Sleepless in Midland

Andrews Sisters sing "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B"

TCM ran some war movies this weekend as a Memorial Day tribute. And early Saturday morning they played a couple of early WWII comedies, one of which was Buck Privates which featured a couple of comics new to the movies, Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. However, the highlight of the movie was the scene in which the Andrews Sisters sing "The Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B."

If you haven't seen them in a while, watch it on Youtube here or here.

It's remarkable how cheery everyone was in that 1941 movie.  A little historical feature that seems odd now was the troop of women who were supposed to keep the guys' spirits up by passing out free gum and cigarettes.

The way people remember Dennis Hopper

Dennis Hopper's IMDB page lists 203 productions he was supposed to have participated in between 1954 and 2010. So he had a good run.

Most people will think of his role in "Easy Rider" which was memorable in its own right although not necessarily for the acting.  However, for me there were two of his performances that stand out from all the others.

One was his role as the psychotic Frank Booth in Blue Velvet, the David Lynch horror thriller. The performances were good, the story was compelling, and the action was terrific. It's probably fairly tame by today's standards, but I had nightmares after I saw it.

Hopper's second standout performance was on "Saturday Night Live" shortly after "Blue Velvet" made it's first run in the theaters. It was a spoof of the ancient TV show "This Is Your Life" in which the guests were surprised by people brought in from their childhood and younger years. In the SNL spoof Hopper was the guest who was supposed to be surprised by all his old teachers, relatives and acquaintances. But the joke was on him because his drug wasted mind could not recollect any of them or his younger years. It was a wonderful, funny, parody.  And it was probably pretty close to home for the addled old Hopper.

Lover come back

Joe has a broken heart and hopes his wife will come home. And he says so in this advertisement from today's Midland Reporter-Telegram.

 

Did he do her wrong? Did she do him wrong? There's bound to be a heartbreaking story behind this, but we can only read between the lines.

Updated 5/31/10: Eric (The Fireant Gazette) alerted us to Joe's previous plea in the 5/23/10 Midland Reporter-Telegram. See below.

 

M.A.M., take him back.  Please.  He's breaking our hearts.

Tabnapping -- a sneaky phishing scheme

Here's a scary new phishing tactic that computer whiz Aza Raskin discovered and exposed. It's called Tabnapping, and it changes the look of a web page when you aren't looking. A user opens a tab then goes to another tab. During that time, the page turns into a fake log in screen for some other site. If the user has forgotten what it was originally, he/ she might go ahead and fill in the log in info which in effect turns it over to the phishers. Insidious.

Mr. Raskin explains it in Tabnabbing: A New Type of Phishing Attack, and as a bonus, he has set up that page to serve as an example. Simply open the site in a tab, then go to another tab, wait 5 seconds, then go back to that tab to see a screenshot of the Gmail log in screen.

At the moment user diligence seems to be the only defense according to How to foil Web browser 'tabnapping'. So it pays to pay attention to the URL in the address line.

He's right here!

 

"Where are they now?" That was the question on the msn.com headline yesterday with a five photo display. Well, the one in the center is our very own Steve Forbes of the Midland, Texas, Fire Department. The baby he is holding is Jessica McClure, known then as Baby Jessica, who fell down a well in 1987 and remained there for several days as rescuers struggled and people around the world held their breaths.

Where is he now? He's the Midland Fire Department Training Chief helping provide firefighters the education and training that makes the Midland Fire Department the efficient firefighting force that it is. Thanks for all you do, Steve Forbes.

So in answer to MSN's query, he's right here, and we are glad of it.

921

That was the head count at the end of the three hour Laura Bush book signing event yesterday according to people manning the entry table at the George W. Bush Childhood Home. You can do the math to figure out how much time she was able to spend with each person. But the hour or so wait was probably worth it for the people who were able to spend a few seconds with the classiest first lady ever.

Books sold at the event yesterday went for an even $30.00, tax included, although smart shoppers found them at local stores for $19.95, and Amazon's current price for Spoken From the Heart is $16.19.

Animal Shelter and No-Kill Policy

A lot of animals pass through Animal Services in Midland, Texas, each year, and one experience many of them encounter is euthanasia. Director Paul O'Neill has a plan to try to save many of those animals. Last night he addressed a large group of interested citizens with a plan to establish the Midland Humane Coalition as a non-profit entity which would coordinate the efforts of Animal Services and the various area animal shelters. The goal is to get an animal adoption facility constructed next to the Midland Animal Services building.

