Meet ‘Fire Fart’ the Pirate – He Was a Real Badass!

Good Day World!

Ahoy Matey! It’s Pirate Appreciation Day at my blog.

I’m going to introduce you to a pirate that you didn’t read about in school. For that matter, anywhere.

Now, you’ve probably heard of at least one of the following pirates:

 Blackbeard (Edward Teach), Bartholomew Roberts (Black Bart), and Samuel Bellamy (Black Sam).

But how about Fire Fart the Pirate?

No, really. I’m not making this up. This dreaded 17th century pirate’s name was Antonio "Botafoc." The word botafoc means "fire blast" or "fire fart" — his real last name is lost to history.

FIRE FART’s HISTORY

With a name like Fire Fart, Antonio must have been a real bad ass. (Pun intended)

His story ties in with the Vatican, and now thanks to a new book “The Spoils of the Pope and the Pirates, 1357: The Complete Legal Dossier from the Vatican Archives,” by The Ames Foundation, his story can be told.

Here’s the condensed version:

The Vatican was once involved in piracy and bribery (tsk tsk), according to new documents from its archives. The newly published documents detail a medieval story about a dead bishop's treasure, the pope, and a pirate named 'Fire Fart'.

Fire Fart was no piker. His ship was armed to the teeth. Records indicate that his crew carried cutlasses (swords with curved blades used by sailors and pirates) and war pikes, and his galley had at least seven ballistae, which were large, crossbowlike devices capable of launching 9-inch (23 centimeters) stone bullets at high speeds.

Despite Fire Fart’s powerful ship the day came when a Dutch fleet put an end to his pirating career.

Fire Fart’s crew was hanged, but he, and his officers were let off with a fine, according to the Vatican records.

Back then, just like today, money paved the way to freedom.

History hasn’t left any clues on whatever happened to Fire Fart, but I suspect he changed his name and led a quite life somewhere far from the sea.

Time for me to walk on down the road… 

 

Return of the Blood Moon: Rare 'Selenelion' greets viewers

In this Tuesday, April 15, 2014, file photo, the moon turns an orange hue during a total lunar eclipse in the sky above Phoenix. On Wednesday morning, Oct. 8, 2014, North Americans will have prime viewing of a full lunar eclipse, especially in the West.(AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)                                          

                                               Good Day World!

Today was the big day…and night. Sort of.

This morning – depending on where you live - there was a rare opportunity to see the total eclipse of the moon and the rising sun simultaneously.

In the East Coast of the United States, the moon was low on the horizon while the West Coast saw the moon higher in the sky at 6:25 a.m.

The little-used name for this effect is called a "selenelion," a phenomenon that celestial geometry says cannot happen. It does anyway. And if you were lucky you saw it!

EXPLAINING WHAT HAPPENED

A total lunar eclipse is when a full moon passes behind Earth's shadow. The moon, sun and Earth are in alignment and will appear red, hence the nickname "blood moon."

Interestingly, the blood moon will include shades of turquoise, making the total lunar eclipse that much more colorful.

"During a lunar eclipse, most of the light illuminating the moon passes through the stratosphere, where it is reddened by scattering. However, light passing through the upper stratosphere penetrates the ozone layer, which absorbs red light and actually makes the passing light ray bluer," according to Richard Keen of the University of Colorado in a recent interview.

North America and most of South America were able to view the eclipse at moonset while India, Asia and Australia viewed the eclipse at moonrise. It wasn’t visible in Africa and Europe.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Pot is already technically legal in Alaska: Full legalization sought in November along with Oregon

Good Day World!

I was looking down the road again and discovered that Alaska and Oregon have something in common this November.

Both states are looking to legalize marijuana.

Oregon voters will be considering  Measure 91, an initiative that would regulate, legalize and tax marijuana for adults 21 and older.

Alaska also has an initiative to legalize weed, which would be the first time the plant was sellable and taxable in the state. Believe it or not, pot was already technically legal in Alaska almost four decades ago!

As the Washington Post recently reported, “Alaska’s Supreme Court ruled in favor of the right to possess, cultivate and consume small amounts of marijuana in one's personal home in 1975.”

The Washington Post article also suggests that ruling has faced some opposition over the years, and has been placed into legal limbo from time to time due to various ballot and legislative challenges.

But Alaska courts have repeatedly and consistently upheld the notion that Constitutional privacy protections cover the personal possession, cultivation and use of marijuana in Alaska.” (source)

Jason Brandeis, University of Alaska law professor, concluded in what the Washington Post calls “ an exhaustive history of Alaska marijuana law," that Alaskans can possess up to four ounces of pot “in their homes for personal use,” to this day.

They can also cultivate up to 25 plants under state law, according to Brandeis, but—as remains true anywhere in the U.S.—they remain at risk of federal prosecution.

