Month: October 2013

From Outta The Snow

There has been a few myths over the years that seem to stay with us…..there are TV series and movies and books written explaining them….you know good old Bigfoot or Chupacabra or Loch Ness and finalloy the one that use to fascinate me…..the Abominable Snowman or Yeti.

It seems we may bow have a good theory on what of who this is…….

(Newser) – Whether you call it the Abominable Snowman or yeti, the mythical creature may have just jumped from the pages of fiction to the world of fact. Oxford geneticist Bryan Sykes performed DNA testing on 27 suspected yeti samples that had been sent to him from around the world, and got a big hit, reports PhysOrg. Two brownish hair samples found in opposite ends of the Himalayas were a perfect match with the DNA of an ancient polar bear species that lived 40,000 to 120,000 years ago, the Telegraph reports. His conclusion? That yeti is a cross between a polar bear and brown bear—and “may still be there.”

One of the “yeti” hair samples is 40 years old and came from a hunter in India’s western Himalayas; the second was found in a Bhutan bamboo forest 30 years later, so “we know one of these was walking around 10 years ago,” Sykes says. In the former case, the hunter who shot the animal described being unusually frightened by it, Sykes says. “If its behavior is different from normal bears, which is what eyewitnesses report, then I think that may well be the source of the mystery,” he tells the BBC, adding the species may be “more aggressive, more dangerous.” Still, he’s not saying there are “ancient polar bears wandering around the Himalayas.” But there very well could be “more recent hybridization between the brown bear and the descendant of the ancient polar bear.”

If true, it sure would blow a whole bunch of theories all to Hell……whatcha think?  Do we have a winner?

Feed The Addiction

Yep, it is the weekend and I have found some cool stuff to post to help you forget all the childish BS from the last week……..

Most Americans have an addictive personality……they get hooked on drugs, booze, internet, porn and a wealth of other fanciful pursuits,,,,but there is something from my youth that I never considered an addictive substance….and it goes so well with a glass of cold milk!

Newser) – You may feel downright criminal the next time you eat an Oreo, and you have a Connecticut College student to thank for that. Neuroscience major Jamie Honohan came up with the idea for a study, which dug into the effects of high-fat and high-sugar foods on the brain. The conclusions: The brain goes wilder for Oreos than for drugs, and the two are equally addictive—at least when it comes to rats. The findings were born out of two tests, as explained by Connecticut College News:

  • In the first, rats were deposited in one of two areas in a maze. On one side they were given a control (rice cakes or saline); on the other, the test subject (Oreos or cocaine or morphine). They were then allowed to scurry to whatever side of the maze they wanted, and the students found that the rats who had been fed Oreos spent as much time on the Oreo side as the rats who had been injected with the drugs spent on the drug side, indicating that the link they made between the “pleasurable effects” of Oreos/drugs and that specific environment was equally strong.
  • If that doesn’t wow you, maybe this will: Another student went on to measure the expression of the protein c-Fos in the brain’s “pleasure center,” and found that “significantly” more neurons were activated in response to Oreos than in response to drugs.

Best side note of the study: Honohan also observed how the rats ate the cookies. “They would break it open and eat the middle first.”

Next they will be telling me that coffee is addictive…..wink…wink.

Why A New Face?

I remember the good old days when the only game in town, if you were a news junkie, was CNN….I watched the 1st Gulf War from first bomb to last.

I recent years CNN has fallen on hard times—-since the early days….when it was a novel idea to have a 24 hour news network….and now everybody has a 24 hour network giving all the news that would make a sane person sick.  A couple of years ago CNN decided it would be a good idea to make Anderson Cooper the face of the network….and the network ratings continue to plummet like a lead balloon.  The idea of having one person to represent the whole enchilada has proven to be not such a good idea.

This moronic act has given MSNBC an idea…….

(Newser) – Ronan Farrow, definite son of Mia Farrow and alleged son of Woody Allen, has already gained a degree of fame thanks to his mom’s admission that he just might actually be Frank Sinatra’s love child. But soon the 25-year-old could be a household name: Page Six reports that he’s about to close a deal with MSNBC. While he won’t have his own show right away, the network plans to have him “work across the whole lineup” and “build his TV news credentials,” a source says. The ultimate plan? He’ll be the “face of the network,” as Anderson Cooper is for CNN.

I do not understand why they would want to do this……plus bring in some unknown entity to make the case……I mean they already have a bevvy of on-air news guys to do this….there is Ari Melber, Steve Kornecki, Chris Hayes among others……let’s not forget the lengendary host Tim Russert’s son, Luke……..

And why a dude to be the face of the network……what is wrong with a women…they have access to some great female on-air personalities…..Karen Finney, Abby Huntsman, Krystal Ball and there are others…….

If you gonna bet on one person as the face of the network…..why not make it a female afdter all they are more than capable of doing the job and in most cases more qualified.

I think this is a stupid move….the network has a good record and changing and becoming a copycat will not be any more rating getting than showing Pussy Riot videos.

