chuck kottke

Hm, but you could study anatomy and psychology under the stars in the planetarium! :wink3:;) I would imagine they have weekly shows... ;)

These things make neat natural sounds! Tornado_infrasound_sources.png (PNG Image, 328x260 pixels) :P Careful where you stand when you're near DC! Rumble, rumble, rumble.. :laugh3:

:cyclist::cyclist::cyclist: The Darwin Awards then? :laugh3: Here in the land of the automobile, it's getting quite hazardous to take a bike on the roadways, even if you skirt the very edge near the gravel and grass. But of course, we have tons of overweight citizens who would, once they got going at it, enjoy a safe bike path.. but the old guard on the boards generally regard such measures as either (1) not a revenue generator, or (2) too progressive. It might cost something (never mind the lives saved from less heart attacks and strokes, cancers, etc. when people get in shape).. a David vs. Goliath problem of sorts..;)

> Well, my plans are to (1) not get clobbered by all the holiday traffic in the area, and (2) avoid crowds! :laugh3: ! But for the adventurous, if you hop on a plane.. dunno - never did the 4th there, but it looks to be pretty well packed for the 4th.. So, to observe the fireworks from a ways off, hm.. trying to think of the hills in the area - maybe Arlington cemetery? Or possibly a balcony or rooftop view - Washington's skyline is limited by the monument, so you should be able to see it all from almost any rooftop..

The perspective I see things in is both in the immediate, and in the long term. Imagine an island where you generally can't leave, but it has everything you need if you use it wisely. And what you do affects not only yourself, but all the other inhabitants on the island, as well as future generations of humans. Our world today is built upon the past, and with that past are the remains of things that came before, and what we modify will be here for those that come after us. So, cars need to encompass the whole enchilada, so the materials work in harmony with nature and our health for now and for the future. So that there is enough for everyone, mostly be built of commonly available materials and elements, that do the least overall harm. Work efficiently so there is less need for energy, as this too affects the climate of the island, and the number of scars upon the land's surface. What survives are our ideas and methods, the forever spiral of human progress into the future. Front Page - The Long Now

A window into the universe, and a world of amazement awaits you then!! :sunny::sunny::sunny: Enjoy it to the max!!!;)

When bad policies and a corrupt system lead to economic downturns, then there is an awakening of the senses. In the field of observation, chance favors the prepared mind; in the field of government reform, moments favor prepared movements. Greater truths cannot be denied or suppressed indefinitely, for it is human destiny to honor truth, and to advance our relationships amongst one-another.

No taxation without fair representation I agree with, but being against taxation I cannot agree with - taxation is the price of civilized society. I just think with all things, checks and balances need to be renewed from time to time to keep those taxes working effectively for our benefit, and being properly allocated to best effect our well being, and to improved overall harmony in the human sphere of influence. To steal is to take unjustly from another what is not yours, but to pay taxes is to contribute to the maintenance of civilization, which like it or not either requires our input, or we simply cease to improve our commons, fall into chaos, and will fall to another group having a structured government. Can we have less taxation? Sure! And be healthier too! But that requires investment in preventive maintenance and reduction in the corruption which is breaking our country.

Bush era tax-cuts to the uber-wealthy and increased spending (mostly with the military, wars, and resulting costs attributable to them) caused us to run a deficit after Clinton's administration had achieved a balanced budget. We could save a ton of money if we were to incentivise preventive health care, and bring back manufacturing to the US by having fair trade policies that protect our industries here, so that we have real income and jobs for the working class. (reverse NAFTA passed by Clinton). Shift military expenditures to infrastructure needs, retrofitting buildings with top-notch efficiency improvements, incentivise energy efficiency at all levels, and shift to a green, renewable, common elements economy. Ultimately, when politicians use spin and TV ads to get elected, then do the bidding of the highest bidders behind the curtains, we get what we get. They're beholden to the biggest interest groups money-wise, not beholden to the citizens and to the nation as a whole; thus, they implement policies that favor short-term results and benefit enormously those who pay into their campaigns, at the expense of the country and the economic security of the world. Which is why I am anxious to see us amend the constitution here, to place real limits on campaign donations and spending, and to level the playing field so that we may choose the best qualified representation, not the most connected and financed candidates who then in the end do the bidding of the gamblers that brought down the economy just a few short years ago, and who have decided to set us up for the perfect storm to topple the financial system. (It is one thing to allow big interests and individuals with great wealth to advise with public oversight, but another when they are allowed to determine policy, head agencies, practically rewrite the laws for their benefit, and reward those in office with guarantees of lobbying positions and other benefits when out of office.)

