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If you had visited me yesterday, you would have seen the awful state of my home. Dishes piled high, dining room table covered in clutter, toys all over the living room floor... And don't even get me started on how backed up I am when it comes to our laundry. But, this is what happens when the mama of the house is out of commission for several weeks in a row.
Today, the house is a tad bit neater, but not much. And honestly? It's driving me a bit crazy because I have, as my husband likes to say, "neat freak tendencies". In other words, I don't have super high standards {i.e. please never do a white glove inspection on any part of my home}, but I also like to live in a relatively clean/clutter-free environment. Things get too out of order and my brain explodes.
Now that I seem to have made it through the morning sickness and am on the mend from a case of the sniffles, the state of my home is starting to get to me. I start to think about the fact that we host a weekly Bible study in our home on Wednesdays and that my parents will be coming in this weekend to celebrate Christmas with us. Who has time for a messy house when all of this is going on?
Then I remind myself that, in the same way I must give myself grace for slacking in the Advent department, I also need to serve myself an extra heaping helping for a house that is need of some serious TLC. After all, if Jesus can lower Himself enough to be born in the less-than-pristine conditions of that stable, then I can ignore some dust bunnies long enough to celebrate Him.
Do you have "neat freak tendencies" {whether subtle or full-fledged}, too?
What are you setting aside in order to be fully present in the celebrating?
God Bless,

subset: commoncrawl


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Categories > Books > Lord of the Rings > The Manly Approach
The Manly Approach3 Reviews
A man was in charge. What if a woman had had a say in things? Could be considered a parody. Same warnings hold for the 'LOTR Condensed' story. A/N If you do not understand the drabble, before r...
Isildur, having cut the ring from Sauron's hand, picked up the finger with the ring. The light in his eyes belied the intentions stated beforehand: Destroy Sauron and destroy the ring.
The gears working within his brain spoke of self-disillusioned strength, the knowledge that he was different, could withstand the siren's song.
And yet, thinking of his pathetic remains laying on the river's bed, I think on how practical a woman would be. Ring in hand, short walk to the fire, what is the problem?


