Trees Hate Hugs

Leona Hemsleys Dog Joins Her in Hell

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 02:33:00 +0000

I hate to have to bring you this disparaging news, but Leona Helmsley's dog, Trouble Helmsley shed her mortal coil back in December.

Doggone it, I think we all need to pause for a moment over this loss. After all, most of us had no bones to pick with the pooch.

Trouble Helmsley, perhaps the world's most pampered pet, was 84 in dog years when she succumbed to illness and died, according to the New York Daily News.

She also, unbeknownst to her, outlasted several vows to bring her to a more violent end. Trouble received multiple death threats from people angry that her doting owner, billionaire real estate tycoon Leona Helmsley, left her a stunning $12 million in her will.

The dog had a full-time security guard too, paid $90,000 a year. Must have been rough work.

The Unprecedented Heat Wave

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 00:31:00 +0000

Here in New England we just got our first heat wave of the Summer. A little early you say? Maybe, but this was our weather just two months ago, on April Fool's Day:

We'll take it. Gladly.

And if you can't beat the heat beat the now-tired man-caused climate change drum:

The mercury climbed into the 90s across half the country Wednesday in a record-breaking blast of August-like heat, forcing schools with no air conditioning to let kids go home early and cities to open cooling centers. And scientists say we had better get used to it.

A new study from Stanford University predicts that global climate change will lead permanently to unusually hot summers by the middle of the century.

Better get used to two-day long heat waves in the Summer because this is unprecedented, unheard of...wait excuse me? The temperatures in Southern New England for the rest of the week are expected to be below average?

Shhh don't tell Al Gore.

Whoops too late.

Was Anthony Weiner On the Plane

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 02:23:00 +0000

Dude. Use the freaking bathroom for crying out loud. What kind of society are we living in when people are whipping their junk out in public places or posting pictures of their little manhood on Twitter?

Oh who the hell are we kidding here? If the tech existed in the past I'm sure someone would have tweeted their junk back then too. Probably in black and white.

As if you needed another reason to avoid flying, now you have to beware of airborne masturbators, too.

The FBI busted a Florida man after he took matters into his own hands "to the point of ejaculation" on a United Airlines flight from Spokane to Denver last Thursday, reports The Smoking Gun. The man was arrested at the Denver airport.

Kyle Pearce, 25, was reportedly charged with making an "obscene and indecent exposure of his person" on an aircraft.

The incident was witnessed by an 18-year-old woman who was unluckily seated in the row across from Pearce.

"I heard a noise and looked over and saw his penis," she recalled in a written statement according to The Smoking Gun. She added, "He ejaculated and got some on the seat."

And unlike a Twitter dikpic you can't delete a memory. (Not yet at least)

No idea if they made eye contact. Cause that would be awkward.

No idea if he was listening to the Divinyls on his IPod at the time.

Red Bull Stolen

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 20:34:00 +0000

Apparently Red Bull doesn't give you wings that can outrun the police.

Police say a South Hadley man is facing charges after allegedly stealing several cases of Red Bull energy drink from a Northampton supermarket and leading police on an hour-long chase through several towns.

You thinking what I am?
Police did not indicate whether he drank any Red Bull during the pursuit.
And he was driving not running. Because that would have been interesting.

Next time buddy take one of these with you. Might have better chances of eluding the authorities.

Aftermath of The Mass Tornadoes

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 07:38:00 +0000

Wednesday's tornadoes in Massachusetts hit a few hours before sunset so by the time it was over and the shock wore off and the search was on to account for everyone it was dark.

Thursday we got a real look at the damage and SEANKEMPTV captures the moment in a very poignant way.

We also got our first aerial views of the damage. Somehow this house survived despite every tree around it falling like matchsticks.

This house was not so lucky.

The tornado flipped those houses off their foundations. Wow.

Almost an entire neighborhood gone.

(Pictures above from Boston Dot Com.)

(Picture above from Masslive.)

Those small white rectangles in the next picture? Mobile homes.

(Pictures above via WWLP.com.)

On the ground it is the same story...

The good news is that the National Guard is on the scene, ready to assist in the recovery and cleanup and upkeep of order.

And despite the disaster the American spirit lives on.

(Pictures above from WWLP's photo gallery)

I Thought Most Politicians Were Already Semi Feral

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 19:00:00 +0000

This is a strange story about meowing politicians. No it was not US Rep David Wu.

