The Daily Drift

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Today in History

1620		The Pilgrims sail from England on the Mayflower.
1668		King John Casimer V of Poland abdicates the throne.
1747		The French capture Bergen-op-Zoom, consolidating their occupation of Austrian Flanders in the Netherlands.
1789		Jean-Paul Marat sets up a new newspaper in France, L'Ami du Peuple.
1810		A revolution for independence breaks out in Mexico.
1864		Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest leads 4,500 men out of Verona, Miss. to harass Union outposts in northern Alabama and Tennessee.
1889		Robert Younger, in Minnesota's Stillwater Penitentiary for life, dies of tuberculosis. Brothers Cole and Bob remain in the prison.
1893		Some 50,000 "Sooners" claim land in the Cherokee Strip during the first day of the Oklahoma land rush.
1908		General Motors files papers of incorporation.
1920		Thirty people are killed in a terrorist bombing in New York's Wall Street financial district.
1934		Anti-Nazi Lutherans stage protest in Munich.
1940		Congress passes the Selective Service Act, which calls for the first peacetime draft in U.S. history.
1942		The Japanese base at Kiska in the Aleutian Islands is raided by American bombers.
1945		Japan surrenders Hong Kong to Britain.
1950		The U.S. 8th Army breaks out of the Pusan Perimeter in South Korea and begins heading north to meet MacArthur's troops heading south from Inchon.
1972		South Vietnamese troops recapture Quang Tri province in South Vietnam from the North Vietnamese Army.
1974		Limited amnesty is offered to Vietnam-era draft resisters who would now swear allegiance to the United States and perform two years of public service.
1975		Administrators for Rhodes Scholarships announce the decision to begin offering fellowships to women.

Non Sequitur

The NFL "no-huddle" offense creates problems - for TV

The no-huddle offense has created plenty of problems for defenses, initially at the collegiate level and now in the NFL.  But as the WSJ reports, the tactic is also creating problems for television broadcasters:

Last week, 14% of NFL plays were run without a huddle, an increase of 56% from last season and 100% from five seasons ago. As you might imagine, these up-tempo drives can put a fair bit of pressure on the TV production crew...

Veteran broadcaster Marv Albert, who now calls NFL games for CBS, explained that the problem starts from the first play. If the team starts no-huddle on the first drive, the broadcast doesn't even have time to show the team's lineups. "And once you look down for an anecdote you're dead," Albert said. He added that when a team like New England is playing, he lives by a simple rule: "Don't talk about anything other than the play at hand, or you are going to miss snaps."...

During a Patriots game last fall against the Dallas Cowboys, the Patriots ran their offense so quickly that at one point in the third quarter, 10 plays went by without a replay. "When you're calling a Patriots game you cannot rest," Albert said.

Brian Billick, a former Ravens coach who is an analyst for Fox, said it's often nearly impossible to get even the shortest opinion across: "It's tight enough as it is, you only have 10-15 seconds to make a point and now you don't even have that." 

More at The Wall Street Journal.

Exercise May Protect Against Future Emotional Stress

Moderate exercise may help people cope with anxiety and stress for an extended period of time post-workout, according to a ...

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Random Celebrity Photo

Democratic Senators holding the lead in Ohio & Florida

The repugicans were hoping to be a lot closer in both states though for now, they have their work cut out for them. The Virginia battle is much harder to call and may remain that way until election day. NBC News/Wall Street Journal/Marist poll:

In Virginia, Kaine and Allen are deadlocked at 46 percent apiece with likely voters.

In Ohio, incumbent Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown leads repugican State Treasurer Josh Mandel 49 percent to 42 percent.

And in Florida, two-term Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson, leads repugican Rep. Connie Mack 51 percent to 37 percent. Twelve percent of Florida voters said they were undecided about the race.

Cult's slavery and lynching sign encourages people to vote

A sign urging people to vote is sparking a lot of conversation in Indianapolis. The sign sits in front of Greater St. Mark Missionary Baptist Clut. The sign reads on top, “Vote,” but it’s the imagery that has people talking. One side of the sign shows slaves in chains, with the wording beneath it “Lest we forget.”

The other side of the sign shows the historical image of the lynching in Marion of two black men in the 1930’s. “It’s to let people know there's been a price paid for the privilege of voting. Often times people get complacent and don’t realize that people made a sacrifice, matter of fact, the ultimate sacrifice for such a privilege,” said Pastor Joy Thornton with Greater St. Mark Missionary Baptist Cult.

Pastor Thornton put the sign up himself, saying the historical images shouldn't be forgotten. “Regardless of who you vote for, you need to exercise your privilege, which is voting,” said Thornton.

YouTube link.

