Philip Roth on the State of the Nation

Jim Kunstler on Clusterfuck Nation

Army of Dude on Phony Soldiers: The Real Deal

Manitou Springs Incline Fire

I ran up the Ute Trail this morning to scout out yesterday's fire. At the top of Rattlesnake Gulch on the first crest there is some red tape across the trail. I continued down and up to the second crest on the Ute. Apparently they had brought a Cat in yesterday and widened the trail to a road up to the first crest. From the second crest they also had plowed up to the Pipeline Trail. I turned up along this new road and joined the Pipeline trail. At the last ridge before the Incline I got my first sighting of blackened slopes. It looked like about 40-50 acres, all above the Pipeline Trail. I could see isolated firemen up along the fire's edge as well as two separate groups making their way up the lower Pipeline Trail. I went ahead and continued down towards the Incline. The firemen told me the area was closed. I continued down to the upper Cog Parking Lot, which was closed and had been turned into the main staging area for the fire.

At the Barr Trail parking lot there were only six cars. A single yellow "do not cross" tape went across the opening to the Barr Trail. I dropped back down to Ruxton, ran up past my house along the marathon route and joined the Barr Trail. No tape or signage. I ran up to the Incline Bail switchback encountering no one along the way. From the Incline I could see no evidence of the fire. I think that is the only time I have been on the Barr Trail and not seen a soul, excepting once last winter during a snow storm, and last May when Harry and I ran up to Barr Camp and back at night.

Rebekka ran down Ruxton and into town this morning and says they have closed Ruxton at the bottom, allowing only Cog tourists and residents. It is signed that the Barr Trail is closed. Someone at the staging area told me they are going to keep it closed tomorrow too.

Gazette article: Manitou Springs Incline Fire

Americans are Brainwashed

Top 15 unintentional bloopers in comics

End Mountaintop Removal Coal mining


Some cool houses

Ten predictions about climate change that have come true

Shot dead trying to show the truth In Burma

Japanese cameraman being shot down in cold blood.

Hello angry Christians

Arianna Huffington: New Books By Alan Greenspan and Naomi Klein: One is Prophetic, One is Pathetic

Al Gore: Be Our Bodyguard

Al Gore is the Man!

Pink Martini - Sympathique

Pancho and Lefty: Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson

Bob Dylan - The Times they are A-changin' -1965

Canada apologizes to America

Very nice vid! Found on Stumble! Video: Pink Martini: Amado Mio

Mcleans Mag of Canada: How George Bush became the new Sadaam

Wes Clark on Late edition last week:

BLITZER: Here’s a quote from the book, your new book, “A Time to Lead.” And you write this: ” ‘Here’s the paper from the Office of the Secretary of Defense outlining the strategy. We’re going to take out seven countries in five years!’ And he named them, starting with Iraq and Syria and ending with Iran. It was straight out of Paul Wolfowitz’s 1991 play book, dressed up as the search for weapons of mass destruction and the global war on terror.” Now, that jumped out at me. Explain to our viewers what you’re referring to when you make a very serious charge like that, that this whole war in Iraq was basically built on a lie.

CLARK: Well, not exactly a lie. But a theory about how to deal with terrorism. It was the “drain the swamp” theory that emerged after 9/11 and people talked about it. But before that, in 1991, I remember being in Secretary Wolfowitz’s office when he was the number three guy in the Pentagon.

And he said, yeah, the Gulf war, well, we didn’t get rid of Saddam, but what we did learn is we can use military power to clean up these old client states. We’ve got maybe five or ten years to clean them up, Syria, Iran, the rest of them, before the next superpower comes along.

I said, five or ten years? You mean, China and — the discussion sort of wandered off. But it was one of those nuggets you remember. And then I’m in the office with this senior general in the Pentagon, and he says, well, he says, sir, I just — this is after I’m retired. Sir, I just got this memo down from the office upstairs. He’s pointing upstairs. And they’re on the second floor, and the civilians are on the third floor.

And he says, seven countries. I said, is that classified? And he read the countries. I said, is that classified? Stop. He was going to show it to me. I said, don’t show that to me. I don’t want to see that. And so it wasn’t a plan. Maybe it was a think piece. Maybe it was a sort of notional concept, but what it was was the kind of indication of dialogue around this town in official circles, just like unofficial circles, that has poisoned the atmosphere and made it very difficult for this administration to achieve any success in the region.

Surfing around on the origin of religion:

Michael Tsarion interviewed about Astro-theology

Astro-theology and Christianity

Israel (Is-Ra-El) Isis (Moon) Ra (Sun) El (Saturn)

Originally, there were 3 basic religions of astrology. The Lunar Cult (Moon), the Solar Cult (Sun) and the Stellar Cult (Saturn). The original Hebrew religion was based on the Lunar Cult and the moon, but went back to the Stellar cult and the worship of El (Saturn). The Christians were bringing back elements of the Solar Cult of the Sun. That is why there is the ongoing dispute about the correct day of worship. The Hebrews worship on Saturday (Saturn) and the Christians worship on Sunday (Sun).

Richard Dawkins reviews Christopher Hitchens' book "God is not Great", a book I am currently reading. I read Richard Dawkins' book "The God Delusion" recently and highly recommend it. We need people of reason speaking out against superstition and delusion.

New movies I would like to see. Unfortunately most are playing only in Denver:

Eastern Promises: Rated 4 stars by the Denver Post.

In the Valley of Elah: Rated 3 and a half stars by the Post.

