DMikeS4321

I was going to post this myself but I saw it here first. Mainstream media strikes again. It's freakin' embarrassing to be associated with these idiots on any level. The sky would fall if these comments had been made about Africans or Mexicans. I guess selective racism is selectively O.K. And some complain about Fox News?!!?!?!?

I think these people have their own left wing newspapers that they read and argue with, since they figure everyone reads and believes them. "These people"? I meant the people who argue with the left wing wacko's like us. Sorry - I had to take Jason's quote out of there so he wouldn't think I was specifically referring to him. (Mike) Now I get it. So do I.

Very interesting article, Dave. I met a woman from Fujian online before I met my wife. She spent about half of every chat apologizing for being from Fujian. I had no idea what she was talking about. Now I know....

Wow. Didn't realize Henry Ford and Rudolph Diesel were hippies. http://www.greendaily.com/2008/02/09/green...oil-dependence/ World population is a little larger now than in Henry and Rudy's day, Dave. It's a damned poor allocation of resources to use food or feed as fuel when there are better alternatives.

What Jim said....

He'd be the first. http://www.slate.com/id/2188754/ "According to Olympic historian David Wallechinsky, no American president has ever attended an opening ceremony beyond American borders." Then he should be a trailblazer AND right at the same time. It certainly behooves us to be friendly with China. We'd be fools not to be.

I've never agreed with all that Mike, AKA Spike, has posted. But, beyond any doubt, I agree with every word that was posted above. Now you've spoiled it, Dennis!!!! If BB is ever re-opened, everyone will know who I am!!! Just to clarify, I've never posted anywhere as Spike, except for BB! I'm thinking about it, though.... B)

Any residual tendency I might have had to feel sympathy for Tibetan separatists evaporated when this happened. Jail time is too good for these goons. http://uk.news.yahoo.com/rtrs/20080411/tpl...ge-43a8d4f.html I'm sickened by this kind of behavior. It tells me all I need to know about the wackos who are pushing the 'Free Tibet' agenda. Reminds me of some of the cretins we've had to deal with in this country. China Daily poll showing 70%+ believe protesters have "crossed the line": http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/olympics/torc...ent_6603977.htm My sympathies lie completely with China. It is very offensive to me that some are trying to rob PRC of their national "moment" on the world stage. P.S. I hope Bush has the guts to attend the opening ceremony.

Fusion would be awesome if it could ever be developed to a point where it is safe and cost-effective, but the "fission is deadly" argument is bullcrap. Modern nuclear reactors are a FAR better option for us than coal. There are people who would try to convince the public that they are all a bunch of would-be chernobyls irradiating the countryside and burping out metric tons of deadly radioactive waste that can't be safely stored and poison the environment and mutate the wildlife... so much so that it's actually at the back of everyone's minds... but it is ludicrous and so overexagerated it's sad really. I've been on the site of the first privately owned reactor to be hooked into a public electric grid for 2 years. There are people who have worked here for 40 years. The average exposure per year is about 1/5 of what you get exposed to on a 6 hour flight on an airplane. No need to get into gruelling detail of course, but if you take a hard look at nuclear power comparitively... hard facts and not opinion columns you will see the boogeyman of nuclear power is about as real as the boogeyman that was under your bed when you were 5. Jason, Why don't you quit dancing around the subject and tell us how you REALLY feel??

What an incredible story. Thanks for sharing!

Here is another good currency converter: http://www.xe.com/ucc/convert.cgi I also have one of those 'gadgets' on my desktop that keeps a running tab. Right now it stands at 6.997 RMB to $1.00 American. I won't be a "rich American" pretty soon (not that I ever was!! ).

