Say what?

Scrap metal is at a premium right now. The price is high and people who are out of work are willing to do some crazy things to cash in. Copper wires and pipes have been stolen from buildings under construction. Manhole covers have been taken off sewers in the road. Farm equipment has been take from around fields and even barnyards. LIVE electric wires have been stolen--or at least attempts have been made to steal them.

But an entire bridge? And not a little one either. Twenty feet wide by 50 feet long.

Bold thieves steal bridge in North Beaver

But one group of thieves might have set the standard last week by stealing a 50-foot-long bridge. State police said the bridge was stolen between Sept. 27 and Wednesday in North Beaver Township. The theft was discovered shortly after 9 a.m. Wednesday.

North Beaver is in western PA near the Ohio border between Pittsburgh and Youngstown.

So if you're out there in western PA or eastern OH and someone says he's got a bridge to sell you...He just might!

One more winterization chore complete

So, I made the run up to the Bolt Hole and back yesterday. Some 220 miles one way, 440 round trip. I purposely made no stops in either direction and, as a result, was in the Tundra, driving, for 4+ hours steadily--each way. Upon arriving at my destinations, the only complaint came from having been sitting in one position so long. My legs sorta buckled upon emerging from the cab of the truck. No pain in the knees at all! YAHOO!

Draining the pipes took a little longer than expected. I would run the water from the lowest point--the bottom of the hot water heater--into a 5 gallon bucket buried in the basement floor and then use a submersible pump to get it outside via a hose. I'd fill the bucket slightly over half full and turn on the pump. The pump would suck the water up and heave it out in less than a minute. This would have to be repeated--often. The tank holds upwards of 50 gallons of water and drains fairly slowly if I want to keep it under control.

Once the pipes and hot water tank were emptied, I poured antifreeze in all the traps and the toilet. The cabin is now prepped for anything Ma Nature can throw at it in the way of subfreezing temperatures. Last year it got as low as minus 20 degrees. With no heat it was nearly as cold inside as out. Did you know beer in the can will freeze at minus 20 degrees?

The entire round trip and duties performed took from 8:30 AM until 6:30 PM. Heh, what can I say. It was a nice day for a ride.

******

It's that time of year. Although the daytime highs are forecast to be in the 60s, night time lows are int he freezing range. Frost/freeze warnings were posted for both the environs of the Bolt Hole and the Aerie for last night and tonight. Terry found here little yellow Aveo's windshield covered with frost as she went out this morning. The deck railing at the Aerie also had a thin film of frost on it. The zucchini and beans look like they were just touched but they are going to get pulled out today or tomorrow anyway.

Looks like there will be plenty of sunshine for a few days as this Canadian high with it's cold nighttime temperatures settles in for a week or so.

King of the road--for the day.

Heading out in just a few minutes to go to the Bolt Hole. The pipes need draining and the place needs buttoning up. No hunting there this year.

It will be 220 miles up--call it 4+ hours--and, if my knee allows, the same back. Maybe 1-1/2 hours to get the few chores done that need doing.

College Football 2011, Preweek 6

Week 6 begins on Thursday night and this week we have three polls to consider as CBSSports has decided to enter the fray. They’re selections and placements are, well, curious. CBSSports’ list has five teams neither the AP nor Coaches have put in the Top 25. And the top of the list is strange. Now, some differences are to be expected, but this is sort of weird.

Three games pit two Top 25 teams against one another: 1 LSU (5-0) vs #17 Florida (4-1), 3 Oklahoma (4-0) vs #11 Texas (4-0), and 10 Arkansas (4-1) vs #15 Auburn (4-1). Only the #4 Wisconsin Badgers have the week off among those listed by the AP and/or Coaches.

Here are the polls (AP/Coaches/CBSSports) and the Week 6 match-ups.

1/2/6 LSU (5-0) The Tigers host the #17 Florida Gators (4-1). The Tigers will remain undefeated.

2/3/1 Alabama (5-0) The Crimson Tide host the Vanderbilt Commodores (3-1). Tide keeps rollin’.

