Posted by: Frozen Al ||
01/05/2010 14:40 Comments ||
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#7
this weirdly exact high number sounds oddly like the jobs created/saved statistics coming out of recovery.gov
Posted by: lord garth ||
01/05/2010 14:51 Comments ||
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#8
That's one a day for 35 years. Exactly 35 years and 0 days.
I call bull.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/05/2010 15:13 Comments ||
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#9
It's not for nuthin that Carly Simon wrote her song about him:
You walked into the party
Like you were walking onto a yacht
Your hat strategically dipped below one eye
Your scarf it was apricot
You had one eye in the mirror
As you watched yourself gavotte
And all the girls dreamed that they'd be your partner
They'd be your partner, and
You're so vain
You probably think this song is about you
You're so vain
I'll bet you think this song is about you
Don't you? Don't you?
#13
Don't forget MAGIC JOHNSON, or JOHN HOMES + RON "THE HOG/WARTHOG" JEREMY.
IIRC, correct me iff I'm wrong but didn't FAMOUS DEPRESSION/PROHIBITION-ERA CHICAGO MOBSTER AL CAPONE die from SYPHILIS-RELATED BRAIN INFLAMMATION [includ bouts of dementia]???
In a new tell-all biography of Warren Beatty by Peter Biskind, it's alleged that the veteran writer, actor, producer and director has bedded 12,775 women, give or take.
Doing the math and assuming one woman per day, 12,775 divided by 365 equals 35 years which means Warren Beatty effectively had sex with a different woman, each and every day, continuously for 35 years. I'm guessing he doesn't remember all their names.
Nevertheless, among the total, loverboy Beatty allegedly had sex with Hollywood stars Julie Christie, Joan Collins and Jane Fonda, according to a review in today's NYPost, with the most interesting being the relationship with Fonda during an audition in 1960.
On the first take, Beatty gave her a brief, chaste kiss. "I thought he was gay," Fonda tells Biskind. Director Joshua Logan was not having it. "Look, are you afraid of Jane or something? Grab her, boy, grab her. Don't be shy." It was a directive that Beatty would apply to his love life forever after. "Oh, my God. We kissed until we had practically eaten each other's heads off," Beatty tells Biskind.
The two went on to become an item, and Beatty would later rave about Fonda's sexual prowess "due to her ability to virtually unhinge her jaw, like a python that swallows prey much larger than itself." Thanks for that mental image. Now, excuse me while I go pluck my eyes out. Not me. I've got the image of her with his entire leg down her throat, caressing her bosom with his toes from the inside...
Reminds me of the joke asking why women are so bad at estimating measurements...
Over the years, Jane Fonda has arguably led a public life fairly unhinged from the rest of society and now we learn that she has been unhinged in private also.
#1
What really drove Jane Fonda mad was being married to Roger Vadim, who positively had a gift from driving the women in his life star raving bonkers. He is also responsible for driving Brigette Bardot nuts (knocked her up at age 15.
Finnish transport officials say a near-empty passenger train has crashed into a hotel by Helsinki's main railway station, causing damage but no injuries.
Timo Saarinen at the Finnish Rail Administration says the train ran into the Holiday Inn Monday morning after the brakes failed. He says three staff members were on board but no passengers. No serious injuries were reported.
Finnish Transport Agency spokeswoman Anna Jokela says passengers at the station were warned to stay away from the incoming train before it crashed. She says a conference room in the part of the hotel that was struck was empty at the time. It was not immediately known why the brakes failed.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/05/2010 00:00 ||
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[Al Arabiya Latest] A British woman claimed she is possessed by the spirit of the ancient Egyptian Queen Nefertiti as both countries accused her of fraud and insanity, according to press reports Monday. Fellow I know thinks he's Simon Girty. Folks do keep their distance, except for the guy that thinks he's Little Harp...
