Curmudgeon

A shot this morning at around 5:45 probably means 1 of those 4 toms is a goner. It came from that direction. No school today- a leftover snow day. Still, there are plenty. Boy, the yotes were howling like mad last night. Too bad they aren't as good at controlling deer as many believe.

Agreed. Re the Isle Royale wolves, this is a good read http://www.isleroyalewolf.org/overview/overview/at_a_glance.html

These trade offs are conflicting for sure. I understand the rationale but don't think it plays well in Peoria.

Late May and Silly Season is upon us. Cold and damp out there too. That can't help.

In post 13, Sir VJP reminded me of an in-law who claims we need not worry about government spying on Americans IF we are innocent. Nice.

No vampire problems either.

I'm sure he can't. We don't have the clearance.

I like that. "Nothing" the Daily Star put at the top on page one. Yes, "move along". We don't want anyone to know what is actually going on. It doesn't fit with our beliefs.

In the discussion "Is it Real?", the hamlet of Islamberg in the Town of Hancock was a hot topic. From today's Oneonta Daily Star: Man admits plot to massacre local Muslims I've attached a pdf of the front page. This is a quote: "Hancock Town Attorney Leonard Sienko Jr. said Islamberg residents have been the victims of anti-Muslim propaganda “regurgitated” by Fox News. The residents, in actuality, have been good neighbors, he said. “The danger here is from folks like Mr. Doggart, not the folks from Islamberg,” Sienko told The Daily Star." the_daily_star_20150519_A001.pdf

A couple of days ago on a late day stroll around the grounds the wife and I watched 4 toms and 2 hens. 2 of the toms had long-beards. I have also found 3 nests on my property over the past couple of weeks. The only nest I monitor is the one next to a main tractor road. That road is closed until the eggs hatch or the nest fails. Virgil - If you find no birds on your place, I can point you in the right direction. Someone was hunting next door - near those birds - Sunday morning but I heard no shots.

Wow Doc - Great post. One of your best. Some us buckled down, sacrificed and put ourselves at risk with our neighbors to protect our homes and towns from the depredations of the oil and gas industry. VJP's history is to flee. First from NJ, then NY. As we say about the sheep, they are "Flighty". If he likes bad air so much, he should return to his roots. Back to NJ.

It sounds like needlecast disease. The scotch probably have Cyclaneusama Needlecast. The Dougs probably have Rhabdcline Needlecast It is actually from last year's growing season being wet. You don't see the damage until the following spring. Mine look terrible. I've given up on Dougs completely because I won't spray registered fungicides. Many of the scotch are so bad I culled them. I'm planning a burn on the next wet day. Try a google image search for the diseases above. A good reference is Christmas Tree Pest Manual USDA 1998.

What species?

Bald Eagles make prey species nervous even if they aren't a threat. Same with Osprey and Turkey Vultures. The prey species see a large bird that looks predatory and react accordingly. It's profiling plain and simple. Where is the ACLU when you need them?

Assume is right! Actually, a lot of people moved out after being paid the big bucks back in 06-07 when gas prices were high. One moved here to my town in Otsego County. He then ranted and raved when he found he couldn't pull the same stunt here. While this was touted as a way to keep farms alive, a lot of farmers saw it as a way to retire. Said the OP.

Thanks Bill for getting this focused back on the original topic.

Actually, the best place for turbines if off-shore. The wind is more steady and the supply is more closely timed to the demand.

VJP wants proof of harm before restricting economic activity. I want proof of safety before initiating fracking. Precautionary principle From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The precautionary principle or precautionary approach to risk management states that if an action or policy has a suspected risk of causing harm to the public or to the environment, in the absence of scientific consensus that the action or policy is not harmful, the burden of proof that it is not harmful falls on those taking an action. The principle is used by policy makers to justify discretionary decisions in situations where there is the possibility of harm from making a certain decision (e.g. taking a particular course of action) when extensive scientific knowledge on the matter is lacking. The principle implies that there is a social responsibility to protect the public from exposure to harm, when scientific investigation has found a plausible risk. These protections can be relaxed only if further scientific findings emerge that provide sound evidence that no harm will result.

Look what just showed up: From: Oregon State University Published May 13, 2015 03:34 PM New study examines the air quality impacts of fracking wells People living or working near active natural gas wells may be exposed to certain pollutants at higher levels than the Environmental Protection Agency considers safe for lifetime exposure, according to scientists from Oregon State University and the University of Cincinnati. The researchers found that hydraulic fracturing – a technique for releasing natural gas from below-ground rock formations – emits pollutants known as PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), including some that are linked with increased risk of cancer and respiratory ailments. “Air pollution from fracking operations may pose an under-recognized health hazard to people living near them,” said the study’s coauthor Kim Anderson, an environmental chemist with OSU’s College of Agricultural Sciences. The study, which appears in the journal Environmental Science & Technology’s online edition, is part of a larger project co-led by the University of Cincinnati’s Erin Haynes, OSU’s Anderson, her graduate student Blair Paulik and Laurel Kincl, director of OSU’s Environmental Health Science Center. Anderson and her colleagues collected air samples from sites near active natural gas wells in Carroll County, Ohio, over a three-week period last February. Carroll County sits on top of the Utica formation, a deep oil- and gas-rich reef of subterranean shale. The rural county is a hotspot of natural gas prospecting, with more than one active well site per square mile. The study got its start when a group of citizens approached Haynes, who is a public health expert, wanting to know more about health risks from natural gas extraction. Haynes got in touch with Anderson and Kincl, and together they designed the study to include citizen participation. They placed air samplers on the properties of 23 volunteers living or working at sites ranging from right next to a gas well to a little more than three miles away. The samplers are aluminum T-shaped boxes containing specially treated polyethylene ribbons that absorb contaminants in a similar manner to biological cells. Volunteers were trained in proper handling of samplers and documenting of data. After the study period, the volunteers packaged the samplers in airtight bags, labeled them and mailed them back to Anderson’s lab at OSU. The samplers picked up high levels of PAHs across the study area. Levels were highest closest to the wells and decreased by about 30 percent with distance.

When I look in my crystal ball, I too see a depressing future. However, that dystopia will not be blamed on rural Americans that grew tired of being treated like third world citizens. That unpleasant future will be blamed on climate change deniers.

I wasn't around during the Great Depression, however, everything I know about it suggests it was nothing like today.

In our devastated economy, everyone has a car, satellite TV, an ATV and snowmobile, a smart phone, multiple firearms, and lots of really fatty food.

Late winter I found a huge dog track by the bone yard, right in front of the camera. I was certain it had to be a coyote dog because it was certainly too big for a coyote. Wrong! It was a yote with ridiculously large feet.

VJP's Liberal reference is interesting. When I got involved in the fracking wars in my town, I found the political leanings of those opposed to fracking covered the spectrum. some very conservative residents opposed fracking. Some liberals wanted a big payday. An independent opposed to fracking beat a long-time conservative Republican incumbent for a town council position. This is a Republican town through and through. Our Rs are not the new teabagger types who moved here from NJ. They are the old version or Rs who value the place they live and their quality of life. I have said this in public a number of times: Even if it is proven that fracking will not affect my water, I still oppose it in my backyard. The air quality issues are more of a concern than the water risks because they are proven. Besides risking our health, the destruction of rural character would make this place somewhere I would not want to live. LONG LIVE THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE! LONG LIVE THE FRACKING BAN!