Retiring Guy's Digest: 2015-01-11

Saturday, January 17, 2015

GO PACK GO!!

Who will win Green Bay Packers vs. Seattle Seahawks: Predictions for the 2015 NFC Championship Game. (nj.com.com, 1/17/2015)

The Seahawks are heavily favored in ChrisChristieland.

So the question immediately arises......when was the last time Rick Perry had sex?

Starting at 0:44. "I'm-I'm-I'm just gonna tell ya from -- heh -- from my own personal, ah, life, abstinence works."

Thanks for sharing, Gail Collins!

Texas is Sending You a Present. (The New York Times, 1/16/2015)

No Friend to the Environment: Republican Representative Charles W. Boustany, Jr., M.D., Louisiana's 3rd Congressional District

Photo source: U.S. Congress

Text source: Congressman Charles W. Boustany, Jr. M.D.

Boustany M.D. was re-elected to a 6th term with 79% of the vote.

Recommended reading for Rep. Boustany M.D. and the constituents in his south Louisiana district.

National climate change report says effects on Louisiana will be significant, costly. (New Orleans Times Picayune, 5/7/2014)

No Friend to the Environment dishonor roll.

Alabama Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives. (Their anti-environmentalism can be summed up in one word: coal. Which is odd, since Alabama contributes a mere 1.9% of U.S. production, good enough for an overall ranking of 13. The state's peak year of production: 1990)

1st District. Bradley Byrne (R). Proposed an amendment that would have cut all FY 2015 funding for the Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
2nd District. Martha Roby (R). Voted YES on opening Outer Continental Shelf to oil drilling and barring EPA from regulating greenhouse gases. Signed the No Climate Tax Pledge by Americans for Prosperity.
3rd District. Mike Rogers (R). League of Conservation scorecard: 2013: 0%. Lifetime (2003-): 9%.
4th District. Robert Aderholt (R). Without bothering to fact-check, he uses a discredited petition rejecting climate change to make a point.
5th District. Mo Brooke (R). Climate Experts Testify that Climate Change Projections are Unreliable and Misleading.
6th District. Stephen Baucus (R). League of Conservation scorecard: 2013: 0% Lifetime (1993- ): 8%

Alaska Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

At-large District. Don Young (R). Ridiculed environmentalists as a “self-centered bunch of waffle-stomping, Harvard-graduating, intellectual idiots.....not Americans, never have been Americans, never will be Americans.”

Arizona Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

4th District. Paul Gosar (R). Takes his environmental cues from cattle and sheep producers.
5th District. Matt Salmon (R). This quote sums up his view: “I found the source of global warming is coming from the hot air coming out of Washington.” Signed Koch Brothers "No Climate Tax" pledge.
6th District. David Schweikert (R). Known to throw a hissy over "the Al Gores of the world". Chairs House Subcommittee on Environment.
8th District. Trent Franks (R). League of Conservation scorecard:2013: 11%. Lifetime (since 2003): 5%.

Arkansas Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

1st District. Rick Crawford (R). Vow to his constituents: "As long as the Obama EPA continues its assault on farmers, I will continue to fight senseless regulations that only serve to cripple American agriculture."
2nd District. Tim Griffin (R). Perhaps one of the few scientists in the Republican House caucus. As far as global warming is concerned, he claims "that there are a lot of shenanigans going on with the data."
3rd District. Steve Womack (R). Loves his fossil fuels.
4th District. Tom Cotton (R). Claims the earth's temperature hasn't warmed in 16 years, a climate denier meme. The reality: 9 of the 10 warmest years on record occurred since 1998.

California Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

1st District. Doug LaMalfa (R). Ask him about air conditioners, packing plants, or praying for rain.
4th District. Tom McClintock (R). Still smarting that he never received a Nobel Prize in the 3rd grade.
8th District. Paul Cook (R). ALEC shill for the Keystone pipeline.
10th District. Jeff Denham (R). Appears to think that climate skeptics are on "the right side of the issue."
21st District. David Valadao (R). Represents a portion of California's Central Valley, a hotbed of climate skepticism, as the representative's League of Conservation Voters scorecard indicates.
22nd District. Devin Nunes (R). Throws hissy fit, a Republican specialty, over what he calls Obama's extremist climate agenda.
23rd District. Kevin McCarthy (R). Bemoans those dang "harmful regulations".
25th District. Buck McKeon (R). 7% lifetime score on League of Conservation Voters' National Environment Scorecard after 24 years in House.
31st District. Gary Miller (R). 3% lifetime score on League of Conservation Voters' National Environment Scorecard after 14 years in House.
39th District. Ed Royce (R). A liberal among the California Republican caucus: a 13% lifetime score on the League of Conservation Voters' National Environment Scorecard.
42nd District. Ken Calvert (R). Although comfortably ensconced in the Republican environmental mainstream, he's not above making an heretical remark or two.
45th District. John Campbell (R). Signer of Americans for Prosperity "No Climate Tax Pledge"; 9% lifetime score from the League of Conservative Voters,
48th District. Dana Rohrabacher (R). Mouths the same climate denier meme as the newly elected U.S. Senator from Arkansas.
49th District. Darrell Issa (R). The richest member of Congress, he recently won the League of Conservation Voters "Climate Denier Award".
50th District. Duncan Hunter (R). Can you top this? "Thousands of people die every year of cold, so if we had global warming it would save lives."

Colorado Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

3rd District. Scott Tipton (R). Tree rings tell us all we need to know.
4th District. Cory Gardner (R). Another beneficiary of the 2010 Tea Party wave. And he adjusted his views accordingly.
5th District. Doug Lamborn (R). Works tirelessly to assure that climate change remains "an extremely controversial topic". (Is also a big fan of impeaching Obama.)
6th District. Mike Coffman (R). Solidly parks his butt in the the-science-is-not-quite-settled camp.

No House Republicans hail from Connecticut and Delaware.
Florida Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

1st District. Jeff Miller (R). "Flintstones, meet the Flintstones. They're the modern Stone Age fam-a-lee."
2nd District. Steve Southerland (R). Spouts the company line.
3rd District. Ted Yoho (R). "I'm not smart enough for that."
4th District. Ander Crenshaw (R). All talk, no action.
6th District. Ron DeSantis (R). As reported by ThinkProgress, a majority of Congressional Republicans are climate deniers. At this point in the exercise, we appear to have unanimity.
7th District. John Mica (R). 7% lifetime score from League of Conservation Voters after 22 years in the House.
8th District. Bill Posey (R). Sez climate change has been with us since the Earth was formed. (Pick your date.)
10th District. Daniel Webster (R). 9% score from League of Conservation Voters during his 2 terms in office.
11th District. Richard Nugent (R). 6% score from League of Conservation Voters during his 2 terms in office.
12th District. Gus Bilirakis (R). Big fan of fossil fuels.
13th District. David Jolly (R). Happy to drift along with the fossil-fuel flow.
15th District. Dennis Ross (R) It's all about personal responsibility.
16th District. Vern Buchanan (R). Proud to represent his rich waterfront property owners.
17th District. Tom Rooney (R). One of 48 Republican House members with a 0% score from the National League of Conservation Voters in 2013.
19th District. Curt Clawson (R). Suggests that climate change "may not exist".
25th District. Mario Diaz-Balart (R). Not ready to jump on the global warming bandwagon.
27th District. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R). Chicken Little, apparently, is one of her favorite folk tales.

