If you never saw the movie the Purge, now might be the time to rent or buy. In that film, a horror parody of life, people are given the permission to commit crimes of any sort for one day a year and the government will not prosecute them.
The whole concept may seem somewhat silly ... however given the state of our current situation in this country, you could almost envision a future in which the Purge would be a non-parody and now a possible reality.
I watched live coverage last night streaming of the riots at Berkeley University. The students took to the campus to express themselves in a violent way because a gay Republican commentator known for sharp insults on Twitter was asked to speak as a guest of the campus Republicans.
But he never got the chance to speak, instead Molotov cocktails were thrown and fires raged as thousands of people took to the campus to express hatred for Milo.
But it wasn't just shouting and signage that caused hostility. There exists several videos of females who are hit with metal or iron rods, and one who is pepper sprayed for wearing a Donald Trump hat. Clearly those women were at the assembly not as protesters but is people who wanted to attend the Milo event..
Since the election last year commentators and talking heads have told us that the Donald Trump crowd has been violent and anti-female. But this new shocking twist of events showcases how more supposedly open minded people could equally be intolerant of speech and even violence towards women, as showcase last night and several videos...
In the latest film Purge election year film, candidates running for president have two sharply different view points on the purge .. The religious candidate likes the purge because it enables him to get rid of political opponents. The female candidate running against him was once the victim of the purge as she saw her entire family be killed when she was young. The movie clearly symbolizes many parts of American society. It is not just a horror comedy/slasher film instead it is a commentary on the world and time we live in.
Right now, it seems like the most common theme of the nightly news is a riot somewhere over political believes, an angry fight in Washington DC about political nominations, or families being torn apart by differing political views. If we would've had television or the Internet in the days leading up to the American Civil War in the 1800s, we may have seen similar events play out.
And that may be more than anything the most trying aspect that has developed since Donald Trump was elected president... look at yourself in the mirror, do you know what you are and what you want? Are you peaceful in nature, or do you deep down want the perch. And if you want to purge, are you completely understanding of all of the difficulties and hers that come with it?
Because by watching the news lately, I'm starting to believe that a lot more Americans than I ever believed would like the purge certainly would except it now. And that my friends is scarier than any horror movie ever made.
You have seen it in movies! A near death experience.. life flashing before your very eyes in a chronological order..
In real life--if this is real--maybe something very similar happens.
Read this article and think about it.. It details how just maybe the flash of life does take place when the last spark of life is being lived.. The brain, instead of using a chronological system however, makes it a little more interesting. The fact that time and space itself seems to be gone, that time--TIME itself!--appears to not exist anymore, is the most amazing of all..
The respondents in the study seem to imply that when their near death experience occurred, the different between 1000 years and 1 second didn't seem to matter, or even be present ..And then to top things off, respondents in the study say that during the life review, they felt the emotions that others felt ..such as a father's emotion towards a child. Fascinating. And though fascinating, some would call it all false.
Where you stand on near death experiences mostly depends on what you stand on matters of faith and existence itself. An NDE could be proof of an afterlife ...or that the brain fires off a to of charges before eventual death occurs..
I read another study this week that fascinated me as much as the NDE survey: That life tries to continue living even after a body dies.. the study seemed to suggest that cells try to generate even when the brain no longer functions and the heart has long stopped beating...
WE are at the beginning of our understanding of everything. We are infantile in our thoughts..An NDE today could be explained tomorrow..an NDE today could be tomorrow's path to understanding God or an afterlife....or the brain and science.
We do indeed live in amazing times. ANd die in them too... Maybe before we die those amazing times simply flash by before the play of life finds the curtain of time..
There is still not enough consistency in the models for the potential Super Bowl Snowstorm along the East Coast.. Too many zig zags, too many low pressure models off the coast not being exactly where it should be to produce a Nor'Easter ...
Still watching and waiting to see how model runs will work out this week.
But if some consistency starts to become seen, get ready for the 6-12 inch range in locations that are going to get snow..
At this point, however, model runs including the storm being rain or even moving out to sea are still possible.
Amid the chaos and confusion of President Donald Trump’s new executive order on immigration and refugees, sources tell CNN that White House policy director Stephen Miller spoke with officials of the State Department, Customs and Border Patrol, Department of Homeland Security and others to tell them that the President is deeply committed to the executive order and the public is firmly behind it – urging them not to get distracted by what he described as hysterical voices on TV.
MORE..
White House press secretary Sean Spicer did not respond to a request for comment.Already, Politico reported in December, the US government had quietly begun asking that foreign visitors provide their social media accounts voluntarily. The Obama administration had previously approved asking for much more information from people on terror watch lists, The Intercept reported in 2014.Trump’s executive order bars citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States for the next 90 days and suspends the admission of all refugees for 120 days.Trump’s unilateral moves, which have drawn the ire of human rights groups and prompted protests at US airports, reflect the President’s desire to quickly make good on his campaign promises. But they also encapsulate the pitfalls of an administration largely operated by officials with scant federal experience.
President Trump has reorganized the National Security Council by elevating his chief strategist Steve Bannon and demoting the Director of National Intelligence and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Now, Bannon will join the NSC’s principals committee, the top inter-agency group for discussing national security. The National Security Council is the staff inside the White House that coordinates decision making by the president on such matters, in coordination with outside departments including the State Department and the Pentagon.
