tend not to process it very well anymore.  How often have you heard the phrase “the enemy within?”  What does it mean to you?  Christians who aren’t very aware of current events might hear the phrase as a reminder that Christians have an “old man” within, one that wars against the new creation in Christ.   Or they might think of the phrase in the context of the end of the age, when the man who will deceive many will be revealed as the man of sin. 

As it was used publicly by top officials in the government in recent weeks, the phrase meant “people within US borders who are not supportive of the regime,” critics, in other words.    This is a major shift in meaning.  These people are predominately US citizens, and may include people like us.  In the past, many immigrants have been characterized as enemies (before that it was “criminal” immigrants), but the shift toward viewing law-abiding citizens the same way is new.  Now, all it takes to qualify as an “enemy within” is living in a city that usually votes Democratic--like Portland, OR, Los Angeles, CA, and Chicago, IL.  Someday the definition might be expanded to include Christians who are not the right kind of Christians—the MAGA kind, in other words.

Authoritarians-in-the-making make liberal use of catchy terms like “the enemy within,” and the phrases are increasingly weaponized, with ever-broader applications, till people usually remember only the specific way in which the regime uses the terms, instead of evaluating them for whether they are truthful, accurate, or justified. 

“Poisoning the blood of our country” has been used repeatedly by the president to describe what happens when the population of non-white immigrants increases.  Hitler used the phrase too, as an accusation against non-Aryans, primarily Jews, but others also.  We all know how Hitler’s rhetoric ended. “Poisoning the blood of our country” is flagrantly racist, and in our country right now it usually means anyone with  black or brown skin.  Be on the lookout for chances to counter this by expressing a Jesus-follower view of immigrants, people with non-white skin, or people of a certain political party.                –Miriam Iwashige

Trail West Dispatch #8 October 25, 2025

“Stand out.  Someone has to.  It is easy to follow along.  It can feel strange to do or say something different.  But without that unease, there is no freedom.  Remember Rosa Parks.  The moment you set an example, the spell of the status quo is broken, and others will follow.”          --Timothy Snyder

Rosa Parks was an African American woman who simply stayed seated one day in 1955 when a white person boarded the bus, and the driver demanded that she give up her seat for him.  She said later that she was tired from a long day’s work. No doubt she was tired too of experiencing the demeaning racist customs and laws of the Deep South. Some saw this as nonviolent protest and others saw it as civil disobedience.   Parks was arrested and the Montgomery bus boycott ensued, continuing for more than a year, crippling the city’s bus system.  This act ignited further racial justice efforts to secure civil rights, and segregation on buses was struck down in the courts approximately a year later.

I don’t think people in our tribe know for sure what to think of actions like Rosa Parks’s,’ or is that just me?  The Quakers don’t seem to have this problem.  They see them as necessary acts of faith and moral courage.  Note: Parks attended an integrated Quaker school as a child, and Snyder has Quaker roots.

Snyder’s admonition seems counter-intuitive for us who are part of a group that in most ways reflexively avoids standing out.  I believe this tendency harks back to our heritage of persecution and martyrdom for our faith, and is best understood in that light.  By now, however, this way of showing up in the world or hiding from it is at least partly cultural.  Being “the quiet in the land” calls for examination.  Does it still express determination to follow Jesus with courage?  Does “fitting in” trump everything else—either within our tribe or within the wider world?  Can it be a fear-based response? These are some of the questions that seem to me to bear consideration, especially in light of the Quakers’ different practices.  Like us, they are deeply committed to the way of peace and they experienced persecution early on.

If I were writing to a general audience instead of to people from our tribe, I would feel compelled to add other questions that should be included in an examination of the “stand out” admonition.  For example:  Is standing out part of an effort to manipulate others or to amass power?  Is it motivated by pride, greed, or selfishness?  Does standing out involve lying, cruelty, hatred, or destructiveness?  I feel confident that a consensus exists within our tribe that we want no part of any of these.  Identifying these motivations when they are present requires vigilance and discernment.   They should consistently be rejected.

In the restricted space of this column, most of the questions will be left to discussions elsewhere.  I will zero in on only one of the questions listed above: “Can [avoidance of standing out] be a fear-based response?”  Based on my own experience as well as on my observations, I believe the answer is “yes.”  I concede that people may wish to fly under the radar for reasons other than fear.  Exercising appropriate caution to avoid encountering adverse consequences makes sense in some cases.  Nevertheless, we are called to consider what acting with Jesus-like courage might look like in these fraught times.  In our faith context and in the context of the current-events-and-issues landscape, how should we “stand out?”

One guaranteed-appropriate response is to ponder the many passages of Scripture that enjoin us to “fear not” or to “be of good courage.”  “I will be with you,” (a promise from God to his people) appears in various forms throughout Scripture.  We can always take to heart these injunctions and claim these promises if we act with Jesus-like courage and stand out for the right reasons.            –Miriam Iwashige

  

Trail West Dispatch #7 October 18, 2025

 

“Be reflective if you must be armed.  If you carry a weapon in public service, may God bless you and keep you.  But know that evils of the past involved policemen and soldiers finding themselves, one day, doing irregular things.  Be ready to say no.”                                             --Timothy Snyder

When our boys were growing up, I remember telling them that it is important to draw bright lines early and honor them throughout life in matters related to taking up weapons against other people.  I emphasized that every small early compromise would decrease the likelihood of their being able to do the right thing in a moment of extraordinary testing.  “Do the right thing at the very beginning” are the words I remember saying.  Using Snyder’s words might have sounded like “Be ready to say no” from the start.

I cannot help wondering about the messages that Doug Schroeder, the Mennonite law enforcement officer from Hesston, KS got in his childhood, long before he shot and killed the shooter at Excel Industries after he opened fire on employees in February, 2016.  Three people died and 14 were injured, some critically. 

