Going on Vacation soon? Here’s a few things to consider

We’re coming into that part of the year when Americans start going on vacations. I’d like to let people know that it’s important to do some research before going on vacation.

Going on vacation is a riskier proposition than ever before. Violence factors into spring break plans for college kids this year.

(right) Students visiting South Padre Island avoid short drive to Mexico

Cruise ship plagued by illness returns to port

(Left)Passengers on Celebrity Mercury sickened on three consecutive sailings

Vacation Travel Club - MISLEADING SERVICES & PRICING

“The Vacation Travel Club representatives were "less than open and honest" with us when we attended their presentation. (Summer of 2008).”

How to Avoid Travel Club Scams and Ripoffs - How Not to Get Taken for a Ride

Report: Mini Vacations - Mini Vacations Vacation Rip Off Tampa Florida

Shell Vacation Time Share - Rip Off - Shell Vacations Complaint -

Vacation Rentals Community - “Keith Briggs, owner of VRBO 10674, as at best a complete idiot and at worst a crook.”

Beware of Peabody Vacations! VACATION SCAM

If you do your research, you should have a great vacation. Happy travels!

The Ten Biggest Misconceptions We Learn In School

 FROM PAUL’S PONDERING BLOG:

“I do some teaching, and my kids are constantly turning in essays with tragically inaccurate examples, like "When Thomas Edison invented the light bulb..." or "Even Einstein got bad grades in school..." which society has for some reason decided to convince them are true. Actually, my kids are turning in examples more like "When Edison invented the atomic bomb..." or "When Ben Franklin signed the Magna Carta..."

1. Einstein got bad grades in school

Um... have you heard about this guy Einstein? Famous physicist? Relativity and all that? A genius, even? I'm pretty sure little Albert could handle his business in 4th grade arithmetic. Yes, contrary to popular belief, Einstein was a top student in elementary school, getting mostly top grades on the German grading scale of 1-6, which silly Americans later assumed, backwardly, were "D"s. The idea stuck because everybody loves the idea that their poor student can go on to great things. Sorry, parents, Einstein was teaching himself calculus at age 12.

Here’s the other nine misconceptions

Learn more about your ‘body burden’

Before we are even born, synthetic chemicals and heavy metals of all kinds begin building up in our bodies.  This chemical "body burden" is the focus of the information you will find on this web site.

The information on this site has been developed through the collaboration of health professionals, scientists, citizens groups and environmental organizations concerned about the chemical body burden we all carry and its health effects - known and unknown.

 

Idaho first to sign law against health care reform

  This move by the state of Idaho has many ramifications. One thing that I see becoming more of an issue is state’s rights.

  Experts are saying that the Supremacy clause in the U.S. Constitution ranks over state law and that the so-called “Idaho Health Freedom Act” will be shot down in the courts when they sue.

  Critics also say that the state will have to hire another deputy attorney at $100,000 a year at a time when the Idaho coffers are empty and the state is looking at massive cutbacks in services.

I predict that this will be a “watershed moment” for states rights as 37 other states are looking at following Idaho’s lead. The Federal government is in for a fight.

Excerpt:

“Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter addresses the media during a news conference on Wednesday, March 17, 2010 inside his office at the Idaho statehouse in Boise, Idaho. On Wednesday Otter signed a piece of legislation that will require the state of Idaho to sue the federal government upon passage of health care reform which comes as Democrats in Congress hope to pass healthcare reform this weekend.” (AP Photo/Charlie Litchfield)

Awkward Office St. Patrick’s Day Bingo

Culture Buzz It's a big day! A day filled with potentially uncomfortable social situations at the workplace! You should easily be able to bingo on this because the people you work with always say such commonplace things. So keep track of your progress today and share the results below!

Facts & Myths about St. Patrick’s Day:

Fact: We really do all get very drunk on Paddy's Day in Ireland.
Myth. We all speak like Darby O'Gill
Fact: We normally focus on not wearing green.
Fact: McDonalds & Starbucks force green coffee and shakes on us too.
Myth: Irish alcoholism is a myth.
Myth: Leprechauns are real.
Fact: 99% of costume (novelty) leprachauns in Dublin are Eastern European and don't speak English.
Myth: Irish people take kindly to American tourists who wear green hats on any other day than St. Patrick's Day.
Fact: I have lived here my entire life and have never once heard someone say 'top o' the mornin' to ye' (I have also never heard anyone speak Irish who wasn't a complete douchebag). Now, you're ready to celebrate Paddy's (NOT Patty's) Day. Begorrah.

Thanks to BuzzFeed

Guest Opinion: John Cory says why he’s mad at both political parties

GUEST OPINION

By John Cory

I am angry.

I'm tired of pundits and know-nothing media gasbags. I'm tired of snarky "inside politics" programming. I am sick of the bigotry and hatred of "birthers" and faux patriotic cranks and their GOP puppet masters. And I'm really pissed at the Democratic Party that confuses having a plate of limp noodles with having a spine.

I'm going to vomit if I hear the word "bipartisanship" one more time.