A meowing Australian senator touched off a political row in Canberra on Wednesday after his cat imitation directed at Finance Minister Penny Wong sparked accusations that the opposition behaved like sexists and goons, and were feral.

Liberal Tasmanian Senator David Bushby meowed at Wong at a hearing when Wong - Australia's first Malaysian-born and first openly gay cabinet member - fought constant interruptions.

Roll the tape...

Shades of 1953 Tornado in Massachusetts

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 13:00:00 +0000

Yesterday's F3 twister in Springfield was not the first time the state dealt with a nasty tornado.

The Worcester County Tornado hit the state on June 9th, 1953. From The Weather Doctor Almanac:

The tornado we refer to as the Worcester Tornado, moved across Worcester County for 46 miles (74 km) during an 84-minute lifetime. The funnel formed over the northern reaches of the Quabbin Reservoir before touching down in heavily forested area south of the town of Petersham at 4:25 pm (EDT). Plowing across a farm field, the funnel tore a two-hundred-year-old, 4-foot diameter tree out from its roots. Moving southeastward at 35 mph (58 km/h) toward the community of Barre, it claimed its first victims: Beverly Strong, 18 and Edward White, 11...

By the time the tornado dissipated, it had travelled 46 miles (74 km), killed 94, injured 1288, and left 10,000 homeless. By the Fujita damage-scale, the storm has since been rated as an F4, although some suggest it may have been an F5. The damage was estimated at $52 million ($349 million in 2002 dollars) and included 4,000 buildings and hundreds of cars.

Then-Senator Kennedy visited the disaster site the next day...

Tornado Outbreak in Mass; Springfield Hit Hardest

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 23:49:00 +0000

It was the real life version of the movie Twister here in New England today, with reports of at least 5-10 tornadoes touching down in the region. Hardest hit was Springfield.

Multiple tornadoes caused damage across Western Massachusetts Wednesday afternoon, including one that caused heavy damage in Springfield's Downtown and South End neighborhoods.

The tornado had crossed the Connecticut River from West Springfield into the city, crossing the Connecticut River and Interstate 91.

Video of the twister:

50,000 people are without power and a state of emergency has been declared in Massachusetts.

Some pictures, from WWLP TV's website:

As of 7:41pm EST there is a tornado watch until 11pm.

More video and pictures.
This happened before in 1953.

Let's Go Bruins

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 23:20:00 +0000

Here we go Bruins here we go!

For the first time since I was in college, before Ulf Samuelsson robbed Cam Neely of his career, the Boston Bruins will be playing for Lord Stanley's Cup. The action begins tonight with Game One Vs. Vancouver Canucks.

And Neely is back, this time as the President of the Bruins.

And seriously, why do the Canucks uniforms look like the old Hartford Whalers ones?

My prediction?

Boston Bruins in six.

Now if they can just stay out of the penalty box.

Trees Hate Hugs is Back

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 22:52:00 +0000

The unrefined blog for political, topical, (and my personal favorite) Boston sports has returned. I know, you all missed me. All three of you.

Good to be back, let's get to some news and stuff...

White House Loses Ton of Value

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 21:28:00 +0000

I think the worth of the White House has dropped faster than the President's approval ratings.

As syndicated columnist Lew Sichelman first noticed, the property value of the White House has lost nearly a quarter of its value over the last three years, according to the real estate site Zillow. In fact, in the last month alone, the White House's estimated property worth has dropped nearly $5.5 million.

At the height of the 2007 housing boom, the White House was valued at roughly $332 million. In January 2009, when President Obama and his family moved in, the fair market value was listed as $292 million. Now Zillow says the property is worth just $252 million — even with all the redecorating the Obamas have done since moving in.

China continues to hold out on attempts to buy the White House. Like many of us, they are waiting for the housing market prices to bottom out.

Obama First Prez to Wear Sandals

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0000

Reuters

Another first of unprecedented precedences. Next week Barack Obama will be the first President to wear boxer briefs.

John F. Kennedy had his boat shoes. Reagan wore cowboy boots and Richard Nixon chose formal wingtips to frolic on the beach. But, last week, while on holiday in Hawaii, President Barack Obama may have boldly gone where no president before him had gone while on vacation: he wore flip-flops. In public.

