Don't be alarmed -- just get up fast and find the flying saucer!

By Dave Stancliff/For the Times-Standard

Posted: 01/12/2010 01:30:22 AM PST

I hate getting up early in the morning. Not an uncommon complaint. I recall when my three sons were little, waking them with music. Now, you might be think, “How sweet. He gently woke his children with the soothing sounds of music.”

You'd be wrong. I had a vinyl record of Snoopy and the Red Baron that featured the sounds of World War I planes in combat! At full volume, it never failed to bring them out of their beds in record (pardon the pun) time. I quit using this method when they hit their teens and loud music had no effect upon them.

Go here to read the rest.

Historic Hearings on Marijuana Legalization tomorrow!

SACRAMENTO - The California Assembly Public Safety Committee will be voting on Tom Ammiano's landmark bill to legalize, tax and regulate marijuana (AB390) Tuesday, Jan 12th.  The bill is expected to be heard when the committee convenes at 9 am.

The bill, based on legislation proposed by Cal NORML and originally drafted for former State Sen. Vasonconellos, would legalize the use of marijuana by adults over 21 and regulate its production and sale in a manner similar to alcohol through the Alcoholic Beverages Commission. 

AB 390 would raise an estimated $1.4 billion in revenues by imposing a $50/ounce excise tax on commercial marijuana, according to an economic analysis by the Board of Equalization.   Existing medical marijuana laws would not be affected.  The bill would also allow adult personal use cultivation of up to six plants.

"With the state's budget broken, prisons bursting at the seams, and illicit marijuana smugglers fueling  violence in Mexico, it makes no sense for taxpayers to be paying the costs of arresting, criminalizing and imprisoning marijuana offenders when they could be collecting tax revenues from a legally regulated market," said California NORML coordinator Dale Gieringer, who authored an economic analysis of the bill:  http://www.canorml.org/background/CA_legalization2.html.

Marijuana has been illegal in California since 1913.  Only after being made illegal did it become  popular, spreading to millions of Californians.  The state has recorded over 2.5 million marijuana arrests, half of them felonies.  Arrests declined after the state partly decriminalized marijuana in 1976, but have recently resurged, reaching 78,514 in 2008.  There are some 1,500 inmates in state prison for marijuana felonies, over 15 times as many as in 1980, when the war on marijuana was escalated.

      Current (amended) text of AB 390 may be found at: http://info.sen.ca.gov/pub/09-10/bill/asm/ab_0351-0400/ab_390_bill_20100104_amended_asm_v98.html

   There will be a press conference after the bill's hearing in the State Capitol around 10 am.

   Supporters are urged to contact the legislature in support of AB 390; for info see http://www.canorml.org/news/2010blitz.html

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photo source

Activists go undercover to thwart puppy mills

 Nothing is more sad that to buy a puppy from a puppy mill and find out it has serious health problems.

Perhaps the new Pennsylvania law aimed at ending inhumane treatment of dogs will set a national standard. We can only hope so.

Excerpt:

“Lacking a bone or toy to occupy their time, some dogs go into a frenzy every time they see a human. Other dogs circle endlessly. Still others just sit there, staring, like a "warm statue," says Jessie Smith, special deputy secretary of dog law enforcement at the state Department of Agriculture.”

Go here to read the whole story.

Guess who’s in the dog house?

Source

Can James Faulk predict the future?

Is James Faulk the heir apparent to the Great Karnac?

Quote from article written by James Faulk on Jan.5th titled

Little temblors just don't add up

“Honestly, it doesn't have to be the megathrust millennial quake in order to shut off contact with the outside world, or to damage the area's drinking water and ruin refrigeration systems. Nope, a small quake can wreak the same kind of havoc. And judging by the peaceful pattern of years we've had recently, it's only a matter of time before it comes back to bite us.

The trick is to be ready.”

I’m just saying…

Did You Feel That?

I was upstairs in our house when the GREAT EUREKA EARTHQUAKE hit!I hear it was a 6.5 tremblor. Ernie started blogging on it 15 minutes after it struck. For real updated info on the blogs he's probably got the best so far.

Wow! Rock and roll! Gotta say it was the biggest earth-rattler I've experienced since coming up to Humboldt in 1978.

Very little damage was done. A few things fell off the walls, dresser drawers opened, and some candles fall of a table.

Where were you when the GREAT EUREKA EARTHQUAKE hit? Wait! What was that? It's 6:22 and I think that was an aftershock.

So where were you?

UPDATE: Humboldtage has more detailed coverage of the earthquake.