It was "bipartisanship" that gave us this activist conservative Supreme Court. A Supreme Court that says money is free speech and corporations are persons except when real people try to hold them accountable for their greed and poisonous ways.

"Bipartisanship" gave us the Patriot Act and FISA and illegal wiretaps and two wars and "free speech zones" and "no fly" lists. God bless bipartisan America.

I get nauseated every time the Senate explains how it takes a super majority to do anything for the American people. Tell you what Senate Bozos, if it takes 60 votes to pass legislation then it should take 60% of the popular vote to get you elected.

When some Tea Party crank says, "I want my country back," I respond, "No madam, you want your country backward."

When a deficit-mongering politician says, "How do we pay for this?" Why not ask, "What did you Republicans do with the surplus we Democrats left you?"

When a compassionate conservative says, "Healthcare reform is socialism," why not answer, "No, sir it is the moral and American way to care for people."

Yes, I can hear it now: "You are naïve and simplistic. These are complicated matters and require sophisticated solutions. Democrats are a big tent and strive for balance. But Republicans block our path at every turn. We are thinking and considering new ways to work in harmony with everyone."

Bite me.

The only thing you get with "harmony" is a Barbershop Quartet.

Democrats stop being Republican Lite. Stop whining about that mean GOP and their nasty messaging. Grow a pair, get a message, get a bumper sticker and hang it out there. Get some strong vivid talking points.

G-O-P = Greed Over People.

Greed Kills - jobs, people and the economy.

Terrorism is Viagra for Republicans: The more fear - the more excited they get.

When a soldier dies for America, who dares ask if they were gay or straight?

Don't act so shocked, Democratic Party. Have you looked around lately?

You're losing the young vote that showed up to elect Obama. You're losing those old enough to remember real Democrats. Why? Because you don't talk to them any more than you talk to me. You talk at me. You talk around me. You talk down to me. You talk about me. You don't talk with me. And you don't inspire and you don't champion and without that you are nothing more than an arbitrator of compromise and abdication.

You are facing a bully. Deal with it!

Republicans want the country backwards. They champion superstition over science because it entrenches ignorance and bigotry and captures the easily frightened.

Republicans treat the Constitution the way they treat the Bible, with selective interpretation and selective application to others while exempting themselves from judgment and accountability.

Republicans preach the gospel of fear because fear is darkness and darkness covers their theft of civil liberties and Constitutional principles.

For thirty years the Republican Party has claimed the mantle of law and order but now quake in dread of the American judicial system when putting terrorists on trial. How criminal is that?

Torture is illegal. Period. John Wayne and Jack Bauer were not our Founding Fathers - only in the make-believe world of Republican drugstore-patriots.

DADT needs to be repealed. Now. It is unconscionable, immoral, and disgusting.

Empathy, compassion and equality are not pejoratives. They are American values proven again and again throughout our history.

Republicans believe that bake-sales and cookies for chemotherapy best determine the value of life and healthcare because life is a pre-existing condition and the "free market" should not have to take on such a high risk - after all, no one gets out alive, so why should the corporation be left holding the bag? Unless of course the price is right.

Republicans believe that government should keep its hands off healthcare but should put its hands inside a woman's body.

Republicans believe in small government - small enough to hold the "right" people and small enough to be owned and operated by the "right" people. And who are the "right" people? Them. Not you.

Democratic Party, DNC, DLCC, DSCC or whatever your acronym - I have only one question for you: Really?

You can't win against these guys? You can't get your message out against these guys? You can't give America leadership against these guys?

Really?

PHOTO - American flag behind barbed wire, and all that implies. (Public domain photo)

‘Made in U.S.A.’ makes Cozy Coupe a rarity

This article is a last gasp effort to show we still manufacturer things in America.

You’ll notice, as you read, that this Cozy Coupe does have some parts manufactured overseas. The company is careful not to slam foreign toy makers because of this dirty little secret; the Coupe has been compromised!

I find it hard to celebrate this Cozy Coupe because if this is an example of an American success story we are truly in hot water…

Ride-along car is among very few toys still made in America

Excerpt:

“The Commerce Department estimates that 95 percent of the nearly $23 billion worth of toys sold in America in 2007 were imported, mostly from China, according to the latest industry report available. That's up from 85 percent just four years earlier.”

Early-morning temblor jolts people awake, puts first-responders on notice in Southern California

When I first saw this headline I thought, “Big deal. A 4.4 is nothing.” Then I read the story and was surprised to see it did shake a few things up, including a stretch of Interstate 5.

Magnitude-4.4 quake shakes Southern California

“Though the quake was considered small in size, it was felt over a large swath of Southern California.

People from San Bernardino County to the east and Santa Monica to the west reported feeling the quake.

"The building started shaking. That's it. I'm used to it," downtown security guard Ruben Solis, 25, said from his booth in the high-rise district. Solis said he checked his monitors and no alarms were triggered. "I got up and went on patrol."

photo source

Iconic Items Not Made in the U.S.A.

