Naval Cats

Meow Mix!

Okay, there's been a bit in the news about Oscar the Cat - He can sense Death - and I found this other story about a Cat who survived an incredible series of 3 sinkings in two Navies (including the battleship Bismark!)  to be just very, very cool. Enjoy!

Unsinkable Sam - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Unsinkable Sam" (also known as "Oscar"[1]) was the nickname given to a ship's cat who saw service in both the Kriegsmarine and Royal Navy during the Second World War, serving on board three vessels and surviving the sinking of all three.[2]

And then there's Oscar - He's a cat that works at a tertiary care center who can sense Death.
Oscar (cat) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

According to the article, Oscar had a purported ability to predict the impending death of terminally ill patients. Explanations for this ability include that the cat can smell ketones, the biochemicals released by dying cells, or the lack of movement in near-terminal patients.[1] Dr. Dosa would later expand on the NEJM article by writing a book, Making Rounds With Oscar: The Extraordinary Gift of an Ordinary Cat[2], which was released in February 2010.

Now, this can seem really creepy, but the good Doctor says - and I agree - that this is really a very good thing. Oscar goes and sits with the person when they're ready to go. They're not alone, they've got a nice, warm, fuzzy kitty with them, and that's comforting. Whether your family is there or not, it's hard NOT to like having a kitten curled up next to you (though I recognize there are those who do NOT care for cats)...And it confirms what I've said about cats for years; In fact, what people have been saying about cats for millenia; They can sense things we can't.

Makes me wonder about all those times Tigger just sat staring at the wall and meowing at something I couldn't detect...

Orion

Admissions of Guilt

And Bias.

Finally. More folks from the MSM are starting to admit that they're utterly in the tank for President Obama and the Democrats. I think they're finally starting to admit it because A: It's patently obvious, and B: they're going down the tubes as a business model anyway, and C: They're expecting - and hoping! - to become wholly owned subsidiaries of the US Government here shortly anyway.

Editor Tina Brown Admits: Obama 'Got the Best Press Known to Man,' WaPo’s Howard Kurtz Agrees | NewsBusters.org

Two prominent journalists appeared on Friday's Good Morning America and casually admitted that Barack Obama has received glowing coverage from the press. Former Vanity Fair and New Yorker editor Tina Brown announced, "No, [Obama] got the best press known to man. Let's face it."

Click through and read the whole thing. It's shocking only because they've spent so long denying it - and spent the election praising their own LACK of bias.

So much for a free and neutral press informing the electorate. Instead, we have an admitted group of propaganda specialists working to elect a specific slate of candidates according to a political agenda...Somewhere, Herr Goebbels is smiling.

Orion
(H/T: Big Journalism)

State Educational Benefits

Enjoy Comrade!

How long until we get the State out of our school systems? How many more stories like this:

Queens girl Alexa Gonzalez hauled out of school in handcuffs after getting caught doodling on desk

Alexa Gonzalez was scribbling a few words on her desk Monday while waiting for her Spanish teacher to pass out homework at Junior High School 190 in Forest Hills, she said.

"I love my friends Abby and Faith," the girl wrote, adding the phrases "Lex was here. 2/1/10" and a smiley face.

But instead of simply cleaning off the doodles after class, Alexa landed in some adult-sized trouble for using her lime-green magic marker.

She was led out of school in cuffs and walked to the precinct across the street, where she was detained for several hours, she and her mother said.

Or this:
GunPundit

Big brouhaha over New Dorp boy’s tiny toy gun

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A 9-year-old New Dorp boy earlier today learned there is no wiggle room in the Department of Education’s “no toy gun” policy — even if the toy gun is just two inches long.

Patrick Timoney, a fourth-grader at PS 52, South Beach, was nearly suspended after playing with LEGOs during his lunch period because one of the action figures was carrying at toy machine gun.

or this:
Berkeley High may cut lab classes to fund programs for struggling students - Los Angeles Times

Campus leadership has proposed cutting before- and after-school labs -- decreasing science instruction by 20% to 40% -- and using that money to fund "equity" programs for struggling students in an effort to close one of the widest racial and ethnic achievement gaps in the state.

The racial and ethnic makeup of science classes was considered when crafting the proposal to shift money away from science instruction.

White students predominate in the science classes that require supplemental lab time, according to an analysis by a lead teacher in the Berkeley High math department. Her study also showed that three-fourths of the students who take less-rigorous science classes -- those that do not require extra lab time -- are African American or Latino.

