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National Climate Report - February 2014
Maps and Graphics
Rankings Maps
U.S. Percentage Areas
Additional Resources
National Overview:
Supplemental February 2014 Information
- Year-to-date temperature evolution for select U.S. cities
- Year-to-date precipitation evolution for select U.S. cities
- Winter temperatures for select U.S. cities
- Winter temperature trends
- Winter snowfall for select U.S. cities
- Great Lakes ice cover
- February daily temperature extremes
- U.S. temperature and precipitation dataset transitiion
- Climate Highlights — February
- The contiguous U.S. February temperature was 32.2°F, 1.6°F below the 20th century average, and the 37th coldest February on record.
- Wisconsin each had a top ten cold February, though no state was record cold.
- The Southwest and Florida were Utah each had February temperatures that ranked among the ten warmest on record, though no state was record warm.
- The February national precipitation total was 2.12 inches, 0.01 inch below average, ranking near the middle of the 120-year period of record.
- Oklahoma had February precipitation totals that were top ten dry.
- Wyoming both had a top ten wet February.
- According to the March 4 U.S. Drought Monitor report, 35.9 percent of the contiguous U.S. was in drought, down from 37.4 percent at the beginning of February. Drought conditions improved across the western Gulf Coast states, while drought intensified in the Southern Plains. Some minor drought relief occurred in the West, when a late-winter storm dropped heavy precipitation across the region, but 22.4 percent of California continued to experience the worst classification of drought, known as D4 or "exceptional", with mountain snowpack still much below average.
- There were 1.75 times as many record cold daily highs (2,205) and lows (1,276, or a total of 3,481) as many warm daily highs (945) and lows (1,043, or a total of 1,988).
- According to NOAA data analyzed by the Rutgers Global Snow Lab, the February snow cover extent for the contiguous U.S. was 1.48 million square miles, 282,000 square miles above the 1981-2010 average. This was the ninth largest February snow cover extent in the 48-year period of record for the contiguous U.S. and the largest since 2010.
- Based on NOAA's Residential Energy Demand Temperature Index (REDTI) , the contiguous U.S. temperature-related energy demand during February was 25 percent above average and the 33rd highest in the 1895-2014 period of record.
- Climate Highlights — winter (December 2013 – February 2014)
- The average temperature for the contiguous U.S. during the winter was 31.3°F, 1.0°F below the 20th century average. This winter ranked as the 34th coldest winter on record and the coldest since 2009/10.
- Seven Midwestern states were much colder than average and had a top ten cold winter season, though no state was record cold.
- The persistent cold during winter resulted in 91 percent of the Great Lakes being frozen by the beginning of March, according to NOAA's Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. This was second largest ice cover for the Great Lakes since records began in 1973, and only surpassed by the Great Lakes ice cover in 1979.
- California winter temperature was 48.0°F, 4.4°F above the 20th century average, far exceeding the previous record, set in 1980/81, by 0.8°F.
- The winter precipitation total for the contiguous U.S. was 5.69 inches, 1.10 inches below average, and the ninth driest winter on record.
- Much of the West and Great Plains were Texas each had a top ten dry winter season. During winter, drought intensified across the West and Southern Plains. Statewide reservoirs in Texas averaged 64 percent capacity on February 20, their lowest level for the time of the year since 1990.
- Beneficial rainfall at the end of February provided some marginal drought relief in the Far West. As of March 1, reservoirs across central and northern California had storage levels between 36 percent and 74 percent of their historical averages for the date. Locations in northern and central California would need over 18 inches of precipitation over the next three months to end the current drought, which would be highly unusual.
- A list of snowfall totals for select U.S. cities can be found here.
- Alaska had its eighth warmest winter on record with an average temperature 6.2°F above the 1971-2000 average, marking the warmest winter for the state since 2002/03. Alaska's winter statewide precipitation total was 20.9 percent above average and the 27th wettest winter in 1918-2014 record.
- According to NOAA data analyzed by the Rutgers Global Snow Lab, the winter average snow cover extent for the contiguous U.S. was 1.42 million square miles, which was 170,000 square miles above the 1981-2010 average. This marked the 10th largest seasonal snow cover extent in the 1966-present period of record. Above-average snow cover was observed across the northern and eastern U.S., while below-average snow cover was observed from the Southern Rockies westward.