SO HOW HAS LEGALIZATION PLAYED OUT IN COLORADO AND WASHINGTON?

Both a  Drug Policy Alliance six-month status report and a Brookings Center  report on Colorado's situation have also found that legalization there is proceeding relatively smoothly, with few bumps.

“In Washington state, the reviews are fewer since retail stores just began operating in July (although Brookings has issued a  report), but customers bought $3.2 million worth of legal weed that first month, with sales doubling to more than $6.9 million in August.

More than another $6 million worth had been sold in the first three weeks of September.” (source)

Will Alaska and Oregon join Colorado, and Washington, in reaping the benefits of legal marijuana? We’ll find out next month.

Time for me to walk on down the road… 

 

A nostalgic Goodbye to Paul Revere, and Hello (again) to Christine McVie

                     Good Day World!

Goodbye, and hello, in the world of rock.

Paul Revere, the organist (photo above) and leader of the Raiders rock band has stopped making music at 76 years old.

Roger Hart, manager for Paul Revere and the Raiders, said he died Saturday at his home in Garden Valley, Idaho, from cancer.

Revere, born Paul Revere Dick, became known as "the madman of rock and roll" for his theatrical colonial wardrobe and infectious onstage persona with the band.

The group launched its career in 1963 with a popular rendition of Richard Berry's "Louie, Louie" before releasing its own hits, such as "Kicks," "Hungry" and "Good Thing."

The band's biggest smash came in 1971 with "Indian Reservation." It was my favorite song by the group.

Goodbye Paul. You’ll always rock in Rocking Roll Heaven!

Hello – again - Christine McVie!

Been awhile.

All of the members of legendary rock band Fleetwood Mac have been reunited.

With the return of former member Christine McVie, who quit the group to live a quiet life in England in 1998, the dynamic band is ready to rock another generation.

The keyboard player and vocalist played her first gig in 16 years in Minneapolis a week ago, when the group kicked off their U.S. tour.

Mick Fleetwood reportedly said. "It's almost like it never happened that she went away."

Between now and December 20, all five members of Fleetwood Mac will be on their 24-date tour, including a special TODAY concert on Thursday Oct. 9.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Man unwittingly invites fugitive in home & prisoner escapes from jail, is gone 2 days before anyone notices!

Good Day World!

I hope you’re having a groovy Sunday.

Here’s two odd short stories that will hopefully amuse you as much as the photo on the left:

The first one:

What happens when a 60-year old man kindly invites a stranger inside his house to have lunch with him, not knowing a manhunt for the stranger is being conducted in his own neighborhood?

Some people can fade away without even being noticed.

The second story I’ve selected for you is about a prisoner who escaped from jail and no one even noticed him missing for two days! No, really! How did that happen?

TOO TRUSTING?

A Silicon Valley homeowner unwittingly welcomed a fugitive into his home and shared a meal with the wanted man as California law enforcement officers canvassed the neighborhood in a manhunt, police said.

Police in Palo Alto launched the search after receiving an emergency call on Monday about a possible fraudulent bank transaction linked to a man wanted in Oklahoma for a sex crime with a minor, the city's police department said.

Officers tried to nab 35-year-old Dominique Tabb of San Francisco at the bank, but he hopped a fence and ran into a residential neighborhood where officers began a yard-to-yard search, Palo Alto Detective Sergeant Brian Philip said.

A homeowner in his 60s saw Tabb in his yard with some minor scrapes, and Tabb told him that assailants had beaten him up and that he was trying to escape, police said.

Believing his story, the homeowner invited Tabb into his home and they shared a meal. Find out what happened. Read the full story at Reuters

NO ONE NOTICES INMATE AT PRISON IS MISSING FOR 2 DAYS

An inmate's escape from a jail in Washington state went undetected for two days last week until the man's defense lawyer stopped for a visit and he couldn't be found.

Rhyan Vasquez, 19, was back in custody in Marysville City Jail, north of Seattle, facing a possible escape charge along with a previous robbery allegation, The Daily Herald reported.

His absence wasn't noticed until last Wednesday when his lawyer asked to see him, court papers said.

Jail staff checked surveillance video and saw that Vasquez had backed out a door and into a hallway on Sept. 22 while a group of inmates was returning from a Bible study class held in a visitation area.

Vasquez was booked back into jail Friday. He was tracked down by two detectives who questioned his associates, said Robert Lamoureux, a police spokesman.

Defense lawyer James Feldman says another attorney from his office was representing Vasquez in the municipal case. That lawyer wasn't available Tuesday.

Feldman said all he knew was the lawyer went to the jail and Vasquez wasn't there.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

NBC and Dr. Snyderman Went Too Far in Pursuit of Ratings

Good Day World!

Rule #1: you don’t mess around with deadly viruses.

I wish someone would have told that to Chief Medical Editor and Correspondent Dr. Nancy Snyderman for NBC news. But no…the show literally had to go on.

