major dad and I spent a quiet ride home from Mobile, just now. On I-10 East, we were surrounded by Mississippi and Louisiana license plates, the shoulder was dotted with broken down vehicles carrying the same and the Welcome Center was jammed. Sobering. And terribly sad. We may be on the eastern edge of the official cone, but my heart’s with Rob and everyone to the west of us. And the hard right Ivan took ~ when we all thought he was heading to Biloxi ~ has taught us to play this like we were dead center. It wouldn’t take long for us to be, should Gustav exercise his capricious side.
Note to self: if the family chariot will be required to perform evacuatory maneuvers, ascertain it can go further than 200 miles without exploding. There is considerably less stress that way.
DATA FROM AN AIR FORCE RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT INDICATE THAT
GUSTAV CONTINUES TO RAPIDLY STRENGTHEN AND NOW HAS MAXIMUM WINDS
NEAR 115 MPH…185 KM/HR WITH HIGHER GUSTS. THIS MAKES GUSTAV A
DANGEROUS CATEGORY THREE HURRICANE ON THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON HURRICANE
SCALE.
Agreed. Once I got done crying (which has NEVER happened in a political sense EVER.) (Okay, when Fred! f*cked things up, but that was RAGE.), I thought “Dang! I can relate to this chick.” I mean, I don’t agree with some of her stances, but nobody ever agrees 100% with anyone. And if they DO… ::raised eyebrows::
But I was always a tomboy (and actually a beauty queen of some SMALL note, too) (they gave me a trophy and savings bonds, yo) ~ always with the guns and the woods and the hopped up car and the rough house with the brothers…and there were so few wimmens of my OWN acquaintance (less mind the manicured, helmet headed doyennes of politics) with whom I felt instinctively I could commune. So, yeah, the Marines was a natch match and while I might envy Liddy Dole for her polish, she and her kind had no real connection to MY life, however she might have my sympathies aligned with her views and my envy for elegant, food stain-free evenings.
But Palin?
Diggity dadgum. I could give a rat’s ass about “experience” as defined by the chattering classes, because the definition morphs for the expediency of the attack at hand. I could also give a rat’s ass about religion in ALL its aspects. There are points about her that the ‘right’-est side of the party love and with which I respectfully disagree. But you know what? I can live with that. Actually doesn’t bother me a bit. Because what we’re being introduced to now is a person I find so refreshing and so normal, so decent and so secure in herself that, in a lot of ways, it’s like looking in the mirror and saying with wry surprise/winkwinknudgenudgeyness, “I know you”…and I’ve never been able to say that before.
And I have a sneaking suspicion there’s more girls than just me thinking that across the country tonight.
And that’s pretty cool. ths UPDATE: At Hot Air, a link to thoughts that sum it up perfectly:
…But ultimately, we are in completely uncharted territory here. Palin is the most manifestly ordinary person ever to be nominated for a major party ticket. In this year of bittergate and Britney-gate and McCain-has-seven-houses-gate, that could conceivably be a virtue; it’s certainly less tone-deaf than a selection like Mitt Romney would have been.
But Palin isn’t merely playing at being ordinary, the way that Bill Clinton (Rhodes Scholar) or George W. Bush (son of a president) or Hillary Clinton (wife of a president) might. She really, really comes across that way — like someone who had won a sweepstakes or an essay contest. Her authenticity factor is off-the-charts good; her biography sings.
But do Americans really want their next-door-neighbor running for Vice President, or rather someone who seems like one?
I’ll take that bad-ass-normal/sister-in-spirit neighbor over a Beltway slicksuit IN A HEARTBEAT.
ANY.
DAY.
Everyone is confirming it’s Palin. And daggum. They had to call her parents while they were caribou hunting.
What a hoot.
Man.
I am CHARGED UP!
Bingley Update: She has more executive experience than McCain, Obama and Biden combined.
ths UPDATE: To quote the radar tech in Top Gun:
Way to go, Maverick!!
I’m giddy. I hope it lasts….
