The world is crying..
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Trying to make sense of the senseless..
The images coming from Japan are disturbing beyond belief.. They are frightening..
The Pacific Ocean ring of fire lit up with a vengeance. And along with the massive 8.9, or maybe even 9.1 earthquake in Japan, came the 33 foot tsunami. The images coming from Japan, of people looking like ants, standing next to rapid waters destroying everything in its path, is humbling and scary.
The ocean water slammed quickly into the land and threw cars around as though they were Matchbox toys.
The video is surreal and looks more like scenes from a big budget Hollywood movie than it does reality. But it’s all too real.
And now, along with the scores dead, and thousands missing, and the dramatic and horrific destruction caused by the natural calamity, comes nuclear fears. Fukushima saw an explosion last night—this after hours of desperate attempts to cool down the nuclear reactor that was set to cause radiation leaks. Now with the explosion, the real possibility that a radioactive discharge, not meant to be, already took place.
This weekend now is filled with aftershocks—some as high as a 7.1, and a 6.4 at the site of the nuclear fears. With every shock comes real shock. With every wave comes renewed fears of the tremendous disaster.
Japan has been through some awful natural disasters before. Most continents have been, too. But this time, for some reason, just feels different.
Maybe it’s all that buzz about the end times—and believe me the ‘end times’ have been advertised highly for centuries and times kept going, as I’m sure they will this go around, as well.
Maybe it feels different because the videos.. the photos.. the images of a whirlpool sucking down boats and life.
Maybe it’s the stories of buses and boats filled with people vanishing—seemingly lost in time.
Or maybe it feels different because, this time, it is. This time the massive tsunami potentially killed more than the quake. The prospects of nuclear meltdowns should be cause for the entire planet to be on alert.
But you can only be alert so much before it doesn’t matter anymore. Tectonic plates move, and this time they did violently, and the earth will do what it always has done: Be.
Yes, indeed, it’s humbling to see the incredible destruction.. no matter how smart or powerful humans think they are, they can’t stop nature. Humbling..
And downright chilling to its core..
Unsettling thoughts.. and times
I am no prophet.. I am no believer in ‘end times’ predictions. I do not evangelize anything .. I force no religious or ethical rules on anyone.. I feel that a lot of other people are a lot smarter than I am. But something keeps me from being calm about the state of our current times..
I hope for the best in Japan. I hope few are dead.. few are injured.. the waters recede.. and the nuclear crisis goes away and we all breath a sigh of relief.
But I don’t think it will, at all. Something deep down in my overall being just keeps thinking: This is not over yet.
I prayed this morning, and this afternoon.. and while I don’t conclusively know a God is present to hear the words I said, I have faith and hope that one is.. At least some type of force that keeps us all in check. Some type of entity or being that, in the end, has concern for humanity.
There are moments, like this one, where I think humanity has a ton more challenging days ahead.. More than we want. And more than we need. Japan is in flames and floods, the Ring of Fire is alive with vengeance, and the Middle East is erupting in violence.
But it’s Saturday night.. and we shouldn’t worry about all that. Right?
Not anymore…
Saturday night crisis
State of emergency at 3 reactors at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear facility ..More..
And while we watch potential nuclear catastrophe..
.. I cannot even fathom what the citizens of Japan are going through today. The nuclear reactor crisis must only be exacerbating the horrendous weekend ..
The danger at Fukushima still difficult to assess..
But I’d argue that recent Japanese officials’ claims of a disaster averted are as premature as saying there has been a disaster.. It’s too early to tell but it’s downright nerve racking watching..
The danger at Fukushima still difficult to assess..
This is a great website for the latest on the crisis in the Pacific
http://english.kyodonews.jp/ (The English version of Kyodo)
This is chilling: A town of 17,000 has 10,000 people missing from it in the wake of the tsunami..
…it was a coastal town…
We can hope for the best but expect.. the worst.
This is chilling: A town of 17,000 has 10,000 people missing from it in the wake of the tsunami..
"No health hazard"
…despite radiation levels being 1,000 times the norm..
Despite workers being treated for radiation exposure..
Despite evacuations of thousands upon thousands of people..
Listen, we get it, governments don’t want an already edgy nation to panic more. But guess what, the edgy people of Japan are intelligent and fully aware that a problem at Fukushima is potentially bad. And much worse than ‘state officials’ are pretending..