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1Fqn9du7xo]YouTube - ‪Adam Lambert - Whataya Want From Me[/ame] It plays well with exotic dancers in the area. :p[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1Fqn9du7xo]‬‏[/ame]

Aww, you are most welcome Nancy!:hug:

In diversity is strength, development is growing into new areas. But there is always the classical sounds, to which they may return on occasion and offer a dusty gem to be polished bright again. Perhaps what some are searching for is something which is soulful and emotionally gripping and trance-like or drifting off as their earlier works are, which is important as well, but enjoy the sunshine when it's here, and there will always be time for the soulful sounds, be they past or future. The world is an oyster, but no two pearls are alike.

Ooof, that's quite a surprise! Glad you and your family weren't hurt!! I know how that can be - very shocking in the instant it happens, and there is only so much defensive driving one can do. Glad you're alright once again, and I hope the insurance company does the right thing and pays for the damages too. :hug:

Lobster dog to the rescue! :laugh3: Able to claw and nibble it's way out of any cage, Lobsterdog is the terra-aquatic equivalent of a giant mud puppy! :P

You have the approach all wrong, You see, winter is really a state of mind. Just think warm thoughts, and maybe put up a light-framed greenhouse, put a little wood heater in the corner covered with rocks, fill the edges of the greenhouse with tropical plants, get a water tank with a fountain and pump for the middle, throw in some fish, put some water on the hot rocks, relax in a lawn chair with computer, and you're set!:cool: Or, migrate to the tropics when the weather gets cold! (or get those socks with the heater cables in them!:P)

Yes! TNP was born in the sign of water

Just dial up the setting on your metabolism! :P Hot and muggy vs. cool. Actually, 2C is pretty nice, unless that's the temperature indoors! :rolleyes: Wear some warm socks then :socks:, or put your feet onto some hot rocks maybe? Hey, build a Swedish sauna! :laugh3::elf:

If only it could be 2C here..! 24C outside, around 22C in the cellar Hot and muggy outdoors, with loud explosions going off, basically.

> Well, tis the season!:laugh3: Excellent mileage, considering the traffic situation!! Hm, car-park, I had to look that one up. Ahh, so that's a car-park!:laugh3: What sort of scenery is there in this car-park place called the M25, btw? Here, you would have to cruise on down to the Marquette Interchange, where the French explorers still are stuck there, waiting for someone to right the overturned canoe. Generally, traffic flows pretty well though, except when there's a game. Or a busy holiday week-end!:stunned: @66mpg, the world would breath a lot easier. I just wish we could get a bike path here, given the growing numbers in our neck of the woods.. maybe the town board would be more amenable to the idea, now that there's new management on-board??..:thinking:

Your thoughts, responses, ideas on the Freedom Flotilla Two :)....:thinking2::sunny: (and who was that playing the harmonica?);) Welcome to Freedom Flotilla

Benjamin from Arizona suggested an amendment on Tom Hartman's program today, and Tom's suggestion was to start at the local level with non-binding resolutions, then move up to the state level. I am not familiar with non-binding resolutions, though they sound like something which is in the public record as a matter to which the governmental body supports but it isn't a law or decision which has any real power. If this gets noticed and makes the matter more and more something which is commonly accepted as being true and good in the public's eyes, I think then the matter of amendment can go forward with less challenges by the high court and the major corporate controllers, since momentum gathers for support until an amendment can be proposed and passed. Short of an amendment, every time we try legislative measures to reign in the problem of big money buying elections, someone almost invariably runs an end-game around it, or the high court (under a 5-4 conservative majority) strikes down the measure. One might argue that even an amendment can be ignored, but it's hard to completely ignore something written plainly and is there for all to see, without an eventual turn-around through popular uprising. However, without an amendment, the high court's majority was able to dismiss the right to fair elections as non-existent or of lesser value, since it isn't written down. One more check and clarity of intent by we, the citizens, is essential to keep a natural right on equal footing, and make clear the need to protect this right of honest governance, after all - without that, all the other rights we hold dear cease to be protected.

