The Flying Horse

[flyinghorse]

:)good morning everyone from Tuxy and me.

Today it's partly cloudy and the temp is 12F <brrrrrrrr shivering>. The weather map shows a wintery mix mess heading our way. Global warming where are you ??

8-)Today in history: In 1787 New Jersey became the third state to ratify the US Constitution; 1865, the 13th amendment abolishing slavery was declared in effect by Secretary of State William Seward; 1892: Tchaikovsky's ballet The Nutcracker premiered in St Petersburg, Russia; 1957: the Shippingport Atomic Power Station in Pennsylvania (first full-scale commercial nuclear energy to generate electricity) went on line; 1958: the world's first communications satellite, SCORE, or Signal Communication by Orbiting Relay Equipment nicknamed "Chatterbox," was launched by the US.

;DWhat I call a hopeful sign--the death penalty sentence is declining in the US. Fewer deaths sentences were handed down in 2009 than any year since the death penalty was reinstated by the US Supreme Court in 1976. As someone who considers that no one, individual or the state, has the right to kill another, I am glad and hope the trend continues. We should have moved beyond the ancient Hammurabi code of "an eye for an eye" rule of law.

>:(A lawsuit filed by Washington state's attorney general against DirecTV could serve as a textbook for consumers on tricks companies play to take our money. The suit alleges so many forms of misbehavior that he thinks the company has built deception into their business model and has left few deceptive tactics unused." It centers on misleading ads and a series of pricey early termination fees (up to $400). Earlier this year, a group of 46 states settled a lawsuit with DirecTV competitor DISH Network. The firm was accused of automatically debiting consumers’ accounts without their consent. The firm admitted no wrongdoing but agreed to change its business practices and refund $6 million to consumers. Anyone who feels they have been unfairly treated by DirecTV should contact your state attorney general at once. If a case is filed in your state, those with complaints on file will be the first to receive restitution should the state win. Cable TV has many things wrong with it, but one thing you don't have to consider is a two-year contract or termination fees or service contracts. I once asked a telemarketer for Verizon about the 2-year contract and termination fee, what was the companies policy if the contract was terminated by my death. I never did get a clear answer, so I didn't buy.

[flyinghorse]

Today is Mother Goose Day (and my oldest son's 46th birthday)



Have a great day everyone!!

[flyinghorse]

Poppies by Henri Matisse


The Window by Henri Matisse

[flyinghorse]

:)good afternoon fellow refugees.

8-)Today it's quiet here and the forecast doesn't say anything about us getting the storm that's coming up the coast for which I am very grateful. Right now it's cloudy and 17F.

???Today in history:
1777, Gen. Washington led his men to winter quarters at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
1813: the British captured Fort Niagara in upstate New York in the War of 1812
1843: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens was first published
1946: war broke out in Indochina as troops under Ho Chi Minh attacked the French
1972: Apollo 17 splashed down in the Pacific to wind up the Apollo program of manned lunar landings
1984: Britain and China signed an accord returning Hong Kong to Chinese sovereignty on 1 Jul 1997
1998: Pres. Bill Clinton was impeached by the Republican-controlled House for perjury and obstruction of justice
1999: Macau spent its last day under Portugal before being handed back to China, ending 442 years of colonial rule.
:oPolish authorities tightened security checks at airports and border crossings while searching scrap metal yards for the infamous Nazi sign stolen from Auschwitz death camp memorial. The brazen theft of one of the Holocaust's most chilling and notorious symbols sparked outrage around the world. The sign, Arbeit Macht Frei (work makes you free), spanned the main entrance to the Auschwitz death camp where more than 1 million, mostly Jews, were killed. British historian Andrew Roberts said the sign would generate huge interest on the burgeoning market for Nazi memorabilia. I wonder if this was just a random act of violence or a well planned act of vandalism based on having a "client" for the artefact. A market for Nazi memorabilia is a chilling thought--people with the money to buy fine art choosing to buy things associated with one of the most heinous episodes in world history.
Iran's hard-line judiciary acknowledged for the first time than at least three prisoners detained after the June's protested election were beaten to death by their jailers. Thus they confirmed a key claim by the country's opposition movement. This acknowledgment followed months of repeated denials that the deaths of protesters in Iranian custody were caused by abuse. The claims embarrassed Iran's clerical rulers and forced Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to order the closure of the Kahrizak prison. Authorities had claimed that they died of natural causes and accused the opposition of running a campaign of lies. The opposition claims at least 72 protesters wee killed but the government puts the number of confirmed dead at 30. The question is what is the Iranian government going to do about it? Their whole law enforcement and judiciary system is a farce and entirely arbitrary, meant to cow its opponents into obedience based on fear. This is an example what can happen when the government doesn't have any checks on its actions. And let's not be too self-congratulatory. We were on this same road in the treatment of Iraqi prisoners and at Gitmo. The designation of individuals as "enemy combatants" and thus deprived of their legal rights under our judicial system.
::)Four passenger trains broke down in the Channel Tunnel between France and Britain stranding more than 2,000 passengers for hours, many without heat, light, or water. Officials blamed the breakdown on wintry weather on the French side. The passengers finally arrived in London 10 hours late after a night being trapped with a lack of air in dark, unheated cars short on water. "They were useless at giving us information," said passenger Alison Sturgeon, who vowed never to take Eurostar again. "The conditions on that train were terrible. We slept on the floor on newspapers like hobos and nobody knew what was going on." Her husband, Steven, said that no Eurostar crew members provided help or guidance during the long hours. According to Eurostar, the problem was caused by the extremely low temps and heavy snow in France. When the trains traveled through the very cold air in France then entered the warm tunnel, the abrupt temperature change caused the breakdowns. I'm one who dislikes tunnels of any sort (I don't like caves either) and you would never get me on a train going under the English Channel. I remember when the began building it, I thought "that's not for me." This just confirms my antipathy for this means of travel. Do the ferries still run? If so, that's where I would be.

