Friday, August 19, 2005ChuckBaldwin.com Announces Two New PagesYes. We have new content. Two new pages have been added. The Cheese Log is a new page for discussions of a lighter nature than are usually found on this page. It will contain cheese commentary, of course, but that's just where it gets going. I foresee it or another similarly formatted page replacing this page as the Main Page. The software backing up this page is too slow and too old to effectively do what I want, quickly and easily anyway. We'll see though. It may be too difficult to migrate the date from here to another place so this page may be forced into retirement. The second new page is the Bird Log. I have stepped up my fascination with our avian friends and volunteered as a HawkWatcher with the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory. This has unexpectedly bumped up my interest in more common tweety birds, but you can read all about it at the Bird Log. Get to both pages via the links in the sidebar on the right. The new technology will also make it much easier to simply add the links in the text rather than explaining where to find them. Woo-hoo! posted @ 12:25 PM PDT [link] Tuesday, July 19, 2005Forest Service Allows Human Waste to Spray on Sacred SiteThe Forest Service has approved a measure to allow the expansion of the Arizona Snow Bowl on Arizona's tallest mountain, San Francisco Peaks, a site sacred to 13 Native American Tribes. The expansion will include the cutting of thousands of ponderosa pines and aspens to make room for ski slopes. Under the proposal, the expansion will include the installation of snow making equipment that will spray reclaimed sewage water containing unregulated chemicals all over the sacred site. Moreover, the inner basin of the mountain is the watershed for the city of Flagstaff and contains its clean water supply. San Francisco Peaks is a popular destination for hiking, camping and hunting and is the home to black bear, goshawks, deer, elk, prairie dogs, peregrine falcon and the endangered Mexican spotted owl. The Peaks are still the site of numerous traditional religious ceremonies by the Native Americans that hold the site sacred. The natural condition of the mountian is sacred to the Native Americans and any development is offensive, but spraying human waste on the sacred site, treated or not, is downright disgraceful. posted @ 12:50 PM PDT [link] [Karma: 2 (+/-)] Thursday, July 14, 2005Fish kills result of improper procedures and administration bullyingThe National Marine Fisheries Service did not follow its own procedures or have all the necessary information it needed when it decided to divert water to farms and southern California cities thereby endangering threatened fish populations in the northern part of the state, according to an audit by the Commerce Department's Office of the Inspector General. Allegations that the administrators and the Bureau of Reclamations pressured biologists at NMFS to OK the diversion in order to fulfill 200 water contracts caused congressional leaders to demand the investigation that produced the audit. Native fish populations in the Delta and in coastal rivers have seen a dramatic decline since last year, when fisherman and fish activists complained that low water releases caused river temperatures to rise killing huge numbers of salmon before they spawned. posted @ 11:55 AM PDT [link] [Karma: -1 (+/-)] Sharks? -- or last vestige of the govt's checks and balances? You can't make this stuff up. The White House refuses to talk about the one thing the people of America want to know about -- the credibility and integrity of its leaders and its leader's advisers. And if you are not wondering about that, you really should be. On a good note, former WorldCom head honcho Bernard Ebbers received 25 years in prison for his role of overseeing the largest corporate fraud in American history -- to the tune of $11 billion. Finally a white collar sentence with an actual deterrant quality has been handed down. Below is a transcript of a portion of Press Secretary Scott McClellan's press conference of July 13, 2005. [from: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/07/20050713-7.html] snip MR. McCLELLAN: And with that, I'm glad to go to your questions. Q Scott, some White House advisors expressed surprise that the President didn't -- did not give a warm endorsement to Karl Rove when he was asked about him at the Cabinet meeting. They had expected that he would speak up. Can you explain why the President didn't give a -- express confidence? MR. McCLELLAN: Sure. He wasn't asked about his support or confidence for Karl. As I indicated yesterday, every person who works here at the White House, including Karl Rove, has the confidence of the President. This was not a question that came up in the Cabinet Room. Q Well, the President has never been restrained at staying right in the lines of a question, as you know. (Laughter.) He kind of -- he says whatever he wants. And if he had wanted to express confidence in Karl Rove, he could have. Why didn't he? MR. McCLELLAN: He expressed it yesterday through me, and I just expressed it again. Q Well, why doesn't he? MR. McCLELLAN: He was not asked that specific question, Terry. You know that very well. The questions he were asked -- he was asked about were relating to an ongoing investigation. Q But, Scott, he defended Al Gonzales without even being asked -- MR. McCLELLAN: I'll come to you in a second. I'll come to you in a second. Go ahead. Q Yes, he defended Al Gonzales without ever being asked. (Laughter.) Ed brings up a good point. Didn't he? MR. McCLELLAN: No, I think he was asked about the Attorney General. Q Scott, you know what, to make a general observation here, in a previous administration, if a press secretary had given the sort of answers you've just given in referring to the fact that everybody who works here enjoys the confidence of the President, Republicans would have hammered them as having a kind of legalistic and sleazy defense. I mean, the reality is that you're parsing words, and you've been doing it for a few days now. So does the President think Karl Rove did something wrong, or doesn't he? MR. McCLELLAN: No, David, I'm not at all. I told you and the President told you earlier today that we don't want to