What is a Dodo worth? I'd rather would hope they would try to clone the bird.

August 25, 2016

By Rowena Lindsay

The dodo bird may be extinct, (click here) but you can still buy one, thanks to one collector who assembled an entire dodo skeleton.

The skeleton, which comes from a private collector who bought the bones throughout the 1970s and '80s, is 95 percent complete and will be sold at the Summers Place Auctions in Britain, The Independent reports. It was about 10 years ago when the collector realized that he had nearly enough bones to complete the skeleton, which was only missing a section of the skull and one claw. Both parts have been reconstructed in anticipation of the sale. 

While individual dodo bones have come up for sale throughout the last century, this is the first time a complete, or nearly complete skeleton has been up for sale since 1914....            

The French are making the dreams of Daesh come true.

There is a lot to be said about the shaming of women that exists in the Muslim faith, but, to allow this display of religious oppression bring about such disharmony that it leads to people being injured is playing into the hands of Daesh. No one wants that.

It was several decades. No. Almost a century since American beauties were modest and would never think of wearing skimpy bathing suits.

I find it interesting the Muslim women actually show their bare feet. That has to be a first. I like the idea they want to go to the beach. They could remain at home and really be oppressed. I think it is a novel idea that moves them closer to celebrating their bodies rather than being oppressed by them. 

But, in all sincerity I have never really breached this issue before. I always think religion has a right to have it's right of passage. But, the Buka is different. It carries with it a great deal of violence. Women live in fear of their lives in some places. It is a matter of having a driver's license or walking hand in hand with your favorite beau. Those issues are real to Muslim women. It has been only recently women are allowed to have a driver's license in Saudi Arabia. 

A young girl is not allowed to walk hand in hand with their favorite beau in public without severe consequences. There are current stories of brothers killing their sisters because they suspected the worst of their virginity. 

The Burka carries with it a sentence of shame and fear. That is what has the French up in arms about this. The Burka departs from civility and imposes death as a reason for compliance. That is not healthy for religion. Death should not enter the quotient for devotion.

My mother always loved God. She married when she was 19 years old and went on to have three daughters. She always prayed her rosary and her devotion to her faith was obvious. But, she was also a fashion bug wearing the latest style to my father's smiles. They had fun as a couple. She could dance far better than my father could lead so it was never a surprise to see her dancing with a variety of men at any wedding celebration. She enjoyed life and was well liked. She loved my father and was always at his side. He could not think of life without her. 

There are a lot of social problems instilled with the meaning that comes with a Burka. Muslim women that lead their society should speak about joy and expressing joy and how that can be translated into expression of God/Allah.

I'd like to say something clever like, "When in Rome do as the Romans would do," but there is a sincere issue with the Burka. It is not just cloth. The women of India have mastered beautiful cloth. It is the entire oppression that accompanies the Burka that is the issue. And when that expression comes into the Western world it causes many social concerns. It is not as simple as acceptance for the French. They are correct, there is something wrong in the expression of oppression. I envy them the discussion. Let it proceed without the injuries. Please.

The social discussion should make France stronger and not more violent.

August 25, 2016

By Maajid Nawaz

...Classical liberals (click here) of any religion or none would do well to remember that this does not have to be a zero-sum game. It is possible to oppose the French ban on burkinis while also challenging the mindset of those who support burkas and burkinis.

As a reforming secular liberal Muslim, I do not endorse the gender-discriminatory body-shaming and moralizing of burkas. I recoil, too, at the silly idea of a burkini. But I also believe that France’s ban on them is ridiculous, illiberal, and incredibly petty. It is also cynical.

As for liberalism going backward, when Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel drove a truck through the crowd in Nice on July 14, he sought to deepen division, and to further the ISIS aim of a global civil war. Strategically, he chose the right location....     

South Korea, Japan and China need to test fire their missiles, too.

