Internet Creator, Al Gore Solves 'Why so much snow' Question

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 Former Vice President Al Gore in his home office in Nashville, TN. (Time magazine)
 http://blog.algore.com/2011/02/an_answer_for_bill.html
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An Answer for Bill February 1, 2011 : 11:43 AM

Last week on his show Bill O’Reilly asked, “Why has southern New York turned into the tundra?” and then said he had a call into me. I appreciate the question.


As it turns out, the scientific community has been addressing this particular question for some time now and they say that increased heavy snowfalls are completely consistent with what they have been predicting as a consequence of man-made global warming:


“In fact, scientists have been warning for at least two decades that global warming could make snowstorms more severe. Snow has two simple ingredients: cold and moisture. Warmer air collects moisture like a sponge until it hits a patch of cold air. When temperatures dip below freezing, a lot of moisture creates a lot of snow.”


“A rise in global temperature can create all sorts of havoc, ranging from hotter dry spells to colder winters, along with increasingly violent storms, flooding, forest fires and loss of endangered species.”

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'Blizzard of 011' I-70 Closed, Whips Missouri Lawmakers, End Work Week Noon Tuesday

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 Snow coming too fast for road crews to keep up.
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Update: Update: I-70 Closed in mid-Missouri

by Zac Evans KRCG

Update: Tues Feb 1 at 2:10 p.m.:
The Missouri Department of Transportation is closing I-70 in Boone, Cooper and Callaway counties due to whiteout conditions.

MoDOT says it does not know how long the closure will last.

The Highway Patrol and MoDOT are urging people not to travel.

“This is not a good time to be on the road,” MoDOT Director of System Management Don Hillis said in a press release.  “Almost all of the state is covered with snow and some areas are receiving ice, making some roads impassable.  Please stay home if you can.”

MoDOT has advised that Highway 54 between Mexico and Fulton is also closed.

To view road conditions, click HERE for a link to MoDot's travel map.

READ MORE

Missouri lawmakers end work week early because of storm

Tuesday, February 1, 2011 | 1:18 p.m. CST

BY The Associated Press

JEFFERSON CITY — Missouri lawmakers are wrapping up their work early this week because of the severe winter storm.

The Senate was adjourning Tuesday until next week. House leaders also adjourned Tuesday morning. The full House was not scheduled to meet in a formal session until next week, though a few House committees still planned hearings. The House will hold technical floor sessions Wednesday and Thursday.

Also canceled was an annual speech about the judiciary before a joint legislative session from Missouri Supreme Court Chief Justice William Ray Price.



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Hermann Road Crews Have Hard Time Keeping in Up, 'BLIZZARD OF 011'

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Snow Shuts Down Roads; Travel Becomes Impossible In Spots

by dfox on Tue, 02/01/2011 KLPW
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While some in Franklin County were still wondering Tuesday afternoon when the snow would arrive, those in the bordering counties of Warren and Gasconade were wondering when it would stop. Heavy snow and high winds shut down a large portion of I-70 in central Missouri, and caused whiteout conditions in Warren County.
 
"This is not a good time to be on the road," Missouri Department of Transportation Director of System Management Don Hillis said. "Almost all of the state is covered with snow and some areas are receiving ice, making some roads impassable. Please stay home if you can."
 
As of Tuesday afternoon, Hermann officials said the snow was falling so rapidly, city street crews were having difficulty keeping up. Hermann Police Chief Frank Tennant was needed to drive City Hall employees to their homes as the snow made travel more and more difficult.
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'Hem and Haw:' Clinton 'We're not advocating any specific outcome' in Egypt crisis

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Clinton: 'We're not advocating any specific outcome' in Egypt crisis

By Bridget Johnson and Michael O'Brien CNN- 01/30/11
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The Obama administration struggled to maintain a careful balance on its response to the crisis in Egypt on Sunday, which continued to spiral out of control as armed gangs broke hundreds of militants out of Egyptian jails and the U.S. Embassy warned citizens to consider leaving the country as soon as possible.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made the rounds on all five Sunday shows, advocating that the people's voice be heard while taking care not to call for a departure of President Hosni Mubarak.

The steps Mubarak has taken to address his people's grievances against the government haven't been enough, Clinton said on "Fox News Sunday."

"I don't think anyone is satisfied, least of all the Egyptian people," Clinton said.


