Wayne La Pierre, Executive Vice President of the National Rifle Association, continues to report “what they didn’t tell you today.” This article tells a story about a home defense incident that would never have happened if the Chicago-area criminal justice system had done it’s job. As Wayne points out, the mainstream media would probably sweep this latter fact under the carpet.
Solar Tsunami
This may be more evidence that the Sun is entering one of it’s most active solar maximums in modern times. The solar flare from December 6, 2006 was so intense that it caused a virtual tsunami of solar plasma to ripple away from sunspot 930.
The interesting thing about this event is that it occurred far enough ahead of the maximum to allow it to be studied in detail without having to deal with the chaos associated with the maximum. Hang on and enjoy the ride. I have a feeling we’re in for an interesting display of climate and electromagnetic effects from our Sun.
Image courtesy SpaceWeather.com
Abandon All Hope
California residents are abandoning the state in favor of other nearby states according to the Department of Finance. Associated Press and other media outlets will be quick to blame the trend on the cost of housing here, but there are other reasons as well.
California is a state where:
- income taxes are extremely high
- sales taxes are extremely high
- property taxes are extremely high
- gasoline taxes are extremely high
- courts are generally soft on criminals
- immigration laws are not enforced
- a half-million illegals and supporters clogged the streets of Los Angeles
- vehicle emissions controls are unreasonably severe
- congressional districts are gerrymandered to assure Democrats stay in power
- judges make rulings for political reasons rather than upholding laws
- unreasonable environmental laws cripple business and industry
- a jury acquitted OJ Simpson of murder despite compelling evidence he was guilty
- extreme firearms laws exist that violate citizens’ second amendment rights
- cities like San Francisco attract and cater to degenerates
Of course these are just a sample of things wrong with California.
Toys for Tots
We repeated our tactics from last year and purchased about a dozen new toys from our local merchandise liquidation store. We dropped them off at a local business where they had a USMCR Toys for Tots barrel. It gave us the usual endorphins knowing that we were sorta like Santa and Mrs. Claus.
Toys R Us advertised that they would be participating in the drive. However, when we tried dropping the toys off last week, they told us they took cash donations only. Not to fault the toy chain, but that wasn’t clear in their advertisements. We found out that you had to purchase the toys there and they would match them with another one, only if you bought them prior to November 16th.
Shuttle Discovery Launch
It’s always exciting when the shuttle departs the pad and heads out to space. I snapped this from the TV coverage as she heads up on a plume of fire.
Read NASA’ s coverage of STS-116 mission launch and details below the fold.
North Pole MC
We drove through the neighborhood today after running some errands. We passed a lot of homes that had Christmas decorations, but this one stood out.
What should we call him? ZZ Claus? Hell’s Santas? SC Rider? Any other suggestions?
We especially liked the sign in the window behind Santa.
A Christmas Card from the Sun
A new very active sunspot sent a coronal mass ejection Earthward which interacts with our magnetosphere to produce bright auroras.
In Finland, a photographer captured the aurora’s glow over snow-tufted conifers to produce this wonderful picture that looks like it was staged to become the front of a Christmas card. (Click on the image to see a larger version.)
From SpaceWeather.com:
AURORA WATCH: Sky watchers, be alert for auroras. A coronal mass ejection (CME) is expected to brush past Earth tonight, sparking a mild geomagnetic storm. The display will probably favor high latitudes–e.g., Scandinavia, Canada and Alaska–but it could descend as well to northern-tier US states such as Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin. (continued below)
The source of the CME is sunspot 930, which has been exploding regularly since it first appeared on Dec. 5th. The “angry sunspot” is slowly turning to face Earth. As it does, it might send more CMEs our way, and they would hit head-on rather than merely brushing past. By next week, Northern Lights could reach deep into the United States. Stay tuned. (And keep your fingers crossed.)
Picture: Auroras over Finland on Dec. 8th. Credit: Vesa Särkelä
Visit the December 2006 Aurora Gallery for more beautiful pictures.