'Cause, you know, Science is racist.

Or how about the cost involved in having the State handle our education:CARPE DIEM: Private School Tuition: 1/3 to 1/2 Less Than Publics

Average private school tuition ($6,600) was about 1/3 less than the spending per pupil in public schools ($9,620) in 2003-2004 (the most recent year available), and average Catholic school tuition ($4,254) was less than half of public school spending per student.

Nothing like paying twice as much for less than half the results. I think back to my school days when I - and most of my friends - carried a KNIFE to school every SINGLE DAY! We were ALWAYS armed with our brutal, vicious, lethal pocketknives! I can't recall how many people we stabbed during our school careers...I think it was...Zero.

But, this is what happens when you let the State take over pretty much anything. I'm trying to think of ANY business that the State has run more efficiently - or even effectively - than private business. Hey, I know! Let's let 'em run the Auto Industry! At least then we can bring the power of the State against non-State owned competitors like..say...Ford and Toyota. And Health Care too! And the Mortgage Industry! And the Banks! And...Why, there's no END to the wonders we can achieve if we only give the State more and more power!

Throw the rascals out! Elect small-government candidates.

Orion

The Fruits Of Socialism!

Enjoy, Comrade!

As you learn what happens when governments continually promise more and more and more...and finally realize that the money well is finite.

Greece? On the verge of economic collapse. Portugal? On the verge of economic collapse. Spain? Teetering and tottering. The Eurozone as a whole? Not lookin' too good. Great Britain's decision to maintain the Pound is looking better every single day.

Belmont Club » The rain in Spain

Neither the collapse of Greece nor Portugal could seriously threaten the Eurozone, but Spain’s much bigger economy could. The Wall Street Journal describes the scenario that has caused the market to fall: a weak Europe stalls the global recovery and leads to a fall in commodities. Like an airplane which has lost lift, someone, somewhere has got to get enough airflow over the wings to get the thing flying again. But how?

It's like watching a 'Preview' of 'American Economy 2015 - Coming to a country near YOU!'

Orion

Socialism

An Insider's View

As I watch our country and others descend into Socialism, I keep seeing articles written by folks who've escaped various Socialist systems...and strangely, they're never about how wonderful Socialism is. Here's an example:

Pajamas Media » Thank You, Glenn Beck, for Exposing Communism’s Evils

Another colleague of mine, with great moral indignation and personal angst, once complained to me about how we are being “attacked” by Pepsi commercials. “By trying to tell us that we are not cool if we don’t drink Pepsi,” he agonized, “the capitalist machinery practices the politics of exclusion. By trying to pretend it offers us choice, it actually negates choice.”

My mom’s father was executed by the Soviet secret police. He did not have the luxury of being oppressed by Pepsi commercials.

Click on through and read the whole thing...And keep in mind how benevolent Governments get as they get more and more of your freedoms. I mean, when was the last time a government got lots of power, disarmed it's citizens, and enslaved them? Why, I can't even think of ONE time...well, other than Nazi Germany, Facist Italy, The Soviet Union, China, Cuba, Venezuela, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Taliban Afghanistan, Saddam's Iraq, Iran, Syria....

Hey! I know! Let's make OUR government just like those! What could POSSIBLY go wrong? In THOSE countries the Government did a GREAT job of managing the auto industry (Pobeda, anyone?), health care, the banking industry, the centrally-managed economy and so on...We should get on that right away! It's not like our existing system did anything right...I mean, all IT did was turn us into the most powerful, prosperous, free, productive, inventive, and advanced civilization in history. DEFINITELY needs changing!

Orion

Bi-Partisan Effort

Budgets And Bonds And Balance

The US is in trouble - we're broke. Not just the Federal Government, which is right now, over $12,436,000,000 in debt. - Almost twelve and a half TRILLION dollars. And our Deficit this year is an equally astronomical 1.85 TRILLION dollars. THIS YEAR. And projected to stay around .8 to 1.2 TRILLION dollars every year after that, growing and growing...Yes, we're spending over a trillion dollars a year more than we take in.

State after state is on the verge of going bankrupt - California, Illinois, Massachusetts, the list keeps growing. They DO all seem to be Socialist states though...

