The Socialist Pope?

(And here I thought the red stood for Pentecost.)

Ever since the Care Bear got elected this November, the right has been having conniptions about his being an un-American, closet-Muslim, socialist magic-negro overlord and re-education camp counselor ™ . Will Republican Catholics show any self-consistency and rail again the Pope for his recent socialist manifesto?

… Benedict sketches a radically different world economy, in which access to food and water is a universal right, wealthy nations share with poorer ones and profit is not the ultimate goal of commerce. He advocates the creation of a “world political authority” to manage the economy.

He blames “badly managed and largely speculative financial dealing” for causing the economic meltdown. The primary capital to be safeguarded is people, he says, adding that economic systems need to be guided by charity and truth.

Dog Flu

The dog flu, canine influenza, or the H3N8 virus, is a highly contagious respiratory infection of dogs. It is thought to have originated in horses and jumped to dogs somewhere around five years ago. It is one of several viruses associated with what’s commonly referred to as “kennel cough.”

The dog flu has been documented in 30 states, but is very prevalent in Colorado, Florida, New York and Pennsylvania.

Most dogs recover within two weeks, however, some dogs progress to pneumonia and have died. The mortality rate is around 5%. Compare that to a 2% human mortality rate for the 1918 Spanish flu. Fortunately, a vaccine is in the works and should be available soon at a vet near you.

Read the story here.

Weathermole

Weathermole is a google mash up for getting weather forecasts. It was put together by a co-worker. Go check it out!

Lagniappe

When I lived in New Orleans, before Katrina, I learned a word the locals used to mean something for nothing, Lagniappe. The term came to mind when I saw this badge for Brighter Planet's 350 Challenge.

According to the Brighter Planet page, in exchange for posting their badge on your web site, Brighter Planet will purchase and donate 350 pounds of carbon offsets for every participant in the 350 Challenge. On the surface it sounds great. I've seen similar campaigns for a wide range of issues such as hunger. But I starting thinking, doesn't this send the wrong message? Doesn't it just reinforce the idea that you can sit on your butt, in front of a computer, doing very little, and save the environment? Something for nothing!

A closer look at the 350.org site illuminates their motivation. They sell offsets that fund green projects such as windmills. So for them, its advertising plain and simple. The folks that participate, get to feel good about themselves in exchange for free advertising. So it isn't really a gift. If you dig a little, there is information about calculating your carbon foot print and conservation, but it might have sent a better message if this had been more prominent.

SuperObama

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Solution to California's budget crisis

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
You're Welcome - California Budget Crisis
thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Newt Gingrich Unedited Interview

Twister

We've had some pretty strange weather here on Colorado's front range. Lots of rain, almost daily showers, thunderstorms, and tornadoes! While its not unusual for this sort of weather to appear mid to late summer, when the daily temperatures get in the 90's, for it to happen this early in the season, and when the weather is relatively cool, is pretty unusual.

Sick little dog

The little black dog had some surgery on her ear again. Its a recurrence of the
ear Hematoma she had last December.

Andy looks on with concern.

wetsuit

A wet suit that doubles as body art? That's what Diddo is doing. Choose between their shark bite and decaying flesh suit designs.

Bath day

Tonight the little black dog gets a bath. Its been since last fall and she really stinks. The poor thing really hates it. Her eyes get wide and she starts to shake. She loves water when its her idea, but not otherwise.

Brew beer in a coffee maker?

Southern Fried Science shows you how to brew beer in a coffee maker, using only materials commonly found on a modestly sized oceanographic research vessel. As they say, it may be very bad, but its beer!

Vintage Camera blog

Kelly's other human has decided to try blogging, and has started a Vintage Camera blog.

Go check it out.

Dogs: Ten thousand years in the making

And they wonder why ...

Taken without permission from Pundit Kitchen.

Don't you just get tired of Wing Nuts going ballistic anytime a progressive says anything snarky about a conservative, but when its from their side they are conspicuously silent.

Andy's Baby pictures

I've posted some baby pictures of Andy from last spring and summer over at Andy the Pocket Shepherd.

