The IRS Scandal Nears a Climax | Power Line:
Powerline still harbors hope that we live in a country where the minority party is legitimate and has the potential to wield political power. We shall see, but I believe it is time to consider that we have crossed a rubicon where "The Party", meaning the Democratic Party is equivalent to what the Communist Party once was in the USSR. The "Party of Government", where the government workers, teachers, mainline media people, captains of industry and even entertainers are required to either be members in good standing or to "shut the F*#K Up!". Case in recent point, Brendan Eich, short term CEO of Mozilla.
Remember that during the W administration, Patrick Fitzgerald, the Democrats and the MSM hunted the modern White Whale named Scooter Libby -- with sincere condolences to Moby Dick. Remember, as recently as 2007 the pursuit of a "leak" that supposedly "outed" a CIA "secret agent" that cleverly maintained cover by driving into her office at Langley every day was a constant top news story!
In the current case, the IRS admitted and tried to "head off controversy" by saying that they were sorry that yes, some conservative groups were targeted and private information was released, etc, When brought up for hearings, the ostensibly responsible Party Apparatchik, Lois Lerner, took the 5th twice.
And that is really that. The MSM and The Party have enough power, to simply declare that to be "the end of the story". The american public has no inclination to mistrust the party powers that be --- they know which side their bread is currently buttered on, and aside from the IRS, the NSA and the "PC Police", all is that is required is even the SUGGESTION that you may have stepped out of the party doctrine.
So far, the idea of a "Minority Power", even ostensively having the power of one of the houses of congress is still legally allowed, although increasingly sanctioned. The Senate Majority leader stands on the floor of the Senate and threatens the Koch brothers for speaking out, and the New York Times as well as other large media and party outlets pick up the attack. "Free Speech" in BOistan is saying what "The Party" wants you to say!
There is no question that the IRS actions demand some form of "Independent" or "Special" Prosecutor, but don't hold your breath. Prosecution is reserved for the Minority Party -- for now, still legal, but teetering. How dare people hold views that do not agree with the Will of The Party? The Party works for the good of the people! To oppose The Party is a luxury that is teetering on oblivion in this totalitarian state.
'via Blog this'
Wednesday, April 09, 2014
Kochs Force Skyrocketing Healthcare Premiums!
Health Plan Premiums Are Skyrocketing According To New Survey Of 148 Insurance Brokers, With Delaware Up 100%, California 53%, Florida 37%, Pennsylvania 28%:
Now THAT would be a story! BOcare causes huge increases? Who would care??
I mean, after all, "They HAD to DO something!" ... and now, why if there are bad outcomes "It isn't their fault!"
'via Blog this'
Now THAT would be a story! BOcare causes huge increases? Who would care??
I mean, after all, "They HAD to DO something!" ... and now, why if there are bad outcomes "It isn't their fault!"
'via Blog this'
I Hold On
I may have overdone it a bit. Finally getting this done Wednesday AM after my 3-day burst home from LA ... 2K miles over 3 days. I pulled in Monday evening at 9PM. I'm very stiff this AM.
After 5K miles in 8 days, the Wing is now officially Wendy ... and on this trip often WINDY! Her navigation skills are questionable ... she didn't know about hwy 20 being 4-lane across most of IA, so was blissfully navigating through space after valiantly trying to navigate us to Ft Dodge. Maybe she just wanted to help get over 5K! Oh well, my "jump on the bike and punch in a city" approach to trip planning could use a little work too. She was reliable smooth and powerful through snow, rain and hail (just a little), plus a lot of cold and wind.
I launched out of Gallup NM Sunday AM at 7ish with 30 degrees on the temp, about 20 mi later I was freezing and checked it again ... 25 degrees, I was going UP! It turns out that while I need 45 to be "reasonably comfortable", this trip forced me to discover that the "UNcomfortable" doesn't get too much worse at least down to that 25 or so ... the combination of the heat exchange with the engine being "open", the grip heaters, the "hand wings" deflectors off the bottom of the mirrors, and just the general excellent wind control make it it "survivable". Future spring trips will have better planning on long range weather / altitude !!
Going through Albuquerque NM the drink holder on my right bar loaded with my trusty Dew, departed. Must have just loosened up and there it went ... ought to be an easy fix, but it was sorely missed for the rest of the trip. Somewhere like 30mi past Albuquerque it hit my "minimum desired" 45 degrees. I rode 40 over to Tucumcari NM and then retraced my steps out up to Liberal KS, then turning N for Great Bend where I spent Sunday night. 740 windy and chilly miles. I kind of like the great plains two lanes. Seeing the farming, huge cattle lots, the change or that area to what must already be closing on a Hispanic majority.
The descendants of the European explorers that "conquered" North America came to the conclusion that having children wasn't important, nor was having borders, nor was having European descent offspring do "low income" jobs -- meaning jobs / lifestyles that would have made royalty jealous in the 16th to even 19th centuries. Queen Isabella could not have believed a flat screen TV, internet, let alone a low-rider with fuzzy dice! Civilizations rise and fall, but I think the plains ... and solo riders on horses, motorcycles and ??? will survive.
