Friday, July 12, 2013
He Is Come To Scarborough
Thursday, July 11, 2013
Lake Athabasca "Oil Slick" Caused By Algae Bloom
FORT CHIPEWYAN, Alta. – Lab tests say a mysterious oily sheen that has covered a long stretch of the Athabasca River in northeastern Alberta is most likely from algae.
Consultants hired by the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation say the algae bloom is probably the result of high water from record-breaking rainfall combined with unusually warm temperatures.
The scientists say dead fish floating on the river probably died as a result of oxygen starvation from the out-of-control algae growth.
Consultants hired by the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation say the algae bloom is probably the result of high water from record-breaking rainfall combined with unusually warm temperatures.
The scientists say dead fish floating on the river probably died as a result of oxygen starvation from the out-of-control algae growth.
Emails Undeleted
Hard to figure out exactly what's going on here, at least for me. Information and Privacy Commissioner Ann Cavoukian's statement suggests that Ministry of Government Services staff found the long-gone emails, put does not get more specific than that. If I were to guess, I'd guess that the original computer advice she was given indeed turned out to be BS, and that while the docs were gone from peoples' hard drives, government IT guys were able to find them on their servers, which shouldn't surprise anyone and, therefore, shouldn't have surprised an information commissioner.
Not sure what this means about the culpability of the government aides who have been under the gun. If you know stuff will be backed up on a server, than you might feel more free with the delete button when cleaning out your inbox. What is clear though is that Cavoukian's earlier statement was seriously in error, and the anger evident in last evening's statement from her is an attempt to direct attention away from that error. As Norm Spector noted:
Not sure what this means about the culpability of the government aides who have been under the gun. If you know stuff will be backed up on a server, than you might feel more free with the delete button when cleaning out your inbox. What is clear though is that Cavoukian's earlier statement was seriously in error, and the anger evident in last evening's statement from her is an attempt to direct attention away from that error. As Norm Spector noted:
Hate to say this, but shouldn’t Cavoukian have verified this *before* filing her report? http://t.co/iIk3LjWOEJ #onpoli
— Norman Spector (@nspector4) July 10, 2013
Yet Another Disaster You Probably Haven't Heard Of
The Eastmain fire is the largest wildfire in Canada since 1959, and is almost as big as all the wildfires that have burned in the US so far this year. Forecasts for the area show warm temperatures continuing for at least another 5 days, so the fire is likely to continue to spread.
The source of this, incidentally, are emails from a number of Canadian fire experts. The MSM stuff I've seen on it is from a week ago.
The source of this, incidentally, are emails from a number of Canadian fire experts. The MSM stuff I've seen on it is from a week ago.
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
On Environment Ministers And Petcoke
From Impolitical:
CTV was reporting that Peter Kent may be moving on and therefore would be out as Environment Minister. Not sure there's much a new Canadian minister might do to sway the Obama administration but Keystone has got to be figuring into Harper's thinking. Is Rempel, currently the Parliamentary Secretary to Kent, the one?
Whoever it is, they're also going to have to deal with this burgeoning - and very warranted - focus onpetcoke. This oil sands byproduct gained greater visibility recently given the Koch brothers' piling of it on the Detroit waterfront to the discomfort of Windsorites looking on from across the river.
We, for the most part, won't burn it for fuel due to its high emissions levels and the "Environmental Protection Agency will no longer allow any new licenses permitting the burning of petroleum coke in the United States." So it is largely being shipped overseas to China and Mexico, nations that don't care much about emissions levels. Shouldn't we Canadians be concerned about that? Particularly if Keystone were to be approved, with the amounts of petcoke that will be produced.
Worth noting that one place using Petcoke close to home is Nova Scotia because, basically, its cheap. In fact that's where part of that big pile is going. Nevertheless:
Renewables produced 18.3% of [NS's] electricity in 2012, the highest total ever. Approved wind farms to be built and the proposed Maritime Link project would help us reach 40% renewables by 2020 and continue to reduce our use of coal and pet coke.
...which 18.2 per cent figure is considerably larger than, I think, Ontario.
PS. Maritime Link is this. When finished, it will connect the NS power grid to NFLD and surplus power from the Lower Churchill Hydroelectric Generation Project.
CTV was reporting that Peter Kent may be moving on and therefore would be out as Environment Minister. Not sure there's much a new Canadian minister might do to sway the Obama administration but Keystone has got to be figuring into Harper's thinking. Is Rempel, currently the Parliamentary Secretary to Kent, the one?