It's a very ambitions project, and if implemented as Mr. O'Neill anticipates, the city would contribute the land and construct the building. And the new entity would provide the staff and upkeep with a grant from Maddie's Fund.

Reporters swarmed the place, so rather than rehash Mr. O'Neill's remarks, I'll simply refer you to the links below. But there was one particularly memorable statement he made to emphasize how difficult a "no kill" status is to achieve. He cited San Antonio Animal Control, which is a Maddie's Fund participant, as an example. SAAC's Policies and Directives say, among other things:

ACS will partner with ALL qualified Rescuers. We will support and build our rescue network, both local and national, in order to achieve NO KILL status.

Mr. O'Neill cautioned the audience that SAAC placed so much significance to the no-kill objective that to try to meet their no-kill goal they discontinued picking up stray dogs.  Therefore, they sacrificed one objective for another without much consideration for which was better for the population affected

No-kill is a goal that could never be reached. But as the old saying goes, it's better to shoot for the moon and miss than shoot for a skunk and hit it.

News Links:
Midland Reporter-Telegram report
CBS7 report
KWES9 report
Permian Basin 360

Animal helpers:
Midland SPCA
Lone Star SPCA
Noah's Ark Animal Sanctuary
Animal Outreach.

UFOs? Poltergeists? Nah, just soap bubbles.

Yesterday morning a teacher was entertaining her young students with some soap bubbles.

 

To see a colorful soap bubble drift across the street without knowing the source is an experience. And they certainly were beautiful.

You are sure to recognize the location -- right across the street from the George W. Bush Childhood Home.

California boycotts Arizona? Let's look at the state to state migration trends

The pundits are abuzz about Arizona's new law concerning immigration enforcement. San Diego City Council condemned it. And some Californians are considering a boycott

But Arizona's approach to immigration is not California's biggest problem.

Californians should be tying to figure out how to stem the outflow of their own citizens to Arizona. Glance at the IRS downloadable spreadsheets for California migration data and Arizona migration data to see who's going where. In case it isn't already obvious, California has a net outflow in relation to Arizona.

Here are the 2007 - 2008 numbers from the spreadsheets available at the above links:
In terms of number of tax returns --
From California to Arizona: 21,810;
From Arizona to California: 15,529;
Net difference, in favor of Arizona: 6,281.

In terms of adjusted gross income --
From California to Arizona: $1,052,221,000;
From Arizona to California: $681,018,000;
Net difference, in favor of Arizona: $371,203,000.

Citizens of California, you have our sympathies. And you should be grateful that Arizona welcomes Californians across its borders. Since conditions have gotten so much worse in California lately, or at least they've become more widely known, one has to assume the migration trend will accelerate.

Post Script: Note to Eric Holder, you can read the Arizona immigration enforcement law right here.

Hail roils swimming pool -- Oklahoma City

This is a fascinating video of someone's back yard pool during a hail storm in Oklahoma City a couple of weeks ago. The hail stones are huge, they come down hard, and the pool water roils like a rough sea. Watch it here or here and appreciate a good roof.

Power of the internet --- Russian girls may have been saved from human trafficking

It's difficult to determine if this really happened, but it certainly is a good story. I stumbled on it at metafilter.com, and it starts as a simple request with a long thread of replies.

Here's a reproduction of the original post:

A Russian friend of mine may be in a dangerous situation in Washington, DC.

My friend and former student K arrived in DC yesterday, along with a friend. She came over on some kind of travel exchange program put together by a Russian travel agency called 'Aloha'. They paid about 3K for this program.

The program promised a job offer in advance, but didn't deliver. They said they would send one via email, but failed there, too.

Her contact in the USA barely speaks English, doesn't answer her calls but does answer mine. He has asked her and her friend to meet in NYC tonight around midnight, with promises of hostess work in a lounge. Yes, I know how horrific that sounds- that's why I am working all possible angles here.

