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posted by on December 28 at 21:44 PM
The greatest hoax ever put over on mankind just got hoaxier…
Ancient ice shelf snaps and breaks free from the Canadian Arctic STEVE LILLEBUEN (CP) - A giant ice shelf the size of 11,000 football fields has snapped free from Canada’s Arctic, leaving a trail of icy boulders floating in its wake.The mass of ice broke clear from the coast of Ellesmere Island, about 800 kilometres south of the North Pole. Warwick Vincent of Laval University, who studies Arctic conditions, travelled to the newly formed ice island and couldn’t believe what he saw. “It was extraordinary,” Vincent said Thursday, adding that in 10 years of working in the region he has never seen such a dramatic loss of sea ice.
“This is a piece of Canadian geography that no longer exists.”
Dems may lose the Senate yet…
Sen. Tim Johnson turned 60 on Thursday, two weeks after emergency surgery to repair a brain hemorrhage that has left him in critical condition.Julianne Fisher, a spokeswoman for the South Dakota Democrat, said Johnson won’t be present in the first days of the new Congress next week but is continuing to improve. She said he is responsive to directions from his wife but has not yet spoken.
It’s too early to tell how long recovery will take, Fisher said.
Gerald Goddamned Ford—maybe not such a bad dude after all…
In his later years, President Gerald Ford accepted an invitation to join the Republican Unity Coalition. The coalition advocated the support for gay issues within the Republican party. He is the only past or current U.S. president to join any such organization that advocates on the behalf of gay equality.
It doesn't matter if he's a drooling vegetable. As long as he's alive and doesn't resign, he can keep his seat.
Very interesting bit about Ford, Dan. It's like when you talk about "tolerance" being about treating gay folks equally, whilte "tolerance" doesn't have to mean "I love gay people!!"
I imagine Ford was like my deceased Catholic grandma when it came to the gays: as long as they're civil and they keep their yards nice, who cares about the rest?
What Gitai said...
FWIW, last June, Peter Gammons of ESPN had a sudden brain hemorrhage, had to undergo emergency surgery, was in critical condition, was transferred to a rehab hospital after about three weeks. He was back on the job, seemingly none the worse for the experience, within three months. Granted, that was an aneurysm rather than an AVM, and brain bleeds are like real estate -- location, location, location -- but the comparison may be valuable.
Wow, check it out. Savage is strangely silent about the Capitol Hill blog vote on the Slog, instead sending his minions to try to rally support. But look at this posting from the Portland Mercury site:
http://www.portlandmercury.com/blogtown/2006/12/a_call_to_arms_from_dan_savage.php
How unfair...Karl Rove tactics! Vote for the good guys- VOTE SQUIRRELS
Yeah, the huge block of ice breaking off from the arctic. But at least in our "environmental" city you still have to struggle to find people who will actually car pool or use public transit on the weekends. Hell, take a look at downtown and count the SUV's in Seattle! Seattle will never be a green city until our Mayor gets serious about pushing for real public transit options FOR PEOPLE WHO LIVE AND WORK IN SEATTLE!!! Honestly, take a bus on a Saturday or Sunday evening from Ravenna to Magnolia and tell me how long it takes.
I will get off my soap box.
I don't know what to say, Dan. I've always been proud to know that Gerald Ford was Michigan's only citizen to become President, but to find that he was also supportive of gay rights and opposed President Bush's invasion of Iraq makes me giddy beyond belief. Unbelievable. God bless you Mr. President. Go Blue. Oh yeah, the thing about sweeping Nixon's Watergate stuff under the carpet... Good Job!!!
I hope Michael Crichton is up there hunting down the environmento-fascists who obviously are running amok in the arctic with jackhammers in a fanatical attempt to influence our Way of Life.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1p_gzdVqHk
The Stranger Vs. Squirrels
Don't let the stranger end up like this kid.
I understand that the "football field" is an accepted unit of measurement in the US (and apparently Canada), but COME ON... 11,000 footbal fields? That's a little hard to grasp. Is the the size of Rhode Island? Bigger?
My back-of-the-envelope calc says that 11,000 football fields is 633,600,000 square feet or close to 23 square miles. Rhode Island is 1,214 square miles.
Quick question for you constitutional experts (!): If Johnson isn't actually present for votes, and there's a tie, say due to another senator being absent - does that allow Cheney, as President Pro Tem, to use his tie-breaking authority? Or are the two non-voters in this example merely recorded as "not present" or whatever, and the tie vote stands?
Manhattan is about 23 square miles in area. A much better descriptor in my opinion.
I remember hearing about the Rhode Island sized chunk of ice that broke off in the late 80s. But, you know, those care-free late Reagan years, when the most important issue then was bad words in music.
Dan, I'm glad you mentioned the bit about Gerald Ford and the Republican Unity Coalition. A lot of press coverage seems to imply (incorrectly) that Republicans are monolithically behind the social conservative wing and its anti-gay agenda. Nice to see the inclusive wing of the party making the news too.
Most of the GOP activists I know locally would agree with the RUC's message of tolerance and inclusion and that sexual orientation should be a non-issue for the GOP. We make this point both internally and externally. I can't repeat this often enough.
Happy New Year.
Do they really mean football fields? Or soccer pitches?
And where will the Coca-Cola polar bears play soccer now?
UPDATE: the big berg is 41 sq mi., so it must be soccer talk.
And Rhode Island has nothing to fear ... for now.
Regarding Gerald Ford, he and his wife are also pro-choice, and non-apologetic with their stand on the issue.
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