"No health hazard"
More than 300,000 people have now been evacuated from homes in northern Japan and that number will rise as the government increases the exclusion zone around the Fukushima nuclear power plant, Kyodo reports
BBC News - LIVE: Japan earthquake (via underthemountainbunker)
This weekend is .. just not going to be good.
A quake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 just hit Fukushima in northern Japan- the prefecture where the unstable nuclear plant is located.
Enough aftershocks. Enough.
Worst place and time for this aftershock
A quake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 just hit Fukushima in northern Japan- the prefecture where the unstable nuclear plant is located.
Quake moved Japan coast 8 feet; shifted Earth's axis
CNN: Reports from the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology in Italy estimated the 8.9-magnitude quake shifted the planet on its axis by nearly 4 inches.
Quake moved Japan coast 8 feet; shifted Earth's axis
It’s been a long and disastrous day..
Scores of people have been killed by disaster on earth.. Millions around the world, if not billions, watched live coverage on TV, the internet, and radio.. Every medium of information was busy speculating on disaster..
No better time than now for a silent, quiet, and peaceful lullaby..
Bing Crosby “TOO-RA-LOO-RA-LOO-RA”
Be at peace.
Goodnight.
Friday, March 11, 2011
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjkJDu0B-1U?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=http://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque&w=500&h=374]
Calling all angels…
You’re needed in Japan.
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
What to make of a day like this..?
Images of ruin .. photos of destruction .. voices of horror .. moments of devastation. Everything that mattered stopped mattering for a while today, as some monumental and massive development in the history of life took place. An enormous earthquake shook parts of the planet, altered time itself, moved an island, and caused a ocean wide tsunami that left destruction in its path.
And all of that was before sunrise in the land of the rising sun..
Japan has had its share of natural disasters before. But the calamity that hit the nation today turned parts of the country into a graveyard ocean.. The amount of dead could very well be shocking.
Yes.. what to make of a moment where it appears the world is on fire.. What to think of a moment in time where it seems stability is gone..
We’ve been here before as a civilization, and we will be again. But this time, for some reason, just seems a little different. Or perhaps just .. more.. real.
Now that nature did its attack today, it’s time for humanity to try to stop another disaster from happening in Japan: A nuclear meltdown.
Wish humanity luck. It seems to need it as of late.
Maybe one of the more frightening images from a day of absolutely horrific sites from the Pacific ring of fire.. This is the giant whirlpool that developed, like a scene from a science fiction movie.. This wasn’t a movie, but instead all too real.
Time. Don't let it slip away
NASA: Japan’s quake was so strong it sped up the Earth’s rotation by 1.6 microseconds..
Not trying to doom and gloom up a Friday.. But
Two Russian Kamchatka VOLCANOES ERUPTED almost simultaneously with the strong 8.9 earthquake that hit Japan More here
Not getting better, but worse..
Japan declares states of emergency for five nuclear reactors at two power plants: More..
Islands moved.. The earth sped up.. Boats and lives lost in a whirlpool
Everything the world saw today has been surreal, but real.. Frightening but true.. Seemingly fiction but fact. And ominous days will undoubtedly be coming next..
Radiation spike
Double fear at Japan nuke plant: Japan says radiation levels surged outside the nuclear plant, as the nation expands area subject to evacuation ..
And remember those rumor Coal Speaker reported few hours ago about radiation already leaking out? some officials at Tokyo power are now publicly admitting it may have happened..
And now this
The radiation level in Fukushima Daiichi plant central control unit 1,000 times normal..
It's both challenging and chilling following the disaster on earth today
But I, like the world, is glued to coverage of the madness being caused by mother nature.. Stay tuned for more.. As I’ll be watching and updating with news I find most urgent and important..
Going nuclear in Japan
The latest: Radiation levels are 8 times their normal levels near the main gate of Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan, according to Kyodo
The ring of fire is on fire
Yet another: Another earthquake hits northern Japan, has preliminary magnitude of 5.8.. Dozens more have been hitting..
Good!
'Not going to be a major damaging event, but there's going to be scattered damage,' says Pacific Tsunami Warning Center about Hawaii
No reports of radioactive leaks..