The world is in a flivver… Trump puts earth in a quiver.. A ban on a plane.. The global pain.. At the future we shiver..
Global opposition to U.S. President Donald Trump intensified on Sunday, as world leaders including Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and German Chancellor Angela Merkel denounced his decision to limit entry from seven predominantly Muslim countries in the name of fighting terrorism.
Trudeau, in a tweet, said Canada would welcome those fleeing “persecution, terror and war. Canadians will welcome you, regardless of your faith.” Merkel expressed her concerns about the temporary ban during a call with Trump on Saturday, her chief spokesman Steffen Seibert said in a statement.
On Saturday night, Uber’s New York City Twitter account notified riders that the company was turning off surge pricing for trips at JFK Airport, the site of protests against President Donald Trump’s executive order blocking some Middle Eastern travelers and refugees.
Critics swiftly accused the ridesharing company of attempting to undermine or profit from a work stoppage by taxi drivers that had been called by the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, an AFL-CIO affiliate that represents many immigrants, and whose work has been largely focused on stopping the encroachment of ride-hailing companies like Uber.
What followed was a firestorm of online anger and calls for a boycott of Uber. Well into Sunday morning, #deleteuber was a top trending topic on Twitter, with many commenters sharing screenshots of their deletions or account cancellations.
And now the newest feature of today’s online world; How to quit UBER.. delete UBER.. get rid of UBER..
Rudy Giuliani said Donald Trump asked him to work out how he could legally implement a “Muslim ban.”
“He called me up, he said, ‘Put a commission together, show me the right way to do it legally,’” the former mayor, who has been advising President Trump, said on “Fox News” Saturday.
Giuliani then said he put a panel together that included former federal Judge Michael Mukasey, Rep. Peter King and Texas Rep. Michael McCaul to come up with a plan that placed the emphasis on threats not religion.
“And what we did was we focused on, instead of religion, danger,” Giuliani said.
“The areas of the word that create danger for us, which is a factual basis, not a religious basis. Perfectly legal, perfectly sensible,” he added.
The president signed an executive order on Friday that bans indefinitely refugees from Syria from entering the US and for 90 days immigrants from seven predominately Muslim countries – Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan and Libya.
President Donald Trump on Sunday doubled down on his executive order to severely curb refugees and legal immigration, insisting on Twitter that America needs “extreme vetting” to avoid the “horrible mess” elsewhere.
Trump’s defense of his actions came as he faced escalating pressure to rescind the order. A growing number of Republicans chided Trump for the order, humanitarian groups planned a second round of protests Sunday, and some judges issued rulings halting the deportation of refugees and others caught in the fire.
On Twitter of course…..
“Our country needs strong borders and extreme vetting, NOW. Look what is happening all over Europe and, indeed, the world — a horrible mess!” Trump tweeted early in the morning.
A US raid in Yemen killed 41 suspected Al-Qaeda militants and 16 civilians on Sunday, an official said, in what would be America’s first military action in the country under President Donald Trump.
Eight women and eight children were among those killed in the dawn raid in Yakla district, in the central province of Baida, said the provincial official, who did not want to be named, and tribal sources.
Sources in the region said the raid targeted the houses of three tribal chiefs linked to Al-Qaeda.
The provincial official said Apache helicopters also struck a school, a mosque and a medical facility which were all used by Al-Qaeda militants.
Amid the chaos and confusion of President Donald Trump’s new executive order on immigration and refugees, sources tell CNN that White House policy director Stephen Miller spoke with officials of the State Department, Customs and Border Patrol, Department of Homeland Security and others to tell them that the President is deeply committed to the executive order and the public is firmly behind it – urging them not to get distracted by what he described as hysterical voices on TV.
MORE..
White House press secretary Sean Spicer did not respond to a request for comment.Already, Politico reported in December, the US government had quietly begun asking that foreign visitors provide their social media accounts voluntarily. The Obama administration had previously approved asking for much more information from people on terror watch lists, The Intercept reported in 2014.Trump’s executive order bars citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States for the next 90 days and suspends the admission of all refugees for 120 days.Trump’s unilateral moves, which have drawn the ire of human rights groups and prompted protests at US airports, reflect the President’s desire to quickly make good on his campaign promises. But they also encapsulate the pitfalls of an administration largely operated by officials with scant federal experience.
President Trump has reorganized the National Security Council by elevating his chief strategist Steve Bannon and demoting the Director of National Intelligence and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Now, Bannon will join the NSC’s principals committee, the top inter-agency group for discussing national security. The National Security Council is the staff inside the White House that coordinates decision making by the president on such matters, in coordination with outside departments including the State Department and the Pentagon.
The world is in a flivver… Trump puts earth in a quiver.. A ban on a plane.. The global pain.. At the future we shiver..
Global opposition to U.S. President Donald Trump intensified on Sunday, as world leaders including Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and German Chancellor Angela Merkel denounced his decision to limit entry from seven predominantly Muslim countries in the name of fighting terrorism.
Trudeau, in a tweet, said Canada would welcome those fleeing “persecution, terror and war. Canadians will welcome you, regardless of your faith.” Merkel expressed her concerns about the temporary ban during a call with Trump on Saturday, her chief spokesman Steffen Seibert said in a statement.
