Bogen

So the flags are popish, or what?

Flags are at half mast, I don't think they were yesterday.

Creationism relies on the existance of miracles. The scientific method depends upon the non-existance of miracles. Creationism is not a theory, it's a belief. Evolution of complex systems is difficult, even for many well-educated people to grasp. (see above reference to that well-known goober, Einstein) Faced with statements about its best just to smile and nod. You'll never communicate on a meaningful level with people like that.

Anyone read finnish? link Some customers of mine have a nephew on this trip, they were trying to tell me that this will be the most ever people to the summit via that particular route, but they couldn't tell me more. Now, all I know about himalayan climbing is what Krakauer tells me, but doesn't that sound strange?

Most likely true. I love scree skiing, it's my favorite part. Has anyone had any experience with this eVent or XCR fabrics in regards to real durability? If you have to take the jacket off when its not raining, why not take a lighter, designated rain jacket?

Haha. I went to check the last few articles I read that lead me to think "outside" was doing better lately. Turns out it was "Explore" magazine I was thinking of.

Just say no to gore-tex. Take a light set of rain gear, or cheap nylon and treat generously with nikwax before leaving. Gore-tex is indeed waterproof when it's raining, and is breathable when it isn't raining. It's not breathable enough to be useful during aerobic activity. Goretex is heavy as well, and for the extra weight you may as well stick to a proper layering system, and the flexibility it affords. The new ultralight wpb fabric is interesting, but seems expensive for something that's likely gonna be torn to shreds the first time I slide down a scree slope.

My neighbor is a hard-working 72 year old portugese shoemaker, who repairs my mountaineering boots from time to time. On the subject of mountains, he mentioned that he was particularly strong at altitude. As an example, he mentioned that he was not even breathing hard when he visited Macchu Picchu at 39,000 feet. I attempted to correct him, but he insisted that the tour guide said they were at 39,000 feet. I said "Hey, Everest is the tallest mountain in the world, and it's only 29,000 feet." He responded, "Well, that's mountains, this is a city, not a mountain."

There are an awful lot of cosmo-readers getting into climbing these days, y'all better get used to it! Anyway, I didn't actually read the thing, so if it does suck that bad, I retract my snarkiness.

Hmm, no-one perusing this site would get the impression that this is a male dominated sport... There are probably alot of women who will be inspired by this article, and rightly so. Outside magazine seems to have had alot of good stuff going on lately, maybe I'll actually buy one.

I've been to GP lately. I don't doubt the claim.

Geez, I thought that this story was rather well reported. The smiling-comagirl footage was given to the media by the parents, who took great pains and hours of footage to get it. I think the media was trying to avoid being manipulated by the schindlers, and that's why they changed the image. Maybe there is no way to report a story without looking like you are choosing sides. Anyone with journalism experience?

What image could you show and stay neutral? Smiling coma victim or non-responsive coma victim? Not that I'd make a habit of defending the news media... Anyway, let's make a point of not mourning. Terri died quite a while ago.

They don't eat the meat, they eat the blubber. And they do take some of it.

Is that better or worse than what you make your money for?

Saw it on the news this morn.

That's what they taught me in Univ. Wouldn't surprise me to find that things have changed.

That is pretty cool. I understand that panasonic is releasing a methanol fuel cell for laptops next year that should effectively quadruple operating time. Smaller fuel cells for handheld phones are still a few years away.

Stemalot and I went to Squamish on Good Friday, and it was good! We climbed exasperator, Stemalot led in one pitch, then we traversed into the top of peasant's route and finished with a pitch above that to the base of Zorro's last ride, then traversed over and rappelled below cruel shoes. We had set out for cruel shoes originally, but there was pretty big wet streak down it so we wussed out. Here is Stemalot, demonstrating the mystical technique of the invisible stem. In the afternoon, we went up in the bluffs and Stemalot led "Partners in Crime" 11a very solidly despite rather cold, damp conditions. Here is the obligatory butt shot.