Whoever it is, they're also going to have to deal with this burgeoning - and very warranted - focus onpetcoke. This oil sands byproduct gained greater visibility recently given the Koch brothers' piling of it on the Detroit waterfront to the discomfort of Windsorites looking on from across the river.
We, for the most part, won't burn it for fuel due to its high emissions levels and the "Environmental Protection Agency will no longer allow any new licenses permitting the burning of petroleum coke in the United States." So it is largely being shipped overseas to China and Mexico, nations that don't care much about emissions levels. Shouldn't we Canadians be concerned about that? Particularly if Keystone were to be approved, with the amounts of petcoke that will be produced.
Worth noting that one place using Petcoke close to home is Nova Scotia because, basically, its cheap. In fact that's where part of that big pile is going. Nevertheless:
Renewables produced 18.3% of [NS's] electricity in 2012, the highest total ever. Approved wind farms to be built and the proposed Maritime Link project would help us reach 40% renewables by 2020 and continue to reduce our use of coal and pet coke.
...which 18.2 per cent figure is considerably larger than, I think, Ontario.
PS. Maritime Link is this. When finished, it will connect the NS power grid to NFLD and surplus power from the Lower Churchill Hydroelectric Generation Project.
Tuesday, July 09, 2013
T.O. Storm Journal
-Mayor Rob Ford
The following has been written up from notes I scribbled on the back of my hand with a magic marker as I fled the deluge. Hopefully they will be of use in reconstructing the events of what will surely come to be regarded as a late afternoon of infamy.
4:30 PM: The downpour has already begun when my bus arrives. The bus is full of wet people from outer Scarborough. It smells of exotic foods; samosas, and coffee that isn't from Tim Horton's. The atmosphere grows tense as we plod slowly east through deepening puddles. A baby cries.
5:35 PM: I exit into a full-blown conflagration! The water, while not yet ankle deep, penetrates my runners and is, I discover, quite cold and unpleasant. A determined leap carries me to the sidewalk.
5:37 PM: I stand before my building. Lightning fills the air and I decide I will not chance an elevator ride under such fraught circumstances. Instead, I scale an interior stairway...one floor, two, three...I am reminded of my first time up K-2, back in the day.
5:41 PM: I reach my unit! NOOOO! A window has been left open, and the carpet beneath has grown damp from the rain. I race to the site, bath towel in hand, and dry as though my very life depended upon it! This carpet, while not exactly new, is in excellent shape and I can neither afford to replace it or strip it to the hardwood underneath! Fortunately, through vigorous efforts, I am able to avert disaster.
6:10 PM: A sudden emergency requires an elevator trip down to the underground and my parked vehicle. I clutch a bic lighter to my chest as my car descends, in case of a power outage. The air fills with tension. Later, in-line skates retrieved, I ride back up, still wary. However, this journey passes without incident.
6:45 PM: I look out my balcony window at the lightning over Lake Ontario. While there is no flooding in this location, I fear that richy-rich downtown assholes who have been made homeless by the storm may show up and start begging for food and blankets. It is a tense moment.
8:00 PM: During a lull in the storm, I put on Season III of Downton Abby. It is, I find, very much like season II of Downton Abby. Bates is still in the shit. The air is tense as I await the next band of storm-clouds from The West.
Tuesday, 5:57 AM: I awake on my couch, having missed both the second wave of storms and whether or not Lady Mary finally hooks up with that barrister guy. It is only blind luck that a tree was not ripped from its moorings by the storm winds and flung against the side of my building while I slept, with possibly fatal consequences!
I thank FATE that I have come safely through the events of the last 12 hours.
Twitter And The News
I can't believe people actually study twitter for a living. That's like deconstructing a hallmark card. But whatever:
July 5, 2013 — News agencies continue to have an edge over Twitter in being first with the news, a study found.
Research into reporting of news events by Twitter and newswire services has found that while Twitter can sometimes break news before newswires, for major events there is little evidence that it can replace traditional news outlets.
Twitter's main benefits for news are bringing additional coverage of events, and for sharing news items of interest to niche audiences or with a short lifespan, such as local sports results.
Doesn't look the paper behind this news release is available yet.
July 5, 2013 — News agencies continue to have an edge over Twitter in being first with the news, a study found.
