CAROLINA NATURALLY

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Will Year of the Tiger bring you luck?

Chinese astrology has good and bad news if you're seeking love or money.

Depends on when you were born

Also:

Insurer delays much-criticized rate hike

Anthem Blue Cross postpones its plan to raise rates for some California residents.

Rate hikes in other states

Also:

CIA reveals secret submarine hunt

Project Azorian was a brazen high-seas Cold War mission to steal Soviet intelligence.

Key details missing

Also:

'Bad' foods that can be good for you

5 'bad' foods that can be good for you

Occasionally eating these five "taboo treats" may actually boost your health.

» Ice cream, cheese, pizza

Also:

Rogue waves injure surfing spectators

Two massive waves knock over fans watching the Mavericks contest in California.

At least 13 injuries reported

Also:

Snow in 49 states at one time

These days the red, white, and blue is mostly white — and more might be coming.

Hawaii's holding out

Also:

New twist to Alabama tragedy

Police say the suspect fatally shot her brother in 1986 in what was deemed an accident.

'The report's gone'

Also:

The repugicans: Civilian Terror Trials 'dangerous'

The repugicans say plans to hold a civilian trial for Sept. 11 suspects are "unnecessarily dangerous."
In the repugican weekly radio and Internet insult to and assault on normal human beings' intelligence ...

Full Story

The repugicans are wussies.

Bruma frees major opposition leader

In this June 9, 1996 file photo, pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, right, speaks to crowds gathered outside the gates of her home as the National League for Democracy Party's Vice Chairman Tin Oo stands at left in Yangon, Burma.

Full Story

Human Otter

State officials in Maine say witnesses who reported seeing a drowning snowmobiler on a lake were probably looking at an otter enjoying a snack.

Otter mistaken for drowning snowmobiler in Maine

Boy, some people in Maine are a bit myopic ... I mean if they can not tell an otter from a human then they best be getting to the optometrist and get some corrective lenses, for sure.

Also, who rides a snowmobile in a body of water, anyway?

Strange Creatures in Utah

Surprisingly enough they aren't talking about mormons?!

For decades there have been dozens of sightings of the famous creature Bigfoot within the borders of Utah.

Strange Creatures in Utah

Bigfoot is more believable than mormons.

Pork-flavored doughnuts?

Patrick Lin is sure he can succeed where others have failed, and get the Chinese hooked on doughnuts.

A Chinese market beckons

Nazi loyalist and Adolf Hitler's devoted aide: the true story of Eva Braun

For decades she has been seen as a decorative companion to Adolf Hitler, an apolitical "dumb blond" whose attentions served as an occasional diversion for the Führer.

http://www.mieliestronk.com/evabraun.jpg

A new biography tells why the serious side to the Führer's 'dumb blond' was hidden to history.

Full Story

Third fire in a week

Firefighters are investigating the latest in a series of suspicious fires in Northwest Charlotte.

3rd Fire In 1 Week; Firefighters Investigate

A lesson in the Physical Laws of Nature

Spraying pepper spray directly into the wind may not have the desired effect.

Japanese whalers who complained of injuries from rancid butter thrown at them by an anti-whaling group were actually suffering from their own pepper spray attack, the protesters said Saturday.

Paul Watson, captain of the Sea Shepherd protest vessel Steve Irwin, said in a statement that video of Thursday's incident showed wind blowing the spray into the faces of the Japanese crew who were aiming it at the activists.

The Japanese said Friday three crew members had eye and face injuries from butyric acid, produced from bottles of stinking rancid butter that the activists sometimes aim at the ships. The activists maintain that butyric acid is nontoxic.

Florida Cold Snap Killing Hundreds of Manatees

From Treehugger:

manatee crystal river florida photo

A manatee in Florida's Crystal River. Photo by divemasterking2000 via Flickr.

Unusually harsh winter temperatures in much of the United States have had a tragic effect on one of Florida's most oddly charismatic animals, killing up to 5 percent of the state's endangered West Indies manatees.

Article continues: Florida Cold Snap Killing Hundreds of Manatees

How to type hearts on your keyboard

What's the trick to making heart symbols with the numeric pad keys?

People answer the question

Also:

Home projects to lower your energy bills

Simple, low-tech changes can be a smarter move than replacing major appliances.

Tax-credit advantages, too

Also:

Tropical Cyclone Rene hits American Samoa

A strong storm with hurricane-force winds has begun hitting American Samoa, where residents are still recovering from last year's deadly tsunami.

Full Story

Israeli doves hold protest

Israel's battered pro-peace camp is showing signs of life with a weekly Jerusalem protest by a motley collection of anarchists, intellectuals and radical rabbis, but they face a public increasingly hostile to their point of view.