- The U.S. Climate Extremes Index (USCEI) during winter was above average and the 25th highest value on record for the season. Elements that contributed to the above average USCEI included the spatial extent of cold maximum and minimum temperatures and days with precipitation. The USCEI is an index that tracks extremes (falling in the upper or lower ten percent of the record) in temperature, precipitation, and drought across the contiguous United States. The CEI for the West region was record high during winter.
- Based on REDTI, the contiguous U.S. temperature-related energy demand during winter was 27 percent above average and the 30th highest in the 1895-2014 period of record.
With this report and data release, the National Climatic Data Center is transitioning to an improved U.S. temperature and precipitation dataset called nClimDiv. More information on this transition and how the new temperature and precipitation values compare to values previously reported this winter can be found here:
- Technical information on transition
- December 2013 and January 2014 temperature and precipitation comparisons
- Background information
- Transitioning to a Gridded Climate Divisional Dataset
**A comparison of the national temperature departure from average as calculated by NCDC's operational dataset (USHCN) and the U.S. Climate Reference Network (USCRN) is available on our National Temperature Index page.**
Alaska Temperature and Precipitation:
- Temperature
- Alaska had its 48th coolest February since records began in 1918, with a temperature 1.22°F (0.68°C) above the 1971-2000 average.
- Alaska had its 8th warmest December-February since records began in 1918, with a temperature 6.20°F (3.44°C) above the 1971-2000 average.
- Alaska had its 7th warmest January-February since records began in 1918, with a temperature 7.99°F (4.44°C) above the 1971-2000 average.
- Precipitation
- Alaska had its 13th driest February since records began in 1918, with an anomaly that was -37.68% below the 1971-2000 average.
- Alaska had its 27th wettest December-February since records began in 1918, with an anomaly that was 20.94% above the 1971-2000 average.
- Alaska had its 45th wettest January-February since records began in 1918, with an anomaly that was 7.57% above the 1971-2000 average.
For additional details about recent temperatures and precipitation across the U.S., see the Regional Highlights section below and visit the Climate Summary page. For information on local temperature and precipitation records during the month, please visit NCDC's Records page.
Regional Highlights:
These regional summaries were provided by the six Regional Climate Centers and reflect conditions in their respective regions. These six regions differ spatially from the nine climatic regions of the National Climatic Data Center.
- Northeast Region: (Information provided by the Northeast Regional Climate Center)
- Looking at preliminary data, the Northeast was cooler than normal during February. Western areas of New York and Pennsylvania were the coldest, with departures as low as -10 degrees F (-5.6 degrees C). Departures as low as -6 degrees F (-3.3 degrees C) were found in most of the region, except in northern New England (Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire) where departures generally ranged from 0 to -4 degrees F (0 to -2.2 degrees C).
- Preliminary data indicates precipitation totals were mixed across the region. Western Pennsylvania, northern New York, and midcoast Maine were the driest spots. Those areas received 70-90 percent of normal precipitation. West Virginia, the Mid-Atlantic, eastern parts of New York and Pennsylvania, and coastal Massachusetts were the wettest areas. Those spots received 150-300 percent of normal precipitation. Scranton, Pennsylvania, had their snowiest February on record. The site received 29.3 inches (74.4 cm) of snow during the month, beating the old record of 27.9 inches (70.9 cm) set in 1914.
- According to the U.S. Drought Monitor released on February 6, parts of ten of the twelve Northeast states were experiencing abnormal dryness (D0). By mid-month, some areas of D0 had expanded, but the overall coverage of dryness in the Northeast decreased. Small areas of D0 were present in seven states at the end of the month. Overall, the coverage of D0 went from 13 percent of the Northeast at the start of February down to 4 percent by month's end.
- A winter storm moved through the region from February 4-6, dropping up to 19 inches (48.3 cm) of snow and 0.50 inches (1.3 cm) of ice. Around 715,000 of southeastern Pennsylvania energy provider PECO's customers lost power due to the storm, making it the second highest outage total only behind Sandy. Costing $90-120 million, the storm may be the most expensive in PECO's history. Around 42% of flights at Newark Liberty Airport were cancelled on the 6th, with hundreds of other flights cancelled throughout the region during the storm. Another storm from February 11-13 dumped up to 29 inches (73.7 cm) of snow on the region. The storm closed Washington, D.C., area airports and contributed to multiple accidents involving 100 cars on the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The weight of the snow also caused numerous roof and barn collapses. From February 15-16, coastal areas of New England were blanketed with up to 20 inches (50.8 cm) of snow and buffeted by strong winds, which caused downed trees, power outages, and travel problems. Severe thunderstorms from February 20-21 caused structural and tree damage across Maryland and West Virginia. The storms also spawned an EF-0 tornado in Maryland, making it only the second February tornado in the state since 1950. Warmer temperatures that accompanied the system also allowed for ice jam flooding on some of the region's waterways.