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Posts Tagged 'climate'
India's giant megawatt trap
Electricity as fundamental right and energy convenience as the basis of 'development' in Bharat and in India. If this is what Piyush Goyal means when he says his government is "is committed to ensure affordable 24×7 power" then it will come as yet another commitment that supports energy provision and consumption as the basis for determining the well-being of Bharat-vaasis and Indians (the UPA's Bharat Nirman was the predecessor). But the Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Power, Coal and New and Renewable Energy cannot, using such a promise, ignore the very serious questions about the kind of 'development' being pursued by the NDA-BJP government and its environmental and social ramifications. [This article is also posted at the India Climate Portal.]
Goyal has said, via press conferences and meetings with the media, that the NDA government is committed to ensuring affordable power at all times ('24 x 7′ is the expression he used, which must be banished from use as being a violent idea – like nature our lives follow cycles of work and rest and '24 x 7′ violently destroys that cycle). Goyal has promised, pending the taking of a series of steps his ministry has outlined, that such a round the clock provision of electric power will be extended to "all homes, industrial and commercial establishments" and that there will be "adequate power for farms within five years".
Some of the very serious questions we raise immediately pertain to what Goyal – with the help of senior ministry officials and advisers – has said. The NDA-BJP government will spend Rs 75,600 crore to (1) supply electricity through separate feeders for agricultural and rural domestic consumption, said Goyal, which will be used to provide round the clock power to rural households; and (2) on an "integrated power development initiative" which involves strengthening sub-transmission and distribution systems in urban areas. This is part of the "transformative change" the ministry has assured us is for the better. Goyal and his officials see as a sign of positive transformation that coal-based electricity generation from June to August 2014 grew by nearly 21 per cent (compared with the same months in 2013), that coal production is 9% higher in August 2014 compared with August 2013, and that Coal India (the largest coal producer company in the world which digs out 8 of every 10 tons of coal mined in India) is going to buy 250 more goods rakes (they will cost Rs 5,000 crore) so that more coal can be moved to our coal-burning power plants.
We must question the profligacy that the Goyal team is advancing in the name of round the clock, reliable and affordable electricity to all. To do so is akin to electoral promises that are populist in nature – and which appeal to the desire in rural and urban residents alike for better living conditions – and which are entirely blind to the environmental, health, financial and behavioural aspects attached to going ahead with such actions. In less than a fortnight, prime minister Narendra Modi (accompanied by a few others) will attend the United Nations Climate Summit 2014. Whether or not this summit, like many before it, forces governments to stop talking and instead act at home on tackling anthropogenic climate change is not the point. What is of concern to us is what India's representatives will say about their commitment to reduce the cumulative impact of India's 'development', with climate change being a part of that commitment. [Please see the full article on this page.]
Weighing the monsoon winds for El Niño
Ignoring the torpor of the summer heat, the India Meteorological Department has dusted off the statutory paragraphs that give us in the sub-continent a first indication of what monsoon for the year may be like. The result this year, both scintillating pages, has been made that much more gripping by the inclusion of El Niño. The IMD's treatment of the normal variables whose interplay determine the nature of any monsoon is perfunctory – which is surprising as the regional and international earth observation networks spare no detail and tend to inundate us with data and analysis.
But the IMD, especially for the south-west monsoon, has always preferred to be spartan. Perhaps there is some philosophical dictum that us non-meteorologists have yet to grasp, and if so then the only criticism we may be permitted, if the IMD had its way, its to ask for more such teaching. But the IMD does not have its way, and we publics whose monies support its work must continue to demand from the recalcitrant department better, much better, application and communication of its work.
The official release, 'Long Range Forecast For the 2014 Southwest Monsoon Season Rainfall', is delivered to us by the IMD, Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES). There is the usual paragraph claiming a profundity of observation and of the IMD being a standard-bearer of superior method. "Operational models are critically reviewed regularly and further improved through inhouse research activities," says the IMD. But what we still have, in a tradition that is probably three generations old, is the two stage forecast (one in April, the second in June). [Here is the release in Hindi.]
I think this proves how out of step the IMD – and the Ministry of Earth Sciences (grand title isn't it?) – is with what citizens of India experience in their villages, towns, fields and hills. For, the south-west monsoon no longer arrives in the first week of June, and it no longer begins to depart by mid-September. Climate change began to alter that comfortable rhythm years ago, but the IMD's forecasting grindstone is the same, never mind how many new earth observation satellites India pelts into orbit.
With all these provisos, stated and implicit, what has the IMD told us?
First, that the "experimental ensemble forecast based on IMD seasonal forecast model (SFM) indicates that the rainfall during the 2014 monsoon season (June to September) averaged over the country as a whole is likely to be 88% ± 5% of long period average (LPA)". This means that in places it could be as low as 83% of the average, and no more than 92% of the average. Combine this with the assessments about the 2014 El Niño and we can see why, far from being satisfied that the IMD is considering both the monsoon and El Niño, we ought to monitor independently both and force the IMD to become more responsive.
Second, that "the experimental forecast based on the coupled dynamical model forecasting system suggest that the monsoon rainfall during the 2014 monsoon season (June to September) averaged over the country as a whole is likely to be 96% ± 5% of long period model average (LPMA)". This is a more hopeful set, but also shows that the IMD, by telling us of two different scenarios from two models, is hedging its forecast, which is not what its job is.
Third, the IMD has said "the experimental five category probability forecasts for the 2014 monsoon season rainfall over the country as a whole using the experimental dynamical prediction system are 33% (deficient), 20% (below normal), 24% (normal), 6% (above normal) and 17% (excess)". This means, using this 'probability', that a normal monsoon for 2014 has only a 1-in-4 chance whereas a deficient monsoon (that is, total rain less than 90% of the long period average) has a 1-in-3 chance.
This is a prognosis that stands between serious and grim, for a 10% drift towards the lower side of an expected average, for any of our 36 agro-meteorological regions, can spell ruin for farmers and severe hardship for water consumers. How have central and state governments prepared for such a forecast? We have no information, most likely because there has been no preparation (there are contingency plans for the chronically drought-prone districts, but these are normally triggered when there is an official declaration by the state government that there are conditions of drought in parts of the state). Elections or no elections, El Niño cares not, and it is up to the state governments to make preparations for a monsoon 2014 whose delivery of water already looks uncertain.
Preparing for Cyclone Phailin
Update4: The water carried over land by Cyclone Phaillin has now travelled northwards and west. Daily monsoon system monitoring by the Centre for Ocean-Land-Atmosphere Studies – COLA (a scientific research centre to improve understanding and prediction of Earth's climate variations) now show the danger from very heavy rain to districts in interior Odisha, eastern Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh.
The soil moisture in these regions is already high – as it should be at the end of the south-west monsoon – and very heavy spells of rain approaching 20mm in three hours will cause widespread flooding. The National Disaster Management Authority and the armed forces will continue to have to be on the alert for flood-related rescue calls from these regions.
Update3: It is very worrying to find that:
(a) satellite images shared by a global meteorological community are showing that Cyclone Phailin crossed the Indian coast between 1800 and 1900 (6pm and 7pm) but until well after 1900 (7pm) the Indian Meteorological Department told television news channels it was still approaching, and
(b) that hourly data from the automated weather stations on the eastern coast are not visible – no explanation as to whether they had been knocked out by the cyclonic conditions or whether the data links were down.
Update2: The armed forces and para-military and disaster relief and rescue teams are reported to be ready. Two Indian Air Force IL-76 aircraft have taken teams and equipment to Bhubaneshwar, Odisha. The Indian Air Force is on stand-by at various bases including Raipur, Nagpur, Jagdalpur, Barrackpore, Ranchi and Gwalior. At least 28 teams of the National Disaster Response Forces have been mobilised.
The East Coast Railway has cancelled or re-scheduled passenger trains between Visakhapatnam and Bhadrak on the Howrah-Chennai Main Line route, PTI News has reported. Among these trains are Puri-Cuttack-Puri passenger, Paradeep-Cuttack passenger, Cuttack-Paradeep passenger, Puri-Gunupur-Puri passenger, Puri-Rourkela passenger, Puri-Cuttack passenger, Bhadrak-Cuttack-Bhadrak passenger and Cuttack-Palasa-Cuttack passenger trains.
PTI News has reported that Odisha has opened control rooms for the cyclone. The helpline number of the Odisha Central Control Room is 0674-2534177
The district control room numbers are: Mayurbhanj 06792-252759, Jajpur 06728-222648, Gajapati 06815-222943, Dhenkanal 06762-221376, Khurda 06755-220002, Keonjhar 06766-255437, Cuttack 0671-2507842, Ganjam 06811-263978, Puri 06752-223237, Kendrapara 06727-232803, Jagatsinghpur 06724-220368, Balasore 06782-262674, Bhadrak 06784-251881.
In Odisha, 200 trained ham radio operators have been put on alert to help with rescue work. Eight stations have been put on 'active alert' while there are 28 stations as back-up around India.
Via Twitter:
Google Person Finder has readied a service in response to cyclone Phailin to help find friends and loved ones (thanks to @GautamGhosh)
Phailin is forecast to strike at IST 1730 (5.30 pm) local time. Trust Foundation has a status page (thanks to @nitabhalla)
Also consult the Tropical Storm Risk site for frequent updates on the course and strength of Phailin.
Update1: For those in coastal Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, check TV and radio broadcasts for weather alerts and conditions in your district for as long as there is electricity. The government weather websites – India Meteorological Department and Mausam – have become very unresponsive probably due to high traffic.
Use the #Phailin hashtag on Twitter to find news and alerts near where you are. See useful examples like these:
Odisha Control Room numbers: Ganjam 06811-263978; Puri 06752-223237; Kendrapara 06727-232803 (thanks for this info to @aditya_manocha )
@debasis3: "Here we go. Rains have started in Bhubaneswar"
More Odisha Control Room numbers: Balasore 06782-262674; Bhadrak 06784-251881; Mayurbhanj 06792-252759; Jajpur 06728-222648 (thanks for this info to @ketan72 )
Important advice from the National Disaster Management Authority of India – If you are in the cyclone danger zone: check the house; secure loose tiles. remove dead wood or dry branches close to the house. Anchor movable objects like piles of wood, tin sheets (these are deadly when sent flying during a cyclone), loose bricks, rubbish bins (whose lids can fly like dangerous missiles in high wind), unbolted sign-boards.
Keep a few wooden boards, nails and a hammer ready to board up glass windows if they are in danger of shattering inwards. Keep emergency lighting ready. Ensure mobile phones are charged. Keep battery-operated torches ready batteries handy. Store boiled or filtered water for drinking. Keep dry food (such as biscuits) at hand if conditions worsen and you can't cook a hot meal.
Zee News (television and online) has reported that in Odisha "thousands flee to shelter homes stocked with emergency food supplies and medicines". National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams have reached Bhubaneswar (capital of Odisha) as evacuations have begun in Odisha and north Andhra Pradesh. Union Defence Minister A K Antony has asked armed forces to be ready to move in to Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
NDTV (television and online) has reported that five districts "are preparing for the worst impact of the cyclone: Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh and Ganjam, Puri, Khordha and Jagatsinghapur in Odisha." Helicopters and food packages are ready for areas that are likely to be worst hit. A minister in the Andhra Pradesh state government has reportedly said that 64,000 people are being evacuated from Srikakulam, Vishakhapatnam and Vizianagaram and are being shifted to cyclone shelters.
The state of Odisha is preparing for Cyclone Phailin as it approaches from the Bay of Bengal. Consult the new map of Phailin and its possible pathways from the Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System (GDACS).
My reading of the forecast path of the cyclone – using the map sets from the National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (Earth System Science Organisation, Ministry of Earth Sciences) – is that in Odisha the districts of Ganjam, Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Bhadrak, Baleshwar, Kordha, Jajapur, Cuttack, Nayagarh and Gajapati will be in the cyclone's path beginning with increasingly heavy rain and fierce winds from Saturday morning 12 October 2013; in Andhra Pradesh the districts of Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam and in West Bengal the districts of Purba Medinipur will be in the cyclone's path.
The series of stacked rainfall forecast maps above show the approach of Cyclone Phailin from 11 October.
Look for the deep blue circle in the left panel from the first pair (top left, 24 hours) – extending out ahead of the cyclone core is the rain storm, which will cross the northern coast of Andhra Pradesh. In the second pair (top middle, 48 hours), the blue circle has moved closer to the coast – rainfall from the vast gyre of clouds around the approaching cyclone will extend far inland, in a great spike through Andhra Pradesh, parts of Madhya Pradesh and north into western Uttar Pradesh.
In the third pair (top right, 72 hours), the cyclone has made landfall with Odisha in the centre and affected districts in Andhra Pradesh to the south and West Bengal to the north – this is when the disaster management teams in the districts will be taxed to the utmost, having already been battered by heavy rain and unrelenting high-speed winds for two days.
In the fourth pair (lower left, 96 hours) the cyclone is still very active as it moves north-west to sweep across Odisha. In the fifth pair (lower middle, 120 hours) the cyclone core has finally weakened (no longer coloured deep blue) but has moved into Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and eastern Uttar Pradesh. In the sixth pair (lower right, 144 hours) the cyclone's force has dissipated leaving rain in its wake across eastern India.
Orissa Dairy has reported ('Phailin upgraded to super cyclone'): "The very severe cyclonic storm Phailin, expected to make landfall at Gopalpur in Odisha, moved closer to the state and lay about 600 km southeast of Paradip, as the government sought the help of defence forces to boost its preparedness, official sources said on Thursday night."
The Hindustan Times has reported ('Cyclone Phailin: deep depression over Bay of Bengal intensifies further'): "A morning bulletin of Bhubaneswar meteorological department on Friday said the cyclone would move north-westward and cross Andhra Pradesh and Odisha coast between Kalingapatam (Andhra Pradesh) and Paradip, close to Gopalpur, by Saturday evening as a very severe cyclonic storm with a maximum sustained speed of 205-215km per hour."
DNA has reported ('Odisha braces for Cyclone Phailin'): "The state government said it was making adequate preparation to deal with the disaster that expects to cause large scale devastation mostly in state's coastal southern districts. Durga puja festivities in Odisha have been cancelled as the state prepares for Cyclone Phailin which could be the worst since 1999 when 10,000 people died. The Air Force, Navy and national disaster management team have already been put on stand-by, while the rapid action force has deployed its forces on the ground. People in the low lying areas of the state will be evacuated by Saturday evening."
Energy, climate, growth, China, India – the World Energy Outlook 2012
In four parts, 18 chapters, four annexes, illustrated by around 300 figures, the chapters supported by about 100 tables, a separate set of data upon which scenarios rest, the World Energy Outlook 2012 of the International Energy Agency (IEA) is a 690-page behemoth. I can only sketch its merest outline here, and in a fleeting way touch upon the knowledge and information it contains.
