Blood Sport Politics is Bringing Us All Down
I’ve always had a thing about grouchy old men. Most of them happen to be conservative. It might be because of a few favorite uncles, and friends of my pop. Even in politics, I’ve been moved by more conservatives than liberals — you could attribute this to the vastly outnumbered progressives in our state, but I think there’s more to it. They are a challenge to charm and usually make for more interesting conversation. (Oh, there are exceptions. For example, the new chair for the Alaska for Trump campaign.) I recently met an antique stove savant. He knows more about…
Bird of the Week – Northern Harrier
There’s still a few Alaska raptors to have a look at. This week it’s the Northern Harrier, formerly known as the Marsh Hawk. This is how you will most often see a Harrier, flying low over an open field or swamp, rocking back and forth a bit, head turned down, looking for prey. Northern Harriers hunt a wide range of prey, mainly small- and medium-sized mammals and birds, coursing low and buoyantly over the ground. Unlike other hawks, the Harrier frequently relies heavily on auditory cues, as well as visual ones, to capture prey. Annual breeding numbers and productivity are strongly influenced by…
“Who Is Kris Kobach?” Greg Palast with Dennis Bernstein
Week two of The Best Democracy Money Can Buy Podcast with Greg Palast and Dennis Bernstein. Bringing you all the news that you need on election protection. This week Palast and Bernstein discuss the man behind Voter ID, SB1070 and the Crosscheck Voter Suppression Program – Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach. Listen in. Dennis Bernstein: Welcome back to our weekly Election Protection Bulletin with best-selling author Greg Palast. Let’s start in Topeka, Kansas with its Secretary of State Kris Kobach. He’s definitely going head to head with the ACLU there. Greg Palast: Kris Kobach is spelled like Koch with a…
Panel Discussion: Hydraulic Fracturing in Cook Inlet
What: Panel Discussion: Hydraulic Fracturing in Cook Inlet From the Cook Inletkeeper Where: Islands and Ocean Center, 95 Sterling Hwy, Homer, AK 99603 When: Tuesday, May 17th from 6:30-9:00pm Join us for a panel discussion on Tuesday, May 17th from 6:30-9:00pm at the Islands and Ocean Center. BlueCrest Energy’s plans to conduct offshore fracking operations north of Anchor Point have prompted widespread community concern. In response, Cook Inletkeeper will moderate a panel discussion with various agency, industry and NGO experts to provide details on the proposed operations, and to give local residents opportunities to pose questions and get answers. For more info contact…
Around the Lens – Episode 23
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/126783/Around%20the%20Lens%20-%20Episode%2023.mp3 This week featured Danish photojournalist and documentary filmmaker Thomas Emil Sørensen and returning panelist Mark Schierbecker, first amendment freedom fighter and filmmaker/photojournalist. We discussed Mark’s life post Melissa Click, the death of Prince and stupid things photographers say about gear. Our picks this week included an article about the identity of the Iwo Jima flag raisers, the recent fire in a church in NYC, a bus line for the homeless and article on branding yourself. Watch the show here. Subscribe to the Podcast on iTunes or YouTube, or via our direct feed, follow us on Twitter and and like us on Facebook. To…
The Weekend Off – News You Missed
Alaska National Hazards Center – Losing Place and Losing Hope THE ALASKA NATIVE TOWN of Newtok is expected to be under water by 2017, according to the Army Corps of Engineers (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 2009). The town is hardly an exception; there are eleven other tribal communities in the Arctic Circle that are in the same predicament (GAO, 2009). However, it is unlikely that these towns will be able to move to higher ground any time soon without the creation of a federal framework that can assist, overlook, and fund their relocation. ADN.com – Fear of a Begich bid for…
Who Does The GOP Think That They Represent?
This week several legislators from the House minority wrote an op-ed. One paragraph specifically answers the question, “What the hell are they doing still in Juneau?” I know, you probably thought it was for all the fancy lobbyists dinners and fat per diem checks, but it boils down to this: “The $775 million in cash subsidies to the oil industry is more than the combined budgets of the Alaska Court System, Department of Corrections, Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, and Department of Fish and Game. Combined.” Can we just think about that for a minute? I’ll wait for you…
Bird of the Week – Swainson’s Hawk
The Swainson’s Hawk is uncommon, even rare, in Alaska. This bird was seen and photographed in Interior Alaska in 2013. The normal range of this species extends only to the Canadian prairie. Oddly enough, a second Swainson’s Hawk was seen in Fairbanks that same spring. Like other Buteos, this is a polymorphic species. This is a dark morph, as was the one in Delta, although they are obviously different birds. Swainson’s Hawks are best known for their spectacular annual migrations, moving in vast flocks from North America to the pampas of South America. It’s not uncommon for hawk watches in…
Around the Lens – Episode 22 – Federica Armstrong, B.A. Van Sise
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/126783/Around%20the%20Lens%20-%20Episode%2022.mp3 This week’s show featured panelists Federica Armstrong and . Our topics included discussion of the Pulitzer Prize winners, how technology had changed our work and the pixel stick. Our picks this week included the Ice Light, coverage of the Panama Papers, the recently announced winners of the Visual Information Awards Program and a great photography magazine website. Watch the show here. Subscribe to the Podcast on iTunes or YouTube, or via our direct feed, follow us on Twitter and and like us on Facebook. To see our bonus topic support us on Patreon.