Monday I took off and headed cross country up to 80, then over to Omaha, then up 30 and eventually to 20 and on home via interstate. Just into IA on 30 I had the treat of watching a jet ranger chopper "surveying something" ... I'm guessing it was power lines from the height and position, but he was going down the road a little higher than the power lines at something like "30 MPH", usually sideways to the road. The moose "limited good judgement in very tough for moose attention control situation indicator" was flashing orange-red. Having a few miles to watch a chopper right in front of me was GREAT, but of course I knew that the chopper was a huge distraction not just for me, but for oncoming traffic as well. Although the thought crossed my mind that 99% of the oncoming found it to be WAY less interesting than I, but anyway ...
I got a couple miles in before a truck came up behind me and I took off. I'm guessing the pilot had done that before ... it was pretty windy, but I could actually see him operating things ... he WAS swiveling his head a lot, which seems like a good idea about 50' up moving in a sideways direction! I know, the SMART thing to do would have been just "take note and go, or pull over and watch for a bit" ... and then skipping Prescott, Pagoda Springs and probably the whole trip would also have been the most "prudent".
Lots of time alone on a bike for 5K miles, lots of it on flat or mildly undulating roads where the road and the telephone poles recede into the horizon like grade school drawing class. They must have been driving in New Mexico when they made up those classes. The decision to get married, settle down and have kids -- and how MUCH one makes that an "all the way" thing. 34 years at IBM, giving up the motorcycle to "be responsible" and a few other such decisions were likely over on the personal side of "nuts" in the same way as a solo 5K ride in the mostly cold.
But then what is wisdom? One can't really get the summary of a 34 year career or 26 years of having been a parent from reading books and thinking about it. Sometimes you just have to ride.
"I Hold On" (very hot current country song that will likely always bring this trip back to my mind), is who we are something we are wired with, decisions we make, character we develop, or a gift from God?
I'm guessing it is yes ...
After 5K miles in 8 days, the Wing is now officially Wendy ... and on this trip often WINDY! Her navigation skills are questionable ... she didn't know about hwy 20 being 4-lane across most of IA, so was blissfully navigating through space after valiantly trying to navigate us to Ft Dodge. Maybe she just wanted to help get over 5K! Oh well, my "jump on the bike and punch in a city" approach to trip planning could use a little work too. She was reliable smooth and powerful through snow, rain and hail (just a little), plus a lot of cold and wind.
I launched out of Gallup NM Sunday AM at 7ish with 30 degrees on the temp, about 20 mi later I was freezing and checked it again ... 25 degrees, I was going UP! It turns out that while I need 45 to be "reasonably comfortable", this trip forced me to discover that the "UNcomfortable" doesn't get too much worse at least down to that 25 or so ... the combination of the heat exchange with the engine being "open", the grip heaters, the "hand wings" deflectors off the bottom of the mirrors, and just the general excellent wind control make it it "survivable". Future spring trips will have better planning on long range weather / altitude !!
Going through Albuquerque NM the drink holder on my right bar loaded with my trusty Dew, departed. Must have just loosened up and there it went ... ought to be an easy fix, but it was sorely missed for the rest of the trip. Somewhere like 30mi past Albuquerque it hit my "minimum desired" 45 degrees. I rode 40 over to Tucumcari NM and then retraced my steps out up to Liberal KS, then turning N for Great Bend where I spent Sunday night. 740 windy and chilly miles. I kind of like the great plains two lanes. Seeing the farming, huge cattle lots, the change or that area to what must already be closing on a Hispanic majority.
The descendants of the European explorers that "conquered" North America came to the conclusion that having children wasn't important, nor was having borders, nor was having European descent offspring do "low income" jobs -- meaning jobs / lifestyles that would have made royalty jealous in the 16th to even 19th centuries. Queen Isabella could not have believed a flat screen TV, internet, let alone a low-rider with fuzzy dice! Civilizations rise and fall, but I think the plains ... and solo riders on horses, motorcycles and ??? will survive.
Monday I took off and headed cross country up to 80, then over to Omaha, then up 30 and eventually to 20 and on home via interstate. Just into IA on 30 I had the treat of watching a jet ranger chopper "surveying something" ... I'm guessing it was power lines from the height and position, but he was going down the road a little higher than the power lines at something like "30 MPH", usually sideways to the road. The moose "limited good judgement in very tough for moose attention control situation indicator" was flashing orange-red. Having a few miles to watch a chopper right in front of me was GREAT, but of course I knew that the chopper was a huge distraction not just for me, but for oncoming traffic as well. Although the thought crossed my mind that 99% of the oncoming found it to be WAY less interesting than I, but anyway ...
I got a couple miles in before a truck came up behind me and I took off. I'm guessing the pilot had done that before ... it was pretty windy, but I could actually see him operating things ... he WAS swiveling his head a lot, which seems like a good idea about 50' up moving in a sideways direction! I know, the SMART thing to do would have been just "take note and go, or pull over and watch for a bit" ... and then skipping Prescott, Pagoda Springs and probably the whole trip would also have been the most "prudent".
