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Saturday, June 8, 2013
Today in History
452
Attila the Hun invades Italy.
632 Mohammed, the founder of Islam and unifier of Arabia, dies.
793 The Vikings raid the Northumbrian coast of England.
1861 Tennessee votes to secede from the Union and join the Confederacy.
1862 The Army of the Potomac defeats Confederate forces at Battle of Cross Keys, Virginia.
1863 Residents of Vicksburg flee into caves as General Ulysses S. Grant's army begins shelling the town. 1866 Prussia annexes the region of Holstein.
1904 U.S. Marines land in Tangiers, Morocco, to protect U.S. citizen.
1908 King Edward VII of England visits Czar Nicholas II of Russia in an effort to improve relations between the two countries.
1915 William Jennings Bryan quits as Secretary of State under President Wilson.
1953 The Supreme Court forbids segregated lunch counters in Washington, D.C.
1965 President Johnson authorizes commanders in Vietnam to commit U.S. ground forces to combat. 1966 Gemini astronaut Gene Cernan attempts to become the first man to orbit the Earth untethered to a space capsule, but is unable to when he exhausts himself fitting into his rocket pack.
1967 Israel airplanes attack the USS Liberty, a surveillance ship, in the Mediterranean, killing 34 Navy crewmen.
1968 James Earl Ray, the alleged assassin of Martin Luther King, Jr., is captured at the London Airport. 1969 President Richard Nixon meets with President Thieu of South Vietnam to tell him 25,000 U.S. troops will pull out by August.
1995 U.S. Air Force pilot Captain Scott O'Grady is rescued by U.S. Marines in Bosnia.
632 Mohammed, the founder of Islam and unifier of Arabia, dies.
793 The Vikings raid the Northumbrian coast of England.
1861 Tennessee votes to secede from the Union and join the Confederacy.
1862 The Army of the Potomac defeats Confederate forces at Battle of Cross Keys, Virginia.
1863 Residents of Vicksburg flee into caves as General Ulysses S. Grant's army begins shelling the town. 1866 Prussia annexes the region of Holstein.
1904 U.S. Marines land in Tangiers, Morocco, to protect U.S. citizen.
1908 King Edward VII of England visits Czar Nicholas II of Russia in an effort to improve relations between the two countries.
1915 William Jennings Bryan quits as Secretary of State under President Wilson.
1953 The Supreme Court forbids segregated lunch counters in Washington, D.C.
1965 President Johnson authorizes commanders in Vietnam to commit U.S. ground forces to combat. 1966 Gemini astronaut Gene Cernan attempts to become the first man to orbit the Earth untethered to a space capsule, but is unable to when he exhausts himself fitting into his rocket pack.
1967 Israel airplanes attack the USS Liberty, a surveillance ship, in the Mediterranean, killing 34 Navy crewmen.
1968 James Earl Ray, the alleged assassin of Martin Luther King, Jr., is captured at the London Airport. 1969 President Richard Nixon meets with President Thieu of South Vietnam to tell him 25,000 U.S. troops will pull out by August.
1995 U.S. Air Force pilot Captain Scott O'Grady is rescued by U.S. Marines in Bosnia.
New North America Viking Voyage Discovered
The voyage may have led to the first contact between Europeans and indigenous people of the New World.
Living Off the Grid Getting Easier
Power companies are making it easier for homeowners to make and store their own electricity.
Five of the last seven U.S. presidents have been left-handed
Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George Bush Sr., Bill Clinton, Barack Obama.This despite the fact that only 10% of the people in the country are left-handed.
In the previous 200 years there were only two presidents known to be left-handed - James Garfield and Harry Truman.
The link is to a New York Sun article discussing this interesting anomaly and speculating about why there has been an apparent surge in lefties; there may be biological and behavioral components, but it's probably just a statistical oddity.
Living a life of delusion ...
Mitt Romney Blames The IRS and Hurricane Sandy For His Loss to Obama
Mitt Romney is still clinging to his skewed polls and claiming that
if Hurricane Sandy wouldn’t have hit when it did, and he would have
known about the IRS scandal, he would have won the election.Video:
CNN’s Gloria Borger asked Romney if he blamed Chris Christie. The former presidential nominee answered by blaming the timing of Hurricane Sandy, “I wish the hurricane hadn’t have happened when it did because it gave the president a chance to be presidential and to be out showing sympathy for folks. That’s one of the advantages of incumbency. But, you know, you don’t look back and worry about each little thing and how could that have been different.”