prejudge the outcome of an ongoing investigation. And I think we've been round and round on this for two days now. Q Even if it wasn't a crime? You know, there are those who believe that even if Karl Rove was trying to debunk bogus information, as Ken Mehlman suggested yesterday -- perhaps speaking on behalf of the White House -- that when you're dealing with a covert operative, that a senior official of the government should be darn well sure that that person is not undercover, is not covert, before speaking about them in any way, shape, or form. Does the President agree with that or not? MR. McCLELLAN: Again, we've been round and round on this for a couple of days now. I don't have anything to add to what I've said the previous two days. Q That's a different question, and it's not round and round -- MR. McCLELLAN: You heard from the President earlier. Q It has nothing to do with the investigation, Scott, and you know it. MR. McCLELLAN: You heard from the President earlier today, and the President said he's not -- Q That's a dodge to my question. It has nothing to do with the investigation. Is it appropriate for a senior official to speak about a covert agent in any way, shape, or form without first finding out whether that person is working as a covert officer. MR. McCLELLAN: Well, first of all, you're wrong. This is all relating to questions about an ongoing investigation, and I've been through this. Q If I wanted to ask you about an ongoing investigation, I would ask you about the statute, and I'm not doing that. MR. McCLELLAN: I think we've exhausted discussion on this the last couple of days. Q You haven't even scratched the surface. Q It hasn't started. MR. McCLELLAN: I look forward to talking about it once the investigation is complete, as the President does, as well. And you heard from the President earlier today. Q Can I ask for clarification on what the President said at Sea Island on June 10th of last year, when he was saying that he would fire anybody from the White House who was involved in the leak of classified information? What were the parameters for those consequences? Was it -- MR. McCLELLAN: I appreciate your question. Q Was it a knowing leak with the intent of doing damage? I'm just wondering when he talked about that, what those parameters were? MR. McCLELLAN: Again, I've nothing to add on this discussion, and if we have any other topics you want to discuss, I'll be glad to do that. Go ahead, David. Q Scott, when the President asked that question at Sea -- was asked that question at Sea Island, and, in fact, when you made your statement that Karl had had nothing to do with this, was there an ongoing investigation at that time? MR. McCLELLAN: Again, we've been through this for two days now, and I've already responded to those questions. Go ahead, April. [Click below for more insight from the White House] posted by @ 09:47 AM PDT [more..] [Karma: -1 (+/-)] Friday, July 8, 2005Merriam-Webster Makes for Bad PolicyRemember the word Bullshit the next time you're swimming in a freshwater lake that you thought the government was protecting from pollution. Funny how the role of government has changed from protecting the people of the country to protecting the corporations of the country, at the expense of the people. Yes, very funny. "Word to the Unwise" "The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are getting creative. They're rewriting the definitions of everyday words -- and letting their imaginations run wild. "Everyone knows what "waste" is. According to Merriam- Webster, it's "damaged, defective, or superfluous material produced by a manufacturing process; an unwanted by-product of a manufacturing process, chemical laboratory, or nuclear reactor." The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the EPA have no use for dictionaries. Historically, both agencies classified toxic mine tailings as "waste" and prohibited mining companies from dumping the stuff in lakes and rivers under the Clean Water Act. With a simple rule change, they redefined the polluted by-product as "fill," for which there are fewer restrictions for dumping. "Thanks to this simple word change, the mining company Coeur Alaska will now be allowed to dump 4.5 million tons of chemically processed tailings into Lower Slate Lake in the Tongass National Forest. It marks the first time since the Clean Water Act became law in 1972 that a mining company will be permitted to discard its toxic waste into a freshwater lake. Other mining companies are already looking to exploit this new loophole and dump their waste into public waterways. "Clearly these agencies have a knack for looking at words through rose colored glasses. If they keep it up, "pollute" will soon mean "to help an elderly woman onto the bus" and "smog" will be "a bubble-gum flavored treat every kid can enjoy." "Read the Reuters article, "Controversial Alaska gold project gets OK" at: http://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,dvjp,o7l,cq4o,a3hw,c7it,3ojx *** Want to do more and help spread the word about the Bush administration's assault on the environment? Here are a few things you can do: 1) read RAW and stay informed 2) forward this edition of RAW to your friends, family, and co-workers or use our online form to encourage them to subscribe to RAW themselves at: http://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,dvjp,o7l,ldxe,kehy,c7it,3ojx 3) write letters to the editor of your local newspapers 4) join the Sierra Club's Take Action Network at: http://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,dvjp,o7l,7bpf,3vup,c7it,3ojx 5) support the Sierra Club's efforts by donating much-needed funds at: http://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,dvjp,o7l,9vnm,86o8,c7it,3ojx " post taken from: http://lists.sierraclub.org/SCRIPTS/WA.EXE?A2=ind0507&L=raw&D=1&T=0&O=D&F=&S=&P=186 posted @ 09:54 AM PDT [link] [Karma: -1 (+/-)] Thursday, July 7, 2005The Age of Bullshit--excerpted from "Mother Jones", July/August 2005, "L'Epoque Bullshit", by Dave Nuttycome, a review of Harry G. Frankfurt's recent book, "On Bullshit". "Frankfurt makes an important distinction between bullshit and lies, which is that while bullshit does not have to be untrue, it is always phony. Bullshit is a process, the byproduct of a person’s uncaring