KY_EnviroGuy
KY_EnviroGuy's JournalGet your entire week's worth of BAD news here.
When I started scanning my news sites over coffee today, it was like "holy shit, nothing but bad news today". So, here's a list of headlines that will allow people to do all their cussin' and throwing stuff at your phone or computer in one place....
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Bad News Summary 012920
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Deployment of new US nuclear warhead on submarine a dangerous step, critics say
First submarine to go on patrol armed with the W76-2 warhead makes a nuclear launch more likely, arm control advocates warn
Link: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/29/us-submarine-trident-nuclear-warhead-patrols-atlantic-ocean
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Trump impeachment: White House claims John Bolton book contains top secret information live
White House sends letter saying book cannot be published
Link: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2020/jan/29/trump-impeachment-trial-live-news-bolton-witnesses-mcconnell-2020-latest-updates
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France to send warships to support Greece in Turkish standoff
Greek PM welcomes move as row with Ankara over energy reserves intensifies
Link: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/29/greece-turkey-standoff-france-send-warships-east-mediterranean
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The Guardian view on Trumps peace plan: a con, not a deal (Editorial)
A two-state solution came about as the result of a rules-based world order, which Mr Trump detests because it is inimical to the raw power that he prefers to govern global affairs
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jan/29/the-guardian-view-on-trumps-peace-plan-a-con-not-a-deal
and..........
Opinion: Trump's Middle East 'peace plan' delivers neither
US President Donald Trump's Middle East peace plan is largely aligned with Israeli interests, while the Palestinians' concerns are ignored. It will not end the conflict in the region, says DW's Rainer Sollich.
Link: https://www.dw.com/en/opinion-trumps-middle-east-peace-plan-delivers-neither/a-52181110
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Brexit: MEPs ratify UK withdrawal agreement
Politicians join in rendition of Auld Lang Syne after vote confirming UK departure from EU on Friday
Link: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/jan/29/brexit-meps-to-vote-on-withdrawal-agreement-ahead-of-uk-departure
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WUHAN VIRUS OUTBREAK (broad coverage)
Link: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/topics/wuhan-virus?cid=cna-sghome_wuhan_virus_outbreak_desktop_22012020_cna
Whole world must be ready to deal with coronavirus, says WHO
Countries urged to be on alert as number of confirmed cases passes 6,000
Link: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/29/whole-world-must-be-ready-to-deal-with-coronavirus-says-who
and....
WHO to hold coronavirus crisis meeting
The UN health agency has called a new round of crisis talks to decide whether the coronavirus outbreak constitutes an international emergency. The body said it "regrets" previously calling the virus risk "moderate."
Link: https://www.dw.com/en/who-to-hold-coronavirus-emergency-meeting/a-52192252
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Pentagon: 50 US troops received brain injuries after Iran airstrike
It was initially believed no one was hurt in the January 8 missile attack on the Ain al-Asad airbase in western Iraq. Fifty US soldiers have been diagnosed with brain injuries, 18 of whom have been treated in Germany.
Link: https://www.dw.com/en/pentagon-50-us-troops-received-brain-injuries-after-iran-airstrike/a-52181691
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US to put 9,000 South Korea workers on leave as military funding row deepens
Stand-off with Seoul over how much South Korea contributes to the upkeep of 28,000 US soldiers stationed there
Link: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/29/us-to-put-9000-south-korea-workers-on-leave-as-military-funding-row-deepens
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Beasts of burden: Hooks, chains and pain - How Thailand's elephants have become symbols of despair
In the first part of a series looking at Thailand's changing relationship with its elephants, CNA explored how the animals are made to perform unnatural acts - such as dancing and painting - for people's entertainment.
Link: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/thailand-elephant-shows-circuses-abuse-cruelty-training-11867874
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Taliban kill at least 29 Afghan security personnel in renewed clashes
KABUL: At least 29 members of the Afghan security forces have been killed in Taliban attacks that followed air and ground assaults by government forces on the Islamist group at the weekend.
Link: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/taliban-kill-at-least-29-afghan-security-personnel-in-renewed-clashes-12368050
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A 40-degree day used to be a playground urban legend. Now it's a reality for our children (Australia)
It's an unsettling thought that extreme temperatures are the new normal for a generation of Australian children.
Link: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-01-30/40-degree-day-playground-urban-legend-climate-change/11869292
and.........
Bushfire smoke could cause lung problems for generations, US monkey study suggests
Monkeys in Northern California are providing valuable clues to the health cost of exposure to bushfire smoke, revealing it could have potentially life-threatening consequences for humans.
