Bedtime in Alaska – Daily Catch Up
Back in Business – Nothing will eat your time and stomach lining like computer problems. Worrying, fixing, stressing, reinstalling, reconfiguring…. But, I was fortunate enough to have a wonderful tech guru who gave up a healthy chunk of his weekend, to get Mudflats central up and running again. Hooray! (Palms on floor…I bow before the greatness of the guru!) That said, I’ve got a lot of catching up to do, so buckle your seat belts for the Mudflats Cliff Notes for the day.
Keep the Wolves in Wolves’ Clothing – The Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund has launched a new website. EyeOnPalin.org ”is a national campaign dedicated to exposing Alaska Governor Sarah Palin’s anti-conservation agenda.” They will not be bored. The website mentions aerial hunting of wolves and bears, and Palin’s attempts to sue the federal government to remove the polar bear from the endangered species list. No mention yet of beluga whales. Ashley Judd appears on the site with the following video:
During the campaign season, I literally received dozens of emails on the subject of Palin and wolves. Click HERE for my post on that subject from back in September.
Mind the Volcano! – Will it, or won’t it, and when? All of Anchorage and the surrounding area is on “volcano watch”. Chit chat on line in the grocery store is full of speculation. “Think it’s gonna blow?” Others are waxing nostalgic. “Remember back in ’89? Could be worse.” Others speculate, “Think it’ll blow ash this way like Mt. Spurr in ’92?” People who are far more organized than I am are buying masks, and stocking up on canned chili. And now we have this in from the official source at the USGS:
“There is very good evidence now that we have new magma involved in this process,” said Tina Neal, a USGS geologist with the AVO. “Unfortunately, we just don’t know enough yet to know exactly where this magma is and whether or not it will actually make its way out of the ground.”
We have magma! (applause) But we don’t know where or when or if. So we wait. Here’s a picture I snapped of Mt. Redoubt yesterday evening. I call it the “Before Shot.”
And if you just can’t get enough of the rumblings and grumblings, you can now follow all the heart-stopping geologic action on Twitter!
Happy Moooooo-nday – Yes, “Dairygate” is back in the news thanks to a long and in-depth post by Andrew Halcro. It’s a tale full of intrigue, allegations of fraud, and brings a whole new meaning to “lactose intolerance.” There’s also a follow-up to the cow theme by Celtic Diva. Pass the cookies. But be sure to eat them beFORE you get to the last part of Celtic Diva’s post. Ack!
Brian Returns! – That’s right, Brian the Moose, the official mascot of the Mudflats came to pay a visit. Brian is always blog-worthy, but this visit was quite special. He’ll get his own post tomorrow night, and you will see, perhaps for the first time anywhere, moose yoga.
With that parting teaser, I bid you all adieu! Good night, good night. Parting is such sweet sorrow, that we must say goodnight ’til it be ‘morrow.
Oh, and speaking of the Bard, a huge hat tip to Mudflatter Dr. Chill, who apparently is quite skilled with the Photoshop! He has transformed my mental image of Attorney General Talis Colberg wearing a purple velvet tunic, metal pants and a codpiece into reality. And if you have no idea what I’m talking about and think that surely I have lost my mind, read THIS. But now, behold!
Exeunt.
Curtain down.
Is it just me, or does Talis look a little like Tom from Desperate Housewives in that pic?
Which is so very wrong, cos Tom is cute!
O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?
Please keep up the good work that you are doing!
AKM:
Since this is the “catch-up” posting, I wanted to make sure you knew that the plight of Alaskans is getting coverage in the lower 48. The article attached below appeared in the LA Times and was reprinted on Sunday in the Baltimore Sun.
The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation/bal-te.alaska01feb01,0,2629527.story
Beautiful picture! Sad news about the baby calf on CD
I wish a eagle would swoop down and nest in Barbies hair….
So glad Brian is back! I’m eager to see his exercise routine. When living in the Jewel Lake area, we had a returnee moose named Bertha. It was amazing to realize how many fences she must have jumped just to lie in the corner of our backyard under the birch trees.
In Eagle River, we named a bear Big Pa — but, we didn’t look close enough to ensure that it was the SAME bear returning!
Now, in Arizona I’d love to name our feeding hummers (AKA hummingbirds) but they just flit and float way too fast to be honored with a name. Briefly, we had one that fought off every intruder until he was named Lil Guard. Some reading on hummers gave us a hint to set up multiple feeders in order to put Lil Guard on Unemployment!
