JayB

Kill yourself. The dudes I know on the Least Coast seem to like Jay Peak and Stowe the best, but all agree that they are far inferior to most of the resorts out West. The paddling is actually pretty good in the DC area from what I hear. Take it up. Lots of kayaking gear for cheap on Craig's list. Also - the mouintain biking is supposed to be pretty decent out there as well.

Agreed. Best new contributor to the site in a long while.

Quite a shame that his life's work actually had a massively negative impact on his major ambition - if you believe that the said ambition was actually Palestinian statehood. If he was intent on discrediting this cause with tactics that were sure to fail on the millitary, political, and moral levels then the man was a spectacular success.

In my opinion, the unfortunate truth is that the only thing that will galvanize world opinion enough to take action to prevent the use and continued posession of WMD by a regime like those running the show in Iran and North Korea is witnessing the use of one of the said weapons against a civilian population, either by the regimes themselves or terrorists armed by them. This is one case where historians will look back and witness a farce preceeding a tragedy.

An economic incentive system that lacked any mechanism for coordinating supply and demand in a manner required for any economy to work, built atop an incentive system that was fundamentally at odds with human nature. Attempting to compete with market economies in the realm of production and innovation baccelerated the collapse - but that would have happened under any circumstances.

I'm talking about negotiations set against the backdrop of massive air and missile strikes against any and all suspected negotiations if they refuse to compromise. None of the forces necessary to mount such strikes are occupied In order for negotiations to be effective, they have to occur in an environment where there is an incentive to participate in a meaningful fashion. The EU is categorically against bringing any such measures into the discussion, so the Mullahs, like the Serbs before them and the Sudanese government in the present, will continue to shrug them off, as they have absolutely nothing to lose by doing so. But back to Iraq - none of the forces required to bring force into the equation - fighters, bombers, subs, missile frigates, etc - are extended to such an extent that they couldn't be brought to bear against Iran.

Chuck - if we were not going to incorporate millitary force, or the threat thereof, into a solution or negotiations with either the Iranians or the North Koreans then no - we haven't hobbled in our ability to deal with either situation by the invasion of Iraq. Checking back into reality - the proximity of Seoul to North Korean artillery and Scuds precludes the use of conventional arms there, and our the engagement of our armies elsewhere doesn't impact our strategic position vis-a-vis Korea one bit. The only foreseeable use of force against the North Koreans for at least a generation has been aerial/missle strikes, most likely against a limited set of strategic targets like nuclear installations. As far as Pakistan is concerned, I am not aware of any evidence that our strategic leverage there has been weakened at all, and the administration has been rather successful in catalyzing a de-escalation of hostilities between Pakistan and India, which was of course the prime motivator for both countries to acquire nuclear weapons. The situation in Libya seems also to have improved with respect to proliferation. And as far as Iran is concerned, since no one there was actually ever seriously contemplating an invasion of that country, this is another case where having our armed forces deployed elsewhere has done absolutely nothing to reduce our strategic leverage with them. Iran has, however, continued to successfully exploit the EU's inability to address any crisis whatsoever - like the one that errupted in the Balkans in the past, or Sudan in the present - with anything more substantial than negotiations. I am sure that a good scolding by the likes of Joska Fischer will whip the mullahs right into shape though.

Lowa Struktura EVOs are pretty sweet for downhill power, and still tour very comfortably. Some Reviewage: Summary - The EVO is a stiffer flexing version of the Struktura Alpine Touring boot, compromising some touring comfort for increased downhill support. "The original Struktura has been a very popular boot, but not stiff enough for many skiers due to its hinged tongue. The EVO GTX solves this problem by replacing the two part tongue with a solid, one piece tongue. The result is a significantly stiffer forward flexing boot. The original fit and characteristics of the Struktura remain, although the boot does not feel quite as natural or forgiving in walk mode. This boot is more appropriate for the cross-over area skier who wants to keep the solid feel of an alpine boot and is less concerned with all day touring comfort." Couloir: "In contrast to the softer-flexing, two part, hinged layout of the Struktura tongue, the Evo's tongue is a solid piece somewhat reminiscent of the Raichlie Flexon Comps of yore…This modification yields a vastly stiffer forward flex for greater precision and more immediate transfer of body energy to your boards…All told, this is a smooth, lively, powerhouse of a boot. The Struktura Evo will make any alpine skier feel at home." Backcountry magazine: "The tongue significantly enhances ski-driving forward stiffness, but sacrifices ankle flex while touring. The traditionally-constructed Gore-tex liner is warm, with appropriate padding that locks your heel into the pocket…. Overall, the EVO provides a bit more power to pilot the ski than the Struktura"