Since the photographs of this landmark event (which took place in a local ice cream shop) surfaced earlier this week, news outlets, style watchers, and even historians have labored extensively over the appropriateness of Obama's footwear choice.

Labored extensively? If only the news outlets on the left labored extensively on stories like, oh I don't know the sanitation union in New York City, or the guy who is fighting the Mass. government on a fine because he can't afford health insurance.

Instead it is all about the President's footwear and the audacity of the Constitution being read in public. Worst reporters ever.

RL Post: Good and Bad News on Inauguration Day

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 02:20:00 +0000

My latest post over at the planet's best political humor and conservative satire, Radioactive Liberty is about the swearing-in of the 112th Congress and the reluctant passing of the gavel from Nancy Pelosi to John Boehner.

Good and Bad News on Inauguration Day

Gas Prices Doom and Gloom or Sunny Skies

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 23:00:00 +0000

Lot of talk lately of course about gas prices going up up up. We've returned to the $3/gallon threshold and predictions of prices for 2011 are mixed.

"The price of oil is poised for another run at $100 a barrel after a global economic rebound sent it surging 34 percent since May. That could push gasoline prices to $4 a gallon by summer in some parts of the country, experts say."

Former Shell CEO John Hofmeister is a bit more pessimistic, predicting $5 a gallon by 2012.

So what the hell is behind the rise in prices?

American Petroleum Institute Senior Economist Sara Banaszak says there are several reasons why.

"Crude oil, which is 70% of what you pay at the pump and what we use to make gasoline, has gone up in price internationally." She says what happens on the worldwide market impacts us right here at home. "When we get back to economic growth in the U.S. and globally, there's going to be pressure on oil prices again and that's what we're seeing happening."

Banaszak says it all comes down to supply and demand. The U.S. remains the largest consumer of gasoline in the world. Developing nations like India and China, though, are using more and more fuel each year, creating more demand and less supply. That drives up the cost.

Good old supply and demand, the heart of economics. None the less most analysts predict in the $3.10-$3.20 range a gallon at the pump.

But there's another pressure point influencing prices:

Oil is purchased around the world in US dollars. If you’re from Japan, you must by US dollars with your Yen before you can purchase a barrel of crude oil. In other words, no matter where you come from, before you can buy oil, you must exchange your currency for the US dollar.

The lower the dollar the cheaper oil becomes to buy, also driving up demand. But that compounds the problem even more because some of that oil is not being bought by manufacturers but instead by investors.

We also have reduced drilling and refining since the BP explosion. That probably isn't helping either.

But there is good news and it is always better to be optimistic right?

Iraq is being pumped left and right. The Obama Administration is being pressured to ease the restrictions on offshore drilling. And oil prices have recently dropped below $90, closing Tuesday at $89.04.

Personally, I think we should see a moderate sell-off of oil to drop it down to the $70-75 dollar range very soon as the nervous investors cash out. But the downturn will probably only be temporary. There is too much demand long term.

Like the weather forecasters I'm going with partly to mostly cloudy. That should cover my position.

Guy Living in Lion Pen

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 14:07:00 +0000

Of course this will have a happy ending. How can it not?

One Florida man is putting his life on the line for charity. James Jablon began sleeping in a lion's den on Saturday, NBC Miami reports, and he plans to bunk with the two African lions for the entire month. Jablon is undertaking the stunt as part of a fundraiser for the wildlife rehabilitation center where the lions live, which he owns and operates. He intends to eat once a day when they eat, sleep on hay near their own slumbering spot, and, in a move that sounds a wee bit risky, hide in the enclosure's trees when their playing gets overly rough.

Hey, good luck with that.

End of the World Predicted for May

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 00:38:00 +0000

For the 3,453,562,345,789,215,237,345th time someone predicted the end of the world. And right before Memorial Day weekend too. That's gonna mess traffic up real bad...

If there had been time, Marie Exley would have liked to start a family. Instead, the 32-year-old Army veteran has less than six months left, which she'll spend spreading a stark warning: Judgment Day is almost here.

Exley is part of a movement of Christians loosely organized by radio broadcasts and websites, independent of churches and convinced by their reading of the Bible that the end of the world will begin May 21, 2011.

Come on for christsake that's a Saturday. Can this Judgement Day start in the afternoon so we can at least sleep in?