Notice that Romney doesn’t say that he wishes that hurricane would have never hit, and people wouldn’t have lost their lives, loved ones, and property. Still as selfish as ever, Mitt Romney is most upset that Sandy struck during the homestretch of the presidential campaign. It never seems to occur to Romney that his inability to show compassion and sympathy for others is what really hurt him with voters.
Later, Romney was asked about the IRS scandal and he claimed that it could have changed the outcome of the election, “You know, the election was close enough in the outcome with what four percent difference between the two campaigns that a number of things could have changed the outcome. Again, you don’t look back and say, oh, couldn’t we have just changed this? The president won. I congratulate his campaign team on having won. That’s the nature of politics is winning. They won. Nice work. And let’s get on with it.”
Mitt Romney is delusional if he thinks that anything could have swung the election to him. Voters didn’t like or trust him. Mitt Romney lost all of the swing states that he targeted for a reason. Despite what Romney and his fellow repugicans keep telling themselves, the 2012 election wasn’t really close. Mitt’s comments illustrate that he is still believes that he was ahead, even if the polls that had him leading have been proven inaccurate and wrong.
Romney is blaming everyone and everything, but himself for his defeat. He is also demonstrating why he would have been a terrible president. Mitt refuses to take responsibility for himself, or accept reality. Most of all, Romney would have been awful because he shows no understanding of or compassion for other people. For 99% of America, Mitt Romney’s presidency would have been a disaster.
Sandy and the IRS didn’t cost Romney the election. Mitt and Ann did.
The repugicans Refuse to Investigate the Illegal Activities of the Kochs and John Boehner
Over the past two years, there have been four instances of malfeasance that have been “overlooked” by the federal government and at least one of them is finally getting the attention it deserves. the repugicans and the oil industry cheered after the State Department released a report on the environmental impact of the Keystone XL pipeline because it gave the environmentally damaging project a clean bill of health, and it should have because the report was conducted by an oil industry contractor, Environmental Resources Management (ERM), that has ties to the pipeline’s owner TransCanada, ExxonMobil, and Koch brothers who all have a stake in developing Canadian tar sand. According to the law, hiring an oil company contractor with a financial interest in the project is against federal conflict of interest laws, and as it turns out, “ERM misled the State Department at least twice in its proposal which most certainly lead the State Department to contract the Keystone XL review to an oil contractor with a vested interest in providing a favorable report.” Where is the repugican outrage at a real scandal with federal documents to back up the claim that ERM lied on its application and review report?
There is more to the Keystone scandal that Darrell Issa, and the SEC, should have investigated regarding Speaker of the House John Boehner’s lies about the hundreds-of-thousands of jobs the pipeline would generate barely a year after he invested in 7 Canadian tar sand companies in 2010. It is an ethics violation for elected officials to use their political office to perform official acts on behalf of special interests, and particularly when the elected official lies about a project to profit him and his campaign donors. A complaint was sent to the Securities and Exchange Commission that accused TransCanada of using “false or misleading statements about the proposed Keystone XL pipeline” and that Boehner, on behalf of TransCanada “consistently used public statements and information they knew were false in a concerted effort to secure permitting approval of Keystone XL from the U.S. government.” The SEC should have fully investigated Boehner and TransCanada for violating SEC Rule 10b(5) – Employment of Manipulative and Deceptive Practices to bolster stock prices, but because it was a Republican and the oil industry who broke the law, the investigation never materialized. Where was repugican and Darrell Issa’s outrage over the Speaker of the House lying to profit the oil industry and bolster his stock portfolio using the power of his political office?
Last year during the presidential campaign, Willard Romney claimed he left Bain Capital in 1999 to run the Salt Lake City Olympics, but filings with the SEC clearly listed Romney as Bain’s chief executive between 1999 and 2002. A former SEC commissioner said that “You can’t say statements filed with the SEC are meaningless. This is a fact in an SEC filing,” and yet Romney was never investigated or charged with lying on federal documents filed with the SEC. Even though it was legally impossible for Willard to deny what he stated on SEC documents and Massachusetts state filings, he continued lying and one cannot help but wonder why he was never charged with filing false government reporting documents which is a felony. Where was repugican outrage and why has Romney still never been charged?
