Some things have occurred to me regarding the global warming trend. It was recently brought to my attention that the Northwest passage is now open for travel and exploration. A giant peat bog is now available for playing around in - I think, in northern Canada. These are things we did not have since they were buried under tons of glacial ice. It is true that the sea level will rise, altering coastlines the world over and submerging most islands. But for anyone who has ever played Sim City, islands are not the best landforms for booming populations of humans. Unless we are planning on shrinking ourselves to take up significantly less space on this planet, or give up the American dream of owning our own chunk of land with a nice big house on it, we are going to be needing continental land mass for living on and growing crops.
God forbid if some terrorist nut cases end up nuking some part of the planet, that region will be uninhabitable for thousands of years, at least. Maybe the Iranian warlords over there in the Middle East might want to think about that for a while before they push the wrong button. I do believe al Quaida and the Taliban have a suicide wish - because that's what will happen if they even try such a tactic - the entire Middle East will be wiped out in less than a day.
There's more to the Global Warming situation than a lot of folks realize. First of all, as the ice melts, sea level will rise everywhere. However, there is a concept in geology called isostatic rebound. As glacial ice melts away, the excess weight on the continental plate is decreased. The continental plate takes advantage of this and buoyantly bobs upward, similar to a spring being released after the pressure is taken off. In the final analysis, we may all end up with more coastline, instead of less, once all the ice is done for.
Since it is melting anyway, and since we need as much fresh water as we can get. I believe that the best course of action would be to harvest as much of the fresh water from these glaciers as we can, before it all ends up in the saline sea water. We could build massive reservoirs and catchments to collect it in and transport it to parts of the planet where it will do the most good, where fresh water is most needed for growing crops and making life livable.
These were just a few thoughts I have scurrying around in my mind, of late. Until later...
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Sunday, October 14, 2007
A Pet Peeve
Declawing of animals should be outlawed.
People who get their pets declawed do not seem to realize what they do to their beloved pets. All that matters to them is material possessions like sofas, rugs, and window treatments.
I wish people would think about the animals feelings, for once in their lives. Why do certain people even bother to buy or adopt animals?! A status symbol - to show off how much they can afford to spend on a living toy?! Animals are not toys, not things, not mere objects! They are thinking creatures with feelings and, yes, they do feel pain. In order to declaw a cat, or any animal, the fingertips are surgically removed - or else the claws will grow back. I have heard of cats crippled with arthritis from declawing. But hey, who gives a damn about these animals' quality of life or the right to live a pain free life when we can just give them an injection to put them to sleep and put them out of their misery. God forbid if we should be expected to watch the poor creatures suffer because of what their adopted parents did to them at an early age. Look at your fingers. Where do your fingernails start growing from? It is the same for all mammals -and likely for all animals with claws, talons, or fingernails. GET THE POINT?! [pun intended].
Even those monsters who do animal testing for cosmetics have to cut their test animals' vocal chords so the testers won't be bothered by the animals crying and screaming in pain. It's one thing to do genetic testing on lab mice and rats to find cures for cancer - especially since the US federal government refuses the use of stem cells for real human embryos for such tests. Why test a bunch of human cells to find cures for human ailments and illnesses - when we can just as well torture some innocent creatures for the same thing?! Except, maybe, because they are not human, and do not have human DNA! If we used the human stem cells, we wouldn't even have to use the mice or rats anymore. It would cut down on the costs for the research since we could go directly to the human genome to do what we must do - it would save valuable time and needless suffering of those with such illnesses. It would also save countless animals needless suffering, as well.
Do not worry; I am not an advocate for PETA. I have never, and will never condone or support such a radical group. They care more about the political dramatics than they do about the animals they claim to protect. Just like the so-called pro-life advocates who are just as likely to throw their own children out on the streets at the age of twelve - or younger - because the child happens to be gay. All life is precious - but to these groups - only under certain conditions.
I saw a Rotweiller without its ears and tail clipped, for the first time in my life, this past weekend at the local pet expo - so I guess there's some hope. Animals are not perfect, and neither are humans. Guess what folks, humans are animals, too. That tends to offend some folks. It offends me when we expect other creatures, including ourselves to be perfect, to fit our ideals. I also do not much care for folks who go around and say that everyone is evil and going to hell. I admit that I make mistakes in this world, all the time. But, it is usually the humans, who are the most disappointing to me. The only creatures that ever cared about me were, and still are, the furry, four-legged kind. I have a rapport with animals. Currently, I have two beautiful cats, whom I adore - and a bunch of furry neighbor friends, several of which have been trying to cheer me up lately - since my human friends are apparently incapable of giving a damn. I am sure they are trying to tell us something. Too bad we cannot quiet our thoughts enough to listen, to them or each other.
People who get their pets declawed do not seem to realize what they do to their beloved pets. All that matters to them is material possessions like sofas, rugs, and window treatments.