While Chief of Police Schroeder seems to have operated in line with professional ethics for officers with his responsibilities, I cannot imagine that a Mennonite mother would have seen his career choice as being ideal—for the very reason that eventually materialized:  violent acts are part of a policeman’s job under certain conditions.  I can imagine that his mother might have felt as I did—that doing the right thing from the beginning would mean that you never take a job in which you must be armed, when doing the job carries the expectation that you will use a gun against people if necessary.  This is simple enough, right?

What Snyder warns against is slightly different, however, from Schroeder’s situation.  For anyone besides a nonresistant or pacifist person, Schroeder’s actions were “regular,” in line with typical measures taken by police officers in similar situations.  If policemen were to protect a perpetrator or attacker instead of protecting the victims, or if they harmed innocent people, they would be “doing irregular things.” 

Things get a bit more complicated in the military but the distinction between “regular” and “irregular” acts remains.  There, any lawful order must be obeyed, and any unlawful order may not be obeyed.  This principle was applied during the International Military Tribunal proceedings at Nuremburg--trials after WWII.  Then, people mounted the “I was just following orders” defense, but they were convicted of crimes anyway--for mass executions and other atrocities that were part of Hitler’s purges.  Some of those convicted were hanged and others served lengthy prison sentences.  In the US, any member of the military who commits crimes (“doing irregular things” in other words) can be tried for those crimes, even when they are obeying orders from a military superior.  In the Viet Nam war era, Lieutenant Calley, was a US military figure convicted and sentenced because of the My Lai massacre in which hundreds of unarmed villagers were killed in South Viet Nam by American soldiers.  He had committed “irregular” actions and was originally sentenced to life in prison because of it. 

Figuring out what constitutes an unlawful order gets messy, and trying to describe it is difficult.  Basically, every military enlistee takes an oath to defend the Constitution, not any specific individual or political authority.  Recent events have caused upheaval in American military circles.  The unrest is centered on what many perceive as a conflict between defending the Constitution and carrying out the wishes of the highest military officials in the country.  This plays out every time the military is employed domestically against the population within US borders, something that most military enlistees never expected to be asked to do.  The moral dilemma is real and some of them wonder if they should say no.                                                                         –Miriam Iwashige

Trail West Dispatch—Sabbath Edition, November 2, 2025

To allow myself some time to regroup, I’m taking a break this week from the usual TWD format and schedule.  This will be a personal newsletter instead of a column on current issues and events Going forward, I hope to observe a similar time away after every six weeks of weekly columns. 

I’m taking a cue from Heather Cox Richardson, who occasionally says something like “I’m too tired to write tonight.  I’ll see you again tomorrow.”  She does not operate on a cycle of “sevens,” to my knowledge—just as I failed to plan to do at the outset of writing the TWD.  One luxury of doing a job without pay is that you’ll get exactly the same amount of remuneration if you work hard or if you relax.

We’ve recently had our first hard freeze, and the rush to salvage all warm season garden crops before it came has required extra effort.  We’re grateful for the bounty, especially of winter squash in some new shapes and sizes and colors—with interesting names:  Green-striped Cushaw, North Georgia Candy Roaster, and Long Island Cheese. 

Mice have sought refuge indoors—too often inside the house—and we’re determined to return to life with only Hiromi and me and occasionally our dog Drover as the only living, breathing occupants.  Fortuitously, we have recently acquired two young cats, Simon loves to polish off whatever mice we bring him from our traps.  Emma turns up her nose at dead mice, but she is enamored with live ones, and plays with them a while before finishing them off.  The cats were named before we got them, courtesy of our granddaughters.

Two mornings a week I get to be a teacher again, with only grandchildren for students.  On December 26 Hiromi is retiring fully from his retirement job at Walmart.  He has worked there parttime for 15 years—long enough to earn a lifetime discount on anything purchased from the store.

For the past several years I have been involved at the Partridge Community Garden.  According to people who track things like this, Partridge is in a food desert, and Center township, which includes Partridge, is the poorest township in the county. All this paints a grim picture of the food insecurity that might be in store for our community if prices increase dramatically, if supply chains are interrupted, or if the economy contracts or collapses—to say nothing of financial supports disappearing (for health care, for example).  I would love to see some resilience baked into our local supply system before catastrophe strikes, and I’ve been leaning farther into helping people learn how to grow food. I dream of incorporating plant medicines into the mix and of working together to preserve food.  This is the kind of “resistance” that I feel good about joining.  People who feel seen and supported where they live are less likely to look to a strongman to save them.  Adequate rainfall during much of the past growing season made gratitude easy.  Seeing green fields instead of brown, and having gardens produce without slavish watering all summer long let our drought-stressed spirits relax a bit.  This is a good feeling.        

–Miriam Iwashige

Trail West Dispatch #6

Trail West Dispatch #6                                                                          October 11, 2025

Be wary of paramilitaries.  When the men with guns who have always claimed to be against the system start wearing uniforms and marching with torches and pictures of a leader, the end is nigh.  When the pro-leader paramilitary and official police and military intermingle, the end has come.        --Timothy Snyder

When I read this, I thought immediately of the events of January 6, 2021, when paramilitary groups who had been told earlier to “stand back and stand by” went with others to the US Capitol at the president’s bidding, and participated in staging an insurrection.  The paramilitary groups had names like “Proud Boys” and “Oath Keepers.”  On Jan. 6, official police forces withstood the attack and some of them suffered injury and death in the process. The Capitol building itself was damaged, and Congress members fled to hide in a safe place while the crowd outside engaged in death chants for Vice President Mike Pence and called for the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, to be brought out. The crowd was intent on preventing the peaceful transfer of power to Joe Biden, who had been lawfully elected as president.

On his first day in office earlier this year, the leader of the present regime pardoned nearly 1600 people who had been charged and, in many cases, already sentenced because of their participation in the insurrection.  Nevertheless, the last sentence in Snyder’s warning was not fully realized in 2021, since only two of the three entities were aligned. 

