Posts from — August 2016

Maine Governor Paul LePage criticised for ‘racist’ remarks:

Mr LePage was asked about a statement he made in January, in which he blamed the state’s heroin problem on “guys by the name D-Money, Smoothie, Shifty” who “come from Connecticut and New York”.

“They come up here, they sell their heroin, then they go back home. Incidentally, half the time they impregnate a young, white girl before they leave,” he said.

Speaking on Wednesday, he denied it was racist, but said that since January he had been putting together a binder cataloguing drug arrests in the state, and that “90-plus per cent of those pictures in my book, and it’s a three-ringed binder, are black and Hispanic people”.
…

The Portland Press Herald published FBI statistics which show that 1,211 people were arrested on charges of drug sales or manufacturing in Maine in 2014. Of those, 170 – 14.1% – were black, and almost all the rest were white.

Blacks are 1.4% of Maine’s population, so the 14% figure for drug arrests is in line with a lot of other states, i.e. Blacks are ten times more likely to be arrested for drug offenses than Whites.

A hint for Governor LePage, if you want to hide the fact that you’re a racist, drop the dog whistle “half the time they impregnate a young, white girl”. I grew up with White/Colored signs all over, so I know bigots when I hear them.

Position: 29.6N 54.4W [10PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: Northwest [320°] near 8 mph [13 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 85 mph [140 kph].
Wind Gusts: 100 mph [160 kph].
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 140 miles [220 km].
Hurricane Wind Radius: 15 miles [ 30 km].
Minimum central pressure: 980 mb ↓.

Currently about 655 miles [1055 km] East-Southeast of Bermuda.

As forecast it is a hurricane again.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

If Florida started throwing high profile people like Ann Coulter and Steve Bannon in prison for violating our election laws, there would be no election fraud in the state.

My Blue-eyed Boy

What?

[Editor: This may be my only photo in which you can see that Excise’s eyes are blue. Alas I took it with my old camera and the focus is off.]

The Friday Ark has been in dry dock for a while

Position: 27.0N 50.8W [10PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: Northwest [315°] near 15 mph [24 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 65 mph [100 kph].
Wind Gusts: 75 mph [120 kph].
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 150 miles [240 km].
Minimum central pressure: 997 mb.

Currently about 915 miles [1475 km] East-Southeast of Bermuda.

Gaston has turned away from the US & Bermuda to a more Northerly course and its wind field has expanded mid-morning.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

If you want to go to the beaches along the French Riviera, you can wear this, but you will be fined for wearing this.

Happy to clear that up… 😈

Position: 22.8N 46.4W [10PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: Northwest [320°] near 17 mph [28 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 65 mph [100 kph].
Wind Gusts: 75 mph [120 kph].
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 115 miles [185 km].
Minimum central pressure: 997 mb ↑.

Currently about 1300 miles [2095 km] East-Southeast of Bermuda.

The current intensity forecast indicates that it will be back to a tropical storm later today. And that happened at 10AM CDT.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

Position: 18.6N 42.1W [10PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: Northwest [310°] near 17 mph [28 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 70 mph [110 kph].
Wind Gusts: 80 mph [130 kph].
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 90 miles [150 km].
Minimum central pressure: 990 mb.

Currently about 1205 miles [1940 km] West of the Cabo Verde Islands.

It is on the verge of being a hurricane this afternoon while Invest 99L has everything except a closed circulation to qualify as a tropical storm down near Puerto Rico.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

It’s the 25^th anniversary of the public posting of first page on the World Wide Web. As can be seen in the official recreation of that page, there was an obvious lack of cat pictures so growth was extremely slow.

Position: 14.7N 37.1W [10PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: West-Northwest [290°] near 17 mph [28 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 65 mph [100 kph].
Wind Gusts: 80 mph [130 kph].
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 70 miles [110 km].
Minimum central pressure: 1002 mb.

Currently about 875 miles [1410 km] West of the southernmost Cabo Verde Islands.

Gaston continues to strengthen while Fiona became a remnant low this morning. Gaston is forecast to be achieve hurricane strength tomorrow and is currently tracking towards the Central Atlantic.

Meanwhile Invest 99L is looking more organized as it approaches the Lesser Antilles.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

The regular Florida Primary for all of the offices except the President is on Tuesday, August 30^th. Early voting is now occurring in most counties.

Libertarians will have their own ballot for the first time and the Democrats have a real live left of center candidate for the nomination for the US Senate: Alan Grayson.

Voting in primaries makes politicians aware that you vote in all elections, not just in the general election during Presidential years.

Position: 12.6N 30.7W [10PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: West-Northwest [285°] near 18 mph [30 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 40 mph [ 65 kph].
Wind Gusts: 55 mph [ 90 kph].
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 60 miles [ 95 km].
Minimum central pressure: 1005 mb ↓.

Currently about 450 miles [ 725 km] West-Southwest of the southernmost Cabo Verde Islands.

This was Invest 90L as forecast.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

Fiona is still out there and will provide a rough ride for people traveling to or from Bermuda this week, but it is curving about halfway between the Carolina coast and Bermuda and not a threat to land.

Invest 99L which has taken a parallel course South of Fiona’s may cause trouble in the Lesser Antilles and could make landfall on the US Atlantic Coast.

Invest 90L is over by the Cabo Verde Islands and may go tropical today, but it is too early to make a decent forecast on what will probably be Tropical Depression Seven.

Position: 23.4N 54.9W [10PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: West-Northwest [290°] near 18 mph [30 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 35 mph [ 55 kph].
Wind Gusts: 50 mph [ 80 kph].
Minimum central pressure: 1008 mb ↑.

Currently about 575 miles [ 915 km] Northeast of the Leeward Islands.

The forecast is again for weakening, and this time it did and is now a Depression.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]