On Saturday night, Uber’s New York City Twitter account notified riders that the company was turning off surge pricing for trips at JFK Airport, the site of protests against President Donald Trump’s executive order blocking some Middle Eastern travelers and refugees.
Critics swiftly accused the ridesharing company of attempting to undermine or profit from a work stoppage by taxi drivers that had been called by the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, an AFL-CIO affiliate that represents many immigrants, and whose work has been largely focused on stopping the encroachment of ride-hailing companies like Uber.
What followed was a firestorm of online anger and calls for a boycott of Uber. Well into Sunday morning, #deleteuber was a top trending topic on Twitter, with many commenters sharing screenshots of their deletions or account cancellations.
And now the newest feature of today’s online world; How to quit UBER.. delete UBER.. get rid of UBER..
Rudy Giuliani said Donald Trump asked him to work out how he could legally implement a “Muslim ban.”
“He called me up, he said, ‘Put a commission together, show me the right way to do it legally,’” the former mayor, who has been advising President Trump, said on “Fox News” Saturday.
Giuliani then said he put a panel together that included former federal Judge Michael Mukasey, Rep. Peter King and Texas Rep. Michael McCaul to come up with a plan that placed the emphasis on threats not religion.
“And what we did was we focused on, instead of religion, danger,” Giuliani said.
“The areas of the word that create danger for us, which is a factual basis, not a religious basis. Perfectly legal, perfectly sensible,” he added.
The president signed an executive order on Friday that bans indefinitely refugees from Syria from entering the US and for 90 days immigrants from seven predominately Muslim countries – Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan and Libya.
President Donald Trump on Sunday doubled down on his executive order to severely curb refugees and legal immigration, insisting on Twitter that America needs “extreme vetting” to avoid the “horrible mess” elsewhere.
Trump’s defense of his actions came as he faced escalating pressure to rescind the order. A growing number of Republicans chided Trump for the order, humanitarian groups planned a second round of protests Sunday, and some judges issued rulings halting the deportation of refugees and others caught in the fire.
On Twitter of course…..
“Our country needs strong borders and extreme vetting, NOW. Look what is happening all over Europe and, indeed, the world — a horrible mess!” Trump tweeted early in the morning.
A US raid in Yemen killed 41 suspected Al-Qaeda militants and 16 civilians on Sunday, an official said, in what would be America’s first military action in the country under President Donald Trump.
Eight women and eight children were among those killed in the dawn raid in Yakla district, in the central province of Baida, said the provincial official, who did not want to be named, and tribal sources.
Sources in the region said the raid targeted the houses of three tribal chiefs linked to Al-Qaeda.
The provincial official said Apache helicopters also struck a school, a mosque and a medical facility which were all used by Al-Qaeda militants.
SUNDAY AM UPDATE: Looking to hold on to the number one spot with ease, Universal’s Split brought in an estimated $7.9 million on Friday and is looking at an impressive $25+ million second weekend.
Landing in second on Friday is Universal’s A Dog’s Purpose with an estimated $5.3 million as it looks as if it will finish around $18.5 million for the three-day weekend.
Screen Gems’s release of Resident Evil: The Final Chapter is projected to take in $13.7 - $14 million for the weekend after taking in an estimated $5.1 million on Friday.
The stories and video about dogs from DOG’S PURPOSE being treated questionably probably didn’t help the film–and with the cloudy month we had we are sad enough without watching a movie about dogs dying continuously..
That said, I also loved the movie SPLIT.. The ending wasn’t the twist I completely have come to love with M Night, but it worked for the film and the atmosphere presented about a city of Philadelphia under siege from 24 personalities without knowing it..
James McAvoy was impressive, completely impressive. Anna Taylor Joy was as well–as usual M Night cast the film with the perfect people to perform the roles necessary..
This is also a much needed victory for M Night Shyalaman, so many films now he has been hit was criticism..
I have loved each movie he made–even the ones others didn’t..
So happy to see SPLIT performing well..
Weekend final numbers for this week:
Split (3,199 theaters) - $18.8 M
A Dog’s Purpose (3,058 theaters) - $18.0 M
Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (3,104 theaters) - $12.2 M
Hidden Figures (3,351 theaters) - $11.6 M
xXx: The Return of Xander Cage (3,651 theaters) - $11.0 M
La La Land (3,136 theaters) - $10.0 M
Sing (2,690 theaters) - $5.4 M
Gold (2,166 theaters) - $4.1 M
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2,049 theaters) - $4.0 M
SUNDAY AM UPDATE: Looking to hold on to the number one spot with ease, Universal’s Split brought in an estimated $7.9 million on Friday and is looking at an impressive $25+ million second weekend.
Landing in second on Friday is Universal’s A Dog’s Purpose with an estimated $5.3 million as it looks as if it will finish around $18.5 million for the three-day weekend.
Screen Gems’s release of Resident Evil: The Final Chapter is projected to take in $13.7 - $14 million for the weekend after taking in an estimated $5.1 million on Friday.
The stories and video about dogs from DOG’S PURPOSE being treated questionably probably didn’t help the film–and with the cloudy month we had we are sad enough without watching a movie about dogs dying continuously..
That said, I also loved the movie SPLIT.. The ending wasn’t the twist I completely have come to love with M Night, but it worked for the film and the atmosphere presented about a city of Philadelphia under siege from 24 personalities without knowing it..