10 ways to be a whole lot happier

Even in tough times, you have more control over your joy than you think

Introduction

From the editors of Prevention

The year 2009 was one that few of us will soon forget. But the tough times we’ve been through illuminate the human ability to weather challenges that might at first seem overwhelming. As so many millions have painfully learned, we can’t fully control our circumstances. Surprisingly often, though, we can control their effects on our well-being.

Experts attribute about 50% of a person’s happiness to genetic endowments and another 10% to circumstances — where we live, how much money we make, how healthy we are. That leaves 40% of our happiness in our control. Fortunately, science has much to say about how we can make the most of that 40%. Even small improvements in mood can have cascading effects. The trick is to pay attention to what strategies work best for you. Click here for 10 ways to be happier.

You Know You're a Conservative When...

10 quick questions to tell if you're a 21st Century right-winger.

Anyone who has a list of 10 questions to tell if you’re a 21st Century Liberal is invited to share it here. Fair’s fair!

Since almost no one is willing to identify with the GOP these days, it can be difficult to diagnose conservatism. Here are some tips to help determine if you are a conservative:

10) You refused to share your toys in kindergarten, saying it would put you on a dangerous path to socialism.
9) You get angry when there are choices for languages on an automated call because you still don't have a good grasp on English.
8) You hate those "elite Hollywood liberals" but refuse to cancel your Netflix account.
7) You go to tea bagger rallies because you have no job thanks to the recession that "started under Obama."
6) You watch Fox News, but unlike most people actually take it seriously.
5) You become absolutely livid about imaginary tax increases.
4) You are against wasteful programs like Medicare, but also against cutting waste from programs like Medicare.
3) You criticize Michael Moore for his weight, without being able to refute a single claim that he makes in his documentaries.
2) You can enter any collective noun into the following sentence "The ______ are screwing everything up" except for the correct ones.
1) You find yourself saying "no" even to things that you actually want, like ice cream, and health care.

This first appeared at Air America Radio.

A Suicide Bomber’s Wife speaks out

When you read this interview one thing really stands out; Dr. Khalil was once just a conservative Muslim who became an extremist after we invaded Iraq.

I’ve contended all along that invading Iraq and Afghanistan was the worst thing we could do to stop terrorism. What’s happened is that these two countries have become recruiting posters for pissed off Muslims who want a chance to kill Americans.

“In an exclusive interview with NEWSWEEK Türkiye (Go here for English version), the wife of the suicide bomber who killed seven CIA employees in Afghanistan talks about her husband's life and beliefs.”

Photos: Courtesy Defne Bayrak via Newsweek Türkiye (left); Engin Iriz / Newsweek Türkiye /Suicide bomber Dr. Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi (left) and his wife, Defne Bayrak

Undocumented Immigrants: Could they help save the economy?

Based on surveys done after the 1986 amnesty program, it concludes that even during the recession, legalizing undocumented workers would benefit the economy. Not everyone agrees.

UCLA study says legalizing undocumented immigrants would help the economy

Photo Source

Related news:

TARP INITIATIVE TO FOCUS ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS EMIGRATING FROM THE UNITED STATES

How cold is it in Florida today?

It was so cold in Florida, freezing iguanas were seen falling out of trees!

In central and south Florida, farmers were trying to salvage citrus and vegetable crops by spraying them in protective layers of ice and covering them in plastic.

Arctic cold tightens grip on central, eastern US with freezing temps; Fla. farmers guard crops

Photo Source

Assembly OKs bills to change California schools

Assemblymen Tom Ammiano, left, Mike Eng, center, and Kevin De Leon listen to the debate over a controversial education bill. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times / January 5, 2010)

Parents would be given more power to transfer children out of poorly performing campuses and petition for changes, including removal of the principal. Teachers unions oppose the provisions.

My concern is that this move is going to enable a class system where the rich kids get good education and the poor go to underfunded schools. All children should be getting the same quality of education, and this move is going to change that.

Go here to read the whole story.

The Ten Worst Muppets

 Even the best shows on Television have bad characters.

And like anything on the internet, this list has been made before. However, those other lists include characters such as Miss Piggy, Sam the Eagle, Animal (one of the BEST Muppets), and even Kermit!

Blasphemy. So here is the real list of Muppets who suck.

1. Pepe the Prawn

What in the hell is this? He’s scary looking, that’s all, and he makes me not want to watch.

Go here to see the rest.

Why Are We So Blind to the True Horrors of War?

If we really saw what war does to young minds and bodies, it would be harder to embrace the myths propagated by our warmongering government.

