Open Thread – Frosty Cones
Just a shot I clicked from a walk today. Each of these little cones is about thumbnail sized.
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[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Chris Lynch, NECC. NECC said: MudFlats Blog: Just a shot I clicked from a walk today. Each of these little cones is about thumbnail sized. http://bit.ly/fbAs0l […]
The people in Wisc are being taken to the cleaners. I think this is only the beginning with all the new Rep. that won in the last election. Hopefully people will wake up before it is too late.
Many things are happening in Iowa also, that I don’t like. They are going against so many social issues that have nothing to do with creating jobs in the state—-that they promised to do. The lastest is that they are going to try to ban “birth control” pills. The FAR Right is on a trip!
The story about the Wisc. Senators who skipped town today can be see on the following web site:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41644074/ns/us_news-life/?GT1=43001
I have had a bad day…but SP’s rants against breastfeeding has just made into a worse day. I have breastfed three children. I also have four degrees and decided to stay at home. I would crucify this retard in a debate.
Can we sign you up?
I’d like to see her chicken out just for the entertainment value.
Sign me up.
Amazing how they [ P&B ] process this:
Michelle Obama, who is overseeing an East Wing campaign to promote exercise and healthy eating among children, said last week that infants who are breast-fed longer “have a lower tendency to be obese” as they grow up, a claim supported by medical studies.
“40% of children never receive the health benefits of breast-feeding” — Michelle Obama
Obama announced $31 million in new federal grants to 11 communities to encourage innovation in fighting obesity.
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” What we have learned over this year is that hope is making a comeback. It is making a comeback. And let me tell you something–for the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my country. And not just because Barack has done well, but because I think people are hungry for change. And I have been desperate to see our country moving in that direction, and just not feeling so alone in my frustration and disappointment. I’ve seen people who are hungry to be unified around some basic common issues, and it’s made me proud.
For the first time in my lifetime, I am seeing people rolling up their sleeves in way that I haven’t seen and really trying to figure this out, and that’s the source of pride I was talking about. ” — Michelle Obama – Madison, Wisconsin, during the 2008 campaign in a context of Americans being unified around some basic common issues and referencing the “record number” of young voters participating in the political process in the 2008 campaign
And output to this:
“No wonder Michelle Obama is telling everybody, ‘You’d better breast-feed your baby,” — S Palin
“2 PA school speech; I’ll intro kids 2 beauty of laissez-faire via serving them cookies amidst school cookie ban debate;Nanny state run amok!”—Tweet, Nov. 9, 2010.
Bachmann accused the first lady of trying to implement a “nanny state.”
“To think that government has to go out and buy my breast pump for my babies? You wanna talk about the nanny state, I think you just got a new definition.” — Bachmann
“You know, when I hear people say, or had said during the campaign that they’ve never been proud of America,” Palin spat out. “Haven’t they met anybody in uniform yet? I get tears in my eyes when I see that young man, that young woman, walking through the airport in uniform…you too… so proud to be American.” — S Palin
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“I’m really not sure that I want my search engine involved in government overthrows, good or bad,” he said. “I’m not afraid that Google is reading my email, or tapping your phone lines, or stealing Grandma’s recipes…what I’m starting to look at is Google and Google as a whole.” — Glenn Beck – Takes on Google – http://goo.gl/qaIZP
Guess Glenn hasn’t read the Patriot Act…..
…..familiar with the ” baker act ” though
….As governor of Alaska, she declared October 2007 “Breastfeeding Awareness Month” and issued a proclamation that said, “government and community organizations have a vested interest in protecting and promoting breastfeeding as a means of preventing infant malnutrition, morbidity, and mortality.”
‘Cause ya see, it’s really wrong for the First Lady to make it easier for women who want to breastfeed to do so. And we certainly don’t want our children to eat healthier foods and exercise more because that would be bad. And growing our own food in our own gardens is a terrible idea because…because…because…ummmmm…
Oh hell, I can’t figure out WHAT these idiots are talking about!
