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bolverk

Certifiably Surly
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Everything posted by bolverk

  1. Will Rogers' historic ranch house https://yubanet.com/california/palisades-fire-destroys-historic-homes-and-buildings-at-will-rogers-state-historic-park-and-topanga-state-park/
  2. "DO SOME OF YOU NOT GRASP THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE?!?"
  3. Careful there. I was told by this site's owner yesterday that ANY discussion of government action is politics and, therefore, should go in the Cloak Room. He even posted this image as evidence, so we should definitely respect his wishes.
  4. I've been streaming one of the local news outlets in LA on YouTube in the background. Apparently, a former mayoral candidate and conservative crank has been bitching about the firefighters briefly running out of water overnight in Palisades. It's the local Fox affiliate, btw, and they're reporting that all the municipal water tanks had been filled in anticipation of the fires but ended up using so much that they ran dry. Basically, they're saying that guy is full of shit. Of course, a reactionary rube like Incredulity is already shouting about this "scandal" in the wildfire news thread. I keep that piece of shit on ignore but viewed his post under the erroneous assumption he might have something informative or useful to add to the conversation. That was a fucking mistake.
  5. Yep, his speech alone legitimizes imperial expansionism. The notion of territorial integrity/inviolability of borders has been baked into international law and the UN charter since WW2. That's all done now. We're going back to Age of Empires.
  6. Hang in there, @Sbbruin. I'll keep my fingers crossed that your "luck" holds up. Not sure what else to say other than this sucks for you guys.
  7. From BBC: Germany and France warn Trump over threat to take over Greenland
  8. The lid was already closed, and now the final nails are being hammered into the Pax Americana coffin. Clowns and Nazis are taking over everywhere.
  9. In the press conference, it sounded like they said some water tanks in Palisades went dry overnight due to the firefighters relying on municipal water supplies. They were then later able to push water through a different trunk line. Don't quote me on that.
  10. Jet Propulsion Laboratory under mandatory evacuation now; Rose Bowl under evacuation warning.
  11. That statement could well apply to the whole nation. Fuckin' Vermont had that flooding disaster not too long ago. I think one of the reporters mentioned it already burned down. I'm not kidding.
  12. BTW, over in Europe, we've got another far-right party founded by former Nazis with ties to Putin about to take control in Austria. I'm becoming increasingly impressed with the outcome of the British and French elections earlier this year.
  13. Yep. It's pretty remarkable that discussing a future president's threats to invade allies is taken as "You fools can't grasp the English language! That's not news; it's just politics. Get that out of here!" And, poof, talking about it is siloed to a subforum where folks who don't want to think about such a radical departure from normal international relations don't have to see it. Foreign policy is a government activity and is, therefore, politics -- never mind the fact that news about international relations is discussed all the damn time elsewhere. Perhaps, it's a good example of what we're seeing elsewhere: anticipatory obedience. Bezos, Zuck...I guess all the tech execs got the same memo. Back on topic: How has Panama responded? In a statement of rebuke to Mr. Trump last month, President JosΓ© RaΓΊl Mulino of Panama wrote β€œevery square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent area belong to PANAMA.” Mr. Mulino also said U.S. vessels are not being overcharged. Rates being charged to ships and naval vessels, he insisted, are β€œnot on a whim.” Panamanian officials said all countries are subject to the same fees, though they would differ based on ship size. They are established in public meetings by the Panama Canal Authority, and take into account market conditions, international competition, operating and maintenance costs, Mr. Mulino said. Rates have gone up recently, however. That’s because starting in 2023, Panama experienced severe drought, driven by a combination of El NiΓ±o and climate change, which Mr. Trump has called a hoax. With water levels at Gatun Lake, the principal hydrological reserve for the canal, at historically low levels, authorities reduced shipping through the canal to conserve the lake’s fresh water. A Trump spokeswoman said that because the United States is the biggest user of the canal, the increase in fees hits its ships the most. What is China’s role in the Panama Canal? Chinese soldiers are not, as Mr. Trump has claimed, β€œoperating” the Panama Canal. β€œThere are no Chinese soldiers in the canal, for the love of God,” Mr. Mulino said in a speech Thursday. β€œThe world is free to visit the canal.” A Hong Kong-based firm, CK Hutchison Holdings, does manage two ports at the canal’s entrances. And some experts have said that does raise valid competitive and security concerns for the United States. Ryan C. Berg, the director of the Americas program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank, noted that CK Hutchison would likely have data on all ships coming through the Panama Canal. China has been using its shipping and maritime operations to gather foreign intelligence and conduct espionage. β€œChina exercises, or could exercise, a certain element of control even absent some military conflagration,” Mr. Berg said. β€œI think there is reason to be worried.” Mao Ning, a spokeswoman for the Chinese foreign ministry, said Tuesday that China β€œwill as always respect Panama’s sovereignty” over the Panama Canal. China is the second-largest user of the Panama Canal after the United States. In 2017, Panama cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan and recognized the island as part of China, a major win for Beijing. Can the United States reassert control? Not easily. Mr. Mulino has made clear the Panama Canal is not for sale. He noted that the treaties established permanent neutrality of the canal and β€œguaranteeing its open and safe operation for all nations.” And the Senate ratified the Panama Canal treaties in 1978. Mick Mulvaney, Mr. Trump’s former chief of staff, suggested that the provocations were merely part of a negotiating tactic to get rates down. β€œYou know, I don’t envision American troops going in to retake the canal, but you got to think that someone is out there scratching their head going, β€˜Is Donald Trump crazy enough to do something like that?’” Mr. Mulvaney said Tuesday on β€œThe Hill” on NewsNation. Mr. Berg said the neutrality agreement made it unlikely that Panama would even be able to grant special rates to the United States. And, he noted, Mr. Mulino is β€œincredibly pro-American” and likely eager to help the incoming Trump administration deal with issues like illegal immigration. β€œPresident Mulino is going to be a great ally with the United States,” Mr. Berg said. β€œWe should not want this to devolve into some kind of political fight because we’re going to need President Mulino on a number of other issues.” But there is, as Mr. Trump has threatened, a military option. Mr. Trump could as president order an invasion of Panama. Under the terms of its constitution, Panama has no army. But experts dismissed Mr. Trump’s threat on Tuesday as empty intimidation. β€œIf the U.S. wanted to flout international law and act like Vladimir Putin, the U.S. could invade Panama and recover the canal,” said Benjamin Gaden, director of the Wilson Center’s Latin America Program in Washington. β€œNo one would see it as a legitimate act, and it would bring not only grievous damage to their image, but instability to the canal.”