attitude toward the facts at hand. And what makes bullshit the “greater enemy of the truth than lies” is that a liar actually knows and cares about the truth. He needs to know which facts he’s trying to hide. The bullshitter just wants to get over. The person who lies on a resume is in danger of not getting the job. But the person who bullshits effectively in the interview has a pretty good chance of getting hired. (That’s how I got all my jobs. And that’s pretty much how I keep them.) The bullshit artist cares more about what people think about him than the veracity of his own words; he values the appearance of “sincerity” over “correctness.” That we can even use the seemingly honorific term “bullshit artist” without blinking is a dispiriting example of how we’ve come to privilege spin over substance." I'll let you contemplate this on your own after pointing out, in case you hadn't noticed, that damn near everything you've heard from the Bush Administration from day one has been bullshit. Everything you hear on FOXNews is bullshit. Most of what you hear from the mainstream news media is bullshit. posted @ 10:20 AM PDT [link] [Karma: -1 (+/-)] Wednesday, July 6, 2005Mistaken IdentityThe following exchange, as well as the post before this, are illustrations of the types of 'conversations' that occur between me and others who have mistaken my identity. 'Chuck' is a common name in the South. And I reckon 'Baldwin' ain't that uncommon. Fortunately for me I was the first to nab the domain name www.chuckbaldwin.com. You would think someone with a political radio show would think to buy it, but likely in a penny-wise pound-foolish decision, another decided to buy chuckbaldwinlive.com. Nonetheless, I am happy with my name and have no intention of changing it or selling it. So, if you are trying to contact a Chuck Baldwin, make sure you are emailing the right one. I cannot be held responsible for replies I make to unsolicited email. Well, at least I don't think I can -- I haven't checked with my lawyers. As a courtesy to the other side of this conversation I have x'd out his name and website where it appears. #### From: "XXXXXXXXX" To: "'Chuck Baldwin'" Date: 04 Jul 2005, 09:03:02 PM Subject: RE: unsubscribe Yow! You ARE a different Chuck Baldwin! Mind you, I don't think he is a total nut case, but he does get tiresome...and repetitive...and off the wall...and.....well, maybe he IS a total nut case. I glanced through your web site quickly and saw that you are clearly one hell of a lot more intelligent than Chuckwagon Chuck. Click on the following for my latest, which went to my list today: http://www.XXXXXXXXXl.com/columns/XXXXXXX.htm You might find me to be more of a nut case than Chuckwagon, though I doubt it. I don't know how you're gonna do it, but you've got to sue him for divorce, or something...too bad you can't force a name change on someone else. Hey! Since the Supremes now say they can take your home and give it to a developer to turn into a strip club, maybe next up would be the forcible taking of names, going to the highest bidder. -XX -----Original Message----- From: On Behalf Of Chuck Baldwin Sent: Monday, July 04, 2005 8:50 PM To: XXXX@XXXXX.com Subject: Re: unsubscribe I'm a different Chuck Baldwin, one without confederate flags flying on my website. But as the owner of chuckbaldwin.com I get a LOT of nutcases writing to my email address in error. Some I respond to, most I ignore. Sorry to bother you. I was trying to get rid of this "chassieman" who seems to be writing you too, and hit Reply All to be as thorough as possible. I thoroughly enjoyed your response, though I'm not familiar with your writing. But based on your reply I am quite interested to see what you do. Please add c h u ckb lo g @ chuckbaldwin.com to your weekly missives' list. If in fact I find it as repulsive as the Reverend Doctor's I'll unsubscribe in earnest. In the meantime consider it a case of mistaken identity. Chuck Baldwin On Jul 4, 2005, at 3:44 PM, XXXXXXXXXX wrote: > You're not on my list, Chuckie. > > I find it odd that someone like yourself, who sends me about sixteen > copies of every single little thought that seems to cross your fevered > brain, has the effrontery to write all of us and demand that WE remove > YOU from OUR lists. Not only that, but you do it via what can only be > described as genuine SPAM! > > If, indeed, somehow you get my weekly missives directly from me, then > do something more thoughtful than this and provide me the actual email > address that needs to be removed. Trust me, it will happen... > > -xx > > > -----Original Message----- > On Behalf Of Chuck Baldwin > Sent: Monday, July 04, 2005 12:24 PM > To: chassieman > Cc: john francis; jerry martin; gary meade; steele; tom tear; don > linda r.; lady home sch.; jack F; doug browning; kerry edwards; melanie > elsie; jerry c.; cindy bob; brenda ?; mark g.; ralph blowers; mike castle; federal > observer; bill f.; barb ketay j.veon.rad.frnd; ed c.; russ westfall; scott jackie; > Randy Rose P; diane d.; ed kaminski; charlie albert; jim > royle; fredd; alex jones; afp editor; ABC News > > Subject: UNSUBSCRIBE > > Please remove me from your lists. I also got a stark "lol"; a "Sorry, I don't have you on any list..."; and a "Please un scribe me from YOUR lists." Well, all in a day's work defending the name Chuck Baldwin. I had my fortune told to me last night by a mystical typewriter at the Musee Mecanique on the Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco. It said that my "behavior is beyond reproach." As G.W.'s god is telling him to bomb Iraq, mine are telling me to keep on track, too. -cb posted @ 09:21 AM PDT [link] [Karma: 2 (+/-)] Friday, July 1, 2005Iraqi BaitCan you explain to me why Hal Lindsey who claims to be a prophetic scholar is supporting Bush's lies on iraq? I am disappointed. I read this article on WND, by Hal Lindsey,'Iraq not part of war on terror'? Exclusive: Hal Lindsey pounds Pelosi for delusional comments on Iraq war --WND (http://wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=45061) I do believe now that Hal Lindsey is a false prophet as was warned in the bible. He is pandering to the Bush Admin. and lacks discernment. I would like to remind Hal Lindsey that the original text of Bush was to throw Saddam out and bring democracy