- For more information, please go to the Northeast Regional Climate Center Home Page.
- Midwest Region: (Information provided by the Midwest Regional Climate Center)
- February temperatures were below normal across the Midwest. Most of the area north of the Ohio River was 7 to 15 degrees F (4 to 8 C) below normal with the coldest areas near the Upper Mississippi River. Kentucky temperatures ranged from 1 to 7 degrees F (1 to 4 C) below normal. Monthly temperatures were the coldest in decades for six of the nine states in the region and the coldest since 1979 region-wide. The February temperatures were the coldest since 2007 in Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky, the coldest since 1989 in Missouri and Minnesota, the coldest since 1979 in Illinois, Iowa, and Michigan, and the coldest since 1936 in Wisconsin. The region-wide value ranked as the 11th coldest February (1895-2014) , while state-wide values ranked 6th in Wisconsin, 7th in Iowa, and 8th in Illinois. Kentucky ranked 29th coldest and the remaining five states ranked between 12th and 18th. Winter temperatures were also below normal across the Midwest and the coldest since the winter of 1978-79. The region-wide winter value ranked 8th coldest. All states except Ohio and Kentucky ranked between the 5th and 10th coldest while Ohio ranked 14th and Kentucky 20th out of 119 years.
- February precipitation ranged from less than a quarter inch (6 mm) in western Minnesota to more than 5 inches (127 mm) in southern Kentucky. Compared to normal, the wettest location was in northeast Minnesota where totals of more than double the normal were reported. The driest areas were in western Minnesota and southwest Missouri were precipitation totals were less than 25% of normal. Snowfall in February was above normal for most of the region with just small areas in western Minnesota, southern Kentucky, and Upper Michigan below normal. Across the central Midwest, from Iowa and northern Missouri east to Lake Erie, totals were 10 inches (25 cm) or more above normal. Northeast Minnesota also received 10 inches (25 cm) more than normal for the month. Winter precipitation ranged from less than 50% of normal in parts of western Iowa and western Missouri to more than 200% of normal in northern Minnesota. Totals were generally above normal in the northern and eastern parts of the Midwest and below normal in the southwest. Snowfall for the season was well above normal, two to three times normal, for a wide swath that included southern and extreme eastern Missouri, most of Illinois and Indiana, southeast Michigan, northern Kentucky and the western two-thirds of Ohio. Most of the remaining areas in the region were above normal except in western Minnesota, western Iowa, and southern Kentucky.
- With the cold conditions, many rivers and lakes froze over. In Ohio and Illinois, ice jams caused localized flooding. Ice shoves also occurred on Lake Erie and Lake Ontario as winds pushed ice onshore. The Great Lakes froze to greater than 90% coverage for all but Lake Ontario which was more than 50% ice covered. The ice extent on the lakes was last at these levels in 1994. The extensive ice had both good and bad effects. Shipping was hampered by the ice, limiting access to harbors and requiring extensive ice breaking. The ice cover cut down on the evaporation lost to the atmosphere which may help the lake levels rebound from their recent low levels. Ice has also allowed wildlife and people to walk from the mainland to islands. Tourist have flocked to the Apostle Islands to view the ice cave formations and Isle Royale wolves, who have been isolated on the island for years, were able to cross the ice to the mainland.
- A shot of warmer weather on the 19th and 20th set the stage for severe weather in the Midwest. Nearly all severe weather reports in the Midwest came in on the 20th with most in southern Illinois, southern Indiana, and Kentucky. Several tornadoes touched down, large hail was reported, and thunderstorm winds also caused damages. In all seven Midwest states had reports sparing only Minnesota and Michigan.
- For details on the weather and climate events of the Midwest, see the weekly summaries in the Midwest Climate Watch page.
