BLOG HAS MOVED!

Hi everybody - My blog has moved to an alternate location: www.sweatandbutterjournal.com See you over there! -Nathan

90 Days With AIDS

Chart: Changes to Facebook vs. Your Sanity

It's just Facebook, people.  You'll adjust.  I promise.

Marcellus Shale permits in Western PA

Despite protests, films, and a little bit of media coverage, the Marcellus Shale is the next major site for natural gas drilling.

This is bad news for my hometown.  At the right, you'll see a picture of the sites of drilling sites that have already been issued a permit in Washington County, outside of Pittsburgh, PA.

In case you are unaware of the method of extraction currently used to drill for natural gas, it's called fracking.  And it involves the pressurized blasting of rock hundreds of meters into the ground with a potent mixture of toxic chemicals.  It's such a toxic procedure that homeowners living near the wells across the country are able to light their tap water on fire (not to mention that hazard that poses to their health).  Here's a video in case you don't believe me:

For more information about this issue, check out the documentary Gasland.

Horrible.

I Love Charts

I Love Charts

Daily Show clip: "World of Class Warfare"

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
World of Class Warfare - Warren Buffett vs. Wealthy Conservatives
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog The Daily Show on Facebook

Chatting About Art Isn't That Much Fun

I Love Charts

Chatting About Art Isn't That Much Fun

I Love Charts

Infographic: The Anatomy of Cancer

++ Click to Enlarge Image ++

Image Source: Asbestos News.com

Infographic reflecting Americans' decreasing faith in their public schools...

View the original post at the GOOD blog HERE.

TED Talk: Paul Nicklen - "Taes of ice-bound wonderlands"

I think it's possible that if everybody was as passionate as Paul Nicklen is about the marine life that lives among the Antarctic polar ice, the world would have a lot fewer problems.

"Five-hundred bucks" - Superpoop

"Taxing the Rich" - Toothpaste for Dinner

Charlie Wittmack

"A FEW DAYS before he begins the push toward the summit of Mount Everest, during some of the monotonous downtime at base camp, Charlie sits in a tent with Brian Block, one of his climbing partners, and the two explore life’s bigger questions: Why are we here? What’s the purpose? And what does it mean to truly live?"

Human limits continue to be tested. Charlie Wittmack is the only person ever to have completed the "World Tri": swim the English channel (275 miles), bike from France to the Bay of Bengal (9000 miles), then run to the foot hills of Everest before climbing to the summit (950 miles). Incredible. Read the rest of the story HERE.

Paleo Infographic

Learn more about the Paleo Diet.

Petrol or bust

In Malawi, gasoline costs around 290 Kwacha per liter. At a rate of 150 kwacha per dollar, this is approximately $8 per gallon. Today, my colleague who was planning to drive me to a village on the outskirts of town called at the last minute to say that he couldn't drive me because he couldn't find a petrol station anywhere in town that had gasoline for purchase. Not a drop.

In Malawi, people will walk 10k to work if they can't afford to pay the rising prices of mini-bus transport (private minivan taxis). There is no public transportation in Malawi, so, if you have to get to work, but can't afford transport, you simply walk or you ride your bicycle.

The reason that gasoline is so cheap in the U.S. (relative to sub-Saharan Africa) is that there is a heavy tax on petroleum products in the latter's case. By imposing a tax on gasoline, the government forces people to ration gasoline to preserve their bank accounts. It's treated as a limited resource there as opposed to in the U.S., where we act as if the world has an unlimited supply.

At $4 per gallon, would you still insist on driving your car? Or are there more affordable ways for you to get around? With our national debt and trade deficits looking worse every year, perhaps taxes on resources such as gasoline (not to mention additional taxes on fast food and soft drinks) are something our government should consider? Hell, it might even motivate you dust off your old bike...

NOTE: correction made on 7/8/2011. Price of gasoline in Malawi is 290MK per liter, meaning the price per gallon is nearly $8.

CHART: Compulsion to Complain When the Waitress Brings You Ketchup Instead of Hot Sauce

CHART: Things That Annoy Me About NGOs Working In Malawi

Can't afford healthcare? Rob a bank for $1 and reap the rewards in jail.

You've got chronic back pain, and nowhere to turn for relief. Thousands of American work their butts off day in and day out are turned down for insurance coverage despite paying their taxes and living civilly obedient. There are only two demographics in our country that are guaranteed health care, active military personnel and inmates (and even the lines for these groups is blurred at times). So you can either continue to suffer without health insurance or you can achieve coverage by joining the military or going to jail. That's what this guy did.  His plan was flawed, as you'll discover in the article, but the care he's receiving in jail is better than nothing.  The important point to take from this article is that a system that leads a guy to do this is clearly broken.  He's not lazy or worthless; he's sick. 

 Read the full article HERE (1).  and HERE (2)

Video:

TIA, bambo

I trust that you’ll

allow me the space

to share my thoughts

for a moment regarding

the uninhibited grace

of your tempt, Love.

The olfaction of

the trip has quartered

me in your arms.  The

sweet aroma of red dusted

roads runs miles through

my mind of memories past.

The sound of your straw

bristles across my stoop,

linens flapping in the breeze.

The warmth of your

beating bossom has grabbed hold

again with the site of your

barren landscapes.  I accept

your embrace, as in years past.

The smoky drip of your

charred flesh, the

gritty swig of your social circle,

a part of which I somehow belong.

With the wave of your hand

hesitation fades

revealing wholesome

sunrises burning like fires

speckling the horizon.

TIA, bamboo.  Welcome home,

my wayward friend.