and freedom to iraq. The rhetoric or lies of Bush is constantly changing and now Iraq had connections to 9/11. I do believe the insurgencies are coming from Bush Admin. to keep our boys and girls busy and linger the war for another 12 years so they can wipe out the early iraqi civilization and keep the oil fields guarded. Elizabeth _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Elizabeth, My belief is that anyone who claims to be a prophet likely isn't. Real prophets have that title thrust on them after they are dead. Since the Bush Administration's bizarre popularity with born-agains, I've seen people coming out of the woodwork claiming to be Christians and Fundamentalists--it's en vogue. If you want to believe someone is for real, seek out an agnostic or a liberal for an argument. This Hal Linden looks especially hypocritical . He just plain looks swarmy. (see photo)Lindsey (3k image)  Lindsey But let's get to his commentary: #### Evidently, Rep. Pelosi thinks that is a bad thing for America. Where would she prefer to locate the "terrorist magnet"? New York? Washington? Los Angeles? I thought that was the strategy – fight them in the Middle East instead of fighting them in the Midwest? Maybe I am missing something about the nuances of politics. #### This is not why we went to war in Iraq. Never have I heard an Administration official say that we are in Iraq to attract the terrorists there so they are not fighting us here. That is using the innocent citizens of Iraq as bait. Where is the Christianity in that I ask? If it is our fight, why bring other innocents into it? That is just plain evil. Yes they were living under a horrible dictator. We went to war solely, we were told by Bush, to disarm Saddam Hussein. Well, Hussein had no weapons yet we are still there evidently to lure the terrorists there so they can blow up our brothers and sisters and sons and daughters, American and Iraqi. #### What has she been smoking? #### And this is exactly what the 'prophet' Hal Lindsey is defending. Al-Qaeda has been shown to not have had many operatives in Iraq before 9/11. In fact the Al-Qaeda leadership had been at in complete disagreement with Saddam Hussein. How could they support him after all? He was a hedonist surrounded by whores and booze and tortured people for fun. We may not have very much in common with fundamentalist Muslims, but we know that sort of behavior is strictly in conflict with the Koran. I do not believe anything coming from the current Administration's government, from Defense, to the FDA, to the EPA. They are spewing nothing but lies with their facts manipulated to support the Administration's agenda. The whole Terry Schiavo issue is a prime example of how corrupt our governing process has become in such a short time. And now with two journalists being threatened jail time if they do not give up their sources, our last avenue of checks and balances is coming to an end, with the great Time, Inc. corporation dropping the blade of the guillotine. Too upset to go on, Chuck Baldwin _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Mr. Baldwin, After much thought, I do believe that Pelosi was saying that inspite of having a new government body in iraq, the country after the invasion has become - a magent for terrorism. If Hal Lindsey is saying that the war was not against iraq but the 9-11 terrorists in iraq, I would like to remind Hal Lindsey that Bush then should have attacked Saudi Arabia, since most of the terrorists of 9-11 were from S.Arabia and not from iraq. Even a four year would conclude that the insurgents are placed by America to fight a war with our troops since iraqis are under training, right? I realize there was a resistance from the Sunnis earlier on, after all they feared that U.S. was going to steal their oil (and they did according to the Brit official, Galloway) and invade. Justified. I do agree with Nancy Pelosi's argument. She was also reacting to Rumsfeld's analysis of the war to continue for another 12 years. Remember, iraqi government is a puppet one - totally controlled by Bush & Co. Elizabeth _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Elizabeth, While I certainly agree that we are fighting the wrong war and on the wrong front, I do not think that the insurgents are planted by the US to extend the war indefinitely. Our simple act of being there and fighting a jihad with the Muslims is creating the insurgents and future generations of terrorists. There is no need to artificially create them, despite our country's previous history of training bin Laden and his cohorts. This is the number one reason I have been against the invasion from before it started -- us attacking them creates the very hostility we are allegedly trying to put down. Bush, Rumseld and Cheney have accelerated and fueled a very vicious cycle of violence. Unless we plan to stay in a constant state of war indefinitely, which might very well be their plan, we have exposed ouselves to the sort of ongoing terrorist attacks that have plagued Europe and the much of the rest of the world for years. We had long escaped such activity until 9/11. And rather than negotiating with and pacifying our attackers, we attacked out of revenge and stoked the flames of discontent for millenia. And as far as the "magnet for terrorism" goes, we are fooling ourselve to think we are rounding them all up in Iraq and "hunting them down". The plans for 9/11 went on for years before the event occurred. The people we should fear are hiding and waiting and gathering their strength. We won't feel their bite for a long time, but when we do it will likely be mighty. What we are doing in Iraq has almost no effect on the war against terrorism. Iraq is insignificant, except in its slaughter of man and waste of billions of dollars that could be spent helping mankind. Chuck Baldwin _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Mr. Baldwin, Thanks for the email. Anything is possible with Bush since he has lied several times. My mother had always warned the family, that never to argue with liars, and that we would be defeated. You are entitled to your opinion, but I believe that Bush & Company planted those insurgents. May God reveal this to you and the others. Remember, there are good guys and bad guys in every country. If