Today, the official police forces largely still stand apart from the pro-leader paramilitaries.  That can hardly be said about the US military, however, since the commander in chief of the military (the president) and the one to whom the paramilitaries are increasingly beholden are the same person.  In other words, the official military and the pro-leader paramilitary are, to some degree, intermingled.  Please note that in Snyder’s calculations, the end comes when all three (police, military, and para-military) join forces.

Admittedly, we do not always know who is responsible when violence occurs.  False flag operations have been a favorite tactic of authoritarians in the past.  In such a scenario, the government itself carries out violent acts in hopes that people will resist, after which the government uses the resistance as a pretext for responding with more force, and taking away more freedoms.    At other times, a para-military may be involved in fomenting violence.  In some rare cases, it might even involve corrupt police forces.  While I cannot fit everything that I see into Snyder’s framework, I believe that what is shaping up currently is that the Insurrection Act will be invoked, and martial law will be declared—unless an intervention occurs.  It will be justified based on legitimate pushback against outrageous government acts and messaging (many of them unlawful or unethical) in relation to immigration, crime in cities, and drug traffic.  

Closer home, a related issue bears careful examination.  Snyder’s phrase “men with guns” clearly could describe many among us.  When gun ownership for valid reasons crosses over into vociferous defense of gun rights, we have strayed from a nonresistant stance, and entered the territory of political partisanship where the strongest defenders of gun rights can be found in far-right para-military groups.   Beware of alignment with such folks and do not believe it if you hear that anyone is advocating that all guns be taken away from all citizens.

While we do not always know exactly what goes on behind the scenes, we must not willfully ignore what occurs in plain sight, and we should stay curious about what happens out of sight.  We must avoid alliances with those who cling to gun rights while justifying violence against other human beings.  Beyond this, we must look to God to show us what we need to know to respond rightly in every case.                                                                                                                                  –Miriam Iwashige 

Trail West Dispatch #5

 

Trail West Dispatch #5                                                                             October 4, 2025

“Remember professional ethics.  When political leaders set a negative example, professional commitments to just practice become more important.  It is hard to subvert a rule-of-law state without lawyers, or to hold show trials without judges.  Authoritarians need obedient civil servants, and concentration camp directors seek businessmen interested in cheap labor.”                   –Timothy Snyder

Several weeks ago, the US president asked Todd Arrington, the director of the Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum in Abilene, KS to surrender a sword that had been given to the former president.  The sword was to be a gift to King Charles of England.  The director refused, explaining that the artifacts in the museum’s possession belonged to the American people, and he had no authority to give them away.  This week the director resigned, after being given the ultimatum of resigning or being fired by order of “higher ups,” * despite having had many commendations for his outstanding work performance in the past.  I see the director’s actions as being consistent with remembering the importance of professional ethics and just practice.    

In the past, if Arrington had given away the sword, he might have been “punished” by someone answering to the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency, the body charged with coordinating oversight of federal agencies. ** This Council helped ensure that civil servants obey the law.  This week, however, the Council had its Congress-approved funding cut off, forcing its closure.  This is a negative example being set by political leaders in the regime, and no amount of professional ethics practiced by agency personnel can compensate for it.  Dilemmas like this play out repeatedly for civil servants, of late. 

Snyder especially notes the important role played by people in the legal profession.  In doing so, he names one of the three kinds of work that originally made up the “professions:” law, medicine, and theology.  The list has grown over time, and today it normally includes other kinds of work that require extensive training, hands-on or in a classroom.  Snyder mentions civil servants and businessmen. Law enforcement, the military, journalism, and education could be added.  Together with occupations that are common in our brotherhood--trades, services, agriculture, and technology--professional ethics matter in every case. 

Ideally, each of us is guided first by our faith commitments, and second by established ethics for our chosen “profession.”  To some extent, we should also familiarize ourselves with the ethics that apply in realms of activity outside of our own.  Without this awareness, we are too easily deceived, and we may believe, act on, and pass on deceptions.  Ethics are particularly relevant in the media world, in which many of us participate as consumers.  Painstaking accuracy in reporting is called for—with data gleaned from and confirmed by multiple sources (or objective proof is available), where uncertainties are acknowledged as such, and where opinions are clearly separated from reporting.  Errors are promptly acknowledged and corrected, and ethics are not compromised, even under direct threats or other pressure.

For the TWD, I am purposely not representing it as a news reporting effort because I cannot meet the exacting journalism profession standards of reporting, although I typically honor the “multiple source” standard.  The opinions expressed grow out of who I am, who and what I care about and what I have learned.  They are aligned with my faith profession and the expectations within our brotherhood. No other “profession” is claimed, but ethics are always prioritized because being faithful to Jesus requires it.

Today I am grateful for each person who stands against tyranny by honoring professional ethics. I pray that all of us find grace to go beyond professional ethics to bring Christian virtue and the way of Jesus to every attitude, every encounter, and every task of life, especially in our occupations.     –Miriam Iwashige

The first two links are related to events at the Eisenhower Library and Museum:

*https://www.militarytimes.com/veterans/military-history/2025/10/03/head-of-eisenhower-library-forced-out-after-sword-spat-with-trump/

**https://www.nextgov.com/digital-government/2025/10/government-watchdog-websites-go-dark-omb-withholds-funds-ig-committee/408524/

This link refers to a recent event in Chicago which involved many violations of law enforcement ethics:

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-border-patrol-raid-sweeps-citizens-families-chicago-crackdown-intensifies-2025-10-04/

This is an article about “bright lines.”  It was written by a Christian writer and researcher whom I appreciate, Robert P. Jones.

https://open.substack.com/pub/robertpjones/p/all-the-bright-lines-behind-us?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email

Trail West Dispatch #4

Trail West Dispatch #4                                                                      September 27, 2025

“Take responsibility for the face of the world.  The symbols today enable the reality of tomorrow.  Notice the swastikas and the other signs of hate.  Do not look away, and do not get used to them. Remove them yourself, and set an example for others to do so.”                                                    --Timothy Snyder

Making sense of these instructions for our time is challenging, even if we understand the two examples that Snyder used:  1.  On the way to collectivizing all farm property, Stalin’s government posters depicted wealthy farmers as pigs (thus destined for slaughter). 2.  On the way to having Jews sent to gas chambers, Hitler first imposed a label on all Jewish-owned businesses.  But what parallels do we have now in America?  Which faces of today’s world should we take responsibility for?