Full Story

President Obama's Weekly Address

Remarks of President Barack Obama
Weekly Address
February 13, 2010

All across America, people work hard to meet their responsibilities. You do your jobs, take care of your families, pay your bills. Sometimes, particularly in tough times like these, you have to make hard choices about where to spend and where to save. That’s what being responsible means. That’s a bedrock value of our country. And that ought to be a value that our government lives up to as well.

Yet, over the past decade, this hasn’t always not been the case. Ten years ago, we had a big budget surplus with projected surpluses far into the future. Ten years later, those surpluses are gone. In fact, when I first walked through the door, the government’s budget deficit stood at $1.3 trillion, with the budget gap over the next decade projected to be $8 trillion.

Partly, the recession is to blame. With millions of people out of work, and millions of families facing hardship, folks are paying less in taxes while seeking more services, like unemployment benefits. Rising health care costs are also to blame. Each year, more and more tax dollars are devoted to Medicare and Medicaid.

But what also made these large deficits possible was the end of a common sense rule called “pay as you go.” It’s pretty simple. It says to Congress, you have to pay as you go. You can’t spend a dollar unless you cut a dollar elsewhere. This is how a responsible family or business manages a budget. And this is how a responsible government manages a budget, as well.

It was this rule that helped lead to balanced budgets in the 1990s, by making clear that we could not increase entitlement spending or cut taxes simply by borrowing more money. And it was the abandonment of this rule that allowed the previous administration and previous congresses to pass massive tax cuts for the wealthy and create an expensive new drug program without paying for any of it. Now in a perfect world, Congress would not have needed a law to act responsibly, to remember that every dollar spent would come from taxpayers today – or our children tomorrow.

But this isn’t a perfect world. This is Washington. And while in theory there is bipartisan agreement on moving on balanced budgets, in practice, this responsibility for the future is often overwhelmed by the politics of the moment. It falls prey to the pressure of special interests, to the pull of local concerns, and to a reality familiar to every single American – the fact that it is a lot easier to spend a dollar than save one.

That is why this rule is necessary. And that is why I am pleased that Congress fulfilled my request to restore it. Last night, I signed the “pay as you go” rule into law. Now, Congress will have to pay for what it spends, just like everybody else.

But that’s not all we must do. Even as we make critical investments to create jobs today and lay a foundation for growth tomorrow – by cutting taxes for small businesses, investing in education, promoting clean energy, and modernizing our roads and railways – we have to continue to go through the budget line by line, looking for ways to save. We have to cut where we can, to afford what we need.

This year, I’ve proposed another $20 billion in budget cuts. And I’ve also called for a freeze in government spending for three years. It won’t affect benefits through Medicare, Medicaid, or Social Security. And it will not affect national security – including benefits for veterans. But it will affect the rest of the budget.

Finally, I’ve proposed a bipartisan Fiscal Commission to provide recommendations for long-term deficit reduction. Because in the end, solving our fiscal challenge – so many years in the making – will take both parties coming together, putting politics aside, and making some hard choices about what we need to spend, and what we don’t. It will not happen any other way. Unfortunately this proposal – which received the support of a bipartisan majority in the Senate – was recently blocked. So, I will be creating this commission by executive order.

After a decade of profligacy, the American people are tired of politicians who talk the talk but don’t walk the walk when it comes to fiscal responsibility. It’s easy to get up in front of the cameras and rant against exploding deficits. What’s hard is actually getting deficits under control. But that’s what we must do. Like families across the country, we have to take responsibility for every dollar we spend. And with the return of “pay as you go,” as well as other steps we’ve begun to take, that is exactly what we are doing.

Thanks.

Today is ...

Today is Saturday, February 13, the 44th day of 2010.

There are 321 days left in the year.

Today In History February 13

Today's unusual holidays and celebrations are:

Madly In Love With Me Day

and

Get A Different Name Day

Our Readers

Some of our readers today have been in:

Budapest, Budapest, Hungary
Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Surat, Gujarat, India
Augsburg, Bayern, Germany
Quezon City, Manila, Philippines
London, England, United Kingdom
Manila, Manila, Philippines
Lincoln, England, United Kingdom
Jakarta, Jakarta Raya, Indonesia
Prague, Hlavni Mesto Praha, Czech Republic
Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan
Munich, Bayern, Germany
Riyadh, Ar Riyad, Saudi Arabia

as well as Poland, Brazil, Spain, and the United States

Daily Horoscope

Today's horoscope says:

You're already feeling the urge to whisper sweet nothings into your beloved's ear, aren't you?
And there's still a day to go before you can officially get away with it.
Just in case, better come up with a Plan B -- for the sake of discretion, of course.
Say, dinner at your place?
Or theirs?
If you're already together, by the way, it would be quite legal to whip out the Valentine's present at midnight!