Joyce Hise works across the street, and says she doesn’t have a problem with the sign. “It was just kind of a little shocker, it made me stop to think. So many people don’t know, and they don’t realize this was part of our history, and it is a reason to vote,” said Hise. Others don't agree with the sign. Mary Bishop owns the seafood shop across the street. “It’s not a good example for him to have it like that,” Bishop said. “He meant well, but he went about it in the wrong way.”

The truth be told

Energy Conservation no longer on repugican platform

Why would conserving energy be dropped? Shouldn't that be a conservative principle? Once again, anything that the Democrats support has to be shut down by the repugicans. Just because. Bloomberg:

The repugican cabal platform for 2012 contains no mention of energy efficiency, leading some observers to conclude that the issue of energy conservation--long considered bipartisan—is becoming increasingly politicized.

The omission is “a little bit surprising” given support from previous repugican platforms and from repugican presidential nominee Mitt Romney himself during his time as governor of Massachusetts, said Andrew Goldberg, chief lobbyist for the American Institute of Architects, a group that supports energy-efficient buildings.

Conserving energy is good all around, including good for the wallets of average Americans. Why or how it has become politicized by the repugican cabal is hard to answer.

Is Coal an Attractive Option?

As a new park counteracts the impact of a surface coal mine, it's interesting to note that coal remains popular despite its disadvantages. More

Did you know ...

Joe Walsh is a misogynist asshole No, not the singer, the other one.

How the repugicans reinforce a campaign of lies

About these 10 bookstores that used to be something else

In the News

Cops: Man aimed gun at pregnant smoker 

A Washington state man has been arrested on allegations that he pointed a handgun at a pregnant woman because she was smoking a cigarette.

Cat helps save man's life 

They say cats have nine lives and in this case, a cat gave his owner a second chance at life.

2 found guilty of charges in Ohio teen's death

Two nurses have been found guilty of charges in the malnutrition death of a 14-year-old Ohio girl who had cerebral palsy and weighed 28 pounds when she died.

The Kalamazoo Promise

In 2005, Kalamazoo, Michigan, went from a somewhat below-average place to live to a powerful magnet of a city in just one day. Seven years later, the New York Times magazine looks at how the hope of higher education has transformed the town.

Back in November 2005, when this year’s graduates were in sixth grade, the superintendent of Kalamazoo’s public schools, Janice M. Brown, shocked the community by announcing that unnamed donors were pledging to pay the tuition at Michigan’s public colleges, universities and community colleges for every student who graduated from the district’s high schools. All of a sudden, students who had little hope of higher education saw college in their future. Called the Kalamazoo Promise, the program — blind to family income levels, to pupils’ grades and even to disciplinary and criminal records — would be the most inclusive, most generous scholarship program in America.

It would also mark the start of an important social experiment. From the very beginning, Brown, the only person in town who communicates directly with the Promise donors, has suggested that the program is supposed to do more than just pay college bills. It’s primarily meant to boost Kalamazoo’s economy. The few restrictions — among them, children must reside in the Kalamazoo public-school district and graduate from one of its high schools — seem designed to encourage families to stay and work in the region for a long time. The program tests how place-based development might work when education is the first investment.

Since The Promise was made, student test scores have gone up, the school district's enrollment increased by 2,000 students, $35 million has been granted in tuition money, and Kalamazoo is now a place to which families want to move. The program has also inspired other towns and school districts to compete by helping more students pay for college. More

A McDonalds in a Mansion

This is a McDonalds outlet in New Hyde Park, Long Island, New York. McDonalds didn't set out to make one of their restaurants this beautiful. The Georgian mansion called The Denton House is over 200 years old -or at least parts of it are. It's been passed around and used as everything from a restaurant to a funeral home. 

By 1986, it was abandoned and on the verge of falling down.

McDonalds purchased the property with the intention of tearing it down and replacing it with a standard McDonald’s restaurant. Thank goodness for the citizens of the New Hyde Park, who worked to secure landmark status for the building in 1987.

McDonald’s had no choice but to restore the property and work within the parameters of the landmarks commission, which ultimately resulted in their most beautiful restaurant in America (if you know of a better example, please let me know).

You can read more about the history of the Denton House, and see lots of pictures, both historical and the gorgeous interior of the present McDonalds at Scouting New York here.

Shrubbery is King In Urban Jungle

Adding greenery to the walls of city streets can eliminate about half of at least two types of pollution from the air. Read more

X-rays spot Van Gogh work dulling

X-rays spot Van Gogh work dulling

Researchers examining microscopic samples of Van Gogh's Flowers in a Blue Vase find the varnish intended to protect it may well be degrading it.

