Ernie Haase & Signature Sound Quartet with the Gaither Vocal Band sing “He Touched Me”

Gordon Mote is the blind piano player in this video. He is a regular member of the Gaither Vocal Band. Gordon is also a studio musician for many country and pop singers.

Did you mail in your census form?

Navy denied access to Fox News on Friday

The Navy confirmed that members of the U.S. Navy were denied access to FoxNews.com for hours on Friday before service was finally restored shortly before noon ET.

Cmdr. Danny Hernandez, a Navy spokesman, claimed it was a technical issue rather than a policy issue.

Fox News received e-mails from Navy personnel around the world on Friday complaining that they could not gain access to the Web site. They said they were able to view numerous other news Web sites.

When they tried to access FoxNews.com, the following message appeared: "Access to this site has been denied in accordance with Navy policy to safeguard the security
posture and/or to maintain the operational integrity of the NMCI."

NMCI stands for Navy Marine Corps Internet.

Link

NASA spending cuts and the unintended consequences

Arcosanti - the green sustainable future that doesn't work

From a report in the Washington Examiner:

In the high desert of central Arizona, more than five thousand miles from the global-warming summit in Copenhagen, sits an aging and unfinished vision of the enviro-friendly, sustainable life that some climate change activists foresee for us all.

It's called Arcosanti, created in 1970 by the Italian architect Paolo Soleri, and it is the prototype of a green community of the future.

The only problem is, it doesn't work. And it never did.

The photos below were taken at Arcosanti, the failed experimental green town in the desert of Arizona, built to express Paolo Soleri's concept of arcology (the fusion of architecture and ecology).

(click on aerial photo above to enlarge)

After nearly 40 years there are only a few buildings. They are “gray, leaky and crumbling.”










The writer continues:

On the chilly December day when I visited recently, there were maybe 50 people there, and there are never, even in good weather, more than 100 or 150 inhabitants, mostly students who come to learn about Soleri's radical environmental and architectural ideas.

In one of the common areas, there were piles of empty cardboard boxes, an empty Mountain Dew carton, a couple of children's bikes with training wheels, and pools of water from the previous day's rain.

When I took a look at the "Sky Suite," a spare and minimally furnished apartment with a lovely view of the canyon, the man staying there had put a towel under the door in an attempt to keep the water out.

It didn't work; on the floor was a soaked towel and a pool of water. Everyone was cold, despite Arcosanti's vaunted solar heating system.

The Paolo Soleri plan was to prohibit cars, yet dozens of cars are scattered about the property.

The title of this report sums up this failure rather nicely. It’s “the green future that doesn't work.”


Did Arcosanti sink this low?

The photo of this decrepit bus was taken at Arcosanti. It appears to be in use. Not as a vehicle for transportation but as a dwelling!

Link

Stranded leader runs Norway by iPad

Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg (pictured), stranded in New York City due to an erupting volcano.


Stoltenberg was in the U.S for the nuclear summit.

His solution to governing his country by remote? Buy an iPad. To govern his country with an iPad -- he must have found an app for that.

Link

April 15 - soon to be known as Spread the Wealth Day

Upside down house in Germany

This house was built upside uʍop in Gettorf, northern Germany.

The fully furnished so-called "crazy house" has a kitchen, a bathroom, a living room and a sleeping room. Visitors have to pay an entry fee to enter this tourist attraction which is set up at the local zoo.

Link here for the upside down house in Poland.

India Security Force high stepping on parade

India's Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) assistant commandants march during their passing out parade in the outskirts of Hyderabad, India.

Losing heads in Pearland Texas

George Washington along other presidents are victims of foreclosure as Pearland, Texas loses its heads.


The photo shows a giant bust of George Washington as it is removed from Presidential Park because the place has been placed under foreclosure.

Workers moved six presidential busts in Pearland to their creator’s studio after developers lost a struggle with bankers to save the site from foreclosure.

The statues were placed in David Adickes’ studio for storage along with the rest of the 44 crafted for Presidential Park in the WaterLights District.

Developers own the statues planned for the project and said they are looking for a second location to build the Park, which would feature all of the 18- to 20-foot busts.

The statues moved Tuesday were those of presidents George H.W. Bush, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy.

Link

Arizona passes tough immigration bill

Look for illegals to begin fleeing Arizona for states soft on immigration such as California.

Arizona lawmakers on Tuesday passed one of the toughest pieces of immigration-enforcement legislation in the country, which would make it a violation of state law to be in the U.S. without proper documentation.

The report at the link below says the bill could still face a veto from Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer (pictured) who has not publicly commented on the bill. However, the governor has argued for stringent immigration laws.