But when asked on CNN's "State of the Union" whether the U.S. was taking the side of government or the protesters, Clinton stressed that the U.S. had been "on the side of the people" as it had been for more than 30 years of cooperation with Cairo while advocating greater democratic and civil rights.

"We're not advocating any specific outcome," she said.

She said that the U.S. is trying to "keep on the message we've been on, convey it publicly and privately, and stand ready to help."
"We do not want to send any message about backing forward or backing back," Clinton said.

Clinton said that the U.S. wanted to see the people be able to express their voices in "peaceful protest ... and then a process of national dialogue that will lead to the changes the Egyptian people seek and deserve."

She cautioned that such changes will take time, but urged Mubarak to take concrete steps and for his new government officials to "put real life into what President Mubarak said" in his address to the nation Friday evening.

Mubarak requested the resignation of his government on Friday, and announced the appointment of a new vice president, a former intelligence chief who's regarded as a Mubarak loyalist.

On Fox, Clinton said that was a first step. "But there's a long way to go."

"We have been very clear that we want to see a transition to democracy, and we want to see the kind of steps taken that will bring that about. But we also want to see an orderly transition," she said. 

"There are many, many steps along the journey that has been started by the Egyptian people themselves."

Click Here to Read More.

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BLIZZARD WARNING First Time EVER Issued in Mid Missouri By Weather Service in St. Louis VIDEO Blizzard of 1977

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Children make their way through a Belleville alley after a storm dumped up to 18 inches of snow on Belleville the weekend of Jan. 30-31, 1982.
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Update: First ever Blizzard Warning issued for mid-Missouri

by Ladd Egan

  01.31.2011

The National Weather Service has issued a Blizzard Warning for all mid-Missouri counties.

This is the first time the Weather Service in St. Louis has ever had to issue a Blizzard Warning for any area.

According the the Weather Service, a Blizzard Warning is issued when sustained wind speeds or frequent gusts of over 35 mph are expected for several hours with considerable falling and/or blowing and drifting snow.

A Blizzard Warning is mainly used to make motorists aware of white-out conditions, which make travel extremely dangerous.

To see the weather watches and warnings for your county click HERE.

For mid-Missouri, here is the forecast:

Light freezing rain and sleet will continue through the afternoon hours Monday, the Weather Service predicts.

By Monday evening, the precipitation will change over to snow, which will continue all day Tuesday and end Wednesday morning.

Accumulations will range from 12 to 20 inches, with the higher totals in the northern counties.

The Weather Service says some areas could get more than 20 inches.

Wind will also be an issue, the winds will become northerly and increase to 25 to 30 mph with frequent gusts to 40 mph by Tuesday afternoon and continue through Wednesday, according to the weather service.

The Weather Service warns that blowing snow could cause white-out conditions. 　
. Click Here to Read More.

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Terrorist Warning Issued for US Citizens Worldwide 2nd Advisory Cautioning Travel to Britain

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US issues terrorist warning for citizens worldwide

Jan 31 
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The State Department Monday issued an updated warning on the "continuing threat of terrorist actions" for US citizens worldwide, and a second advisory cautioning travel to Britain. "Current information suggests that Al-Qaeda and affiliated organizations continue to plan terrorist attacks against US interests in multiple regions, including Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East," said the advisory, which updates the last Worldwide Caution post from August 2010.
The State Department warned that militant groups could target areas where US citizens may gather in large numbers, such as sporting events, hotels, or places of worship.
Attacks could involve a variety of tactics "including suicide operations, assassinations, kidnappings, hijackings, and bombings," said the statement.
In another warning the State Department cautioned US citizens traveling to or living in Britain, due to a "continuing high level of terrorist threat." 

Click Here to Read More.

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Oil Hits $100 First time Since 2008 as Egypt Protests Intensify VIDEO Oil Prices Will Stay High

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Oil over $100 as Egypt protests intensify

 By Javier Blas in Geneva, Roula Khalaf in London, Michael Peel in Cairo
January 31 2011
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Oil prices broke through the $100 a barrel level for the first time in more than two years, amid market fears that Egypt’s turmoil will hit oil flows.

Brent crude, the global benchmark, surged to an intraday high of $101.19 per barrel, the highest since September 2008.

“It is something that we are, as you can imagine for our economy and for the recovery of the global economy, watching quite closely,” said Robert Gibbs, White House press secretary.