Drawing on the latest data and policy developments, the World Energy Outlook 2012 presents projections of energy trends through to 2035 and insights into what they mean for energy security, the environment and economic development. "Over the Outlook period, the interaction of many different factors will drive the evolution of energy markets," said the WEO-2012. "As outcomes are hard to predict with accuracy, the report presents several different scenarios, which are differentiated primarily by their underlying assumptions about government policies." We are told that the starting year of the scenarios is 2010, the latest year for which comprehensive historical energy data for all countries were available. What are these four scenarios?
1. The New Policies Scenario – the report's central scenario – takes into account broad policy commitments and plans that have already been implemented to address energy-related challenges as well as those that have been announced, even where the specific measures to implement these commitments have yet to be introduced.
2. To illustrate the outcome of our current course, if unchanged, the Current Policies Scenario embodies the effects of only those government policies and measures that had been enacted or adopted by mid-2012.
3. The basis of the 450 Scenario is different. Rather than being a projection based on past trends, modified by known policy actions, it deliberately selects a plausible energy pathway. The pathway chosen is consistent with actions having around a 50% chance of meeting the goal of limiting the global increase in average temperature to two degrees Celsius (2°C) in the long term, compared with pre-industrial levels.
4. The Efficient World Scenario has been developed especially for the World Energy Outlook 2012 (WEO-2012). It enables us to quantify the implications for the economy, the environment and energy security of a major step change in energy efficiency.
I have extracted five important messages from the summary which are connected to the subjects you find in this blog – food and agriculture, consumer behaviour and its impacts on our lives, the uses that scarce energy is put to, the uses that scarce water is put to, the ways in which governments and societies (very different, these two) view food, energy and water.
Five key messages:
"Energy efficiency can keep the door to 2°C open for just a bit longer." Successive editions of the World Energy Outlook have shown that the climate goal of limiting warming to 2°C is becoming more difficult and more costly with each year that passes. The 450 Scenario examines the actions necessary to achieve this goal and finds that almost four-fifths of the CO2 emissions allowable by 2035 are already locked-in by existing power plants, factories, buildings, etc. No more than one-third of proven reserves of fossil fuels can be consumed prior to 2050 if the world is to achieve the 2°C goal.
"Will coal remain a fuel of choice?" Coal has met nearly half of the rise in global energy demand over the last decade, growing faster even than total renewables. Whether coal demand carries on rising strongly or changes course will depend on the strength of policy measures that favour lower-emissions energy sources, the deployment of more efficient coal-burning technologies and, especially important in the longer term, CCS. The policy decisions carrying the most weight for the global coal balance will be taken in Beijing and New Delhi – China and India account for almost three-quarters of projected non-OECD coal demand growth (OECD coal use declines).
"If nuclear falls back, what takes its place?" The anticipated role of nuclear power has been scaled back as countries have reviewed policies in the wake of the 2011 accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station. Japan and France have recently joined the countries with intentions to reduce their use of nuclear power, while its competitiveness in the United States and Canada is being challenged by relatively cheap natural gas. The report's projections for growth in installed nuclear capacity are lower than in last year's Outlook and, while nuclear output still grows in absolute terms (driven by expanded generation in China, Korea, India and Russia), its share in the global electricity mix falls slightly over time.
"A continuing focus on the goal of universal energy access." Despite progress in the past year, nearly 1.3 billion people remain without access to electricity and 2.6 billion do not have access to clean cooking facilities. Ten countries – four in developing Asia and six in sub-Saharan Africa – account for two-thirds of those people without electricity and just three countries – India, China and Bangladesh – account for more than half of those without clean cooking facilities. The report presents an Energy Development Index (EDI) for 80 countries, to aid policy makers in tracking progress towards providing modern energy access. The EDI is a composite index that measures a country's energy development at the household and community level.
"Energy is becoming a thirstier resource." Water needs for energy production are set to grow at twice the rate of energy demand. The report estimates that water withdrawals for energy production in 2010 were 583 billion cubic metres (bcm). Of that, water consumption – the volume withdrawn but not returned to its source – was 66 bcm. The projected rise in water consumption of 85% over the period to 2035 reflects a move towards more water-intensive power generation and expanding output of biofuels.
Such is the barest glimpse of the WEO-2012. There are a number of aspects of the Outlook which deserve more scrutiny with a view to learning energy use and misuse, and this will be expanded upon in the weeks ahead.
What ails the South Asian monsoon?
This set of images helps explain the worrying 2012 monsoon season in South Asia and why drought conditions are emerging in more districts with every passing week.
We are coming up to the eight-week mark of the 2012 monsoon (taking the 04-06 June date as the 'normal' for the monsoon to become active over south-west India, after which the climatological system slowly advances over the peninsula and up into northern India).
The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has not helped, by maintaining a scientific detachment between forecasting science and the dire situation of farmers and consumers. With emergency drought programmes new being rolled out in many states (more than a month late), the IMD's refusal to speak plainly to those who need the information the most is unpardonable.
Worse, the Department on its website and its communications walls off its forecasting behind a very unfriendly science interface (see this commentary for a detailed explanation), and appears oblivious about its responsibilities to those for whom it exists – the citizens of India who are waiting for rain.
This set of images (strips below, you can click on the images for the full-size versions) describes what the IMD ought to be disseminating (but stubbornly refuses to). These are 24, 48, 72 and 96 hour regional forecasts for South Asia of accumulated precipitation and temperature extremes.
Day 1 – 02 Aug 2012
Day 2 – 03 Aug 2012
Day 3 – 04 Aug 2012
Day 4 – 05 Aug 2012
The four regions you see in the panels are Peninsular India and Sri Lanka, Western India and Pakistan, Northern & Central India and Nepal, and Eastern India and Bangladesh. These are from the monsoon forecasting sub-site of the Center for Ocean-Land-Atmosphere Studies – of the Institute of Global Environment and Society (IGES) – which processes and synthesises data from the NOAA/NCEP, which is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA, the US government agency), National Centers for Environmental Prediction. These regional weather forecasts are presented as a running four-day ensemble of images showing daily forecasts of 2-metre temperature minima and maxima and accumulated precipitation covering the four sub-regions.
USA climate, the newer, higher, normals
In July 2011, the US National National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Climatic Data Center updated the Climate Normals for the USA.These are three-decade averages of weather observations, including temperature. The new annual normal temperatures for the United States reflect a warming world.
Following procedures set by the World Meteorological Organization, normals shift each decade, rather than each year. As of July 2011, the climate normals span 1981–2010, dropping the 1970s, which were unusually cool. Last year, the normals included 1971–2000, leaving out the warmest decade on record (2001–2010).
NASA's Earth Observatory has provided maps which show the differences between the old normals and the new normals. The top image shows July maximum temperatures, and the lower image shows the January minimum temperatures.
Positive temperature changes appear in orange and red, and negative temperature changes appear in blue.
On average, the contiguous United States experiences the lowest temperatures on January nights, and the highest temperatures on July days. Both January minimum temperatures and July maximum temperatures changed, but not by equal amounts.
Parts of the Great Plains, Mississippi Valley, and the Northeast experienced slightly cooler July maximums from 1981–2010 compared to 1971–2000 (top map).
A much more striking difference, however, appears in the January minimums (lower map). Nighttime temperatures in January were higher everywhere except the Southeast. Warmer nights were especially pronounced in the northern plains through the northern Rocky Mountains—several degrees warmer in some places.
Comparing average temperatures year round, every state experienced warmer temperatures in 1981–2010 compared to 1971–2000.
NOAA's National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) released the 1981-2010 Normals on July 1, 2011. Climate Normals are the latest three-decade averages of climatological variables, including temperature and precipitation. This new product replaces the 1971-2000 Normals product. Additional Normals products; such as frost/freeze dates, growing degree days, population-weighting heating and cooling degree days, and climate division and gridded normals; will be provided in a supplemental release by the end of 2011.
Although warmer temperatures can have benefits, they pose hazards to some plants. For instance, higher nighttime temperatures enable some pests—such as the pine bark beetle and wooly adelgid—to thrive in places where they previously froze.
What are Normals? – In the strictest sense, a "normal" of a particular variable (e.g., temperature) is defined as the 30-year average. For example, the minimum temperature normal in January for a station in Chicago, Illinois, would be computed by taking the average of the 30 January values of monthly-averaged minimum temperatures from 1981 to 2010. Each of the 30 monthly values was in turn derived from averaging the daily observations of minimum temperature for the station. In practice, however, much more goes into NCDC's Normals product than simple 30-year averages. Procedures are put in place to deal with missing and suspect data values. In addition, Normals include quantities other than averages such as degree days, probabilities, standard deviations, etc. Normals are a large suite of data products that provide users with many tools to understand typical climate conditions for thousands of locations across the United States.
What are Normals used for? – Meteorologists and climatologists regularly use Normals for placing recent climate conditions into a historical context. NOAA's Normals are commonly seen on local weather news segments for comparisons with the day's weather conditions. In addition to weather and climate comparisons, Normals are utilized in seemingly countless applications across a variety of sectors. These include: regulation of power companies, energy load forecasting, crop selection and planting times, construction planning, building design, and many others.
The National Climatic Data Center compiles climate normals from observations from thousands of stations in the National Weather Service (NWS) Cooperative Observer Program, as well as stations staffed by professionals within the NWS, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Federal Aviation Administration.
India lowers its 2011 monsoon forecast
India's meteorological department has issued its second long range forecast for the 2011 monsoon and has lowered its estimate. Rainfall will be 95% of the 50-year average in the June-September season, which are the monsoon months. In April, the Indian Meteorological Department predicted a monsoon that would be 98% of the long-term average. Normal precipitation is considered to be 96%-104% percent of the long-term average.
India's agriculture-dependent population has been hoping for adequate rainfall to harvest good quantities of foodgrain and lentils for a second year and bring down inflation, which has led the Reserve Bank of India – the central bank – to raise rates for a 10th time in 15 months. Agriculture accounts for 14% of the economy and a reduced harvest can further lower rural incomes and send food inflation higher than it already is. Inflation in India is the highest among Asia's major economies.
Bloomberg reported that the wholesale price index in India accelerated 9.06% in May after having increased 8.66% a month earlier, according to official data released on June 14. An index measuring wholesale prices of farm products including milk and lentils rose 8.96% in the week ended June 4 from a year earlier, according to the commerce ministry. India imported record quantities of sugar, lentils and oilseeds in 2009 following the weakest monsoon that year since 1972.
The IMD's 'long period' is 1951-2000 and the department considers probabilities for the country (all-India) and four major regions: north-west India, central India, north-east India and south peninsula. "Over the four broad geographical regions of the country, rainfall for the 2011 Southwest Monsoon Season is likely to be 97% of its LPA over North-West India, 95% of its LPA over North-East India, 95% of its LPA over Central India and 94% of its LPA over South Peninsula, all with a model error of ± 8 %."
The IMD also employs a six-parameter statistical forecasting system to prepare probability forecasts for five pre-defined rainfall categories. These are deficient (less than 90% of LPA), below normal (90-96% of LPA), normal (96-104% of LPA), above normal (104-110% of LPA) and excess (above 110% of LPA). The forecasted probabilities for the 2011 southwest monsoon season based on this system in percentage for the above 5 categories are 19%, 37%, 37%, 6% and 1%
The department's 'Summary of the Update Forecasts for 2011 Southwest Monsoon Rainfall' has said:
(1) Rainfall over the country as a whole for the 2011 southwest monsoon season (June to September) is most likely to be below normal (90-96% of LPA). Quantitatively, monsoon season rainfall for the country as a whole is likely to be 95% of the long period average with a model error of ±4%. The Long period average rainfall over the country as a whole for the period 1951-2000 is 89 cm.
(2) Rainfall over the country as a whole in the month of July 2011 is likely to be 93% of its LPA and that in the month of August is likely to be 94% of LPA both with a model error of ± 9 %.
(3) Over the four broad geographical regions of the country, rainfall for the 2011 Southwest Monsoon Season is likely to be 97% of its LPA over North-West India, 95% of its LPA over North-East India, 95% of its LPA over Central India and 94% of its LPA over South Peninsula, all with a model error of ± 8 %.
According to Reuters, government officials played down concerns that lower rainfall could fan inflation and dampen growth. "There is no need to press the panic button, as June rains are still above normal," said Shailesh Nayak, the top civil servant in the ministry of earth sciences which controls the country's weather office.
While rains could be slightly lower than normal in July, India's chief forecaster said distribution was key. "There are chances the monsoon will pick up after July 15 once it covers the entire country," said D. Sivananda Pai, director at the state-run National Climate Center. "Don't go by the numbers, it is the distribution (of the rains) which we are still hoping to be good." The weather office predicted 27 centimetres of rain in July compared with long-term average rainfall of 29 centimetres, and rains at 24 centimetres in August, when seeds start maturing, compared with long-term averages of 26 centimetres.
Weather office chief Ajit Tyagi remained optimistic. "Ninety five percent is a good forecast," Tyagi said. "Had it been 90% of the long-term average then it would have been a cause for concern," he said, adding that in the past slightly below normal monsoon rains had also seen adequate farm output because they were well distributed in the major crop growing regions.
Explaining climatic conditions over the equatorial Pacific and Indian Oceans, the department's second long range said moderate to strong La Nina conditions that prevailed in the equatorial Pacific during mid-August 2010 to early February 2011 weakened during subsequent months and dissipated to neutral conditions around mid-May 2011. The latest forecasts from a majority of the dynamical and statistical models indicate strong probability for the present ENSO-neutral conditions to continue during the current monsoon season and the remaining part of 2011.
It is important to note that in addition to El Niño and La Niña events, other factors such as the Indian Ocean Sea surface temperatures (SSTs) have also significant influence on India monsoon. However, the latest forecasts do not suggest development of either a positive or a negative Indian Ocean Dipole event during the 2011 monsoon season. In the absence of strong monsoon forcing from both Pacific and Indian Oceans, intraseasonal variation may become more crucial during this southwest monsoon season and lead to increased uncertainty in the monsoon forecasts.
Asia worries about food stocks and prices
Bangladesh, South Asia's biggest rice buyer, is in talks with India to buy grains on a regular basis to bolster food security as governments seek to avoid a repeat of the unrest that broke out when prices last soared, reported Bloomberg.
A long-term agreement will protect Bangladesh from possible defaults by private traders, who sometimes fail to meet their commitments if prices gain, Muhammad Abdur Razzaque, the nation's food minister, said in an interview yesterday. "Rice prices rose this year in our country; people are suffering as they have limited income," Razzaque said by phone from Dhaka.