OUCH!!!! Jason, you say what I've been thinking, I just didn't want to get reprimanded. How DO you feel about jojoba and veggie diesel? It makes more sense to me as veggie was the fuel Dr. Rudy originally designed his engine around and jojoba in particular shouldn't impact food production. You may think that's a crazy idea, but at least it makes a little more sense than the ethanol thing. Best Regards

Lao Po went to the countryside for three days to participate in this event. It's a pretty big deal; I guess she had to hike quite a ways up into the mountains to visit the family tomb. As an aside, we sell a special grade of Lung Jing (Dragon Well) tea that is dedicated to Tomb Sweeping Festival. See link: http://www.newchinateahouse.com/product_in.../products_id/13 I hope to be there for the festival next year.

I agree. I have several relatives that have worked for Dow. I think Dow was/is the largest employer in the Midland/Bay City area and they have been good 'corporate citizens'. You're also right about sugar beets, but leave it to our government to subsidize (with our tax money) something that has such a huge impact on our food prices (corn), leaving us with a double-whammy effect. Food crops should be used for just that. There are more sensible alternatives. See links below: http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn3464 http://www.jojoba-oil.org/jojoba-future.html Quote from above article: "As if this isn't enough to put jojoba right up there with some of the greatest discoveries of all time, probably most remarkable is a discovery by a team of Indian scientists reported in New Scientist in 2003. The team made an alternative to regular diesel fuel by mixing methanol and a catalyst with raw jojoba oil. They then successfully ran an engine on the fuel and found not only did it match the efficiency of diesel; it produced lower carbon emissions and was completely free of sulfur emissions. That means less pollution thrown into the atmosphere to fuel global warming and acid rain. For those keeping score, that's another one... make that two for the environment." Another link: http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_yield.html Jojoba yields 194 gallons of oil per acre and can be planted in desert conditions that won't support most other crops. It yields approximately the same BTU per acre as ethanol without the high cost of cultivation while not distorting feed grain markets and food supplies dependent upon them. It's safe to assume it would yield more BTU per acre with even rudimentary cultivation, thus making it much more efficient than ethanol.

Corbin, you probable know that Bay City was talking about a sugar beet facility. I think they wanted to use the sugar beet waste and the actual beets both to make the ethanol. So a celluose and a normal sugar process. Plus, they might be able to burn some of the beet waste for fuel. One thing that them ethanol boys forget - SUGARBEETS can be grown hydroponically. So - You Gots a WasteWater Treatment Plant ? Redirect yer 'flow' to a section o sugarbeets, use that sh|t-filled water to yer own advantage (yes, past the bacteriophage-dying segment, surely). So Bay City can use the water from the Dow facility! And pump the waste into Saginaw Bay!!! Let's REALLY do this right! Yippeee!!!!

What's awesome is that the price of food is skyrocketing while the price of fuel soars, all so we can 'grow our fuel'. Too bad nobody thought this out beforehand. I posted before; Lao Po won't eat corn anymore because it costs too damned much. Beef, pork and chicken are through the roof because of the shortage (and subsequent increase of price) of feed grains. Rice is going up rapidly and there are stories about social unrest among the poor who can no longer afford their dietary staple. Truly awesome!!! Talk about unintended consequences...

Roger, Roger, Roger..... I never SAID there would be absolutely NO negative effect ever to occur. I never SAID that Scientific American had an axe to grind. In fact, Roger, I MENTIONED that there were negatives discussed in ALL the articles I linked to. Please, Roger, read a bit more carefully. You are a mod now so you should try a little harder to open your eyes and ears. Please note the last line of my previous post: "Each of the websites I've linked to above also mentions some downside to the dam, but I think it only fair to present a small bit of the upside." Where do you see my claim that there will be no negative effect? Where did I say S.A. had an axe to grind? Let me be clear; IT'S ONLY FAIR TO BALANCE THE BAD WITH THE GOOD, unless YOU are saying that absolutely NO positive effect will ever occur. Best Regards P.S. Your stubborn refusal to acknowledge that some good will come from this dam tells everyone reading who has the axe to grind. The fact that you have kept this topic open for over 5 months with nothing but more of the same clearly shows the same. P.P.S. Thanks for the tip on Mao. I already knew he had the vision for Three Gorges Dam. I read his poem.

