Headlines
MAIG Cooridinators Paid as City Employees
Robin Gibbs Dead
Donna Summer - Dead at 63
Vidal Sassoon assumes room temperature
A final grand but sad salute to US space supremacy
Dick Clark - who's got him?
Only in Wisconsin: Drunk 80 Year Old Hits Beer Truck
Anybody have Mike Wallace?
Sweetness and Dark
I think my brain just suffered an aneurysm.
Sugar Should Be Regulated As Toxin, Researchers Say
Tell me this is a nightmare. I SAID TELL ME!!!
Sugar and other sweeteners are, in fact, so toxic to the human body that they should be regulated as strictly as alcohol by governments worldwide, according to a commentary in the current issue of the journal Nature by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). (emphasis mine)
First of all, that whole “regulating alcohol” bit won’t wash, seeing as every government has its own laws about consumption, and they are all different. Maybe I’m misunderstanding it, but my guess is the researchers want the regulations to be as strict as OUR alcohol laws, not Spain’s. They go on to tell us that over 67% of our population is overweight, and half of those are considered obese, and of those that are obese, 80% will suffer from diabetes or other metabolic diseases, and that 75% of U.S. health-care dollars are spent on such diseases.
You knew it was coming down to money, right?
They also note that even though the role of sugar in obesity is not well known, we still need to learn us some prehistorical stuff.
From an evolutionary perceptive, sugar in the form of fruit was available only a few months of the year, at harvest time, the UCSF researchers said. Similarly, honey was guarded by bees and therefore was a treat, not a dietary staple.
Having studied Nutritional Anthropology, I can tell you that makes sense. But what the researchers forget to add is, we evolved right along with our diet. They forget about the Theory of Evolution when it’s convenient.
I did say this was about money, right?
Lustig, a medical doctor in UCSF’s Department of Pediatrics, compares added sugar to tobacco and alcohol (coincidentally made from sugar) in that it is addictive, toxic and has a negative impact on society, thus meeting established public health criteria for regulation. Lustig advocates a consumer tax on any product with added sugar.
Among Lustig’s more radical proposals are to ban the sale of sugary drinks to children under age 17 and to tighten zoning laws for the sale of sugary beverages and snacks around schools and in low-income areas plagued by obesity, analogous to alcoholism and alcohol regulation.
This is a bit too radical, even for San Francisco. And economists agree!
Economists at Iowa State University led by John Beghin suggest taxing the sweetener itself at the manufacturer level, not the end product containing sugar.
Because as we all know, the manufacturer would never, ever pass along that tax to the consumer, right?
First we regulate trans fats, then we regulate salt, and now sugar. Alcohol is made from sugar. I wonder how that will be greeted by distilleries. Now, I’m not saying there are no obese people. But what happened to fats being the culprit? Or carbohydrates?
What about lack of exercise?? When I was in school, we had PE every day. We could go outside after lunch and play in the playground, or as we got older, we walked around greeting people and hanging out. Here in this school district, PE is done 2 or 3 times a week at the elementary level, and you must stay seated at the cafeteria table until the teacher dismisses your class. Intermediate is 3 times a week, and you must also stay at the cafeteria table. Hell, you have to raise your hand to get permission from a teacher to go to the bathroom during lunch. As kids we were very active in school. Things have changed.
But sugar is to blame for obesity now.
I feel the need for some very rich chocolate right now.
Deathtrap 2000, and Twelve
Because the Smart Car™ is waaay too big:
Fold-up car of the future unveiled for Europe
That’s right: a car that folds up. I don’t know about y’all, but “folding” is something I look for in clothing, not a vehicle.
The “Hiriko,” the Basque word for “urban,” is an electric two-seater with no doors whose motor is located in the wheels and which folds up like a child’s collapsible buggy, or stroller, for easy parking.
With the motor in the wheels and only a lightweight plastic cover to shield the sole passenger, I can’t imagine what could possibly go wrong. However, I’m sure that the Europeans in charge of this deathtrap car of the future have that covered.
“European ideas usually are developed in the United States. This time an American idea is being made in Europe,” consortium spokesman Gorka Espiau told AFP.
See that? Who do you think will get sued when the first casualties begin to amass? Not the Basque companies. It is an American design, after all. They see it as a city-owned vehicle to rent out for use in congested areas, and as for the speed, it would be electronically set to the city speed limits.
What cracks me up, aside from knowing the mortality rates probably will be going up across Europe, is the fact that this vehicle is completely electric, and yet most of the cities to which it is destined are having power crises. And who will be paying for the electricity used for the little buggers? Why, just impose another tax hidden among the others, because the rent of the bug cart will be slated as revenue for the city.
I can’t wait to see what happens when this thing gets hit by a Ford truck. Shit… I can’t wait to see what happens when it gets hit by a Smart Car!!!