August 24, 2016

By Motoko Rich

Tokyo — The missile that North Korea (click here) test-fired from a submarine off its east coast on Wednesday momentarily brought together three nations that have recently had reasons to squabble.

At a previously scheduled meeting in Tokyo, the foreign ministers of the three nations — China, Japan and South Korea — criticized the missile test, which appeared to demonstrate a significant advance in North Korea’s efforts to build a harder-to-detect means to strike American and allied forces. The missile flew 310 miles toward Japan, much farther than previous tests.

Tensions between the three countries have risen in recent months: Chinese vessels have repeatedly entered disputed water surrounding a group of Japanese-controlled islands in the East China Sea, setting off protests from Japan. Tokyo opposed a visit this month by South Korean lawmakers to islands both nations claims. And China has harshly criticized South Korea’s agreement to host an American-built advanced missile defense system that the Chinese believe could be used against their missiles.

But North Korea’s missile launch briefly united the three other nations on Wednesday.

“If there was a silver lining, it would be the fact that it provided the three an opportunity to have something in common, which is rare,” said J. Berkshire Miller, an international affairs fellow with the Council on Foreign Relations.

If the North Korean threat is to be truly defused, experts say, the three East Asian neighbors will need more common ground....

I heard there was one non-travel related case in Florida.

That means the mosquitoes are successful in transmitting it to other people after they are infected by a person carrying the virus. In other words a person with Zika was bitten by a mosquito and then it bit someone else.

There still isn't a pool of mosquitoes carrying the virus. It means there are issues with transmission from patients with travel related infection. Place them in quarantine until they completely recover.

What are the chances those that have recovered from Zika have antibodies?

August 25, 2016

By Kristen Reed

The number of travel-related Zika virus cases is growing in Georgia. (click here)

In one week, that number jumped from 48 cases on August 17 to more than 60 cases on August 25.

Southeast Health District Public Information Officer Mary Beth Kennedy Butler said the number changes everyday but that the department's message is the same.

"We still want people to protect themselves."

Georgia uses statewide reporting to share Zika instances with the public so it is not clear where the cases are located.

There are no reported cases of the virus being transported locally.

In fact, the only state seeing locally-transmitted cases of the virus is Florida. The number of non-travel related cases in that state now stands at 43, with the majority having occurred in Miami-Dade County. Palm Beach County is north of Miami.

Zika causes a mild illness in most people but can lead to severe brain-related birth defects if women are infected during pregnancy....

See, I don't buy the idea that the casinos failed because there was competition.

What happened is poverty. Oh, I know some gamblers are compulsive and they ruin their lives. I am not saying that is what the problem was. Poverty. See competition is suppose to improve capitalism and there is no greater capitalism (the opportunity to be a million-billionaire) than Atlantic City and Las Vegas.

See, the people can't afford it anymore. By all rights Las Vegas has got the name and that alone draws tourists. Most of the folks that go to Las Vegas don't go to see the Hoover Dam. And of all places why Atlantic City? There is a beach and a board walk and romance and fun in the sun and the ocean. There are so many things to do in Atlantic City it just doesn't make sense, but, what does make sense is the poverty that struck the country making it impossible for people to make hotel reservations and fun for the kids and adults.

Do you know what it costs to get into Disney World these days? Who can afford it without going into debt?

The problem with the casinos as many other tourist destination is the fact there are families that cannot afford a vacation yet alone the average room at a casino in the USA. 

$15.00 per hour, Mr. Trump. We need a better minimum wage. I know Hillary Clinton says it needs to be raised to $12.00 per hour, but, that isn't enough. With $15.00 per hour and a 40 hour work week that puts $600.00 per week in the hands of Americans. Those couples that struggle that are the working poor will think they struck it rich. A couple with each partner working 40 hours per week and making $15.00 per hour will automatically put them into the Middle Class at an annual salary of $60,000 annually. Do you know what happens when Americans start to be happy. They start to accumulate wealth and buy a house and at least once a year TAKE THE KIDS ON VACATION!