Bangladesh's plan underscores a drive by governments to strengthen their reserves to help manage the impact of food prices that advanced to a record last month, beating the jump in 2008 that spawned riots from Haiti to Egypt. This year's surge has driven millions into extreme poverty, according to the World Bank, and contributed to unrest in the Middle East and Africa. "When we go for international tenders and prices suddenly rise, private suppliers sometimes fail to fulfill their commitments," Razzaque said. "They don't supply us and put us in trouble. It has happened."
In the Philippines, Sen. Francis Pangilinan, chairman of the Senate committee on agriculture, has called on the country's Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to start preparing for the worst-case scenario as far as the prices of oil and other basic commodities are concerned in response to the volatile situation in the Middle East.
The Philippine Star quoted Pangilinan as having said that other nations have started preparing for an expected food and oil shortage, not only because of the turmoil in the Middle East but also because of the erratic weather patterns that the world has been experiencing. "Some Asian governments have already started to come up with measures to mitigate rising prices. Erratic weather patterns have started wreaking havoc on our agricultural lands. China and India are stockpiling on grains, which means we need to rely less on importation to secure our buffer. The price of oil continues to soar, it is a matter that requires our serious attention," he said.
In today's world of interlinked markets, a problem in one place quickly ripples out to others. Croplands in Russia, one of the world's leading wheat producers, were devastated by fires during last summer's record-breaking heat wave. Wheat harvests in Ukraine, also plagued by torrid weather, dropped 15 percent last year, a comment in Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reminded readers.
Both countries responded by introducing export bans that have exacerbated global shortages of the commodity. Partly as a result, world wheat prices doubled between June 2010 and January 2011. According to the World Bank, wheat prices have risen in the past six months by 54 percent in Kyrgyzstan, 45 percent in Bangladesh, and 33 percent in Mongolia.
In the oil-rich Caucasus republic of Azerbaijan, high prices have been sending citizens across the border into neighboring Georgia, where they are buying up meat, potatoes, onions, and apples. Nadeem Ilahi, head of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) delegation visiting Baku this week, warned that Azerbaijanis should expect overall prices to rise 10 percent in the course of this year — most of it due to the worldwide rise in the cost of food.
How June 2010 blazed new climate records, and the story of Rongbuk glacier
It's been another searing half year from January 2010 to June. Global temperature records have been surpassed all over the place. Both land and sea temperatures have climbed upwards to match previous highs, and in some places to top them. Here are the global highlights for June 2010 from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA), National Climatic Data Center, State of the Climate, Global Analysis, June 2010:
* The combined global land and ocean average surface temperature for June 2010 was the warmest on record at 16.2°C (61.1°F), which is 0.68°C (1.22°F) above the 20th century average of 15.5°C (59.9°F). The previous record for June was set in 2005.
* June 2010 was the fourth consecutive warmest month on record (March, April, and May 2010 were also the warmest on record). This was the 304th consecutive month with a global temperature above the 20th century average. The last month with below-average temperature was February 1985.
* The June worldwide averaged land surface temperature was 1.07°C (1.93°F) above the 20th century average of 13.3°C (55.9°F)—the warmest on record.
* It was the warmest April–June (three-month period) on record for the global land and ocean temperature and the land-only temperature. The three-month period was the second warmest for the world's oceans, behind 1998.
* It was the warmest June and April–June on record for the Northern Hemisphere as a whole and all land areas of the Northern Hemisphere.
* It was the warmest January–June on record for the global land and ocean temperature. The worldwide land on average had its second warmest January–June, behind 2007. The worldwide averaged ocean temperature was the second warmest January–June, behind 1998.
* Sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean continued to decrease during June 2010. According to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, La Niña conditions are likely to develop during the Northern Hemisphere summer 2010.
The 'State of the Climate, Global Analysis' for June 2010 said that warmer-than-average conditions dominated the globe during the month, with the most prominent warmth in Mexico, northern Africa, and most of Europe, Asia, South America, and the USA. The world land surface temperature June 2010 anomaly of 1.07°C (1.93°F) was the warmest on record, surpassing the previous June record set in 2005 by 0.12°C (0.22°F).
The warm conditions that affected large portions of each inhabited continent also contributed to the warmest June worldwide land and ocean surface temperature since records began in 1880. The previous June record was set in 2005. Separately, the worldwide ocean surface temperatures during June 2010 were 0.54°C (0.97°F) above the 20th century average—the fourth warmest June on record. Warmer-than-average conditions were present across most of the Atlantic, Indian, and the western Pacific oceans.
"June 2010 was the fourth consecutive month with reported warmest averaged global land and ocean temperature on record (March, April, and May 2010 were also the warmest on record)," said the Global Analysis for the month. "When averaging the last three months, the combined global land and ocean surface temperature during April–June 2010 (three-month period) ranked as the warmest April–June on record, with an anomaly of 0.70°C (1.26°F) above the 20th century average. The previous April–June record was set in 1998, which had an anomaly of 0.66°C (1.19°F) above the 20th century average."
The areas with the wettest anomalies during June 2010 included southern India, southern China, southern Europe, the midwestern USA, and parts of northwestern South America. The driest anomalies were present across northern India and across parts eastern Asia, northeastern South America, and Australia. There was climate havoc in China. According to the Beijing Climate Center (BCC), the provinces of Guizhou, Fujian, and Qinghai had above-average precipitation during June 2010, ranking as the second wettest June since national records began in 1951.
The BCC also reported that ten provinces in southern China were affected by storms that brought heavy rainfall across the area—resulting in record breaking daily rainfall in some places of Jiangxi and Fujian. The copious rainfall prompted floods that killed nearly 200 people. Meanwhile, the province of Jiangsu had its driest June on record, while Shanxi had its second driest on record. Overall, the monthly averaged precipitation in China during June 2010, 95.0 mm (3.7 inches), was near the 1971–2000 average.
The impact of a succession of record warm Junes is described in photographic detail by an eye-opening exhibit of the Asia Society. (The Telegraph of Britain had an early report on the startling photos.) The two pictures show an alarming retreat in ice over more than 80 years.
The first was taken in 1921 by British mountaineer George Mallory. The Asia Society commissioned the same picture to be taken of the main Rongbuk glacier on the northern slope of Mount Everest in Tibet in 2007.
The new picture by mountaineer David Breashears show that the glacier is shrunk and withered. Breashears retraced the steps of the 1921 British Mount Everest Reconnaissance Expedition Team, using photos taken then by surveyor and photographer Maj Edward Wheeler and amateur photographer George Mallory, who later died attempting to reach the Everest summit in 1924.
The Himalayan glaciers are melting at an alarming rate, as is starkly documented in photographic comparisons between archival images and recent photographs taken by mountaineer David Breashears in the new Asia Society Museum exhibition Rivers of Ice: Vanishing Glaciers in the Greater Himalaya. "That melting also has a profound impact on the local communities the Himalayan glaciers serve, and has emerged as a primary bellwether of global climate change," said the Asia Society.
The surface area of glaciers in these high altitude valleys is often covered by layers of debris or snow. To determine the full measure of loss in the ice mass in these photos, look not only at how far the glaciers have receded, but at the surrounding valley walls. In many cases, the loss in depth is upwards of 300 vertical feet.
'Do or die' year for agriculture
"If we don't take steps to address the serious ecological, economic and social crises facing our farm families, we will be forced to support foreign farmers, through extensive food imports."
"This will result in a rise in food inflation, increase the rural-urban and rich-poor divides and allow the era of farmers' suicides to persist."
"On the other hand, we have a unique opportunity for ensuring food for all by mobilizing the power of Yuva and Mahila Kisans and by harnessing the vast untapped yield reservoir existing in most farming systems through synergy between technology and public policy."
"2010 is a do or die year for Indian agriculture."
So says Prof M S Swaminathan, India's best-known agriculture scientist, who established the M S Swaminathan Research Foundation in 1988. Chastened by the limitations of the 'green revolution', the MSSRF's mission is the conservation and enhancement of natural resources, and generation of agricultural, rural and off-farm employment with a particular emphasis on the poor and the women.
Swaminathan made these points in a blunt, hard-hitting and no-nonsense convocation address at the Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana on 10 February 2010. The content of his address should have attracted national attention, because of the urgency of his tone and also because of the specific, very feasible institutional transformations his suggestions will need. He talked about adaptation to climate change and explained that a group of scientists led by the MSSRF have undertaken studies during the last five years in Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh on climate change adaptation measures. The districts chosen were Udaipur in Rajasthan and Mehabubnagar in Andhra Pradesh. The approach adopted was to bring about a blend of traditional wisdom and modern science through farmer participatory research.
MSS mentioned five particular points of adaptation:
1. Water conservation and sustainable and equitable use
2. Promoting fodder security
3. More crop and income per drop of water
4. Weather information for all and climate literacy
5. Strengthening community institutions
He said these interventions were supported by training and skill development and education and social mobilization. A training manual was prepared by MSSRF for training one woman and one male member of every Panchayat as Climate Risk Managers. Such local level Climate Risk Managers will be well trained in the art and science of managing weather abnormalities. The work has highlighted the need for location specific adaptation measures and for participatory research and knowledge management.
"The adaptation interventions have also highlighted the need for mainstreaming gender considerations in all interventions. Women will suffer more from Climate Change, since they have been traditionally in charge of collecting water, fodder and fuel wood, and have been shouldering the responsibility for farm animal care and post-harvest technology. All interventions should therefore be pro-nature, pro-poor and pro-women."
"It is clear that to promote location specific and farmer-centric adaptation measures; India will need a Climate Risk Management Research and Extension Centre at each of the 127 agro-ecological regions in the country. Such centres should prepare Drought, Flood and Good Weather Codes what can help to minimize the adverse impact of abnormal weather and to maximize the benefits of favourable monsoons and temperature. Risk surveillance and early warning should be the other responsibilities of such centres. Thus the work done so far has laid the foundation for a Climate Resilient Agriculture Movement in India. The importance of such a Movement will be obvious considering the fact that 60% of India's population of 1.1 billion depend upon agriculture for their livelihood. In addition, India has to produce food, feed and fodder for over 1.1 billion human, and over a billion farm animal population."
It is a shared responsibility, said MSS, and one that the non-farming, urban population must recognise and help bear. "Urban and non-farming members of the human family should realize that we live on this planet as the guests of sunlight and green plants, and of the farm women and men who toil in sun and rain, and day and night, to produce food for over 6 billion people, by bringing about synergy between green plants and sunlight. Let us salute the farmers of the world and help them to help in achieving the goal of a hunger free world, the first among the U N Millennium Development Goals."
These points are made at a time when India (or rather the central government and key ministries) still places economic growth as a priority rather than ecologically sustainable existence which is mindful of cultural traditions and which builds on extensive systems of traditional knowledge to take a human development route that is climate neutral. From 2007 onwards, there have been major intergovernmental and international studies on the impacts of climate change (including on agriculture). Several of these have shown that in South and East Asia, rice yields are affected. For most crops and regions, carbon fertilisation accentuates the positive impacts and mitigates the negative ones. However, there is considerable uncertainty about the true impact of carbon fertilisation. Among developing countries, the number of countries which 'lose' exceed the number of countries that 'gain', and their decrease in cereal production was greater than gains elsewhere.
Developing countries are worse off, where agriculture is concerned, said an OECD study in 2008 titled 'Costs of Inaction on Key Environmental Challenges'. For example, the scenario with the highest CO2 concentration showed a 7% decline for developing countries. For developed countries, yields actually increased under all scenarios, but the global effect was always negative, or (at best) neutral. Not only was there significant variation across countries; the implications for the risk of hunger also varied greatly, depending on assumptions made about the fertilising effects of increasing CO2 concentrations.
"Assuming 'no action' is taken with respect to emissions, positive changes in yields (due to warming, precipitation, and crop fertilisation) in mid and high latitudes were predicted to be more than compensated by reductions in the lower latitudes, particularly in Africa and the Indian sub-continent. Changing crop yields (and demands) will affect market prices for agricultural output, as well as land prices. Decreases in agricultural yields in developing countries are likely to have significant implications for risk of hunger."
Moreover, there has been evidence enough of the links between reducing poverty and strengthening agriculture. A paper produced by DFID (the British official aid agency, in 2004) emphasises the historically close correlation between different rates of poverty reduction over the past 40 years and differences in agricultural performance – particularly the rate of growth of agricultural productivity. There are links described between agriculture and poverty reduction through four 'transmission mechanisms': 1) direct impact of improved agricultural performance on rural incomes; 2) impact of cheaper food for both urban and rural poor; 3) agriculture's contribution to growth and the generation of economic opportunity in the non-farm sector; and 4) agriculture's fundamental role in stimulating and sustaining economic transition, as countries (and poor people's livelihoods) shift away from being primarily agricultural towards a broader base of manufacturing and services.
Why is this so important to India and so important now? An ADB paper explains ('A General Equilibrium Analysis of the Impact of Climate Change on Agriculture in the People's Republic of China', by Fan Zhai, Tun Lin, and Enerelt Byambadorj, Asian Development Bank, 2010). Despite rapid growth in recent decades, the People's Republic of China (PRC) is no exception to the effects of climate change. It also faces a great challenge to meet increasing demand for agricultural products due to increasing population and income level in the coming years. In the PRC, agriculture accounted for 11.7% of the national gross domestic product (GDP) in 2006 and agricultural crop land occupied 157 million hectares. Agricultural production has enabled the country to feed a population of 1.3 billion people, more than a fifth of the world's population, of whom 900 million live in rural areas, from an eighth of the world's arable land.
"Global climate change could cause rises in temperature, redistribution of rainfall, and more frequent flooding and droughts, and do considerable damage to crop production and the agricultural sector in general," says the ADB paper. "At the national level, overall impact on crop production, assuming there is no carbon dioxide (CO2) fertilisation, is an estimated 7 to 14% reduction in rice, 9 to 10% reduction in maize, and 2 to 9% reduction in wheat. Assuming an average drop of 7%, this means a reduction of almost 40 million metric tons of food grain, and 20% of the global grain trade. Such a loss would undermine food security in the PRC, with particular health consequences for the poor and women, as females are primarily responsible for feeding the family."