But the AP is reporting an urgent: Miyagi prefecture nuclear plant fire update: Smoke seen at building separate from reactor; no reports of radioactive leaks, injuries
Up to a 33 foot wave slammed Japan.. I can only believe that no image, not even this one, does any justice in showing the horror.. More images from Boston.com
URGENT: Abnormality reported at Fukushima nuclear plant | Kyodo News
The operator of the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant reported an abnormality Friday following a powerful earthquake which hit a wide area in northeastern Japan including Fukushima Prefecture, the industry ministry said.
The system to cool reactor cores in case of emergency stopped at the No. 1 and No. 2 reactors of the plant operated by Tokyo Electric Power Co., it said.
Anyone mind explaining what this means? Is it as horrific as it sounds?
URGENT: Abnormality reported at Fukushima nuclear plant | Kyodo News
UK Sky News reporting...
Tokyo Electric Power Co confirms a “falling trend” in the water levels inside reactors at Fukushima nuclear plant.
To my Hawaiian readers
Find higher ground now.. Don’t panic. Whatever will be will be, and the rest if the world is hoping for you .. And praying for lost lives in Japan after the tremendous natural disaster we will never forget
Smaller after shocks 'in the hundreds' hitting Japan
But about 20 or so large quakes hit after the 8.9
Earthquakes, tsunamis, and nuclear emergencies
The world has not held its breath like this in quite some time
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywX3vZaE7Hc?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=http://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque&w=500&h=374]
Flogging Molly - Irish Pub Song
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
Thursday, March 10, 2011
....something more to worry about
Health officials alarmed at cancer rates in our modern age: According to numbers released today, the number of cancer survivors in the United States is increasing by hundreds of thousands a year, and now includes roughly one in 20 adults..
The Hamster Killing
Brooklyn teen charged with killing pet hampster.. Monique Smith, 19, is charged with one felony count of aggravated cruelty to animals for allegedly killing the 4-ounce hamster during a family dispute..
And if convicted, the teen could also face two years in prison..
Perhaps a good punishment, without any flippancy intended, would be for the teen to run in a steel wheel for hours on end, only being supplied water and bread crumbs?
The battle for the box office
Box office this weekend: The battle for LA tops? A UFO sighting that inspired the new flick written about..
Aliens take to the box office..
A review: “Immitation”..
Review: The big what if..
This week at the box: BATTLE: LOS ANGELES expected to pound contender MARS NEEDS MOMS.. Because Mars may need moms, but big box office budget busting techniegraphic flicks need disaster, UFO invasions, and a city being destroyed. And this weekend, the box office will get it.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mb3iPP-tHdA?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=http://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque&w=500&h=374]
Good evening everyone..
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
The more things change, the more they stay the same.. A decade ago we were watching Seinfeld on Thursday night while Gadhafi ruled with an iron fist. And now, Seinfeld is gone.. but Gadhafi still rules with an iron fist
Rainy days and Thursdays always get me down..
I actually recall Thursday night TV back in the heyday of NBC sictomland of the late 1990s.. Seinfeld at 9.. (Friends at 8, but I never watched).. and if you cared to take it, ER was still on at 10 before your late local news..
The only constant in life is the late local news after all—fires, floods, ravages of nature, and stabbings. And that’s before weather 15 after and sports before JAY..
Now the new modern age is filled with ‘days of rage’ and gas prices sky high.. When Seinfeld was on, I remember gassing up the car to get to high school for the minor price of $.99 a gallon.. Times change indeed. Hurricane Katrina, OPEC, and lots of Middle Eastern skirmishes later, and the powers that be were able to call it a day on low prices..
Our modern life is filled with union vs non union.. peace vs war..
But the constant still appears to be one person: Moummar Gadhafi — and no one STILL knows how to spell his name..
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzI4QN1ML6I?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=http://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque&w=500&h=374]
Juice Newton - Angel Of The Morning
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qx9br5ISRpo?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=http://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque&w=500&h=374]
This song reminds me of a warm night under summer stars.
A shame I can’t swim.
Goodnight all.
R.E.M. - Nightswimming
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNW809QqF1g?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=http://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque&w=500&h=374]
Good evening.
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
Just when we forgot about them, animals deaths are back
Millions of dead fish in Rodondo Beach....
Mystery..