In Issa’s current witch hunt, all the attention is being focused on IRS agents targeting teabagger and conservative groups’ applications for 510(c)(4) tax exempt social welfare organizations, and repugicans are desperate to tie the White House to the IRS doing its due diligence in scrutinizing applications before granting tax exempt status to the purely political organizations. Each and every group that applied for the “social welfare” designation checked a box on the applications that said they were not primarily in the business of political promotion, and instead of investigating the groups for lying on federal tax documents, repugicans are focusing on a non-existent connection between the IRS doing its job and the Obama White House. Where is the repugican outrage and congressional investigations into teabagger groups and the Koch brothers’ Americans for Prosperity for lying on federal documents to conceal their dark money donors?
In November 2010 Issa knew repugicans would have control of the House and he would get to conduct “seven hearings a week, times 40 weeks,” and yet he has never launched one investigation in confirmed acts of filing false documents and share manipulation by the Speaker of the House. Romney’s SEC filings are still part of the public record readily available to Issa, and the ERM application to conduct the KeystoneXL environmental impact report is in plain sight for all to see as are over 300 teabagger and conservative groups’ applications to earn “social welfare” tax exempt status. Where is repugican outrage and why is Issa not screaming about repugicans and their donors’ immoral and illegal actions that are genuine scandals waiting to be prosecuted.
It is common knowledge that repugicans operate under a double standard, but to allow men like the Koch brothers, Karl Rove, Willard Romney, and Speaker of the House John Boehner to escape even an investigation is beyond hypocrisy, it is criminal and looking the other way makes Issa and his repugican cheering section criminals for not doing their jobs as advocates for the American people. The idea of never investigating, charging, and prosecuting repugicans or their campaign donors is a pox on this nation going back to the shrub junta lying to take the nation into a war, and not prosecuting bankers and Wall Street executives for deliberately crashing the economy and it persists today in ignoring clear cases of illegal activity by wingnuts and their oil industry masters. The repugicans, and primarily Darrell Issa, have wasted months on a Benghazi non-scandal and they will waste more time and taxpayer dollars pursing a non-existent IRS scandal when if they really want convictions, they can look into Willard Romney, John Boehner, Koch oil associate ERM, and conservative groups’ illegal activities, but as often is the case, there is honor among criminals and there is no way the criminals in the repugican cabal will investigate the other criminals in the repugican cabal.
TSA chickens out ...
... and won't allow items that don't threaten airplanes back on-board
But coping a feel is still allowed
The TSA has backed down from its moment of sanity in which it decided to allow golf-clubs, small knives and other items that pose no threat to airplanes back in the sky. The TSA's move had been a welcome effort to clarify that it was attempting to prevent terrorists from crashing airplanes, not prevent bodily harm to passengers (in order to do the latter, it would have had to also ban socks full of quarters, large booze-bottles from the duty-free, and innumerable other objects capable of harming crew and passengers). However, after hysterical criticism from flight crews, flier groups and cowardly congressmen, it changed its mind.
"After extensive engagement with the Aviation Security Advisory Committee, law enforcement officials, passenger advocates, and other important stakeholders, TSA will continue to enforce the current prohibited items list," Mr Pistole said.
Wal*mart needs to pay fair wages
When Walmart moved into a small town near us with one of their Super
Centers, they wiped out about 75% of all of the local businesses. There
isn't a competing grocery store within 15 miles.
From Forbes
For years, Wal-Mart and other large retail operators-have been piling up huge profits by controlling their labor costs through paying employees sub-poverty level wages. As a result, it has long been left to the taxpayer to provide healthcare and other subsidized benefits to the many Wal-Mart employees who are dependent on Medicaid, food stamp programs and subsidized housing in order to keep their families from going under.
With Medicaid eligibility about to be expanded in some 30 states, as a result of the Affordable Care Act, Wal-Mart has responded by cutting employee hours-and thereby wages-even further in order to push more of their workers into state Medicaid programs and increase Wal-Mart profits. Good news for Wal-Mart shareholders and senior management earning the big bucks-not so good for the taxpayers who will now be expected to contribute even larger amounts of money to subsidize Wal-Mart's burgeoning profits.
But, at long last and in a move gaining popularity around the nation, the State of California is attempting to say 'enough' to Wal-Mart and the other large retailers who are looking to the taxpayers to take on the responsibility for the company's employees-a responsibility Wal-Mart has long refused to accept.
