This is our Open Thread. Say what you will.
TheZoo
Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness. ~Martin Luther King, Jr.
This is our Open Thread. Say what you will.
How come I never get cardinals on my suet feeder? Are they too lazy too fly to Oregon? So pretty
I guess we’re lucky, we have cardinals year ’round here in NY. There’s a big fat one outside our office window right now.
Are there “Western” cardinals?
Nope. They don’t appear to be resident anywhere west of the Plains, except down in Arizona (and throughout Central America).
I was wondering the same thing about my feeders. And I know we have them in the area as I have friends who get cardinals at their feeders.
Should I bring a few mating pairs with me when I visit? That may be the only way to get this lovely bird west of the Rockies.
Please do, Cats!! Lovely picture!!
It looks like he made sure you were getting his good side. 🙂
Here’s looking at you 😉 That’s what I thought when I saw the picture. I had to take this from quite a distance so as I zoomed in, it was tricky to get the shot. My husband got me a new camera for Christmas. It’s a Canon PowerShot SX150 IS and so far, I’m really pleased with the pictures and the video that it takes.
Nice camera!!
Thanks.
do you have Blue Jays?….if so, they’ll run cardinals away
We do have bluejays but they don’t generally show up until the warmer weather. The cardinals are here throughout all the seasons.
Lessons in marketing: look up the meaning of the name of your new product *before* you release it
Ah yes, the Nike (we haven’t got the damnedess idea of what the hell we’re doing except buying the best University football team that we can!). That Phil NikeAssholishness.
I do know the translation for my business’ name. Translated from Leni Lenape, it means “I touch you”. 🙂
I’m sure the business world is replete with similar screw ups: ones that come to mind are ‘Nova’ for a Ford I think imported to Mexico, and ‘Smeg’ for a brand of Italian kitchen appliances.
In the world of casual Christianity, there is ‘Crusade’ – never seen from the point of view of the victim though: sure there you are minding your own business when a bunch of heavily armed religious nutters land on the beach and start slicing you up, raping your daughters (and sons and farm animals), then burn down your house and steal your stuff …..
…. funny how Crusade and Jihad are kind of the same thing….
Translations gone bad.
http://www.funtasticus.com/2007/10/10/top-13-worst-slogan-translations-ever/
Wow, there’s a use for ““Bite the Wax Tadpole”” in Chinese? I can go home now I have learned my fact for the day
Nova was a Chevy model. Ever hear of the VIC-20 computer by by Commodore? They called it the VC-20 in Germany because “vic” is a vulgar term with sexual meaning in German.
Wasn’t there a shoe/sneaker company that tried to name their new shoes “Succubus”? I thought that was Nike, too, but it might have been Reebok.
That’s as bad as marketing a condom called the “Tallybanned”.
In Australia the brand name for Scotch tape is ‘Durex’, same as the brand name for condom in the UK.
“Ah – it’s a do-it-your-self then? Where are the knittling needles that come with it?”
Or “Buy-me-and-stop-one”?
So, this is not to be mistaken for that other Cardinal, the high priesty guy from the Catholic Hierarchy of We are Infallibilityness?
Or, the baseball team from St. Louis that lost it’s 11 year veteran slugger to the Angels of Anaheim/Los Angeles/Smogville/Hundreds of square miles of contiguous pavement, or the NFL football team formerly of St. Louis, now stuck out in the middle of the damn desert?
Damn, I can’t see the photo here at work – I wonder why? I’ll have to check it at home later.
I can’t see it at work, either, and I’m using Google Chrome as my browser.
Take a look here at the first hit, “Cardinal images” – what is that gray and white bird with the red cardinal head on it? http://www.bing.com/search?q=cardinals+birds&src=IE-SearchBox&FORM=IE8SRC
I don’t know what that bird is. Could the picture have been photoshopped? It does link to a graphics website.
I think it’s definitely Photoshop. In the full-size image it’s pretty obvious.
It looks like a woodpecker.