My recollection was that in school we were taught history based on wars and events, little discussion of the undercurrents driving those events, and nothing too recent - since the historians haven't decided just yet what to leave in, and what to leave out. So for history, that subject area is highly subjective, and often can be skewed to favor one line of reasoning or a given mindset, yes. In the condensed versions, the context is largely left out, and events that are important can be shunted aside if they don't suit a certain political viewpoint. However, I do feel that increased wealth can be encouraged by good government, as many of the things we rely on for a high standard of living are in the commons, such as good roads, electric lines, common traffic laws, law enforcement, public education to advance society as a whole, environmental protection of air, water, and the biotic environment. Limiting access diminishes the overall wealth of our society, and I am against the attempts to privatize things that are broadly essential in society, and exist independent of us. We do not own the earth we inhabit, we are but a part of the life that exists upon it, and a part of the universe as a whole. The rain that falls from the sky does not fall for us, it merely falls as a part of a natural phenomenon, and in that we need to learn to share with one-another our common use of that which we take from nature. :laugh3: The free market has been portrayed by many with sound bites and ads as some panacea, as though "free" can be equated with fair, that somehow we exist as independent islands in the sea of humanity, each doing what is right for his or her own accord independent of the other. To me, it is Fair Markets that make sense - including our common understanding of social justice and equity, so that markets work for more than just the wealthiest among us. Who is going to see the toxic waste dumped to produce a given product, and care about the harm that does, when that method of production yields the cheapest thing available on the market vs.a competitor that does the right thing, and that's what sells? It is our duty to make right the institutions of government which act as arbiters of fair behavior on our behalf. The U.S. government has ignored the Bill of Rights from time to time, because the Bill of Rights is the ideal to which we as a nation have yet to achieve. Society has lagged behind this penning of rights, out of a desire by some to perpetuate gross inequities for profit and control, and to mess with the minds of others to maintain systems of inequity. Slaveholders never seemed to want to free their slaves any more than corporate controllers want to share equitably in the economic gains made with their employees, even if some among them see these disparities as unjust. It is not the Constitution which is a distraction, but the end-game run by those in power and their principle moneyed backers which destroys the essence of the government the framers intended to create, a living document amendable to suit the times and the level of human advancement. To quote Thomas Jefferson on this matter, "I am not an advocate for the frequent changes in laws and constitutions. But laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind. As that becomes more developed, more enlightened, as new discoveries are made, new truths discovered and manners and opinions change, with the change of circumstances, institutions must advance also to keep pace with the times. We might as well require a man to wear still the coat which fitted him when a boy as civilized society to remain ever under the regimen of their barbarous ancestors."

> Hm, sounds rather Orwellian to me too.. under The International Security Act?! I will definitely Google it! That's bad - having an education system designed to indoctrinate students into believing that the government is absolutely perfect, that is nuts. If it's called a democracy, then that should entail the right of anyone to run, and for all voices to be heard. Citizens can decide who they want in office - otherwise, it's not a democracy! Strange terms - sounds like newspeak to me.. Here, it's anyone can run, but the moneyed few behind the scenes decide what will be done, + or - a little bit. Those who pay for the ads buy the government they want, and we're left with less and less say in the process. What little influence is left for the average citizens in the US is in interest groups that represent large blocks of the population, and they're constantly battling to save what little is left of representative government. With the recent Supreme Court decision over the case of Citizens United vs. the Federal Elections Commission, given the conservative justices' decision, we now face a tidal-wave of campaign cash flooding virtually every sizable contest, with predictable results increasing the corruption level to new heights, and reducing our democracy to new lows. How bad must it get before we act?

Flash mobs? Just wear your Kentucky Blues shades!:cool:

The Best Chris Martin collaboration is yet to be!