In the US it's a huge national debt where in China it's taking risks their environment. Both are putting the answers of todays problems at the feet of their children who will have no other choice than to deal with their parents decisions. I hear ya, but isn't this pretty much always true? Doesn't each subsequent generation have to deal with the problems left over from the previous one? Each generation has it's own struggles; that is true througout history. I was just hoping for some kind of balance. Below is an old website from PBS online. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/wonder...ree_gorges.html I didn't 'cherry pick' this site; it was number 5 when I did a search for "Three Gorges Dam". The article mentions that the dam was already facing environmental opposition in 2000, but it also says that the dam, when complete with a full reservoir, will generate up to 9%(!!!) of the entire country's electrical power. That is HUGE. Think of the many smaller projects that can be avoided. Think of the net savings in pollution from reduced reliance on coal. Here is an excellent site, obviously more pro-dam: http://www.imperialtours.net/3gorges_dam.htm This site claims that TGD will NOT be the largest dam in the world; apparently it will produce more power and be more expensive, but they say Grand Coulee is larger in terms of concrete and steel used. This site claims TGD will generate from 11% to 15% of China's electricity, 18 TRILLION watts, and claims that these figures have squelched the opposition that was claiming coal would be a better alternative. This opposition was obviously during a less 'eco-sensitive' time. Quote: "China's phenomenal economic growth has killed the debate surrounding this issue. It now appears that the Chinese leadership was correct to assume the utility of the dam's electricity production. Whereas naysayers had argued that China's coal production would keep pace with her industrial development, this is certainly no longer the case. Already, in 2005, China is importing one third of its energy needs." Americans, of all people, should appreciate the problems inherent in energy importation. Another quote: "A corollary to the flood control benefit of the three gorges dam project is the plan to construct a 600 kilometer canal from the three gorges reservoir to Beijing. From 2007, this will be able to divert up to 80 billion cubic meters of soft water per year to the water-starved north." Another huge benefit is that the dam will allow the use of transport barges of up to 10,000 tons. Water transportation of this sort is extremely efficient in terms of fuel usage, using less energy per ton than any other form of freight transport. Given the growth of Chongqing, China's most populous municipality, proponents of the project claim that the Three Gorges Dam will reduce freight costs and facilitate trade in this area. See link below for efficiency comparisons between barge, truck and train freight ton-mile per gallon of fuel. http://www.arc.gov/index.do?nodeId=2571 Pretty persuasive stuff. Here is a Discovery Channel site that describes benefits and problems: http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lesso...ms/threegorges/ The benefits mentioned are: "The dam will benefit some two million Chinese by controlling flooding on the lower Yangtze River, generating hydroelectric power, and reducing pollution caused by the burning of coal." From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Gorges_Dam Excerpt from above: "According to The National Development and Reform Commission of China, the average consumption of coal to produce one kWh of electricity in China is 366 grams (2006). Therefore, the Three Gorges Dam will potentially reduce the coal consumption by 31 million tons per year, cutting the emission of 100 million tons of greenhouse gas, millions of tons of dust, 1 million tons of sulfur dioxide, 370 thousand tons of nitric oxide, 10 thousand tons of carbon monoxide and a significant amount of mercury into the atmosphere." More from Wiki: "The most significant function of the dam is to control flooding, which is a major problem of a seasonal river like the Yangtze. Millions of people live downstream of the dam, and many large and important cities like Wuhan, Nanjing and Shanghai lie next to the river. Plenty of farm land and the most important industrial area of China are built beside the river. In 1954, the river flooded 47.75 million acres (193,000 km²) of land, killing 33,169 people and forcing 18,884,000 people to move. The flood covered Wuhan, a city with 8 million people, for over three months, and the Jingguang Railway was out of order for more than 100 days. In 1998, a flood in the same area caused billions of dollars in damage. The Chinese government asked for support from its military to fight the flooding. Two thousand and thirty-nine square kilometers of farm land was flooded. The flood affected more than 2.3 million people, and 1,526 were killed. The reservoir's flood storage capacity is 22 cubic kilometers (18 million acre feet). This capacity will reduce the frequency of major downstream flooding from once every 10 years to once every 100 years. With the dam, it is expected that major floods can be controlled. If a "super" flood comes, the dam is expected to minimize its effect." All in all, I'm presenting what some may consider to be "pro-dam" information, but I prefer to think of it as being balanced. Each of the websites I've linked to above also mentions some downside to the dam, but I think it only fair to present a small bit of the upside. Best Regards