I think it’s a red-crested cardinal.
http://identify.whatbird.com/obj/1125/_/Red-crested_Cardinal.aspx
Thanks for the information.
Had posted this on the other thread today (as I mistook it for the open thread)…
Rebekah Brooks among six arrested in phone-hacking investigation | Media | guardian.co.uk
And what about Murdoch?
My snarky reply was to say he’s at home having champagne, but I did see in the news that he was attending a service for the journalist who was killed in Afghanistan.
But he’s still free; and that’s a problem.
News : Rush syndicator tells news/talk affiliates not to run its barter spots for 2 wks | Radio-Info.com
Someone on that thread at TP last night said that Lifelock had been fined and the owner was charged with something, I forget what.
Go read a book
http://www.funtasticus.com/2012/03/13/amazing-libraries/#more-21046
Things were going fine – beautiful libraries, sure my old Uni library was there somewhere…. should have paid more attention to the ‘cheerleader fails’ and ‘hot Mexican weather girl fails’ on the right hand side – scrolled down too far – probably not-work-friendly – just saying.
Just heard on the Ed Schultz radio show that Derrick Bell’s service in Korea was edited out of his Wiki page. Despicable.
The reich wingers are such awful people. They live by fear and lies and are very unhappy. I wouldn’t have a beer with any of them. Can you imagine “having a beer” with Romney? Yukkers!
He’d be sipping his beer like it was a fine wine, and I’d have to smack him. 😆
“Smack him”… too funny.
Funny how no one has ever tried to *edit in* George W Bushes ‘lost service’ in the Champagne Squadron during ‘Nam?
I’d have thought by now, his ‘lost service’ would have included a couple of Chuck Norris style MIA missions at least by now…
Here on the frozen tundra the trees are budding and the birds are courting. I’ll have to get the camera out but, after a lot of extra time on my feet over the last few days, my foot is killing me. A friend of mine suggested it might be gout and, after looking up the symptoms, he might be right. Sigh… I’ll have to hobble off to the doctor and get it checked out and, since there will doubtless be a bunch of sneezing, coughing, children in the waiting room I’ll probably get a cold or flu.
If it is not gout, it could be Lyme disease.
I don’t think Lyme disease is much of a possibility. It’s still a bit early for ticks here and I’m pretty certain that I didn’t get bit last year either. It’s most likely that I’m just a bit out of shape. Looking back I’ve realized that I’ve barely sat down since Saturday. I’m also more prone to aches and pains than I was 20 years ago! Still, since the pain is isolated in the first joint of my big toe, I better get tested.
osteoarthritis
In their effort to combat Sharia; did South Dakota just invalidate the Catholic protest of contraception? Personally, I would welcome an amendment to the 1st Amendment that would clarify that religious dogma has no legal standing in courts and Congress.
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2012/03/13/443666/south-dakota-governor-signs-unconstitutional-anti-muslim-bill/
And here it is – The Young Turks breaks down the demographic that the GOP Clown Car is pandering too this week…
… *You will be shocked* – or maybe not
TPM has a link to the entire poll and it’s frightening to consider just how stupid so many people are.
Also; Current really has to hang some carpet or egg crate over the cinder blocks on the set. That echo drives me nuts!
http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/03/ppp-poll-gop-voters-in-al-ms-think-obama-is-muslim-unsure-about-interracial-marriage.php?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+tpm-news+%28TPMNews%29
For some folks, ignorance is a fashion that never goes out of style.
“The boy is ignorance and the girl is want – beware them both, but especially, beware the boy” – Charles Dickens, A Chritsmas Carol
In their case it’s not mere ignorance, it’s stupidity. It takes a profoundly stupid person to remain ignorant by choice.
That awful woman from Alaska is whining again. This time she’s playing the “out of context” card. I must admit that it’s difficult for a sane English speaker of normal intelligence to actually figure out what her context is but, in this case, it was pretty clear. Her context was that President Obama is seeking to segregate America. Of course, one would have to be as stupid and crazy as said awful woman from Alaska to actually say such a thing.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/13/sarah-palin-obama-ad_n_1341618.html
News flash to those living in a time warp.
