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I called Raymark one time for an emergency job after I screwed something up. The guy they sent out was pretty cool. Gave me some subtle shit about my screwup, while at the same time saying I did a good job compared to some he'd witnessed (like a guy who blew up half his houses and shit like that). I think they're a pretty big outfit though, so who you get might be pretty variable.

Washington Post "Fact checker" gives Moveon.org ad three Pinnochio's.

gender confused?

JayB, I believe this is the third time you have outed Al_Pine. Why this obsession? What has Al_Pine ever done to you?

no we're not! Go Jarred Go!

Relatively exposed? How about VERY exposed. There's a sequence of more than two no-good-handhold moves above a steep face. That is, if you're soloing and a foot blows, you're dead. I tried soloing it one time after an ascent of the South Face. I kept moving up two moves, moving back down. I couldn't summon the nerve to continue. But that was just me. As they say, YMMV! Good luck!

Enchantment Peak is good too. It's got good views and a big cliff on one face. A little bit of scrambling right at the top.

In hopes of making a lasting resource for the masses looking for this topo here is the same topo linked at an alternate site infinite bliss topo Here's an alternate version Approach: Drive Middle Fork Snoqualmie River road to five-car pullout 1.0 mile past the Taylor River Bridge. Walk ~1/2 block further down road to obvious trail leaving N side. Hike ~45 minutes to base. Gear: 17 draws, 2x60m ropes, helmet This is what it looks like from the base. That guy is on route. ... and what the heck, here's another one (same file) attached right here! 3788-infinite_bliss.pdf

You give yourself waaaaay too much credit. Slight advantage?! JayB <-> George Will KKK <-> George Bush

Right, I don't remember that as an unstoppable leviathan. You merely posit that "all us dems" were screaming that. Take away that made up "fact" and your argument falls apart. But, whatever, you know as well as everybody else that a small majority cannot overrule the president in terms of executive policy (commander in chief). Your argument that it is some big failing of the newly elected democratic majority that we're not out of Iraq 8 months after they took over is completely absurd and disingenuous (i.e. you spout this nonsense even though I'm sure you aren't actually stupid enough to believe it). BTW, this "unstoppable leviathan" verbiage reminds me a lot of JayB, you getting this from his blog or something?

In case you haven't understood (though I think you have, it's just that you can't refute with mischaracterizing), a simple majority IS a leviathan that is very difficult to stop, WHEN the president is also on its side. Your arguments are disingenuous. I'm thinking you are actually just trolling. Can you tell us which freedoms of yours that the ACLU took away?

You forgot the part about the president. I don't recall anything about a leviathan that couldn't be stopped (when the prez was Clinton). I seem to recall a certain majority being pretty impotent in it's partisan attempts to throw out the standing president. Feigning ignorance and making shit up as debating tactics does not suit you, KKK.

Name one

I've figured that one thing that Republicans and Democrats still have in common in this extremely polarized environment is distrust of the government. It amazes me how Republicans like you guys are willing to just lie down and take it for the good of the GOP. How are you going to like it when Hillary is elected and she will have all these extra-constitutional powers that Bush has accumulated? If you guys were smart you'd be thinking ahead.

You guys have been railing against Hugo Chavez for quite a while now. How he is abusing the democratic process and slowly but surely consolidating power until it impossible to "legally" oppose him. Well maybe I'm a bit paranoid but I see a bit of the same thing going on with Bush. - imprisoning people without any due course - wiretapping and spying on other communications without warrants - refusing to allow oversight of congress or the courts as to what he is specifically wiretapping - firing members of law-enforcement whom it appears will not do his political bidding (and then refusing to submit to oversight of the courts or congress when they want to see why this is going on) You might say I'm paranoid, but I think the founders of the country designed it well. And they put these specific checks and balances in operation to prevent abuses of power. Buschco is blatantly disregarding these checks. Your only defense is that you "trust" Bush. As he gives no accounting of what he is doing. Those of us who don't trust him are worried. He could be using these tactics to consolidate power (spying on domestic political opposition, firing prosecutors who won't trump up charges against political opponents, imprisoning opponents or at least imprisoning random brown-skinned individuals so as to stoke terror fear). As for which of my rights have been taken away, I'm not feeling too threatened because I'm white, non-muslim and I don't travel too much. If I were brown-skinned, muslim (or had muslim relatives) or frequently travelled overseas, I'll bet I'd have some issues. How about that attorney in Oregon who was held for months without charge because of a fingerprint error and the fact that his wife was Muslim?

I've always been partial to "Butthroat Cuttress". It would have gone well with Layton's infamous Cutthroat TR.

Did you also do some air-guitar fretting on the bottom of the stall divider?

Hey there all you Olympics-familiar climbers! I'm considering the Mt. Cruiser area for a backpack at end of September and have a couple of quick q's. Is this area dry (i.e. is it in that famous Olympics rainshadow)? Any thoughts on Flapjack Lakes versus Mildred Lakes? I would guess Mildred Lakes have less red tape. Could be good (obvious reasons), could be bad (bunch of drunk hunters?).

A puzzling bit from the article: "They were wearing baseball caps, short-sleeved T-shirts, jeans and shorts." (emphasis added) Is that the non-climber version of shorts over polypro?

The fresh water from your tap has chlorine in it too. I wouldn't worry about it.

Silent Running is a great route to teach someone slab climbing. p1: lead it and let the student follow. Tell them to find the steepest section they calibrate and see what they can trust their feet on, with the safety of a toprope. p2: student lead, crux moves down low, well protected. p3: the pitch that Nelson says someone like, "requires catlike agility" Newbie gets to follow, test their new skills. p4: will feel easy after previous pitch. student lead. I think this one's got a major runout on easy terrain, but it may be the next one. p5: throwaway 5.7 p6: graduation pitch. featureless slab, trust your feet climbing. Bolts at perfect length. They pass if they lead to the anchors without diving for the safety of the bushes. p7: not particularly slab oriented but does have the toughest slab moves of the climb (basically toproped by bolts even on lead). Then it gives you the Darrington psychout. A fingercrack next to some doable 5.8 slab. You get used to the actual holds in the fingercrack and are feeling all, la de da, this is easy then the crack pinches up and so does your sphincter. If you just climb the slab not even using the crack it'd be about 5.8, but once you get used to the holds, you hate to see them leave, and you whimper. Anyway... fun climb. unless it's wet

If you didn't know this all already: It's six pitches, four tens sandwiched between two nines, almost exclusively gear protected, bolted belays. Twenty to thirty minute hike, rappel descent. You should be able to figure it out from that I hope.

here 's a lead for you