Camelopardalis

Nature 2 Minutes

Giraffes are amazing creatures! They used to be known as ‘camel leopards’, due to their tall structure and leopard-like pattern, and their scientific name today has not changed – Camelopardalis. The name was given to these creatures by Julius Caesar, who received a giraffe as a gift and was thrilled with it! After showing it off to the people of Rome, he ended up feeding it to the lions…ooops!

The patterns on a giraffe are totally unique – no two giraffes are ever the same! And even though a giraffe has a longer neck than all other mammals, it still only has seven vertebrae in its neck, which is the same amount as other animals. They can run up to speeds of 35 miles per hour, outrunning most horses, and their long legs mean that they can cover plenty of space in a short amount of time, making their average walking speed around 10 miles per hour. But a giraffe’s sharp 12-inch hooves can cause a lot of damage, and could even kill a lion if necessary.

A giraffe’s tongue is blue-back to protect it from sunburn in hot climates. They also have the same amount of teeth as humans; however, one of the most interesting things about giraffes is that all 32 teeth lay on the bottom of its mouth and are mostly molars positioned right at the back. Giraffes use their bottom teeth to grab a branch and then comb the leaves off. So when you see a giraffe without upper front teeth it’s not because of a giraffe brawl – that’s what evolution intended. Giraffes live in savannas throughout Africa. The tall creatures are native to Kenya, Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Uganda, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania, Angola and South Africa. They like semi-arid, open woodlands that have scattered trees and bushes, making the savannas perfect for these animals. 

Giraffes seldom sleep. Most of them get around 10 minutes to two hours of sleep per day. Even when they get the little amount of sleep required each day, they don’t lie down. Giraffes go to sleep standing up most of the time. They are also able to give birth while standing up, meaning that these creatures rarely have an excuse to lie down! And giraffes conserve water very well, mainly because they don’t sweat or pant when hot. But adult giraffes only need to find water once a day. They are able to drink up to 10 gallons of water each day, and also get water from the plants they eat, including acacias.

When giraffes are seen rubbing their necks against one another, they are competing to see who is stronger. Known as ‘necking’, it is a practice between male giraffes. (Not at all what I envision when i hear the term necking.) Both male and female giraffes have horns from birth. These actually lie flat on their heads and are not attached to the skull to avoid injury during birth. These horns, called ossicones, can be used to defend themselves. Later in life, the ossicones will fuse with the skull and become formidable weapons, particularly in adult males.

The birds pictured below are oxpeckers which feed off parasites on giraffes’ bodies. This win-win situation for both creatures ensures that the birds find food and that the giraffes get rid of unwanted parasites.

Unfortunately giraffe populations are challenged because of poaching and their shrinking habitat. The animals’ tails are made into good-luck bracelets, fly whisks and thread for stringing beads. As agricultural settlement expands, the giraffe’s main source of food, the acacia tree, is being cut down. Fewer than 100,000 giraffes remain in the wild, down from an estimated 150,000 that roamed the savannas 30 years ago.

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Published by pat frederick

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194 thoughts on “Camelopardalis”

  1. Good morning! What an interesting open and what a coincidence! Just last night I was watching Planet Earth II and they did a segment about the desert lions trying to take down a giraffe – they failed. Those long legs and sharp hooves can shatter a lion’s jaw, their ribs and spinal chord. In this case, the entire group chased the giraffe while the lead lioness got into position for a frontal attack. She leaped for her neck but was unable to grab hold and almost got trampled. I also didn’t know about the teeth nor why their tongue was blue/black. However, there are many animals that give birth while standing – horses, cattle, rhinos, elephants, etc., etc.

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Morning All!
    we did get some heavy rain for a brief period last evening, but then it stopped.
    skies are cloudy but the hummers are active!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Glad you got some rain at least – hope more is on the horizon for you. The hummers are still hitting the honeysuckle, as well as the front feeder – I haven’t seen any orioles on it. But I noticed something odd yesterday – we’ll see if it continues today – FAR fewer orioles and no more Papas feeding their fledglings. I’m beginning to wonder if they might be starting their migration super early this year…..we’ll see if that continues. Yesterday, it was a bunch of finches/sparrows hitting the jelly. I probably only saw 5 or 6 orioles all day.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. haven’t seen orioles in a long while…but the hummers are numerous and active. they drain 2 of the 4 feeders DAILY and nearly a third as well.
        but that’s okay–they’re only here a short time.