Read her Wiki entry, before the nutroots start adlibbing in it. I’m getting screencaps right now. I was worried about the State Trooper thing, but Bingley pointed me to this entry on the Wiki page:
…In response to Palin’s statement that she had nothing to hide, in August 2008 the Alaska Legislature hired Steve Branchflower to investigate Palin and her staff for possible abuse of power surrounding the dismissal, though lawmakers acknowledge that “Monegan and other commissioners serve at will, meaning they can be fired by Palin at any time.”[49] The investigation is being overseen by Democratic State Senator Hollis French, who says that the Palin administration has been cooperating and thus subpoenas are unnecessary.[50] The Palin administration itself was the first to release an audiotape of Bailey making inquiries about the status of the Wooten investigation.[48][51]
Wooten and the police union alleged that the governor had improperly released his employment files in his divorce case. However, McCann’s attorney released a signed waiver from Wooten demonstrating that Wooten had authorized the release of his files through normal discovery procedures.
UPDATE: Oh, man! The Obama campaign stepped on their cranks with their statement.
“Today, John McCain put the former mayor of a town of 9,000 with zero foreign policy experience a heartbeat away from the presidency. Governor Palin shares John McCain’s commitment to overturning Roe v. Wade, the agenda of Big Oil and continuing George Bush’s failed economic policies — that’s not the change we need, it’s just more of the same,” said Bill Burton, Obama Campaign Spokesman.
Bitter, SMALL town folks clinging to guns again?
They’re fools.
THIS PATTERN SHOULD FORCE HANNA ON A SLOW SOUTHWESTERLY TRACK BEYOND THREE DAYS…BUT AT THE SAME TIME THE UPPER-LEVEL WINDS SHOULD WEAKEN THE CYCLONE. THE OFFICIAL FORECAST
SHOWS A LITTLE BIT OF THE SOUTHWESTERLY MOTION BUT DOES NOT GO AS FAR SOUTH AS SHOWN BY MOST OF THE MODELS. IN FACT…THE GFS HAS JOINED THE REST OF THE GLOBAL MODELS IN BRINGING THE CYCLONE SOUTHWESTWARD. I PREFER TO WAIT FOR MORE MODEL RUNS BEFORE FORECAST SUCH A RARE BUT NOT UNIQUE TRACK TOWARD THE SOUTHWEST.
At this point she *looks* to stay Cat 1 for the near term…
A HIGH OVER THE OHIO VALLEY IS EXPECTED TO CAUSE
GUSTAV TO GRADUALLY BEND TO THE LEFT. HOWEVER…THERE IS A LARGE UNCERTAINTY IN THE TIMING AND SHARPNESS OF THE BEND. THE UKMET AND GFS HAVE HAD LARGE CHANGES TO THEIR FORECAST FROM THE PREVIOUS RUNS…AND GIVEN THE INCREASING MODEL SPREAD…WE’VE OPTED TO KEEP THE FORECAST SIMILAR TO THE PREVIOUS ONE. HOPEFULLY A G-IV MISSION LATER TODAY WILL HELP RESOLVE SOME OF THESE DIFFERENCES.
AFTER THE STORM MOVES AWAY FROM JAMAICA…SIGNIFICANT INTENSIFICATION IS POSSIBLE. VERTICAL WIND SHEAR IS FORECAST TO BE VERY LIGHT DURING THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS…AND COMBINED WITH THE DEEP WARM CARIBBEAN WATERS…COULD PRODUCE A STRONG HURRICANE VERY QUICKLY. THE OFFICIAL FORECAST WILL SHOW RAPID INTENSIFICATION BEFORE IT REACHES WESTERN CUBA AND COULD BE CONSERVATIVE AS SOME MODELS SHOW CATEGORY FOUR STRENGTH AT THAT TIME.
Arctic ice at second-lowest level ever
WASHINGTON (AP) — New satellite measurements show that crucial sea ice in the Arctic Ocean has plummeted to its second-lowest level on record.