Bin Laden was the prime suspect initially, where is he now? Under the protection of Saudi royals? Elizabeth posted @ 09:50 AM PDT [link] [Karma: 1 (+/-)] Monday, May 30, 2005A lesson in foot pain (text and images stolen from http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu/uvahealth/adult_arthritis/gout.cfm) What is gout? Gout is characterized by inflamed, painful joints due to the formation of crystal deposits at the joints. Also known as "the disease of kings and the king of diseases," gout affects more men than women and is often associated with obesity, hypertension (high blood pressure), hyperlipidemia (high levels of lipids in the blood), and diabetes. What causes gout? Gout is caused by monosodium urate crystal deposits in the joints, due to an excess of uric acid in the body. The excess of uric acid may be caused by an increase in production by the body, under-elimination of the uric acid by the kidneys, or increased intake of certain foods that metabolize into uric acid in the body. Foods that are high in purines (the component of the food that metabolizes into uric acid) include certain meats, seafood, dried beans, and dried peas. Alcoholic beverages may also increase levels of uric acid in the body. Gout attacks may be triggered by any/all of the following: * consumption of large quantities of alcohol * consumption of large quantities of protein-rich foods * fatigue * emotional stress * minor surgery * illness What are the symptoms of gout? Gout is characterized by sudden, recurrent attacks that often occur without warning. Severe, chronic gout may lead to deformity. The following are the most common symptoms of gout. However each individual may experience symptoms differently. Symptoms may include: * severe, sudden pain in one or more joints (most often the joint in the big toe) * swollen joint(s) * red or purplish, tight, shiny skin over joint * warmth in joint area * fever * chills * general feeling of illness * rapid heartbeat * hard lumps of urate crystal deposits under the skin (called tophi)  (text and images stolen from http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu/internet/library/historical/artifacts/caricatures/en7-excess.cfm) Gout in Art In this 1799 hand-colored etching, James Gillray juxtaposes a popular eighteenth-century drinking song with a social commentary on the alcohol abuse of the upper class. The song is entitled, “Landlord Fill the Flowing Bowl” (also known as “Three Jolly Coachmen"). The full song can be found at http://www.firstulster.org/page/songs. One verse of the song is as follows: Punch cures the gout, the colic and the physic, Punch cures the gout, the colic and phylitic, And is to all men, And is to all men, the very best of physic. In the etching, three individuals find the medicinal cure to their ailments in the punchbowl. The bowl is filled with punch, a mixture of at least five or more ingredients of liquor and fruit juices made popular in the eighteenth century. Only the wealthy could have afforded an exquisite Chinese porcelain vessel like the one on the table. The three “jolly” characters suffer from the maladies in the song. The obese gentleman on the right is afflicted with a severe case of the gout in his extremities. Gout was believed to attack men who overindulged in heavy wines and rich foods. The man has wrapped his legs, feet, and hand in soft flannel as a means to induce perspiration, thought to be a safe and efficacious method to discharge gouty matter. William Buchan, Domestic Medicine, New York & London: Garland Publishing, Inc., 1985, pp. 484-493. The fashionable woman suffers from colic, a disease that causes pain in the bowels and costiveness. The last character is diagnosed with 'tisick, or consumption, which today is known as tuberculosis, a disease of the lungs that causes the wasting away or atrophy of the body. William Buchan, author of Domestic Medicine, wrote in 1785, “consumptions prevail more in England than in any other part of the world.” William Buchan, Domestic Medicine, New York & London: Garland Publishing, Inc., 1985, p. 218. To prevent further flair-ups of the diseases satirized in Gillray's caricature, Buchan recommended abstaining from strong liquor. These three characters in this caricature chose to ignore prevailing medical opinion and instead turned to alcohol to find relief from their symptoms. How is gout diagnosed?In addition to a complete medical history and a physical examination, a diagnosis of gout may be confirmed with the examination of a fluid sample from the joint for the presence of urate crystals. Treatment for gout: Specific treatment for gout will be determined by your physician based on: * your age, overall health, and medical history * extent of the condition * your tolerance for specific medications, procedures, and therapies * expectation for the course of the condition * your opinion or preference Treatment may include: * nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications (to relieve pain and inflammation) * colchicine, an oral or intravenous medication (to relieve pain and inflammation; may cause diarrhea and other side effects) * corticosteroids (to reduce inflammation) * increasing fluid intake while avoiding alcoholic beverages * reducing the intake of protein-rich foods * reducing weight (if obesity is a factor) * medication (to lower the uric acid level in the blood) * medication (to block production of uric acid in the body) * surgery (to remove extremely large tophi) posted @ 01:19 PM PDT [link] [Karma: -5 (+/-)] Sunday, May 15, 2005Official ApologyIn the spirit of fostering a good and meaningful partnership with all my artistic collaborators, I hereby apologize for my unthoughtful and inconsiderate remarks of May 14, titled 'New Release from Pussyfoot'. In that post I say, 'I prefer the "demo" myself but it's a little bare' and refer to the fine studio work of my brother-in-law, Matt Price, as a 'somewhat enhanced' version of the song. Clearly the song is more than somewhat enhanced, it is now a full-blown 'tune' on its way to FM radio play, hopefully even satellite. Carefully chosen words are the hallmark of a fine writer, and I am not. I should have said something along the lines of, 'The original demo version still holds a warms spot near my heart, as it was the