NASA looks at Antarctic ice

Image Credit: NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team

The Wilkins Ice Shelf, on the western side of the Antarctic Peninsula, experienced multiple disintegration events in 2008. By the beginning of 2009, a narrow ice bridge was all that remained to connect the ice shelf to ice fragments fringing nearby Charcot Island. That bridge gave way in early April 2009. Days after the ice bridge rupture, on April 12, 2009, the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on NASA's Terra satellite took this image of the southern base of the ice bridge, where it connected with the remnant ice shelf. Although the ice bridge has played a role in stabilizing the ice fragments in the region, its rupture doesn't guarantee the ice will immediately move away. [NASA Image of the Day]

*Update*

The Independent reports that The first icebergs started to break away on Friday [April 24], and since then some 270 square miles (700 square kilometers) of ice have dropped into the sea, according to the satellite data and Laravatus Prodeo has more satellite images of the disintergrating ice.

en Passant on the money

Leonie gets right to the point when faced with a piece of post-Howard revisionism:

Crap Corner - Colonel Costello (1st Howard Regiment, ret'd)

Remember Peter Costello?

He's the guy who didn't spend nearly enough on infrastructure during his 11 years as Treasurer.

He's the guy who slashed spending on hospitals and schools but had billions for defence, ASIO and other unproductive sectors of society.

He's the guy who pissed the resources boom revenue up against the tailings.

The Colonel Blimp of Australian politics put on his old battle gear this Anzac Day and went 'over the top'.

His stormed the lines of the Conservative Rudd Labour Government......

Best blog quote of the month from Hexy

Hexy of Hexpletive guestposting over at Hoyden about Town about Andrew Bolt's nasty views in Andrew Bolt, Wajin-looking Koori, Aboriginality, and comments full of lies:

Oh, that's just magic. If Andrew Bolt can point to one single "full-blood Aborigine" with whom he has discussed this matter and who expressed that sentiment, I'll eat my hat. No, even more extreme… I'll f*ck Andrew Bolt...........

The only people who have ever expressed disbelief of my Aboriginality based on my skin tone have been over-privileged white f*ckwits who feel entitled to decide who does and does not get to claim membership of a demographic they themselves have no connection at all to. [letter substitutions to avoid those *#@ filters]

Hexy you are a joy to read.

Photo from Crikey

Obama changes his tune once again

It seems that Barack Obama has discovered the delights of former Australian prime minister John Howard's approach to core and non-core promises.

The latest to surface is in relation to the Freedom of Choice Act. It appears that once you're president then any pretence that you really believe in a woman's right to chose, in relation to pregnancy termination, flies out the window.

Here is FactCheck on the subject:

Is Obama shying away from the Freedom of Choice Act?
When CNN correspondent Ed Henry asked the president about his current thinking on FOCA at last night's White House press conference, Obama used very different language than he did during the campaign.
In 2008, as we noted in our Ask FactCheck item on FOCA, Obama told a Planned Parenthood audience: "The first thing I'd do as president is sign the Freedom of Choice Act. Now that's the first thing I'd do."
Last night, Obama specifically altered that statement. "Now, the Freedom of Choice Act is not my highest legislative priority," he said. "I believe that women should have the right to choose, but I think that the most important thing we can do to tamp down some of the anger surrounding this issue is to focus on those areas that we can agree on," such as reducing unwanted pregnancies.

Tim Fisher lives!

After costing taxpayers about $1 million a year to establish the first resident Australian ambassador to the Holy See, His Excellency Timmeh Fisher is almost but not quite earning his keep.
What's on the Tube tells us that; "Former deputy Prime Minister and now Australia's ambassador to the Vatican Tim Fisher said that charges have be[en] laid against the two members of the Chaser team on April 28 for breaching the no-fly zone regulations. Mr Fisher confirmed that they were detained by Italian authorities and questioned for eight hours before being released. Morrow today said on ABC radio, "I'm not sure whether charges have been laid yet but we certainly did spend a fair bit of time chewing the fat with the Italian constabulary"."
Apart from turning up at an English language Italian mass for bushfire victims in February, this is the first time I've heard a peep out of the ambassador since his appointment took effect at the beginning of this year.

Update:
Apparently Timmeh is not too good with spoken Italian, because ABC News says "On Friday, Australia's resident ambassador to the Vatican, Tim Fischer, incorrectly said charges had been laid." and The Chaser team say "We've since heard from Tim Fischer that we've been charged, but from an Italian lawyer that we haven't. We're backing the lawyer".

Northern Rivers artist explores the nasty side of Monsanto

Monsanto

Lyn Hope

original, unframed, abstract political work, revealing Monsanto’s nasty side

Displayed at Arthouse Australia

Evidence of spiders doesn't mean the house isn't clean

In Australia our urban population is mainly spread along a hundred kilometre wide coastal fringe, predominately on the eastern and southern sides of the continent.

Our preferred housing is often in areas which were developed for the first time in the last 10 to 50 years, often on recently cleared land.

This means that there are many houses which are built close to remnant bushland, open space, rural land or national park and therefore close to native species of plant, animal, reptile, insect et cetera. In such areas it would be hard to find a house without a resident spider or two.

So when did it become a sign of uncleanliness to house the odd spider?

The answer is easy - when you have pest inspection services to sell.

According to the Herald-Sun on Thursday:

Archicentre which conducts pre-purchase inspections on behalf of potential homebuyers found many homeowners who had little understanding of the need to keep their homes clean and well-maintained had no one but themselves to blame.

The figures show:
TRACES of rats or mice in 46 per cent of homes.
SPIDERS in 58 per cent of homes.
COCKROACHES in 15 per cent of homes.
POSSUMS in 13 per cent of homes and
SILVERFISH in 5 per cent of homes.
TERMITES were found in 12 per cent of homes.

Shame on you, Archicentre.

Living in a town built on reclaimed marsh and sand as I do, Daddy Long Legs and Tarantulas under the eaves (along with frogs and lizards at ground level) are the first line of defence against all those mosquitos, sandflies, midges and other flying biters that can make life a misery.

Daddy Long Legs from Google Images