CEOC activated in Los Angeles County by Storm

Rain In Southern California: Winter Storm Unified Command Update

Fri, 02/28/2014 - 8:35pm  |  Newsroom

The Los Angeles County Operational Area Emergency Operations Center (CEOC) was activated at 6:00 a.m. PST in response to a strong winter storm moving through Los Angeles County. The storm system is impacting Los Angeles County cities and unincorporated area communities. The storm system is forecast to bring heavy rain, snow in high elevations, isolated thunderstorms, and gusty winds to the area through Saturday, March 1, 2014. The CEOC is activated in support of the cities of Glendora, Azusa, Monrovia, Rancho Palos Verdes, Long Beach, and Los Angeles. Activations of their Emergency Operations Centers due to storm related issues.

The low pressure system will continue throughout the night moving in the East/Southeast direction through late Saturday night. Rainfall rates ranged from 0.40” to 1.3” per hour in the San Gabriel Mountains. There will be a lull in the shower activity this evening and most likely will increase Saturday morning and continue through the afternoon and early evening hours. An additional 1” to 2” is expected in the Metropolitan LA area and 2” to 5” in the Foothill area.
The Los Angeles County Emergency Operation Center will remain active through this storm event.

STORM, FLOOD AND MUDSLIDE SAFETY TIPS 

• If you notice a major mudslide slippage, move your family to a safe location and call the Department of Public Works at 1-800-675-HELP (4357). If the situation warrants, call 911.
• Do not cross rapidly flowing streams. Stay on one side until the water recedes. Most streams will go down in a couple of hours, once it stops raining.
• Watch for mudslides and adjust drainage to reduce mudslides.
• During a storm, check drainage systems at your home and driveways to maintain a safe situation and limit damage.
• Contact “211” info line for the most up to date shelter information in Los Angeles County.

NEW ROAD CLOSURES 

• Pearblossom: Avenue T, Longview Road to 165th Street East.
• State Route 39 (San Gabriel Canyon Road). Closed at Crystal Lake road to Mile Post Marker 38.9.

(Source: DPW Website)
Read the full report, Click Here.

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Rain In Southern California: Winter Storm Unified Command Update

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Article: Rain In Southern California: Winter Storm Unified Command Update
Source: Santa Clarita NewsAuthor: Newsroom
end quote from:
http://hometownstation.com/santa-clarita-news/rain-southern-california-winter-storm-unified-command-update-40602

How language and culture divides the Ukraine

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A divided Ukraine

updated 11:50 AM EST, Thu Feb 27, 2014 Ukraine is beset by political turmoil the likes of which it hasn't seen in almost a decade. What started as protests over the handling of a trade pact with the European Union escalated to the ousting of the pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych. A new government has been installed in Kiev, the capital. Ukraine, the biggest frontier nation separating Russia and the European Union, is sometimes considered a pawn between Russia and the West. The maps below show a couple of ways in which Ukraine is divided. Related story | Who's who in Ukraine unrest »

The language

Ukrainian is the official language, spoken by 70% of the country’s population. Russian is also spoken widely and is the mother tongue of many Ukrainians, especially in the east and in the southern region of Crimea, where ethnic Russians are in the majority. Violent protests broke out in the Crimean capital of Simferopol on February 27, against the new order set in motion a week earlier amid mass demonstrations in the country capital of Kiev. Crimea is a bastion of support for ousted President Yanukovych and is also home to Russia's Black Sea naval fleet, based at Sevastopol.
Source: 2001 Ukraine Census

2010 presidential elections

A contentious election in 2010 saw pro-Russia candidate and former Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych win with narrow margins over Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko. Yanukovych won with strong support in the Eastern regions, with most regions in the West favoring Tymoshenko.
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http://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2014/02/world/ukraine-divided/?iid=article_sidebar

How young men were trained to be safe with hunting rifles from age 4 to 6 years of age for hundreds of years

The basic idea for hundreds of years is that when you became 4 to 6 years of age (depending upon how a young boy demonstrated his maturity) he would be given a weapon to keep in his bedroom in his closet or to hang on his bedroom wall to hunt with. (sometimes they were just hung over the fireplace back a few years).

The basic idea was that young men had to learn to be responsible and to protect the family from any animals or people that might show up unexpected and cause harm or damage. Often there weren't any police for 10,20,30 or 50 miles or more. So, if you didn't protect your family they would be dead from wild animals or wild people (not much difference in some ways the thinking was then).

So, being given the right to protect your family was an honor and a privilege and demonstrated that people trusted you to let you do this. It was completely related to just how responsible you demonstrated yourself to be by every single action you ever did in your life.

So, if you weren't trained to use a weapon by ages 4 to 6 years age people tended not to trust you and think you might be a little addled in the head or something like that. If you were allowed to use a gun to protect the family or to hunt with then other privileges were given like tending the horses or hitching up the horse or horses to the wagon or whatever honor you were given as a young man 6 to 12 years of age. Step by step you climbed this ladder to manhood by acting responsibly at all times. But, if you even demonstrated in any way you could not be trusted all privileges could be taken away temporarily or even permanently depending upon how you acted in every single moment of your life.

So, you knew to be scared enough to act like an adult whenever you were doing adult things or else you would be terribly shamed by something you did and your life might be temporarily or permanently over as far as being trusted by your family and the community you were a part of.

Pointing a gun at a pet or even a person loaded or unloaded meant someone likely would hit you or knock you down or out. No messing around with weapons or serious adult jobs were ever tolerated even once.