WooHoo!

Friday, February 12, 2010

Hawaii's the holdout

Forget red and blue — color America white.

http://icons-pe.wunderground.com/data/wximagenew/b/BigDaddyT/35.jpg

There was snow on the ground in 49 states Friday. Hawaii was the holdout.
It was the United States of Snow, thanks to an unusual combination of weather patterns that dusted the U.S., including the skyscrapers of Dallas, the peach trees of Atlanta and the Florida Panhandle, where hurricanes are more common than snowflakes.

Full Story

Lawyer for Americans in Haiti has no license

Figures ... the criminals have a criminal for a lawyer
(but then again isn't that the definition of a lawyer?)

A Dominican man who has served as legal adviser and spokesman for 10 Americans detained in Haiti on child-kidnapping charges has no license to practice law in his native country, officials said Friday.

Jorge Puello, who has been a high-profile advocate for the jailed Baptists as they navigate the Haitian justice system, is in apparent violation of Dominican law for failing to register with the local bar association or obtain a license, said Jose Parra, vice president of the Dominican Lawyers Association.

Full Story

And is anyone really surprised

US Marines, Afghan troops attack Taliban-held town

Helicopter-borne U.S. Marines and Afghan troops swooped down on the Taliban-held town of Marjah before dawn on Saturday, launching a long-expected attack to re-establish government control and undermine support for the militants in their southern heartland.

Full Story

More snow than expected

From the "No Shit, Sherlock" Department:
snow

Region getting more snow than expected

Taming the world's biggest party

New zero-tolerance rules are in place for Rio de Janeiro's famously free-wheeling Carnival.

Hundreds already arrested

Also:

Three dead after Alabama college shooting

Officials say no students were injured in the University of Alabama campus faculty-meeting attack.

Woman in custody

Also:

Them Crooked Vultures

Supergroup rocks sold out Fillmore crowd Read more

Is the Bikini Atoll Ready for Resettlement?

From Treehugger:

bikini atoll nuclear explosion photo
Image credit:

In the 1950s, the United States dropped a total of 76.8 megatons of nuclear bombs onto the Marshall Islands, with most of the detonations centered around the Bikini Atoll. Due to high-altitude winds and other factors, the fallout spread across several islands in the area including the Rongelap and Utrok Atolls.

Now, researchers from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory believe that with a few simple precautions the islands could be resettled—and that residents would experience a lower background radiation level than that present in the United States or Europe.

Article continues: Is the Bikini Atoll Ready for Resettlement?

Intelligence speaks of Palin

Indeed!

Don't be fooled

Don't let the repugicans and other wingnuts fool you into believing their lies.
They ARE the American version of the Nazi party of 1920s - 1945 in Germany.

The tiger's ancient ancestry is revealed

Tiger's ancient ancestry revealed

As the Chinese Year of the Tiger begins, scientists say the world's biggest cat may be more ancient and unique than we thought.

In pictures: Ancient tigers

First video of clouded leopard

Liars and Fools

Liars and Fools today are:

Faux's John Stossel appears in chains on TT to falsely claim "America may be on" the "road to serfdom".
Actually we're moving away from serfdom and the cabal doesn't like it so they project their desires as that of others.

Faux's Glen Brick has a guest who advised viewers to 'take up arms".
More Treason.

Virginia Foxx (reptile) lies "We will lose our country" if we don't "take this country back from the leftists".
This is and has always been a left/center country you stupid bitch and we will not let you steal our country from us.

Faux's Glen Brick lies saying "There aren’t enough knives" for "dishonored" climate scientists to kill themselves.
They have not been 'dishonored', you, however ...

Cop News

In Cop News

Florida cop to police brutality witness: "Guys like you disappear every day"

Fired North Carolina police sergeant admits felonies

After quitting, California police officer accused of embezzling money pleads guilty

California police chief investigated for hit-and-run in city car

California sheriff vows changes at jail after detention deputy charged with assault

California police officers under investigation in hit-and-run case

Connecticut police officer charged with threatening victim advocate

$110K award in lawsuit suit against Illinois police

North Carolina county sued over police stun gun incident

Five Ways American Workers Found Out Today That They’re Screwed

1. The poor are far more unemployed than the rich.
It’s not enough that they make more money anymore — despite everything that economics might normally predict, those with higher incomes are less likely to be unemployed during this recession. A new study from Northeastern University shows that among the top 20 percent of households — those making more than $100,000 — the unemployment rate is about 3.5 percent. In the poorest 10 percent of American households — those making under $12,800 a year — the unemployment rate is 30.8 percent. No wonder all those AIG bankers were threatening to leave their jobs in the midst of the recession: For them, there never was one.