James McAvoy was impressive, completely impressive. Anna Taylor Joy was as well–as usual M Night cast the film with the perfect people to perform the roles necessary..
This is also a much needed victory for M Night Shyalaman, so many films now he has been hit was criticism..
I have loved each movie he made–even the ones others didn’t..
So happy to see SPLIT performing well..
Weekend final numbers for this week:
Split (3,199 theaters) - $18.8 M
A Dog’s Purpose (3,058 theaters) - $18.0 M
Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (3,104 theaters) - $12.2 M
Hidden Figures (3,351 theaters) - $11.6 M
xXx: The Return of Xander Cage (3,651 theaters) - $11.0 M
La La Land (3,136 theaters) - $10.0 M
Sing (2,690 theaters) - $5.4 M
Gold (2,166 theaters) - $4.1 M
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2,049 theaters) - $4.0 M
When President Donald Trump declared at the Pentagon Friday he was enacting strict new measures to prevent domestic terror attacks, there were few within his government who knew exactly what he meant.Administration officials weren't immediately sure which countries' citizens would be barred from entering the United States. The Department of Homeland Security was left making a legal analysis on the order after Trump signed it. A Border Patrol agent, confronted with arriving refugees, referred questions only to the President himself, according to court filings.Saturday night, a federal judge granted an emergency stay for citizens of the affected countries who had already arrived in the US and those who are in transit and hold valid visas, ruling they can legally enter the US.
And more..
It wasn't until Friday -- the day Trump signed the order banning travel from seven Muslim-majority countries for 90 days and suspending all refugee admission for 120 days -- that career homeland security staff were allowed to see the final details of the order, a person familiar with the matter said.The result was widespread confusion across the country on Saturday as airports struggled to adjust to the new directives. In New York, two Iraqi nationals sued the federal government after they were detained at John F. Kennedy International Airport, and 10 others were detained as well.
The Mandela Effect, for all its naysayers, seemingly strikes when you least expect it.. at the most comfortable of occasions, you find yourself uneasy.. Uncomfortable.. Unsure of what you may have just realized is true despite what you always knew to be reality.
Last night while playing Monopoly, I took a hard look at the Monopoly Man. I have seen him my entire life. . . from old board games as a child to even the NINTENDO version in the late 1980s, I have always loved the game. The newest version is cool but creepy–a credit card and banking fees, all electronic. So it was that when I figured, alright.. they must have modernized the Monopoly Man to have him loose the monocle.
Thus began another night of Mandela Effect thinking.
See… I went back, and I could not find any image of the Monopoly Man having a monocle. Even odder was finding people in Halloween costumes, dressed as the Monopoly Man with a monocle..
I also founds lots of pop culture references to the monocle.. people writing articles that that to really, really be the Monopoly Man you need a monocle to adorn your face. Even a scene in ACE VENTURA that would muddy the waters..
And nothing..
No evidence that a monocle ever existed..
Nothing to showcase proof that such a facial feature was on the Monopoly Man..
So yet again, another piece of information that weaves together a confusing fabric of the Mandela Effect.
I have long written about this topic on this website.. I have not really opined much about the validity of the effect, whether it’s true that reality has shifted or if we just all remember everything the wrong way.. Except a few times, name the following:
The British actor of stage and screen also received an Academy Award nom for 'Midnight Express' and was memorable in 'Alien,' three Harry Potter films and 'Doctor Who.' John Hurt, the esteemed British actor known for his burry voice and weathered visage — one that was kept hidden for his most acclaimed role, that of the deformed John Merrick in David Lynch’s The Elephant Man — has died, according to reports from several British newspapers. He was 77.
The two-time Oscar nominee's six-decade career also included turns on the BBC’s Doctor Who and in A Man for All Seasons (1966), Midnight Express (1978) and three Harry Potter films.
He announced in June 2015 that he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
A BIG WEATHER PATTERN CHANGE COMING.. THE HOG WON’T KNOW WHAT HITS HIM..
Seriously.. we are going from a mild winter to a suddenly cold and snowy one here in the East .. This weather model you’re looking at for example shows what MAY be a February 6ish storm along the coast, Nor’Easter potential… Blizzard condition potential.
The big thing will be a bout of not one but SEVERAL storms that can do the same run along land and water ..
The battle line will now be about where the rain and snow falls..
A BIG WEATHER PATTERN CHANGE COMING.. THE HOG WON’T KNOW WHAT HITS HIM..
Seriously.. we are going from a mild winter to a suddenly cold and snowy one here in the East .. This weather model you’re looking at for example shows what MAY be a February 6ish storm along the coast, Nor’Easter potential… Blizzard condition potential.
The big thing will be a bout of not one but SEVERAL storms that can do the same run along land and water ..
The battle line will now be about where the rain and snow falls..
- Lunar New Year, which also encompasses Chinese New Year or “Spring Festival,” begins on Jan. 27 and ends Feb. 2. While Chinese New Year is part of Lunar New Year, Lunar New Year is not necessarily Chinese New Year — it is more of a blanket term that is celebrated by more than one culture.
- Chinese New Year is based on the ancient Chinese calendar that existed when the Shang Dynasty was in power during the 14th Century B.C. “The Chinese calendar was a complex timepiece,” said Christopher Tin of Better Chinatown USA. “Its parameters were set according to the lunar phases as well as the solar solstices and equinoxes.”