first recording I made of the song and I still cherish it.' I think that is much closer to what I meant to say, rather than the harsh either-or way I put it previously. To me it is not either-or. They are both wonderful in their own ways. As Yngwie Malmsteen and Robert Johnson both have merit, so do both versions of Pulled Pork BBQ Sandwich. My apologies once again go out to all my artistic collaborators and in particular, Matt Price, the best brother-in-law a guy could ever have. I hope everyone will find the time to listen to both versions over and over again until their minds have completely blown. posted @ 12:48 PM PDT [link] [Karma: -3 (+/-)] Wednesday, May 4, 2005New release from PussyfootThere are two new public releases of Pussyfoot songs. "Pulled Pork BBQ Sandwich" is a guttural tune somewhat enhanced by my brother-in-laws more professional sounding recording of the song. I prefer the "demo" myself but it's a little bare. Listen for yourself and shoot me a line about them if you want. http://chuckbaldwin.com/pussyfoot/ http://chuckbaldwin.com/pussyfoot/PulledPorkBBQSandwich.mp3 http://chuckbaldwin.com/pussyfoot/PulledPorkBBQSandwich_demo.mp3 Enjoy! or don't. posted @ 11:13 PM PDT [link] [Karma: -3 (+/-)] Friday, April 15, 2005America: &#!* Yeah!Watch this. http://www.chuckbaldwin.com/america_yeah.mov Here is the original real-life, too good to be true video: http://americawestandasone.com/video.html I did not create the remix and I do not know who did. But I though everyone should see, especially those who had the misfortune to watch the original. posted @ 04:43 PM PDT [link] [Karma: -2 (+/-)] Monday, April 11, 2005Bush to dismantle AmtrakThe Bush budget for 2006 proposes ending federal support of Amtrak, the only US national passenger rail service. In fiscal 2005, the federal subsidy to Amtrak was $1.2 billion, which is what Bush spends in six days in Iraq. $1.2 billion to support Amtrak is far less than 1% of the 2006 Defense Department budget. Eliminating federal support will force Amtrak into bankruptcy and will cause it to shut operations. Amtrak provides intercity and cross-country service to more than 500 US destinations in 46 states on a 22,000-mile route system. 24 million passengers rode Amtrak this past year, an all-time high and ridership has soared on all routes, from the northeast corridor, to the west, midwest and more. Amtrak President David Gunn called Bush's proposal "irresponsible and a surprising disappointment." Why would George Bush propose to shut down Amtrak? A recent op-ed in Newsday claimed that the Bush administration has sold out the railroads to the “oil interests, airlines interests and the automotives interests.” The Bush mantra is that Amtrak must become self-sufficient financially, just like the airlines and highways. Reality is that airlines and highways are supported by many billions annually of taxpayers’ dollars. Another reality is no mass transportation system in the world survives without government subsidies. And why should it? Government is not business. Government supports its citizens with their own funds. The White House itself predicts that without subsidies, “Amtrak would quickly enter bankruptcy, which would lead to elimination of inefficient operations….” Translation of Bush lingo….inefficient means not profitable enough. Friends, the purpose of government is not to make a profit. It is to serve the people, not take and profit from the people. “Bush’s message on this is atrocious. It doesn’t make any sense at all. It’s a fraud.” Said Dr. Vukan Vuchik, Professor of Transportation at University of Pennsylvania. Why should Amtrak be saved? - Cost-efficient - Subsidies for Amtrak since it began in 1971 are less than “loans” given to US airlines since 9/11. - Energy-efficient – Amtrak uses just 54% of the energy per passenger mile that airlines consume. - Loss of Amtrak would immobilize millions – Many smaller communities are poorly served, or not served at all, by other forms of public transportation. Many people…elderly, disabled, those with medical conditions…cannot fly, and need trains as a travel option. - Amtrak is good for the environment – Trains create less pollution because they use less energy. Also, one rail line can carry the equivalent of 16 highway lanes, thus additionally reducing both gas usage and air pollutants. Amtrak has about 25,000 employees, and many thousands of car builders and supply workers depend on their employers’ contracts with Amtrak. If the President has his way, all these workers will soon be unemployed. What’s next? President Bush wants to push Amtrak into bankruptcy, and end its rail services. He proposes to set aside $360 million for a new train system to someday run only in the country’s northeast corridor. Bush wants to “privatize” the rest of Amtrak by selling its assets, and let multiple corporations make profits as they see fit. The leading House Democrat on transportation, Minnesota Rep. Jim Oberstar, predicts a “test of wills.” “This is serious” he said. “They really intend to eliminate Amtrak.” Said Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ),” They’re about to run Amtrak off a cliff…. We’re gonna fight it, and we’ll see who blinks first.” -- from Deborah White, without permission, http://usliberals.about.com/od/environmentalconcerns/a/AmtrakBudget.htm posted @ 03:43 PM PDT [link] [Karma: -2 (+/-)] Saturday, April 9, 2005Must've been faking itAs my wife runs off to get more medicine and biscuits I realize that I must have been faking it, or at least overreacting, with all previous recent sick days. A sore throat and cough is nothing compared to what I've got now. What that is I'm not sure, probably the flu. Yesterday my entire body ached, my headed was stuffy and cloudy, if I started to cough I suppressed it immediately lest I burst a blood vessel in my brain. And I had a fever of 100 degrees. I honestly cannot remember the last time I had a fever. I even skipped going to a baseball game I had tickets to, a Friday night game at Giants Stadium in the first week of the season--hot dogs, garlic fries and beer. I must be sick. I eventually took Naproxen for the fever last night before going to bed. It seems to have broken the fever as my temp is at 97 now. I must be preparing for hibernation. So today I will start