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Blue Horse Charities Merging Efforts with TAA
Blue Horse Charities announced July 10 the awarding of its grants for 2013 and a new association with the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, which begins this year.
Blue Horse Charities announced July 10 the awarding of its grants for 2013 and a new association with the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, which begins this year.
Kara Colvin has been working on a full-length documentary about Thoroughbred aftercare issues and the careers of off-the-track Thoroughbreds since 2011.
Bourbon Lane Stable, the national racing partnership based in Lexington, has established a retirement pasture for its horses at Old Friends, the country's premier Thoroughbred retirement care facility.
For the fifth consecutive year, Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races is providing funding to CANTER Mid-Atlantic for the organization's ongoing program and mission to rehabilitate and find homes for former racehorses.
See the bottom of this story for information on how you can support Double L and also be entered in a fun contest. read blog
New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Program announced the launch of its newly formed Ambassador Program to assist the organization in promoting retired raceshorses in second careers.
Prime Cut, whose prominent half siblings are graded stakes winners Vyjack and Tepin. Prime Cut was bought by Carrie Brogden of Machmer Hall for a mere $1,000 at last year's Keeneland November mixed sale. read blog
New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Program announced its new partnership with the student riding program Gallop On.
A study on former racehorses transitioned to second careers indicates a large percentage of them are acquired from their owners, not auctions.
The Thoroughbred Alliance Show Series Awards Banquet will be held at 11 a.m., Saturday, Jan. 11 at Laurel Park.
Comma to the Top, whose victory in the 2010 CashCall Futurity (gr. I) topped a highlight-filled career, has been retired but will remain with trainer Peter Miller as a stable pony.
Glenye Cain Oakford takes us through the Retired Racehorse Training Project event and asks various participants why they choose Thoroughbreds and former racehorses. watch video
A horse competition in Staunton, Ill., Oct. 20 will be held to benefit Thoroughbreds Helping Thoroughbreds, an organization that aims to promote the retired Thoroughbred as a capable horse breed for competition off the track.
A guest blog from Emily Walden on her OTTB Bluegrass Knight. read blog
Lotka, the 30-year-old Kennelot Stables' mare by Danzig, died Sept. 10 at Our Mims Retirement Haven near Paris, Ky. where she had been a resident since August 2008. She was buried in the Haven's cemetery.
The Jockey Club Thoroughbred Incentive Program has announced the recipients of its two non-competition awards for 2013: the T.I.P. Thoroughbred of the Year Award and the T.I.P. Young Rider of the Year Award.
Positive stories about horses that were retired at the right time and able to have lives beyond the track. read blog
Aftercare needs a long-term strategy. read blog
Old Friends at Cabin Creek, the New York division of Old Friends Thoroughbred retirement center in Georgetown, Ky., will be hosting two special events this summer to coincide with the Saratoga Race Course meet.
New Vocations Charity Horse Show will celebrate its 10th year of showcasing the Thoroughbred's athleticism and versatility beyond the track July 6-7.
On July 13, Pimlico will host the second annual Totally Thoroughbred Horse Show, featuring retired racehorses showing under their Jockey Club names. The show is part of the Thoroughbred Alliance Show Series.
The second annual Old Friends at the Oheka Castle fundraising event will take place June 5 at Gold Coast mansion in Huntington, N.Y. The evening is a benefit for Old Friends.
Penn National will donate a total of $10,000 to three equine aftercare organizations on Penn Mile Day, June 1, at Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course.
Saturday April 20, 2013 Arson Squad visited Keeneland with Michael Blowen to help raise awareness of Old Friends Retirement facility and educate fans on the importance of Thoroughbred aftercare. read blog
2004 Champion 2yo Declan's Moon was back in the limelight in the '100 Day Thoroughbred Challenge.' read blog
Jimmy Bell, Craig Bernick, Bob Elliston, Rachel Kukulewich join Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance board of directors.
Great Geldings re-trains off-the-track Thoroughbreds for ranch work. read blog
The Thoroughbred Horse Show Association is taking entries for its second spring event April 14 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington.
Thoroughbred aftercare organizations may now apply for The Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance accreditation. By passing a TTA inspection, a facility will be eligible to receive financial support for their retired Thoroughbreds.
The Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation has announced Suzie O'Cain has been elected to serve on the organization's board of directors.
"Hats Off to the Horses: The Road to the Derby," the fourth annual online charity auction produced by Old Friends and custom millinery Maggie Mae Designs, continued as bidding opened on a new handcrafted Kentucky Derby hat.
CandyLand Farm's Herb and Ellen Moelis have raised millions for retired racehorses. Download Now
It didn't take long before Metro Meteor got the hang of painting. Krajewski chooses the colors for him, loads the paint brush with paint, and then the gelding holds the brush in his teeth and applies the strokes to the canvas read blog
It is hard to believe it's been five years of The Blood-Horse readers helping Double L Stable's horses by participating in Double L Stable's Valentine's Day Card Fundraiser Contest. read blog
Winners of the Rood & Riddle Thoroughbred Sport Horse Awards for 2012 will be honored Jan. 17 during the United States Equestrian Federation's annual meeting in Louisville, Ky.
I love it when a past Beyond the Blinkers subject takes the time to e-mail and give me an update on his or her off track Thoroughbred! Do you guys remember the story of Windy Jim as told by owner Jackie Cross in March 2011? read blog
The Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation has announced an agreement with the State of Illinois to open its ninth correctional facility-based farm., the Second Chances Ranch at the Vandalia Correctional Facility in Vandalia.
Read the story of Canadian grade I winner Rahy's Attorney, who is being re-trained as a stable pony. read blog
Remi Gunn has fallen on hard times in recent years--from the riding accident that left her paralyzed in 2003--to the financial struggles that almost claimed her farm. read blog
A year and a half ago, Zodiac was the most critically ill horse to ever come through the gates of the Woodbine, Md.-based Days End Horse Rescue. But thanks to the help from many, he has endured through the darkest of days read blog
Beyond the Blinkers visits New Vocations' Lexington facility at West Wind Farm. read blog
Florida TRAC, a Thoroughbred retirement and adoptive care program supported by the Gulfstream Park Thoroughbred After-Care Program and others, has relocated from Palm City to Fort Pierce, Fla.
Once again, I will be turning the attention of my blog to all things Kentucky Oaks (gr. I) after this week...But first I wanted to bring you this touching story about a sweet gelding named Doctor Decherd. read blog
Shannon Hahn of Double L Equine Rescue and Sanctuary tells the story of Xatra, aka "Officer Isaac." From needing the law to becoming the law, Xantra overcame injuries due to neglect and now serves as a New York police horse. read blog
Fleet Valid, a hard knocking gelding by Montbrook, was a just a claimer during the majority of his 28 starts. read blog
During the month of July, New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Program hosted two horse shows that featured Thoroughbreds competing off the track. Read Blog
On an extremely sultry Kentucky afternoon last week, I made the 25-minute trip from my office to Old Friends' Dream Chase Farm near Georgetown, Ky. Read Blog
Corinne Ashton is a world class, four-star eventer and now Grand Prix dressage hopeful...and my first official riding lesson was with her. Hear about how she trains Thoroughbreds, whom a few are OTTB's Read Blog
After Thoroughbreds have completed their race careers, they are often ideal candidates for another vocation.
For 37 years Karen Murdock has dedicated her life to horses, doing everything from dressage and barrel racing to jumping and trail riding. But in all her experiences she has never encountered a horse quite like Lukas.