Georgia Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

1st District. Jack Kingston (R). Ask him about climate change, and he'll give you his troglodyte views on evolution.
3rd District. Lynn Westmoreland (R). One of the Republicans who threw a hissy fit when the Defense Department announced its climate change initiative.
6th District, Tom Price (R). During 2009 floor debate on a climate-change bill, he asked colleagues for a moment of silence for lost jobs.
7th District. Rob Woodall (R). Like his colleague Lynn Westmoreland, Rob believes that climate change discussions should be, at best, marginalized, not expanded.
8th District. Austin Scott (R). "Absolutely" skeptical when it comes to climate change.
9th District. Doug Collins (R). Ranked by National Journal as the most conservative member of the state's House delegation (90.2% rating, 16th overall).
10th District. Paul Broun (R). Believes that climate change is one of the greatest hoaxes perpetrated by the scientific community. Got his butt kicked in the 2014 Georgia Republican primary for U.S. Senate.
11th District. Phil Gingrey, M.D. (R). Surgical masks for every cow.
14th District. Tom Graves (R). Has a facility for stringing cliches together.

Idaho Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

1st District. Raul Labrador (R). According to this list, one of the scariest.
2nd District. Mike Simpson (R). Tries to come across as reasonable, but his words are contradicted by his 7% lifetime score from the League of Conservative Voters. (Lifetime = 9 terms, 18 years.)

Illinois Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

6th District. Peter Roskam (R). Once referred to climate change as "junk science".

13th District. Rodney Davis (R). Content to spout the company line.
14th District. Randy Hultgren (R). Asserted in 2009 that "we're headed in to a bit of a colder time."
15th District. John Shimkus (R). "The B-I-B-L-E/yes, that's the book for me/I stand alone on the word of God/the B-I-B-L-E!!"
16th District. Adam Kinzinger (R). Gives new meaning to "all-inclusive".
18th District. Aaron Schock (R). When it comes to support of environmental issues, he's all talk and no action.

Indiana Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

2nd District. Jackie Walorski (R). “That’s My Congress” notes Rep. Walorski has followed a conservative course when voting on environmental legislation -- and everything else, for that matter. Earned a 0% rating from the League of Conservation Voters after her first year in the House.
3rd District. Martin Stutzman (R). Signed Americans for Prosperity’s “No Climate Tax Pledge” a month before being sworn in as a member of Congress in 2010.
4th District. Todd Rokita (R). This climate change denier respects "God's green earth". Anyone who thinks otherwise is arrogant.
5th District. Susan Brooks (R). The Walorski summary fits Brooks to a T.
6th District. Luke Messer (R). Considers climate change a social issue.
8th District. Larry Bucshon M.D. (R). Climatologists are only in it for the money.
9th District. Todd Young (R). Describes himself as a climate agnostic.

Iowa Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

3rd District. Tom Latham (R). Earned a 8% lifetime score from the League of Conservative Voters in his 20 years of Congressional service.
4th District. Steve King (R). Rep. King explains it all for you.

Kansas Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

1st District. Tim Huelskamp (R). A fossil fuel kinda guy, More development and utilization = jobs jobs jobs.
2nd District. Lynn Jenkins (R). Knows how to tap dance her way through a town hall forum.
3rd District. Kevin Yoder (R).http://paulsnewsline.blogspot.com/2015/01/no-friend-to-environment-republican_9.html More of the same.
4th District. Mike Pompeo (R). Uses social media to trumpet his climate skepticism.

Kentucky Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

1st District. Ed Whitfield (R). In the pocket of coal industry.
2nd District. Brett Guthrie (R). Another Corncracker Soldier fighting against the "War on Coal".

4th District. Thomas Massie (R). Not your garden-variety Republican.
5th District. Harold Rogers (R). Serves as the Supreme Commander in the fight against the War on Coal.
6th District. Andy Barr (R). A foot soldier fighting against the War on Coal.

Louisiana Congressional delegation: U.S. House of Representatives

1st District. Steve Scalise (R). The empty-headedness of GOP talking points. You can't make this stuff up.
3rd District. Charles W. Boustany, Jr., M.D. (R). From coal to oil. "All politics is local".