Compared to then children often are treated more like pets and not humans today because it suits adults. However, when kids are treated like pets they cannot also be responsible ever. This is the main problem I see with how things are done today. People think the way things used to be done was cruel. I think that is wrong. I think the way things are done today are more cruel in keeping children from sometimes ever being responsible from ages 4 to 6 onwards.

Storm lashes California

Storm lashes California, but not a drought buster

Houston Chronicle

- ‎2 hours ago‎

LOS ANGELES (AP) - California was lashed Friday by heavy rains that the parched state so desperately needs, though with the soaking came traffic snarls, power outages and the threat of mudslides.

Storm spreads rain across Calif.; mud threatens homes near burn area; little ...U.S. News & World Report

Homes, highway empty in exposed areas as Southern California braces for now ...Fox News

Storm spreads rain across Calif.; mud threatens homes near burn area; little effect on drought

A man places sandbags at the top of a street lined with K-rail and sandbags in Glendora, Calif., as the city and residents prepare for possible flooding Thursday, Feb. 27, 2014. The first wave of a powerful Pacific storm spread rain and snow early Friday through much of California, where communities endangered by a wildfire just weeks ago now faced the threat of mud and debris flows. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

Associated Press Feb. 28, 2014 Leave a Comment SHARE

By JUSTIN PRITCHARD, Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) — California was lashed Friday by heavy rains that the parched state so desperately needs, though with the soaking came familiar problems: traffic snarls, power outages and the threat of mudslides.
Even with rainfall totals exceeding 6 inches in some places by midday, the powerful Pacific storm did not put a major dent in a drought that is among the worst in recent California history.
The first waves of the storm drenched foothill communities east of Los Angeles that just weeks ago were menaced by a wildfire — and now faced potential mudslides. Mandatory evacuation orders were issued for about 1,200 homes in the area. Small debris flows covered one street in Glendora, but no property damage occurred, police said.
Forecasters expected the storm to last through Saturday in California before trundling east into similarly rain-starved neighboring states. Phoenix was expecting its first noticeable precipitation in two months. The storm was projected to head east across the Rockies before petering out in the Northeast in several days.
The threat of mudslides will last at least through Saturday night. Tornadoes and water spouts were possible.
Rainfall totals in parts of California were impressive, especially in areas that typically don't receive much, but not nearly enough to offer long-term relief from a long-running drought.
Downtown Los Angeles received two inches before a midday reprieve, but remained about 12 inches below normal rainfall for the season.
"We need several large storms and we just don't see that on the horizon. This is a rogue storm," National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Boldt said. "We will dry out next week."
But for this rain, the service said, this would have been the driest December through February on record in Los Angeles.
Rain also fell in the central coast counties, the San Francisco Bay region and the Central Valley. Winter storm warnings were in effect in the Sierra Nevada.
About 15 inches of new snow had fallen by mid-day Friday at UC Berkeley's Central Sierra Snow Lab located near the Sierra summit at 6,900 feet above sea level.
"All these (storm) events move us a little higher up, but we're still well below average," said researcher Randall Osterhuber. Earlier in the week, the state Department of Water Resources found that the Sierra snowpack had water content at only 24 percent of average for the date.
Farmer Ray Gene Veldhuis, who grows almonds, walnuts and pistachios and runs a 2,300-cow dairy in the Central Valley's Merced County, welcomed the wet weather but knew it would not rescue California from drought.
"Hopefully, they keep coming," Veldhuis said of the storms. "If not, we'll deal with the hand we're dealt."
The storm did more than force Californians to reacquaint themselves with their rain gear.
Numerous traffic accidents occurred on slick or flooded roads across California, including one about 60 miles east of Los Angeles involving a big rig whose driver died after falling from a freeway overpass.
Two men and their dogs were rescued from the swift waters of the Los Angeles River. A few miles downriver, another man was pulled out and carried to safety. Hundreds of miles north in San Jose, firefighters also pulled a man from swollen Coyote Creek near a homeless encampment.
Power outages hit about 32,000 customers, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and Southern California Edison said.
In Glendora, a city about 25 miles east of Los Angeles that sits beneath nearly 2,000 acres of steep mountain slopes stripped by fire in January, a muddy soup of debris began to fill catch basins. With the vegetation gone, little held the dirt and rock in place.
Homes were spared. Skip loaders scraped tons of mud off a road that funneled ooze, large rocks and other debris from a dam-like catch basin below the burn area down the steep roadway.

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   Andrew Geleris, 59, of Pomona, spent the night with his 87-year-old mother at her home near the catch basin. "I tried to talk her into evacuating yesterday ... but she's just stubborn."
Weeks ago, firefighters stopped the flames 15 feet from Dana Waldusky's back fence.
"This time there's nothing you can do. You can't stop water," said Waldusky.
Meteorologists posted flood watches for many other areas denuded by fires over the past two years, and also warned of potential coastal flooding.
The storm was good news for other Californians who didn't have to worry about mudslides.
Kite-surfer Chris Strong braved pelting rain to take advantage of strong winds that gave him about an hour of fun over the pounding surf in the Sunset Beach enclave of Huntington Beach.
"I don't get to kite here in these conditions very often — only a handful of times — but you put them in the memory bank," he said.
Surf schools in San Diego cancelled lessons, and asked their customers to be patient.
"It's unruly out there now but when the storm settles and it cleans up, there will be the best waves in the next few days," said Rick Gehris of Surfari Surf School.
Storms this winter mostly began in the Pacific Northwest and followed a U-shaped path across the country. This latest storm originated farther south and is "taking a beeline across the middle of the country," said warning meteorologist Greg Carbin at the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla.
"It's a different than other storms we've seen so far, but this is nothing all that unusual," he said.
___
Contact Justin Pritchard at https://twitter.com/lalanewsman
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Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Sue Manning, Alicia Chang and John Antczak in Los Angeles, Robert Jablon in Glendora, Martha Mendoza in Santa Cruz, Sudhin Thanawala in San Francisco, Fenit Nirappil and Don Thompson in Sacramento, Scott Smith in Fresno, Gillian Flaccus in Huntington Beach and Julie Watson in San Diego.
end quote from:

Storm lashes California, but not a drought buster

Rain Bands hitting California

The present set of rain bands hitting California (there could be more coming) have mostly moved inland (except for a few places) past Sacramento. Further South it is a different story with large bands still hitting from Ventura to San Diego and into Tijuana, Mexico. Also, heavy bands are hitting the Las Vegas Areas as well in Nevada. Snow is coming down above 7000 feet along most of  the Sierras as well in abundance. Luckily where I am there are enough hills so we are not in a flood plain near the ocean, although within 10 to 20 miles there are rivers moving out to sea, so flooding is less of a problem where I live than other places around here nearby.

Some of the larger rain cells are letting loose to the west and to the North of Phoenix in Arizona as well as in Nevada near Las Vegas.

Flash flood and surf advisories for Northern California coast

The national Weather service has issued a flash flood warning for Santa Cruz, Monterey and San Benito Countries as of Friday morning.

NWS officials said Big Sur is at the highest risk of mudslides and landslides during this storm because it was hit by a 4.4 magnitude earthquake Thursday and a 900 acre wildfire in December.

Sudden rain could cause mudslides to happen in those areas of Los Padres National Forest.

"Of particular concern it he Pfeiffer burn scar and the Sycamore Canyon within the burn scar perimeter," the NWS said. "Excessive rainfall may have a higher likelihood of producing debris flows and slides."

"A magnitude 4.4 earthquake occurred south of the Pfeiffer Area on the San Simeon Fault offshore...immediately west of the burn scar," the NWS said.

end partial quote from www.ksbw.com
begin second part of quote from same online article


-- National Weather Service High Surf and Flash Flood Advisory --
COASTAL HAZARD MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA
516 AM PST FRI FEB 28 2014
WESTERLY SWELL REMAINS ON TRACK TO IMPACT LOCAL BEACHES SOUTH OF
SAN FRANCISCO FRIDAY EVENING TO SATURDAY AFTERNOON. SAN FRANCISCO PENINSULA COAST-NORTHERN MONTEREY BAY-SOUTHERN MONTEREY BAY AND BIG SUR COAST
...HIGH SURF ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 8 PM THIS EVENING TO
3 PM PST SATURDAY...
WAVES AND SURF...WESTERLY SWELLS BETWEEN 14 AND 16 FEET WITH A PERIOD OF AROUND 14 SECONDS. LOCAL BREAKERS UP TO 20 FEET POSSIBLE. HIGHEST SWELLS WILL BE SOUTH OF POINT PINOS.
TIMING...FRIDAY EVENING INTO SATURDAY AFTERNOON.
IMPACTS...HIGHER THAN NORMAL SURF ESPECIALLY ALONG WEST AND SOUTHWESTERLY FACING BEACHES. IN ADDITION...THERE WILL BE A HEIGHTENED RISK OF RIP CURRENTS AND SNEAKER WAVES.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A HIGH SURF ADVISORY MEANS THAT HIGH SURF WILL AFFECT BEACHES IN THE ADVISORY AREA...PRODUCING RIP CURRENTS AND LOCALIZED BEACH EROSION.
FLOOD WATCH
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA 826 PM PST THU FEB 27 2014 SANTA LUCIA MOUNTAINS AND LOS PADRES NATIONAL FOREST-
SOUTHERN MONTEREY BAY AND BIG SUR COAST-
826 PM PST THU FEB 27 2014
...FLASH FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT PST TONIGHT THROUGH LATE FRIDAY NIGHT...
THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH CONTINUES FOR A PORTION OF CALIFORNIA...INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING AREAS...SANTA LUCIA MOUNTAINS AND LOS PADRES NATIONAL FOREST AND SOUTHERN MONTEREY BAY AND BIG SUR COAST.
FROM MIDNIGHT PST TONIGHT THROUGH LATE FRIDAY NIGHT
A SECOND SURGE OF MOISTURE IS SET TO REACH THE GREATER MONTEREY BAY AREA LATE THURSDAY EVENING... BRINGING UPWARDS OF 8 INCHES TO HIGHER ELEVATION AREAS IN THE SANTA LUCIA MOUNTAINS OVER A 24 TO 36 HOUR PERIOD. TOTAL RAINFALL AND RAINFALL RATES MAY BE HIGH ENOUGH TO ENGENDER FLASH FLOODING IN SMALL CREEKS AND DEBRIS FLOWS IN SATURATED... STEEPER TERRAIN.
OF PARTICULAR CONCERN IS THE PFEIFFER FIRE BURN SCAR AND SYCAMORE CANYON AND OTHER LOCAL DRAINAGES WITHIN THE BURN SCAR PERIMETER. EXCESSIVE RAINFALL MAY HAVE A HIGHER LIKELIHOOD OF PRODUCING DEBRIS FLOWS AND SLIDES IN THIS AREA. MID-MORNING THURSDAY A MAGNITUDE 4.4 EARTHQUAKE OCCURRED SOUTH OF THE PFEIFFER AREA ON THE SAN SIMEON FAULT OFFSHORE. THE SAN SIMEON SYSTEM SHARES LINEAMENTS WITH THE SAN GREGORIO SYSTEM JUST OFFSHORE AND IMMEDIATELY WEST OF THE BURN SCAR. ANY FURTHER SEISMIC ADJUSTMENT OF SIGNIFICANT MAGNITUDE THAT OCCURS LOCAL TO THE PFEIFFER BURN SCAR DURING THE COURSE OF FORECAST PRECIPITATION MAY BE SUFFICIENT TO ACCENTUATE DEBRIS FLOW POTENTIAL. EXTRA CAUTION AND PREPAREDNESS IS URGED IN LIGHT OF THIS... AS WELL AS THE ANTECEDENT CONDITIONS FROM THE RAINFALL THAT HAS ALREADY FALLEN.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MEANS THAT CONDITIONS MAY DEVELOP THAT LEAD
TO FLASH FLOODING AND OR LOCALIZED DEBRIS FLOWS AND SLOPE
INSTABILITY. FLASH FLOODING IS A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION. YOU SHOULD MONITOR LATER FORECASTS AND BE PREPARED TO TAKE ACTION
SHOULD FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS BE ISSUED.