        Liked by 1 person

          1. the hummers?
            we had them last year till the end of September!
            the longest they were here was a few years ago, the last mark i had on the calendar was October 4th

            Liked by 1 person

    2. Ah! Brilliant on the pot holes…..and I certainly identify with the fitness protection program! Before Marilyn left, she tried to convince me to go with her to the school track to walk every day. Yeah, no, that ain’t happening! Can you say boring??!!?? No, I’ll get my exercise the old-fashioned way – yard work!!!!

      Liked by 1 person

        1. Meh! I wouldn’t mind tramping around in the country but here in town? Like I said – boring! Michael and I have talked about going out walking along the river to bird watch and take pics. Maybe one of these days but now that he is working and on his feet all the time…..

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  5. families pulling their children out of schools because of over the top gay agenda
    entire article
    At least two families have decided to remove their children from Stetson Middle School after over-the-top gay pride celebrations this year.

    Jim Jacobs said he and his brother have decided to send their children to different schools because of what he believes is cultural indoctrination instead of education occurring in the West Chester Area School District.

    “The last thing I wanted to do was to transfer my son for his 8th-grade year, but enough is enough,” said Jacobs. “At Stetson, there is no freedom of speech but freedom of ‘woke’ speech. The tolerance promoted by Diversity/Equity/Inclusion is not practiced towards those who have disagreements with or dare to question the ‘woke’ agenda.”

    During the gay pride celebrations, boys were encouraged to wear dresses during Gay Pride Month and a male teacher taught in high heels. However, Jacobs’ son was pulled out of class for wearing Uggs that officials deemed slippers, although the youth had worn Uggs the previous year without incident.

    “So my son gets disciplined for wearing Uggs (which are said to not adhere to the dress code), but boys are encouraged to wear dresses and male teachers can teach in stilettoes! Really?” Jacobs said. “I called Assistant Principal (James) DeWitt to ask if that was true. He verified it and told me that ‘boys dressing as girls and a male teacher wearing high heels is perfectly acceptable and not in violation of the dress code.’”

    And DeWitt also told Jacobs, “This teacher has worn high heels on multiple occasions and that if the teacher is comfortable wearing them, then the school supports him.”

    “My son told me that the same teacher who wears high heels would wave the gay pride flag and march it through the cafeteria at lunch and that this was completely accepted and encouraged,” said Jacobs. “How are these not clear-cut examples of indoctrination and the promotion of a specific social agenda?”

    “The final straw was the fact that students were encouraged to wear ‘gay pride’ flags for Gay Pride Week. My son’s friends were wearing American flags, and he wanted to wear a Blue Lives Matter flag. I saw nothing wrong with that since if students are allowed to wear Gay Pride flags, others should be allowed to wear an American flag, right?

    “However, a gay student opposed the American flags being worn, so Mrs. Heather Selgrath, the 8th-grade counselor, told students who were wearing American flags and Blue Lives Matter flags (my son) that they had to take them off and put them away in their lockers,” said Jacobs.

    “It’s selective enforcement of the dress code,” Jacobs said. “It’s ridiculous.”

    Also, Jacobs said his 12-year-old niece had to do a book report this semester, but her only option was to do one on a Black or transgendered person.

    “Why?” he asked.

    “My brother is flipping out,” Jacobs said. “They had his daughter wearing all this make-up and posing with another girl because that’s what they’re encouraging.”

    Both Jacobs and his brother are sending their children to Catholic schools in the fall.

    “Students were encouraged to take pictures with same-sex students in front of the gay pride flag at school,” he said. There were also pictures on the wall for students to pose with. “When the LBTGQ display by the pride flag is examined closely, pictures of various individuals on the school wall can be seen,” he said.

    “Googling two of their names gave extremely disturbing results,” he said. One was Frida Kahlo, “who was a Communist artist ‘regarded as an icon for Chicanos, the feminism movement, and the LGBTQ+ movement,’” he said. “And another was Bianca Del Rio, who is a drag queen comedian, ‘whose YouTube videos contain off-color raunchy, comedy routines and discuss heroin usage and men’s penises.’ One has to question the academic value of displaying these pictures in a middle school for 11 to 13-year-old children.”