She is not going to NYC but I need some help handling and understanding how to handle this- I have a friend helping them with a cheap hotel for the night, but that's all at the moment. I am presently driving to LA and could fly her and her friend to meet me there on Saturday, but couldn't house them indefinitely. I will be monitoring this thread over the next hour.

posted by fake to travel & transportation (242 comments total) 649 users marked this as a favorite

Not sure what to make of the poster's moniker: "fake." But the commenters seem to have detected this as a scheme to get these girls to work in a strip joint to do who-knows-what. And by the end of the thread the commenters are congratulating one another for the good job of saving those girls. It certainly makes for an interesting read.

Toyota and Tesla make a deal

The Tesla Roadster in an electric car that will accelerate from zero to 60 mph in less than 4 seconds, has a top speed of 125 mph, and has a "real world" range of 245 miles per charge. Source: Tesla FAQ. It's a sleek, beautiful automobile. But production is limited, and the price is high.

But it caught the eye of someone at Toyota. And the other day Toyota and Tesla announced an agreement. Forbes gives us the guts of the deal:

In a surprise announcement the companies said they will cooperate on the development and production of electric vehicles and components, and that Toyota will buy a $50 million stake in Tesla when it goes public in the near future. Tesla also said it had purchased Toyota's former NUMMI factory near Silicon Valley.

The match-up looks like a good deal. Imagine the result, an inexpensive, reliable, fast electric car.

All right, all right, Toyota can't get out of here without a joke:

A hot, fast electric Toyota -- drive it once and you'll never stop.

OK, now that we've got that out of our system, a Toyota/Tesla team could have tremendous potential.

SNL's Timecrowave

I'm a sucker for a good time travel yarn. Add a little humor and double the fun.

Saturday Night Live did one recently in the form of a commercial for Timecrowave, the microwave cooker for those who don't want to wait those long minutes for something to cook. Simply put in the meal, then send it back in time to cook so that it's ready to eat now. Sounds simple, doesn't it? Watch it at Hulu while it's still online. (Via Waxy.)

Best be careful, though. One wouldn't want to disrupt the space time continuum. Whoops, too late. The present changed each time they sent the meal back in time to cook. Just like when Cartman used the Crank Prank Time Phone.  It's about time someone invented a time travel machine that won't do that.

Fighting floods -- Know your vehicle

Exactly one week ago was the day when everyone in Midland, Texas, left work early but arrived home late. Yes, that flood. It only takes a few inches of rain in a short amount of time to fill the streets and make them almost impossible to drive.

The city streets serve a dual purpose, and they do it very well. In normal weather they get us where we want to go in minimal time. Oh yeah, there are plenty of complaints, but let's reserve those for later. During precipitation, the streets serve as drainage conduits to disperse rain water -- a job they perform fairly well. But the problems occur when the streets are required to do both jobs at the same time.

Last week there were stalled cars in deep water all over town. Read about one such intersection here.

In anticipation of the next time, we all need to learn a little bit about our vehicles in case we become that kind stranger called on to help get someone's stalled car out of the middle of an intersection.

It was apparent last week that a towing strap with a hook on each end would have been a good investment. That way, anyone with a workable vehicle could serve as a temporary wrecker and help pull cars out of intersections. Amazon.com has them as do typical hardware stores.  But it's important to know where to hook up.

Not too many years ago automobiles had huge chrome bumpers that were anchored solidly to the vehicle frames. But these days bumpers seem to be made from recycled sporks. And there is nothing there to hook onto. However, some manufacturers have anticipated this.

 

Notice the objects in the photos. There's a little plastic square on this bumper that covers a screw hole. Search the vehicle long enough, and a tow hook is likely to turn up. Simply screw the hook into the hole, hook up, and away we go.

Some SUVs and trucks have a more obvious emergency tow point.

However, one has to wonder if someone with the tendency to take the chance to drive through deep water would have planned far enough ahead to have made these preparations. Well sure, risky behavior and preparedness almost always accompany one another, don't they?

Many small non-profits missed IRS deadline

For the longest time small non-profit corporations with the IRS exemption didn't have to file anything if their annual receipts were normally $25,000 or less. But that all changed a few years ago. Now they have to file an annual Form 990-N (e-Postcard). It's a very simple online form, but the new law really wasn't very well publicized, and apparently many small non-profits missed the deadline.

In The IRS Cracks Down on Small Charities Suzanne Garment and Leslie Lenkowsky castigate the government for interfering with small charities and creating a situation in which small non-profits will have to spend resources complying with the law or risk losing their exempt status.