If either Obama said the sky was blue and the earth was round, they’d swear the sky was orange and the earth was obviously flat just because. It really is hard to be THAT stoooopid!!!
It is 75* here right now. This is nuts.
JUNEAU, Alaska — Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell said he will not implement the federal health care overhaul after a judge in Florida struck down the law as unconstitutional.
Parnell, who sought the advice of his attorney general amid concerns implementing the law would violate his oath of office, told the Juneau Chamber of Commerce the state would pursue lawful, market-based solutions to making insurance affordable and accessible to Alaskans.
Huffpo article: http://goo.gl/ADQrC
I just read the story,too and the RWNJ posters are congratulating quitty lite 2.0 for standing up to Obama.
“Affordable” Ahahahahahahahahahahaha. What a joke.
We are paying through the nose for “market based” health insurance and because of high deductibles and the fact that we are being killed by the price of gas and fuel oil we cannot even THINK about going to see a doctor for anything. Not sure how I am going to deal with it when my meds run out this month. Can’t afford it even with insurance. Pray to God you don’t get sick Alaskans. I can’t wait until they start chopping into Medicare and Medicaid and Social Security. I hope the idiots who voted for these idiots are the ones who hurt the most (even though I know they won’t be).
This $hit makes me so mad I want to march out onto the street like those folks in Madison WI. Man these Republicans and Tea Party people do NOT have a clue. This is the stuff that they were whining about and now we are ALL getting a double dose.
oooohhhh…” hope the idiots who voted for these idiots are the ones who hurt the most (even though I know they won’t be).”
oohh. They’ll hurt.. but they won’t see that it’s their own fault; they’ll blame it on the Liberal left that forced the cutbacks , not on the power mongers that they elected…
WOODBURY, Long Island – Sarah Palin flirted openly with running for president on Thursday, saying there’s “no one” more qualified for White House multi-tasking than “a woman, a mom” and even went so far as to describe the man-on-the-street campaign she’s considering.
“I am still thinking about it – I certainly haven’t made up my mind,” said Palin, who was also asked why she hired a chief of staff this week and replied: “To tell you the truth, Todd’s getting kinda tired of doing it all for me.
http://goo.gl/7rElC
ARGH! Didn’t Mrs. Palin raise taxes on the oil industry while she was governor? And now she says:
“I live in Alaska. I don’t want to mess up the environment. But we don’t have to tax energy to get there.”
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/sarah-palin-criticizes-obama-administration-egypt-economy-long/story?id=12942864
I just saw this little tidbit about Palin’s energy tax hypocrisy:
“JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – Oil industry leaders delivered a stinging rebuke of the production tax that became a hallmark of Gov. Sarah Palin’s administration, telling a legislative committee Wednesday that it has discouraged investment and made Alaska a less attractive place to do business.”
and later in the article:
“The current oil and gas production tax, known as Alaska’s Clear and Equitable Share, or ACES, features a base rate of 25 percent; there’s also a progressive surcharge, triggered when a company’s net profits top $30 a barrel.”
http://www.canadianbusiness.com/markets/market_news/article.jsp?content=D9LEA5BG0
So as the slimy opportunist promotes herself as the no tax queen….
BG, I’m not an appliance fryer, but it used to be (back when professional video equipment was b&w reel-to-reel) that video equipment would break down if I was in the room. Fortunately, that ended. I can’t wear watches with batteries (I’m too sensitive to what they emit), but I’m okay with wind-ups and automatics. Although I just bought a watch that stopped working after a few hours. I’m returning it for a credit. Try putting smoky quartz crystals on your electronics. It’s supposed to help, and they’re lovely to look at.
I don’t fry appliances. I saute them in a little olive oil with a bit of garlic.
I imagine they’re more tender eatin’ that way.
Are they extra-virgin appliances or extra-virgin olive oil? How do they taste?
A few folks on the flats already know this about me but I wanted to toss it out to the general population for some feedback.