That is what happened to the casinos. See the casinos can run bus trips for seniors, but, that is a dwindling population. But, they can't charter jets to fly them in, so I already know the idea there are too many casinos is a bit ridiculous.

$15.00 per hour Mr. Trump and you'll have so much business in a few years after the new minimum wage it will seem like there really is a Santa Clause.

August 13, 2015

By Kelsey Butler

NEW YORK (The Deal) -- When the Resorts International Casino (click here) opened its doors on May 27, 1978, politicians and residents alike felt that the gambling den would be just the ticket to turn Atlantic City, N.J., around. A crowd of thousands gathered just off the beach on the city's famed boardwalk with pocketfuls of bills and coins that they couldn't wait to plunk down on tables and drop into machines. It was the first time gambling had been legalized outside of Nevada, and the 1.5 million New Jersey residents who voted in favor of the measure to bring casinos to the dowdy "Queen of Resorts" no doubt believed they had placed a winning bet.

And for many years it was.

State Senate President Stephen Sweeney, a Democrat, recently told The Deal that the city "had a monopoly on gaming for 30 years."

Recently, though, the tide shifted. In the past 18 months, four casinos -- Revel AC, Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, the Atlantic Club Casino Hotel and Showboat Atlantic City -- have closed their doors, costing 8,000 workers their jobs. The fading fortunes of Atlantic City's gaming industry have taken a toll on the municipality's fiscal situation. An emergency manager has been tapped to look into the city's dire finances....

Today was a great day. I am grateful I was on Earth for the 100th Birthday of our National Parks. They are magnificent. They could also use some funding. Every American has been given a gift by the generations that preceded us. They are one of the common demonstrators that links us directly to the values we and our forefathers share.

The National Parks of the USA exhibit our deep appreciation and commitment to the natural world. We are a lucky people and we need to cherish our heritage and the lessons it teaches us.

I did have my radio no today when I took a break. I heard Secretary Clinton address the wrongful language of hate that seems to allow some violence in the country. I thank her for that. I also heard Mr. Turmp's reply. The Clinton Global Initiative also known as The Clinton Foundation has accomplished great works in this world. It accomplished it because there was US Congress to interfere. 

I would encourage all those that have benefited from the great works of The Clinton Foundation to let the American people know how they were fed or given a chance for a goal of their nation to be accomplished. I would encourage all those that were helped and did help through the efforts of the Foundation to come together for a advertisement to run during this election season. 

See, President Clinton is a humble guy with humble beginnings. He doesn't really brag. So ,when it comes to something like the election of Hillary Clinton there is push back by any bragging about his work after leaving office. Knowing that it leave an empty space for others to step into the void to say how terrible the Foundation is and how it is corrupt. 

I know there were no shading dealings. A little bragging from some friends this season would be a good thing.

A little birdie told me Donald Trump is having or had a meeting with casino owners. That is interesting. I imagine if all the casinos in the country were filled to capacity it would help the local economy. Create jobs. The problem is the jobs that trade creates are minimum wage jobs, except, for the positions at the tables in the actual casinos. I am can sympathize with the failure in Atlantic City. I hurts to have a major US city struggle to bring in tourist dollars. 

continued...+

National Park Service celebrates a century of service.

August 25


By the Act of March 1, 1872, (click here) Congress established Yellowstone National Park in the Territories of Montana and Wyoming "as a public park or pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people" and placed it "under exclusive control of the Secretary of the Interior." The founding of Yellowstone National Park began a worldwide national park movement. Today more than 100 nations contain some 1,200 national parks or equivalent preserves.
In the years following the establishment of Yellowstone, the United States authorized additional national parks and monuments, many of them carved from the federal lands of the West. These, also, were administered by the Department of the Interior, while other monuments and natural and historical areas were administered by the War Department and the Forest Service of the Department of Agriculture. No single agency provided unified management of the varied federal parklands....