Walmart Pays Workers Poorly And Sinks While Costco Pays Workers Well And Sails-Proof That You Get What You Pay For Rick Ungar Rick Ungar Contributor
Walmart Bails On Obamacare-Sticks Taxpayers With Employee Healthcare Costs Rick Ungar Rick Ungar Contributor
It's about time.
Legislation is now making its way through the California legislature-with the support of consumer groups, unions and, interestingly, physicians-that would levy a fine of up to $6,000 on employers like Wal-Mart for every full-time employee that ends up on the state's Medi-Cal program-the California incarnation of Medicaid.
The amount of the fine is no coincidence.
A report released last week by the Democratic staff of the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce, estimates that the cost of Wal-Mart's failure to adequately pay its employees could total about $5,815 per employee each and every year of employment.
From Forbes
To Wal-Mart: Enough! No More Taxpayer Subsidized Profits For You
For years, Wal-Mart and other large retail operators-have been piling up huge profits by controlling their labor costs through paying employees sub-poverty level wages. As a result, it has long been left to the taxpayer to provide healthcare and other subsidized benefits to the many Wal-Mart employees who are dependent on Medicaid, food stamp programs and subsidized housing in order to keep their families from going under.
With Medicaid eligibility about to be expanded in some 30 states, as a result of the Affordable Care Act, Wal-Mart has responded by cutting employee hours-and thereby wages-even further in order to push more of their workers into state Medicaid programs and increase Wal-Mart profits. Good news for Wal-Mart shareholders and senior management earning the big bucks-not so good for the taxpayers who will now be expected to contribute even larger amounts of money to subsidize Wal-Mart's burgeoning profits.
But, at long last and in a move gaining popularity around the nation, the State of California is attempting to say 'enough' to Wal-Mart and the other large retailers who are looking to the taxpayers to take on the responsibility for the company's employees-a responsibility Wal-Mart has long refused to accept.
Walmart Pays Workers Poorly And Sinks While Costco Pays Workers Well And Sails-Proof That You Get What You Pay For Rick Ungar Rick Ungar Contributor
Walmart Bails On Obamacare-Sticks Taxpayers With Employee Healthcare Costs Rick Ungar Rick Ungar Contributor
It's about time.
Legislation is now making its way through the California legislature-with the support of consumer groups, unions and, interestingly, physicians-that would levy a fine of up to $6,000 on employers like Wal-Mart for every full-time employee that ends up on the state's Medi-Cal program-the California incarnation of Medicaid.
The amount of the fine is no coincidence.
A report released last week by the Democratic staff of the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce, estimates that the cost of Wal-Mart's failure to adequately pay its employees could total about $5,815 per employee each and every year of employment.
New York Senate makes it a felony to annoy a police officer
From the "Very, very, very bad idea" Department:
The New York Senate has passed a bill making it illegal to "harass" a
police officer by "any type of physical action" -- even action that does
not otherwise constitute interference, obstruction or assault. Given
that "obstruction" and "interference" are famously broad, it's hard to
imagine what conduct the police and the NY Senate believe they need to
control by statute, though there's a clue in the statutory language,
which makes it a felony to "harass, annoy, or threaten a police officer
while on duty."
In other words, if you cause any physical contact with a police officer, even unintentionally, even if the contact does not rise to the level of assault or obstruction or interference, you can be convicted of a felony and imprisoned if the officer can show that your conduct "annoyed" him. This is the kind of statute that seems calculated to allow the police and prosecutors to put people in jail for very long stretches (remember that 97% of people indicted for felonies in the USA plead guilty under threat of decades of prison should they fight and lose) just because they don't like them very much.
I'm reminded of Toronto's notorious "Officer Bubbles", Adam Josephs, who told a G20 protester that if any soap bubbles were to touch him, he could consider it assault (and who violently arrested the protester on that basis). The world laughed (albeit with some weary cynicism) at the idea that a large, armed man could call incidental contact with a soap-bubble "assault." But the New York Senate has effectively given police the power to literally treat mere annoyances as felonious conduct.
In other words, if you cause any physical contact with a police officer, even unintentionally, even if the contact does not rise to the level of assault or obstruction or interference, you can be convicted of a felony and imprisoned if the officer can show that your conduct "annoyed" him. This is the kind of statute that seems calculated to allow the police and prosecutors to put people in jail for very long stretches (remember that 97% of people indicted for felonies in the USA plead guilty under threat of decades of prison should they fight and lose) just because they don't like them very much.