The "bogging-down-so-that-we-can't-threaten-the-real-bad-guys" claim is certainly an odd rejoinder from someone who would doubtlessly be amongst the first to condemn any lean towards the use of force, or the threat thereof, to deal with North Korea or Iran as a ploy executed by a cabal of elites for the benefit of a vague claque of corporate interests. The glib dissmissal of exquisitely documented corruption of this nature and magnitude in the service of Saddam Hussein's interests, while continuously repeating claims of corruption in the administration that are as yet utterly untainted by any factual evidence whatsoever - is also quite remarkable. But back to Iran and North Korea. Am I to understand that you would be in favor of a land invasion of Iran to force them into compliance if it weren't for our troops being engaged in Iraq? Also - I think that the fact that Seoul is within shelling range of more than 20,000 North Korean artillery pieces - e.g. instant anhillation of most of the city - has more to do with the reluctance to engage in hostilities with North Korea than insufficient firepower on our part. Another odd tack from the Left has been the criticism of the Bush administration for not excluding China, Japan, and South Korea from the negotiations concerning North Korea - and advocating -cough, cough - unilateral action to resolve the situation.

I am the one in the blue dress. The transformation was remarkable. Oh wait - this is a "clever costume idea" thread. The only one that I can remember is from a few years ago, where I saw a guy - otherwise wearing normal attire - who had a potato cut into the shape of a penis hanging from his belt. This was his "Dick Tater" costume... Speaking of dictators, at the halloween party that gave rise to the above photo, I had the slightly surreal experience of watching two guys just about to tussle when all of a sudden three guests - dressed as Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, and Osama Bin Laden - simultaneously jumped in to keep the peace....

Black Diamond Switchblade crampons - featuring: dual front points with a thin profile to maximize shearing, and a spacing that provided neither the stability of regular dual points nor the delicacy of monos, an anti-shearing plate between the two front points that prevented effective penetration magnificently, and secondary points so far behind the front-points that they would only engage when one's heel dropped roughly 60 degrees below horizontal, at which time the front points were conveniently sliding out of their placements. Not sure what the deal is with BD and the secondary ponits on their waterfall crampons, but they seem to be designed with a different philosophy than the models produced by other manufacturers. They are great if you want to work on your calf-and-forearm endurance though.

