dberdinka

Republican Sen. Richard Shelby, speaking on ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Friday morning, “It’s probably $500 [billion] to a trillion dollars, and that’s going to visit the taxpayers sooner or later,” he said. “It’s either going to be a debt charged to all of us or to all our children.” Now really who's going to take on that debt? The 60 year old in the $700,000 house with a power boat down at the harbor or the two year old in diapers? Our country is sick.

I work in insurance so I actual have some moderate understadning of what happened to AIG. And I agree that yes money will be made, or at leats not lost, on the AIG deal. But thats because they suffered a liquidity not a solvency issue. Their (vast) assests are tied up as RBC (risk based capital) in all the traditional insurance products they write. They couldn't pull that out in time (though NY was going to let them pull some) to cover their CDS costs. I don't believe that the investment banks are suffering from liquidity issues alone. If they sold their securities at actual market value well it might improve their liquidity but only for their creditors because they'd go insolvent in the process. We are going to buy all their shit for way more thats it's worth. And Alex. This isn't about the government watching your back or not, it's about the government sticking a knife in it and smoothering your baby while they're at it. Time to stock up on pitchforks and muskets bitches.

Todays seniors and baby-boomers have just extended their generational warefare against our children and grandchildrens future. They (the old) have gotten wealthy from 20 years of unsustainable debt-fueled prosperity. Now they're going to do everything they can to prevent the devaluation of their houses and equities to what they might actually be worth. Can't let any more completely iresponsible companies go bankrupt? Well then kick the can down the road to next generation! Borrow another 300 billion (that 300 1000 million!) from foreigners then buy up all the crap investments from big business so they can get back to making money. Who cares if your grandchildren pay for it with higher taxes, lower benefits, a weakened economy and a weakened dollar? They'll all be dead. While there is some presidence for similar governement intervention that ultimately didn't cost the taxpayers (the Japanese government bought low and sold high during their recession) I wouldn't hold my breath when it comes to Uncle Sam. Our governement will have to overpay for these "investments" to prevent the banks from going bankrupt in the process. It's time to realize that we the young are goinging to get screwed unless we get involved. Vote for the young, demand your representatives cut social security benefits now, cut medicare benefits now, hike the estate tax to pay off the fucking the mess that we will inherit. Jesus Christ I'm pissed off!.......

Dude! Your bummin me out...I'm goona go get a latte now....

That looks good! Why oh why did I replace my Toyota 4x4 truck with an Outback???

Trip: The Sphinx - N Ridge, Phyllis' Engine - Std Route Date: 9/6/2008 Trip Report: Fifteen years ago I was sitting in Westerns' Wilson Library flipping through Canadian Alpine Journals when I came across an amazing photo of a guy climbing some of the cleanest most splitter granite I had ever seen. The route was Vertex on the west face of Isosceles Peak located in a remote corner of Garibaldi Park. The climb sat on my short list of places to go but never made the top until last week when Gene Pires and I found ourselves staggering up the Helm Creek Trail under heavy packs laden with rock gear and aspirations for an aggresive four day itinerary. The following morning as we stumbled across loose talus and suffered demoralizing losses of elevation it became apparent that we were no longer the paragons of fitness nor the alpine titans we once thought we were. Isosceles would be left for another journey and we instead settled for several less commiting climbs located above the Sphinx Glacier. The following photo is as close as we got. Isosceles Peak, Crosscut Ridge and Mount Luxor THE APPROACH Garibaldi Park is different. The rugged and steep valleys of the North Cascades are replaced by the gentler sculpted terrain typical of volcanic areas without being dominated by the classic volcanic cone. The high peaks in this area are granitic and Garibaldi itself sits far to the south. With the exception of the long drop to Gentian Pass the entire eleven mile approach to the alpine is a gradual ascent on good trails, open meadows, mellow glaciers and gentle ridges. Helm Meadows The infamous Black Tusk towers over the first part of the approach. Cinder Hills If you follow the Alpine Select approach description literally by hiking all the way to Cinder Flats and then circling around The Cinder Cone you'll add an extra hour of wandering through a chaotic and tortured landscape of shifting cinders, dust and scattered animal bones. Both tiring and interesting. Helm Glacier The Helm Glacier is an oddity. More arctic than alpine, it oozes down across an otherwise barren landscape. Why is it here? How much longer will it last? First View of Castle Towers and The Sphinx After about 8 miles and 4000' of gain you finally get see your destination. Unfortunately you also see the steep 800' drop to Gentian Pass. Nothing comes easy. Gentian Pass No trails, no cairns, no footprints. The Perfect Campsite After eight-and-a-half hours of travel we finally scrambled off the backside of Polemonium Ridge to find a perfect campsite. Flat heather meadows, a small stream, boulders to sit on and an impeccable view. Garibaldi Sunset Tantalus Range at Sunrise Garibaldi Lake in the foreground. The Sphinx - North Ridge II 5.8 Campsite near the Glaciers Edge As described earlier, on the morning of the second day we found difficult and time consuming terrain between Polemonium Ridge and The Sphinx Glacier. Realizing that we didn't have the time or energy for Isosceles we set up camp on an airy perch near glaciers edge and climbed The Sphinx that afternoon. Crossing Sphinx Glacier An absolutely wonderful journey. It's almost three miles across with numerous deep schrunds and crevasses to navigate. Threading the Shrunds Garibaldi Lake in the background. Near the Base of the North Ridge The route is only about 500' in length. We climbed a 200+' pitch of low-5th class on blocky granite, then another 200+' pitch up a fine slab split by numerous enjoyable cracks. The final pitch is short and stout, starting up a steep crack and corner system before finishing with a wild slightly overhung handcrack. Near the top of Pitch 1 looking east to Isosceles Fine cracks on Pitch 2 Sphinx Summit Pose Based on the summit register the Sphinx appears to receive one to two ascents a year. A majority of those are by the North Ridge and a majority of those are by Garibaldi Park Rangers. Presumably they canoe across Garibaldi Lake, significantly shortening the approach. N-E-S Facing Panorama from Summit of Sphinx In every direction there are endless glaciers and summits even more remote. How often do they get climbed? PHYLLIS' ENGINE - Standard Route II 5.8 The Smokestack On the third day we climbed Phyllis' Engine. The tower is about 300' tall and is made of some the cleanest, finest stone I've climbed in the mountains in recent memory. The standard route climbs the convex slab on the right side then the back of the summit block in three short pitches of 5.8. There are several other excellent looking lines as well. Heres a view of The Entire Engine. Summit Block Geometry The geometry was more reminicent of a desert tower than of your typical northwest spire. Looking down at the first belay Starting the Second Pitch We skipped the see-through chimney in favor of some nice looking cracks to climbers left. Second Pitch cracks Gene following the easy cracks. Looking South from below the summit block Glaciers everywhere. THE DEPROACH Descending Polemonium Ridge After climbing Phyliss' Engine we packed up camp and begin the long trip back home. Black Tusk in the distance. Iceman or Gene? Helm Glacier Pass Helm Glacier Basin One last night was spent in the barren plain below the Helm Creek Glacier. We stayed up late bullshiting and watching the stars come out. The following morning we reached the car in a little over three hours. Total travel time of seven hours from the Sphinx Glacier to the parking lot. One last look - Sunset over Sphinx Glacier Gear Notes: Lightest 50m rope you can get Set of nuts and cams to #3 Camalot Approach Notes: 30+ miles ~10k feet of vertical 6 pitches