Victoria, who originally hails from Nigeria, believes she is carrying a message to the entire world but will never be able to deliver it unless everyone believes she is the incarnation of the 18th dynasty Egyptian queen Nefertiti, the Egyptian daily independent al-Masry al-Youm reported Monday. In that case she's prob'ly not gonna deliver it...
"Of course I am Nefertiti," she told the paper. "If you don't believe me read my books and see the map of Africa on my body." She's not Hatshepsut, nor the lovely Berner Ib, nor Cleopatra (any of them), nor some minor court lady, nor one of the forgotten queens of the VIIth Dynasty...
She revealed a birthmark in the chest area that resembles the African continent and presented her books which bear both her name and Nefertiti's.
Victoria claims she came to Egypt to deliver an important message that would save the world from the 2012 doomsday, a direct reference to the 2021 movie that predicts the world will end in that year. "The gods, especially Amun-Ra, told me the world will be transferred to the moon before 2012 to save the universe from destruction," she said. "The gods and I maintain contact all the time."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/05/2010 00:00 ||
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#6
2012, huh? I didn't realize the ancient Egyptians were tied in with the not-quite-as-ancient Mayans. I'm glad I read Rantburg to find these things out!
#9
"The gods, especially Amun-Ra, told me the world will be transferred to the moon before 2012 to save the universe from destruction," she said. "The gods and I maintain contact all the time."
I dunno.. I think Amun-Ra has vastly under-estimated the acerage of the moon.
Volunteers have reported that a large number' of elderly customers are snapping up hardbacks as cheap fuel for their fires and stoves. Temperatures this week are forecast to plummet as low as -13ºC in the Scottish Highlands, with the mercury falling to -6ºC in London, -5ºC in Birmingham and -7ºC in Manchester as one of the coldest winters in years continues to bite.
Workers at one charity shop in Swansea, in south Wales, described how the most vulnerable shoppers were seeking out thick books such as encyclopaedias for a few pence because they were cheaper than coal. One assistant said: Book burning seems terribly wrong but we have to get rid of unsold stock for pennies and some of the pensioners say the books make ideal slow-burning fuel for fires and stoves. A lot of them buy up large hardback volumes so they can stick them in the fire to last all night.' A 500g book can sell for as little as 5p, while a 20kg bag of coal costs £5.
Since January 2008, gas bills have risen 40 per cent and electricity prices 20 per cent, although people over 60 are entitled to a winter fuel allowance of between £125 and £400.
Jonathan Stearn, energy expert for Consumer Focus, said: If pensioners are taking such desperate measures to heat their homes it is shocking. With low wholesale prices and increasing profit margins, there is clearly room for energy companies to make price cuts immediately.' Ruth Davison, of the National Housing Federation, said: The spiralling cost of energy means heating homes has become a luxury rather than a necessity for many people particularly the elderly, low paid and unemployed.'
Posted by: Steve ||
01/05/2010 13:42 ||
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-6C = +21F
Fairly typical winter temps in the Midwest and New England.
Is this really such a crisis as the press makes it out to be???
Al
P.S. Temperature in International Falls (on the US/Canada border) was -26F (-32C) for comparison.
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
01/05/2010 14:38 Comments ||
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#3
Is this really such a crisis as the press makes it out to be???
It is if houses aren't insulated or heated for those temps, if people don't have clothes for that kind of cold and if the authorities can't keep the streets cleared and safe to drive on.
#8
Sounds like when I was there for 3 years (Carson). Snow up to your knees in October. BUT had one of the guys in my section go home for Christmas, he had forgotten how cold Michigan could be.
A 7.2-magnitude earthquake has struck near the Solomon Islands in the western Pacific but there were no immediate reports of injuries or damage.
The US Geological Survey said on Monday, that the quake, at 9:36 a.m. local time (2236 GMT on Sunday) was centered 103 kilometers (64 miles) southeast of the island of Gizo.
It followed an earlier 6.5 magnitude quake that struck at 8:48 a.m. local time (2148 GMT Sunday) in the same region.
There was no immediate tsunami warning.
The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said no tsunami was expected.