“We are extremely concerned about the Middle East situation,” said Marco Dunand, chief executive of Geneva-based Mercuria, one of the world’s biggest oil traders. “This is going to increase volatility substantially.”

Although both the Suez Canal and a pipeline linking the Red Sea with the Mediterranean continue to operate, the popular uprising to unseat Hosni Mubarak, Egypt’s president, has brought much of the rest of the economy to a halt.

The army said on Monday it would not use force against Egyptians staging protests demanding President Mubarak step down, a statement said. It said “freedom of expression” was guaranteed to all citizens using peaceful means.

This is the first such explicit confirmation by the army that it would not fire at demonstrators who have taken to the streets of Egypt since last week to try to force Mr Mubarak to quit.

Egypt’s new vice-president Omar Suleiman said on Monday he had been asked to start dialogue with “all political forces” – including on constitutional and legislative reform, a key demand voiced by anti-Mubarak protesters.

The constitutional amendments include easing restrictions on those who eligible to run in presidential election. “The president has asked me today to immediately hold contacts with the political forces to start a dialogue about all raised issues that also involve constitutional and legislative reforms in a form that will result in clear proposed amendments and a specific timetable for its implementation,” Mr Suleiman said in a televised address.

Local and foreign companies have suspended operations, while holidaymakers are rushing to airports in an effort to evacuate the country.

As the stand-off between protesters and Mr Mubarak escalates, activists are preparing for what some have dubbed a million-strong march today.

At entrances to Tahrir square in Cairo, young men held up signs saying “One million march. 10am. Down with Mubarak.”

Mr Mubarak, who is facing the gravest threat to his 30-year rule over the Arab world’s most populous country, named a new cabinet to replace ministers close to his son, and presumed heir, Gamal. 

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SMACK DOWN - JUDGE RULES HEALTH CARE LAW UNCONSTITUTIONAL

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Judge strikes down healthcare reform law

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By Tom Brown

MIAMI | Mon Jan 31, 2011

(Reuters) - A federal judge in Florida struck down President Barack Obama's landmark healthcare overhaul as unconstitutional on Monday in the biggest legal challenge yet to federal authority to enact the law.
U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson ruled that the reform law's so-called individual mandate went too far in requiring that Americans start buying health insurance in 2014 or pay a penalty.
"Because the individual mandate is unconstitutional and not severable, the entire act must be declared void," he wrote, "This has been a difficult decision to reach and I am aware that it will have indeterminable implications."
Referring to a key provision in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Vinson sided with governors and attorneys general from 26 U.S. states, almost all of whom are Republicans, in declaring the Obama healthcare reform unconstitutional.
"Regardless of how laudable its attempts may have been to accomplish these goals in passing the act, Congress must operate within the bounds established by the Constitution," Vinson, who was appointed to the bench by Republican President Ronald Reagan, ruled.
The Obama administration said it would appeal Vinson's ruling and believed it would prevail on a highly politicized issue likely to end up at the Supreme Court.
"We strongly disagree with the court's ruling today and continue to believe -- as other federal courts have found -- that the Affordable Care Act is constitutional," Justice Department spokeswoman Tracy Schmaler said.
A White House official told reporters the administration planned to continue with implementation of the law.
"We'll continue to operate as we have previously and suspect that the states will do the same," said the senior administration official, who asked not to be named.
"Obviously this case will be appealed ... and so implementation would proceed apace ... This is not the last word by any means," the official said.
But the fact that the judge did not issue a stay of his ruling pending appeal by the government could threaten the application of many of the provisions of the healthcare law.

. Click Here to Read More.

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Gasconade County, Missouri Residents, Do You Know the Meaning of Gasconade ?

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Fredericksburg Ferry, Gasconade River, Gasconade County.     May 2010
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Posted by Dave
Jan. 31, 2011

Community Comment

A Word A Day — gasconade

Do you wish to travel, but don't want TSA groping you or taking your unclothed picture? Well, you've come to the right place. With this week's words we'll take you to Europe. We'll explore words derived from the names of places, and the places we'll visit are Italy, Greece, and France. We'll even travel back in time and visit Ancient Greece, making three stops to pick up words along the way.

gasconade

 

PRONUNCIATION:

(gas-kuh-NAYD)

MEANING:

noun: Boastful talk.
verb intr. : To boast extravagantly.

