http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/19/us/sev...html?hpt=hp_t1

Tornado warning here in Leavenworth but multiple tornados have already touched down in Iowa, Oklahoma and Kansas. Hope the rest of the ESers out in these areas are safe!

So, my girlfriend and I are going on a road trip next weekend in hopes of finding one of these areas homey enough to move to. We love Boston, but the rent is too damn high.

Things we'd like:

• Great seafood
• Good live music
• Outdoor adventures nearby (hiking, canoeing, rafting, etc.)
• History
• Fun culture
• Affordable housing
• Safe
• Family friendly
• Active community
• Great farmer's markets

Any input would be awesome. Thanks :)

http://www.rightwingwatch.org/conten...olence-against

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/0...ment_254300272

http://petersantilli.com/

What state would that be Mr Santilli? The state of insanity? :doh:

Philippians 4:13

King James Version (KJV)

13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.


Have a good Sunday.

http://www.economist.com/blogs/democ...dation-funding

This is getting a lot of attention, even in the more practical sciences, like biochemistry:

"THE most urgent research priority for American social science is the question of why so many congresspeople are boastful ignoramuses. But since Tom Coburn, the Republican senator from Oklahoma, succeeded in blocking National Science Foundation funding for political science last month ("except for research projects that the [NSF director] certifies as promoting national security or the economic interests of the United States"), this critical research subject will have a hard time getting a grant."


"Now, not content with having saved American taxpayers 1/12th of the cost of an F-35 fighter by defunding political-science research, our elected representatives are seeking to eliminate yet more wasteful spending on useless stuff like intellectual inquiry.

Yesterday, over the course of two contentious hearings, the new chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Science, Space, and Technology floated the idea of having every NSF grant application include a statement of how the research, if funded, "would directly benefit the American people." Representative Lamar Smith (R-TX) said that he was not trying to "micromanage" the $7 billion agency but that NSF needs to do a better job of deciding what to fund given the low success rates for grant applicants and a shrinking federal budget."


Add on top of that an effort to defund the census from collecting socioeconomic data (data that indicates things like how fast the top 1% is growing):

"“This is a program that intrudes on people’s lives, just like the Environmental Protection Agency or the bank regulators,” said Daniel Webster, a first-term Republican congressman from Florida who sponsored the relevant legislation.
“We’re spending $70 per person to fill this out. That’s just not cost effective,” he continued, “especially since in the end this is not a scientific survey. It’s a random survey.”
In fact, the randomness of the survey is precisely what makes the survey scientific, statistical experts say."


http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90915F20130110

Add on top fo that the recent limits on doing research on public health and gun safety (funding that included studies that showed a person close to the family is more likely to be killed with a gun in homes where there was a gun then w/o):


It is starting to appear that the Republicans are going to more aggressively limit research that is generating results that are not consistent with their political ideas through legislation.

Came across this article on FO doing some analysis of Lane Johnson and DJ Fluker.

Johnsons write up interested me - it sounds like Johnson is a talented prospect who will excel as a run blocker in a zone blocking scheme but who seems to have some pretty fundamental technique issues in pass blocking. These are probably coachable but its something to watch for in pre season and for us to look for in a match up with Kerrigan on opening day (assuming Johnson starts at RT).

http://www.footballoutsiders.com/wor...-and-dj-fluker

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap100...-ped-violation

Just a quick scan of the Shehawk board and they're saying it was Adderal. Well now, that's three players on their team that have been popped for taking it. I've always heard once is an aberration, twice is a habit, and three times makes for a problem. Think anything is going to be done about it?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/0...00003&ir=Crime

The officer will be fine so I only feel a little bad about finding the situation funny. Poor girl will never live this down if she remains with the department. :ols:

Could be spoilers for some?

REDSKINS SIGN DRAFT PICK DAVID AMERSON



LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. – The Washington Redskins announced today that they have signed 2013 second-round draft pick cornerback David Amerson (51st overall). Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Amerson (6-1, 205) started 35 of the 39 career games in which he played at NC State, amassing 169 tackles (131 solo), 18 interceptions and three interception returns for touchdowns. His 18 career interceptions are the most in school history and are tied for the third-most in ACC history.
As a junior last season, Amerson started all 13 games for the Wolfpack, earning second-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors after leading the conference in interceptions for the second straight year. A year earlier as a sophomore, Amerson led the nation with 13 interceptions, setting ACC and NC State records in the process. That season, he was named the winner of the Jack Tatum Award, given annually to the nation’s top defensive back.