Ah, the animal world….
OT – Plumber Joe is back from Israel and is officially a “Consultant to the GOP”……..as reported on MSNBC this am. I just stared at the tv slack-jawed. Also the Judd video is getting heavy coverage. I hope Sarah pops off to Ashley…..Ms. Judd will kick her ass so hard,that she’ll be wearing it for a hat.
austintxNo Gravatar (06:18:54) :
OT – Plumber Joe is back from Israel and is officially a “Consultant to the GOP”
——————–
How the mighty have fallen. Slack-jawed, here, too, also.
I am totally disgusted by the idea of hunting wolves, by air or any other means. People lie about the need to kill wolves, and Palin is just another liar in that respect. I am paralized by my anger, and I wish I could put my emotions to better use. Maybe I’ll just visualize an eagle…or maybe a vulture nesting in SP’s hair.
Has anybody heard any confirmation about that other possible zing from Obama to Palin at the dinner? The one where he congratulates her for winning a golden globe for 30 Rock?
womanwithsardinecanNo Gravatar (06:42:54) :
Has anybody heard any confirmation about that other possible zing from Obama to Palin at the dinner? The one where he congratulates her for winning a golden globe for 30 Rock?
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It was a link in the ADN, from yesterday…hehe, he dissed her good
Lin in AZNo Gravatar (06:36:32) :
I am totally disgusted by the idea of hunting wolves, by air or any other means. People lie about the need to kill wolves, and Palin is just another liar in that respect. I am paralized by my anger, and I wish I could put my emotions to better use. Maybe I’ll just visualize an eagle…or maybe a vulture nesting in SP’s hair.
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Course she is lying… wolves hunt the caribou (& smaller animals), mostly going for sick, injured…this is for the sports hunters (macho men like dud, doncha know!) and the fur people. Yes I did mention a eagle before, but a vulture landing on her head pecking out her eyes….much better.
Hope Ashely can get the word out about Barbies wolf hunting b/c it is totally a load of crap, her reasoning behind it.
I’m thinking we ought to live trap a few dozens wolves, surround her buddy-built house with an 8 foot fence and then let the wolves out within the fence. …
pay back would be a female wolf, eh?
I also have very strong emotions on the slaughter of the wolves. I do not appreciate the so called science in which the Gov. rules by. Anyone knows that most any predator seeks out the old, and sick animals, you can see the process on National Geographic everyday if they show Africa. No I don’t like to see anything get eaten but it is called nature for a reason, predator’s have to eat to survive. If the Gov. is so worried about the declining numbers of prey animals (money maker, caribou, moose) stop the dam* big game hunters from killing so many or restrict there kills. When you reduce the number of predators you are risking the health of the herds because there will be nothing to cull the sick animals. If some of these animals were to catch some kind of disease it would spread rapidly and could almost wipe out the herds.
I don’t know how many of you read the ADN but there was a very good article on the introduction of wood bison into Alaska. What is interesting about the article is the greedy behavior of the Gov. The two big hunting organizations are paying for these animals to be introduced into Alaska even though right now they are endangered species. The bison has been there for 2 years I believe it said and has cost millions.
It is also interesting to see the Gov.’s stand on the issue, why you ask, well it is going to go against her bullet pipeline. Introducing the bison could delay or completely nix the pipeline, but the Gov. is still in favor of the bison. Now it is apparent why she is for it, her cronies (hunting clubs) are sponsoring these animals and if they introduce the animals and they thrive, guess what is going to be next. Of course big game hunting of the wood bison. I am inserting this link so ya’ll can read the article itself. http://www.adn.com/oil/story/672792.html. We all know the Gov. is got oil on the brain but boy howdy she sure is helping the good ole boys to come up with a very lucrative crop. Also lately I have been seeing her name associated with the Grizzly’s , wow I am so scared for all wildlife if the Gov. can see big business in it.
Check out this site to give you an idea what is going on behind the scenes. I am not sure how much licenses cost charged by the state but I bet they are very expensive. http://www.castlerockoutfitters.com/Prices.htm
Crunk PetrolNo Gravatar (05:02:26) :
AKM:
Since this is the “catch-up” posting, I wanted to make sure you knew that the plight of Alaskans is getting coverage in the lower 48. The article attached below appeared in the LA Times and was reprinted on Sunday in the Baltimore Sun.