We find some help when we realize that the word “labels” could likely replace “symbols” as “signs of hate” in Snyder’s writing.  I remembered Arthur’s sentiments, when he said in church several years ago that he and others were trying hard to avoid using the term “homeless” when speaking of those they hoped to serve at the Coffee Corner. This serves as an example of what it means to take responsibility for the face of the world as it relates to people who lack housing. To some, “homeless” means “evil or unworthy.”

Consider these recent events as an illustration of the harm that can come to people who have been indicted by their “homeless” label.  In Washington, D. C. in August 2025, it began in earnest with words like this, coming from the chief executive of the US: "The Homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY." "We will use every tool... to get the homeless off our streets." He called the city a "wasteland" of "tents, squalor, filth, and Crime". He linked the homeless to disorder by lumping them in with “drugged-out maniacs.”  After this, signs went up, and the National Guard and the bulldozers and garbage trucks went to work.  The White House now boasts of having “already purged roughly 70 tent encampments from the Washington area,” adding the warning that those who do not go to shelters “will face punishment in the form of fines and jail time.”  Jails and shelters are already overcrowded, and basic living expenses cannot be covered with funds from a fulltime minimum-wage job.  When we use the word “homeless” carelessly, some people will mentally connect the term with what has happened in D. C. and assume that we approve. 

The inhumane process that begins with labeling has been going on in the US far too long.  Examples:  Label immigrants as criminals, rapists, gang members, and vermin, and thus any brown or black person who speaks with an accent can be abducted without warrants—by people wearing masks and no identification, incarcerated in inhumane conditions with no access to legal counsel or the courts and no contact with their families, and finally, be disappeared or deported to unknown destinations.  Label occupants of small fishing boats as drug smugglers (Venezuelans), and the US miliary can destroy them with missiles, leaving no evidence behind.  Label comedian Jimmy Kimmel’s show as making "a major illegal campaign contribution" and his media host faces a lawsuit and threats of having their FCC license revoked.  Label a former FBI chief (James Comey) a “dirty cop” because he uncovered evidence of Russian campaign interference, and an indictment follows, along with “I hope there will be many others.” Label any person or group as a criminal or terrorist or being guilty of defamation--if they are perceived as an enemy, and the force of law (or at least an executive order) can be brought down on that person or group.  Antifa (anti-fascist) is the latest example, despite no organized group like that existing. 

Christians know that love is paramount, and using labels that intend harm is not loving.  Furthermore, when we internalize dehumanizing labels, our conscience is damaged, and Jesus’ name suffers reproach.

Page 2

Note:  I am not committed to making a second page a regular feature of this column, but I didn’t want anyone to miss out on the article linked here, written by a member of our church’s leadership team.  Feel free to alert me if you’d like to highlight your own writing or you’d like to elevate the writing of someone else.

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Here is a recent article written by Ellis Miller, shared here by permission.  https://tinyurl.com/MourningKirkAndAnabaptists

Trail West Dispatch #3

 

Trail West Dispatch #3                                                                     September 20, 2025

“Beware the one-party state.  The parties that remade states and suppressed rivals were not omnipotent from the start.  They exploited a historic moment to make political life impossible for their opponents.  So support the multi-party system and defend the rules of democratic elections. . ..”             –Timothy Snyder

How can people who eschew partisan politics support the multi-party system?  How can they defend the rules of democratic elections?  What does it look like for political life to become “impossible?”  Perhaps a needful first step is to understand how a one-party state looks and what is at stake when one party in a nation controls all the major levers of power.  Consider that many authoritarian states have come into being via elections resulting in one-party control of the government. In the absence of a moral compass, many checks and balances can fall. I believe this is the reason for Snyder’s caution. 

In the US, a one-party state might look exactly like what we have now since the president’s party has a majority in both houses of Congress, and a majority on the Supreme Court.  The Judicial Branch has historically not been included when the US has been described as temporarily being a one-party state—because it was believed to be largely non-partisan.  That assumption probably needs to change, however, because of a significant ruling issued on July 1, 2024 about the January 6 insurrection, which gave the president immunity from criminal prosecution for most actions taken while in office. Among those who lamented this decision which seemed to suggest that the president can commit crimes with impunity were some of the most respected conservative lawyers in the country.  For this ruling and for other reasons (e. g. partisan manipulation of the appointment process), the Supreme Court is widely regarded as having lost its non-partisan characteristic.  The nine members of the court are made up of a 6-3 conservative majority.

While one-party control of the executive and legislative branches is not a new phenomenon, partisan divisions have sharpened markedly in the 21^st Century.  I concur with others who see that bipartisan support for congressional action is increasingly rare, as are decisions made with moral clarity to benefit the common good. Party loyalty too often reigns supreme. Also, under this regime, many government servants formerly considered non-partisan because they served administrations from both major parties (ambassadors, for example) have been replaced by loyalists.  This extends the reach of the party in power.

Every political figure is created in the image of God, and is thus deserving of respect, but remember that the entire political arena has minimal overlap with the Kingdom of God. While a political entity might at times do the right thing, none can consistently do God’s will. Unwavering loyalty to it is thus a mistake. 

Instead, keep on showing up on the side of right conduct, even when it antagonizes the party in power, praying for courage to do this. Never justify hatred or violence or consider anyone deserving of them.

Be a discerning witness.  Are the rules of democratic elections being defended?  Is political life becoming impossible for one party?  Observe carefully, document data if necessary, compare observations with Scriptural imperatives and Jesus’ example, praying as Jesus taught us to pray.  If you speak about what you see, do so honestly, even if it means naming wrongdoing in people who are part of the party with which you identify most readily—and sometimes even if it means kindly countering your friends and family.  Being peaceable is important, but saying “peace, peace when there is no peace” is neither righteous nor just—two concepts that are often paired in Scripture.

“. . . Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. . ..”                  --Miriam Iwashige

Trail West Dispatch #2

 

Trail West Dispatch #2                                                                       September 13, 2025

“Defend Institutions.  It is institutions that help us to preserve decency.  They need our help as well. . .. Institutions do not protect themselves.  They fall one after the other unless each is defended from the beginning.  So choose an institution you care about . . . and take its side.”           --Timothy Snyder                                                                                                         

Churches, marriages, families, banks, courts, and media outlets all either represent organizations or long-standing established practices and traditions, thus fitting the definition of “institution.”  None of us could thrive in a society without institutions because chaos would prevail.  What happens after they have already failed is a topic for another column, but keeping institutions alive is today’s focus.

At the behest of the US government, many institutions are currently under attack.  Media outlets and universities that are critical of the regime are sued, and often the target settles out of court by capitulating.  Private companies that want government contracts have been asked to sign over a percentage of the company’s ownership under the terms of the contract.  Government-run agencies like prisons and social services are increasingly placed into the hands of for-profit companies.  Election interferences and gerrymandering are stripping away power from large groups of citizens.  Entire government departments and agencies are eliminated, and others are diminished to the point of being ineffective. The promised cost savings have yet to materialize.  In some cities in Democratic states, local law enforcement officials are being pushed aside by federal military personnel who take charge. 

If any of these attacks on institutions ever provoke a violent confrontation, almost certainly the federal government will use it as a pretext for a major crackdown.  This pattern of humbling or smacking down institutions reflects what has arguably happened in every nation that has descended into tyranny.  For that reason alone, this trend should concern us, but the bigger reason for concern is the suffering that is inflicted on innocent people when these institutions no longer function to serve the common good.

Snyder apparently believes that seeking justice through the courts is necessary if institutions are to be defended.  This is likely consistent with his Quaker upbringing, but less so for us.  Indeed, judicial institutions are often cited currently as the best hope for stemming the tide of an authoritarian takeover, but court action is usually slow, and the outcome is uncertain.  Lawmaking bodies like Congress could help hold back the downhill slide, but the will of the majority in Congress to do so is lacking. 

“We the people” is frequently cited as another hope for stemming the march toward authoritarianism. Many of us, however, look at the enormity of the task of defending institutions and feel that our efforts will make no difference.  Paralysis can set in.  A better way is to do whatever small thing that is in our power to do.  Coupled with prayer and great faith, these acts can bring about significant change.  Start close to home, in families, churches, and communities. Pay for subscriptions to the work of truth tellers and buy from local farms and businesses.  Visit public parks and thank everyone who serves the public.

Most importantly, pray. Atypical prayers won’t shock our Heavenly Father.  Sample: “Lord, please seal our lips if we are ever tempted to justify the destruction of good institutions.  Please keep the US Postal Service and the National Weather Service afloat, and help the government to be able to keep people safe and to protect public health.  We pray that roads would be repaired when needed and that the electricity would stay on.  Keep safeguards in place to keep the country from going to war or from attacking its own people.  Help the government to prioritize good stewardship of natural resources—above short-term financial gain for powerful business interests. We pray that small hospitals could stay open and that everyone who works hard could make a decent living, especially those who provide food, clothing, or shelter for others.  We pray that social services would function well to provide aid to those in need, both here and abroad.  Please make decent housing affordable.  Protect people of faith from interference with the free exercise of it.  In every place, in the media, in universities, in museums and libraries, in independent journalism, allow truth and righteousness to prevail over lies and evil.”   –Miriam Iwashige

Trail West Dispatch #1

Here is the first column in the Trail West Dispatch series.  The target audience is people who attend the same church as I do.  I just sent out the fifth column, and am posting previous columns here in case late subscribers wish to read columns they missed when they were initially published.  

In an introductory letter to people at church, I wrote that the first number of columns will draw writing prompts from chapter titles in Timothy Snyder's book On Tyranny.  New columns typically publish on Saturday evening.

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Trail West Dispatch #1                                                                       September 6, 2025

“Do not obey in advance.  Most of the power of authoritarianism is freely given.  In times like these, individuals think ahead about what a more repressive government will want, and then offer themselves without being asked. A citizen who adapts in this way is teaching power what it can do.” -Timothy Snyder

Most of us understand that a Democracy or a Republic is a government that differs from Communism (Russia), pre-WW2 Fascism (Italy), Nazism (Germany) and Imperialism (Japan).  “Tyranny” is a feature of every government system in the second list.  It is a cruel, unreasonable, or arbitrary use of power or control.  None of us idealizes tyrannical forms of government.  They violate Christian norms on every hand, and often cause great suffering.  Yet, the United States looks less and less like the Democratic Republic envisioned and installed by the founders; and it has a growing number of tyrannical features. Timothy Snyder wants us to resist this trend, which he summarizes under the term “authoritarianism.”

“Do not obey in advance” sounds like good advice, and certainly seems like a better option than resisting the trend by breaking existing laws.   Acting on several related imperatives seems even better–all of which can be pursued outside of any kind of government structures without breaking laws.  
1.  Decide in advance that only God will have your absolute loyalty and obedience.  
2.  Do not try to ingratiate yourselves in any way with a corrupt ruler, including by obeying in advance.
3.  Never excuse or justify evil, especially when it occurs in the pursuit of power.  
4.  Seek to bring about change by loving and serving the people around you, as Jesus did.  
5.  Guard against “the deceitfulness of riches.”
6.  Pray.

The historical record from 1933-1945 does not cast the German Mennonites in a favorable light, partly because of how they failed in some of the above areas.  They chose loyalty to and complicity with Hitler, whose evil cruelty is legendary.  As Aryans (white non-Jewish), Mennonites were not in danger of being dehumanized and targeted for extermination.  Perhaps this favored racial identity gave them an inflated sense of their own virtue and entitlement, completely clouding their vision.