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Read more: http://www.ksbw.com/news/central-california/santa-cruz/a-flood-advisory-is-now-in-effect-for-local-counties/24732922#ixzz2uemfh5eH

More than $1 billion worth of Apple TVs sold in 2013

I had heard about Apple TV before but didn't know much about it. When I learned that 1 Billion Apple TVs were sold I wanted to know more about it.

Tim Cook: Apple TV did over $1B in ...

CNET-by Richard Nieva-20 minutes ago

At Apple's annual gathering of shareholders, CEO Tim Cook said ... So much for Apple TV being just a hobby, said Chief Executive Tim Cook.

Tim Cook: Apple TV sales topped $1 billion in 2013 CBS News-1 hour ago

Apple CEO promises new products, says Apple TV no longer a 'hobby' Highly Cited-Reuters-15 minutes ago

More than $1 billion worth of Apple TVs sold in 2013: CEO Tim Cook In-Depth-Economic Times-3 hours ago

Cook Raises, Dashes Hopes for Excitement at Apple Annual Meeting Blog-Wall Street Journal (blog)-19 minutes ago

Apple's TV Hobby Is Now a Billion-Dollar Business

Tim Cook: Apple TV did over $1B in 2013 revenue

At Apple's annual gathering of shareholders, CEO Tim Cook said the product is more than a "hobby."

by Richard Nieva

February 28, 2014 11:09 AM PST

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(Credit: Apple)

CUPERTINO, Calif. -- While the iPhone and iPad have come to dominate Apple's business, the television has often been relegated to an afterthought for the company. So much for Apple TV being just a hobby, said Chief Executive Tim Cook. "That hobby was over a billion dollars of revenue last year," Cook said during the company's annual meeting with shareholders here. "It's a little hard to call it a hobby anymore."
The billion-dollar figure includes content sales conducted by Apple on the platform -- like movies and TV shows -- and not just hardware sales of its set-top box. At Friday's meeting, Cook did not specify the breakdown between the two revenue streams.
Still, the milestone means the product is getting attention from consumers. A little over a year ago, Cook announced that in the first quarter of the 2013 fiscal year, the company sold more than 2 million Apple TVs, up from 1.4 million a year before. (Although it's worth noting that Apple's first quarter includes results from the holiday shopping season.)
The company also is said to be refreshing the product during the first half of this year, but the update is reportedly to enhance its content experience -- possibly adding a game center and a version of the App Store.

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• Citi paints not-so-pretty picture for Apple's iPad, future market

Still, a billion dollars is less than one percent of the company's total net sales late year. And the set-top box is far from what many fans have wanted for a long time -- a full-fledged Apple TV set. Cook has said that the company will be entering new product categories this year. And on Friday, he had a little fun with all the anticipation. "I'd like to unveil some new products today," he said, as an overflow room full of reporters gasped. "I was just kidding about that last part," he added, laughing. But on the topic of innovation and research and development, Cook did say that the company has acquired 23 companies in the last 16 months. Thus far, the company's recent playbook has been to buy out smaller companies for technological gains, and Cook reiterated the point on Friday. "We're not in a race to pay the most. Not in a race to get the headline," he said, likely a veiled reference to Facebook's blockbuster acquisition of messaging service WhatsApp for as much as $19 billion. But he didn't rule out a splashy buy. "That doesn't mean we won't buy a big company tomorrow afternoon."
At the meeting, all of the motions proposed by Apple to shareholders were approved, while the motions proposed by individual investors were denied.
The gathering was originally billed as a showdown between activist investor Carl Icahn and Apple over the company's buyback program. Icahn has been vocal about Apple repurchasing more of its stock. In December, Icahn announced a nonbinding proposal for Apple shareholders to vote on a buyback at Friday's meeting.
But Icahn then announced earlier this month that he would pull the proposal, mainly because the Institutional Shareholder Services, a trade organization, urged shareholders to vote against it, and because Apple had increased the volume of its stock repurchasing. After investors were disappointed with first-quarter results, Cook announced that the company had bought back $14 billion worth of shares in two weeks. The company is said to be on course to repurchase $32 billion by year's end, just $18 billion off Icahn's $50 billion sum.
Still, Cook said on Friday that the company is still deliberating its buyback plan, and will issue an update of its plans in the next 60 days.
But even without the Icahn drama, the meeting was not without its excitement. A group of Silicon Valley security guards -- including Apple's own -- held a protest at Infinite Loop to coincide with the gathering of the company's shareholders. The protest was just another example of the culture clash engulfing the tech industry in Silicon Valley and the Bay Area.

