Recent Blog Posts: Bakersfield.com

Breaking News: Police catch 39 people not wearing seat belts

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 11:35:18 PST

BAKERSFIELD POLICE DEPARTMENT
1601 Truxtun Avenue
Bakersfield, CA
(661) 326-3815

PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 24, 2009

On Sunday November 22, 2009 the Bakersfield Police Department Traffic Enforcement Detail fielded additional traffic officers between the hours of 4:00 PM and 8:00 PM targeting motorists not wearing their seatbelts.

As a result of this enforcement event 39 total citations were issued to motorists for not wearing their seatbelts, 5 vehicles were impounded when the drivers were found to be unlicensed and ten (10) other motorists received citations for miscellaneous vehicle code violations.

Officers concentrated their efforts west of Hwy. 99.

The Bakersfield Police Department Traffic enforcement Detail will conduct these “Click it or Ticket It” enforcement events throughout this coming year.
Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The public is encouraged to help keep roadways safe by calling 911 if they see a suspected drunk driver.

It's a Mad, Mad World: Republicans' litmus test for 2010: only conservatives need apply

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:46:52 PST

These guys have really gone off the deep end, and they will continue to lose elections if they don't recognize it. Hopefully they won't because this country needs to be saved, and they certainly aren't interested in that:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2009/11/republicans-new-litmus-test-for-2010-candidates-only-conservatives-need-apply.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+topoftheticket+(Top+of+the+Ticket)

"The goal of the resolution is to take a position ... towards reclaiming the Republican Party’s conservative bona fides,” said Committeeman James Bopp, who authored the resolution. “We are open to diverse views. But you have to agree with us most of the time.”

Conservatives like former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin clashed with party officials last month by backing a conservative over the party's nominee in 23rd Congressional District in New York. The effort to further purify the party ideologically could pose new problems for Chairman Michael Steele as he tries to recruit centrist Republicans to run in congressional districts that lean Democratic.

But conservatives within the party are adamant. They want candidates to abide by a litmus test they are calling Reagan’s Unity Principle. Here's the full list.

(1) Smaller government, smaller national debt, lower deficits and lower taxes by opposing bills like Obama’s “stimulus” bill;

(2) Market-based healthcare reform and oppose Obama-style government-run healthcare;

(3) Market-based energy reforms by opposing cap-and-trade legislation;

(4) Workers’ right to secret ballot by opposing "card check";

(5) Legal immigration and assimilation into American society by opposing amnesty for illegal immigrants;

(6) Victory in Iraq and Afghanistan by supporting military-recommended troop surges;

(7) Containment of Iran and North Korea, particularly effective action to eliminate their nuclear weapons threat;

(8) Retention of the Defense of Marriage Act;

(9) Protecting the lives of vulnerable persons by opposing healthcare rationing and denial of healthcare and government funding of abortion; and

(10) The right to keep and bear arms by opposing government restrictions on gun ownership

Comments:
MadMan commented:

The fact that Ronald Reagan wouldn't be welcome in the GOP today speaks volumes of how far they've moved to the right.

jfrancais commented:

The sad thing is when they're in power, government doesn't get smaller.

pogo commented:

One of my most optimistic moments was when Bill Clinton said, "The era of big government is over."

Sadly, my optimism didn't last long.

jfrancais commented:

Government actually got smaller under Clinton.

jfrancais commented:

http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=3184

http://reason.com/archives/1996/11/01/clinton-confidential/1

paxchristi3 commented:

Can't argue with any of the principles. This is much needed to weed out the confused turncoats like DeDe Scozzafava in the NY-23 race.

Just like Pope Benedict XVI doesn't mind the Catholic Church getting smaller if that means making it purer and shoring up unity, the GOP should likewise adopt this mindset even if that means letting the nation go to pot in the short term. The pruning will pay off in the long term with bigger and better fruits.

And if folks think this amounts to imposing dogmas on the flocks, what does that say for the Democrats who do the same in imposing their socialist worldview?

MadMan commented:

The pruning will pay off in the long term with bigger and better fruits.

I've gotta agree there. The Republicans and conservatives won't be in charge of anything ever again.

pogo commented:

So, Pax, the Catholics and Dems are the same?

Infowar commented:

Hey dejembe (madman) you need to get rid of the excess code in your video. It looks tacky. : )

ttp://www.youtube.com/v/72... name="movie" />

Make that go away. lol

Ray_Harwick commented:

Conservative Andrew Sullivan's analysis:

Where to begin?

1) Are they saying that the archetypal spending bill they oppose would be a stimulus package in the worst recession since the 1930s? C'mon. Surely, a bill like Medicare D, unfunded and passed during a boom, would be a more apposite example. So on the first count, we have partisanship, not principle winning out.

2. "Government-run healthcare" is a talking point, not an analysis. Do they mean the public option? Or any attempt to help the working poor get private health insurance through government subsidies? And on this count, Mitt Romney is disqualified from being a Republican after his health insurance reform in Massachusetts.

3. They do not mention climate change, which is the entire fricking reason for cap and trade. And what are "market-based energy reforms"? Isn't cap-and-trade specifically designed to operate with markets, not against them?

4. Fine.

5. Utopian.

6. They want a surge in Iraq now? I thought we had one. And military-recommended troop surges? Are they saying that strategy in war should not be driven by the president, but by generals? And McChrystal offered various options for a "surge". Which one is the "military-recommended one"? And how can one reconcile 1. with 6. since the expense of these two endless occupations and exercises in nation-building is one of the biggest new expenditures the country has?

7. Containment of Iran? Well that's an interesting development. Except that it also means "effective action" to "eliminate" their nuclear weapons or weapons technology. Does that mean a military attack? Or sanctions? Or is this as vacuous as it sounds?

8. More with the gays.

9. They oppose denial of healthcare by the government but not denial of healthcare by the private sector?

10. Guns!

If a potential Republican candidate disagrees with more than two of the above, the RNC wants to deny funding. I'm not sure how anyone could agree or disagree with this crapulous mishmash of rhetorical degeneracy. But as a sign of intellectual health, it is depressing. It's a sign that denial is deep and a serious attempt to govern, as opposed to posture, is still far from the Republican psyche.

Condors Talk: Sexton heading to Manitoba Moose

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:40:46 PST

Dan Sexton’s breakout weekend, 5 goals and 4 assists in three games against Alaska, earned the rookie center a re-assignment by the Anaheim Ducks to the Manitoba Moose of the American Hockey League.
It also earned him ECHL player of the week honors.
Sexton did have a 10-point weekend for a while, but upon further review, one of his four assists on Friday night was a phantom Dean Larson-type and was credited to the rightful player.
Anyway, the rookie who sat in the stands for five games with San Antonio of the AHL before being assigned to Bakersfield by the Ducks, made the most of his opportunity as he netted 26 points in 18 games.
The timing for his breakout weekend, which included tenacious backchecking, was perfect as it came with Bruce Southern, Manitoba’s director of player personnel, in the house. Also on hand on Sunday was David McNab, senior vice president of hockey operations for Anaheim.
Sexton becomes the fourth Bakersfield player to wind up to Manitoba. The others: Alexander Bolduc, Mark Derlago and Matt Pope were loaned to Manitoba by the Condors.
The Moose play the Rockford IceHogs in Rockford, Ill. on Wednesday.

Comments:
mrsearnhardt88 commented:

Yay for Dan! Glad he's getting a chance to prove himself. Would have loved to have him around here a while longer though.

makemelaugh commented:

I knew he wouldn't be around too long. I wish him the best of luck.

Mr. Griffith: It's Matt Pope, not Mark.

CondorsTalk commented:

makemelaugh,

Thanks...got in a big hurry and wanted to post before I had to run out of the office...it is fixed.

Politics, anyone?: Pete Parra announces endorsements

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:39:16 PST

Former Kern County Supervisor Pete Parra has announced endorsements from local police officers, elected officials and other community leaders in his bid for the 30th Assembly District seat.

Parra, running in the June Democratic primary, said he’s been endorsed by the National Latino Peace Officers Association, Tulare County chapter; Assemblyman Juan Arambula; Avenal Mayor Harlin Casida; Delano City Councilman Ruby Hill; Delano Union Elementary School Board Trustee Frank Herrera; and Hanford Police Chief Carlos Mestas.

Parra is running against former Shafter Councilwoman and Mayor Fran Florez in the Democratic primary. The seat is currently held by Republican Danny Gilmore of Hanford, who has said he’s leaning against running for a second two-year term.

“Pete Parra stands out for his commitment to public safety, and he has earned the support of front-line law enforcement officers,” Gabe Cano, president of the National Latino Peace Officers Association, Tulare County chapter, said in a news release.

“He has the experience and personal knowledge needed to best represent the 30th Assembly District; we know his experience will serve the communities of the district well, and we are happy to add our organization to the growing list of elected officials and Valley leaders supporting Pete Parra for state Assembly.”

AFTER FAILING IN CHINA AND INDIA

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:20:11 PST

Obama is off to countries that he maybe able to handle....

Monaco, Liechenstein, Malta and Grenada........... maybe he can lecture them about somethiing ....since Monaco only has about 1 million ....maybe they can relate with everyone having health insurance ........

Comments:
Mountianman commented:

Obama drops to lowest approval rating / America is waking up

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Tuesday shows that 27% of the nation’s voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Forty-two percent (42%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -15. This is the lowest Approval Index rating yet measured for President Obama

Mountianman commented:

Gathering consensus: Obama’s Asia trip a flop

The New York Times worried about a bow, but not the one to Emperor Akihito. Even the most sympathetic editorial board in the nation to Obama gave the trip low marks:We were especially disappointed that China made no discernible move to join with the United States and other major powers in threatening tougher sanctions if Iran fails to make progress on curbing its nuclear weapons program. President Obama should have made clear in his private talks that the United States and Europe will act anyway if Beijing and Moscow block United Nations Security Council action.It was also dispiriting that Mr. Obama agreed to allow China to limit his public appearances so markedly. Questions were not permitted at the so-called press conference with Mr. Hu, and his town hall meeting with future Chinese leaders in Shanghai not only had a Potemkin air, it was not even broadcast live in China. It’s obvious that the last thing Mr. Hu wanted was to get questions about issues like his brutal repression in Tibet and Xinjiang. That doesn’t explain Mr. Obama’s acquiescence in such restrictions.Mr. Obama did not meet with Chinese liberals. In Shanghai, he spoke of the need for an uncensored Internet and universal rights for all people, including Chinese, and at the press conference he called for dialogue between Beijing and the Dalai Lama. He delayed a meeting with the Dalai Lama until after the China summit and should schedule it soon. Why did Barack Obama take a tour of Asia? That question has begun to be asked around the world, as Obama returns home with no major initiatives launched, no diplomatic openings achieved, and nothing of consequence broached. The Times of London takes the lead in its news section by saying that that “dream” of Obama appears to be fading:

http://hotair.com/archives/2009/11/23/gathering-consensus-obamas-asia-trip-a-flop/

President Obama was elected in part because he promised a more cooperative and pragmatic leadership in world affairs. We support that. The measure of the success (or failure) of his approach won’t be known for months, and we hope it bears fruit. But the American president must always be willing to stand up to Beijing in defense of core American interests and values. He didnt stand up for America, he appears as a weak leader to the entire world,

BakoBeachBumm commented:

I am wondering why the President is ALWAYS on the move. He is here at home in the states so little it is no wonder he doesn't have time to get this economy back on track, as well as what he needs to do to resolve the Afghanistan request made by his General.

His constant moving around the world reminds me of a line in the Tom Cruise movie "The Firm" ---

"never 2 nights in the same place" " just like Yaser Arafat

Makes you wonder.....

NancyII commented:

Heh Bako. I was thinking along the same lines. Maybe he subscribes to the old "a moving target is harder to hit."

(And no, I am NOT calling for, approving, suggesting, or any other negative thing about Obamas demise. It was just a comment.)

Sure is a waste of all those bedrooms in the White House though. But..it saves on linen and laundry. (as long as you don't compare it to jet fuel and hotels.)

NancyII commented:

Hey Refi Guy..you have competition. Note the red eyes getting ready to melt something.

refiguy commented:

Nancy that picture is much cuter than mine

jfrancais commented:

I am wondering why the President is ALWAYS on the move.

Because that's what pimps do.

JohnfromBakersfield commented:

Yeah! Fuck diplomacy! Fuck world trade!

jfrancais commented:

It's all about that world trade, baby. Don't fudge it up just yet.

drilnliftcrude commented:

I have yet to read anything that says this last trip was successful at anything. I think the world see's the US as weak now. Nobody has any problem telling Obama "no".

anglo1 commented:

I wrote my first letter to BO the other day. I told him I thought his tire air pressure comment was actually a good idea. To make it better he should go out to the nearest vehicle and try to read the minuscule print concerning the correct PSI. It is the smallest print in the world [ maybe ]. He needs to coerce the tire manufacturers into making the PSI labeling about 1/2" high. Way off topic but I thought this might be something he could accomplish.

drilnliftcrude commented:

The foreign press isn't in the tank like the US press. Der Spiegel has some interesting things about this failure of a trip.

In Tokyo, the new center-left government even pulled out of its participation in a mission which saw the Japanese navy refueling US warships in the Indian Ocean as part of the Afghanistan campaign. FAIL. In Beijing, Obama failed to achieve any important concessions whatsoever. There will be no binding commitments from China to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. FAIL. A revaluation of the Chinese currency, which is kept artificially weak, has been postponed. FAIL. Sanctions against Iran? Not a chance. FAIL. Nuclear disarmament? Not an issue for the Chinese. FAIL.

The White House did not even stand up for itself when it came to the question of human rights in China. The president, who had said only a few days earlier that freedom of expression is a universal right, was coerced into attending a joint press conference with Chinese President Hu Jintao, at which questions were forbidden. Former US President George W. Bush had always managed to avoid such press conferences.

drilnliftcrude commented:

Anglo, I think you only gave him ideas on how to shake down Goodyear for campaign donations.

lanabuford commented:

Yeah! fudge diplomacy! fudge world trade!

Johnfrombakersfield

Fudge is not the word I read when scaning the blogs.....Potty mouth!

Politics, anyone?: Conservative group releases legislative scorecard

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:18:27 PST

Nine legislators rated perfect scores on the annual Legislative Scorecard published by the California Republican Assembly, a drop from 13 perfect scores last year.

More significantly, the average Republican score dropped from 87 to 81, while the averages for Democrats remained constant at three.

“It’s clear that Republicans moved to the left this year,” said CRA President Ken Mettler.

“Overall, the budget crisis seems to have brought out the worst in our Republican legislators. Too many of them supported tax increases and growth of government in the middle of the worst recession in a generation.”

Mettler praised the legislators who achieved perfect scores: Sens. Sam Aanestad, Dennis Hollingsworth, Bob Huff, George Runner and Mimi Walters; and Assemblymembers Joel Anderson, Chuck DeVore, Curt Hagman and Jeff Miller.

“These legislators continue to demonstrate their commitment to Republican principles and should be thanked,” Mettler said.

CRA reviewed hundreds of bills before settling on 18 key votes. Notable among the bills are measures to increase taxes and fees, provide for early release of criminals and declare “Harvey Milk Day.”

The complete scorecard can be downloaded here.

The purpose of the scorecard is to focus on bills that may not seem important on the surface, but clearly demonstrate the divisions within the Democrat and Republican caucuses.

“Once again, Democrats accounted for all of the zero ratings in the scorecard,” said Mettler. “Although the total number of zeros dropped from 63 last year to 56.”

The highest scoring Democrat on the CRA scorecard was again Sen. Lou Correa, who received a weak 39 percent – an increase of 20 points from his score last year. On the Assembly side, Assemblywoman Alyson Huber was tops among Democrats with a score of 28 percent.

Of the 120 legislators, the lowest scoring Republican was Sen. Abel Maldonado, scoring a paltry 22 percent. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger nominated Maldonado, from Santa Maria, to be lieutenant governor Monday.

“This is the first time in recent memory, perhaps in the history of the scorecard, that a Republican scored lower than two Democrats,” Mettler said.

- California Republican Assembly press release

Comments:
stevefromsacto commented:

“It’s clear that Republicans moved to the left this year,” said CRA President Ken Mettler.

May I please have some of what Mr. Mettler is smoking? Given the collapse of anything close to cooperation in the legislature--due to the complete and utter intransigence of the Republican minority--I shudder to think of what legislators need to do to insure a good score from this bunch of Neanderthals.

Carlos42 commented:

Mr. Mettler is the poster child for what is wrong with the California Republican party,a complete inability to face any kind of facts that conflict with his political theology.

Crashing through the phony left-right paradigm : Forget The Emails, Code Discusses “Artificially Adjusted” Temperatures

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 09:59:44 PST

The real smoking gun behind ClimateGate

Although the majority of the attention around ClimateGate has focused on emails exchanged between CRU scientists, the real smoking gun proving deception and fraud can be found in the code of climate models which prove that temperature numbers were “artificially adjusted” to hide the decline in global warming since the 1960’s.

Attempts on behalf of the establishment media to characterize the scandal as “rancor” amongst scientists completely obfuscates the real issue, which is the fact that man-made climate change proponents gamed their data models to make them produce the results they wanted.

Not only do we have emails where CRU Director Dr. Phil Jones talks about pulling tricks in climate models to “hide the decline” of global temperatures, but within the code of these models we also find blatant evidence of manipulation.

“People are talking about the emails being smoking guns but I find the remarks in the code and the code more of a smoking gun. The code is so hacked around to give predetermined results that it shows the bias of the coder. In other words make the code ignore inconvenient data to show what I want it to show. The code after a quick scan is quite a mess. Anyone with any pride would be to ashamed of to let it out public viewing,” writes Steve Mcintyre.

Mcintyre highlights the following programmer comments (emphasis mine), which are inserted into climate models to indicate where data has been excluded.

Plots 24 yearly maps of calibrated (PCR-infilled or not) MXD reconstructions
; of growing season temperatures. Uses “corrected” MXD – but shouldn’t usually
; plot past 1960 because these will be artificially adjusted to look closer to
; the real temperatures.

This shows that scientists “artificially adjusted” temperature data to hide the decline in temperatures after 1960. The graphs cited by global warming advocates to argue for continued man-made global warming in the modern era are therefore largely fraudulent. This is not about “rancor,” “debate” or “insults,” as the media spin machine would frame it, this is about hardcore evidence of deliberate deception.

As Anthony Watts writes, “You can claim an email you wrote years ago isn’t accurate saying it was “taken out of context”, but a programmer making notes in the code does so that he/she can document what the code is actually doing at that stage, so that anyone who looks at it later can figure out why this function doesn’t plot past 1960. In this case, it is not allowing all of the temperature data to be plotted. Growing season data (summer months when the new tree rings are formed) past 1960 is thrown out because “these will be artificially adjusted to look closer to the real temperatures”, which implies some post processing routine.”

“Spin that, spin it to the moon if you want. I’ll believe programmer notes over the word of somebody who stands to gain from suggesting there’s nothing “untowards” about it.”

“Either the data tells the story of nature or it does not. Data that has been “artificially adjusted to look closer to the real temperatures” is false data, yielding a false result.”

Paul Joseph Watson
Prison Planet.com
Tuesday, November 24, 2009

URL to article: http://www.prisonplanet.com/forget-the-emails-code-discusses-artificially-adjusted-temperatures.html

URLs in this post:

[1] Prison Planet.com: http://prisonplanet.com/

[2] writes Steve Mcintyre: http://camirror.wordpress.com/2009/11/22/these-will-be-artificially-adjusted/

[3] Image: http://www.prisonplanet.com../2009_christmas_special.htm

[4] As Anthony Watts writes,: http://wattsupwiththat.com/2009/11/22/cru-emails-may-be-open-to-interpretation-but-commented-code-by-the-programmer-tells-the-real-story/

Comments:
learnem commented:

these manipulated "models" are the same type of models that CARB uses to come up with their Data

(virgil) hmmmmmmmmmm

catpaw commented:

The seasonal Northwest Passage ships are sailing did not come from declining temps.

Crashing through the phony left-right paradigm : BBC Climate Correspondent Was Forwarded CRU Emails Five Weeks Before They Were Made Public

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 09:56:30 PST

Further indication that “climategate” data was leaked by an inside source

A BBC Weather presenter who was discussed by scientists in the “climategate” emails says he was forwarded the material more than five weeks before it was made public on the internet.

Paul Hudsen, a weather presenter and climate correspondent for the BBC, notes on his blog “I was forwarded the chain of e-mails on the 12th October,”.

Hudsen says he saw the exact emails that were either hacked or leaked from the Climate Research Unit at East Anglia University placed on the internet last week.

“The e-mails released on the internet as a result of CRU being hacked into are identical to the ones I was forwarded and read at the time and so, as far as l can see, they are authentic.” Hudsen notes.

Following the publication of a 9th October article Hudsen wrote for the BBC entitled “whatever happened to global warming?“, in which he questioned the science behind the theory of human induced warming, the BBC correspondent was discussed within emails to which several of the CRU climatologists were privy, including Kevin Trenberth, Michael Mann, Tom Wigley and Philip D. Jones.

Hudsen’s article, which pointed out that there had been no increase in global temperatures since 1998, spurred Kevin Trenberth, one of the leading authors of the IPCC report on climate change to make the following comment within the private emails to his colleagues:

“The fact is that we can’t account for the lack of warming at the moment and it is a
travesty that we can’t.”

Climate scientist Michael Mann of Penn State University also commented on Hudsen’s piece, writing:

“extremely disappointing to see something like this appear on BBC. its particularly odd, since climate is usually Richard Black’s beat at BBC (and he does a great job). from what I can tell, this guy was formerly a weather person at the Met Office.

We may do something about this on RealClimate, but meanwhile it might be appropriate for the Met Office to have a say about this, I might ask Richard Black what’s up here?”

As we reported yesterday, in addition to showing that the scientists manipulated data to “hide the decline” in global temperatures, the thousands of leaked emails have already revealed several references to efforts by the CRU scientists to exclude skeptical warming viewpoints and evidence from important scientific publications and the media at large.

If it is confirmed that the emails were forwarded to the BBC’s Paul Hudsen on October 12th, it would provide a strong indication that the source of the leak is an insider at the CRU, rather than an external hacker.

Hudsen says he is in the process of providing a more detailed write up on the matter.

Steve Watson
Infowars.net
Tuesday, Nov 24, 2009

www.prisonplanet.com/bbc-climate-correspondent-was-forwarded-cru-emails-five-weeks-before-they-were-made-public.html

Breaking News: Arrest log for November 23

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 09:39:01 PST

Not sure what crimes these folks were arrested for? Check out our list below or click on the link below.