Link: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-01-29/bushfire-smoke-could-alter-respiratory-health-for-generations/11892520
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Egypt-Turkey tensions continue to rise in wake of newsroom raid
Egyptian security forces stormed the office of the Turkish Anadolu Agency Jan. 14 and arrested four employees, including a Turkish national, then referred them to state security prosecution on the grounds of terrorism accusations.
Link: https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2020/01/egypt-security-raid-turkish-anadolu-agency-relations.html
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Accusers: Weinstein excused lewd acts as a showbiz norm
Harvey Weinstein callously preceded an alleged rape with reassurances that hed had a vasectomy, one accuser testified Wednesday.
Link: https://apnews.com/8fc80c6e9e7c45bd05c66395c19f888d
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Women, 5 children among 8 victims of Alabama dock fire
Link: https://apnews.com/a9c316ee8aef6849659d0ad62de4fcca
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Temperatures at a Florida-Size Glacier in Antarctica Alarm Scientists
Scientists in Antarctica have recorded, for the first time, unusually warm water beneath a glacier the size of Florida that is already melting and contributing to a rise in sea levels.
Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/29/climate/thwaites-glacier-melting-antarctica.htm
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Perhaps someone will have the stamina to post a list of some good news around the globe.
KY............ ..........
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Best Photo of the Day?
![](https://i.postimg.cc/3JLh1jhP/Trump-Shoe-in-Mouth-2-012920.jpg)
A Palestinian man places a shoe on a television screen broadcasting President Donald Trumps announcement of his administrations Middle East peace plan, Hebron, Israeli-occupied West Bank, Jan. 28, 2020.
(Credit: REUTERS/Mussa Qawasma)
Found at: https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/home.html
Almost as good as W's shoe reward......
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Lighten up! Cats Reacting To The First Snow
Never knew cats love to play in snow....
10-minutes of sweet relief from the crazy!
KY..........
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Updates on Houston, Texas explosion.
2 victims killed in massive explosion in northwest Houston identified; hundreds of homes damagedThe blast knocked some homes off their foundations and jolted people awake as far away as Nassau Bay and La Porte.
Author: Doug Delony, KHOU 11 Staff
Published: 4:39 AM CST January 24, 2020
Read more here (with video): https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/breaking-large-blast-rattling-windows-felt-across-houston-area/285-dfb38cd1-484e-48f3-b87c-6bac0b7f2a25
(Warning: possible right-wing ads on this page)
(snips)
Authorities identified the victims as Frank Flores and Gerardo Castorena. The two were apparently employees of the business and had shown up early to use the gym on the site.
A nearby resident was also taken to the hospital with unknown injuries and 18 people self-reported to emergency rooms with minor injuries, such as cuts and breathing issues, associated with the blast.
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Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner got his first look at the damage caused by the major explosion on Friday evening that leveled the facility. He toured some of the more than 200 homes damaged by the blast, many of them left unlivable.
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Mayor Turner said the facility had been here since 1972 and many of the communities were built around it. It would be irresponsible on our part not to evaluate and assess what has taken place here today and to do everything that we can to mitigate the risk of future explosions of this kind to the extent we can, Mayor Turner said.
The city said all things have to be considered moving forward in a changing city to protect residents. The investigation of the debris field is expected to take several days.
Meanwhile, State leaders are reaching out to FEMA Looking at the possibility of getting federal help.
Will Texas ever learn? This brings back memories of many other events where poorly regulated chemical plants in towns with few zoning controls blew up and killed many people such as the West Fertilizer Company explosion in 2013.
KY..........
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News from Turkey found here.....
18 dead, 553 injured as massive quake of magnitude 6.8 rocks Turkey's ElazığDAILY SABAH - ISTANBUL
Published 24.01.2020
Link: https://www.dailysabah.com/turkey/2020/01/24/18-dead-553-injured-as-massive-quake-of-magnitude-68-rocks-turkeys-elazig
(snip)
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Soon after the initial quake, the province was shaken further by a series aftershocks ranging from between a magnitude 5.4 to 3.3. According to initial reports, the earthquake was felt in provinces as far as southern Adana and northern Samsun, along with northern Syria and Iraq.
The Interior Minister also said several buildings collapsed or sustained damages following the tremor.
Fault lines in Turkey:
![](https://i.postimg.cc/NF51Xnsp/Turkey-Fault-Lines.jpg)
KY.......