Topics:

Apple Corporate,

Apple TV

Tags:

Apple TV,

Apple

end quote from:

Tim Cook: Apple TV did over $1B in ...

When I look at the picture above this device looks almost exactly like my Roku puck that I use for streaming onto my 60 inch TV in the living room in HD. I've bought one also for my daughter and her boyfriend and for a friend that used to work for me also and his girlfriend. I have one in my living room and one on my bedroom TV as well. This allows me personally to watch Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and anything else I want to watch that is either free or has a subscription like Netflix and Amazon Prime.

This is all many young people use now because they don't want to pay cable fees on their TV use.  My 17 year old daughter prefers Roku to regular cable TV unless it is for new stuff for the first time on TV. Then we use my TIVO that can record about 1000 hours of HD Stuff on it. So, this way we have enough room to record what everyone in the house wants to watch or keep in regard to movies and new series on Cable TV.

So, what I'm getting from this article is that Apple TV is probably more proprietary than Roku but might have other advantages that I don't know about yet.

Story: Russia's 21st Century Malaise in Five Grim Charts

Economy

Russia's 21st Century Malaise in Five Grim Charts

By Brian Bremner November 19, 2013

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The recent economic news out of Russia has been unremittingly awful, and the longer-term future doesn’t look much brighter.

It seems Vladimir Putin’s petro state has hit a wall, with the government last week reporting economic growth at a disappointing 1.2 percent in the third quarter, over the year-ago period. The Russian economy has been decelerating since the end of 2011, when gross domestic product expanded by 5.1 percent. Meanwhile, Russian Economy Minister Alexei Ulyukayev recently broke the news that the country’s share of the global economy is likely to shrink. Government forecasters project an average growth rate of 2.5 percent each year through 2030, below the global average of 3.4 percent or 3.5 percent. At the same time, the U.S. shale-energy boom is complicating life for Putin, whose government finances and political power are tethered to oil and gas exports.
Now yet another economic study, this one charting out trends to 2100 or so, suggests the entire 21st century may feature subpar growth for Russia. A team of economists from the Gaidar Institute for Economic Policy and Ranepa say Russia already faces serious fiscal challenges, despite official statistics that show a solid government financial position.
The economists analyzed Russia’s likely future financial obligations such as pension payments and social spending, as well as expected taxes and additional receipts, based on the country’s economic growth trajectory. They concluded that Russia faces an eventual fiscal gap of $28 trillion unless the economy grows far faster than predicted or the government raises taxes dramatically.
Russian fatalism? Yes, this is in some ways a thought experiment—who knows what Russia, let alone the world, will look like in 2063?—that assumes some brilliant Russian leader of the future doesn’t enact the right reforms or otherwise figure out a way to get the economy streaking ahead. Still, the working paper submitted to the National Bureau of Economic Research, titled Russia’s Fiscal Gap (PDF), points to some worrisome trends for Putin’s current government. Here are five of them:
1. Falling Energy Revenue. Russia is currently the world’s biggest energy exporter. Natural gas and oil represent some 70 percent of exports, compared with less than 50 percent in the mid-1990s, providing half of the government’s revenue and roughly 17 percent of GDP, according to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. That bounty may not last forever.

2. Shrinking Population. Russia may be facing a steady exodus of citizens over the next century.

3. Smaller Workforce. Migration trends and an aging population will mean fewer workers.

4. Dwindling Consumers. Russia’s overall projected population decline—unless you buy into the optimistic scenario in the next chart—will mean fewer potential consumers.

5. Add it all up, and it becomes clear why Russia’s outlook for economic growth may prompt some to reach for the Stoli.

Bremner is an assistant managing editor for Bloomberg Businessweek. Follow him at @bxbremner. 

end quote from:

Story: Russia's 21st Century Malaise in Five Grim Charts

I was wondering what Stoli meant. It means:

Stolichnaya Premium Vodka

https://www.stoli.com/‎

Stolichnaya

Enjoy the different flavors of Stoli Vodka. Test your skills at Stoli Cipher or express yourself at Stoli Palette.

Stolichnaya - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stolichnaya‎

Wikipedia

Stolichnaya (Russian: Столи́чная, also known as Stoli) is a vodka made of wheat and rye grain. A well-known Soviet brand, Stolichnaya for international ...

‎Description - ‎History - ‎International distribution - ‎Varieties

 

Seven Reasons Putin Won't Give Up Ukraine

Emerging Markets

Seven Reasons Putin Won't Give Up Ukraine

By Peter Coy February 21, 2014

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Photograph by Sasha Mordovets/Getty Images

Russian President Vladimir Putin at the 2014 Winters Olympics in Sochi

Bloomberg’s Henry Meyer has an extraordinary article today about the dwindling options available to Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose Sochi Olympic moment has been overshadowed by the bloody mess in neighboring Ukraine.

But as much as the situation seems to be slipping out of control, it’s hard to imagine that Putin will just walk away and leave Ukraine to its own devices. Here are seven reasons why:
Pride: Putin said in 2005 that the fall of the Soviet Union was “the greatest geopolitical catastrophe” of the 20th century. From that perspective, to allow Ukraine to slip out of Russia’s orbit would make Putin no better than Mikhail Gorbachev, who presided over the Soviet empire’s dissolution in 1991.

