I don’t know who gets angrier when PBS cuts into SESAME STREET to collect money, my son or me..
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Happy Saint Patrick’s Day, 2011
Metallica - Whiskey In The Jar (Dublin Ireland, 2006)
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Two states left
I did a shout out to the states of Hawaii, North Dakota, and Wyoming.. North Dakota came through with visits today.. still waiting for the other two.
Stay lean, minus the cuisine
Dieters and male office workers unite: Be fearful over a recall of some Lean Cuisine dinners..
Interestingly enough, they were on sale a week ago on my local grocer..
Good thing I didn’t take advantage of the sale on half-sized turkey dinners and blank egg rolls..
Although the chicken marsala isn’t so bad.
Either way, some of the dinners have been recalled after discovery of ‘foreign’ materials within the spaghetti and meatballs.
The products were sold east of the Rocky Mountains in 9.5 ounce units entitled “Lean Cuisine Simple Favorites, Spaghetti with Meatballs” and have the establishment number “EST 7991.”
They bear a November 2011 “best before” date on the side of the package.
I can’t recall if the meatballs were on sale.. and I hope for your sake your don’t have packages with that establishment number..
International child pedophilia ring busted
Three year old “Operation Rescue” has succeeded, according to police.. They say the product of their investigation revealed an international pedophile ring, rescuing 230 children from abuse and arresting 184 suspects — including teachers and police officers
The ring was centered on an Amsterdam-based online forum called boylover.net.. Investigations still are ongoing concerning members to the website. One official said, “Those who have been members of the site can expect a knock on the door in the very near future”..
New readers, old world, the coal mine is never full
The United States.. joined by Canada, and the UK, Australia too.. Argentina, don’t cry for me, with Aruba’s brew.
Singapore, don’t cane me, Slovenia don’t distain me.. Welcome France and Japan, join in the fun..
Thanks for reading, new readers and old ones alike. For those in the middle, stay for a while..
Take two
Workers at Japan’s damaged nuclear power plant have returned after being evacuated, Tokyo Electric Power Company says.
The world sometimes can be sadder than anyone can take.. Find solace in what you know.. somehow. Somewhere.
God bless earth.
Ominous
Workers at Japan’s damaged nuclear power plant have suspended operations and evacuated, chief Cabinet secretary says.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
The news is busy tonight telling people they don't need to take potassium iodide..
But I must ask, are they really surprised people are making runs to health stores for the little pills that are meant to protect the thyroid against problems? Are they really surprised people are worried about radiation.. And are they really surprised that people don’t 100% believe government statements that the ‘radiation will not reach California’?? ..
A horrifying video of the monster wave in Japan, as seen from a helicopter above..
More video from Japan: Tsunami waves smashing land..
Raw video of the tsunami in Japan
A late afternoon wrap..
Not a full wrap— with news developing fast and furious, more information will be coming through the night..
NUKE PLANT CRISIS HAS ‘WORSENED CONSIDERABLY’…
Europe’s energy commissioner: ‘Apocalypse’…
Japan works to contain nuclear threat after quake
And as if we didn’t know:
WHY IS THERE NO LOOTING?
…It’s an interesting question posed by the UK TELEGRAPH..
Japan is filled with very decent, good people… but why no looting?
Why no violence? None.
Interesting readers and followers respond, I’d be interesting hearing your thoughts.
WHY IS THERE NO LOOTING?
Too early for Japan jokes?
For Gilbert Gottfried, it is.. He has been fired as the AFLAC voice for these two tweets, which may be a bit too much a bit too soon:
"Japan is really advanced. They don’t go to the beach. The beach comes to them." He also posted: "I just split up with my girlfriend, but like the Japanese say, ‘They’ll be another one floating by any minute now."
Read more: Gilbert Gottfried canned as Aflac Duck voice | Atlanta Business Chronicle
So who will take over? I’d say… Don Rickels! Take advantage of him while he’s here
Monday, March 14, 2011
Radiation levels have 'increased to levels that can impact human health' around Fukushima.. Japan is telling people around the plant to remain indoors..
This is a major amplifying up of Japan’s government’s statements. After days of calm, real warnings are finally beginning.. God bless Japan and its people… No one deserves to live through this.
Remember the Westboro Baptist Church?... they are longing for your attention
So much so that they decided now they will protest at the funeral of the death of CHILDREN who died in a fire..
Seriously..?
Westboro Baptist Church… Enough already!
Remember the Westboro Baptist Church?... they are longing for your attention
Despite the talking heads on TV saying 'no big deal' and 'no bigger deal than a CT scan,' we are in UNCHARTED waters with the nuclear crisis developing in Japan
And while I understand the overall feeling not to put anyone in a sense of panic, I also wish realistic reporting could be done…
Despite the talking heads on TV saying 'no big deal' and 'no bigger deal than a CT scan,' we are in UNCHARTED waters with the nuclear crisis developing in Japan
![](https://coalspeaker3backup.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/tumblr_li2jnlsubm1qfjo2go1_1280.jpg)
There is undoubtedly a ton of bad news on its way in Japan, but for one fleeting moment, the world saw something good: A miracle child, 4 months old, plucked from the rubble, reuinted with her father..
Yes, indeed.. we needed that.
…back to reality.
It’s been a long weekend..
Goodnight all.. sleep in peace. Dream of better times
Sunday, March 13, 2011
![](https://coalspeaker3backup.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/tumblr_li13744vbg1qfjo2go1_1280.jpg)
Shocking footage of the tsunami surfaces that would out all Hollywood graphics artists to shame.. This video is the real thing..and damn scary
ANOTHER URGENT
Shinmoedake volcano erupts, sends ash two miles into sky…
Can things get any worse..
People talk about the end of the world a lot these days. I can only imagine that in Japan, it feels like it
![](https://coalspeaker3backup.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/tumblr_li09d92hzi1qfjo2go1_1280.jpg)
Amazing images running in the DAILY MAIL of massive swarms of fish (as they point out, looking more like oil slicks in the water than fish, since there were that many of them) swimming to Acapulco..
Fishermen took advantage. So did people with cameras..
Did the earthquake and tsunami make this happen…?
Officials in Japan warn: A monster aftershock may strike within days..
The other fear, besides the nuclear concerns, is another tsunami.. The ultimate fear is a quake, tsunami directed at the nuclear facility at Fukushima..
The death toll continues to rise in Japan — and it may very well likely top 10,000..
AP alert: Japan’s nuclear crisis intensified Sunday as authorities raced to combat the threat of multiple reactor meltdowns and more than 170,000 people evacuated quake- and tsunami-savaged northeastern coast where fears spread over possible radioactive contamination.
Japan braces for more reactor explosions..
100,000 troops deployed..
Concerns over food and water..
Finally facing reality
Japanese prime minister: Country facing most difficult crisis since World War II.
I just can't stop thinking...
Only weeks ago, my wife and I brought a child into this world.. And during the quake and tsunami in Japan, someone there was bringing a child into the world too, at some unnamed hospital and some time.. So unsettling to think of how difficult Japan’s days are now..
As much as I hated the media over-covering Charlie Sheen, I think I miss him being the top story
It would be far better than hearing of death and destruction with waves of tsunami waters destroying land and human life.
I just can’t sleep..
Saturday, March 12, 2011
The world is crying..
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
Calling all angels…
You’re needed in Japan.
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.
![](https://coalspeaker3backup.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/tumblr_lhxdemzqwt1qfjo2go1_400.jpg)
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..