The answer my first question the command is:

/sbin/ifup (interface name)

As stated I have placed it in ip-up.

That was the last bit of automation I needed. Now I can throw the hardware switch on the GLI AR 150, watch the leds go from red/middle green/to far green, and then I know my dialup connection is ready to be used by any device on my lan, or wlan. To hang up, I simply throw the switch back, or if the connection is lost my led goes back to red. In fact I am writing to you from dialup now.

This is the closest Unix documentation on the subject.