The Solomon Islands archipelago, about 2,500 kilometers east of Australia, lies in the Pacific "Ring of Fire" and experiences frequent seismic tremors.
Gizo was badly damaged and at least 50 people were killed on the island when an 8.1 magnitude quake struck on April 2, 2007, sending a tsunami crashing into the coast.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/05/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Anyone hear from Joe?
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
01/05/2010 10:53 Comments ||
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When Britain woke up on the first day of the year it was met with freezing temperatures, snow and the promise of travel chaos.
And now, three days into 2010, forecasters have warned the country to expect continued snowfall for the next ten days - bringing with it added stress for commuters heading back to work after the festive break and children returning to school.
Yet Britain is not along in struggling to cope with the difficult weather conditions.
SWISS ALPS
Four people were killed and three more are feared dead after two avalanches struck at the same Swiss resort just minutes apart.
Britons were among hundreds of skiers at Diemtig Valley, about 25 miles south of the capital Bern, when the first massive snowslide was triggered on Sunday.
As an Alpine search team arrived to free one man buried under tons of snow, a second avalanche hit the slope 20 minutes later burying several rescuers and more skiers.
A second team from the Swiss Air Rescue Service then raced to the scene at the 8,000ft off-piste Drumannler peak to begin the hunt for survivors. One person was found dead at the scene, while three more died later in hospital, including one rescue service doctor.
Five others were injured, and three more are still missing in what police said was one of the worst avalanche disasters in Switzerland for ten years. One of those pulled alive from the snow is said to be a Briton, who has not yet been named.
#2
Anybody know where the Goracle is? Usually, he's just affecting the weather in one spot, now it looks like everywhere in the Northern Hemisphere is getting hammered.
#4
Al's hometown is Carthage TN, the local Natl Weather Service announcement as of about 9am CST today is:
The National Weather Service in Nashville has issued a Winter Storm Watch... which is in effect from late Wednesday night through Thursday afternoon.
* main impact... 2 to 4 inches of snow accumulation... followed by
blowing and drifting snow. The snowfall will stick to Road surfaces with no melting... and strong northwest winds will cause
a period of blowing and drifting snow. This will cause travel problems or delays across the mid state.
* Other impacts... another surge of Arctic air will move into the mid state in the wake of the system and will drive temperatures into the single digits Friday night... with wind chill readings below zero.
Posted by: lord garth ||
01/05/2010 11:10 Comments ||
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#5
The Alps look like Disneyland, with their well-marked and well-maintained trails, and lack of nanny-police. Speaking from personal experience, it's a great way to get yourself killed if you do stupid things.
(Bloomberg) -- Cold, windy weather enveloping the U.S. from the northern Plains to the East Coast may continue to break temperature records today. In south Florida, orange growers may escape most crop damage.
The National Weather Service issued hard-freeze warnings for last night and this morning for southern Alabama and Georgia and the northern part of Florida, including the panhandle. Such warnings alert growers of temperatures that may fall below 32 degrees Fahrenheit (zero Celsius) for more than three consecutive hours.
A low of 20 degrees was forecast for Jacksonville, Florida, overnight, which would break the existing record of 22 degrees, said Dave Samuhel, a meteorologist for AccuWeather.com Inc. in State College, Pennsylvania. Typical temperatures for Jacksonville this time of year are 42 degrees, he said.
In Florida, citrus-growers will likely avoid major crop damage since below-freezing temperatures wouldn't last long enough, Samuhel said.
"I don't expect widespread damage," he said.
The next few weeks will be key to the outlook for agriculture, said Bobby Barden, president of the Sebring, Florida-based Highlands County Citrus Growers Association, in a telephone interview.
Next Weekend
A cold blast expected next weekend "is supposed to be stronger" than the current weather pattern, Jack Scoville, a Price Group Inc. vice president in Chicago, said in an e-mail yesterday.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/05/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Last night I submitted a bid for Frozen Concentrated Orange Juice futures, but it seems to have vanished.