BRIANT    WILLIAMS    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93306    B    23/11/2009    HS    11351.5 HS    11351        KCS

DESHAWN    ROBERTS    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93306    B    23/11/2009    HS    11351.5 HS    11351   PC    186.22A    KCS    STUDENT

BRIAN    DEAN    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93308    W    23/11/2009    PC    460(B) VC    10851(A)PC    594(B)(1    KCS    OILFIELD

LEOPOLDO    BARRIOS    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93304    H    23/11/2009    HS    11377(A)HS    11379(A)PC    496D    VC 10851(A)VC 14601.1(    KCS    LABORER

LAWRENCE    OLIVAS    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93306    H    23/11/2009    BP    25658(A)            KCS    CONSTRUCTION

STACY    RAUDMAN    F    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93308    W    23/11/2009    PC    460(B) PC    496(A) PC    529.5(A)PC 530.5(A)PC 664/487(    KCS    SALES

RONALD    MALLORY    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93306    W    23/11/2009    PC    3056            KCS    LABORER

DANIEL    DERR    M    LAKE ISABELLA    CA    93240    W    23/11/2009    HS    11377(A)            KCS

ANNA    GIL HURTADO    F    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93304    H    22/11/2009    US    C TITLE8S            KCS

MICHAEL    DEVOUS    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93301    W    23/11/2009    VC    38026.5 RM    C 4-5.102        KCS    NONE

RUDY    VILLARREAL    M    MOJAVE    CA    93501    H    22/11/2009    HS    11364   PC    12020(A)        KCS

LORENZO    MARQUEZ    M    LAMONT    CA    93241    H    23/11/2009    VC    14601.2(VC    23152(A)        KCS    LABOR

FELIPE    GABRIEL    M    LAMONT    CA    93241    H    23/11/2009    PC    647(F)            KCS

JAVIER    VIDAL    M    LAMONT    CA    93241    H    23/11/2009    PC    148(A)(1PC    148.9(A)VC    12500(A)VC 24601    KCS

JAVIER    VIDAL    M    LAMONT    CA    93241    H    23/11/2009    PC    3056            KCS

CURTIS    DAVIS    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93308    B    23/11/2009    PC    243(E)(1            KCS

JEANNETTE    JACOBO    F    WASCO    CA    93280    H    23/11/2009    PC    148(A)(1PC    647(F)        KCS

JOSE    SAUCEDA    M    MUSCATINE    IA    52761    H    23/11/2009    PC    148(A)(1PC    647(F)        KCS

ANTHONY    SCALICI    M    CAL CITY    CA    93505    W    23/11/2009    HS    11364   HS    11550(A)VC    22349(A)    KCS    LOBORER

MIGUEL    JIMINEZ    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93305    H    23/11/2009    PC    647(F)            KCS

CHERYL    VANDERMOLEN    F    BAKERSFIELD    CA        W    23/11/2009    PC    273.5(A)            KCS

VANCE    RANKIN    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93308    W    23/11/2009    PC    647(F)            KCS    LABOR

MATTHEW    MCBEAN    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93313    H    23/11/2009    PC    647(F)            KCS    LABOR

MATTHEW    MCBEAN    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93313    H    23/11/2009    PC    647(F)            KCS    LABOR

MATTHEW    MCBEAN    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93313    H    23/11/2009    VC    14601.2(VC    16028(A)VC    24250   VC 4000(A)    KCS    LABOR

LEAMON    PHELPS    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93308    W    23/11/2009    HS    11550(A)            KCS    NONE

REBECCA    ANGUIANO    F    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93305    H    23/11/2009    HS    11377(A)            KCS    FIELD WORKER

ALEJANDRO    LAZALDE    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93306    H    23/11/2009    PC    460(A) PC    496(A)        KCS

VICTOR    LEVA    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93305    H    23/11/2009    PC    647(F)            KCS

VICTOR    LEVA    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93305    H    23/11/2009    HS    11357(B)VC    4462.5        KCS

WILLIAM    GARCIA    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93305    H    23/11/2009    PC    3056            KCS    LABORER

ADRIAN    MORDEN    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93304    H    23/11/2009    PC    460(B) PC    496(A) PC    182(A)(1    KCS    LABORER

JAIME    RAMIREZ    M    MCFARLAND    CA    93250    H    22/11/2009    HS    11377(A)HS    11364   VC    12500(A)    KCS    PALLET REPAIR

FRANCISCO    RODRIGUEZ    M    DELANO    CA    93215    H    23/11/2009    VC    23152(A)            KCS    FARM LABORER

EDNA    SALINAS    F    DELANO    CA    93215    H    23/11/2009    VC    12500(A)VC    40508(A)        KCS    LABORER

JOHN    COLEMAN    M    MOJAVE    CA    93501    W    23/11/2009    VC    12500(A)            KCS

JOHN    COLEMAN    M    MOJAVE    CA    93501    W    23/11/2009    VC    40508(A)VC    12500(A)VC    24600(B)VC 16028(A)    KCS

JOHN    COLEMAN    M    MOJAVE    CA    93501    W    23/11/2009    VC    40508(A)VC    12500(A)VC    24600(B)VC 24603(B)    KCS

SHANNA    MOSHIER    F    RIDGECREST    CA    93555    W    23/11/2009    HS    11377(A)            KCS

JUAN    ACEVEZ    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93311    H    23/11/2009    HS    11350(A)            KCS    CASHIER

JUAN    ACEVEZ    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93311    H    23/11/2009    HS    11379(A)            KCS    CASHIER

JUAN    ACEVEZ    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93311    H    23/11/2009    HS    11364   HS    11550(A)        KCS    CASHIER

SHANNON    EVERETT    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93304    W    23/11/2009    PC    460(B) PC    182(A)(1HS    11364   PC 12020(A)PC 12031(A)    KCS    LABORER

TIMOTHY    WILLIAMS    M    RIDGECREST    CA    93555    W    23/11/2009    HS    11550(A)            KCS    LABORER

TIMOTHY    WILLIAMS    M    RIDGECREST    CA    93555    W    23/11/2009    PC    3056            KCS    LABORER

CLIFF    THOMAS    M    THOUSAND OAKS    CA    91360    W    23/11/2009    PC    273.5(A)PC    243(E)(1        KCS    CONSTRUCTION

MARIO    MARQUEZ    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93307    H    23/11/2009    VC    14601.1(VC    16028(A)        KCS    LABORER

CHERYL    DAWSON    F    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93306    W    23/11/2009    PC    245(A)(1            KCS    REAL ESTATE

LUIS    MELENDREZ    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93306    H    23/11/2009    VC    12500(A)VC    23152(A)VC    23152(B)    KCS    LABORER

OLEGARIO    VELASCO    M    TAFT    CA    93268    H    22/11/2009    PC    664/212.PC    591     PC    243(E)(1PC 273A(B)    KCS    FARM LABOR

EMILY    LEE    F    TAFT    CA    93268    W    21/11/2009    VC    12500(A)VC    4000(A)        KCS

EMILY    LEE    F    TAFT    CA    93268    W    21/11/2009    VC    23152(A)PC    1203.2        KCS

BRADLEY    HAYDEN    M    TEHACHAPI    CA        W    23/11/2009    PC    488            KCS    WELL PULLER

RYAN    WHITLEY    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93305    W    23/11/2009    PC    602(M)            KCS    MASONRY

WILLIAM    DAWSON    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93305    W    23/11/2009    PC    243(E)(1            KCS

MONIFA    EDWARDS    F    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93305    B    23/11/2009    PC    273D            KCS    MEDICAL ASST

BEVERLY    CHAMBERS    F    LAKE ISABELLA    CA    93240    W    23/11/2009    HS    11379   HS    11378   PC    487(C) HS 11377(A)HS 11357(B)    KCS    SSI

CECELIA    GARZA    F    DELANO    CA    93215    H    23/11/2009    PC    136.1(A)            KCS

TERESA    ARMENDAREZ    F    MCFARLAND    CA    93250    H    22/11/2009    PC    488            KCS

MELVIN    ROBERTS    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93313    B    23/11/2009    PC    148(A)(1            KCS    AIR FORCE FIRE

ABRAHAM    GONZALEZ    M    LAMONT    CA        H    23/11/2009    PC    422     PC    602        KCS

ABRAHAM    GONZALEZ    M    LAMONT    CA        H    23/11/2009    US    C TITLE 8            KCS

FAUSTO    JIMENEZ    M    BAKERSFIELD    CA    93306    H    23/11/2009    PC    236     PC    243(E)(1        KCS    LABORER

MICHELE    COSTA    F    ROSAMOND    CA    93560    W    23/11/2009    PC    148(A)(1            KCS    HOMEMAKER

SUSAN    CAMPBELL    F    BORON    CA    93516    W    24/11/2009    HS    11357(B)            KCS    HAIR DRESSER

SUSAN    CAMPBELL    F    BORON    CA    93516    W    24/11/2009    HS    11357(B)            KCS    HAIR DRESSER

Click here to see the full penal code or check the list below for some of the more well-known crimes.

* 187 - Murder
    * 191.5, 193 c - Vehicular Manslaughter
    * 207 - Kidnapping
    * 211 - Robbery
    * 215 - Carjacking
    * 240 - Assault
    * 242 - Battery
    * 245 - Assault with a deadly weapon
    * 261 - Rape
    * 288 - Child molest
    * 415 - Disturbing the peace
    * 422 - Criminal threats
    * 451 - Arson
    * 459 - Burglary
    * 470 - Forgery
    * 484 - Petty Theft
    * 487 - Grand Theft
    * 488 - Theft or Larceny
    * 496 - Receiving stolen property
    * 594 - Malicious mischief/Vandalism
    * 602 - Trespassing
    * 647(b) - Prostitution
    * 647(f) - Public Drunkenness or Public Intoxication
    * 664 - Attempt (usually charged together with one of the above)
    • 1203.2 - Probation violation
    • 3056 - Parole violation
    • 12020 - 12031 gun violations
Health and Safety Code
    • 11350 to 11379 possession or sales of drugs
    • 11364 drug paraphernalia
Vehicle Code
    • 12500 driving without a license
    • 14601 driving on a suspended or revoked license
    • 16028 c driving without insurance
    • 10851 vehicle theft
    * 23152 drunken driving

Crashing through the phony left-right paradigm : Climate Alarmists Finally Admit The Debate Is Not Over

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 09:14:03 PST

Top climate alarmists have conceded that the climategate scandal represents a huge blow to the global warming movement and that the debate is not over, and yet establishment media organs are still invoking South Park’s Officer Barbrady in downplaying the story despite the fact that it clearly illustrates how evidence which directly disproves global warming is being censored by agenda-driven scientists.

The Guardian’s George Monbiot, a climate change zealot and a staunch defender of the faith, concedes that the science now needs “reanalyising” and that CRU Director Phil Jones should resign.

“It’s no use pretending that this isn’t a major blow. The emails extracted by a hacker from the climatic research unit at the University of East Anglia could scarcely be more damaging. I am now convinced that they are genuine, and I’m dismayed and deeply shaken by them,” writes Monbiot.

“Yes, the messages were obtained illegally. Yes, all of us say things in emails that would be excruciating if made public. Yes, some of the comments have been taken out of context. But there are some messages that require no spin to make them look bad. There appears to be evidence here of attempts to prevent scientific data from being released, and even to destroy material that was subject to a freedom of information request.”

“Worse still, some of the emails suggest efforts to prevent the publication of work by climate sceptics, or to keep it out of a report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. I believe that the head of the unit, Phil Jones, should now resign. Some of the data discussed in the emails should be re-analysed.”

Another prominent global warming alarmist, Tim Flannery, now admits that there are holes in the “science is settled” mantra.

“We’re dealing with an incomplete understanding of the way the earth system works… When we come to the last few years when we haven’t seen a continuation of that (warming) trend we don’t understand all of the factors that create earth’s climate…We just don’t understand the way the whole system works… See, these people work with models, computer modelling. So when the computer modelling and the real world data disagree you’ve got a very interesting problem… Sure for the last 10 years we’ve gone through a slight cooling trend,” said Flannery.

“And on these now-admitted uncertainties we must scrap all coal-fired generators, impose massive new taxes, shut entire industries, hand billions to the UN and change the way we live?” asks Andrew Bolt.

However, while some alarmists have embarked on a course of damage control, the establishment has closed ranks and, after failing in their efforts to float the hoax that the emails were manufactured, are now ludicrously invoking South Park’s Officer Barbrady and crying in unison, “Move along, nothing to see here!”

In an article entitled, Hacked climate e-mails awkward, not game changer, Reuters’ Timothy Gardner writes, “Revelation of a series of embarrassing e-mails by climate scientists provides fodder for critics, but experts believe the issue will not hurt the U.S. climate bill’s chance for passage or efforts to forge a global climate change deal.”

Oh really? With numerous influential individuals calling for criminal investigations, and with climate alarmists themselves admitting that scientists closely affiliated with the UN IPCC exposed by the hacked emails should resign, only the wilfully naive could believe that this will not hamper the Copenhagen agenda for a global carbon tax, which was already being derailed before the scandal broke.

The latest to weigh in on the controversy was prominent skeptic Lord Monkton, who labeled the CRU scientists crooks who should be criminally prosecuted. “They are not merely bad scientists — they are crooks. And crooks who have perpetrated their crimes at the expense of British and U.S. taxpayers,” writes Monckton. “With Professor Fred Singer, who founded the U.S. Satellite Weather Service, I have reported them to the UK’s Information Commissioner, with a request that he investigate their offenses and, if thought fit, prosecute.”

The Reuters story quotes Anthony Leiserowitz, the director of the Yale Project on Climate Change, who claims there is no smoking gun contained in the emails, despite the fact that they expose how scientists used “tricks” to “hide the decline” in global temperatures.

In another email, a scientist talks about changing temperature data on a graph in order to disguise evidence of global cooling that has been in play for the last few years.

“I’ll maybe cut the last few points off the filtered curve before I give the talk again as that’s trending down as a result of the end effects and the recent cold-ish years.”

To Leiserowitz, this isn’t evidence of conspiracy, merely “embarrassment” which would “provide fodder for the 2 to 3 percent of the general public that are hard-core climate change doubters.”

In reality, polls show that a huge and growing number of both Americans and Brits are “climate change doubters.” A recent Pew Research Center survey showed that only 36 per cent of Americans believe man is to blame for climate change, whereas in Britain, “Only 41 percent accept as an established scientific fact that global warming is taking place and is largely man-made.”

Far from being a tiny minority, as Leiserowitz claims, climate change skeptics are now in the majority, as belief in global warming alarmism whittles away increasingly to the fringe.

The Reuters story also quotes Kevin Book, an analyst at ClearView Energy Partners, LLC, who characterizes the scandal as “scientists behaving badly.”

“This does nothing to the U.S. climate bill, which will be decided mostly by economic forces, not environmental ones,” said Book.

Precisely – this has nothing to do with the environment and everything to do with companies like ClearView getting fat off the spoils of the climate fraud that they are intimately invested in. Obviously, to the scientists at the CRU, it has little to do with the environment either, since they are more than willing to block FOIA requests, change data and hide evidence of global cooling in order to make the science fit their agenda.

To dismiss this as “behaving badly” shows unparalleled ignorance of what science is supposed to be all about, namely empiricism, not bias and fraud, which is exactly what the global warming movement has now come to represent.

Paul Joseph Watson
Prison Planet.com
Tuesday, November 24, 2009

URL to article: http://www.prisonplanet.com/climate-alarmists-finally-admit-the-debate-is-not-over.html

URLs in this post:

[1] Prison Planet.com: http://prisonplanet.com

[2] writes Monbiot.: http://www.monbiot.com/archives/2009/11/23/the-knights-carbonic/

[3] asks Andrew Bolt.: http://blogs.news.com.au/heraldsun/andrewbolt/

[4] Image: http://www.prisonplanet.com../2009_christmas_special.htm

[5] Hacked climate e-mails awkward, not game changer: http://www.reuters.com/article/GCA-GreenBusiness/idUSTRE5AM4AH20091123?sp=true

[6] A recent Pew Research Center survey: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1222510/Poll-U-S-belief-global-warming-cooling-down.html

[7] whereas in Britain: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5izHlKRky9T8K12vU_jRfQuR0UxTQ

------------------------------------------

Emergency Viral: ClimateGate Fraud Exposes Dirty Tricks Agenda For Global Government

Alex Jones Channel
Monday, November 23, 2009

Kurt Nimmo
Prison Planet.com
Monday, November 23, 2009

Globalist minion Al Gore and the United Nations climate change shysters led by Phil Jones are in trouble. Last week hackers uncovered a pile of email and documents revealing what many of us already knew — the climate change agenda is based not only on easily debunked junk science, but outright lies and deception.

In the wake of the damning revelations exposed by these anonymous hackers, the climate change snake oil salesmen Gore and his complaisant entourage of now discredited scientists are in full retreat. Even the corporate media — guilty of peddling the fabrication of man-made climate change for years with the best propaganda money can buy — are desperately scrambling to put the best spin possible on the emerging travesty.

In the above video, Alex Jones examines the startling revelations of the CRU files and spells out what it means for the global elite who have planned to use the ruse to impose crippling carbon taxes and put the finishing touches on their global totalitarian super-state and its accompanying control and slave grid.

Infowars and Prison Planet are now feverishly going through the documents and will post the result in the hours and days ahead. In the meantime, here are a few quotes from the perpetrators:

The fact is that we can’t account for the lack of warming at the moment and it is a travesty that we can’t. The CERES data published in the August BAMS 09 supplement on 2008 shows there should be even more warming: but the data are surely wrong. Our observing system is inadequate.

Kevin Trenberth <trenbert@ucar.edu>

I seem to be getting an email a week from skeptics saying where’s the warming gone. I know the warming is on the decadal scale, but it would be nice to wear their smug grins away.

Phil Jones <p.jones@uea.ac.uk>

In any case, if the sulfate hypothesis is right, then your prediction of warming might end up being wrong. I think we have been too readily explaining the slow changes over past decade as a result of variability–that explanation is wearing thin. I would just suggest, as a backup to your prediction, that you also do some checking on the sulfate issue, just so you might have a quantified explanation in case the prediction is wrong. Otherwise, the Skeptics will be all over us–the world is really cooling, the models are no good, etc. And all this just as the US is about ready to get serious on the issue.

Mike MacCracken <mmaccrac@comcast.net>

Ironically, the E1-IMAGE scenario runs, although much cooler in the long term of course, are considerably warmer than A1B-AR4 for several decades! Also – relevant to your statement – A1B-AR4 runs show potential for a distinct lack of warming in the early 21st C, which I’m sure skeptics would love to see replicated in the real world… (See the attached plot for illustration but please don’t circulate this any further as these are results in progress, not yet shared with other ENSEMBLES partners let alone published).

Tim Johns <tim.johns@metoffice.gov.uk>

Your final sentence though about improvements in reviewing and traceability is a bit of a hostage to fortune. The skeptics will try to hang on to something, but I don’t want to give them something clearly tangible.

Phil Jones <p.jones@uea.ac.uk>

Looks pretty good to me. Only one issue. In our discussion of possible participants in Bern, I think (someone correct me if I’m wrong) we concluded that the last two on the list (w/ question marks) would be unwise choices because they are likely to cause conflict than to contribute to concensus [sic] and progress.

Christoph Kull <christoph.kull@pages.unibe.ch>

Mike, I agree very much with the above sentiment. My concern was motivated by the possibility of expressing an impression of more concensus than might actually exist . I suppose the earlier talk implying that we should not ‘muddy the waters’ by including contradictory evidence worried me. IPCC is supposed to represent concensus but also areas of uncertainty in the evidence. Of course where there are good reasons for the differences in series (such as different seasonal responses or geographic bias) it is equally important not to overstress the discrepancies or suggest contradiction where it does not exist.

Keith Briffa <k.briffa@uea.ac.uk>

The key thing is making sure the series are vertically aligned in a reasonable way. I had been using the entire 20th century, but in the case of Keith’s, we need to align the first half of the 20th century w/ the corresponding mean values of the other series, due to the late 20th century decline. So, if we show Keith’s series in this plot, we have to comment that “something else” is responsible for the discrepancies in this case. Otherwise, the skeptics have an field day casting doubt on our ability to understand the factors that influence these estimates and, thus, can undermine faith in the paleoestimates.

Michael E. Mann <mann@multiproxy.evsc.virginia.edu>

RELATED: Climatic Research Unit Hacked E Mails & Data (Full File Of Hacked E Mails)

------------------------------------

CRU’s Phil Jones: “Maybe because I’m in my 50s, but the language used in the forecasts seems a bit over the top re the cold.”

Watts Up With That?

wattsupwiththat.com/2009/11/23/crus-phil-jones-maybe-because-im-in-my-50s-but-the-language-used-in-the-forecasts-seems-a-bit-over-the-top-re-the-cold/

Tuesday, Nov 24th, 2009

The Powerline blog has done an excellent job of summarizing the issues surrounding the Climatgate/CRUtape Letters in the past couple of days. Since they reference WUWT in the most recent article, it seems relevant to also post here.

It seems Dr. Jones frets about the “weather, not climate” issue that we have been so often chastised for, whenever WUWT covers a record cold event, or a record snow event. We’ve seen quite a few of those lately. It seems CRU is concerned this “weather” may become a trend. Maybe they’ll just blame it on China and SO2 emissions.

There’s an app for that. – Anthony

TV weather forecast from the UK -”over the top re cold”?

POWERLINE:www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2009/11/025011.php

We’ve written about the leaked emails and other documents from the University of East Anglia’s Climatic Research Center here, here and here. Another intensely interesting email thread, which doesn’t seem to have gotten much notice, relates to the fact that the last decade, contrary to the alarmists’ predictions, has tended to get cooler, not warmer.

At the end of 2008, the scientists at East Anglia predicted that 2009 would be one of the warmest years on record:

On December 30, climate scientists from the UK Met Office and the University of East Anglia projected 2009 will be one of the top five warmest years on record. Average global temperatures for 2009 are predicted to be 0.4∞C above the 1961-1990 average of 14 ∫ C. A multiyear forecast using a Met Office climate model indicates a rapid return of global temperature to the long-term warming trend, with an increasing probability of record temperatures after 2009.

We know now that the alarmists’ prediction for 2009 didn’t come true. What’s interesting is that in January of this year, another climate alarmist named Mike MacCracken wrote to Phil Jones and another East Anglia climatologist, saying that their predicted warming may not occur:

Your prediction for 2009 is very interesting…and I would expect the analysis you have done is correct. But, I have one nagging question, and that is how much SO2/sulfate is being generated by the rising emissions from China and India…. While I understand there are efforts to get much better inventories of CO2 emissions from these nations, when I asked a US EPA representative if their efforts were going to also inventory SO2 emissions (amount and height of emission), I was told they were not. So, it seems, the scientific uncertainty generated by not having good data from the mid-20th century is going to be repeated in the early 21st century (satellites may help on optical depth, but it would really help to know what is being emitted).

That there is a large potential for a cooling influence is sort of evident in the IPCC figure about the present sulfate distribution–most is right over China, for example, suggesting that the emissions are near the surface–something also that is, so to speak, ‘clear’ from the very poor visibility and air quality in China and India. So, the quick, fast, cheap fix is to put the SO2 out through tall stacks. The cooling potential also seems quite large as the plume would go out over the ocean with its low albedo–and right where a lot of water vapor is evaporated, so maybe one pulls down the water vapor feedback a little and this amplifies the sulfate cooling influence.

Now, I am not at all sure that having more tropospheric sulfate would be a bad idea as it would limit warming–I even have started suggesting that the least expensive and quickest geoengineering approach to limit global warming would be to enhance the sulfate loading…. Sure, a bit more acid deposition, but it is not harmful over the ocean…. Indeed, rather than go to stratospheric sulfate injections, I am leaning toward tropospheric, but only during periods when trajectories are heading over ocean and material won’t get rained out for 10 days or so.

In any case, if the sulfate hypothesis is right, then your prediction of warming might end up being wrong. I think we have been too readily explaining the slow changes over past decade as a result of variability–that explanation is wearing thin. I would just suggest, as a backup to your prediction, that you also do some checking on the sulfate issue, just so you might have a quantified explanation in case the prediction is wrong.

Otherwise, the Skeptics will be all over us–the world is really cooling, the models are no good, etc.

Sulphur dioxide, like carbon dioxide, is emitted as a result of industrial activity. Unlike carbon dioxide, it is actually a pollutant. But whereas carbon dioxide tends to warm, sulphur dioxide tends to cool, and MacCracken suggests that SO2 emissions from China and India may well be offsetting the temperature impact of CO2. The net effect of human activity, therefore, may be much closer to neutral than the alarmists have been claiming.