    “These activities and displays are unquestionable distractions and liabilities to academic learning, which should be the primary purpose of our public schools,” Jacobs continued. “Promotion of political and social agendas should be verboten. Unfortunately, freedom of speech doesn’t exist anymore in public schools such as in the WCASD…there is only freedom of ‘woke’ speech and selective enforcement of dress codes. Taxpayers should not be required to fund this nonsense.”

    “This is unbelievable, crazy stuff,” Jacobs said about the school’s emphasis on LGBTQ issues. “It’s not enough to be gay. You have to be flamboyantly gay.”

    Elana Fishbein, a Lower Merion resident and founder of No Left Turn in Education said, “Our schools have been completely derailed by woke people who call themselves ‘educators.’ These woke mobsters hijacked the schools and are suffocating and sexualizing our children with their perverted ideology. For them, furthering an ideology is their mission, not imparting knowledge and skill building. And while religion was chased out of school halls long ago, this ideology has become, ironically, not only a new religion but a cult. Today, they are the true schoolyard bullies.”

    A spokeswoman for WASD did not respond to a request for comment.

    https://delawarevalleyjournal.com/families-fleeing-wcasd-over-lgbtq-curriculum-dresses-for-boys/

    Liked by 2 people

  7. Liked by 1 person

    1. If that physician had ANY self-respect, he would have been embarrassed to do such a thing! What a jackass! But, then, if he had any self-respect, he wouldn’t have accepted the job in the first place!

      Liked by 1 person

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  11. things learned from the j6 committee…more at the link
    FTA
    So, second, we learned from the Committee that Trump wanted to go to the Capitol after his speech. Then, after an insurrection by the Secret Service and others refusing to carry out his orders, Trump was irate. Shouldn’t he be? White House officials and staff just overturned the authority of the President. Does that worry anyone in terms of setting a precedent?

    snip

    Some months earlier, we learned that Trump officially appointed Sidney Powell as a special counsel to review the data from the election. But White House Counsel Pat Cipollone and others refused to carry out the President’s orders. The shocking part is any POTUS giving an order and being told “no.” Earlier that day, we learned, a staffer conspiring with Cipollone tipped him off to that very meeting that Trump had with outside advisors. Cipollone set a “new land speed record” rushing back to the White House to break it up. Cipollone’s palace coup was portrayed as typical, normal, and routine. The junior staffer felt comfortable texting the White House counsel at night and warning him that the President was meeting with people Cipollone might not approve of.
    By the by, on January 8 the Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi publicly announced that the military should not carry out Trump’s orders as commander in chief. What if our enemies had believed that the U.S. military was leaderless and had used that moment to attack our allies?

    So after telling Trump he could not go to the Capitol, the Trump haters blame him for not taking control of the situation at the Capitol. Well, which is it? Did you want Trump to go to the Capitol or stay out of it? The jilted ex-boyfriends blame Trump either way.

    https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2022/07/some_lessons_from_january_6_committee_finale.html

    Liked by 1 person

  12. how the left can gracefully step back from ultra naggot and hunter (hunter has to be convicted of crimes and doing time–but don’t worry–the pardon can be super quick!)
    FTA
    Step Three is Joe pardons Hunter. A president can pardon someone who committed a federal crime and is being punished. Incarceration is punishment. Joe tells the nation that as a kind, loving (though sick In the head) father he has chosen to help his son at the expense of his 2024 presidential run. What else could a father do?

    This scenario allows:

    Joe to leave office without the disgrace of losing the election, crapping his pants on the campaign trail, and holding his head up high for choosing family over career
    The Dems to jettison him and apply their resources to the election(s) and not defending and covering for Joe
    The Dems to sanctimoniously disagree with his pardon but being understanding of it, i.e., distance themselves without dissing Joe
    The critical points are to have this political theater elevate Joe, harshly punish Hunter, have Joe pardon him and free the Dems of the Biden millstone.

    https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2022/07/joes_and_the_dems_almost_perfect_out_on_hunter.html

    Liked by 1 person

    2. My absolute, all-time favorite pic is of him touching that veteran’s face who had lost both arms in battle. I have it – I’m just too lazy to sign into imgur at the moment….

      Liked by 1 person

  18. Well, my little black and white friend has returned for his breakfast. He was at the front door, waiting. This time, Jake is shut in the bedroom – bugging the crap out of me to come watch him eat – when he pulls that crap, bye-bye! One would think Jake would learn but he’s too stupid, I guess. SMH

    He really needs to go to a vet – the sore on his head is getting worse, fleas abound…..I went out and gave him some food and loving – he rubbed, rolled around and purred, then set to eating. ….sigh….

