The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 1 of 49
Welcome to the September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY!
I still am in the process of recovering from the MidAmerican II ConCrud, but I am felling better than last week. As you get older, it’s a slow process to bounce back. But hey, it beats the hell out of the alternative.
It has been so hot around the Big Nooga this summer, I have been pretty much house bound. But we got a break in the heat on Saturday and I got the lawn tractor out and cut the side and back yards. It really felt great to get a little bit of exercise but I will admit it tired me out. But the yard looks half way decent and I can start getting ready for Leaffagedeon that is coming this fall. In the past I have gone crazy bagging up the leaves and throwing them into the woods. But last year I tried a different tact. I waited until they all fell and dried out and started mulching them on the ground. I think I cut them up 4 or 5 times and with the lawn tractor and got them down to a nice powder. Would you believe, they help to fertilize the yard this year and the dirt in the back yard actually looked a little greener. ;^)
Labor Day was pretty around Casa Bolgeo. Alexander the Grape came over and was spraying the yard to kill all of the different types of ivy we have growing wild. Everybody can understand trying to get rid of poison ivy, but we are trying to fight back the English Ivy. That stuff will climb up the trunk of a tree and eventually strangle and kill it. Even though it is not Kudzu, it is pretty bad in it’s own right and I have been fighting it for over 30 years to keep it out of my yard. Alex made enough to help fill up his gas tank and take his lady love, Kyla out for a date or two.
So on that ”Working Note”, why don't y'all sit back and relax because here's the best in gossip, jokes and science for your reading pleasure!
Uncle Timmy
~~~ THE CHOO CHOO IS CUTTING THEIR AVAILABLE HOTEL SPACE. BUT DON’T WORRY, WE HAVE A PLAN! From the LibertyCon Facebook Page Hey everyone, we hope that you have had a great summer and for those of you who are going to DragonCon this weekend -- find us, we will be there and ready to party! As you will undoubtedly see in the upcoming weeks, the Choo Choo has some big news. While they are keeping all of the function space as is, they have decided to turn Building 3 into apartments, which means that between Building 1 and the train cars there will only be about 130 room left as hotel space. "What does this mean for LibertyCon?", you ask... We do have some options, and are looking into things as we speak… or type… you know what we mean! The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 2 of 49 While we don’t have anything quite ready for prime time yet, the one thing that we ask is that if you have a hotel reservation, UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES CALL AND CANCEL OR CHANGE ANYTHING! Again, we can’t give you all of the specifics quite yet, but we need to keep those reservations as is for now. You will not lose anything, and it allows us to have better discussions with different venues when we show a sold out Choo Choo. Luckily, we have plenty of time to to ensure that LibertyCon XXX is still an amazingly kick- ass weekend, so don’t worry, and a LibertyCon membership is still a perfect Christmas present for those who haven’t gotten one yet!!!! WE ARE ALREADY IN THE PROCESS OF MAKING SURE THAT THERE WILL BE PLENTY OF ROOMS AVAILABLE FOR LIBERTYCON 30 AND THAT IT WILL BE EASY ACCESS TO GET TO THE CHOO CHOO. KEEP TUNED TO THIS STATION BAT FANS FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION ON WHAT IS GOING ON WITH LIBERTYCON 30. UT CON*STELLATION T-SHIRT/POLO ORDER INFO IS UP From: “Mike Kennedy" [email protected] Date: August 30, 2016 at 10:22:40 PM CDT Order info for @Con_Stellation 34 T-Shirt/Polo added to main page; http://www.con-stellation.org/constell/wiki/index.php - art by David O. Miller Online payment is via PayPal, but you don’t have to have a PayPal account to use that service. RT: $45 rate for @Con_Stellation 34 extended to 17 Sept. Pay online (main page http://www.con- stellation.org/constell/wiki/index.php ) via PayPal (no acc’t req'd) or by mail. THE INAUGURAL DRAGON AWARDS HIGHLIGHT THE POPULIST SIDE OF SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY From: “Tim Bolgeo” [email protected] The awards appear to be an alternative to the Hugo Awards By Andrew Liptak, on September 4, 2016 08:27 pm http://www.theverge.com/2016/9/4/12794666/dragon-award-dragoncon-david-weber-terry-pratchett The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 3 of 49 This year’s inaugural Dragon Awards were handed out today at Dragon Con in Atlanta, Georgia. The winners show a remarkable contrast to the recipients of this year’s Hugo Award winners, one of the major awards in science fiction and fantasy literature. The Dragon Awards were instituted earlier this year in conjunction with the convention's 30th anniversary. The award is designed to be a "true reflection of the works that are genuinely most beloved by the core audience," the larger fan world, rather than the core literary circles that help choose the Nebula Awards and Hugo Awards. The Dragon Awards opened nominations and voting to the general public. NOMINATIONS FOR THE DRAGON AWARDS WERE OPEN TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC One of the nominated authors, Larry Correia, noted on his blog that "this award isn’t for a small clique to take turns telling each other how brilliant they are. This award is for all of fandom to celebrate what they think is great." The nominees certainly encompass a wide range of works, from critically acclaimed authors such as Ann Leckie and N.K. Jemisin to enormously popular ones such as Jim Butcher and Correia. The awards have been hailed by a pair of groups calling themselves the Sad Puppies and Rabid Puppies, some of whose members vocally identify themselves with the alt-right movement. These groups have sought to put a small, select slate of works on the Hugo Award shortlists in the last couple of years by taking advantage of the Hugo Award's voting process. This year, their groups of nominees were largely voted down in favor of non- slated works. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 4 of 49 In contrast to this year's Hugo Awards, winners of the top categories were predominantly won by authors associated with the Puppies movements, such as Correia, John C. Wright, and Nick Cole. The Dragon Awards appears to have become an alternative for these movements to seek recognition. However, without having direct access to the breakdown of voters for each award, it's hard to tell exactly how these movements influenced this particular vote. The results do seem to show that they have had an influence on the eventual slate of winners. Here are the winners of the 2016 Dragon Awards (winners in CAPS & Italics): Best Science Fiction Novel * SOMEWHITHER: A TALE OF THE UNWITHERING REALM, JOHN C. WRIGHT (CASTALIA HOUSE) * The Life Engineered, J-F. Dubeau (Sword & Laser) * Raising Caine, Charles E. Gannon (Baen) * Ancillary Mercy, Ann Leckie (Orbit) * Agent of the Imperium, Marc Miller (Far Future Enterprises) * Aurora, Kim Stanley Robinson (Orbit) Best Fantasy Novel * SON OF THE BLACK SWORD, LARRY CORREIA (BAEN) * Asteroid Made of Dragons, G. Derek Adams (Sword & Laser) * Blood Hound, James Osiris Baldwin (Gift Horse Productions) * The Aeronaut’s Windlass, Jim Butcher (Roc) * Changeling’s Island, Dave Freer (Baen) * The Fifth Season, N.K. Jemisin (Orbit) * Grave Measures, R.R. Virdi (Self-published) Best Young Adult / Middle Grade Novel * THE SHEPHERD’S CROWN, TERRY PRATCHETT (HARPER) * Six of Crows, Leigh Bardugo (Holt) * Changeling’s Island, Dave Freer (Baen) * Steeplejack, A.J. Hartley (Tor Teen) * Trix and the Faerie Queen, Alethea Kontis (Self-published) * Carry On, Rainbow Rowell (St. Martin’s Griffin) * Calamity, Brandon Sanderson (Delacorte) * Updraft, by Fran Wilde (Tor) Best Military Science Fiction or Fantasy Novel * HELL’S FOUNDATIONS QUIVER, DAVID WEBER (TOR) * Blood in the Water, Taylor Anderson (Roc) * Chains of Command, Marko Kloos (47North) * Wrath of an Angry God, Gibson Michaels (Arc Flash) * Allies and Enemies: Fallen, Amy J. Murphy (Self-published) * The End of All Things, John Scalzi (Tor) * The Price of Valor, Django Wexler (Roc) The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 5 of 49 Best Alternate History Novel * LEAGUE OF DRAGONS, NAOMI NOVIK (DEL REY) * Germanica, Robert Conroy (Baen) * 1635: A Parcel of Rogues, Eric Flint & Andrew Dennis (Baen) * 1636: The Cardinal Virtues, Eric Flint & Walter H. Hunt (Baen) * Deadlands: Ghostwalkers, Jonathan Maberry (Tor) * Bombs Away: The Hot War, Harry Turtledove (Del Rey) Best Apocalyptic Novel * CTRL ALT REVOLT!, NICK COLE (CASTALIA HOUSE) * Chasing Freedom, Marina Fontaine (Self-published) * Dark Age, Felix O. Hartmann (Self-published) * The Fifth Season, N.K. Jemisin (Orbit) * The Desert and the Blade, S.M. Stirling (Roc) * A Time to Die, Mark Wandrey (Henchmen) * Best Horror Novel* * SOULDANCER, BRIAN NIEMEIER (SELF-PUBLISHED) * Honor at Stake, Declan Finn (Caliburn) * Alice, Christina Henry (Ace) * An Unattractive Vampire, Jim McDoniel (Sword & Laser) * Chapelwood, Cherie Priest (Roc) * Disappearance at Devil’s Rock, Paul Tremblay (William Morrow) Best Comic Book MS. MARVEL Astro City Civil War II Daredevil DC Universe: Rebirth Providence Saga Best Graphic Novel THE SANDMAN: OVERTURE, NEIL GAIMAN & J.H. WILLIAMS III (VERTIGO) Chicago, Glenn Head (Fantagraphics) March: Book Two, John Lewis & Andrew Aydin (Top Shelf Productions) Virgil, Steve Orlando (Image) Sacred Heart, Liz Suburbia (Fantagraphics) Killing and Dying, Adrian Tomine (Drawn & Quarterly) Best Science Fiction or Fantasy TV Series * GAME OF THRONES * Daredevil * Doctor Who The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 6 of 49 * The Expanse * The Flash * Jessica Jones * Outlander Best Science Fiction or Fantasy Movie * THE MARTIAN * Ant-Man * Captain America: Civil War * Crimson Peak * Deadpool * Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens Best Science Fiction or Fantasy PC / Console Game * FALLOUT 4 BY BETHESDA SOFTWORKS * Darkest Dungeon by Red Hook Studios * Metal Gear Solid V by Konami Digital Entertainment * Overwatch by Blizzard Entertainment * Undertale by Toby Fox * XCOM 2 by 2k Games Best Science Fiction or Fantasy Mobile Game * FALLOUT SHELTER BY BETHESDA SOFTWORKS * Quaser One by Emre Taskin * PewDiePie: Legend of the Brofist by Outerminds Inc. * Hyper Burner by Patrick Cook * Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes by Electronic Arts Best Science Fiction or Fantasy Board Game * PANDEMIC: LEGACY BY ZMAN GAMES * Star Wars: Rebellion by Fantasy Flight Games * Blood Rage by Cool Mini or Not * Talon by GMT Games * Monopoly: CTHULHU by USAopoly * Codenames by Vlaada Chvatil Best Science Fiction or Fantasy Miniatures / Collectible Card / Role-Playing Game * CALL OF CTHULHU ROLEPLAYING GAME (7TH EDITION) BY CHAOSIUM INC. * Deluxe Tunnels & Trolls by Flying Buffalo * Magic the Gathering: Shadows over Innistrad by Wizards of the Coast * Magic the Gathering: Battle of Zendikar by Wizards of the Coast * Mouse Guard 2nd Edition by David Petersen & Luke Crane * Star Wars: Armada by Fantasy Flight Games This year's nominees did represent a much broader range of novels that don’t typically make some of the other major award ballots, such as self-published works. The broader