My Dad called a little while ago from his home in northern Alabama. He said that Walmarts all across the state have sold out of rifle ammunition, because
NOTWITHSTANDING…THERE IS VERY LITTLE…IF ANY…SKILL IN
INTENSITY PREDICTIONS AT THESE EXTENDED RANGES. INDEED…IF ONE
LOOKS AT THE LATEST WIND SPEED PROBABILITY PRODUCT INCLUDED IN THIS
PACKAGE…IT CAN BE SEEN THAT THERE IS NEARLY AN EQUAL CHANCE THAT
GUSTAV WILL BE A CATEGORY 1…CATEGORY 2…OR CATEGORY 3 HURRICANE
AT THE END OF THE FORECAST PERIOD.
…ONE SHOULD
NOT READ MUCH INTO SUCH SHIFTS OF THE FORECAST TRACK SINCE THE
TYPICAL ERROR OF A 5-DAY PREDICTION IS OVER 300 MILES.
We have a long couple of days of weather pr0n ahead of us.
Bonus question: How quick a trigger will Mayor Noggin’ have this time around?
(don and I have been having a talk here about Obama/Biden et al and I thought to make life easier I’d post my latest reply here and broaden the discussion.)
I must confess that I haven’t watched any of the convention, and I won’t watch the Rep one either, as I find incessant pep rallies to be about as exciting as dental surgery. That being said, the reviews of Michelle’s speech indicate that she did exactly what she needed to do, i.e. show she’s a nice person who has sweet kids and loves both her husband and her country. I would imagine that for the next few weeks at least she will do her utmost not to be any type of a distraction and will appear mainly to smile and kiss babies so that Obama can focus on his message and his opponent and not have to answer any questions about something she has said.
Hillary is no dummy. As much as the media was trying to whoop up the idea of her fighting tooth and nail at the convention so they would have some fun stories to run there is no way in hell she was going to do so, as her sights are now on 2012. By making a strong speech in support of Obama it’s a win-win for her. If he loses the election, the Dems will say “we should have chose Hillary.” If he wins her help will have been key and so there will be some plum owed to her. If he wins and doesn’t have a terribly successful term than she is the obvious choice for 2012.
As I said before I really don’t see Biden as a positive, and it occurred to me last night that Biden clearly was not his first choice. Obviously, there’s no way he would have chosen Hillary as his running mate. No way. The divisive, brawling horror show that would entail, trying to rein in both Hillary and Bill, would frankly ruin an Obama presidency. No, I think his first choice, the person who would have firmly solidified his ‘Change’ mantra and kept the “new” image projection alive would have been Edwards. While I may disagree with their policies I can’t help but think that an Obama from the North and Edwards from the South would have been unbeatable combination. Unfortunately for the Democrats Edwards was more interested in other types of combinations, and that’s why you’re starting to see some vitriol directed at the Saintly Elizabeth as well now, for allowing the public charade to go on as long as it did since she knew about the canoodling at least since 2006. I can’t help but think the Edwards implosion was a huge blow to the Dems, and forced him to reluctantly turn to a guy in Biden who’s only 6 years younger than the ‘dinosaur’ McCain and fully 25 years older then Obama is and thus blunts part of his appeal.
major dad’s Vienna Snausages ~ absoLUTELY essential and stockpiled during the 2004 hurricane season ~ are expiration dated for Nov. 2009, saving us a whopping 33¢ ea. replacement cost.
Yeah.
Buddy.
Back to the inventorying…
So after spending several hours toodling around in Disenchantment Bay in front of the glacier it was time to say “aw reservoir” and start the trip to Juneau, where we were scheduled to dock at 6 am or so.
So my Bride and I sat on our balcony and enjoyed the lovely mountainous scenery as it went by
(Toto, we ain’t in Jersey anymore)
when we suddenly noticed a pod of killer whales right in front of us
How insanely cool was that? And how insanely crappy is that photo? All we could see were these fins slicing and Ginsuing through the water, I rush and take 5 or 7 photos and I don’t capture squat in any of them.
Now I know how all those crazy old coots at Loch Ness feel: “Really! It was there! Look at the ripples, man…the ripples!”