Well, it's really not that much of a burden for anyone who knows how to use a computer, and these days who doesn't? The real problem was that it snuck up on them. (That would be "sneaked" for the large charity people.)

The deadline for filing the 2009 form has passed, but not to worry. IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman issued a statement the other day addressing that exact issue. Here are the guts of it:

The IRS has conducted an unprecedented outreach effort in the tax-exempt sector on the 2006 law’s new filing requirements, but many of these smaller organizations are just now learning of the May 17 deadline. I want to reassure these small organizations that the IRS will do what it can to help them avoid losing their tax-exempt status.

The IRS will be providing additional guidance in the near future on how it will help these organizations maintain their important tax-exempt status — even if they missed the May 17 deadline. The guidance will offer relief to these small organizations and provide them with the opportunity to keep their critical tax-exempt status intact.

So I urge these organizations to go ahead and file—even though the May 17 deadline has passed.

So clearly Commissioner Shulman is aware of the situation and isn't looking at a missed deadline as evidence of tax skulduggery. The IRS is compassionate? Who knew?

Nanny state notice: the worst thing about hot dogs

If you eat hot dogs, what's the worst that can happen?

Most hot dog consumers might be thinking about cholesterol, fat and salt, and the effects those things might have on a healthy heart and the consumer's life expectancy. But no. According to the American Academy of Pediatric it's the potential to choke.

So a redesign may be in order. See A square hot dog? Redesign food that can choke, docs say. Via CATO. Eating is hazardous to your health.

Hopefully, they won't discover grapes any time soon.

In the meantime, if you sell a hot dog that is a footlong, don't call it a "footlong" or else SUBWAY® may be on your case. See Subway Says Other 'Footlong' Sandwich Sellers Violating Its Trademark.

7 year old Aiyana Jones accidentally shot and killed by police in Detroit -- what kind of gun was it?

A seven year old girl was killed by a bullet fired from a Detroit policeman's handgun the other day. There are two conflicting versions of the story. But first, what kind of handgun was it?

Reporters almost never ask that question or report the information. And maybe it's not important to most people, but whether or not the gun had a manual safety is relevant information to anyone interested in gun safety.

Some searching reveals that in April of 2009 Smith & Wesson announced that the Detroit police would be replacing the handguns in use at that time with Smith & Wesson M&P40 Polymer pistols.

The Detroit police armorer probably would have selected the M&P40 with the manual safety over the one without the manual safety. But in either case, an unintentional discharge suggests some sloppy gun handling even without a child on the receiving end.

For the police version of the incident see Assistant Police Chief Godbee's remarks on shooting in which the Assistant Chief says this:

As the lead officer entered the home he encountered a 46-year-old female immediately inside the front room of the house. Exactly what happened next is a matter still under investigation, but it appears the officer and the woman had some level of physical contact.

At about this time the officer’s weapon discharged one round which, tragically, struck seven-year-old Aiyana Stanley Jones in the neck/head area. Officers immediately conveyed Aiyana to St. John’s Hospital while others apprehended the suspect and cleared the rest of the residence.

But there's another side to the story. Lawyer Geoffrey Fieger explains on a video that he viewed a video of the shooting. He says the officer threw in a stun grenade, then within milliseconds, he fired a shot from outside into the house while the special response team was still on the porch.

The child is dead, and a lawsuit is almost a certainty.  But the rest of us can learn from this, and a review of Richard Fairburn's Causes and cures for the negligent discharge from policeone.com might be appropriate:

1. All guns are always loaded. (Even if they are not, treat them as if they are.)

2 Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy. (For those who insist “this particular gun is unloaded,” see Rule 1.)

3. Keep your finger off the trigger till your sights are on the target. (This is the Golden Rule. Its violation is directly responsible for about 60 percent of inadvertent discharges.)

4. Identify your target, and what is behind it. (Never shoot at anything that you have not positively identified.) What I mean by the term negligent discharge (ND) is, a round fired from an officer’s weapon that they didn’t intend to fire. Several factors can enter into the causation of a ND, but they almost invariably involve mishandling on the officer’s part.

Let's all be very careful when handling a firearm.

High school confidential -- how to tell if your classmate is too old for high school -- Satire alert!