• X-rays reveal archaeology secrets
• X-rays uncover Van Gogh portrait

Ming Dynasty vase used as doorstop sells for $1.3M

A rare Ming Dynasty vase that had been used as a doorstop in a New York home has sold for $1.3 million at auction.

More

 

Wow

The Czech Republic bans spirit sales amid wave of poisonings

A policeman leads a man accused in the case of illegal alcohol to the court in Zlin, Czech Republic, 250 kilometers east of Prague, Friday.

More

Shoplifter assaults Rock Hill Walmart worker, flees police

Police say a Rock Hill, South Carolina man stole $245 in steaks from Walmart, assaulted a worker and then led officers on a foot chase into the woods.

Reginald Brice, 47, is accused of stealing the steaks from the Old York Road Walmart near Newport around 3 p.m. Thursday, according to a Rock Hill Police report.
A store security worker confronted the thief in the parking lot when the man shoved and hit him, the report states. The store employee told police the shoplifter also attempted to bite him.
Brice ran away into the woods behind Walmart. Police found some of the steaks in his car in the parking lot, the report states.
He was later found hiding behind a garbage bin after an employee of a nearby pizza store noticed Brice looking suspicious and informed police.
Brice ran from officers back into the woods before he was arrested.
He is charged with resisting arrest, shoplifting and assault and battery, the report states.

Attempted theft at Bi-Lo

In an unrelated case, police are reviewing surveillance video to try to identify two women accused of attempting to steal nearly $800 worth of groceries from the Cherry Road Bi-Lo on Thursday.
Bi-Lo’s store manager told police that two women tried to leave the store with two grocery carts full of food around 6:40 p.m., according to a Rock Hill Police report.
The manager stopped the women and asked if they paid for their groceries.
One woman showed him an old store receipt from Charlotte, the manager told police.
They abandoned the shopping carts and ran to a gray Ford Taurus in the parking lot.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/09/14/3529368/police-shoplifter-assaults-rock.html#storylink=cpy

Man smashed up neighbor's camper because 'it looked like he was going to get froggy'

Curtis Leatherberry of New Port Richey, Florida, told deputies he grabbed a soda and a pastry from the house next door. It was an agreement he had with his neighbor. He didn't think there would be any trouble. At 1:45 on Tuesday morning, his neighbor came over. Tony Barney struck up an argument. He said food had been missing from his house and blamed Leatherberry, 52, a Pasco County Sheriff's Office report states.

Barney, 31, punched out a window of Leatherberry's live-in camper. Leatherberry told Barney that if he put his hand in again, he would stab it. Authorities say Barney then punched out every other window. He lobbed a cinder block into the trailer, breaking Leatherberry's dresser and microwave.

Barney broke off the supports to the camper's out-board sleeping area, then he began "literally tearing the walls off the trailer." He then stuck a water hose in the camper, turned it on and left. Deputies wrote they arrived to find shards of glass around the trailer and clinging to its window frames.

A 32-inch TV lay in its face nearby. The camper's siding was torn off, the frame broken, the inside soaked. In the middle of the floor sat the cinder block. Asked why he did it, Barney told deputies, "while I was talking with Curtis, it looked like he was going to get froggy. That is the only way I can describe it." Barney was arrested on a charge of criminal mischief. He remained on Wednesday at Land O'Lakes jail in lieu of $5,000 bail.

Bigoted filmmaker who triggered deaths has shady past

Besides being a hateful bigot, the filmmaker behind the new movie that has triggered riots and the death of a US ambassador is no stranger to trouble. He may have also violated the terms of his probation and is under investigation following the outbreak of violence. NBC News:

A 55-year-old Egypt-born Coptic Christian man living in the Los Angeles area was a key figure behind the anti-Islam film "Innocence of Muslims," blamed for sparking riots and protests in the Middle East, a federal law enforcement official told NBC News Thursday.

Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, who is on probation after being convicted of financial crimes, also was twice sentenced to jail on drug charges in the late 1990s, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office said.

Court records show that Nakoula was convicted on federal fraud charges in Los Angeles in 2010. Among the conditions of his probation, Nakoula was barred from using "any online service at any location" without the prior approval of his probation officer, according to a copy of court records in the case.

Indian laborer's hand cut off for asking for wages

In an instance of extraordinary brutality, a laborer's hand was chopped off by his employers infuriated over his seeking outstanding wages.

Lalman Yadav and his brother Uday Yadav, who run an illicit liquor business in Sikhnadi village in Jharkhand's Garhwa district, had hired Aliyar Rajwar (40) for supplying water to their production unit.