Here’s another dozen items that are no longer made in the good old USA:

“The granddaddy of all sneakers, the All-Star entered production in 1917 and took on basketball player and salesman Chuck Taylor’s name in 1923. Countless Americans used the high-top, rubber-soled kicks to establish their cred—from NBA star Julius Erving to the Ramones, Dr. House to Kurt Cobain. But when Nike bought Converse for $305 million in 2003, it moved production of all the company’s shoe lines abroad—even the cherished Chucks.”

People in power make better liars, study shows

This revelation will come as no surprise to the majority of Americans. I find it interesting that there was actually a study done to prove this.

In my opinion, all you have to do is follow politics. Every day brings revelations of more lies by politicians and the public becomes numb to their offenses.

So what can we conclude here? It’s really quite simple; people seeking power lie their asses off to get it.

Findings suggest that dishonesty comes more easily to those on top

Excerpt:

“There’s old saying: power corrupts. And a new Columbia Business School study titled, “People with Power are Better Liars,” finds there may be some truth behind the cliché.

“People in power are able to lie better,” said Dana Carney, a management professor at Columbia Business School and one of the co-authors of the study. “It just doesn’t hurt them as much to do it.”

Above Photo source -

“Former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling, who is serving 24 years in jail for his role in the energy giant's 2001 bankruptcy in one of the biggest corporate scandals in U.S. history, has appealed his conviction to the U.S. Supreme Court. His lawyers are challenging a 1988 federal law that makes corporate bosses liable to prosecution for depriving shareholders of "honest services."

View related photos

Where the heck is Saint Helier?

There’s been 342 total visitors to this blog as of 1:00 p.m. PST today. Almost half have been International. I’m always amazed to find a Country/Island I never heard of. Today’s Island is - SAINT HELIER. Here’s what I found out about it:

       (Left)Coat of arms of Saint Helier Saint-Hélier - (Right) Location of Saint Helier Saint-Hélier in Jersey

Saint Helier (French language: Saint-Hélier, Jèrriais: St Hélyi) is one of the twelve parishes of Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands in the English Channel. St. Helier has a population of about 28,000, roughly 31.2% of the total population of Jersey, and is the capital of the Island (although Government House is situated in St. Saviour). The urban area of the parish of St. Helier makes up most of the largest town in Jersey, although some of the town area is situated in adjacent St. Saviour, with suburbs sprawling into St. Lawrence and St. Clement. The greater part of St. Helier is predominantly rural.
The parish covers a surface area of 4.1 square miles (10.6 km2), being 9% of the total land area of the Island (this includes reclaimed land area of 494 acres (2.00 km2) or 200 ha).
The parish crest is two crossed gold axes on a blue background, symbolising the martyrdom of Helier and the sea.

More International Visitors (as of 1:00 PST) were from:

Plovdiv, Bulgaria; Bandar Penggaram, Johor, Malaysia; Huddersfield, Kirklees, United Kingdom; São Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Zoetermeer, Zuid-holland, Netherlands; Dartford, Kent, United Kingdom; Antalya, Turkey; Luzern, Switzerland; London, United Kingdom; Redditch, Worcestershire, United Kingdom; Durban, Kwazulu-natal, South Africa; Rezekne, Latvia; Athens, Attiki, Greece; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; Kiev, Kyyivs'ka Oblast', Ukraine; Longueuil, Quebec, Canada; Skopje, Karpos, Macedonia; Delhi, India; Parksville, British Columbia, Canada; Mumbai, Maharashtra, India; Caldicot, Monmouthshire, United Kingdom; Orthez, Aquitaine, France; Stilli, Aargau, Switzerland; Kiev, Kyyivs'ka Oblast', Ukraine; Royal Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, United Kingdom; Bucharest, Bucuresti, Romania; Dunfermline, Fife, United Kingdom; Köln, Nordrhein-westfalen, Germany; Luzern, Switzerland; Antalya, Turkey; Dartford, Kent, United Kingdom; Dublin, Ireland; Motherwell, North Lanarkshire, United Kingdom; Lisburn, United Kingdom; Bristol, United Kingdom; Steenwijkerwold, Overijssel, Netherlands; Hradec Králové, Kralovehradecky Kraj, Czech Republic; Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal; Birmingham, United Kingdom; Borovnica, Bohinj, Slovenia; Barnet, Hertford, United Kingdom; Preston, Lancashire, United Kingdom; Kynsperk Nad Ohri, Karlovarsky Kraj, Czech Republic; Riyadh, Ar Riyad, Saudi Arabia; Store Heddinge, Storstrom, Denmark; Kosice, Slovakia; Hemel Hempstead, Hertford, United Kingdom; Nancy, Lorraine, France; Madrid, Spain; Hilversum, Noord-holland, Netherlands; Wynberg, Western Cape, South Africa; Stip, Macedonia; Paris, Ile-de-france, France; Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; Minia, Al Minya, Egypt; Birmingham, United Kingdom; Gdynia, Gdansk, Poland; Male, Maldives; Espoo, Southern Finland, Finland; Glasgow, Glasgow City, United Kingdom; Blacktown, New South Wales, Australia; Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Bogor, Jawa Barat, Indonesia; Sofia, Grad Sofiya, Bulgaria; Lindfield, New South Wales, Australia; Stuttgart, Baden-wurttemberg, Germany; Rivne, Rivnens'ka Oblast', Ukraine; Saint Kilda, Victoria, Australia; Leigh, Lancashire, United Kingdom; Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Rome, Lazio, Italy; Etikhove, Oost-vlaanderen, Belgium; and Nasik, Maharashtra, India.

images source

AS It Stands: Orientation study says getting lost could be in our genes

By Dave Stancliff/For the Times-Standard

Posted: 03/14/2010 01:27:36 AM PST

Hi. My name is Dave and I have a reputation for getting lost.

