When the mountain roared
Posted By: DVC, 5/18/2025 2:19:22 PM
In 1980, I was a forester working for the Idaho Department of Lands in the northern backcountry. On Sunday, May 18th, a few of us were having a barbecue. It was a beautiful, bright day with a clear blue sky. Suddenly, we noticed an ominous black cloud coming over the back of the mountain to our west. It didn’t look natural. The cloud expanded as it moved eastward, soon covering the entire sky, and it became so dark that the streetlights came on. It was early afternoon, and yet it was as dark as midnight. We were terrified.
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Taxing remittances?
11 replies
We've posted about remittances to Mexico in the past. It's a big number and the top source of cash for Mexico after oil and tourism revenues. It's US$ 63 billion, a lot of money, to say the least. It's also a lot of money leaving the U.S., specially from towns and communities that could use the funds to support local services.
[snip]
Remittances, one of Mexico’s main sources of foreign currency, are now in the crosshairs of U.S. tax policy. A U.S. House of Representatives committee on Wednesday approved a proposal to impose a 5% tax on remittances.
When the mountain roared
6 replies
In 1980, I was a forester working for the Idaho Department of Lands in the northern backcountry. On Sunday, May 18th, a few of us were having a barbecue. It was a beautiful, bright day with a clear blue sky. Suddenly, we noticed an ominous black cloud coming over the back of the mountain to our west. It didn’t look natural. The cloud expanded as it moved eastward, soon covering the entire sky, and it became so dark that the streetlights came on. It was early afternoon, and yet it was as dark as midnight. We were terrified.
Spain is running its national power grid in “strengthened mode”, using more nuclear and natural gas in place of the renewables it vaunted before last month’s historic blackout, but still hasn’t said what started the outage.
Spain still hasn’t officially acknowledged it knows what caused the historic blackout that started in the south of the nation and cascaded to totally knock out all electricity in two European countries, but now says it is certain it wasn’t the victim of a cyber attack. Two weeks after the total loss of all energy generation on the Iberian peninsula of Spain and Portugal, the national generation agency Red Eléctrica
In 2023, Germany shuttered its last nuclear plant, and in 2024, wind energy became the nation’s largest single source of electricity, supplying 31.9%. But now it’s 2025, and as the staff at Remix News reported yesterday, “Germany’s wind lull is slamming electricity production” and creating losses in the millions.
Here’s the story:
Germany: Wind power firms face millions in losses as wind speed drops to 50-year low
The wind speed average has dropped below less than 5.5 meters per second in the first quarter of 2025, according to [the] German Meteorological Service (DWD).
In the aftermath of the Spanish blackout
2 replies
One subject that renewable advocates are averse to discussing is asset utilization and I can understand why. Capacity factors, which are a measure of asset utilization, plummet when renewables enter the picture. As a typical example look at Red Eléctrica de España (REE). In 2024, it had capacity factors for wind, solar, and natural gas of 22%, 17%, and 16%, respectively. In essence, REE possessed three expensive assets that were grossly underutilized. If it discarded the wind and solar, the natural gas capacity factor would rise to 64%.
Moreover, even with the price of natural gas being four times (4x) more in Spain than in Texas
In his latest proposal to end the war in Ukraine, former President Donald Trump reportedly offered Vladimir Putin a dangerous concession: de jure recognition of Russia’s annexation of Crimea. The proposal appears to accept the idea that Crimea was once part of Russia and that returning it to Russia would restore historical justice.
This logic is not just politically reckless, it is historically and legally indefensible. It echoes the imperial narrative Putin himself has long advanced: that modern Russia is the rightful heir to the entire Russian Empire[snip]
Crimea was never part of Russia, and the Russian Federation is not a successor to the entire Russian Empire.
In George Floyd: did a police administrator commit perjury? I wrote of the probability Minneapolis Assistant Police Chief Katie Blackwell committed perjury to ensure former MPD officer Derek Chauvin’s conviction in the self-inflicted death of George Floyd. I wrote in part:
Fourteen current and former police officers with the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) have signed sworn declarations [snip] say they believe Blackwell perjured herself when she testified in court that the restraint method Chauvin used to subdue George Floyd in May 2020 was not a part of MPD officer training. In that trial, Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree unintentional murder[snip]
Over 100 illegal immigrants arrested in
Colorado Springs massive underground nightclub raid 4 replies
Colorado Springs massive underground nightclub raid 4 replies
Federal authorities announced Sunday that more than a hundred illegal immigrants were detained in a massive raid at an underground nightclub in Colorado Springs that officials say was "frequented by TdA and MS-13 terrorists."