Lots of time alone on a bike for 5K miles, lots of it on flat or mildly undulating roads where the road and the telephone poles recede into the horizon like grade school drawing class. They must have been driving in New Mexico when they made up those classes. The decision to get married, settle down and have kids -- and how MUCH one makes that an "all the way" thing. 34 years at IBM, giving up the motorcycle to "be responsible" and a few other such decisions were likely over on the personal side of "nuts" in the same way as a solo 5K ride in the mostly cold.
But then what is wisdom? One can't really get the summary of a 34 year career or 26 years of having been a parent from reading books and thinking about it. Sometimes you just have to ride.
"I Hold On" (very hot current country song that will likely always bring this trip back to my mind), is who we are something we are wired with, decisions we make, character we develop, or a gift from God?
I'm guessing it is yes ...
Saturday, April 05, 2014
89, Prescott, 89a, Sedona
Took off early from San Bernadino. Very pretty views of Mt San Jacinto with the sun coming up and a cloud deck partially obscuring the mountain. Made great time on I10 and then veered off on 60 and wound my way up to 89 in the "Congress" area.
Shortly after Congress there is a section of 89 where the lanes are split so there is no oncoming traffic. I had a Ferrari ahead of me with a bunch of local Harley's ahead of him that knew how to ride the road. Not having oncoming traffic was a HUGE help for me ... one of my biggest weaknesses cornering is backing off the throttle as soon as oncoming traffic shows up (my snake brain isn't very trusting of oncoming drivers!).
The ferrari had to be a V12, it had an unearthly screaming howl like a pack of wounded coyotes on rock concert amplification. I saw like "20ish" different exotic cars, mostly high end Porche, but I definitely IDed the Ferrari symbol on the one that was ahead of me ... and then let me by. In Prescott I pulled up next to a Lamborghini, but I'm too bummed after the WI loss to keep trying to figure which one it was. In the early stages of that lane split section out of Congress a cop had what I'm pretty sure was a Countach pulled over -- I bet that was a nice conversation!
I'm too conservative to really enjoy going fast on curves ... but with the front suspension work on the wing and just Harleys rather than crotch rockets ahead holding back the Ferrari, I was fine ... did a little grinding on the bottoms of the boards a few times, and since I could keep up, I did. I'd say that run from Congress to Prescott has to be way up there in the world for corner speed daemons.
Somewhere in that section before Prescott I went by Yarnell ... here the group of top notch firefighters died a year or two ago.
89a up to and beyond Sedona was a lot more sightseeing ... I had traffic ahead of me for most of both. WOW, the Jerome mining town hacked out of the side of the mountain would be a geat place to spend some time in!
I think I was in a bad mood the only previous time I was in Sedona since I was driving a chevy pickup with a camper on and sick of "rocks". It was damned pretty this time. Would be nice to come out and spend some time there with the bikes.
Me and Flagstaff just don't get along! The temp dropped back down to 48 as I went up there from Sedona, and there were some flakes of snow in the air! THIS TIME though the bad stuff looked to be JUST to the NW and I scooted to the east on 40, making it here to Gallup NM, 600+ mi for the day, 1500 miles or so from home ... a hard day and an easy one to go the way I look at it!
Friday, April 04, 2014
More Guns, Less Crime, Chicago Correlates This Time
http://www.ijreview.com/2014/04/126664-coincidence-illinois-enacts-concealed-carry-law-chicago-murder-rate-plummets-immediately/
As always, "correlation is not causality". However:
-- If gun crime had gone UP, do you want to place any bets on how we would be hearing about it?
-- MULTIPLE CASES of correlation, along with a good potential mechanism for WHY there is correlation IS highly useful. If the same standard was applied to "smoking causes cancer" as is demanded of "more guns less crime", we would still have cigarette ads on TV!
The left wants guns removed for the same reason that they want people that don't agree with their stand on gay marriage to lose their jobs.
C O N T R O L !!!
Barabas Lives!
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/04/04/mozilla-exec-out-of-job-for-gay-rights-intolerance-some-think-thats-intolerant/?tid=hp_mm
You will be MADE to think as we do!
Remember the Puritans? Freedom has NEVER been free, and is UNnatural to humans. Christian Exceptionalism is love for others and most importantly TOLERANCE in the culture (render unto Ceasar). The Puritans were rigorous in their own interpretetation of what they saw as the piety of the Bible, and they sought freedom from the state telling them how they had to worship.
The human urge to piety relative to a set of beliefs and enforcing that piety as a standard is a constant of human nature -- again, like breathing. We ARE going to do it, the issue is just "how".
Christ provided an impossible standard (Christ's) as a model, but explicity forbade using personal power or the power of the state to enforce the standard on others by any means other than "loss of fellowship" for those that claimed to be believers but rejected the standard.
When humans take the place of God, they DEMAND compliance for ALL, and they ALWAYS end up using the power of the state to enforce their view of "right".
"Right" (mans right) is made law by FORCE, the only mechanism avaible once Gods standards, justice and love are refused.
"Give us Barabas"! The cry that still echos loudly!
