Posts Made By: Rod Kaufman

david goldman said:

I found gas @ $3.71 per gallon here in the midwest the other day....
You go figure.

Midwest gas prices have nothing to do with California gas prices so your point is?

The giant spike in California gas prices this week is due to, "heavier than normal routine refinery maintenance"? What, each independently owned and operated refinery on the west coast experiences heavier than anticipated maintenance at the same time? Are you kidding me?
http://www.the-signal.com/section/36/article/65395/
This is oil company horse----

Saw it in 3D. And that's the preferred media for this one, IMO.
One of the actors, who was probably around age 1 when Alien made its debut, said it's not a prequel. He's wrong because all ya gotta do is look at the ending to see the little bugger pop out. It even takes place on LV 223, the same planetoid that gave rise to the legend.
Beyond that, the movie has seemingly more implausibilities than its ample body count.
For starters, a biologist and a geologist somehow get lost off ship, even when they're accompanied by hand held probes and visualized in real time by the ship's captain. Of course, the ding-dongs get killed off early.
Then there's the actual plot, if you can call it that, which doesn't make much sense. They go off looking for the species that created mankind, only to find one left whose determined to get back to earth to end it for all of us. Based on that experience, (and the termination of her fellow crew mates by the same entity) the heroine somehow concludes they changed their minds and sets off to find more of them. God only knows why. Additionally, as noted above, Alien resurrection occurs again. So, we are left with an Alien and a quest for the other aliens who evidently gave rise to us. You figure it out. I'm done with this one...

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/54246295-78/police-springdale-tourists-audit.html.csp
Hmm, does "foreign" mean anybody without a Utah plate?...

Roswell: IT DID HAPPEN!
http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/11/roswell-really-happened-says-former-cia-agent/?hpt=hp_t2
"Independence Day" for real!!!

A pipeline leak in the midwest(it could never happen to the Keystone pipe, now could it?) and refinery problems elsewhere, including a MASSIVE explosion at a Chevron California refinery yesterday, are rapidly propelling gas prices upward.
http://money.cnn.com/2012/08/07/news/economy/gas-prices/index.htm?iid=HP_LN
So, what could be done about it? Nothing you say?
Hogwash! When pipeline disruptions occur and refinery explosions happen, there ought to be a law that requires the exporting of oil/gas to cease with shipments redirected to the states. Let the prices rise somewhere else!

Guys,
Thanks for your comments. Dave has a good questions regarding duplicating the ordinance in other counties such as Orange County. My feeling is we ought to wait a bit longer until the ordinance is formally adopted by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. Then, a carefully crafted, diplomatically correct letter ought to be sent to the Orange County Board of Supervisors informing them of the achievement by Los Angeles County and requesting Orange County (or equivalent) to do the same. I think this is particularly important for Kern County since it governs much of the land that is slated for development for Centennial City. I would be happy to help in initiating a letter requesting consideration of adoption of similar ordinances for other counties once the LA County ordinance is formally adopted. Such letters, however, would need to originate within the counties in question so while I can help to a certain degree, it becomes incumbent upon a resident living within their respective county to do some of the leg work in shepherding the proposal to their board.

As some of you may recall, I posted a link to a proposed light pollution ordinance for Los Angeles County. I have been in contact with an individual in the county department who is directly involved with the development of the ordinance. I've sent the individual a link to the ordinance utilized by Pima county in Arizona. It's recognized as one of the toughest and most comprehensive in the country. I am pleased to know the Arizona ordinance was recognized as a "good outdoor lighting ordinance" and has been used as a reference for the LA County ordinance.
At present, the LA county general counsel has been reviewing the proposal and it has been described as "moving forward." I've been informed I will be posted regarding its progress.
At this point, I am cautiously optimistic on its progress.

When I was studying astronomy in college many years ago, Bernard Lovell and his work at Jodrell Bank was well known and required reading. I had thought Lovell died long ago but today I read of his recent passing:
http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-bernard-lovell-20120812,0,2000630.story
Truly a pioneer in his times...

The movie, "The Expendable's 2" certainly has its moments. Arnold Schwarzenegger is back, and after destroying California, I thought I'd see what he could do abroad. I wasn't disappointed. Bruce Willis, Sylvester Stallone, Dolph Lundren, Jean Claude Van Dame, Chuck Norris and the rest of the gang are all back, kicking more butts than you can count.
It's like a navy seals movie on steroids, and some of them probably are...