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Rocky Mountain Division led a multi-agency operation early Sunday morning and arrested 114 illegal immigrants at the venue that contained more than 200 people inside.
Authorities uncovered drugs, including pink cocaine, as well as evidence of prostitution and multiple firearms during the operation, according to the DEA.
This week marks the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord and the start of the Revolutionary War. Farmers, tradesmen, laborers, and mariners–Americans of all stripes–came together to defend themselves against the most professional army in the world.
April 19, 1775, marked the beginning of an epic journey for a band of brothers who risked EVERYTHING for a nation yet to be born. Over the course of nearly eight years, many of these Americans marched thousands of miles, often shoeless, unpaid, and starving, to fight for freedom and liberties most Americans today take for granted.
The biological mother of accused Florida State University shooter Phoenix Ikner kidnapped him and fled to Norway amid a bitter custody battle a decade before the deadly shooting, court documents reveal.
Anne-Mari Eriksen took her then-11-year-old son to the Scandinavian nation in March 2015 in violation of the custody agreement she had with Christopher Ikner — after telling the father she was taking him to South Florida for spring break, according to a probable cause affidavit from the Leon County Sheriff’s Office viewed by The Post.
Eriksen and Phoenix Ikner — who at the time went by his birth name, Christian Gunnar Eriksen — both have American and Norwegian citizenship.
Stellantis is halting production at two manufacturing plants, one in Canada and another in Mexico, just a day after President Donald Trump announced 25-percent tariffs on all foreign-made cars.
During a speech in the Rose Garden on Wednesday evening, Trump announced the auto tariff and the United States reciprocal tariffs, marking an end to the nation’s decades-long free trade policy that has eliminated millions of American manufacturing jobs.
Stellantis, whose former CEO Carlos Tavares was the highest paid auto executive — raking in nearly $40 million annually before his resignation in December of last year — has announced that its Windsor Assembly Plant in Ontario, Canada,
One of the virtues of being a mentally healthy person in an honest society is that you don’t have to deal with cognitive dissonance. That is, there are no moments when you are forced to accept two entirely conflicting facts or values. Instead, you have the mental freedom to work through the conflict and come out with an honest evaluation.
When people lack that honesty and liberty, the only refuge is delusions and heartfelt lies to themselves. That shows up in a very funny video from February that’s starting to gain deserved traction.
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Although the event occurred earlier in the month, video of Hillary Clinton’s appearance at a Newmark Civic Life Series talk at the 92nd Street Y in Manhattan is hitting the internet and going viral. The former first lady thinks the importance of having children is overrated and that a renewed focus on family life would somehow be going “backward.”
Her voice drips with contempt as she talks about President Trump, Elon Musk and Vice President JD Vance extolling the virtues of big families and having babies. It’s truly appalling stuff:
…this very blatant effort to basically send a message most exemplified by Vance and Musk, and others, that,
Joe Biden Diagnosed with Prostate Cancer
39 replies
Former President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with prostate cancer that is “characterized by a Gleason score of 9,” his office revealed in a statement Sunday.
(Snip) “Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms,” the press release said. “On Friday, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, characterized by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone. While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management.”
“The President and his family are reviewing treatment options with his physicians,” the statement added.
He missed the boat on this one.
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) on Sunday bizarrely suggested that DOGE cuts to the US Coast Guard could have been partly to blame for a Mexican tall ship’s deadly collision with the Brooklyn Bridge.
“We know there has been meddling by the Trump administration into USCG staffing, and we need to know how this might have impacted the events of last night — from a command, communication and local coordination level,” the embattled Dem said in a press release.
“There are indications that this service [Vehicle Traffic System] may not be fully or adequately functional in light of a hiring freeze,” he said —
Representative James Clyburn (D-SC) said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” that he believed former President Joe Biden would have been able to perform the duties required for the job another four years.