_____________________
This is why the MSM is experiencing so much shrinkage. During the election, the MSM was about 2 weeks behind in covering factual matters related to Palin (some they half-ass and some they didn’t cover at all). Ya’d think they’d learn… yet, here it is again when it comes to matters of importance. For the Alfalfa Dinner, there was immediate coverage. For the food and fuel crisis, there’s delayed coverage.
The MSM. Still not learning and still 2 weeks behind.
austintxNo Gravatar (06:18:54) :
OT – Plumber Joe is back from Israel and is officially a “Consultant to the GOP”
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Note to Joe: your 15 minutes was up a long time ago.
It’s been hinted around for weeks now that SP and her milk maids are being investigated by the FBI anyone know if this is true?
I hope this news gets out to the Hilary supporters that drifted to Palin based solely on the existence of a womb in both candidates:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/politics/state/stories/DN-perrypalin_03tex.ART.State.Edition1.4c4134a.html
She’s no Hilary Clinton!
AKM, thanks for repeating the September post on wolves and Palin. I encourage all Mudpuppies to financially support the new EyesonPalin.org. I am certain that the Department of the Interior under the Obama Administration will now do its job and stop this brutal practice, but it does need to be kept in the news, and that takes money. Please make a donation today.
From what I can tell, this is an editorial written opinion from the Frontiersman, the Wassila newspaper. The writer doesn’t agree with Gov’s idea of a state built 500 mile road through the middle of nowhere at an estimated cost of $400,000 to $500,000 a MILE! The writer makes many good points.
What the hell is she thinkin, oh yeah, makin those oil and mineral power people happy.
http://www.frontiersman.com/articles/2009/02/03/opinion/editorials/doc4987d8315bd22745538273.txt
oh dear, correction, it’s 4-5 MILLION per MILE to build the road! Good grief, is that correct?
AKM,
We are all still having fun with “joe the Plumber” Michael “I never saw government create a job,” and your own “Governor Sarah” as being the folks that the Republican Party wants —front and center.
Priceless!
@Say No -
I’ve heard anywhere between $1-2 million per mile to up to $13 million per mile. Lots of Native Lands in there. That road is not going to happen. Maybe she needed to prove to her mining buddies that she is making the effort to allow them more raping & pillaging & dumping of tailings in pristine environments? Or maybe it was a hail mary pass, she needed some huge deal “as majestic as the State of Alaska” and this was the best that she could come up with.
It’s been proven time & time again that she is not really interested in the details involved in actually governing this state, including but not limited to proposing &/or acting on projects that ADD VALUE.
She sucks. Worst governor we’ve ever had, and that’s really saying something. And I’ve seen many.
Tundra drums has another account of a suffering village- Kotlik. This story also goes into the physical and health effects of old, wet housing. I grew up in a farmhouse with inch-thick hoarfrost on the windows- I used to melt child-high spy holes in the frost with a thimble held in pliers and heated on the cast-iron kitchen coal stove. But the house was dry, had no mold, and there was coal and food and skills and lots of space, though only the kitchen was warm. As the coals cooled during the night the cats climbed on top of the stove and top cat slept in the open oven. The bitter cold prodded our small family into the most togetherness we ever had. Not saying that Kotlik isn’t much, much, much worse.
I have linked (“seeded”) the Kotlik and Emmonak stories to Newsvine, though I don’t know if this is very effective. It may just look pretty.
Off topic- My other internet research area has been the lethal misuse of tasers by police. I started on that after the Polish immigrant Dziekanski was killed by RCMP in my local Vancouver airport. I spent months compiling stats on this (some are on the site TruthNotTasers) until last fall I finally overloaded and couldn’t bear to search for the details of one more death, so I jumped to Mudflats to watch Sarah- at least there is room for humor here, even though it is often bittersweet.
Dziekanski’s death was about Dec 1 2007, and the detailed forensic data and testimony is only now coming out in the second phase of an investigation ordered by the BC government, so I have returned to following the story. If anyone wants to follow it, this link will take you straight to the testimony transcripts, which are posted about 5 days later. The first phase of the inquiry was back in May and dealt with general information about tasers. Canada is more skeptical about the manufacturer’s safety claims. We could never have trusted the RCMP to reveal self-harming information.