Thursday, April 03, 2014
Viva Las Vegas
After a dismal day yesterday I launched at 9:30 from Flagstaff. 35 degrees again, took a shot at 89a route, but there was ice in shaded areas and I realized that I would not be enjoying the ride even if it DID get better -- scardy moose always thinking that on some shaded canyon turn there could be that patch that would be "invisible". Yea, I know, "it could be anything", but it was going to prevent enjoyment no matter how good the ride was.
So, I chickened to I40 and sputtered along in the right lane in the wheel tracks that were pretty much dry and watched the bridges like a hawk. It was dropping down out of the Kaibab area at like Williams before it cleared 40. In the current Wing config, I need 45 degrees to get to the "edge of comfort" ... hours of riding without deep freeze. The vents pulling heat off the engine, the grips, etc make 45 OK in "reasonable wind". Today, I was nearly to Seligman before that happened.
Had a nice breakfast at the "Road Kill Grill" there, warmed up, gassed up, and took the old Route 66 to Kingman. Really enjoyed the ride, saw quite a few bikes. Seligman and a couple of other holes in the wall gave a hint of how hoppin 66 must have been before the interstates took all the tourists. EVERYTHING has it's unintended consequences!
93 from Kingman up to Vegas was funny ... 65 MPH speed limit, slow traffic doing 85, plenty of folks at 90-95 and LOTS of bikes going the other way .. Harleys, in groups, often loud enough I copuld hear the thunder in my lane. When I popped the ridge prior to the Colorado River I once again wished I had a helmet cam set up! Very nice scenery from there over the new bridge above the dam to where I stopped and gassed up at Boulder City and shot the pic with Lake Mead in the back. Had to be upper 60's by then.
To top my bad day off yestday I discovered that my iPad had not been charging ... so I had my snazzy new phone route me to the Apple store. Right down town, big cool malln called "The Fashion Show" on Las Vegas drive, right next to a huge Wynns Casino. Bad cable ... cats DO have "some issues". Vegas reminds me of the Lords Prayer ... definitely, it is LOADED with temptaion "Gentlemens Club, topless this and that, this kind of girl, that kind of girl ..." not to mention gambling and enough beverages to tempt an LCMS guy during Lent! Oh well, it is remarkable how many big buildings temptation can build. Lots flashier than DC, but not NEARLY as much money actually!
Looking forward to riding down to LA tomorrow and then I will be turning for home by a more southernly route! Sure felt nice to drive around town with the big jacket in the saddlebag and just the kevlar shirt on for a change!
Wednesday, April 02, 2014
Snowed!
Today was a reminder how easy it is to focus on our own situation and to be FAR too believing of "the common wisdom". A big part of the reason that I set out on this adventure in this direction was the cold temps in MN all winter and into spring. Even though I'm often a skeptic, I'm ALWAYS a human! The media regularly said "oh, the midwest and east is a LOCAL weather phenomenon, the South West is having an extremely warm winter and spring". Yea, right!
So I believed them. The AVERAGE high for April 2 in Pagosa Springs is 50 degrees, the average high for Flagstaff AZ is 52. I'm sitting in the Days Inn at Flagstaff right now because the temp is currently 32 degrees, and when I hit the area at 3ish it was 35 and snowing so heavy I had to limp in and stop.
East of Durango, this AM my temp read 37 degrees ... 1 degree lower than when I left Rochester. YES, I understand altitude, but the SW is having above average warmth this winter and spring. Remember?
Everyone, definitely me, has an agenda, a very limited focus, and even in the best of circumstances, is EXTREMELY fallible! ALWAYS! Especially large organizations like Government and Media!
It is MY fault, my own grievous fault -- I ought to have gone SOUTH and forgot west!
Other than snow to start and snow to end (the start was not as heavy and not sticking), COLD ... mostly 45-50 degrees, with my new record for the trip being 35 degrees and heavy snow at Flagstaff, I did get in 425 miles including some nice rock formations along NM 491.
The elusive Monument Valley remains a quarry for another day and my guess is that the return trip will be SOUTH rather than through Idaho.
Tuesday, April 01, 2014
Roswell to Pagosa Springs, Memories and Chance
The alien museum opened at nine, so I had to settle for some pics and a couple T-shirts, coffee cup and shot glass across the street.
Hit 285 N out of Roswell and within 30 min was on a completely deserted 4-lane with tunes cranked doing 80 in a 70. No traffic, no place for a cop to even hide ... air would be the only way. "Reaper" came on, I cranked it, popped a ridge, looked forever forward and back, and the snake brain said "top it out" ... had I not had my wireless sending gauge on my tires, the angel moose on one shoulder would have won out ... kick it to 4th, close to redline at like 105, 6th, pulled strong to 120, hit 127 and then was leveling out. The thought of losing my license and sitting in the Roswell pokey, backed me back down -- but wow, for a couple min, massive smile. Next random song in the mix, Bob Seeger, Roll Me Away ... I ride a Wing, so Marla never has to worry about the girl in the bar. Besides, it is lent and I never drink when I ride anyway, BUT ...
