Bitching about Boston

[gotsnowgotslush]

Another pleasant Spring day, in Boston. More puddles on the outdoor skating rink.
Let us all thank Vornado the Tornado for the cheap, ugly monstrosity that is the Millennium Tower.

How much sun will the tower block out ?

I would not be surprised if the old shell of Filene's cracked into pieces and fell onto the arseholes that ruined Downtown Crossing.

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

I bundled up in warm clothing, etc. -went outside, and waited. At least, I heard something.

Nov 13, 2014
...the Massachusetts Air National Guard announced that five F-15 fighter jets from Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield would fly over areas of eastern and southeastern Massachusetts at low altitudes — between 1,000 and 5,000 feet — early Thursday morning as part of a pre-planned media event. It was announced that the flight path would include Bedford, Salem, Boston, Norwood, Foxboro, Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard. The fighter jets were expected to pass over the Vineyard at 8:47 am at an altitude of 5,000 feet, according to a press release.

But the F-15s never showed, much to the disappointment of Islanders waiting, watching and looking skyward. Lt. Colonel Sean Halbrook told The Times that the F-15s only flew as far as Cape Cod due to time and fuel constraints. The jets took off late and were unable to rendezvous with a tanker, he said.

http://www.mvtimes.com/2014/11/13/look-flyover-f-15s-thursday-morning/

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

wheeee!
Use an ATM to gamble away your life savings, while at a MA casino, and a liquor license for every MA continuing-care retirement home!

The liquor bill (S 2407) passed in the Senate. (Who cares, if medications do not mix well with alcohol ? Who cares, how grandma and grandpa will pay for their bar tabs ?)

Formerly, MA was protected by a ban on having an ATM outside of the gambling floor. Who decided that Christmas Eve was a great time to scrap the ban on ATM’s where gambling occurs, and allow ATMs within a few yards of the casino floor?

What are people saying about Senator Stephen Brewer (D-Barre)?
Sen. Stephen Brewer is a key sponsor of the amendment.
(amendment added to H.4110, the Bank Modernization Act)
MA Senate said yes to the amendment.

Why would the MA Senate want the odds to be in a casino's favor ?
Why would anyone be concerned by the idea of a bank "helping" a casino to remove cash from a gambling patron ?

Tip of the hat, to Keller at Large

 

[trysail]

Boston Power Doubles as Blast of Cold Weather Boosts Demand
By Jonathan N. Crawford
(Bloomberg)
December 30, 2014

Spot wholesale power in New England more than doubled as a wave of cold weather driving heating demand was projected to bring peak usage to a three-week high.

Low temperatures spurred consumption on the six-state grid from Maine to Connecticut to 16,375 megawatts for the hour ended at noon, up 6.6 percent from the day-earlier period, according to ISO New England Inc., which manages the system.

Demand on the New England network is projected to peak at 18,940 megawatts, which would 6 percent more than yesterday’s high, according to the system operator’s website.

Power also advanced on the back of a jump in natural gas. Natural gas for delivery today at the Algonquin City Gates, which includes Boston, surged $8.99 to $12.43 per million British thermal units in trading yesterday.

The low temperature in Boston may be 20 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 7 Celsius), 4 less than normal, according to AccuWeather Inc. of State College, Pennsylvania.

Spot wholesale power for the hub for Boston and Northeast Massachusetts market climbed $43.53 to average $69.01 a megawatt-hour for the hour ended at noon from the same time yesterday, grid data compiled by Bloomberg showed.

ISO New England said yesterday that it anticipated 513 megawatts of generating capacity would be out of service because of cold weather.

In New York, power gained $3.63, or 14 percent, to average $30.47.

Average on-peak power in Boston traded $20.21 more than in New York, widening from a premium of $3.29 yesterday, and compared to a three-month average premium for Boston of $5.43 a megawatt-hour.



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[gotsnowgotslush]

It seems that the protesters have been given permission to demonstrate on First Night. Complaints,were heard from parents of small children when the protesters were heard above the music, at the lighting of the Christmas tree on Boston Common.

First Night is an event that involves many more people. Events geared toward children are scheduled during the day and early evening.

One concern is that the protesters gathering, will interfere with the marching of the First Night parade. Another concern is that the die-in will be traumatic for young children.

The parents complain that they and their children, are there to enjoy themselves.

People who are losing their children, relatives, friends, husbands, due to police violence are not enjoying themselves.