I'm not sure where it started. I might have earned it in junior high when I got lost in the school's surrounding neighborhoods while running with the track team. Having “directional challenges” is a label I've tried to shed most of my life.

This is the part where I confess past orientation situations and feel real silly while doing it. For starters, I need a navigator when I go further from home than the local post office.

My friends and family accept this, and are willing to assume the navigator's role at a moment's notice. Once, when my three sons were very young, my wife and I decided to take them to this refuge for cats (it was called a “Cattery”) about an hour's drive from where we lived.

It should have taken an hour. Three hours later, I gave in to my wife and sons and stopped to get directions. All guys know this is hard to do. This incident is embedded in my sons' memories, and despite the fact they are men now and have their own children, they bring up the incident all too often at family gatherings.

Go here to read the rest.                                                                  image source

It Is Now Mathematically Impossible To Pay Off The U.S. National Debt

“A lot of people are very upset about the rapidly increasing U.S. national debt these days and they are  demanding a solution.

What they don't realize is that there simply is not a solution under the current U.S. financial system.”

Go here to read the whole article.

Catholic Church in Europe facing abuse claims

I’ve always had a problem with organized religions Each seems to attract extremists, and to believe it’s the “One True” religion.

It’s this narrow-minded attitude of self righteous people that turns me off. The “My Way or the Highway” religion requirements are hypocritical at best, and dangerous at the worst. Think Muslims who practice international terror in the name of Allah.

Then there’s this other terrible dynamic that seems all too common in the Catholic Church; Pedophiles. Sexual abuse cases with Catholic priests fondling children are being exposed worldwide daily. That trend has become one of the biggest threats to the Catholic Church yet; lawsuits suing dioceses that harbor pedophile priests.

Lawsuits alleging cover-up of pedophile priests could bankrupt dioceses

“Pope Benedict XVI, left, meets Archbishop Robert Zollitsch in his private library at the Vatican on Friday. Germany's top bishop says the pope encouraged him to pursue the truth about cases of clerical sex abuse in the pontiff's native Germany.”

View related photos

Prime-Time Supremacy – The New Look of Hate

 

The new FX series “Justified” shows a real and growing problem. Racism is alive and well in America today as more angry whites swell the ranks of White Supremacy groups. I have a column waiting in the wings about an all-white basketball league that is currently recruiting cities to play in.

Excerpt from NewsWeek: 

“Harlan is not the charming, genteel Mayberry you'd expect from a small town in Kentucky with a population around 2,000. At least not in Justified, the new FX series starring Timothy Olyphant as Raylan Givens, a maverick U.S. marshal dispatched to Harlan after he gets trigger-happy on a suspect in a Miami restaurant.

It turns out that Harlan's little local white-supremacy group is part of a real and growing problem. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, membership in white-extremist groups is ticking upward, as downtrodden, angry Caucasians seek an outlet for their anxieties about a black president, illegal immigration, and a leaky economy. Still, the supremacy surge seems to be much more acute in Hollywood than anywhere else in the country.”

Read the whole story here.                                                       Photo(s) source

The reason the Mayan calendar ends in 2012

A laugh for Friday…

and a rainy day…

cartoon source

Past Pot Column Appears on T-S reader polls Today

I noticed that a column that ran last October was the 2nd Most Viewed on the Times-Standard list this morning at 8 a.m. It dropped down to #3 when the article “Three arrested in Eureka POP raid” took the top spot. It’s still the 2nd Most Emailed. I find it interesting to see something I wrote six months ago on today’s reader input gage Online. Here’s the column:

Marijuana proven effective in treating different types of cancers

Here’s links to the web sites that picked it up:

Tulsa NORML – Cannabis News – Hemp News – Michigan Medical Marijuana Association –Medical Cannabis – a patient research platform – Lobita – Worldwide Marijuana Seeds – Cannabis Culture – Legalize Cannabis Alliance News Database – Soft Secrets Forum –Cannabis To You – Canned in Totnes (Note: this site plagiarized my article and claimed to have written it)- Hemp Info- The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation – The Cancer and Marijuana Blog – Medical Marijuana Doctors – Cannabis News (this site ran the column – 1/11/2010) – The Washington Post – Post Partisan (Quick takes by Post Opinion Writers – Google shows my column here - but I had trouble finding it in their WP archives – I think you have to subscribe) – The Marijuana Cancer Cure Cult (this site ran my column on 2/3/10) – and Cannabischat (scroll down).