How did the British scientists, whose careers are committed to the proposition that human activity is causing catastrophic warming of the globe, respond? Surprisingly, Tim Johns reacted with insouciance:

Mike McCracken makes a fair point. I am no expert on the observational uncertainties in tropospheric SO2 emissions over the recent past, but it is certainly the case that the SRES A1B scenario (for instance) as seen by different integrated assessment models shows a range of possibilities. In fact this has been an issue for us in the ENSEMBLES project, since we have been running models with a new mitigation/stabilization scenario “E1″ (that has large emissions reductions relative to an A1B baseline, generated using the IMAGE IAM) and comparing it with A1B (the AR4 marker version, generated by a different IAM). The latter has a possibly unrealistic secondary SO2 emissions peak in the early 21st C – not present in the IMAGE E1 scenario, which has a steady decline in SO2 emissions from 2000. The A1B scenario as generated with IMAGE also show a decline rather than the secondary emissions peak, but I can’t say for sure which is most likely to be “realistic”.

The impact of the two alternative SO2 emissions trajectories is quite marked though in terms of global temperature response in the first few decades of the 21st C (at least in our HadGEM2-AO simulations, reflecting actual aerosol forcings in that model plus some divergence in GHG forcing). Ironically, the E1-IMAGE scenario runs, although much cooler in the long term of course, are considerably warmer than A1B-AR4 for several decades! Also – relevant to your statement – A1B-AR4 runs show potential for a distinct lack of warming in the early 21st C, which I’m sure skeptics would love to see replicated in the real world… (See the attached plot for illustration but please don’t circulate this any further as these are results in progress, not yet shared with other ENSEMBLES partners let alone published). We think the different short term warming responses are largely attributable to the different SO2 emissions trajectories.

So far we’ve run two realisations of both the E1-IMAGE and A1B-AR4 scenarios with HadGEM2-AO, and other partners in ENSEMBLES are doing similar runs using other GCMs. Results will start to be analysed in a multi-model way in the next few months. CMIP5 (AR5) prescribes similar kinds of experiments, but the implementation details might well be different from ENSEMBLES experiments wrt scenarios and their SO2 emissions trajectories (I haven’t studied the CMIP5 experiment fine print to that extent).

Cheers,
Tim

Got that? Here is a translation: assumptions about SO2 emissions do have a “quite marked…impact” on global temperatures under the warmists’ various models. What impact they have varies from model to model. Which model is correct (if any)? Who knows? But as a result of increased SO2 in the atmosphere, there is “potential for a distinct lack of warming in the early 21st C.”

That must come as a great relief, since everyone involved in this exchange has been telling the public that global warming is an imminent catastrophe. But no! The prospect of a “distinct lack of warming in the early 21st C[entury]” is bad, because “skeptics” would “love” it!

Phil Jones, Director of the Climate Research Unit, now weighs in. Does he welcome the idea that, contrary to his own predictions, there may be little or no warming in coming decades? No!

Tim, Chris,

I hope you’re not right about the lack of warming lasting till about 2020. I’d rather hoped to see the earlier Met Office press release with Doug’s paper that said something like -half the years to 2014 would exceed the warmest year currently on record, 1998!

Still a way to go before 2014.

I seem to be getting an email a week from skeptics saying where’s the warming gone. I know the warming is on the decadal scale, but it would be nice to wear their smug grins away.

Better that the Earth experience the cataclysm of global warming than that the skeptics be proved right? It makes one wonder how seriously Jones believes in the catastrophe of global warming. Jones then frets about whether the weather is really as cool as the weathermen are saying:

Chris – I presume the Met Office continually monitor the weather forecasts. Maybe because I’m in my 50s, but the language used in the forecasts seems a bit over the top re the cold. Where I’ve been for the last 20 days (in Norfolk) it doesn’t seem to have been as cold as the forecasts.

So the very climate scientists who keep saying that global warming will be an unparalleled disaster for humanity are telling the Earth: Heat up, damn it!

But let’s go back to the main point. Apparently the alarmist climatologists acknowledge that SO2, frequently emitted in conjunction with CO2, nullifies, wholly or in part, any warming tendency associated with the CO2. What is the net effect? This is, obviously, an empirical, quantitative question. But these scientists can’t answer it, not only because each of their models gives a different answer, but because they have no idea how much SO2 is being emitted by the main countries that produce that pollutant, India and China. Having no idea what the facts are, their models are useless. It does appear, however, that one obvious alternative to impoverishing humanity in a most-likely-futile effort to stave off global warming would be emitting a whole lot of SO2 over the ocean, and continuing those emissions indefinitely rather than banning them as is currently contemplated by the warmists’ models.

Climate science is in its infancy, and every proposition is controversial. What climate scientists like those at East Anglia don’t know dwarfs what they do know. They can produce a model for every occasion, but are the models any good? If so, which one? One thing we know for sure is that they don’t generate reliable predictions. In every scientific field other than global warming, a scientific hypothesis that generates false predictions is considered disproved. When it comes to global warming, however, there is no such thing as falsification. Which is the ultimate evidence that the alarmist scientists are engaged in a political enterprise, not a scientific one.

Comments:
catpaw commented:

...huge blow to the global warming movement and that the debate is not over.

Maybe I'm just slow, you are once again above my meager faculties. I got about half way through your cut and paste articles.

The problem as you define it, is not lies and conspiracies. The problem is the friggin' ice caps are melting. Glaciers have either disappeared or are about to. There is no global warming movement.. It is happening. There is no debate. It is happening.

antiextremism commented:

You do know the difference between a newspaper guy, a politician, and a climatologist right?

I don't listen to the first two regardless of their beliefs when it comes to science. There is no debate between ANY major scientific organizations.

It's like debating whether or not gravity exists.

Infowar commented:

I got about half way through your cut and paste articles.

Damn you are lazy, no wonder you are so misinformed. Who cares If I "pasted" the articles? How does that take away from the validity of the information?

Infowar commented:

There is no debate between ANY major scientific organizations.

It's like debating whether or not gravity exists.

Wow you are full of it.

antiextremism commented:

Name one...just one. And no, I don't mean the Exxon funded junk scientists. I mean REAL organizations. I mean every nation's national science academies. The Union of Concerned Scientists doesn't count. Just one.

randomfactor commented:

The "debate" consists entirely of "news" organizations saying "climate experts agree that man-caused global climate change is a fact. Now to present the other side is this paid-for opinion courtesy of Exxon."

Back in the Good Old Days, folks like Edward R. Murrow helped folks wade through the crap. Nowadays they televise the crap because it brings ratings.

antiextremism commented:

Amen to that!

There is certainly anomia on the part of many who have differing political persuasions, especially today with the general mistrust of govenment, but when you believe in every little conspiracy theory out there, your message is dilluted. I will grant Info this, his motivation, no matter how paranoid it may seem, does not seem to be politically motivated. He thinks everyone is out go get him. That's more than I can say for most posters.

Bakersfield Boomers: 36 coming for Thanksgiving and I'm sick! So what are your Thanksgiving Day Plans?

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 08:24:54 PST

I went to the store last night (the store was freezing and my knees were knocking from being ill). I bought a 22 pound turkey and a 10 pound ham. I wasn't sure how many potatoes to buy to feed 36 people so I got two huge white plastic produce bags of them. 4 packages of bread and cornbread cubes. Etc etc I've never cooked for this many people before, so I bought plenty of everything going by the theory that its better to be safe than sorry.

To make a long story short, I spent $160.

I'm befuddled this holiday. Maybe its being sick, maybe its the amount of people coming. Maybe its both.

Anyway, I can't wait until Friday. LOL

BTW HEY Savemart. Turn up the thermostat!

Comments:
AudreyB commented:

So, ladies (and gentlemen) what are your plans?

NancyII commented:

Thanksgiving dinner is at Marks house and Christmas dinner is at mine.

At this point I know I'm taking the dressing and green beans and probably the pumpkin pies. Oh yeah..and green goopy. That's my contribution.

koztarr commented:

At home just wife and I...vegetarian menu.

AudreyB commented:

OK Nancy....you snagged me. What's green goopy?

BTW please check your email from me.

jfrancais commented:

I'm driving to Bakersfield with my babies. I'm picking up my brother in Phoenix along the way. I'll be celebrating Thanksgiving at my Aunt's house. I plan on making a few pies and drinking a little "holiday cheer".

AudreyB commented:

The best Thanksgiving dinner I ever cooked was the year my mom came to dinner for the first time. I was very young and unsure of how to do anything in the kitchen. I was near tears and told my husband to get me a bottle of wine so I could have a glass to calm down. By the time dinner was ready I was loop legged. The funny thing is, everything came out great because I didn't stress over it.

NancyII commented:

By the way Audrey, you and I apparently are sharing the same ailment. A cold and, for me, laryngitis. Twice before in my lifetime I was desperately sick on holidays. Once in the 60's I apparently caught the "asian flu" on Christmas and had to be taken home without dinner. I was just to sick to stay or eat. They brought me a plate for later but I don't remember if I ate it or not.

In the 70's I had the flu so bad at Thanksgiving that I stayed in bed while the hubby and kids went to his moms. I'm not down this year, just a cold that I want to thank Logan for. He loves sharing with Nana. This isn't appetizing but when Kaley picked him up on Friday we were talking and she said OMG you've got to see this. I went around the chair and he had blown the biggest bubble you've ever seen..from his nose. Where IS the camera when you need it? That would have been priceless to show his girlfriends in his teens. Such talent.

In any case, I have his cold ...but I don't do bubbles.

randomfactor commented:

Cooking for one. I may give some to the cat.

NancyII commented:

Audrey, it's what we call Watergate Salad. Pistachio pudding, pineapple, cool whip, marshmellows. Yum.

Checking mail now.

AudreyB commented:

Lucky Random!

jfrancais commented:

Audrey, it's what we call Watergate Salad.

Does it have any Reagan cheese in it?

AudreyB commented:

Don't you mean Nixon nuts.

lanabuford commented:

Cooking for 19 people.....I'm with Audrey,I can't wait until Friday!

jfrancais commented:

I can't wait till Friday, either. I'm going to breakfast with my dad and going to the BHS-Stockdale game.

AudreyB commented:

MEN!

pinkchampagne commented:

For some reason I cannot find beef tenderloin!

jfrancais commented:

Ha! Ha! Ha!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IReMfvamQ28

Give me meat!!!!

AudreyB commented:

Jrancais

I'd cook for the entire 300 if they came to dinner dressed like that.

NancyII commented:

WOWZIE WOWZIE Jf.... What food? What table?

sagefever commented:

Enjoy the day all~ cooking for my bestest friend and self,doing some of the prep today,most of it tomorrow . Turkey,sausage/apple stuffing,mashed potato's,gravy, fresh berry and pumpkin pies,real whipped cream...green beans (fresh) . rolls, and a ham. I figure a day of work and several days of "reheat the leftovers"...hug those loved ones. Blessing All.

NancyII commented:

Pink, call Copes on Norris or Wooddale on Real Road. Both have great butcher shops and you may have better luck there. Have you tried Winco? They have a huge meat department.

bakoblue commented:

Spouse and I are on our own until Saturday, when my folks are coming down. Thursday will be a good home-cooked, steak and potatoes type meal, with a bigger, more celebratory meal on Saturday.

Audrey --- next year you need to head out of town :-)

jfrancais commented:

I'd cook for the entire 300 if they came to dinner dressed like that.

Would you just settle for a Black guy with a Santa Claus outift or tin foil hat?

learnem commented:

inlaws are coming over...got a turkey to deep fry early thanksgiving morning...watch some football....crash early, as I have the gym early on FRIDAY morning, so I can drive by wally world on rosedale with water ballons and pelt the LOSERS who stood in line for HOURS, when they could have got the same deal ONLINE

VirgilAnderson commented:

I do the cooking - my wife does the pies .

In the morning, my daughters and I help with the community meal while the Turkey is slow roasting back in our oven. My wife stays at home and makes pies.

We eat around 3:00 in the afternoon, with the basics of meat, stuffing, maashed potatoes, beer, wine, hashish, and a few green things on the side. We also try to have a guest: this year, it's a good friend or ours, who happened to lose his partner of 32 years about a year ago.

I always look forward to thanksgiving holiday. On Friday, I take the dog fishing.

--vrgil

jfrancais commented:

Does the dog get any hash (i.e. country crock)?

VirgilAnderson commented:

Only when I use a paper sack .

What's a country crock ?

--virgil

VirgilAnderson commented:

I don't use a country crock when cooking.

Hubris dosen't get in the way either.

--virgil

jfrancais commented:

I'm outdoors, early mornin' sellin' this country crock
Let's get this understood, gotta get me off the top
I got them break down dimes and bomb with twenty-fives on the block
Of that 'naw that hawd, talkin' 'bout that glass that straight drop

-Backbone on All The Same by Bubba Sparxxx-

VirgilAnderson commented:

Nope .

--virgil

goldilox commented:

PinkChampagne --- WinCo, they have wonderful beef tenderloins..great prices too.

We are staying home for T-Day, bbq'ing for immediate family (4 people) === Baby Back Ribs !

AudreyB commented:

This will be the biggest group I've ever cooked for. So what did I do?

I decided to try a new dressing recipe. I must be crazy, or maybe its the Theraflu.

CatherineBaker commented:

Well, my plans are to bake ham #2 at my house, and make another casserole of brown sugar and butter with sweet potatoes in it, and then drag my snot-nosed family over your house, where we will wipe our noses on our hands and then touch everything in sight. The kids will run amok while the hubby and I will take naps on your living room couches, and then we'll pack up the leftovers and come home.

Oh, and we'll gossip about the relatives that didn't show up.

honorerdieu commented:

Well Audrey, since you're cooking for 36 people, we're all going over to your house to top off at 40 and try to be discreet as possible. What's another three people and a labrador?

Actually, my folks and I are having dinner at their house. We're probably golfing on Friday, then the rest of the family will show up on Saturday morning. We'll spend time together for the entire weekend. On Monday, they'll be watching me obtain my business degree at CSUB before they all head home.

honorerdieu commented:

If jfrancais is invited, be careful not to use his tin foil hat to cover your turkey.

NancyII commented:

Congratulations honor! What a great holiday treat!

honorerdieu commented:

Thanks Nancy! It was long overdue, but well worth it.

AudreyB commented:

I second Nancy's comment, Honordieu

pogo commented:

Honor, congratulations. We'll be there to see our granddaughter get her communications degree.

jfrancais commented:

Felicitations!

mrsearnhardt88 commented:

Cracking me up again Catherine!!!

I have a 23 lb. Tom the Turkey thawing in my fridge, all the fixin's ready to be prepped. Gotta hit the store on the way home since I forgot pie stuff last night. Just me and my kiddos, daughter's BF is here too. Middle kid will eat at my house and then go to Grandma's for her pies. Ha ha! That means she likes my food better :)

catpaw commented:

Mrs. Catpaw is sick. Tis the season to pass the germ. Daughter came to the rescue and offered to do the cooking, a la Martha Stewart. The first time she took over the stove, she set the kitchen on fire.

If you hear a rumor that the Catpaw's ate Thanksgiving at a homeless shelter.....probably true.

AudreyB commented:

Women were the real heros of the first Thanksgiving.

Only five of the 53 settlers who survivied the first winter at Plymouth were women.Those five women cooked for days preparing the feast of Thanks Giving. They managed to feed themselves, 48 male Pilgrims and 90 Indian braves.

Let's remember them on Thanksgiving day.

goldilox commented:

NO, lets kick their BUTTS for passing that tradition on to us! LOL

NancyII commented:

I'm with Audrey..Hooray for the Pilgrim women. If it had been up to the guys they'd have roasted a bird over a fire and eaten it whth their hands, burped, and called it good. Every man for themselves.

Observer commented:

I am shocked that the men in your families would really trust you to cook meat. Seriously, the rite of passage comes when you realize that the older generation is no longer capable of cooking a feast dinner without becoming totally frazzled and you realize it is your time to cook the feasts.

goldilox commented:

HUH?

mrsearnhardt88 commented:

I'm with you, goldilox. HUH??? Does that mean that only men can cook meat??? Well, alright then. That means the we women can now sit down, drink beer, watch sports and not do a damn thing each and every holiday! Woo hoo!!! But of course, there are other dishes involved in the feast. I'm guesing that is still our job... And the clean up.

jfrancais commented:

...yep...

mrsearnhardt88 commented:

Well, at least I have confirmation jf :) Be safe in your travels! My sister lives in Phoenix- she and her hubby had that bad wreck 2 weeks ago. They are in the hospital by the airport. Think happy thoughts for them as you drive through!

NancyII commented:

That's he way it is now..I don't see any changes. The guys tell everyone they cooked dinner but what they mean is that they put the marinated meat (by mom) on the propane grill and turn it a time or two.

Sorry guys.

jfrancais commented:

Will do, Mrs E.

jfrancais commented:

Sorry guys.

No apologies necessary, Miss Nancy. I admit that I'm lazy and will occassionaly "contribute" by pushing a button on the stove and call it cooking.

I really do cook my pies, though. It's a secret recipe that can not be revealed to mere mortals.

mrsearnhardt88 commented:

You need to wear that Santa suit on your drive!!! That would be funny!

jfrancais commented:

I have the suit on now...well the hat, anyway.

Observer commented:

I had no idea that the "Huh" was directed at me. I normally cook 6 to 8 turkeys a year... cooking turkeys is absolutely no sweat to me. We have a division of labor here, I cook the meat, the spouse cooks the vegetables and anything else healthy we need. Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter are not supposed to be a major stress on anyone. Clean-up is best done as we go and is shared. (I have offered to use the power washer on the pots and pans, but thus far the offer has been declined).

The only time my spouse has complained was when I was taking cooking lessons for Chinese food and cooked a 6 course dinner... every pot and pan and plate in the house was dirty... we compromised on one dish at a time unless there was company.

Everyone, I guess, has to work out compromises. But I really hate it when women think they are the only ones that can cook. And I really hate it when peeps take on roles they are not suited for because their mother or father did it that way.

Oh and Thanksgiving dinner will be for three... nearly none cooked by me... but it will be turkey breast, corn bread dressing, gravy (cooked by me), a Lutheran green bean casserole, glazed yams, and rolls.

drilnliftcrude commented:

I saw the baker at Winco making pumpkin pies the other day...

lanabuford commented:

I'm the cook in my family~ I don't need help nor do I want it.....This year I'm making mindori margaritas....(for me)...LOL!

NancyII commented:

Lighten up observer...we were having fun. My son is a very good cook. And he enjoys it.

edited...by the way Observer, I like the way your family shares on all the cooking and the cleanup. I wish I had a kitchen big enough to accommodate that. It's not even big enough for me.

vanityfair commented:

If Mr. V's runny nose doesn't become a full-blown cold, we're off to Bass Lake tomorrow and will picnic and hike in Yosemite on Thanksgiving Day if the weather is good.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