Neither party has a claim on being innocent in this obscenity. Moody's is talking about the risk to the US Bond Rating, the Chinese are refusing to buy any more US debt and making anxious noises about it - the entire world is concerned. The number of public employees is growing at an insane rate...the promises of more and more benefits without anyone asking 'Who's gonna PAY for all those services'? - Except the call to 'Soak The Rich' (how long will The Rich stay here if they are just cash-cows for everyone else?)...It's NUTS!

I truly believe that pretty much the only thing we can do is to vote for candidates who will SHRINK the governments of the States and the Federal Government - get rid of as much discretionary funding as possible, run a balanced budget, and start getting rid of the debt.

Right now, if the US paid every single cent the Federal Government took in, into paying off our debt, it would take over 6 years to pay it off. This is NOT good.

Although, heck, if we took the entire Gross Domestic Product of the US, we could do it in a year! LOL

So, can we PLEASE stop our government from spending like drunken sailors, stop electing people who promise more and more services, stop growing our government and start getting rid of this debt before the US goes bankrupt?

Orion

CNN

Why We Call Them The Communist News Network

I've not met many folks in the military who have any respect at all for networks like CNN and MSNBC. We watch them while we're deployed and shake our heads, watching them do their best to destroy what we're doing, or to destroy us. Here's another example:

JammieWearingFool

CNN screws the pooch again! The network has a long track record of working against the U.S. military by publishing stories and supposed investigative pieces on weapons and tactics that wind up being detrimental to those who serve.

The military has long treated CNN as a quasi-propaganda and spy agency for the enemies of this country since at least Desert Storm, when we used the useless fools to feed false information to Saddam Hussein. We knew that they couldn't wait to breathlessly report on our troop movements and to pontificate on how the opening phases of our war to liberate Kuwait would go. Gen Scwarzkopf was smart enough to realize this and fed them just what he wanted the Iraqis to know. His staff would then monitor the broadcasts to make sure the useful idiots did their job. CNN would not have done it on their own so they had to be made to feel that they had the inside track.

Click through and read the rest of it...

Orion

VERY Cool Technology!

Better Than Scotchguard?

Okay, this stuff sounds really, really cool:
Spray-on liquid glass is about to revolutionize almost everything

Liquid glass was invented in Turkey and the patent is held by Nanopool, a family-owned German company. Research on the product was carried out at the Saarbrücken Institute for New Materials. Nanopool is already in negotiations in the UK with a number of companies and with the National Health Service, with a view to its widespread adoption.

The liquid glass spray produces a water-resistant coating only around 100 nanometers (15-30 molecules) thick. On this nanoscale the glass is highly flexible and breathable. The coating is environmentally harmless and non-toxic, and easy to clean using only water or a simple wipe with a damp cloth. It repels bacteria, water and dirt, and resists heat, UV light and even acids. UK project manager with Nanopool, Neil McClelland, said soon almost every product you purchase will be coated with liquid glass.

Click through and read the entire thing - this is one of the very cool things coming from Nanotechnology. It's rapidly moving from science-fiction to the grocery store shelves.

Orion

Stardom Awaits!

New Contest!

The latest Photo contest - "Tools" is up over at Stardom Awaits - trot on over and vote for your ONE favorite pic in the list!

Orion

By Request...

A Music Video!

Just for the person who made my entire UK trip possible...


Life's A Jolly Holiday - Enjoy!

Orion

News Surfing

Items of Interest You May Have Missed....

Just some interesting news items you might find interesting...

More items on the profligate spending going on in Washington:

Democrats living large on the taxpayers' expense? Surely not.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has racked up an amazing $2.1 million travel tab during the last two years according to government documents obtained by Judicial Watch through a FOIA request. The Air Force Gulfstream V she rides costs almost $6,000 per hour (an average cost per flight of over $28,000). But that's nothing when you consider the $22,000 per hour price tag of the Boeing 757 that she prefers for ferrying her between her district and Washington.

Interestingly enough, over $100,000 of which was for alcohol and food. What is she eating, unicorn steaks?

(From BlackFive)

In Venezuela, the People, after having a taste of Socialism find they don't like it much - and are trying to tell the government they don't like it much. And getting beaten, shot, and gassed for it.

Interesting article over at The Belmont Club about the Arab's hope that the Jews will save them from Iran...

Of course the touching Sunni belief that the Jewish state will save them from Iran — something that must rank as among the most astounding ironies of history — may prove to be completely unfounded. But it is indicative of the degree to which the administration has abandoned the traditional American role of hegemon that the Arab states are clutching at such straws. The President campaigned on the promise that he would restore America’s stature in the world. What he has actually transformed America’s stature into will presently be shown.

