Science denial is deadly

Via WeatherUnderground: a view of part of Washington, Illinois from Mackenzie Street on Sunday, Nov. 17, 2013 after a tornado tore through the area. (AP Photo/Alex Kareotes)

Creationism is annoying and depressing, but a typical middle-class voter can get through their entire lives availing themselves of the fruits of microbiology and science in general while yammering on against about evolution or geology. As Illinois residents dig out from another freak tornado epidemic and the death toll on the Phillippines in the wake of Super Typhoon Haiyan rises, it’s appropriate to note climate change is a whole different story. The wind, water, and drought brought on by changing climate are killers. Ask any expert: [Read more…]

Damn meddling script kiddies

paypal_logo

Without your contributions this year — to Paypal email address DarkSydoThemoon-at/aol-com — this site and would cease to exist. The moment I don’t have to do this anymore I’ll be thrilled to yell it from the mountain tops. I’ll have a snail-mail set up later this week for those who despise or do not use Paypal. On a bright note, I was able to afford some Bengal Gold, an insecticide that’s very effective. So, thanks to those who donated, I had a satisfying morning of sorts killing and sterilizing all the little bastards who moved in to keep me company …

On the weird spamming dealio that a reader reported, it’s a persistent trickssy little bug, but fortunately all it does is hyperlink a few random words and its even kind enough to feature on off page arrow to warn you. My scans picked up the usual garbage and I killed them all, after which it seemed to go away. But just this morning there were signs it had gotten back. This particular spammer appears to work with a file or files many people have, but not everyone has them, so the links show for some people and not for others. BTW, If you’re a little low on bucks to blow on sec software, MalwareBytes has a decent free version that’s better than nothing and doesn’t seem to cause many conflicts. I’ll be working on getting rid of the last shreds of it today, meaning new posts will be light as my PCs will be undergoing maintenance.

The Hockey Stick rides again

Update: Dr Mann ably answered dozens of reader questions and remarks at Daily Kos here with a facility that should be a case study in any seminar on how practicing researchers can best leverage new media to convey important scientific info. For more great info, read that book!

BookmainThe Hockey Stick and the Climate Wars: Dispatches From The Front Lines
By Dr. Michael Mann, Ph.D
Columbia University Press Nov 2013
New 448 page paperback for $15.38 and on Kindle at $11.79. Click book image or this link to order now

Few scientists have been as viciously slimed as paleo-climatologist Michael Mann. He has been harassed by Congress, investigated by his employer, cyberstalked by the usual suspects, and at one point was the subject of an all-out witch hunt by none other than soon-to-be-unemployed Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli.

Needless to say, there was no wrongdoing found in any of those cases. Indeed, at every step Dr. Mann’s integrity and research was vindicated. And with that success and the intimidation that followed, far from shrinking away, he’s become a sorely needed voice at a time when science and scientists are often under attack, or at best a victim of the false equivalency syndrome afflicting far too many reporters and cable news celebrities. Meaning he’s not only a great scientist, he’s a truly courageous one. Today we’re pleased to have Dr. Mann’s comprehensive answers a couple of the more pressing weather-related questions of the day AND as a special treat, available in the comments below to respond in person to readers Daily Kos and FTB in a few minutes. We’ll also be monitoring the Twitter hashtag #AskTheMann for questions or comments.

The updated paperback version of the Hockey Stick would make a great stocking stuffer for the science junky in your life. Like the original, its well written in layman’s terms but still lays out the ruthless intersection of climate science and conservative politics faced by a small group of researchers who had the gall to succeed in their research and create the foundation on which modern paleoclimatology rests. But the best part for me is the fascinating tour of the science underlying climatology, with a particularly noteworthy focus on the analysis that went into the diagram that caused all the ruckus, first published in Nature by Mann, Bradley and Hughes in 1998: the Hockey Stick. [Read more…]

The end times are nigh and the Jews will sell us out

paypal_logo

Guys, gals, I’m closing in on the halfway mark of what is needed on this year’s holiday bleg, many thanks tor those who already. pitched in I’d say I’ll say a prayer for you, but … you know. My Paypal email address is DarkSydOtheMoon-at-aol-dot/com. I’ll have a snail mail address in a few days too for those who don’t like or don’t use paypal. Thanks!

Update: Why the fuck did I think this guy was Catholic?