Jan. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Temperatures in northern China may fall to the lowest in half a century today as the Chinese capital recovers from the heaviest snowfall in almost six decades.
Beijing temperatures are forecast to drop to as low as minus 16 degrees Celsius (3.2 degrees Fahrenheit) tonight, according to the China Meteorological Administration. Northern China may have 50-year low temperatures today, China Central Television reported yesterday.
The Chinese capital was hit by the heaviest daily snowfall since 1951 on Jan. 3, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/05/2010 00:00 ||
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[Al Arabiya Latest] Morocco's King Mohammed VI on Monday made a partial cabinet reshuffle, replacing interior and justice ministers to "give greater momentum to major development projects and structural institutional reforms," the royal council said in a statement.
Former Interior Minister Chakib Benmoussa was replaced with Taieb Cherkaoui and Mohamed Naciri was appointed new justice minister, instead of Abdelouahed Radi.
Other changes involved the ministries of Tourism and Handicrafts, Relations with Parliament and Modernization of Public Sectors.
After holding various positions within the judiciary, the new Interior Minister Cherkaoui, 60, was appointed in August 2008 president of Morocco's Supreme Court.
The king paid tribute to outgoing ministers, stressing in particular the role of Abdelouahed Radi "in the action he has taken to head the Ministry of Justice, and for his sincere commitment to the comprehensive reforms in the judicial system."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/05/2010 00:00 ||
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Other changes involved the ministries of Tourism and Handicrafts,
I can understand the Justice department but Handicrafts?
KARACHI: Six boxers of Central Africa have decided to embrace Islam after they were greatly struck by the behaviour of the Muslims during their stay here.
The spokesman of the Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF) said on Monday that these boxers will be recited Kalma by mufti Naeem during a special gathering here at a local hotel at 2:00pm on Tuesday (today).
It is pertinent to mention here that Central Africa have sent seven-member team to Pakistan to feature in the Shaheed Benazir Bhutto International Boxing tournament and the team's manager/coach is already a Muslim.
A PBF official said that they are very much impressed the way they are being treated here during the tournament as well as they are captivated and struck by the behaviour of the Muslims in routine life. The vice-president of the PBF Iqbal Hussain told The News' that the chairman of the football federation of the Central African Republic is also willing to enter into the fold of Muslim Umma.
He has shown his willingness to embrace Islam during an interview with a TV channel and it is expected that he will also leave Christianity and enter into Islam,' the PBF official said. He said that it is a great news and great achievement of the boxing tournament being held here.
Posted by: john frum ||
01/05/2010 15:27 ||
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This is interesting because that part of the world has seen the greatest degree of abandonment of Islam for Christianity. I smell some Saudi inducements.
Posted by: Titus Uleretch2704 ||
01/05/2010 15:57 Comments ||
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#2
Prize fighter converts to Islam and there isn't even a draft on? Oh well... "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee."
Apparently serious, as you'll see in the slide presentation at the link. I have no idea if this can work.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/05/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
I'm not so sure. They threw in some tongue in cheek gags into that slide show. And despite all else, the best use of airships is rather dull--heavy cargo lift. Payload for a C-130 is only 22.5 tons. Their largest airship has a payload of 500 tons.
So it would take 22 C-130 flights to carry as much cargo. So airships save a hell of a lot of time and money.
#2
Faster than ships, more cargo than planes. The real question is how high can they go (above RPG range?) and how durable are they?
I mean continue comparing it to a C-130, but one equipped with the gatling guns and canons to support ground troops. The airship can stay on target a lot longer and doesn't have the same level of movement so I should think it would be far more accurate. It would be nice having that floating up high over a base, or silently over known smuggler trails, but at what point is this death from above a big fat target?
#4
I don't think that the Close Air Support mission is in the cards for any airship.
Airships can go really, really, really high, though. 70,000 feet wouldn't be out of the question. I think canceling DARPA's Walrus program was a mistake.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.