The U.S.A. is already segregated.
There’s the 99%
And there’s the 1%
Frothy signage for the hearing impaired:
That was funny.
OK The Young Turks is going to cover the Trayvon Martin shooting – a 17 year old boy is shot dead by a neighborhood watch man. The boy was found to be carrying a packet of Skittles and an iced tea for his little brother. Cenk says what he has to say makes him upset.
From CNN:
“Police said they have not charged Zimmerman because there are no grounds to disprove his story of what happened.”
WTF? A dead boy on the pavement with a 9mm bullet in his chest is apparently *not* ‘probable cause’…?
I also find myself wondering why a guy who had been charged with battery against a police officer was legally carrying a gun. It sounds to me like he saw a black kid where he didn’t expect to see a black kid and initiated the whole incident. He should have been booked on the spot. The police are, at the very least, complicit.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/neighborhood-watch-shooting-trayvon-martin-probe-reveals-questionable/story?id=15907136
The dead boy is black so the police couldn’t be bothered with the paperwork apparently. And Sarah Palin rails that Obama wants to take us back to before the civil war.
What the Fuck moment of the day:
Fired For Using Birth Control? It Could Be Possible In Arizona
Ignorance and/or irony alert.
Bitch.
And these are the same freaks who whine about the “nanny state”. If one could impose a sense of irony upon them they would probably throw themselves in front of a bus.
As I’ve said, Arizona is full of religious kooks.
Think about it.
Arizona borders Utah.
It’s different! Government intervention is Good if it forces people to behave as you want them to.
Right …. not governments but corporations can control your private health decisions…. its a f***ing feudal society.
If they had their way, they would outlaw the f***ing.
Ignorance and irony, not to mention there is no Soviet Union.
These people really do exist in a bubble that resides in the mid-20th century.
Question: Does an employer know what medications an employee is taking? I would think that the HIPPA laws would prevent a pharmacy from disclosing this information.
Arizona, one of several states that are interested in writing nonsense bills. In the meantime, Arizona is doing nothing about creating jobs.
I’m guessing all the women in the workplace will be called in for a grilling under the hot lights, and Allan West will be brought in to fire a gun next our heads if it seems like we might not want to give up the info.
Read rest here.
Perhaps he’s worried that he might get nabbed and taken to the World Court?
Here in Canada we do protest. Violent protests are rare and but they happen on two occasions: 1) When their hockey team loses and 2) When a lying sack of chicken shit comes to spread his propaganda.
Guess which one he is?
Don Rickles would say he is a hockey puck!
Its shameful when Canada has to hold account the leaders of the United States when the United States can’t be bothered to do the job.
Red-Crested Cardinal seems to be the bird in question in an earlier post.
Avian life is so wonderfully diverse. Thanks for that link.
In the west we don’t have true red birds, i.e. Cardinals.
Our Scrub jays give us a nice blue.
Well, smack me as a smart arse for “knowing” it was a hoax.
It certainly looked odd to me as well. And given that it’s not a bird any of us are likely to see in person, I can understand why we were all skeptical.
I ultimately used whatbird.com to find it. If any of you have never tried the site, it’s a lot of fun.
Matt Romney: I Think President Obama ‘Is Great’ | ThinkProgress
Read rest here.
Apparently there’s a gaffe gene in that family.
To keep with family tradition young Matt must declare that President Obama is “awful” within 36 hours. Although, that won’t keep the rabid Reichwhiners using his original statement as proof that Mittens can’t control his kids.
Indeed. And then in another 36 hours after that it will be back to saying Obama is a great guy; combined with a “I’m a rich man” type of gaffe he’s prone to. This time he’ll say “I don’t know anything about it myself, but I have lots of friends who own black people.”
Okay, that may have been too far… but it seems to be the meme of Romney’s wealth. He can’t relate to the common man; he can only relate to owners of things.
CNN Poll: Should applicants for jobless benefits have to pass a drug test?