[flyinghorse]

Today is A Christmas Carol Day

;)Thought for Today:
"I never could see why people were so happy about Dickens' A Christmas Carol because I never had any confidence that Scrooge was going to be different the next day."
— Karl Menninger, American psychiatrist (1893-1990).

[flyinghorse]

Have a great weekend.

[flyinghorse]

Today it's cloudy and 22ºF but most important quiet with no snowfall. The nor'easter has now reached New England. And of course, it just had to strike the populous East Coast on super sales Saturday, the biggest shopping day before Christmas. The retail sales stores must feel by now that they are jinxed.

???Today in history: In 1790, the first successful cotton mill in the US began operating at Pawtucket, Rhode Island; 1803: the US purchase of the Louisiana Territory was completed during ceremonies in New Orleans transferring it from France; 1860: South Carolina became the first state to secede from the Union; 1945: the Office of Price Administration announced the end of rationing effective 1 Jan 1946; 1987: more than 4,300 were killed when the Dona Paz, a Philippine passenger ship, collided with the tanker Vector off Mindoro island; 1989: the US launched Operation Just Cause as it sent troops into Panama to topple and arrest Gen. Manuel Noriega; 1999: the Vermont Supreme Court ruled that homosexual couples were entitled to the same benefits and protections as wedded couples of the opposite sex.

:oThe slow-moving storm that has blanketed swaths of the mid-Atlantic with nearly 2 feet of snow has reached southern New England, continuing its assault on the East Coast after causing at least five deaths, crippling travel and leaving empty stores normally crammed with holiday shoppers.

Blizzard warnings are now in effect for parts of Rhode Island and Massachusetts with gusts up to 60 mph. As much as 16 inches of the white stuff is expected to cover parts of southern New England. You cannot possibly know how much I am thankful that I live 300 miles northwest of New York City and missed the whole thing. Right now the ground where I am is only lightly covered with snow and I'm just as happy to keep it that way, although I'm sure the skiers and ski resorts don't share my relief.
:(Iran's most senior dissident cleric Grand Ayatollah Hassein Ali Montazeri, who emerged as the spiritual father of the Iranian reform movement, has died at age 87. For years he had accused the country's ruling Islamic establishment of imposing dictatorship in the name of Islam. He persisted in his criticism following June's disputed presidential election. His criticisms were even more stinging because of his status. Before they had a falling out, he was designated the successor of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the late founder of Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution. Wouldn't you know that it would be one of the "good" guys that passed away. We can't afford to lose people like this in the world today. Be that as it may, R.I.P. sir.