Germany had been humiliated and impoverished by being forced to pay steep reparations (for wartime destruction) after they were defeated in WW1.  Hitler was lawfully elected, promising to make the country prosperous and powerful again.  This appealed to the Mennonites, as it did to many other Germans.  Things fell apart swiftly, or came together beautifully, depending on one’s perspective. “[T]hrough constitutional means. . . Hitler systematically disabled and then dismantled his country’s democratic structures and processes” within 53 days. 

A group of Mennonites wrote a letter to Hitler in 1933, thanking him “for the powerful revival that God has given our nation through your energy, and [they promised] joyful cooperation in the upbuilding of our Fatherland through the power of the Gospel, faithful to the motto of our forefathers: No other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid which is Jesus Christ.”  

Hitler wrote back and thanked them “For your loyalty and your readiness to cooperate in the upbuilding of the German nation . . .”

Other Christians, Hutterites among them, did not fare well under Hitler.  Many of them fled Germany, and most of those left behind were persecuted.  I am not aware that Mennonites ever used their voice to reprove Hitler or to defend the Jews, some of whom died near the homes and fields of German Mennonites, either in concentration camps or in portable gas chamber vans that traveled throughout the countryside.  This sobering record of complicity with an evil ruler, which was fueled by a desire for prosperity, prominence, and power should prompt deep reflection and humility for the American Mennonites of 2025.

Response to a Private Message

I decided to post here a response that I sent to someone who sent me a private message on Facebook in relation to something I had posted earlier. It came from an account with both a man and a woman's name on it. It was so heavily encrypted, or perhaps so hemmed in by privacy measures, that I could learn nothing about the sender of the message by checking the FB profile. I have made a few edits and additions to the original reply.

*********

First, I'd like to know whether the person writing here is [husband] or [wife]. Since I believe that what I'm saying could be said to either one of you, I'll go ahead in spite of this uncertainty for now.

"I'd encourage you to do a little more research . . ." Let me assure you first that I know how to do research. I've submitted many research projects to teachers of college classes, and gotten approving feedback and good grades for it. I've also taught many high school language arts classes, including teaching students how to do research. For a number of years, I was in charge of crafting a bi-monthly school-wide research project on current events. That's when I first started really paying attention to current events. I retired from teaching in 2018. After that I had a lot more time to read and study to my heart's content.

I have developed and taught high school courses on Anabaptist History. IOW, I know our history in relation to political involvement, and I know that much of what I see now is a radical departure from that good tradition. This is a great grief to me.

I too grew up in a family with strong opinions and spirited debate. We're a diverse group today (12 children), but all of us have high regard for how our parents (and even our grandparents and great grandparents) modeled a life of curiosity about current events and issues, and took a highly principled stand in relation to what was going on in the world. My grandfather, Ananias J. Beachy, for example, was jailed during WW1 for refusing to buy war bonds. He was not disobeying the law, but public sentiment was so strong that anyone who stood for the principle of nonresistance in that way was seen as a collaborator with the enemy.

My Amish great grandfather, Jonas Beachy, subscribed to the Kansas City Star, the biggest daily paper in the region (he lived in Iowa), and it was said in his obituary that he saw great value in knowing what was going on in the world, or else we would not be able "to discern the times."

My father, David L. Miller, left his tracks on every Beachy board (except AMA), since he was a founding member of all of them. He was on a number of inter-Mennonite and community "founding boards" as well. He attended college as an Old Order young man and was ordained to the ministry in the OO church after that. He was a teacher at Calvary Bible School and a regular columnist for Calvary Messenger. I don't say this because I want you to be awed by any of it. I'm saying it to emphasize what I will say next.

I'm sorry to be so blunt, but what you're saying to me tells me that you have not taken time to really hear from me in order to learn. You're listening just long enough to get an idea for how to set me straight from your "superior position and knowledge." For example, I don't know how many times I've explained why I don't vote, and still feel called to speak truth publicly, even when it involves topics like politics that people have strong opinions on. You either did not read that or didn't understand what you read. I'll just point you for now to things that I've already written, and to the example in Scripture of people who spoke prophetically, and the Lord blessed their ministry. My Facebook posts have always been public, so you can go back as far as you want to see earlier posts. I haven't posted much on my blog for some time, but there's a long series on my blog about some of the same topics that I've been writing about on FB of late. My blog address is miriamiwashige.blogspot.com. You can enter a search term there in order to find posts on a particular topic.

I've also said a lot about media consumption in the past. You don't seem to understand where I'm coming from on that front either. Your reference to my "preferred political candidate" is another case in point. I don't have a preferred political candidate except "anyone other than Trump." I know that Biden is old and that he has ailments. I also know that there's much more to learn about this than whether or not he has dementia and whether he should continue to be the candidate. I reference some of what happened in my parents' final years when I evaluate what I see in Biden. Some of it is cautionary, and some of it makes me want to counter the "panic." In short, what you seem so confident of from your sources (that he has dementia--end of story) differs from what some other credible sources are saying, so I'm reserving "judgement" on that for now, and praying for the Lord's will to be done. It will make no difference in my vote (because I won't vote, of course).

I sense that you also might have "prophetic" motivations. Believe me, I know how hard it is to function appropriately in a Beachy setting with such a motivation, especially for women. I'm sure that you know that speaking prophetically means "speaking truth" as much as it means "fore telling." A commitment to speak only truth takes deep humility and a willingness to keep your mouth shut until the Lord pries your lips open with truths that compel others to fall down and worship the God of the Universe. All gifts are given for the edifying of the body of Christ, and putting prophetic gifts on parade for other reasons is counter-productive at best. Opinions on politics are a dime a dozen, and I personally don't think sharing my opinions (or yours) benefits anyone very much--only calling people to faithful living in relation to the claims of God on one's life.