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Excellent perspectives on U.S. involvement in the Middle East - Video interview
Former top diplomat: Idea of US imposing peace plan on Israel, Palestinians 'is a farce'Issued on: 24/01/2020
Link: https://www.france24.com/en/middle-east/20200124-interview-martin-indyk-former-us-special-envoy-ambassador-to-israel-trump-middle-east-peace-plan-1
Well worth the time to watch to reiterate with clarity exactly what our "interests" over there really are. So why does tRump keep whacking the hornet's nest if a major plank in his platform was to get the hell out?
KY..........
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American firefighters killed in Australian bush fire plane crash identified.
Coulson Aviation names three aerial firefighters who died in NSW tanker crashABC - Australian Broadcasting Corp.
Read here: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-01-24/three-firefighters-who-died-in-nsw-tanker-crash-named/11897704
(snips)
In a post to Facebook, Coulson Aviation (USA) named captain Ian McBeth, first officer Paul Hudson and flight engineer Rick DeMorgan Jr as the aerial firefighting crew who died in the crash of the C-130 Large Air Tanker north-east of Cooma.
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The statement said 44-year-old captain McBeth lived in Great Falls, Montana, and was a highly respected C-130 pilot and qualified instructor with experience fighting fires both in the military and with the aviation company. He served with the Wyoming Air National Guard and was later a member of the Montana Air National Guard.
First officer Hudson, 42, from the United States Marine Corps, lived in Buckeye Arizona and had 20 years of service in the US Marines.
Mr DeMorgan Jr, 43, from Navarre, Florida, served in the US Air Force with 18 years as a flight engineer on the C-130.
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The company thanked members of the public for their support in the wake of the fatal crash.
The statement said the company's crews on other aircraft would be returning to work soon.
RIP and may peace soon come to their families.......
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Three dead after Large Air Tanker crashes while fighting bushfires in southern NSW
Source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)
Three American firefighters died when a Large Air Tanker crashed while fighting a bushfire in southern NSW. Earlier this afternoon, the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) said it had "lost contact" with a Lockheed C-130 Hercules, used in water bombing operations, in the Snowy Monaro area.
Firefighters, emergency services and military personnel launched a search and rescue and located the wreckage. However, RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said all the crew members were "tragically" killed.
"[The aircraft] impacted heavily with the ground and initial reports are that there was a large fireball associated with the impact of the plane as it hit the ground," he said.
Commissioner Fitzsimmons said there was no indication on what caused the accident, but is working with the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) to determine what happened. The Lockheed C-130 Hercules was contracted through American aerial firefighting company, Coulson Aviation (USA).
Read more: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-01-23/nsw-rfs-air-tanker-crashes-near-numeralla-bushfire/11893554
Horrible reminder of the risks involved in fighting these massive bushfires in Australia. RIP to the three brave Americans.
Backtoblue, I think what you experienced was the beauty of community.....
which is something most all of us need in one form or another. Most of our old-fashioned elements of community have been destroyed by capitalism. Back in the 70s, I felt the warmth of community in the volunteer fire service after I moved from the country to a large urban area. Sadly, that old community fire department is now gone and so is the brotherhood.
During the late 70s, I spent quite a time on a service job in a Southern coastal state in the area called "low country" where extreme segregation and poverty abounds. During my Sunday for-fun road trips to see the sights, I would see black people dressed in their Sunday finest walking along the highways to their nearest African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME) and services would go on for hours. Those churches ARE their community and the only escape from horrible racism.
Those churches were very small and it seemed there was one every mile. I'm now jealous that they have such a beautiful union of people that we sorely need in some form across the nation and I hope they're able to maintain what they have.
Please continue to report your visits. You are warming some hearts that really need it......
Depends on occasion, recipe and mood.
Bleu: No. 1 flavor and aroma-trigger cheese for salads and a to-die-for tomato soup for me.Havarti and Swiss: late night snacks and sandwiches.
Cheddars: Snacks with whole-grain crackers.
Asiago: A special treat for snacking.
Notable credits to the lesser of cheeses (bless their hearts):
Before she passed, my wife used to make Mac and Cheese using Velveeta and the kids loved it.
Back during the long-gone crazy drinking days, a friend and I liked Heineken and Limburger.
During my traveling days, suitcases returning from Wisconsin jobs had all spare room filled with their world-famous chocolate cheese. Ladies were in-waiting at the airport.......
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Profile Information
Gender: MaleHometown: TN, KY
Home country: USA
Current location: KY
Member since: Thu Jul 6, 2017, 07:43 PM
Number of posts: 14,570