Photo source

The 21st century version of Alice in Wonderland

Michael Ramirez Cartoon

School Cancels Prom Rather Than Let Lesbians Attend

Homophobia is still rampant in Jackson, Mississippi. Just ask 18-year old high school senior Constance McMillen.

Rather than let her wear a tuxedo and bring her girlfriend to the high school prom school authorities cancelled the prom!

Here’s what they had to say:

"However, at this time, we feel that it is (cancelling the prom) in the best interest of the Itawamba County School District, after taking into consideration the education, safety and well being of our students."

Whose safety are they worried about? McMillen and friend, or the entire student body? It’s a point to ponder after reading the whole story here:

School prom off after lesbian’s date request

VA looks at new effort to reach homeless veterans

I know that news from the 41st Congressional District – and not ours – doesn’t interest a lot of people here. Perhaps it should. Look at what Congressman Lewis is doing for veterans.

Comments by Jerry Lewis:

“On any given night, 131,000 veterans can be found sleeping on the streets and in homeless shelters across America. These former men and women of uniform now represent one-third of the nations homeless population. In our own Inland Empire community, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) estimates there are nearly 2,000 homeless veterans who struggle every day to find a place to sleep and to eat a decent meal.

Under the leadership of my good friend, Secretary Eric Shinseki, the VA has pledged to end homelessness amongst our nations veterans in five years. This ambitious goal will provide nearly $4.7 billion a year in healthcare, housing, job training, education, and other services targeted at not only helping veterans exit homelessness, but also at preventing veterans from becoming homeless in the first place.

On March 4th, 2010 at the FY2011 Budget Hearing for the VA, I spoke with Secretary Shinseki about this important issue. In our conversation I pledged to support the VA in its efforts and I challenged my colleagues on the Appropriations Committee to also support this national imperative. As we proceed with the work of Congress in the months ahead, the House Appropriations Committee on Veterans Affairs will now make ending homelessness amongst our nations veterans a top priority.
With this investment, our country will seek to ensure that no man or woman who serves our nation is forgotten.” Photo source

Vigilant Pug Helps Save Drowning Cat

Chloe the Pug saved her sister Willow, a Siamese cat, recently. Forget about fighting like cats and dogs. These two are best friends.

Read the story here.

New Jersey raid nets biggest illegal indoor grow in state’s history

This bust kinda reminds me of the French Connection, but it’s the Vietnamese Connection in this case! Arrested were:Thu N. Nguyen, 44, Tuan A. Dang, 35, and Ngoc H. Bui.

Excerpt:

“Along with a vast array of indoor cultivation equipment, 3,370 growing plants, 115 pounds of harvested marijuana and $65,000 cash was seized in the raids on five different large homes, which one law-enforcement official described as "mansions."

Go here for the full story.

Looks like robbers are hitting hard times like the rest of us

Our Great Recession has taken it’s toll on all professions. That includes robbers. It’s becoming more of a crap shoot than ever for thieves who gamble on their illicit earnings.

The woman in the following story is a good example of what I’m talking about. These are indeed hard times.  

Police: California robber holds up 11 people, gets $6

Are you ready for the toilet of the future?

The heated seat sounds like  a good idea to me. The rest of this toilets gadgets are just a little to “Buck Rogers” though.

“Amenities include heated seats, sound effects, lids that raise automatically.

Dr. Michael Sykes, a San Diego molecular biologist who runs the International Center for Bathroom Etiquette blog says he’s surprised at how long it’s taken for high-tech toilets to hit the U.S.”

Photo by Kim Terca / Page One PR

VA to automate its Agent Orange claims process

This is BIG NEWS for veterans. An alert reader sent me this story: VA to automate its Agent Orange claims process

“The Department of Veterans Affairs announced today that it will fully automate how it pays claims for illnesses related to exposure to the chemical Agent Orange to keep an overburdened system from collapse.

It is the department's first effort at automating claims processing in its 80-year history, says VA chief technology officer Peter Levin. It comes as the agency struggles to cut a backlog of more than 1 million disability claims, appeals and other cases.”

Terrorists come in all colors and countries

Pa. woman accused of recruiting jihadists

What does a terrorist look like? They’re dark-skinned and are Muslims right? Wrong! It’s time we understand that the enemy comes in all colors and from all countries. Even right here in America.

I’m not talking about terrorist cells. I’m talking about a person like Colleen R. LaRose who carries on her own jihad against the USA and other Western countries like Ireland and Sweden.

Indictment alleges American used Internet to spark terror overseas

1. She went by the name “Jihad Jane.” It reminds me of another traitor to our country during the Vietnam war – Jane Fonda aka “Hanoi Jane,” who has never been tried for her collaboration with the enemy because she was a movie star with a lot of money and political connections.  

                                        Ireland arrests linked to the above case
Authorities in Ireland on Tuesday arrested seven people accused of joining a plot to kill the Swedish cartoonist, and U.S. officials said the two cases were linked.