3/1/7 Oklahoma (4-0) The Sooners are on the road to play the #11 Texas Longhorns (4-0). Someone loses this week, probably from Texas.

4/5/12 Wisconsin (5-0) The Badgers have the week off.

5/6/3 Boise State (4-0) The Broncos go on the road to play the Fresno State Bulldogs (2-3) on Friday night. The Broncos should enjoy their trip to California.

6/7/2 Oklahoma State (4-0) The Cowboys will host the Kansas Jayhawks (2-2). Cowboys win by 14.

7/4/8 Stanford (4-0) The Cardinal play host to Colorado Buffaloes (1-4). The Luck is with the Cardinal.

8/8/9 Clemson (5-0) The Tigers play host to the Boston College Eagles (1-4). The Tigers solidify their position in the ACC with a big win.

9/9/NR Oregon (3-1) The Ducks host the California Bruins (3-1) on Thursday night. The Ducks will score big.

10/12/NR Arkansas (4-1) The Razorbacks host the #15 Auburn Tigers (4-1). Close game with the Razorbacks winning.

11/10/5 Texas (4-0) The Longhorns host the #3 Oklahoma Sooners (4-0). Sooners come away with the win.

12/11/4 Michigan (5-0) The Wolverines play at the home of the Northwestern Wildcats (2-2). Michigan will win by 10.

13/13/10 Georgia Tech (5-0) The Yellow Jackets play host to the Maryland Terps (2-2). Maryland’s got fancy uniforms, but they won’t help against the Jackets high powered offense.

14/15/17 Nebraska (4-1) The Cornhuskers host the Buckeyes of Ohio State (3-2). Nebraska got punished last week on national TV. They are angry. OSU is confused. Nebraska by a bunch.

15/23/16 Auburn (4-1) The Tigers play on the road against the #10Arkansas Razorbacks (4-1). Home field advantage gives the Razorbacks the edge.

16/19/25 West Virginia (4-1) The Mountaineers play host to the Connecticut Huskies (2-3). The Mountaineers will tame the pooches.

17/18/21 Florida (4-1) The Gators hit the road to play the #1 LSU Tigers (5-0) and will take it on the chin.

18/14/14 South Carolina (4-1) The Gamecocks will host the Kentucky Wildcats (2-3). USC will try a new QB this week. He should have an easy time against Kentucky.

19/16/11 Illinois (5-0) The Fighting Illini will play on the road against the Indiana Hoosiers (1-4). Illini win big.

20/21/15 Kansas State (4-0) The Wildcats host the Missouri Tigers (2-2). Wildcats win.

21/17/24 Virginia Tech (4-1) The Hokies host the Hurricane of Miami (Fla.) (2-2). The Hokies will rebound after last week’s loss.

22/24/NR Arizona State (4-1) The Sun Devils will play on the road against the Utah Utes (2-2) and will come home with a win.

23/22/NR Florida State (2-2) The Seminoles head north to play at Wake Forest Demon Deacons (3-1). The Seminoles are battered and beaten up, but they will still handle Wake.

24/25/NR Texas A&M (2-2) The Aggies are playing on the road against unbeaten Texas Tech Red Raiders (4-0). This one could be a close one.

25/NR/NR Baylor (3-1) The Bears host the Iowa State Cyclones (3-1). Another possible close one. Cyclones have been playing well and the Bears have a hell of an offense.

NR/NR/13 Houston (5-0) the Cougars host the East Carolina Pirates (1-3). Cougars will maul the Pirates.

NR/NR/18 Notre Dame (2-3) The Fighting Irish host the Falcons of Air Force (3-1). Could be close, but Rees been doing well as leader of the Irish and, at home, the Irish should pull it out.

NR/NR/19 North Carolina (4-1) The Tarheels host the Louisville Cardinals (2-2). NC has been lucky. Fairly good but lucky. Against Louisville, they will be more than good enough.

NR/NR/22 South Florida (4-1) The Bulls have the week off.

NR/NR/23 Washington (4-1) The Huskies have the weekend off.

How the Internet began

Sent to Terry via email. Enjoy.

This has been carefully thought out by someone with waaaayy too much time on their hands.