Anyhoo, it was a formal night on the ship, and I looked positively mahvelous in my tux. After a delicious dinner and perhaps a tad too much wine I hit the sack and conked out, only to be awoken by some rather odd noises outside of the cabin the next morning…
“While air power, precision-guided bombs and missiles often receive all the glamour on the modern battlefield, cannon artillery still plays a critical role in today’s fight by serving as the only 24-hour, all-weather reinforcement for the infantry soldier — a fact proven in recent conflicts.”
Will stars in Denver help or hurt Obama?
Democrats weigh benefit of having ‘sparklies’ too close to candidate
…”I don’t think it’s fair to lump all celebrities together,” Sunshine adds. “Most serious celebrities don’t pretend to be anything more than activists and good citizens. Why should Ben Affleck be penalized just because he’s an actor and a director? He’s smarter, more articulate, better read on foreign policy than 98 percent of us.“
And so’s Obama himself, Joe Biden will gladly tell you heis vis a vis La Streisand, while Madonna just puts on picture shows at her concerts so your average MOH-ron voter can figure it out. (Or Gwynnie, for that matter?)
If you don’t acknowledge the omnipotence and inevitability of audacity, then you’re acting like a mad Japanese soldier and it’s really because you’re just stupid. 98% stupider than Ben Affleck.
Told you so.
…One senior Obama supporter said the Clinton associates negotiating on her behalf act like “Japanese soldiers in the South Pacific still fighting after the war is over.”
…As Gen. David Petraeus returns home, McCain increasingly resembles those mad Japanese soldiers who remained at war on remote Pacific islands years after Hiroshima.
I seriously hope someone changes the analogy of choice.
Or at least spread it out over a couple weeks.
Politics | Mr. Bingley | August 24, 2008 11:57 pm | Comments Off on I’m Sensing a New, Democratic
So we left Sitka in the early afternoon and slowly steamed our way north overnight towards the Hubbard Glacier. The next morning we got a special treat, for the day dawned warm and clear.
There she was, twenty miles ahead of us.
As we crept closer we started seeing high snowy mountains for the first time
Even from this distance the blue glacial ice was eerie
Who’s the joker who put on Celine Dion?
Vacation.
That magical word that conjures up images of endless hours stuck in traffic trying to get to the Shore, fighting with your siblings for precious square inches of backseat real estate, painful sunburns chafing under shirts that somehow aren’t as soft now as they were but a few days ago, standing in long dismal lines in sweltering heat and humidity with thousands of people for a 45 second ride and wondering where the ‘amusement’ part of ‘amusement park’ comes from. Or perhaps it means going on a tour, hoping to see different cities and sights but instead mostly seeing different hotels as you endlessly pack and unpack every night at yet another new lodging…at times ‘vacations’ are more work than, well, work, which somehow seems to defeat the purpose.
With a cruise you get to take the hotel with you. Great in theory, but my fear has always been that once I got out to sea I would decide that it…sucked and then I’d be stuck. I’ve never been tempted by a Caribbean cruise. Oh sure, I’ve known lots of folks who have gone on them and loved them, but I find the Caribbean to be, well, boring (I also find the Caribbean by looking on a map, but that’s a different thing entirely); I’m just not a sun or beach person.
I have been tempted, however, by the idea of perhaps a cruise in the Aegean amongst the Greek Isles, sniffing the vapors at Delphi, or perhaps a river cruise waltzing down the Blue Danube…or a cruise to Alaska. Ah, Alaska! That final frontier, bastion of manly man-ness, where the eagles fly free, the salmon always run and the polar bears are all sopranos. My Bride and I have always wanted to go there and when the chance appeared we booked a week-long cruise out of Seattle on the Celebrity Infinity.
As we’d never been there before, and to make sure we had no danger of missing the ship, we flew out a few days before to do some of that touristy thang, like dinner at the Space Needle. Great views
Crappy food.
Big Blows | Mr. Bingley | 
August 30, 2008 6:26 pm | 
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