goldilox commented:

~~~~~~~~~~~~ HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EVERYONE !~~~~~~~~~~~~

AND IF YOU'RE TRAVELING, I WISH YOU SAFE AND PROMPT TRAVELS !

Shwaine commented:

I made my first attempt at a dairy-free pumpkin pie last night. The whole thing tastes of rice milk. It's not bad, just very bland and kind of a little too sweet even without the whipped topping. I think I need to try this again with a blander rice milk brand so the flavor of the pumpkin and spices can come through.

honorerdieu commented:

Thanks for the congratulations, folks. I hope everyone have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving.

Ray_Harwick commented:

If I had 36 coming to dinner I'd just give them directions to the house, tell them where the food is, then check into a hotel for a few days. Ugh. Run, Audrey!

NancyII commented:

Shwaine, I always double all the spices EXCEPT cloves. Nothing worse than a bland pumpkin pie.

Bakersfield Boomers: Great Moments in False Advertising

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 07:47:08 PST

Great Moments in False Advertising

There’s a sucker born every minute, and they’re routinely snapped up by the Internet and late-night TV.

We’re not talking about buying clunk-headed products from top-notch companies that then get recalled - think of Burger King’s 1999 discovery that children could choke on the Pokemon toys in its kids’ meals, or Mattel’s belated realization that 967,000 of its toys contained lead paint, along with a host of other toxic chemicals. Just what a growing child needs.

No, this is a story about 100% pure, Grade A, turbo-charged gullibility - the kind that drives consumers to spend billions on bogus products each year. Remove your rose-colored glasses, gentle reader, and put your credit card in a safe

To check your gullibility quotient, watch the slide show of nine stores caught in lies.

http://www.minyanville.com/slideshow/index.htm?preview=1&a=134

For 8 more gullible grabbers................................

http://www.minyanville.com/slideshow/index.htm?preview=1&a=83

Comments:
AudreyB commented:

Tis the season to be wary.

Do you fall for every silly claim that advertisers make? Are you a smart shopper?

"If it sounds too good to be true"................................well you know the next line.

jfrancais commented:

PF Flyers, anyone?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1Q8WLdbFr4

jfrancais commented:

Caveat Emptor

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqw86jm7ANI

NancyII commented:

I'm probably one of the most skeptical people on the planet when it comes to advertising and I RARELY do any impulse buying. It took me about 3 months one to buy a stereo and about the same to replace a VCR player. I want the most features for the least money and, unless I'm desperate, I figure sooner or later the right item will come along at the right price. If I already know the requirements and the stats, THEN my purchase may be swift.

I'm just not into hype. A restaurant menu item will say "3 large fluffy delicious pancakes and 3 farm fresh grade A eggs cooked just the way you like them with your choice of crisp bacon or just right sausage" when what you get are pancakes tossed on a griddle and eggs tossed on the grill or, if scrambled out of a pre beaten batch in a bucket. Your crisp bacon is more likely to be as limp as an old rag and the sausage is ..well, sausage, and usually a little underdone for my taste.

Hype...that's what sells. Not the product. And that's what the advertisers get paid the big bucks for.

Just what IS concierge service on your auto insurance anyway...Flo says it comes with every package.

NancyII commented:

WOW Jf, those look just like Keds. LOL.

AudreyB commented:

The only Miracle behind "Miracle Clean" is elbow grease.

NancyII commented:

And then there's this..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyhvHB62ph8&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WekjGo-2lyk&NR=1&feature=fvwp

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BU49DSS1ibc

ApolloDawn commented:

Marketing is evil. (Oversimplifed hyperbole, I know, but what the hey; I thought I'd let one fly.)

Marketing is five percent product quality and 95 percent behavioral psychology. I don't appreciate being manipulated. The minute I smell marketing, I'm un-sold.

My husband and I have fun with those super-high pressure TV ads for miracle gadgets and panaceas. We watch the incredible pitch for the gadget that is amazing beyond all conceivability at an impossibly low price - and we know exactly when to point to the TV screen and shout "But Wait!" in perfect unison with the hawker. It's a crockup - a crock and a crackup.

I know we're all old ladies (you too, Jf - just kidding), but I remember when TV advertising claims were often tame and modest. "Marlboro. It has a good working filter" is such a far cry from the wild, high-pressure hype that only a cross between an auctioneer and a used car salesman can bellow out.

(Then there's that furniture store, oh what's the name again, that is having its last sale ever this Thanksgiving weekend, better hurry on down...)

NancyII commented:

You've gotta love the youtube above that hawks cigarettes and then goes directly into two adorable kids hawking a drive in movie projector toy.

jfrancais commented:

Responsible consumption- that's my new mantra for the new year.

The marketing taps into what is lacking in us. The need to have. The need to consume. How does more than half the world live on $2 a day yet we struggle, as a nation, to feed ourselves?

ApolloDawn commented:

"Cigarettes are good for you"

That's the guy from Racket Squad. Oh my God! The irony!!!

AudreyB commented:

I HATE CIGARETTES!!!!!

ApolloDawn commented:

Racket Squad was an early TV cop show about catching con men - and here he is talking about cigarettes being good for you.

I was busting out laughing at the unintended irony.

AudreyB commented:

Do you remember when doctors used to advertise cigarettes? They extolled the virtures of a "mild" smoke.

Even then the tobacco companies knew that smoking was a death sentence.

ApolloDawn commented:

Yes; even back then a doctor could be bought. Marketing is evil, I say!

AudreyB commented:

9 out of 10 doctors say that Menthols are good for you!

ApolloDawn commented:

Thanks for the fun topic, but we've things to do and get ready for.

Have a nice Turkey Day. :)

NancyII commented:

My doc many, many years ago smoked cigars and had his ash tray right on his desk. You'd be shocked at how many respiratory therapists and nurses smoke. Look for the tables around medical buildings and see how many people are wearing scrubs.

ronmexico commented:

Remember when 56 million morons believed the false advertising that came out of this shysters mouth last year??

randomfactor commented:

And bought cigarettes?

They were just rejecting the other brand, Ronm. And rightly so.

pogo commented:

Hi Ron, I was getting worried that you had overslept under your rock for the past couple of days.

AudreyB commented:

RonMexico

Never passes up a chance to be himself.

CatherineBaker commented:

Okay, of the 17 you showed, I only fell for one of them--Activia, and that's because my kids' pediatrician TOLD me it would help the baby's digestion. So did *I* fall for it, or did my pediatrician?

Oh, and Pantene really is the best store-bought shampoo out there. I'm too cheap to spend $30 on a bottle of salon shampoo, and an old hairdresser of mine said that the two best regular shampoos are Vidal Sassoon and Pantene. After months of trial and error, I agreed.

goldilox commented:

AudreyB commented:

My hair is to the point where shampoo neither makes it better nor worse. So I buy Suave.

NancyII commented:

I buy Alberto VO5 and have for many years. It's at the 99 Cent store for 99.9 cents. I really did like Mane and Tail shampoo and conditioner but it's a little pricey and like with Audrey, it's all about the same these days.

One who never lied to me is Loreal... it really does take away the gray. Well, to the roots anyway. Another is Arm & Hammer Baking Soda, it really is a miracle product. It's like ground beef, there are so many ways to use it that it has a special place in my heart.

AudreyB commented:

Do you remember Prell Shampoo Nancy.

It was what everybody used 40 years ago. 60 cents for a BIG bottle. It was a terrible shampoo and dried my hair out so that I looked like Albert Einstein.

I think the manufacturer changed the name and sell it today as Sunlight Dish Detergent. LOL

NancyII commented:

LOL...I do remember it Audrey. Green wasn't it? There are days when my hair is doing it's "thing" when I think I look like the Breck girl. Remember Tame cream rinse? Without it you couldn't get a garden rake through my hair let alone a comb. It's not much different today, just thinner..lol. Frizzled, frazzled curly....but Loreal conditioner that comes with the color really helps.

lanabuford commented:

I used... Gee your hair smells terrific....Loved that shampoo! Prell was the worst of all shampoos! They should have made it for poodles....would have been great then.

pogo commented:

What was the one that smelled so good? Halo?

I chased any girl who used it.

goldilox commented:

dangit LANA

you stole my next entree ...

i used that in my Senior Year (1982) and thougt i was ALL THAT!

one guy said " your hair stinks!"

LOL

pogo commented:

Thanks for the Camel ad Goldie, brings back fond memories (NOT!)

It must be the season. No fighting this morning.

lanabuford commented:

My first husband used that shampoo when we first dated......He was tall, tanned and had long blonde hair that smelled awesome.......my oldest daughter is 28 now....LOL

donmason commented:

I enjoyed the Ad for the magnetic fuel milage enhancer.

What a great product! Added 20% to my gas milage.

I also installed the new Turbo Air Diffuser ( another 25% gain in milage).

Then I added a set of Super Volt Gas Saver spark plugs for an added 35% gain.

The Ultra Milage Super Power gasoline additive gave a guaranteed 20% milage gain.

Last I added the patented Cold Ram Air Cleaner, with patented Ion Technology for a further 15% milage gain.

Wow, My total milage has gained over 120% using all these great products !!!

Does anyone know where I can find a cheap gasoline trailer to tow behind my car to hold all the surplus gas that flows out of my tank while I’m driving???

Have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

mrsearnhardt88 commented:

Do you guys remember that lemon shampoo that had a big lemon stuck on the lid? Can't remember the name. No More Tangles spray and my personal favorite as a teenager... that bleach in a bottle crap called "Sun In". I had the most beautiful shade of green hair that summer from the pool! Then, like an impulsive teenager, I decided to go the beauty school to get a perm. Major "chemical" cut. Burned it right off at the perm rod. Maybe that's when I decided to go to beauty school to be a hairdresser!

goldilox commented:

Sun IN ! yep - used that by the pool too, mixed with cheap beer to try and naturally streak my already blonde hair ... more blonde. mistake!

lanabuford commented:

I used sun in.....Awful stuff...My hair felt like I had 3 cans of hairspray in it. and it never worked. they still sell that stuff.

NancyII commented:

Amonia and peroxide for blonde streaks. I used it in the eighth grade for just my bangs and sides. My buddies started calling me Andy..not short for Anderson but for Andrew Jachson.

SRobley commented:

"Amonia and peroxide for blonde streaks"

Old age for gray ones, if you want them or not...............

goldilox commented:

back to false advertising ...arent there laws that protect consumers from flat-out lies?

i see ad's daily that you KNOW arent true, and how can EVERY single cellular service be THE best ?

some one is fibbingggggggggg....

lanabuford commented:

Well I guess i might have fallen for some bogus advertising.....I'm hoping its not and they really do work....The new booty shoes by Reebok's....we'll see.

goldilox commented:

So you got the Reeboks? Did you check the new Scetchers Store?

mrsearnhardt88 commented:

So this might also explain why I am a financially challenged advertising executive. I actually have ethics and I am truthful and honest in all that I do for my clients! Ha! What a concept!

lanabuford commented:

yeah...I got them,...But I went to foot wear on rosedale hwy...$119.00 and I got some nice rocketdogs for $40.00...my new shoe store...:)

NancyII commented:

And I went into cardiac arrest when I paid $38 for my Reeboks at Pennys. I have never paid over 40 bucks for a pair of shoes in my life. LOL.

goldilox commented:

I paid $80 for my Harley boots, and i bought my daughter Ughs ($$$UGH$$) for Christmas last year, other than that, i limit myself to $40 for shoes ... no wonder my butt is 3" below where it used to be ! hhahahha

you GO lana ....

THE MISSING LINK: If you're missing a link, they're all here.: A POEM: MORNING IN AUTUMN

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 07:21:27 PST

MORNING IN AUTUMN

The day is broken by

silky, noisy,

golden strands

of clouds flashed by sun.

Trees with leaves

in terminal hues

clatter, chattering

at my window.

They rattle in the

morning breeze,

breathing morning

just once more.

Shuffling to the kitchen,

I prepare coffee:

elixir of pardon

for breaking the day.

Comments:
ApolloDawn commented:

Nice as always; I was thinking of waking up the Poet myself.

ALICEN commented:

AD: Mine's been hiding. I still have that other one I was working on when I wound up being the one worked on. It sort of took away any desire on my part for anything but vengeance. Not a nice place to be. There's never enough!

The last phrase popped into m mind the other day, and I just worked around it this morning.

I shall look forward to your next. I should say I do look forward to it.

ALICEN commented:

AD: An edit: First line of comment should have been THANK YOU! Consider it edited.

ApolloDawn commented:

THANK YOU! (Oops, I mean "thank you") ;)

I have a few ideas being blown around by the air in my head. I'll see what settles out.

AudreyB commented:

Beautiful Alicen. Thanks for sharing.

You and I have a similar appreciation of nature.

ALICEN commented:

AD: That's funny. When the dust settles (oops, I meant air), we'll be looking forward to what falls out of the whirlwind.

ALICEN commented:

Audrey: Thank you much. As you probably realize from any of my other offerings, nature plays a big part in any backdrop.

samheath commented:

I'm grateful you are still working Alicen; as to nature you know what it means to me.

Go Mobile: Sparkles the Golden Pup

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 07:13:55 PST

An AT&T mobile user sent in these pictures of Sparkles the dog.

Have any cute pictures of your pup that you snapped on your cell phone? Email them to mobile@bakersfield.com and we'll feature them on this blog.

Comments:
tehachapian commented:

Sparkles is adorable, as is this photo. Thank you for the morning smile.

Dr BLT's Blog n Roll Studio : Nick of the band Shilo joins line-up for The Bakersfield Sound of Christmas recording project

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 07:05:38 PST

Nick, the man with the long last name and a ton of talent, from the local band, Shilo, pictured here, is the latest in a long list of artists/bands to sign on for The Bakersfield Sound of Christmas, the recording project to raise money and awareness of the needs of the homeless in Bakersfield.

It's not too late to join us. For more information, visit:

http://www.bakersfieldsoundunderground.com

When you head underground to the site, simply hit enter, and kaboom, there it is, the latest update on the project.

: White House: Obama Afghan decision 'within days'

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 06:18:31 PST

By ANNE GEARAN and JENNIFER LOVEN, Associated Press Writers Anne Gearan And Jennifer Loven, Associated Press Writers – 19 mins ago

WASHINGTON – The White House braced for a tough sell of President Barack Obama's long-awaited decision on whether to commit tens of thousands of new U.S. forces to the stalemated war in Afghanistan, even as the president met with top advisers for possibly the last major deliberations before an announcement.

Military officials and others expect Obama to settle on a middle-ground option that would deploy an eventual 32,000 to 35,000 U.S. forces to the 8-year-old conflict. That rough figure has stood as the most likely option since before Obama's last large war council meeting earlier this month, when he tasked military planners with rearranging the timing and makeup of some of the deployments.

"After completing a rigorous final meeting, President Obama has the information he wants and needs to make his decision and he will announce that decision within days," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Tuesday morning.

The president has said with increasing frequency in recent days that a big piece of the rethinking of options that he ordered had to do with building an exit strategy into the announcement — in other words, revising the options presented to him to clarify when U.S. troops would turn over responsibility to the Afghan government and under what conditions.

As Gibbs put it to reporters on Monday, "It's "not just how we get people there, but what's the strategy for getting them out."

Obama held the 10th meeting of his Afghanistan strategy review since mid-September on Monday night, with a large cast of foreign policy and military advisers, to go over that revised information from war planners. The two-hour Situation Room session was aimed at discussing "some of the questions that the president had, some additional answers to what he'd asked for," Gibbs said.

The meeting was arranged for the unusual nighttime slot to accommodate both Obama's packed public schedule on Monday and the fact that many of his top advisers were leaving town for the holiday. No more war council meetings are on the calendar.

The presidential spokesman had said ahead of the meeting that it was possible Obama could lock in a decision then, or that one could come "over the course of the next several days." In either case, it will not be announced this week, he said, and the meeting concluded with no announcement about a decision.

The White House is aiming for an announcement by Obama next week, either Tuesday or Wednesday, after Congress returns from its Thanksgiving break.

Military officials, congressional aides and European diplomats said they expect Obama to deliver a national address laying out the revamped strategy. Obama said in a television interview last week: "At the end of this process, I'm going to be able to present to the American people in very clear terms what exactly is at stake, what we intend to do, how we're going to succeed, how much it's going to cost, how long it's going to take."

Congressional hearings would immediately follow that address, including testimony from the U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal. Others likely to take part in hearings would be Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry. All four were among the approximately 20 top administration officials and Obama advisers participating in the talks Monday night — one of the biggest groups gathered for these sessions in some time.

Obama must not only sell his plan to the public, but to foreign allies whose additional resources the White House wants in Afghanistan and to lawmakers on Capitol Hill who would be asked the fund the effort.

Gibbs said that the subject of a war tax on the wealthy, proposed by a handful of leading Democrats, has not come up yet in the president's extensive war council meetings. But the idea, though unlikely to pass Congress, is one way for Democrats who are coming to dislike the war in greater numbers to challenge the president to confront the cost of any escalation.

Democratic allies of the president, such as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin, have become more outspoken on the war in other forums as well.

The force infusion expected by the military would represent most but not all the troops requested by Obama's war commander, for a retailored war plan that blends elements of McChrystal's counterterror strategy with tactics more closely associated with the CIA's unacknowledged war to hunt down terrorists across the border in Pakistan.

McChrystal presented options ranging from about 10,000 to about 80,000 forces, and told Obama he preferred an addition of about 40,000 atop the record 68,000 in the country now, officials have said.

Obama has already ordered a significant expansion of 21,000 troops since taking office. The war has worsened on his watch, and public support has dropped as U.S. combat deaths have climbed.

The additional troops would be concentrated in the south and east of Afghanistan, the areas where the U.S. already has most of its forces, military officials said. The new troops that already went this year were directed to help relieve Marines stretched to the limit by far-flung postings in Helmand province and that would continue, while the U.S. effort would expand somewhat in Kandahar.

The increase would include at least three Army brigades and a single, larger Marine Corps contingent, officials said.

All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision is not final.

U.S. war planners would be forgoing the option of increasing U.S. fighting power in the north, a once-quiet quadrant where insurgents have grown in strength and number in the past year. But McChrystal's recommendation never called for a quick infusion there.

In the absence of large additions of ground forces, dealing with the north would probably require relying more heavily on air power, two military officials said. Any such additional air strikes would be more successful if, as U.S. officials hope, Pakistan turns up the heat on Taliban militants on their side of the border.

As originally envisioned by McChrystal, the additional U.S. troops would begin flowing in late January or after, on a deployment calendar that would be slower and more complex than that used to build up the Iraq "surge" in 2007. McChrystal's schedule for full deployment has it taking nearly two years, military officials said.

The relatively slow rollout is largely driven by logistics. But it also could give the White House some leverage over Afghan President Hamid Karzai. U.S. officials note that where and how fast troops are deployed are a means to encourage fresh and more serious efforts at cooperation and clean government in Afghanistan.

Comments:
siouxcityranch commented:

this is an old game.. in the past wars have been started when the economy was bad..it gives men jobs and increases manufacturing and cuts back on over population..hes going to do it...

ProgressivePete2 commented:

In the past we've raised taxes to pay for the wars too. I wonder if we'll start that again. It's better than borrowing the money from China, that's for sure.

randomfactor commented:

In the past we've raised taxes to pay for the wars too. I wonder if we'll start that again.

There's a move to levy a surtax to pay for it if Obama approves a troop surge. I don't see how any American who supports the war could be against that.

pogo commented:

$1MM/soldier/year x 40k troops = $40Billion.

For what?

What constitutes victory in Afghanistan?

learnem commented:

bring them home, and start a war on our southern border

jfrancais commented:

bring them home, and start a war on our southern border

...stay tuned.

learnem commented:

...stay tuned.

sheeeeit...after Napalitano declared our border security and immigration now a *SUCCESS*......... I DOUBT IT.. but it would be nice...

dont have to worry so much about those crazy Canadians lol

randomfactor commented:

dont have to worry so much about those crazy Canadians lol

We don't have anything they want--they've *GOT* national health coverage already!

jfrancais commented:

Just...stay tuned, learnem.

learnem commented:

We don't have anything they want--they've *GOT* national health coverage already!

If Mexico took better care of their poor, maybe they would too.

randomfactor commented:

True. But we get lots of advantages by serving their needs. It evens out.

ProgressivePete2 commented:

Um, there's already a war going on at the southern border. The drug lords are kidnapping and murdering people all the time. Oh, but I guess you meant sending troops down to kill Mexicans. I'm not quite sure how you would justify something so inhumane.

learnem commented:

Um, there's already a war going on at the southern border. The drug lords are kidnapping and murdering people all the time. Oh, but I guess you meant sending troops down to kill Mexicans

Gosh Pete, must you ALWAYS assume the worst in people?....So there IS a war going on? Funny how our military isnt aware of it...nor our Congress for that matter.

and if it is Mexicans that owuld choose to not follow orders from our troops IF they were on the border, then yes, Mexicans would get killed.

VirgilAnderson commented:

"and if it is Mexicans that owuld choose to not follow orders from our troops IF they were on the border, then yes, Mexicans would get killed."

For marijuana and cocaine .

Leranem, don't you have some teenagers to teach basketball, or something ?

--virgil

learnem commented:

why Virgil...you probably want to come and take some pictures of young boys in workout clothes???

VirgilAnderson commented:

hm ...

Interesting, you wrote :

"you probably want to come and take some pictures of young boys in workout clothes???"

--virgil

learnem commented:

why you have to overanalyze the fact youre the butt-end of a joke Virgil....you seem to dish it out quite often, but kind of standoffish about taking it..

hmmmm

VirgilAnderson commented:

Leranem,

what joke ?

perhaps you should not hmmmm so much ...

--virgil

learnem commented:

typical of you Virgil...ignore the elephant in the room....

and the hmmmmmm is from the valsalva maneuver that was occurring when i typed that

VirgilAnderson commented:

They're getting bigger !

"hmmmmmm ... "

Leranem, you might want to control that, less you break an ear drum. How many times a day do you do that anyway?

--virgil

jfrancais commented:

Funny how our military isnt aware of it...

They are.

I drive along the US-Mexican border everyday to work and live in a city where people get kidnapped and our found beheaded on the the other side of the border.

It's not that bad on the El Paso side but the block is hot in Juarez.

jfrancais commented:

An airman turned up dead in Juarez about two weeks ago.

pogo commented:

I'm surprised they are giving passes for Juarez.

Off topic: JF, did you know that Bliss once housed Italian POWs? The 5-man huts they had them in were what was used for basic troops back in the day.

jfrancais commented:

They aren't giving passes in most circumstnces but again this is a professional military with members from all over the world, including Juarez. I don't know the specifics of his case but I have soldiers with relatives in Juarez.

I know they had POW at Bliss and they also had them at Fort Gordon (another base I was stationed at)

pogo commented:

A friend of mine from basic got assigned to Gordon for training, radio I think.

I got Infantry at Ft. Dix.

jfrancais commented:

Yeah, Gordon is the home of the Signal Corps (commo)

learnem commented:

Leranem, you might want to control that, less you break an ear drum. How many times a day do you do that anyway?

take a dump?? thats no concern of yours...unless you want to add to your collection of boys in workout attire pics LMAO

VirgilAnderson commented:

"take a dump?? thats no concern of yours...unless you want to add to your collection of boys in workout attire pics LMAO"

Leranem - dude,

"and the hmmmmmm is from the valsalva maneuver that was occurring when i typed that" ( @ 10:30 )

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valsalva_maneuver

we obviously have our minds in two different places today.

--virgil

VirgilAnderson commented:

Leranem,

--virgil

learnem commented:

think about it Virgil...when you take a dump...you "push"....the Valsalva .....had you paid attention in biology in Jr high and high school, you would have known that

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defecation

SORRY TO TAKE YOUR BLOG DOWN THE TOILET SCR lol

VirgilAnderson commented:

okay ...

Like I said, our minds are in two different places today.

Happy Pooping, Leranem .

--virgil

learnem commented:

good enough...

It's a Mad, Mad World: A sad and humiliating journey

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 01:04:30 PST

It's one that I had to take four and a half years ago when I was forced to move back in with my parents. Fortunately it only took me a year to get back on my feet and move out:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/ap_on_go_ot/us_boomerang_kids

WASHINGTON – Faced with limited job options, many young adults are turning to an old standby to weather the recession: moving back in with mom and dad.

Nearly 1 in 7 parents with grown children say they had a "boomerang kid" move back home in the past year, according to a study being released Tuesday by the Pew Research Center. In a turnabout in the rite of passage in which a college graduate finds a job and an apartment, many are returning to their parents' empty nests because of tight finances or as they pursue an advanced degree.

"The journey home for Thanksgiving won't be quite so far this year for many adults," said researchers Wendy Wang and Rich Morin, who wrote the report. "Instead of traveling across country or across town, many grown sons or daughters will be coming to dinner from their old bedroom down the hall."

Pew's survey and analysis of government data found that the share of adults 18 to 29 who lived alone declined from 7.9 percent in 2007 to 7.3 percent this year. Drops of that magnitude were also seen during or immediately after the recessions of 1982 and 2001.

Roughly one-third, or 35 percent, of boomerang kids said they had lived independently at some point in their lives but had to move back in with their parents. About half of the grown children worked full- or part-time, while 25 percent were unemployed and 20 percent were full-time students.

The findings are the latest to highlight the sweeping social impact of a recession that began in December 2007. The effects have included declining immigration and U.S. migration between states, as well as increased carpools, use of public transit and "doubling up" of families in single-residence homes.