versus the negative aspects of relying on coal for generation of electricity???? versus the negative aspects of relying on nuclear power for generation of electricity???? versus the negative aspects of NOT generating the electrical power the country needs???? versus what positive aspects of the development???? Is there ANYTHING to balance this horrible development or is it being done soley to destroy the culture and environment of China???? Rog, give us something, anything, positive about the dam, please, or are we just to assume somebody is doing this development to intentionally ruin the country?

Our State Department can't control access to presidential candidate passport information in their own damned building. How can they POSSIBLY know what's going on in Tibet? If our government doesn't wise up, we will make even more enemies than we already have. I'm not saying the travel advisory is wrong; only a fool would travel to Tibet right now, but the slant in the Advisory is just too obvious.

DMike, as you said it may not work for anyone, but you and your wife. Though it has some major truths to it. These are, what can you live with and what makes you both happy without compromising you or your wife to the breaking point. This is true, Big C, but I think, in my case, it stems from my previous failed marriages and the realization that I am SO lucky to have my wife. I just made a conscious decision to always honor her and see her in nothing but a positive light. Not that this is hard because, she IS perfect. I've simply made a major adjustment to the way I look at things; in my past, God help the woman who tried to correct me or blame me. In retrospect, I was a sick man, but now I'm well. The cure can be seen in my current avatar (she's the one on the left in the picture!! ). I AM the luckiest man in the world!! She looks like she feels lucky also.............. So she says. God only knows why... Don't knock it just except it................ Amen, Brother. I've always felt she is too good for me, but who am I to judge??

You can read about him (or them as GZBILL reports) on many other Chinese blogs...I think the worst thing is it makes people wonder if all foreign men in China are of this mold... At least they're British and not Americans... Not to draw too broad a generalization, but the Brits were pretty well reviled in Hong Kong when I was there in 1973. VERY racist and constantly making derogatory comments to the locals. In fact, some buddies of mine and I went drinking with some Royal Marines and were downright appalled at their behavior towards the guides (female and legitmate) we had hired to show us the sites. Damned near became a replay of the War of 1812. We ditched the suckers and gained immeasurable respect from the gals because we stood up for them. They may still be telling stories about the chivalrous Yanks... P.S. The Brits did teach me ONE thing that I've continued to this day... they call it a 'topper', a spritz of fresh lime in one's beer. Tastes great and good for you, too...

What sort of a comment is this??? Hmmmm.... looks like another 'personal attack' Rog, at least by your definition. We're just funnin' ya, dood..... XOXO

Just can't lay off the personal attacks can you Mike... Nope, but... this isn't really an attack, either. More of an observation, Rog....

DMike, as you said it may not work for anyone, but you and your wife. Though it has some major truths to it. These are, what can you live with and what makes you both happy without compromising you or your wife to the breaking point. This is true, Big C, but I think, in my case, it stems from my previous failed marriages and the realization that I am SO lucky to have my wife. I just made a conscious decision to always honor her and see her in nothing but a positive light. Not that this is hard because, she IS perfect. I've simply made a major adjustment to the way I look at things; in my past, God help the woman who tried to correct me or blame me. In retrospect, I was a sick man, but now I'm well. The cure can be seen in my current avatar (she's the one on the left in the picture!! ). I AM the luckiest man in the world!! She looks like she feels lucky also.............. So she says. God only knows why...