May 25, 2015

It will be interesting to see how congress handles flood relief for Texas

Will they give it the "Sandy" treatment? Or will they give til it hurts?

Here Are the Republicans Who Voted 'No' on Hurricane Sandy Relief Funds

May 24, 2015

How to make a meal for 4 with 2 carrots, an onion, 5 strips of bacon & 5 asparagus spears

and 2 cups of leftover rice

YUMMY too !

cut bacon into tiny pieces ..cook crispy..remove

thinly slice onion & saute until translucent, in bacon fat ( prefer green onions, but did not have any)

add carrots (shredded) and cut up asparagus add cooked bacon pieces back into the mix

add rice & stir.. Cover to help tenderize the asparagus & carrots

feeds 4 ..is quick and super cheap/.


you could probably substitute pork, chicken or ham & could add snow peas or other veggies.but I was in a hurry, and just wanted to use up the rice

May 19, 2015

"Faulty intelligence" is accepted as the norm

because if the media dared to call it what it was ...deceptive, manipulative , conniving lies to benefit corporations that succeed with war, and to prop up sketchy politicians so they could transition to lucrative contracts after they left office... wellllll.. if that was what was reported then, someone would have had to DO something....like charge people with offenses, and then prosecute them


and..

we all know by now that doing those thing is "messy"...and we all know how politicians love to forget about the past and move forward

The irony is that when we DO/DID deal with what was/is happening, presidents can be forced to resign, people can/do go to jail..

The easy path (except for the 1% who risk lives in the military) and the 99% who risk financial security when the economy gets laid waste to, is to put blinders on, and pretend that "everything is gonna be okay"..

May 19, 2015

Scientists examine why men even exist

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2015/05/18/scientists-examine-why-men-even-exist/?tid=hybrid_linearcol_1_na


By Rachel Feltman May 18 at 11:11 AM

Sex is a messy, inefficient method of reproducing, but most multicellular organisms have evolved to rely on a partner regardless. It's generally accepted that species accept the inefficiency of sexual reproduction because something about the process gives us an evolutionary boost. A new study used 50 generations of beetles to examine just how important sexual selection -- the act of choosing one potential partner over another -- is to the survival of a species.

[Long-forgotten secrets of whale sex revealed]

From a purely biological standpoint, the existence of the male sex is kind of perplexing: When it's time to create a new generation, the males of a species often contribute nothing but genetic material to the mix.

"Almost all multicellular species on earth reproduce using sex, but its existence isn't easy to explain because sex carries big burdens, the most obvious of which is that only half of your offspring -- daughters -- will actually produce offspring," lead author and UEA professor Matt Gage said in a statement. "Why should any species waste all that effort on sons? We wanted to understand how Darwinian selection can allow this widespread and seemingly wasteful reproductive system to persist, when a system where all individuals produce offspring without sex -- as in all-female asexual populations -- would be a far more effective route to reproduce greater numbers of offspring."


snip

May 18, 2015

Mad Men..okaaaaaay

Over, but wtf !

May 12, 2015

CNN-I just reported another Nepal (Namche) quake...7.4

They reported it as breaking news..no link yet

Those poor people

found a link from BBC

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-32701385

A major earthquake has struck eastern Nepal, two weeks after a devastating quake killed more than 8,000 people.

The latest earthquake hit near the town of Namche Bazar, near Mount Everest.

The US Geological Survey said it had a magnitude of 7.4. An earthquake on April 25, centred in east Nepal, had a magnitude of 7.8.

The latest tremor was felt as far away as the Indian capital Delhi, as well as Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.

Strong tremors were felt in the capital of Nepal, Kathmandu, that was badly damaged in last month's earthquake.

"This is a really big one," Prakash Shilpakar, the owner of a craft shop in Kathmandu, told the Reuters news agency.