Pete Seeger: The Power of Song

Iraq Diary: My Mother was killed for not wearing a veil

Colorado Relay: Idaho Springs to Glenwood Springs

Ran the Colorado Relay Friday and into Saturday. It is a 170-mile long relay race from Idaho Springs, Colorado to Glenwood Springs, traversing four mountain passes. Our team, Mountain Madness, ran the course in just under 24 hours. There are 30 legs on the course and each runner runs three of them. I ran legs number 1, 11, and 21. Leg 11 is a pure trail run that gains 2000 feet of elevation to Georgia Pass, 11,500', then loses 2200 feet over some 13.3 miles. I felt very strong and well hydrated. I finished the leg in 1 hour 56 min.

Classic Bill Maher

Read my Slits

Pentagon report gives lie to Insurgence Success

Whoops! Juan Cole on the latest Pentagon report (That comes conveniently after General Petraeus' testimony)

Sailors on a sailing ship in the Pacific document the formation of a new island. Very cool!

What is the truth concerning the Blackwater incident in Iraq? Blackwater claims it was an "exchange" of gunfire. Iraq officials say it was one-sided with Blackwater killing a couple and their toddler because they didn't pull to the side of the road fast enough.

I think it was a trigger happy Blackwater crew that just started firing indiscriminately into the crowd.

Must See: Playing the Traitor Card

Brainwash?... the Teaser

Answer antiwar protest arrests at US Capitol 9/15/07

Video of 190 arrests

Naomi Klein - The Shock Doctrine - Part 1 of 6

Go to Youtube.com to watch parts 2 through 6.

The Shock Doctrine by Alfonso Cuarón and Naomi Klein

Marlene in the Ghost Town of Crystal, Colorado.

Daughter Marlene at one of the most photographed buildings in Colorado: The Crystal Mine near the ghost town of Crystal. We hiked from Marble to Crystal on Saturday. Sunday I ran the Lead King 25K loop that goes from Marble up to the Lead King Basin and back down to the town.

Village Voice: Bush Beat: Worse than Gonzales? War of Terror's New Front: Mukasey

Huffington Post: George Lakoff on the Moveon.org flap re: General Petraeus ad: Whose Betrayal?

And... Iraq and the Betrayal of Trust

LARRY CRAIG-TAP 3 TIMES- SINGING SENATOR !!! MUSIC VIDEO !!!

John Edwards - Response to President Bush

Naomi Klein is the discovery of the day... I found her through a link off Andrew Sullivan's blog to bookforum.com . Later I found her again from a link off a blog post by Jane Smiley on Huffingtonpost.com . Her book, "Shock Doctrine" is not even available until next week. It will be a mover and a shaker when it comes out.

Jeremy Scahill - Blackwater Shadow Army part 2

Keep watching...

Guernica Magazine: Powerful Acts: An interview with Mia Farrow and her work for Darfur. What a great soul.

Seattle Times: Gigantic Mine Proposal tests values of Alaskans

This is very disturbing to me. The summer after I graduated from high school in 1973 I went to Kenai, Alaska to work in a salmon cannery. Across the strait the glorious Mount Iliamna beckoned with its pristine wilderness and no roads or towns. This mine proposal will wipe out 25% of the world's sockeye salmon, pollute beyond repair the largest freshwater lake in Alaska, Lake Iliamna, home to the rare freshwater seal, and they are talking about the "values" of Alaskans?? Where is the outrage??

How to create an Angry American

Jeremy Scahill - Blackwater Shadow Army in Iraq

Go to Youtube.com and watch the other three parts.

Failed Strategy

Obama confronts Petraeus

Hagel confronts Petraeus

Undercover North Korea

New Yorker: George Packer: Planning for Defeat

John Kerry gets it right on Iraq.

Sigure Ros: Glosoli

I miss Korea!

Mr. Chuckles sez: "Checkmate America"

Mountaintop Removal Movie from iLoveMountains.org

Watch and weep. More environmental destruction courtesy of Mr. Bush and his cronies.

A Short History of the English Language

DailyKos diary outlining the topics (Wiretapping and Domestic Surveillance, Defining Torture, and Mountaintop Mining) of Bill Moyer's Journal from last Friday. Watch it here.

John Bolton on Iraq [BBC]

It is astounding to watch John Bolton attempt to justify the invasion of Iraq in this interview.

Vanity Fair examines old myths about Al Gore.

Important book by Bob Altemeyer: The Authoritarians.pdf. John Dean used Altemeyer's studies of high Right-Wing Authoritarian follower types as he wrote his excellent, "Conservatives without Conscience".

The New Republic has a short version of each of the reports coming down from Iraq.

SB in former military life on a helicopter in S. Korea.

Long time ago... SB on a mountain near Dutch Harbor, Alaska...

Christopher Hitchens on Billy Graham: "a disgustingly evil man".

Remains of an old restaurant at the top of road to "The Horns". It supposedly met its demise in the 50's.

The highest "Horn" on the slopes of Cheyenne Mountain has a rock stairway built into it, leading to a cement platform and an old flag pole.

Seldom seen view towards Pikes Peak from the Sunrise Trail to "The Horns" on Cheyenne Mountain's north slopes. The cut of Gold Camp Road is visible in the lower left corner.

Found these fascinating photos on the Internet. Take a look:

The Way Of All Flesh

Apparently someone picked up a small cosmetics case at a flea market stuffed with photos almost all of which were of the same woman. The bulk of the photos were photobooths and portraits documenting her as she aged over the course of about 50 years or so.

Zolf bar baad - Mohsen Namjoo

The "Bob Dylan" of Iran, his web site appears to have been obliterated. One would think by the Iranian Ayatollahs.