A week of cold weather in the lower Rio Grande Valley brought skims of ice to the ponds of the wildlife refuge.
Tens of thousands of sandhill cranes spend the winter here, along with equal numbers of snow geese and ducks.
The ice caused these cranes to have some concern over their next steps…
You know you’ve failed when…
…you divorced your wife and left her out to live off benefits and she goes on to write seven books…
… you were just planning on getting laid and end up on a stage in suit and tie alongside John McCain because you’ve impregnated the governor’s daughter in the process…
Less famous fail stories here
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The employees of Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland, Oregon put together this fun video to promote breast cancer awareness — Go Pink!!
The Teabagger’s concerns aren’t too far off the mark. With an eye on running for Governor of California, Senator Diane Feinstein has unveiled a plan to create a super-commission tasked with gutting the country’s most popular and effective social programs, Social Security and Medicare.
According to the article on Credo, Calfornia’s senior Senator is willing to cripple the federal government by blocking any increase to the debt ceiling unless she gets her way. And her way is to create a commission that’s given extraordinary legislative powers:
“The commission would be able to offer legislation in both chambers of Congress that could not be filibustered or amended and that would pass on simple majority vote.”
So, it appears that Democrats can operate with resolve. Rather than make Social Security solvent by removing the cap upon which wages can be taxed – Income over $100,000 per year is Social Security Tax-Free – meaning the wealthy get a tax break, but not the minimum wage earner — Senator Feinstein would cut benefits to retiree’s whose sole income is Social Security.
Now, I must admit, I am a bit biased against Senator Feinstein. She lost my vote when she voted for a Constitutional Amendment aimed at restricting a particular form of political speech, flag burning. But she’s revealing her true Corporate Colors now.
And, one more thing to think about. If a super-commission can be created and given the powers to introduce legislation that cannot be filibustered, cannot be amended, cannot be blocked:
WHY THE HELL DIDN’T THE DEMOCRATS DO THAT WITH HEALTH CARE REFORM! WE COULD HAVE HAD UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE MONTHS AGO!!!!!
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Ebenezer Blackadder, the Victorian proprietor of a “moustache shop”, is the nicest man in England. He is everything that Ebenezer Scrooge was by the end of the original story; generous and kind to everybody, and sensitive to the misery of others. As a result, everybody takes advantage of his kindness, and all but Mr. Baldrick view him as a victim, although even he is slightly more cynical than his ancestors. His business turns no profit, all his earnings going to charity and to con artists, and he lives a lonely, miserable life.
Leave it to Rowan Atkinson and crew to do a reverse Christmas Carol. Enjoy!
Part 1 of 5 (each about 8 minutes long)
Part 2
Photo by Zooey
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The real deterrent against nuclear war rests in the our Navy’s ability to launch a devastating second strike from its submarine fleet.
In the late 50′s, the navy was inclined to use cruise missiles as its primary delivery system for all elements of the fleet. This led to the Regulus II program. The Regulus II was never deployed.
In 1956 Eisenhower demanded that a submarine launched IRBM system be developed and deployed. Adm Sam (Foghorn) Rayburn of the Naval Special Projects Office was given the task of managing the project. He was not known for the use of kid gloves. Any team as much as a day behind in their deliverables was exposed to his wrath. He managed the development of the submarine, the missile and the warhead. All except the warhead were tested in a successful submarine launch in 1960. The complete system was tested in a 1962 submarine test launch with a throttled-down warhead, the only full dress rehearsal of a ballistic missile system ever.
This was the Polaris program. The picture shown is a Polaris A3 which had a range of about 2300 miles and can hit a target about dead nuts. The Polaris was succeeded by the Trident.
One of my most favorite singers — Bonnie Raitt, Love Letter
Wikipedia sums up the significance of this site very well:
For 15,000 years, native peoples gathered at Wyam to fish and exchange goods. They built wooden platforms out over the water and caught salmon with dipnets and long spears on poles as the fish swam up through the rapids and jumped over the falls. Historically, an estimated fifteen to twenty million salmon passed through the falls every year, making it one of the greatest fishing sites in North America.
Celilo Falls and The Dalles were strategically located at the border between Chinookan and Sahaptian speaking peoples and served as the center of an extensive trading network across the Pacific Plateau. Artifacts from the original village site at Celilo suggest that tribes came from as far away as the Great Plains, Southwestern United States, and Alaska. When the Lewis and Clark expedition passed through the area in 1805, the explorers found a “great emporium…where all the neighboring nations assemble,” and a population density unlike anything they had seen on their journey. Accordingly, historians have likened the Celilo area to the “Wall Street of the West.”
All of this came to an end in 1957 when the final construction of The Dalles Dam flooded the entire area, destroying the falls and rapids, along with 15,000 years of fishing. According to the Government lawyers, none of this was a violation of treaties with the native tribes, although cash awards were made in compensation.
Nye Beach, Oregon
Photo by Zooey
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The journey to modern electronics started with the modest Triode Vacuum Tube. Click on the link to get a quick education on how these things work. It is actually quite simple. (Actually, the image below looks sorta like an inverted emoticon.)