Research into reporting of news events by Twitter and newswire services has found that while Twitter can sometimes break news before newswires, for major events there is little evidence that it can replace traditional news outlets.
Twitter's main benefits for news are bringing additional coverage of events, and for sharing news items of interest to niche audiences or with a short lifespan, such as local sports results.
Doesn't look the paper behind this news release is available yet.
Monday, July 08, 2013
Twitter: Who Is Real, Who Isn't?
July 4, 2013 — Tweet timing can differentiate individual, corporate and bot-controlled Twitter accounts independent of the language or content of a tweet, according to research published July 3 in the open access journal PLOS ONE by Aldo Faisal and Gabriela Tavares from Imperial College London, UK.
[...]
Perhaps not surprisingly, the study also found corporate-managed accounts tweeted more during work hours, personal accounts were more active in the afternoons and evenings, and bot-controlled accounts either tweeted at regular, constant intervals through the day, or had sudden bursts of activity at one or a few specific hours. Senior author Faisal concludes, "The identification and classification of specific types of users on Twitter can be useful for a variety of purposes, from the computational social sciences, focusing advertisement and political campaigns, to filtering spam, identity theft and malicious accounts."
Link to paper through link.
[...]
Perhaps not surprisingly, the study also found corporate-managed accounts tweeted more during work hours, personal accounts were more active in the afternoons and evenings, and bot-controlled accounts either tweeted at regular, constant intervals through the day, or had sudden bursts of activity at one or a few specific hours. Senior author Faisal concludes, "The identification and classification of specific types of users on Twitter can be useful for a variety of purposes, from the computational social sciences, focusing advertisement and political campaigns, to filtering spam, identity theft and malicious accounts."
Link to paper through link.
Christian Crossroads Through The Years
From The Winnipeg Free Press:
OTTAWA - The Harper government has received scores of letters and emails over government funding being provided to an organization that referred to homosexuality as a "perversion" and "sin."
The Prime Minister's Office and the office of the international development minister got about 170 letters and emails after The Canadian Press reported earlier this year on the $544,813 contract to Christian Crossroads Communications for humanitarian work in Uganda.
Here's there founder gay bashing in 1979. Here's them getting dinged by the CBSC for abusive or unduly discriminatory commentary on the basis of sexual orientation. So, a pretty consistent message over the years.
OTTAWA - The Harper government has received scores of letters and emails over government funding being provided to an organization that referred to homosexuality as a "perversion" and "sin."
The Prime Minister's Office and the office of the international development minister got about 170 letters and emails after The Canadian Press reported earlier this year on the $544,813 contract to Christian Crossroads Communications for humanitarian work in Uganda.
Here's there founder gay bashing in 1979. Here's them getting dinged by the CBSC for abusive or unduly discriminatory commentary on the basis of sexual orientation. So, a pretty consistent message over the years.
Athabasca River Oil Spill Still Unconfirmed, But...
The Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development (ESRD) suggests a sheen noticed on the river is "natural", but pictures have emerged. And, I must day, it looks like some kind of petroleum product to me.
Sunday, July 07, 2013
The Disaster You Haven't Heard About Yet?
Details are sparse so far on an oil spill reported in the Athabasca River near the Poplar Grove First Nation. Members of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation oil spill response team report seeing a 5 kilometer-wide oil slick spanning the width of the river. Stay tuned for details.
That was written last night. As of this morning there is still no official confirmation that a spill took place. Bad news if it happened. Bad news if its someone's idea of a joke or a good way to fund-raise.
That was written last night. As of this morning there is still no official confirmation that a spill took place. Bad news if it happened. Bad news if its someone's idea of a joke or a good way to fund-raise.
Saturday, July 06, 2013
Portents?
Look for announcements about Sun Media cutting frequency of papers in southwestern Ontario this week and next week.
And:
...heard a rumour of press room layoffs in London, anyone hear more?
And at Sun News Network HQ some guy apparently came around this week to look at the HVAC system. When a guy comes around to look at the HVAC system, it usually means your building is up for sale. Pink slips usually follow soon after.
And:
...heard a rumour of press room layoffs in London, anyone hear more?
And at Sun News Network HQ some guy apparently came around this week to look at the HVAC system. When a guy comes around to look at the HVAC system, it usually means your building is up for sale. Pink slips usually follow soon after.
Friday, July 05, 2013
Saved By The Shell! Ostrander Point Wind Project Cancelled Due To Presence Of Endangered Turtle!!!!