How the Internet began

In ancient Israel , it came to pass that a trader by the name of Abraham Com did take unto himself a young wife by the name of Dot.

And Dot Com was a comely woman, broad of shoulder and long of leg. Indeed, she was often called Amazon Dot Com.

And she said unto Abraham, her husband: "Why dost thou travel so far from town to town with thy goods when thou can trade without ever leaving thy tent?"

And Abraham did look at her as though she were several saddle bags short of a camel load, but simply said: "How, dear?"

And Dot replied: "I will place drums in all the towns and drums in between to send messages saying what you have for sale, and they will reply telling you who hath the best price. And the sale can be made on the drums and delivery made by Uriah's Pony Stable (UPS)"

Abraham thought long and decided he would let Dot have her way with the drums. And the drums bang out and were an immediate success. Abraham sold all the goods he had at the top price, without ever having to move from his tent.

To prevent neighbouring countries from overhearing what the drums were saying, Dot devised a system that only she and the drummers knew.

It was called Must Send Drum Over Sound (MSDOS), and she also developed a language to transmit ideas and pictures - Hebrew To The People (HTTP)

But this success did arouse envy. A man named Maccabia did secrete himself inside Abraham's drum and began to siphon off some of Abraham's business. But he was soon discovered, arrested and prosecuted - for insider trading.

And the young men did take to Dot Com's trading as doth the greedy horsefly take to camel dung.

They were called Nomadic Ecclesiastical Rich Dominican Sybarites, or NERDS.

And lo! The land was so feverish with joy at the new riches and the deafening sound of drums that no one noticed that the real riches were going to that enterprising drum dealer, Brother William of Gates, who bought off every drum maker in the land.

And indeed did insist on drums to be made that would work only with Brother Gates' drumheads and drumsticks.

And Dot did say: "Oh, Abraham, what we have started is being taken over by others."

And Abraham looked out over thee Bay of Ezekiel , or eBay as it came to be known. He said: "We need a name that reflects what we are."

And Dot replied: "Young Ambitious Hebrew Owner Operators."

"YAHOO," said Abraham. And because it was Dot's idea, they named it YAHOO Dot Com.

Abraham's cousin, Joshua, being the young Gregarious Energetic Educated Kid (GEEK) that he was, soon started using Dot's drums to locate things around the countryside.

It soon became known as God's Own Official Guide to Locating Everything (GOOGLE).

And that is how it all began!

Aerie Report, Morning, October 4, 2011

I was awakened at 5 AM by the sound of heavy rain again this morning--again--so it was no surprise to find the Aerie engulfed by heavy fog at 7 AM when I came downstairs. The rain gauge recorded another 0.17 inches over the past 24 hours. Some spritzes are still in the forecast for today and this evening, but both weather.com and AccuWeather are promising this will be the last rain we'll see in the foreseeable future. That's 10 days at least of nothing but sunshine and more normal temperatures. We shall see.

It did remain cold enough long enough that I gave in and turned on the heat. The thermostats are all set at 64 degrees though, so, while comfortable, any little bit of sunshine will be enough to warm the house without having the heat kick on or having to build a fire.

As soon as we get a couple of days of sunny weather, I'll be able to go out ans stack the firewood that I cut and split. It's been uncovered and is pretty wet right now. Luckily, there are two stacks that have been covered and a smaller stack int he garage that are relatively dry and ready to be burned.

******

I'll be heading up to the Bolt Hole to check things out tomorrow. Mark says he's got no pictures on the game cameras for the last two weeks so it's a good thing I didn't drop a couple hundred on a NYS hunting license this year. The lack of game and personal mobility would have made any foray into the woods a futile effort. There just isn't any food available for deer in our neck of the woods. The beech trees haven't produced a mast crop in several years. The cherries didn't do well either. Only the apples seem to have fared well but they just aren't more than a single midnight snack for the few bears and does that are in the area.

He (Mark) also reports that it's actually been warmer around the camp than down here at the Aerie. Dryer, too. Even so, the pipes need to be drained before freezing weather sets in, hence my need to get up there.