taking cough expectorants along with suppressants, so that the cough will be at a minimum but when it does come will be productive. Yesterday while resting on the couch I watched a 3-hour documentary on Winston Churchill--an interesting fellow whose gut reaction to the fascism of Nazism while on an early trip to Germany turned out to be 100% correct. posted @ 11:56 AM PDT [link] [Karma: -2 (+/-)] Wednesday, April 6, 2005Gov. Warner vetoes Bill that would threaten Virginia's coasts (& more)Richmond, Virginia - Virginia's Governor Mark Warner today vetoed a controversial bill that would have been a step toward lifting the federal moratorium for oil and gas drilling off the Virginia coast. The controversial bill, SB 1054, slid through the state's General Assembly in the flurry of activity as the session ended and there was very little opportunity for public comment. Now that Governor Warner has vetoed the legislation, the General Assembly will vote to sustain or override his veto during the reconvened session beginning April 6. [more below] #### Electricity During the drought of the late 1970s, when less hydroelectric power was available, over two-thirds of California's electricity was generated from oil and natural gas. During the decade of the 1990s, California has one of the world's most diverse resource mixes for electricity generation. In 2003, about 26.6 percent of the state's 276,969 gigawatt-hours of electricity production was produced by renewable sources (including large hydroelectric). In 2003, California imported about 22.3 percent of its electricity supply from the Desert Southwest and the Pacific Northwest. [from: http://www.energy.ca.gov/html/calif_energy_facts.html ] http://www.energy.ca.gov/html/energysources.html http://www.sierraclub.org/globalwarming/cleanenergy/factsheet/ posted by @ 08:41 PM PDT [more..] [Karma: -4 (+/-)] Monday, March 28, 2005Industrial poisoning of our drinking and sporting watersGULF OF MEXICO: POISONING SPORTSMAN'S PARADISE Mercury enters the Gulf of Mexico from many sources-from coal-burning power plants, chlor-alkali plants, and other combustion sources, as well as river discharges, particularly from the Mississippi River.1 Large amounts of rainfall combined with high emissions in the Gulf States have created a "hot spot" for mercury that runs from the Mississippi River in Louisiana to the southern tip of Florida. According to the Mercury Deposition Network, in Mobile, Alabama, the level of "airborne mercury deposits was two to five times greater than the quantity recorded over much of eastern North America" in 2003. Mercury levels ran from 18 micrograms per square meter west of New Orleans to 26.8 micrograms near Bay Minette and 28.8 micrograms by Fort Lauderdale. These levels are clearly higher than the 4.9 to 11.2 micrograms typically seen on the Atlantic Coast, Northeast, and upper Midwest.2 Failure to limit these human-induced sources of mercury to the environment has resulted in Gulf-wide fish advisories. For instance, larger king mackerel throughout the Gulf are so contaminated that advisories, which frequently apply only to women and children, instead apply to everyone. Because people who live in the Gulf states rely so heavily on fish in their diet, they are at an increased risk for mercury contamination. In a study of 65 people, the Mobile Register found that Gulf Coast inhabitants who eat fish regularly might have mercury contamination in their bodies five to 10 times higher than levels considered safe by the EPA.3 FLORIDA: IMPACT TO VACATIONLAND All of Florida's waters, lakes, and rivers are under fish consumption advisories for some species because of mercury contamination. Florida's largest emitter of mercury pollution is the Crystal River power plant, helping the state to rank 18th in the nation for mercury pollution.1 The Bush administration's failure to clean up mercury pollution in Florida's waters recently prompted the Sierra Club to file a lawsuit challenging the EPA's illegal approval of a list of impaired Florida waters. This list, submitted by Florida's Jeb Bush administration, omitted 97 mercury-contaminated waters from the state's mandatory clean-up list of polluted waters. Instead, several of these waters were put on an unauthorized "planning list," which means that the state has no immediate schedule to clean up these waters even though they are impaired by mercury. 1 2002 Toxic Release Inventory posted @ 11:56 AM PDT [link] [Karma: 0 (+/-)] Family Guy back by popular demand The Family Guy is the first show to be brought back to prime time by the same network that cancelled it. This is great news for folks who think Homer Simpson is a bit too intellectual. I remember seeing an espisode on FOX not long ago wherein they blurred the naked animated butt of one of the characters, fearing a half million dollar fine from the FCC. An ANIMATED butt! And I know it was blurred out becasue I own all the episodes on DVD and there ain't no blurring there. This show definitely has some wild antics that will keep the conservatives watching so they can complain. The FCC will probably hire a team just to monitor it. At least we'll be entertained before the moral majority shuts it down again. Long live Stewie! May the Earth cower in his presence! posted @ 11:06 AM PDT [link] [Karma: 1 (+/-)] Tom Delay helped murder his own father Fro the LA Times: http://tinyurl.com/4ly6n ""There was no point to even really talking about it," Maxine DeLay, the congressman's 81-year-old widowed mother, recalled in an interview last week. "There was no way [Charles] wanted to live like that. Tom knew — we all knew — his father wouldn't have wanted to live that way." Doctors advised that he would "basically be a vegetable," said the congressman's aunt, JoAnne DeLay. When his father's kidneys failed, the DeLay family decided against connecting him to a dialysis machine. "Extraordinary measures to prolong life were not initiated," said his medical report, citing "agreement with the family's wishes." His bedside chart carried the instruction: "Do not resuscitate."" Hypocrite. posted @ 01:26 AM PDT [link] [Karma: -1 (+/-)] Sunday, March 27, 2005Happy EasterAs a union worker I got Good Friday off, but I'm the only person I know in the Bay Area that got the day off other than the woman next