The Ostander Point Wind Project has been revoked because:
... the roads systems and construction [necessary for the project] would cause serious and irreversible harm to the Blanding’s Turtle and that the proposed mitigation plans were insufficient to protect the endangered species.
The full ruling is below. Its worth a read-through (which I've done!). Project opponents brought six arguments to the tribunal: 1) the project would cause human health issues, 2) the project would endanger migratory birds passing through the Ostrander Point IBA (Important bird Area), 3) the project would endanger bats living near or migrating through through the area, 4) the project would encroach on the breeding grounds of the local Monarch Butterfly population, 5) the project would endanger plant life in the local alvar , and 6) the project would endanger the local population of Blanding's Turtle.
Below the document are excerpts in regards to each of these issues:
... the roads systems and construction [necessary for the project] would cause serious and irreversible harm to the Blanding’s Turtle and that the proposed mitigation plans were insufficient to protect the endangered species.
The full ruling is below. Its worth a read-through (which I've done!). Project opponents brought six arguments to the tribunal: 1) the project would cause human health issues, 2) the project would endanger migratory birds passing through the Ostrander Point IBA (Important bird Area), 3) the project would endanger bats living near or migrating through through the area, 4) the project would encroach on the breeding grounds of the local Monarch Butterfly population, 5) the project would endanger plant life in the local alvar , and 6) the project would endanger the local population of Blanding's Turtle.
Below the document are excerpts in regards to each of these issues:
Human Health
Effect On Migratory Birds
I think the appellants felt that this was their strongest card. After all Ontario Environmental Commissioner Gord Miller had argued against allowing wind-farms in important bird areas. However, after much testimony and counter-testimony, the tribunal saw things differently:
And:
I'm not particularly surprised by this aspect of the ruling. Most ornithologists, when asked to rank causes behind the decline in NA bird populations over the past several decades, wouldn't even put wind farms on their top ten list. In fact, if people really wanted to make a difference re saving endangered bird species they'd kill their pet cat (in particular if its an outdoor cat); each of these vicious little bastards kill about as many birds per year as an average turbine, and they can't heat your house.
Bats
This was the most interesting aspect of the decision for me. As noted, "there is very little scientific research available on the impact of wind turbines on bats, partly because bats are extremely difficult to study." Some highlights of the testimony included:
And this, with respect to mitigating the effect of turbines:
In the end, the Tribunal concluded:
Monarch Butterflies
The project was to be located near Prince Edward Point National Wildlife Area, which is a International Monarch Butterfly Reserves. Concerns were raised that it would negatively impact Monarch populations. The Tribunal didn't buy it:
And I'll don't think I'll excerpt the bits about Blanding's Turtle either, even though these considerations finally put a stop to the project. Its important to note, however, that the presence of turbines was not itself an issue. Rather, the problem lay with a road network that would have been built in order to construct and maintain them. This network would have been smack dab in the middle of the turtle's habitat; the beasts would have been forced to cross these roads on multiple occasions and at multiple points during their life cycle. Since the network would have been publicly accessible, more ATV and other traffic would have been drawn to the area. Furthermore, available mitigation measures were judged ineffective. Nobody obeys road signs, for example. And culverts where the turtles might safely cross under the road depend on the species having crossing "hot spots"--preferred road crossing points--where these devices might be installed. Unfortunately, Blanding's Turtles do not use their habitat in the appropriate manner.
So there you have it. A win for the anti-windfarm faction, but really more bad than good news in the ruling. Claims re the negative health effects of turbines continue to gain no traction. The recent study by Nissenbaum, which garnered so much media attention, is referenced a whole one time in the ruling. In practical terms it has clearly had no effect on the debate. Furthermore, the judgement's position re IBA's suggests that turbines can probably operate safely within protected areas. That's a pretty important point going forward.
Thursday, July 04, 2013
Rob Ford Prepares...?
Got the pic from Coady McGraw who says its:
@goldsbie Jane and DundasAnd, from Streetview, it does seem to be. Nothing much on that block other than the LC and the beer store.
— Cody McGraw (@Cody_McGraw) July 4, 2013
PS. Picture is bigger if you open in new tab.
