fear_and_greed

With reports circulating about his imminent demise, what is the speculation out there on the future of Cuba? Will Washington finally be rid of the thorn in its side? Will little bro Raul keep control or will Cuba descend into chaos and lynchings. Does Bush have a plan to stabilze it or will he make the entire island a prison for malcontents? Will the bottom drop out of the collectors market in the US for 1950 and 60's cars?

More chins in that place than a chinese phonebook.

There was probably 4-6 ft at the bottom, 6-8 ft midway and higher. If you're thinking about coming up, choose a few mid week days so the hut won't be overcrowded. When we arrived 6 pm on Friday there were already 11 vehicles parked at the winter route lot. We turned around and stayed at the hotel in Mt.Currie ( at the T-junction). Much better than 30+ people in the hut.

It was up on Mt. Matier this weekend. My buddy practiced some self arrest since skiing on that angle of wind sculpted plastic would have been an invitation for disaster.

ffs2Wyz30Zk wH15z1BQNL0 Found some good snow up high this weekend.

Was B/C sking this weekend and saw maybe 40 other people up there. Besides my partner and myself no one else had Avalungs. I saw probes, shovels and beacons but not something that will give you some extra minutes. Crazy.

Worlds most dangerous man is not wasting any time. Report: U.S. Troops Raid Iranian Consulate in Iraq http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/11/AR2007011100427.html

“Where mistakes have been made, the responsibility rests with me,” said Mr. Bush, who spoke from the White House residence library and called the situation in Iraq “unacceptable.” You should resign or be impeached then for gross incompetence.“It is clear that we need to change our strategy,” he said. But, but you boldly trumpeted mission accomplished years ago and as recently as OCT.25 said you’re winning. Quit lying. “Failure in Iraq would be a disaster for the United States”. And you think the current state of affairs is not a disaster? Idiot. “America's commitment is not open-ended,” he said. “ Sooo, your final solution IS to cut and run after all.“Now is the time to act.... Only the Iraqis can end the sectarian violence and secure their people.” Good thing you waited until more than 3000 US soldiers and countless Iraqi civilians are dead and heaped untold misery on their families before you decided to act. You are a war criminal.Stepping back now, as most Americans and U.S. Democrats are demanding, would force the Iraqi government to collapse( it isn’t?) and tear the country apart( oh yes, it is surely united at the moment isn’t it), said Mr. Bush, resulting in “mass killings on an unimaginable scale.” I imagine the families of the dozens of dead found on the streets at dawn every morning can. “The most realistic way to protect the American people is to provide a hopeful alternative to the hateful ideology of the enemy by advancing liberty across a troubled region.” I submit that your hateful ideology has killed more innocents, sowed more seeds of discontent towards America than ever before. After you’ve finished bankrupting America, will anyone care that they’ve advanced liberty to a country on the other side of the world?The President also has rejected the key idea of direct talks with Iran and Syria to help quell the violence that hit a two-year high in December. Instead, he called for increased operations against them. “These two regimes are allowing terrorists and insurgents to use their territory to move in and out of Iraq,” said Mr. Bush.“We will interrupt the flow of support from Iran and Syria. And we will seek out and destroy the networks providing advanced weaponry and training to our enemies in Iraq.” Jesus fucking christ. You war mongering asshole . I suppose you’re going to invade two more countries now in the name of freedom, democracy and the American way. You are going to end up starting World War 3.

I went to all organic food about 5 years ago and feel better for it. In addition to not eating anything that comes in a box, or manufactured by multinational companies, I read the labels very carefully. Basically if I can't pronunce the ingredient I dont want to eat it. Conventional skin cream, shampoo, deodorants and toothpaste also have a myriad of known carcinogens in them and should be avoided. I also do a daily detoxification program by taking concentrated "greens" that helps to eliminate any junk that gets through. If you're unlucky enough to have chlorine in your tap water, every time you take a hot shower you get to breath in chlorine vapor. Super toxic. I believe over the course of many years all this chemical ingestion cannot be good for you and builds up to a point that cancers are created. Of course after all this I could get run over by a bus tomorrow and it wouldn't matter.... Oh yeah, don't cook in non-stick or aluminum pans either!