Yes
72%
99438
No
28%
38731
I’ll bet the vast majority of “yes” votes are the same people who think the government is too intrusive in their lives.
I’d like to see a poll:
Should all elected officials be subject to random drug tests?
Southern 2012 primary: Rick Santorum mailer highlights Rush Limbaugh praise – POLITICO.com
Read rest here.
I have no doubt either what a President Santorum would be doing either. He’d be trying to regulate sex.
Sick Rantorum is insane. Nutso. Whacked out. Batshit crazy. Barking mad. But that’s not what makes him dangerous. What makes him dangerous is his disdain for the separation of church and state. He would do more to bring theocracy to America than any President in our history. It troubles me deeply that anyone is treating him as a viable candidate.
Me too. I think his zealotry is used so that evangelicals don’t realize he’s Catholic and not one of them. But he’s still a true believer.
“Excessive either warning” in that last sentence.
If anyone else posted this, I apologize (just home, no time to read the thread yet).
Mitt Romney will NOT enroll in Medicare!
I suppose if I had a Mustang, a pickup, two Caddies, four or five houses, and a quarter billion $$ in offshore banks I wouldn’t have enrolled in it either. What a douche he is.
He’s considered “still employed’ so doesn’t have to enroll immediately.
Mittens can’t think the ‘little people’ look up to him as sacrificing for not using MediCare. He’s a selfish wooden prick..
As you point out anyone with such millions doesn’t have to worry about health coverage.
Funny. When he defended his low tax rate he said he wasn’t employed.
Typical Romney. He’s all things at all times.
The three years I spent between getting too sick to work, thereby loosing my insurance, and qualifying for Medicare were utterly brutal and almost certainly took years off my life. Of course, going bankrupt paying medical bills is reserved for us working stiffs and Mittens, with his vast wealth, is probably immune. And Mittens will damn-sure never have to decide between buying needed medication and eating for the next week.
Biggest laugh of the day: Allen West’s bizarro world.
I would feel great joy if someone punched Mr. West in the throat. Not a fatal blow but just enough to leave him on the ground, gasping for breath.
Were they in the studio together? Cuz if they were, they must have been giving each other handjobs.
If I honestly thought that anyone involved in the market believed that R’s were about to take over and usher in a wave of prosperity I would divest myself of every investment I possess. That’s crazy.
And Allen West is a war criminal.
Hi folks… a brief squawk from the rim before dropping back into the canyon, moved camp to downstream on the Colorado from Moab, going to float about 10 miles tomorrow. So far I’m not missing the world outside the outside world I’m in.
🙂
I’ve always dreamed about being like the Tom Hanks character in Cast Away, but minus the horrific air crash.
As Chuck Yeager used to say… any landing you walk away from is a good one.
I’m hoping for a pacific float tomorrow, no towering standing waves and violent whirlpools, and no shipwrecks.
A long time fan of Edward Abbey, I’m finally able to put some places and sights in perspective.
Edward Abbey and Colin Fletcher — a pair of my all time favorites. “Desert Solitaire” and “The Man Who Walked Through Time” — peerless.
Have fun. Be safe. Take lots of pictures. Post them so we can all live vicariously through you.
Thanks zxbe. I’ve checked out the river by road, it looks good, and the scenery is phenomenal down through the black varnished redstone cliffs.
I’m back after wrapping my receiver in a giant condom made of saran wrap. Pete, don’t discount Lymes if you’re exhausted. I never saw the tick that got me, and I got so bad that I slurred my speech before I suspected I had a serious problem.
I was like that the last time I stayed down town after work on a Friday … 🙂
I’m not exhausted. I just have a sore toe which, after an afternoon with no shoes, isn’t really that bad.
Mitch McConnell confirms he’s a petty little freak. He admits that he’s blocking judges because, to paraphrase, Harry Reid called Republican obstructionism “obstructionism”.
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2012/03/13/444005/mcconnell-im-filibustering-seventeen-judges-because-reid-made-republicans-look-bad/
So, in response to being called an obstructionist, he’s going to be an obstructionist.