******

Bow season started here in PA last Saturday. It's not nearly the big deal it was in New Jersey or that the gun season that starts after Thanksgiving is. The gun season is like a state holiday with schools closed and everything pretty much grinding to a halt on that Opening Day Monday.

My aching and still recovering knee makes climbing into a tree stand out of the question right now so my bow season is on hold. I've got a portable ground blind I could use but the rainy weather would have made it a difficult choice anyway. Following a blood trail of an arrowed deer is tough enough when the darn stuff isn't washed away by the rain.

******

Terry departs for Anaheim, CA and her Smocking Arts Guild convention later this week. She's pretty psyched about getting out there and meeting up with some friends from around the country as well as taking classes.

I'll be staying home with the cats. I'll spend much of my time in the wood shop with the scroll saw. I've quite a few different projects I want to work on. The only problem I have there is a bunch of very rusty skills and plans that call for difficult to find thicknesses of wood.

Why is it that plans from Scroller and Winfield typically call for 3/8 inch thick stock but neither company sells that dimension of lumber? Even Lowe's hardwoods come in 1/4 and 1/2 thicknesses. There are other sources on the web that provide 3/8 inch thick hardwoods, but I've never ordered from them and have little idea of what to expect if I do.

Unlike Terry's projects, where if she goofs up she can rip out the threads and start over, if I goof, make an error, or have something snap, I can't just reuse the piece of (expensive) wood. Except as a fire starter.

Monday morning

Went to bed last night after the second defensive TD by the Baltimore Ravens against the NY Jets just five minutes into the second quarter, so I missed the THIRD defensive TD. Could any defense look so good? Or offense look so bad? What a great defensive game by the Ravens. What a terrible offensive game by the Jets.

Whatever happened to the Jets' running attack? Minus yards in the second half and a grand total of 38 yards for the game? That's no way to win a football game. No way at all.

The Jets defense actually played pretty well. They, too, got a TD on a 35-yard interception return by David Harris. And special teams produced a 107-yard kickoff return for a TD in the opening minutes. But the offense was, well, offensive. It stunk.

At least I got to go to bed earlier than expected. Would have fallen asleep too except...

******

Soon after going to bed, the skies over the Aerie opened up and rain beat down in torrents-again. Checking the rain gauge this morning there was 1.0 inches of water. That's from Saturday morning until Monday morning, 10/1 - 10/3. Seems like October started just as August and September ended: WET.

It's still overcast and we may get a bit of a spritz at any time during the day but the temperatures have risen slightly into the 50s. AccuHunch promises things will get better later this week with the sun actually making a prolonged appearance and daytime temps getting back toward the 70 degree area. We shall see.

******

About the only things that are doing well under these weather conditions are waterfowl (too chilly for frogs), algae, moss, and mushrooms. I've a pretty good crop of the latter popping up around the yard. If I was 100% sure of the species, I could probably harvest enough for some soup or side dish fried in butter. The risk, however, of being wrong is too high.

I'm pretty sure these are edible...but not 100%. Shaggy manes? They are all over the place right now.

Emerging in clusters beneath some shrubs. Note the old stalks
in the background. They belong to a different species.

Solitary individuals in the lawn. Approximately 4-5" tall.

Enmass where I've disturbed the earth on the side of the driveway.
The big one on the right is 8-9" tall. Those on the left are about 6".

I've seen others on neighbors' lawns, in the woods and in the pastures round about. Excellent conditions for mushrooms, indeed.

College Football 2011, Week 5 results

Week 5 saw quite a few of the Top 25 teams losing. No too unexpected considering four games pitted Top 25 teams against each other. #3 Alabama (5-0) beat #12 Florida (4-1), #7 Wisconsin (5-0) beat #8 Nebraska (4-1),# 11 Virginia Tech (4-1) lost to #13 Clemson (5-0) and #14 Texas A&M (2-2) lost to #18 Arkansas (4-1).

Additionally, #15 Baylor (3-1) fell to Kansas State (4-0), #16 South Florida (4-1) lost to the Pittsburgh (2-2), and #20 TCU (3-2) was beaten by SMU (4-1)

With seven (7) of the Top 25 losing, there will be plenty of shuffling around in the polls prior to week 6.