Some American Responses: "Dear wonderful, loving friends from abroad, We Ohioans are an ornery sort and don't take meddling well, even if it comes from people we admire and with their sincere goodwill. We are a fairly closed community overall. In my town of Springfield, I feel that there are some that consider people from the nearby cities of Columbus or Dayton, as "foreigners"- let alone someone from outside our country. Springfield, Ohio Have you not noticed that Americans don't give two shits what Europeans think of us? Each email someone gets from some arrogant Brit telling us why to NOT vote for George Bush is going to backfire, you stupid, yellow-toothed pansies ... I don't give a rat's ass if our election is going to have an effect on your worthless little life. I really don't. If you want to have a meaningful election in your crappy little island full of shitty food and yellow teeth, then maybe you should try not to sell your sovereignty out to Brussels and Berlin, dipshit. Oh, yeah - and brush your goddamned teeth, you filthy animals. Wading River, NY Right on! Just wanted to say thanks from California for your effort and concern. This IS a very important election ... There are so many people here in the States that care about the impact America has on the rest of the world. I am personally saddened for the loss of all innocent lives. The best statement Americans can make to the rest of the world is to not elect Bush for president. Thank you so much for getting involved in our world. California Advertiser links Save Now - 21st Century Insurance Save $300 on auto insurance and get more coverage and more... 21st.com Motor Vehicle Insurance Are you a driver over 50? You could save up to $300 in... aarp.thehartford.com Drive Away with Savings Auto insurance from the American Express Property Casualty... americanexpress.com Consider this: stay out of American electoral politics. Unless you would like a company of US Navy Seals - Republican to a man - to descend upon the offices of the Guardian, bag the lot of you, and transport you to Guantanamo Bay, where you can share quarters with some lonely Taliban shepherd boys. United States I am a student and life-long resident of Clark County, Ohio. I just wanted you to know that this is a wonderful idea you've initiated; people here love and respect the United Kingdom, especially the prime minister. I hope this campaign will be successful for your newspaper and for us voters. Springfield, Ohio KEEP YOUR FUCKIN' LIMEY HANDS OFF OUR ELECTION. HEY, SHITHEADS, REMEMBER THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR? REMEMBER THE WAR OF 1812? WE DIDN'T WANT YOU, OR YOUR POLITICS HERE, THAT'S WHY WE KICKED YOUR ASSES OUT. FOR THE 47% OF YOU WHO DON'T WANT PRESIDENT BUSH, I SAY THIS ... TOUGH SHIT! PROUD AMERICAN VOTING FOR BUSH! Shame on you for using the people of Ohio like this. The US presidental election isn't just about foreign policy, it's about healthcare, taxes, education, transportation, natural resources and all manner of issues with little to no impact on the people of Britain. We live in a globalised, interconnected world. If China shuts its borders to US imports, you better believe American companies, shareholders and workers are affected. Should US citizens therefore have a direct say in Chinese policies? No - Americans should demand that their own elected leaders address the issues with their Chinese counterparts. The British have a similar voice in US policies - through your own elected representatives who have any number of diplomatic, economic and military tools at their disposal. You vote for your leaders and we'll vote for ours. Your problem is with your leaders, not ours. Washington DC Real Americans aren't interested in your pansy-ass, tea-sipping opinions. If you want to save the world, begin with your own worthless corner of it. Texas, USA Thank you, thank you, thank you! What a wonderful idea! I am a US citizen who is scared to death that Bush and Klan will get back in. We need all the help we can get to ditch this bunch of maniacs. United States I just read a hilarious proposal to involve your readership in the upcoming US presidential election. At least, I'm hoping that it is genius satire. Nothing will do more to undermine the Democratic cause in Ohio than having patronising Brits wander around Clark County telling people how to vote. Just, for a second, imagine if the Washington Post sent folks from Ohio to do the same in Oxfordshire. I'm saying this as a Democrat, and as someone who has spent the last few years in the UK. That is, with all due respect. Please, please, be rational, and move slowly away from the self-defeating hubris. United States I enjoy reading your paper and agree with your politics, but this is really too much.Your plan, if carried out, will hurt the Bush opposition TERRIBLY. We cannot afford to have this associated with John Kerry or anyone else. It will be; the press is going in for a kill, days before the election. United States Your idea is superb and frankly, we need a little help over here right now. Ohio My dear, beloved Brits, I understand the Guardian is sponsoring a service where British citizens write to Americans to advise them on how to vote. Thank heavens! I was adrift in a sea of confusion and you are my beacon of hope! Feel free to respond to this email with your advice. Please keep in mind that I am something of an anglophile, so this is not confrontational. Please remember, too, that I am merely an American. That means I am not very bright. It means I have no culture or sense of history. It also means that I am barely literate, so please don't use big, fancy words. Set me straight, folks! Dayton, Ohio Hey England, Scotland and Wales, Mind your own business. We don't need weenie-spined Limeys meddling in our presidental election. If it wasn't for America, you'd all be speaking German. And if America would have had a president, then, of the likes of Kerry, you'd all be goose-stepping around Buckingham Palace. YOU ARE NOT WANTED!! Whether you want to support either party. BUTT OUT!!! United States Please be advised that I have forwarded this to the CIA and FBI. United States As an American who is very anti-Bush, I applaud your letter-writing campaign. I have read some of the letters that you published, and while I agree with most of the content, I also believe they will not be persuasive. This is because they are too aggressive and, as stated on your website, you don't know anything about these voters. If they happen to be leaning toward Bush, these letters