About That Video ...

Coldest Winter on Record Followed by Latest Global Warming Warnings

Doubling Down on Stoopid

General Motors has boosted prices of its redesigned 2014 full-size pickups $1,500 – enough to pay for a $1,500 rebate currently offered on most models.

"It's the oldest game in the book – raise the price and raise the rebate. It's a marketing message," says Karl Brauer, senior analyst at Kelley Blue Book. Shoppers have come to expect a rebate, and are less attentive to whether the price of the vehicle has gone up commensurately, he says.

The new prices make the least-expensive 2014 GM pickup – a Silverado with two-wheel drive and regular cab -- $26,670 including $1,095 shipping.

So.

The president of GM acknowledged, last week, that sales of its pickup trucks are off some 7 to 9 percent (I forget which), and stated specifically it's because of consumers being angry about the government bail-out at taxpayer expense.

Perhaps someone should tell the mental pygmy that when sales are falling, you don't raise the prices.

Perhaps they deserve to fail.

5th Avenue Mall Evacuated

after some bear spray was discharged.

Shoppers and workers at the 5th Avenue had to end their evening shorter than expected after bear spray was discharged Friday evening, according to the Anchorage Fire Department and mall officials.

Sometime before 8 p.m., hazmat crews were called on scene due to bear spray and the mall evacuated. The popular downtown shopping center opens at 10 a.m. and closes at 9 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Mall officials say the mall shut down an hour before closing and no serious damage was caused by the incident.

Anchorage police confirmed that people had reactions to the discharge.

Never a dull moment, it seems.

Even elves think that was dumb!

Stupidity is its Own Reward

A man was arrested in Girdwood Wednesday night after Alaska State Troopers say he tried to elude troopers, but was caught when his sport-utility vehicle attempted to elude him.

According to a Thursday AST dispatch, troopers saw Andrew L. Mitchell, whose license was suspended, driving on Hightower Road in Girdwood at about 5:50 p.m. Wednesday.
“As troopers attempted to stop Mitchell in his Jeep Liberty, Mitchell accelerated away and attempted to flee on foot, but had to return to the vehicle when he failed to put the vehicle in park and turn the vehicle off,” troopers wrote.

So he put on a burst of speed & then changed to shoe leather ... only to care more about his Jeep more than his freedom, as it kept rolling.

Slow News Day, Bringing the Stoopid

The local news consists of several "Anchorage Gets Heavy Snowfall" stories, along with the inevitable pictures/videos of people pushing snowblowers around driveways, and stuck cars out of intersections.

Snow's not exactly a novelty up here, folks; get a grip & move on, 'kay?

found at www.adn.com

* * * * *

One bit o' political news: it seems our Lt. Governor, Mead Treadwell, is considering a run for Mark Begich's (D-AK) U.S. Senate seat in 2014.

Cue the "Who's Mead Treadwell?" interviews in 3 ... 2 ...

(Begich, you'll recall, won his first term in 2008 by running against the late Ted Stevens, who was convicted on seven counts of lying on Senate ethics forms in late October - just before the election. What a coincidence!  Those convictions were later overturned due to prosecutorial misconduct & mishandling on the part of the U.S. Justice Dept., including suppression of evidence which would have been favorable to Sen. Stevens.)

* * * * *

I see where Harry Belafonte (he was a Calypso singer, 50 years ago, and therefore obviously an expert on social relevance) recommends that the President "work like a third world dictator and just put all these guys in jail" while referring to entitlement reformers.

And then, of course, the President would be on the receiving end of a third world revolt. How dumb can one guy get and still breathe?

Bringing the Stupid; More Snow

A college hockey referee from Colorado, with all the acuity of a mental pygmy, cracked what he thought was a joke at the Alaska Airlines counter here. Observing that the baggage agent put his luggage tag on his friend's suitcase, he said,

"But my friend's bag has a bomb in it," the agent remembers him saying, according to a charging document. He recounted it to authorities slightly differently, more to the effect of "what if my friend's bag has a bomb in it?"

Either way, his comment was "perhaps an effort to be funny or flirtacious," Assistant District Attorney Adam Alexander said Sunday before Friesema made a court appearance.

Friesema, 44, may have been joking but no one in the airline business is amused by off-hand comments about bombs.

 Okay, so maybe he's the one person in America who hasn't seen the "don't joke about bombs" signs that have been in airports for some 40 years. But his actions resulted in a three-hour shutdown of the south (main) terminal at Stevens Airport, with some thousand passengers being bussed to the north terminal, and flights delayed or cancelled.

It seems Ron White is correct: you can't fix stupid. But the offender now faces jail time and a fine. I only hope he did a better job as a referee.

* * * * *

After a decade in Anchorage, we've learned never to be too confident in announcing that winter has begun. It wouldn't be the first time that we had snow - sometimes, several inches of it - followed by a weeks-long warm spell.

But it appears that winter is just about here. It was raining when I left home, and during that 15-minute drive to work, it became a slushy rain/snow mix.  AccuHunch Weather guesses we'll get another inch or so by tonight. This is the third snowfall of the season. Those who have been predicting an early winter feel justified, although this isn't really that early. Back in '47 (before you were born; remember, kids?) Anchorage received its earliest snowfall on Sept. 20.

Okay, so folks here have long memories.  Either way, it could be sign of another long winter season.

What's So Bad About Socialized Medicine?

What the ...???

'Nuff said?

h/t Upinak

Bringing The Stoopid

From this morning's Daily News:

A Kalskag man shot holes in his own vehicle after punching his wife early Tuesday morning in the Southwest Alaska village, according to Alaska State Troopers.

~ snip ~

Hetherington allegedly told troopers that when drove the woman home from the party, he still needed to "blow off some steam," so he got a .45 caliber handgun and shot his SUV about 50 times, troopers said. He was arrested on assault and weapons misconduct charges.

The stupid ... it burns.

And If We Don't, You Probably Didn't Need It

Duhh....