West Texans were astonished to read the recent news reports alleging 16 year old Permian High School basketball standout Jerry Joseph was actually a 22 year old impostor named Guerdwich Montimer. See Permian player is impostor and Montimer faces sexual assault charge.

Sleepless in Midland is always on the lookout for ways to help the community, so what follows are some ways to tell whether your high school classmate might be too old for high school.

• You complain about large pimples. He complains about enlarged prostate.

• You worry about when to start shaving. He worries about going bald.

• You order the pizza special. He looks for the early bird special.

• You wear trendy Nikes. He wears U.S. Keds.

• You like basketball. He agrees but prefers shuffle board.

• Your pants are falling down. His belt is almost up to his chest.

• Your mother makes you brush your teeth at night. His teeth soak in a glass at night.

• You talk about the latest Beyonce video. He talks about the Lawrence Welk show.

I hope this helps.

Bark in the Park

Yesterday the Midland, Texas, branch of the Alzheimer's Association held a Bark in the Park event for both humans and canines at Hogan's Run Dog Park. There were some great looking dogs there, and of course, they stole the show.

Here are a few shots.

 

The black Cocker Spaniel holds the distinction of being the first pet placed in a new home by HospiceMidland through its new Pet Peace of Mind project. He's missing one hind leg, but he hops along happily on his remaining three legs. They named him "Cassidy." Get it?

 

Best in show, every one of them.

One drowned

This is tragic. Kathleen Thurber reports that a Mustang was swept from Jackson Street into Scharbauer Draw. And later the body of a 46 year old woman was recovered from the Mustang where Fairgrounds Road crosses the draw. The Google map on the right shows the relative location of the two spots. What a tragedy that was.

There hasn't been a drowning in a Midland, Texas, flood since May 9, 1968 -- see Flood of '68 for excerpts from newspaper reports about that one and a link to the newspaper photos from that day. Also, see Tales from the water's edge – more Midland flood stories. And Newsroom Stew has another accounting from that historic event.

Would a simple self rescue device like the ResQme have helped? There's no way to answer that. A person in peril of drowning still has to have the peace of mind to think up a way to escape a sinking car when the natural state is full blown panic. It's probably best to have a plan in mind ahead of time.

Updated 5/16/10: Audrie Palmer reports that the name of the deceased is Teresa Townsend, 46, of Midland. Such a tragedy. Here's the link to Ms. Palmer's news report. And here's an interesting paragraph from said report:

Officers were then dispatched to the scene Friday evening to assist when Action Wrecker was trying to impound the vehicle; that's when authorities said they found Townsend's body inside the car.

Emphasis mine.  Ever wonder what would it take to stop a wrecker driver from impounding your car?  Me too.

three inches of rain, and it's still falling

Meet Barry Gumaer, local guy, National Guardsman, hero.

 

There are unsung heroes all over town this evening. And he's one of them.

It's Midland, Texas, and man oh man, did we have the rain. First there was rain, then there was hail, then there was more rain. Over three inches fell within a very short time this afternoon. And the streets were flooded.

The city streets serve an alternate purpose as conduits for water runoff in heavy rain, and they served that purpose well today. Unfortunately, people wanted to drive on them at the same time. Intersections all across town were flooded, and stalled cars were everywhere.

Here's one story. It was a typical intersection, the water was deep, and drivers kept driving. At least two cars stalled in the water in a brief period, and along came a local hero, a national guardsman with a jeep and a winch by the name of Barry Gumaer. He helped two stranded drivers at this intersection before he moved on, destined to help others, no doubt.

 

So here's a salute to the local heroes all across town tonight. Thanks, y'all. You make this country great.

And hopefully all stranded drivers eventually made it home tonight.

More subliminal advertising

An author named Wilson Brian Key wrote a few books about subliminal advertising, and one aspect he focused on was its possible use in liquor advertising. The theory was that an alcoholic or a person with a predisposition for alcoholism might have an unconscious reaction to frightening images and be compelled to reach for the bottle.

So, the theory goes, scary images were put in liquor advertising. But they couldn't be obvious, they had to be hidden so that the viewer didn't actually think about them. And some plausible deniability might be handy. Once someone becomes aware of this phenomenon the little scary images seem to pop up everywhere. But that's not exactly right, they don't pop up everywhere. The ice from a typical ice tray doesn't have these creatures in them. They only appear in liquor ads.