Post them up if you've got em! We went to the top of a small knoll near Excelsior Pass. The next morning when she woke up her first words were "Mommy, I climbed my first mountain-hike". Not bad for a two year old.

And he will! My prediction - McCain/Palin will win the election because if there's one thing Democrast are good at it's loosing elections to retards. Palin will promptly fire the white house cooks and do all the cooking for McCain. By the end of February McCain will die a unfortunate death due to "natural causes". Palin becomes president. Theocracy/hilarity/WWIII ensues.

I'm such an asshole

You learn to aid climb while doing the FA of a Grave IV alpine wall!? Jesus...some guys have all the luck...

Yes! I've spent the last three years believing that Justin had stole it!

Nice. Those bottom corners look even better than I remember. Looks like routes overlap for 1/2 of P6 and P7. The direct finish looks much better than our lazy finish. Post up some "beautiful valley" shots if you got them!

Come on man, it's just frickin tawdy. How much fucking drama does the white house need? It's particularly iritating that McCain now sternly warns that children of canidates are "off limits". Not long ago he found it perfectly humorous to crack a joke that went something like "Chelseas so ugly because Janet Reno's her dad". Rich man. This guy can't make a wise decision to save his ass. It's all gonna blow when they figure out who the dad is.

If they can actually pull that off hell maybe I'll vote republican. Can't wait to see Mac handing out the hot bottled water....

Experience, ability, intelligence and talent. It's all in the mix. A shameless copy and paste on my part...

You're way off....that's far more diverse than Bellingham!

I'm still shocked. Though he was running a slimy campaign and I disagree with his worldview I still presumed McCain was very serious about the importance of the presidency. This choice seems like a gimmick. Sarah Palins experience seems beyond light for the job of VP particularly when paired with a 72 year old. Maybe we'll learn more but I get the impression that she has no record or policy stances on...anything other than the oil industry as it pertains to Alaska. Say what you like about Joe Biden and Barack Obama, that seven years as a senator at the state and national level is not experience. But the guy has clearly thought long and hard about all the issues a presidency deals with; taxation, the economy, energy, foreign relations, etc. and has an integtrated policy and plan for each of them. Can't wait to learn more....

So it be. A direct appeal to the supposedly disenfranchised women after Hillary lost the primary. Will it be enough?

Colin Powell displaying whats left of his Self-Respect I always wonder how he got duped into giving that vacuous presentation..... I vote Pawlenty or a similar nobody.

Last night I had to shoo that kid off my lawn. So unappreciative these youngsters are...

A ditch?

Those who don't work already have healthcare coverage through Medicaid. The 40+ million who don't include a great number of individuals who do work but don't get healthcare benefits through their employer and can't afford them out of pocket.

Ouch! But the point being that you never went from the road to the blue glacier camp in a day. You always had to rest your dandy little legs before the going got tough....

If I were to do it again I would hike the trail and camp by Agnes Creek on Day 1. Day 2 I would haul up to the nice campsites by the Blue Glacier. Would make for two relatively short days but then you would be fully rested on Day 3. Matt and I (sandbagged by Blakes somewhat disingenuous desciption of the effort involved) tried to do it all in one day. We almost made it all the way (hiked until 10 pm) and probably would have if we hadn't been slowed by the 300+ logs we had to crawl under and over. However we were wasted enough on Day 2 that we accomplished very little. Blake has a very detailed description of where to leave the PCT that I have not seen around here. Hassle him.

Is one of the most beautiful places you will ever visit.