The law would grant police the power to stop and verify the immigration status of anyone they suspect of being illegal.

More here.

It’s that time of the year again…

Change we can believe in?

Finger pointing at the Nuclear Security Summit

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev (left) and French President Nicolas Sarkozy (right) point fingers at each other during the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, DC.

Gum wrapper prom dress

High school junior Elizabeth Rasmuson from Garner, Iowa made her prom dress out of gum wrappers and even made a matching vest for her boyfriend, Jordan Weaver.


Her mother said, “she’s a junior in high school and in today’s world a lot of the girls are worried about fitting in; they don’t want to stand out for the wrong reason so it’s really cool and so unique.”

Elizabeth and Jordan have been collecting Wrigley’s “5″ gum wrappers since last August to make this happen.

She finished her dress with a vinyl topcoat because the wrappers break easily.

Link

An alpaca rides a wave on a surfboard

Surfer Domingo Pianezzi rides a wave with his alpaca named Pisco at San Bartolo beach in Lima, Peru.

Pianezzi has spent a decade training dogs to ride the nose of his board when he catches waves, and now he is the first to do so with an alpaca.

Reuters photo

Why did Sarah Palin resign as governor of Alaska?

Many have wondered why Sarah Palin stepped down as governor of Alaska. The reason is simple - money.

Pundits can debate the political costs and benefits of Sarah Palin’s decision to step down as Alaska governor, but the monetary advantages of leaving her $125,000-a-year public service post are beyond dispute.

Since leaving office at the end of July 2009, the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee has brought in at least 100 times her old salary -- a haul now estimated at more than $12 million -- through television, book deals and a heavy schedule of speaking appearances worth five and six figures.

The amounts are a conservative estimate based on publicly available records and news accounts.

Palin does not publicize her earnings, and has managed to keep a lid on reliable figures for her earnings from a multi-year contract with Fox News and a second book deal with HarperCollins.

A Palin aide responding to questions from ABC News said the governor “is now a private citizen. As a result, her fees and earnings are private.”

Link

Snooki’s bedazzled sun glasses

Nicole 'Snooki' Polizzi was seen wearing these interesting gem-decorated sunglasses last week in Miami.

Not sure if anyone could see in - wonder if she could see out.

Photos - Obama greeting world leaders

Bowing to Chinese leader Hu Jintao

Hugging progressive Brazil President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva

Waving a finger in the face of conservative Canada Prime Minister Stephen Harper

A kiss for Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel

Photos were taken during the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, Monday April 12, 2010.

A little red in with the black

Audience members listen to the testimony of former Citigroup Chief Executive Charles Prince and Robert Rubin, former chairman of the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors at Citigroup, at the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington.

The red shoes are really nice. The legs … not so much.

…Reuters photo via Time Magazine

Can acupuncture ease dental anxiety?

A report on alternative medicine at the link below deals with relieving dental anxiety by using a five-minute acupuncture treatment.

The median level of anxiety among 20 patients was significantly reduced after acupuncture and completion of their respective procedures.

The findings suggest acupuncture can help combat moderate-to-severe anxiety associated with going to the dentist, along with distraction techniques, sedatives, antidepressants, and beta blockers.

I have never had dental anxiety in spite of more than 20 teeth with restorations, including crowns and inlays.

However, I have known enough people with acute dental anxiety to realize it is a serious problem.

One lady never knew when her next dental appointment was. Her husband would stop by the office, pick her up and take her to the dentist. If she knew ahead of time she would find dozens of excuses to cancel the appointment. Another needed to take Valium before his visit to the dentist.

As to acupuncture -- I personally would be skeptical about any positive results by using this procedure.

Just last week I allowed a therapist to use acupuncture to help ease sciatic nerve pain. It didn’t help.

Link

Report: ObamaCare’s doctorless world

A grim report on the doctorless world of ObamaCare.

In rural areas of the country, obtaining a doctor's appointment is practically mission impossible.

Even in cities such as Boston and Manhattan, it can be very difficult for patients to attain the medical care they badly need, particularly for Medicare and Medicaid patients.

From New York's Upper East Side to the heartland to San Francisco's Haight Ashbury, a striking physician shortage exists in this country.

The reasons for the dearth of doctors are complex, but one thing is certain: The "health care reform" that President Obama ardently pushed down the public's throat and recently signed into law will not increase the scant supply of doctors. In fact, it will make the problem worse.

We can’t say all this will be the result of unintended consequences because the results are very predictable proving ObamaCare bill wasn't about health care but about the government gaining power.