Joe told me that, too. Is that wrong?

Yeah, I can't find it. A search through the few news sites I frequent reveals quite a few hits though. The article I read was concerning the ban on canadian cow imports. Bush said that he would veto the ban if it came across his desk, and that the ban was not in keeping with his desire for science-based public policy. Bush nominated both Johnson as head of the EPA and Crawford as commisionner to the US FDA based on their committment to science based policy making. Not saying it makes the world a better place, or even that it isn't some political double-speak. At least they are talking about rational governance.

Can't find the original article I read, but here's a start: http://www.world-grain.com/feature_stories.asp?ArticleID=73505

A Burmese friend of mine had his wife in the hospital to get her appendix removed last night. This morning she was complaing of a sore throat, and my friend says "see, now you know what they were doing while you were unconcious. Open your mouth, let me see if they stitched it or glued it." To which the wife laughed and laughed... WTF? Apparently a well-known Burmese joke: A man thinks that his wife is too loose, and so he hires a guy to come and stitch her up partially so she'll be tight again. After some time in the room, the guy rushes out and leaves without saying a thing, doesn't even want to be payed. The husband goes in to see what's up, and cries "That bastard! I asked him to stitch it, not glue it!" Burmese people are weird.

A few years ago, as I was doing my Zoology degree at the U of Alberta, these topics were quite in vogue. Particularly of interest to this current discussion were the passionate works of several labs regarding the evils of fragmented ecosystems (clear cuts.) The theory itself was, and is very sensible, but you would never have known it to speak to the people at the head of this research. Attending talks given on the subject was frustrating as hell - full of poor science with no room for intelligent critical questioning. I can recall being shouted down and talked over during after lecture question period on several occasions. It was the same sort of passion for truth without substance or fact that I encountered at the "creation science" lectures that I attended. This is not to say that their concerns are not valid. But it was interesting to me years later to figure out why the "fragmented ecosystem" issue was so important. You see, I too grew up hunting and trapping in northern Alberta. I am a product of, and part of that ecosystem. I have been to High Prairie, which is nothing compared to the huge tracts of forest harvested near High Level several hundred kilometers to the north. The largest pile of wood in the world can be seen every winter in High Level, and the growing poplar crop alone stretches to the horizon even when viewed from a helicopter. I also went to Faro, YK once, to see what was then touted as the largest strip mine in the world. The thing is, to see this evidence of man's destructive power, you have to drive or fly past alot of uninhabited, wild boreal forest. By the time you get there, these great works of man seem ridiculously insignificant. Thus the emphasis in the eighties was placed on the impact of fragmanted ecosystem on local fauna. And sure enough, if you look hard enough, the biodiversity changes in an area if you cut down the trees. Never did hear a reasonable validation for these concerns, only that the poor animals have rights too. The arguement of conserving wild lands for our children doesn't hold much weight in Canada, at least not to any one who has travelled the humbling breadth of it. California may be a different story, and rightfully so, though I was amazed at the volume of "wild lands that I saw there when I visited. The point of essay starting this thread seems to be the disparity between consumption and conservation, particulatly by Californians. Of course Americans consume alot. They also produce alot. What do they produce that is of value to the world, that can possibly justify this over-consumption of black gook inside the planet, or all that oriented strand board? An interesting question that deserves more than a passing thought, in my opinion. For the record, oriented strand board is made from faster growing softwood's. Like poplar. The poplar crop around High Level, planted and maintained by the forest companies on land that is of absolutely no other arable use, actually has higher faunal biodiversity than wild boreal forest in the region. It also removes far more carbon from the atmosphere than old growth wild forest, if you care about such things. I am pleased to see that your president is reported to be a staunch supporter of "science-based policy making." I read that the other day and felt a surge of optimism such as I haven't felt in many years. Don't forget, though, that scientists are not immune from "emotion-based policy making." Buy Canadian Beef. And lumber. We don't mind, really.

Yeah, whatever. Buy more wood, and while your at it, are you sure you're getting enough beef?