::)China, the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases, lauded the outcome of a historic UN climate conference that ended with a nonbinding agreement that urges major polluters to make deeper emissions cuts--but doesn't require it. The international talks produced "significant and positive" results, said Foreign Ministry Yang Jiechi. The meeting ended after a 31-hour negotiating marathon, with delegates accepting a US-brokered compromise. The so-called Copenhagen Accord gives billions of dollars in climate aid to poor nations but doesn't make major polluters to make deeper cuts. Yang said the positive outcomes of the conference were that it upheld the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities" recognized by the Kyoto Protocol, and made a step forward in promoting binding emissions cuts for developed countries and voluntary mitigating actions by developing countries. Yeah and with $1.50 I can get a cup of coffee and contemplate that "good will hunting" of the US and China, the 2 major greenhouse gas producers.

[flyinghorse]

Today is Dot Your I's with Smiley Faces Day

Thought for Today:
"Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art. ... It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival."
— C. S. Lewis, British author (1898-1963).

[Site Administrator]

I wish you were not always posting in a ghost town, Peg. One day I hope others will join in the fun.

[flyinghorse]

Well, Capt , you could comment. I'm sorry the the Tropical Islanders started their own group here and didn't join this one. My thought is to keep active here so if my special friends one day decide they need a place away from MSN and I can direct them here (IIF, sparkle, walk the talk, beaglesowner, etc.--all of us from the old MSNBC Wonderful World board).

[flyinghorse]

Today is cloudy and 26ºF that feels like 21ºF. Well that's not to bad for 4 days before Christmas. I don't mind temps in the 20s for winter. And looking at the weather map, there's nary a storm in sight. I'm sure all the retail stores are dancing a small jig.

8-)Today in history: On 1620 the Pilgrims went ashore from the Mayflower for the first time at present-day Plymouth, Mass.; 1804: Benjamin Disraeli, British statesman and Prime Minister, was born; 1937: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the first feature-length animated cartoon, premiered in Los Angles, CA; 1948: the state of Eire (or Ireland) passed an act declaring itself a republic; 1958: Charles de Gaulle was elected as the first president of the Fifth Republic of France; 1988: 270 people were killed when a terrorist bomb exploded aboard a Pan Am Boeing 747 over Lockerbie, Scotland;

>:(Senate Democrats won a crucial test vote on health care overhaul, putting them on track for passage before Christmas of the historic legislation to remake the nation's medical system and cover 30 million uninsured. Frankly, I have lost all faith in this bill. It is a patched together bunch of special interests pork--Big Pharma, insurance companies, etc. each have their sticky fingers all over it. And the stock market agrees with me. This a.m. the stocks of health insurance and drug companies soared to new highs. The US Senate should be ashamed of itself. We counted on them actually doing something to help us and they have failed miserably.

;D Pres. Obama is likely to sign an executive order before year's end to create a National Declassification Center to clear up the backlog of 400 million pages of Cold War classified documents. It will give everyone time to process the documents rather than than just flinging them out willy-nilly. The order also aims at elimination unnecessary secrecy, directing all agencies to revise their classification guides--the more that 2,000 separate and unique manuals used to determine what information should be classified and what needs no such protection. The still-classified documents will provide a wealth of data on US-USSR relations. The government spent more than $8.21 billion last year to create and safeguard classified information, and $43 million to declassify it, according to the oversight office, part of the National Archives and Records Administration. The figures don't include data from the principal intelligence agencies, which is classified. Good, we not only would get a more open government but should save some money too. A win-win situation for a change.

:(Mayon, a Philippine volcano, gets louder and could erupt soon. Troops pressed the last villagers to leave the danger zone following 10s of thousands who have already evacuated. Between Sunday and Monday it has shook with nearly 2,000 volcanic earthquakes and the emission of sulfur dioxide (an indication of magma rising inside) has jumped to 6,000 tons per day (normal is 500). It's first recorded eruption occurred in 1616 but the most destructive one came in 1814 that killed more than 1,200 people and burying a town in volcanic mud. The ruins of the church in Cagsawa have become an iconic tourist attraction. In 1991, Mt Pinatubo exploded in northern Philippines in one of the biggest eruptions of the 20th century, killing about 800 people. The problem here is that the farmers and others won't stay evacuated. They keep sneaking back to take care of their farms and belongings. It's hard to put oneself in their shoes. Part of me says "run like h e l l" but if all my worldly belongings and means of making a living were there? I don't know. I just hope that no one gets caught when it does erupt.
:)Today is Forefathers Day

[flyinghorse]

Happy Winter Solstice--Winter officially arrives at 12:47 p.m. EST.