- The Chinese calendar also follows the Chinese zodiac, meaning each year is represented by one of 12 signs of the Zodiac. This is the year of the rooster.
- Home and family are the core principles of the Chinese New Year . New Year in China is the largest period of human migration on earth, according to Tin. “Everyone goes back home to visit their families, and with so many migrant workers, this equates to hundreds of millions of people!” he said.
- One common tradition includes gifting red envelopes, or “lai see,” which are filled with “lucky money.” These envelopes are most commonly given to children by their parents. The amount of money doesn’t matter as it is only symbolic, however, it is usually an even number.
- The numbers eight and 88 are considered especially lucky because “eight” sounds like a word that means “prosperity.”
- Families offer ritual sacrifices of food and paper icons to appease both Gods and ancestors. Paying respects to your ancestors is also a common practice during the new year.
- Dumplings are often created to resemble gold and silver ingots to represent riches and foods like hard-boiled eggs, fish and chicken are all associated with prosperity. Spring rolls tend to represent wealth and sweet rice balls represent family togetherness.
- The color red is often used during the Chinese New Year — so much so it is even featured in food. Red dates, dyed pumpkin seeds and pomegranates are often found on the table during Chinese New Year.
2017 is a Fire Rooster Year. According to Chinese astrology, each year is associated with one of five elements as well as an animal, including gold (metal), wood, water, fire or Earth. The element, combined with the zodiac animal, set the astrology for the year. This year is a fire year, and so those born in 2017 are Fire Roosters. The last Fire Rooster Year was 1957.
Each year, the Chinese calendar assigns an animal from a rotating zodiac of 12 animals. The 12 animals cycle through rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. 2016 was the Year of the Monkey. Apart from 2017, the Year of the Rooster includes the years 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005 and 2029.
Famous Roosters include Beyoncé, Bob Marley, Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears and Jennifer Aniston. Famous Fire Roosters include Stephen Fry, Steve Buscemi and Hans Zimmer.
Roosters are characterized as observant and hardworking. Active and talkative, Roosters tend to enjoy social events and being in the center of attention, according to Chinese astrology. They also typically enjoy sports, according to traits set by the astrology.
2017 is set to be unlucky for Roosters, according to Chinese astrology, because being in the year of one’s birth sign does not bode well. Chinese astrology dictates that Roosters will have to monitor their money and health extra carefully. However, when it comes to love, Roosters truly in love are advised to get married. Those in dead-end relationships should consider breaking up, according to the astrology.
- Lunar New Year, which also encompasses Chinese New Year or “Spring Festival,” begins on Jan. 27 and ends Feb. 2. While Chinese New Year is part of Lunar New Year, Lunar New Year is not necessarily Chinese New Year — it is more of a blanket term that is celebrated by more than one culture.
- Chinese New Year is based on the ancient Chinese calendar that existed when the Shang Dynasty was in power during the 14th Century B.C. “The Chinese calendar was a complex timepiece,” said Christopher Tin of Better Chinatown USA. “Its parameters were set according to the lunar phases as well as the solar solstices and equinoxes.”
- The Chinese calendar also follows the Chinese zodiac, meaning each year is represented by one of 12 signs of the Zodiac. This is the year of the rooster.
- Home and family are the core principles of the Chinese New Year . New Year in China is the largest period of human migration on earth, according to Tin. “Everyone goes back home to visit their families, and with so many migrant workers, this equates to hundreds of millions of people!” he said.
- One common tradition includes gifting red envelopes, or “lai see,” which are filled with “lucky money.” These envelopes are most commonly given to children by their parents. The amount of money doesn’t matter as it is only symbolic, however, it is usually an even number.
- The numbers eight and 88 are considered especially lucky because “eight” sounds like a word that means “prosperity.”
- Families offer ritual sacrifices of food and paper icons to appease both Gods and ancestors. Paying respects to your ancestors is also a common practice during the new year.
- Dumplings are often created to resemble gold and silver ingots to represent riches and foods like hard-boiled eggs, fish and chicken are all associated with prosperity. Spring rolls tend to represent wealth and sweet rice balls represent family togetherness.
- The color red is often used during the Chinese New Year — so much so it is even featured in food. Red dates, dyed pumpkin seeds and pomegranates are often found on the table during Chinese New Year.
2017 is a Fire Rooster Year. According to Chinese astrology, each year is associated with one of five elements as well as an animal, including gold (metal), wood, water, fire or Earth. The element, combined with the zodiac animal, set the astrology for the year. This year is a fire year, and so those born in 2017 are Fire Roosters. The last Fire Rooster Year was 1957.
Each year, the Chinese calendar assigns an animal from a rotating zodiac of 12 animals. The 12 animals cycle through rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. 2016 was the Year of the Monkey. Apart from 2017, the Year of the Rooster includes the years 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005 and 2029.
Famous Roosters include Beyoncé, Bob Marley, Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears and Jennifer Aniston. Famous Fire Roosters include Stephen Fry, Steve Buscemi and Hans Zimmer.
Roosters are characterized as observant and hardworking. Active and talkative, Roosters tend to enjoy social events and being in the center of attention, according to Chinese astrology. They also typically enjoy sports, according to traits set by the astrology.