Story: Behind a Pattern of Global Unrest, a Middle Class in Revolt

Trade: Putin wants Ukraine to join Russia’s fledgling customs union with Belarus, Kazakhstan, and soon, Armenia. The customs union is his answer to the European Union’s much larger trading bloc. Indeed, the current protests broke out after Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, a Putin ally, pivoted away from a European Union integration accord last November and chose Russia instead.
History: Russia and Ukraine have deep historical links dating back to the Kievan Rus, whose glory days were the 11th and 12th centuries. According to Russiapedia, the Kievan Rus “is traditionally seen as the beginning of Russia and the ancestor of Belarus and Ukraine.”
Statehood: In 2008, the Russian business daily Kommersant cited a source in a NATO country’s delegation who quoted Putin as telling President George W. Bush: “You understand, George, that Ukraine isn’t even a state.” For most of the 900 years preceding independence in 1991, it wasn’t. Parts of what’s now Ukraine were controlled by Poland, Lithuania, the Khanate of Crimea, Austria Hungary, Germany, and of course Russia. In 2009 Putin approvingly quoted a description of Ukraine as “little Russia.” If Putin doesn’t perceive Ukraine as a real state, he’s less likely to respect its independence.

Video: Will Sochi Games Mark Putin’s Defeat of Europe?

Crimea: Crimea, the southern part of Ukraine on the Black Sea, was part of Russia until 1954, when it was given to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, supposedly to strengthen brotherly ties, even though it had a majority-Russian population. Historians still aren’t sure why Russia gave away Crimea, but Putin isn’t likely to let that gift get too far away.
The Navy: Russia’s Black Sea Fleet is headquartered in the Crimean city of Sevastopol (which is less than 200 miles northwest of Sochi). If an unfriendly Ukrainian government ended the lease, Russia would be forced to move its headquarters east to Novorossiysk. In December, Russia dangled an offer of cheaper natural gas to Ukraine in exchange for better terms on its lease in Sevastopol.
Energy: Natural gas sales to Europe are a key source of foreign exchange for Russia, and a big share of that gas passes through Ukraine. It wants to keep those pipelines in friendly hands. But Russia’s Gazprom (GAZP:RM) is also hedging its bets by building a new South Stream pipeline that crosses the Black Sea on the seabed from Russia to Bulgaria, bypassing Ukraine.

Story: Ukraine’s Protesters May Soon Gain Power—and Regret It

Josef Stalin brutally subjugated Ukraine in the 1930s, liquidating the wealthy farmers known as kulaks. Putin is no Stalin, but no one should assume that he will let Ukraine go without a struggle.

Story: Russia's 21st Century Malaise in Five Grim Charts

end quote from:

 Seven Reasons Putin Won't Give Up Ukraine

Ukraine Accuses Russia of Invading Crimea as Airports Seized

Ukraine Accuses Russia of Invading Crimea as Airports Seized (1)

Businessweek

- ‎3 minutes ago‎

Russian troops block the road way towards the military airport at the Black Sea port of Sevastopol in Crimea, Ukraine on Feb. 28, 2014.

Ukraine accuses Russia of deploying troops in CrimeaBBC News

Russian moves in Ukraine's Crimea a familiar patternUSA TODAY - by Oren Dorell

Opinion:Putin's energy play in Ukraine: follow the moneyThe Globe and Mail

In Depth:Creeping Russia Takeover in Crimea Seen More Likely Than AssaultBloomberg

Live Updating:Ukraine crisis live: UN Security Council to hold emergency meeting on Ukraine ...Telegraph.co.uk

Wikipedia:Crimea

Bloomberg News

Ukraine Accuses Russia of Invading Crimea as Airports Seized (1)

By Daryna Krasnolutska February 28, 2014

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Russian troops block the road way towards the military airport at the Black Sea port of Sevastopol in Crimea, Ukraine on Feb. 28, 2014. Photographer: Andrew Lubimov/AP Photo

Ukraine’s acting president accused Russia of invading the southern Crimea region, where unidentified gunmen seized airports and other facilities.

“The Russian Federation started a naked aggression against our country,” Oleksandr Turchynov said in a speech broadcast by the parliamentary television channel today. “I demand that President Putin halt the provocation immediately and call military forces back from Crimea.”
Thirteen planes carrying about 2,000 paratroopers have landed in the region, Serhiy Kunitsyn, a representative of Turchynov in Crimea, said today on the ATR television station. Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment when reached by mobile phone. Igor Konashenkov, a spokesman at the defense ministry in Moscow, wasn’t immediately available.

Video: Ukraine Looks to IMF Bailout as Gunmen Storm Crimea

Tensions are mounting in Crimea, home to Russia’s Black Sea fleet, after an uprising in Kiev against ousted President Viktor Yanukovych last week called into question Russia’s sway over the country of 45 million people.
U.S. Treasuries pared losses after Turchynov’s remarks as traders sought a refuge in the world’s largest securities market. Benchmark 10-year notes traded at 2.6565 percent at 4:05 p.m. in New York, down from 2.6968 percent earlier in the session.

Russian Majority

Any Russian invasion risks further destabilizing a country that’s already on the brink of default and elected a government only yesterday. While it would also likely anger U.S. President Barack Obama’s administration, NATO is under no obligation to defend the country against a foreign incursion.

Story: A Humiliated Putin Plans His Next Move in Ukraine

Russians comprise 59 percent of Crimea’s population of about 2 million people, with 24 percent Ukrainian and 12 percent Tatar, according to 2001 census data. Of the entire country’s 45 million people, 78 percent are Ukrainian and 17 percent are Russian.
Turchynov said there’s a precedent of Russia using the military on the country’s borders to support its citizens, citing the example of Georgia. In 2008, the Kremlin sent troops into South Ossetia and Abkhazia, saying it had to protect the Georgian separatist republics from government troops. After a five-day conflict, Russia gave the regions diplomatic recognition and deployed soldiers to their borders.
In New York, Ukraine’s ambassador to the United Nations said Russia illegally flew military transport aircraft and helicopters across Ukrainian borders.