2. The jobs that used to exist aren’t coming back.
Economists predict that at least 25 percent of the 8.4 million jobs that have disappeared thus far won’t be coming back no matter how good the economy gets. In fact, with job creation expected to be, at best, 133,000 new jobs per month over the next year — and 100,000 new people entering the work force every month — it will take more than 20 years at this rate to replace all the jobs that were lost in the last two years.

3. Corporations now know exactly how much money they save by firing workers.
And although the employment figures show that the rich stayed employed and the lowest-wage workers — who do most of the productive work in the economy — did not, companies laid off so many lower-paid workers that they are more flush with cash than Scrooge McDuck — to the tune of $1.19 trillion. But since people who kept their jobs have been busting their humps to keep them, productivity rates went up during the recession — which means your corporate overlords know exactly how hard they can work you for how little pay without reducing output. Get used to busting that hump.

4. Job growth is already not meeting economists’ predictions anyway.
Despite economists’ already-less-than-rosy predictions about job growth, only 95,000 jobs were created last month. So, we’re already 38,000 jobs — or more than a month — behind the growth we’d need to make back the 8.4 million lost jobs in 20 years.

5. Even Republicans don’t pretend that living wages exist for many Americans.
Nearly one in eight Americans currently depends on food stamps, and many of those people are working Americans (including some members of the military). Half of the families enrolled in food stamps are working, though fully 90 percent of those receiving benefits are below the federal poverty line. Everyone from Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) to George W. Bush and his food stamp administrator Eric Bost to former Wisconsin governor and presidential candidate Tommy Thompson is a food stamp booster for the working poor — the people who make minimum wage but can’t make ends meet. But you can have a job in this country and still go hungry — and some people who acknowledge that think the best solution is just to give companies more tax breaks.

Tea Party Movement Racist

In a case of the pot calling the kettle black ...

Strange results from a Faux News poll, as their core audience is undeniably to the right.
However, a Faux News poll indicates that even those viewers / readers feel that the Tea Party movement is racist.

Full Story

SC teens charged with lynching

Horry County Police have arrested 15 young people and are searching for five others in connection with a lynching.

SC teens charged with lynching

South Carolina police said it is a real-life fight club. Fifteen people are under arrest, most of them teenagers.

"Fight club" members raid home

TSA employees to get secret intelligence

Knowing their competence and track record "leaks" are the least of the worries ...

10,000 airport staff to get secret intelligence

Nearly 20% of airport security officers will receive classified info on terrorist plans.

Leaks feared

Also:

Where home prices are overvalued

In the most-inflated metro area, expect to pay 30% more than the fair market price for a home.

10 worst

Also:

Foods you may not know are heart-healthy

Hot cocoa has twice the antioxidants of red wine and three times as many as green tea.

Four more great choices

Also:

Americans line up to own a piece of Buffett

Starting today, millions will finally get a stake in the legendary investor's $178 billion enterprise.

From luxury to bargain

Also:

How to justify a 79.9% interest rate

There's no way in Hell to justify a 79.9% interest rate!

How to justify a 79.9% interest rate

The company that issues a credit card with a shocking APR defends itself.

Response has been 'phenomenal'

Also:

Old Nintendo system sells for $13,105

It isn't gold plated, but something even rarer made one 1980s Nintendo system a hot commodity.

Seller's surprise

Also:

Olympic Luger Dies

Olympic luger dies after training crash

Nodar Kumaritashvili of Georgia is killed when he loses control of his sled on a high-speed run.

Details

Also:

And:

Did fast track lead to luger's death?

Nodar Kumaritashvili of Georgia was going almost 90 mph before his sled flipped.

'They are pushing it'

Also:

Lucky timing for world's most livable city

An annual ranking of the most well- rounded cities has special significance this year.

U.S. shut out of top 10

Also:

Crabzilla

From Treehugger:

Photo via Buzzfeed

Hail Crabzilla! The Japanese Spider Crab is the biggest arthropod on Earth--their legs are believed to grow up to 12 feet long. But since they live at such great depths (typically 1,000 feet down or so) a full grown spider crab has yet to be caught. So for now, we'll have to make due with the 5 foot long Crabzilla (that's what it's called--I didn't make it up!), one of the largest known crabs in the planet.

Article continues: Crabzilla! At 5 Feet Tall, Biggest Known Crab Heads to UK

Guess what ...