More on the mass fish death: Anchovy Carcasses Blanket Los Angeles Harbor..
Official says no foul play..
Millions dead..
Sheen lost the shine
…and it’s for all to see.
What I originally thought was inventive marketing seems to have spiraled out of control..
Just as CBS fired Sheen from TWO AND A HALF MEN, Chuck took to a roof waving a machete..
Just as I thought the machete was just one last attempt to get some attention, he appeared on the internet, looking more like a corpse than a man, looking less like a star of a hit TV sitcom, and more like SKELETOR from the 1980s cartoon HE-MAN..
Is this the light of fame shining down on a soul of someone who has no shame? Is this, perhaps, the ultimate of greed profit in the sin city of Tinseltown..? Is this the image of a man who will one day have a star on the Hollywood walk of fame? .. shame.
No, this is the image of a troubled soul, empty and void of common sense at the moment.. And the world’s watching. But then again, all the world’s a stage.. And Charlie Sheen may be one of its best players..
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7E88RUqyjts?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=http://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque&w=500&h=374]
Goodnight world at war.
Be at peace.
Grandpa Tell Me Bout The Good Old Days — The Judds
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
Monday, March 7, 2011
News from the heartland: The Dusk Bowl coming back strong?
The UK TELEGRAPH reporting on some interesting, and really not good news, that farmers are worried about the Ogallala Aquifer, which is now running dry..
(Some of the comments on the article are just as interesting as the article itself)
News from the heartland: The Dusk Bowl coming back strong?
'Spectacular' cyber attack hits French government
…watching this one closely..
The French finance ministry has shut down 10,000 computers after a “spectacular” cyber attack from hackers using Internet addresses in China, officials and reports said on Monday.
The hackers were hunting for documents relating to the Group of 20 (G20) developed and developing nations, which this year is led by France, said Budget Minister Francois Baron, adding that a probe was under way into the attacks.
“We have leads,” Baroin told Europe 1 radio, saying that what he called a “spectacular” attack was “probably the first time” that the French government’s computer system had been hit on this scale.
» via Yahoo! News
'Spectacular' cyber attack hits French government
A new and chilling 9/11 tape emerges from the vantage point of a NYPD helicopter
According to Gawker: The National Institute of Standards and Technology requested the 17-minute video through the Freedom of Information Act, and the video was sent anonymously to the secret-sharing website Cryptome..
Cryptome has famously led the way in posting secret government documents throughout the years—much longer in operation than Wikileaks as well..
A new and chilling 9/11 tape emerges from the vantage point of a NYPD helicopter
Restaurants not faring very well on the 'germ' list
As a proud germaphobe, I was eager to read This: The top germiest places you’d never realize..
Restaurant menus. I can see that. Lemon wedges in the restaurant? Sure.. they are never cleaned but yet put into your water glass..
Cleaning the clock
Me: Dad, why isn't this clock working anymore?
My Dad: It does work! It just always ticked but never tocked
My Dad: It does work! It just always ticked but never tocked
It's really not news anymore, but oil jumped in price again
…and if there was any economic recovery, say goodnight Irene if oil keeps rising.
I think it was Gorilla Monsoon from the old 80’s WWF should perfected the saying ‘goodnight Irene.’
I wonder if Irene ever slept, really.. And if she still can knowing she will have to spend her entire savings by Memorial Day just to fill up her car was gas?
It's really not news anymore, but oil jumped in price again
An interesting CNN story on the exorcist behind the movie THE RITE
And no.. he does not do exorcisms on demand.
An interesting CNN story on the exorcist behind the movie THE RITE
Snowzilla? This is the name for it?
Either way, news agencies are accounting for the surprise snow that blanketed much of the Northeast..
I never liked the strange names we give weather events. Although I due sometimes wish major Nor’Easters would get named, just as hurricanes do..
Snowzilla? This is the name for it?
Lava spews 65 feet high after a crater collapse in Hawaii
A new vent has opened at one of the world’s most active volcanoes..
The Kilauea volcano suddenly made news Sunday. MORE Kilauea volcano crater collapses in Hawaii
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Just read an urgent weather bulletin from the National Weather Service about heavy snow and ice beginning tonight. It’s been raining heavy all day .. a few folks said “at least it’s not snow.”
Now it will be…
Jinx.