will not put them off. New York THE AMERICAN TAXPAYERS HAVE SPENT TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS PROTECTING THE PEOPLES OF THE EU, AND WHAT DO WE GET IN RETURN. BETRAYAL, BETRAYAL, BETRAYAL. I HAVE BEEN TO YOUR COUNTRY, THE COUNTRY OF MY ANCESTORS, AND I KNOW WHY THEY LEFT. MAY YOU HAVE TO HAVE A TOOTH CAPPED. I UNDERSTAND IT TAKES AT LEAST 18 MONTHS FOR YOUR GREAT MEDICAL SERVICES TO GET AROUND TO YOU. HAVE A GREAT DAY. Harlan, Kentucky We all enjoyed this at work. Cheers. United States Thank you for taking such an active interest in the elections here in America. I appreciate what the Guardian is doing. Your effort to reach out to "swing states" and make a difference is commendable. I hope that many of your readers will take your challenge to help make a change in Washington by contacting voters. Clarke County, Georgia Keep your noses out of our business. As I recall we kicked your asses out of our country back in 1776. We do not require input from losers and idiots on who we vote for in our own country. Fuck off and die asshole!!!!! Knoxville, Iowa Gentle folks at the Guardian, In your plea to get your non-American readers to write to voters in Clark County, Iowa, you are correct that events in the US have had, and will have, effects on world events. For example, we have pulled your chestnuts out of the fire in two world wars that were occasioned by European diplomacy. Maybe you'd like a vote in which American president will oversee the next rescue. The next time you have elections in Great Britain, I shall endeavour to send names of your citizens to people in France, Iraq, India, the United Arab Emirates, Botswana, Pakistan, China and Argentina so that they may attempt to influence your election. It's only fair that everybody in the world should have a say in the selection of the prime minister. California Mind your own flipping business. United States Dear Guardian folks, While I empathise with your plight, this attempt to influence voters by sending letters from foreigners will have a negative effect on your ultimate goal. You will cause people to empathise with the president, not the other way around. People will read these letters and say, "John Le who? Never heard of him, but who is he to tell me who to vote for?" Ohio I am a registered voter in Clark County, Ohio, and am very much interested in hearing what our overseas friends have to say about our election. You are correct in assuming that this election in the US is the most important election in memory. The threat of terrorism is a very real threat, not just in our country, but all over the world. In this day and age there must be worldwide unity against these fanatical groups who just hate. Not just Americans, but all western civilisation. United States Thanks for running this initiative. It may be the only way I get to have an impact on the American election, despite the fact that I'm a registered American voter. See, I vote in New York, which is solidly Democratic. Due to the electoral college system, once a majority is secured in any state, subsequent votes don't really matter. Whether NY goes 51% or 99%, the impact on who actually wins is the same. So thanks for the opportunity to impact somebody else's vote, where it may really matter. Amsterdam, Holland Who in the hell do you think you are??? Well, I'll tell you, you're a bunch of meddling socialist pricks! Stay the hell out of our country and politics. And another thing, John Kerry is a worthless lying sack of crap so it doesn't surprise me that a socialist rag like yours would back him. I hope your cynical ploy blows up in your cowardly faces, you bunch of mealy-mouthed morons! United States I used to visit the UK every year. I love the history and culture of your country. But after I heard about your campaign to influence our elections, I've decided that neither myself, nor my family will ever visit again. I'm offended by your campaign and because of it, I'm remembering more of the negative aspects I've seen in the UK than the positive ones. Though I still love the castles! Detroit Dear British friends, I think you have an interesting idea to encourage international grassroots efforts, but I sincerely doubt most Springfielders are going to be influenced by letters from a country they probably can't even point to on a map. I wish you luck with your campaign, but I warn you that you're not likely to accomplish much. Dayton, Ohio You radical leftwingers are worse than the Taliban. I suggest you stand back and take a good hard look at yourselves. PS: When do you propose to add Michael Moore to your staff of lunatics? United States I suggest that if a particular reader of the Guardian would like to vote in America - would really like to influence the American election, say - that reader should move to America, become a citizen of the United States. Everyone is welcome here. Even the readers of the Guardian. But if you don't wish to be an American, to live in Ohio, for instance, and participate in the American political process, that is too bad. Perhaps there is something wrong with you. Perhaps it is your teeth. New York Go back to sipping your tea and leave our people alone. Ohio As an American who is afraid of the terrible ramifications if Bush is elected, I commend your efforts to try to get Britons involved. Although many Americans would be critical of British people "meddling" with our politics and elections, all the world will share in the disaster if Bush is re-elected. Many of us are very concerned. I teach young adults, most of whom have been very uninvolved in voting and politics. Many of them are going to vote. We need all the help we can get. United States As a US citizen, I want to advise you that you and anyone that participates in subverting the US presidential election can be criminally charged and perhaps even charged as spies. California Thank God above for you English! Just when I was beginning to despair at the thought of Bush being re-elected, you come along with a strategy to help us! Your invitation to your readership and rationale for offering it are provocative at the least, and laudable at best. Springfield, Ohio · www.guardian.co.uk/clarkcounty" Special report US elections 2004 Have your say 13.10.2004: How you can have a say in the US election 13.10.2004: A brief guide to Clark County 13.10.2004: Dear Clark County voter: three prominent Britons reach out 13.10.2004: How to contact the US media Printable version | Send it to a friend | Save story UP Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2004

