Some quick suggestions:
- Missing father, 2 kids found safe in Congaree National Park — So, if there are so many fallen trees across trails and such that it’s hard to search for missing people, should members of the public be allowed to explore them? Especially with kids? Is the swamp inherently unsafe?
- Questions swirl about DSS actions in latest Richland child death — John Monk tells story of child who died after DSS response delay of almost two months.
- Kerry apologises for Israel ‘apartheid’ comments — Has the SecState contracted foot-in-mouth disease from the Veep?
Or… whatever y’all want to talk about…
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I spent the afternoon at the swamp last week and walked the lower boardwalk (the upper boardwalk is closed for repairs) and then the trail around Weston lake, so about five miles worth where these folks were and well beyond. The trails were quite clear, so no problems there. This sounds more like they went wandering off the trail and got lost, but kept wandering. Lots of folks just don’t realize how easy it is to get lost in the woods until it happens to them. There are a lot of trees down, but not generally on the trail, and where they did cross the trail, skirting them was easy.
What worked:
1. The Search and Rescue
2. The father’s survival skill (water from available “natural sources”).
What went wrong:
1. Absence of entrance fee makes wild area more inviting thanthe zoo or a skating rink.
2. Terrible decision for a father who had never visited Congaree State Park to take young kids.
This father taxi-driver appears likely be in the news again, I estimate within 2 – 3 years.
Juan – entrance fee and wild are two terms that should never be mentioned together. The wild and outdoors are part of our natural heritage, for everyone to enjoy at no cost. It’s a shame that almost all the land has been claimed, and that there’s no terra nullius left.
“Terra nullius,” of course, being the Latin for “land that is more than 10 miles from the nearest Starbucks”…
Silence, or Bryan, or someone else who knows how to play around with such things…
How could I have set up a Jed Bartlet avatar to go with that comment?
I thought I’d figured out the way, but when I was trying to create the account at gravatar.com, it wouldn’t let me use jedbartlet as a username…
I think the Gravatar is based off of your email address, which is why your regular picture showed up. jedbartlet is probably already taken by someone, or else you’ve already registered the email address you were trying to use for the new gravatar. Probably.
It is a National Park, which we can be proud of, thanks to Fritz Hollings
There was a TV program on ETV not long ago about the Congaree National Park and its beginnings. They actually gave a lot of credit to the establishment of the park to Strom Thurmond. I was around then but I must not have paid too much attention to it all.
Strom may have played a big role in its establishment, but Fritz got it upgraded to full park status.
So glad the family was found. What a horrible situation. I know the dad shouldn’t have gotten lost in the first place, but it’s just one of those situations where you’re happy to have them back.
Long ago — like, 20 years ago — my wife took our younger son and some of his friends on a walk through the swamp and got lost, partly because some of the trails were inundated. She feared they would stay lost past dark, but eventually they found their way out.
This was before cellphones. So I didn’t know they were lost until after they found their way home.
While I wish I could have been with them during that ordeal, the oft-told story has more than dampened any enthusiasm I might ever have had for going there and walking the trails.
I’m not an outdoor guy, so the hope of my ever developing such enthusiasm is dim to start with. Here’s the way I feel about it:
No, the swamp is not inherently unsafe. As long as you stay on the clearly marked trails, there should be no problem. And you should always carry water–even on a short hike. The staff and volunteers there are pretty good about removing downed trees from the trails or allowing the trail to redirect around a downed tree.
However, the further you get from the visitor center, the less-traveled the trails are. We hike there often on the Weston Lake, Oakridge (my favorite–secluded enough to feel adventurous, but trodden enough to feel secure). and Bluff trails. We started out the River trail (for the first time) just a couple of weeks after the snow and ice we had in February. We skirted several downed trees, but came to a place where couldn’t locate the trail for several minutes–it made a sharp turn under the debris. When we finally located it, we made the decision to turn back because we were unfamiliar with the trail even in its good state.
It’s like anything else. A man’s got to know his limitations.
I’m thankful the kids are safe. A little traumatic for them right now, but what a cool story to tell when they’re older….
Very thankful that the father and children are safe.
I wish the Lillian Koller matter were not so politicized. It is hard to figure out what is true and what is posturing, all around. DSS handles tricky matters, with way too few staff, some of whom are incompetent. It is hard to assess blame accurately.
You have a point.
The thing is, whenever we have a case in which the child died, whatever DSS did, it wasn’t the right thing. By definition.
The hard part is figuring out that it’s not the right thing BEFORE it’s too late.
Well said. I suspect DSS not having adequate resources is probably at least partially a factor. Where are all the charities and volunteers and private entities that were going to step in and save the day when Haley was advocating defunding government agencies during her campaign.
I can’t believe I left the Paul Simon/Edie Brickell spat off my list of suggested topics…
Did you see the pictures from the court appearance? It looks like Paul Simon is dressed as Willy Loman in “Death of a Salesman”…
He kinda always had that old guy vibe, even when he was young. He’s 72 now.