Anyway, I don’t want to debate this here, just to offer this link for anyone interested.
http://www.braidwoodinquiry.ca/hearings_schedule.php
kateincanada I agree this is not the place for that debate, you start a thread in the forum and I will gladly tell you first hand about tasers.
sauerkrautNo Gravatar (07:37:05) :
I’m thinking we ought to live trap a few dozens wolves, surround her buddy-built house with an 8 foot fence and then let the wolves out within the fence. …
pay back would be a female wolf, eh?
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You betcha!
Palin is apparently able to take some time out of her very very busy schedule to meddle in texas politics:
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2009/02/03/sarah-palin-endorses-texas-gov-perrys-re-election-bid/
The republicans down there are too moderate and they need someone to set them straight.
Peaceful GrannyNo Gravatar (07:43:15) :
It’s been hinted around for weeks now that SP and her milk maids are being investigated by the FBI anyone know if this is true?
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Who’s hinting? Granny tell us? God I’m so sick of sending stuff to the FBI, I would be so happy to know they got “a clue”
An interesting comment over at Andrew Sullivan about Daschle and Palin and not paying taxes:
A reader writes:
Someone should make the point that the theory on which Daschle did not pay taxes on an extraordinary non-salary benefit provided by his employer (car and driver) is exactly the theory on which Palin did not pay taxes on an extraordinary benefit (free air travel for her children, and 60 dollar per day per diem payments for use of her own house).
Palin never paid back taxes but simply produced a squirrelly letter from her lawyers saying that someone could believe in good faith that taxes were not owed on the travel or per diems she received, so her failure to report those items as income was excusable.
But Daschle is a librul elitist! And Palin’s hot. That’s the counter-argument, right?
Daschle just resigned his appointment….! Now lets see IRS go after barbie and she can resign as gov
@Caligirl and @sauerkraut….
Please don’t even joke about SP and the wolves….don’t even think of her being
near enough to their beautiful fur….the wolves would vomit, too, also, you betcha….
Could I suggest instead to
think of her on an ice flow with Joe the Plumber, let them do mano-a-mano
as the ice melts….due to the global warming they don’t believe exists…
InterestedPersonNo Gravatar (09:42:05) :
@Caligirl and @sauerkraut….
Please don’t even joke about SP and the wolves….don’t even think of her being
near enough to their beautiful fur….the wolves would vomit, too, also, you
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Oh I’m not joking! My name on the forum is Caligrl wolves eat Palin!
this is from my ADN profile:
Steam Fangs Palin
News interests:: Ripping into corruption
Favorite sports and sports teams:: running with the pack & paling around with polar bears
Favorite hobbies and recreation:: sniffing out corruption….playing on the ‘Flats’
Favorite foods and restaurants:: Palin burgers & Kabobs
Favorite music and bands:: KO and RM
About Minding the Volcano….
You all might be interested to know that, over at a certain Devoted-to-Sarah blogsite, they actually have one of those “Sarah Palin Death Stare” pictures posted with the caption, “HillBuzz: Palin Can “Stare Down” Volcano”.
Over at Hillbuzz, the commentary ends with this: “It just reminds us what a wild and difficult to control state Alaska truly is — and just what sort of unique challenges Governor Palin successfully faces every day, with characteristic grace under fire.”
So, does this mean Gov. Palin will take all the credit if the volcano doesn’t erupt?
(gagging over the fannish worship)
KaJoNo Gravatar (10:01:06) :
About Minding the Volcano….
You all might be interested to know that, over at a certain Devoted-to-Sarah blogsite, they actually have one of those “Sarah Palin Death Stare” pictures posted with the caption, “HillBuzz: Palin Can “Stare Down” Volcano”.
Over at Hillbuzz, the commentary ends with this: “It just reminds us what a wild and difficult to control state Alaska truly is — and just what sort of unique challenges Governor Palin successfully faces every day, with characteristic grace under fire.”
So, does this mean Gov. Palin will take all the credit if the volcano doesn’t erupt?
(gagging over the fannish worship)
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Her “fan base” why do they all sound so Jr. high? I guess that’s why their so stuck on their very own wannabe beauty queen, {gack!}
Gotta love the waiting game with the volcano!
@caligirl….not to belabor the point, but so many coyotes and wolves have been
poisoned, I hate to think of them eating ANY kind of poisoned meat….