Amerson, 21, was born on Dec. 8, 1991. He attended Dudley H.S. in Greensboro, N.C., where he was ranked as the No. 19 safety in the country by Rivals.com.

Phil Jackson always has been hesitant to compare Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. Until now.

In his new book, co-written with Hugh Delehanty and entitled "Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success," Jackson breaks down what separated Jordan from Bryant, the biggest stars and personalities that he coached during his Hall of Fame career.

The Los Angeles Times, which received an advance copy of the 339-page book, provided some details of Jackson's Jordan and Bryant comparison.

In terms of advantages, the biggest that Jordan has over Bryant comes in the leadership department, according to Jackson.

"One of the biggest differences between the two stars from my perspective was Michael's superior skills as a leader," Jackson writes. "Though at times he could be hard on his teammates, Michael was masterful at controlling the emotional climate of the team with the power of his presence. Kobe had a long way to go before he could make that claim. He talked a good game, but he'd yet to experience the cold truth of leadership in his bones, as Michael had in his bones."

Jackson, who coached Jordan to six titles with the Chicago Bulls and Bryant to five with the Los Angeles Lakers, also compared the players' defensive skills and accuracy. Once again, Jackson sided with Jordan.

"No question, Michael was a tougher, more intimidating defender," Jackson writes. "He could break through virtually any screen and shut down almost any player with his intense, laser-focused style of defense."

Saying Bryant learned some of Jordan's defensive tricks, Jackson added: "In general, Kobe tends to rely more heavily on his flexibility and craftiness, but he takes a lot of gambles on defense and sometimes pays the price."

On offense, Jackson said: "Jordan was also more naturally inclined to let the game come to him and not overplay his hand, whereas Kobe tends to force the action, especially when the game isn't going his way. When his shot is off, Kobe will pound away relentlessly until his luck turns. Michael, on the other hand, would shift his attention to defense or passing or setting screens to help the team win the game."

Jackson also touched on the difference in personalities.

"Michael was more charismatic and gregarious than Kobe," Jackson writes. "He loved hanging out with his teammates and security guards, playing cards, smoking cigars, and joking around.

"Kobe is different. He was reserved as a teenager, in part because he was younger than the other players and hadn't developed strong social skills in college. When Kobe first joined the Lakers, he avoided fraternizing with his teammates. But his inclination to keep to himself shifted as he grew older. Increasingly, Kobe put more energy into getting to know the other players, especially when the team was on the road."

....

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/92...be-bryant-book



...

Video here:

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap100...ing-a-football


I still might take him over Beck and Tebow...

I feel bad for Browns fans.




Jason Campbell reportedly outplays Weeden at OTAs





[*] By Marc Sessler[*]Around the League Writer[*] Published: May 17, 2013 at 01:34 p.m. [*] Updated: May 17, 2013 at 02:10 p.m. [/LIST]



The quarterback battle in Cleveland is far from the NFL's sexiest signal-caller derby, but Brandon Weeden might want to keep an eye on Jason Campbell.
Longtime Browns writer Steve Doerschuk of The Canton Repository reported this week that Campbell showed up to organized team activities with "(Ben) Roethlisberger-like size."



"Campbell's clearly bigger than Brandon Weeden. He made (third-string passer) Thaddeus Lewis look like a shrimp," wrote Doerschuk, who added that the seven-year veteran passer "definitely had better sessions than Weeden" on Thursday. Campbell displayed a strong, deep ball on long strikes to receivers Travis Benjamin and Jordan Norwood.
Weeden -- at 6-foot-3, 220 pounds -- opened OTAs with the first team, but Campbell -- listed at 6-foot-5, 230 -- was signed as insurance with an opportunity to fight for the job. The Browns also inked Brian Hoyer on Thursday, which means Lewis (aka "shrimp") is on thin ice.


http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap100...weeden-at-otas

Invasive Crazy Ants Are Displacing Fire Ants, Researchers Find

Invasive “crazy ants” are displacing fire ants in areas across the southeastern United States, according to researchers at The University of Texas at Austin. It’s the latest in a history of ant invasions from the southern hemisphere and may prove to have dramatic effects on the ecosystem of the region.