Is There Truly A Center?

let’s talk about the mentality of the American voter…….some say we are a country of centrists….that there are very few in the Left column and few in the Radio talking heads Right and that the majority is trapped somewhere in the middle….centrists, if you will.

Who are these centrists/moderates/independents or whatever the title du jour may be?  In my mind centrists is about the best term to describe the voter….a recent survey published in Esquire magazine has a lot of info to digest……

At the center of national sentiment there’s no longer a chasm but a common ground where a diverse and growing majority – 51 percent  – is bound by a surprising set of shared ideas.

Pluralities believe that the political system is broken (49 percent), and the economy is bad (50 percent) and likely to stay that way a while (41 percent). Majorities fear another 9/11 or Boston-style bombing is likely (70 percent), and that their children’s lives will be more difficult than their own (62 percent), which are either stuck in place or getting worse (84 percent) — while the rich keep getting richer at the expense of everyone else (70 percent).

The new American center has a socially progressive streak, supporting gay marriage (64 percent), the right to an abortion for any reason within the first trimester (63 percent), and legalized marijuana (52 percent). Women, workers and the marginal would also benefit if the center had its way, supporting paid sick leave (62 percent); paid maternity leave (70 percent); tax-subsidized childcare to help women return to work (57 percent); and a federal minimum wage hike to no less than $10 per hour (67 percent).

But the center leans rightward on the environment, capital punishment, and diversity programs. Majorities support offshore drilling (81 percent) and the death penalty (90 percent), and the end of affirmative action in hiring and education (57 percent). Most people in the center believe respect for minority rights has gone overboard, in general, harming the majority in the process (63 percent). And just one in four support immigration reforms that would provide a path to citizenship for those who came here illegally.

Does any of that sound like you and your voting style?  If you are not sure take this test…..

Take an interactive quiz to find out where you stand.

Once you take the test please share with me….I would like to see where my readers come down on this political spectrum……

Shining City On The Hill

I am old enough to re4member that speech by Reagan…..btw, not an original quote, I believe it came from a 16th century preacher, Reagan was talking about democracy, American democracy and how it was being portrayed around the world……as the hope for mankind…..it was especially aimed at the now defunct USSR…..convincing the commies that there was a better way and a better government of the people, by the people and for the people…….

My how things change……if Reagan were alive today he would be labeled a RINO because his governing style does not fit well with those pea brains from the Tea Party…….but beyond that…how odes it play today?

(Newser) – A group of 49 Russians is in DC as part of a US-funded exchange program to witness American democracy in action. Just one problem: There’s very little action right now. “This step, to shut down the government, is inconceivable,” says one Russian journalist. “French people are said to be the most freedom-loving [people]. Even the French wouldn’t be able to do such things.” Ouch. Ironically, the Open World Leadership Center, which runs the exchange, still has enough of its $8 million annual funding to keep the Russians here, despite the shutdown, reports the Washington Post. It just doesn’t have a lot to show them.

They haven’t been able to organize many meetings, because so many staffers are furloughed. They haven’t been to the museums, because they’re closed. And their lectures are taking place in an Embassy Suites, rather than the Library of Congress. One Russian teacher jokes that DC is actually running surprisingly well without a government—a situation really more akin to socialism than democracy. “Maybe you will come to communism soon!” he says. “No government … but people are still managing!”

It seems that the lights are going out on that ‘shining city’…..I can tell you that this observation is NOT unique to Russians……my contacts around the world are asking…..what happen to that example of how much better democracy is that anything else”?

And that my friends is an excellent question!

Could A Deal Be Possible?

Day 16–the morons have tentatively reached an agreement…….all the parasites have had their day and now the camera work begins….but it looks like we have a deal that could keep the government and the country going……at least until the next quarter and maybe we will play this number again……

Newser) – Harry Reid and Mitch McConnell have reached a bipartisan deal to end the government shutdown and lift the debt ceiling, they announced in Senate floor speeches today. “This is far less than many of us had hoped for frankly,” McConnell said. “But it’s far better than what some had sought.” The deal does not include any major tweaks to the Affordable Care Act, but it does require people getting subsidies under the program to verify their income. It also calls for a conference committee to settle bigger budget issues like the sequester cuts, the Washington Post reports.

Reports earlier indicated that John Boehner would not only allow the House to vote on the bill, but would have it vote first to streamline the Senate’s procedural process. But a spokesman for Boehner earlier said that “no decision has been made about how or when a potential Senate agreement could be voted on in the House,” the Hill reports. Jay Carney said the White House wouldn’t officially weigh in until the bill is voted on, but that “the president applauds leader Reid and minority leader McConnell for working together to forge this compromise.” Ted Cruz, meanwhile, decried the deal, but said he would not attempt to block it in the Senate. “There’s nothing to be gained from delaying this vote one day or two days,” he said.

Maybe now we can return to normal….HA HA….this country has not been normal for 5 years…..but maybe now we can try to do business for the country and not for the party………please do not hold your breath…the fat lady has not sung!