Host Jake Tapper said, “With what we’ve seen from President Biden both in that audio, but also throughout 2023, 2024, especially on the debate stage do you think that Joe Biden really would have been able to perform as president all the way through January 2029, when he would have been when he would be 86?”
Clyburn said, “Yes. I thought that back then. I still think that, but I don’t know that.
Comey: Don’t Regret ‘Innocent’ 86
47 Post — It Was ‘Clever,’ Artistic
Political View Point 35 replies
47 Post — It Was ‘Clever,’ Artistic
Political View Point 35 replies
Former FBI Director James Comey said Monday on MSNBC’s “Deadline” that he did not regret his “86 47” social media post because it was “clever” and an artistic political point of view that he admired.
Host Nicolle Wallace said, “Take me back to the walk on the beach.”
Comey said, “We were walking on the beach. We went to the beach to prepare for this week, which was the launch of my book and to think about the book and to prepare to answer questions about it. And we were walking back towards the road and we saw in the sand someone had arranged shells with numbers.
First, my sympathies for the Biden family. I’ve been there.
Now, here’s my puzzlement. Prostate cancer is notoriously slow-growing. Although prostate cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer deaths among men (second to only lung cancer), that’s not because it’s so deadly, but because it’s so common. It’s a fact that more men die with prostate cancer than of it.
Of those who die, the typical mechanism of death is by the cancer cells metastasizing to other organs and/or to the bones. It takes years for that to happen – typically something like 5-10 years even without treatment, and even longer with treatment.
Former President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with prostate cancer
Biden was seen last week by doctors after urinary symptoms and a prostate nodule was found. He was diagnosed with prostate cancer on Friday, with the cancer cells having spread to the bone.
“While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management," his office said.
Prostate cancers are given a score called a Gleason score that measures, on a scale of 1 to 10, how the cancerous cells look compared with normal cells. Biden’s office said his score was 9 ...
During an appearance on FNC’s “Sunday Morning Futures,” FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Director Dan Bongino discussed the details surrounding Jeffrey Epstein’s death.
According to Bongino, Epstein committed suicide. “You said Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide,” host Maria Bartiromo said. “People don’t believe it.” (snip) Bongino added, “He killed himself. Again, you want me to — I have seen the whole file. He killed himself.”
According to a new report from the Los Angeles Times, Kamala Harris will spend her summer deciding between three options for her political future.
The first and most obvious option would be to retire from politics, which seems unlikely given her ego. Harris’s second option is a third attempt at running for president. According to the report, the third option is a run for California governor.
The report states, “According to several who’ve spoken with Harris, she is genuinely undecided, torn between concern and affection for her home state and an undimmed desire to be president.”
Honest Abe. Old Hickory. Tippecanoe (and Tyler too). Silent Cal. The Gipper.
Been some iconic nicknames for U.S. presidents.
Should Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz ever reach the big-boy seat in the Oval Office, he should probably invest in a better nickname, because his current one doesn’t exactly convey an inspirational sense of wisdom, majesty, courage, or purpose.
I looked it up: There were roughly 300 news articles — from mainstream, legitimate news outlets — that referred to Tim Walz as “Tampon Tim.”
Those outlets included NPR, Time Magazine, CBS News, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, MSNBC, People Magazine, Bloomberg, The Daily Beast, HuffPost, The Washington Post, USA Today, TMZ,
MSNBC contributor Claire McCaskill said Monday on “Deadline” that American voters were “not smart enough” to keep President Donald Trump away from the presidency.
McCaskill said, “There’s a huge swath of Americans that don’t know about that because their algorithms are purposely not feeding them politics because they don’t want to hear about it. But you know what they’re all going to know about? They’re all going to know about higher prices. They’re all going to know that they’re spending more at Walmart than they spent this time last year. They’re all going to know that their 401Ks are down. They’re all going to know that.
Former Democratic Rep. Beto O’Rourke said former President Joe Biden “failed this country” by seeking reelection in 2024.
Speaking on the Pod Save America podcast, O’Rourke said, “We might very well lose the greatest country that this world has ever known,” he said, blasting Biden for clinging to power and ignoring widespread voter dissatisfaction. “It’s not just you and me, but our kids and grandkids… who might have to pay the price for this.”
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This was a pretty incredible event, and a great example of never underestimating the power of natural forces, especially volcanoes.