Three teams had the week off: # 5 Oklahoma State (4-0), #9 Oregon (3-1), and #23 Florida State (2-2).

Here are results of week 5’s match-ups for all the Top 25 college teams. The two rankings are the AP/Coaches' Polls.

1/2T LSU (5-0) The Tigers raked the Kentucky Wildcats (2-3) 35-7 at home Saturday afternoon. In his first game back after suspension, LSU’s Jordan Jefferson took his first snap as quarterback for the Tigers—and scored on a 1-yard sneak. Jarrett Lee, however, remains the starter and why not. LSU’s 5-0 under his command.

2/1 Oklahoma (4-0) The Sooners had their way against the Ball State Cardinals (3-2) Saturday night. Up 10-6 in the second quarter, Tony Jefferson made three (3) interceptions on consecutive series to spark a scoring spree that led Oklahoma to a 38-6 lead at the half. It didn’t stop there, however, as the Sooners got 21 more points in the third quarter on their way to a 62-6 rout. Landry Jones completed 23 of 33 attempts for 425 yards and 5 TDs.

3/2T Alabama (5-0) The Tide rolled over the #12 Florida Gators (4-1) 38-10 Saturday. Florida got its 10 points in the first quarter. After that, they couldn’t do much at all. ‘Bama’s defense held the Gators to just two first downs in the second half. The Tide’s Trent Richardson carried the ball 29 times for 181 yards and scored two TDs.

4/5 Boise State (4-0) The Broncos built a 30-0 lead during the first three quarters on two TD passes by Kellen Moore (just 19 of 33 for 142 yards -- a career low) and two TD runs by Doug Martin (21 carries for 126 yards). The Nevada Wolf Pack (1-3) came into the game 15th in the nation in total offense, averaging 483 yards per game, but they discovered the Broncos can play defense, too. Nevada managed just 182 yards net offense, 59 on the ground.

5/6 Oklahoma State (4-0) The Cowboys had the week off.

6/4 Stanford (4-0) The Cardinal defeated the UCLA Bruins (2-3) Saturday night. Andrew Luck completed 23 of 27 attempts for 227 yards and 3 TDs.

7/7 Wisconsin (5-0) The Badgers spanked the #8 Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-1) Saturday night 48-17. Wisconsin quarterback Russell Wilson completed 14 of 20 for 255 yards and three TDs. He also ran for one from 10 yards out. Montee Ball carried the ball for the Badgers 30 times for 151 yards and scored 4 TDs.

8/8 Nebraska (4-1) The Cornhuskers traveled north to face the #7 Wisconsin Badgers (5-0). Badgers whipped ‘em 48-17.

9/11 Oregon (3-1) The Ducks have off until Thursday, October 6.

10/9 South Carolina (4-1) The Gamecocks lost to the Auburn Tigers (3-2) on Saturday. The defense was the name of the game as each team had four turnovers. Michael Dyer carried the ball 41 times for the Tigers gaining 141 yards and scoring one TD.

11/10 Virginia Tech (4-1) The Hokies hosted the whirlwind known as the #13 Clemson Tigers (5-0) Saturday evening and got manhandled 23-3. Clemson beat a ranked team for the third consecutive week.

12/12 Florida (4-1) The Gators lost to the #3 Crimson Tide of Alabama (5-0) 38-10 Saturday. Tide continues to roll. See above for more details.

13/15 Clemson (5-0) The Tigers hit the road to beat the #11 Hokies of Virginia Tech (4-1) Saturday evening 23-3.

14/13 Texas A&M (2-2) The Aggies led 35-17 at the half against the #18 Arkansas Razorbacks (4-1) Saturday but they couldn’t seal the deal. The Razorbacks outscored the Aggies 25-3 in the second half to win 42-38. Arkansas’ Tyler Wilson threw for a school-record 510 yards on a 30 for 51 afternoon and teammate Jarius Wright caught 13 passes for a school-record 281 yards while scoring 2 TDs. The Aggies Christine Michael carried the ball 32 times for 230 yards and 3 TDs in a losing cause.