"How to shit in the Woods" by Chapp Dass "Wilderness Amputations" by Buster Bloodvessel "Snow cave Construction" by Pop Sickle

Had big plans for climbing, skiing etc. during the holidays and so far events have conspired against me in such a way so that in the past 11 days I haven't so much as put on a mitten. The original objective was an attempt to climb Mt. Robson via the Kain face. Or if the weather was unfavourable north, attempt Mt.Assiniboine down south. Failing that a week of ice climbing in Canmore. Had trained and planned for several months for this one. My Buddy Jason flew up from San Fran into Calgary and met my other buddy Josh. The idea was for them to bond for a couple of days until I got there from Vancouver. Well when I arrived you could cut the tension in the air with a knife. The atmosphere was toxic even though when I've climbed with them seperately they were very easy going. About this time I started to get very sick with the head cold from hell. Super congested and buckets of snot flowing. So Jason and I decide to get back to Vancouver and hook up with BackCountryPunk and A-Ron. A ski trip around the Garabaldi Neve with as many peaks as we could bag sounded like a great idea. I still didn't feel quite up to it though by that time and decided to meet them 4 days hence and we'd try the east ridge on Matier and area. So yesterday I waited at the appointed spot at the appointed time until 9PM. No one showed. Did they fall into a crevasse, did an avalanche get them, are they lost/hurt? I left a note on the car and left for home. Oh yeah during my wait I got an attack of dysentary or something because I couldn't stop shitting. Anyway, I decided if I didn't hear from them by noon, I was going to call for search and rescue. ABout 10 a.m. "Officer Jay" called saying my note was found with my number on it. At first I thought it was Jason being a smart ass and fucking about. Given the potential for a serious situation to develope out of this, I wasn't too happy if i was being played with and was pretty rude to the "cop". He said to call him back if I didn't believe he was for real. I did but still didn't believe it until I heard a radio squawking in the background. I gave him the trip details and the level of preparedness of the guys and assorted info. I figured their food and fuel would be finished today and wouldn't really be worried until tomorrow if they hadn't checked in. As I sat and speculated the phone rang again. It was Officer Jay saying they had made contact and were on they way out, tired no doubt. Great relief. Next weeek, the real world starts again. Maybe I should go night skiing at the local hill just to get some turns in .

We are a group of 5 booked for April 1st week looking for 1 or 2 more. My buddy did it last year same time, long days, awesome snow, great food and service. The guide throws in an avy course as well. Send me a PM if interested.

This guy and ARC really should get hooked up. What a team they'd make on Thermogenius.

Trip: Johnson Canyopn, Alberta - Date: 12/22/2006 Trip Report: Posted photos on my blog http://hydrogenplusstupidity.blogspot.com/ click on photos to enlarge them

With your confused president apparently dismissing the Iraq Study Groups recommendations of withdrawl in favour of adding more troops, http://www.armytimes.com/story.php?f=1-292925-2435913.php I can only see them coming from reinstituting the draft. If you don't want to take part in the illegal occupation and expose yourself to the horrors of war then come to the draft dodgers country of choice, Canada. Here's a few tidbits to help you out. Make one of your first trips to a Tim Hortons or "Timmys" as the locals call it. Great donuts and not a place where the MP's will look for you. When you buy groceries they will ask you "paper or plastic" which is not for a form of payment but which type of shopping bag you would prefer. A bag is also another name for a sack. Not everyone up here says "eh" or is a "hoser" but after you meet a few hosers you will know how to insert eh after every sentence. The only mainstream sport that matters is hockey. Baseball doesn't exist although many people wear basball hats. Nobody has a gun so don't bring yours. Less time is spent discussing politics because in the end the west always gets screwed anyway. Having sex with farm animals is not viewed as appropriate behaviour here.

......rubbed the belly of his personal baby jesus. Now it was time to shake off those demons once and for all. This is the spot that Charlie died he thought as he twisted an ice screw in. The solid placement was as reassuring to him as his big brothers infectious laughter. A snaking trail of spindrift enveloped him from far above the coulouir. Damn it man, get moving! The first rays of sun are starting to probe the upper reaches of the 2000m face. As he planted his ice tool and began to move higher, there was a tremendous roar from above as......