    Liked by 1 person

      1. That he does…..jeez! I just keep thinking….$150!!!! I did start doing some rationalizing…..well, I would NOT bring him in the house but….I do have that doggy door – I could teach him how to use that and let him on the patio…..sigh….and then I could put a pan out there with some kitty litter….sigh….I think I see another “aw, shit” moment headed my way….

        Liked by 1 person

          1. It wouldn’t be a big issue on the patio – Jake doesn’t go out there all the time, just now and then. No doubt he would stand inside at the door hissing and growling. As for his age, I’m not positive but Mom got him from the shelter about 6 years ago and I think they claimed he was around 2 or so. So I guess 8 or 9 maybe?

            Liked by 1 person

  24. Holy cow! And I thought I was a bad smoker at a pack a day! Watching Autopsy: Last Hours of Eddie Van Halen – they said he would smoke a full pack in an HOUR!!!! Good grief! Now that’s ridiculous!!! The show before that was a documentary about Jim Morrison – I learned a lot about him that I never knew.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. The channel is REELZ and they were just advertising a special by Theresa Caputo (Long Island Medium) coming in September about using her “gifts” to help people who lost family members on 9/11. I have to say that I’m not at all convinced that her “gifts” are authentic but she sure is interesting.

      Liked by 1 person

  25. EXCERPT: “As Marty Makary M.D., M.P.H., and Tracy Beth Høeg M.D., Ph.D., recently revealed, some officials within the CDC claim the heads of their agencies “are using weak or flawed data to make critically important public health decisions, that such decisions are being driven by what’s politically palatable to people in Washington or to the Biden administration and that they have a myopic focus on one virus instead of overall health.”

    In this article, I will demonstrate how the CDC used three key MMWRs to compel the public to comply with pandemic response measures. These reports were flawed to an extent suggesting more than mere incompetence or even negligence — they were deliberate attempts by CDC scientists to mislead the public.

    These MMWRs address the effectiveness of mask mandates (March 5, 2021), vaccine safety during pregnancy (Jan. 7, 2022) and the risk of COVID-19 in children (April 22, 2022).”

    https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/cdc-morbidity-mortality-weekly-report-covid-disinformation/

    Liked by 1 person

  26. EXCERPT: “The health-conscious and safe food advocates are well aware of genetically modified organisms (GMO) such as the corn that Monsanto designed to withstand heavier exposures to its juggernaut herbicide Roundup. Less publicized, however, are GMO food animals. Judging from ongoing research, the companies making these creatures hope they will increasingly find their way onto Americans’ plates in the years ahead.

    The AquAdvantage salmon was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2015, but other GMO animals are under development. The AquAdvantage salmon was created by inserting the coding sequence from a Chinook salmon growth-hormone gene under the control of an “antifreeze protein promoter and terminator” from the eel-like ocean pout into wild Atlantic salmon. Designed to grow twice as fast as normal salmon, it was the first GMO animal approved by the FDA.

    According to a food industry website, the Counter, the AquAdvantage salmon is sold in Canada, but more than 85 grocery chains, food service companies, restaurants and seafood companies have pledged to boycott it for both food safety and environmental reasons. In addition to concerns about the product itself, the safety of wild salmon populations is threatened by such GMO animals if they escape. (Think Jurassic Park.)

    While both the FDA and the AquAdvantage salmon’s creator, AquaBounty, claim the GMO salmon is safe to eat, the FDA briefing packet disseminated for 2010 hearings revealed such red flags as a higher incidence of “jaw erosion” and “focal inflammation” (infection) seen in the AquAdvantage salmon; no way to determine if greater allergy risks existed because of the excessive culling of “abnormal” AAquAdvantage salmon; and a possible “increase in the level of IGF-1,” insulin-like growth factor-1, in the AquAdvantage salmon.

    Moreover, FDA food scientists and outside experts who had been called in for the hearings noted unexplained discrepancies, omitted data and overall substandard science presented by those promoting the AquAdvantage salmon.

    More FDA GMO approvals

    In 2020, the FDA approved the second GMO animal, an “intentional genomic alteration” in pigs. The lab-created animal, called a “GalSafe” pig, is designed to eliminate a substance found on the surface of pigs’ cells called “alpha-gal sugar” that could cause people with alpha-gal syndrome to have an allergic reaction.