15/16 Baylor (3-1) The Bears led the Kansas State Wildcats (4-0) 35-26 after three quarters Saturday but saw The Wildcats comeback with 10 unanswered points in the fourth to earn a 36-35 victory. Collin Klein was 13 of 28 for 146 yards and 2 TDs but added 113 yards and another TD rushing on 25 carries. Baylor’s Robert Griffin completed 23 of 31 passes for 346 and 5 TDs—three of them to Kendall Wright (43, 34, and 35 yards) in a losing cause.

16/14 South Florida (4-1) The Bulls lost to the Pittsburgh Panthers (2-2) Thursday night 44-17. Pitt’s Ray Graham ran and ran and ran some more gaining 226 yards on 26 carries while scoring 2 TDs.

17/17 Texas (4-0) The Longhorns went to Ames to play the Iowa State Cyclones (3-1) and came away with a 37-14 victory. And it wasn’t that close. It was 34-0 at the half and after three quarters. Texas used both Case McCoy (7 of 12 for 110 yards) and freshman David Ash (7 of 12 for 145 yards and 2 TDs) under center.

18/18 Arkansas (4-1) The Razorbacks headed west to play the #14 Texas A&M (2-2) Saturday. They fell behind, but came back in the fourth quarter to earn a 42-38 victory. See above for more details.

19/19 Michigan (5-0) The Wolverines routed the Golden Gophers of Minnesota (1-4) 58-0 Saturday afteroon. Minnesota’s Coach Hill was back on the sidelines but probably wished he wasn’t. The Wolverines’ Denard Robinson completed 15 of 19 passes for 169 yards and 2 TDs while running for a third.

20/20 TCU (3-2) The Horned Frogs outscored the Mustangs of SMU (4-1) 23-6 in the fourth quarter to tie the game33 all in regulation. SMU prevailed in overtime, however to win 40-33. TCU’s Casey Pachall was an impressive 30 of 42 for 304 yards and 3 TDs but SMU’s J.J. McDermott was just as good completing 23 of 45 for 349 yards and 4 TDs.

21/21 Georgia Tech (5-0) The Yellow Jackets remained undefeated as they beat the North Carolina State Wolfpack (2-3) 45-35 Saturday afternoon. Orwin Smith scored 3 TDs on just 9 carries for the Jackets.

22/23 West Virginia (3-1) The Mountaineers host the Falcons of Bowling Green (3-1) Saturday afternoon. WVU is looking to bounce back after losing to LSU. And they should. Look for the Mountaineers to win by 14.

23/24 Florida State (2-2) The Seminoles had the weekend off.

24/22 Illinois (5-0) The Fighting Illini needed a fourth quarter comeback against the Northwestern Wildcats (2-2) Saturday at noon to salvage a 38-35 win. The Illini’s Nathan Scheelhaase completed 21 of 32 for 391 and 3 TDs—all to A.J. Jenkins who had 268 yards on 12 catches—and scored a fourth on the ground. Northwestern’s Dan Persa was 10 if 14 for 123 yards and 4 TDs—three of them to Jeremy Ebert—in the losing cause.

25/NR Arizona State (4-1) The Sun Devils feasted on the Oregon State Beavers (0-4) 35-20 late Saturday night. The Devils had to overcome 4 turnovers or it would have been worse. As it was, the Beavers were almost as giving, committing 5 turnovers of their own.

NR/25 Michigan State (4-1) The Spartans played the Buckeyes at Ohio State (3-2) Saturday afternoon. Only a last second TD pass making it 10-7 kept the Spartans from shutting out the Buckeyes.

Colder, still wet, though.

It rained a goodly portion of the night. The sound of the water dripping in the metal downspout just outside the bedroom window woke me up at 4 AM and kept me awake. The cats, sensing my tossing and turning started yowling at 4:40 AM so I gave up and got up. They were happy. Me? Not so much.

After feeding the beasts, I checked the temperature and saw it was just 42 degrees outside on the deck. That meant it was probably around 37 degrees. Stepping out on the deck, it sure felt like it was in the 30s.