I can’t believe you left the ICBM 8-inch floppy disk story off of your list of suggested topics.
http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2014/04/60-minutes-shocked-to-find-8-inch-floppies-drive-nuclear-deterrent/
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, I guess. Doug Ross would probably feel right at home with the Air Force’s launch control system.
And if the missiles don’t work, we can fling the floppies at the Rooskies, like Frisbees…
I’m surprised it isn’t running on this.
http://oldcomputers.net/trs80i.html
That is what I got started with in 1977… programs stored on cassette tape. I would spend hours typing in BASIC programs from Creative Computing magazine.
WOPR: Shall we play a game?
Notice the specs on that bad boy:
RAM: 4K, 16K max
Not 4 megabytes, not 4 gigabytes… 4 K… 4096 bytes of memory.
My first home computer – http://oldcomputers.net/ibm5155.html
Doug – Love to. How about global thermonuclear war?
Count me out. The only winning move is not to play.
We used to have a TI 99/4A at our house in the 80s. It was just a keyboard/console that connected to the back of a TV. I used to write simple programs for it in BASIC. You could also play a generic version of Space Invaders, and Pole Position, with these cassette things that were kind of like 8-track cartridges.
And yes, if I wanted to save anything, it went onto a cassette player. Compared to which that old floppy is quite futuristic…
We had one too. I played Munch Man and Hunt the Wampus alot. I also wrote silly little programs that played tunes and drew blocky pictures and saved them on cassettes. We got the voice generator and my brother and I used to love to make it pronounce the alphabet like a word. I reckon I was easily entertained.
Something else left off this post — Graham, et al., once again asking for Benghazi hearings. I am not making this up:
Sterling gets banned for life by the NBA… http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2014/04/29/nba-to-discuss-investigation-into-sterling/
They went full Pete Rose on him.
Well, he’s 80 and may have dementia, so a life-time anything isn’t all that long. And what does the “ban” entail? Can he go to games? Listen to them on the radio? Can he still hook up with hot 30 year old chicks?
“Mr. Sterling may not attend any NBA games or practices, he may not be present at any Clippers facility, and he may not participate in any business or decisions involving the team.” He may listen to them on the radio or watch them on the television, presumably. He may also continue to hook up with “hot” 30 year old chicks, as his finances permit.
I hope she was worth it, dude.
I’ve tried listening to that recording, and I don’t know what the crazy old guy is talking about. It’s so incoherent.
What does he want? What is he actually upset about? Is he just an insecure old guy who’s jealous, and his mind seizes on this “black people” thing as a dodge because he would be too humiliated to say what really bothers him?
The argument is so inarticulate and incoherent. It’s like a couple of drunks arguing over what to watch on TV, just before the shooting starts…
And how does someone who has that much trouble expressing himself obtain all that money?
It’s really not a good argument for the Doug side of the eternal debate over whether rich people deserve their wealth or are just lucky. This evidence tends to support the Bud side of the equation…
You’re joking, right? He made his money 40 years ago.. back before he was “experienced” in life. At 80 years old, I’m guessing you’d think he’s ready to be governor of California. He’s likely at an early stage of dementia.
He’s a former attorney who started buying commercial property in Beverly Hills in the 60’s. There are plenty of scumbags who are also very good at business. He appears to be one of them.
Luck is a one time event. To go from zero to a billion over 50 years isn’t luck. It takes effort and skill.
Who’s had a luckier life? Vincent Sheheen who was born on third base or Nikki Haley? Which one has done more with less?
I don’t think Sheheen was born on third base. Second, maybe.
Haley has indeed gone far, but her Tracy Flick ruthlessness and dodgy ethics sure contributed a lot
His father served as South Carolina’s Commissioner of Higher Education and his mother was a public elementary school teacher and a principal. His uncle is the former Speaker of the South Carolina House of Representatives. Sounds like 3rd base to me.
I think W was third base. Son of a state politician in SC, not so much.
Let’s see – these are questions we can only speculate on:
– Did he have to take out student loans to pay for his college education and law degree?
– Did his father / uncle assist him in finding his first job and bringing in clients to his law firm?
I’d say W was already ’round the bases when he exited the birthing canal.
Grandpa Prescott Bush was a partner in a Wall Street investment bank (Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.), and was a US Senator. Daddy George H.W. Bush was POTUS, VP, a congressman, director of the CIA, UN Ambassador, and an oil millionaire, back when being a millionaire meant something.
If you are the child of a national politician, attend a proper New England prep school, and are an Ivy-League legacy, you might have won the birth lottery.
If one of your parents is part of the Bilderberg Group, or member of the Trilateral Commission, you might have won the birth lottery.