I also realize that speaking prophetically in a God-honoring way means to stay far away from gaslighting. I'm not sure where the term for this manipulative maneuver originated, but I picture it as flooding the area with inflammatory gases and then blaming innocent people for starting a fire if they stroll into the room, bringing a charge of static electricity with them, which causes an explosion. In other words, I dare not spread toxicity or lies and then blame people for causing a problem when they disagree with me.

This leads me to one topic on which I would be glad to hear from you again: How do you look to Scripture and especially to the way of Jesus to guide your ideals as it relates to promoting the growth of the Kingdom of God--today, in America, in this political morass? I still feel a deep need to learn in this area, and I would be glad to learn from you.

After you have familiarized yourself further with what I have already written, I would be glad to communicate on other topics as well.

Please communicate with me by email in the future. My address is miriam@iwashige.com. If I knew your email address, I would be happy to let you continue to write via Messenger, but I want to respond by email.

One more thing: I plan to travel to my sister's place in Oregon for a time of fellowship with my siblings and their spouses, leaving on Tuesday and coming back the following Monday. Since I'll be away from my computer, it's not likely that I'll be very reachable electronically during that time.

Blessings on your walk with God.

A Total Eclipse

The only bad part of viewing the eclipse totality in Morrilton, Arkansas was getting out of the state afterward. We left our viewing site at 3:15 PM and reached our home 11 hours later, at 2:15 AM. Interstate 40 was jammed full, and traffic moved most of the time at less than 20 MPH. We began to travel at normal speeds only after we left Interstate 40 for Interstate 49, which took us north into Missouri instead of further west into Oklahoma.

I think everyone struggles to explain the magic of an eclipse totality experience. Perhaps it's partly because we never otherwise find ourselves in the middle of an all-encompassing familiar environment, when the natural order of things suddenly goes off the rails. Yet the abnormal is itself completely natural. Words do not easily shape themselves around such realities.

Something about all that reminds us of how precious it is to serve an unchangeable God of order, who nevertheless delights in giving us special gifts and unmerited favor. And so, for me, traveling to witness a total solar eclipse, once in a lifetime, made perfect, logical sense. The fact that we could do it together with a host of friends and relatives made it a special treasure. Many of us "moteled" at my brother's house in SE Kansas, which made possible breaking the trip into two hitches of roughly equal length.

Five of us siblings were together, along with some of our children, grandchildren, and assorted nieces and nephews and their children, and a friend/relative from PA. With some typical last-minute planning, we gathered at the Methodist Missionary Baptist Church, after seeing on the internet that the church youth group was having a welcome party as a fund raiser. With restrooms, concessions, and a bouncy house close by, everyone's needs were easy to satisfy.

We lined up our lawn chairs on the sidewalks on the north side of the church and spread our quilts on the grassy level area. Our cars were nearby in the parking lot. A low curb at the edge of the grassy area separated it from a steeply sloping hill down to the parsonage below. The city of Morrilton nestled into the valley.

Besides keeping an eye on the toddlers who seemed inordinately inclined to cavort near the curb, and passing the babies from one set of welcoming arms to the next, we oohed and aahed every time we got out of our chairs and aimed our dark-glasses-clad faces toward the sun. I made sure I stood next to a sturdy flagpole while I tipped my head back and searched blindly for the only brilliance to shine out of the darkness. Between times, I also eavesdropped on the two young men who discussed philosophy next to me.

Breakfast had been served before 5:00 AM, and the mid-morning family rendezvous at my niece's friend's coffee shop en route receded gradually into the background, so a lot of snacking happened too, as well as eating sandwiches from the concession stand.

Near the moment of totality, a giant dimmer switch darkened the sky and hills to the west and the darkness overspread the area. The bird sounds turned to murmurs and then silence. Coolness touched us all. We joined in the applause that erupted from the wider area at the moment of totality. Some of us had tears. Headlights, street lights, and neon lights came on in the town below. Someone quickly threw quilts over the dark-sensing floodlights aimed at the top of the flagpole. Gentle sunset colors piled up near the horizon. The dimmer switch reversed directions and the light returned in the west while darkness faded in the east. Bird calls increased in volume.

In between, at totality (which lasted more than four minutes), we kept looking, again and again, and couldn't stop marveling. Finally, a "gem" appeared to the lower right of the circle (the diamond ring phenomenon), and the brilliance there gradually turned into a short, narrow arc. We kept checking periodically after that, noted the warming temps, and the fading of "golden hour," and eventually began to load things into our vehicles, made one more round to the bathroom, and joined many others for the trek home. *********** I had a chance to travel to Nebraska with others in my family in 2017 when the path of totality occurred there. I had to refuse the opportunity, however, since it was just before school started, and I was too snowed under with getting ready for teaching to make it work. I was a little bit bitter at this necessity, and vowed to see the next eclipse one way or another. I wasn't sure that it would happen though, until Joel's family offered to include me in their travel plans. I rode with them in comfort, but it was a bit of a tight squeeze for them because of me and my luggage. I was sorry about that.

When we left home on Sunday afternoon, high winds picking up topsoil turned the air dirty. I think all of us could begin to relax a bit as soon as we noticed blue sky overhead again, and experienced improved long-distance vision as the air cleared. This happened about halfway to Labette County in SE Kansas where my brother Ronald lives.

The next day we drank in lots of GREEN along the roadsides and in the trees. Obviously, it's been raining somewhere while we're still praying for moisture here.

We felt undeserving of the kindness shown by the folks at the church where we watched the eclipse. I hope they felt rewarded for their welcoming efforts. Traveling to see the eclipse was a very short vacation, but it packed an outsized refreshing wallop to our drought-assaulted souls.