Buffetting a Need
Funny how the world works. By “the world” I mean politics, and by “works” I mean “screws”. Just last week the U. S. State Department recommended that the Keystone XL pipeline project be denied. Their reason for the denial was that there was not enough time to study the proposal by February 2i, 2012. Nevermind that the State Dept. “has been conducting a transparent, thorough, and rigorous review of TransCanada’s permit application for the proposed Keystone XL Pipeline project” since 2008. The deadline is just too soon!! But as Newton said, for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction:
Warren Buffett’s Burlington Northern Santa Fe LLC is among U.S. and Canadian railroads that stand to benefit from the Obama administration’s decision to reject TransCanada Corp.’s Keystone XL oil pipeline permit.
I find it funny that Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett’s company, just happens to be centralized in Omaha, Nebraska, the very state where the envirowhackos have claimed the pipeline would destroy wetlands and agricultural productivity. As we all know, that’s the government’s job, not the pipeline’s. Oh, and if you think it’s about environmental issues, think again.
The rail option, though costlier, would lessen the environmental impact, such as a loss of wetlands and agricultural productivity, compared to the pipeline, according to the State Department analysis. Greenhouse gas emissions, however, would be worse.
So it’s ok to protect the wetlands from the evul Canuck pipeline, the study of which the State Dept. claims would take too long before the Obama Administration deadline, but not ok to protect it from greenhouse emissions that can suffocate it, right? I guess dealing with a railroad bottleneck effect, more pollution, and higher transportation costs is better than providing much needed job creation and income stability to Americans.
At least Mr. Buffett gets to profit. From the government. With our money.
Question of the Day
Today is the day that certain media websites are “going dark” to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the House and the Protect Intellectual Property Act (PIPA) under consideration in the Senate. Now, I am not familiar with either bill, but I am familiar with the those who are protesting by going dark:
G00gle™
Wikipedia™
Reddit™
My question for them is, will you be this vocal when the Fairness Doctrine and Net Neutrality rear their ugly heads again?
Paris, California
New year, new city! Actually, Texas still has Paris, but Los Angeles is hell bent on being the French capital:
With about 40 arson fires across Los Angeles in the last three days, the wave of intentional blazes that started in Hollywood on Friday is the worst since the 1992 riots.
{snip}
Most of the blazes were started on automobiles, with some spreading to buildings. By Saturday night, the Los Angeles police and fire departments were leading a multiagency campaign across the county.
Unlike the muslim yutes who torched Paris and surrounding cities in 2005, these fires had no catalystic event like the accidental deaths of two juvenile delinquents. According to the city, the arsonist (or copycats) just decided to start setting fires to cars, and then to buildings, though looking at the map provided in the link, they all seem to be pretty close to Hollywood Freeway. But take heart, Los Angeles: these are fires your brave men and women in the LAFD can put out. Governor Jerry “Peace Out!” Brown has decided to burn your state, and there’s pretty much nothing you can do about it:
Californians will no longer be able to carry handguns openly in public, buy alcohol at self-serve checkout stands or purchase shark fins for their soup under hundreds of new laws that take effect Jan. 1.
Other measures bar minors from tanning beds, allow students to be suspended for cyber-bullying and require booster seats for children in cars until they are 8 years old or at least 4 feet, 9 inches tall.
{snip}
[Also included] new funding for a bullet train and a campaign to boost enrollment for food stamps as the economy remains sluggish…. [and] one allowing illegal immigrants to receive private financial aid administered by California’s public colleges. (Another permitting access to taxpayer-provided aid takes effect in 2013.)
So, in a state that considers itself to be a safe haven sanctuary for illegal immigrants, banning open carry while giving out more benefits to said immigrants makes perfect sense. Governor Brown is probably hoping some illegals will take the bullet train after putting a bullet through an unarmed victim’s head. But at least the sharks are safe.
Virtual Criminals
I really don’t know what is more screwed up: that playing a videogame may be grounds to charge one with a crime, or that it’s the International Order of the Red Cross that says so.
The Red Cross is investigating whether 600 million gamers are violating the Hague and Geneva conventions when they kill and blow stuff up for fun.
Now, I understand that this organization is tasked with observing and reporting violations of the Geneva Convention, but how exactly is a 14 year old sitting in his room, playing a game consensually with other like-minded people online violating a “humanitarian law” written for the express purpose of times of war?
Especially when the characters can be reset to life again??
In its daily bulletin, the ICRC&RC stated that “for the first time, Movement partners discussed our role and responsibility to take action against violations of IHL in video games”. Apparently they seem to think a kid who is a sharpshooter on Call of Duty Doing Modern Warfare During World at War with Black Ops while Reaching Halos is going to go outside and grab the nearest AK 47/uzi/P90 and massacre the entire neighborhood.
“While National Societies shared their experiences and opinions, there is clearly no simple answer. There is, however, an overall consensus and motivation to take action.”
You may ask yourselves why this very big, very influential organization is now worried about 600 million people playing war videogames. Well, they videogaming industry is a multi-billion dollar industry which has so far escaped the wrath of the global body to which the ICRC&RC reports Geneva Convention violations: The United Nations. And y’all just know they want a piece of that pie.
But like we in the real world understand, their is a difference between fantasy and reality. And the videogame industry, unlike governments, will not take this bent over while asking for a reach around.
Spanish Fly
So, the sangria-swilling surrender monkeys are scared enough to throw the bum out:
[Mariano] Rajoy, who first challenged for the premiership in 2004, is expected to unseat the Socialists on Sunday amid widespread unhappiness with José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, who has announced he will stand down after the vote.
