Entirely avoidable…
The .GIF Friday Post No. 413 – Seal Team, Snake Dead End & Happy Marching
On The Border.
A section of the controversial US-Mexico border fence expansion project crosses previously pristine desert sands at sunrise on March 14, 2009, between Yuma, Arizona and Calexico, California. The barrier stands 15 feet tall and sits on top of the sand so it can lifted by a machine and repositioned whenever the migrating desert dunes begin to bury it. The almost seven miles of floating fence cost about $6 million per mile to build.
[Image found in here. Caption from here.]
[soapbox ap enabled]
I love the choices of phrase: “controversial… fence” and “previously pristine desert,” and the words “almost” and “about.” There’s nothing controversial about a sovereign nation protecting her borders with a fence or otherwise, and the desert is so pristine that it’s relatively devoid of flora and fauna. It’s pure pristine desolation.
Reports vary as to the the border fence height (15-20 feet), the length and the cost; however, local law enforcement says that it works, and that arrests of drug smugglers and “coyotes” along the Yuma border have dropped from 800 per day down to only 15 – a reduction of over 98 per cent in illegal traffic since 2005.
It also translates to a huge reduction in the related costs of apprehending illegals, detaining and housing them, conducting legal hearings and deportations, and it cripples the Mexican drug cartels as a bonus.
Border fences through accessible regions makes simple economical sense, especially in the long term. How do we pay for it? Reduce the annual budget for the NSA by only 1.5 percent each year for the next 10 years.
Then, if a low skilled workforce is still needed, we revive the successful Bracero Program and ensure that the workers don’t get chumped.
[soapbox ap deactivated]
I like the photo. It looks like the work of Christo, only more functional.
The 11th Hour of the 11th Day of the 11th Month: Armistice Day aka Veterans’ Day
Have you ever had the patience, alas
to count to 101,079?
Or to walk the salt-resistant grass
and touch the headstones in each long line?
To think of each warrior buried there
knowing their lives have been split in two
half for their carefree heroic youth
and half for the freedom of me and you?
If so, you couldn’t have stemmed the flood
of tears that surely blurred your eyes
as the spirit dips His brush in blood
to paint Old Glory in the skies
R. T. Sedgwick
[Image of Ft. Rosecrans National Cemetary and poem found here.]
“You DO know what yellow snow is, right?”
[Found here.]
Furry little bastard.
Saturday Matinee – Saving Daylight Trailer, Caifanes, The Iguanas & Tito Puente
Saving Daylight – The Movie. [via].
The guy that brings our mail and kills the rats in our building showed up today wearing a baseball jersey with Los Caifanes logo on it, so I asked him about it, and he told me. They remind me a bit of these guys:
Although it’s real bad advice, “Oye, Isabel” is one of The Iguanas‘ catchiest tunes. Okay, let’s go for one more, and since we’re on a latino music kick tonight, here’s some addictive Mambo rhythms from Tito Puente.
Have a great weekend, folks, and we’ll see you back here on Sunday.
The .Gif Friday Post No.412 – DUCK, Hosedown & China Dog
Horrorse.
[Image found in here.]
There’s nothing wrong with that student’s sketch, because it has little to do with artwork. Duplicating individual squares of a grid is a geometric exercise in hand-eye coordination and nothing more.
On the other hand, the sketch is awesome. Ignore the grid and mock the assignment. Realism is what cameras are for.
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The key to drawing is to sketch what you see, not what you think you see. Forget what it is you’re trying to draw, squint your eyes and sketch out the dark spots, then add the medium spots. The white spots will figure it out on their own.
Look at a tree. It’s not a flat lollipop, and when you draw it, make sure there are holes in it for the birds to fly through.
Grampa Strutts gave me that advice a long time ago. Then he showed me this book. Download a copy before it’s gone and study it. It’s Beyond the Valley of Awesome.
[Related post here.]
Donald Trump’s Point Made.
[Found here.]
Tacky Raccoons 