    Alpha-gal syndrome sensitizes someone to allergic reactions to beef, pork and lamb usually after a tick bite. The GMO animal was created by removing the gene for alpha-1, 3-galactosyltransferase, which “attaches alpha-galactose sugars to cell surfaces,” Medpage Today reported.

    GMO animals are already used in the laboratory. In the 1980s, transgenic mice were created by inserting human genes and a sheep with human genes was created in 1997.”

    More: https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/big-meat-gmo-salmon-pork-chicken/

    Liked by 1 person

  27. EXCERPT: “Story at a glance:

    – Research demonstrates the acute deleterious effects soda can have on your kidney function when used to quench your thirst during exertion on a hot day.

    – Drinking soda causes dehydration and raises markers for kidney disease when consumed after performing manual labor or exercise in 95-degree Fahrenheit weather.

    – When you exert yourself in a hot environment, your body regulates blood pressure and conserves water by reducing blood flow to your kidneys. A sudden and steep drop in blood flow through your kidneys can cause acute kidney injury due to the fact that it reduces the amount of oxygen being delivered to your kidneys.

    – Your diet has an overriding influence over the health of your kidneys, with sugar and excess protein topping the list of food components known to cause problems when consumed regularly.

    – Poor kidney function is also associated with a number of other serious health problems, including Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease.

    Your kidneys — two bean-shaped organs — are located just below your rib cage, one on either side of your spine. Positioned on top of each kidney are your adrenal glands. Each day, your kidneys filter up to 150 quarts of blood and flush out waste products through your urine. One of the reasons why you need to drink enough water is to ensure healthy kidney function. In fact, chronic low-grade dehydration is one of the most common causes of kidney stones.”

    https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/drinking-soda-hot-day-damage-kidneys-diabetes-heart-disease-cola/

    Liked by 1 person

  28. this would not surprise me….tcth

    SparrowHawk
    July 24, 2022 9:50 am

    I have not verified this , but would anybody be that surprised ?

    ” Auto-Immune BLISTERING Disease listed in the Pfizer side effects documents they tried to hide for 75 years ” — Uh …… Monkeypox ?

    #warroom Gab. com page

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I seem to recall reading that before…..

      EXCERPT: “Inoculation-Induced Skin Blistering Internal Pfizer documents present concerning findings regarding COVID-19 vaccines. During the clinical trials, laboratory technicians noticed test subjects experienced unusual side effects. According to a recently released dossier labeled 5.3.6 CUMULATIVE ANALYSIS OF POST-AUTHORIZATION ADVERSE EVENT REPORTS OF PF-07302048 (BNT162B2) RECEIVED THROUGH 28-FEB-2021, recipients suffered from a host of inoculation-induced illnesses. One specific reaction listed is autoimmune blistering disease.

      The report reveals that 8,476 participants developed skin and subcutaneous tissue disorders. Immunized individuals developing similar ailments are also described in the federal VAERS database. Numerous entries state patients experienced epidermal abnormalities post-vaccination. Vaccines Trigger Autoimmune Conditions Further evidence that SARS-CoV-2 elixirs can cause external deformities and sores can be found within the National Institutes of Health archives. A particularly intriguing submission is titled Autoimmune Bullous Dermatosis Following COVID-19 Vaccination.

      Scientists conducted a detailed examination of the peculiar dermatological condition. Authors write: “Autoimmune bullous diseases (AIBDs) are a heterogeneous group of diseases characterized by cutaneous and mucosal vesicles, blisters, and erosions. We hypothesized that vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) could trigger an immunological response in genetically predisposed individuals. According to the French method of imputability, the pharmacovigilance investigation showed an I5B4 causality assessment score for the vaccines, interpreted as highly probable, for all the patients. The diagnosis of vaccine-induced autoimmune bullous dermatosis was highly suspected.”

      Copyright (C) https://downthechupacabrahole.com. Read more at… https://downthechupacabrahole.com/2022/05/31/the-root-of-monkeypox-internal-pfizer-document-reveals-vaccines-trigger-autoimmune-skin-blistering/ .