I’m one of those people that “fry” things. Watches, clocks, appliances, light bulbs , computers ,etc. The past few years it’s become a more frequent happening but the past 2 months it’s been unreal. I’ve fried 3 computers in the last few weeks. There’s a possible 4th but I didn’t even touch that one so I’m not sure. Also blew out the microwave and the electric ignition on the stove. Light bulbs have been going left and right and I’ve been sending my tv crazy. Can’t chalk it up to the house electricity because it happens to battery operated things and also happens when I’m somewhere other than home.
My guess is that I’m not the only one here that has this effect so my question is – Has anyone noticed an increase, of late ?
Oh, and my dsl box is acting up so I’ve been having trouble getting online. Driving me crazy. I have visions of it turning in to that Twilight Zone episode with the little kid who could zap people away just by directing his thoughts at them.
( It’d be wrong to head for Wasilla ? )
.
That is interesting…I’ve often said that I must have some strange human magnetic wiring because copiers always breakdown when I use them and I’m on my fifth computer. Luckily, I don’t have some of the other things happening that you describe.
To answer your other question…go ahead and book your flight!
There was a research project at Princeton that was studying this sort of thing. It was called PEAR but I think they ran out of funding. I never followed it closely but did think it was awfully interesting that it was a common enough event that the university wanted to put serious time in to looking further.
Yeah – I had a feeling there were a few appliance fryers on this board. You were one of my guesses. ha!
I knew we were linked somehow!
I do that, too, BuffaloGal, face it, you’re magic.
If it’s a computer, you have to give it chocolate. Put a piece of candy on it.
The other electrical-apparatus malfunctions are probably due to static. Touch something before touching the electrical item to ground the static that may be clinging to your clothes.
It happens a lot during dry, very cold weather – especially if you have carpeting – I don’t notice as much in my house with hardwood floors.
Chocolate ! Who knew ?? . Do they make special chocolate token offerings for computers ? I imagine it needs to be of exceptional quality . My newest computer looks like it would accept no less.
I can tell by the way it’s glaring at me.
My new apt. is all hardwood floors and I have a humidifier running through my heating system. Maybe I need to start making clothing out of foam insulation ?
My cube-farm neighbor uses Dove chocolates.
She refreshes the offering on a regular basis.
The only logical answer is it is your magnetic personality. Frankly there are worse things you can turn into than the little guy you didn’t want to make unhappy.
I’m a longtime lurker with an interest here. Knew a guy once who could do that to street lights. It was really odd driving with him when he was stressed. It does tend to correlate with stress – especially when it spikes the way yours has, though one woman I know has never been able to wear a watch (mechanical or electronic) for more than a couple of days before having it die on her.
Could be just from a long winter, might be almost anything else. Best way I know to damp it a little is to find something physical that you can do that will make a positive difference to something, and concentrate on it for a while each day. On the theory that when there’s something you want to do that you can’t, find something you can, and do it.
Also, physical distance does make a difference, mostly. Make your next computer at least a mini-tower, and get some custom (long) cables for the monitor. If your computer’s 15 feet away, you’ll fry the monitor first, and monitors are cheaper to replace.
There are huge geomagnetic storms going on on the sun right now, though I don’t know it that would explain anything from the past few months.
Also, my DH cannot wear digital watches. Other digital things are fine, but he kills those off quickly.
Ack! “Off to the cornfield with you!”
I had that problem once upon a time. I was living in an old house with just a few breakers and stuff keep getting fried. Computers, frig, bubls, etc.
Turns out it was the power lines at the pole coming to the house. All the connections were bad. The power company was able to fix it. I’d talk to some neighbors to see if they have problems because it might also be a transformer. In any case, make the power company check it out.
I don’t fry electronic equipment like you do but I do have a problem with an abundance of static electricity. It’s pretty bad at home and I’m constantly getting shocks from everything at work, from the metal stair handrails to the storage cabinets next to my desk. My little desk area is in the basement with a tile floor and no carpets, curtains (no windows for that matter!) or other typical static-producing materials. No one else at work seems to have the same problems that I do, so it appears to be me, not the environment that’s the problem.