What a crazy ant may look like

The “ecologically dominant” crazy ants are reducing diversity and abundance across a range of ant and arthropod species — but their spread can be limited if people are careful not to transport them inadvertently, according to Ed LeBrun, a research associate with the Texas invasive species research program at the Brackenridge Field Laboratory in the College of Natural Sciences

The study by LeBrun and his colleagues was published in Biological Invasions.

“When you talk to folks who live in the invaded areas, they tell you they want their fire ants back,” said LeBrun. “Fire ants are in many ways very polite. They live in your yard. They form mounds and stay there, and they only interact with you if you step on their mound.”

LeBrun said that crazy ants, by contrast, “go everywhere.” They invade people’s homes, nest in crawl spaces and walls, become incredibly abundant and damage electrical equipment.

The crazy ants were first discovered in the U.S. in 2002 by a pest control operator in a suburb of Houston, and have since established populations in 21 counties in Texas, 20 counties in Florida, and a few sites in southern Mississippi and southern Louisiana.

In 2012 the species was formally identified as Nylanderia fulva, which is native to northern Argentina and southern Brazil. Frequently referred to as Rasberry crazy ants, these ants recently have been given the official common name “Tawny crazy ants.”

The Tawny crazy ant invasion is the most recent in a series of ant invasions from South America brought on by human movement. The Argentine ant invaded through the port of New Orleans in about 1891. In 1918 the black imported fire ant showed up in Mobile, Ala. Then in the 1930s, the red imported fire ant arrived in the U.S. and began displacing the black fire ant and the Argentine ants.

The UT researchers studied two crazy ant invasion sites on the Texas Gulf Coast and found that in those areas where the Tawny crazy ant population is densest, fire ants were eliminated. Even in regions where the crazy ant population is less dense, fire ant populations were drastically reduced. Other ant species, particularly native species, were also eliminated or diminished.

LeBrun said crazy ants are much harder to control than fire ants. They don’t consume most of the poison baits that kill fire ant mounds, and they don’t have the same kinds of colony boundaries that fire ants do. That means that even if they’re killed in a certain area, the supercolony survives and can swarm back over the area.

“They don’t sting like fire ants do, but aside from that they are much bigger pests,” he said. “There are videos on YouTube of people sweeping out dustpans full of these ants from their bathroom. You have to call pest control operators every three or four months just to keep the infestation under control. It’s very expensive.”

Click on the link for the full article

WP Redskins beat reporter Mike Jones wrote yesterday that the Skins and the Giants are interested in Hightower:

The Washington Redskins and New York Giants have both had exploratory talks regarding the services of free agent running back Tim Hightower, who last played for the Redskins during the 2012 preseason, two people with knowledge of the situation said.

It wasn’t immediately clear how serious the Redskins’ interest is, but the Giants held talks with Hightower earlier this month and were expected to meet with him again “in a couple weeks,” one person said. The second person said they weren’t sure how close either team was to signing Hightower, however.

The Redskins acquired Hightower via trade from the Arizona Cardinals in the summer of 2011, and he opened the season as their starting running back. But he tore his ACL in the fifth game of the season. In five games, Hightower had 84 carries for 321 yards and a touchdown. He also had 10 catches for 78 yards and a touchdown.

Hightower had surgery to repair the ligament and he attempted a comeback last preseason. He declined the option of opening training camp on the Physically Unable to Perform list and, in the Redskins’ third preseason game, rushed for 28 yards on five carries — including an 18-yard run.

But Hightower’s knee swelled up after the game, and with his knee slow to recover at the time Washington had to make final roster cuts, he was released. Hightower said in an interview in January that he regretted the decision not to open the season on the PUP list.

At the time of his release, Redskins Coach Mike Shanahan said the team would be open to bringing back Hightower once his knee had recovered.

The 26-year-old Hightower’s knee now is said to be “feeling great.”

The Redskins are looking for a running back who could be used to spell starter Alfred Morris, particularly on third downs. Hightower excelled both in pass protection and as a receiver out of the backfield. Washington, however, is hoping to get Roy Helu back from a toe injury that forced him to miss the bulk of last season and has continued to slow him this offseason.

More: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...tim-hightower/

He looked okay coming back from his torn ACL last year but got squeezed out in a numbers game with the emergence of Alfred Morris. I was surpised nobody picked him up...

He's still only 26 years old. Would you like to see him back on the Redskins roster?