Safety advocates say product can cause infant suffocating

I’m somewhat skeptical about this style of baby sling (see photo) being branded as dangerous.

This same basic design for carrying babies goes back hundreds of years in numerous cultures. All of a sudden it’s a death trap? What do you think?

Is it an over-reaction? Are American men and women just so stupid that they wouldn’t notice if their child was suffocating in a sling like this?

The concern: infants can suffocate, and at least a few have.

photo source

Banks and financial institutions continue operating like the recession never happened

Are you wondering what reforms have been imposed upon the banks and financial institutions that caused our economy to nearly collapse while we were bailing them out? None. Nothings changed. They still play their games. They still hold the strings to power in our capitalistic country.

How much hope is there for real financial reform you may ask? In my opinion, none. Look at those clowns in Congress. They’re so polarized that they can’t agree on the simplest subjects. Throw in the lobbyists for those financial institutions, and you can see why there won’t be any real change in the financial regulatory system soon. Consumers lose as usual. It’s a corporate world after all!

So far in congressional debate, it’s lenders 1, consumers 0

“As Congress this week inches toward a new set of rules to avert another global financial collapse, it is focused on two conflicting goals: reforming the banking system to protect consumers while still giving lenders the freedom to take risks.”

photo source

Are Veterans Being Given Deadly Cocktails to Treat PTSD?

PTSD is not something you can cure with drugs. As a matter of fact, there’s no definitive cure.

With counseling, group therapy, and years of support, a person can still lead a relatively normal (I’m really not sure what normal is) life. Sometimes it’s necessary to add drugs to peoples PTSD treatment.

For example, I take Trazone at night to sleep. Zoloft,  a common anti-depressant drug that’s been around for over a decade, is also used as part of a treatment program. There are other drugs out there that have proved their worth as partial components for PTSD therapy.   

But, a potentially deadly drug- Seroquel -  manufactured by pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca has been linked to the deaths of soldiers returning from war.

Although it has not been approved for treatment of PTSD, Pentagon purchases of Seroquel nearly doubled between 2003 and 2007. Elspeth Ritchie, medical director of the Army's Strategic Communications Office told the Denver Post the drug is "increasingly utilized as an adjunct for PTSD."

Yet the FDA continues to approve it!

Introducing Andrew Sullivan – my kind of guy

« “Don’t Mess With Mossad!” | Main | The Walking Wounded »

Read today’s column Washington Bullshit Watch

New book claims Robin Hood stole from the rich and lent to the poor

A new book claims that Robin Hood was not as selfless as he is often depicted, suggesting he stole from the rich and lent money to the poor as an early kind of loan shark.

 Robin Hood: The Unknown Templar has a lot of Englishmen talking. Every hear the phrase, “Say it ain’t so Joe?” The British are saying, “Say it ain’t so  Robin.”

image source

In a better world, we wouldn't keep animals in captivity

By Dave Stancliff/For the Times-Standard

Posted: 03/07/2010 01:27:21 AM PST

San Diego Zoo, 1960 -- I'm 10 years old and it's my first visit to a zoo. My parents and I walk past cages full of fascinating animals for several hours. At one of our stops my Dad points out the biggest rat I'd ever seen peacefully lumbering around in its enclosure.

He weighs about a hundred pounds Dad said, “which means he's heavier than you.” That sobered me up quick. As he talked about the capybara, I moved closer to the cage and came eye-to-eye with one of the big rascals.

What I saw was sorrow. A longing for home. “They can be found in Panama, Columbia, Venezuela, Peru...” Dad droned on, but his words were lost in my growing sadness.

Go here to read the rest.

Animal Parks and Zoos: capitalism and captivity

My column tomorrow “In a better world animals wouldn’t be held in captivity” will be considered controversial by some.

As I look around at recent incidents, “Report: Tiger bites keeper to death in Chinese Zoo,” “Women bitten by Bear at Wis. Zoo: fingers severed,” and the recent death of Animal trainer Dawn Branch at Sea World in Orlando, Florida, all trouble me. Tilikum, a 12,000 lb. Killer Whale, probably didn’t mean to kill his trainer, but by all accounts he was “stressed out” from living in isolation, with the exception of breeding attempts.

There’s even a darker side to some “so-called zoos.” A good example would be:

 Tigers Being Turned into Wine!

Although the Xiongsen tiger park, near Guilin in south-east China, appears to be a depressingly typical Third World zoo, with a theme park restaurant and open areas where tigers roam, it actually hides a far more sinister secret: it's a factory farm breeding tigers to be eaten and to be made into wine.

The two reasons for zoos and animal theme parks are to make money and to study the animals in order to keep them from going extinct. At least, that’s the way I see it.

The first reason is inevitable; animals attract people who pay big bucks to see them. So, the argument is that visitors are able to experience seeing exotic (and not so exotic) animals that they might never come into contact with otherwise. With the technology we have today, we could have virtual zoos (holographs and all) that would give people the same experience without putting the animals into captivity.