We will someday long for the “good old days” when a primary care physician decided the best treatment for us rather than non-medical government bureaucrat.

Link

The creepy new Tiger Woods Nike TV ads

Tiger Woods doesn’t speak in the creepy Nike TV ads. The voice is that of Earl Woods, the deceased father of Tiger.

The tarnished sports icon is featured in a new Nike television commercial launched Thursday (April 8) entitled "Earl and Tiger." In the black-and-white ad, Tiger Woods is seen solemnly facing the camera.

As the shot slowly zooms in on his face, a voice-over of Woods' late father, Earl Woods, is heard saying, "Tiger, I am more prone to be inquisitive to promote discussion. I want to find out what your thinking was. I want to find out what your feelings are. And did you learn anything?''

Link

Counterfeiters pass the buck in Alaska

Evidence of a low-stakes counterfeit operation showed up recently in Juneau, Alaska.

Juneau police say the economy may be affecting lawbreakers when employees at a Juneau bar opened up their tip jar to find counterfeit money in an unusual denomination - one dollar bills.

Jack Tripp, owner of the Viking Lounge, says that in the 19 years he has owned the establishment, it has received counterfeit money only twice. Both times were in the last year, and both times they were fake $20 bills.

Juneau Police Department spokeswoman Cindee Brown-Mills says the latest fake bills were probably printed off the Internet. Some were blank on one side.

She says the economy must be really bad if people are counterfeiting $1 bills.

Link

Tina Fey back on SNL as Sarah Palin

Funny girl Tina Fey was back on Saturday Night Live with another skit impersonating former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.

There is a short video of the latest skit at the link below.

This Palin impersonation is especially funny because it also shows a “dumber than a rock” view of Katie Couric.

Link

Poll: 58% support the repeal of ObamaCare

Not only did Obama not get a “poll bump” for passage of healthcare, the results of a Rasmussen Reports poll says 58% of respondents support the repeal of the new national health care plan.

Click here for the support for repeal of ObamaCare story.
Click here for the no poll bump for ObamaCare report.

Madonna’s trendy daughter

Madonna's trendy daughter, Lourdes sports wide framed eyeglasses along with unusual wearing apparel.

Just proves you don’t need to be trendy to be labeled trendy if you happen to be Madonna’s daughter.

Man files tax returns for 250 Dead People

A California man leads guilty to filing 250 tax returns for dead people.

Haroon Amin of Upland, California, pleaded guilty Monday to the charges. He was indicted, along with Ather Ali of Diamond Bar, California, in December 2008.

The two were accused of filing the returns in 2002 and 2003 falsely stating that the deceased individuals earned wages from which income tax was withheld. The false returns claimed more than $2 million in income tax refunds.

The IRS rejected most of the refund claims, but it issued a number of refund checks that were delivered to addresses controlled by Amin, Ali and their co-conspirators, including to various mailboxes opened by Ali using false forms of identification. Most of the refund checks were then delivered overseas to be deposited in bank accounts in Armenia and Pakistan.

Link

A vanity tax could increase tanning salon prices

Searching for ways to help fund the pork-laden ObamaCare bill, a vanity tax could be leveled at tanning salons.

Tanning salon fans are about to get burned.

The golden-glow lobby lost out to the tummy-tuck crowd when congressional Democrats chose their final victim for a vanity tax to help fund the health-care overhaul bill.

A 10% levy could be imposed on indoor tanning services this summer, bringing the total tax New Yorkers pay per session under the UV bulbs to 14.5%.

Link

Tigers tantrums continue at the Masters

In the past, when Tiger Woods (pictured) was a crowd and media favorite, reporters largely downplayed his club throwing and cursing during tournaments.

A report at the second link below says:

There is no question that Tiger is bad for golf, the game, but his behavior has been downplayed or ignored altogether by the media because Tiger is supposedly good for golf, the business.

Tiger was unable to control his emotions Saturday at the 74th Masters. He blasted out curses on several bad shots while staying in contention.

Woods unleashed a profane tirade during a run of three bogeys in four holes on the front nine, failing to live up to his goal of curtailing the curses out of respect for golf before eventually regaining his composure and shotmaking.

Link here and here.

Ft Hood massacre suspect moved from hospital to jail

The photo shown here was released by the Bell County Sheriffs Department and shows U.S. Major Nidal Hasan after he after was moved from Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio to Bell County Jail in Belton, Texas on Friday April 9, 2010.

Hasan had been at the military hospital since shortly after a Nov. 5 shooting spree at Fort Hood which left him paralyzed.

Nidal Hasan is charged with 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder.

Link