And more about those Patriot batteries being deployed in the Gulf.

And finally, too many links to post, but the whole Global Climate Change scam is coming apart at the seams with their data being proven false, top people being found to have manipulated data unethically, the claims about the glaciers being proven false, and on and on and on. At this stage, if you're still a believer in this old Religion, you've got to feel like one of the faithful of Zeus about the 5th Century AD...

Orion

Zone 2 - The Lake District

HILLS?

ZONE 2: THE LAKE DISTRICT PICTURES AT KODAK GALLERY

Welcome back to my extended travelogue for my Leave in the UK. Next up...Zone 2! The Lake District!

But first...we have to get there! So, this is going to start off back in Zone 1 because I left off at our hotel on the Moors...

We drove the rest of the way to Lancaster and met Lara and her boyfriend Shannon and got to see their really beautiful university. The dorms are spectacular - much better than anything I ever saw at MTU, that's for sure!

We grabbed the two of them and went into Lancaster for a bit of shopping and wandering and sightseeing. They ended up going off on their own while Diane and I explored and found new things for me to take pictures of. Which was about every ten feet. Including one very patient Bobby who I'm sure was tired of having every tourist in the city ask him for pictures! He was very nice - in every way a stereotypical British cop (and I mean that in a very good way!).


We found gorgeous building after gorgeous building, and a monument to Queen Victoria and even a pasty shop! Now, of course, I'm used to UP Pasty's, which took the original Cornish Pasty and then added a lot of Swedish, Finnish, and American modifications so it was interesting to try the original. It was, as expected, delicious!


But we headed out and got to our hotel, which was truly lovely. We got up the next morning - much too late - and managed to talk the staff into letting us eat a quick breakfast even though we were about half an hour too late! They were very nice however and let us stuff ourselves silly. LOL

Now, the previous evening we had picked Diane's daughter Lara up and took her shopping with her mother. THAT was an experience. If you ever want to see a strong-willed daughter butting heads with a strong-willed mother, watch those two. And of course, Mother ended up buying a full load of groceries for her college student. LOL It was hilarious! Sorry Diane...


Anyway, we left our hotel and drove from Lancaster to Kendal, the very start of The Lake District. We had a great time, stopping at a McDonald's for some sustenance and free Internet! But basically we just kinda cruised along enjoying the road trip. We even stopped at a lovely bay and got some GREAT shots there.

But eventually, we arrived in Kendal, starving and tired. We looked all over for someplace to stay, but they were all full - and finally found a lovely B&B right on a bridge. Well, that is to say, we could SEE it. We just couldn't GET to it. We drove in endless loops, across bridges, up one-ways and down one-ways, through round-abouts and always around the river. We finally gave up and I WALKED to the place...and found it was too expensive. But we did finally find me a place called The Dun Horse that was just beautiful. Right over a pub!


So we decided to find someplace to eat. We had hoped for a fish and chips place but...the only one we found looked really nasty with old soggy fish. So we left...and we walked. And we walked. And we walked. Everyplace was nasty, or closed, or not serving food that day (I'm not kidding!). Eventually poor Diane was just exhausted; her feet were killing her, and she was stressed and starved. We found a nice little place and tucked in.

After dinner, we headed back and said our goodbyes. Poor Diane was so upset, I was very touched. And worried. She HAD to drive back home that night - a very long drive in the dark while tired. So we chatted on the cell-phone while she drove until she got home, and I slept like a log in my snug little room.

I have to admit, I'm hooked on Beds & Breakfasts, particularly in Great Britain. WAY better than hotels!


The next morning, I woke up nice and early, geared-up and headed out the door. Kendal is a gorgeous little town and very tourist-friendly. I stopped and chatted with one guy about being a US Soldier, American politics vs British and the like. I got a hiker's map and some advice from the Tourist Information people and headed out on The Dales Way. In the rain. The nice lady did warn me that I might find it 'a bit boggy'.


I had hardly gone a mile when a couple of guys in a lorry pulled over and offered me a ride to wherever I was going! They could tell I was a US Soldier from my giant ACU back-pack, amazingly enough. I told 'em I was looking forward to the hike, we chatted a bit, and off I went. But pretty much everyone in the UK was like that.