ETYMOLOGY:

From French gasconnade, from gasconner (to boast), after Gascon, a native of the Gascony region in France. First recorded use: 1709.

NOTES:

Were people from Gascony full of boast and bravado? Not necessarily. Historical rivalries lead one people to generalize others' names as having some shortcoming and some of those names become part of the language. Other examples of such words are solecism solecism, Boeotian, and fescennine.

USAGE:

“Stanley Hauerwas's explanation is not appreciated in an era of instant broadcast and electronic gasconade.”
Irony at UVa; The Richmond Times-Dispatch (Virginia); Aug 2, 2010.

. Click Here More Info.

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Halle Berry Quits Film to Fight for Custody Over Her Young Daughter.

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Rep: Halle Berry quits film to fight for custody

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The Associated Press

Posted on January 31, 2011

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Halle Berry has pulled out of a film job to prepare for a custody fight over her young daughter.

A spokeswoman for the Oscar-winning actress says Berry backed out of a role in "New Year's Eve" that was scheduled to shoot in New York this week "due to pending custody litigation involving her daughter."

Publicist Meredith O'Sullivan did not say where or when the custody case would be heard.

Berry and her ex-boyfriend, Gabriel Aubry, have a daughter, Nahla, who will turn 3 in March.

Attempts to reach Aubry on Monday were unsuccessful.

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Discovery Bay, California - We Don't Accept Cash For Services

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California Residents Hit With Government Ban On Paying By Cash

Steve Watson
Prisonplanet.com
Jan 27, 2011
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District officials want to find out who “uncommonly antagonistic” individuals are by tracing requests for public records, while federal government paints cash users as potential terrorists

Residents of Discovery Bay, California will be the first in the country to be officially denied the right to use cash to pay for public services, in a move that echoes the Department of Homeland Security’s drive to depict those who use physical money as potential terrorists.


As reported by the Contra Costa Times recently, from May onwards, residents will no long be allowed to pay water bills or purchase park permits after the Discovery Bay Community Services District board voted to ban cash transactions for all services.


Anyone paying for such public services must do so with a credit/debit card, a check or money order.
The declaration on all US money bills that “This note is legal tender for all debts, public and private” will no longer apply in Discovery Bay when it comes to paying the government.


One former director on the District Board told the Times that he believes the move has come in response to a small amount of anonymous requests for copies of public records, which were then paid for in cash, a perfectly legal right.


Residents of the town have been described as “uncommonly antagonistic toward local government”, and former director David Piepho believes some are attempting to use public records “to be like snipers and take shots.”


He believes that by banning cash payments, the local government will be able to identify who these individuals are or prevent them from requesting further public information.


However, district representatives have denied those claims, instead suggesting that the ban is being put in place because handling cash puts city officials under threat from potential thieves.


The ruling sets a dangerous precedent, not only in that it effectively limits access to public records, but also particularly in light of the fact that the federal government is pushing an agenda to identify those who exclusively use cash to pay for things and do not own credit cards as suspicious and potential terrorists.


As part of the Commercial Facilities Sector Training and Resources, the following PSA video titled DHS Video No Reservations – Extension of “See Something, Say Something” program was recently released by Department of Homeland Security (DHS).


The video suggests that “Terrorists and criminals do their best to cover their tracks. This may include paying by cash.” The hotel receptionist acts baffled and dumbfounded when a guest asks to pay in cash and says he does not use credit cards. Like a dutiful tattle tale she alerts her manager, concluding “I guess it’s not a problem, it’s just… WEIRD.” The narrator of the video then confirms “This is suspicious behaviour”.
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Of course, what really is “WEIRD” is the fact that we’re expected to believe that US citizens will find it perfectly normal being asked to report on each other for a government that wishes your every purchase to be electronically traceable on the off chance that you might be an enemy of the state.
Related: Big Sis Launches DHS Takeover Of Hotels, Malls & Sports Stadiums
Related: Americans Outraged As Big Sis Launches DHS Invasion Of Society
Related: You Are The Resistance Against The DHS Occupation Of America



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Cashless Cow Society: ‘Facebook Nation’ unveils its new “virtual currency credits”

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Patrick Henningsen
21st Century Wire
January 31, 2011

The 21st century has certainly witnessed a progression towards a ‘cashless society’, but social networking giant Facebook are taking things a step further, throwing their hat into the ring with the introduction of a new compulsory monetary policy that will initially govern its share of the multi-billion dollar online games industry.