“In Peter van Agtmael’s "2nd Tour Hope I don’t Die" and Lori Grinker’s "Afterwar: Veterans From a World in Conflict," two haunting books of war photographs, we see pictures of war which are almost always hidden from public view.

These pictures are shadows, for only those who go to and suffer from war can fully confront the visceral horror of it, but they are at least an attempt to unmask war’s savagery.”

Go here to read the rest.

This article first appeared on TruthDig.

Photo source greatdreams

3-D TV! It was entertainment destiny

I’m not surprised that 3-D technology has come home. Our TVs serve many functions now. The picture is really lifelike if you have blue ray, or one of the new generation of plasma TVs.

Read about other trends expected to dominate the show, which runs Thursday through Sunday in Las Vegas. TVs that connect to the Internet and mobile digital TV will also be displayed. It sounds like a nerd holiday. If this is your thing, it sounds like fun.

Before its official opening, visitors stroll the floor of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, a major showcase for new entertainment technology. (Paul Sakuma / Associated Press / January 4, 2010)

Why The Chicken Crossed the Street

Pierre liked good wines and wasn’t afraid to go out and look for them.

He is known on the boulevard as a gentile- chicken with class.

Photo via Funny pics

If the US won't stand up to China, who will?

Here’s a very good editorial by Wei Jingsheng, a prominent Chinese dissident who spent 18 years in Chinese prisons. China is a major trading partner with the US, so we ignore (aside from useless rhetoric) their human rights violations.

I call it “Dancing with the Devil” and when the music stops we all lose! China holds billions of dollars in American debt, and they can play that card anytime they feel like it.

Wei Jingsheng now lives in exile in Washington. He’s the chairman of the Overseas Chinese Democracy Coalition and president of the Wei Jingsheng Foundation.

Excerpt:

“Though diplomats from Germany and Australia were among the two dozen people allowed to observe the “public trial,” the fact that no one from the American embassy was admitted should be read as a particularly clear and open challenge to the US.We Chinese are intimately acquainted with this authoritarian arrogance.”

Go here to read the whole article.

Image source via cryptome.org

What do dogs, cats, and PTSD have in common?

By Dave Stancliff/For the Times-Standard

Posted: 01/03/2010 01:27:24 AM PST

While I was petting my pug and doing some online research the other day, I ran across an interesting item about an Iraqi war veteran who has a Psychiatric Service Dog to help with his Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

A Colorado mailman made news recently, when he was allowed to bring his service dog along on his mail route. I'm not talking about an attack dog. There's a huge difference between them and service dogs. Paul Gernert of Colorado Springs was the first postal carrier in the country allowed to bring his Psychiatric Service Dog to work.

Go to The Times-Standard for the rest of the story.

Photo via bralexlabradors

UPDATE (Noon)

7 web sites that have picked up today’s column so far:

frenchbulldog

twitter/leonepret

PetPedia -The Pet Encyclopedia (1/3/10 - Pet News)

Dogster – For the Love of Dogs

Well Bred Pets (under recent headlines 1/3/10)

North Coast Blogthing (under 1/3/10 Op-Ed)

Pubsub (under 1/3/10 stories of the day)

UPDATE (3:00 p.m.)

brokencontrollers

Petpress (Sun.Jan3)

 

 

Do you know what an Autostereogram is?

A random dot autostereogram (left)encodes a 3D scene which can be "seen" with proper viewing technique.

An autostereogram is a single-image stereogram (SIS), designed to create the visual illusion of a three-dimensional (3D) scene from a two-dimensional image in the human brain. In order to perceive 3D shapes in these autostereograms, the brain must overcome the normally automatic coordination between focusing and vergence.

The simplest type of autostereogram consists of horizontally repeating patterns and is known as a wallpaper autostereogram. When viewed with proper vergence, the repeating patterns appear to float above or below the background. The Magic Eye books feature another type of autostereogram called a random dot autostereogram.

One such autostereogram is illustrated above left. In this type of autostereogram, every pixel in the image is computed from a pattern strip and a depth map. Usually, a hidden 3D scene emerges when the image is viewed with the correct vergence.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kobe Bryant: the best player on the planet!

Kobe did it again last night against the Kings. He took a last second buzzer beater – hit it – and won the game.

That’s the third time this year he’s done that. He also leads the league in scoring (just over 30 points per game) and is playing with a broken index finger and hyper extended elbow!

I’ve been a Laker fan since they moved to LA in 1961. Fair Warning: despite the fact this isn’t a sports blog, I’ll be making comments on the Laker’s activities every now and then.

Here’s a link to the LA Times article and video about last night’s game.

Photo via Sports Illustrated