2017 is set to be unlucky for Roosters, according to Chinese astrology, because being in the year of one’s birth sign does not bode well. Chinese astrology dictates that Roosters will have to monitor their money and health extra carefully. However, when it comes to love, Roosters truly in love are advised to get married. Those in dead-end relationships should consider breaking up, according to the astrology.
Gorgeous photos from NOAA’s newest weather satellite, GOES-16.
In the first picture, we see a composite color full-disk image of the Western Hemisphere captured on Jan. 15, 2017. According to NASA, the new weather satellite can image the Earth every 15 minutes, which is five times faster than current devices used by meteorologists and will allow more detailed observations of the atmosphere and weather systems.
“The image is much more than a pretty picture, it is the future of weather observations and forecasting,” said Louis W. Uccellini, director, NOAA’s National Weather Service, Silver Spring, in a news release. “The rapid-refresh of these images will allow us to monitor and predict the evolution of these systems more accurately.”
And yes, that is a real picture of the moon in the second photo. Stunning!
-Patrick
(Image Credit: NOAA, NOAA/NASA)
Start your day with spectacular photos from NASA! 🌔 -Emily
Where were you on January 15 2017 when this picture was taken? ….feel small yet?
The occurrence was seen by one of the many observers, this time John Craddick, who seemingly stare are live NASA footage constantly, trying to find the next UFO ..
He told British press,
He told the Mirror: “I’ve been watching it [the live feed] for years but never seen any UFOs on it before.
"I was showing a friend how it worked at around 11.30pm when the feed cut out, and 35 seconds after it came back on, this object appeared.
"At first it was really small and then it grew bigger, lasting for about 25 seconds,” he said.
Mr Craddick claims that it must be alien because “nothing human can fly that high”
If you check your favorite news service of choice as of late, you may be noticing a trend.. All Trump, all the time..
And the headlines? So often unkind..
This is a smattering of issues from today.. A screenshot first to capture a moment time:
From the NEW YORK TIMES concerning the sudden (but expected) tension with the land down under the United States:
Mr. Trump’s push to fulfill his campaign pledge and build a border wall brought to a head months of simmering tensions, culminating in a remarkable back-and-forth between the two leaders.By afternoon, Mr. Trump’s spokesman said the president would pay for the border wall by imposing a 20 percent tax on imports to the United States, which he said would raise billions of dollars.The sparring began Thursday morning when the president of Mexico announced on Twitter that he was canceling his meeting with Mr. Trump next week, rejecting the visit after the new American leader ordered the border wall between the two nations.Having called for dialogue in the face of Mr. Trump’s vows to build a wall during the American presidential campaign, President Enrique Peña Nieto ultimately bowed to public pressure in Mexico to respond more forcefully to his northern neighbor.
President Trump will call for a 20 percent tax on Mexican imports in the hopes of raising billions of dollars to help construct a controversial wall along the southern border of the United States — a move likely to ratchet up the tension between the two nations.
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer told reporters on Thursday that the plan had been discussed with congressional Republican leaders and is part of a broader tax reform effort. Chief of Staff Reince Priebus told NBC News the 20 percent tax on Mexican imports is one of a "buffet of options", sentiments Spicer also echoed.
Moving the Clock 30 seconds, rather than a full minute or more, was a first as well, meant to reflect the fact that while Trump's words on the campaign trail raised the specter of a renewed arms race—Trump tweeted in December that the U.S. must "greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability until such time as the world comes to its sense regarding nukes"—it was too early to know exactly what he would do as President. "It is now only six or seven days of the Administration, and actions speak louder than words," said Krauss. "We want to send a message that things are not going in the right direction."
......and it hasn't even been a full week yet.
Welcome to the new America..?
Score one for corrections in the northern part of the coal region.. today Governor Wolf announced that SCI Pittsburgh would be shuddered in a cost savings move. Surviving was SCI Frackville, and the rest of the prisons in the Northeast, that some thought would have occurred..
The Unnatural Vegan vs the Vegan Cheetah! Ramon noodles! Cheese!? Who’s more vegan?! Who’s less? Ethics and animals, furs and fights.. Vegans Youtubers battle with might…
I think I’ll stick to my one ingredient lifestyle ..
The Unnatural Vegan vs the Vegan Cheetah! Ramon noodles! Cheese!? Who’s more vegan?!
Who’s less? Ethics and animals, furs and fights..
Vegans Youtubers battle with might…
I think I’ll stick to my one ingredient lifestyle ..
“Was there an earthquake that made that big boom at 3:15 p.m.?” Nancy Whitaker posted on Facebook.
Santee residents reported seeing a large glowing ball in the western sky.
“I automatically thought it was a earthquake, my car started moving back & forth in Imperial Beach!” Laura Reynolds said.
“Are we having an earthquake? Our sliders won’t stop shaking, but my chair isn’t moving and it’s not wind,” a Coronado resident posted to social media.
“I heard it here on the Strand, but didn’t feel anything. Sounded like 2 loud bangs, I thought it was thunder. I am curious what it could have been,” another Coronado resident posted.
USGS did not detect an earthquake in San Diego County during that time. a
“Was there an earthquake that made that big boom at 3:15 p.m.?” Nancy Whitaker posted on Facebook.
Santee residents reported seeing a large glowing ball in the western sky.