Let's look at some examples. A recent Wall Street Journal weekend print issue came with a magazine supplement. And on the back page was an advertisement for Patron Tequila. In the scans below you can see the full ad and portions blown up for a closer look.

   

This first set, above, shows the full ad, a close up of the glass, and a close up and rotated portion of the bottom of the glass. Am I crazy or is there a strange looking humanoid in that third shot?

Zoom in on the glass and see more of those little monsters.

That last one on the right looks sort of like a deep sea diving helmet with a scary face on the front. Why a diving helmet? You got me.  But more importantly, does this stuff work?

Previously: Does Subliminal Advertising Work?.

High tech grenade launcher going to Afghanistan

Taliban insurgents fire down on U.S. soldiers from a few hundred yards away while hiding behind thick mud walls, trees, ridge lines or anything else that would give them cover. And it's difficult to defend against them when Apache air strikes could be an hour away.

Along comes a new weapon that can save the day. It's a counter defilade weapon -- a weapon that defeats the enemies' cover. The new $25,000 Heckler & Koch XM-25 is a smart grenade launcher that fires a 25mm explosive round. And a few are going to Afghanistan this summer.  Via DefenseTech.org. Excerpt:

The XM-25 gunner aims the weapon’s laser rangefinder at the wall or window behind where the enemy is hiding. The distance to the target is displayed on an optical lens with cross hairs that automatically account for air pressure, temperature and the ballistics of the 25mm round.

When the Soldier pulls the trigger, that data is fed into the warhead that then detonates either above or behind the enemy. The 25mm round actually has two warheads that provide more explosive than the current 40mm grenade launcher, [Lt. Col. Christopher] Lehner said. He expects it to force the Taliban to change their tactics.

Yes, it's expensive. About that, there was this:

The Army plans to spend $34 million on further development in 2011 with a production start slated for 2012, according to service budget documents. The service had planned to buy 12,500 XM-25s, but a final decision is awaiting a program review by senior Army officials.

Watch it in action in this CNN report.

Taxaholics

Today in the Washington Times Richard W. Rahn writes about taxaholics:

When people are addicted to something, there are usually two alternative treatments. One is to attempt to educate them about the dangers of whatever they are addicted to, and the other is to remove them from the addictive substance so they cannot get their hands on it. All too many in Washington, particularly Democrats, but also some Republicans, are addicted to taxes. This addiction is particularly common among policymakers and elected officials, not only in the United States, but also worldwide, and is most prevalent in Europe.

Mr. Rahn's focus was on capital gains taxes and efforts to educate the governing class to the fact that if capital gains tax rates are raised, the government gets less revenue and the country gets a higher jobless rate along with lower wages and productivity.

Actually, taxaholism is a secondary addiction. Spending is the gateway drug, and taxes merely enable the addicted spender. But the cure Mr. Rahn prescribes for taxaholism applies equally to spendaholism. Educate the people in our government and lay off those who can't learn.

Better living with chemistry -- K2, the synthetic, legal, marijuana substitute

The Illinois Poison Center Blog explains:

The mountain [K2] is high, this fake weed gets you ‘high’…clever, eh? So what is this stuff anyway?

Basically these products contain synthetic chemicals that are similar to THC (tetrahydrocannibinol) which is the active chemical in marijuana or Cannabis. The most widely used chemical in these products is known as JWH-018, which was discovered by Dr John W Huffman, an organic chemist researching cannabinoid receptors at Clemson University. THC’s medicinal usefulness is not lost on scientists, and research is ongoing, with the hope of finding a similar chemical that will produce the analgesic, anti-nausea effects of marijuana but without the euphoric effects responsible for its legal status and overall stigma. There are 2 cannibinoid receptors in the body: CB1 and CB2.

CB1 is responsible for the ‘high’: euphoria, altered space-time perception, and alteration of visual, auditory and olfactory senses. These synthetic cannabinoids in K2/Spice bind to the CB1 receptor with a 3-4 fold higher affinity than THC, which likely explains its increased side effects such as agitation, anxiety, high blood pressure and increased heart rate.

