Roadwolf's Blog

I believe I have written about this before, however I think I need to re-hash this.

I heard some unknown scientist today talking on NPR about how President Obama should be using this Oil Spill in the Gulf to condem the oil industry and say hey, this may be a disaster, but it is also a similar disaster to use the same oil to pollute the air in our cars.

Well I wouldn’t expect Mr. Obama to say that, because it is utter garbage.  Okay, so maybe if we didn’t demand so much on oil, this spill may not have happened.  But saying that refined gasoline will pollute the earth as much as the crude oil is, is absurd.  Saying that would make Mr. Obama look like an uneducated puppet, which he is not.

I don’t know what they promote in this unknown scientists ‘college’ in Vermont, but I do not imagine it is a well known place of study.

It is well known that global warming is natural, and only slightly influenced by human activities.  A single volcano like the one in Europe that erupted earlier this year, puts out more carbons into the atmosphere then we do in a year.   And volcanoes are erupting every day.  The earth is unstable,  its temperature is never constant.  It is influenced by the Sun, by the Moon, by the internal workings of our planet.  Our influence has very little effect in the long run.

Eventually the earth will not support human life anymore.  Not because of anything we have done (unless it is nuclear war), but because a cosmic event will happen which may change the world as we know it.   These events are bound to happen every few hundred thousand years.  Be it a super-volcano like the one under Yellowstone, which could wipe out all of Western North America., or a comet, or meteoroid.

So all you Global Warming freaks who thing that just because our planet has warmed up by 1 degree – that it is a global emergency; go suck on a lemon.  Sure, being green is good!  I fully support the move for clean energy, and nuclear energy.  But do not panic over it.  Also, Green energy will have its side effects as well…  Everything has side effects.  Solar Cells will reflect / block the suns energy from reaching the ground, and thusly effect the ground under them.   Wind turbines cause issues for birds, and may also un-naturally slow down prevailing winds slightly enough to alter local weather patterns.

Just some food for thought.

Tags: Nature, News by Roadwolf
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Lately it has come to the attention of the media that the Red Cross has been not only treating the wounded in Afghanistan, but also training the Taliban in survival and first aid skills, as well as supplying them with the equipment to do so.  While the goal of the Red Cross is to remain as neutral as possible, it admits that this is a unique situation.

Regardless of the situation however, many believe that the act of giving the Taliban gear and equipment crosses the line.  Jerry Agar of Toronto’s Newstalk 1010 argues that this is a kin to equipting the enemy for battle.

A retired Canadian Armed forces general was asked about the issue, and responded with nothing but positive things to say about the Red Cross.  He cleaimed that since our troops are so amazingly trained, we do not need the training or equipment the Red Cross provides.  In fact every Canadian troop is trained Advanced first aid – bordering on Paramedic level training.  When you compare that to the Talibans, or to the Afghan people, you would be lucky to find someone who knew basic first aid in a small village of a couple hundred people.

The International Red Cross also retorted that it is staying neutral.  However in this case since there are no real front lines, it is safer for the Red Cross to train the Taliban, and supply them with the equipment to treat themselves, then it is to try to follow them around and aid them on the move.

Regardless, it is still interesting that the Red Cross is aiding the Taliban, as the Taliban is one group that does not follow the Geneva Convention which the Red Cross helped draw out.

It will be interesting to see how, or if this plays out in US Media.

Tags: News by Roadwolf
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Well I must say, this has been the most enjoyable holiday season I have had in a long time.  The chance to get up and see my family and friends for Christmas was very nice indeed.  This year has been a tough year at times for me.  It has also been a very interesting and joyful year at times.

The past year started off with myself finally getting my U.S. Resident status.  Thus the epic job hunt began.  Nightbird and myself also started the year off by looking to purchase a house.  Sadly that never happened, but it is likely for the better at this point seeming as I still can’t find a job.

In February I met up with Kelly, and we hit it off.  The feeling of love was strong and kept me afloat for the next few months.  I became more involved with a clan called FLC on Team Fortress 2 and began running their server.  I became less involved with WoW, eventually quitting all together, only to find out my account was stolen.  I got my account returned, but still have not returned myself.

The adventure into the polyamorous world has been an interesting twist this year.  I must say that it is not as easy as I thought it would be.  I know that this lifestyle rubs a few people the wrong way, but it is what it is.  I do love my wife very much, and I consider myself a lot closer to her now then I was before.