Later, as I went of the papers at 8:30 AM the Tundra's thermometer read 39 degrees. And it was still raining and kept on raining through noon. It did slow after that, however.

Well, at least it wasn't West Virginia cold. They got 4 inches of snow down in WVA. Of course, that was above 3500 feet and the Aerie is at a mere 2100 feet.

There was some snow down in the southwest part of Pennsylvania. Even State College--home of AccuWEather--got some large flakes.

Of course I built a fire.

Fast and Furious = one big cluster F***

A big story that has been running under the Big Media radar for months may finally be getting some legs. I'm talking about Fast and Furious.

If you haven't heard of it, Fast and Furious was a program run by ATF that allowed thousands of guns to be purchased by folks who should not have been allowed to purchase a single weapon--some convicted felons--who then smuggled them into Mexico to sell to a drug cartel. Hundreds of Mexicans were killed using those weapons and at least one US border security officer was slain.

Now CBS is reporting that late Friday night, the White House released numerous documents (not all that were asked for, BTW), some of which seem to implicate the White House in this debacle. Friday night is the time when such documents/statement are made, hoping that they will be ignored/down played in the news. Hopefully, that will not be the case this time.

New Fast and Furious docs released by White House

Late Friday, the White House turned over new documents in the Congressional investigation into the ATF "Fast and Furious" gunwalking scandal.

The documents show extensive communications between then-ATF Special Agent in Charge of the Phoenix office Bill Newell - who led Fast and Furious - and then-White House National Security Staffer Kevin O'Reilly. Emails indicate the two also spoke on the phone. Such detailed, direct communications between a local ATF manager in Phoenix and a White House national security staffer has raised interest among Congressional investigators looking into Fast and Furious. Newell has said he and O'Reilly are long time friends.

I've seen T-shirts that say "Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms should be a convenience store, not a federal bureau." Who knew just how accurate that comment would be IF you were a member of a Mexican drug cartel?

Congressional investigators for Republicans Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) have asked to interview O'Reilly by September 30. But the Administration informed them that O'Reilly is on assignment for the State Department in Iraq and unavailable.

One administration source says White House national security staffers were "briefed on the toplines of ongoing federal efforts, but nobody in White House knew about the investigative tactics being used in the operation, let alone any decision to let guns walk."

Right! The guy just happens to be in Iraq.

And "...nobody in White House knew about the investigative tactics being used in the operation, let alone any decision to let guns walk." LOL. If true, than we certainly have a number of rogue--and very, very stupid--operatives in the White House. And they aren't all working to kill our energy programs and the economy.

Here's hoping a special prosecutor is soon appointed to investigate what's gone on here. Someone needs to get jail time or, should the trail lead to the president, impeached.

As others have said: Watergate had no fatalities. Fast and Furious has killed hundreds of Mexicans and at least one American.

Jobs, Spending, Government

If you're a regular viewer of TV news, you've probably seen tape of the President saying he wants action on his jobs bill now. There's only a couple of problems with that...
Durbin says Democrats don’t currently have the votes for Obama jobs bill

The jobs plan is made up of a combination of tax increases on the wealthy, new infrastructure spending, an extension of the employee payroll-tax cut and additional funding for unemployment insurance benefits.

Republicans have voiced opposition to the plan, albeit less than with other pieces of legislation Democrats have proposed recently.

Durbin added that the president’s bill would need bipartisan support because there are senators both on the left and the right opposed to aspects of it.

That's Senator Dick Durbin (D) Majority Whip in the Senate. He says he needs Republican votes despite the fact that the Democrats have a majority in the Senate. Seems some of them (Senate Dems) do not like the plan.

Senate delays jobs bill to take on China

The president’s plan would combine $447 billion in temporary tax cuts and infrastructure spending over the next several years, which would be offset with permanent tax cuts that would raise $467 billion over the next decade.

While the tax cuts and spending have some support, there is bipartisan opposition to his tax increases, making that bill a tough sell in either chamber.

“We’ll get to that, but let’s get some of these things done that we have to get done first,” Mr. Reid said.