I'm reminded of Toronto's notorious "Officer Bubbles", Adam Josephs, who told a G20 protester that if any soap bubbles were to touch him, he could consider it assault (and who violently arrested the protester on that basis). The world laughed (albeit with some weary cynicism) at the idea that a large, armed man could call incidental contact with a soap-bubble "assault." But the New York Senate has effectively given police the power to literally treat mere annoyances as felonious conduct.
“At a time when shocking incidents of disrespect and outright confrontation are at an all-time high, the men and women who patrol the streets of our cities deserve every possible protection we can offer them,” Senator Griffo stated. “My bill would make it a crime to take any type of physical action to try to intimidate a police officer. This is a necessary action because we can see from the rise in incidents that too many people in our society have lost the respect they need to have for a police officer. We need to make it very clear that when a police officer is performing his duty, every citizen needs to comply and that refusal to comply carries a penalty.”
***
Now who is it that will be determining what constitutes 'harassing' police officer - surely not the police officer(s) ... there are more than enough egomaniacs among them as it is and this ill conceived law will only make things worse.
"Weeds" Come to Life?
NY Mom Arrested in Massive Pot Bust
by Winston Ross, Eliza Shapiro
To
people who didn’t know her well, Andrea Sanderlin was a fairly typical
mom. She doted on her two young daughters and bragged about their
endeavors to anyone who’d listen. She was to be the maid of honor in a
wedding next month. She goes to dinner parties and family functions. She
designs baby furniture.
That’s what she tells people, anyway.
“She’s a great mom,” one friend told The Daily Beast. “Because she’s all about being a mom.”
But the few people Sanderlin allowed inside a tight “inner circle” knew the 45-year-old Scarsdale, N.Y., woman kept a loosely guarded secret that funded a lavish lifestyle: a secret straight out of the Showtime series Weeds.
Sanderlin was running a massive marijuana growing operation out of Queens, federal authorities allege in a criminal complaint released
Tuesday. Agents seized 2,800 marijuana plants and large quantities of
dried marijuana from the sprawling, two-room warehouse where she
allegedly tended to her plants on an industrial block in Maspeth,
Queens, according to documents obtained by The Smoking Gun.
Sanderlin’s arrest came as a shock to some. To others, not so much.
“I knew she was growing weed. It was just kind of known,” said one
friend, who spoke on the condition that she not be named. “I had no idea
how extensive it was.”
What Sanderlin didn’t hide were the apparent spoils of the operation:
a leased four bedroom, five-bathroom, 5,500-square-foot Spanish-style
mansion on a tranquil street in one of New York City’s wealthiest
suburbs. A Mercedes GL4 sport-utility vehicle. The “biggest diamond ring
I’ve ever seen in person, on a human person, outside of a museum,”
according to the friend—an engagement ring given to her by her
boyfriend, Vince “Rome” Garcia. The Friesian horse and newfound
equestrian hobby she cultivated at Twin Lakes Farm in Bronxville, where
private lessons go for $95 an hour.
“She was into plastic surgery,” the friend said. “She got a Brazilian butt lift that she actually went to Brazil for.”
While she didn’t hide her wealth, Sanderlin kept her alleged pot
business under wraps, at least until an anonymous informant tipped off
the New York branch of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency after the arrest
of five men in a separate incident in April. In order to save himself,
one of the five arrested growers ratted out Sanderlin, whom he referred to as “Andi.”
Federal agents responding to the tip eventually found Sanderlin’s
posh house and her three vehicles—a white Chevy van and black Jeep
Liberty, along with the Mercedes. Then they found a clue: Sanderlin was
paying $9,000 a month in electricity fees to Con Edison. In cash.
“I know that large cash payments are consistent with narcotics activity,” the indictment read.
Agents tracked Sanderlin for more than a week as she went about her
daily routine, driving the gray Mercedes from 193 Saxon Woods Road in
Scarsdale across the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge and parking in the
driveway of 58-15 57th Drive in Queens, the site of the warehouse
registered as a New York City corporation called Fantastic Enterprises.
On May 20, the agents stopped Sanderlin, identified themselves, and
searched the warehouse.
Chocolate giants accused of price fixing
Former Nestle president criminally charged
Canada’s
Competition Bureau said Thursday it is laying price-fixing charges
against Nestle Canada Inc., Mars Canada Inc. and ITWAL Ltd., a network
of independent wholesale distributors.