I guess all that Cambio didn’t work out for España. This is what happens when you freak out and cave in to terrorists. This is what happens when you cave in to socialism via AGW dogma. You end up destroying your economy, and try to fix it by changing the guard back to conservatism. At least until such time as you feel you don’t need it any more.
The election in Spain is likely to mark a third change of prime minister in one of the four embattled southern EU countries – Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain – in the space of a few weeks. But Rajoy would be elected by the people, unlike Lucas Papademos and Mario Monti, the new technocratic prime ministers of Greece and Italy.
That’s right. THREE of the FOUR have changed PMs. The Socialists in Spain are trying to downplay the debacle by blaming it on banshees, minotaurs, and a disgruntled Dyonisus investors looking for a scapegoat. But every pendulum eventually swings back. Unfortunately for these countries, it may be too late.
But we can at least enjoy some Spanish eyecandy.
Another One Under the Bus
Or rather, falling on a sword:
Energy Secretary Steven Chu said Thursday that the buck stopped with him over the half-billion dollar loan made to California solar company Solyndra, using a hearing on Capitol Hill to take responsibility for the failed investment while continuing to defend his actions as not politically motivated.
This imbroglio just keeps getting thicker, and that is only aided by partisan hackery, of course.
[Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO)] complained about the recent Republican decision to issue a subpoena to the White House over Solyndra despite “good-faith efforts” by the White House to comply.
What “good faith efforts”? Ignoring a subpoena is not a “good faith effort” by any definition. That falls under “obstruction” where I come from. But Chu is putting up some sort of fight, just enough to save Department face. However, the fact that he approved a restructuring of Solyndra’s debt that allowed two private investors to move ahead of taxpayers won’t look good for him, especially in light of his insisting that taxpayers still are first in line. He does keep pushing the AGW Koolaid™, though.
“When it comes to the clean energy race, America faces a simple choice: compete or accept defeat. I believe we can and must compete,” he said.
Compete?? COMPETE?? If there were anything to “compete” in, we wouldn’t need subsidies in the “clean energy” field, would we??
Does this man have any idea of the shitstorm coming his way?
The Party’s Over…Almost
We’ve seen it coming, but for the so-called 99%, it’s still a bit of a shock to find that your protest is nothing more than a rave getting out of hand:
Three people arrested Thursday night inside the Occupy Boston camp have been charged with dealing crack cocaine.
{snip}
“Things have changed drastically. It seems to be deteriorating,” the man told Carl [Stevens, of WBZ NewsRadio 1030]. “A lot of drug use, alcohol use, people getting into fights… It’s deteriorating pretty quick.”
This is what you get when you open up a so-called protest to everyone. Even the mayor of Boston, Thomas Menino (D), is upset at what he describes as “infiltration”:
“They have a message that’s not a clear message. The problem we have today is that we have different groups infiltrating the people who have the message. We have anarchists who are part of the group. We have homeless individuals who are part of the group.”
Wait…I thought they were part of the 99%?? Are you telling me that homeless people and anarchists are NOT part of this movement?? REALLY??? Because I was under the impression that everyone NOT in Wall Street or a bank was part of the 99%. Seems to me like Mayor Menino doesn’t share the same impression, though.
“The problems are down in Washington. And nobody’s even addressing those issues of what Washington has done to our economy, to job training, to housing, to education. They’re directing their anger at the wrong location.”
This is the same man who not long ago was completely in support of the Occupods*. But now that the crime rate is escalating, and the filth and disease is spreading, he is turning his back and suggesting the occupiers at Dewey Square GTFO and go protest in Washington, D.C.
Nothing like a fair weather politician, eh??
*Creatively borrowed from Matt 
Reach Arounds Are Extra
Riding the wave of the Occupy Fill-in-the-Blank protesting 1% of something, two lawmakers will introduce bills to tax financial transactions, following a proposal introduced in the European Union.
Because you know, taxation is working so well over there.
Senator Tom Harkin, an Iowa Democrat, and Representative Peter DeFazio, an Oregon Democrat, will introduce the bills tomorrow in their respective chambers. The bills will give the United States an increased role in the international debate over a transaction tax, which is likely to be discussed at the Group of 20 summit this week in Cannes, France.
Yes, the same Cannes where Sarkozy is fighting to keep from unravelling due to Greece’s sudden demands for a popular vote over their financial rescue by the rest of the European Union members. Europe would love this tax bill here, which in turn would add global capital for use in undertermined ways. And by “undetermined”, I mean bailouts. Who controls global capital again?
But don’t worry. It wouldn’t be as high as the EU proposal of .1% of stock and bond trades. It would only be a rate of .03%. And in case you needed more reassurances, Senator Harkin delivers.
“It’s a significant way to raise some needed revenue,” Harkin said in an interview today in Washington. “Quite frankly, I bet nobody would even feel it.”
No one that actually doesn’t pay taxes. It never ceases to amaze me how a tax hike is permanent, but a tax cut is temporary.
Sometimes the best disinfectant is napalm.
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