The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 7 of 49 spread of categories, such as alternate history and military science fiction/fantasy, also help to bring some recognition to less visible works. VIAFILE 770 HEROES AND VILLAINS SERIES OF PHOTOGRAPHS IN 17TH CENTURY GARB, From: “Christina Cowan” [email protected] by Sacha Goldberger: http://factory.tokyoelement.com/supereroi-nel-17- secolo-di-sacha-goldberger/ THERE ARE MANY MORE PICTURES AT THE WEBSITE. IT IS WELL WORTH YOUR TIME TO CHECK IT OUT. UT USS INDIANAPOLIS: MEN OF COURAGE OFFICIAL TRAILER 1 (2016) - NICOLAS CAGE MOVIE From: “Jim Woosley” [email protected] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDPE-NronKk The trailer doesn't say how much might have been taken from Jack Chalker's historical fiction novel of the event, The Devil's Voyage. Hopefully a lot, but probably none, since they didn't use his accurate but melodramatic title. Those of my age will recall the discussion of the loss of Indianapolis - not mentioned by name - in the infamous move Jaws. (Jack's book ended with the speculation that chain of events which lead to the discovery of the Manhattan Project - and a suggestion that the Russians warned the Japanese about the Indianapolis - was a Russian spy finding out about the government's investigation of Astounding Science Fiction magazine in 1942 for Cleve Cartmill's story Deadline, and Robert Heinlein's Solution Unsatisfatory, both of which feature a fictional Manhattan Project-like secret program to develop nuclear weapons.) From: "Jerry Tollett" [email protected] THE COACH----PRICELESS At one point during a game, the coach called one of his 9-year-old baseball players aside and asked, "Do you understand what co-operation is? What a team is?" "Yes, coach", replied the little boy. " Do you understand that what matters is whether we win or lose together as a team?" The little boy nodded in the affirmative. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 8 of 49 "So," the coach continued, "I'm sure you know, when an out is called, you shouldn't argue, curse, attack the umpire, or call him an asshole. Do you understand all that?" Again, the little boy nodded in the affirmative. The coach continued, "And when I take you out of the game so that another boy gets a chance to play, it's not a dumb ass decision or that the coach is a shithead is it?" "No, coach." "Good", said the coach. "Now go over there and explain all that to your grandmother. FIRST SLOGAN FOR CARNATION MILK 65 Years Ago. True story!! A little old lady from Wisconsin had worked in and around her family dairy farms since she was old enough to walk, with hours of hard work and little compensation. When canned Carnation Milk became available in grocery stores in the 1940s, she read an advertisement offering $5,000 for the best slogan. The producers wanted a rhyme beginning With 'Carnation Milk is best of all.' She thought to herself, I know everything there is to know about milk and dairy farms. I can do this! She sent in her entry, and several weeks later, a black car pulled up in front of her house. A large man got out, knocked on her door and said, "Ma'am,.....The president of Carnation milk absolutely LOVED your entry.....So much, in fact, that we are here to award you $1,000 even though we will not be able to use it for our advertisements! "He did, however, have one printed up to hang on his office wall. (Here it is:) The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 9 of 49 GOOD MILK In a convent in Ireland , the 98-year-old Mother Superior lay dying. The nuns gathered around her bed trying to make her last journey comfortable. They tried giving her warm milk to drink but she refused it. One of the nuns took the glass back to the kitchen. Then, remembering a bottle of Irish Whiskey that had been received as a gift the previous Christmas, she opened it and poured a generous amount into the warm milk. Back at Mother Superior's bed, they held the glass to her lips. The frail nun drank a little, then a little more and before they knew it, she had finished the whole glass down to the last drop. As her eyes brightened, the nuns thought it would be a good opportunity to have one last talk with their spiritual leader.. "Mother," the nuns asked earnestly, "Please give us some of your wisdom before you leave us." She raised herself up in bed on one elbow, looked at them and said: "DON'T SELL THAT COW." WHY RETIREMENT IS GOOD Question: How many days in a week? Answer: 6 Saturdays, 1 Sunday Question: When is a retiree's bedtime? Answer: Three hours after he falls asleep on the sofa. Question: How many retirees to change a lightbulb? Answer: Only one, but it might take all day. Question: What is the biggest gripe of retirees? Answer: There's not enough time to get everything done. Question: Why don't retirees mind being called seniors? Answer: The term comes with a 10 percent discount. Question: Among retirees, what is considered a formal attire? Answer: Tied Shoes Question: Why do retirees count pennies? Answer: They are the only ones who have time. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 10 of 49 Question: What is the common term for someone who enjoys work and refuses to retire? Answer: NUTS! Question: Why are retirees so slow to clean out the basement, attic or garage? Answer: They know that as soon as they do, one of their adult kids will want to store stuff there. Question: What do retirees call a long lunch? Answer: Normal Question: What is the best way to describe retirement? Answer: The never ending coffee break. Question: What is the biggest advantage of going back to school as a retiree? Answer: If you cut classes, no one calls your parents. Share this one with all the retirees that you know. I'm sure they can relate to some of them! AND if you have not yet retired, look what you have to look forward to! From: "Mel Boros" [email protected] Subject: I'm sold on electrics, this will be my next car. JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS DOES COMMERCIAL FOR BATTERY-OPERATED MERCEDES AA CLASS CAR ON ‘SNL’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arQ8_PW-RiA&feature=youtu.be From: “Christine Cowan” [email protected] The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 11 of 49 From: "Mike Waldrip" [email protected] KEVIN HAD SHINGLES. Those of us who spend much time in a doctor's office should appreciate this! Doesn't it seem more and more that physicians are running their practices like an assembly line? Here's what happened to Kevin: Kevin walked into a doctor's office and the receptionist asked him what he had. Kevin said: 'Shingles.' So she wrote down his name, address, medical insurance number and told him to have a seat. Fifteen minutes later a nurse's aide came out and asked Kevin what he had... Kevin said, 'Shingles.' So she wrote down his height, weight, a complete medical history and told Kevin to wait in the examining room. A half hour later a nurse came in and asked Kevin what he had. Kevin said, 'Shingles..' So the nurse gave Kevin a blood test, a blood pressure test, an electrocardiogram, and told Kevin to take off all his clothes and wait for the doctor. An hour later the doctor came in and found Kevin sitting patiently in the nude and asked Kevin what he had. Kevin said, 'Shingles.' The doctor asked, 'Where?' Kevin said, 'Outside on the truck. Where do you want me to unload 'em??' Have you ever wondered why it's OK to make jokes about Catholics, Jews, Christians, the Pope, the Irish, the Italians, the Polish, the Hungarians, the Chinese, the French (including French Canadians), the elderly, bad golfers, men/women, blacks/whites, etc, but its insensitive to make jokes about the Muslims? The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 12 of 49 Well, it's time to level the playing field and be politically incorrect, by including our friends, the Muslims, on this grandiose list. So Jeff Foxworthy did his part to include the Muslims on his list ... 1. If you grow and refine heroin for a living, but morally object to the use of liquor, You may be a Muslim. 2. If you own a $3,000 machine gun and a $5,000 rocket launcher, but can't afford shoes, You may be a Muslim. 3. If you have more wives than teeth, You may be a Muslim. 4. If you wipe your butt with your bare hand, but consider bacon to be unclean, You may be a Muslim. 5. If you think vests come in two styles, Bullet-proof and suicide, You may be a Muslim. 6. If you can't think of anyone that you haven't declared jihad against, You may be a Muslim. 7. If you consider television dangerous, but routinely carry explosives in your clothing, You may be a Muslim. 8. If you were amazed to discover that cell phones have uses, other than setting off roadside bombs, You may be a Muslim. 9. If you have nothing against women and think every man should own at least four, then you, too, may be a Muslim. 10. If you find this offensive and do not forward it, you are part of the problem but if you delete this, you are most likely a Muslim. OLD MAN IN DOCTOR'S OFFICE An elderly, hard-of-hearing, gentleman had been waiting in a doctor's waiting room for over an hour and he was becoming increasingly impatient. Finally, a nurse approached him and asked him what was troubling him today. "IT'S MY DICK!" the old man hollered. "SShhhhh!!" the nurse cautioned. "There are other people in the waiting room!. You can’t use that kind of language!" "WELL WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO SAY?" he replied. "I don't know. Say it's your ear that's bothering you" she said. "OK, IT'S MY EAR!" The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 13 of 49 "Fine then, Sir. What's wrong with your ear?" she asked. "I CAN'T PISS OUT OF IT!" From: "Frank Brayman" [email protected] ALABAMA-AUBURN TICKETS A friend of mine has two tickets for the 2016 Alabama-Auburn game. Box seats plus accommodation etc., but he didn't realize when he bought them that this is going to be on the same day as his wedding - so he can't go. If you're interested and want to go instead of him, it's at 1st Baptist Church in Birmingham at 5pm. Her name's Louise. She will be the one in the white dress YOU JUST CAN’T MAKE THIS STUFF UP! From: “Tim Bolgeo” [email protected] CALIFORNIA’S SUBSIDIZED SOLAR POWER INCINERATES 2 BIRDS PER HOUR The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 14 of 49 by CHRISS W. STREET5 Sep 2016, Newport Beach http://www.breitbart.com/california/2016/09/05/cal-subsidized-solar-power-incinerates-2-birds-hour/ Joel Pollak / Breitbart News The only good news from California’s wildly subsidized Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System is that it has reduced its rate of incinerating wild birds from 10 to 2 per hour. Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System opened in California’s Mojave Desert in February 2014 as the world’s largest solar power plant. With 350,000 moveable mirrorscovering 5 square miles, light is reflected into concentrated energy beams onto three 40-story towers to boil water and create electricity. The 400-megawatt facility, a joint-venture between NRG Energy, Google and BrightSource Energy cost $2.2 billion to build, but was subsidized with an Obama administration $1.6 billion federal loan guarantee. Under SB 871, Northern California’s PG&E utility is forced to pay a premium price of $57 a megawatt hour for solar power, versus $35 a megawatt hour for electricity produced from natural gas. But in an extreme example of how the economic idiocracy of “sustainable energy” and crony capitalism play together, PG&E has paid Ivanpah $200 a megawatt hour during the summer and $135 a megawatt hour during the rest of the year. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 15 of 49 The plant also received huge California subsidies that included a 30 percent Investment Tax Credit for buying solar capital assets, and a guarantee that utilities will buy all Ivanpah’s electrical generation, despite the time of day or level of system demand. Ivanpah is not efficient at producing electrical power, but it turned out to be first-in-class at slaughtering about 28,000 wild birds in its first year. With the facility only operating an average of about 8 hours per day, Ivanpah was killing about 10 birds an hour. Workmen referred to birds that flew through the “death-ray” light beams as “streamers,” because they ignited in midair like a comets, and then plummeted to the ground trailing smoke. The Audubon Society of California pulled together several conservation organizations and demanded the plant close for violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Audubon claimed that bird losses from Ivanpah were multiples worse than the Altamont Winds Inc. turbines in Northern California, which killed at least 67 golden eagles, 80 American kestrels, 57 burrowing owls, and 172 red-tailed hawks over a recent 10-year period. David Knox, a spokesman for NRG Energy Inc., told the Los Angeles Times that Ivanpah is trying to be pro-active in testing an “ever-changing combination of tactics to minimize bird deaths and injuries since it began sending power to the grid in 2014.” He added, “If there’s a silver bullet out there, maybe we’ll find it.” The Ivanpah plant claims to have redirected the death rays from migratory bird paths; replaced flood lights with LED bulbs that attract fewer insects that the birds feed on; attached anti-perching spikes to the frames of the three towers; added devices that make loud recorded broadcasts; added high-pitched shrieking noises; and fitted each tower with machines emitting nonlethal avian respiratory irritants used by farmers to protect crops. But when pressed by the Times, Knox acknowledged, the results have been “modest.” According to federal biologists from the Obama administration, the bird kill rate is down to about 6,000 per year, or a bit over two an hour. On top of the smoky mess is the reality that solar power, by definition, is an intermittent energy source that is unavailable every night and affected by overcast skies. Engineers refer to electrical power streams that are intermittent as a “dirty” resource, because the utility’s infrastructure must include another 100 percent fossil-fuel power back-up. YOU JUST CAN’T MAKE THIS STUFF UP! From: “Christina Cowan” [email protected] CC: OK. We save like mad and go then go to New Zealand for Worldcon 2020!. HOW AN ORDINARY NEW ZEALAND TOWN BECAME STEAMPUNK CAPITAL OF THE WORLD Farming community of Oamaru attracts visitors from around the globe after community embraced subculture where wrought iron meets science fiction The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 16 of 49 The rise of the modern-day Victorian inventors. Steampunkers gather in the New Zealand town of Oamaru on the Queen’s birthday weekend. Photograph: Eliza Clair Cadogan, Monday 29 August 2016 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/aug/30/new-zealand-town-oamaru-steampunk-capital-of- the-world VIDEO AT THE WEBSITE OF THE EVENT. The humble farming town of Oamaru, three hours south of Christchurch on New Zealand’s South Island, used to be known for its population of blue penguins and having the best- preserved collection of Victorian architecture in the country. But that was before it became the world’s unlikely capital of steampunk, drawing enthusiasts from around to globe to what was once an economically depressed rural service centre wedged between the Kakanui mountain range and the Pacific Ocean. Earlier this month Oamaru made it into the Guinness Book of World Records for the largest gathering of steampunks in the world. For the uninitiated, the term steampunk was coined in the 1980s and is based on imagining inventions the Victorians might have created for the modern world. The movement was kickstarted by science fiction novels and has branched out to incorporate art and fashion while spawning a well-established aesthetic, typified by embellished hats and goggles. Iain Clark, who likes to go by his steampunk name: Agent Darling. Photograph: Eleanor Ainge Roy Iain Clark, who is widely credited with launching steampunk in Oamaru and likes to be known by the name Agent Darling, said the movement began to take hold in 2010. At the time many locals were suspicious of what they saw as a weird niche interest gaining traction in their otherwise ordinary town. But despite the early resistance, the movement grew. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 17 of 49 “Some people can’t stand it, but most have come to accept that steampunk has allowed many shy people with slightly unusual interests to come out of the shadows,” said Clark. “It has been particularly freeing for the creatives and artists in the community, to have Oamaru adopt something like steampunk as a core part of their identity.” In 2010 Clark approached Weta Workshop – the Wellington-based special effects and props company that worked on Lord of The Rings — which donated half a shipping container of artwork and statues for a steampunk exhibition in the town. Steampunk fans take part in a parade in the New Zealand town of Oamaru. Photograph: Iain Clark The tipping point came when local farmers started turning up in droves to the exhibition, intrigued by the creative, outlandish inventions on display – which often incorporated materials scavenged from dumps and secondhand shops in the area. “The farmers went home and started tinkering in their sheds, creating steampunk inventions. That’s when it really started to go like wildfire,” recalls Clark. With the farmers on board, the wider community began to embrace steampunk too, and now it is not uncommon to see people sauntering down the main street in full Victorian costume, nodding politely at gob-smacked tourists. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 18 of 49 Steampunk HQ, a museum, in Oamaru. Photograph: Eleanor Ainge Roy “It seemed to hit a frequency at the right time,” said Helen Jensen, whose steampunk name is La Falconesse. “New Zealanders are great creators and inventors, especially if they can make inventions from the junk collected in their garden sheds. I think the inventive side of steampunk is something Kiwis are particularly open to – making things from nothing makes sense to them.” Oamaru is home to 14,000 people, many employed in the rich agricultural industry in the surrounding Waitaki district. Driving along the town’s main drag you’ll pass the usual franchises – McDonald’s, KFC and Liquor Land. But turn towards the seaside and you’ll soon find yourself immersed in a steampunk wonderland, with pristine Victorian architecture carved from local stone, a steampunk-themed children’s playground and the looming, apocalyptic looking Steampunk HQ, a museum, stationed by the railway tracks. “I didn’t understand what it was at first, and to be honest I probably still don’t,” said Kristen Murdoch, a local who works at the information centre. Being different is becoming the norm here – something we celebrate. Iain Clark “But I think Oamaru has gradually become accepting of it. It is so different and unique, it can be divisive, but it has definitely made us more open-minded, and it has been huge for young kids who might not be into the mainstream – it makes them feel more at home here.” The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 19 of 49 Steampunk games such as teapot racing invented in Oamaru have been adopted by steampunk groups the world over, and Clark knows a number of Victorian enthusiasts who have moved to Oamaru specifically to be closer to the thriving scene. “It’s hard to feel shy when there are so many people walking around, bowing to you in the street,” said Clark. “Being different is becoming the norm here – something we celebrate.” YOU JUST CAN’T MAKE THIS STUFF UP! From: Stephanie Osborn OBESE PATIENTS AND SMOKERS BANNED FROM ROUTINE SURGERY IN 'MOST SEVERE EVER' RATIONING IN THE NHS Henry Bodkin , 2 SEPTEMBER 2016 • 10:00PM http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/09/02/obese-patients-and-smokers-banned-from-all-routine- operations-by/ Obese people are to be routinely denied operations CREDIT: DOMINIC LIPINSKI/PA Obese people will be routinely refused operations across the NHS, health service bosses have warned, after one authority said it would limit procedures on an unprecedented scale. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 20 of 49 Hospital leaders in North Yorkshire said that patients with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or above – as well as smokers – will be barred from most surgery for up to a year amid increasingly desperate measures to plug a funding black hole. The restrictions will apply to standard hip and knee operations. The decision, described by the Royal College of Surgeons as the “most severe the modern NHS has ever seen”, led to warnings that other trusts will soon be forced to follow suit and rationing will become the norm if the current funding crisis continues. Leaving patients waiting in pain for treatment longer than is clinically necessary cannot be accepted. Clare Marx, president of the Royal College of Surgeons Chris Hopson, the head of NHS Providers, which represents acute care, ambulance and community services, said: “I think we are going to see more and more decisions like this. “It’s the only way providers are going to be able to balance their books, and in a way you have to applaud their honesty. You can see why they’re doing this – the service is bursting at the seams.” The announcement is the latest in a series of setbacks for patients who are facing rolling strikes by junior doctors that threaten to cripple the health service as winter approaches. The decision by Vale of York Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) comes amid increasing limits across the NHS on surgery for cataracts as well as hip and knee operations. YOU JUST CAN’T MAKE THIS STUFF UP! From: “Keith A. Glass” These are the signs of an economic collapse By Michael Gray , September 3, 2016 | 8:00pm http://nypost.com/2016/09/03/these-are-the-signs-of-an-economic-collapse/ What does the beginning of an economic collapse look like? Do you see grocery stores closing? Do you see other retailers, like clothing stores and department stores, going out of business? Are there shuttered storefronts along your Main Street shopping district, where you bought a tool from the hardware store or dropped off your dry cleaning or bought fruits and vegetables? Are you making as much money annually as you did 10 years ago? The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 21 of 49 Do you see homes in neighborhoods becoming run down as the residents either were foreclosed upon, or the owner lost his or her job so he or she can’t afford to cut the grass or paint the house? Did that same house where the Joneses once lived now become a rental property, where new people come to live every few months? Do you know one or two people who are looking for work? Maybe professionals, who you thought were safe in their jobs? Friday’s anemic jobs numbers tell that tale. Did your high school buddy take a job at the local convenience store