Ratings are that important to NBC and the good doctor.

For years now weather forecasters have been reporting from the hearts of torrential downpours, hurricanes, and other bad conditions to get viewers attention.

But those efforts at first-hand reporting are usually only a hazard to the reporter and their crew. NBC and Dr. Snyderman have trumped that by being in the middle of a disease outbreak – Ebola – to report it on location.

I don’t think the audience learned anything more with her and her crew there than they could have gotten at a safer distance. Like America, for example.

THE RESULT?

A freelance NBC News cameraman was diagnosed in Liberia with the Ebola virus. Snyderman and the rest of the crew are under observation. I have to wonder if it was worth it to gain ratings? Questions abound:

How did someone infected with Ebola ever get into the United States in the first place?

Health officials had predicted it, and even planned for it. But now that a patient has been diagnosed with Ebola on U.S. soil, and wasn’t brought here in a special jet with a sealed isolation pod, Americans are clamoring for answers.

LIBERIAN NATIONAL MAKES IT TO U.S. WITH EBOLA

The case of the Dallas hospital that initially sent home a man sickened with Ebola highlights an urgent need for better training — not only for the nurses who are the front-line defense against stopping the spread of any disease, but for all health care personnel, some experts say.

It was not necessarily human error (say what?) that caused the hospital staff to mistakenly send home Liberian national Thomas Eric Duncan, the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital claimed.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has repeatedly said that U.S. hospitals are prepared to handle such patients. It sure doesn’t appear that way.

A survey by National Nurses United of some 400 nurses in more than 200 hospitals in 25 states found that more than half (60 percent) said their hospital is not prepared to handle patients with Ebola, and more than 80 percent said their hospital has not communicated to them any policy regarding potential admission of patients infected by Ebola.

Another 30 percent said their hospital has insufficient supplies of eye protection and fluid-resistant gowns. According to this story  U.S. nurses say they are unprepared to handle Ebola patients

SO WHAT HAPPENED?

The hospital says it has updated software that appears to have made doctors miss a nurse's note flagging that Duncan came from Liberia.

Really? Something that dumb? Why leave a note for someone to see at some unknown time when something this important was discovered? Liberia…the very mention of this country should have rang alarm bells.

That nurse should have put an immediate hold on the man the minute she discovered where he was from. But instead, the nurse makes a note on the computer and calls it a day; then goes home without sharing the blockbuster news with administration or other staff.

IT ONLY GETS WORSE

According to news reports officials in Liberia give everyone a questionnaire, asking about contact with possible Ebola patients.Liberian officials now say Thomas Eric Duncan may have lied when he filled out his form and said he didn’t come in contact.

As long as a disease is circulating anywhere, the potential is for it to spread everywhere. Health officials say it over and over again — any disease is just a flight away from anywhere else.

Experts at the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention know that well.

Now, if only NBC news could have understood that! Stay tuned…there will be more to this story.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Not a ‘Fair Chase’ When Hunting With Optics

                              Good Day World!

Disclaimer: I’m not a hunter.

I don’t see the need to kill animals when their meat is already available in stores.

Despite my position on hunting, I don’t condemn hunters who still adhere to the “fair chase” doctrine. I do, however, object to long-range optics on rifles and people shooting at animals from 700 yards or more.

Let’s be realistic, hunting defenseless animals with optics and range-finders is chicken-shit! There’s a big difference between using the old iron sights and thousand dollar scopes.

Technological advances are now inviting hunters to take substantially longer shots in the field, spurring a public debate about whether relying more on improved weaponry over field skills is blurring the lines of hunting's historic fair-chase credo.

There's a lot of historical precedence where a code, call it 'fair chase' if you want, brought people together. It's taught in hunter-education. That's how fair chase has stuck.

The problem is you have wannabe hunters using high technology without enough hours of practice, leading to animals being wounded and suffering a slow agonizing death. 

There’s a difference between just shooting at live targets and actual hunting, where more caution is used to get a clean kill. Because hunters with optics can see their intended target doesn’t mean they have the skill to hit them cleanly. That takes a lot of practice.

Finally, what kind of thrill does anyone get when they kill an animal at 700 yards away? Are they afraid their quarry is going to attack them? Especially when hunters are looking at deer, elk, and other animals with no way of defending themselves.

Hunters like that should stick to arcade games.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

People who want to shed pounds without dieting and exercise

                                 Good Day World!

America is fat, and wants to lose weight. Sort of.

The only problem is we really don’t want to stray out of our comfort zones to peel those pounds away.

No one wants to go without eating, or to sacrifice their favorite foods for long periods of time…perhaps even forever!

Bummer! And exercise every day? Please!

There must be a simpler way to loose weight without breaking a sweat. This is the 21st Century for goodness sake!

