Blog Heap of Links for the day 14 March 2015

Links in this view: 23
1

Wars and Rumors

ChiCom Flag

How do we know the war is coming in the first place? Because the advertising for it is out.

6:56pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Threats

Okla Flag

…Authorities said students at Edmond [Okla] North High School began alerting school administration two weeks ago that the 16-year-old boy seemed suicidal. In the days that followed, the school closed because of a snow storm, but the students said they continued to get alarming texts from their friend. … When police searched the boy's home, they found blueprints for explosives and bomb components. Investigators said the boy had no specific day planned to carry out the attack. He was taken to a mental-health facility.

7:10pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Sex can be... disturbing

Eight major studies of identical twins in Australia, the U.S., and Scandinavia during the last two decades all arrive at the same conclusion: gays were not born that way. “At best genetics is a minor factor….”

10:15am CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Political Theater

Last night, DNC Chair Debbie McFrizz asked Twitter users to tell her what liberal policies have made them the most “proud.” … Naturally, conservatives trolled her hard. Because that’s what happens when you ask stupid, unanswerable questions, Debbie.

7:56pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Humans can be Dangerous

Crocodile

Five drug raids in New Jersey have led to the seizure of the normal assortment of marijuana, ecstasy and guns and the removal of one not-so normal thing: a (small) crocodile. [This is poor reporting. We need to know how "small" before this is news.

7:49pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Nature can be Deadly

Massive cyclone rips across Vanuatu, killing 'at least 40 people and leaving thousands homeless' as it causes CATASTROPHIC destruction on the island nation… expected to bring destructive winds of 250km/h, torrential rain and phenomenal seas to Vanuatu… [Daily Mail - many more links to cyclone news at War News Updates]

7:38pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Under Tyranny

Holder

Birmingham has been chosen as one of six cities nationwide to serve as a pilot site for a national initiative on restoring relationships between law enforcement and citizens.

Attorney General Eric Holder made the announcement today. The $4.7 million National Initiative for Building Community Trust and Justice was announced in April and is a partnership between federal officials and criminal justice experts focused on providing training, policy and research to address distrust between citizens and law enforcement.

The other pilot cities are: Ft. Worth, Gary, Indiana, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh and Stockton. The initiative comes after several high profile fatal police-involved shootings.

[Thus, we see why the tyrants in office have been fanning flames of racial discord.]

8:07pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW
2

Marriage Today

Sarah

Former Marine Corps Sgt. Dakota Meyer, whose heroism in Afghanistan earned him a Medal of Honor for his "daring initiative and bold fighting spirit," is engaged to be married to the daughter of a former vice presidential nominee.

His fiancee is Bristol Palin. She is a reality television personality and the daughter of former Alaska governor Sarah Palin, the 2008 Republican nominee for vice president. …

7:27pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Spacecraft

Sun

NASA launched four identical spacecraft Thursday on a billion-dollar mission to study the explosive give-and-take of the Earth and sun's magnetic fields.

…quartet of observatories is being placed into an oblong orbit stretching tens of thousands of miles into the magnetosphere - nearly halfway to the moon at one point. They will fly in pyramid formation, between 6 miles and 250 miles apart, to provide 3-D views of magnetic reconnection on the smallest of scales.

Magnetic reconnection is what happens when magnetic fields like those around Earth and the sun come together, break apart, then come together again, releasing vast energy. This repeated process drives the aurora, as well as solar storms that can disrupt communications and power on Earth. …

10:04am CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Order and Disorder

[bluebird of bitterness posts a second collection of Pi graphics for 3-14-15]

9:37pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW
9:32pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

[bob manages to adroitly merge Albert Einstein's birthday with the regular caturday post]

8:38pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

[Bluebird of Bitterness celebrates 3/14/15 with a sweet collection of graphics]

8:33pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

What’s irrational and never ends? Pi! Hank explains how we need pi to explain some of the most basic but most important principles of the universe, in honor of Pi Day. [Video 4:53]

6:46pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Policing Ourselves

Texas State Representative Jason Villalba (R-Texas) has found himself at the center of controversy after filing a bill that would make it a crime for bloggers and independent journalists — as well as regular citizens — to film police officers. Despite the backlash from free speech advocates, Villalba is insisting that his bill “does not infringe on constitutional rights” or “limit liberty in any way.” …

[Right. Not in any way. Says Jason Villabra, RINO-Texas. This Dallas fellow does not seem to be a real Texas Republican.]