Data released earlier this year showed that older Americans will make up virtually all of the growth in the U.S. work force in the coming years as a nearly unprecedented number hold onto jobs and younger people decide to stay in school.

Among 16- to 24-year-olds, less than half, or 46.1 percent, are currently employed, the smallest share since the government began collecting such data in 1948. At the same time, a record high of about 11.5 million Americans ages 18 to 24, or nearly 40 percent, attended college in October 2008.

"Boomerang kids are a major trend, and they represent a shift in cultural norms," said David Morrison, president and founder of Twentysomething Inc., a marketing and research firm. "Young adults are the first to feel the brunt of a bad economy and the last to feel the benefits of a recovering economy. So the first way you hedge your bets is to minimize your expenses."

Saying there is now less of a stigma in moving back home, Morrison predicted that the trend of boomerang kids may lessen somewhat but still continue after the economy recovers. That could create longer-term ripple effects in social relationships, from multigenerational family tensions to delayed marriage, he said.

According to the latest Pew survey and census data:

_About 20 million people ages 18 to 34 live at home with their parents — roughly 30 percent of that age group. That's up from about 18 million, or 27 percent, in 2005.

_About 12 percent of young adults ages 18 to 34 said they were forced to move in with a roommate because of the poor economy.

_Fifteen percent of adults 18 to 34 said they had postponed getting married due to the recession. That share increases to 21 percent for adults ages 25 to 34, when many people tend to get married.

_Fourteen percent of adults 18 to 34 say they delayed having a baby.

Pew based its findings on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Census Bureau. It also interviewed 1,028 people ages 18 and older by cell phone or landline from Oct. 21-25. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.9 percentage points.

Comments:
catpaw commented:

I think HLN repeated that poll. It doesn't surprise me. Most teens or youngsters I am aquainted with are having a difficult time finding a menial job. Their competetion is mostly regular breadwinners with a household to support.

So far, my own almost 19 yr. old has kept her own apt. and is lucky enough to have secure employment. Of course, we are proud parents that her job skills and maturity got her the job. When I was made aware of the job seekers she beat out, I can't help but wonder what she said or did to get the attention of her employer. There was alot of talent applying for the job. She was lucky.

I know she'd rather take a beating than ask us for help or move back in with us. Her "secure" job has laid off a few employees. We're braced for the possibility.

zapped commented:

It's one that I had to take four and a half years ago when I was forced to move back in with my parents.

Not an earth shattering surprise for those who occasionally follow this forum

learnem commented:

wow...good Job DejemDAVEman....an entire post without putting down "conservatives", "republicans" "teabaggers", "right wingGers".......

hopefully we will see more like this one in the future

MadMan commented:

Well, if it wasn't for the Republicans screwing up the economy over the last eight years, I might have been able to get a decent paying job right out of college. If I would have graduated in college in 1994 instead of 2004, my story would be different.

SRobley commented:

None of my kids have tried to move home. They and their families are all doing very well............

goldilox commented:

we talked about this issue the other evening w/ my 20 y/o son

he has a decent job, barely makes it in-between paychecks, but mostly because of frivolous spur of the moment un necessary purchases! (kid stuff)

but, if and when he needs to return home - i would welcome him with open arms. moms love, i guess. THEN, i can force him to finish his paperwork application packet for the CHP academy :)

pogo commented:

Robley, not surprised that your kids would not want to come back home.

SRobley commented:

They come home all the time.. I see grand kids everyday. They just don't live here.

NancyII commented:

Well pogo, in spite of your earlier proclamations it didn' t take you long to blend in with the regulars. Your comments to Srobley was totally uncalled for considering there was no malice from him.

Welcome to the mud slinging just for the hell of it.

pogo commented:

Tell you what Nancy, I'll make my comments and you make yours. I don't like Robley's comments, never have and today I decided to unload.

Tough stuff.

NancyII commented:

"I'll make my comments and you make yours"

I just did.

SRobley commented:

Never say something that would embarrass your mother.........................I've been telling my boys that for years. Now that she is gone, they know that she is always listening.

pogo commented:

fair enough.

BOHICA

NancyII commented:

Call me naive but I had to look that one up.

Here was the description.

BOHICA

Bend Over, Here It Comes Again - Used colloquially to indicate that an adverse situation is about to repeat itself, and that acquiescence is the wisest course of action. Literally, a reference to forced anal sex.

Your Momma wouldn't be proud to see that one I betcha.

goldilox commented:

jfrancais commented:

Well, if it wasn't for the Republicans screwing up the economy over the last eight years, I might have been able to get a decent paying job right out of college.

The army is hiring. They even pay for grad school.

Education: Congressman Kevin McCarthy will be supporting Mary Bono Mack

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 21:21:01 PST

Congressman Kevin McCarthy announced on the Ralph Bailey show (KNZR 1560 Bakersfield) today that he will support the incumbent California Congresswoman Mary Bono Mack in next year's primary election. Congresswoman Mack voted yes on the Cap and Trade bill earlier this year. If Cap and Trade passes in Congress many people in Kern County will lose their jobs. How can Congressman McCarthy say that he represents our district and then turn around and support Congresswoman Mack who voted against our district? I attached a blog posted by an environmental wacko professor at Duke University who give her a great endorsement. If this bothers you give his office a call at 661-327-3611 or 202-225-2915. http://kevinmccarthy.house.gov/

http://www.nicholas.duke.edu/thegreengrok/bonomack/?searchterm=None

Comments:
Ray_Harwick commented:

Mary Bono is a fiscal conservative and a Very Popular Republican in her district and she's the INCUMBENT running against an openly-gay Democrat whose political experience is equal to Mary's former husband, Sonny, in that he was mayor of Palm Springs when he first decided to run for congress. The Democrat is Steve Pougnet (like Sonny Bono, a former Mayor) and he's a political Moderate just like Mary Bono-Mack. It won't be a race. Bono will mop the floor with him. Why? Because Mary Bono-Mack has the gay community already on her side because of her record on gay issues. And because Republicans DOMINATE in this district. If some Teabagger takes her on, they will be unmercifully destroyed because Dems will vote for Bono-Mack any day of the week. Moderate Dems around here may be annoyed by Bono-Mack but both the Repub and Dem moderate base HATE teabaggers.

So, McCarthy is actually wasting his time. His endorsement matters not ONE SINGLE IOTA to the people in Mack's district. She has ALWAYS kept her own counsel and the only possible way for her to get unseated is for some Very Popular Republican to move to the district and take her on. Like Who? Arnold? It would take someone of Arnold's stature to beat Bono-Mack.

drilnliftcrude commented:

Teabagger. You're obviously using it as an insult, but I find it amusing in an ironic sort of way to hear coming from someone who most likely enjoys the act himself.

jfrancais commented:

Are teabagging and turkeyslapping the same thing?

anglo1 commented:

Similar, sort of like the difference between boys and men. So I've been told.

Observer commented:

I thought it was chicken slapping...My how teabagging grows.

Observer commented:

Sonny Bono was the only politician that actually shook my hand, when he was Mayor of Palm Springs. Local politicians treated me like shit staff. Oh well, I don't like them either, regardless of party.

anglo1 commented:

Somebody could lose an eye. When I first the matching ear protectors I thought that was his own scotum, ouch.

drilnliftcrude commented:

With the wheels coming off of the global warming scam wagon, McCarthy should be trying to get Bono-Mack to rescind her support for cap and trade before he puts his own credibility in question with an unqualified endorsement.

: New Map Bolsters Case for Ancient Ocean on Mars

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:44:48 PST

SPACE.com Staff

SPACE.com Space.com Staff

space.com – Mon Nov 23, 5:30 pm ET

Several lines of evidence point to the possibility of a past ocean on Mars, from apparent ancient shorelines to chemicals in the soil.

Add to the list a new map of the red planet's valleys. The map shows extensive valley networks around the equator and in the southern hemisphere, suggesting a warmer Mars long ago, with extensive rainfall that would have fed an ocean in the northern hemisphere.

"All the evidence gathered by analyzing the valley network on the new map points to a particular climate scenario on early Mars," Northern Illinois University geography professor Wei Luo said. "It would have included rainfall and the existence of an ocean covering most of the northern hemisphere, or about one-third of the planet's surface."

The valley networks are more than twice as extensive (2.3 times longer in total length) than had been previously mapped out.

"The presence of more valleys indicates that it most likely rained on ancient Mars, while the global pattern showing this belt of valleys could be explained if there was a big northern ocean," said Tomasz Stepinski of the Lunar and Planetary Institute.

Luo and Stepinski published their findings in the current issue of the Journal of Geophysical Research — Planets.

Longstanding debate

For nearly four decades, scientists have debated whether the valley networks on Mars were created by surface water erosion or some other process, such as groundwater sapping, which can occur in cold, dry conditions.

One argument against rainfall had been that the valley networks on Mars were not as dense as on Earth. The new map shows the densities on Mars are greater than previously thought.
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"It is now difficult to argue against runoff erosion as the major mechanism of Martian valley network formation," Luo said.

"When you look at the entire planet, the density of valley dissection on Mars is significantly lower than on Earth," he said. "However, the most densely dissected regions of Mars have densities comparable to terrestrial values."

The mapping project, funded by NASA, used topographic data from Mars satellite missions, fed into a computer algorithm.

"The only other global map of the valley networks was produced in the 1990s by looking at images and drawing on top of them, so it was fairly incomplete and it was not correctly registered with current datum," Stepinski said. "Our map was created semi-automatically, with the computer algorithm working from topographical data to extract the valley networks. It is more complete, and shows many more valley networks."

Explaining Mars

The Martian surface is characterized by lowlands located mostly in the northern hemisphere and highlands located mostly in the southern hemisphere. Given this topography, water would accumulate in the northern hemisphere, where surface elevations are lower than the rest of the planet, thus forming an ocean, the researchers said in a statement today.

"Such a single-ocean planet would have an arid continental-type climate over most of its land surfaces," Luo said.

The northern-ocean scenario meshes with a number of other characteristics of the valley networks.

"A single ocean in the northern hemisphere would explain why there is a southern limit to the presence of valley networks," Luo added. "The southernmost regions of Mars, located farthest from the water reservoir, would get little rainfall and would develop no valleys. This would also explain why the valleys become shallower as you go from north to south, which is the case.

"Rain would be mostly restricted to the area over the ocean and to the land surfaces in the immediate vicinity, which correlates with the belt-like pattern of valley dissection seen in our new map," Luo said.

Comments:
AudreyB commented:

Just imagine all the little green men in their tiny black speedos going off the high dive into a refreshing pool of boiling water.

catpaw commented:

Shades of Ray Bradbury (The Martian Chronicles)!

Arthur Clarke used to assert in his lectures that the first man on the moon was already born. He didn't realize at the time that this "baby" was flying jet aircraft. He was also predicting communication satellites.

Amazing, how fast science fiction is becoming science fact.

It's a Mad, Mad World: Ed Schultz takes on right-wing nutjob over billboard

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:41:59 PST

This is more evidence that watching Fox News and listening to Glenn Beck makes people go insane:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7FmZGor7Z8

The Department of Homeland Security was, in fact, correct when they released a report earlier this year that warned of a rise in right-wing extremism:

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/04/14/homeland-security-warns-rise-right-wing-extremism/

Comments:
paxchristi3 commented:

Since when did the center-right folks become extremists? Keep this up this nonsense and they just may become extremists because your propagandizing of relativism sucks to high heaven.

MadMan commented:

Center-right? Hardly.

Pax, your idle threats wouldn't make Jesus very happy. But then again, since you don't behave the way a self-proclaimed Christian should, you probably don't care.

MadMan commented:

In addition, Pax, your daily blogs and comments provide overwhelming evidence of how listening to Fox News and right-wing radio can make you lose touch with reality. It's either that or your religion. Or maybe a deadly combination of the two.

Infowar commented:

Hey dejembe...were the founding fathers "right wing nuts" in your opinion?

MadMan commented:

I don't know who dejembe is, but since you are asking a question on my blog, I will offer my opinion.

Thomas Jefferson certainly wasn't. Alexander Hamilton certainly was. John Adams could be at times. Not Ben Franklin.

What do you think, infowar?

Infowar commented:

Cindy Sheehan feels the same as those "right wing nuts" you rail against madman. She was called a left-wing loon by the so called right during the Bush years. I guess she is still a nut according to today's so called left because she is true to her word & she is still anti-war. Sheehan said she woke up to the false left-right paradigm. She finally realized both mainline factions of the republican & democratic party are controlled by the same scum at the top of the pyramid. To bad you are engaging in child's play. It's obvious you are passionate about your agenda. It's sad to see you chasing your tail. Hopefully one day you will wake from your slumber. You are almost there man. Pax is pretty much there too. He still dabbles in the left-paradigm. At least Pax knows all about the New World Order & it's severe threat to humanity. You guys need to realize that presidents are mere pawns a game much bigger than you can comprehend at the moment. The globalist at the top are not liberals or conservative. They are power hungry lunatics who are full of hubris and they hold enormous amounts of disdain for the folks they call 'useless eaters'...that's you & me by the way...Oh yeah people who make a million dollars a year are still not worthy according to the global elite. The open plan is to depopulate a large percentage of earth's human population. Madman you come off as a neo-social Darwinist brown noser...I am sure in your petty mind, you are all for hardcore modern eugenics programs.(Get rid of the evil "right wingers" first...right? ) HA HA

Oh yeah...I can name names if you want to know who 'they' are. In fact I consistently name names in my post, but most of you are not listening. I guess that is part of casting your pearls before swine.

Infowar commented:

Interesting answer madman. (dejembe)

My answer....hmmm?

Infowar commented:

madman...look at your messiah. He is a total liar and fraud.

www.youtube.com/watch

.
.......

MadMan commented:

I guess she is still a nut according to today's so called left because she is true to her word & she is still anti-war.

Nope, not a nut at all. I'm anti-war, too. The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were both huge mistakes and we need to get out of both countries immediately, and more and more people are starting so see things the way that Ms. Sheehan and I see them.

As for the rest of your comment, infowar, it is so baseless that it doesn't deserve my time to address it. This New World Order you speak of, will this be happening and come to fruition...when??? 10 years? 20 years? Is this like the imminent second coming that Pax and the rest of the Christians keep talking about but it never seems to happen?

MadMan commented:

He's not my messiah, but his comments from two years ago deeply disappoint me. Let me repeat, I believe we need to get our troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan right now.

Infowar commented:

This New World Order you speak of, will this be happening and come to fruition...when??? 10 years? 20 years?

It's happening right now you fool. Go to my blogs & read all about it.

No this has nothing to do with some mythical second coming crap. It has everything to do with hardcore tyranny on a global scale. Sigh...you really need to wake the hell up man.

Infowar commented:

I believe we need to get our troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan right now.

Well pin a rose on your nose. Good for you. Now you better denounce Obama completely because he does not share that same school of thought AT ALL.

MadMan commented:

I do read your blogs, infowar. And all of your sources come from a website that makes money off of peddling fear. Sorry man, but I just don't buy it--just like I don't buy the religious nonsense that also makes money off of.........you guessed it--peddling fear.

By the way, there's no need to name-call. You're better than that, or at least I'd hope.

Infowar commented:

You scan my blogs, you don't actually read them. Try clicking on the hundreds of hyper links with in my blogs & at the same time rub a few braincells together.

I am off to get some beauty sleep. Continue chasing your tail with whimsical tales of left verses right.

good night

: Obama could lock in Afghanistan decision Monday

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:39:40 PST

By ANNE GEARAN and JENNIFER LOVEN, Associated Press Writers Anne Gearan And Jennifer Loven, Associated Press Writers – 1 hr 7 mins ago

WASHINGTON – The White House said President Barack Obama could use an unusual evening war council session Monday to lock in his long-awaited decision on whether to commit tens of thousands of new U.S. forces to the stalemated war in Afghanistan.

Military officials and others said they expect Obama to settle on a middle-ground option that would deploy an eventual 32,000 to 35,000 U.S. forces to the 8-year-old conflict.

That rough figure has stood as the most likely option since before Obama's last large war council meeting earlier this month, when he tasked military planners with rearranging the timing and makeup of some of the deployments.

As White House press secretary Robert Gibbs put it to reporters on Monday, it's "not just how we get people there, but what's the strategy for getting them out."

Obama was holding the 10th meeting of his Afghanistan strategy review since mid-September on Monday night, with a large cast of foreign policy advisers, to go over that revised information from war planners.

In the 90-minute session in the Situation Room, "they'll go through some of the questions that the president had, some additional answers to what he'd asked for, and have a discussion about that," Gibbs said.

The presidential spokesman said it was possible Obama could lock in a decision at Monday's meeting or that it could come "over the course of the next several days." In either case, it will not be announced this week, he said.

The force infusion expected by the military would represent most but not all the troops requested by Obama's war commander, for a retailored war plan that blends elements of Gen. Stanley McChrystal's counterterror strategy with tactics more closely associated with the CIA's unacknowledged war to hunt down terrorists across the border in Pakistan.

McChrystal presented options ranging from about 10,000 to about 80,000 forces, and told Obama he preferred an addition of about 40,000 atop the record 68,000 in the country now, officials have said.

Obama has already ordered a significant expansion of 21,000 troops since taking office. The war has worsened on his watch, and public support has dropped as U.S. combat deaths have climbed.

The increase would include at least three Army brigades and a single, larger Marine Corps contingent, officials said.

All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision is not final.

The White House is aiming for an announcement by Obama by the middle of next week, after Congress returns from its Thanksgiving break.

Military officials, congressional aides and European diplomats said they expect Obama to deliver a national address laying out the revamped strategy. Said Obama in a television interview last week: "At the end of this process, I'm going to be able to present to the American people in very clear terms what exactly is at stake, what we intend to do, how we're going to succeed, how much it's going to cost, how long it's going to take."

Congressional hearings would immediately follow that address, including testimony from McChrystal.

"Gen. McChrystal will certainly be coming back to ... testify. When that is is still to be determined," based on the timing of the White House announcement, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said.

On the topic of increased costs in Afghanistan, Gibbs said that the subject of a war tax, suggested by some leading Democrats on Capitol Hill, has not come up yet in the president's extensive meetings with his war advisers.

: Will Minorities Get Enough Out of the Economic Stimulus?

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:35:45 PST

By TIM PADGETT / MIAMI Tim Padgett / Miami – Mon Nov 23, 10:10 am ET

Miami's poorer residents have long complained that the city's meager public-transit system makes it harder for them to get to work. So when the Obama Administration announced the $787 billion stimulus plan earlier this year, many hoped some of that money would help fund plans like an expansion of Miami's undersized Metrorail system - especially a 10-mile northern extension that would reach into predominantly African-American and other minority communities largely cut off from downtown and other employment centers. But the project, in part because it's not considered as shovel-ready as jobs like existing highway maintenance, isn't getting any of the $15 billion in stimulus aid for Florida, and has been shelved for the time being.

To Gihan Perera, that's just one example of how federal and state governments are missing a great opportunity to use the stimulus to aid the poor and minority communities hardest hit by the Great Recession. Perera, director of the nonprofit Miami Workers Center (MWC), is among a number of antipoverty activists closely examining which communities and contractors are getting stimulus dollars, and so far he says the picture doesn't look bright for already marginalized "low-opportunity" zones and minority-owned firms. The lion's share of road and other construction work in Florida has gone to venues like airports and new highways that usually benefit more affluent suburbs, Perera argues. And as of September, less than 10% of the $330 million in stimulus projects awarded directly from federal agencies to Florida-based contractors had gone to minority-owned firms, according to a study by the MWC, the Kirwan Institute at Ohio State University and the Research Institute on Social and Economic Policy (RISEP) at Miami's Florida International University. In all, black-owned firms received less than 2%. "The fear," says Perera, "is that the stimulus money could instead serve to exacerbate the inequalities that existed before." (See which businesses are bucking the recession.)

That's not just a concern for the Sunshine State, which now has one of the nation's highest jobless and home-foreclosure rates. Earlier this year, the Associated Press found that across the U.S., the stimulus plan was "set to spend 50% more per person in areas with the lowest unemployment than it will in communities with the highest." In Illinois, President Obama's home state, a Chicago Public Radio investigation this fall found that less than 10% of the Department of Transportation's stimulus contracts had gone to "disadvantaged business enterprises," or DBEs, even though the state says it benchmarked almost a quarter of the dollars for those minority- and women-owned firms. Less than 2% of it had gone to black-owned businesses. Florida's Department of Transport doesn't have a specific DBE participation target for stimulus-related projects, but it says it exceeded its goal of more than 8% for all federally funded (not just stimulus) work in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30. Still, given that Florida's workforce is about one-third minority, watchdogs like the MWC suggest the target should be higher.

Washington and the states have been trying to get stimulus money and projects out the door as quickly as possible, often bundling smaller projects into larger ones set to begin work immediately (so-called shovel-ready projects) for more efficiency. Consequently, they have also tended to rely on larger and therefore predominantly white-owned construction contractors (who in turn also tend to use their preferred subcontractors) over smaller minority-owned firms that often don't have ample equipment or personnel. Those smaller companies also have trouble finding the resources to post construction bonds (money contractors must offer up front as a guarantee that a job will be finished) on larger jobs. Serge Jean-Louis, a Haitian-American contractor and president of Nicon Engineering in Coconut Creek, Fla., near Fort Lauderdale, is struggling to land stimulus-related projects in South Florida. He says federal and state officials managing the stimulus should relax bond requirements for smaller firms and DBEs, "or we're going to be out of the stimulus picture." (See pictures of the global financial crisis.)

The Obama Administration insists that 15% of the stimulus contracts awarded so far across the country have gone to DBEs. That's 2½ times the share of federally funded projects that went to minority- and women-owned firms in fiscal 2008, say officials. "It's a top priority of the President's, and we've worked very hard to create those opportunities," says David Hinson, director of the Commerce Department's Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA). Hinson points to the outreach program the MBDA and the Small Business Administration have created to "put boots on the ground" and make contract procurement easier for DBEs. He also suggests it's "a little early to draw conclusions" about the stimulus' level of minority participation.

Most of the federal stimulus money is disbursed via states and counties, and the outlook for minorities does seem better once the dollars reach more local levels. Miami-Dade County's Public Works Department has kept its so far $25 million worth of stimulus projects relatively small, and therefore more accessible to minority contractors, to ensure its own 10% DBE participation goal. On some projects Miami-Dade has even 100% DBE involvement. For now, the county is using what stimulus money it can earmark for transit purposes to purchase a fleet of BRT (bus rapid transit) buses that will at least reach into predominantly minority corridors at a faster clip than conventional metro bus lines. Says Miami-Dade Public Works Director Esther Calas, the stimulus trickle-down "wasn't really crafted to happen as fast as it could have, but once it gets to us we're expediting it quickly." She points out that Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez championed an ordinance last year that accelerates contracting processes related to any kind of economic-stimulus project.

Given such different track records, minority-business advocates like John Powell, director of the Kirwan Institute, which studies race and ethnicity issues, feel that additional stimulus billions should be pushed more directly to the local level, where it stands a better chance of boosting poor minority areas. "These communities see tons of money moving around, but they fear it's passing them by," says Powell, noting that many, if not most, U.S. municipalities don't yet know how to access stimulus funds for basic green projects like home weatherization and biofuel stations. (See pictures of the effects of global warming.)

Powell thinks it's only fair that more stimulus money finds its way to minority communities, since much of today's economic disaster can be traced to those areas being lavished with subprime mortgages. Despite recovery.org, the federal website designed for tracing stimulus outlays, Powell argues, "We need to put how this is playing out under a larger magnifying glass, make it more transparent." If not, he warns, "we'll have the irony of the first black President presiding over the greatest economic restructuring in decades, but it could actually end up worsening the racial disparity." Whether or not that's an exaggerated warning, heeding it could help Obama ensure that his recovery crusade is on a track that does the most long-term - and not just immediate - good.