Riding bike makes me think about "the safety net". How many of the best moments in your life have SIGNIFICANT risk? Love, marriage, kids ... and yes, driving whatever, especially a bike. How much was 116 MPH on the Yamaha sled worth? soloing in a plane? ... and countless other things. Naturally, in some cases if things go wrong, life is changed forever, or over ... in which case it is changed forever for those that loved you. BUT ... is the long "risk free" (a fantasy) life worth living?
So I drove reasonable the rest of the day ... not slow, reasonable. Wanda the Witch of the Wing and I had an odd day ... I had Monument Valley in as the ultimate destination, but kept seeing things I liked ... long story short, ended up going "too far" N, saw how beautiful the mountains looked, took 64 to Cimarron and WOW!!! I need to check into this when I get back, the run from I25 through Eagles Nest, Taos and up to Pagosa Springs HAS to be in the running for greatest motorcycle mountain ride of all time! Passes, streams, great rock formations, snows cappers, elk, some long fast sweeper and straight sections ... I GOTTA do this one again!
Had never heard of Pagosa Springs CO before either ... in the running for "favorite CO rocky town" quaint little lodge even has a friendly kitty!
Would never have been here without Wanda and smoke in the air causing early dusk ... the elk were out TOO much and I had no intent for Pagosa Springs, but was HAPPY to see it. Would have blown through for Durango or went a more southern route if not for lowering light and Wanda Routing. Chance? Maybe, we can never "prove" otherwise, but sometimes it just feels like a "better planner".
Lots of 50 ... even 48 a couple times today, barely broke 60. Some of it could have been altitude, I was up and down A LOT. The wind was OK until noon or so, and then BRUTAL ... worst yet! Had to be completely on it or it could definitely cause an accident! Not to mention I was glad for every piece of gear, engine heat blowing on me, full fairing, mirror wings, laminar lip, etc ... didn't see many bikes for good reason, and Wings and BMWs were the ones I saw except for a couple REAL Harley tough guys!
So two years ago today IBM decided that they could go on without me ... rode the Wing that day too, first 100mi ride. 540 today, I'm slipping! So thankful for the blessing of being able to retire early -- and thanks to Marla for staying working for a bit to help make that a lot easier financially.
Hit 285 N out of Roswell and within 30 min was on a completely deserted 4-lane with tunes cranked doing 80 in a 70. No traffic, no place for a cop to even hide ... air would be the only way. "Reaper" came on, I cranked it, popped a ridge, looked forever forward and back, and the snake brain said "top it out" ... had I not had my wireless sending gauge on my tires, the angel moose on one shoulder would have won out ... kick it to 4th, close to redline at like 105, 6th, pulled strong to 120, hit 127 and then was leveling out. The thought of losing my license and sitting in the Roswell pokey, backed me back down -- but wow, for a couple min, massive smile. Next random song in the mix, Bob Seeger, Roll Me Away ... I ride a Wing, so Marla never has to worry about the girl in the bar. Besides, it is lent and I never drink when I ride anyway, BUT ...
Riding bike makes me think about "the safety net". How many of the best moments in your life have SIGNIFICANT risk? Love, marriage, kids ... and yes, driving whatever, especially a bike. How much was 116 MPH on the Yamaha sled worth? soloing in a plane? ... and countless other things. Naturally, in some cases if things go wrong, life is changed forever, or over ... in which case it is changed forever for those that loved you. BUT ... is the long "risk free" (a fantasy) life worth living?
So I drove reasonable the rest of the day ... not slow, reasonable. Wanda the Witch of the Wing and I had an odd day ... I had Monument Valley in as the ultimate destination, but kept seeing things I liked ... long story short, ended up going "too far" N, saw how beautiful the mountains looked, took 64 to Cimarron and WOW!!! I need to check into this when I get back, the run from I25 through Eagles Nest, Taos and up to Pagosa Springs HAS to be in the running for greatest motorcycle mountain ride of all time! Passes, streams, great rock formations, snows cappers, elk, some long fast sweeper and straight sections ... I GOTTA do this one again!
Had never heard of Pagosa Springs CO before either ... in the running for "favorite CO rocky town" quaint little lodge even has a friendly kitty!
Would never have been here without Wanda and smoke in the air causing early dusk ... the elk were out TOO much and I had no intent for Pagosa Springs, but was HAPPY to see it. Would have blown through for Durango or went a more southern route if not for lowering light and Wanda Routing. Chance? Maybe, we can never "prove" otherwise, but sometimes it just feels like a "better planner".
Lots of 50 ... even 48 a couple times today, barely broke 60. Some of it could have been altitude, I was up and down A LOT. The wind was OK until noon or so, and then BRUTAL ... worst yet! Had to be completely on it or it could definitely cause an accident! Not to mention I was glad for every piece of gear, engine heat blowing on me, full fairing, mirror wings, laminar lip, etc ... didn't see many bikes for good reason, and Wings and BMWs were the ones I saw except for a couple REAL Harley tough guys!
