Herman Cain’s Blinkage – An Unscientific Comparative Study
Many have commented on Herman Cain’s vigorous denial of sexual harassment allegations on Fox News the other day. As I watched the interview, something struck me. As someone who is intrigued by nonverbal communication of all sorts, I found myself mesmerized not by what Cain was saying, but by what he was doing. Blinking. I had to watch the clip a second time because I couldn’t even concentrate on the words the first time through the rapid-fire visual blink assault. Then I thought to myself, “Wow. I wonder how many times a minute he’s blinking? I bet it’s a lot….
Where’s Don? Rep. Don Young is Most Absent Member of Congress
Once again, Alaska has topped the charts. Even though we have but one lone congressman, he holds a dubious dishonor. Yes, folks, Don Young is the least present member of the United States Congress. Representative Don Young of Alaska likes to get around his home state, and he does not let his voting schedule get in the way. One Tuesday in July when his fellow House Republicans voted for their signature budget measure, known as Cut, Cap and Balance, Mr. Young was the only one among them to miss the vote, for a charity fishing trip in Whittier. OK, a…
Open Thread – Halloween Hat Tip to Senator Mark Begich
A nod to Senator Mark Begich who won the newly created Halloween Hat Tip Award for his unorthodox and completely awesome holiday activities. While the little ghouls and goblins rang doorbells for candy, Senator Begich visited his fellow Senators delivering these killer No Frankenfish buttons. Begich proposed legislation earlier this month that would make it illegal to sell, posses, and/or purchase genetically-altered salmon in the U.S. It has gained support from his Republican counterpart in the Senate, Lisa Murkowsi (R-Alaska)… Both Alaskan senators have questioned the economic and environmental impact of introducing genetically-altered salmon into the national food supply.
Corporate Shills Move to the Head of the Class
By Shannyn Moore Many of us sat through parent-teacher conferences this week, poring over the progress of our children. I remember the anxiety growing up. I fretted over what they would tell my parents. Was I living up to my potential? Would I end up in a padded room talking to myself someday? Oh, wait, that’s radio. That got me to wondering what the lawmaker-corporation conferences were like. You see, Alaska politicians got report cards this week too. Since the Citizens United decision that granted corporations unlimited campaign contributions under the guise of “free speech,” corporate political war chests have…
Open Thread – Eeeeeek! The Paven!
It just wouldn’t be Halloween without something really scary. This year’s winner? Zombie Palin! Hey, it may be the only way she ever finds any brains. And now a special Halloween treat for your internet basket. Back in October of 2008, Mudflatter Eddie Fireplace Palin delighted us all with his poem The Paven, inspired by Edgar Alan Poe’s The Raven. I thought it might be fun to repost – just for old time’s sake, and because the notion of our might-have-been Vice President will remain terrifying regardless of how irrelevant she may be. The Paven Once upon a midnight…
State of Alaska Sues Lake & Peninsula Borough Over No Pebble Vote
Those darned uppity citizens. The Pebble Partnership already sued them once to keep an initiative off the local ballot. It didn’t work. The Save Our Salmon initiative on the Lake & Peninsula Borough ballot was recently passed by local residents near Bristol Bay. It will give the Borough and its residents the right to decide if they want the continent’s largest open pit mine in their back yard, which happens to also be on the shores of the largest wild salmon fishery on the continent. Not surprisingly, and even after the success of the mining proponents to invalidate scores of…
We’re #1! Alaskans, Violence, and Firearms
By Wickersham’s Conscience This post started out as a semi-serious recounting of one of the two documented instances of a cougar – a mountain lion – in Alaska. It seems that back in 1989, an off-grid homesteader outside of Wrangell named Paul Matteoni claimed to have opened his door and have seen two green eyes. He didn’t know what it was, so he shot it. A quintessential Alaskan reaction. What “it” was turned out to be a cougar. Probably the big cat had wandered down the Stikine River Valley from British Columbia, where there is a small but stable population….
Alaska Disasta! Conoco Net Income Looks Grim…
Forgive me a second while I try to calm down. I… it’s…. I’m sorry. Just… just give me a second. (You kindly wait while I compose myself) You know how Governor Parnell tells us that we have to give $2 billion back to the oil companies every year? It’s not that he really wants to, but you know, they have to make a living. They invest a lot in our state, and we need to show a little gratitude. We can’t be all greedy and hog it all to ourselves, or they will just be lose their incentive, and will…
Governor Sean Parnell Supports Destruction of Thriving Salmon Habitat for Coal
Mudflats readers will remember coverage over the last year of the issue of the “Unsuitable Lands Petition” that Cook Inletkeeper and the Chuitna Citizens Coalition submitted to the state. Basically, what this petition did was to put forth the idea that certain areas are just plain unsuitable for coal strip mining – specifically the areas directly on either side of the Chuit River (above), and its tributaries that were deemed “important salmon habitat” for Cook Inlet. The petition, if successful, would ensure that a narrow ribbon of land – 50 feet on either side of tributaries, and 100 feet on…