The second reason is scientific. Zoos are a way to preserve species that might otherwise disappear. I’d rather see scientists spending their time in the wild to study them (I know some do that now) and creating habitats for endangered species that don’t have gawking humans involved.

Be sure to see my column on the subject in Sunday’s (March7) Op Ed page in The Times-Standard.       

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‘Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day’ set

By Carl Young

(Veterans Activist)

It’s finally official. Thirty-five years after the war ended in Vietnam, a welcoming home for the Veterans of the Vietnam war has been established.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill last September, AB 717, which calls for an annual “Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day” on March 30. The Board of Supervisors, and local cities will be doing resolutions supporting it. Sadly, local veterans are deeply split on the issue of even having a day for Vietnam veterans.

Our country was deeply divided during the Vietnam war, and at times some people were hostile to the returning veterans. Those memories still haunt some Vietnam veterans. The damage done to our fellow Vietnam veterans, and their families, is incalculable. Many will never see their “Welcome Home,” because they prematurely died due to aliments associated with their military service.

I support the establishment of this long overdue day of remembrance, in which 58,000 U.S. troops died and more than 300,000 were wounded. These statistics don’t include the number of suicides, mental health, destroyed families and the illnesses directed associated with our service.

Additionally there is the possibility that many other birth defects and aliments suffered by our children are because of their parents exposure to Agent Orange. The Department of Veterans Affairs only recognizes a few birth defects like Spina bifida.

I think Daniel L. Lawrence, President, of the Humboldt Memorial Chapter 781, Vietnam Veterans of America summed it up well, “We are the only defenders of freedom in this country to be vilified, berated and shunned by our own people. If this resolution brings peace to many Vietnam vets then I am all for it. It’s said that time heals all wounds. I guess not enough time has passed for me to heal my wounds. I am pleased that our country has chosen to not place the blame for this current war on those who doing the fighting. instead placing the blame where it belongs on our so called leadership. For all the problems these new veterans will face, being shunned by their own people will not be one of them.”

Maybe, California’s enactment of a special day to recognize Vietnam veterans will encourage other states to follow, someday making it a national holiday. I also support the idea of establishing a similar day for the forgotten veterans of the Korean War. It’s the very least we can do for those who served so faithfully.

I encourage everyone to attend the reading of the Resolutions with the following government agencies: Humboldt County Board of Supervisors, on March 23, at 9:00 a.m; the Fortuna City Council meeting on March 15 at 6:00 p.m.; Ferndale (already presented March 4th); Rio Dell March 16th at 6:30Pm and the City of Arcata March 17, at 6:00 p.m. As far as I know, there aren’t any other plans locally to recognize this special day for Vietnam veterans on March 30.

Lastly, I would like to thank the folks at the Eureka VA and Mental Health Clinics and our local Vet Center for the excellent care they provide. I’m hopeful the VA can further support local medical and mental health providers and our veterans through the “fee basis” program, and the establishment of local VA specialty clinics. The professionalism of the staff has been remarkable, as well as the coordination of care with local providers.

 

Anti-gay senator arrested 'after leaving gay club'

 Another political hypocrite is exposed. Finding liars and hypocrites in public office doesn’t seem like much of a challenge anymore. Both Democrats and Republicans have their growing Halls of Shame.    

A US senator with a history of opposing gay rights has been arrested for driving drunk after reportedly leaving a gay nightclub in California.

National media is abuzz about 'K2'. A scary drug, or just another drug scare?

Fake-Pot Panic

 “What would he make of all the recent stories about K2, or "fake marijuana," which is essentially a legal, smoking form of psychoactive potpourri?

 Breathless news reports about the substance have been popping up all over in the last few days. If you live in Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Kansas, or Wisconsin, you've probably seen one. Maybe you even caught a Missouri detective's panicked prediction that K2 is "going to end up killing somebody." As far as we know, though, it hasn't. Why is it suddenly getting all this attention?”

photo source - A package of K2: Herbs sprayed with a synthetic marijuana compound

A look at decades of pro- and anti-marijuana media – go here 

How Oakland Is Leading Marijuana Legalization

How L.A. Became Overrun With Legal Marijuana

Ethan Nadelmann's Fight to Legalize Marijuana

VIDEO: Marijuana Mecca,

VIDEO: Pot's Biggest Bud

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Missing dog turns up 600 miles from home

I can’t resist this type of animal story. Each is unique, and best of all, they always end well!

Deacon the German shepherd survived journey from Virginia to Florida

For more animal stories like this go to:

11 true ‘tails’ of survival
From a ham that went on the lam to a Chihuahua that blew away, meet 11 amazing animals that survived a brush (or flush!) with death to reunite with their owners.

FDA orders recall of foods flavored with hydrolyzed vegetable protein

Is it just me, or is it becoming scary to shop at the supermarket these days?

Salmonella found in flavor enhancer used in thousands of processed foods

"Our investigation is continuing. We are proceeding with special studies to make sure foods containing those products are safe," Farrar said. "We are working with food manufacturers and distributors to provide guidance on any products that will need to be recalled. We are also creating a Web page to find any recalled products that may be in their pantry."

