View from summit of Annapurna (26,545 ft.), world’s 10th highest mountain. Colliding tectonic plates thrust up this rugged landscape; moisture carried from the ocean by seasonal monsoons draped it with snow and ice. These climbers lucked into clear weather and a fabulous view, but two of them [...]
Archive for November 17th, 2021
November 17th, 2021 - 10:09 pm § in Misc.
In Praise of Maurice Griffiths
It’s too bad Maurice Griffiths is dead, if you love wood boats. Griffiths (1902-1997; bio here) knew wood boats, better than almost anyone. For decades, he edited the U.K.’s leading yachting magazine, but we don’t care about that. We care about the sailboat designs he left behind, the books he[...]
November 17th, 2021 - 9:22 pm § in Misc.
PHOTOGRAPHY: Central Himalayas from space
Somebody found this NASA photo taken from the International Space Station (roughly 225 miles above earth) of the Annapurna-Dhaulagiri region, and identified the peaks and marked their elevations in meters. This area is in central Nepal, about halfway between the Karakoram’s cluster of high pea[...]
November 17th, 2021 - 7:48 pm § in Politics
Idaho GOPers punish one of their own for vile conduct
It takes work for a Republican legislator to get censured by a legislature where their own party holds 80% of the seats, but Priscilla Giddings (photo, left) pulled it off. How? By doxing a rape victim, in this case a legislative intern allegedly raped by a fellow Republican legislator, and then mes[...]
City of Spokane banned from county health board
This spring, the Washington Legislature changed how local governments structure public health boards. “Gov. Jay Inslee praised the bill as he signed it, saying it would ‘take politics out of public health,’” the Spokane newspaper said (here). Little did he know. The Spokane Count[...]
November 17th, 2021 - 6:33 pm § in Law and Courts, Misc.
Drunk driver hits police car
This blog opposes drinking and driving. Driving drunk and hitting a police car is an even worse idea. In Spokane, Washington, a pickup driver made a “California stop” at an intersection, i.e., he slowed at a stop sign, but didn’t come to a complete stop, as drivers are required to [...]
House sanctions GOP Rep. Gosar for “kill” video
The House voted Wednesday to censure Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ), and strip him of his committee assignments, as punishment for a doctored video that depicted him killing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY). The vote was 223-207-1, with only 2 Republicans voting in favor, and 1 abstaining. He’s th[...]
November 17th, 2021 - 2:30 pm § in Environment
Western Washington floods: Bad for people, good for fish
Battered by super-wet “atmospheric rivers” coming in from the Pacific Ocean, western Washington is once again dealing with overflowing rivers, flooded streets and homes, and people needing rescue. More or less happens every winter, although it’s unusually severe this time, because [...]
November 17th, 2021 - 1:15 pm § in Misc.
Boy with a gun who shot at 4 people insists, “I did nothing wrong”
“I did nothing wrong” Someone sure as hell did. Responsible adults don’t let children play cops-and-robbers with real guns. This child wasn’t trained for policing a riot, no one was supervising him, and he lacked the maturity, wisdom, and experience to make life-and-death jud[...]