The first part of the hike was all paved roads. Eventually I got to the place where The Dales Way turns into a true trail. And found that 'a bit boggy' meant that the first mile or so was an icy stream about 6" deep and all up hill. Since I had almost 10 miles of this, I was not looking forward to it.


Fortunately, the trail eventually got high enough up that it was just 'boggy' and not an actual stream. The views were beautiful. But I kept climbing. And the trail itself involved a fair amount of climbing over these anti-sheep gates. They're designed so that you have to wedge yourself into a tall, angled gate contraption and then swivel the gate itself past you and weasel out. You can't do that while wearing a giant ACU backpack. So you have to climb over. Which is hard while wearing a giant ACU backpack. In the rain. Especially when the gate is covered with half a millenium's worth of English moss.


By now, I was to the first town (Stavely) on the way, freezing, soaked, and sore. So I figured I'd stop for the night. Especially since I had been told the entire trip to Windermere from Kendal was perhaps 2 or 3 miles and I'd already gone over 4. But as soon as I walked into town, I found a B&B right on the edge of town called "The Eagle & Child" - how could I NOT stay there? It was beautiful.

A hot shower, clean, dry clothes, and a hot meal later, I was ready to hit the sack. I slept like
the dead, got up early and hit the trail under a beautiful blue sky. Again with the up-hill path! Again, the views were just spectacular. I loved every foot of the hike. Gorgeous horses, old stone walls, beautiful houses scattered everywhere...The song 'Wanderlust' by Wylde Nept describes my feelings beautifully...

For I’m at my best when my boots wear thin, I’ll see the world by the mile.
Every lake is green as a lady’s eyes, every breeze is welcome as a smile.
From caravans of gold and silk to ships on the new moon’s tide,
I found my comfort in a mossy bed, with the road close by my side.

So...I kept going. I stopped at one point to chat with an old couple who were taking tea at a small turnout halfway up a hill...And why were there all these HILLS in the LAKE district? LAKES should be where it's FLAT, right? Apparently not. I found out later that the highest mountain in England is in the Lake District.


I was feeling pretty cocky about my pace until the old couple caught up to me and passed me...*sighs*

Anyway...I kept going, enjoying the views, the road, the occasional climb over a sheep-gate, and once getting lost in a sheep-pen. The trail wasn't well marked in that locale, but I found my way. One of the rams kept eyeing me like I was going to bother him or something, but we went our separate ways without further trouble.


Finally, I got to the outskirts of Windermere. I had to climb several more gates and sneak across a railway track, and then got to a spot where the trail just vanished. I took my best guess and...ended up in some poor guy's side yard. There was no way out except to go back about half a mile..Instead, I quickly hopped the ancient stone fence, backpack and all, into a roadway with no sidewalk! A quick sprint later and I was back on normal pedestrian paths though, making my way to the Tourist Information Bereau. Which was closed. Thursdays, they were closed. DOH. I checked their touch-screen information gadget to find the nearest B&B in my price-range and walked that way. It was full. All of them were full. I walked one end of Windermere to the other and every place was full. One guy was willing to give me his last room at half price if I couldn't find anyplace else though...So, I screamed for help!

Diane to the rescue again! She checked online, found a place with the right price and a room and hooked me up! I walked over there and got a room. It was beautiful! By now I was completely soaked, even through the rain gear. Again, a hot shower and dry clothes and all was right with the world. I found a great little deli and had dinner, including split-pea soup. Not as good as Mom's, but delicious! Later, I found a nice Italian restaurant. Ahhhhhh!!

I ended up taking the room for a second night as I was BEAT. I figured I'd wander around Windermere and take pics. Except the next day it was freezing, pouring rain, and grey. So I loafed the entire day, watched movies and weird British TV. I made my way over to the train station and bought my ticket to Edinburgh, and in the process had about an hour and a half conversation with the Stationmaster and one of the cleaners there. Just wonderful people! Again, typical Britons. I got a great price and met two great folks.

The next morning, bright and early, I was at the station. I met a couple of people there including a pretty young woman from Massachussets who was traveling all over, We spent the next five hours on the train talking about just about anything and everything, making the trip pass quickly.

And finally...I arrived at Waverly Station and met with Diane, but that's the next Zone!

Hopefully she'll make any corrections to my tale in the comments...It's been a while so I may have some of the items out of order or perhaps even forgotten something!

Orion

Superman

Theme...

Love these two videos...So I thought I'd share.
1: Kryptonite by Three Doors Down

And I LOVE the ending.