For list of recalled products, go to http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/HVPCP/

It's Not a Food. It's in Everything...And Now It's Tainted with Salmonella
Read more at: The Daily Green

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Anti-Pot Propaganda As Stupid As Ever -- Yet Our Alarmist Media Continues to Hype It

Once again the mainstream media is running wild with the absurd notion that marijuana use causes psychological problems, despite much evidence to the contrary.

It’s this kind of weed rhetoric that the Feds seize upon despite the study’s credibility, to wage their senseless war on marijuana.

The day is coming when this kind of bullshit will come to an end, and the Feds will have to find a new bug-a-boo. Photo source

 

GOP portrays Democrates as an ‘evil empire’

Talk about the pot calling the kettle black!  The Bush administration was often portrayed as the evil empire for good reason. Look what they did to the country in eight years.

They waged wars and drove the national debt though the roof. They came up with the idea of spying on Americans (Patriot Act), and the oil barons danced as Dubya looted oil resources in Iraq. Cheney was the perfect Darth Vadar.

No, the real evil empire fell in the last elections. Having said that, I would also like to point out how miserably the Obama administration is doing. He hasn’t kept one campaign promise yet. The corruption in Washington continues to thrive. The people who surround him are idiots with personal agendas. The American people got rid of the “Evil Empire” in 2008 and replaced it with a three-ring circus staffed with lobbyists and clowns.   

RNC chair disowns document showing Democrats as cartoon ‘Evil Empire’

 Democrats on Wednesday sharply criticized a fundraising document that caricatured President Obama as the Joker, while Chairman Michael S. Steele sought to distance himself from it.

The three Democratic leaders were gathered under the heading "The Evil Empire."

 Robyn Beck / AFP - Getty Images

Of pretenders, contenders and perenial title winners

 The Lakers dismantled the Pacers – 122 – 99 -  last night.

Yet their critics continue to say

they are lazy with sloppy play… 

Next up is Miami the city of sin,

 It shouldn’t be that hard to get another win

The hype will be about Kobe vs. DWade,

After 3 quarters the Heat are gonna fade

DWade may make an ESPN move or two, but he won’t be able to pull his team thru

Knock him down 3 times & he will get up 4, But all that accomplishes is a butt that is sore.
But give DWade credit, he does have a Ring, and after Kobe, he is the next best thing
Not like that lil actress Princess Jimmy, All she knows how to do is dance and shimmy
The Princess does not have the fire that burns within, which is why a Ring she’ll never win
The only way the Princess will see a ring, is if her puppet steals some of the Mamba’s bling
So don’t slip up Princess you need every win, If you hope to get back to the Finals again
But I’m afraid home-court won’t do you no good, the Lakers will beat you in your own hood

The hardest opponents the Lake’s have to play,Is the team they see in practice everyday

Kobe against Thriller, Lamar against Pau,

I would pay for a ticket to see that scrimmage “yawl”

It’s probably better than The Finals would be, To see The Thriller try and shut down Kobe

But we must play out the regular season string, before the coronation for our 16th Ring
You probably think I am cocky I know,

The Lakers are Destinies Team - didn’t your Mama tell you so?

PHOTO SOURCE

Child directs air traffic at JFK Airport

I’ve heard of kids coming to their parents jobs for a day to see what they do. This is the first time I’ve heard of a child doing the parents job however.

I’m sure there has been other cases. This one is particularly worrisome. Someone could have died. You’d think that no one other than authorized personnel would be allowed up in the tower. I’ll bet when this is over, there will be new rules.

A child apparently directed pilots last month from the air traffic control center at John F. Kennedy Airport, one of the nation's busiest airports. The Federal Aviation Administration said today that it was investigating the case.

Child directs air traffic at JFK Airport

March 3 UPDATE: The FAA is investigating five transmissions from the control tower at JFK Airport in New York City, where tapes reveal that the child of an air traffic controller directed planes on a runway. NBC’s Tom Costello reports. See Video

Rare Buddhist flower found under nun's washing machine

A rarely seen Buddhist flower, which blossoms every 3,000 years, has been discovered under a nun's washing machine

The only thing I ever found under our wash machine was lint and dust. I wonder who was around to document the last time one of these babies bloomed? Just curious. It appears to me that this rare little flowers can suddenly pop up out of nowhere (but somewhere where Buddhists live and can recognize them).

You could be just walking along in an alley in China Town, San Francisco, when one of these pale plants could spring up next to a trash can. If they can grow under a wash machine why not? But then what do you do? You can’t pluck the fragile stems and put them in a vase. Wait! Your cell phone has a camera. Now, if you can just find an expert to confirm your find…you’ll make the news!

Internet, TV main news sources for Americans

 This information seems to confirm my belief that Americans rely too heavily on the corporate media. What do you think?

“The Internet is now the third most-popular resource for Americans' daily news, behind local and national television news, and about a third of cell phone owners are using their devices to catch up on the latest information, according to a new study.”

A third of cell phone owners access stories on their mobiles, study says

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