Exactly. Who will be the first GOoPer to publicly say “nanny, nanny, boo-boo”?
Some exciting news for moi. I’ve been selected to appear in a TV episode of Grimm. Tomorrow we start a shoot. I’ll be spending my evening preparing my acceptance speach for the next Emmy awards. Here’s a rundown about the show…
http://www.tv.com/shows/grimm/
You really can’t leave us hanging like that. DETAILS!
waiting for a call or e-mail from the casting director as I write. more info forthcoming.
Is it being filmed in the Portland area?
You have a shrewd business mind. If it is in Portland, you’re going to give him one of your bags to carry on the set and maybe get a product placement in the program. 😉
Are you an actor by profession?
Very cool, nwoldguy! I’ve caught a few episodes of Grimm and I enjoy the modern retelling of the old classic myths.
Wow! That’s cool!
Make sure you add TheZoo in your acceptance speech. Just because. 🙂
Congratulations!
(show ’em how it’s done) Congratulations, nwog!
Check out this Rick Santorum quote for a minute:
“But is there such thing as a sincere liberal Christian, which says that we basically take this document and re-write it ourselves? Is that really Christian? That’s a bigger question for me. And the answer is, no, it’s not. I don’t think there is such a thing. To take what is plainly written and say that I don’t agree with that, therefore, I don’t have to pay attention to it, means you’re not what you say you are. You’re a liberal something, but you’re not a Christian. That’s sort of how I look at it.
“When you go so far afield of that and take what is a salvation story and turn it into a liberation theology story, which is done in the Catholic world as well as in the evangelical world, you have abandoned Christendom, in my opinion. And you don’t have a right to claim it.”
It’s from an interesting article about the disconnect between modern American right-wing Christians and the teachings of Christ.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-lux/jesus-vs-the-christians_b_1342613.html
I’m not a Christian, handed that crap its walking papers decades ago. Santorum is, meanwhile, like all other evangelicals of whichever Christer persuasion, a complete and vapid fool, made moreso each and every time he ‘confesses’ his faux beliefs. He’s a freakin’ theocrat and has but one goal: to force his line of bullshit on everyone else. He sucks dirt in every way.
If by some odd quirk he (or someone of his ilk) should ever manage to get themselves elected to the presidency, I’m outta here on the first boat.
I tend to agree. People like Rantorum make enlightened countries like Somalia or North Korea a pretty attractive proposition.
Bloomberg News reports that Super PACs are responsible for a whopping 91% of campaign ads in Alabama and Mississippi.
F*** you, Chief Justice Roberts – may your role in the history of the destruction of representative democracy in this country be written truthfully.
The exit polls suggest a Romney win in Mississippi and a Santorum win in Alabama. Dominating the vote is white evangelicals: 81 percent.
That “big tent” gets more exclusive with each passing day.
Big tent update: the black vote was 2 percent of the total, in states where the African-American population is 37 percent (MS) and 27 percent (AL).
Indeed. The GOP has nearly succeeded in becoming an all white, male, club. Let’s face it; most sane women and minorities realize that the GOP has nothing but disdain for them. If the freaks keep it up we could see the biggest electoral win, for the Democrats, this country has ever seen. The encouraging bit is that the “librul media’s” reticence, incompetence, and complicity isn’t fooling anyone and most people seem to have figured out the GOoPers are all nuts.
Any numbers on the gender turnout? Wondering if the GOP misogyny is having any effect.
Fundie women vote against their own best interest so there will be that, hopefully very small, percentage.
Haven’t seen a gender breakdown yet….
“Big tent”? More like a pillow case …..with two holes for eyes….
Surely you-all found this, but just in case…
Alabama Exit Polls
Mississippi Exit Polls
New grocery bag in the shop!
Another great looking bag! Looks like citrus slices!
I was trying to come with a description of those circles, but only came up with “wheel.”
Citrus slices…duh.
Romney is currently THIRD in Miss. Good news? Well, it’ll keep Newt in the race.
I’m getting nervous about Santorum winning the nomination. It’s just too damn close for comfort.