The products are sold as ‘herbal’ even though the chemical is synthetic and is sprayed on random herbs (likely to keep in step with the marijuana culture). The products are sold in stores and online as incense/potpourri or as a smokable product. Labels may feature psychedelic art and claim to be herbal or a natural high. Concerns with K2/Spice (in addition to the aforementioned increased adverse effects) are that these particular chemicals have never been studied in humans (unlike marijuana, which has) so both short and long term medical effects are unknown.

No thank you. But for other opinions, see these product reviews from some actual users.

Post Script: Walter White should have gotten in on this and saved himself a lot of grief.  Although had he done so, Breaking Bad wouldn't be nearly as entertaining.

Midland County District Clerk's office

Ross Bush won the Republican Primary spot for Midland County District Clerk, and there appears to be no Democrat running, so unless something happens, Mr. Bush will be the next Midland, Texas, District Clerk.

The time for submitting a wish list has probably expired, but what the heck.

Anyone who has gone into the Midland County Courthouse in the past few years has experienced the belt and jewelry strip, the pocket emptying, and the here-comes-another-terrorist look the courthouse guards give to citizens wanting to use the Courthouse. In other words, it's not a very user friendly place.

Now that we are in the information age it's a shame that the District Clerk doesn't utilize the internet more. Pull up the District Clerk's home page and get a few links, but the civil and criminal links are dead ends. But the county does give us a very nice Purpose page:

In providing the Midland County web site as a public service, our mission is:

-To improve public access to County information, programs, and services.
-To provide a mechanism for County government to become more efficient, effective, and responsive to the public through the use of online web portals.
-To expedite County government's internal functions.

We sincerely hope that you find this site useful, informative, and enjoyable.

For contrast, take a look at the Harris County District Clerk's page. Plug in a plaintiff's or defendant's name and most likely, that person's case will pop up. To give it a spin, just put a common name in the blank. Now that's useful, informative and enjoyable.

Mr. Bush has his work cut out for him.

Updated 5/11/10, 3:30pm -- Ask and you shall learn. Civil and criminal cases are already online and available to citizens through the District Clerk's office. But there's a catch.  It costs a $120 annual fee plus a $0.10 per page fee to view or print a document. So the information is there, but it'll cost ya. Anyone wanting to see a case file has a decision to make: suffer humiliation at the hands of the courthouse guards or pay up for online access.

Next question:  Is the county making money on this or is that what it actually costs to provide the information online?

Does a bear defecate in the woods? Can humans do it too?

Interesting complaint to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. More interesting is the response. (You can read it in PDF form here. Via The Faculty Lounge.)

What follows is a quick and dirty transcript:

First the complaint:

Initial Problem
Limestone County
On 03/09/2010 a complaint was received at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Waco Regional Office. The complaint alleged that [named individual] had been leasing out a hunting cabin and allowing the hunters to deficate in the woods. It also alleged that there is no restroom, and Mr. [named individual] is planning to extend plumbing into a creek next to cabin. The cabin is located at ... (Limestone County), Texas ...

Action Taken
... On 03/17/2010 this complaint was referred to Judge Daniel Burkeen, Authorized Agent, Limestone County, for further investigation.

So here's the good part, the Judge's reply:

March 31, 2010

Mr. Tim Blackmon
Water and Waste Section Work Leader
Waco Regional Office
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality

RE: TCEQ Incident No. 136926

Dear Tim,

We have had some delay in our investigation of the incidents alleged in the complaint which you kindly forwarded to us. The problem is, we have recently had a rash of reports of cows, horses, sheep and goats defecating at will in pastures throughout the county. On top of this, we suspect that wild hogs, deer and all sorts of other animals are defecating without even trying to find a proper facility. In addition, I have personal proof on my windshield of a mischievous bird defecating in flight. The culprit flew away, but I did get a description. It was red. The gift it left was white.

In order to complete our investigation, I must ask, we should inquire into urination, or only defecation? I strongly believe that both are taking place, since hunters have long been suspected of taking a good amount of liquid refreshments with them into the woods. Also, we are collecting samples of the activities of these diabolical, defecating reprobates. Should we send these to you, or directly to Austin?

Lastly, please allow us to handle this a the local level, and do not involve the federal government. When it comes to matters of excessive defecation, Washington bureaucrats would only add to our misery.

"Don't Mess in Texas."
Very Truly Yours,
/signature/
Daniel Burkeen

Ha ha! That's telling them, Judge. Hunters shouldn't have to "hold it in" because the nanny state, formerly big brother, might be watching.