text: EVENTS Thursday, July 31 2014 "Waterways - Meet Artist Kathy Buist" Thursday, July 31, 2014 6:00 - 9:00 pmWelcome acclaimed artist Kathy Buist to New River Fine Art and be the first to see her ethereal abstract paintings. Buist's paintingshave been exhibited at numerous museums and we are proud to introduce her work to our collectors. May 22 - June22, 2014 "Through the Looking Glass - The Art of Anke Schofield" Opening Reception - Meet the ArtistThursday, May 22nd from 6:00 - 9:00 pmPiquing the imagination, Anke Schofield's whimsicalimagery of figures and objects integrated in unexpected ways is a sophisticated combination ofphotography, collage, oil paint, wax and other media.The surreal juxstaposition ofimagery is reinforced by the subjective melding of the real with the imaginary. Click here to view event photos. Share this:More


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Government-owned Indian defense manufacturer Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) has
launched a $12 million Strategic Electronics Manufacturing facility spread across 196 acres in Kasargod in the southern state of Kerala. It will produce advanced avionics for aircraft and helicopters. The facility is the manufacturing extension of HAL's Hyderabad-based R&D unit for avionics–the Strategic Electronics Research and Design Center.


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- Biosafety Stewardship Sep 10, 2014 at 1:55pm
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text: Free Energy find themselves in a strange new world. A fuzzy, poppy, rock 'n' roll band inspired by '70s acts like Big Star, Thin Lizzy, and The Cars, they grew up on rock. "Paul and I are both from the same small town," says Evan Wells, who started the band with his brother Scott and their friend P ... More >>


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Created: Thu, 21 Nov 2013 06:26:00 CST
Updated: Fri, 22 Nov 2013 09:19:37 CST
Kids at the Hastings Museum got a special kind of history lesson today...
Straight from the families of Native Americans.
The Native American Festival was open today to kids of all different ages...
Students did their own weaving and even learned a few words in a Native American language.
The Many Moccasins Dance Troupe performed and traditional Native American instruments were performed throughout the day.
It was tough for some of the kids to pick out their favorite thing of the day...
But they all loved getting the chance to make their own drums.
"We put the balloon on it and put the beans in there and then we made a drum," kindergartner Sophie Smith said.
Aside from the little ones, plenty of volunteers came from Hastings College and Central Community College.


