[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 90 (Wednesday, June 18, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1290]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HAPPY 80TH BIRTHDAY, BERT MUHLY

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 18, 2003

  Mr. FARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 80th birthday of the 
legendary Bert Muhly. Bert is the quintessential professorial type of 
guy: articulate, caring and wonderful in his style and manner. It is 
safe to say that Santa Cruz, California would not be the Santa Cruz it 
is without the Herculean efforts and goodwill of Bert.
  His fingerprints are all around Santa Cruz. As a member of the Santa 
Cruz City Council, his activities have included the following: member 
of the State Democratic Central Committee; Co-chair of the California 
16th Senatorial District Committee; and Santa Cruz County Chair. He has 
also contributed to presidential, gubernatorial and congressional 
campaigns, such as those of yours truly.
  Bert and his family are well-fed people because they host more issue-
oriented, potluck dinners than any other family I know. He always has a 
place for you at his table to talk about issues such as global warming, 
social injustice, globalization and corporate imperialism. I don't 
believe that anyone in Santa Cruz County has housed, clothed and fed 
more Democrats than Bert, and on his birthday, that total will only 
continue to rise.
  Bert is the personification of the phrase ``think globally, act 
locally.'' He believes firmly in the effectiveness of petitioning 
government when a citizen wants to register a complaint with local 
elected officials. He has made Santa Cruz a sanctuary for the 
establishment of sanctuaries and has filed more petitions to the local, 
State and Federal governments than is humanly imaginable. They probably 
had to build an extra wing onto the Library of Congress simply to 
accommodate his prodigious works. While a voluminous petitioner, Bert 
is also a fantastic and extensive speaker. When Bert was mayor of Santa 
Cruz, the clerk of the city council changed the meeting's ``minutes'' 
to ``hours.'' A humble man, he always downplays the fact that he was 
mayor by saying that ``half the people on Pacific Avenue Mall are 
former mayors.''
  But his efforts have never been confined to Santa Cruz, and he has 
accumulated a generous amount of frequent flyer miles traveling back 
and forth from Central and South America. Bert has not been elected 
governor of California yet, but he certainly is a viable candidate in 
Nicaragua, El Salvador and Colombia. He has devoted an enormous amount 
of time spreading his own and America's goodwill to the impoverished 
and less fortunate, and without a doubt, he has changed the lives of 
many.
  An incredible wit and humor, Bert has been the smiles and strength 
behind the voice of the good fight in Santa Cruz for many years, and he 
has taken that fight to other countries. On behalf of this House, I 
wish Bert Muhly a happy birthday: a scholar, a father, a husband, a 
visionary, a friend and always young at heart.

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