I wish people would think about the animals feelings, for once in their lives. Why do certain people even bother to buy or adopt animals?! A status symbol - to show off how much they can afford to spend on a living toy?! Animals are not toys, not things, not mere objects! They are thinking creatures with feelings and, yes, they do feel pain. In order to declaw a cat, or any animal, the fingertips are surgically removed - or else the claws will grow back. I have heard of cats crippled with arthritis from declawing. But hey, who gives a damn about these animals' quality of life or the right to live a pain free life when we can just give them an injection to put them to sleep and put them out of their misery. God forbid if we should be expected to watch the poor creatures suffer because of what their adopted parents did to them at an early age. Look at your fingers. Where do your fingernails start growing from? It is the same for all mammals -and likely for all animals with claws, talons, or fingernails. GET THE POINT?! [pun intended].
Even those monsters who do animal testing for cosmetics have to cut their test animals' vocal chords so the testers won't be bothered by the animals crying and screaming in pain. It's one thing to do genetic testing on lab mice and rats to find cures for cancer - especially since the US federal government refuses the use of stem cells for real human embryos for such tests. Why test a bunch of human cells to find cures for human ailments and illnesses - when we can just as well torture some innocent creatures for the same thing?! Except, maybe, because they are not human, and do not have human DNA! If we used the human stem cells, we wouldn't even have to use the mice or rats anymore. It would cut down on the costs for the research since we could go directly to the human genome to do what we must do - it would save valuable time and needless suffering of those with such illnesses. It would also save countless animals needless suffering, as well.
Do not worry; I am not an advocate for PETA. I have never, and will never condone or support such a radical group. They care more about the political dramatics than they do about the animals they claim to protect. Just like the so-called pro-life advocates who are just as likely to throw their own children out on the streets at the age of twelve - or younger - because the child happens to be gay. All life is precious - but to these groups - only under certain conditions.
I saw a Rotweiller without its ears and tail clipped, for the first time in my life, this past weekend at the local pet expo - so I guess there's some hope. Animals are not perfect, and neither are humans. Guess what folks, humans are animals, too. That tends to offend some folks. It offends me when we expect other creatures, including ourselves to be perfect, to fit our ideals. I also do not much care for folks who go around and say that everyone is evil and going to hell. I admit that I make mistakes in this world, all the time. But, it is usually the humans, who are the most disappointing to me. The only creatures that ever cared about me were, and still are, the furry, four-legged kind. I have a rapport with animals. Currently, I have two beautiful cats, whom I adore - and a bunch of furry neighbor friends, several of which have been trying to cheer me up lately - since my human friends are apparently incapable of giving a damn. I am sure they are trying to tell us something. Too bad we cannot quiet our thoughts enough to listen, to them or each other.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Bolivian Crater Information and a Rant
This image courtesy of NASA Earth Observatory http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Source: http://intute.ac.uk/sciences/worldguide/html/image_2093.html
Apparently, there hasn't been much research done on the Bolivian impact crater. This is due to its remote location. I did get a few bits and pieces of information about it.
- It's called the Iturralde Structure or the Araona Crater.
- It's located at 19 degrees 49' South by 68 degrees 19' West - NW edge of the Salar de Uyuni, Eastern Bolivia
- Oval - elongated in a north-south direction and bowl-shaped - 8km across
- Flat-bottomed with very steep inner walls [similar to the Barringer Crater, AZ] with raised external rim
- It is located downslope of some volcanic craters with evidence of a more recent lava flow being diverted as well as a diverted river. This proves that it is relatively recent. Also, even though some weathering has obviously occurred, the crater is still in relatively good condition - albeit, buried under layers of decomposing organic-rich soils and vegetation.
This is about all there is about this crater. No tektites, shocked minerals, or other necessary evidence. Most of the data is biological in nature with a detailed study of the soil layers and their organic and ecological implications. Geological evidence is minimal and largely absent. Where's the evidence of a human settlement destroyed by the impact? The age is not even determined: estimated to have originated between five and twenty thousand years ago. If they had conducted proper geological sampling and measurements, a more accurate date could be determined. Who cares what the ecologies were/are inside the crater since the impact? They can do that later! We need to know when it occurred and any other pieces of evidence regarding the impact itself. This is not very encouraging. It is science of the most absurd kind. A botanist led the expedition who apparently decided that the geology was of little importance. Why did they go to investigate the crater in the first place? It's a geological impact structure - that's what drew them to the site. Instead they decide to study what plants have lived inside since the impact. The impact and the crater itself are of little importance to the advancements of science. Apparently! The sad lack of geological evidence has some scientists believing that it is merely a volcanic crater instead of one created by a meteor. The vast majority of the evidence is from satellite images - that's the only way we know its size and general shape. There is just nothing written about this crater. Maybe evidence has been gathered but not yet put out there in print for reference. It is a very vexing problem. Until later...
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