2: Superman by Five for Fighting

Just like the sentiment in this one..."Even heroes have the right to bleed..."


Enjoy!

Orion

International Terror Alert Levels

Ha! They MOCKED US!

But I see that MOST countries seem to have a variation on the same theme. I found this post over at mil-blogger Blackfive's and I'm re-posting it in it's entirety. Be sure to click over there for the comments.

The English are feeling the pinch in relation to recent terrorist threats and have raised their security level from "Miffed" to "Peeved." Soon, though, security levels may be raised yet again to "Irritated" or even "A Bit Cross." The English have not been "A Bit Cross" since the blitz in 1940 when tea supplies all but ran out. Terrorists have been re-categorized from "Tiresome" to a "Bloody Nuisance." The last time the British issued a "Bloody Nuisance" warning level was in 1588 when threatened by the Spanish Armada.

The Scots raised their threat level from "Pissed Off" to "Let's get those Bastards." They don't have any other levels. This is the reason they have been used on the front line of the British army for the last 300 years.

The French government announced yesterday that it has raised its terror alert level from "Run" to "Hide". The only two higher levels in France are "Collaborate" and "Surrender." The rise was precipitated by a recent fire that destroyed France's white flag factory, effectively paralyzing the country's military capability.

It's not only the French who are on a heightened level of alert: Italy has increased the alert level from "Shout Loudly and Excitedly" to "Elaborate Military Posturing." Two more levels remain: "Ineffective Combat Operations" and "Change Sides."

The Germans also increased their alert state from "Disdainful Arrogance" to "Dress in Uniform and Sing Marching Songs." They also have two higher levels: "Invade a Neighbour" and "Lose".

Belgians, on the other hand, are all on holiday as usual, and the only threat they are worried about is NATO pulling out of Brussels .

The Spanish are all excited to see their new submarines ready to deploy. These beautifully designed subs have glass bottoms so the new Spanish navy can get a really good look at the old Spanish navy.

Americans meanwhile and as usual are carrying out pre-emptive strikes on all of their allies 'just in case'.

Canada doesn't have any alert levels.

And in the southern hemisphere:
New Zealand has also raised its security levels - from "baaa" to "BAAAA". Due to continuing defense cutbacks (the airforce being a squadron of spotty teenagers flying paper aeroplanes and the navy some toy boats in the Prime Minister's bath), New Zealand only has one more level of escalation, which is "I hope Australia will come and rescue us".

Australia , meanwhile, has raised its security level from "No worries" to "She'll be al'right, mate". Three more escalation levels remain: "Crikey!', "I think we'll need to cancel the barbie this weekend" and "The barbie is cancelled". So far no situation has ever warranted use of the final escalation level.

That'll show 'em.

Orion

Holy Icicles Batman!

Frozen Falls!


My mother sent me these pics about Niagra Falls freezing over in 1911...Snopes pretty much verifies it...










Can you imagine that? And who knows? Perhaps we'll be seeing winters like this again soon! I know it's bad for crops and the like, and much more expensive and hard to live, but I do miss a hard, snowy winter. As long as I don't have to drive in it and I can curl up someplace warm!





























Orion

So Much For 'Peak Oil'

Which Was Pretty Much Nonsense In The First Place.

Instapundit points to an interesting article on some folks who've found a way to make e. coli bacteria produce biodiesel. Yes. Germs that make fuel.

That essentially turned the bacteria into little biodiesel factories. "The more you steal away, the more it turns it up," Keasling said.

The bacteria expelled droplets of oil into the fermentation vats, which made extraction of the fuel relatively easy. "When you turn the impellers off, it's like oil and water," Keasling explained. "The oil floats to the top, you skim it off, you put it in your tank."

The process could be tweaked to produce other chemical products as well, ranging from jet fuel to solvents and lubricants.

Um....Well, that pretty much solves the oil problem now, doesn't it? Add to that all the OTHER fuel sources we have (Oil Shale, Oil Sands, newly discovered fields in Montana, etc.) and looks like there's no risk of running out of fuel any time soon.

As Dr. Reynolds says..."Faster, please."

Orion

Sometimes They're Real People!

This is an Actual Letter...

I saw this post over at BlackFive and thought he was trying to pull a fast one - or that he had been duped, neither of which was very likely at all, but I figured I'd triple check over at Snopes...(Text copied from Snopes) It reads like one of those 'bag on the guy in the Oval Office' letters that's pretty common from both the left and the right (depending upon who's in office), but this was an actual letter written by an actual US Navy Master Chief (retired).