So two years ago today IBM decided that they could go on without me ... rode the Wing that day too, first 100mi ride. 540 today, I'm slipping! So thankful for the blessing of being able to retire early -- and thanks to Marla for staying working for a bit to help make that a lot easier financially.
Monday, March 31, 2014
Alien Moose Discovered in Roswell
Left El Dorado KS at a bit after 8 after searching for a charge cable for my new Samsung Galaxy Note 3 that dropped into a black hole.After wasting time today at every stop trying to find a new cable, discovered 2nite that "std" micro-usb will work on one side of the attach port! Main cable is for charge AND sync ... charge only works with the old micro, COOL!
65 degrees to start, mostly 70-75, brutal crosswind until evening ... 25-30MPH again!
Took 400, then 54 most of the way. Liberal KS was funny ... giant landfill and HUGE beef processing plant on way in. Dalhart had the bigges feedlots I've ever seen on the SW side, MILES of them! Had to be 100K+ head. Tucumcari was interesting ... very large "bluff / mesa" with interesting shape next to town, old "Route 66" mainstreet. You can imagine it really hopping during summers in the 50's and 60's.
Lots of very green winter wheat, but like ZERO other crop work done. Hispanic kid chatted about the Wing and complained about their "hard winter" at Liberal -- little snow even, days it didn't thaw, TOUGH winter by their standards, he was like "20" ... "never imagined he would see anything like that, just thought it would keep getting warmer, that is what they said in school!" Ah yes, reality and learning that the "experts" often AREN'T!
The set of roads out of Tucumari was interesting ... 209,268,267,330, then 70 for the last 50 mi or so. Lots of open range, a few curves, no ditches, a few antelope, VERY little traffic. More farming than I expected to see in New Mexico. Good day, lots more variation, small towns. HOPEFULLY be out of the wind tomorrow!
Plus, my cell will be charged, so I might go for some pics finally!
65 degrees to start, mostly 70-75, brutal crosswind until evening ... 25-30MPH again!
Took 400, then 54 most of the way. Liberal KS was funny ... giant landfill and HUGE beef processing plant on way in. Dalhart had the bigges feedlots I've ever seen on the SW side, MILES of them! Had to be 100K+ head. Tucumcari was interesting ... very large "bluff / mesa" with interesting shape next to town, old "Route 66" mainstreet. You can imagine it really hopping during summers in the 50's and 60's.
Lots of very green winter wheat, but like ZERO other crop work done. Hispanic kid chatted about the Wing and complained about their "hard winter" at Liberal -- little snow even, days it didn't thaw, TOUGH winter by their standards, he was like "20" ... "never imagined he would see anything like that, just thought it would keep getting warmer, that is what they said in school!" Ah yes, reality and learning that the "experts" often AREN'T!
The set of roads out of Tucumari was interesting ... 209,268,267,330, then 70 for the last 50 mi or so. Lots of open range, a few curves, no ditches, a few antelope, VERY little traffic. More farming than I expected to see in New Mexico. Good day, lots more variation, small towns. HOPEFULLY be out of the wind tomorrow!
Plus, my cell will be charged, so I might go for some pics finally!
Frozen Moose Finds El Dorado (KS)
Marla took a shot of me as I took off at 8aAM Sunday. The Wing read 38, and even with the vents drawing engine heat and the grips on high, I ought to have had long underwear and the liner in my jacket ... good for future reference. I need at least 45 or maybe calm, there was a 20-30MPH headwind the whole day ... noisy, and enough to keep a bit busy on the bars at bridges or when semis were around, but otherwise no problem.
Anyway, I was uncomfortably cold by Austin, toughed it out to Albert Lea and stopped into the truck stop and REALLY enjoyed having a very generous and nicely finished ham steak with eggs and hash-browns. They had a wood fired rotisserie doing chickens, I basked next to that for a bit.
When I got out, it had warmed to 44 and that made all the difference. I saw 3 loud Harley's, heading S on 35 as I was getting on the bike. Not a lot of bikes to be seen until Ankeny IA or so, but by Des Moines and certainly Kansas City there were quite a few. I got about 150 mi each tank, and other than breakfast, those were my stops until 8PM when I pulled in here
I did take a couple curvy road interludes ... I went west on 80 a bit at Des Moines, then turned off and picked an "avoid highways" mode with a town on I35 ... so it gave me some curves and then I just picked up the old route ... did the same just N of Kansas City to avoid downtown ... it put me on a pretty cool road with lots of big houses, a flowage, and a good number of crotch rockets. So after a bit of a rocky start with the Wing guidance maiden the last couple years, we can get along after all!
Other than the wind, it was quite nice once I hit Des Moines. The last of the snow in ditches was N of there, but VERY little greening even down into KS. I still love the Flint Hills area. In 2012 early August it was under a long term drought, and looked terrible, but now other than being probably a month later than "normal", the little ponds are full, and quite a few cattle were around. I saw one LARGE grassfire ... at least a mile or so fire line, but it was going away from the road, and while there were a couple of trucks out there, they didn't seem very concerned ... multiple signs that "this is a prairie fire area, don't drive into smoke".