The accused in a chocolate price-fixing case could face a bitter fate if
convicted — millions of dollars in fines for the companies and
potential jail time for the individuals.
Canada’s Competition
Bureau said Thursday it is laying criminal charges against Nestle Canada
Inc., Mars Canada Inc. and ITWAL Ltd., a network of independent
wholesale distributors.
Also charged are former Nestle Canada president Robert Leonidas; Sandra Martinez, former president of confectionery for Nestle Canada; and David Glenn Stevens, president and chief executive of ITWAL.
The companies and individuals are accused of conspiracy under the Competition Act.
In separate statements, both Nestle and Mars said they intend to “vigorously defend” themselves against the charges. Both said the allegations date back to 2007 and earlier.
Statements from ITWAL and Hershey were not immediately available.
The bureau says it must not only prove competitors agreed to fix prices, but that the agreement would likely have “an undue economic effect” on the market.
“We are fully committed to pursuing those who engage in egregious anti-competitive behaviour that harms Canadian consumers,” said interim competition commissioner John Pecman.
“Price-fixing is a serious criminal offence and today’s charges demonstrate the Competition Bureau’s resolve to stop cartel activity in Canada.”
The bureau found out about the alleged scheme through its immunity program, under which the first party to disclose an offence or provide evidence may receive immunity, provided it fully co-operates.
Subsequent parties that help out in an investigation may receive lenient treatment.
In this case, the bureau says Hershey Canada Inc. co-operated with its investigation and the agency recommended to prosecutors that the company receive lenient treatment.
The Competition Act’s current conspiracy provision could mean a $25-million fine and/or imprisonment of up to 14 years.
But since the price-fixing took place under an earlier provision, the penalties are less harsh. In this case, the accused face a fine of up to $10 million and/or a prison term of up to five years.
The bureau says proving the law was broken will also be more complicated under the old rules.
Also charged are former Nestle Canada president Robert Leonidas; Sandra Martinez, former president of confectionery for Nestle Canada; and David Glenn Stevens, president and chief executive of ITWAL.
The companies and individuals are accused of conspiracy under the Competition Act.
In separate statements, both Nestle and Mars said they intend to “vigorously defend” themselves against the charges. Both said the allegations date back to 2007 and earlier.
Statements from ITWAL and Hershey were not immediately available.
The bureau says it must not only prove competitors agreed to fix prices, but that the agreement would likely have “an undue economic effect” on the market.
“We are fully committed to pursuing those who engage in egregious anti-competitive behaviour that harms Canadian consumers,” said interim competition commissioner John Pecman.
“Price-fixing is a serious criminal offence and today’s charges demonstrate the Competition Bureau’s resolve to stop cartel activity in Canada.”
The bureau found out about the alleged scheme through its immunity program, under which the first party to disclose an offence or provide evidence may receive immunity, provided it fully co-operates.
Subsequent parties that help out in an investigation may receive lenient treatment.
In this case, the bureau says Hershey Canada Inc. co-operated with its investigation and the agency recommended to prosecutors that the company receive lenient treatment.
The Competition Act’s current conspiracy provision could mean a $25-million fine and/or imprisonment of up to 14 years.
But since the price-fixing took place under an earlier provision, the penalties are less harsh. In this case, the accused face a fine of up to $10 million and/or a prison term of up to five years.
The bureau says proving the law was broken will also be more complicated under the old rules.
Are You Prepared for the Krispy Kreme Sloppy Joe?
Every year, Chicken Charlies introduces a new heart attack on a plate at the San Diego Fair. Past creations have included deep fried Kool Aid, zucchini nachos, fried avocado and more. This year, the new additions include a fried bacon-wrapped pickle, deep fried cookie dough, a waffle dog and, most notably, a sloppy joe sandwich with a Krispy Kreme donut bun.
I'd test out the monstrosity for you guys while I'm at the fair this Saturday, but unfortunately, I have a gluten intolerance and even a regular Krispy Kreme donut would leave me feeling like death for the next 24 hours. Of course, if you guys have any requests for things you'd like to see me check out at the fair (I'll even eat weird stuff as long as it won't make me sick), just let me know and I'll see if I can oblige while I'm there.
Soy Sauce Overdose
Soy
sauce is tasty, but apparently it can also be deadly at high levels.