We're expecting MORE snow this afternoon.

Rare snowstorm sends South reeling

It took two blizzards to paralyze D.C., but in the Deep South it takes only a couple inches.

Crippling effect

Also:

What workers hate about management

Pitting employees against each other probably isn't the best way to inspire them.

9 more practices to axe

Also:

Glenn Beck's radio show has had zero ads for the past three days in the UK, following boycott

Treating the brick like he deserves ...

From StopBeck.com:

During the last week and a half, Glenn Beck lost his 100th, 101st and 102nd sponsors. A full list of all 102 sponsors that dropped Mr. Beck (or Fox News as a whole) can be found here. Please note that this total includes sponsors that have dropped him both United States and/or in the United Kingdom.

It seems like our efforts are having an effect…

Glenn Beck’s show in the United Kingdom has not run any commercials during the past three days (Tues-Thurs). Glenn Beck’s show in the UK used to run commercials. The shows that come on before and after Glenn Beck still run commercials. But, for the past three days, Mr. Beck hasn’t had any sponsors in the U.K. During the commercial break, instead of running ads, they cut away to Sky News updates or the weather. Perhaps they’re having trouble finding sponsors willing to subsidize Glenn Beck’s misinformation, vitriol, sexism and race-baiting?

Iceland aims to become an offshore haven for journalists

Iceland Iceland aims to become an offshore haven for journalists and leakers

On Tuesday, the Icelandic parliament is expected to introduce a measure aimed at making the country an international center for investigative journalism publishing, by passing the strongest combination of source protection, freedom of speech, and libel-tourism prevention laws in the world.

Supporters of the proposal say the move would make Iceland an “offshore publishing center” for free speech, analogous to the offshore financial havens that allow corporations to hide capital from authorities. Could global news organizations with a home office in Reykjavík soon be as common as Delaware corporations or Cayman Islands assets?

Iceland aims to become an offshore haven for journalists

Martian sheen: Life on the rocks

The "desert varnish" that blackens Earthly rocks may be made by bacteria.
So what about similarly shiny rocks on Mars?

Martian sheen: Life on the rocks

Best moves for a flat stomach

These strengthening exercises set you up for amazing posture and a pain-free lower back.

Ab-flattening poses

Also:

16th-century murder mystery unraveled

The death of an Italian baroness and her lover had stumped analysts for centuries.

Reopening a very 'cold case'

Also:

Guards watch a 15-yr old get beaten

A 15-year-old girl who was badly beaten in a Seattle bus tunnel as three unarmed security guards looked on told investigators that she thought the men would protect her.

The statements were revealed in court papers filed Wednesday against the teen girl who attacked her and three young men accused of stealing her purse, phone and iPod. The four were all charged with robbery.

The girl told a detective that the group followed her from a nearby department store into the bus tunnel, and she stood next to the three guards thinking they’d protect her.

The guards didn’t intervene, though, because they have standing orders to “observe and report,” but not to try to stop fights or criminal activity. That protocol is now under review after the guards’ response was caught on surveillance video. (I should say so!)

Today is ...

Today is Friday, February 12, the 43rd day of 2010.

There are 322 days left in the year.

The moon is waning.

Today In History February 12

Today's unusual holidays and celebrations are:

Darwin Day,
Oglethorpe Day
and
Safety Pup Day

Did you know ...

That today, February 12th in 1795, the University of North Carolina became the first US state university to admit students with the arrival of Hinton James, who was the only student on campus for two weeks.

Our Readers

Some of our readers today have been in:

London, England, United Kingdom
Ringsted, Vestsjalland, Denmark
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Budapest, Budapest, Hungary
Caguas, Caguas, Puerto Rico
Lausanne, Vaud, Switzerland
Kharkiv, Kharkivs'ka Oblast, Ukraine
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Manchester, England, United Kingdom
Rotterdam, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands
Oakville, Ontario, Canada
Birmingham, England, United Kingdom
Leiden, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands
Bristol, England, United Kingdom
Ratingen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany
Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia

as well as Scotland, Wales, Singapore, and the United States

Daily Horoscope

Today's horoscope says:

It might not be fun, and it probably won't go down in your mental scrapbook as the best on record, but once you've made it through this day, you'll feel really good about yourself -- as if you've accomplished something.
So when it seems as if the universe is throwing everything but the kitchen sink between you and where you need to be, don't give up.
Ever heard about testing what you're made of?
That's what's going on -- and this is one test you're guaranteed to pass.

Another test?!

Welcome to ...

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Friday, February 12, 2010

And:

Naturally Friends

Playlist