door who works for Catholic Charities. We just watched "Goodbye, Lenin", an interesting though too long look at the changes in East Germany after the wall came down. Recommended if you are interested in other cultures, or the effects of the West on the East. Not recommended if you can't read subtitles or hate contrived situations. Terri Schiavo's parents have finally given up their fight to drag out her death. I think I'll watch Hidalgo next if Erin's up for it. Right now they are comparing croccodiles and hippos on Wild Kingdom. Remember that show? It used to be the only way to see all the cool animals in the world. Now it's just one of many shows on the Animal Planet network. The hippo won as most powerful animal in the African river. Blogging is fun. posted @ 04:59 PM PDT [link] [Karma: 1 (+/-)] Saturday, March 26, 2005Conservatives keep sending me mailOne of the most interesting and disturbing aspescts of being a Chuck Baldwin and owning www.chuckbaldwin.com is getting mail most likely intended for Dr. Reverend Chuck Baldwin, the conservative radio talk show host in Pensacola, Florida. His Bush-bashing conservative talk show is allegedly one of the biggest growing radio shows in the South East. His website has a confederate flag waving next to the US flag with a link underneath espousing "The Truth Behind the Confederate Flag." If you are unlucky enough to click the link you are taken to an essay by Pastor John Weaver, wherein he blathers bible quote after bible quote for 1413 words--or 3 pages in Word--before he ever mentions the Confederate flag. Hardly any of it makes sense at all. All of it is irrelavent anyway as regardless of what this man says or believes, the Confederate flag is now the biggest symbol of racism and bigotry in America. Period. No number of bible quotes or psalms will change that. I have been emailing a member of the Constitution Party of Tennessee, a man named Michael Goza, from time to time when he mis-sends another email to me along with a host of conservative media folk. We have actually agreed that we are on the same page for a lot of issues, namely the corruption of our country's leaders, the corporate-profit motive our government's actions, and our disappointment with the American people for blindly following Bush with hardly a question--in the name of American Patriotism. He is as disgusted with the state of America as I am, though we do not agree on any fundamental issues. Kind of spooky. He is a prime example of the religious right that allegedly supported Bush in the election and he is equally disgusted. To his credit he did not support Bush, but rather the Constitution Party's Michael Peroutka for Pres. and Chuck Baldwin for VP. Amazingly, they were the first choice listed on the ballot in California. I kept my absentee ballot because I voted in person--I'm kind of a dork that way, if it says Baldwin or Chuck Baldwin, I'm keeping it. Someday I may get my own name on the ballot, but I'm not old enough, yet. Of course by the time I am, the native born requirement and the 2-term limit will have been replealed and we'll be in the years of Chancellor Schwarzenegger, Supreme Leader of the West. Anyone remember the Fire in the Reichstag? Or should I remind you with the falling of the Twin Towers? Oh well, I guess it doesn't really matter... posted @ 12:07 PM PDT [link] [Karma: -1 (+/-)] Friday, March 25, 2005We be jammin'Pussyfoot rocked last night. I picked up GarageBand 2 on the home from work yesterday, because I couldn't stand not having two inputs into GB and I couldn't find ANYone to copy it from. So I broke down and spent the $85. Well worth it though. Ari and I rocked the night away and when we listened to the playback it sounded as good as we thought it would. The best part of GB2 is that now I can plug Ari's bass in and set the sound to his likeing and plug my guitar into the other channel and set the sound to my liking. AND THEY DON'T HAVE TO BE THE SAME SOUND! A year and a thousand dollars later and I can finally do with GarageBand what I thought all along I'd be able to do. With a few guitar and bass jams in the can, we went back to them one by one and laid down some words--to your mother. It is evident that we need a lyicist. Somebody has got to come up with something for us to say. We apparently can't. posted @ 09:01 PM PDT [link] [Karma: -1 (+/-)] Thursday, July 8, 2004Pussyfoot band practiceAs I sit here at work contemplating my next attack strategy, I think back to the wonderfullness that was the the inaugural Pussyfoot band practice. We were smokin'. I still do not have my guitar. I'm having to improvise with a Yamaha classical acoustic axe. Nice beefy lows with little to no mids and highs. The rest of the band is going to be blown away by the huge sound of a red-rocker hollowbody screaming through the tube-amped power of a Vox amp. Will we live up to expectations? Is that even possible? We're taking it slow. None of us wants to be the next Britney Spears. We want to live a little before fame drives us over the top. More drinkin' tonight at the Edinburgh Castle. An email from the Out of the Bedroom open mike night organizer this morning makes me harken back to my old Scotland days -- out til 3 partying with the local singer/songwriter crowd. Downing Caledonia 80's like they were 70's. Good stuff. Heady times. Will we ever see those people again. Would Erin's hair look better had the fire alarm *not* gone off? It makes you wonder... posted @ 09:57 AM PDT [link] [Karma: -1 (+/-)] Wednesday, July 7, 2004Excitement generatedI mentioned I set up the blog to Erin and Ari and both were immediately excited -- that combined with my 3-way cell call to both gave me the technology award of the day. As they both have their sites hosted with HostSave, as well, they will soon have there's up and running. tangentgirl.com and ariterkel.com. Tonight our first band practice as Pussyfoot (first album, Puppyfoot?) occurs. Oh yeah! posted @ 06:59 PM PDT [link] [Karma: -2 (+/-)] First Blog This may or may not find its way to the permanent site. I was encouraged by the fine looking blog-site of Mike Fox (http://www.mfox.us/), who is traveling about MesoAmerica doing good everywhere he goes. posted @ 10:32 AM PDT [link] [Karma: -3 (+/-)] |
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