Yep. Fresno is high enough that the lake in the Central Valley won't reach here, but might face flooding from the foothills. The first level of protection is the ponding basins throughout town that serve to recharge the aquifer; even if full, with enough warning they can be pumped out. Then there are a number of irrigation canals passing through the city, but they only give a few hours' respite--irrigation canals are built exactly the opposite of drainage canals==they get smaller as they go, instead of larger. After that water is pumped into the below-grade portions of the newest freeway through town (it was designed with that in mind). Our house is on the bluff above the San Joaquin River, high enough that I think we would be safe even in such a mega-flood. A few miles downstream the river channel narrows dramatically, and it might overflow its banks there, which are lower than in our area. Over the years since the construction of the flood control and irrigation dam upstream there has been development on the floodplain of the river, but few houses aside from a mobile home park that can be evacuated quickly. The piano tuner who visited our house remembered the freshet on the river in the days before the dam; he said that it sounded like a hundred freight trains going by for days.
Another note about the 1861 flood---as I recall reading, there was a substantial snow pack in the mountains, then a prolonged warm spell that melted it completely. If there isn't a snow pack (quite possible with global warming), that will decrease the risk. On the other hand, the bed of the Sacramento River is much higher than it was because of the brobdignagian amounts of dirt that washed into it from hydraulic mining for gold. The levees protecting the cities along the river are monumental.
Oh, and although it isn't weather-related, let's not forget that the Cascadia Fault is going to bust loose again some day--and some day could come any time now. That would be on a par with the Tohoku Earthquake. And very few schools in western Oregon and Washington are designed to be earthquake resistant. California learned that lesson in the 1933 Long Beach Earthquake, [Click], which thank Heaven was on a weekend.
Didn't you recently say there is a decent snowpack this season? Hmmm.
I was reading all that had to be done out your way to make the land livable and am amazed. Out here we just....build a house. There are some areas that can flood, but we just learn not to build there. Very little is done to alter the land itself. There was some repair and prevention created after Irene came through, but it's peanuts next to what California has done.
I only read a (presumably bowderlized) child's version of Gulliver's Travels that only covered Lilliput, never the complete thing. (I suspect many of the references to politics of the day would evade me), but when I happened upon the adjective "brobdingnagian" I was quite taken with it. Although I must be careful when typing it, it is part of my active vocabulary. And remember that "yahoo" is also from Gulliver; vide the Wikipedia entry. [Click]
The slogan “Give ‘em Hell, Harry!” comes from an incident that took place during the 1948 Presidential election campaign. In Bremerton, Washington, Truman delivered a speech attacking the Republicans. During the speech, a supporter yelled out, "Give 'em Hell, Harry!" Truman replied, "I don't give them Hell. I just tell the truth about them, and they think it's Hell." Subsequently, "Give 'em Hell, Harry!" became a lifetime slogan for Truman supporters.
On another note, I followed up on the toilet paper article that I posted the other day. I bought some of Trader Joe’s regular TP (100% recycled), and compared the price per square foot to Kirkland [Costco] (100% virgin pulp): 1.4 cents vs. 1.1 cents. Adjusting for the difference in width (TJ’s is half an inch narrower—the old standard width), the price per linear foot is the same, about half to a third of the fancy brands. TJ’s isn’t quite as soft as the fancy brands (e.g. Charmin or Northern), but it’s certainly not rough; if anything, nicer than the average TP of my youth.
Looking at the South By Southwest article: A universal basic income is certainly no panacea, but it should be part of the Democratic platform. Should have been for years. The environment and climate change certainly are vitally important but, again, not the only thing that's important. There really isn't much hope for single issue candidates except, as the correspondent noted, to make those issues noticeable enough to get them into the party platform.
I am aware of two real-world experiments with universal basic income--one in Manchester, one in Finland; there may be or have been more. In both cases it didn't seem to get people back on their feet and self-supporting, more's the pity.
May’s Brexit Deal Rejected Again March 12, 2019 at 3:25 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard “British prime minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal has been defeated again in Parliament by 391 votes to 242, a majority of 149.”
I suppose the next step is a vote against a “no deal” Brexit. Then,hopefully, a vote to stay in the customs union.
“As promised in advance by Theresa May, the next step will be motions on successive days to see first if MPs want to rule out a no-deal departure and then, if they do, whether they wish to extend article 50 and delay the Brexit process. The Conservatives will have a free vote on no deal. May stressed that Wednesday’s vote would not rule out no deal for ever – just for now. And if MPs decline to rule out no deal, she said, it will become official government policy.”