Map of the Fallen

The Map of the Fallen is a google maps project to honor American and Coalition soldiers who have lost their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan. For Memorial Day go check it out.

What could possibly go wrong?

This Wednesday, congress sneaked in legislation, as part of the credit-card reform bill, that changes the rules to now permit loaded, concealed weapons to be carried within National Parks. Prior to this, only unloaded weapons were allowed within the Park boundaries.

What could possibly go wrong?

Two people were killed and six others _ two of them children _ were wounded in a shooting at a high school graduation party, police said Sunday.

Brent Matthew Banks, 37, was arrested after a four-hour standoff with police at a house in Mesa, east of Phoenix, Mesa Police Sgt. Ed Wessing said.

Preliminary information indicated that Banks was an invited guest at the party who got into a physical fight with his ex-wife late Saturday, Wessing said.

He allegedly went to his vehicle, got a gun, returned to the party and opened fire, killing his 38-year-old ex-wife and a 32-year-old man, Wessing said.

He said six others suffered minor injuries. They included a 10-year-old boy who was grazed on the head and an 8-year-old boy injured by bullet fragments.

Insane in the membrane

My post earlier this week cast some doubt on the sanity of those currently running the GOP into the ditch. This recent reworking of the anti - Goldwater Daisy ad from 1964 by the GOP over the closing of Gitmo speaks for itself. Because clearly closing Gitmo is the modern equivalent of Nikita Khrushchev blowing up the world with hydrogen bombs. I mean its not like we have any record of successfully locking up dangerous people (second only to China) in our prisons - including those responsible for the first NY Trade Center bombing, the Oklahoma city bombing, the Unibomber, and the list goes on. These are human beings we're talking about, not terminators. Experience has shown that they can be safely contained in a Federal Supermax. Yet the GOP goes on like Obama will be creating a superfund site in small town America.

The unfortunate reality is that small towns with big prisons holding normal criminals are already a mess. Steinbeck's Salinas has been completely overrun with gangs and related crime. When you throw a gang leader into the supermax, there is a tendency for their family and associates to relocate near to the prison. Quickly the gangs learn that the small town cops aren't up to the task of policing big city gangs and it unravels from there.

Even the govenator can't save things

My friend Tim, over at Cafe Zeke also grew up in California, but is now an expat. As a former Journalist and history major, he has a pretty good take on the mess California state policies have created for themselves.

A long time ago, I covered state and local government for a variety of local newspapers. I watched, year, after year, as government, under the slowly swinging axe of Prop. 13 made cut after cut into vital social services and things like parks and libraries and shifted the tax burden to the "user" through fees. I saw politicians forced into funding needed projects through bond measures (the pay-later plan). And I saw how dysfunctional California's revenue system really was, a system where any crazy minority could hold the public hostage to its demands.

I wrote article after article on these issues, often containing warnings that these were short-sighted policies that would bankrupt the state. As an editor, I argued the same things more forcefully, pointing out the the long-term health of my community and our state depended on making more democratic reforms that allowed sensible revenue generation (taxation) and even sometimes got to make the point that those who get the most out of a society (corporations and the rich) should pay the most into it, rather than be supported by the "users" of public services (the middle class and the poor—in other words, me you, and just about everyone we know).

Read the rest here.

Don't Ask!

Originally posted here.

Doing what they do best

A new sport

Tank of gas

Filled the beast's tank today. Cost over $25. The price today here was $2.19/gal. Thats an almost 20 cent jump in the last five days. Other than it being May and the beginning of summer driving season, I can't think of a single reason for a jump that big (over 10%). The previous tank was about two weeks ago, and was just under $25.

What did you pay for gas this week?

Update - I refilled again today (May 21). Its up to $2.25/gal for the holiday weekend.

Be afraid, be very afraid

At least that is what the Republican machine would like. Senate Republicans have created an unusually inane video about how this country is unable to incarcerate the Guantanamo detainees because clearly we don't incarcerate anyone dangerous already, as demonstrated in this video.

The horror

Trekkies Bash New Star Trek Film As 'Fun, Watchable'