The office of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, declined to comment on the schedule.

The legislation Mr. Reid has placed ahead of the jobs bill is a bipartisan bill that combines the efforts of two other bipartisan bills to try to force China to increase the value of its currency, the yuan, compared with the U.S. dollar.

That's Senator Harry Reid (D) the Senate Majority Leader who sets the agenda.

Then there's this from Hot Air:

Just a reminder: Obama’s jobs bill still has no cosponsors

No co-sponsors have added their names to either the Senate or the House version even after more than a week, although readers have to dig a ways into the Washington Post report to find that out....

Only two folks seem to even recognize there is a bill: Senator Harry Reid (D-Nev) and Representative John B. Larson (D-Conn). Not one other member of either Senate or House has lent his/her name to this piece of...legislation.

In the House things don't look any better as few Democrat Representatives want to put their name on a bill that will, by best estimates, create jobs at a cost of $200K per job.

$200K Per Job? Timothy Geithner Says White House Jobs Plan Is Still a Bargain

"You've got to think about the costs of the alternatives," Geithner said when asked about Harvard economist Martin Feldstein's calculation that each job created by President Obama's American Jobs Act would cost taxpayers about $200,000.

"If government does nothing, it does nothing now because they're scared by politics or they want to debate what's perfect, then there will be fewer Americans back to work, the economy will be weaker," he said.

That's Timothy Geithner, tax cheat and TUrbo Tax challenged Secretary of the Treasury.

There are things the government could do: 1-Cut spending 2-Cut regulation 3-Get the heck out of the way

Then there's this problem on the deficit:
Exclusive: Democrats push tax hikes first in deficit talks

Yeah, new taxes. Just remember that the new taxes were tried back in Herbert Hoover's day. How'd that work out? And the Democrats once promised that they would consider spending cuts once before with the first President Bush. They agreed to make cuts after new taxes were passed. They didn't live up to that promise. They won't live up to this one. Democrats never agree to meaningful cuts.

Rain and Football

Got pretty cold last night. Down to the upper 40s. It would have been colder but there was a blanket of clouds after midnight that prevented further heat loss. The winds switched to come out of the north as a storm swirled around a center somewhere near the tri-state corner of NJ-PA-NY. Rain started around 9:30 AM and has continued all day into this evening. Talk about raw! The day's high was only around 50 degrees outside. Got down to 60 degrees inside before I built a fire. That rose the temperatures to 68 inside and the cats were most appreciative.

Terry says they had a good time at my niece's surprise bridal shower in NJ today. Kristen had no clue that it was happening. I guess that's good, although it means she doesn't read my blog because I accidentally posted about it the other day. (I did remove the reference to it after Terry alerted me that it was supposed to be a surprise, but still....Common girls! Read what your old uncle is doing...please?)

******

I "watched" the Rutgers-Syracuse game on the computer/radio today. RU pulled out a sloppy victory in double overtime, 19-16, up in the Carrier Dome. I had it on WOR out of NYC but their computer radio kept going to commercials while play was still underway...including during the final seconds of regulation when RU had a chance to win the game. I switched to the Rutgers page where there was a link to WCTU 1250 AM and managed to listen to the game without those annoying interruptions.

Following the game on the ESPN GameCast, I noticed they had a weather statement "Overcast; 74 degrees." Hello! The game was played in the dome. The overcast skies , and the rain/wind outside had absolutely no affect on the outcome.

I actually started to follow it on CBSSports using their GameTracker but the operator was either 1-asleep or 2-overwhelmed with the other games going on. There would be times the GameTracker would pretty much freeze up and leave you wondering what was going on while the WOR broadcast was carrying commercials but the game was proceeding.

Speaking of playing an overtime game...so far there have been lots of them today. Rutgers-Syracuse, Navy-Air Force, TCU-SMU, and Idaho-Virginia. (AF, SMU, and Virginia all won their games.) Additionally, the number of games where the difference was 4 points or less has been pretty amazing.

Football is still being played, after all, it's just 8:30 PM EDT.
And the pros will be playing tomorrow.