The vacuum tube is fading into the dustbin of history. It used high levels of power and required frequent replacement. In the near term, devices that cost a buck or two 30 years ago now go for hundreds of dollars.
Currently there is an equivalent solid state or liquid crystal device or device set to duplicate every function delegated to vacuum devices in the past.
Since the vacuum was never perfect, one could watch the waltzing of ions and electrons between the cathode and plate (anode) in a beam pentode. That is something that I will forever miss.
On this, the 25th Anniversary of the worst chemical plant disaster in history, the GOP is rolling out their “new” plan to increase job opportunities for American citizens:
Deregulate business. Gut regulations that protect workers, the environment and consumers. This will eliminate the down-side cost of doing business. But it must also be accompanied by legislation that will prevent workers, environmentalists and consumers from being able to sue companies for the harm they cause…i.e. “tort reform.” That way companies can do anything they want with no consequences for any harmful decisions they make. This will increase jobs. Or not. Because nothing in deregulating business requires them to pass the savings on to anyone.
Freeze discretionary government spending. This will create jobs by preventing the government from expanding, i.e. from hiring any more public employees. It will also create jobs by putting a halt to infrastructure projects, such as repairing highways and bridges. Well, actually a freeze on discretionary government spending will throw a lot of people out of work – all those who are now currently working on projects for the government would instantly become unemployed.
“No new taxes.” This, combined with tax cuts, will create jobs by allowing the wealthy to keep more of their money. Granted, if the government cuts taxes at the same time it is fighting two wars and revenues are down because of a recession, there will be but two choices: raise the deficit or eliminate programs. As to creating new jobs, we must take it on faith that the wealthy will do something with their reduced tax rate that will benefit the working class.
Approve free trade agreements. Free trade agreements have done wonders for job growth – in other countries. A free trade agreement allows multi-national corporations to shop around the world for the lowest labor costs.
Remove obstacles to domestic energy production. We would have more jobs if only we allowed domestic energy companies carte blanche to destroy the environment. This is true. There would be more domestic jobs for oil workers and coal miners; more jobs for hospitals and clinics and physicians who treat diseases from polluted air and water; more jobs for those who have to clean up toxic sites.
But the bottom line is, as has been pointed out elsewhere: the GOP’s “new” plan for creating jobs is the same “plan” that destroyed our economy in the first place; the same “plan” that created the greatest disparity in income since feudal times; the same “plan” that was rejected by the voters in 2008.
Republicans know they cannot fool all the people all of the time. They’re banking on fooling enough of the people at just the right time – election day, 2010.
One last hike into the Gila Wilderness of New Mexico was rewarded by encountering a small herd of elk also enjoying the waning days of Indian summer.
Oregon Coast -- where else?
Photo by Zooey
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It is 25 years ago today that a deadly cloud of chemicals swept over the Indian town of Bhopal killing 3’787 people and injuring many many more. People are dying and suffering from the gas leak ever since.
The late 70′s and early 80′s were a time when governments really had got into environment protection legislation. I perfectly remember the howls of the chemical industries, how all those restraints would ruin their business and how they would send all those jobs to other countries where legislation wasn’t as crippling. I was hanging around with hubby’s crowd then, all Chemistry students, and being pro environmental protections I got an earful, believe me.
When you get down to the reasons for the disaster, you will find not much has really changed and there are many Bhopals out there still waiting to happen.
Factors leading to this huge gas leak include:
- The use of hazardous chemicals (MIC) instead of less dangerous ones
- Storing these chemicals in large tanks instead of over 200 steel drums.
- Possible corroding material in pipelines
- Poor maintenance after the plant ceased production in the early 1980s
- Failure of several safety systems (due to poor maintenance and regulations).
- Safety systems shut down to save money – including the MIC tank refrigeration system which alone would have prevented the disaster. (read all)
If the environmental standards are going to be lowered in the light of the economic crisis – and they mostly are, along with worker’s rights – the next Bhopal may well be in our own backyard. What’s more, Chernobyl and the Sandoz spill show us that this planet is all we’ve got. Poisoning it will hit us all. You can find a list of other environmental disasters here.
From BraveNewFoundation:
President Obama has decided to send more than 30,000 extra troops to Afghanistan, at a cost of more than $100 billion/year. But America cannot afford a war that does not make us safer, and Congress has the power to stop the escalation. Vote NO on any spending bill that would send more troops to Afghanistan.”
http://rethinkafghanistan.com Please SIGN the petition!
Tiger Woods posts an apology.
Woods: ‘I have let my family down’
I would have to agree.
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It seems that long before the invention of the bow, humans developed the spear thrower (Atlatl) to enhance their ability to deliver a missile(spear) to prey or a foe. The sling also offered a similar advantage, but required more skill and could not deliver a piercing weapon. This technology seems to have evolved in human societies world wide. If you are into hunting mastodons, you can get a modern throwing stick with all of the accessories today.
To see how to use an Atlatl, click here.
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