- Southeast Region: (Information provided by the Southeast Regional Climate Center)
- Mean temperatures were variable across the Southeast in February. The greatest departures were found across the Florida Peninsula, where monthly temperatures were 2 to 4 degrees F (1.1 to 2.2 degrees C) above average. Miami, FL recorded its fifth warmest February in a record extending back to 1895. In contrast, monthly temperatures were 1 to 2 degrees F (0.5 to 1.1 degrees C) below average across much of Virginia, North Carolina, and Alabama, while the remainder of the contiguous region was near average for the month. Mean temperatures were generally above average across Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands in February. San Juan, PR tied its third warmest February in a record extending back to 1898. The end of February also marked the second warmest meteorological winter (December-February) in San Juan, falling just short of the record set back in 1980-1981. In addition, Miami, FL tied its third warmest meteorological winter on record.
- Precipitation was also variable across the Southeast in February. The wettest locations were found across parts of Virginia, Alabama, and northern Florida, where monthly totals were as much as 4 inches (102 mm) above average. In contrast, the driest locations were found across South Florida and coastal sections of Georgia and South Carolina, where less than 2 inches (51 mm) of precipitation was recorded for the month. Precipitation was variable across Puerto Rico and near average across the U.S. Virgin Islands. A major winter storm affected a large portion of the Southeast from the 10th to the 14th of the month. Snowfall totals of 3 to 10 inches (76 to 254 mm) were reported across central and northern portions of Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina, as well as central and eastern portions of North Carolina and Virginia. The greatest totals were found across western North Carolina and southwest Virginia, where up to 20 inches (508 mm) of snow was recorded. Roanoke, VA recorded 19 inches (483 mm) of snow on the 12th and 13th, which was the fourth highest 2-day snowfall total recorded at that station since 1912. Additionally, a swath of freezing rain extending from central Alabama through southeastern North Carolina resulted in ice accumulations of 0.25 to 0.75 inches (6.4 to 19 mm), with some locations across northern South Carolina recording over an inch (25 mm) of ice. An additional 0.5 to 2 inches (13 to 51 mm) of sleet was also recorded across central and eastern portions of the Carolinas. Millions of customers across the region were without power for several days and considerable damage to tree plantations was noted, though specific losses are still being assessed. Several counties in Georgia and South Carolina have been awarded federal disaster assistance from FEMA to help supplement local recovery efforts from the storm.
- There were 191 reports of severe weather across the Southeast in February, including 14 confirmed tornadoes that occurred as part of an outbreak on the 20th and 21st of the month. One person was injured when an EF-2 tornado tracked through DeKalb County, AL, while another EF-2 tornado tracked across Laurens County, GA. The remaining tornadoes were weak (EF-0 and EF-1) and occurred across northern Alabama, southeast Georgia, eastern North Carolina, and northeast Virginia. Heavy rain, hail, and damaging winds were also reported across the northern half of the region during this outbreak.
- The Southeast remained drought-free in February, with only small pockets of abnormally-dry (D0) conditions reported across extreme southern and extreme northern Alabama by the end of the month. While the cold weather over the past two months reduced the threat of insect pests in crops across Georgia and Alabama, it disrupted the growth of the Vidalia onion crop in southeast Georgia where farmers projected at least a 25 percent loss. Heavy rains across northern Florida led to increased disease pressures during the month, including late blight in tomatoes and potatoes, as well as a decline in pasture conditions and winter wheat development.
- For more information, please go to the Southeast Regional Climate Center Home Page.
- High Plains Region: (Information provided by the High Plains Regional Climate Center)
- February 2014 was a cold month for the High Plains Region. Many locations had average temperatures which were lower or similar to January which led to large departures. Even with a mid-month warm up, average temperatures for the majority of the Region were well below normal. Much of North Dakota, northern South Dakota, portions of the Nebraska panhandle, northeastern Colorado, and northern and eastern Wyoming had temperature departures of at least 10.0 degrees F (5.6 degrees C) below normal. Interestingly, these departures were not record breaking but, some locations ranked in the top 25 coldest on record. For instance, Aberdeen, South Dakota had its 7th coldest February on record with an average temperature of 6.6 degrees F (-14.1 degrees C). Although 11.0 degrees F (6.1 degrees C) below normal, this was a far cry from the record of -7.3 degrees F (-21.8 degrees C) which occurred in 1936 (period of record 1893-2014). It should be noted that not all areas of the Region were dealing with the bitter cold this month. Parts of southern Wyoming and western Colorado were actually above normal, with departures up to 6.0 degrees F (3.3 degrees C) in some locations.