      Liked by 1 person

  30. EXCERPT: “On Tuesday, advisors to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — perhaps believing they can reverse the slowdown in “vaccine uptake” and without admitting to the ravages caused by the Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson (J&J) shots — unanimously recommended the “Novavax COVID-19 Vaccine, Adjuvanted.” The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week granted Novavax Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for its COVID-19 vaccine, for adults age 18 and up.

    Back in 2020, Operation Warp Speed awarded Novavax — another company that like Moderna, never brought a product to market before COVID-19 — a secret contract worth $1.6 billion (now being reported as $1.8 billion). It was one of the largest taxpayer handouts channeled through Operation Warp Speed.

    The media’s obliging sales pitch is that the Novavax injection is a “game changer” in comparison to the mRNA and adenovirus-vectored gene therapy shots, and should be “reassuring to those who are hesitant.” In fact, according to the CDC’s advisors, the unvaccinated represent the “primary target population for Novavax.”

    To further entice the unvaccinated, headlines feature the misleading claim that Novavax’s EUA jab — featuring recombinant moth-cell-based nanoparticle technology, the problematic surfactant polysorbate 80 and a never-before-approved nanoparticulate adjuvant called Matrix-M — is “free of side effects.”

    However, the day after the FDA issued its Novavax authorization, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) made its own announcement, stating it was updating its product information for the Novavax COVID-19 shot to disclose “new” side effects. The EMA’s list of side effects included “severe allergic reaction [anaphylaxis] and unusual or decreased feeling in the skin” (called paresthesia and hypoesthesia, respectively).

    In addition, the EMA said it is assessing myocarditis and pericarditis as Novavax side effects — safety signals that also were on display in the FDA’s briefing document. And in clinical trials, older adults who received the Novavax vaccine experienced an increased incidence of hypertension compared to those in the placebo group.”

    https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/novavax-covid-vaccine-nanoparticle-adjuvant/

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Rachel Dolenz, or something like that, isn’t it? Hey, guess what! I am starting to think that my smoking has been exacerbating my inability to smell…..I noticed on Friday – for the first time in years, I can smell my own sweat. I have been unable to do that for at least 5 years. That just gives me even more incentive to quit!!!

      Liked by 1 person

        1. You know what else is odd? I can smell the purple and lilac petunias I planted in my front planter but none of the others, including the honeysuckle, even if I bury my nose in it – same for the rose blooms. Another odd coincidence – after my sister had all her back surgeries, she also lost her sense of smell except for lilac! Must be something about lilac, I guess.

          Liked by 1 person

  34. apparently tedros is not a math whiz…9 against, 6 for is a TIE? gotta love the title of the article
    FTA
    Though the committee does not formally vote, a survey of the members revealed that nine thought a PHEIC should not be declared and six supported a declaration. “Nine and six is very, very close,” Tedros said in a news conference called to announce the decision. “Since the role of the committee is to advise, I then had to act as a tie-breaker.”

    https://uncanceled.news/delete-the-k-in-monkeypox/

    Liked by 1 person

  37. Love it. I got to feed some Giraffes years ago in Africa. They would call them and they all came running. Long tongues that’s so sure. I wanted to take mine home. Her name was buttercup.

    Liked by 2 people

  40. Oh, FFS! I thought Houston was a blue city anyway!

    Entire Article @ DC: “The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Friday that it will investigate the City of Houston for civil rights violations in relation to enforcement of illegal dumping laws in black and Latino neighborhoods.

    The investigation seeks to determine whether the city’s waste management programs, specifically the enforcement of illegal dumping laws, “resulted in discrimination against Black and Latino residents in violation of Title VI,” which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin, according to a DOJ press release today.

    “No one in the United States should be exposed to risk of illness and other serious harm because of ineffective solid waste management or inadequate enforcement programs,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said in the press release, “We will conduct a fair and thorough investigation of these environmental justice concerns and their impact on Black and Latino communities in the City of Houston.”

    Illegal dumping has caused problems for the city for years, with residents struggling to see results from Houston’s non-emergency 311 line, according to the Texas Tribune. “We got a hodgepodge of reasons why people are doing it, but why does it stay on our streets for so long?” Huey German-Wilson, a northeast Houston resident, told the Texas Tribune. German-Wilson also voiced his displeasure that it became a DOJ matter at all, the Texas Tribune reported.