In August I was accepted into the Firehall.  Since then my life has had a bit more direction then it has in the recent past.  I am now a firefighter!  And it gave me an excuse to get out and do things and feel like an active member of society again.  With all that time being devoted towards the firehall, a 2nd relationship (i.e. polyamorous) was taking its toll on me.  I sadly had to break that relationship off    But in the end, I think the outcome was better off for Kelly.     Her and I are still close, and good friends, which I am super happy with.

I ended 2009 with a cold    But I still attended a new years party at the fire hall, then came back home before midnight and worked on setting up a 2nd server for the FLC Clan, as my gift to them.  I still have yet to find a job however, and my hopes are dwindling.  Seriously, if any of you readers here know of a job opening, let me know.

I wish everyone a happy and prosperous 2010!  I hope it will find people in better circumstances across the board.

Tags: Buffalo Life, General, News, Polyamory by Roadwolf
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Tags: News by Roadwolf
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No, I am not speaking about the tons and tons of illegally dumped uranium and other radioactive wastes from the Manhattan Project.  However this story does involve the Military.

I have gotten wind of a training excercise which will be happening in the area over the next few weeks.  Basically the Military will be taking over many locations in the area to do a mock disaster relief / rescue operation.  Several locations will be involved in this massive search and rescue operation.  Some such sites will be the Spalding Fiber location, where bodies (unknown if their alive volunteers or training dummies) will be buried in piles of rubble.  Search dogs and military search and rescue teams will work to find the bodies, and recover them.  Other sites will range from the Tonawanda Fire Towers to various other abandoned sites located in North Tonawanda, Niagara Falls, and Lewiston.

The general storyline is that on November 1st, 2009, a earthquake will occur in the area, destroying the City of Tonawanda’s only (non existing) hospital.  1,200 Military Troops, and approximately 400 civilian responders will be called in in large convoys to preform search and rescue of other sites which were destroyed by the mock earthquake.

Sadly however, while apparently local agencies are welcomed to be involved, so far there has been no word from the military as to if such agencies will be involved or not.

The Military will be setting up a command post, and will be using military vehicles and helicopters in this drill.

Tags: Buffalo Life, News, Volunteer Work by Roadwolf
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Yes it is true! Ontario has finally banned cell phones while driving.  Drivers may wear earpieces or use in car speakerphone technology, however they can no longer text, dial or hold a phone to their ear while driving. Drivers are also banned from being able to view ANY display screen while driving.  The only exceptions are ‘equipted’ GPS units, and screens which are built in to the vehicle to monitor or control functions of the vehicle.

This basically means that Laptop computers, DVD players and other such devices can not be mounted in view of the front seats.

A note of interest to HAM Radio operators, is that “The use of hand-held radios by amateur radio operators (who provide assistance, especially in emergency situations such as severe storms and blackouts) will be phased out within three years, to allow hands-free technologies to be developed.”

Now, the way I read that, is that the law specifically applies to hand held radios, and mobile radios with hand held microphones are exempt.  Most savvy HAM’s have mobile radios anyhow.  And most new portable (or hand held) radios have a VOX mode for a headset.

The problem that I see happening with the VOX for HAM’s is that it is very possible to inadvertently swear over the air, as Toronto traffic often makes people swear.  This also will likely cause a lot more dead keying, as traffic noise or broadcast radio noise (music) causes the radio to open up without the operator knowing.  The airwaves are noisy and busy enough in the Toronto area to have to deal with dead keying, or someone sitting on their microphone, or someone swearing at traffic.  All of which would be violations of the HAM Operating rules.

Sure HAM’s will likely come up with solutions for this problem.  A few years back, I had designed a in vehicle VOX / Communication system for my Van.  Which would require all passengers to wear headphones (the driver wearing a half headset) and allow any passenger to key up any radio at the press of a button at their seat.  And also use the intercom to talk between the rear and front of the van.  But this is an expensive and very geeky solution.

While I agree that cell phones are bad, I disagree that HAM radio operators should be targeted.  While yes, some hand held radios are way too big to be holding while you drive, I believe that if someone was using them in such a way as to be operating the vehicle in an un-safe manner, they should just be charged with dangerous driving.  There are many small hand held radios which fit comfortable in your hand while driving.  And the thing with radios is that you do not have to hold them to your ear, so you can keep your eyes in-front of you while you talk and listen.  Not to mention you can usually hold and key a small portable radio while still having both hands on the steering wheel.

The creation of this law likely causes more problems for HAM operators then what it is worth.

Tags: Canadian Life, Ham Radio, News, Roadwolf's Rants by Roadwolf
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