[flyinghorse]

[flyinghorse]

8-)Today it's cloudy and 22ºF but no snow except some flurries yet; however, the weather map shows a storm heading our way from the west. It's not entirely clear just where in the east it's going to hit. I imagine it's the storm that hit Iowa yesterday but it may pass below me. Hope, hope, hope.

???Today in history: In 1808, Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 n C minor, Op. 67 or Eroica Symphony and Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68 the Pastoral Symphony, had their world premieres in Vienna, Austria; 1858: Giacomo Puccini, Italian opera composer (La Boheme, Madame Butterfly), is born; 1894: French captain Alfred Dreyfus was convicted of treason in a court-martial; 1989: Romanian President Ceausescu, the last of Eastern Europe's hard-line Communist rulers, was toppled from power in a popular uprising

:)The American economy's recovery appears to be on an ever stronger footing. After a record four straight quarters of declines, it returned to growth in the July-to-September period and many analysts think it appears headed for an even better finish in the current quarter--growing at nearly 4%, the strongest showing since the first quarter of 2006. I sure hope they are right. Then maybe businesses will start hiring again and the jobless rate will start going down. And the various governments will also begin to recover fiscal responsibility.

Do any of you get the same feeling I have about Iran being schizo? It's as if there was a good twin and a bad twin and you never know which will show up. Today they described the border incident with Iraq, which caused oil prices to rise last week, as a "misunderstanding" and called for experts from both countries to look into border demarcation issues. Sounds reasonable doesn't it. Not like their original seizure of the oil well and their belligerent attitude toward those who protested and Iraq. So when will the bad twin pop back into the picture? When they either get their way or are balked at attaining whatever their objective is?

;D In the category of "My How Things Have Changed" category. Russia and the US plan unprecedented cuts to their Cold War arsenals of nuclear weapons under a new arms reduction deal, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said today. This will be the replacement for the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, which has been extended as the two powers negotiate.

Today is Christmas Tree Lights Day


Only three more days to go.

[flyinghorse]

8-)Today is cloudy and 23ºF but no snow in sight. So it doesn't look like it's going to be a completely white Christmas, only a wishy-washy spotty mess. Ah well, I guess the snow is all in the midwest. Sorry about that, but deep inside me there's a little chuckle saying "better you than me" as I read about the winter storm spreading across the Midwest. I know that it will eventually reach me and then I will accept all expressions of sympathy.

???Today in history:
1814: the War of 1812 officially ended as the US and Britain signed the Treaty of Ghent in Belgium;
1851: fire devastated the Library of Congress destroying about 35,000 volumes;
1865: several veterans of the Confederate Army formed a private social club in Pulaski, Tennessee, called the Ku Klux Klan;
1871 Giuseppe Verdi's opera Aida had its world premiere in Cairo, Egypt; 1943: Pres. Roosevelt appointed Gen. Dwight Eisenhower as supreme commander of Allied forces as part of Operation Overlord;
2004: the international Cassini spacecraft launched a probe on a 3-week free-fall toward Saturn's mysterious moon Titan.

:)Update on the Brazilian custody case--Sean Goldman was delivered to his American father by the Brazilian family he has been living with, ending a five-year custody battle. It is nice to see a story end happily.

:oIn Gojra, Pakistan, no Christmas decorations brighten the tent camp sheltering Christians left homeless by the worst violence against minorities in Pakistan this past year. Instead, there is a pervasive sense of fear with Christians receiving cell phone text messages warning them to expect a "special Christmas present." They are terrified of their tents being torched or their church services being bombed. Extremists have increasingly targeted minority religious groups in Pakistan. Minority Rights Group International lists Pakistan as 7th on the list of 10 most dangerous countries for minorities, after Somalia, Sudan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Myanmar and Congo. I find it interesting that three of these countries are where we are active--Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan. Do you think that there might be some correlation?

:(And another Southeast Asian ferry disaster. A passenger ferry collided with a fishing boat in Manila Bay. Three floating bodies were found and at least 24 people are missing. 46 passengers and crew were plucked from the water. All 22 crew on the fishing boat were safe and it didn't sink. Sea accidents are common in the archipelago because of tropical storms, badly maintained boats and weak enforcement of safety regulations. Doesn't anyone out there care? Two of the three causes are preventable--boat maintenance and law enforcement. So after repeated incidents why doesn't the government do something to protect its citizens?