8:22pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Pop Culture

Mickey Mouse Ears

Something magical is afoot! Cinderella (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and Belle (Whitney Avalon) throw down in the fourth Princess Rap Battle. [Video 2:58]

7:53pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW
3

Israel Stands Alone

Israel Flag

Jerusalem, a mosaic of different peoples, faiths, and nationalities. Nevertheless, despite this diversity, under the sovereignty of Israel, Jerusalem is a city that works. But has it always been this way? [(Spoiler: No.) Quite a whirlwind historical tour. Video 5:15]

6:52pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Defending Ourselves

…"He started banging on the door really hard, messing with the doorknob, saying, 'Let me in, baby, please. We're OK.'" Allie explained. "I glanced through the peephole and I had no idea who he was at all. So I grabbed my phone, called 911. I ran to the back room to get my gun."

"I heard a loud crash, and by the time I came back to the end of the hallway, he was just a few feet from me. And I had no idea who he was, he kept coming at me. So I shot him twice."

One shot went through the man's hand into his abdomen and the other hit him in the groin.

"The only thought that I had was to make sure he didn't get up again. I kept my gun trained on him. And I was on the phone with dispatch the whole time…."

9:35pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Opposing Tyranny

Mordor Eye

…[Missouri] Republican Representative Tim Remole has introduced an Anti-Smart Meter bill titled HB 1175. This short (as all bills should be) 3 page bill, if passed into law, would (among other things) prevent utilities from sharing any information collected via the Smart Grid with any 3rd party (without your consent). It would limit the amount of time the utility can keep your information before it must be destroyed. It demands that any information collected through the Smart Grid that is to be used against an individual in a criminal case must be attained through a judge issued warrant. AND (here comes the good part) HB 1175 creates an Opt-Out option for those of us who do not wish to have a Smart Meter on our home by forcing the utility company to replace the Smart Meter with an analog meter at no additional charge. The utility also can not charge you a higher electric rate for opting out. …

8:18pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Effective Communication

"Interesting phone call this morning by the IRS saying they had a warrant for me unless I paid 2000 dollars, total scam of course. Did a little research, next time I'll give give this technique a try . . . S.L."

[Video 3:23, lep094 on YouTube]

9:50am CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Breitbart is Here

Reagan

[Amusing collection of cartoons and posters. Posted for yesterday, but they're still fresh.]

9:45am CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

Vic's list of the latest outrages begins here.

"On this day in 1900 William McKinley signed into law the Gold Standard Act of 1900. The price of gold was set at $20.67 per troy ounce. The US under FDR went off the gold standard in 1933 when FDR signed an EO to outlaw ownership of gold by citizens. This order was obviously illegal but he was a saint by Democrat standards and still is. At the time the price of gold was STILL $20.67. IOW no inflation. …"

7:55am CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW

US Election 2016

Val Jar

“My contacts and friends in newspapers and TV tell me that they’ve been contacted by the White House and offered all kinds of negative stories about us,” one of Bill’s friends quotes him as saying. “The Obamas are behind the e-mail story, and they’re spreading rumors that I’ve been with women, that Hillary promoted people at the State Department who’d done favors for our foundation, that John Kerry had to clean up diplomatic messes Hillary left behind.”

Then, according to this source, Bill added: “The Obamas are out to get us any way they can.”

9:54pm CDT Sat 2015 Mar 14 :MW