Check www.coldfear.com for conditions info. The potential there is amazing - but I wouldn't expect to get more than one route a day in. I went there in late March last year during a freakish warm spell an everything was collapsing - but what I saw looked great, however - if your goal is mileage at trip to Ouray might be the way to go. Bring the pepper spray and/or 12-gauge if you are hitting the valley early or late in the season.

There is a really old establishment in Roslyn - brick construction, huge imported bar, pool tables, stage, and running water-in-gutter type spittoon at the base of the bar that serves up a wicked pot-roast special on Sunday nights. The burgers are also pretty sweet. Killer ambience and good food. Plus you can meet and make peace with the slednecks that congregate there in winter...

More good reading for the people whose political thinking revolves around something more substantial than jingoistic retardisms here: http://www.foreignaffairs.org/ Another worthwhile read: http://www.resort.com/~prime8/Orwell/patee.htm

Hey Will: Check out this article: New York Review of Books One of the few sober, coherent left-of center musings on America's place in the world I've read in ages. Best quote: "Both books are dreadful. Anyone old enough to remember the revolutionary rhetoric of the Seventies will recognize the style, notwithstanding the postmodern updating. Negri, who spent many years in prison for his part in the homicidal radicalism of Italy's Lead Years, has learned nothing and forgotten nothing (Hardt is presumably too young to have known anything in the first place). There are no subjects in these books: just structures, processes, and "de-centered" forces and "encounters." The proposition—to flatter more than nine hundred pages of flaccid, inept prose—is that the "multitude" will be brought together by the workings of "empire" and (with the familiar help of some cleansing violence) will rise up and break its shackles: Empire...by colonizing and interconnecting more areas of human life ever more deeply, has actually created the possibility for democracy of a sort never before seen. Brought together in a multinoded commons [sic] of resistance, different groups combine and recombine in fluid new matrices of resistance. This is globalization for the politically challenged. In place of the boring old class struggle we have the voracious imperial nexus now facing a challenger of its own creation, the de-centered multitudinous commonality: Alien versus Predator. Through his American dummy, Negri is ventriloquizing a twenty-first-century paraphrase of Marxist theories of imperialism popularized by Rosa Luxemburg and Lenin at the end of the nineteenth. The originals were much better written and distinctly more poli-tically threatening, since they had some purchase upon reality.. With the American left reading Multitude, Dick Cheney can sleep easy " The author fades a bit while repeating his vows of solidarity with the tribe in the last paragraph or two, but the contrast between the depth of this analysis and the usual dreary incantation of Mooreisms is pretty striking.

Just wondering how many people on this site that use the term "neocon" know the provenance of the word and the nature of the ideological background that it implies. I would be surprised if over 25% could correctly differentiate between the essential nature of conservatism versus neoconservativism.....

Interesting sidenote - quite apart from the ethics of the route itself - is the fact that when I went out there on a rainy day to take a look at the trail and the base of the route for myself there was a considerable pile of trash in the pull-out nearest the route, with a full on debris field extending well beyond the road and into the forest. Its amazing that with all of the people who purport to be outraged about this foul intrusion into the pristine wilds that abound in close proximity to the Middle Fork Road, and have gone in to survey the damage themselves, that this pile of trash had persisted for so long. I would have thought that this rubbish heap would have been gone within seconds of the ALPS et al getting out of their cars. However, despite months of controversy, gnashing of teeth, etc - it seems that none of the impassioned wilderness advocates could stir themselves to undertake the simple task of picking up the obvious pile of trash en route to the trail that leads to the route - which was quite a bit more conspicuous than the trail itself. Or - not that many people who are spewing about the trail or the route have ever actually seen either in person. In any event - I hiked the trail, headed for the base, and saw one bolt after a few minutes of looking. If I wasn't a climber (1) I would have never even noticed the trail as I was driving by if I hadn't set the odometer - and it took a couple of passes to find it when I was looking for it (2) if I had been a hiker I never ever would have even bothered to follow such a trail for any reason whatsoever (3) If some accident of fate had lead me to stray onto the base of the route I would not have even noticed the said bolt and (4) there appeared to be at least a square kilometer, if not more, bolt free terrain on the West Peak of Garfield, and at least a couple of square miles of bolt-free terrain on the other peaks (5) I noticed a massive linear swath of forest had been cleared at the base of the mountain. It was at least 30 feet wide and looked as though the cartesian devastation that it wrought upon the forest continued for miles and miles. Then I realized that it was - the road that everyone drives to the base of the route, either to climb it, or to bemoan its existence. Then I picked up about 60 pounds of sopping wet trash that had been there for at least a few months and drove away. I am of course comparing apples to oranges here, and this is not to dismiss the concerns about rap-bolting in the mountains, but I would suggest that a sense of perspective is in order. If you are really concerned about preserving the rock and the integrity of wild areas in Washington, I believe there is a project afoot that will remove several hundred million metric tons of it from the flanks of Mt. Cashmere in the very near future.