Comments:
siouxcityranch commented:

NEENER NEENER..now you tell me these folks are going to vote owe in for another term....

jfrancais commented:

So are blacks supposed to get a handout or not? I'm confused.

This stimulus is not about poor folks or minorities. When are people going to realize this? It's about saving the economy, minorities and poor folks be damned,

jfrancais commented:

The economy can't truly recover without convincing people to to continually buy stuff

http://m.www.yahoo.com/_ylt=Akk_9VbWe32NTe0jwc9AZEybvZx4/SIG=11ualiuv2/**http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_ap_poll_stressing_over_debt

SRobley commented:

Well, the lady from Louisiana sold her vote in the Senate for $300,000,000. She's been bragging about it. That's why the health care bill will go to debate.

I don't think the Obama Administration will give anything for the black votes because they think they have them in their pocket already.

The Hispanic vote is still up for sale. All the Obama Administration has to do is give citizenship to all the illegals (plus a few other little things) ant they'll have the Hispanic vote all set up. Watch the Democrats push for that one next.

pogo commented:

How'd you get your citizenship Robley?

SRobley commented:

I stole it from some white guy................................. That's what you want to hear isn't it?

I was born here. My parents were naturalized citizens.

jfrancais commented:

I stole it from some white guy................................. That's what you want to hear isn't it?

No, I think he wanted to hear this- listen: ( )

SNL RIGHT AGAIN !!!! OBAMA IS AN

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:02:57 PST

Well, see if you agree........I'll just wait for CNN..... to do a fact check ....

wonder if the Chinese President ......likes to be kissed .......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxYSduRES1o

3 more years of goofing on The President the producers must be overjoyed .....it is like having Jimmy back.....

peanut farmer ....peanut head .......

Comments:
siouxcityranch commented:

yahoo now SNL has him in their sights..hes gonna get a taste of what his jerk wads did to sara and her family..

KARMA IS A....

Awe TCHhhhhh..

but *HAY* it couldnt be happening to a nicer guy!

MadMan commented:

You know what they say: if it's not funny within the first two minutes, it's a failed skit. SNL failed.

SNL used to be funny when they did stuff like this:

http://www.movieweb.com/video/HUg3IhliJ6Yejk

siouxcityranch commented:

for once your right dj..its not funny..its so *TRUE* its really *SAD*

Everyone has to admit SNL" hit the nail on the head"

MARK'S WORLD: About the Boy: Week 11

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 18:59:44 PST

Well, Ryan didn't play this week, I didn't go to the game, the game wasn't televised and I didn't get the chance to catch it on radio, but the Dogs beat La. Tech 30-28 in what, I am told, was a very exciting game. Fresno lost RB Anthony Harding to a knee injury. That's about all I know.

In other news about the boy..Last night was the annual Fresno State Football Awards Banquet and Senior Night. Ryan was awrded the Most Outstanding Offesive Back as well as the MVP of the year, an award which all players and coaches voted on. He received all but one vote..HIS!..We'll see! It was a cool evening.

Here is a Bee article from this morning.

Mathews gets team MVP at Bulldog football awards
Star RB remains undecided on entering NFL Draft.
Published online on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2009
By Bryant-Jon Anteola / The Fresno Bee

The chants were weak and ended in awkward silence.

Junior running back Ryan Mathews was just named Fresno State's Most Valuable Player at Sunday's football banquet, receiving all but one player vote -- his own -- for the Bulldogs' top honor.
And after Mathews said a few brief words, Fresno State broadcast voice Paul Loeffler tried to entice the room full of Bulldogs players and fans to serenade the star running back with the "One ... more ... year" chant.
But only a few people joined in, and the chant was cut short.
Then it became clear afterward why the chants for Mathews to stay another season at Fresno State were light.
Many of Mathews' teammates believe Mathews should forgo his senior season and leave early for the NFL.
"Ryan Mathews is out of here," senior safety Moses Harris said. "He is gone -- gone."
When asked if his opinion was shared throughout the team, Harris unequivocally said yes.
"What more does he have to prove?" Harris asked. "There's nothing left for him to do. Everyone wants what's best for Ryan. If I was leading the country in interceptions after my junior year, I would have left early, too.
"He's accomplished everything he's needed to accomplish in college. We've known since after the Boise game that he'd be gone. He's ready. It's time for him to get paid to play."
That sounds good, but not so fast, Mathews said.
Mathews reiterated after Sunday's banquet that he still isn't sold on leaving early or staying for his senior season.
Much of Mathews' decision will hinge on the offseason projections and evaluations made by the NFL that help underclassmen assess their draft stock.
Mathews said he will rely heavily on coach Pat Hill's insights to help make his decision.
Mathews still leads the nation with an average of 149.1 rushing yards per game despite missing the bulk of the past two games because of a concussion.
Mathews' net total of 1,491 rushing yards ranks third in the country but he remains within 78 yards of reclaiming the national lead.
Mathews also needs just 96 more rushing yards to set Fresno State's single-season record.
Mathews added Sunday that he feels no effects from the concussion he sustained two weeks ago at Nevada, and that he expects to return to practice today and play in Fresno State's regular-season finale at Illinois on Dec. 5.
"I'm having fun right now, being a Bulldog," Mathews said. "I'm just going to enjoy my time while I'm here. If it's my time to go, it's my time to go.
"Coach Hill will get the evaluations. I trust him, everything he says. If he says go, I'm going to go. If he thinks it's a good idea for me to stay, I'm going to stay."
If it were up to Mathews' teammates -- even players expected to return next season -- they'd tell Mathews to leave early.
"Everyone," Harris said, "wants to see him do his thing in the NFL."

: Michelle Stabs Oprah In The Back !

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 18:08:37 PST

A distraught Oprah Winfrey is telling pals her "thank you" for helping Barack Obama win the presidency has been a knife in the back.

A jealous first lady has frozen the talk queen out of the White House inner circle, say insiders. "Oprah is devastated," revealed a friend.

"She had no idea that Michelle was so jealous about the influence she had on Barack. She hated the way her husband would huddle with Oprah over strategy and jump when she called.

"The jealousy and anger was eating up Michelle. During the campaign, she vowed Oprah would not be a part of the new administration.

"Oprah had visions of being a close adviser to the president and a regular visitor to the White House. She was actually planning to redecorate the famous Lincoln bedroom, which is reserved for special guests of the first family.

"But in the first 10 months of the Obama administration, Oprah has visited the White House only twice, and one visit was for a business meeting to do an interview with Michelle for O magazine.

"And that was a disaster. Oprah arrived with her friend Gayle King, but was shocked to find Michelle cold and distant. Worse, she all but ignored Oprah and directed her attention to Gayle. It was as though Oprah wasn't even there."

The meeting got off to a bad start when Oprah, 55, greeted Michelle. The TV host leaned to kiss her cheek, but the first lady stepped back and extended her hand instead.

Then Michelle, 45, seemed to ignore a question Oprah asked about the Obama children, instead taking a question from an aide and then returning only to chat with Gayle again - ignoring or forgetting Oprah's question.

By the end of the day, Oprah felt roundly snubbed.

"Since then, Oprah has tried again and again to mend the rift," said the friend. "But she's had no luck. Michelle has made it clear she is no longer interested in being friends with Oprah and is going to block her from access to the President."

Comments:
siouxcityranch commented:

Looks like Michelle has her own version of the Obama "bus" -maybe a minivan with 18-inch deep-tread tires - that she uses to roll over those who have outlived their usefulness...or are cutting into her influence with her husband....

Welcome to the club, Oprah. Hey - we were promised Hope and Change, and all we got was slapstick socialism. Why should you make out any better? Your support for Barack Obama cost you viewers and your aura, and your star has declined with his. You exchanged your invaluable personal currency for what you thought would be a girlfriend in the White House and a president's ear, but instead got hustled, defrauded, and shown the door.

jfrancais commented:

Oprah has it rough. She has only got to visit the White House twice. Hopefully she can drown her sorrow in her billions and get over it.

paxchristi3 commented:

Good thing Oprah wasn't fully addled by the Kool-Aid or incapacitated by Palin Derangement Syndrome, otherwise she wouldn't have gone out with a bang, courtesy of her interview of Sarah that chalked up the highest rating for her show in the past couple of years.

siouxcityranch commented:

wow Pax i thank you for bringing that up..now it makes complete sense as to why Oppie had Palin on her show..she was thumbing her little round nose at Michelle haha this is *GREAT*

now with his youtube supporters saying 'hes no leader just another politician' he will be climbin out the upstairs window like a thief in the night in NO TIME...I even got an email the other day calling for people to Impeach him...

Icannothearyou commented:

Who cares? Oh, and where is your source for this junky article? Can't you line up cans to shoot instead of gabby beautysalon-esque chatter?

catpaw commented:

Your blog doesn't mention sources. More fabricated celeb gossip?

How would the source know how Oprah or the first lady "really" feels about anything?

pogo commented:

Sioux has been reading the Globe again at the Food Maxx checkout line.

randomfactor commented:

But isn't it great that Jen & Ben are getting back together, and Tom & Katie splitting up?

ProgressivePete2 commented:

... and what was Britney thinking?

jfrancais commented:

Stedman is gay?!?!?!?!

learnem commented:

did you hear that Obama and Orca, errrr Oprah are having an alien love baby?

randomfactor commented:

Well, I liked the *LAST* Vulcan-human hybrid...

learnem commented:

siouxcityranch commented:

RF But isn't it great that Jen & Ben are getting back together, and Tom & Katie splitting up?

ya i know RF its too much for your brain to handle if it doesnt invlove you arguing about your "BLACK* president as you enjoy referring to him as..or tommy and bobby wanna get married and its the churches fault for anything that might have dripped on your shoe that day..talk about a limited mentality..you take the cake

siouxcityranch commented:

PP... and what was Britney thinking?

to tell you the truth I dont really care..but Im glad to see some one is concerend PP..but hay here I found her myspace for ya..ask her for yourself

http://www.myspace.com/britney

siouxcityranch commented:

JF Stedman is gay?!?!?!?!

he would have to be to take crap off oppie all these years..no kids etc..hell i bet she is and hes just her front man...alittle rosie odonnel thingy?? think about it..

siouxcityranch commented:

Pogo Sioux has been reading the Globe again at the Food Maxx checkout line.

Nope wrong again Pogo..National Enquirer..havent gone grocery shoppin in years..not my job..unlike many on here I got a lovely lady who does that for me..she brings it in ....

occasionally I pick it up when I run out of toilet paper ..cept i really enjoyed it this time

jfrancais commented:

http://www.tv.com/video/175/101/15677/

She has several suitors.

siouxcityranch commented:

haha looks like she getting what she deserves..course hes probably just confused...or strung on somethin besides life

Mountianman commented:

Michelle Obama jealous?, of another woman?, it can't be,

HypocrisyIrks commented:

I doubt Oprah is Tweeting all of these thoughts and feelings about how she feels so snubbed by the White House and the First Lady. What is your source and what mind-reader are your quoting here?

NancyII commented:

Did you know that NCIS hunky dunk Gibbs (Mark Harmon) is married to Mindy? (Pam Dawber)

The Grade: Parents ask district for $19,000 after monkey bar fall

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:31:22 PST

Parents at Caroline Harris Elementary School are asking Bakersfield City School District to pay $19,000 for medical bills and damages after their 7-year-old fell from the monkey bars.

The district on Tuesday will vote on denying the claim during a school board meeting.

According to the parents' statement, their daughter was "swinging from bar to bar when her hand slipped off the bar while her other hand was in midair." She fell backwards and broke her fall with her hand. Her wrist broke.

In arguing their case, the parents say "it was hot outside, her hands were sweaty and the bars slippery. There is no grip tape on the bars which I feel could have prevented this accident... I realize this was an accident, but the school system is responsible for my children while they are in their care."

Medical bills were $9,000, they state. The remaining $10,000 is for damages, because their daughter "was in a great deal of pain and this was very traumatic for her."

Do the parents have a case? You decide.

— Jorge Barrientos, Education Reporter

Comments:
cheeksmck commented:

As a parent you should have checked out the safety of the playground. And then told your daughter not to play on it or do certain tricks. At my daughters school they are prohibited from that type of play. Sounds as if you are "sue happy" Thats shameful.

amlynam commented:

Have you ever seen grip tape on a children's playground? Not at school, not at the park. I wonder what type of playground surface she landed on - sand, bark or whatever. My son broke his wrist at Freedom Middle School a couple of years ago, because of horseplay - was I supposed to sue the school district because the concrete wasn't soft enough that broke his fall??? He was in their care after all....

jfrancais commented:

I have a bit of a problem with the $10k for "pain" part. I don't have a problem with the family seeking damages for the medical bill. I also don't have a problem with the district denying the claim on principle. The next step should be civil court or some sort of settlement.

JDubois commented:

Get the monkey bars removed! Then these parents can come back and sue when their teenager is obese because there was no playground equipment for her!

Parents in that district should contact the board members and demand that they deny the claim and spend whatever it takes to defend this nonsense.

dragoon commented:

I don't think these people deserve a dime for what is essentially part of being a kid. But, it doesn't matter what I think. The school district's risk management will initially deny the claim but the parents will sue and the the school district will pay them off with an amount that will be substantially less than what a court case would ultimately cost.

hotandfoggy commented:

I fell off a bar that kids swung around at school. Kids who did gymnastics were really good at it. Anyways, when I fell I sprained my back really bad. Underneath the bars was solid dirt. My mom, who worked at a school, found out that insurance companies have standards for the amount of sand or bark that must be underneath playground equipment. My parents didn't sue the school, but my mom complained to the principal and those high bars were off limits for a long time.

If the family doesn't have health insurance, then maybe the school's insurance will cover the medical bills. However, suing for $10,000 for emotional damage is ridiculous. Kids get hurt and break bones all the time.

NancyII commented:

First they take out the merry go round and now they're complaining about the monkey bars. They've taken regular swings out of most parks. What's next? Fences so the kids can't play on playgrounds at all?

Wrap them in cotton wool or like the little boy in A Christmas Story?

siouxcityranch commented:

our oldest son fell off the monkey bars at Roosevelt elementary when he was young and they didnt even send him home or call us..they just let him sit in the nurses office until he stopped crying....we found out he was hurt when he got home and his collar bone was broken..you can still see the injury and hes 37 years old..

hmmm i wonder what the statut is on collecting on an injury like that..

jfrancais commented:

I had a buddy bite through his tongue on the monkey bars at Roosevelt.

mildmannered1 commented:

Maybe there's a case for covering the medical bills. Mental suffering? Puh-lease.

I broke my arm when my bicycle basket started slipping, I grabbed it, fell in the street. I broke my arm when a boy jokingly pulled a chair out from under me when I went to sit down. Yeah, it hurt and then it healed. I thought I was hot stuff with a cast everyone wanted to sign. I couldn't buy that kind of publicity and popularity.

This is life, toughen up, dear.

siouxcityranch commented:

dats some evil metal jf..and i betcha they are still standing injurying more kids every year..we should start a class action against Roosevelt..

jfrancais commented:

Sure. Why not? I think my collarbone hurts all of a sudden.

NancyII commented:

I broke my wrist falling with my bicycle in the driveway of a gas station. I fell and hit my eye on the corner of our outbuilding while running through the grapevines at my house.

I never got hurt falling off the monkey bars.

jfrancais commented:

I broke my wrist playing basketball at Bessie Owens.

honorerdieu commented:

Has the weather been that hot lately in Bakersfield? Grip tape on bars? Can the mother imagine how much damage a grip tape can do the hands?

What a frivolous lawsuit.

vanityfair commented:

Do the parents have a case?

No. This is so extremely over-the-top crazy. The district should not be responsible for the medical costs or the supposed "suffering."

When I was an elementary school student, we had playground equipment that would maim or kill children by today's standards, I suppose. In the late 70s to early 80s, a popular activity was the horizontal bar ... spinning over and over, sometimes with one leg, other times two, vaulting off into a perfect stand or an embarrassing crash. If you were brave enough to tackle the double bar, you might have walked away licking your wounds the first time, but came back to DO IT. I did.

Parents, take responsibility for your kids.

CTA, stop being so greedy.

(Edited, because my language was not appropriate. My apologies to those who were offended)

NancyII commented:

No wonder we have obesity in our country's children..the parents are enablers.

dragoon commented:

I got bucked off while "schooling" a colt and broke my left clavicle. Should I sue the horse?

dirtyshirt commented:

vanityfair said "Parents, take responsibility for your kids. CTA, stop being such assholes."

I understand how the first statement fits the post, but not the second. How does CTA figure into your analysis of this story, VF?

My reaction: litigation is best settled in the courts, not in the blogs. Public reaction is rarely appropriate to the facts, even after being dutifully reported by a local journalist whose primary interest is in serving the needs of a publication in desperate need of readers and, therefore, drama, fear, excitement. Much moreso than facts.

I remember when my Junior High School was sued for the damage done to a child by one of the teachers' "paddles". They used to practice corporal punishment, you may recall. The decision to stop was driven mostly by litigation. That was, I'd say, a positive outcome.

The parents in this case may be over-reacting and reaching for the brass ring, but hopefully the judge and/or jury will check them in that effort. I will say this: it's hard to imagine how the case, as outlined here, deserves that pay out (or any pay out).

natsmom commented:

No wonder things are such a mess. What about personal responsibility? My child falls and hurts herself at school all the time. I don't want them to remove their playground equipment. Unfortunately if the District is sued successfully it is the children who suffer. The District will remove their playground equipment. Then what are they going to do? Oh, they will have to just run and play, but if a child runs and falls down and breaks a bone, then what, remove the play yard?

I highly recommend reading the most recent Time Magazine. There is a parenting article in it that is an eye opener. We need to allow our children to be kids, broken bones from innocent falls and all! That is all this was....It happens. The parents need to demonstrate some personal responsibility themselves....Our schools cannot afford these frivilous lawsuits. Every dime spent in legal bills for things like this is less money to provide a good education for your child. Which is more important?

JohnfromBakersfield commented:

I went to Harris, they should have kept the original playground in the first place!

VirgilAnderson commented:

" vanityfair said "Parents, take responsibility for your kids. CTA, ... "

Vanityfare says that only because it was not her kid who fell.

--virgil

AudreyB commented:

I guess she wasn't "monkey" enough for the bars.

This is ridiculous. How many children have slipped and fallen from playground equipment. Mine? Yours? All of us?

Yet we managed to get through it without litigation.

Make the parents pay court costs....please!

zappers1 commented:

Oooh por baby, my son broke his arm last year cause some fat kid landed on him, the school paid the medical,and he was fine,for pain and suffering I hope their child has not lost his job, gotten behind on his mortgage ,lost his new corvette and suffered a nasty divorce

VirgilAnderson commented:

I agree, they should have kept an eye on her .

--virgil

pinkchampagne commented:

Ridiculous. Kids get hurt in the normal course of play. That's just what they do. People can't just sue for every injury their kids get at school. The school districts are broke enough without paying out "damages" for every kid that turns up in the nurses office. My sister had cysts on the backs of her knees from those bars, which had to be drained. My mother didn't sue anybody.

Grip tape? How can you do death drops, and monkey chutes (which my mother told me not to do) with grip tape? :)

NYtransplant commented:

This is plain greed. The parents acknowledged that it was an accident so that's what it is. No accident is 100% preventable especially with playful kids. As long as the school made sure that the ground below met the spec on softness, the school has no liability in this case.

learnem commented:

vanityfair on Nov 23, 2009 at 09:58 PM

Parents, take responsibility for your kids.

CTA, stop being such assholes

VF i dont get where the CTA plays a role in this

pogo commented:

I have long advocated the banning of monkey bars, but for national security purposes. I remember watching all those al qaeda guys working out on those things.

goldilox commented:

Vanity - I used to do all those awesome tricks on the triple high parallel bars at school too (70's) HAHAHA

fun times/ memories, even with the amount of pain in suffered when i didnt 'stick-the-landing' LOL

CatherineBaker commented:

Yeah, I used to do some serious dare-devil tricks on the bars when I was a kid. It was fun. I never broke my wrist, but I did get the wind knocked out of me a few times. I climbed trees, did tricks on my bike(no helmets back then,) ate a whole bottle of children's vitamins once, and climbed up on the kitchen cabinets every day--all barefoot. I jumped off the high dive and did bellyflops over and over again, walked along fencelines, climbed power poles (they had neat little metal pegs, which made it easier) and just generally ran amok all through my childhood.

And never once did anyone get sued. Strange....

goldilox commented:

Seems everyone is looking for a 'free-unEARNED-dollar'

Our tax dollars at work...

Sorry the child fell and was injured, BUT ~ how is that the schools fault?

If i trip like a klutz and fall in the parking lot of the mall, that is my fault, dumb feet ... I would NOT sue ! I know there is a place and time for lawsuits. but i deff dont agree w/ this one. over the top!

AudreyB commented:

Gosh Cat

Where was I while all this was going on?

When I was 10, Sherry and I climbed a rotten wood ladder to the top of an old abandoned oil derrik that was down the street from where we lived. (Just across hwy 99 from the 99 drive in). When we got to the top of the rungs we circled the top platform and then slipped under the top rail and leaned out as far as we could holding on to the wooden guard.

Was it scary. Yeah!! But, being 10, I was sure I would live forever.

CatherineBaker commented:

Well Mom, we never sued our next-door neighbors when their dog bit me (and I could have lost an eye!) Our neighbors in the front never sued us when I pushed Cindy off her porch and she broke her arm (we were playing a game called "King of the Mountain!") We never sued the hospital when I stepped on that rusty rake and the doctor never cleaned the wound properly and I ended up getting blood poisoning.

As for where you were when I was running amok outside, you were always INside. ; )

CIA commented:

It happened on school property, the school is ultimately responsible for the medical costs. That's what insurance is for.

goldilox commented:

~~ Insurance payment for medical bills, maybe.

the extra $10k is because mom/dad want a fun Family Christmas ...IMO

darenhandy commented:

The parents are looking for a way out, or a boost up... Good going, show your kid the right way to take care of things... If the parents get awarded then we may be seeing parents get fined or sued for their kid getting hurt at home. Come on, give me a break here... Monkey bars have been around for MANY years and I have never seen one with grip tape or any type of covering on the metal. All I can say is "Shame On You Parent!!", its life, kids get hurt, I can only see that the school would be responsible for the remaining balance of the bill if that.

beaker30 commented:

Last year, my brilliant child who was attending a BCSD school managed to jam a paper clip into an electrical outlet. Burns, blisters, trip to the ER, and a sound lecture from mom and we learned: the schools carry insurance to cover these medical expenses. My insurance kicked in, but I didn't even have to pay the co-pay (which I would have paid - kid do this stuff, it's part of parenting to be responsible for it) because of the district's secondary insurance policy. I thought that was a nice feature.

When I called the district on a separate issue the next day, I was fast tracked to the upper level of the superintendent's office, where they seemed pleasantly surprised and relieved to know I wasn't calling to yell at the district or talk about suing them. As I told them, I was only happy it had happened at school so that I wouldn't come under scrutiny for being an inattentive parent.

Covering medical costs is reasonable. If the parents prevail in seeking damages for school causing pain and suffering, then I'm suing on behalf of my kids who experience great emotional pain each time they are forced to take a test. Sheesh.

goldilox commented:

Great example and great post B-30 ...

i wonder what the outcome with this case will be?

i wonder if the plaintiffs are reading the bogs today? it always interests me to hear all sides

spam code: D T Z P G (ditzy parenting)

vanityfair commented:

Dirtyshirt and Learnem, my comment about the CTA was an off-topic one sentence rant that was inspired by reading the news about California's budget woes yesterday. The unions (and regulations, and mandates, and blah blah blah) are holding this state hostage. The deals the CTA has negotiated are not sustainable, not by a long shot, not ever.

I regret that I used coarse language in my comment; my internal edit function was disabled yesterday after dealing with a - yes, you guessed it - retired teacher. My intent was to come back here to clarify my comment last night, but life happens.

Back to the topic, I don't get people who want their kids learning in a bubble-wrapped environment and expect someone else to pay when they get hurt. I broke a finger on the playground in the the third grade, my best friend fell off the monkey bars and sustained injuries that required an ambulance; our parents didn't sue for anything, even medical expenses.

Sadly, though, the district will likely settle, establishing yet another precedent.

Retirement Bound: What Goes Up Doesn’t Necessarily Have to Come Down

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:13:55 PST

Wall St. and your stock broker don’t want you to find out that you can participate in the market without risking your principle. If you could do this, then why do you need them?

Well, you can!

see complete blog

Dr BLT's Blog n Roll Studio : the movie New Moon never made me feel insecure as a man

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:11:21 PST

...and it never brought out any insecurity in me at all about my appearance either. BTW does my butt look big in this photo?

It's a Mad, Mad World: Interviews with Sarah Palin supporters

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:56:20 PST

When watching this video, ask yourself this question: who is dumber, Sarah Palin, or a Sarah Palin supporter?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKKKgua7wQk

Pathetic.

Comments:
siouxcityranch commented:

Pathetic?? arent you calling the kettle black again dj?

randomfactor commented:

Nope.

Know why Palin's currently the punching bag for the US media? Because the GOP powers-that-be have decided to put her in the sack with the teabaggers and steep them in the river. They think it's going to slow the demise of the Republican Party.