Kids, here's why it's dumb to drink a quart of soy sauce as a dare:After the man drank the soy sauce, he began twitching and having seizures, and the friends took him to an emergency room. That hospital administered anti-seizure medication, and he was already in a coma when he was taken to the hospital where Carlberg was working, the University of Virginia Medical Center, nearly four hours after the event.Tia Ghose of LiveScience has the post: Here.
"He didn't respond to any of the stimuli that we gave him," Carlberg said. "He had some clonus, which is just elevated reflexes. It's a sign that basically the nervous system wasn't working very well."
The team immediately began flushing the salt out of his system by administering a solution of water and the sugar dextrose through a nasal tube. When they placed the tube, streaks of brown material came out. Within a half hour, they pumped 1.5 gallons (6 liters) of sugar water into the man's body.
The man's sodium levels returned to normal after about five hours. He remained in a coma for three days, but woke up on his own.
It's all in the Brain
A new study by researchers from Brown University finds more
evidence that breastfeeding is good for babies’ brains. The study made
use of specialized, baby-friendly magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to
look at the brain growth [...]
Researchers report that a single, 20-minute session of Hatha
yoga significantly improved participants’ speed and accuracy on tests of
working memory and inhibitory control, two measures of brain function
associated with the ability to maintain [...]
Why Did The Neanderthals Die Out?
Our current solo status on Earth is therefore an evolutionary oddity - though it is not clear when our species became Earth's only masters, nor is it clear why we survived when all other versions of humanity died out. A major conference in London this week will reveal the results of five years' research on why Homo sapiens emerged triumphant in the survival battle of the humans.
World's Oldest Tumor
A Neanderthal bone fragment shows a cancerous tumor
Melody Kramer of National Geographic News has the post: Here.The discovery of a fibrous dysplasia in a Neanderthal rib is the earliest known bone tumor on record, predating other tumors by more than 100,000 years. The rib, recovered from a site in Krapina, Croatia, indicates that Neanderthals were susceptible to the same types of tumors modern-day humans get, despite living in a remarkably different environment."They didn't have pesticides, but they probably were sleeping in caves with burning fires," says David Frayer, an anthropologist at the University of Kansas and the co-author of a new paper about the discovery. "They were probably inhaling a lot of smoke from the caves. So the air was not completely free of pollutants—but certainly, these Neanderthals weren't smoking cigarettes."
Sansiantai
The Dragon Bridge To The Island Of The Three Immortals
Sansiantai is saturated in folklore. The three enormous rocks making up the island's most conspicuous feature long ago gave rise to a native myth that three of China's Eight Immortals once chose the island for a place to rest. Even the name of the island translates to the Terrace of the Three Immortals.
Solar Secrets
Sun-graze comet shows solar secrets
A comet's extremely close encounter with the Sun gives scientists a look at a region never visited by spacecraft.
The universe has 100 billion galaxies
... with 100 billion stars in each galaxy
There are 100 billion galaxies, with 100 billion stars in each galaxy, in the universe. It’s a ridiculously large number of stars when you add it all up. It’s a figure that’s always amazed me, ever since I was kid watching Carl Sagan on TV.
The view from the Hubble Telescope.
It’s also why, even though I’m not convinced there’s anything near
us, I am convinced that we’re not alone. Having said that, it’s been
theorized that even if we aren’t alone, it’s not entirely clear that
another civilization would be nearby, at our equal stage of development
(so that we could communicate electronically), or that the other
civilizations would even exist at exactly the same time that we exist –
meaning, something existed a long time ago, died off, we existed, then
we die off, then another civilization peaks somewhere else.And let’s not even get into the problem that the immense distances pose. We could receive a signal from a distant civilization, but it might have been sent a million years ago. Would they even still exist, let alone even if they did, what would they be like after a million years of civilization?
Anywhere this video about the Hubble telescope, and the Ultra Deep Field, got me thinking of these matters. I’ve always loved astronomy. And these kind of videos reignite that passion for me, big time.
Kepler Stars And Planets Are Bigger Than Thought
The Kepler space telescope's target stars appear to be bigger than astronomers realized.
Animal News
Jim Morrison who famously slithered around in tight pants on
stage, was known as The Lizard King. Now scientists have named an
enormous lizard after the late great rock star.
Dogs may help correct certain human mental health disorders by affecting brain chemistry and function.
The similarity in development suggests gestures played an important role in language evolution.
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