Frame Of Reference
I caught myself making a stupid assumption about Australia regarding geography. It is in the Southern Hemisphere and the directional norms for North and South are reversed, i.e. the climate is colder the further South you go, and warmer the further North.
Melbourne on the South coast would be like Richmond, Virginia, while Darwin on the North coast is like Managua, Nicaragua. The Tropic of Capricorn runs through the center of the continent, while it’s northern counterpart, the Tropic of Cancer, runs through the center of Mexico, and divides Cuba from Florida.
To get an appreciation for the recent heat wave, think about 115° in central Virginia.
February 10, 2009 9 Comments
Too Much Truth
From Juan Cole, the misinformation of CNN’s NBC’s Chuck Todd.
[Some days the posts write themselves. I thought the picture was funny, and the next click gave me the context to justify the bandwidth.]
February 10, 2009 5 Comments
No End In Sight
The latest for this morning: 181 confirmed dead, 3,000 square kilometers [1200 miles²] and over 900 homes destroyed. No word on the loss of pets, stock, and wildlife.
There are more than 30 fires still burning and the wind from the South is starting to rise. Unfortunately this is far from over.
Jack, Grumpy Forester who has been on the lines fighting wildfires, adds some perspective [which I missed yesterday {stupid caching}].
February 10, 2009 18 Comments