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What One Can Learn From the Initial Public Offering of Google? A Twenty-Year Excursion to the Venture Capital Industry
AbstractOver the past two decades the venture capital industry became a major focus for the financial media. With potential for high rates of return, this industry attracts entrepreneurs looking for opportunities to invest. While some investments are successful and highly publicized, many are not. This paper gives insight about the role financing in different stages plays in determining the success of an investment. It compares data on the rates of return of 2,678 venture-backed public companies during multiple stages of financing. Additionally, this paper evaluates how the rates of return of these companies have changed between the 1980s and 1990s.
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Bibliographic InfoPaper provided by Penn Institute for Economic Research, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania in its series PIER Working Paper Archive with number 04-041.
Length: 24 pages
Date of creation: 25 Oct 2004
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:pen:papers:04-041
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Postal: 3718 Locust Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104
Phone: 215-898-9992
Fax: 215-573-2378
Web page: http://economics.sas.upenn.edu/pier
More information through EDIRC
Related researchKeywords: Annualized returns; Venture Capital; Venture-Backed Public Companies; Stage of Financing; Initial Public Offering; Early-Stage Financing; Seed Financing; Research and Development Financing; Start-up Financing; First-Stage Financing; Expansion Financing; Second-Stage Financing; Third-Stage and Mezzanine Financing; Bridge Financing; Acquisition/Buyout Financing; Acquisition Financing; Management /Leveraged Buyout;
Find related papers by JEL classification:
- C12 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods and Methodology: General - - - Hypothesis Testing: General
- D81 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty
- D92 - Microeconomics - - Intertemporal Choice - - - Intertemporal Firm Choice, Investment, Capacity, and Financing
- E22 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Capital; Investment; Capacity
- G12 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Asset Pricing; Trading Volume; Bond Interest Rates
- G24 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Investment Banking; Venture Capital; Brokerage
- G3 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance
- M13 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting - - Business Administration - - - New Firms; Startups
- M21 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting - - Business Economics - - - Business Economics
- O16 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Financial Markets; Saving and Capital Investment; Corporate Finance and Governance
- O3 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Technological Change; Research and Development; Intellectual Property Rights
This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:
- NEP-ALL-2005-01-02 (All new papers)
- NEP-ENT-2005-01-02 (Entrepreneurship)
- NEP-FIN-2005-01-02 (Finance)
- NEP-FMK-2005-01-02 (Financial Markets)
ReferencesReferences listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
- Wang, Susheng & Zhou, Hailan, 2004. "Staged financing in venture capital: moral hazard and risks," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, Elsevier, vol. 10(1), pages 131-155, January.
- Gompers, Paul & Lerner, Josh, 1999.
"Conflict of Interest in the Issuance of Public Securities: Evidence from Venture Capital,"
Journal of Law and Economics,
University of Chicago Press, vol. 42(1), pages 1-28, April.
- Paul Gompers & Josh Lerner, 1998. "Conflict of Interest in the Issuance of Public Securities: Evidence from Venture Capital," NBER Working Papers 6847, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
- Hellmann, Thomas, 2002. "A theory of strategic venture investing," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, Elsevier, vol. 64(2), pages 285-314, May.
- Lerner, Josh, 1995. " Venture Capitalists and the Oversight of Private Firms," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, American Finance Association, vol. 50(1), pages 301-18, March.
- Mansfield, Edwin, 1986. "The R&D Tax Credit and Other Technology Policy Issues," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 76(2), pages 190-94, May.
- Martin, John D. & Petty, J. William, 1983. "An Analysis of the Performance of Publicly Traded Venture Capital Companies," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 18(03), pages 401-410, September.
- Gordon Murray, 1999. "Early-stage venture capital funds, scale economies and public support," Venture Capital, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 1(4), pages 351-384, October.
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World's Most Beautiful Bridges
Tower Bridge, London, England
London's 272-foot, dual-bascule bridge began as an architectural conundrum. As the East End of the capital city became more densely populated in the 19th century, the city needed a new crossing structure downstream of the London Bridge, but could not afford to disrupt river traffic in the process. The solution? A bridge that could raise and lower to allow river traffic to pass. It took more than 50 design submissions, eight years, five major contractors and 432 construction workers, but by 1894 the Tower Bridge was finally completed. The finished product was an architectural marvel—at the time the largest and most sophisticated bascule bridge ever built, which powered its 1,100-ton decks with steam hydraulics. Impressive engineering by day, yes, but the bridge is even more spectacular at night, aglow with floodlights illuminating its fairy-tale turrets. Tower Bridge Rd.; 44-20/7403-3761; towerbridge.org.uk.


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MLS Regular Season
Hours from the season's first game, it was all smiles in the team's final training session
Fri, 03/01/2013
The Chivas midfielder is thinking about his postprofessional career, but now Chivas is priority
Wed, 02/20/2013
The Red-and-White are set to surprise in the upcoming 2013 MLS season
Tue, 02/19/2013
Coach Chelis hopes Bolaños' field intuition will help lead the Goats to victory
Mon, 02/11/2013
The Ecuadorian sets personal goals for the upcoming MLS season
Thu, 02/07/2013
Rojiblancos now have kickoff times programmed for their meetings versus Vancouver and Montreal
Wed, 02/06/2013
The Red-and-White took the first SuperClasico in the 2012 season. Do you remember this match?
Tue, 02/05/2013
The 25 year old San Diego-native is eager to learn from head coach Jose Luis Sanchez Sola
Wed, 01/30/2013
The Red-and-White finished the 2012 season on a high note. Do you remember this match?
Mon, 01/28/2013
The 2011 match vs. the Red Bulls turned into a historic match for the Goats. Find out why!
Thu, 01/24/2013
Looking back at one of the most exciting games between Chivas and Crew ahead of '13 First Kick
Mon, 01/14/2013
Rojiblancos begin the season with four out of five matches at The Home Depot Center in March
Wed, 01/09/2013
A look back at previous matches against the Crew before the Goats' home opener on March 2
Thu, 12/27/2012
The Red-and-White will host Columbus on Saturday, March 2
Tue, 12/18/2012
Who will it be? Kennedy, Valencia or Riley? Vote now for your top Chivas USA save of 2012
Mon, 12/03/2012


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Customer Service 731.441.9158
Mon - Fri: 9 am - 6 pm CST Contact Us
Check out our new Gallery format
New ~ Join our Email Club (click top right hand corner)
Christopher Nejman
Pillow case dresses For the Young and Young at heart
$750 Spent on Store bought Fringe for Dance Costumes...save money
Check out our new Gallery format. We placed the samples into Topic Categories to help you find what you're looking for. Also check out the new listing of a purse made by Ann Travis, KY. Ann used a Baby Lock Embellisher for purse embellishment and My Own Fringemaker to create custom fringe. Sweet - Thanks so much for sharing with us Ann!


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Weatherist is an online weather service that provides users with the most probable forecast for their area. Unlike traditional weather forecast services, Weatherist reviews forecasts available for a location, grades them and then generates The Most Probable Forecast based off of those grades. Think "Moneyball for Weather" and you're on the right track.
Traditional weather forecasting is slow, dated and doesn't provide accountability for the source. Viewers, users and readers never know how accurate a forecast is going to be or how accurate the forecaster has been in the past. Having an inaccurate weather forecast after you have already planned an event, outing or activity is incredibly disappointing and doesn't have any real solutions.
Weatherist solves this problem by aggregating local and national forecasts for a particular area and tracking their accuracy over time. With this data, a most probable forecast is extracted and delivered to the user. This forecast is a combination of all the highest rated weather data available in our extensive database.
We provide you with The Most Probable Forecast, a combination of the most accurate weather data in our database and something you can't find anywhere else on the web.
The Most Probable Forecast is a combination forecast of the most accurate weather data in our database. Since we grade each forecast metric in our system, we are able to extract the top-rated metrics for each forecaster and generate a new forecast. We believe that this forecast combines the best-of-the-best forecast data available on the web.
No, never.
Weatherist exists to fill the gap of information that you cannot receive when just viewing one or two weather forecasts. We add a layer of accountability to the forecasters and provide you with the Most Probable Forecast, a mixed forecast based on the highest rated weather forecasters. We believe that past performance can help us to understand future performance.
Development is underway and we will let you know once it has been completed!
Weatherist.com works well in all current browsers, but we cannot control how older versions of browsers operate. If you are having an issue with your browser, please update it to the most current release and that should resolve the problem.
Contact us at contact(at)weatherist.com. We will work hard to get you the data you need.
E-mail contact(at)weatherist.com to hear more about our current advertising rates.
Three guys, in two states that decided it was time bring a layer of accountability to the weather industry. We're not saying that forecasting the weather is an easy job, but we do think some forecasters are clearly better than others.
The latest release of Weatherist removed the ability to submit your own forecasts. If you are interested in submitting your forecasts or data feed, please contact us at contact(at)weatherist.com