If it’s gotten particularly bad in the last couple of months, I would agree with A fan from CA…get it checked out by the power company. It might be that you are especially susceptible to electrical charges, but the wiring in or near your house may be contributing to the problem as well. Be careful and good luck finding a solution.
Sullivan posted some very important information about the attack of the female journalist in Egypt…Important because some conservatives have posted heinous remarks and no doubt others will use this attack to further condemn Islam.
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2011/02/muslims-saved-her.html
This may shock many of you but, right out of the box, Palin bashes Obama. Yep, it’s true, as I type she’s answering questions on Long Island, in front of cameras no less. I have a feeling that they’ll let her spew her venom unchecked…like when she called Obama the King of debt, I doubt if they asked her where the huge deficit he inherited came from.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0211/49738.html
God, she makes me ill.
Ben Smith is live tweeting it.
http://twitter.com/benpolitico
She actually said global warming is snake-oil science? I knew she believed that, but wow.
That’s right Mrs. Palin, the press should be ashamed of throwing out soft ball questions to the President–he should be more like you and submit to the tough stuff. That’s right, where he sat for a soft ball interview with his pal O’Reilly, you had to sit down with that beady eyed, tough and nasty interviewer Katy Couric (granted it was more than two years ago but hey).
http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0211/Palin_talks_debt_budget_in_Long_Island_performance.html
Quitty would know about forked tongue,cold blooded,creatures since she appears to be one.
I think this takes the cake.
“No wonder Michelle Obama is telling people to breast feed their babies, because the price of milk is rising so high.”
She then warned the dozens of reporters at her question and answer event, “That better not be the takeaway here.”
Here’s a thought, you puffed up eejut: If you don’t want that snark to go viral in 1.6 seconds, keep your danged mouth closed.
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/02/17/palin-talks-2012-mocks-michelle-obama/#more-147394
Lawrence O’Donnell nailed her on that one. By reading the proclamation she made as governor making oct 2007 Alaskas Breasfeeding Awareness month. Basically says exactly what Michelle Obama said, now she’s trashing it as ‘nanny’ state stuff.
I got this letter by email this morning. I hope it is okay to re-post it here:
Salmon People film update
By Dennis Zaki For Backers Only
Hello there,
I thought I’d post an update and a pledge for more funding.
Since I started filming last month I’ve filmed the Federal Subsistance meeting in Anchorage, an interview with a former Emmonak, Alaska resident forced to leave his village due to a lack of fish, and a former fisheries observer who told me that the numbers of chinook salmon bycatch are only 10% of what are actually being reported.
I’ve posted a link on The Salmon People website (http://thesalmonpeople.com/) to a story about how subsistance users are very worried about slumping salmon runs. Myron Naneng, director of the Association of Village Council Presidents, said “the problem is they’re placing the burden of conservation on the people who need it for food.”
That’s the issue I’m trying to get across with this film. The people of Alaska are suffering at the hands of factory trawlers, most of which are owned by companies outside of Alaska.
“How many people live off pollock or cod for subsistence purposes?” Naneng said. “You can ask all of them in the Y-K Delta, ‘Who survived off that?’ Would any raise their hand? I don’t think so. But if you ask how many village members harvest salmon, almost everyone would raise their hand.”
“Are they placing the burden on the richest trawl fleet in the world?” Naneng said. “No.”
Funding: Only 6 backers out of the 66 backers here on Kickstarter sent a check to me. If you made a pledge here on Kickstarter, you know by now that they didn’t take your pledge from your bank account. Please send your pledge to me.
I need money to fund this project. I can’t do this all by myself. I don’t have the money or I wouldn’t ask. I’ve only collected a total of $1,350. Submitting this film to film festivals alone is going to cost more than that. This needs to get to a national audience. I need to get out to the villages to film there.
I don’t like asking for money, but if I don’t make this film, who will?
Dennis Zaki
2130 Stanford Drive
Anchorage, Alaska 99508
Thank you
Is there a Paypal address for Dennis?
So many educators and people who support education read this blog that I thought it might be okay to offer this link. It is making the rounds of our school district.
