tvashtarkatena

New pics up in original posting.

Your turn, Billcoe. I love Christmas. Good times!

Voted best not by a hard man? Don't sell yourself short, buddy, although I'm certainly not in the Hall of Fame league, either.

Wow. If that joke wasn't obvious enough....

Kidnap, torture and rape. Please fill out this HR complaint form, ma'am. Here's a free company pen. This is what happens when you do not hold private contractors to the same legal standards as uniformed personnel, and then throw an opaque 'national security' blanket over them. No accountability. If this were an isolated incident, it would be one thing. According to several independent reports, including one by the International Committee of the Red Cross, it is anything but.

I've never quoted my dad on this forum. We have a philosophical difference. I don't bat for either team, the 'team' idea is the route of the problem. In this new age of resource depletion and global climate change, like it or not, we're all one big team now, and we'd better figure out how that's going to work or we're all fucked. Culturally, Iran is as close to the U.S. as a Middle Eastern country gets. We've both squandered that relationship in recent years; it's time to re-establish it. Regarding N. Korea, I'd say Chinese dissatisfaction had more to do with Kim's acquiescence than our military presence, which is really a trip wire, but the influence of that presence is duly noted. As always, I'd suggest anyone interested in the cost of the Vietnam war on the U.S. economy do their own research and draw their own conclusions. I've done it before; don't want to spend the time to do it again. It's a piece of widely accepted economic history.

There was a time, long ago, when the well appointed alpinist didn't resemble a NASCAR racer. A time before "The North Face" came to mean "card me", "Patagonia" came to mean "Can I give you my Windemere card?", and "LoweAlpine" came to mean "I couldn't afford the Patagonia". A simpler time, before GTX, Stealth C4, and Modest Mouse. A time when climbing required not much more than a thrift store and a sewing machine. I now present Runway of the HardMen: Don in your basic blue down jacket, boots, and gaitors, accessorized with cabby cap, a Woodbine, and a flask, with Chris echoing. Bring back Basic! RR, too, had a thing for jaunty headgear Whatever happened to the sweater? Gaston lived his motto like few others: "The bigger the hair, the closer to God." Can you get a German to keep his clothes on? Herman a half a century before his time in patched cargos. Fred sporting the "I just escaped from a gulag" look, with nickers you could bivvy in. From prisoner to cop: Fred was, and still is, a full spectrum dresser, never to be assimilated. Yvon, before his 'form fitting' period. Lou looking strong in the primaries. King of Cotton: The Bad Boy of Big breaks all the rules with his apre-ascent wear, still readily available at a Goodwill near you. Fred pays homage to Gaston and Lou in his latest signature sweater, which nevers fails to draw a comment or two from Canadian waitresses. No accessorizing required Tenzing in aviators and Sir Edmund in classic glacier goggles and bomber style earmuffs George Mallory, best dressed of them all:

One more thing that hasn't been mentioned. Hypoglycemic people tend to get a little 'scratchy', or bitchy, as we say in the AR biz. Why put your partner through that?

Strong work. Beautiful spot.

Bullseye. With the singular exception of WWII, when were were the only economy left standing, wars are a get rich quick scheme for a slice of the economy at the expense of the majority of the economy. In addition to much of the products made being destroyed, much of the production tooling, expertise, etc. that normally evolves continuously in the commercial world is thrown into the trash bin after the conflict is over. Pay a few Pauls now; a lot of Peters pay later.

Lillooet. Used to be a nice small town in the middle of inter-mountain nowhere. I just hate what's happened to the place.

Clarification: I never posited a cause for the teetering American economy. What is more relevant in this discussion is the affect a new war, a probably several new wars, would have on the U.S. debt burden, which is a major determinant for the availability of credit, which is a major determinant for economic health. Military spending has been the most significant factor in increasing our debt burden. It is squarely in the center of our economic woes. Regarding the highly disputed Iranian operatives in Iraq: the Kurds, with our blessing and probable material support, have been killing Iranians on Iranian territory for well over a decade now. As insulting as it may be, that seems like a minor game of tit for tat better negotiated away than a justification for global conflagration. The U.S. needs to take it's Zero Tolerance stick out of it's ass and do the following: Accept that Hamas will need to be part of any Palestinian/Israeli peace negotations. This means that the counterproductive 'terrorist organization' list goes away in the face of modern day reality. Resolving this is central to any regional stability. Begin several party talks with the Iranians included to establish a regional plan for a return to stability and figure out what the Iranians want in exchange for a pledge to keep their nuclear program on ice. The reality is that Iran will have a major influence over it's Iraqi neighbors long after we're gone. We're going to need to accept that reality, because there's really nothing we can do about it. Disengage from the middle eastern oil tit as quickly as possible. If this means reducing military spending, and I don't see how it will not, so be it. The mullahs in Iran may be there for some time to come, but I'm-a-dinner-jacket and his hard line buddies, who have fallen out of favor with even the Holy Ones, will probably not be in a job much longer. This presents a political opportunity. The Iranians understand our military threat. OK, fine. It's now time for the U.S. to capitalize on the negotiating clout it's gained with that threat, preferably before our loony toon president leaves office and the opportunity is missed. Will that happen? Probably not. With the one notable exception of N. Korea, Bush has proven himself time and time again unable to play checkers, nevermind chess.