From Auntie Beeb:
“Mrs May said MPs will now get a vote on whether the UK should leave the EU without a deal and, if that fails, on whether Brexit should be delayed. She said Tory MPs will get a free vote on a no-deal Brexit.”
Cat--Beowolf (the book, not the hero) arrived today, and it looks dandy upon quick perusal. Getting seriously into it will have to wait a bit--I have a largish Art class assignment to hand. We have three weeks for the project, but I hope to have it done in one.
Cat--re the factoid mentioned above...do they offer any explanation or hypothesis to explain the sex disparity among the blind? Are blind males more likely to die, for instance? Or are blind women more likely to contract trachoma?
A Nearly $1 Trillion California Flood Likely to Occur Within 40 Years
ReplyDeletehttps://www.wunderground.com/cat6/Nearly-1-Trillion-California-Flood-Likely-Occur-Within-40-Years
Yep. Fresno is high enough that the lake in the Central Valley won't reach here, but might face flooding from the foothills. The first level of protection is the ponding basins throughout town that serve to recharge the aquifer; even if full, with enough warning they can be pumped out. Then there are a number of irrigation canals passing through the city, but they only give a few hours' respite--irrigation canals are built exactly the opposite of drainage canals==they get smaller as they go, instead of larger. After that water is pumped into the below-grade portions of the newest freeway through town (it was designed with that in mind). Our house is on the bluff above the San Joaquin River, high enough that I think we would be safe even in such a mega-flood. A few miles downstream the river channel narrows dramatically, and it might overflow its banks there, which are lower than in our area. Over the years since the construction of the flood control and irrigation dam upstream there has been development on the floodplain of the river, but few houses aside from a mobile home park that can be evacuated quickly. The piano tuner who visited our house remembered the freshet on the river in the days before the dam; he said that it sounded like a hundred freight trains going by for days.
DeleteAnother note about the 1861 flood---as I recall reading, there was a substantial snow pack in the mountains, then a prolonged warm spell that melted it completely. If there isn't a snow pack (quite possible with global warming), that will decrease the risk. On the other hand, the bed of the Sacramento River is much higher than it was because of the brobdignagian amounts of dirt that washed into it from hydraulic mining for gold. The levees protecting the cities along the river are monumental.
Oh, and although it isn't weather-related, let's not forget that the Cascadia Fault is going to bust loose again some day--and some day could come any time now. That would be on a par with the Tohoku Earthquake. And very few schools in western Oregon and Washington are designed to be earthquake resistant. California learned that lesson in the 1933 Long Beach Earthquake, [Click], which thank Heaven was on a weekend.
Great word for giant, Alan!!
DeleteDidn't you recently say there is a decent snowpack this season? Hmmm.
I was reading all that had to be done out your way to make the land livable and am amazed. Out here we just....build a house. There are some areas that can flood, but we just learn not to build there. Very little is done to alter the land itself. There was some repair and prevention created after Irene came through, but it's peanuts next to what California has done.
I only read a (presumably bowderlized) child's version of Gulliver's Travels that only covered Lilliput, never the complete thing. (I suspect many of the references to politics of the day would evade me), but when I happened upon the adjective "brobdingnagian" I was quite taken with it. Although I must be careful when typing it, it is part of my active vocabulary. And remember that "yahoo" is also from Gulliver; vide the Wikipedia entry. [Click]
DeleteGreat quote! Amazing how little Republicans have changed in 70 years.
ReplyDeleteI left a post about SXSW on the last thread.
ReplyDeleteThe slogan “Give ‘em Hell, Harry!” comes from an incident that took place during the 1948 Presidential election campaign. In Bremerton, Washington, Truman delivered a speech attacking the Republicans. During the speech, a supporter yelled out, "Give 'em Hell, Harry!" Truman replied, "I don't give them Hell. I just tell the truth about them, and they think it's Hell." Subsequently, "Give 'em Hell, Harry!" became a lifetime slogan for Truman supporters.
ReplyDeleteRemember "Give 'em hell, Howard!"?
DeleteI could get a case of the woulda shoulda couldas today.
listener ~~ I sure do remember that. I heard it live at Chicago's Naby Pier.
DeleteFederal Prosecutors Reveal Nationwide College Admissions Fraud Scheme [Click] I am SHOCKED! SHOCKED, I say—to read that athletics coaches were involved!