because he could not find work in sales? Is the pothole on your street getting larger instead of getting repaired? Is there more than one street light out in your town? Is the town pool closed this summer much more than usual? Have you seen a situation — any situation — and said, “Jeez, it wouldn’t take much money to fix that” — but it hasn’t been fixed? You may have witnessed many of these situations, but you tell yourself it can’t be an economic collapse because the stock market is at an all-time high. Does that mean all is well? No, this is what a 21st-century economic collapse looks like in the beginning. The divide between the haves and the have-nots is growing exponentially. If the 99 percent can’t contribute to the economy because of the dire financial situations they find themselves in, then you see gross domestic product growth reports of 1 percent, such as we have seen lately. Don’t be fooled into thinking that the stock market is any indication of the health of an economy. It’s a rigged market to placate the masses — most of whom do not have much skin in the game — and convince them that all is well, when in fact the opposite is true. We are entering the problem months for the markets. September and October are historically times of greater market volatility to the downside. There was a time when this was very explainable. In the last two centuries, huge amounts of cash would move from the Eastern money markets over the mid- to late summer to the Midwest and Western states to buy crops, leaving the equity and bond markets in a liquidity squeeze come late summer/early fall. Now it’s down to the returning traders from the Hamptons or the Cape realizing that their trading book looks a little sick. Their bonus will depend on them making the right moves in the next three months, and they need to sell those dog stocks soon. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 22 of 49 So what does an economic collapse look like in the 21st century? What is listed above is just the tip of the iceberg of what I’ve witnessed recently near my home, which is a typical middle-class suburban neighborhood. If you look through the prism of “Jeez, it wouldn’t take much money to fix that,” now you begin to have an answer as to why it’s not fixed. ****** Observations: First, I live in the Metropolitan Washington DC area: one of the best economies in the country. Even so, the local mall is ~ 1/3 boarded up stores. The downtown shopping area is about 50% closed stores. Restaurants are closing, and not re- opening under new management. I know quite a few professionals out of work. As for infrastructure. . . the DC-area Metro system is so bad, there's a website: https://ismetroonfire.com/ If it's that bad HERE. . . . From: “Tim Bolgeo” [email protected] IS A BLUE FIRE TORNADO THE FUTURE OF OIL SPILL CLEANUP? By Kacey Deamer, Staff Writer, Live Science, Published August 31, 2016 http://www.foxnews.com/science/2016/08/31/is-blue-fire-tornado-future-oil-spill-cleanup.html The otherwise-destructive fire tornado could be harnessed to burn fuel with reduced carbon emissions.(University of Maryland) A blue fire tornado sounds like it could be an alarming natural disaster, but this phenomenon could actually offer a way to burn fuel with reduced carbon emissions, a new study finds. A fire tornado, or fire whirl, can occur during urban and wildland fires, threatening life, property and the surrounding environment. However, researchers have discovered a type of fire tornado they call a "blue whirl," and they said these flames have the ability to burn nearly soot-free. Traditional, yellow fire whirls gain their color from The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 23 of 49 radiating soot particles, according to study co-author Elaine Oran, a professor of engineering at the University of Maryland. Oran said the particles in yellow whirls form because there is not enough oxygen to burn the fuel completely. "Blue in the whirl indicates there is enough oxygen for complete combustion, which means less or no soot, and is therefore a cleaner burn," Oran said in a statement. The researchers were initially studying the combustion and burning dynamics of fire whirls on water. When they discovered the swirling blue flame, the researchers said they thought there could be a practical application for the fire tornado. Reduced-emission combustion through the blue whirl could offer a solution to "the worldwide need to reduce emissions from both wanted and unwanted combustion," the scientists wrote in their study. One potential application is to help clean up oil spills, the researchers said. Currently, one remediation technique is to corral the oil, creating a thick layer on the water's surface to be burned. But burning the oil this way is smoky, inefficient and incomplete, the researchers said. If blue whirls could be harnessed and controlled, oil-spill remediation-by-combustion could be greatly improved, they added. "Fire whirls are more efficient than other forms of combustion, because they produce drastically increased heating to the surface of fuels, allowing them to burn faster and more completely," said study co-author Michael Gollner, an assistant professor of fire-protection engineering at the University of Maryland. In the researchers' experiments over water, Gollner said, the blue whirls not only burn cleaner, but also help pull in the fuel due to the flames' circulation. "If we can achieve a state akin to the blue whirl at larger scale, we can further reduce airborne emissions for a much cleaner means of spill cleanup," Gollner said. The findings were published Aug. 4 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. ARMY RECON TARGETS APACHE HELICOPTER CANNON FOR HUMVEE REPLACEMENT By James Rogers, Published August 30, 2016, FoxNews.com http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2016/08/30/army-recon-targets-apache-helicopter-cannon-for-humvee- replacement.html As the U.S. Army readies to bring its current crop of Humvees into the 21st century with a new vehicle, reconnaissance officials are also looking to replace the Humvee's pre-World War II .50-caliber machine gun with a version of the Apache helicopter’s cannon in 2019. The Army has embarked on a major project to replace the Humvee, officially known as the High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWVS). Last year the Army signed a $6.7 billion deal with Oshkosh Defense for 17,000 Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (JLTVs). Touted as offering more protection and greater off-road mobility, JLTVs will replace a large chunk The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 24 of 49 of the Army and Marine Corps’ legacy Humvee fleet. The military expects to see the new vehicles in 2018 and 2019. The JLTV (Oshkosh Defense) Col. William T. Nuckols Jr., director of mounted requirements at the Army’s Maneuver Center of Excellence (MCOE) at Fort Benning, Ga., says the shift to new vehicles is a great opportunity for scout platoons to upgrade from the Humvees’ M2 .50-caliber gun. “The design work for [the M2] was started in 1917 by General John Pershing,” he explained. “I don’t want to bash it; it’s the best heavy machine gun in the world, but technology has continued to move.” Nuckols explained that, while scouts’ primary role is reconnaissance, they need heavy firepower when they run into enemy forces. “In a chance encounter scouts will be looking to engage the enemy, then disengage as quickly as possible,” he said. A version of the M230-LF 30-mm. cannon used on Apache helicopters would significantly boost scout platoons’ weaponry, according to Nuckols, citing the cannon’s devastating explosive rounds. “Having an exploding bullet is good when you’re facing enemy soldiers who are in a vehicle or behind a wall,” he said. “Anytime we can shoot bullets that explode, versus bullets that don’t explode, that’s a good thing.” The M230’s 30-mm. rounds also cause much greater damage over long distances than the M2’s 12.7 mm bullets. Whereas the .50-caliber bullet can pierce just 7/8ths of an inch of armor at 100 meters, the 30-mm. round can penetrate 1.37 inches of armor at 500 meters, according to Nuckols. “At 1,500 meters, it actually goes up to [penetrating] 1.7 inches [of armor],” he added. The Army is looking to field the modified M230 cannon to scout platoons in around 2019. “We have got to do some modifications to it, we’re working through that right now,” said Nuckols. “Along with the improved weapon, we’re also looking to add an improved sensor – it will give us the ability to see further using the sensor and also engage with the weapon.” The cannon could be deployed on up to 800 vehicles. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 25 of 49 Military.com reports that Army maneuver officials are also hoping to convince the service’s senior leadership, and Congress, that scout platoons need a light tactical vehicle that carries six soldiers. The JLTV carries four. “We’re looking at several different options to present to Army senior leaders,” Nuckols told FoxNews.com. The colonel explained that, with a 6-soldier vehicle, a 36-soldier scout platoon would only have to manage six, as opposed to nine vehicles. “It allows us to maximize our mounted [- in-vehicle] and dismounted [on foot] reconnaissance capability,” he said. The Army and Marine Corps are looking to buy up to 55,000 JLTVs by 2040. SPACEX FINDS A CUSTOMER FOR ITS FIRST REUSED ROCKET, SATELLITE OPERATOR SES Company has shown it can land rockets, but now it needs to fly them again. ERIC BERGER - 8/30/2016, 10:00 AM http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/08/spacex-finds-a-customer-for-its-first-reused-rocket-satellite- operator-ses/ SpaceX has been running out of room in its facilities in Florida as it lands rockets by sea and ground, so it would like to begin reusing some of these first-stage Falcon boosters as soon as possible. The first step was finding a customer, and now SpaceX has done that. The Luxembourg-based satellite operator SES said Tuesday that it intends to launch a geostationary satellite, SES-10, on a reusable rocket in the fourth quarter of this year. “Having been the first commercial satellite operator to launch with SpaceX back in 2013, we are excited to once again be the first customer to launch on SpaceX's first ever mission using a flight-proven rocket," said Martin Halliwell, Chief Technology Officer at SES. "We believe reusable rockets will open up a new era of spaceflight and make access to space more efficient in terms of cost and manifest management." SpaceX has not yet specified how much it will charge for launch services on one of its flown boosters, but industry officials anticipate about a 30 percent discount on SpaceX's regular price of $62 million for a Falcon 9 launch. The company has not shared how much it is spending to refurbish and reuse a Falcon 9 stage, nor has it offered much public information about the extent to which the vehicle's engines have had to be tested and prepared for a second flight. To make good on its goal of low-cost, reusable launch services, however, it is not enough for SpaceX to make spectacular landings at sea and on land. The company must now take the critical step of showing that rockets that have flown into space and made high-energy returns to Earth are capable of being turned around in reasonably short order, and at a low cost, to make reusable rocketry practical. Launching by the end of 2016—at a discount— would begin to deliver on that promise. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 26 of 49 SpaceX landed its latest booster on August 13, after the JCSAT-16 mission. SUPER CEMENT'S SECRET by Staff Writers, Richland WA (SPX) Aug 31, 2016 http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Super_cements_secret_999.html Electron anions (center green blob) pair up in the center of molecular cages and lower the temperature at which glass forms in C12A7 electride. Image courtesy Johnson/Sushko/PNNL. Simple cements are everywhere in construction, but researchers want to create novel construction materials to build smarter infrastructure. The cement known as mayenite is one smart material - it can be turned from an insulator to a transparent conductor and back. Other unique properties of this material make it suitable for industrial production of chemicals such as ammonia and for use as The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 27 of 49 semiconductors in flat panel displays. The secret behind mayenite's magic is a tiny change in its chemical composition, but researchers hadn't been sure why the change had such a big effect on the material, also known as C12A7. In new work, researchers show how C12A7 components called electron anions help to transform crystalline C12A7 into semiconducting glass. The study, published Aug. 24 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, uses computer modeling that zooms in at the electron level along with lab experiments. They showed how the small change in composition results in dramatic changes of the glass properties and, potentially, allows for greater control of the glass formation process. "We want to get rid of the indium and gallium currently used in most flat panel displays," said materials scientist Peter Sushko of the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. "This research is leading us toward replacing them with abundant non-toxic elements such as calcium and aluminum." BREAKING THE GLASS CEILING More than a decade ago, materials scientist Hideo Hosono at the Tokyo Institute of Technology and colleagues plucked an oxygen atom from a crystal of C12A7 oxide, which turned the transparent insulating material into a transparent conductor. This switch is rare because the conducting material is transparent: Most conductors are not transparent (think metals) and most transparent materials are not conductive (think window glass). Back in the crystal, C12A7 oxide's departing oxygen leaves behind a couple electrons and creates a material known as an electride. This electride is remarkably stable in air, water, and ambient temperatures. Most electrides fall apart in these conditions. Because of this stability, materials scientists want to harness the structure and properties of C12A7 electride. Unfortunately, its crystalline nature is not suitable for large-scale industrial processes, so they needed to make a glass equivalent of C12A7 electride. And several years ago, they did. Hosono and colleagues converted crystalline C12A7 electride into glass. The glass shares many properties of the crystalline electride, including the remarkable stability. Crystals are neat and tidy, like apples and oranges arranged orderly in a box, but glasses are unordered and messy, like that same fruit in a plastic grocery bag. Researchers make glass by melting a crystal and cooling the liquid in such a way that the ordered crystal doesn't reform. With C12A7, the electride forms a glass at a temperature about 200 degrees lower than the oxide does. This temperature - when the atoms stop flowing as a liquid and freeze in place - is known as the glass transition temperature. Controlling the glass transition temperature allows researchers to control certain properties of the material. For example, how car tires wear down and perform in bad weather depends on the glass transition temperature of the rubber they're made from. Sushko, his PNNL colleague Lewis Johnson, Hosono and others at Tokyo Tech wanted to determine why the electride's glass transition temperature was so much lower than the oxide's. They suspected components of the electride known as electron anions were The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 28 of 49 responsible. Electron anions are essentially freely moving electrons in place of the much- larger negatively charged oxygen atoms that urge the oxide to form a tidy crystal. MOVEABLE FEAT The team simulated Hosono's lab experiments using molecular dynamics software that could capture the movement of both the atoms and the electron anions in both the melted material and glass. The team found that that the negatively-charged electron anions paired up between positively charged aluminum or calcium atoms, replacing the negatively charged oxygen atoms that would typically be found between the metals. The bonds that the electron anions formed between the metal atoms were weaker than bonds between metal and oxygen atoms. These weak links could also move rapidly through the material. This movement allowed a small number of electron anions to have a greater effect on the glass transition temperature than much larger quantities of minerals typically used as additives in glasses. To rule out other factors as the impetus for the lower transition temperature - such as the electrical charge or change in oxygen atoms - the researchers simulated a material with the same composition as the C12A7 electride but with the electrons spread evenly through the material instead of packed in as electron anions. In this simulation, the glass transition temperature was no different than C12A7 oxide's. This result confirmed that the network of weak links formed by the electron anions was responsible for changes to the glass transition temperature. According to the scientists, electron anions form a new type of weak link that can affect the conditions under which a material can form a glass. They join the ranks of typical additives that disrupt the ability of the material to form long chains of atoms, such as fluoride, or form weak, randomly oriented bonds between atoms of opposite charge, such as sodium. The work suggests researchers might be able to control the transition temperature by changing the amount of electron anions they use. "This work shows us not just how a glass forms," said PNNL's Johnson, "but also gives us a new tool for how to control it." Lewis E. Johnson, Peter V. Sushko, Yudai Tomota, Hideo Hosono. Electron anions and the glass transition temperature, Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A Early Edition, August 24, 2016 SOLID LUBRICANT SMOOTHS THE WAY FOR REDUCED WEAPON MAINTENANCE David Szondy, March 10, 2016 http://newatlas.com/us-army-ardec-durable-solid-lubricant/42242/?li_source=LI&li_medium=default- widget One the most tedious yet vital tasks of the foot soldier is personal weapon cleaning and maintenance. Under field conditions, it has to be done daily and failure to do so can literally mean the difference between life and death. To reduce this task and make the weapon more durable and reliable, the US Army Research, Development, and Engineering Center The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 29 of 49 (ARDEC) at Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey is developing a Durable Solid Lubricant (DSL) that replaces the more conventional wet lubricants. Covered with a durable solid lubricant, the bolt and bolt carrier assembly are inserted into a weapon’s upper receiver (Credit: US Army/Erin Usawicz) Weapon cleaning has been the soldier's lot ever since the invention of gunpowder. Despite centuries of advancement from simple fire tubes to advanced automatic assault rifles, the routine of stripping and cleaning has remained as predictable and necessary as ever. This is because firearms are made of a precisely engineered set of slides and linkages to load and fire, and the barrel to hold the ammunition and send the bullet on its way. Lubricants are needed to make sure the moving parts operate quickly and smoothly, but the inside of a rifle is very hostile to mechanics. As the cartridge fires, the barrel becomes a space filled with hot, corrosive gases, which leaves behind a stubborn carbon residue that, if not removed regularly, will increase wear and cause the firing mechanism to jam. Worse, dirt and sand can find their way in and cause even more trouble. The problem is that most weapons use CLP (cleaner, lubricant, and preservative), which is a wet lubricant. Cleaning a rifle not only removes the dirt and residue, but the CLP as well, which has to be continuously replaced. Since 2001, this problem has become more acute for the US Army and Allied forces with the outbreak of the Global War on Terrorism. Weapons designed for wars in Europe or the tropics ended up being used in the sand and grit of the Middle East, where many rifles and other weapons saw a jump in wear and jamming of some types occurred with alarming frequency if cleaning procedures were neglected. As part of the US Joint Service Small Arms Program, engineers at ARDEC were called in to find a lubrication solution that didn't rely on CLPs. Using as a baseline small and medium caliber weapons, such as the M4A1 Carbine and the M240 machine gun, they came up with a solid lubricant that allowed the weapon to continue to function with less maintenance. Instead of being applied to the weapon directly, the DSL is coated on the components during manufacturing. According to ARDEC, the DSL has a lower friction coefficient to allow the mechanism to slide more freely, better wear resistance, and improved corrosion protection. "With typical wet lubricants, Soldiers need to reapply in order for the weapon system to function properly. Soldiers also have to regularly clean off carbon residue that builds up from firing and it can be tough to clean," says experimental engineer Adam Foltz."Our DSL has a high wear resistance and a low friction coefficient, so it's easy to clean off anything The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 30 of 49 that builds up. You can use a steel brush to knock off any residue, and you don't even have to worry about reapplying anything." ARDEC says that using DSLs also eliminates the need for phosphate coating and oils, so it's more environmentally friendly. The precise nature of the new DSL hasn't been released, but most solid lubricants are made from a variety of materials, such as ceramics, soft metals, and nanotubes. ARDEC says that the development process started out with 27 candidate coating combinations, which were reduced to six by coating metal balls with the candidate material, then bringing them into rotating, sliding contact at a specified load against three pads. These pads were also coated with the candidate coatings and the tests carried out under various environmental conditions. The six winners were then subjected to a slide-rail simulator, which reproduces the typical geometry, motion, and contact stresses in a gun. The best four candidates ended up in live- fire exercises of up to 15,000 rounds per weapon while subjected to different temperatures, sand, dust, salt, and fog. The result was a DSL that demonstrated five percent wear on the bolt carrier and bolt, while a control CLP showed 75 percent wear on the bolt carrier sliding surfaces and 90 percent on the bolt. ARDEC says that the DSL is currently undergoing larger scale testing in hopes of moving it into the field in 2017. How well it works then will show if it lives up to its promise under real world conditions. In the meantime, the agency says that the technology could find applications in other armament systems, manufacturing machinery, and advanced oil-free turbomachinery. Source: US Army THIS ROBOTIC TRACTOR LOOKS SERIOUSLY BADASS George Dvorsky, September 1, 2016 http://gizmodo.com/this-robotic-tractor-looks-seriously-badass-1786051858 Agricultural equipment manufacturer Case IH, a unit of CNH Industrial, just unveiled a seriously intimidating-looking tractor at the Farm Progress Show in Boone, Iowa. Called the Autonomous Concept Vehicle, the robotic tractor can be programmed using a tablet computer. This futuristic piece of agricultural equipment is drawing crowds at the annual Iowa farm show, and for good reason. Unlike conventional tractors, it has no cabin for a driver. Instead, it utilizes cameras, radar, and GPS, which allows farmers to remotely control and monitor the machine with an app on a tablet computer. The machine can operate day or night and is designed to plant seeds and harvest crops, among other tasks. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 31 of 49 Path planning technology developed by Case IH will allow farmers to manage their fields and oversee the overall operation of multiple vehicles simultaneously. The ACV is also capable of obstacle detection to prevent mishaps. Image: Autonomous Solutions Inc.,/CNH Industrial/Case IH. After the farmer triggers a command, the autonomous tractor can drive from a parking area along a private road to a field where it can commence its agricultural duties without any further human intervention. The tractor is also designed such that it can work in tandem with manned machinery. The machine boasts a 419-horsepower engine and clocks a maximum speed of 31 mph (50 km/hr). It’s not known how much it costs to build the tractor, or its intended retail price. Image: Autonomous Solutions Inc.,/CNH Industrial/Case IH. As cool as this machine looks, it’s not immediately clear when it’ll finally make an appearance on an actual farm. As reported in Bloomberg, the concept vehicle still faces The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 32 of 49 legal hurdles before it can go on sale. There’s concern, for example, about the legalities of having the tractor cross a publicly accessible road as it moves from one field to another. Experts say it could take years before these sorts of legal details are ironed out. US NAVY TAKES POSSESSION OF ITS LARGEST EVER DESTROYER David Szondy May 20, 2016 http://newatlas.com/us-navy-destroyer- possession/43461/?li_source=LI&li_medium=default-widget PICTURES The USS Zumwalt is the largest destroyer ever built for the US Navy (Credit: U.S. Navy photo courtesy of General Dynamics/Released) The US Navy took formal possession of its largest ever destroyer as the future USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) changed hands from the Bath Iron Works shipyard in Maine. Billed as "the most technically complex and advanced warship the world has ever seen," the handover follows months of sea trials during which the first in its class, multi-mission land attack and littoral dominance warship was tested to certify its hull, mechanical, and electrical systems, propulsion, and anchor and mooring systems. With its distinct tumblehome hull and composite superstructure, the Zumwalt is notable not only for its size, but also for its suite of advanced stealth features that reduce the ship's radar profile by a factor of 50 over current destroyer designs. Carrying a crew of 130 and an air detachment of 28, the destroyer is armed with two 155 mm Advanced Gun Systems (AGS) firing rocket-powered precision Long-Range Land The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 33 of 49 Attack Projectiles (LRLAP) with a range of 63 nm (72 mi/117 km), which is three times greater than current surface gunnery.. The Navy says this is the first US warship to incorporate the Integrated Power System (IPS), which is an all-electric system powered by gas turbines. This design was chosen not only for economy and survivability, but also in anticipation of future energy weapons. Named after former Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Elmo R "Bud" Zumwalt Jr, construction of the US$4 billion Zumwalt began in 2009 and it was launched in 2014. The Navy says that it's designed to operate independently in forward areas to provide presence and deterrence, as well as operating with joint and combined expeditionary forces as a multi- mission Anti-Air Warfare, Anti-Submarine Warfare, and Anti-Surface Warfare unit. The Zumwalt will now undergo crew certification before its formal commissioning in October in Baltimore, Maryland, after which it will sail to its homeport in San Diego, California. "Today represents a significant achievement for not only the DDG 1000 program and shipbuilding team but for the entire US Navy," says Rear Admiral Jim Downey, DDG 1000 program manager and Program Executive Office Ships. "This impressive ship incorporates a new design alongside the integration of sophisticated new technologies that will lead the Navy into the next generation of capabilities." The video AT THE WEBSITE shows the Zumwalt underway. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 34 of 49 Source: US Navy The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 35 of 49 From: “Stephanie Osborn” ICELAND RAISES ALARM AFTER LARGEST VOLCANO STARTS TO RUMBLE Omar Valdimarsson, August 29, 2016 — 5:58 AM EDT http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-08-29/iceland-raises-alarm-after-largest-volcano- starts-to-rumble Iceland raised the alarm after its largest volcano was hit by the biggest tremors since 1977. Two quakes larger than 4 in magnitude early Monday rocked the crater of Katla, the country’s Met Office said in a statement. That was followed by at least 10 more tremors at the volcano, which rises 1,450 meters (4,757 feet) into the air on the North Atlantic island’s southern coast. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damages to property. Katla last erupted in 1955 and 1999. Neither of those were large enough to break the ice covering its 10 kilometer-wide (6 mile) caldera. Its last major eruption was back in 1918, when it spewed ash for more than five weeks. An eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano in 2010 caused the cancellation of more than 100,000 flights across Europe on concern that glass-like particles formed from lava might melt in aircraft engines and clog turbines. Historically, Eyjafjallajokull has been known to erupt one to two years prior to Katla. A magnitude 6.2 quake killed at least 250 people in central Italy last week. A 3-D PRINTING PEN FOR PROFESSIONALS HANDLES SPECIAL MATERIALS, LETS USERS FINE-TUNE WORK September 3, 2016 by Nancy Owano https://techxplore.com/ne ws/2016-09-d-pen- professionals-special- materials.html Tech Xplore)—At first sight drawing objects in the air has you rubbing your eyes in disbelief and then you realize you are looking at a 3D pen in action. As James Vincent The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 36 of 49 in The Verge said, "who doesn't want a souped-up glue gun that can draw 3D structures in midair?" Now there is news of a 3D pen which is purposely designed not just to delight the masses but to be used as a seriously professional tool, and it is called the 3Doodler PRO. The pen is targeted for architects, engineers, designers, artists. It's a tool for prototyping and tactile design. Bridget Butler Millsaps in 3DPrint.com commented that "Architects in particular should find the high-speed fan handy as it allows for a solid plastic structure to be printed, or painted, in the air in one movement. This should prove to be helpful in making blueprints—whether they are indeed airborne or on a surface." In a video guide, the company noted the pen's on-off switch on the side of the pen with the other side carrying its fan speed switch and control port. The power port is on the back of the pen. This is where you plug in your (included) power adapter. Its makers are promoting this as an advanced 3D printing pen; outstanding features include a new range of materials to work with and its pen controls. Three variables adjust the flow of materials. Temperature control, extrusion speed, and fan speed. The company said with adjustable dials, "you control both speed and temperature and the LCD displayensures you always know exactly what temperature you're using. The built-in, high-speed variable fan also gives you control over how quickly materials cool." Also, Dezeen said "The company has upgraded the pen's outer casing to a carbon-fibre shell, and created additional nozzles and a portable battery pack." The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 37 of 49 There is much to be said about the new materials. Dezeen said "The 3Doodler Pro pen works with a range of new materials, including polycarbonate and nylon. It also handles plastic-based composites of wood, copper or bronze." Dezeen said the composites after they are extruded can be sanded or polished. The Verge explained more about this, using the wood filament as an example. "So, in the case of the woodfilament, there are actual bits of wood chips embedded in the plastic. Speaking to The Verge, 3Doodler's co-founder and COO Daniel Cowen said that this means that not only does the filament smell like wood, it also feels like it. 'Because real wood is used the finished items can be sanded or stained,' says Cowen." An LCD display on the pen lets you monitor the temperature and speed settings. The pen has a battery pack for untethered use. The new pen is priced from $249. From: “J. R. Madden” [email protected] SCIENTISTS REPORT CORAL BLEACHING IN THE GREAT BARRIER REEF COMES AND GOES DEPENDING UPON CONDITIONS. In addition, tourism operators are working with authorities to reduce their impact on the Reef ... but maybe not all operators in the tourism industry. http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/managing-the-reef/threats-to-the-reef/climate-change/what-does-this- mean-for-species/corals/what-is-coral-bleaching CORAL BLEACHING As the climate changes, coral bleaching is predicted to become more frequent and severe. Sea temperature increases and coral stress from other impacts may increase corals' vulnerability to bleaching. As part of its Reef Health Incident Response System, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority has a Coral Bleaching Response Plan for detecting and responding to coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef. WHAT IS CORAL BLEACHING Many types of coral have a special symbiotic relationship with a tiny marine algae (zooxanthellae) that live inside corals' tissue and are very efficient food producers that provide up to 90 per cent of the energy corals require to grow and reproduce. Coral bleaching occurs when the relationship between the coral host and zooxanthellae, which give coral much of their colour, breaks down. Without the zooxanthellae, the tissue of the coral animal appears transparent and the coral's bright white skeleton is revealed. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 38 of 49 Corals begin to starve once they bleach. While some corals are able to feed themselves, most corals struggle to survive without their zooxanthellae. If conditions return to normal, corals can regain their zooxanthellae, return to their normal colour and survive. However, this stress is likely to cause decreased coral growth and reproduction, and increased susceptibility to disease. Bleached corals often die if the stress persists. Coral reefs that have high rates of coral death following bleaching can take many years or decades to recover. WHAT CAUSES CORAL BLEACHING The main cause of coral bleaching is heat stress resulting from high sea temperatures.Temperature increases of only one degree celsius for only four weeks can trigger bleaching events. If these temperatures persist for longer periods (eight weeks or more) corals begin to die. High water temperatures can affect reefs at regional and global scale. Other stressors can also cause bleaching, including freshwater inundation (low salinity) and poor water quality from sediment or pollutant run-off. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 39 of 49 CORAL BLEACHING ON THE GREAT BARRIER REEF The Great Barrier Reef has experienced mass coral bleaching events in the past. In 1998, there was a global mass bleaching event where 50 per cent of the reefs on the Great Barrier Reef suffered bleaching. During this time, sea temperatures on the Great Barrier Reef were the highest ever recorded. Mass bleaching also occurred in 2002, with 60 per cent of reefs were affected. This was the largest coral bleaching event on record. Two periods of hot weather resulted in sea surface temperatures a few degrees centigrade higher than long-term summer maxima. In both events, about five per cent of the Great Barrier Reef's coral reefs were severely damaged. The two-week expedition, reported by breitbart.com, surveyed a 300 km section of the reef. The Great Barrier Reef is 2300 km in length, extends over 14 degrees of latitude, from shallow estuarine areas to deep oceanic waters. -- gbrmpa.gov.au The survey looked at 13% of the barrier, reportedly the most severely impacted. WORKING WITH TOURISM OPERATORS Tourism operators are working with GBRMPA to reduce their impact on the Great Barrier Reef. The industry has been proactive on climate change. With the support of GBRMPA, it has established the Great Barrier Reef Tourism Climate Change Action Strategy and has been implementing the initiatives to build the industry's resilience to climate change. Individual Reef tourism operators in direct contact with visitors are uniquely placed to deliver powerful action on climate change both on and off the water. In addition to sharing this information, operators are also: * Calculating, monitoring and reducing their carbon emissions * Trialling alternative energy sources such as biofuels * Becoming climate certified through Ecotourism Australia The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 40 of 49 * Offsetting their carbon emissions The GBRMPA has developed tools to assist tourism operators to reduce their emissions and adapt to climate change. These tools include: * A carbon emissions calculator for tourism operators * Case studies outlining how some operators have reduced their emissions, providing information and resources for other operators to do the same * Information on climate change and its impacts on the Reef to inform operators, and also to share this knowledge with visitors. http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/managing-the-reef/threats-to-the-reef/climate-change/working- with-tourism-operators From: “Keith A. Glass” [email protected] Subj: Climate Change! (for those of you who don’t know, the “Ship of Fools I” was the 2014 Antarctic voyage of the Russian ship Academik Shokalskiy to prove the melting of the icepack that was trapped in the ice.) SHIP OF FOOLS II- GREEN ARCTIC EXPEDITION FRUSTRATED BY LARGE QUANTITIES OF ICE 1 Sep2016 http://www.breitbart.com/london/2016/09/01/green-arctic-expedition-frustrated-large-quantities-ice/ An Arctic expedition designed to raise awareness of the perils of man-made climate change is being frustrated by unexpectedly large quantities of ice. The Polar Ocean Challenge, whose aim is to circumnavigate the Arctic in a sailing boat while the summer ice-melt allows, is being led by veteran explorer David Hempleman- Adams. He justifies the expedition thus: Permanent irreversible change in the sea ice landscape of the Arctic seems inevitable. This will / is already having global economic political, social and environmental implications. A significant change in my lifetime. I see this possibility to circumnavigate the Arctic as one I wanted to take despite the risks associated with it in order to increase the world’s attention on the effects of Arctic climate change. There may be a possibility still to curb this progressive warming and melting in the Arctic. But even if this is not possible the next most important thing is to at the very least highlight the need to ‘Navigate the Future of the Arctic responsibly’. Well, yes, of course, David. That’s just the kind of eco-friendly blah which will have landed your expedition sponsorship from a City of London finance firm. But what if, as the real world evidence increasingly suggests, your prognostications of climate doom are flat out wrong? Already the expedition is around 4 to 6 weeks behind schedule having been held up in the Laptev Sea by the kind of ice which experts like Cambridge University’s Peter Wadhams – The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 41 of 49 of whom more in a moment – assure us will soon disappear permanently from the Arctic in summer. Here, for example, is an entry from their August 18 ship’s log: Well I came up on watch this morning at 0800. ice, ice and more b****t ice, and here We had to turn round from the ice by the coast last night and find somewhere safe to moor/anchor. There were strong winds so we needed to find somewhere else to sit them out, and the answer was a stamukha. A Stamukha is an iceberg that is touching the bottom. We knew it might drift, and it did, so when it had drifted into a more dangerous situation, Ben (who was on anchor watch) woke Nikolay and we’ve moved off it to go and have a look at the ice situation just up ahead again and here’s one from crew member Ben Edwards, who is 14 years old We’re still running into ice, aaaagggghhhh! We’ve had patches of clear water just large enough that you can’t see the other side, just large enough that you start to think maybe we’ve seen the last of the ice, and then it looms out of the horizon like a piece of homework that you’ve been trying to avoid doing by moving to India only to find that school exists there as well. Hmpf. We’ve put in three new tracks today each one further south than the last in the vain hope that we’d finally escape the ice by running away from it. Unfortunately it seems that ice is a vindictive substance and refuses to leave us alone. Poor Ben. Like every other 14-year old in Christendom he has never lived in a period of global warming (it hasn’t happened for 18 years) but yet has been assured non-stop by teachers and other experts that it represents a serious threat to the planet’s future. And given how the world’s big media organisations so love to ramp up scare stories about this non-existent problem is it any wonder? On BBC Radio 4’s Today programme this week we heard from Cambridge professor Peter Wadhams that the Arctic is more doomed than ever before. But apart from being something of a conspiracy theorist – he once claimed that secret agents, possibly in the pay of Big Oil, have been bumping off climate scientists, presumably because they know too much [not, it must be said, a major handicap of any alarmist climate scientist I’ve ever encountered] – he has an embarrassingly dismal track record on forecasting Arctic ice melt. Indeed, as I reported at Breitbart, even within the climate alarmist community he is now considered such a liability that even hardcore enviro loons prefer not to be associated with him. Yet the BBC goes on featuring him as if he were an expert whose predictions should be taken seriously. For the record, here – courtesy of Paul Homewood – is what Arctic Sea Ice coverage currently looks like: The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 42 of 49 Note that the coverage is already pretty extensive – raising understandable questions about whether Polar Ocean Challenge is going to be able to complete its mission before the winter freeze sets in. Tony Heller, who has been following the expedition closely at Real Climate Science, says * “they are taking a big risk heading into the Northwest Passage now with winter setting in. Even if they don’t encounter ice, it will be cold and the weather rough.” Note too that summer sea ice coverage has increased and thickened quite a bit since Wadhams first started peddling his “ice free North Pole” predictions in 2007. But the really sad thing - sad, at least in a “Death of Little Nell” way - is this; all these explorer Pen Hadow is that the point they are trying to make is an utterly meaningless one. All this nonsense you regularly hear from alarmists about the polar regions being navigable by ship for the first time because of global warming is historically and scientifically illiterate. Here, for example, is a history by the Ecotretas blog going back to the 1490s of all the various ships and explorers which have previously negotiated the North East Passage (as recently but-barely navigated by the Polar Ocean Challenge). It also looks like it was pretty toasty up there during the “Arctic Heat Wave” of 1923. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 43 of 49 One of these days, someone’s going to get themselves hurt on one of these polar Ship of Fools expeditions. But until that day, I say: * “Bring them on!” * If idiots want to freeze their b***s off, take City investment firms and insurance brokers for a ride, and make utter dicks of themselves for our delectation and amusement while making a mockery of current climate ‘science’, then I’d say they are performing a truly valuable public service. <~><~> ABSOLUTELY & TOTALLY POLITICALLY INCORRECT & AS FAR TO THE CENTER AS YOU CAN GO! From: “Jim Woosley” [email protected] SWISS FEAR EU EFFORT TO TIGHTEN GUN CONTROL COULD DISARM LAW-ABIDING CITIZENS FoxNews.com, Published September 02, 2016 http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/09/02/swiss-fear-eu-effort-to-tighten-gun-control-could-disarm- law-abiding-citizens.html The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 44 of 49 Participants fire their infantry and assault rifles during the traditional 'Ruetlischiessen' (Ruetli shooting) competition in central Switzerland. (REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann) Swiss gun rights proponents fear a new European Union measure to tighten gun control could disarm thousands of law-abiding citizens, Reuters reports. The proposed gun restrictions which Switzerland, a non-EU member, would be obliged to implement under cross border agreements, has raised hackles among the Swiss, who resent intervention from Brussels, the news wire reported. It also comes at a time of increased tensions between Switzerland and the EU over Swiss efforts to curb immigration. Christopher Blocher, a leading voice of the Swiss right, told Reuters Switzerland should end its participation in the system of passport-free travel if the tighter gun restrictions are defeated in a referendum. The proposed measure would curb online weapons sales and impose more restrictions on assault weapons, the according to Reuters. It was drafted after the ISIS terrorist attacks in Paris last November that killed scores of people. The initial proposal provoked an outcry in Switzerland because it meant a ban on the long Swiss tradition of ex-soldiers keeping their assault rifles, the new wire reported. Then two months ago, Justice Minister Simonetta Sommagrua returned from meetings in Brussels saying she he successfully negotiated against such a ban, according to Reuters. But in the fine print, the EU demanded concessions including psychological tests and club membership. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 45 of 49 Swiss gun rights proponents also fear the restrictions could encroach on the country’s proud heritage and national identity that includes a well-armed citizenry. “When conflicts arise, Switzerland must put its sovereignty first,” said Blocher, a businessman and vice president of the SVP, the country's biggest party, told Reuters. “In an emergency, Switzerland should be ready to exit (the cross border agreements).” Switzerland has one of the highest rates of private gun ownership in Europe, with nearly 48 percent of households owning a gun. In France, there are about 30 weapons per 100 people, while the figure in the Great Britain is far lower, at 6.7 guns per 100 civilians, Reuters reported citing the Australian-based think tank GunPolicy.org. However, gun-related crime in Switzerland is low and the high number of privately owned guns harks back to a long tradition of self-defense and to the Swiss policy of near-universal conscription, Reuters reported. In 2015, 11 percent of the 20,600 soldiers who left the Swiss Army opted to keep their assault rifles which upon departure are modified to fire single shots, according to Reuters. The number of soldiers choosing to keep their weapons has been declining for several years. Switzerland's grassroots gun lobby ProTELL, named after the 14th-century folk hero William Tell, is prepared to call for a referendum on the EU bloc’s proposal, if necessary. “With our direct democracy, Swiss people are accustomed to having the last word,” ProTell's Dominik Riner told Reuters. “We're opposed to any and all efforts to make current weapons laws more restrictive.” Europe plans to finalize its gun directive later this year, Reuters reported. <~><~> ABSOLUTELY & TOTALLY POLITICALLY INCORRECT & AS FAR TO THE LEFT AS YOU CAN GO! From: “Keith A. Glass” [email protected] SOCIAL JUSTICE WARRIORS PUSH TEEN TO SUICIDE By Ian Miles Cheong | 3:03 pm, August 30, 2016 http://heatst.com/entertainment/social-justice-warriors-push-teen-to-suicide/ A few years ago, Ken Levine’s hit first-person shooter, Bioshock Infinite, was accused of enabling racism. The game, some in the social justice movement argued, was racist in the way it portrayed the brutal oppression of minorities. Bioshock Infinite, they said, was insensitive to the social justice struggle because of the way it depicted both the racists within its universe (The Founders) and the social justice warriors (Vox Populi) in similarly damning terms. Extremists of every stripe resort to indiscriminate violence, while moderates and innocent The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 46 of 49 bystanders—including sympathizers to the social justice movement—are made victims based on the color of their skin or socioeconomic status. In response, I wrote an article defending the game and argued how—if all elements of the game were taken into consideration—the game wasn’t racist at all. The universe Ken Levine created was honestly intelligent and well-crafted. Though I mentioned some of the individuals arguing that the game was racist by name, my intention was to simply further the conversation. I woke up the next day to a stream of apoplectic responses in my timeline that accused me of ignorance and called me a full- blown racist and not much of a social justice “ally” after all. My references to individuals were seen as a public “call out.” The shame I felt was immense. I was misunderstood, and to some I had become a pariah. I was fully immersed in the social justice movement at the time—before I realized that it was more of a cult than an actual cause. I know how bad the culture is now, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get upset when people branded me a racist. And when you’re fully immersed in groupthink, the last thing you want is to be socially ostracized by your peers and disconnected from your only support network. It is a culture of fear. Apparently, someone else felt similar to how I did at the time. In fact, it led her to kill herself. An official inquest has heard that a teenage girl named Phoebe Connop in the United Kingdom posted a photoshopped image of herself with darkened skin and wearing a headscarf on Instagram. She shared the image with friends, and jokingly suggested that she’d only get the approval of the parents of the boy she was interested in, who is of South Asian descent, if she resembled the edited photograph. Unfortunately for her, the image was shared outside her private circle of friends, and Connop feared a backlash that would lead to her being branded a racist and subsequently ostracized. So Phoebe Connop, age 16, took her own life. Her parents say that she wasn’t behaving out of the ordinary in the months and weeks leading up to her death. Connop, who was an award-winning gymnast, had posted pictures of her school leavers prom just days prior. During the inquest, the police detective investigating her suicide testified that she had taken her own life entirely because of her fears about the consequences of the photograph. There was no other reason, the police said. “From speaking to her friends in the weeks following her death, we discovered that the image had circulated further than she wanted it to,” said Sergeant Katherine Tomkins. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 47 of 49 “There had been some negative reaction and she confided in her friend, who did take the image down at her request, that she was scared of what the reaction might be from the Asian community in her area.” Phoebe Collop isn’t even the first victim of this culture of fear. In 2015, a fan artist who drew illustrations of her favorite characters in the cartoon show, Steven Universe, was bullied into attempting suicide. The artist, who went by the name Zamii, was accused by the Steven Universe and Homestuckfandoms—which are heavily immersed in social justice rhetoric— of racism, transphobia, fatphobia, ableism, and a litany of other sins. She came under fire for drawing an anime character with slightly slanted eyes and yellow skin, and again for drawing a “Native American” Fluttershy from the popular My Little Pony cartoon that was accused of being “stereotypical.” The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 48 of 49 The complaints turned from a trickle into a torrent when she drew Rose Quartz, a Steven Universe character, with slightly less body fat than the official character. And the transphobia she was accused of? It’s because she called someone who identified as gender-neutral “dude.” No number of apologies on her part would get the bullying to stop. In all, over 40 Tumblr blogs and countless social media accounts were created to smear her reputation and brand her a bigot. When one of the show’s creators spoke up on her behalf, he was immediately bombarded with comments accusing him of apologia. He deleted the tweet, and Zamii found herself without any support. So she attempted suicide. Fortunately, she survived the attempt. But not everyone is as fortunate as Zamii. The social justice movement has fostered an environment—not just on social networks like Tumblr, Instagram and Twitter, but in the real world—in which everyone is afraid of being “called out.” And those affected the most by the social justice-driven culture of fear, shaming, and public callouts are often the most vulnerable, like Phoebe Collop. Being called by your peers and shamed by them for inexplicable reasons is something most people are unable to deal with, especially not teenagers. It needs to stop. UNL STUDENTS RESTRICTED BY NEW ‘RESPECT’ POLICY William Nardi - Roger Williams University •September 2, 2016 http://www.thecollegefix.com/post/28888/ ‘Nonnegotiable’ list of expected beliefs about diversity and inclusion Calling the University of Nebraska Lincoln a place that “values acceptance,” the institution kicked off the fall semester with its newly installed chancellor essentially telling new students they should not say or do things that might be offensive or cause people to feel disrespected, calling the stance “nonnegotiable.” “We insist on a culture of respect, and we recognize that words and actions really matter,” Chancellor Ronnie Green said during a speech at the new student convocation on Aug. 19. While suggesting the university values free speech and freedom of expression, Green – who took the helm of UNL this summer – went on to declare: “We do not tolerate actions of hate and disrespect.” The policy, being called by campus leaders a set of “belief statements” on diversity and inclusion, is also spelled out on its website. The September 7th, 2016 Edition of THE REVENGE HUMP DAY! Page 49 of 49 Green’s comments come as Christianity and conservatism — even support of Donald Trump — is accused of being intolerant, hateful and racist on campuses nationwide. Green did not define, neither in his speech or the written policy underscoring it, what an action of disrespect might be, leaving it widely open to interpretation. The vague set of beliefs also comes a time when accusations of microaggressions, or unintentional slights some interpret as racist acts, have a vice grip on universities. “We all share in the responsibility to create a positive culture here and to safeguard equity, inclusion, diversity and respect,” Green continued in his speech. “ … We take action when we observe something or someone being treated unfairly or in a demeaning manner. It’s our core belief as a university here at the University of Nebraska. It’s nonnegotiable. That’s who we are.” Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZZWpsfGeIo Green reiterated his stance in a memo to students. The “belief statements” also come as the university announces a new assistant vice president for diversity, access and inclusion, Stancia Whitcomb Jenkins. ‘If you can’t express yourself respectfully, shut up’ At least one critic rebuked the policy, saying it means students are no longer allowed to dissent from progressive ideas. “Chancellor Green has informed UNL’s new students that UNL has a non-negotiable list of expected beliefs about matters of diversity and inclusion,” said intellectual freedom activist David Moshman in the Huffington Post. “In other words, here in the UNL community, we encourage you to speak up but if you say the wrong thing we will not tolerate it,” he continued. “Feel free to politely criticize the ideas of ISIS or the Ku Klux Klan, for example, but make sure not to show any disrespect, much less hatred, for any group, individual, or ideology. If you can’t express yourself respectfully, shut up.” These measures could also be alarming to some students at UNL, found to have zero Republican political science professors, The College Fix reported. “Lincoln has trended towards the social justice principles for years. So I’m not surprised, I just won’t be a part of it,” UNL student Gus Burnette told The College Fix. “There are plenty of open arms to liberal rights groups, minorities, the LGBTQ community, and even libertarians. But if you dare bring up God, for example, be ready to be yelled at.” ______ If you would like to unsubscribe From: THE REVENGE OF HUMP DAY, please send an email message to Tim Bolgeo [email protected] and say, "QUIT SENDING ME THIS STUPID RAG!" ______~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~ ~~ ~~~~~~~