A few hundred protesters, out of a million people that are celebrating, is not too much to ask, is it ?

http://www.necn.com/news/new-englan...Discuss-New-Years-Preparations-287100281.html

Boston Mayor Martin Walsh, Police Commissioner William Evans, Fire Commissioner Joseph Finn and other officials discussed the preparations at City Hall on Tuesday. Activists have promised to stage a "die-in" at Copley Square, located close to a number of the New Year's Eve activities.

Walsh said that while he understands people will be protesting and that he respects their First Amendment rights, he asks protesters to do do in a respectful manner and to keep the roadways clear.

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

The weather announcer just said wicked cold. heh
Saturday night, greasy gopher guts sleet/ slush.
Cold, colder, coldest after Sunday's trick.

Single digits, and strong winds are coming for the Massholes.

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

-30f, -35f, for Boston ? ( That is the count, figuring in the wind chill factor.)

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

I need a mini electric blanket for my tea pot.
The cozy does not help, at all.

If there is a power failure, I will be up the creek, without a paddle.

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

What was in the time capsule ?

Using a porcupine quill, and other tools, Boston Museum of Fine Arts Conservator Pam Hatchfield pried open the box and found five newspapers, 23 coins, a silver plate made by Paul Revere, a bronze medal depicting George Washington and other priceless historical documents, The Boston Globe reports.

One of the coins, a Pine Tree Shilling, dates back to 1652 and was created in defiance of England, NBC News reports.

The time capsule was placed in the cornerstone of the Massachusetts State House by Paul Revere and Samuel Adams, amongst others, in 1795 to honor the 20th anniversary of American independence and to commemorate the construction of the building.

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

It was a beautiful early Spring day. 40f
It is wonderful, not to worry about frostbite.
We will resume our Siberian torment of freeze,
tomorrow.

Watch out for patches of black ice.

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

New England states have communities that united to fight fracking, and to fight Texas plans to exploit New England.

We do not want their pipeline.
We do not want their toxic chemicals.
We do not want their earthquakes.
We do not want their oil spills.

Pennsylvania's decision to profit from fracking, is proving to make neighboring states suffer the expense of fracking damage.

"Nobody is talking to one another about [the problems with waste water produced from fracking] his," says William Ellsworth, a prominent USGS geophysicist who's published more than 100 papers on earthquakes. Among other mishaps, Ellsworth worries that a [fracking] well could pierce an unknown fault "five miles from a nuclear power plant."

http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2013/03/does-fracking-cause-earthquakes-wastewater-dewatering

 

[trysail]

...On December 17, Governor Andrew Cuomo decided to ban hydraulic fracking of shale in New York State. The important Marcellus formation is in the southern and-western part of the state, which is experiencing economic stagnation. The governor referred to his experts who cited unspecified health concerns. As the Wall Street Journal stated: “In other words, all of the Governor’s men couldn’t find conclusive evidence that fracking presents a significant risk to public health or the environment. So they’re going to ban fracking until they do.” Hydraulic fracturing has been used since 1947 and the EPA has yet to uncover credible evidence that it causes groundwater contamination...

-The Science and Environmental Policy Project
​

​

 

[trysail]

Top Halliburton executive sips fracking fluid with colleagues in industry show stunt
by Yadullah Hussain
http://business.financialpost.com/2013/10/31/haliburton-fracking-fluid/?__lsa=aeaf-b57f

...Halliburton executives took it upon themselves to drink some of their latest fracking fluid to show just how harmless it is.


“It was absolutely the first time I drank fracking fluid — you can be sure of that,” said Michael Binnion, President of QOGA and CEO of Questerre Energy Corp. a couple of days after Monday’s event, noting that 20 to 25 executives drank the brew. “I feel fine. There was quite a build-up, but it was a bit of a let-down as it was less viscous than I thought it would be, but more viscous than water. And very stale-tasting.”


http://business.financialpost.com/2013/10/31/haliburton-fracking-fluid/?__lsa=aeaf-b57f

​

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

Do not go West! -16f to -20f including wind chill. Friday night, into Saturday.

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

Gives "from zero, to fifty," a whole new meaning, does it not ?

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

What in the Dickens, is the MBTA upset about ?

The MBTA police are out, in full force.

Then, again, it was days, ago, when a few protesters from Black Lives Matter took to the highway.
Some were irate about their morning commute.

Crowds gathered at the Old State House in Boston on Martin Luther King Jr. Day for a planned march to protest police brutality, mass incarceration, and worsening economic inequality.