Video: What's Ukraine's Financial Situation Like Now?

While he didn’t have information on who the group of “heavily weaponed people” at Crimea’s two airports and parliament are, Yuriy Sergeyev said it’s already clear that Russia has breached Ukraine’s sovereignty.
To contact the reporter on this story: Daryna Krasnolutska in Kiev at dkrasnolutsk@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Mark Sweetman at msweetman@bloomberg.net; Balazs Penz at bpenz@bloomberg.net

Story: Seven Reasons Putin Won't Give Up Ukraine

end quote from: 

 

Ukraine Accuses Russia of Invading Crimea as Airports Seized (1)

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US Warns About Ukraine Intervention

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February 28, 2014

The White House on Friday urged Russia to respect the territorial integrity of Ukraine, while Russia's president stressed to European leaders the need to "normalize" the situation there.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said reports of Russian intervention in the southern Ukrainian region of Crimea are of "deep concern" to the United States, and he reiterated comments made by other U.S. officials that intervention in Ukraine would be a "grave mistake."

Carney said Washington is seeking clarification of reports of Russian intervention in Crimea, where pro-Russian gunmen seized government buildings Thursday.

On Friday, Ukraine's interim interior minister Arsen Avakov said Russian forces took control of Crimea's two main airports. He said armed Russian troops were blocking the Belbek airport in Sevastopol, where Russia has a naval base.

A VOA correspondent who flew into Crimea's Simferopol Airport on Friday saw gunmen wearing camouflage and carrying automatic weapons at the airport.

Meanwhile, the Kremlin said in a statement Friday that President Vladimir Putin discussed the situation in Ukraine in telephone conversations with British Prime Minister David Cameron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and European Council Chairman Herman Van Rompuy.

According to the Kremlin, the conversations emphasized the need to prevent a further escalation of violence and quickly normalize the situation in Ukraine.

On Thursday, the Kremlin reported that Mr. Putin had instructed his government "to continue contacts with partners in Kyiv on the issues of development of trade and economic ties between Russia and Ukraine." 

end quote from:

 US Warns About Ukraine Intervention

A Nation and World out of touch with Reality?

When I grew up people were more used to dealing with physical things like wild animals and wild people around the world in the 1950s. From today's perspective you might have called us "wilder and crueler" than today. However, unfortunately, we were much more realistic and "in touch" with physical reality. Whereas I would say people have lost touch with "Physical reality" and become more proficient with "Theoretical Reality" instead. The Zimmerman case with Travon Martin is a perfect example of this.

Zimmerman was living in a "theoretical reality" rather than an actual reality when this happened when Travon Martin died. It is also possible that Travon Martin was also in an altered state from smoking marijuana too at that point. However, Marijuana if that was what happened does not make you violent it makes you paranoid. So, Travon likely was scared or paranoid.

So, you have the unrealistic nature of Zimmerman (which I might call the video game theoretical reality) coming up against the (reality?) of a 17 year old boy becoming a man. These two relative unrealities caused Travon Martin's death.

When you add to this the unreality of someone shooting someone for texting his babysitter to see if his child was all right in a movie theater, someone shooting someone for playing loud music at a gas station, someone shooting someone for vandalizing their car, you begin to see where I'm going with all this.

For example, vandals often were shot with rock salt in shotguns still when I was growing up. People didn't shoot people for vandalizing or stealing in the country. They just made those people have so much pain from rock salt embedded in the butts and backs so they never would do that again.

So, people didn't shoot people for doing a lot of things people do now. So, I'm thinking it is the video game, TV program, Twitter and Facebook generations with video games not clearly observing what is actually going on physically around them all the time.

People are getting just too into their heads and fantasies about everything. And in the south Arkansas to Florida when unreality is mixed with guns people die.

Fantasies and guns don't belong together, in bars, theaters, or just in your driveway. Because when they do some people are sure to die and people of color or a different race or look slightly different because of their dress are going to be dead. Fantasy and guns make people dead.

No one should have a gun who isn't realistic and have their head on straight. It's sort of like taking concealed weapons into a bar. No one but cops who aren't drinking alcohol right then should be doing this.


There is a book a little bit about this called "Suspicion Nation" that I was hearing about on CNN TV Today.

Suspicion Nation: The Inside Story of the Trayvon ... - Amazon.com

www.amazon.com/Suspicion-Nation.../dp/161902327X‎

Amazon.com

... Martin case? Why does America endure so many tragic shootings like this one? These are the questions at the heart of Suspicion Nation. Bestselling author.

News for suspicion nation

HLNtv.com

1. Lisa Bloom's 'Suspicion Nation' dips into Trayvon Martin case

   Los Angeles Times ‎- by Hector Tobar ‎- 4 hours ago

   Book review: For better or worse, Lisa Bloom brings a TV pundit sensibility to the Trayvon Martin case in 'Suspicion Nation.'

    

    

    

   Even Lisa Bloom who actually wrote "Suspicion Nation" said she didn't do well on a test developed by a University to test bias against other races. So, even people who are trying to be helpful and not be racist especially in the white culture of America unknowingly contribute to subconscious racism in their actions towards minorities.