There, that's better:

I think the ad agency responsible was just old school:

25-ML-56362-ML-

debutcrombies. Where is the thing gonna be, anyway? That frathole Dante's, right? I'll have to go out and get a hoody.

That's the only reason I have a social life beyond chasing small game with a stick.

Not to worry. He's been working out with the ViceGripper.

The necks were far too hairy back then. Some still are.

Canada's got the goods alpine-wise, and right in our back yard. It's the greatest backcountry paradise in the world. The alternative for us northwesterners is to spring for a plane ticket; usually the much more expensive and complicated option. Having just got back from the great north, we found that the tab for a lowball road trip to climb in Canada is still as cheap or cheaper than the same trip would be in the U.S.

No conflict is inevitable. The Iranians the U.S. share some important mutual interests: with stability in the Middle East on top of the list. In addition, the Iranian people are as fed up with their moronic leadership as we are with ours. Finally, it seems that we might have another opportunity to calm the Israeli Palestinian tensions down a bit; which would provide calmer atmosphere for productive negotiations. This is an opportunity for direct dialogue between the U.S. and Iran; the most effective formula for reducing tensions and establishing a mutual way forward. Our overt threats to Iran and the defiant responses of their leadership can only lead us towards, not away, from direct confrontation, nuclear or otherwise. Given that the U.S. invasion of Iraq has only destabilized the region further and provided a vast playground for bomb makers, and that our economy is teetering, it seems like a conflagration in the region would not be anyone's interests. There will be no "OK, we beat up the bad guy and now things are all better", as our administration seems to suggest. Considering their track record so far, it should come as no surprise that they're off target on this one as well. Detractors from this approach need only look to N. Korea; an even more intractable and culturally alien nation than Iran. Personally, I'm far more worried about the much greater likelyhood that the U.S. will use tactical nukes unilaterally and set an extremely dangerous precedent than about Iran's nuclear program. When you scan the horizon for proven belligerants armed to the teeth with nukes, we're squarely on the top of the heap. Returning to international nuclear disarmament rather than the development of more offensive tactical nukes and the provocation that comes with that would make me feel alot better about our future prospects for avoiding nuclear conflict in the future.

Might I suggest rolling a small turd around in your mouth, Dru. Not necessarily only during ketosis, mind you.

Here's some tips from adventure racing. On a week long race, ketosis is not an option. It shouldn't be on long climbs, either. Your body is EXTREMELY inefficient in that mode, and you risk injury due to clumsiness, eroded judgement, etc: Take in 150 to 300 calories per hour during heavy exertion. The key to this is to have food available to eat as you move. This is pretty easy; waist pouches, pockets, etc. Some racers duct tape food all over their mountain bikes. Going without food for long periods of time is just poor planning. "regular" foods are best (this is advice from the top adventure racers in the world): ie. sandwiches and the like. Everybody's got their own preferences...here's what works for me: sandwiches, Landjaegers/salami/etc, bread (squished up into bread balls in my case), various bars, the less sugary the better, nuts, raisins, burritos (excellent), Essential sandwiches.... Eat enough protein. This is one of the number one mistake made in endurance sports. Salami/landjaeger/pre-cooked bacon in a baggy, whatever Gu doesn't work for me; it's basically sugar, so it jacks me up and lets me down, but it works for some people. It might be good to carry for that end of day emergency shot. Take electrolyte pills on longer or hotter trips; 1 per hour. If you experience any cramping, take 2 per hour. Drink every 15 minutes in warmer weather. Again, a camelbak or water bottles toe-clip strapped to your pack's chest straps (my preferred method) or waist belt keeps you hydrated. Not taking enough food to 'save weight' will result in arriving back at the car later than if you kept yourself fit every time. It's a losing equation.

So, in other words, our policy should be to give the impression to the international community that we will maim and kill our detainees; that we have become, in fact, the new Gestapo. Um...no thanks. What an utter disgrace to everything we supposedly stand for that would be. There was a generation of Americans who gave a whole lot of blood to fight that kind of tyranny. They deserve better than this. Not to mention that would we do to our enemies in captivity in this war will be done, with complete justification, to our captured soldiers in every war from now now.

If you go there, by definition, you're a monster, regardless of your justification. Most people on this planet that have committed similar atrocities having loving families, doggies, and kitties waiting for them at home.