One more to go.

May 16, 2015

American Pharoah (click here) is on his way to getting his misspelled name in the history books!

Following his victory at the Kentucky Derby, the speedy colt won the 140th Preakness Stakes despite the pouring rain, putting him on track for a shot to earn horse racing's highest honor, the Triple Crown. 

American Pharoah, ridden by jockey Victor Espinoza, edged out a tough field of eight horses in Saturday's race in Baltimore, adding to trainer Bob Baffert's string of victories. If American Pharoah can follow up with a win at the Belmont Stakes after the Preakness, Baffert can add a Triple Crown -- a sweep of the top races -- to his war chest.

American Pharoah was the favorite heading into the race at Pimlico Race Course, but by no means without competition, having to beat out rivals he bested at the Kentucky Derby, Dortmund and Firing Line, who were also picked as horses to watch. American Pharoah also had the unfavorable No. 1 post.
Mr. Z started off the race in front, but the Kentucky Derby winner pulled ahead in the stretch, finishing first with an impressive lead.

It is that time of year. Spring and the three tests of the 3 year old generation of thoroughbreds.

American Pharoah #18, ridden by Victor Espinoza, comes out of turn 4 during the 141st running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 2, 2015 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Image source: Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

Three year old, American Pharaoh, came from the 18th place in the starting gate to win the "Run for the Roses."

The colt didn't have the track record. That occurred in 1973 and belongs to "Secretariat" and his enormous stride, broad chest and long underline which defined the size of his lungs. His finish was incredible. He out classed all the other colts at one minute and 49.40 seconds.

The second place record holder was robbed of his title as his best time lagged 0.57 seconds behind the great Secretariat.  It occurred in 2001 and belongs to "Monarchos"with a time of one minute and 59.97 seconds.

But, does "American Pharoah" have the will, speed and stamina of his Great, great, great grandfather "Northern Dancer?" "Northern Dancer," a Canadian horse, holds the third fastest time of the Kentucky Derby at 2 minutes flat. It occurred in 1964. 

If we are to measure "American Pharoah" against his distant relative he wouldn't even come close at a time of two minutes and 3.02 seconds. That may seem minimal, but, with Secretariat's average performance speed of 37.5 miles per hour it is an enormous distance behind the most spectacular three year old in history.

The Preakness is the second race of the Triple Crown. It takes a special horse to capture it, but, it takes only a horse that out performs his or her peers. Anything is possible. 

WHEN: Saturday, May 16, 2015. Post time: 6:18 p.m. ET

WHERE: Pimlico Race Course, Baltimore.

HOW TO WATCH: (click here)

Preakness prep coverage, NBC Sports Network, 2:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m.

Preakness race coverage, NBC, 4:30 p.m.-6:30 p.m.

Preakness post coverage, NBCSN, 6:30 p.m.-7:00 p.m.

Do you want to know where the intelligence came from so the USA could invade Syria successfully?

The hard core KGB that McCain always complains about. That is why the intelligence worked. Vladimir got on the phone and called his buddy from Syria and said, "Hey, the USA is here; what is the low down that would end the conflict?"

How is the new baby Vlad? You are never seen in photos with ALL your children. It would be nice for the Russia people to know their First Family is for real rather than asking if "I am love and I love."

May 15, 2015
By David M. Herszenhorn

MOSCOW — For Russia, (click here) victory came three days after Victory Day, in the form of Secretary of State John Kerry’s visit this week to the Black Sea resort city of Sochi. It was widely interpreted here as a signal of surrender by the Americans — an olive branch from President Obama, and an acknowledgment that Russia and its leader are simply too important to ignore.

Since the seizure of Crimea more than a year ago, Mr. Obama has worked aggressively to isolate Russia and its renegade president, Vladimir V. Putin, portraying him as a lawless bully atop an economically failing, increasingly irrelevant petrostate.

Mr. Obama led the charge by the West to punish Mr. Putin for his intervention in Ukraine, booting Russia from the Group of 8 economic powers, imposing harsh sanctions on some of Mr. Putin’s closest confidants and delivering financial and military assistance to the new Ukrainian government....