I’m no fan of Mittens but the mere fact that anyone considers Newt or Rantorum as potential presidents makes me ill. I would rather see Mittens win the nomination and have a greater risk of Obama losing than seeing either of the other guys with any chance of winning whatsoever.
Just what I’m feeling, pete.
That would certainly be everyone’s worst nightmare….
But I don’t see how the math gets Santourm there. And the big factor is Newt. As long as he stays in (and his sugar daddy keeps paying for him to stay in) I think it keeps Santorum from winning enough delegates to pull it off.
Even if Newt drops soon, a lot of things really have to go Santorum’s way for the math to work.
Not impossible, certainly, but I’m wondering how probable it is at this point.
(That’s my most diplomatic way to make a non-prediction prediction.)
What if Newt drops out and pledges his delegates to Santorum?
Admittedly, I have not been keeping an eye on delegates totals.
That’s where the safe money is still playing but Rantorum has some momentum now. And, as we keep pointing out, these freaks are effing nuts.
Currently Mittens is in third place in both Mississippi and Alabama. If one breaks down the vote by education and ideology it looks like the half-sane ones are voting for Mittens but only about 30% are even half-sane.
Breaking News: Rick Santorum wins Alabama primary
What surprises me is how Ron Paul is doing. He is the only candidate that can get people out on street corners holding signs several weeks before the election. Yesterday morning the inbound lane on Hwy 72 west into Huntsville had two guys parked on the shoulder, standing in their pickup beds, waving and holding Ron Paul signs. Nothing like that for any other candidate, but he gets 5%.
That was a surprise at Paul’s low numbers.
Neut must be licking his wounds. He was so damn sure, in the beginning of the circus, he’d end-up in the center ring as the anointed gooper.
But Newt won South Carolina…No candidate has won the GOP nomination for President without winning South Carolina since Ronald Reagan in 1980.
Looks like pRicky has taken Ole Miss too.
Another brutal Romney gaffe from earlier today, calling these primaries “the desperate end” of Santorum’s campaign. Srsly, Mitt, when you could finish third across the board while outspending everyone by a PANTLOAD.
Big egos aren’t fairing very well this evening: Mittens can’t advance; Neutered one can’t figure out why others don’t find him to be the savior.
Okay gang I just received the info on tomorrows shoot for the TV show Grimm. The shoot takes place in Sandy, OR about an hour east of Portland towards Mt. Hood. No zxbe I’m not a professional actor. Well maybe, I was a salesman for 30+ years. Anyhoooo the lead went to someone else. 😯 Actually, and this is cool because of the Zoo, I’ll be a Parlimentary BEAVER creature, and as a group we vote against the lead “Nick” out of fear. Because of confidentiality agreements my mouth is now sealed. Tonight I’ll be practicing on how to emote as a Beaver creature.
Huzzah!
This is SO cool. 🙂
Careful gnawing on those trees!
Thanks. I’m in deep concentration to find my inner Bearver creature. Yes, good thinkin Queen Z, I need to find some wood to chew on to get closer to the truth of Beaver creature. This is so goofy, and fun.
It might help to dye your teeth orange. 😀
Would you be allowed to take pictures of some of the production? Assuming you have any time, of course.
Our Zoosters are such interesting people!
No pics, they’re VERY clear about that.
Oh darn. I should have known better.
Boo.
Santorum wins both states; Romney comes third in both. When you consider the simply enormous gap in terms of ad spending, this is another humiliation for Romney. Whadda mess the GOP is.
TV’s Frank: Santorum hopeful that tonight’s wins in Deep South will give him credibility with racist voters in the rest of the country.
OMG, Romney actually said he’d eaten “cheesy grits?” 🙄
Y’all ain’t goin’ to believe this…
Roy Moore is winning the race for Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice! Looks like he rode the fundie coattails of Santorum back into the job he was unanimously bounced out of in 2003.
House, you gotta get out of there!
Jeebus…I lived in the South for five years, so I know there is abject poverty and a heaping helping of ignorance, but…wow.