I wish she would be around to screw up the 2012 primaries, but she'll be long gone by then. She was in over her head on day one of her governorship (that's why she left early). Thank the nonexistent god that she didn't get elected to any higher office.

siouxcityranch commented:

The Young Turks / Obama Is Just A Politician, NOT A Leader

even his youtube supporters have no faith in him any more..

randomfactor commented:

I heard Cenk speak at a rally in Kernville.

The problem with Obama is that he's listening to, and giving too much weight to, the Republicans who wrecked this country in the first place. The entire system is corrupt--corrupted by money--and only a massive change will make any difference. Obama has yet to make any such change.

And nightly I thank the Flying Spaghetti Monster that he was elected in place of McDumb & Dumber. Because Obama is President we still have a country we might save.

paxchristi3 commented:

Do you need more Hopium to alleviate your madness?

motopoet commented:

Still with the teabagger thing, huh?..Well..I'd rather be the teabagger than the tea bagged, and the left is getting teabagged big time! I love it.

The dumber are the 48% who still support Obama! Palin doesn't need support, but she's getting it anyway.

Name the last liberal talking head or politician who worte a NYT best seller...

VirgilAnderson commented:

"... is getting teabagged big time! I love it."

yeah, I bet you do .

--virgil

VirgilAnderson commented:

"Name the last liberal talking head or politician who worte a NYT best seller..."

I'd rather you did. You guys are the ones who pay for them.

--virgil

It's a Mad, Mad World: Chris Matthews destroys catholic bishop who banned Patrick Kennedy

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:53:10 PST

As you may have heard or read, a bishop in Rhode Island barred Patrick Kennedy from receiving communion because of his position on abortion. Chris Matthews had that bishop on Hardball today to explain his actions, and Chris Matthews (also Catholic) destroyed him:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QV7xBh5Q8Lc

The hypocrisy of the catholic church is neverending.

Comments:
paxchristi3 commented:

"Chris (Mr. Tingly Leg) Matthews should be fired for his offensive and impolite Interview of Bishop Thomas Tobin. Then, he should sign up for the Right of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) and learn the Catholic faith all over again."

Amen to that, Deacon! http://www.catholic.org/politics/story.php?id=34908&wf=rsscol

" ... The only question that remains is whether Michael Sean Winters (substitute Chris Matthews for Winters) cares so little for the soul of Patrick Kennedy that he would condemn the bishop's attempt to save him?"

Way to pile-drive some common sense into Mr. Tingly Leg, Creative Minority Report!

"Why anyone would go on television and discuss something she ("The View" panelists -- and Matthews for that matter) knows absolutely nothing about is a mystery, but I’ll tell you this much—it makes for a great laugh."

Touche, Catholic League's Bill Donohue! http://www.catholicleague.com/release.php?id=1722

paxchristi3 commented:

Allred, it should come as no surprise that some bishops and priests will betray the Holy Mother Church just as some of the disciples betrayed Jesus. Thankfully there are many, like Bishop Tobin, who take care not to risk having their skulls join those of their overly pastoral brother priests in lining the path to hell.

ApolloDawn commented:

My opinion? I have a few concerning both Chris Matthews' interview and the Bishop, plus some comments of my own. Here goes, comments first:

It does my heart no good to think of "destroying" the Bishop. I don't want to "destroy" anyone for their beliefs any more than I would want to be destroyed for mine. I don't want to destroy them; I would rather see them become the most loving people that they have the potential to be.

While hypocrisy is not uncommon whenever dogmatic absolutism on a few select issues crowds out the finer points and higher points of any given faith, this particular interview did not appear to reflect hypocrisy on the part of the Bishop.

I do not believe that Chris Matthews was offensive. It was a "hardball" attempt to get the Bishop to be specific, and getting that specifc answer took a lot of work on Matthews' part. Hardball is the name of the show.

By being reluctant to sign on to the ramifications of pro-life policy, I think the Bishop actually showed conscience. I sensed that when confronted with the logical outcome of pro-life policy, his conscience told him that maybe, deep inside, it would be morally wrong to go all the way with what outlawing abortion would entail. It's easy to talk in the isolated arena of abstract absolutes, where a lot of debate like this takes place; it's more difficult, often, to get the implementation of it past one's own conscience.

But since he was on national television, what may have been the Bishop's real feelings about implementing such policy could not come forth. He was obligated to - when pressed - call for the outlawing of abortion.

If I were part of the pro-life movement, I would be uncomfortable with the Bishop's reluctance to state an unapologetic position. If I were someone like Randall Terry, I would characterize the Bishop's hesitancy as "waffling." Where's the moral conviction to say, for all the world to see, what he believes God's truth is?

What I found interesting is the Bishop's closing the interview with the desire to convince people, especially Catholics, to voluntarily adhere to church teaching. While I believe (unfortunately) that his feet will be held to the fire to take a political stance, it was refreshing to hear a statement that reflected what heartfelt faith and spirituality is really all about.

MadMan commented:

The bishop hypocrite was asked if abortion should be illegal, then what should the punishment be for a woman who has one? Prison time? Death? A fine? He couldn't answer because he doesn't have an answer. You see, the anti-choice people haven't thought about that part. Besides, they wouldn't want any hypothetical punishment done unto them if they or someone close to them decided they wanted to have an abortion.

And it's understandable why they don't have an answer. Deep down they know that no one should be punished for voluntarily undergoing a medical procedure. Besides, what do we do with the women who have accidental abortions? Should we punish them because their bodies aren't healthy enough to bring a fetus to term?

MadMan commented:

I'm not going to delete you, red. You have never, so far as I know, personally attacked anyone nor have you posted anything so downright hateful that would warrant me to ban you.

But my question is what does the catholic church do to those that preach abortion or have abortion

They should do what any responsible organization would do: stay out of it because it isn't any of their business.

paxchristi3 commented:

The Catholic Church doesn't do anything to those who preach abortion or have abortion, save for excommunication of the faithful who do so. The folks who do that have condemned themselves, and the church just tries to help them from eternally damning themselves. Failing that, it can bring out the excommunication hammer to the benefit of the scandalizer and the scandalized. If the bishops fail in the regard out of appeasement, then they might have hell to pay as well.

As for what should be done about women who have abortions should the practice be outlawed, they certainly should be treated as any plain ol' killer. After all, the unborn have the constitutional right to live. They are persons with their own distinct DNA.

MadMan commented:

After all, the unborn have the constitutional right to live.

Wrong again, my hypocritical friend. The reproductive rights of women supercede those of fetuses that don't have any brain activity. I know you don't like it, but that's our Constitution for ya.

By the way, support for Roe v. Wade is a high not seen since the early 1990's, while opposition is at a low not seen during that same time period. Also, 53% of Catholics believe you can have an abortion and still be considered a good Catholic: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1282/is_1_57/ai_n13610441/

Doesn't being wrong suck, Pax?

JohnfromBakersfield commented:

lol religion

they won't alow him to eat christ

MRAllred commented:

Pax I deleted all my comments in here

Pax you are a person highly against abortion and gays as I'm I realize you have no control over your church neither do I over mine

So the best we can do is keep hoping in the end it all turns out for the best

Keep bring out the Word of God because it will not come back VOID

catpaw commented:

Here we go again:

If Kennedy fell in line with the church and ignored the views of the voters he's representing to church doctrine in order to be a "good" catholic, then would he not be betraying his oath of office and declaring his alliegence to a foreign head of state (the pope) and a foreign country (the Vatican)?

So far, pax's arguments are presenting a case that catholics should not hold public office.

randomfactor commented:

Kennedy's stance is shared by the majority of those in the pews. It's just Pope Ratzi who's hell-bent on cutting his American flock by half. Or more.

They won't be able to pay the molestation judgements anymore...

paxchristi3 commented:

Oh, so catpaw wants to silence Catholics who have every right to participate in the political sphere, and in fact are required to do so by the church. How commie of you. I suppose you think Caesar also should take what is God's.

paxchristi3 commented:

Catholic League's Bill Donohue sends a tingly feeling up Matthews' legs:

CHRIS MATTHEWS INSULTS BISHOP TOBIN

November 24, 2009

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on the way MSNBC host Chris Matthews handled his interview with Providence Bishop Thomas Tobin last night on “Hardball”:

We were deluged with phone calls, faxes and e-mails after what happened yesterday on “Hardball.” After watching the first portion of the interview between Chris Matthews and Bishop Tobin, I wondered what all the fuss was all about: Chris was just being his usual aggressive self. But it didn’t take long before Matthews literally spun out of control.

Matthews proceeded with an extended and quite insulting lecture. He had absolutely no interest in a discussion on the question of the morality and legality of abortion—all he wanted to do was to make the bishop sit there and listen to his rant. Indeed, his tirade was simply over-the-top.

No non-Catholic would ever treat a bishop this way. But too many liberal Catholics, especially Irish Catholics, think they are exempt from the same standards of civility that apply to others. They are flatly wrong.

I was on MSNBC twice yesterday on this same subject and was treated with respect both times. Ed Schultz, who can be quite tough, was totally respectful, and I’m a lay person. Chris could learn a thing or two from Ed, who not only does not insult his guests, he actually gives them a chance to respond.

randomfactor commented:

Only the ones who, having reached office, think their duty is to their dogma rather than their constituents.

It's all part of that "render unto Caesar" thing you conveniently misunderstand.

Personally, I think anyone who literally believes there's a being called Satan, and doesn't mean it metaphorically, is too mentally unstable to be running around loose. But even most religious sorts aren't *THAT* far gone.

paxchristi3 commented:

Allred, thank you for removing the comments. You are very right that Christians should support one another in fending off the attacks by their enemies and keep their trust that God knows what he is doing in forever drawing good from evil. It's apparent that the secularists are slowly but surely causing God's children to mend their rifts, which will fulfill Christ's wish for unity in him.

We are already seeing this in the recently released Manhattan Declaration, in which Christian leaders say civil disobedience would be permissible to defend the faith: http://www.newsmax.com/headlines/wuerl_colson_christian/2009/11/21/289471.html?s=al&promo_code=91AA-1

MadMan commented:

It's all part of that "render unto Caesar" thing you conveniently misunderstand.

No no, they understand it quite well. They just choose to ignore it.

MadMan commented:

Christian leaders say civil disobedience would be permissible to defend the faith

And law enforcement would say that arresting every last one of you would be permissible to defend the rest of us.

paxchristi3 commented:

RF, the likes of Patrick Kennedy should submit to the will of the people so long as he doesn't work against his church's teachings as he has done. He should be fighting for the rights of the unborn even if that risks getting his fanny booted from the "wide tent" Democratic Party. But oh no, the party is his master since Christ said man cannot serve two masters.

But even if the will of the people is such that civil disobedience is required to protect the faith as I mentioned in my previous comment, then Kennedy better get on board or get the hell out and stop calling himself a Catholic so as not to scandalize the flock.

paxchristi3 commented:

Fine, Madman, bring back the good ol' days of Stalin and let's see who crumbles in the end.

zapped commented:

And it's understandable why they don't have an answer. Deep down they know that no one should be punished for voluntarily ~~undergoing a medical procedure.~~ having their child murdered (fixed that for you)

randomfactor commented:

While Pax longs for the comfortable certainty of Stalin's purges, I'm willing to compromise on the issue of abortion.

The compromise is called "Roe V. Wade."

It's settled.

The so-called Manhattan Declaration will not stand in the way of human progress. Same-sex marriages, like interracial marriages before them, will be the law of the land.

And Pax's hallucinations, shared though they may be with many other suffers of the "folie a dieu" known as Roman Catholicism, will *NOT* be the basis for laws in a secular society like that of the United States.

randomfactor commented:

As for the MD's supposed civil disobedience, Jefferson *SAID* that the tree of liberty had to be watered occasionally by the blood of idiots. None of the evil men who signed the "declaration" has any intention of putting their butts on the line.

pogo commented:

So Pax, what would you have Kennedy and other pro-choice politicians do? I ask you the same question that Matthews asked, respectively asked I might add, of the Bishop: should they obey the law?

Why do the Bishops (the Church) feel that they can dictate to lawmakers what is in a law? Health care is for everyone, not just Catholics.

I wish you would try to answer these questions. And, if possible, your answers, not Mr. Donohoe.

The Bakotopia Blogospheerie!: Buck Owens would be proud of this addition to Bako sound!

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:09:51 PST

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Comments:
blognroll commented:

Canadians rock! It sounds like he's got a lot more class than Adam Lambert.

bakotopia commented:

Lol! (rimshot!)

blognroll commented:

LOL There's something refreshing about simply seeing a man or woman with a guitar and a mic on stage--no fancy lights, no fuss or fluff, and no dancing sluts.

bakotopia commented:

Awww, true, but it's the balance of garbage and quality that keeps us on our toes to appreciate what's out there, or the classics.

I've actually been listening to this great classical station out of Switzerland on my iTunes.

blognroll commented:

So true. To be honest, I loved to watch Solid Gold as a slobbering young pre-teen. That sounds like a cool station. I love listening to stations from different places in the world. Do you happen to have a link?

: Palin limits crowd interaction at NC's Fort Bragg

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:44:58 PST

By MIKE BAKER, Associated Press Writer Mike Baker, Associated Press Writer – Mon Nov 23, 2:53 pm ET

FORT BRAGG, N.C. – Former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is wrapping up a three-hour book signing by thanking soldiers and shaking their hands at a North Carolina Army base.

Palin did not give a speech during her stop Monday at Fort Bragg, home of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division and Green Berets. The former Alaska governor promised to limit her enthusiasm after the Army worried Palin's appearance would prompt political grandstanding against President Barack Obama.

Army officials said more than 1,200 people lined up outside a Fort Bragg store where Palin signed copies of her new memoir. She waved and greeted some supporters before walking inside.

Several military personnel craned to take photos of Palin as she arrived.

Comments:
siouxcityranch commented:

I seriously doubt Bonehead Biden could have gotten through this without saying something really idiotically clever..

paxchristi3 commented:

So the state-run media was allowed full access to the Narcissist in Chief but his potential challenger wasn't?

Leave it Catholic Caveman to make sense of it all:

Hey Army, just let the press cover the appearance unencumbered, and we, the American people, will draw our own conclusions. You know, that whole First Amendment thingee?

After all, this isn't about National Security, but it is about Totalitarianism and Dictatorship.

paxchristi3 commented:

For the record, Sioux, you may want to amend your head to: Army limits Palin's crowd interaction at NC's Fort Bragg.

It makes sense, after all, considering how her growing popularity can easily set off Palin Derangement Syndrome among the lefties.

VirgilAnderson commented:

This is one of my favorites ...

--virgil

My view: Post Office bailout on the table

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 14:30:11 PST

This has been my main argument against any governent intervetion into the affairs of private entities. They are unable to manage USPS, even with direct competition from FedEx, UPS and other mainstream mail carries. So, how's it that governnent can better manage healthcare than the private sector? If you truly belive that goverment will be able to self fund Obamacare through cutting out waste, you are sadly living in a fantasy world as they tend to create more buracratic nightmares, waste and fraud. I once again advocate, government does not have your best interest. They are in it for them selves. You may think you're saving a dime, but you're only getting the royal screw if you let government take over the healthcare. Be very careful of what you ask for, you might just get it.

Post Office bailout on the table

Jim Brown - OneNewsNow - 11/23/2009 7:30:00 AM

A budget expert at a prominent Washington think tank says instead of bailing out the U.S. Postal Service with taxpayer dollars, Congress should remove the government's monopoly on first- and third-class mail.

The U.S. Postal Service is estimating that it will lose almost $8 billion in the coming year and deliver 11 billion fewer pieces of mail. That follows the announcement last week that the federal agency had lost $3.8 billion in the most recent fiscal year and delivered 26 billion fewer pieces of mail.

A Postal Service spokesman tells CBS News that the agency currently owes the U.S. Treasury $10.2 billion. Now comes word that Congressman Danny Davis (D-Illinios) is calling for a federal bailout of the Postal Service and elimination of Saturday service.

Tad DeHaven, a budget analyst at the Cato Institute, says Davis' comments reflect a mentality in Washington that prefers taking other people's money and throwing it at a problem rather than finding practical solutions.

"You can get rid of Saturday service, or they've talked about removing a day from the week. You can give the Postal Service more money through general funds, but that's not going to fix the underlying problems at the Postal Service," the budget analyst notes. "With technology changing, people use e-mail; they use text messages [and] cell phones. That's completely undermined the demand for the Postal Service's business."

DeHaven predicts that because it is burdened by excessive labor costs through a largely unionized work force, and because the current Congress has no interest in undermining union power, the Postal Service will continue to "plod along and lose money."

Comments:
donmason commented:

The US Postal Service is a constitutional mandate, and therefore must provide service to any citizen with a legal mailing address.

UPS and FedX get to skim the cream, and ignore full service delivery to each legal address , no matter how marginal.

In a declining base for services, legacy fixed costs remain, even if a large portion of postal employees are laid off. The retirement and health insurance benefits remain.

Removing the government monopoly on first and third class mail wouldn’t result in any meaningful cost savings. We certainly haven’t seen a mass exodus from USPS to FedX three day service for delivery of magazines and sales flyers. The only difference for private delivery is lack of ability to place deliveries directly in mailboxes.

“I once again advocate, government does not have your best interest.”

Last time I checked, I couldn’t find a Health Insurance corporation founded on the basis of pure altruism.

tehachapian commented:

I think I might have more interest in your opinion if you actually knew how to spell. An ability to spell connotes a person with some educational acumen who can apply reason and memory to a problem. So...

g-o-v-e-r-n-m-e-n-t

b-u-r-e-a-u-c-r-a-t-i-c

b-e-l-i-e-v-e

That's your spelling lesson for the day -- as a start.

casooner90 commented:

tanks for da englsh leson - so, you're telling me you've got nothing better to do than to check spelling on a blog? Are you some sort of a spelling bee flunky, relieving the horrors of failing your 6th grade spelling contest? Get a life - loser!

adampayne commented:

casooner90, you have just been schooled. Twice. And your response is, as usual, to throw a hissy fit tantrum by calling someone who corrected your mistakes a loser. What is your beef with the USPS? Do you own stock in FedEx or UPS? How does the Postal Service have anything to do with health care? The feeble attempt to link the two is about as good as your spelling.

We all understand how much you and your other conservative buddies hate your government. Thank you for posting more of your anti-US rants. Are you a communist?

Isn't your old adage, my country right or wrong? Or was it, love it or leave it?

MadMan commented:

I'd like to see UPS or FedEx deliver a letter from my mailbox to a relative in Florida for only 44 cents. There's no way they could do it.

Until recently, the USPS was a guaranteed money maker for the government. The reason the USPS is losing money (although not a substantial amount) is not because UPS or FedEx provided competition, it's because people started doing sophisticated things like "paying their bills online" and corresponding through "email." The story you posted even said so: The U.S. Postal Service is estimating that it will lose almost $8 billion in the coming year and deliver 11 billion fewer pieces of mail.

I know that right-wingers want every government program to fail--except police departments, fire departments, and the military. But rooting against a beneficial government program like public schools, the USPS, and a potential health care program is nothing more than being anti-American.

NancyII commented:

MM, you really should stop generalizing, it makes you look..umm...........wrong.

I actually agree with you on this one. While I realize the USPS is losing money hand over fist I also know that they are the most reasonable and most convenient of the carriers as a rule. I had to mail a package once that USPS wouldn't ship and to ship it UPS cost me almost double the PO rates.

I can print postage out at home and have a carrier pick up my packages at my door and still get a discounted rate.

As far as getting the mail to us, I find it is VERY reliable and you're right, a letter across the USA for pennies? Beats the old Pony Express any day.

casooner90 commented:

I seriously don't know why I argue with lazy liberals with entitlement desires, but let me just throw this out. I am not against US government, but I am against US government intervening into private sector. US government is too heavy with layers of bureaucracy - always is and always will be. My point is not that I want USPS to fail, I want them to get efficient so they can compete. I like my regularly scheduled delivery of mail, but I also want them to operate within a fiscal balance. If the profit a little, so be it. But to bleed money year after year spells horrible mismanagement. Therefore, adam & mad, you too tend to be harsh on private sector executives being over compensated, but what about these government organizations that does nothing to improve while sucking off of our tax dollars - or do you not pay any taxes? You see, these organizations aren't under any pressure to show a profit so fiscal management isn't their forte. And you want these idiot to control your health care? You call me an anti American, but how much more of an American are you when all you want is for the government to provide you with everything? I'd call that a leach.

The US Postal Service is a constitutional mandate - obamacare is not!

NancyII commented:

Ahh casooner, don't you know by now that if you criticize anything that has to do with the government, business, the president or the economy you automatically are wanting any and all above to FAIL?

The battle cry of most of the left is yelling FAIL, RACIST, HATE when you're critical of anything they approve of, or disagree with them. No one wants our systems to fail and it's ridiculous for others to even suggest it.

There's a huge difference between being a realist and being a hater.

casooner90 commented:

Nancy, I consider my self a patriot and a nationalist. As a legal immigrant to these great United States of America, I support our government to provide security, sovereignty and freedom. However, I just don't think government, with its layers of bureaucracy, can out-compete private sector. There are some things free enterprise with free market system will win out every time. Granted, we do expect government to provide some basic essentials (and therefore justify the taxes they collect), but they also ought to be fiscally responsible and not spend it like drunken sailors like they have been for decades. Why the left continues to prop up government intervention into private sector is mind boggling unless you stand to gain from their wealth redistribution plan. I guess that beats hard work.

randomfactor commented:

However, I just don't think government, with its layers of bureaucracy, can out-compete private sector. There are some things free enterprise with free market system will win out every time.

I don't think either home mail delivery or health-care insurance comes under the heading "things free enterprise does better." American businesses love the availability of the USPS.

pogo commented:

I don't believe that the government 'competes' with the private sector. The government sometimes provides services universaly that the private sector only provides selectively (health care/mail service). I do not expect my government to make a profit, government is not a business. A perfect example is the TVA, created durning the Depression to provide jobs and eventually electricity to a neglected area of our country. No private utility would undertake such a project, yet when it was completed, private utilities began lobbying for government to stop competing.

ProgressivePete2 commented:

Without the USPS, we wouldn't be able to send a letter for under $ .50. Think how much it is to send a #10 envelope under 1oz via fedex or UPS.

The reason it works so well is that they don't have to answer to shareholders or try to make a profit. Could it work better, yes. Is it still a great government program that employs over 656,000 Americans. I can't believe people think an institution that's been around since 1775 want it to be turned into a private company. Ask your postal worker, I doubt they would want that.

learnem commented:

Could it work better, HELL yes.

There Pete, I fixed it for you. im sick of having my Christmas Cards steamed open, then taped shut. USPS rat bastards got some of my Christmas money last year

casooner90 commented:

As usual, you're missing the point. I didn't say abolish USPS. I said hold them accountable so they operate within fiscal balance. They are working off of our dime (for those of you that actually pay taxes). The reason for your mail being so cheap is because they work off of our taxes. Therefore, they shouldn't be wasteful. Get rid of layers of buracracy. Growing up, I can't count the number of times someone wanting a goverment job. Why? Because everyone knows that you can scam government, can't get fired, have great healthcare and retirement plans. Who's paying for all this? You guessed it - the tax payers. Of course, you folks on the left with your entitlement attitude don't / won't see anything wrong with that. But, as soon as you hear about some one in the union assembly line making $30 - $40/hour, you cry foul.

It's a Mad, Mad World: Obama to promote science and math education

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 12:46:51 PST

Let's see how long it takes the Republicans to whine about this:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/dcnow/2009/11/barackobamacougarsscienceprojects.html

President Obama confronted a “cougar cannon” this morning and he saw:

a) A new version of a gun to hunt animals;

b) A secret weapon to win in Afghanistan;

c) A television pilot explaining intergenerational mating rituals;

d) None of the above.

If you picked (d), congratulations! You are ready to join the president’s crusade to improve science and math education.

Obama unveiled his program, $260 million in companies’ donations to take the hard sciences into more classrooms with television programs and celebrity science personalities. As part of the effort, science will be highlighted at an annual science fair.

“If you win the NCAA championship, you come to the White House. Well, if you’re a young person and you’ve produced the best experiment or design, the best hardware or software, you ought to be recognized for that achievement too,” Obama said in a televised presentation, of his “Education to Innovate” campaign.