I heard that President Putin had inside intelligence directly form Saddam that was passed to "W" before the Iraq invasion. And who did Powell appear with at the UN? CIA. USA CIA and they couldn't state they had heard from other countries with better intelligence because the CIA was afraid Bush would ignore even more information from his PDB as he did with bin Laden. And we want another Bush? The older brother couldn't get it right and the little brother already can't understand where to stand on issues that would jeopardize crony support. Bush's come with an agenda and the country suffers for it. Want to talk about the global economic collapse, Wall Street and the Former Treasury Secretary Paulson?
 

Maintain the sequester cuts, it is the best thing that ever happened to the USA.

The Iraq War pulled the USA into a death spiral. It can't be repeated again. We have witnessed yet another Bush praising his brother for his decisions regarding the invasion due to 'faulty' intelligence. That is bullshit. There was on the ground intelligence from the UN. Just that simple.

Bring everyone home. The US Navy has a base in Italy for defense of NATO. 

May 14, 2015
By Emmarie Heutteman and Ashley Parker

WASHINGTON — Key Democrats on Thursday (click here) said they opposed Republican efforts to circumvent broad, congressionally mandated cuts in military spending as lawmakers considered the annual Pentagon budget.

As the House began voting on amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act, members debated whether to dedicate about $39 billion to go into a fund insulated from the across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration, which took effect in 2013. That fund, the Overseas Contingency Operations account, is intended to be used for emergency military operations.

Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, the Democratic leader, said Republicans were willing to let nonmilitary spending bear the brunt of the cuts....

The Himalayas has dropped three feet with recent earthquakes.

There was no intelligence about the flying conditions in those mountains? Really?

May 16, 2015
By Binaj Gurubacharya 

KATHMANDU, Nepal — The bodies of all eight people (click here) on board the U.S. Marine helicopter that crashed during a relief mission in earthquake-hit Nepal have been recovered, Nepal’s army said Saturday.

The wreckage of the UH-1 “Huey” was found Friday following days of intense searching in the mountains northeast of the capital, Kathmandu. The first three charred bodies were retrieved the same day by Nepalese and U.S. military teams. The Nepalese army said in a statement Saturday that the remaining five were also recovered.

The aircraft, with six Marines and two Nepali soldiers on board, went missing while delivering aid on Tuesday.

May 13, 2015
by Sarah Zhang

The earthquake in Nepal (click here) was so violent it moved mountains. Satellite imagery shows that the parts of the Himalayas sank three feet—and the area around it as much as five feet—as tectonic plates snapped under extreme pressure. But the mountains will regain their height, slowly but surely, thanks to the geologic forces at work.

The European Space Agency’s Sentinel-1A radar satellite captured before and after images of the area hit by the earthquake. The image below show how the Eurasian plate bent, the land falling in some places (yellow) and rising in others (blue). The area of the Himalaya’s Langtang range sank by three feet. Everest, which was further away from the earthquake, sank about an inch....

The Himalayas dropped 3 feet with recent earthquakes in Nepal.

KATHMANDU, Nepal — The bodies of all eight people on board the U.S. Marine helicopter that crashed during a relief mission in earthquake-hit Nepal have been recovered, Nepal’s army said Saturday.
The wreckage of the UH-1 “Huey” was found Friday following days of intense searching in the mountains northeast of the capital, Kathmandu. The first three charred bodies were retrieved the same day by Nepalese and U.S. military teams. The Nepalese army said in a statement Saturday that the remaining five were also recovered.
The aircraft, with six Marines and two Nepali soldiers on board, went missing while delivering aid on Tuesday.

Ya know, trying to eliminate the charismatic draw of this bozo outfit named Deash is impossible. Absolutely impossible. The USA military just gave Daesh the target they wanted for so long. I hear there are oil employees from BP volunteering now.

This isn't just about US troops. This was a bozo move if I ever saw one.

Mexico went to Russia to launch a satellite? You've got to be joking.

This is what privatization of the US space program has done to the world. Amazing. 

May 16, 2015

The Proton-M carrier rocket broke (click here) down minutes after it was launched from Kazakhstan on Saturday morning, the Roscosmos agency said.
The cause of the accident is being investigated, Roscosmos added.
Russia's space programme has experienced a series of mishaps in recent months, including the loss of an unmanned supply ship.

On Tuesday Russia was forced to delay the return of three astronauts on board the International Space Station (ISS) after the out-of-control cargo ship burnt up as it re-entered the Earth's atmosphere on 28 April....