35 SW of Kansas City is a 75mph toll road that everyone is running 85 on. Went by a couple of groups of 2-up Harleys running 75ish and looking like they didn't enjoy running that fast -- shorty windshields, loud pipes, but I think they might have been struggling a bit 2-up with the headwind, besides the wind factor ... even on the Wing there was some evidence of a "breeze".
I'm smitten with the Indian, but on days like today, it would be A LOT tougher! Yea, yea, I know those V-twin riders are just tougher than the old Moose, but lots of smooth power and superb wind handling is going to be awfully hard to part with! Kinda like my giving up my blanky from childhood. Like all Wing riders, we know we need to give it up , SOON!
I'm smitten with the Indian, but on days like today, it would be A LOT tougher! Yea, yea, I know those V-twin riders are just tougher than the old Moose, but lots of smooth power and superb wind handling is going to be awfully hard to part with! Kinda like my giving up my blanky from childhood. Like all Wing riders, we know we need to give it up , SOON!
There are well attended sessions on leaving your blanky behind every year at WingDing!
Thursday, March 27, 2014
Rummy Abuses Apes and Trainers
http://www.ijreview.com/2014/03/123940-thinking-rumsfeld-says-trained-ape-better-afghanistan-obama/
Ridiculous. An untrained ape, child, or a broken 8-ball, would do "better" if you define "better" to be "not counter to US interests".
But we know that BO desires America to be humbled, and at that he is better than any world leader since Ho Chi Min! (Ok, maybe Carter was the actual champ ... but it doesn't seem fair ... I think Jimmie was actually TRYING to do good for America, and can best be remembered as "the Barney Fife president".
The Breathless Human
The Rise of Secular Religion - The American Interest:
It only requires the most minimal of study and thought to realize that the non-spiritual human is exactly as rare as the non-breathing human. No matter how hard one may work to differentiate themselves from "the breathing class" (say Indian meditation, holding of breath for very long times like free divers, etc), that more the actual focus is on breathing, modified though it may be.
So with the spiritual. Those that are absolutely most certain that they have completely "abandoned religion" and "have no faith" are often the greatest "Puritan zealots", even if their "purity" is pure evil as in the case of the Gang, the Prison Culture, the Nazis or the BO cabinet.
So we have "political correctness", gay rights, animal rights, veganism, coops, local foods, environmentalism ... the list is endless. As the linked article puts it:
One of the extreme advantages of religions that are thousands of years old is that when you are raised in one and embrace it, you know what you are doing. The analogy of the cute little boy that takes his toy apart becoming less cute when he dissects his puppy is apt. "Science" and "left wing paganism" has dissected Western Culture and Christianity with an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) and decided "that was easy". The kiddies may think that yoga, gardening and expanded gender identities" are a good replacement for what they believe they blew up, but the fascination with monsters, vampires, demons, body piercings and tattoos might not be entirely metaphorical.
Perhaps there is more to this breathing thing than they thought?
Oh, and that is in the current, supposedly nominalist, scientific, "modern" world. Many of our current youth might well compare tattoos and body piercings with even an African tribesman of the year "800" and not detect any irony.
It is the season of Lent as I write this. God came down and took human form to die on a cross to save humanity from ETERNAL spiritual "non-breathing" (spiritual death) 2000 years ago. Of course each generation would DEARLY love to make that "eternal" word part a MYTH, in the sense that "myths" may be in "detail and particulars" not "data factual", but are far MORE "human factual" than "data reality".
The Mona Lisa is a better "likeness" for humans than a terapixel photo of the subject. On this failure of understanding falls much of the sadness of our declining culture and community.
While "Avengers" was an eminently forgettable film, the scene where Loki declares to Hulk that "I am a God" might give a tiny insight into how the underlying spiritual reality of the universe ultimately deals with humans that are certain of their deity ... or that try to hide what they are really thinking behind the idea that "there is no god" (translation in reality, they have decided that THEY are god!).
'via Blog this'
It only requires the most minimal of study and thought to realize that the non-spiritual human is exactly as rare as the non-breathing human. No matter how hard one may work to differentiate themselves from "the breathing class" (say Indian meditation, holding of breath for very long times like free divers, etc), that more the actual focus is on breathing, modified though it may be.
So with the spiritual. Those that are absolutely most certain that they have completely "abandoned religion" and "have no faith" are often the greatest "Puritan zealots", even if their "purity" is pure evil as in the case of the Gang, the Prison Culture, the Nazis or the BO cabinet.
So we have "political correctness", gay rights, animal rights, veganism, coops, local foods, environmentalism ... the list is endless. As the linked article puts it:
We live in a spiritual age, in other words, when we believe ourselves surrounded by social beings of occult and mystic power. When we live with titanic cultural forces contending across the sky, and our moral sense of ourselves— of whether or not we are good people, of whether or not we are saved— takes its cues primarily from our relation to those forces. We live in a spiritual age when the political has been transformed into the soteriological. When how we vote is how our souls are saved."soteriological" - providing salvation.
