Huh. Apparently there's no known fault near Reno?

I get this... time is winding down. Too much going on for me to think otherwise, now. Whether you agree with that or not, it makes sense to prepare for any disaster.

lgf: New DNC Ad Shows US Troops being Blown Up

I haven't felt so sick since the Wright clips first surfaced. :(

This just in: Men's and women's bodies react differently to exercise.

Also, the sky is blue and the Pope is Catholic. *eyeroll*

Obama is claiming he is "outraged" by Wright. I ain't buyin' it, but we'll see how this goes over. Anybody familiar with the story is likely wondering why this didn't happen earlier.

British former Muslim "bullied" for converting to Christianity

Lord, have mercy. Creeping British Islamification meets creeping British thugocracy.

The UK needs a Churchill.

So, yesterday when I said I'd be miserable in Reno right now?

Heh. I mean, it's not funny-haha, but funny-weird.

Looking at the earthquake site, I count at least 6 quakes of 3.+ in the last day or so across Nevada.

Hmmm...

Ugh.

Mugabe's rounding up children and babies, now.

Somebody needs to off this guy, yesterday.

I really should have gone on to get a degree in earth science. This stuff fascinates me.

4.7 quake in Reno last night, following more than a hundred earthquakes yesterday and a couple months of increased seismic activity. 100+ quakes in one day? Yeesh. And looking at the USGS list, I've counted ninety so far today, and it's not yet two-thirty out there.

Given how uncomfortable I get with prolonged thunder or bombing (tests at Eglin AFB), I believe I would be pretty miserable if I were out there.

Oh, my.

Dr. Richard Benkin is convinced that, in the fall of 2006, he gave
Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama an ideal opportunity to prove his
touted “special sensitivity to injustice.” But, Dr. Benkin says, in failing to
come to the aid of a Bangladeshi journalist whose only “crime” was trying to
build peaceful relations between Muslims and Jews in the Middle East, Mr. Obama
displayed a shocking disregard for basic human rights in a part of the world
controlled by extremist Islamist ideology.
***
Mr. Choudhury had been charged by the Bangladeshi government with
blasphemy, sedition, treason, and espionage on behalf of Israel. His real crime
was that he had condemned terrorism and exposed the growing strength of Islamist
radicals in Bangladesh. He had urged the Bangladeshi authorities to recognize
Israel so that the two countries could establish trade and diplomatic relations,
and he advocated genuine interfaith dialogue based on religious equality.
***
Three weeks after Mr. Kirk became involved in the case, Mr. Choudhury was
released from prison. Mr. Choudhury and Dr. Benkin assume the Bangladeshi
government was reluctant to risk losing the annual $100 million it receives in
US foreign aid.
But although the Bangladeshi Ambassador in Washington had
promised also to have the charges against Mr. Choudhury dropped, that did not
happen.

Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury--The Moslem Hero of Moderation

"People are punished for crime, for creating anarchy and for putting humanity into horrifying terror. But, could we ever believe that someone would be arrested, tortured and imprisoned for 17 long months just for being in favor of global peace, inter-faith dialogue, ending religious hatred and thinking of everything good and noble for mankind? In my case it did happen and after being released on bail keeping their keeping the sedition charge very much alive. According to the allegations, my crime is: I am a living contradiction to today’s phenomenon in the Muslim world, a Zionist, a defender of Israel and a devout, practicing Muslim living in the second largest Muslim country in the world.”

These are not mere words! These are all facts. Such a courageous statement comes from the very heart of a Moslem journalist in Bangladesh named Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, who has been facing sedition, treason and blasphemy charges in his own country since 2003, for confronting radical Islam, for advocating interfaith understanding between Moslems, Jews and Christians and for demanding relations between Israel and the Moslem Bangladesh.

Bangladesh also has one of the highest population densities in the world, is extremely poor, and has been under a military-backed regime since January of 2007 (those they've pledged new elections by the end of this year.

I would very much like to know what on earth the good senator from Illinois was thinking. Or even if he was thinking.

Ah, summer. I love this time of year.