The USA needs to remove it's troops from the region.

Special Ops seems to do just fine when it comes to killing, but, can't seem to carry out any hostage rescue. It would think it would be the other way around. At least when hostages are reached they can be an ally on the inside rather than resistance to death. Go figure.

I don't think there is a UN resolution that justifies USA troops on the ground. This also doesn't fit into the request by President Obama.

The talking head generals are out in force in the media.

May 16, 2015

American special operations (click here) forces killed a senior Islamic State leader who helped direct the group's oil, gas and financial operations during a raid in eastern Syria, U.S. officials said on Saturday.

The White House said President Barack Obama ordered the overnight raid that killed the man identified as Abu Sayyaf. U.S. officials said his wife, Umm Sayyaf, was captured in the raid and was being held in Iraq.

This was the first known U.S. special forces operation inside Syria apart from a failed secret effort to rescue a number of U.S. and other foreign hostages held by Islamic State in northeastern Syria last year.

White House National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan said in a statement that U.S. personnel based out of Iraq conducted the operation in al-Amr in eastern Syria....

There will be escalation of tensions in the region.

May 16, 2015

By the AP

CAIRO — An Egyptian court sentenced ousted President Mohammed Morsi and over 100 others to death Saturday over a mass prison break during the 2011 uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak and later brought Islamists to power for the first time in Egypt.

As is customary in passing capital punishment, Judge Shaaban el-Shami referred his death sentence on Morsi and others to the nation's top Muslim theologian, or mufti, for his non-binding opinion. El-Shami set June 2 for the next hearing.

Morsi, Egypt's first freely elected leader, was ousted by the military in July 2013 following days of mass street protests by Egyptians demanding that he be removed because of his divisive policies. Morsi's successor, Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, was the military chief at the time and led the ouster. El-Sissi ran for president last year and won the vote in a landslide....

This is more obvious a cause. The actual cause in the USA is yet to be decided.

Sorry to hear this happened in Germany. This happens in the USA, but, usually with freight trains.

May 17, 2015

BERLIN (AP) " A train hit a truck Saturday (click here) on a road crossing in western Germany, killing two people and injuring at least 20 others, police said, adding that three of the injured were in severe condition.

Police spokesman Jochen Laschke said a regional train coming from the city of Osnabrueck and heading to the small town of Ibbenbueren collided with a farm truck with a tank full of manure. Laschke said the accident happened in a rural area near Ibbenbueren, 440 kilometers (275 miles) west of Berlin.

According to the first investigators on the scene, the truck got stuck when trying to drive over the train tracks, he said. The train crashed into the truck and came to a stop 200 meters (650 feet) down the track. He said the truck driver was not injured....

How about some scopolomine!

Scopolamine or “The Devils Breath” as it has become known, is a part hallucinogenic part delirium inducing drug native to the northern area of South America including Ecuador, Venezuela and of course Colombia. Its effects vary from being mildly euphoric (When mixed with opiates) to causing a zombie-like state that renders your power of free will useless....

It is known to give euphoria and with enough in the blood the inmate would have flash backs as it is a truth serum. But, it would kill him while hallucinating so that should be okay.

I would not expect to find too many of these plants in the neighborhood. They are dangerous plants.

Deadly drug: (click here) Scopolamine is made from the Borrachero tree, which blooms with deceptively beautiful white and yellow flowers

They are mostly tropical. If your neighborhood has one it could be removed for the danger it possesses. 

Or maybe some strychnine.

The inmate can care for the tree before he dies and bond with a kinship. The bonding process would provide a warm fuzzy feeling inside. It could be grown in the yard and provide shade on hot days. Then it can be harvested to provide enough poison to kill the inmates on death row.

I tell you what, we could try uranium toxicity. We know it works over time and the family could get to say good-bye.