Dear President Obama,

My name is Harold Estes, approaching 95 on December 13 of this year. People meeting me for the first time don't believe my age because I remain wrinkle free and pretty much mentally alert.

I enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1934 and served proudly before, during and after WW II retiring as a Master Chief Bos'n Mate. Now I live in a "rest home" located on the western end of Pearl Harbor allowing me to keep alive the memories of 23 years of service to my country.

One of the benefits of my age, perhaps the only one, is to speak my mind, blunt and direct even to the head man.

So here goes.

I am amazed, angry and determined not to see my country die before I do but you seem hell bent not to grant me that wish.

I can't figure out what country you are the president of. You fly around the world telling our friends and enemies despicable lies like:

"We're no longer a Christian nation"

"America is arrogant" - (Your wife even announced to the world, "America is mean-spirited." Please tell her to try preaching that nonsense to 23 generations of our war dead buried all over the globe who died for no other reason than to free a whole lot of strangers from tyranny and hopelessness.)

I'd say shame on the both of you but I don't think you like America nor do I see an ounce of gratefulness in anything you do for the obvious gifts this country has given you. To be without shame or gratefulness is a dangerous thing for a man sitting in the White House.

After 9/11 you said, "America hasn't lived up to her ideals." Which ones did you mean?

1. Was it the notion of personal liberty that 11,000 farmers and shopkeepers died for to win independence from the British ?

2. Or maybe the ideal that no man should be a slave to another man that 500,000 men died for in the Civil War?

3. I hope you didn't mean the ideal 470,000 fathers, brothers, husbands, and a lot of fellahs I knew personally died for in WWII, because we felt real strongly about not letting any nation push us around because we stand for freedom.

4. I don't think you mean the ideal that says equality is better than discrimination. You know the one that a whole lot of white people understood when they helped to get you elected.

Take a little advice from a very old geezer,young man. Shape up and start acting like an American. If you don't, I'll do what I can to see you get shipped out of that fancy rental on Pennsylvania Avenue. You were elected to lead not to bow, apologize and kiss the hands of murderers and corrupt leaders who still treat their people like slaves.

And just who do you think you are telling the American people not to jump to conclusions and condemn that Muslim major who killed 13 of his fellow soldiers and wounded dozens more. You mean you don't want us to do what you did when that white cop used force to subdue that black college professor in Massachusetts who was putting up a fight? You don't mind offending the police calling them stupid but you don't want us to offend Muslim fanatics by calling them what they are, terrorists.

One more thing. I realize you never served in the military and never had to defend your country with your life but you're the Commander-in-Chief now, son. Do your job. When your battle-hardened field General asks you for 40,000 more troops to complete the mission, give them to him. But if you're not in this fight to win, then get out. The life of one American soldier is not worth the best political strategy you're thinking of.

You could be our greatest president because you face the greatest challenge ever presented to any president.

You're not going to restore American greatness by bringing back our bloated economy. That's not our greatest threat. Losing the heart and soul of who we are as Americans is our big fight now. And I sure as hell don't want to think my president is the enemy in this final battle.

Sincerely,

Harold B. Estes

Orion

Phitness Phollies!

Too Much FUN!

Okay maggots!! How are you all doing on your fitness routines?

Last night was a 'lift' night - I worked my upper body for 45 minutes - as much as my shoulder could stand. You should've heard the amazing assortment of snaps, crackles, and pops when I was performing movements like the bench press or the rotator cuff pull-ins/pull-across...I sounded like an advertisement for Rice Krispies. That was worth 200 calories, but builds larger muscles which will burn more calories. Plus, I got an extra 15 calories in for jumping rope for a minute to warm up. LOL I need to increase that too!

Today was a run day! Now, I'm stepping it up a bit 'cause you're all worthless and weak! Especially me! So...every quarter-lap, we stopped and did an exercise:
10 Burpees.
10 Situps
10 Pushups
A hard sprint for 50 yards
10 Side-Straddle-Hops (Jumping Jacks)
10 Mountain Climbers
A hard sprint to the finish for 50 yards.
Total time: 27 minutes 30 seconds over 2.8 miles, giving us 414 calories burned already today, plus a good muscle workout on top of the aerobics!

So how are YOU all doing?