The guy making the prediction, Harold Camping also says the world ends Friday October 21, 2011.

TGIF.

"A lot of people might think, 'The end's coming, let's go party,' " said Exley, a veteran of two deployments in Iraq. "But we're commanded by God to warn people. I wish I could just be like everybody else, but it's so much better to know that when the end comes, you'll be safe."

Actually, that sounds like a great idea. And while you are out spreading the word, tell everyone the end-of-the-world party is at my house. BYOB.

RL Post: My 2011 Predictions

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 18:46:00 +0000

My latest post over at the planet's best political humor blog Radioactive Liberty is full of prognostication and others words I can barely spell. And predictions too like:

the future of MSNBC...FOX News...a potential Thin Lizzy reunion...and much more.

Read the post.

No SUVs in Paris

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 20:57:00 +0000

Climate Change people have the worst damn timing. Why do they even bother making these kinds of announcements during the winter?

This is like Obama's birth certificate issue. Just release the thing and shut Ron Paul and the rest of the birthers up already.

Paris is planning to test restrictions on gas-guzzling vehicles, likely including sport utility vehicles, as part of attempts to curb pollution.

Denis Baupin, an environmental official in the mayor's office, said Wednesday that sport utility vehicles and old diesel cars are likely to be targeted in upcoming test restrictions.

To any Parisian who drives an SUV, Baupin's advice is: "Sell it and buy a vehicle that's compatible with city life.

"I'm sorry, but having a sport utility vehicle in a city makes no sense," Baupin told RTL radio.

Basically, tough shit if you drive an SUV in France. All coming from an unelected hack no less.

Then there was this climate change news:

Paris and northern France were bracing for more freezing weather on Wednesday, as airports struggled to clear the backlog of delayed fights. Thousands of passengers were forced to spend the night in Paris’s Charles de Gaulle’s, hanging on to the slim hope of reaching their destination before Christmas.

Paris police have told French people to leave work early and to stay off the roads this evening. France’s weather crisis centre said that between five and ten centimetres of snow are expected to fall in the evening.

So a crony of the mayor of Paris announces an upcoming ban on SUV's because according to every single scientist that has walked the Earth humans are causing the planet to warm immensly. Yet, on the same day Mother Nature says hello to France with a snow storm.

Awkward.

Energy Star's Worthless Certification

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 00:00:00 +0000

Something strange is happening with the Energy Star certification program.

"Technology manufacturers may start dropping out of the US EPA's Energy Star program as a result of new certification requirements scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2011.

The new requirements are a response to an investigation earlier this year by the US Government Accountability Office (GAO), which found that the Energy Star self-certification program was vulnerable to fraud and abuse. The GAO obtained Energy Star certifications for 15 bogus products, some of them rather outlandish."

A government program vulnerable to fraud and abuse? I find that very hard to believe. I'm sure they must have had strict application requirements. How could this have ever gone wrong?

"In April, after the GAO published its report, the EPA stopped its automated approval process - by which a manufacturer essentially certified itself - and started requiring manufacturers to submit complete lab reports and results to be approved by EPA. It also announced that it would as of January 1 require manufacturers to submit test results from an approved, accredited lab. Previously, the manufacturers' own testing was sufficient."

Oh yeah, that.

Glad This Was Not My SUV

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 14:00:00 +0000

Crazy viral video from New York City...no private sector vehicles were harmed in the making of this video.

Bad News All Around for Air Travelers

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 03:21:00 +0000

It's a one-two-three punch for air travelers.

First, of course was the "Blizzard of Christmas Weekend 2010" or whatever grandiose phrase you want to use for the storm that dumped a crap load of snow causing the cancellations of thousands of flights along the East Coast.

Now prices are going up...

"Several airlines confirmed Tuesday that they are raising prices on many domestic routes by $10 one way and $20 per round trip, even as snowbound passengers remained stranded at New York City-area airports...
...The airlines posted strong profits in the third quarter, and traffic has been running higher than a year ago as travel demand slowly recovers from the recession. They didn't offer a reason for the fare hikes.
But FareCompare noted that they are facing rising fuel costs. Oil prices have climbed this year and analysts predict they will rise again in 2011 due to strong demand from developing countries such as China and India."

Then a government panel last week recommended the banning of lap children on flights...