Although (click here) human experience with uranium spans more than 200 years, the LD50 for acute intake in humans has not been well established. Large acute doses of uranium can produce death from chemical toxicity in rats, guinea pigs, and other small experimental animals, with variation in sensitivity among species. However, there has never been a death attributable to uranium poisoning in humans, and humans seem to be less sensitive to both acute and chronic toxic effects of uranium than other mammalian species studied. Highly relevant data on uranium toxicity in humans are available from the experience of persons administered large doses of uranium for therapy of diabetes and from acute accidental inhalation intakes. Although the data on which to establish oral and inhalation acute LD50 for uranium in humans are sparse, they are adequate to conclude that the LD50 for oral intake of soluble uranium compounds exceeds several grams of uranium and is at least 1.0 g for inhalation intakes. For intakes of uranium compounds of lesser solubility, acute LD50 values are likely to be significantly greater. It is suggested that 5 g be provisionally considered the acute oral LD50 for uranium in humans. For inhalation intakes of soluble compounds of uranium, 1.0 g of uranium is proposed as the provisional acute inhalation LD50.

Even Dick Cheney would approve of this method.

Asphyxiation is mentally cruel. The 'buzz' is not a part of the drug or gas as the case may be. Nitrogen counts on metabolism. That is not legitimate.

May 22, 2014
By Tom McNichol

This new proposed method, (click here) known as nitrogen asphyxiation, seals the condemned in an airtight chamber pumped full of nitrogen gas, causing death by a lack of oxygen. Nitrogen gas has yet to be put to the test as a method of capital punishment—no country currently uses it for state-sanctioned executions. But people do die accidentally of nitrogen asphyxiation, and usually never know what hit them. (It’s even possible that death by nitrogen gas is mildly euphoric. 

Any other MECHANISM of killing someone in the death penalty OCCUPIES the space in which death is guaranteed. Nitrogen is also a matter of metabolism. Death by metabolism is not a legitimate method of a guaranteed death. It might make interesting dialogue, but, it is cruel and unusual.

Next thing you know they'll be providing the last meal with salmonella. 

Let's see. Hm. How about hydrogen? All anyone would have to do is light a match.

Automatic cremation. No fuss, no mess, purely end of life. 

The Bends Overview (click here)

The bends, also known as decompression sickness (DCS) or Caisson disease occurs in scuba divers or high altitude or aerospace events when dissolved gases (mainly nitrogen) come out of solution in bubbles and can affect just about any body area including joints, lung, heart, skin and brain....

So, the genius behind the nitrogen bubble as a means of death for the death sentence decided giving an inmate "The Bends" will kill him, huh? The operative word here is "Comatose." Nitrogen toxicity causes a coma, death comes later. That is NOT a legitimate method of putting a person to death free of cruel and unusual. It is very unusual thinking. That is the only legitimacy this has.

 

There are co-pilots in jets. There needs to be a co-engineer in every train.

That means more funding and a secession of the US Congress continuing to put our government services into bankruptcy, including the US Post Office. Do I trend?

I look forward to the complete report from the NTSB about the train derailment in Philadelphia. I appreciate their update and throughness. I hope the passengers are recovering. It was an absolutely violent derailment and no one expects anyone to be okay after such an experience.


May 14, 2015
By Mark Abrams

 
...National Transportation Safety Board (click here to watch video) member Robert Sumwalt, who is leading the investigation, says in the wake of preliminary information that the train was running in excess of 100 miles an hour going into a curve, more data has been revealed in an on-board camera from the front of the engine. Sumwalt says it captured the final fateful minutes before the engine and its seven cars went tumbling off the tracks.

“Thirty-one seconds before the end of the recording, the train speed was going through 90 miles per hour. Sixteen seconds before the end of the recording, the train speed was going through 100 miles per hour,” said Sumwalt.
Sumwalt said the train increased its speed by 30 miles per hour in 49 seconds. The train peaked at 106 miles per hour and was clocked at 102 miles per hour when it crashed.

Sumwalt wouldn’t say who or what was causing the train to accelerate, even though the speed at that area was only 50 miles per hour.
“We always look at distraction. We always look at potential for fatigue,” Sumwalt said....

The Death Penalty is law in the United States of America.

The venue for ending this type of sentencing and the prolonged appeals and repeating effects on the jury is to address the fact the United States Constitution does not provide for the death penalty.

It is not the jurors responsibility to decide the death penalty is unconstitutional. It is the jurors responsibility to carry out the law as provided to them through the prosecutors and judge.