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Why do people think you MUST start with your elbow up in order to hit the ball well?
Why do people think you MUST start with your elbow up in order to hit the ball well?
Just looked at pics of @jessmendoza & @gotbustos - both relaxed arms in stance waiting 4 pitch - back elbow NOT up.
Oh gosh - someone trying to tell me top level hitters all have their "elbow up."
DDs pitching practice in the back yard went well. Now to keep it up until the 3rd week of August!
Heading to the back yard to catch for DD.
RT @angiesandy: It costs a small fortune to by everything for school now days! <=Agreed - though this yr wasn't as bad as I anticipated
RT @lexirodrigo: @kellymccausey I'm so glad I'm out of the whole dating thing! :-) <=Ditto! It sounds so complicated.
Trying to get everything in order to run a concession on Sunday at the Hawaii Invitational Tournament.
Hawaii Invitational Starts Tomorrow http://aweber.com/b/1wQp-
Oh my goodness…ice cold water tastes soooooooo delicious! No lemon or added flavor. Just plain water with lot of ice…Mmmmmm
Okay, I better get off the computer and go sharpen and label the 144 pencils my DDs need for the 1st day of school tomorrow.
Hawaii Invitational Softball Tournament starts Saturday at Kapolei High School.
RT @johnreese: @lynnterry I think people *should* use Twitter, FB, etc. but I see a lot of people wasting far 2 much time w/it.<also true
RT @lynnterry: @aliceseba Sure, but what are we - the Twitter Police? It's easy enough to unfollow, or just ignore random TMI tweets…<True
Got a bunch of errands to run today & DD1 has softball practice tonight. Last night she was pitching socks into a mirror.
RT @espn Arturo Gatti's death ruled suicide; wife released - http://tinyurl.com/mnmpdc <= Wow, after everything that was said earlier
Must get ready to leave for town…c ya later
Blog post: ASA Softball Stories http://allaboutfastpitch.com/Blog/?p=984
Jessica Mendoza Has a Blog http://aweber.com/b/VWnE
Hawaii Fastpitch Pitching Clinic October 2009 - download the flyer at http://www.allaboutfastpitch.com/BH2009.pdf
Just got word of a Hawaii 18 & over Fastpitch league. More details when I get them.
Wow! Lots of people at Wet N Wild today. Haven't seen it that busy in a long time.
Must check out this Google Voice everyone keeps talking about.
I think it's time for a Peanut Butter Moo'd. :)
RT @latarahamying If you are a believer who only associates with other believers then you missed the whole point of Christ's example!
Gosh a nap would be nice, but my day is now in high gear & won't wind down until after 8:00 tonight.
RT @mariloutheclerk: @staciemahoe Stacie, apparently that's a scam….I just retweeted somebody's warning.<= Yeah I didn't even post that!
This is turning out to be one crazy week - at getting busier by the minute.
RT @tweetpea: SPAM musubi: sounds like moo-sue-bee. It's a slice of fried spam on a cake of white sticky rice wrapped w/nori (seaweed).<Mmm
My kids will be learning with Singapore Marh this year: so cool!
Tonight: oreintation for the kids' school. Tomorrow: coaches meeting for school coaches. Later this week: school supply shopping.
Thought provoked by @ncsa - just because college coaches aren't allowed to contact u, doesn't mean u should not be in contact with them!
Which bat to use? The one you swing well & are comfortable/confident with in the box. Brand/price don't matter nearly as much as that.
Blog post: Battle of the Sexes Softball Style http://allaboutfastpitch.com/Blog/?p=979
Battle of the Sexes Tonight - Softball Style http://aweber.com/b/1aSnU
Whoa - justed watched the nuts "alien" guys on America's Got Talent. Crazy!
RT @kellymccausey: @lexirodrigo I don't outsource my own social networking because I like being a human interacting with humans.<=Yeah that
On a side note, I really wish someone would televise men's fastpitch international tournaments/championships.
Wonder how DD1's team is doing in Maui. Had semi-final at 9am. Haven't heard from her yet. Either lost or playing again already.
On our way to Pokai Bay for a family day!
RT @SoftballNetwork: USA Men's Fastpitch in Saskatoon, Canada playing in the World Championships-usasoftball.com for updates<Yes men play 2
Had a nice tine seeing family at my nephew's 1st Birthday Party today. DD's team is doin well in Maui, but tough semi-final game in the AM.
Always fun talking soft/baseball with @WebBall @FastpitchTV @ATumblebug @DarcyElliott @CoachAndy #followfriday
RT @aliceseba: Personally, I'm still shocked that people buy shoes online. I gotta put my feet in 'em first before I buy 'em. <= Totally!
Getting things in order for my DD to go to Maui tomorrow - softball tournament in Lahaina this weekend!


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BJP welcomes 'Cong' MP
The Congress party in Madhaya Pradesh was ridden with factionalism. Come assembly elections, all the prominent factions has managed to put up a coherent picture, to trounce Shivraj Singh and company.
Just when the Congress was gaining ground, it received a severe blow, from which recuperation can be tough. Udai Pratap Singh, Congress leader and MP from Hoshangabad, joined the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. Singh clinched the Hoshangabad seat from the BJP, from the first time since 1989, when he defeated BJP leader Sartar SIngh.
Singh cited ill treatment by the Congress high command, as the principle reason behind his defection. According to Singh, he was made to wait outside vice-president, Rahul Gandhi's residence in New Delhi, but Mr Gandhi did not give him an audience. Things went from bad to worse, when party devised the manifesto for assembly elections without consulting the rank and file.
Though his detractors in the congress party is painting a picture of betrayal and opportunism, but Singh denied contesting the Loksabha elections with a BJP ticket in 2014. According to the Rameshwar Neekhra, state congress Vice president, Singh betrayed the Congress which did so much for him.
Link :
Congress MP Udai Pratap Singh joins BJP
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Enchanted Embers
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Ok, so Enchated Embers is a different take on another piece called "Breath of Fire".


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I prefer coming here to going to Odeon, although I find it sells out quicker sometimes and the queues for tickets can be horrendous so get in early if you can. There aren't that many screens but it does show most the major movies coming out.
It's a bit smaller in size, but the seats are nicer and more comfortable and the snacks are good from downstairs. There is also a lack of gangs of kids trying to spoil you're film in front of you, from the times I've been!
This cinema is in a better location than Odeon if you're coming from the East of the city, but that is the only thing going for it over Odeon really. Its smaller and more intimate but if you want a grand cinema experience its probably better to give it a miss. There is a WIDE choice of sweets and confectionary before you go into the cinema, so fitting in the seats could be an issue if you go often enough!!
Prefer this cinema to the odeon down at leisure world, but it isn't the best one by a long way. For a start, it can be extremely difficult to find a parking space and when you do, you need to go in the cinema to get a permit. Only has four screens, so you need to check before you go what time the film you want to watch is showing. Food is overpriced, particularly the pic n mix, and the seats fairly uncomfortable with very little leg room. There are a number of restaurants nearby - a Mexican one is just across the car park.
This is my first choice of cinemas if it's a weeknight. I prefer the seating arrangement as you can pick your seats. However it has awful parking outside which you have to pay for if it's before 6pm and sometimes we have had to drive to the Odeon in West Quay as we couldn't find any parking. The snacks bar is quite limited it's better in Odeon as far more choice. However there is a licensed bar upstairs so you can relax with a beer or wine before the film starts. If you are running late don't' worry as the film doesn't usually start until 15 minutes after the advertised time anyway. All in all nice seats bit more upmarket class of people go there not many large groups of kids unlike the Odeon.
Not the worst Cinema I have visited but the worst Cineworld I have. I'm seriously considering cancelling my Unlimited card (which I have had for a year for the excellent Cineworld in my home town Yeovil). It advertises films it does not show and it has very few showing times for the films it actually does show. Not a happy customer.
Much more comfy than Odeon and the staff are friendly. Unlimited card is great and very good value.
This user has arrived from Qype, a European company acquired by Yelp in 2012. We have integrated the two sites to bring you one great local experience.


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Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen:
gold closed down by 23.00 to 916.20. Silver fell in sympathy down to 17.84 as options expiry almost always causes the cartel to raid the precious metals arena. I cannot recall ever the cartel abstaining from raiding on option expiry Friday.
The open interest on the gold comex rose to 434000 despite Thursday's fall in gold price. Again short selling is evident.
During yesterday's session gold was trading at 947.00 when the cartel and the banking interventionists decided it was time to act. They forced the Euro down to 1.5718 after that currency hit 1.593 earlier in the morning session. The usa index rocketed to above 72. as gold, silver, oil and just about every commodity were hit.
However in the afternoon, oil rebounded from its lows to close to 116.40. The long bond continues to tank. Platinium went from negative 25 dollars to positive 2.00 dollars. And the USA index sank below the 72 mark.
Intervention never succeeds.
Wall Street rejoiced with news that Citibank's losses may not be as large as anticipated. They revealed a loss of 5 billion dollars but announced a further 60 billion dollars of toxic subprime garbage. Citi then reported that it has a further 18.3 billion exposure in the Alt A arena. The market rejoiced because at the end of 2007 it stood at 22 billion dollars.
There was considerably commentary on the misinformation on the Libor pricing. Because of this it looks like the banking problems are getting worse by the minute.
I guess the biggest news came from Barrick vs the CIBC. It seems that Barrick deposited 65 million dollars of short term money in the Asset Backed Commercial Paper market. They got the green light from the bankers the CIBC. This is the same fund that Martin Goldfarb deposited 33 million dollars after he got the green light from the Bank of Nova Scotia chairman.
In the restructuring of the ABCP pool, one of the conditions is that one cannot sue a bank for wrongful information.
The CIBC expressly told Barrick that the ABCP paper was void of subprime stuff. They were mistaken and now Barrick went to court in order for them to be allowed to go after the bankers. This will be worth watching!
Midas will resume on Monday when everyone is back from the Washington conference.
Have a great weekend
Click here to view my daily commentary:


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PASS CHRISTIAN, MS (AP) Supporters of a Catholic church in Pass Christian have asked a judge to stop the demolition of the building.
The church in question is St. Paul's Catholic Church.
A group, called "Save St. Paul," contends in court documents that a closed-door vote by the Gulfport Board of Aldermen violated the state's open meeting law.
Aldermen reversed a historic preservation commission's denial of the application for a demolition permit requested by the Catholic Diocese of Biloxi.
Mayor Chipper McDermott vetoed the board's decision on November 12th but the board overrode his veto.
No date has been set for a hearing in Harrison County Circuit Court.
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