Mysteries of Cross-pollination Between Vine Crops

This will deal only with plants that produce crops that may be commonly called one of the following:  squash, pumpkins, or gourds.  None of them are known to cross-pollinate with melons or cucumbers.  My interest was piqued when Paul Dickens gave me some saved seeds for storage squashes/pumpkins and I planned to grow all of them, believing that none of them would cross-pollinate with the others because they were of different species.  I also bought one packet of Green-striped Cushaw squash seeds from Pinetree Garden Seeds to plant because they were a different species from the ones Paul gave me, and I remembered my mother growing them.  The seed packet had the Latin species name wrong IMHO, and I wrote customer service to ask about it

My plans took on major complications when I got a reply from a customer service person at Pinetree Seeds who referred me to the website linked below. The packet was indeed mislabeled.  It's the only familiar squash in that group, and the group used to be called mixta and is now called argyrosperma--never pepo.  But the other part of the reply opened a can of worms on which I've just now slammed a lid.  The contact person also told me that ALL the squash-pumpkins-gourds cross-pollinate. Woah!  She should have added [with something else], because it's not quite correct to say that everything cross-pollinates with everything else.  Sorting it out took me way too long, and I'm posting it here so that I'll never need to do it again, and so that others might benefit. 

********** 

 Cross-pollination of Cucurbitae

https://www.morningagclips.com/the-complicated-world-of-cross-pollination/

I had hoped to plant all of these storage squashes together without fear of cross-pollination (because they belonged to different species of the Cucurbitae genus), but realize now that I need to do some regrouping:  

1.  Maxima  (Queensland Blue--stored till May for Paul)

2.  Argyrosperma (formerly Mixta, Green Striped Cushaw)

3.  Moschata  (Neck Pumpkin, AKA known as Dutch Long Neck, like a giant butternut)

4.  Pepo  (Tarahumara--Southwest Indian Winter Squash--drought tolerant, and the best one of all for Kansas, according to Paul Dickens' experimentation last year, pick at 90% green stage, stores for 6-12 months)

From the website:

"Focusing on the Cucurbita genus, there are 4 groups of primary interest:

1.  The maxima species, which contains winter squash, buttercup squash, banana squash, and some pumpkins*
2.  The argyrosperma species (formerly known as mixta), which contains the cushaw pumpkin [please note that no other member of this species is commonly grown].
3.  The moschato [sic] species, which is the butternut squash group
4.  The pepo species is a large group containing summer squash, acorn squash, most of the pumpkins, zucchini and spaghetti squash."  

*I'm adding North Georgia Candy Roaster to this list since it was highly recommended by Barbara Pleasant, one of my favorite garden writers.  It is a banana type.  I have not delved at all into which categories that individual pumpkin varieties belong to.  

Main takeaway from website:  " . . . [P]epo can cross with argyrosperma and moschato [sic], and moschato [sic] will cross with maxima."

Personal Notes on Main Takeaway:  

All of this information is relevant only if you want to save seeds from what you grow, and if you want the crops grown from saved seeds to be like last year's crop (the one from which you saved seeds).  

First Group which will cross-pollinate: (Pepo, Argyrosperma, Moschata)

--Zucchini and most summer squash (yellow crookneck, scallop/pattypan) are pepo. Some winter squash are also pepo (acorn squash, most pumpkins, and spaghetti squash).  1.  Seed saving is not recommended when any two of the pepo are grown close together.  To summarize, don't grow any summer squash, spaghetti squash, acorn squash, or most pumpkins in the same vicinity if you want to save seeds.  This is not new information to most of us--especially as it relates to summer squash.  

2.  What is new for some of us is that we shouldn't grow anything in this pepo group with Cushaw (Argyrosperma).

--Cushaw with the Butternut  squash group would be a problem too.   Green-striped Cushaw and Neck Pumpkin, for example.

Second Group which will cross-pollinate: (Moschata and Maxima)
A parallel to thinking of Moschata as the butternut squash group is that Maxima may be thought of as the ButterCUP squash group--which contains many pumpkin-shaped fruits, but also some banana-shaped ones.

1.  Don't plant together any two from the same group if you hope to save seeds.  This is not new to most of us.

--Avoid planting butternut squash and neck pumpkin (both Moschata) together.
--Avoid planting North Georgia Candy Roaster, Banana Squash and Queensland Blue Squash together (all Maxima).

2.  Seed saving is not recommended when Moschata and Maxima are grown together.  What follows may be new to some of us:

--Avoid planting butternut squash or neck pumpkin (both Moschata) with North Georgia Candy Roaster, Banana Squash or Queensland Blue Squash or any Buttercup squash and many pumpkins (all Maxima).

GREEN LIGHT ON THESE COMBINATIONS:

1.  Pepo (big family!) and Maxima (Buttercup and banana types, and some pumpkins) CAN be combined because they will NOT cross-pollinate.  Examples:  

A.  Tarahumara (pepo) and Queensland Blue (maxima)

B.  Tarahumara (pepo) and North Georgia Candy Roaster.(maxima). 

2.  Argyrosperma (Green-striped Cushaw) and Maxima can be combined.

A.  Cushaw (argyrosperma) and North Georgia Candy Roaster or banana squash (Maxima) can be combined.

B.. Cushaw (argyrosperma) and Queensland Blue (maxima) can be combined.

Final simplification for my purposes:

Of my original selected storage varieties, It WILL work to plant one of these combinations if I plant none of the others nearby:*

A.  Tarahumara (pepo) and Queensland Blue (maxima)

                      or

B.  Tarahumara (pepo) and North Georgia Candy Roaster (maxima)

                       or

C. Cushaw (pepo) and North Georgia Candy Roaster (maxima)

                       or

D. Cushaw (Argyrosperma) and Queensland Blue (maxima)

*It would also work to plant any summer squash (pepo) with a maxima (like Queensland Blue).  

*****************                                          

It will NOT work to plant Neck Pumpkin with any of the other storage squash because it is a Moschata, which will cross-pollinate with pepo (Tarahumara), argyrosperma (Green-striped Cushaw), and maxima (Queensland Blue).  

It also will not work to plant neck pumpkin (moschato) with any of the summer squash (pepo) because those two groups will cross-pollinate.

***********

All this make the price of new seeds look really reasonable.  

What we might consider is recruiting a small group of gardeners to each plant one of the combinations that will work, and then to share fruits and seeds with all the others.