On your 1000th post you should get a snaffle enema

For the last few days in here it's like somebody broke into my house, wore my clothes around and slept in my bed. Either that or it's like I can hear what everyone is thinking. Instantly. Right down to the smallest driplet of shit emanating from their festering gobs. The jesus freaks pushed me over the edge though. Please shoot me now.

Because in the few moments we spend in the risk zone, we live more than most people do in their entire, pitiful, endless-loop-let's-rewind-the-tape and do it again- tomorrow-next week/month/year exsistences.

As one of dubya' staunchest supporters of this quagmire that now threatens to engulf an entire region, you have had ample time in which to enlist into your favourite branch of the military and request immediate deployment to Iraq. If you're too old to be accepted then you should also feel just as committed to sending your children and or granchildren over to fight your "just" war.

Baker - Hamilton quote - "The United States has made a massive commitment to the future of Iraq in both blood and treasure. As of December 2006, nearly 2,900 Americans have lost their lives serving in Iraq. Another 21,000 Americans have been wounded, many severely. To date, the United States has spent roughly $400 billion on the Iraq War, and costs are running about $8 billion per month . In addition, the United States must expect significant “tail costs” to come. Caring for veterans and replacing lost equipment will run into the hundreds of billions of dollars. Estimates run as high as $2 trillion for the final cost of the U.S. involvement in Iraq. Despite a massive effort, stability in Iraq remains elusive and the situation is deteriorating. "The Iraqi government cannot now govern, sustain, and defend itself without the support of the United States. Iraqis have not been convinced that they must take responsibility for their own future. Iraq’s neighbors and much of the international community have not been persuaded to play an active and constructive role in supporting Iraq. The ability of the United States to shape outcomes is diminishing. Time is running out." The dream of burka less females throwing figs at the American liberator tank crews must now be finally over. At this point it is plain to see for everyone including dubya. But how to extricate yourselves from this quagmire? The new Baker - Hamilton report lays out many points, but are they realistic? Direct talks with Iran and Syria. Direct talks with the Axis of Evil?? You've got to be kidding! After years of references to these countries as "rouge nations", "terrorist states" and the like, that's really quite laughable. They have absolutely nothing to gain from helping Iraq. Why do you think that they are helping destabilize it? After you pull out they will swoop in for the biggest land grab since the wild west. More oil for them. Israel - Palestine peace plan. News flash guys - just like the Sunnis and Shites, they've been killing each other for 1000's of years. You really think some more dialogue will erase all the personal hatred aginst the other group? What would you do if Canada suddenly appropriated Washington state and kicked you out to Oregon or worse North Dakota? Try and kill every motherfucking canuk I bet. Especially if your family has been killed or maimed. Well you can blame the Brits for stating this one. Esteem for America is windling. I submit to you that it can't go much lower. Most of you guys that I've met are pleasant enough. But the attitude of your government leaves much to be desired. Most other countries interact and put up with you for their own selfish interests. In many parts of the world you are reviled and hated. I can't name another country that suffers the same effect.. I'm not saying Canada is perfect but we don't go sticking our noses where we don't belong (although I strongly diagree to our involvent in Afganistan) or give pompous UN speeches that dare "you're either with us or against us". For the money that has been wasted in Iraq, massive improvements in education, alternative energy research and infrastrucure could have been underway.

Sung to the Beverly Hillbillies tune; This is a story about a sprayer named Arc Of his climbin’ prowess, he kept us in the dark Then one day he was trading for a stove And poor old Fos was left out in the cold He would boast and brag and blow us all away The spray boards were full ‘cuz we all had lots to say Said he was on his way up Thermogenesis And up on the summit he was gonna take a real big piss Well it turns out he takes to livin’ in a car With no job, friends or family you know he ain’t goin far And by chance when someone discovers who he are He quickly changes over to a different avatar In his opinion he thought he was “it” Turns out he is a steaming pile of shit But really he’s the biggest fool I ever did saw I hope he just moves back to his pony in Enumclaw

Iran has to have their nukes to guarantee their own safety and future existence. Without it their country will resemble that smoking burnt out hulk of a country Iraq. More wars in the future will be fought over dwindling oil supplies. How ironic it is to threaten Iran with nuclear bombing just because they want to develop their own. I wouldn't put anything past W though.

#1 - Stewart Copeland #2 - Who cares?

Anyone out there have a scumbag avatar that ARC can update to?