John Hagee, a man who is inexplicably in a position of respect and authority in the eyes of millions of Catholics, may be feeling the heat of the new Pope’s focus on the Gospels and the Pontiff’s lesser concern for Hagee’s revolting brand of wingnut politics disguised as religion. So it’s time to stir the hornet’s nest, do a little scapegoating, and who better to give the Holy finger to than Jews? [Read more…]

Batkid saves Gotham City!

There are times when magical thinking has a moment. And that day is today in San Francisco Gotham City, where one lone, little super-hero stands against the forces of evil: BatKid! And it’s working great. Batkid has become a Twitter sensation at the hashtag #SFBatKid, live feed here.

Gotham City Press — San Francisco, grappling with the exploits of the Riddler and the Penguin, will call upon a pint-sized crusader: Miles, a 5-year-old cancer-stricken boy, a.k.a. Batkid. What started out as Miles’ wish to be Batman has turned into an all-out extravaganza in San Francisco as word spread and thousands of people volunteered to pitch in and help transform the bayside metropolis into Gotham City.

Coordinated by the Make-A-Wish Foundation, the effort will include Miles’ own Batmobile, a personal call from Police Chief Greg Suhr for help, the apprehension of the Riddler and then a flash mob involving hundreds of people in Union Square alerting Batkid to the fact that Penguin has kidnapped Lou Seal, the San Francisco Giants mascot.

Rest assured, Batkid’s leukemia has gone into remission and he will be around to protect the good people of Gotham for years to come. Not a bad way to end the week folks.

Christian “dating coach” advises women to STFU

Paypal email: darksydothemoon-at-aol-dot-com

Paypal email: darksydothemoon-at-aol-dot-com

Leave it to Texas. Here in the Lone Star State we have a heartless Governor and a ton of willing acolytes spewing religious nonsense to justify their greed and the casualties of the Class War. But there’s, so much more! You have to wonder if Christian Mingle is going to snatch this guy up … a school near Dallas actually brought this clown in for a motivational talk. Here’s a a couple of his brilliant insights: [Read more…]

Climate change deniers still at it

rest assured, the usual suspects will have no problem denying the link between more intense storms and climate change. We’ll be discussing this very issue Sunday morning here at FTB and on Daily Kos with paleoclimatologist Micheal Mann. I’ll also be fielding questions at that time via Twitter using the hashtag #AskTheMann. In the meantime, the holidays are upon us by my personal calender — Nov 15 is close enough!

Please consider donating a modest sum to yours truly at the Paypal email address DarkSydOtheMoon-at-aol-dotcom. Thanks, it means a great deal to me to in terms of basic survival and to be able to continue blogging. If I don’t pick up a used PC soon, I may not be on for much longer. The two workhorses I’m using are both on their last legs.

OMFG, Canada

paypal_logo

DarkSydOtheMoon-at-aol.com

Thanks again for the help folks. The way things are going, health improving and some donations that have already come in thanks to a few reg readers, I’ll probably avoid humiliation, the ER, and homelessness for at least another month.

Speaking of health, what the hell is up with Toronto mayor Rob Ford? The guy has been busted on video doing all kinds of crazy things including bragging about how he would whack someone with his bare hands in the midst of a drunken crack binge. He’s now under fire for lewd comments made after that confession and promise to clean up: [Read more…]

I may have a treat for all FTB readers this Sunday

logo_paypal_106x29

Use my email address: DarkSydOtheMoon-at-AOL-dotcom

 

Many thanks for those who have pitched in once again to help me navigate the serial tragic obstacles of the last few years. I’m starting to feel more grateful and a lot less desperate thanks to you. A number of of Paypal donations have already come in, enough to get me a little teary-eyed. So, if I’m going to rely on this crazy medium and the generosity of you regular readers to keep a roof over my head and the heat on, I owe it to you and the site to provide the best that my skillset can offer. One such event may be in the works for this coming Sunday morning. [Read more…]

Andy Kaufman still “alive” according to “daughter”

Update: This just in, Andy Kaufman is still dead. And if the holiday spirit strikes any of you hellbound atheists, you can help me out here.

If you’re old enough to remember an era with no cell phones or Internet, you might recall a quirky comedian named Andy Kaufman. He did did one of the best Elvis impersonations of the 80s and played the mild-mannered, lovable Latka on the TV series Taxi. He died from a rare form of cancer at age 35 in 1984. But this week a lady claiming to be one of his daughter’s said the former SNL contributor is still alive. I’d be extremely skeptical about this folks. But Kaufman was by all accounts plenty weird enough to try and pull it off: [Read more…]