Hudak's Lament: PCPO Leader Issues Statement Re Doug Holyday, Steve Ryan, And Wayne Wettlaufer
Actually, no, Tim Hudak has not issued a statement in regards to the PCPO's double fluff-up on the first day of their bye-election campaign.--ie Wayne Wettlaufer's comment on ignorant women who vote Liberal, and Doug Holyday's ill-time speculation about a possible run for MPP in Etobicoke-Lakeshore. The former insulted half the province in a single tweet, and the latter involves Holyday possibly ousting a fellow Conservative named Steve Ryan, who won the nomination out there fair-and-square back in December. That's a sure way to party unity!
In fact, Hudak planned to issue a statement, but his handlers snatched it from him. Luckly, I got hold of an early draft, which I have reproduced below:
My Fellow Ontarions,
I am so sick of all this bullshit. The government of the day is tired, awash in scandal, demoralized. And yet there are five bye-elections coming up and I am poised to get bupkis outta them.
Well no, not quite bupkis. I'm going to get a shitload o' blame for the result. And yes, I am The Leader. But there's only so much I can do leading a cartload of hapless boobs. I got a weak bench, is what I'm saying. I'm not suggesting they're morons. I'm saying morons can beat these guys in checkers.
And you know what? Wayne and Doug aren't even the worst. That would be Randy Hillier, from out in Lanarck. I go to hoedowns with him out there, to meet his people, and they cook and consume all sorts of wild meat and, frankly, its difficult for me to watch them eat. Very disturbing. And the worst part is I can see their scheming. Randy watches me out of the corner of my eye, waiting for me to stumble, to eat with a fork or something hopelessly Liberal like that.
Well, I'll tell you what, Randy. You want my job, you can have it. You just have to ask up front. In fact why don't you just kill me now? Rip my fucking guts out and strangle my political career with them. Because I can't hack it anymore!!! I can no longer work under such conditions!!!
And then afterwards I'll be free, and I can go back to the private sector. Maybe sit on a board. Maybe help conserve some poor animal. I like bunnies, for example. I'm not that guy you see on tv, that looks like Richard Nixon shagged a weasel. I'm really quite sweet when you get to know me.
I have a resume if anyone wants to look at it.
Sincerely,
Tim Hudak
In fact, Hudak planned to issue a statement, but his handlers snatched it from him. Luckly, I got hold of an early draft, which I have reproduced below:
My Fellow Ontarions,
I am so sick of all this bullshit. The government of the day is tired, awash in scandal, demoralized. And yet there are five bye-elections coming up and I am poised to get bupkis outta them.
Well no, not quite bupkis. I'm going to get a shitload o' blame for the result. And yes, I am The Leader. But there's only so much I can do leading a cartload of hapless boobs. I got a weak bench, is what I'm saying. I'm not suggesting they're morons. I'm saying morons can beat these guys in checkers.
And you know what? Wayne and Doug aren't even the worst. That would be Randy Hillier, from out in Lanarck. I go to hoedowns with him out there, to meet his people, and they cook and consume all sorts of wild meat and, frankly, its difficult for me to watch them eat. Very disturbing. And the worst part is I can see their scheming. Randy watches me out of the corner of my eye, waiting for me to stumble, to eat with a fork or something hopelessly Liberal like that.
Well, I'll tell you what, Randy. You want my job, you can have it. You just have to ask up front. In fact why don't you just kill me now? Rip my fucking guts out and strangle my political career with them. Because I can't hack it anymore!!! I can no longer work under such conditions!!!
And then afterwards I'll be free, and I can go back to the private sector. Maybe sit on a board. Maybe help conserve some poor animal. I like bunnies, for example. I'm not that guy you see on tv, that looks like Richard Nixon shagged a weasel. I'm really quite sweet when you get to know me.
I have a resume if anyone wants to look at it.
Sincerely,
Tim Hudak
Wednesday, July 03, 2013
The Jet Stream, The Calgary Floods, And Global Warming
One day I want to do an in-depth post on gradually changing attitudes among climate scientists re attributing individual events to global warming. This is not that post. Instead I've just ripped some text from Dr. Jeff Masters at Wunderground that talks about how unusual patterns in the jet stream brought Alberta its great flood:
...June 18 - 22, when a ridge of high pressure over Alaska broke all-time heat records in the state, with unofficial readings as high as 98°F. A low pressure system became trapped over Alberta, Canada, bringing the city of Calgary a $3 billion flood disaster. This was the most expensive flood in Canadian history, and third most expensive natural disaster of any kind for the country. The only more expensive disasters were a 1989 wildfire ($4.2 billion) and a 1977 drought ($3 billion.)
[...]