My problem is not so much with who deserves their largesse, rather it’s more a pragmatic matter. The super rich have clearly benefited from the labor and industry of many, many people and institutions including government at all levels. What these incredibly fortunate individuals take from the process is far in excess of any contribution they may have made. Isn’t it clear that the members of the Walton family never contributed to the community an equivalent amount of value in relation to the wealth they control? This would not be a problem if the economic pie was large enough to fund such unfathomable wealth but it clearly must be siphoned off from hard-working people who struggle just to make ends meet. Given the extreme gap between what the rich contribute and what they reap it seems both reasonable and prudent for the government to tax much of this fabulous wealth away for the good of those who have earned a better life. Otherwise we will continue our march toward a 21st century version of the gilded age.
Let’s say the Walton’s decided tomorrow to shut down Wal Mart and walk away (not that they could since it is a public company). Do you realize how many millions of people would be driven to financial ruin? Employees, suppliers, trucking companies… and millions of investors (through direct or mutual fund).
Somebody has to run the business. Others attach themselves onto those successful ventures. And others haven’t got the skills to do anything but fill low skill level jobs. It’s the way things work. People with skills and ambition succeed. Others don’t. You can’t fix that equation no matter how much money you take from the rich. You could tax the rich at 100% and it wouldn’t make but a blip of difference in the livelihoods of the majority of Americans.
Somebody has to run the business.
-Doug
Doug you’re just being obtuse on this. The Waltons are extraordinarily fortunate as are ALL billionaires. They didn’t do anything to be in the position of running the company. My point is simple. The income discrepancy in this country is huge and growing. And it is destructive and unnecessary. They can run the company and make lots of money but in return they should pay their people a living wage, furnish decent benefits and pay a far higher percentage of their taxes (a 50% top marginal rate for starters) than the cash register clerk. And they would STILL be far, far, far, far, far ahead of any possible financial situation they would be if left the same inheritance that you or I will receive.
No, they don’t have to pay their employees a “living wage”. They have to pay them any amount above the minimum wage. Wal-Mart is a publicly traded company owned by its shareholders. Those shareholders have seen their investment grow by 500% in 15 years in addition to pulling in a very stable 2.4% dividend payment that literally millions of people depend upon. Wal Mart is a $250 billion dollar company – and the Walton heirs do not own most of it. Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway owns 5 times as many shares as Jim Walton. It’s very clear that your blind jealousy of anyone who is successful prevents you from seeing reality. You think we live in a country of rich rulers doling out gruel to the serfs. We don’t. We live in a country run by large financial institutions managed by their cronies in the government and a Federal Reserve that manipulates the markets.
Whatever income inequality has happened over the past few decades is more a result of the skills gap between people whose jobs could be replaced by cheaper resources offshore or by technology. It’s never coming back. You are either ahead of the curve or else you depend on the skills of someone who is ahead of the curve. If you are in a job that is a commodity and have no desire to change that reality, you are done for — no matter how much you think “rich” people should give you as charity.
Just wait until 2018 when Obama starts earning tens of millions per year. Will you expect him to give it all back to the little people? Good luck with that.
Here’s a link to the South Carolina Retirement Fund’s annual report. Please examine this report and advise them which investments you think they should divest themselves of in order to minimize their profits in the future. Because it would be immoral for them to try and earn anything more than the bare minimum, right? And why not let people who HAVEN’T been lucky enough to work for the government get a piece of the pie too? That would be fair.
http://www.ic.sc.gov/Reporting/AIR/default.htm
You have no idea what Obama will do with whatever money he earns, not being clairvoyant, as far as we know. Bill Gates is sure giving away a lot, and few foresaw that.
Right. You want to put a bet on whether his net worth exceeds $50 million within five years of leaving office?
It’s already about $12M now, and as far as I can tell, he’s never held a real job oustide of government, aside from a few years as a law professor.
I would bet a large sum of money that Obama will own very expensive real estate in Hawaii, Chicago, and New York or L.A. within five years of leaving office.
Oh, and I am fine with that… as long as he doesn’t steal the money, whatever he earns he should be able to do with it as he chooses. If someone thinks having him read a speech off a teleprompter is worth $500K, more power to him.
My issue with speaking fees or honorariums or whatever for once-and-future politicians, is that they are essentially disguised campaign contributions. See: Clinton, Hillary
He already has a fairly expensive house in Hyde Park in Chicago.
Interesting response from the L.A. Times when faced with a resolution from the L.A. City Council to reject all ads from Donald Sterling (whose rental properties generate significant revenue for the paper). Sounds like the paper isn’t interested in making any kind of statement on the matter that would harm it financially. The proper response would have been “We will stop taking money from that racist”.
“In an emailed statement, Times spokeswoman Nancy Sullivan said: “The Los Angeles Times understands and shares the outrage surrounding the unconscionable racist comments the NBA has confirmed were made by Donald Sterling. We review the content of any advertising we accept to ensure our standards and guidelines are followed. The Times also reserves the right to refuse any advertising submitted for publication in our sole discretion.”]
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-nba-sterling-ban-ads-20140429,0,4262153.story#ixzz30KqwTN7K