Rajwar was hired by the Yadav brothers at Rs 3,000 (£34, $55) per month. When he did not get his dues for three straight months, he approached the brothers for payment. But instead of giving Rajwar the Rs 9,000 they owed him, they first beat him up and then cut-off his hand with an axe.

YouTube link.

The attack on Rajwar took place late on Sunday and the Yadav brothers have absconded, while their accomplice, a man called Ramchandra, has been arrested. Garhwa SP Michael Raj admitted that the incident was serious.

Exploring the Abandoned Island of Drug Lord Pablo Escobar

Scattered around small islands off Colombia's Caribbean coast, these crumbling homes were once the playground of powerful drug lords – not least Pablo Escobar. More

Inside Auschwitz

Haunting Mementos of the Nazis' Largest Death Camp

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The Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz is notorious for its gas chambers and human experiments. Today, it still has tremendous power to elicit horror and sadness. More

Massive German War Plane Wreck Found

The six-engined plane, known as Messerschmitt 323 "Giant," was the largest land-based transport aircraft used in World War II. Read more

Awesome Pictures

Little Cold Spell Grows Massive Ice Sheet

A new study shows glaciers can respond swiftly to climatic shifts.  
Read more

'Lava Junkies' Hike Volcanos

When a volcano calls to this man, he answers by laying down on the rim and watching for hours at a time. Read more

Tatey: The Ancient Monastery of Armenia

Armenia has a number of monasteies dated the IX-XI centuries. Many of them have been important spiritual centers of the country. In the epoch of feudalism development they even had high schools where students were taught historiography, literature, philosophy, theology, music, miniature painting and other sciences. That's why they had to build special houses for books storage. Such houses were characterized by folk architecture made with stone. Tatev monastery was exactly one of them.It's the monastery of the Armenian Apostolic Church situated in the south-east of Armenia, near Tatev village and not so far from Yerevan - the capital of Armenia. More

TV Show Says Aliens Visited Easter Island

Archaeologists know who built the Moai statues and they weren't Martians.  

Read more

Alien Looking Desert Landscapes As Seen From Above

Although deserts are known as dry, dusty and desolate places, these pictures of desert landscapes taken from the air show that they can also be stunningly beautiful. More

Astronomical News

Dawn's Last Look Back at Vesta

As NASA's Dawn spacecraft departs Vesta, it sends back one last view of the surprisingly complex little world. Read more

Suspected Asteroid Smashes into Jupiter

Amateur astronomer George Hall sure was looking at the right place at the right time on Monday. Read more

Holey Moley, Batman: A real-life man-made bat cave

Created as a possible solution to the epidemic of white-nose syndrome:

...the conservation group, working with the state wildlife agency, decided to build a bat hibernaculum that could be scrubbed out with ammonia each autumn and spring, keeping the cave clean of the deadly fungus...

Made out of pre-cast concrete modules, the cave is about 24 metres long. That size space could easily accommodate 200,000 bats. "But I'd be happy with 10,000 to 15,000," Holliday said.

The cave was engineered to draw a continual supply of winter air from a concrete shaft to provide the chilly temperatures favoured by hibernating bats. Stale air is released through a chimney. The shaft also serves as the entrance for the bats.

The ceiling is scored with ridges and rough edges, the better to give bat claws a tight grip. Walls are lined with sheets of open mesh and fine screens – even a slab of board, with a gap for crevice-loving bats to roost in...

But there are no guarantees the bats will even deign to use the artificial space.  "It's a neat idea for sure but the trick will be seeing whether bats will use it first of all. The second thing will be seeing how they regulate the micro-climate inside, which is super-important for bat hibernation," said Craig Willis, a bat expert at the University of Winnipeg.

The Exotic Beauty Of Hummingbird Clearwing Moths

Have you ever done a double take when you're out in the garden admiring your honeysuckles and a quick-flying creature came up to suck the nectar? If it was too small to be a hummingbird and had tell-tale antennae, you may have seen a common clearwing moth.

Common clearwing moths (Hemaris thysbe) are both beautiful and bird-like, but despite all appearances to the contrary, they are bugs. These unusual moths are about 1.5 inches long, and they can be found in gardens and nectar-bearing bushes from central and eastern USA, all the way up to Alaska.

The Twelve Worst Invasive Fish on Earth

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Invasive fish, starting either as released pets, or as attempts to control mosquitoes or provide food are wrecking havoc on native ecosystems. More

Alien Snakes Help Spiders Overrun Guam

A bird-eating snake wipes out birds in Guam's jungles -- and spiders thrive.  
Read more

A 20-FT Shark Tagged Off Cape Cod

20-FT Shark Tagged Off Cape Cod

A 20-foot female great white shark was tagged near Chatham Harbor, Mass.

Animal Pictures