    “They have whole entire budgets and people who deal with these issues — why did we have to go all the way to the Department of Justice?” German-Wilson told the Tribune. Clarke said that the probe seeks to confirm reports of illegal dumping in Northeastern Houston, and determine what disparities exist in enforcement between different neighborhoods, according to Reuters.

    “Addressing discriminatory environmental and health impacts through enforcement of the nation’s civil rights laws is a top priority of the Department of Justice,” the department said, citing the creation of the Office of Environmental Justice in May 2022 as a prime example.”

    Liked by 1 person

  42. Springsteen’s cooking his own goose! Idiot!

    Entire Article @ DC: “Bruce Springsteen fans were left shocked to see tickets selling for $4,000 to $5,000, the New York Post reported Friday. The prices were a product of Ticketmaster’s “dynamic pricing” system that prices to skyrocket if demand is high on the platform, according to the Post. One fan tweeted his reaction to finding a general admission ticket going for $1,125, saying simply, “Fuck off!”

    Many of the tickets were sold as “platinum tickets” which are tied to “dynamic pricing.” Nosebleed seats were priced over $1,000, according to the Post. Podcast producer John Palumbo responded over a video to the Springsteen ticket prices saying, “I’m rich and I think that’s fucking crazy.”

    “I will hire Back Streets to play in my yard for a week for cheaper than it would be to go to that show,” he said.

    Springsteen is not the only artist who has received backlash for high ticket prices. Paramore tickets for a Chicago show were priced as high as $8,018 for an upcoming show, according to the Post.”

    Liked by 1 person

  43. Yet another Hollyweird child who has been used and abused her entire life! Has she finally gone off the deep end?

    Entire Article (videos @ link): “Drew Barrymore has been known for her off-beat behavior, but her posts to TikTok in recent weeks have really stunned her fans, leaving them wondering if she’s possibly on something or if she’s really this bizarre. We don’t know if she’s actually on something, but Barrymore exhibits interesting behavior in some of her TikTok videos and seems completely lost in her own world. She seems to be oddly obsessed with being rained on and encouraged her fans to embrace the rain by heading outdoors in inclement weather.

    “Whenever you can, go out into the rain, do not miss the opportunity,” Barrymore said in one of her viral TikTok videos. In that particular video, the actress appeared with absolutely no makeup on at all, and it was evident that she was drenched. Her hair was slicked back from being rained on, and her face was still covered in water. Barrymore made a series of odd facial expressions while she encouraged her fans to seize the moment and get rained on as well.

    Barrymore had large glasses on. She was giddy and laughing hysterically with her head tilted to the sky as she screamed. It’s not only the rain that apparently gets Barrymore excited. She also posted a video that showed her exceptional joy after finding a hidden window while renovating her home.

    Her behavior appeared to be just a tad too excited about water falling from the sky and hidden windows, making fans wonder what made them seem far more exciting to her than they do for most of her fans.”

    https://dailycaller.com/2022/07/22/drew-barrymore-tiktok-videos-rain-hidden-window/

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Entire Article @ DC: “A Utah family is safe after their heroic dog protected them from a mountain lion hiding in their backyard on Tuesday. Ella, a 7-year-old Labrador, was outside with the family’s children as they played in the pool when something grabbed her attention in their yard, according to KSLTV News. “She was on point. She’s a hunting dog but she was just on point,” owner Crystal Michaelis explained to KSLTV.

      “She kept looking at the kids and then quickly looking back.” Michaelis continued. “She was just being very cautious and my daughter thought it was very concerning.” Ella, who usually plays with the children, even went so far as to nudge one of the children away when they tried to get her down from the rock wall in their yard, according to WTKR news.

      Once the children went inside the house, Ella was attacked, though the family was not aware of it until they heard her at their door, according to KSLTV. “We opened the back door and found Ella just bloodied. There was blood all over the door and all over the patio,” Michaelis said.

      Ella suffered injuries to her head, nose, tongue, legs and neck, and had more than 30 bite marks on her body, indicating that she never let down her protective stance, Michaelis explained to KSLTV.

      Police in Pleasant Grove, Utah, urged local residents to be cautious after confirming that Ella’s attacker was a mountain lion from tracks found in the yard, KSLTV reported. In a statement released on Facebook, Pleasant Grove Police encouraged residents to be aware of their surroundings and the whereabouts of their small children and also asked them to consider bringing their family pets inside.”