Imagine a virtual world where all goods and services are to be offered, bought and paid for by a new virtual-local form of electron currency. Facebook will be piloting such a scheme for their multimillion dollar online games market. As of July 2011, every social game developer on Facebook will have to offer the social network’s “virtual currency credits”.

According to a recent news release from Marketing Week, “Over the next five months developers will have to implement credits as a payment method within their games”. The games industry already accounts for 70% of the virtual goods transactions on the site.

According to Facebook, the social networking corporation are not insisting that their new online currency will be the only payment method available to users, and in exchange for their cooperation game developers will offered incentives if they use Facebook dollars exclusively. Compensation for compliance will apparently include early access to product features and premium promotion on their site, including promotion on the games dashboard and of course, premium ‘smart’ ad targeting.

What appears on the surface to be a simple online marketing tool to help consolidate a niche market share on the world’s largest social network, has in fact much more far and reaching consequences for hundreds of millions of users.  What Facebook have effectively achieved here is nothing short of a huge “game changer” in terms of envisioning a world without cash.

Foreshadowing of things to come
In 2011, it is a social reality that most people you know are, in one way or another, citizens of the Facebook Nation. The corporation’s success in capturing a near global monopoly of membership to their online platform has now given it the ability to dictate an economic mandate to both producers and consumers, in effect, controlling both the upper and lower loops of their virtual economy. This is an incredible position of power, but one which should come as no surprise to any economic student of monopolies. A severe lack of choice in the world of online communities has unwittingly(or not) positioned Facebook in the rolls of banker, retailer and governor.  It is certainly a trend worth noting at this stage, and one which may one day have real consequences for its members and their various cyber passions.

By issuing its own form of “virtual currency credits”, it is essentially creating its own money supply that may one day be the defacto currency for all transactions for goods and services that fall within the borders of the social network. This puts Facebook into a position of exception economic leverage. With any new form of ‘national’ currency- in this case, it’s the Facebook National currency, also comes the possibility of fluctuation in currency exchange rates. With this centralisation of power also comes the ability and means to control and even inflate the value of its currency in terms of supply and demand. This can also reflect itself in the value of all goods and services whereby the paying online community would have no choice but to comply to any new user monetary policy decrees or changes in value imposed on producers and users. One only has to look at their recent announcement to realise that this is indeed already the case.

A Brave New World: the cashless society
As the virtual community and virtual economy begin to replace the real ones, trends forecasters and futurists can begin to imagine a world where morning newspapers are replaced by online news, local markets are replaced by online supermarkets, community fundraising events are replaced by web fundraisers, fun fairs are replaced with online games and greasy spoon cafés are replaced by internet cafés. In case you haven’t been paying attention, in so many ways- that day has already arrived. Welcome to the virtual world. As we spend more and more of our time interfacing with this new world, we will invariably be performing many more monetary transaction there too.


Aside from the obvious differences in a cashless society- a world where  no notes and coins are ever physically held by the owner, there are also a number of other not so nice realities which citizens will be forced to accept. Chief among these are legitimate concerns that a cashless society would make “retailer resistance” aka choosing independent shops, buying direct or supporting local markets over mega supermarkets and national retail chain stores… nearly impossible. In addition to retailer resistance, cash ensures some level of anonymity on the part of its owner. Not so in cashless world, as electronic currency and transactions are and will always be recorded, track, analysed and in some cases- suspended.


With the introduction of a cashless society, citizens are also likely to lose their identities associated with national currencies like American Dollars, or British Sterling. But as they lose one identity, they will most certainly gain another. In this way, Facebook has taken the lead in supplying a monetary identity to its client citizens in the form of its ‘virtual currency credits’.


Perhaps one day we may also see ‘Apple Credits’ or ‘Nokia Kroner’ as mobile device transactions creep further and further into our economic routine. Either way you slice it, it is an incredible amount of power and influence which an elite clique of corporations now have over large sections of the global population.


 As we have seen with the online games developers and their customers, resisting the Facebook marketplace is no longer an option, as it has already defined policy within the boundaries of its massive virtual community- even mandating what form of money can be used within the Facebook Nation. The decree is simple and clear, “if you are not in, you are out.”

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World of Farmcraft (game developers try to explain why Farmville is so damn popular)

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