Lighthouse Video

Musical Trip!

I'm learning the Linux version of Movie maker, so this isn't as good as it should be, but it's still fun. Comments welcome! The YouTube version is, of course, much jerkier than the real one...



But hopefully it's still enjoyable!

Orion

The Art of Manliness

Interesting!

...And painful. This is a blog I just found that has an interesting take - Teaching men the Art of Manliness. Something every boy needs to learn and a subject that is now treated like teaching someone cannibalism.

This post in particular is about The Burpee. If you've done sports or military training, this exercise has been the bane of your life. It is evil. It is painful. It is effective. Those of you following along on my fitness craze - give 'em a try! I'm working with a Private here to get him in shape for his PT test and intend to get him doing my favorite run - You run for a while, then you drop and do 20 pushups. Repeat - except you mix in situps, mountain climbers, burpees, star-jumps, and pushups in between sprints and jogs.

It burns! It burns! Nasty hobbitssessss!!!

Enjoy!

Orion

Shared Photos - Zone 1

UK Leave Trip

Okay - I shared the first 3 photo albums for my UK Leave Trip:
Zone 1 - Derbyshire Pics at Kodak Gallery (92 Pics)
Zone 1 - The Moors Pics at Kodak Gallery (22 Pics)
Zone 1 - Lancaster Pics at Kodak Gallery (127 Pics)


They've got comments too! Enjoy!

Orion

Lighthouse Album

With Comments!

Okay - I uploaded my pics from the Lighthouse Trip (Phase I!) to Kodak Easy Share - Click on the link and enjoy the full set of pics (all 87 of 'em!)

Oh, one of the things I've been chuckling about; Most of you know my right side is a disaster area, and my right leg has suffered a lot of damage. I had not noticed this until I was in England (and Diane, I believe, put her finger on the reason why) but I really noticed it this trip. Almost all of my shots have a definite tilt to the right - About a degree and three quarters low on the right side unless I make a serious effort to correct it against a known horizontal line. My own viewpoints is too used to seeing things tilted right, so apparently I just automatically correct things that way. I think I've fixed most of these shots, but you may see a few that are tilted.

Orion

Lighthouse Teaser Pics

To Whet The Palate!

About 600 miles in 15 hours of driving - Max purred like a kitten the whole trip. I only managed to get 8 of the 11 before running out of daylight - They closed the gate at #9 JUST before I got there, drat it! And my AAA directions were um...laughable at one of the sites.

But here are some pics!

Brookings Harbor











The Lighthouse at Cape Blanco










The Coast at Cape Blanco











Coquille River Light











View from Cape Arago











Cape Arago Again











Heceta Head Lighthouse











Yaquina Bay Lighthouse

Elections?

Not Any More.

Anyone notice that in just about EVERY article on the Special Election in MA today that the key things are:
1: That Brown needs to win by more than the margin of fraud in a Democrat-machine state.
2: Not whether or not the Dems will try to steal the election, but just how obvious they're willing to be about it.
3: That if they can't rig enough votes to give Coakley the 'win', the Dems have already decided not to seat Brown until after the health-care vote.

So - the question here is no longer, "Who's going to win the election?" Its: How are the Democrats going to corrupt the electoral process and maintain their hold on power?

Anyone think that's more than a little frightening when that same party has a stranglehold on the American government? Anyone think that the assumption of vote fraud by Democrats, and the attitude that this is NORMAL for them is wrong?

Interesting times, indeed.

Orion

UPDATE: Instapundit has links to a lot of on-going apparently-Democrat possible-voter fraud. Already.

UPDATE2: Media folks can't find Coakley (D) supporters willing to go on-air:

The problem isn’t money. “They’re getting paid well,” Luntz says, “probably more than they’re making at their jobs. And they still don’t want to do it.”

Instead, says Luntz, they’re ashamed. “They don’t want to be on television defending Martha Coakley. It’s passé. It’s socially unacceptable. I never dreamed I’d see Democrats in Massachusetts embarrassed to admit they’re Democrats.”

This is NOT a good sign if you're a Dem...but they're already manufacturing allegations of fraud to delay seating Brown if he manages to outstrip the apparent left-wing fraud. Somehow, despite the obvious dearth of people willing to vote for this Democrat, despite the huge numbers of excited supporters the Republican has, the Dem will manage to eek out a win...

UPDATE: I've never been happier to be proven wrong! Now, let's see if they seat him...