A federal advisory panel recommended steps Wednesday that could end the practice of having very young children in their parents' laps when flying.
The Federal Aviation Administration has the final say on regulations governing the airline industry, but a 19-member advisory panel said the federal agency should look at whether it would be safer to have children belted into their own seats instead of being in their parents' laps. Putting children into their own seats or using child seats requires the purchase of an extra ticket at most airlines.

The recommendation was among 23 items identified by the panel, appointed a year ago by Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood to find ways to bolster the chronically ailing airline industry and fix some of its more pressing problems.

One of them being their sluggish sales and raising ticket prices and charging for lap kids is their solution. Nice of the government to help them out.

EPA Says No More Permits for Texas

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 03:31:00 +0000

If you can't legislate, go brown shirt on those opposed to Cap and Trade.

The Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday that it is taking the unprecedented step of directly issuing air permits to industries in Texas, citing the state's unwillingness to comply with greenhouse gas regulations going into effect Jan. 2.

I love how the EPA is trying to regulate power while at the same time acquiring more of it for themselves.

EPA officials indicated they reluctantly were taking over Clean Air Act Permits for greenhouse gas emissions because "officials in Texas have made clear . . . they have no intention of implementing this portion of the federal air permitting program."

I'm sure they were so reluctant that they lost sleep over the decision.

The EPA's takeover of Texas' air permit program came on the same day the agency announced it would begin developing standards to reduce heat-trapping gases at power plants and refineries.

Together, the developments show the agency is taking a hard line on regulating the pollution blamed for global warming, even as Republicans in Congress vow to block them. Legislation to limit greenhouse gases that was backed by the Obama administration died in the Senate this year, after Republicans and some Democrats said they would not vote for a bill that could raise energy prices.

But the state is not backing down and they refuse to modify their own permit regulations. Seven other states were threatened and will comply. (Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Oregon and Wyoming)

This was my favorite line from the article:

"The Lone Star State has more oil refineries, chemical plants and coal-fired power plants than any other state and leads the nation in greenhouse gas emissions and industrial pollution."

How does someone tell what state CO2 comes from? Can they look up in the sky and say, oh that's a molecule from Texas, and that one is from Oklahoma?

It really amazes me that so many people still fall for this bull. There is no New Hampshire CO2 or Rhode Island CO2. But there is a lot of hot air coming out of the mouths of con artists. Don't fall for their scam.

MTV Reduces Teen Pregnacy

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 19:11:00 +0000

What? Huh? A show about teen pregnancy helped reduce the rates of teen pregnancy in 2009. No really, they said it:

For years, MTV has made a living, its detractors would say, peddling rock-star debauchery to wide-eyed teenagers.

But according to a new government study that shows the U.S. teen birthrate falling dramatically in 2009 after a five percent increase from 2005 to 2007, experts say the network may have redeemed itself with its gritty "16 and Pregnant" documentary series, which many teens credit with opening their eyes to the consequences of unprotected sex and early parenthood.

Umm the show came out in June of that year. Are the experts trying to tell us that in six months "16 and Pregnant" was able to impact an entire year's worth of teen birth rates?

Of course not. And besides, isn't television the great enabler of teen sex? I guess that mantra is no longer applicable or something like that.

And let's not forget that just a few months ago the lower birth rate was due to the economy:

The United States birthrate has fallen to its lowest level in at least a century as many people apparently decided they could not afford more mouths to feed.

The birthrate dropped for the second year in a row since the recession began in 2007. Births fell 2.6 percent last year even as the population grew, numbers released Friday by the National Center for Health Statistics show.

The media and the so-called experts are all over the place on explaining why this is happening but they have no freaking idea. I wonder what the reason will be a few months from now, global warming?

Weekend Post Roundup

noreply@blogger.com (Chris C) — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 18:11:00 +0000

Because of the format of posts rolling along then dropping off the front page like lemmings off a cliff (but in a good way) you might have missed something.

Every Saturday I'll print a list of the week's posts, and maybe once in a while some links to other interesting stuff I found.

This week was a short one--it was my first time back since November.

What Are Polar Bears Going to Do Now

Animals Are Latest Weapon Against Global Warming

Micheal Moore Explains His Default Behavior

Michelle Obama Shows Government Makes No Sense

Chavez Says Its Just a Democracy