Maybe I should start believing myself more often: On February 27, Accuweather reported and this website re-linked a possibility that this weekend’s rain would turn to snow.. I suppose that turned out to be true after all..
For those along the East Coast drenched in rain, be forewarned.. it may soon turn to a blinding heavy snow accumulation reminding everyone that March still can act as a lion before the lamb sets in…
(Source: http://www.coalspeaker.com/)
No skin off my back.. the tip of the spear.. the boiling point.. don't pull the wool over my eyes: The war over circumcision in San Francisco
Anti-circumcision groups want to stop the cutting. Some Jewish groups oppose.
In a few years, will San Francisco be filled with foreskin or will it be cut? The debate rages..
No skin off my back.. the tip of the spear.. the boiling point.. don't pull the wool over my eyes: The war over circumcision in San Francisco
This is the Daily Beast and Newsweek.. Will it be newsweak with Tina or strong again? The redesign features bulky verdana letters.. And Hillary in her finest of light..
Tina Brown going where others have gone before: The logical choice for a logical cover.. The redesign looks a lot like the previous if you ask me. But no one did.
Government gets its first three subjects from Schuylkill County
A local story of interest to me, and maybe even you.. Three babies have been born in Schuylkill County, PA, and are going to take part in a decades-long government study on children..
The government study, according to the report, intends on asking not why children get sick, but instead why some children are healthier than others..
My wife and I were offered the chance to stick Ayden into the study a few weeks before he was born, but we declined. I am not accusing anyone of anything nefarious.. I just didn’t have the interest and maybe even the paranoia of untrustworthiness for any government study that will watch my child until the drinking age of 21..
As far as health? Schuylkill County!? If you’ve never been here, you’ll most likely not know it’s the home of a vast array of abandoned former coal mines.
Nothing unhealthy in the ground there, right?
And it’s the home of a sulfur creek that many have labeled the ‘shit crick’.. Yes, I said crick. Local word..
And this county of Coal Speaker home base is also the home of a rare cancer that has been seen more and more in the region.
So I hope the 21-year-long study goes well. I’ll be 51 by the time we find out why certain kids are sicker than others.
The Lincoln history books neglect to mention
New book sheds new light on Lincoln’s racial
views
He wanted to send free blacks to Central America.. While that fact has been tossed around for generations, few took hold to it and spoke about it. And the new book by Philip Magness and Sebastian Page, they write about newly uncovered documents found in London on America’s hero president.
According to AP’s reporting on the new Lincoln book, Magness and Page’s book offers evidence that Lincoln continued to support colonization, engaging in secret diplomacy with the British to establish a colony in British Honduras, now Belize
It’s a history lesson few know.. and one most history teachers aren’t comfortable telling.
But we should face facts of American history more often.
History is interesting, filled with complexities, and must (MUST) be viewed in the prism of then, and reflected on now with the knowledge of today.
After all, does anyone really think Dwight Eisenhower opened-armed loved African Americans enough to send forces in to help desegregate a school? No. He was just enforcing a Supreme Court decision. And in doing so, IKE accidentally became one of the most important presidents in history concern racial desegregation.
As far as honest Abe? He probably could tell a lie. He most likely was a typical politician. He probably did the 1800s version of Dick Morris type triangulation. And he was really successful.
And he, just like Ike, also accidentally did something wonderful: He spoke the Emancipation Proclamation as leverage against the South during the Civil War, held strong, and ended up freeing slaves, though Radical Republicans in the aftermath of his assassination would undue his successes through their punishments.
And yes, racial intolerance continues today.. Racial segregation continued for generations. Horrible racial crimes took place within the North and South of the United States. And even today, a few places proudly fly a confederate flag without abandonment.
So while Lincoln helped push the nation into the future, it is more than worthwhile to know the full history of the man who the 21st century feels to be a saint. He was not a saint, most likely a sinner, and a complex man who shaped history in ways he most likely never knew he would.
And since we’re talking about real history, he also declared Martial Law, suspended freedoms of press, fired lots of generals, mismanaged and micomanaged the Civil War, and had a really high pitched voice. But people said he knew how to tell a joke. Unless people were just laughing at how he sounded…. Those things don’t make history books.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILWSp0m9G2U?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=http://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque&w=500&h=281]
Flashdance What A Feeling - Irene Cara
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
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