The Constitution calls upon citizens to carry out judgement within a jury. I am confident every juror that was chosen was asked if they had a moral objection to the death penalty. I am more than confident the prosecutors understand how people can object to the death penalty depending on their religion and or personal values and choices. It was not the duty of the prosecutors to find people who would deliver 'a certain type of verdict' that would be a political decision. It was the prosecutor's responsibility to carry out the law. The difficult aspect of this sentence is that the State of Massachusetts doesn't recognize the death penalty, but, the crime crossed into federal statues and that is where there is recognition of the death penalty. 

Jurors and prosecutors only seek to carry out the law. In doing so they answer to the citizens. This is a representative democracy where representatives elected are suppose to reflect the values of their constituents. That was once true in the USA. On a federal basis the elected Congress, Executive Branch and Judiciary recognize the federal sentencing. 

We heard today the decisions unanimously on how the prosecutors had found all the requirements to carry out a death penalty. The requirements are clear. The jury was charged with the proceedings and the qualifications. In working through the requirements for the death penalty, the jurors found the crimes met with guilty verdicts.

For those that feel strongly about recapturing our Constitution and ending the death penalty there is a political process that has to be rendered to end it. It can be a state process and if there are enough states that eliminate the death penalty, there can be an amendment to the federal constitution. Now, why an amendment if the death penalty is considered unconstitutional. There are states within the United States that will commit to ending the death penalty. An Amendment will end the argument.

Let me introduce an idea if a challenge is to go forward. This is necessary to bring about the correct focus. Proponents to the death penalty state it is a deterrent. I would not expect the Tsarnaev Brothers to know the impacts of our federal laws. Anyone is going to point to the fact this was a terrorist act against the USA and it was. Absolutely. It was an act based upon a belief system the Tsarnaev Brothers wanted to have as the basis of life in the USA. That is treason. Terrorism both domestic and foreign is an act against the country.

Here is the question:

"Did the Tsarnaev Brothers give thought to the fact Massachusetts doesn't have the death penalty before they caused the deaths, maiming, hardship and impact on the peace within the borders of the USA?"

I am not going to answer that question for you. That is from me for everyone that believes the death penalty is a blight upon this country. Now. Plot the course forward to bring about the change needed for some of the heinous practices in the country, including the mentally ill.

Considering this is terrorism and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is connected by birth to a dangerous part of the world, he should have very little contact with anyone, except, his attorneys.

One has to consider where the impetus to this crime began. It began with Dzhokhar's brother while traveling to his home to visit with his family. He came back with a purpose other than living a productive and happy life. 

Dzhokhar carries with him a love for his brother enough to be influenced to carry out a heinous crime. I am confident there are others looking at his trial sentence and calling him a martyr. There are all sorts of heinous thoughts revolving around him. He needs to be a prisoner and not a martyr to issue instructions to the outside world.

It was heinous. 

It was random. 

It was terrorism.

Three people, one being a child, died. That child didn't have a chance to say he loved life and wanted it for as long as he could have it. Martin was innocent, he loved his family and he won't ever have a chance to see his life unfold.

Avian flu USA.

There is a common denominator causing the spread of the contagion. I guarantee you it is the trucks coming and going from the farms that are carrying the virus. It was the large commercial transportation found to be the culprit with the virus and bacteria to bee colonies. 

Each farmer needs to have their own straight truck or have a contract with a local transporter that will respect the need for maintaining decontamination from virus and bacteria.

The microbes can be colonized on the TIRES as well as the cargo compartment. Eggs and poultry are considered non-exempt freight. They are perishable. So, independent transports is going to be involved. The independents have to be oriented to the reality of contamination of this virus. The best place to educate independent truckers is at the brokerages, especially any brokerages that transport poultry. 

The poultry farmers have to become their own best friend by demanding every truck or car that comes and goes from their farms are decontaminated. It is not that difficult. Tanker freight have to scour out their trailers between cargo loads. The truck stops have wash areas with hoses inside concrete block buildings so the trucks simply drive the tanker trailer and cab into the building and throw some quarters or credit cards swipes to start up the hoses. It is not that big a task. 

This is all the equipment farmers need in their own garages. Every time a car or truck is leaving and returning their tires and cargo areas are disinfected.

As is possible have a scheduled wash down of the entire vehicle including inside the cab. Boots and shoes can carry the contagion, too. It will come under control as soon as the folks involved realize the dangerous potential to simple everyday activities.