There must be some amazing alternatives to dieting and exercising out there. You know, like taking a pill or something.

I had high hopes for a line of bras, girdles and leggings infused with caffeine that were sold as weight loss aids up until recently. Unfortunately, they didn’t work out.

The Federal Trade Commission said Wacoal America and Norm Thompson Outfitters, which owns Sahalie and others, were using deceptive advertising that claimed their caffeine-impregnated clothing would cause the wearer to lose weight and have less cellulite.

Oregon-based Norm Thompson sold clothing made with Lytess brand fabric infused with caffeine which, the company said, would break down fat. Wacoal America, based in New Jersey, also advertised that its clothing had microcapsules with caffeine, vitamin E and other chemicals that it said led to weight loss.

U.S. regulators laid down the law on those bogus items Monday and made the companies refund about $1.5 million. I wonder how many people that equated to?

Oh well, hope springs eternal.

Here’s 10 Weird Diets and Weight Loss Plans that will amuse you.

IN-DEPTH

• Here's Why Your Coffee Habit Is Making You Fat
• 7 things you didn't know about caffeine
• Green coffee bean extract diet: Fat burner or lame buzz?

-Reuters

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Have you noticed that gas prices are dropping? Here’s some reasons why

Despite turmoil across the globe, average US gas prices continue to plummet. As supplies continue to rise and demand stays flat, gas prices could stay low for some time.

To the delight of American drivers, gasoline prices are continuing to slide downwards. The national average price of gasoline hit $3.35 per gallon at the end of September, which is about 14 cents lower than at the same time a year ago, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Better yet, gasoline prices could drop further in the coming months.

In recent years it has become commonplace for many drivers to see a gallon sell for well over $4 per gallon. Why have gas prices dropped to such low levels all of a sudden?

There are a complex set of factors that determine the price at the pump, but the largest contributor is the global price of crude oil. Oil prices have plummeted by more than 17 percent since peaking in June of this year, when the Islamic State, also known as ISIL, overran much of Iraq and sparked fears of major disruptions in oil supplies. But with the advance of the Sunni jihadist group slowed, if not contained, concerns over oil eased and prices pulled back from their highs. (Related: Is This $7.6 Billion Deal A Sign of Things Coming?)

Of course, the largest supply shock comes from the United States, which continues to reach record levels of production. The U.S. is now producing over 8.8 million (bpd), the highest rate since the mid-1980’s. The EIA projects that the upward trajectory will continue, with output reaching 9.5 million bpd in 2015.

(Read the whole story here)

Operation Popeye: How US Modifed Weather in Vietnam

Good Day World!

Seeding clouds with silver iodide and lead iodide is nothing new.

The practice began during WW II and is still in use – although supposedly not in military applications.

Silver, as silver iodide, is used in the United States for weather modification, including rain and snow making and hail suppression; as much as 3,110 kg of silver is used for this purpose annually. (Wikipedia Commons)

Silver iodide never dissipates according to some experts.

Once it falls to the ground in the form of a raindrop or snowflake, the water dissipates, but the silver iodide remains, and get washed down streams, rivers and ends up in our water. Some of it soaks into the soil and creates bacteria and robs root systems of moisture.

The practice is controversial and many people and groups want to see it stop.

Today, I want to share a special program we had in Vietnam where the military application for weather modification was used:It was called Operation Popeye:

Operation Popeye (Project Popeye/Motorpool/Intermediary-Compatriot) was a highly classified weather modification program in Southeast Asia during 1967-1972.

The cloud seeding operation during the Vietnam war ran from March 20, 1967 until July 5, 1972 in an attempt to extend the monsoon season, specifically over areas of the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

The operation was used to induce rain and extend the East Asian Monsoon season in support of U.S. government efforts related to the War in Southeast Asia.

The operation seeded clouds with both silver iodide and lead iodide, resulting in the targeted areas seeing an extension of the monsoon period an average of 30 to 45 days. As the continuous rainfall slowed down the truck traffic, it was considered relatively successful.

However, resultant rain and subsequent flooding of the nearby Song Con River is sometimes blamed for the move of POWs from the prison camp at Son Tay and therefore, the failure of Operation Ivory Coast.

The former U.S. Secretary of Defense, Robert S. McNamara, was aware that there might be objections raised by the international scientific community but said in a memo to the president that such objections had not in the past been a basis for prevention of military activities considered to be in the interests of U.S. national security.

The chemical weather modification program was conducted from Thailand over Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam and allegedly sponsored by Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and CIA without the authorization of then Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird who had categorically denied to Congress that a program for modification of the weather for use as a tactical weapon even existed.

Well, there you have it.

Messing with Mother Nature has a price. Surprisingly, our government continues to seed clouds with this method despite evidence it’s harmful to the atmosphere, the earth, and humans.

Time for me to walk on down the road…