A Storm named Titan

This storm definitely matches it's name. I was watching on the weather channel while someone described this huge storm. It has a cyclonic center out in the Pacific ocean and all the rain bands are fanning in a counter clockwise direction and since the center is stalled out to sea at present sort of much more rain than originally expected is going to hit California as it hits the California coast in a counter clockwise way storm band after storm band. Then it is going to go east from here and collide with the Polar Vortex and the Moisture coming up from the Gulf of Mexico and make a mess all across the U.S. all the way to Washington D.C. and then out to sea from there.

3 to 5 inches of rain are going to hit Southern California and parts of the Sierras. Under 3 inches are likely for most of the rest of California. The highest winds and the most amount of damage (wind and driving rain) up to 60 mph likely will be from Santa Barbara down to the Mexico border and inland from there. Mud slides are already a problem in some areas of the south land wherever fires occurred recently as well.

A Healthy way for all day Energy at Work

My cousin is a lawyer but he is also 71 years of age. So, he told me his secret of still being able to work without distress at this age still in his practice. He uses Nature Made Balanced B-100 Complex which is a timed release tablet that helps convert food into energy.

He says without it he could no longer be okay in the afternoons working at this age. But, with this supplement he doesn't fade out in the afternoons even when driving home through traffic.

I shared this with my daughter who was going to have to drive from Mt. Shasta to Portland in the storm this week. She was not feeling well when she left but was amazed how well she still felt when she arrived in Portland. She called and wanted the brand name of this useful item for getting things done in a very healthy way. (Of course you have to eat good food and get enough sleep for this to work properly). But, generally speaking this is a very useful item to healthily not fade out in the afternoons while driving long distances or working hard at whatever you need to be doing.

She wanted to recommend this to her friends as a healthy way to stay strong and alert throughout the day.

Los Angeles: First Calendar day with an inch or more of rain since 2011

"Downtown Los Angeles had the first calendar day with an inch or more of rain on Thursday since October of 2011.
As beneficial as this rain will be, it does pose some dangers, particularly to those living in Southern California."

repeat quote from:

California Rain Brings Both Relief, Flooding

This quote gives some idea of just how bad this drought has been in southern California since 2011.

California: Relief and Flooding

Washington Post

California Rain Brings Both Relief, Flooding

AccuWeather.com-5 hours ago

Another round of rain is moving into California to close out the week, bringing further relief from the extreme drought gripping much of the ...

California Rain Brings Both Relief, Flooding

By Brian Lada, Meteorologist

February 28, 2014; 7:41 AM

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Another round of rain is moving into California to close out the week, bringing further relief from the extreme drought gripping much of the Golden State. However, the storm will cause some problems as well.
This rain began to move in Thursday night, right on the heels of the storm that brought rain to parts of the state on Wednesday. This second storm will have some differences though, including a heavier rain that will span across the entire state.
Downtown Los Angeles had the first calendar day with an inch or more of rain on Thursday since October of 2011.
As beneficial as this rain will be, it does pose some dangers, particularly to those living in Southern California.
Storm clouds are shown over downtown Los Angeles Thursday Feb. 27, 2014. (AP Photo/Nick Ut)
A mandatory evacuation due to a high probability of debris and mudflow was ordered Thursday in the Colby Fire Impact Area in Glendora, Calif., according to the Glendora Police Department's Facebook page.
The department said there is the risk of injury and/or death in the event of such a debris or mudflow.
A mandatory evacuation order has been issued in Azusa, Calif., for 11 residences that have been identified by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works as having a high potential for mud flow flooding.

According to AccuWeather.com Western Weather Expert Ken Clark, "Rain will fall everywhere in the state Friday and Friday night with the heavy rain mostly in the southern third of the state."
This is a big difference from that storm that affected the state Wednesday into Thursday, as some residents of Southern California did not even see a drop of rain.
Not only will the rain help battle the drought, but heavy snow is also expected to fall in the mountains with several feet possible in the Sierra through Saturday. This snow is crucial during the warmer months when the runoff helps to fill water reservoirs downstream.
RELATED:
Ken Clark's Western U.S. Weather Blog
Drought-Stricken Southwest Tears up Lawns to Save Water
California Interactive Radar
Several inches of rain are likely through Saturday along the California coast with the heaviest rain focusing along the coast of Southern California.
"I would expect to see some amounts in the 6- to 8-inch range Friday into Saturday in the mountains with 4 to 6 inches in the spots in the lower foothills. This would include the recent burn area around the San Gabriel Valley," Clark said.
Periods of heavy rain are also in store for southern parts of Nevada and Utah as well as northern Arizona as the moisture associated with the storm travels inland.

The storm will bring some hazards with it. Heavy rain can quickly lead to flash and urban flooding. Mudslides are possible, especially in areas that have been affected by wildfires over the past several months.
Folks living in these areas are encouraged to have a plan in place in the event that you must leave your home with little warning.
Thunderstorms will also develop over Southern California on Saturday, bringing the risk of damaging winds and hail. A brief tornado or waterspout cannot be ruled as well.

So far this year, San Diego had received measurable precipitation on only four days totaling 0.50 of an inch. This equates to only 12 percent of what the city normally receives up to this point in the year.
According to the U.S. Drought Monitor report on Feb. 25, 2014, more than 90 percent of California was under a severe drought, and 74 percent under an extreme drought.
Although the rainfall through the weekend will help to lower these percentages, it will take much more rain to have a long-term impact on the current drought.
The chance of rain will return again to California during the first half of next week; however, most of this rain appears like it will stay mainly over the northern half of the state.

  end quote from:

Washington Post

California Rain Brings Both Relief, Flooding

Around Midnight or shortly thereafter heavy rains began. I stayed up awhile to watch it. When I awoke about 9 Am still the heavy rains continued. So, a good soaking was had here in on the Northern California Coast.