RooDee

This should help you decide who should be president.

Immoral Republicans

Republican Senator David Vitter was subpoenaed for his use of prostitutes.

Mike Gravel

I hope these candidate endorsements help you make informed decisions about the candidates.

Tab Benoit

My Bucket Got A Hole In It

CRW_6352 graham don quixote brandwood, originally uploaded by bennettphoto.

I hiked with Don Quixote In "06 on the AT. Don was fun to talk with incredibly bright and awry sense of humor. He is an Englishman, not British.I remember on the 4th of July he told me" It's not to late to come back to the commonwealth. All is forgiven. "

Immoral Republicans

Here is a great link to all the recent Republicans immoral sex. As Melissa says, there are two kinds of republican sex and they are both illegal.

Hang Drum At Pinnacle

This video was taken at the Pinnacle in PA on the Appalachian Trail.

Beer Goggles

Ezra and Matt are having some fun with beer goggles. Part of the report reminded me of a joke I told to Charlie Foxtrot(his polite name). Charlie is a British chap, I hiked with in '06 on the AT.

drinkers were more likely to rate someone of the opposite sex as attractive.

"Charlie you British chaps are alright . You drink enough beer and you will sleep with women."

Iran Not A Threat

Real experts on the Middle East do not seem to think Iran is a threat to the US. This article by McClatchy Papers is pretty good. It seems Rudy Giuliani's campaign adviser, Norman Podhoretz is the biggest hawk in the article. Podhoretz is a true radical. He has been wrong about the Soviet Union, Iraq and now Iran.

Would I like Iran to have a nuclear bomb? No," said Robert Jervis , a Columbia University professor of international politics who has written widely on nuclear deterrence. But, "the fears (voiced) by the administration and a fair number of sensible people as well, just are exaggerated. The idea that this will really make a big difference, I think is foolish."

Even some commentators in Israel , whose leaders see themselves in Iran's crosshairs, present a more nuanced view of the potential threat than the White House does.

Go read the whole thing.

Twins

I remember reading about twins and yams in Africa a while ago. I believe it was in a cookbook. Probably not your best source for scientific info. So, it is nice to see an article about it.

But West Africa bucks that trend, particularly with a much higher incidence of fraternal, or non-identical twins than in Europe or Japan. That is especially true, experts say, amongst Nigeria's Yoruba community which is largely concentrated in the southwestern part of the country where Igbo-Ora is located.

Overall, almost 5 percent of all Yoruba births produce twins, the Belgian study said, compared with just around 1.2 percent for Western Europe and 0.8 percent for Japan -- although fertility drugs in the developed world are changing those figures.

Important New Invention

A device to cool beer in seconds. It would be great for backpacking.

And the portable gadget, which has a cooling capacity almost four times that of regular ice with the advantage that it doesn't water down your drink, could spell the end of lugging a heavy chilly bin to the beach.

Hiker Rescue

This is a great video of a hiker being rescued by helicopter. I'm sure she did not care about the cost after a night in the cold.
When I was on the PCT, the Germinator was rescued by a helicopter. The first thing the rescue officer said was there would be no charge for the helicopter. The first thing the Germanator said was he would walk because he did not want to pay for the helicopter.
Update: Nacona's journal of the day the Germanator was rescued.

Vote Libertarian

Ron Paul Girl - Watch today’s top amazing videos here
This is the most sophisticated argument I have seen lately to vote libertarian.

WAR IS BAD!

Gloom and Doom

I think of the plague as something from mid evil times but, an Arizona biologist likely died from the plague.

A wildlife biologist at Grand Canyon National Park most likely died from the plague contracted while performing a necropsy on a mountain lion that later tested positive for the disease, officials said Friday.

Yellowstone may blow.

A big blob of molten rock appears to be pushing up remnants of an ancient volcano in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, scientists reported on Friday.

Things are not going well in Afghanistan or Iraq this year.

The six deaths brings the number of U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan this year to at least 101, according to an Associated Press count, surpassing the 93 troops killed in 2005. About 87 died last year. The toll echoes the situation in Iraq, where U.S. military deaths this year surpassed 850, also a record.

We are having a hard time keeping our children alive.

The United States ranks near the bottom for infant survival rates among modernized nations.

Congratulations

Congratulations to Andrew Skurka on completing the Great Western Loop. A journey of 6,875 miles. A pretty good article in the Arizona Republic. It is nice to see a hiker getting some sponsorship even if it is from Go Lite. The folks at Go Lite once told Tuna "If you Go Lite you can hike more miles and get back to work faster." No one is in a hurry to get back to work.

It took me five and a half months just to do the Pacific Crest Trail part of The Great Western Loop. I'm Amazed by people that can do thirty plus mile days for months on end.

Immoral Republicans

The immoral Republicans hate children. How else can you explain this:

The nation’s top official for consumer product safety has asked Congress in recent days to reject legislation intended to strengthen the agency, which polices thousands of consumer goods, from toys to tools.

This summer I remember reports of lead paint in children's toys,nasty stuff in toothpaste. Now this:

WASHINGTON - Millions of Chinese-made toys for children have been pulled from shelves in North America and Australia after scientists found they contain a chemical that converts into a powerful "date-rape" drug when ingested.

They just do not want anything to get in the way of there corporate profits. Children's health is just not important to Republicans. Go read the first article. Guess how many inspectors there are for all those Chinese toys and everybody else's toys. Or you can find out at the end of this video

Hiker Found Dead

A hiker was found on the Ozark Highlands Trail on Monday. No signs of foul play.

Adelsberger was found lying atop a sleeping bag and under a tarp suspended between trees.

My condolences to his family.

Tell It Keith


Go Watch!

Food Fight

The New York Times has a good opinion piece about the upcoming farm bill. It is written by Michael Pollan the author of "The Omnivore's Dilemma" and the forthcoming "In Defence Of Food: An Eaters Manifesto." It talks about the huge subsidies for commodities farmers and

or the first time, about $2 billion to support “specialty crops” — farm-bill-speak for the kind of food people actually eat.

Man do we have our priorities wrong in this country. Coke is the same price as water because of the subsidies.