“I automatically thought it was a earthquake, my car started moving back & forth in Imperial Beach!” Laura Reynolds said.
“Are we having an earthquake? Our sliders won’t stop shaking, but my chair isn’t moving and it’s not wind,” a Coronado resident posted to social media.
“I heard it here on the Strand, but didn’t feel anything. Sounded like 2 loud bangs, I thought it was thunder. I am curious what it could have been,” another Coronado resident posted.
USGS did not detect an earthquake in San Diego County during that time. a
The document obtained by the Star proposes funding the projects as public-private partnerships, with half the money coming from private investment.
The Trump team put together the priority list of “Emergency & National Security Projects,” a senior congressional aide said. It includes cost estimates and job impact numbers.
It is not clear whether that document is a draft or a final version. The National Governors Association circulated a similar list, which had been compiled by the transition team, as a spreadsheet among state officials in December, requesting further suggestions. All but two projects on both lists are the same.
Some projects that governors suggested — in California and Washington state in particular — do not yet appear on either list.
The governors’ association has received 43 responses from states and territories so far, said Elena Waskey, a spokeswoman for the association.
The document obtained by the Star proposes funding the projects as public-private partnerships, with half the money coming from private investment.
The Trump team put together the priority list of “Emergency & National Security Projects,” a senior congressional aide said. It includes cost estimates and job impact numbers.
It is not clear whether that document is a draft or a final version. The National Governors Association circulated a similar list, which had been compiled by the transition team, as a spreadsheet among state officials in December, requesting further suggestions. All but two projects on both lists are the same.
Some projects that governors suggested — in California and Washington state in particular — do not yet appear on either list.
The governors’ association has received 43 responses from states and territories so far, said Elena Waskey, a spokeswoman for the association.
President Donald Trump is expected to sign executive orders starting on Wednesday that include a temporary ban on most refugees and a suspension of visas for citizens of Syria and six other Middle Eastern and African countries, according to several congressional aides and immigration experts briefed on the matter.
Trump, who tweeted on Tuesday night that a “big day” was planned on national security on Wednesday, is expected to order a multi-month ban on allowing refugees into the United States except for religious minorities escaping persecution, until more aggressive vetting is in place.
Another order will block visas being issued to anyone from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, said the aides and experts, who asked not to be identified.
In his tweet late on Tuesday, Trump said: “Big day planned on NATIONAL SECURITY tomorrow. Among many other things, we will build the wall!”
President Donald Trump is expected to sign executive orders starting on Wednesday that include a temporary ban on most refugees and a suspension of visas for citizens of Syria and six other Middle Eastern and African countries, according to several congressional aides and immigration experts briefed on the matter.
Trump, who tweeted on Tuesday night that a “big day” was planned on national security on Wednesday, is expected to order a multi-month ban on allowing refugees into the United States except for religious minorities escaping persecution, until more aggressive vetting is in place.
Another order will block visas being issued to anyone from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, said the aides and experts, who asked not to be identified.
In his tweet late on Tuesday, Trump said: “Big day planned on NATIONAL SECURITY tomorrow. Among many other things, we will build the wall!”
The mall has been sold!
New management!
Out with the old!
...in with the new... But what is the future?
This is a press release to persons within the mall ..
The winning bidder was Northpoint Development LLC for $2.1 million and the assumption of the leases for A&A Auto Parts, Total Renal Care, Big Lots, McDonald’s, Holiday Inn Express and Cracker Barrel. Northpoint will also maintain Bon Ton’s rights under their ground lease agreement. They will allow rejection of all leases by the trustee pursuant to the bankruptcy code. This bid is subject to a hearing and approval by the United States Bankruptcy Court For the Middle District of Pennsylvania, which is scheduled a hearing tomorrow. If approved by the court, closing is to take place by February 24.
The death of the mall? Or a new birth.. time will tell..
But for now, we can tell this about the new ownership of the mall from their own website..
We believe we have an obligation to give back to the community through charitable efforts and, as a token of our appreciation to those who have helped us succeed, we will pay it forward.
The relationships with our customers, employees, and investors are our most valuable assets. We will strive to always take care of each other and to operate our business so that we maintain our culture of appreciation, respect, transparency, and we shall avoid office politics.
We also know this about Northpoint.. the development company has also recently purchased Highridge properties in Minersville.. They spent $28 mil, as a matter of fact, on two parcels in Highridge late 2015..
In January 2017, just days ago, it was reported that chew.com company based in Dania Beach, Fla., will lease an 800,000-square-foot distribution center that NorthPoint is developing on a 172-acre site in Hanover Township near Wilkes-Barre.. NorthPoint acquired the site, which was remediated after being scarred by coal mining, for $15 million in September.
In 2014, the Kansas City Missouri went nation when it launched big industrial and apartment projects..
The winning bidder was Northpoint Development LLC for $2.1 million and the assumption of the leases for A&A Auto Parts, Total Renal Care, Big Lots, McDonald’s, Holiday Inn Express and Cracker Barrel. Northpoint will also maintain Bon Ton’s rights under their ground lease agreement. They will allow rejection of all leases by the trustee pursuant to the bankruptcy code.
This bid is subject to a hearing and approval by the United States Bankruptcy Court For the Middle District of Pennsylvania, which is scheduled a hearing tomorrow. If approved by the court, closing is to take place by February 24.