One of the extreme advantages of religions that are thousands of years old is that when you are raised in one and embrace it, you know what you are doing. The analogy of the cute little boy that takes his toy apart becoming less cute when he dissects his puppy is apt. "Science" and "left wing paganism" has dissected Western Culture and Christianity with an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) and decided "that was easy". The kiddies may think that yoga, gardening and expanded gender identities" are a good replacement for what they believe they blew up, but the fascination with monsters, vampires, demons, body piercings and tattoos might not be entirely metaphorical.
Perhaps there is more to this breathing thing than they thought?
How durable is post-Protestant culture? Missing from Bottum’s portraits of the “poster children” is any mention of the children they are—or aren’t—raising. Fertility rates among members of the secularized Mainline churches are so low (just as they are among “progressive” Jews) that one is tempted to regard post-Protestantism as a one-generation wonder. While the children of the Mainline occupy themselves with yoga, organic gardening and expanded gender identities (Facebook now offers more than fifty categories to choose from), popular culture becomes moribund. The 20th century’s variations of the social gospel seem genteel next to what populates America’s metaphysical realm today. Americans spend more time with supernatural monsters than ever did the Christians of the Middle Ages, from vampires to zombies to demons of every hue. In 2012, the horror genre supplied one out of eight American feature films; a decade ago it was roughly one out of twenty-five. Strip away divine immortality from American spirituality, and it embraces the undead variety.
Oh, and that is in the current, supposedly nominalist, scientific, "modern" world. Many of our current youth might well compare tattoos and body piercings with even an African tribesman of the year "800" and not detect any irony.
It is the season of Lent as I write this. God came down and took human form to die on a cross to save humanity from ETERNAL spiritual "non-breathing" (spiritual death) 2000 years ago. Of course each generation would DEARLY love to make that "eternal" word part a MYTH, in the sense that "myths" may be in "detail and particulars" not "data factual", but are far MORE "human factual" than "data reality".
The Mona Lisa is a better "likeness" for humans than a terapixel photo of the subject. On this failure of understanding falls much of the sadness of our declining culture and community.
While "Avengers" was an eminently forgettable film, the scene where Loki declares to Hulk that "I am a God" might give a tiny insight into how the underlying spiritual reality of the universe ultimately deals with humans that are certain of their deity ... or that try to hide what they are really thinking behind the idea that "there is no god" (translation in reality, they have decided that THEY are god!).
'via Blog this'
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
I Don't Always Talk In Front of Whiskey Bottles ...
Bruce Bradley on Chuck Grassley: A ‘farmer’ with no law degree - POLITICO.com:
... But when I do, I TELL THE TRUTH!
Saying what they really think is a very very bad idea for Democrats. Iowa, do you want this guy, who seems to be running against Chuck Grassley (who isn't running)" or do you want a Lt. Colonel, Iraq vet that knows how to farm and cut hogs.
Is insulting farmers in IA in front of a bunch of whiskey bottles a good political move? Maybe even some of the dead vote will balk at this loser!
'via Blog this'
... But when I do, I TELL THE TRUTH!
Saying what they really think is a very very bad idea for Democrats. Iowa, do you want this guy, who seems to be running against Chuck Grassley (who isn't running)" or do you want a Lt. Colonel, Iraq vet that knows how to farm and cut hogs.
Is insulting farmers in IA in front of a bunch of whiskey bottles a good political move? Maybe even some of the dead vote will balk at this loser!
'via Blog this'
Best Senate Ad EVER! Iowa People, PLEASE HELP!!
Squeal - YouTube:
OK IA people, THIS is the candidate for Senate! Might make it down there to vote for her RE-election, but right now you gotta help me out!
The ad is very well done and RIGHT to the point! She has the SUPER view on "cutting pork" -- those pork politicians need to A LOT more squealing!
NOT having Stuart Smalley and and whiny Amy for Senators! One more super benefit to get the hell out of MN!
Oh, I can imagine that media is going to HATE her ... attractive, smart, mother, military and farm background. I would be completely un-surprised to find that she is a Christian as well.
Of course they hate ALL Republican women, and BLACKS (even more) ... but intelligence, accomplishment, and ESPECIALLY BEAUTY in any remotely conservative woman makes their blood run completely cold!
When they say "freedom", they DO NOT mean the freedom to disagree with them ... especially if you are group that they have consigned to their thought plantation!
'via Blog this'
OK IA people, THIS is the candidate for Senate! Might make it down there to vote for her RE-election, but right now you gotta help me out!
The ad is very well done and RIGHT to the point! She has the SUPER view on "cutting pork" -- those pork politicians need to A LOT more squealing!
NOT having Stuart Smalley and and whiny Amy for Senators! One more super benefit to get the hell out of MN!
Oh, I can imagine that media is going to HATE her ... attractive, smart, mother, military and farm background. I would be completely un-surprised to find that she is a Christian as well.
Of course they hate ALL Republican women, and BLACKS (even more) ... but intelligence, accomplishment, and ESPECIALLY BEAUTY in any remotely conservative woman makes their blood run completely cold!
When they say "freedom", they DO NOT mean the freedom to disagree with them ... especially if you are group that they have consigned to their thought plantation!
'via Blog this'
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)