  14. From last night: A rapidly spreading wildfire in southern California reached the grounds of the Getty Villa museum north of Santa Monica on Tuesday, but officials said no structures had burned and the collection was safe. The Pacific Palisades fire, fueled by a major windstorm and prompting mass evacuations in Los Angeles county, burned some trees and vegetation on site at the Getty Villa, but museum leaders said the galleries and archives were protected. The Villa is located along the Pacific Coast Highway and is roughly 10 miles away from the affiliated Getty Center, the site of the main museum of the world-famous art institution. The Getty Villa had β€œmade extensive efforts to clear brush from the surrounding area as part of its fire mitigation efforts throughout the year”, Katherine E Fleming, president and CEO of the J Paul Getty Trust, said in a statement early Tuesday evening. While the blazes reached some of the vegetation on the property, β€œstaff and the collection remain safe”, she said. Fire prevention measures at the Villa include water storage on-site, with irrigation immediately deployed throughout the grounds on Tuesday morning, Fleming said, adding: β€œMuseum galleries and library archives were sealed off from smoke by state-of-the-art air handling systems. The double-walled construction of the galleries also provides significant protection for the collections.” Footage spread on social media showing some greenery ablaze near a Getty Villa sign, but the video appeared to be of the driveway entrance and a nearby building that is separate from the Villa.
  15. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/08/us/california-fires-landmarks-pasadena-palisades-malibu.html?smid=url-share The wildfires that continued to burn through Southern California early Wednesday have gutted some local landmarks along the Pacific Coast Highway and other areas. Here are some of the most affected sites so far: The Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center: The synagogue in Pasadena was engulfed by the Eaton fire, said Melissa Levy, its executive director, though the extent of the damage was unclear. That fire in Eaton Canyon, in the San Gabriel Mountains north of Pasadena, had consumed at least 1,000 acres as of Tuesday night. Malibu Feed Bin: A local institution that has offered pet supplies and gifts since 1966 was destroyed in the Palisades fire, according to a post on social media. β€œWith a heavy heart, I am writing this. We lost the Feed Bin today,” the post said. Reel Inn: A well-known seafood restaurant in Malibu, Reel Inn posted a link on social media to a report in The Malibu Times, which said the restaurant had been destroyed in the Palisades fire. β€œWe are so grateful for the 36 years we have been part of the community,” the restaurant’s owners said in the post, adding: β€œWe are heartbroken and unsure what will be left.” Palisades Charter High School: Flames overwhelmed the campus at the independent charter school in Pacific Palisades, according to Nick Melvoin, a trustee at the Los Angeles Unified School District. Mr. Melvoin said the school β€” a local landmark and the alma mater of numerous celebrities in show business, sports and the arts β€” was still closed for winter break, so there was no need to evacuate. Mr. Melvoin said that classrooms, bungalows, tennis courts and the baseball field had burned.
  16. Evacuation Zones: https://www.latimes.com/wildfires-map/
  17. FIRMS map updates: https://firms.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/usfs/map/#d:2025-01-08;@-118.36,34.18,10.89z
  18. Really happy you guys got out, and I can only imagine your nerves. Fire is a general concern for me too, living in a windy and drier climate along a brushy ridgeline. I hope I never experience the same.
  19. New fire in Sylmar according to local news.
  20. Wordle 1,299 3/6 β¬›β¬›πŸŸ©πŸŸ¨β¬› β¬›β¬›πŸŸ©πŸŸ¨πŸŸ© 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Connections Puzzle #577 🟨🟨🟨🟨 🟦🟦🟦🟦 🟩πŸŸͺ🟩πŸŸͺ 🟩🟩🟩🟩 πŸŸͺπŸŸͺπŸŸͺπŸŸͺ πŸ™‚ Daily Quordle 1080 5️⃣4️⃣ 6️⃣7️⃣ m-w.com/games/quordle/ ⬜⬜⬜🟨⬜ 🟩⬜🟨⬜⬜ 🟨⬜⬜🟨🟩 ⬜🟨⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜ 🟨⬜⬜⬜🟩 ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ 🟨⬜⬜🟨🟨 ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜🟨🟨 🟨⬜🟨⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜🟨⬜⬜⬜ 🟨⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜🟩🟨⬜🟨 ⬜⬜⬜🟩⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
  21. I'm watching the local news from that link up-thread and this is some scary and heartbreaking shit.
  22. Fire map: https://firms.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/usfs/map/#d:24hrs;@-118.27,34.10,11.10z
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