I've got the doors and windows open right now, listening to the crickets and the whippoorwills.

I can remember as a teenager, in the days of 97c-a-gallon gas, driving around just about dark just for the heck of it. Smells of honeysuckle and barbecue and cool night air and freshly turned earth, Toby Keith on the radio, watching for deer and armadillos on the road. Maybe stopping by the creek for a quick dip, that sugar-white sand squeaking under my bare feet...

Yeah, I'm feeling nostalgic.

Things that interest me from around teh interwebz...

Global Food Riots (NRO)
Rice Shortages Provoke Panic at Home and Riots Abroad (ABC)
Glitch means you pay for gas you don't get (MSNBC)
China overtakes US as world's biggest user of internet (TimesOnline)

This is just plain scary:
Official: Syrian Nuclear Reactor Was Weeks From Functioning (FOXNews)

I don't recall seeing anything so crazy as the rising food prices. But then, I am still young (despite those crow's feet I see when I smile) and do not have a long view of the world yet.

I suppose if Granny and Grampa could make it through the Depression, we ought to be able to handle a recession, no? It's the people in poorer countries who live on dollars a day that I am concerned about. I can easily make do with less; it's another matter when you have so little to start with. :(

Report: Iran's president says oil prices too low

GRRRR......

This might be one of the things that ticks me off the most about rising gas prices--Middle Eastern Islamo-nuts are profiting. And OPEC is happy with it, don't you know.

I guess it's times like these that I kinda wish I didn't live so far back in nowhereville. I wind up staying at home far too much because I can't afford to drive anywhere, and I can't get anywhere without driving.

When are we gonna get those transporters Star Trek promised me, huh?

5.2 earthquke rocks Illinois

Unusual to have one that strong, but mild quakes are fairly common along the New Madrid fault. What really interested me was how far it was felt. According to the USGS,

"Earthquakes of comparable size are felt over greater distances in the East than
those occurring in the West," said Harley Benz, seismologist for the USGS.
"Earthquakes in the central U.S. are infrequent, but not unexpected."

I guess that's due to rock type or not so much folding in the crust or something like that. It's a reminder that the midsection of the country shouldn't be complacent when it comes to building codes and preparedness. None of us should be.

UPDATE: Aha! ABC's article explains:

While the crust of the earth in the western United States is full of
fractures, there is less geological activity in the Midwest and the Eastern
landscape.

The soil there is stronger, more continuous, which means that
seismic waves -- uninterrupted by fractures -- can travel much farther and why
people in Georgia felt the morning's quakes, according to Seeber. The geology,
therefore, also makes the Midwest and the East more vulnerable.

"It's well-known the same size earthquake can do a lot more damage in the eastern
U.S., where there's not geologic activity," Seeber said. "In the eastern U.S.,
the rocks are stronger. The waves go through and go for a longer distance."

Storms Pound Midwest With Rain, Snow

Man, the heartland has really taken it on the chin this year, haven't they? I wonder how this year compares to '93. My thoughts and prayers are with everyone out there.

UPDATE:


This from the USGS WaterWatch site: http://water.usgs.gov/waterwatch/?m=flood%2Cmap&r=us&w=real%2Cmap All kinds of ways to play with the data, if you're interested in that sort of thing, as I am.

http://hotair.com/archives/2008/04/07/video-voice-of-god-inspires-couple-to-chase-their-dreams/

Excuse me while I hurl.

***

Spring has well and fully arrived here. The pecans and persimmons are the last trees to leaf out, and they're full of new growth. The mockingbirds are singing every morning now, and the whippoorwills have begun calling at night. Dogwood blooms hang like lace in the forest, and the swamps are full of froggy choruses.

***

Honor.

Is it something we as a society still value? It's something I've been chewing on a lot lately. It certainly isn't something that gets talked about much, and the only time I seem to hear it any more is when mentioning "honor killings" or maybe the Medal of Honor, or the McCain campaign. I think that's sad. Honesty, integrity, and fairness are all quite lovely ideals, and society is doomed when we begin to devalue such attributes.