In hard times, teachers need all the help they can get because they don’t just spend money on themselves and their families, they often pay for supplies for their classes our of their own pockets when school budgets don’t stretch enough. My husband has been teaching for almost 30 years, and I cannot remember a semester when he doesn’t ask to use part of our paycheck for things he needs for the classroom. That is just part of what teachers and librarians do. I’ve even seen our custodial and kitchen staff bring things in to help out (and they get paid a lot less). All this even though our district is one of the better funded ones. Almost everyone connected to education cares enough to sacrifice for the kids.
So, to help others who are in the same situation, here it is – a site listing shopping discounts available for educators. It’s not much, but every little bit helps:
http://tweentribune.com/discount
Wow…what a great resource!
I always take advantage of the school supply sales in August at stores like Walmart and Staples and try to stock up for the year, but I usually miss something I end up needing several months later. I hate having to pay full price for things like kids scissors and glue sticks!
I like that the companies listed offer discounts all year and there are even recreational discounts for when we’re not in the classroom. Thanks for the link…I’ll pass it on to the folks at school and other family members who teach.
What kind of deciduous trees produce cones? Bad news today. I had my last wisdom tooth pulled this morning and now I qualify as a wisdom-less rethug and can register with that party any time. I prefer to stay more Liberal and independent. I’m so not gonna be one of those people.
Alder
Thanks for enlightening moi.
Glenn Beck Conspiracy Generator:
http://politicalhumor.about.com/library/bl-glenn-beck-conspiracy.htm
(although to be fair it doesn’t appear to be a generator in the true sense of the word. But still pretty good)
Lovely…I’ll take it as a reminder to hang together when the world seems cold…
How about those activists in Wisconsin, eh?
Here in Florida, Gov. Crook would like to de-certify unions, which would be the end of collective bargaining here, also, too.
but, but, but, Governor, it’s against our state constitution!
Well, then, I’ll just have to change the constitution.
When will he figure out that Florida is not “his” company and he doesn’t get to make the rules? Talk about a grifting feckin’ fraud! How many billions did he “make” off of Medicare? Even whatzername would be in awe.
Closer to home, our school board is voting tonight on a proposal to random drug test our students if they are in middle or high school and participate in sports or any extra-curricular activities (band, student government, chorus, Honor Society, other school clubs), or if they park on campus. School nurses will be required to administer the tests, which the district is getting for about $3 per test. How many things do you see wrong with this picture?! The board has already heard from me, but I’ll be there at the public forum to speak up again.
Oy, vey? Whatever happened to smaller government and rights to privacy on the oh so red Redneck Riviera?
And so it goes…and goes…and goes… 🙂
L’Shalom,
thatcrowwoman
((((crow!))))
hanging together !
I’d like to know: When did our view of children (and adults) shift to one of assuming they were doing big-time wrong? *All* of them. 24/7/365.
When did we go from addressing the odd one who did do wrong in a given situation, to not trusting *any* of them to do right in any situation?
The phrases “self-fulfilling prophesy” and “people living up to our expectations”, comes to mind. And guess what — the kids (and adults) are doing just that: they’re operating on the mindset *we’ve* assigned them. They’re doing exactly as we expected; when it comes to honor and trustworthiness (or whatever you want to call it) they’re living *down* to the low expectations we’ve set for them. Woo-hoo — mission accomplished!
I’m not naïve enough to think kids (and adults) don’t cheat, don’t use drugs, don’t lie, don’t steal, don’t do all sorts of things that are socially unattractive and unacceptable, EVER!, but to accuse them *all*, as a group –from the get go– of such behaviour, imho, is not good! It’s counter-productive…and incredibly stupid, on our part. How the heck do we expect to raise kids to ‘do the right thing’ when, simultaneously, we tell them that we *know* they won’t — and just to prove that we know they won’t, we’re instituting, across the board, ‘traps’ to catch them? I, for one, am sick of it! beth.