ReplyDeleteOn another note, I followed up on the toilet paper article that I posted the other day. I bought some of Trader Joe’s regular TP (100% recycled), and compared the price per square foot to Kirkland [Costco] (100% virgin pulp): 1.4 cents vs. 1.1 cents. Adjusting for the difference in width (TJ’s is half an inch narrower—the old standard width), the price per linear foot is the same, about half to a third of the fancy brands. TJ’s isn’t quite as soft as the fancy brands (e.g. Charmin or Northern), but it’s certainly not rough; if anything, nicer than the average TP of my youth.
Pollsters Struggle with Huge 2020 [Democratic] Field [Click] This surely compounds the even further decline in response rates in telephone surveys [Click] I take it to mean that even if Biden and/or Beto make a big splash by jumping in, they could quickly fall into the also-ran category. In any event, the polls should be unreliable for some time.
Here's a factoid I just learned. According to the Hadley School for the Blind, nearly two thirds of the world's blind are women.
ReplyDeleteLooking at the South By Southwest article: A universal basic income is certainly no panacea, but it should be part of the Democratic platform. Should have been for years. The environment and climate change certainly are vitally important but, again, not the only thing that's important. There really isn't much hope for single issue candidates except, as the correspondent noted, to make those issues noticeable enough to get them into the party platform.
ReplyDeleteI am aware of two real-world experiments with universal basic income--one in Manchester, one in Finland; there may be or have been more. In both cases it didn't seem to get people back on their feet and self-supporting, more's the pity.
DeleteShe Invented a Board Game With Scientific Integrity. It’s Taking Off.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/science/wingspan-board-game-elizabeth-hargrave.html?fbclid=IwAR3QMGnGD7y-34ZJfKKpO89R054WGRdd_Df53FtJvEIBoiVuPVU2D5rkwms
Have you had a review from your son the ornithologist?
DeleteTrump Insider Says GOP Not Ready for Investigations [Click] But:
ReplyDeleteWe [They] May Be Focusing on the Wrong Mueller Report [Click]
May’s Brexit Deal Rejected Again
March 12, 2019 at 3:25 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard
“British prime minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal has been defeated again in Parliament by 391 votes to 242, a majority of 149.”
I suppose the next step is a vote against a “no deal” Brexit. Then,hopefully, a vote to stay in the customs union.
Thanks for the update.
DeleteMy pleasure, Bill; if I see something about the next Commons vote, I will mention it here.
DeleteWhat happens next?
DeleteFrom The Guardian:
“As promised in advance by Theresa May, the next step will be motions on successive days to see first if MPs want to rule out a no-deal departure and then, if they do, whether they wish to extend article 50 and delay the Brexit process. The Conservatives will have a free vote on no deal. May stressed that Wednesday’s vote would not rule out no deal for ever – just for now. And if MPs decline to rule out no deal, she said, it will become official government policy.”
From Auntie Beeb:
“Mrs May said MPs will now get a vote on whether the UK should leave the EU without a deal and, if that fails, on whether Brexit should be delayed.
She said Tory MPs will get a free vote on a no-deal Brexit.”
Cat--Beowolf (the book, not the hero) arrived today, and it looks dandy upon quick perusal. Getting seriously into it will have to wait a bit--I have a largish Art class assignment to hand. We have three weeks for the project, but I hope to have it done in one.
ReplyDeleteGood news on the paper recycling front! [Click]
ReplyDeleteBeautiful weather today; maybe gardening tomorrow afternoon.
And now to do my part making Chinese chicken salad for the Art class potluck tomorrow. [I process the chicken, roasted by Costco.]
Cat--re the factoid mentioned above...do they offer any explanation or hypothesis to explain the sex disparity among the blind? Are blind males more likely to die, for instance? Or are blind women more likely to contract trachoma?
ReplyDeleteA couple of columns re the college admissions racket that just got busted by the feds:
ReplyDeleteKids Are the Victims of the Elite-College Obsession [Click]
Why the [latest] College-Admissions Scandal Is So Absurd [Click]
#BreakUpBigTech: Elizabeth Warren says Facebook just proved her point.
ReplyDeleteThe platform briefly blocked some of Warren’s ads attacking it. Her response: ‘Curious why I think FB has too much power?’ [Click] They stopped blocking her ads within a day? Whatta buncha wimps!
Polly Toynbee: The prime minister got one thing right: we can’t blame the EU for this [Click] Gee—rather forceful re Brexit follies; I like it.
More Brexit: panic sets in [Click]
Oh...and GMail is having problems world-wide.