As to the future the mall I cannot project nor do I know the plans by Northpoint.
The death of the mall? Or a new birth.. time will tell..
Models are starting to show a dynamic upper level trough that enters the Eastern Great Lakes, dives to the Mid Atlantic states and moves northeastward from there spawning an East Coast snowstorm around January 29 or so…
Right now the models are southeast of the region with snowfall, but the trends have been to sharpen the trough up more and more and then bring the storm closer to the coastline. New England is favored over Washington DC.
Models are starting to show a dynamic upper level trough that enters the Eastern Great Lakes, dives to the Mid Atlantic states and moves northeastward from there spawning an East Coast snowstorm around January 29 or so…
Right now the models are southeast of the region with snowfall, but the trends have been to sharpen the trough up more and more and then bring the storm closer to the coastline. New England is favored over Washington DC.
This is the ultimate insult to injury.. Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare 2 has fast become my son’s favorite game.. and somewhat mine. But lately it’s been awful, just awful.. Every time the game gets good, we get booted. And this annoying “unable to connect to EA servers” warning comes up.
I am curious if anyone else had the same issue? I know there are ‘fixes’ online–all of which thus far have yet to ‘fix’ the issue for us..
It’s getting painful, though..
If anyone out there has a real true fix to the problem, please send it to me.. let me know.. Until then, the plants and zombies fight without me or Ayden helping..
This is the ultimate insult to injury.. Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare 2 has fast become my son’s favorite game.. and somewhat mine. But lately it’s been awful, just awful.. Every time the game gets good, we get booted. And this annoying “unable to connect to EA servers” warning comes up.
I am curious if anyone else had the same issue? I know there are ‘fixes’ online–all of which thus far have yet to ‘fix’ the issue for us..
It’s getting painful, though..
If anyone out there has a real true fix to the problem, please send it to me.. let me know.. Until then, the plants and zombies fight without me or Ayden helping..
Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton Collapses during his State Of The State Speech. He was attended to by EMTs as the joint meeting of the House and Senate was adjourned. He apparently fainted. Dayton will turn 70 this Thursday.
Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton Collapses during his State Of The State Speech. He was attended to by EMTs as the joint meeting of the House and Senate was adjourned. He apparently fainted. Dayton will turn 70 this Thursday.
President Donald Trump met Monday at the White House with leaders of construction, carpenters, plumbers and sheet metal unions, the White House said.
According to the White House, participants included North America’s Building Trades Unions President Sean McGarvey, Laborers’ International Union of North America President Terry O'Sullivan, SMART sheet metal workers’ union President Joseph Sellers, United Brotherhood of Carpenters President Doug McCarron and Mark McManus, president of the United Association that represents plumbers, pipefitters, welders and others.
President Trump formally abandoned the Trans-Pacific Partnership on Monday, pulling away from Asia and scrapping his predecessor’s most significant trade deal on his first full weekday in office, administration officials said.
Mr. Trump sharply criticized the partnership agreement during last year’s campaign, calling it a bad deal for American workers. Although the deal had not been approved by Congress, the decision to withdraw the American signature at the start of Mr. Trump’s administration is a signal that he plans to follow through on promises to take a more aggressive stance against foreign competitors.
In other action on a busy opening day, Mr. Trump ordered a hiring freeze in the federal work force, exempting the military. And he reinstituted limits on nongovernmental organizations that operate overseas and receive American taxpayer money from performing abortions. Republican presidents typically impose those restrictions soon after taking office, and Democratic presidents typically lift them when they take over.
The president’s withdrawal from the Asian-Pacific trade pact amounted to a drastic reversal of decades of economic policy in which presidents of both parties have lowered trade barriers and expanded ties around the world. Although candidates have often criticized trade deals on the campaign trail, those who made it to the White House, including President Barack Obama, ended up extending their reach.
President Donald Trump met Monday at the White House with leaders of construction, carpenters, plumbers and sheet metal unions, the White House said.
According to the White House, participants included North America’s Building Trades Unions President Sean McGarvey, Laborers’ International Union of North America President Terry O'Sullivan, SMART sheet metal workers’ union President Joseph Sellers, United Brotherhood of Carpenters President Doug McCarron and Mark McManus, president of the United Association that represents plumbers, pipefitters, welders and others.
President Trump formally abandoned the Trans-Pacific Partnership on Monday, pulling away from Asia and scrapping his predecessor’s most significant trade deal on his first full weekday in office, administration officials said.
Mr. Trump sharply criticized the partnership agreement during last year’s campaign, calling it a bad deal for American workers. Although the deal had not been approved by Congress, the decision to withdraw the American signature at the start of Mr. Trump’s administration is a signal that he plans to follow through on promises to take a more aggressive stance against foreign competitors.
In other action on a busy opening day, Mr. Trump ordered a hiring freeze in the federal work force, exempting the military. And he reinstituted limits on nongovernmental organizations that operate overseas and receive American taxpayer money from performing abortions. Republican presidents typically impose those restrictions soon after taking office, and Democratic presidents typically lift them when they take over.
The president’s withdrawal from the Asian-Pacific trade pact amounted to a drastic reversal of decades of economic policy in which presidents of both parties have lowered trade barriers and expanded ties around the world. Although candidates have often criticized trade deals on the campaign trail, those who made it to the White House, including President Barack Obama, ended up extending their reach.