There were two wonderful wolf ‘ambassodors’ in NYC in the 70s that I got to meet
[as did many school children, who learned to appreciate them, not as scary,
but wild beautful creatures]. They were poisoned by a Brooklyn ‘neighbor..’
So Jethro and Clem always are in my memory as specific wolf beings who died
because of human stupidy.
And it might be just desserts [!] for SP but still yukky for anyone who touched her.
InterestedPersonNo Gravatar (10:19:52) :
@caligirl….not to belabor the point, but so many coyotes and wolves have been
Did they catch who did it? People that go around committing animal abuse/wanton killing are very sick people. Usually Bullies, which fit’s Barbie to a T, she is a “bully” and is for the wanton killing of wolves, polar bears, whales. I was a Vet Tech for 10 yrs and hate to see any animals abused by anyone!
poisoned, I hate to think of them eating ANY kind of poisoned meat….
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Poor Jethro and Clem
In case you have not seen it, Palin has made Huff Post yet again…enjoy
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/geoffrey-dunn/dog-eat-dog-palin-patrons_b_163385.html
On the cows thing that Celtic Diva posted, that was my calf. There were five eagles feeding on the calf when I got there.
The eagle feeding on the Homer Spit draws birds from as far away as Kodiak and Prince William Sound. It’s an unnatural gathering of powerful predators.
Prediction: The B&B owners in Homer will lobby the City like crazy to allow the feeding to continue, because the tourists love it.
grewingkNo Gravatar (10:57:27) :
On the cows thing that Celtic Diva posted, that was my calf. There were five eagles feeding on the calf when I got there.
The eagle feeding on the Homer Spit draws birds from as far away as Kodiak and Prince William Sound. It’s an unnatural gathering of powerful predators.
Prediction: The B&B owners in Homer will lobby the City like crazy to allow the feeding to continue, because the tourists love it.
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I’m so sorry! I read that this morning on CD and felt so bad…I’m stunned that eagles would go after a calf. Hopefully when people STOP feeding them they will go away.
cali, go google The Eagle Lady. Or just go read the Homer News — www dot homernews dot com — I think the coverage of Jean’s memorial service is still up on the front page.
A neat old gal named Jean Keen lived on the Spit and fed the eagles for 25 years or so. The number of birds that would come in grew over the years. Stockgrowers on the Kachemak noticed increased problems with eagles over the years. The City of Homer recently outlawed feeding eagles for everyone but Jean; they grandfathered her in for her lifetime. I hope the City will stick to that decision. We lost Jeannie a couple of weeks ago. As things stand right now, the birds will be fed through March, then stopped. (Herring runs and other natural food sources will start to arrive in March and the birds can go home and make a living on their own.)
Jean’s feeding had unfortunate unintended consequences.
Caligirl–re Jethro and Clem…
As I recall, they had been aban doned as pups, and their human, Tony,
raised them, and took them out for educational events. To see urban children
change from cringing, to touching their fur, to smiles, was magic.
Someone threw poisoned meat over their fenced in yard.
And to my knowlege were never caught.
NEW THREAD ALERT!
grewingk:Jean’s feeding had unfortunate unintended consequences.
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She seemed like a very interesting and nice person who meant well…but to be feeding birds of prey and interfering with their natural feeding habits is not good. We had some falcons nesting in the middle of SF a couple of years ago, and biologists were studying them and even had nest camera’s online. Sometimes they would have to take a egg or chick and have a surrogate bird raise it. When they released them to the wild they were very careful to make the hack site as natural as possible so the birds would learn to hunt and not be dependent on humans. They were also careful not to habituate the birds to humans. As much as Jean had good intentions, it created a totally unnatural situation and these are big birds of prey, although I’m shocked they would actually go after a birthing calf! And the dogs didn’t scare them either! Just shows how out of hand the situation has gotten. I’m sorry for your loss, and for Mama cow too, it must of been very traumatizing for her! I hope they will stop feeding the eagles so they can revert to their natural feeding patterns, and these problems will end.
Check out Palin’s Peyton Place, got the website fron Immoral Minority–looks like same pics from Palin’s Pics for Truth-maybe someone took over for Morgan????
InterestedPersonNo Gravatar (09:42:05) :
@Caligirl and @sauerkraut….
Please don’t even joke about SP and the wolves….don’t even think of her being
near enough to their beautiful fur….the wolves would vomit, too, also, you betcha….
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No disrespect to wolves intended… I just want a few of them to bite her on the behiney.