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          1. I have several grow lights – I used to have quite a few houseplants and I used them in the winter. They put off a different spectrum of light that is more muted – not exactly like black lights but similar. That specific spectrum interacting with the atmosphere is probably causing it.

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  46. We also need to ban lobbyists!!!!

    Entire Article @ DC: “Federal lobbyists have made huge profits in the second quarter of 2022, according to financial disclosures reviewed by Politico, while many Americans continue to feel the effects of inflation and the ongoing energy crisis.

    Of the top twenty lobbying firms by revenue, just two saw revenue decreases when compared with the first three months of the year, Politico reported. The lobbying boom was largely attributable to reconciliation negotiations between Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, as well hotly contested deliberations on whether to dole out subsidies to domestic semiconductor companies.

    Firms leading the pack for lobbying revenues in the second quarter were Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, and Holland & Knight, reeling in $15.2 million, $12.8 million, and $10.7 million respectively, Politico reported. The largest individual contract, between semiconductor firm Qualcomm and Covington & Burling, was worth $1.4 million.

    K Street’s revenues come as the rest of the economy is facing decades-high inflation and teetering on the edge of a recession. The Consumer Price Index, a key gauge of inflation, soared to 9.1% in June, while the U.S. economy contracted in the first quarter of 2022 as Americans have been forced to spend less on basic goods thanks to sky-high energy prices.

    The top spenders included the Chamber of Commerce, a trade organization representing U.S. businesses, and the National Association of Realtors, who spent $15.8 million and $14.8 million respectively, according to Politico.”

    Analysts also expect the third quarter to be a productive one for the lobbying industry thanks to the midterm elections, and Democrats will likely try to get legislation passed while they still have control, leading to a flurry of lobbying activity, according to Politico. (RELATED: ‘A Definite Slowdown’: Business Owners Say They’re Already Seeing Signs Of A Recession”)

    “With changes of control possible in the House or Senate, clients are asking us how best to prepare for the possibility of competing agendas between Congress and the White House next year, while also being prepared for the possibility of renewed legislative activity if the Democrats maintain control,” Michele Pearce, the co-chair of Covington & Burling’s public policy practice, told Politico.”

    Liked by 1 person

  47. Entire Article @ DC; “SMART Alabama LLC, a subsidiary of Hyundai, has for several years used migrant child laborers as young as 12 years old in its factory in Alabama to manufacture car parts, according to a report by Reuters.

    The plant reportedly employed as many as 50 underage workers across various shifts at the plant, according to one adult migrant worker who worked for the plant until last year that spoke anonymously to Reuters. Another anonymous source, an adult U.S. citizen, claims she worked alongside about a dozen minors during her shift before she also left the plant last year, Reuters reports.

    After a Guatemalan migrant child went missing in February, police from Enterprise, Alabama, learned that the child worked in the Luverne factory, according to Reuters. The child, who lived in Enterprise and turns 14 this month, was eventually found almost 300 miles away in Athens, Georgia, with another SMART migrant worker, Alvaro Cucul, 21, who was eventually deported, according to Reuters.

    The girl’s father confirmed to Reuters that she worked alongside her brothers, aged 12 and 15. Interviews with over a dozen anonymous former employees confirm that most underage workers did not attend schooling, according to Reuters. After the incident, which generated significant local news coverage, SMART reportedly dismissed the majority of its underage laborers for fear of a police crackdown, according to former employees and familiar locals, Reuters reported.

    “SMART Alabama, LLC has a longstanding policy that requires compliance with all federal, state, and local laws. SMART denies any allegation that it knowingly employed anyone who is ineligible for employment under these laws. SMART finds the act of human trafficking and the exploitation of vulnerable populations tragic,” a SMART spokesman told the DCNF.

    The SMART Alabama plant has been fined $48,515 in OSHA penalties since 2013, including for crush and amputation hazards, according to Reuters. The plant’s general manager wrote to a U.S. consular official in a 2020 letter that the plant was “severely lacking in labor” when seeking a visa for a Mexican worker, according to Reuters.

    “Hyundai does not tolerate illegal employment practices in any Hyundai entity. We have policies and procedures in place that require compliance with all local, state, and federal laws,” a Hyundai spokesman told the Daily Caller News Foundation.”

    Liked by 1 person

      1. And child labor is illegal – here in NE, the kids always used to get summer jobs de-tasseling corn. Now, they can’t even do that, if they even would these days – kids are waaaaay too spoiled these days!

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