On the other hand, the guy's plan to run a sewer line into the nearby creek doesn't sound like a very neighborly thing to do.

The 1st annual MPD Open House

The weather worked against them. With a temperature in the mid 50s, the air was coolish. The crowd was small, but their enthusiasm made up for it.

 

CSI and the SWAT team opened their trucks for inspection. The K-9 corps had a couple of rambunctious Belgium Malinois on display -- look but don't touch. A wagging tail means he's ready to bite.  Let's not confuse the canines with McGruff, the friendly crime dog. His tail doesn't wag, but he'll shake your hand. Heck, he'll give you a high-five.

 

And Sgt. Brian Rackow let delighted kids pilot the EOD robot on a successful mission to pick up a can of Orange Crush. Way to go, young man! Then there was the dunking booth.

Ya gotta love Officer Larry Woodruff, a guy willing to stand up to -- or rather take a dunk for -- a pack of strong armed, ball throwing kids aiming to drop him into a tub of water.

Over and over again he went under, and Officer Woodruff had such good humor about it. Some of the kids couldn't hurl the ball hard enough to trigger the release, so he let them walk right up and physically mash it. Down he went, laughing the whole way. Ya gotta love that guy.

Oh, and let's not forget the hot dogs. The color was a healthy pink with touches of open grill tan. Juicy with a nice mix of meat and fat, when placed on a soft bun adorned with mustard they made a rich and tasty meal.  Bon appétit.

Big weekend ahead May 8 & 9

Lots of fun stuff going on this weekend here in Midland, Texas.

Tomorrow, May 8, 2010, the Midland Police Department will have its first open house at the police station, 601 N. Loraine from 10:00am til 2:00pm. From the notice:

Demonstrations including SWAT, K-9, EOD, and Identification. There will also be a Bike Rodeo and the Fatal Vision Goggles. Jumpers, dunking booth, and tours. Hot dogs and drinks for everyone. Citizens are encouraged to attend.

Mmmm, hot dogs! By the way, "Identification" here might be known as "crime scene investigation" elsewhere. See also.

Something on Saturday for the ladies -- Women in Policing.  Starts at 10:00am and goes on til 3:00pm at Stonegate Fellowship Church, 6000 W. Wadley and will provide women an opportunity to converse with police women about career opportunities.

Then there's the Autism Walk at Midland Horse Shoe Arena -- "rain or shine." Lots of people will be walking that long mile to help raise money for Autism Speaks.  Registration is at 9:00am, and at 10:00am, start walking. (Previously.)

For bicycle riders there's the 6th annual Peace Officer Memorial Ride on Sunday, May 9. It's set to begin at 2:00pm, with cyclists leaving the Midland Police Department at 601 North Loraine and riding 14 miles -- with a police escort!

Walk, ride or watch and listen.  What fun this weekend will be. Local weather forecast calls for a high of 65° Saturday and 76° Sunday. Spring in this part of the country typically lasts about 10 minutes, so let's take advantage of this cool weather while we can.

How'd I get on Hannah Giles' mailing list?

You remember Hannah Giles. She and James O'Keefe pulled a sting on ACORN and amazed us all with video of ACORN employees going along with and offering advice on a fictitious plan for converting a house into a house of ill repute.

So I get this letter in the mail from her saying she's being sued by one of the stung ACORN employees.  You can see the envelope on the right.  (Watermarked painter's tape covers the address.)

Liberty Institute is handling her defense, and here's what their website says:

In the summer of 2009, 20-year-old college student Hannah Giles spent her summer working with James O?Keefe to expose ACORN corruption. Together, they released videos from six cities showing ACORN employees encouraging the duo, posing as a prostitute and pimp, to break laws including tax laws and underage prostitution. Since the release of the videos, ACORN and two of its former employees filed a $5 million lawsuit against Hannah, James, and Andrew Breitbart, who helped popularize the videos through his BigGovernment.com website. After the suit was dismissed, a third ACORN official, this one in Philadelphia, filed suit. This case is just starting in Federal Court in Philadelphia. Liberty Institute represents Hannah to protect the free speech of citizen journalists, and has established www.DefendHannah.com as her legal defense fund.

Looks like a good cause, and citizen journalists need all the support they can get. But still, how'd I get on her mailing list?