WHDH TV

The Boston Marathon trial is sputtering.

Roxbury, MA artist Ekua Holmes's Google Doodle illustration honoring MLK !

Huff Post / Boston Globe

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

In Boston, you are three times as likely to be stopped and frisked, if you are a member of a minority.

Does the rule apply, in New York ?

DJ Henry was going at no more than 7 to 10 miles per hour and probably closer to 7 miles per hour," he said. "He had attempted to break when he currently saw Mr. Hess in the roadway, and rather than evade the vehicle, with a weapon drawn, he jumped on the hood of the vehicle and immediately began shooting."

Shots indeed were fired with bullets coming from the guns of two different police officers. Hess and an officer named Ronald Beckley.

"Mr. Beckley has given sworn testimony that he was shooting at Mr. Hess, whom he viewed as quote 'an aggressor,' not at Mr. Henry, and was in fact attempting to kill Mr. Hess because he viewed him as aggressing against a civilian," Sussman said. "At the time he was shooting, he, Mr. Beckley, did not know that Mr. Hess was a police officer.

Boston PBS News

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

The deadline for Obama Care was extended. January 23, 2015 is the new deadline.

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

The weather announcer just said "translucent slop."

Who will get heavy wet snow, that will cause power outages ?

Saturday will not be a pleasant day for running errands.

60 million people are hoping that Winter Storm Iola will run out of energy.

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. -

Deflategate could have been caused by the weather conditions at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough Sunday night, a Boston College physics professor said.

“It’s not possible for weather not to have played a role,” said Professor Michael Naughton, chair of the physics-photO

“Say you inflated the ball to 12.5 PSI -- the NFL minimum -- in a room at 70 degrees, and then used the ball outside where it was 50 degrees. That 12.5 PSI would eventually become 11.5 PSI," said Naughton.

"If you inflate the ball to 12.5 PSI in an even warmer room where it was, say, 80 degrees, and then played outdoors at 40 degrees, that 12.5 PSI would become 10.5 PSI -- a drop of two PSIs."

Naughton said the footballs of the Indianapolis Colts would have also lost air pressure -- but if the PSI starting point was higher than the balls of the Patriots, the Colts’ balls could have still stayed above the NFL minimum.

http://m.wcvb.com/sports/weather-a-factor-in-deflating-of-footballs-physics-professor-says/30871774

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker declared a State of Emergency at noon and said he is implementing a statewide travel ban at midnight. He warned residents to prepare for roads that may be "impassable," extended power outages and coastal flooding.

Mayor Marty Walsh announced Monday afternoon that Boston Public Schools would be closed Tuesday and Wednesday. A citywide parking ban will go into effect at 6 p.m. Monday, and cars will be towed beginning at 8 p.m.

I heard it again, at 3:00. Will there be inconsiderate, self-centered, and foolhardy daredevils, out on the road, tonight ?

I hope that it will not be, so. The plows, emergency crews, medical crews, will be busy.

I hope that you have made it out of Logan on time.

Juno 2015 VS Blizzard 1978

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

At noon, there were tiny snow flakes that could fit in the paw of a mouse.
Flurries, just spates of tiny flakes.

Boston might get two feet of snow. The Nemo storm got a mention today.
Nemo gave us two feet of snow in 2013.

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

Snow Emergency starts at 6:00
Get yourself home.
Parking ban- you will have your car towed at 8:00
They are giving a discount at parking garages.
Play it safe.

 

[phrodeau]

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker declared a State of Emergency at noon and said he is implementing a statewide travel ban at midnight. He warned residents to prepare for roads that may be "impassable," extended power outages and coastal flooding.

Mayor Marty Walsh announced Monday afternoon that Boston Public Schools would be closed Tuesday and Wednesday. A citywide parking ban will go into effect at 6 p.m. Monday, and cars will be towed beginning at 8 p.m.

I heard it again, at 3:00. Will there be inconsiderate, self-centered, and foolhardy daredevils, out on the road, tonight ?

I hope that it will not be, so. The plows, emergency crews, medical crews, will be busy.

I hope that you have made it out of Logan on time.

Juno 2015 VS Blizzard 1978

Of course there will be drivers on the roads. There's a parking ban.

 

[gotsnowgotslush]

If you have a parking permit, you already know where you should not park.

This weekend, I saw someone park at the stoplight.
Thank goodness, an ambulance was not blasting through the crossroads.