I’m going to be devil’s advocate here. IF kids know there is a chance of random drug testing, it will give them one more reason to not do drugs. And a valid reason to decline them when offered.
Okay, switch hats. This could be a power play tool for those in charge – teachers, whoever can order random tests, and it’s possible that the tests could become nonrandom but targeted.
So, I’m on the fence with this one, not knowing more specifics as to when and how the tests will assigned.
Why should our kids even be thinking there will be (random) drug testing? Why should they even be thinking that, no matter what, ‘adults’ will presume they are using drugs? (Which is *exactly* the message such testing gives.) Those are *not*, imho, things kids *should* have to be thinking about! What happened to building trust by giving trust — what’s with all this, instead, coercing trust by holding over their heads, threats? It’s just all ackbasswards.
We’re rapidly becoming (if we haven’t already become) a nation of ‘threat-givers’ instead of trusters; we’re presuming ‘they’ are going to screw up (or screw us over) so we automatically go on the ‘defensive’. I see no difference between drug testing a certain population (at random) and ‘checking the papers’ of a certain population (as AZ decided it would be good to do); it is a presumption of guilt for no other reason than they ‘fit the profile’ of the very, very, very few who *might* be screwing up (screwing us over.) I find even the notion of either, highly offensive!
‘course, such threats do have their purpose, I suppose…
If you tell kids there will be (random) drug tests; if you have a kid sign a statement at the beginning of a class term that they will not cheat on tests or papers; if you have them pledge they will ‘keep pure’ until marriage; if you have them publicly declare they won’t bully any one or steal anything or etc, the ‘adults’ can cede/disavow any responsibility IF the kid happens to screw up…”Oh, noes!eleventy-one!! They promised they wouldn’t — they *knew* there’d be drug testing and they even signed/pledged/etc that they wouldn’t [do whatever]!” Accch!
I suppose it IS easier for the ‘adult’ to abrogate their duty to children by having the kids sign/pledge/etc,(AKA passively-aggressively threatening them), than it is to watch out for changes in the individual kid’s day-to-day activities, attitudes, and performances, though. Easier to get that one little ‘job’ of being responsible to that portion of a kid’s well-being, growth, and development *totally* out of the way — over and done with in one fell-swoop — at the *beginning* of [whatever the kid will be participating in] and/or when the kid reaches an age where we think they *might* screw up. Easier to take care of it from the get-go by making *sure* the kid knows exactly how much we trust them. Get the kid to say they won’t do whatever it is, and put that ‘say’ in their permanent file, never to be seen or thought of, again; over and done with. It’s *much* easier to do it that way…no follow-up or further attention required.
Yes, this whole thing does pix me off. Royally (you could tell?) On the one hand, we tell kids to act and be responsible; on the other, we don’t let them…so how can they? We flat adz don’t TRUST them to act or be responsible. Sadly, they then meet our (profoundly low) expectations of them…and we wonder what’s ‘wrong’ with our youth of today. I hate to say it, but I have a stinking suspicion that we are. beth.
Ignorance and greed seem to be the dominant forces of the day.
I have faith things will turn around and common sense will prevail, but I am saddened every day by the cruel and senseless decisions that are being made by those who don’t care or don’t understand that we must help one another if we are to survive.
Stay strong. Each generation must stand against ignorance and greed. Stay strong – and thank you for your strength and sacrifice. It is obvious you care and that you put translate that concern into action.
Oh, crow. I say, piss on anyone who asks you to take a urine test!
Nice picture, but you will have to go a long way to beat yesterday’s of the moose blowing a razzberry. Geez, I’m still laughing about that one.
It may just be wishful thinking, but it seems to me the little buds are swelling slightly promising Spring is coming. I surely hope so!
Of course, I cannot complain. It will be 70 today. From the freezer to balmy in mere days. Then it’s back down again. I’m glad Nature is more resilient than I feel this morning. Winter-weary is the phrase that suits me today. I will accept the warmer temps with gratitude, but it seems like such a giant tease.
Beautiful photo!
Beautiful – I like the little dollop of snow in the middle.