Selma Alabama Times 3

A Long March Into History. Stephen Somerstein Photos in ‘Freedom Journey 1965’. (The New York Times, 1/16/2015)

For all involved, danger was ever-present. The march, which covered 54 miles and took five days, from March 21 to 25, had been preceded by two traumatic aborted versions. On March 7, 600 people trying to walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge over the Alabama River leading out of Selma to Montgomery were accused by local law officials of gathering illegally and were savagely assaulted by state troopers.

Sunday, March 7, 1965. The march is shown in the first 3:33 of this video.

Tuesday, March 9, 1965.

Two days later, a second group, this one led by Dr. King, approached the bridge, knelt to pray and turned back. If the retreat was intended as a symbolic rebuke to violence, it did no good. That night, a Unitarian minister from Boston* named James J. Reeb, in town for the event, was beaten on the street by a group of Selma racists and died.

(*I'm sure the New York Times will print a correction. Perhaps Holland Carter can't imagine an advocate for racial justice traveling from Wyoming to Alabama in 1965.)

March 21-25, 1965.

By the time of the third march, certain protective measures were in place. The force of public opinion was one. Pictures of the attack at the bridge had been widely seen in print and on national television: All eyes were on Selma now.

The Americans: The Colonial Experience. Book 3. Language and the Printed Word. Part 12: A Conservative Press

Chapter 49. The Decline of the Book

output of books very small considering intellectual energy

other types of printed grew in profusion

reasons for book's lack of development

scarcity of type
scarcity and poor quality of paper

Stamp Act and Townshend Acts both taxed paper among other items
correspondence written on any scraps of paper to be found
paper that was manufactured was not made to last

inferior ink
printing presses had to be imported
imported book became staple of American bookseller

American printing lagged technically behind England's
printer tried to cover investment through advance subscriptions

had to play it safe
solidly conventional list of publications

few books of lasting significance appeared

religious books proliferated in North
legal books in South

Chapter 50. The Rise of the Newspaper

American printers left free to serve special needs of his community
presses were flourishing by mid 18th century
bulk of printed material was government work in early years

statutes
votes and proceedings of colonial assemblies
legal and commercial forms, a staple commodity

almanacs

most important printed matter next to Bible for many farmers
back numbers kept for reading matter
spread up-to-date political information, opinion and argument in pre-Revolutionary era

larger income and future lay with newspaper

by early 18th century, newspapers had become a familiar institution
precocious development
growth stimulated by circumstances

spread of literacy
extent of the country
existence of several capitals, each with its own different ways
competition among a number of seaboard cities

symbol of how Americans broke down all distinctions

need to be useful and relevant, not requiring long study and concentration
mixed the public and private
took the community into account with a view to action and specific events rather than universal principles

advertising

saved the newspaper from becoming too literary
history of journalism shows tie to commercial spirit

magazines

mixed literary form
first one with continuous history appeared in 1741
few, short-lived, and pallid sums up overall output
practiced habit of copying articles from other, mostly English publications

Chapter 51. Why Colonial Printed Matter was Conservative

tight, effective control by government

no secret presses
no real freedom of the press as we know it

traditional European idea of a monopoly of the press to cement the social order was successfully transplanted
influence of New England

more than half the colonial imprints between 1639 and 1763
press restrictions were single largest influence
government control remained effective into Revolutionary era and during war itself

printing began under government supervision in all the colonies

no press in Virginia from 1683 until 1730
only one until 1767, an official organ of government
outside of Boston, Philadelphia and New York were two leading printing centers
government support meant government control

confinement of the American press

government control
censorship
threat of libel prosecution

under these restrictions, colonial presses could hardly be centers of novel, startling or radical ideas

printers' need to be a government man acceptable to ruling group
only government business made it possible for a man to live by his press

Chapter 52. "The Publick Printer"

steps to success

winning confidence of government
discovering sources of news
finding ways of distributing his commodity quickly
results led to the development of an unprecedented network of public information which eventually would link a vast nation together

aspects of life which increased printer's influence

large number of separate governments
this gave a focus and practical purpose to printed matter
put printing press in service of entire literate community

men qualified to be public printers were always in demand

became an American institution
influence in public life foreshadowed special American relationship between politics and the press (e.g., Presidential press conference)

growth of responsibility

printer was chief local customer of post office

gathering place for men of affairs
postmaster had quickest and most confidential access to news through letters.