“Scientists and engineers ought to stand side by side with athletes and entertainers as role models, and here at the White House we’re going to lead by example. We’re going to show young people how cool science can be,” the president insisted.

The likelihood of physicists being as big on campus as football players may seem far fetched. But the president did his part, including the unveiling of the “Cougar Cannon,” a science project created by two Virginia students as an example of what the president called “the extraordinary promise of American young people.”

“I'd like to invite Steven Harris and Brian Hortelano from Oakton High School to come up here and demonstrate what their team has built,” Obama said. “It's flashing so far. I don't see it whirling,” Obama said as the audience laughed.

The purpose of the device is to scoop up and toss moon rocks, but it look a bit like a mobile batting cage or a very fancy device to automatically return basketballs for someone shooting hoops.

"How long did it take for you to build this?" Obama asked, according to a pool report of the confrontation.

Six weeks, the students replied.

"This is all stuff you can get at Radio Shack?" Obama said.

No, the students said, shaking their heads.

It's a Mad, Mad World: Teabaggers shout down woman who lost daughter and grandchild

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 12:04:41 PST

During a Town Hall meeting on health care this month in Illinois, the teabaggers showed up with their typical mob-mentality and heckled a woman whose daughter and would-be grandchild died because they could not get health insurance. Some of them even laughed at her as she was crying and recounted the story. Watch:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dl5Jo0GnX-k&feature=player_embedded

These people are shameless and hate this country. They are doing the dirty work for the insurance companies because they are brainwashed dummies.

Comments:
siouxcityranch commented:

A still picture of a man smiling inserted into the video..come on dj you can do better than that..and if you think that her complaint has any creedence your nuts..the lady was a plant or just plain stupid..her daughter in law ended up in the hospital for 50 days and died..she wasnt turned away..she was obviously sicker than they figured and they held off too long to get her checked..their fault not our systems..

and there are medical financial plans you can work out with a hospital if things get too hairy..all else fails go bankrupt..the hospital will absorb the cost at a grossly lesser rate..what they charge us isnt what it costs them....they do it all the time..

she could have gone to an emergency room or county hospital..they can not turn you away even if you dont have insurance..ask any illegal..

now you want some real horror storys?? lets talk about the canadians ..dont be scared its a real eye opener

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2jijuj1ysw&feature=related

randomfactor commented:

Unlike the story MadMan posted, the Canadian health-care stories mostly *ARE* fabrications.

siouxcityranch commented:

RF the Canadian health-care stories mostly *ARE* fabrications.

oh im sure you 'the almighty imaginary flyin owe lover' would say that..i know people from canada..ive heard it from them too..so face the reality of your free health care system..it aint that great..

and i know you didnt watch the video..it was too long..so your just talking out your other pie hole..*AGAIN*

randomfactor commented:

I don't have to watch the video.

I looked up the "brain tumor" one before...that turned out it wasn't a brain tumor, and the Canadian doctors were treating it correctly. The stories of people denied hip surgery because they're too old? Lies. You get denied if you're too *YOUNG* sometimes. And the editorial against national health care that said Stephen Hawking would be dead of his illness if he lived in a cold, unfeeling country like England.

Oh, and yes, you can go to an emergency room in this country without insurance. You have twice the chance of dying as someone who *DOES* have insurance. And it *WILL* land you in bankruptcy court.

The woman in the video MadMan posted *DID* go to the emergency room. The trick is to get things treated *BEFORE* it reaches that stage. The way Canada does it. The way England, France, Germany do it. At half the cost we pay.

randomfactor commented:

I attended the local health care "town hall," too. The teabaggers *ARE* that stupid and heartless as to have heckled someone with a legitimate grievance.

And they're being thrown under the bus by the Republican Party, because they will drag that party down the drain swiftly and surely if the GOP doesn't start showing some brains.

Breaking News: Deputies say Frazier Park deaths don't appear connected

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:48:12 PST

"Kern County Sheriff's deputies are investigating two suspicious deaths in Frazier Park that happened within the last month, but say so far there is no indication that are connected.

Deputies responded to the mountain community Sunday after a body was found somewhere in town. The name, age and even gender of the deceased have not been released. So far all deputies will say is that the death appears suspicious.

On Nov. 3 the body of 42-year-old man was found in a creek in the center of town. The man, identified by the Kern County coroner as Jukka Hellsten of Frazier Park, was found near Frazier Mountain Park Road and Monterey Trail at 9:55 a.m.

Neither death has been ruled a homicide, said Ray Pruitt, the sheriff's department's public information officer.

"There is no indication at this point that either case is related," Pruitt said. "It's a small community and two suspicious deaths is pretty unusual. We're just asking folks to be patient."

Dr BLT's Blog n Roll Studio : Musicians need to decide whether to be musicians or smut-peddling whores

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:43:35 PST

Musician? Smut-peddling whore? Adam Lambert made up his mind which one he preferred to be when he performed at the American Music Awards last night. The song was terrible, but I can excuse that, I've put out some pretty awful songs between the better ones myself.

And I don't condemn either road, I just don't think that smut-peddlers make very good artists, that's all. It's has nothing to do with the fact that he is gay. Elton John: Classy, gay. Adam Lambert: Trashy, gay and apparently likes it that way.

This is going to be a long, repulsive journey people, so hide your children. I had to hide my four year-old when Adam came on with his crap (I feel I must apologize to crap here). And to think I was actually rooting for him on American Idol! What was I thinking?

Comments:
tchudilowsky commented:

You are so right! His is total crap.

Honestly when I first read "Smut-peddling whore" I thought this post was going to be about Miley Cyrus. YUCK!

A Glad bag couldn't make her look good.

lanabuford commented:

Its all about what people will spend $$$$ on....Miley cyrus....her parents disgust me, I seen a picture of her when she was probably 7 yrs old posing sexy with a short sweater and tight jeans...GROSS!!

jfrancais commented:

Love the avatar, man. Can I put it on my tree?

mrsearnhardt88 commented:

That poor boy is so confused... I'm thinking his ear monitor wasn't working well either since his high pitched cat calls were all flat... And, I did root for Kris Allen all through Idol :)

randomfactor commented:

Smut-peddling whore?

Pays better...

NancyII commented:

Looks to me like Mileys daddy couldn't make in in the music biz (flash in the pan) so he pimped out his daughter. No father of the year award for him.

And Adam? He registers really high on my gurk meter. What a waste of his real singing talent. He absolutely destroyed some of the songs he did on A.I.

makemelaugh commented:

So your 4 year-old saw Rihanna and Lady GaGa, and all the acts that had to have lyrics censored, but you drew the line at Lambert? Sorry, but that's just a little bit funny. The whole show was inappropriate for children. The terrible singing and screaming actually offends me more than the ridiculous efforts to get the most attention. For those who watched, some content of the Lambert performance was edited for the West Coast, so it was even worse for those who saw it live. They also edited out Jennifer Lopez falling on her behind after jumping off the back of one of her dancers. Sadly, they didn't edit whatever that thing was that used to be Ryan Seacrest's face.

jfrancais commented:

Lambert actually has singing talent. Lady GaGa doesn't.

VirgilAnderson commented:

Nancy,

"Looks to me like Mileys daddy couldn't make in in the music biz (flash in the pan) so he pimped out his daughter. No father of the year award for him."

That is true .

--virgil

makemelaugh commented:

AP story on Yahoo News:

NEW YORK – ABC says more than 1,500 people have called to complain about Adam Lambert's sexually charged performance at the American Music Awards.The network characterized the response as "moderate." Before his performance, Lambert said that he wanted to break down a double standard that existed where female performers are often sexually provocative while men don't do it that often.

bakotopia commented:

Hold up...

You said,

"It's has nothing to do with the fact that he is gay. Elton John: Classy, gay. Adam Lambert: Trashy, gay and apparently likes it that way".

You just contradicted yourself, B!

blognroll commented:

I missed Lady Rhianna and GaGa's performance. I would have shielded my little girl from all of it if it was anywhere near the lows of Adam's cheap gimmick. I guess with sales dropping and most people just finding free mp3s on the internet, musicians are getting desperate. Maybe folks like me play into their hands. Maybe I've become "that guy" that all too predictably shows signs of disgust and shock, leading to a steady buzz on the internet and steady sales stemming from the shock and buzz factor. Maybe it would be better just to yawn. Maybe the new bold is just getting old.

Hi Bakotopia! I meant that Adam apparently likes being trashy, not that one likes being gay and the other doesn't. In that context, have I still contradicted myself? If so, you know me, I'm always eager to reflect upon my own cognitive and behavioral contradictions.

blognroll commented:

PS: If you like, we could discuss it over a nice warm bowl of menudo. I'll buy. Have your people call my lack of people. Seriously, let's get together sometime to eat, to talk, and to jam.

defyinggravity commented:

Actually I do think there is a double standard and women can get away with a lot more. But all in all I think that kind of dancing is just disgusting. What's the point of it? I hate the american peoples obsession with sex, but the fact of the matter is sex sells.

defyinggravity commented:

On that same note, I don't think adam lambert can sing. The screeching, cat call, thing he does is just annoying and sounds like nails on chalkboard to me.

learnem commented:

women do it because they know it makes straight men go crazy, and it gives them some form of control at that point...now if men were wanting to take it further.....thats another story...

randomfactor commented:

I don't watch awards shows. But the guy's obviously doing his job if so many people are talking about his performance.

blognroll commented:

Well, he's doing his job if the goal is simply commercial. But cheap, sleazy gimmicks only go so far if you're actually trying to establish an enduring legacy. Elvis could do much more than swivel his hips, otherwise he'd just be remembered for swiveling his hips.

CheckMate commented:

blognroll, if you say Elton John is classy gay, and Adam Lambert is trashy gay, how do you describe Ricky Martin, Lance Bass, George Michael, Clay Aiken, and Freddie Mercury, to name a few?

blognroll commented:

One can be classy and gay or classy and straight. One could be trashy and gay or classy and straight. Anticipating that some may read more into my sentiments than is warranted, what I was suggesting was that my sentiments concerning Adam Lambert's latest performance had nothing to do with the mere fact that he was gay.

I have nothing but respect for Elton John. I have witnessed a live show of his and I loved it. He conducts himself with grace and poise and has a wonderful rapport with his audience. He is gay, and that does not, in any way, reduce my level of appreciation for him as an artist. Moreover, Madonna is not gay, and yet I have little respect for her because she has similarily assumed that shock equals art, and that it doesn't matter who you offend as long as you shock people into buying your records.

Therefore it is not a gayness issue but a matter of trashy vs. classy. I don't think any of the other gay artists that you've mentioned have publically and openly expressed themselves on stage in the crude, unclassy way that Adam Lambert has. Does that make him a terrible person? No, it just means that he thinks that he has to shock people so they will buy his new record, and they probably will, in large numbers. He may interpret that as success as an artist, and he may equate shock with artistic value. My opinion is, just because something has the effect of producing shock in culture does not necessarily make it is a work of art.

bakotopia commented:

Mel Brooks said it best in "The Producers"...

"If at the end you want them to cheer
Keep it gay, keep it gay, keep it gay
Whether it's Hamlet, Othello or Lear
Keep it gay, keep it gay, keep it gay..."

Classic! It worked! :-P

blognroll commented:

You're taking us back to the days when gay meant happy and carefree, and in that case, I say that's very true. Nevertheless, straight or gay, they will cheer if they feel you near. If they feel you are pushing them away with cheap gimmicks, self-indulgent garbage or shock for the sake of shock, you will get just as many jeers, and tears (not the good kind) as cheers.

Ray_Harwick commented:

I admit, I was pretty shocked (okay, it was way, way over the top) but I'm also pretty shocked by that girl-on-girl *grinding* dance stuff. Young people!!!!

pinkchampagne commented:

Very disappointing. I voted for Kris, Allison, and Matt over Adam on Idol, but I at least thought the guy had talent, and respected his effort to "be himself". What I saw on the American Music Awards was horrible. I didn't see any of what I had perceived Adam Lambert to be. The whole thing seemed like some kind of comic book porn come to life. I wonder how much control he had over it. Oh well.

defyinggravity commented:

That is a GREAT question pink. I wonder how much control he did have... He is a relatively new artist he might not have had too much to do with it... Anyway...

Regardless if it "drives men crazy" the women bumping and grinding is disgusting. I personally am super conservative when it comes to sex and broadcast television. I honestly believe that it gives kids the wrong impression about what sex is supposed to represent and what it is. Television and film paints it as this all wonderful, throw away thing... Anyway... I'm getting on my soap box.

But, the thing i loved THE MOST was on channel 29 news they had a piece about how it was too racey for prime time television and then they proceed to show each and everyone of the "disgusting" scenes on PRIME-TIME-TELEVISION. Anyway...

makemelaugh commented:

pinkchampagne: "I wonder how much control he had over it."

American Idol basically owns anyone who appears on the show for the first 2 years after their season ends. Clive Davis usually controls what label they sign with (all of which are somehow connected to him), and what songs go on their albums. Lambert got the prized spot of closing the AMAs curiously enough when he is not yet a proven artist, and wasn't even the winner of AI. Ryan Seacrest from AI introduced him, Paula Abdul opened the show, and Clive's darling Whitney Houston received the Lifetime Achievement Award. Anyone connecting the dots? Lambert may think he has some control over his career, but Clive makes the decisions and 'his' artists fall in line or else. He tried to ruin Kelly Clarkson when she made a CD with songs of her own choosing. He publicly trashed her so bad before it was even released that she had to cancel her tour. She was so happy that she was finally going to sing what she wanted instead of what Clive told her to, but he made sure that radio stations wouldn't support it. She had to immediately record a new CD of songs that he wanted in order to salvage her career. Lambert will do what Clive says for at least 2 years, and probably long afterward, because he signed his life away to be on AI.

blognroll commented:

Are you saying Clive is the one to blame for Adam Lambert's vulgar performance at the AMA? Ryan Seacrest announced today that his previously planned appearance on Good Morning American has just been cancelled.

lanabuford commented:

I seen Adam Lambert on a morning show today.....they ask him if he would like to apologize to people he said "No I'm not a babysitter I'm a performer" Which I agree with....but I just didn't like his attitude!.....He said "I'm getting this reaction because I'm male and I'm gay"......No Adam Lambert your getting this reaction because your NASTY!!!! And you can't sing.

Breaking News: Boron man arrested for allegedly shooting at neighbor

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:38:57 PST

Subject Arrested for Attempted Homicide, Firing a Firearm at an Occupied Dwelling and Exhibiting a firearm

This is a news release of the Kern County Sheriff's Office.
Please do not contact the Sheriff's Communications Center.

Date: Monday, November 23, 2009
Time: 11:00:05 AM
Department Contact: Ronald Maniord

Details:

On Wednesday, 11/18/09 at approx.1800 hours, Mojave deputies responded to a report of a subject with a firearm in the Boron area. While enroute, deputies were advised that shots had been fired.

When deputies arrived, they contacted a subject, later identified as Charles Cross, 64, of Boron, CA., that appeared to have a weapon in his hand. Deputies had to speak to Cross over their PA system to get him to comply with their directions, which he eventually did.

Cross was detained, without incident.

Upon checking the porch area of Cross' residence, deputies found a loaded .44 cal handgun and a sword.

Deputies contacted a neighbor and learned that Cross had fired two shots at him, while he, the neighbor, was seeking cover behind a brick wall. Deputies checked the wall and located what appeared to be two bullet strikes.

Upon checking Cross' residence, deputies located 2 other firearms and ammunition.

Cross was arrested, transported and booked into the Central Receiving Facility for Attempt Homicide, Discharging a Firearm at an Inhabited dwelling and brandishing a firearm.

Breaking News: Police to hold checkpoint Wednesday, somewhere in town

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:37:41 PST

BAKERSFIELD POLICE DEPARTMENT

1601 Truxtun Avenue

Bakersfield, CA

(661) 326-3815

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 23, 2009

On Wednesday, November 25, 2009, the Bakersfield Police Department Traffic Enforcement Detail will be conducting a DUI/Drivers License Checkpoint in the greater Bakersfield area.

This DUI/Drivers License checkpoint enforcement event is in an effort to reduce the number of persons injured or killed each year in DUI related collisions, as well as insuring motorists on city streets are in possession of a valid driver’s license. A major component of these checkpoints is to increase awareness of the dangers of impaired driving and to encourage sober designated drivers.

Funding for this program was provided by a grant for the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The public is encouraged to help keep roadways safe by calling 911 if they see a suspected impaired driver.

Comments:
Infowar commented:

Another fun day of harassing the public & treating them like scum!! Your papers please!!

CheckMate commented:

infowar, you remind me of a retired Cal Trans worker who used to blog here under a different name, and who likes to write letters to the editor. You both are loony...

I suggest that on Wednesday night, you stay home, take all your meds, and watch T.V.

But, if you decide to go out, just put an extra layer of tinfoil inside your hat, and you won't get stopped in the checkpoint.

Breaking News: CHP warns Thanksgiving drivers, will start maximum enforcement Wednesday

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:40:34 PST

California Highway Patrol

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 23, 2009

CHP PREPARING FOR A SAFE HOLIDAY TRAVEL SEASON

SACRAMENTO - The Thanksgiving holiday traditionally means heavy traffic on California’s roadways. However, holiday travelers won’t be the only ones making the trip this year. The California Highway Patrol (CHP) will mount a focused campaign against safety belt violators during the Thanksgiving holiday.

“Wearing a seatbelt is the easiest and quickest way to save a life” said CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow. “It takes two seconds to buckle up.”

Thirty-three people were killed on California roadways during the Thanksgiving holiday in 2008. Among the 20 vehicle occupants killed in CHP jurisdiction, 35 percent were not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash.

In addition to keeping an eye out for vehicle occupants without seatbelts, officers will be especially watchful for impaired drivers during the period.

“Throughout the holiday travel season officers will also emphasize DUI enforcement to help remove these most dangerous drivers from California’s roadways,” said Commissioner Farrow.

Starting at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, November 25 through midnight, Sunday, November 29, the CHP will be implementing the annual Thanksgiving enforcement period. During this time all available officers will be out on the road.

“The roadways get crowded during the four-day weekend and on the day after Thanksgiving with holiday shopping traffic congestion,” said Commissioner Farrow. “The message is simple, drive safe, sober and remember to buckle up.”

Thanksgiving is also an Operation CARE (Combined Accident Reduction Effort) holiday. Operation CARE is a joint program of the nation’s highway patrols that places special safety emphasis on interstate highways during holiday periods. CARE highways in California include Interstates 80, 40, 15 (San Bernardino to the Nevada border) and 5 (Bakersfield north to the Oregon line).

Comments:
Infowar commented:

HA HA "Maximum Enforcement"...oh boy these people make me sick.

“The roadways get crowded during the four-day weekend (yeah!! More people to pillage!!)and on the day after Thanksgiving with holiday shopping traffic congestion,”

CheckMate commented:

infowar, I'm pretty sure you don't have to worry about getting caught up in any holiday traffic, since you seem to sit behind a computer all the time posting your garbage....

Infowar commented:

You can't prove my "garbage" wrong. So go back to boot licking.

randomfactor commented:

Because it is, in fact, "garbage." The ultimate insult in science applies here: "It's not even *WRONG*."

Infowar commented:

Thanks for sharing your misinformed skewed opinion random*NO*fact-or.

regor commented:

Infowar: You are such a dumb F%$*, why don't U get a life & stop posting such BS. The CHP are out there to help protect the innocent people

lanabuford commented:

LOL! Grow up!

Breaking News: Wreck injures two, slows Highway 99 traffic early this morning

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:37:23 PST

California Highway Patrol

Press release

On November 23, 2009 at approximately 0050 hours, Mike Koshkaryan, 48, of Glendale, was driving northbound on SR-99 in the #2 lane, from Ming Avenue. Mr. Koshkaryan observed a traffic collision ahead of him and applied his brakes.

Fredrick Scott, 40, of Los Angeles, was driving northbound SR-99 behind Mr. Koshkaryan. Mr. Scott was not able to stop and he struck the rear of Mr. Koshkaryan's vehicle. All four lanes of northbound SR-99 were blocked for approximately 4 hours and traffic was diverted onto the east shoulder. Mr. Scott sustained major injuries and was transported to Kern Medical Center. Mr. Koshkaryan complained of a sore neck and was not transported.

Comments:
ednpatc commented:

Don't State of California computers have spell check???? I guess it is one more savings Arneld is doing for us .......

: Palin's Book Tour to Include Stop at Fort Hood

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:34:22 PST

Monday, November 23, 2009 11:07 AM

FORT HOOD, Texas -- Sarah Palin's tour to promote her new memoir will include a stop at Fort Hood to benefit the victims of the shooting rampage and their families.

An updated schedule for the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee and former Alaska governor includes a Dec. 4 visit to the sprawling Texas post where an Army psychiatrist is accused of killing 13 people and wounding more than 30.

The gunman, who faces murder charges, was shot by civilian police.

Palin, on her blog for the "Going Rogue" book tour, says she's "especially looking forward to meeting our brave men and women in uniform at Fort Hood."

Palin says she will donate royalties from book sales during her stop at Fort Hood to the victims and their families.

Comments:
siouxcityranch commented:

Palin says she will donate royalties from book sales during her stop at Fort Hood to the victims and their families.

I wonder how much Owe has pledged to the familys?? Oh wait thats right..they knew what they were getting into when they volunteered!

pogo commented:

Palin says a lot of things. Some of them may be true. She has been asked not to go to Fr. Bragg.

MadMan commented:

Yeah, she's been asked not to speak. Do you honestly think the army wants her to be the commander in chief?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/23/palin-fort-bragg-book-sig_n_367441.html

randomfactor commented:

I think they ought to put her back on the tundra to watch for Russkis.

MadMan commented:

According to the LA Times, a group of "hundreds" showed up:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/dcnow/2009/11/palin-arrives-at-fort-bragg-to-a-crowd-of-hundreds.html

siouxcityranch commented:

According too Army officials they said more than 1,200 people lined up outside..as usual you have no idea what your talking about..

Dont be so

of her!

honorerdieu commented:

Good publicity for Palin.

Breaking News: Prison inmate released Sunday, carjacks vehicle in Rosedale same day

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:34:10 PST

Bakersfield Police Department

Press release

On 11-22-09 at 6:42 p.m., two adult females exited a business in the 8100 block
of Rosedale Highway and approached their vehicle to leave. They were approached
by a black male adult armed with a black firearm, and ordered to hand over the keys
to the vehicle. Upon seeing the firearm, both females ran away in separate directions.

The driver ran back inside the business and was followed by the suspect. The suspect physically removed the keys from the driver, and fled inside the vehicle. A citizen in
the parking lot witnessed the robbery and followed the victim's vehicle eastbound on
Rosedale Highway to southbound Freeway 99.

A Bakersfield Police Officer observed the victim vehicle southbound Highway 99 at
Houghton Road at a high rate of speed and initiated a pursuit. A 25 minute pursuit covering over 50 miles at speeds in excess of 130 mph culminated when law enforcement lost sight of the vehicle at 1-5 and Highway 138. A subsequent search of the area resulted in officers locating the victim vehicle disabled on the shoulder of the roadway, and the suspect found walking in the area of the vehicle.

The suspect was positively identified as Donte Kevin Brown, 23 years old of Palmdale,
California. Investigation revealed Brown had just been released from Corcoran State
Prison early this morning. Brown was charged with 2 counts of Carjacking, 2 counts of
Robbery, Active participation in a street gang, Possession of a firearm by a felon, Felony
evading, Gang member in possession of a firearm in commission of a felony, Driving
on a suspended license, and Parole violation. Brown was booked into the Kern County Jail.

Comments:
michele1075 commented:

What a moron! Maybe he just needs to stay in prison since he was so eager to return :)

jfrancais commented:

Is this another "Hard on Hoes" gang member?

learnem commented:

probably just the prision mentality....much like the welfare mentality

no skills, doesnt want to be responsible, cant handle life in the real world, so he committed another crime to go back in

these are the type of people who piss me off subsiding in jail on MY dime

He needs to be shot, because his actions yesterday definitely said, " Im not going to abide by your rules"

I wonder where he got the gun from?

VirgilAnderson commented:

you really felt the need to post that twice ?

--virgil

midterm2 commented:

Does the Department of Corrections and REHABILITATION now give every inmate a firearm when they are released from prison? Makes sense, I guess. They need to be able to raise money some way.

jfrancais commented:

If they are in BGF, they $200 and a dope sack upon leaving prison.

CheckMate commented:

andy, maybe learnem didn't post the comment twice. Maybe it was a glitch in TBC system. Don't be a punk.

Charlie107 commented:

Just wait until the federal court forces the governator to release 40, 000 inmates .....

learnem commented:

Just wait until the federal court forces the governator to release 40, 000 inmates .....

thats EXACTLY why ive been stocking up on .223 and .40 acp ammunition the last three months...Id love to take care of a few waste of taxpayers money myself

hotandfoggy commented:

Do police reports usually include the color of the firearm? I never read a report before that mentioned a "black firearm." Back to the big house.

hotandfoggy commented:

Is there a way to find out what he was previously convicted of?

Icannothearyou commented:

A black male does not mean participation in a gang, right? Isn't a gang more than one person?

jfrancais commented:

Not if you're in the army

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwt5WkmwFp8

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