May 1, 2015

GW Bridge Indictments are in

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/05/01/chris-christie-bridgegate_n_7190020.html

NEW YORK, May 1 (Reuters) - A former ally of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie on Friday pleaded guilty to criminal charges related to the George Washington Bridge closure scandal, delivering another blow to Christie's image at a time when he is trying to get his presidential campaign off the ground.

David Wildstein, who had been a senior Christie appointee to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy at a U.S. district court in Newark. He was released on his own recognizance on a $100,000 bond. The judge in the case cited his cooperation with prosecutors for the release term. Sentencing is set for August.

The judge was also expected to unseal indictments against Bill Baroni, former deputy executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and Bridget Anne Kelly, a former deputy chief of staff to Christie, according to the New York Times.

They were the first charges stemming from the September 2013 incident, which created four days of traffic snarls on the Hudson River crossing into New York City.


snip
U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Paul Fishman will hold a press conference at 1 p.m. ET (1700 GMT) at his office.

Wildstein's attorney, Alan Zegas, could not immediately be reached for comment.

May 1, 2015

No amount of federal money can cure poverty in big cities

... at least in the current way we do it... When federal money comes into cities. It comes to the leaders who then get to decide HOW the money gets spent.

People are poor because they have no money ….. They have no jobs of any consequence because rich folks closed up the factories that used to employ them. The jobs that do remain are mostly service jobs that cannot sustain a family…and to use services, you still have to have money..which they mostly don’t have.

They rent in substandard buildings because those are the only places they can afford. If money goes into rehabbing those buildings (in the form of grants to owners or tax credits), the owners will probably sell the building or raise the rents. It’s called gentrification..and it’s the modern-day “urban renewal”.

The Mom who chased down her son, has 6 kids. And probably has a hard time finding a place big enough for all those kids. Her choices of rentals is very limited. There are many people in her same situation.

The ONLY way that would work would be to set up a minimum income for all poor folks and just give them the money..without strings. Many would probably pool the money and just move to a cheaper place to live.Some might start their own small businesses...Some would not get supplemental jobs, but many would...

If every poor family got a decent subsidy, they would automatically bring up the economy of their community because they would have money to spend. It might also deter the younger folks from risking their lives to sell drugs.

The way our government works, this will never happen though, because we refuse to believe that any of us are complicit in the problem, and the last thing our government wants to do is to pay people who do not “deserve it”. The group think is that people are failures ( i.e.poor) because they do not try hard enough or they did it to themselves.

Poverty is multi-generational because children DO learn what they live. By the time a child is 9 or 10, they pretty much know how their life will be, based on what they see in their family. If they are a poor child (urban or rural) most probably know that their “big job” might be clerking at a store or in an office locally. College is a pipedream for most.

If FREE college was at the end of high school for all poor students with a B average, school might be more appealing, and might break the cycle…but we are pennywise and pound foolish, so we will do nothing…just like we always have done.

Except for cutting assistance, closing schools, and locking people up in jail

April 30, 2015

3 easy steps to "fix" our police problem

1. body cams that are live-streamed to an outside-the police- data collection site..and cannot be turned off..

2. cameras on "suspects/pick ups/arrestees" at ALL TIMES...in the van/ in the car/ in the booking/questioning/cells..everywhere...

3. 1 month mandatory suspension WITHOUT PAY for ALL responding officers if the detainee is injured/killed. During that month an OUTSIDE investigation should be done, and if they are truly vindicated. their pay is returned to them..

Cops would think twice if they knew they would have to explain to their wives that there would be no paychecks for a month..

April 19, 2015

Shit.. It's "that" time of year here already

http://abc7.com/news/300-homes-threatened-as-prado-dam-fire-spreads/669013/

300+ people are desperately trying to get horses, pets & valuables out of their homes.. Our fire engines have been blaring past our back street as they go to help out..

The area where this fire is , is in horse country..Most people in this area have horses, goats, chickens, peacocks, etc.

One more just screamed past at 2:25 AM..