printer found it convenient to take on duties of local postmaster
printer's shop came to resemble a general store
advantage of being postmaster kept press in hands of respectable men
advantages developed by earliest printers

intimately acquainted with public tastes
learned the problems of selling and delivering printed matter to a wide audience

reason for first U.S post office

needs of the Continental Congress
new American army
rising colonial newspapers

system set up on model of William Goddard

man who had opposed post office monopoly under Franklin's rule as Deputy Postmaster General
Franklin chosen as first postmaster which sealed the continuing close relationship between the post office and politics

Related posts:
The Americans: The Colonial Experience by Daniel Boorstin, Book 1. The Vision and the Reality Part 1. A City Upon a Hill: The Puritans of Massachusetts. (12/8/2014)
The Americans: The Colonial Experience. Part 2. The Inward Plantation: The Quakers of Pennsylvania. (12/10/2014)
The Americans: The Colonial Experience. Part 3. Victims of Philanthropy: The Settlers of Georgia. (12/13/2014)
The Americans; The Colonial Experience, Part 4. Transplanters: The Virginians. (12/14/2014)
The Americans: The Colonial Experience. Book 2. Viewpoints and Institutions. Part 5: An American Frame of Mind. (12/17/2014)
The Americans: The Colonial Experience. Book 2. Viewpoints and Institutions. Part 6: Educating the Community
The Americans: The Colonial Experience. Book 2. Viewpoints and Institutions. Part 7: The Learned Lose Their Monopolies. (12/24/2014)
The Americans: The Colonial Experience. Book 2. Viewpoints and Institutions. Part 8: New World Medicine. (12/31/2014)
The Americans: The Colonial Experience. Book 2. Viewpoints and Institutions. Part 9: The Limits of American Science
The Americans: The Colonial Experience. Book 3. Language and the Printed Word. Part 10: The New Uniformity. (1/6/2015)
The Americans: The Colonial Experience. Book 3. Language and the Printed Word. Part 11: Culture Without a Capital; (1/11/2015)

Erwin Drake: These 3 Great Songs Are Among the Gems in his Songwriting Repertoire

Erwin Drake, Pop Songwriter, 95. (The New York Times, 1/16/2015)

He later collaborated with Irene Higginbotham on the lyrics for “Good Morning Heartache,” which Miss Holiday recorded in 1946. (She was said to have called it one of her favorite songs.) It was later recorded by a host of singers, including Ella Fitzgerald, Diana Ross and Alicia Keys.

“I Believe” was commissioned by Jane Froman, the singer and actress, as an antidote to angst over the Korean War. Described as the first hit song introduced on television, it was a huge hit for Mr. Laine in 1953 and has been recorded by dozens of others, including Elvis Presley, Perry Como and Patti LaBelle.

(In 1963, the Beaty Junior High School 7th grade chorus performed the song in the Spring Show.)

Mr. Drake wrote the words and music for the wistful “It Was a Very Good Year” in 1961 for Bob Shane of the Kingston Trio. Mr. Sinatra heard it on his car radio driving to Palm Springs, Calif., and his recording of it on a comeback album in 1966 hit the Top 10.

The Kingston Trio's version appears on their 1961 album, Goin' Places, which peaked at #3 and spent 41 weeks on Billboard's Top 200 albums chart.

The Frank Sinatra version appears on this 1965 album, September of My Years, which peaked at #5 and spent 69 weeks on Billboard's Top 200 albums. This song earned Sinatra the Grammy for Best Vocal Performance, Male.

La Ciotat, France: Europe's Superyacht Maintenance Capital

This one measures just under 50 meters.