When the jet stream goes into one of these extreme configurations, it freezes in its tracks for weeks, resulting in an extended period of extreme heat or flooding, depending upon where the high-amplitude part of the jet stream lies. The scientists found that because human-caused global warming is causing the Arctic to heat up more than twice as rapidly as the rest of the planet, a unique resonance pattern capable of causing this behavior was resulting. According to an email I received from German climate scientist Stefan Rahmstorf, one of the co-authors of the study, unusually extreme jet stream amplitudes likely played a role in the May - June Central European flooding event.
So there you have it. For now.
...June 18 - 22, when a ridge of high pressure over Alaska broke all-time heat records in the state, with unofficial readings as high as 98°F. A low pressure system became trapped over Alberta, Canada, bringing the city of Calgary a $3 billion flood disaster. This was the most expensive flood in Canadian history, and third most expensive natural disaster of any kind for the country. The only more expensive disasters were a 1989 wildfire ($4.2 billion) and a 1977 drought ($3 billion.)
[...]
When the jet stream goes into one of these extreme configurations, it freezes in its tracks for weeks, resulting in an extended period of extreme heat or flooding, depending upon where the high-amplitude part of the jet stream lies. The scientists found that because human-caused global warming is causing the Arctic to heat up more than twice as rapidly as the rest of the planet, a unique resonance pattern capable of causing this behavior was resulting. According to an email I received from German climate scientist Stefan Rahmstorf, one of the co-authors of the study, unusually extreme jet stream amplitudes likely played a role in the May - June Central European flooding event.
So there you have it. For now.
Tuesday, July 02, 2013
Sri Lanka Strikes Back!
A diplomatic slappy-fight between diplomatic corps over Canada's threatened boycott of the Commonwealth summit in Colombo. Nothing in the MSM, but here and below in the "ethnic" papers:
Yeah. A quiet news day.
Monday, July 01, 2013
Heartland Institute Vs. Chinese Academy Of Science, Round II
Last week the Heartland Institute got into it with Chinese Academy of Science. The academy had seen fit to translate HI's Climate Change Reconsidered reports, and PR guy Jim Lakely from the institute suggested that this counted as an endorsement of the think-tank's position re global warming. But no; CAS begged to differ, in fairly strong terms, and Lakeley was forced to issue an apology/retraction.
Now, however, we find that HI's words were hollow. CEO Joe Bast writes:
Regrettably, the lies of some advocates, perhaps aided by confusion caused by the language barrier, led Chinese officials to threaten to cancel a planned workshop in Beijing for some of the authors and translators of Climate Change Reconsidered. With four scientists representing The Heartland Institute already in Beijing, we agreed to remove the news release and the book itself from our Web site.
Now that the workshop has been successfully concluded, we have restored our original news release...
So once they got their boys thehelloutta China, they went back to their original, misleading statement.
I emailed CAS once again to see if they had any further response to this latest bit of trickery, and they responded as follows:
Dear Mr. Murphy,
It's very kind of you to remind us the repost of the Heartland release. We have notice it last week. The CAS attitude towards the translated book had been made clear in the statements on June 15 as follows: http://english.cas.cn/Ne/CASE/201306/t20130615_104625.shtml. We are sure that we have sent you the translator's preface in our last email, in which the translator had addressed his views on climate change and on the translation of the book.
We hope to receive your continuing focus on the Chinese Academy of Sciences, both on its scientific efforts&achievements and on its official website.
Best,
Chinese Academy of Sciences
Which, to me at least, suggests they are really, really tired of the Heartland Institute and the whole clown show HI inflicted on them. I suspect that this will be the last bit of cooperating we see between HI and CAS for a long while.
Now, however, we find that HI's words were hollow. CEO Joe Bast writes:
Regrettably, the lies of some advocates, perhaps aided by confusion caused by the language barrier, led Chinese officials to threaten to cancel a planned workshop in Beijing for some of the authors and translators of Climate Change Reconsidered. With four scientists representing The Heartland Institute already in Beijing, we agreed to remove the news release and the book itself from our Web site.
Now that the workshop has been successfully concluded, we have restored our original news release...
So once they got their boys thehelloutta China, they went back to their original, misleading statement.
I emailed CAS once again to see if they had any further response to this latest bit of trickery, and they responded as follows:
Dear Mr. Murphy,
It's very kind of you to remind us the repost of the Heartland release. We have notice it last week. The CAS attitude towards the translated book had been made clear in the statements on June 15 as follows: http://english.cas.cn/Ne/CASE/201306/t20130615_104625.shtml. We are sure that we have sent you the translator's preface in our last email, in which the translator had addressed his views on climate change and on the translation of the book.