Space Needle.

Questions - answer any or none as you see fit. 1) What specific policy goals would such a group articulate? 2) What specific ends do you hope to achieve? Where? 3) What leads you to believe that a majority of climbers are not represented by the stance of the Access Fund and the WCC? 4) What - exactly - is the nature of the help that the ALPS and the forest service would welcome, and who - specifically - did you speak with on each of these occaisions when they stated that they would welcome the sort of help that you think that a group composed of you and other like minded climbers could provide. If you'd be kind enough to fill in some of the blanks I'll let you know what I think of such a group and your motivations for striving to create it.

I support the work that Dane and others did in removing the artificial hold bolted onto the rock, and the bolts next to protectable cracks. In the case of the bolts next to gear placements in particular, it seems that in this case it seems clear that the two conditions that most climbers require for exceptions to the "no bolts next to gear placements" rule were not present in that (1) they did not have the consent of the FA, and (2) gear placements are not not uncommon enough to be totally out of character with the crag. I am not sure how the second condition will jive with the sensibilities of the more vehement opponents of bolting on this board, but in practice a bolt next to a feature that might take gear amidst a line that involves 100 feet of otherwise unprotectable face climbing, at a crag that features nearly all bolted lines, is just not something that most reasonable climbers are going to get upset about - and even those that do get upset probably make the reasonable conclusion that in a world where you have to pick your battles, it would be wise to save the ammo for more significant fights. Returning to this particular fight, I get the sense that neither Dane nor the people installing the bolts are going to allow the other to have the final say, and that we are on our way to the eventual "winner" achieving a pyrrhic victory in which access is lost, the rock is trashed, and climbers earn themselves a bad name in the eyes of land managers across the state. The only way out that I can see is for the two sides of the dispute to turn the matter over to a third party, and accept the compromise that the said party comes up with after hearing the arguments from both sides. This might even take the form of a route-by-route judgement. No one will come out of such a process as the unanimous winner, but that seems a hell of a lot better than the likely outcome of the current stalemate, in which everyone comes out a loser.

Pretty hillarious. Loved the the theme song.

I know everyone is aware of the situation involving the non-felons who were incorrectly barred from voting, in part because the firm that the state contracted to purge the voter rolls of felons refused to use race as factor in establishing the identity of those they purged, but weren't there a few thousand felons who were able to vote in that election? The record seems to indicate that a number of counties were aware of the problems with validating the identities of the felons and, lacking a complete resolution of the problem, decided to ignore the lists altogether. Estimates are that a few thousand felons who should have been prohibited from voting were able to as a result of that choice. All things being equal, I suppose I would rather have 10 felons vote and no nonfelons excluded from excercising their right than the other way around, but it does strike me as odd that there was no popular outrage about this amongst the denizens of the Left. The most likely explanation for this curious omission is that Democrats have concluded that convicts are much more likely to vote for their candidates, and any snafu that permits them to vote in states where they are specifically prohibited from doing so will work in their favor. I never thought I would see the day when politics would involve groups hankering for the convict vote - at least not in public - but these are strange times.

Cool Bob.

I was on the Shuksan in early November last year at the end of one of the hottest, driest summers on record and the navigation was trivial. The only hazard I can see is weak, shallow bridges covering relatively small crevasses. Last year there was really no snow-cover whatsoever, and this just wasn't a problem.