Superyachts to the Rescue. (The New York Times, 1/16/2015)

When the entire ship, replete with helicopter pad and five staterooms, reached the height of the quay, it rode a motorized dolly sideways onto a grid of metal rails. Then it rolled toward the giant work shed where until March it will be cleaned, repaired and painted in a makeover costing 2 million euros, or $2.3 million.

Though yachting’s high season is still months away, winter is a busy time in this picturesque town in southeast France that is Europe’s largest yacht-maintenance and refitting seaport, as measured by revenue.

La Ciotat, yachtless.

Wisconsin Public Library Holdings: Dane County Print, Audio, Video (1996-2013)

Source: U.S. Census Bureau State and County Quickfacts

Public libraries in Dane County:

Source: Wisconsin Public Library Service Data

Percentage change by format, 1996-2013

Other posts in this series:

Adams County. (1/5/2015)

Ashland County. (1/6/2015)

Barron County. (1/7/2015)

Bayfield County. (1/8/2015)

Brown County. (1/9/2015)

Buffalo County. (1/10/2015)

Burnett County. (1/11/2015)

Calumet County. (1/12/2015)

Chippewa County. (1/13/2015)

Clark County. (1/14/2015)

Columbia County. (1/15/2015)

Crawford County. (1/16/2015)

Other Wisconsin public library statistics series:

Public Library Circulation and Program Attendance, 1996-2013. (Complete)

Public Access Internet Computers (1999-2013) and Print Serial Subscriptions (1996-2013). (Through Washington County as of 1/17/2015)

Total Annual Hours of Operation (1996-2013) and Total Square Footage (2000-2012) of Wisconsin Public Libraries. (Through Juneau County as of 1/17/2015)

Total Annual Hours of Operation (1996-2013) and Total Square Footage (2000-2013) of Wisconsin Public Libraries: Juneau County

Source: Wikipedia

Public libraries in Juneau County

Source: Wisconsin Public Library Service Data

From the Elroy Public Library history. In 2001, the library was remodeled to add more space – plus meeting room, kitchenette and a parking lot. After 6 months in temporary quarters, the Elroy Library reopened for Christmas in its sparkling new building.

Necedah's new library opened in late 2010.

As of December 10, 2014, the New Lisbon Memorial Library had $177,233.48 in its New Library Building Fund.

The Wonewoc Public Library broke ground for an addition to its 1939 structure in April 2013.

Winding Rivers Library System

Related posts:

Adams County. (12/22/2014)
Ashland County. (12/23/2014)
Barron County. (12/24/2014)
Bayfield County. (12/25/2014)
Brown County. (12/26/2014)
Buffalo County. (12/26/2014)
Calumet County. (12/27/2014)
Chippewa County. (12/28/2014)
Clark County. (12/29/2014)
Columbia County. (12/30/2014)
Crawford County. (12/31/2014)
Dane County. (1/1/2015)
Dodge County. (1/2/2015)
Door County. (1/3/2015)
Dunn County. (1/5/2014)
Eau Claire County. (1/6/2015)
Florence County. (1/7/2015)
Fond du Lac County. (1/8/2015)
Forest County. (1/9/2015)
Grant County. (1/10/2015)
Green County. (1/11/2015)
Green Lake County. (1/12/2015)
Iowa County. (1/13/2015)
Iron County. (1/14/2015)
Jackson County. (1/15/2015)
Jefferson County. (1/16/2015)

Washington County WI: Public Access Internet Computers (1999-2013) and Print Serial Subscriptions (1996-2013)

2010 population: 131,877

Public libraries in Washington County

This line-graph series is the result of my wondering if there's any pattern to the number of print serial subscriptions held by public libraries in relation to the increasing number of public access Internet computers provided by public libraries since 1999. (Earliest year for which Wisconsin statistics are available.)

Note: The 1996, 1997, 1998 Wisconsin public library annual reports asked for the following information: Libraries with Internet access. (Answered yes or no.) Libraries with electronic services. (Answered yes or no.) In 1999, public libraries reported the number of public access Internet computers for the first time in the annual report.