We hope to receive your continuing focus on the Chinese Academy of Sciences, both on its scientific efforts&achievements and on its official website.
Best,
Chinese Academy of Sciences
Which, to me at least, suggests they are really, really tired of the Heartland Institute and the whole clown show HI inflicted on them. I suspect that this will be the last bit of cooperating we see between HI and CAS for a long while.
Your Daily Nazi: McCorkell Collection Update
This clip from CBC brings the latest, in particular that the University of Ottawa, which got some of McCorkell's artifacts after he moved East from Saskatchewan , is willing to let the collection be sold off to private collectors:
As for me, I was most interested in the few glimpses of McCorkell's collection that the clip offers. My favorite piece is this:
Maybe its a bit of pottery. I'm not sure. But the beast carved on its surface is pretty clearly a Griffin, one of my favorite of the mythical creatures. And that's chiefly because:
Much of the griffin folklore originated from the deserts of central Asia, specifically in an area of alluvial gold deposits in a thousand-mile corridor dividing land masses that are now China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan. Mayor's research led her to consult paleontologists to see what kinds of fossils were common to the area.
The Gobi, Turfan and Dzungarian deserts contain some of the world's richest fossil beds, and many fossils appear on the surface because of the windswept nature of the region. Fossils of the plant-eating Protoceratops are the most commonly found dinosaur fossils in the Gobi desert.
Protoceratops was a creature six or seven feet long, with four legs, claws, and a scary beak that looked like a huge lobster claw.... [A]ncient people may have dug up skeletons of the Protoceratops, a probable theory considering that American tourists who visited the Gobi Desert in 1992 uncovered a complete, standing dinosaur skeleton trapped in the sand. It would only take a small imaginative step for ancient prospectors, making similar finds, to think that living griffins existed and guarded their nests like protective mother birds in the same standing position.
You can see the two creatures compared here, for example.
Not much more to add here other than to repeat myself: it would be a pity if this collection was sold off to fund a gang of white supremacists.
As to the U of O's decision, I suspect McCorkell's collection is good but not essential. Rare but not that rare. I've seen ancient coins, for example, turn up in flea markets in Arizona. One fellow told me the piece he was hawking for $30 U.S. showed a constellation of stars on the face that were not visible with the naked eye, suggesting that the ancients had had contact with alien races. I told him I was just off the plane, not the boat.
PS. U of O labels the griffin thusly: Panel from painted terracotta revetment frieze with griffin from Düver (Turkey) 550 B.C.
As for me, I was most interested in the few glimpses of McCorkell's collection that the clip offers. My favorite piece is this:
Much of the griffin folklore originated from the deserts of central Asia, specifically in an area of alluvial gold deposits in a thousand-mile corridor dividing land masses that are now China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan. Mayor's research led her to consult paleontologists to see what kinds of fossils were common to the area.
The Gobi, Turfan and Dzungarian deserts contain some of the world's richest fossil beds, and many fossils appear on the surface because of the windswept nature of the region. Fossils of the plant-eating Protoceratops are the most commonly found dinosaur fossils in the Gobi desert.
Protoceratops was a creature six or seven feet long, with four legs, claws, and a scary beak that looked like a huge lobster claw.... [A]ncient people may have dug up skeletons of the Protoceratops, a probable theory considering that American tourists who visited the Gobi Desert in 1992 uncovered a complete, standing dinosaur skeleton trapped in the sand. It would only take a small imaginative step for ancient prospectors, making similar finds, to think that living griffins existed and guarded their nests like protective mother birds in the same standing position.
You can see the two creatures compared here, for example.
Not much more to add here other than to repeat myself: it would be a pity if this collection was sold off to fund a gang of white supremacists.
As to the U of O's decision, I suspect McCorkell's collection is good but not essential. Rare but not that rare. I've seen ancient coins, for example, turn up in flea markets in Arizona. One fellow told me the piece he was hawking for $30 U.S. showed a constellation of stars on the face that were not visible with the naked eye, suggesting that the ancients had had contact with alien races. I told him I was just off the plane, not the boat.
PS. U of O labels the griffin thusly: Panel from painted terracotta revetment frieze with griffin from Düver (Turkey) 550 B.C.
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