- Precipitation was quite varied across the High Plains Region this month. Most areas of the Region had below normal precipitation with southeastern North Dakota, northeastern South Dakota, and southeastern Kansas being the driest. These areas only picked up liquid equivalent precipitation totals that were at most 25 percent of normal. Luckily, winter is a dry time of year for the plains, so these precipitation deficits were not too troublesome. Meanwhile, areas receiving above normal precipitation included western and northern Wyoming, western Colorado, and an area encompassing eastern Wyoming, northeastern Colorado, and the panhandle of Nebraska. These wetter areas all received liquid equivalent precipitation totals of at least 150 percent of normal. February snowfall rankings indicate that some locations throughout the Region ranked in both the top 10 snowiest and least snowiest on record. Take Fargo, North Dakota and Cheyenne, Wyoming for example. Both sites receive about the same amount of snowfall in February, on average. Although several systems brought a Trace amount of snow, Fargo, North Dakota had its 8th least snowiest February on record with only 1.5 inches (4 cm). This amount was 5.5 inches (14 cm) below normal and not too far off from the record that occurred in February of 1954 with 0.3 inches (1 cm) (period of record 1885-2014). On the other end of the spectrum, Cheyenne, Wyoming had its 4th snowiest February with 19.4 inches (49 cm). This total was 11.5 inches (29 cm) above normal, but not enough to beat out the record of 23.3 inches (59 cm) which occurred back in 1995 (period of record 1883-2014). Even though much of the Region had below normal precipitation, several systems brought snow to the Rockies and improved the snowpack in both Colorado and Wyoming. While southern basins in Colorado were running 15-23 percent below average, other basins were near to above normal which brought Colorado's statewide average at the end of February to 111 percent - up considerably from last month's 94 percent. Meanwhile in Wyoming, the statewide snowpack at the end of the month was 132 percent of average, also up from last month's 113 percent.
- Typical for this time of year, there were only small changes to the U.S. Drought Monitor in the High Plains Region this month. Approximately 23 percent of the Region was in moderate (D1) to exceptional (D4) drought at the end of February, which was unchanged from January. While the percentage of area in drought remained about equal, some small areas had improvements and others had degradations. For instance, Wyoming's last remaining D1 areas were eliminated, but D1 in eastern Kansas expanded. The extreme (D3) and exceptional (D4) drought conditions across western Nebraska, western Kansas, and eastern Colorado remained unchanged. According to the U.S. Seasonal Drought Outlook released February 20th, current drought conditions are expected to persist across Colorado and southwestern Kansas through May 2014. Meanwhile, drought conditions may improve or be eliminated in other parts of Kansas and Nebraska. Further drought development is not expected at this time.
- There was strong ridging to the west and troughing to the east across the United States this winter. This pattern led a dichotomy where winter storms frequented the east and warm, dry conditions prevailed in the west. With the exception of portions of Colorado and Wyoming, the majority of the High Plains Region had temperatures which averaged well below normal. Although blasts of cold air were common, the coldest portion of these air masses slipped to the east and impacted places such as Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Illinois. For instance, much of the northern and eastern sides of the Region had temperatures which were 4.0-10.0 degrees F (2.2-5.6 degrees C) below normal but, a large area of northern Minnesota and Wisconsin averaged greater than 10.0 degrees F (5.6 degrees C) below normal. It is worth noting that although this winter was not necessarily record breaking, there were many impacts. A deep frost line has been reported in many locations due to a lack of snow cover early in the season and extended cold. This could lead to enhanced runoff chances should these areas get early spring rains. Propane shortages have also impacted the Region, especially those that rely on the fuel for warmth. Unfortunately, at least one death in North Dakota was due to the propane shortage. Producers were also impacted by the shortage as some corn was not dry at the end of the growing season and propane is used to help finish drying the crop. In some places, there will be loss. As for precipitation this winter, much of the Region was below normal however, parts of the Rockies have picked up quite a bit of snow. As such, snowpack has greatly improved in Colorado and Wyoming, especially when compared to last year. One local example was from the popular ski destination of Breckenridge, Colorado which had its 3rd snowiest winter on record with 131.6 inches (334 cm). The record of 182.6 inches (464 cm) from the winter of 1898-1899 held (period of record 1893-2014).
- For more information, please go to the High Plains Regional Climate Center Home Page.
- Southern Region: (Information provided by the Southern Regional Climate Center)
- February was generally a colder than normal month for the Southern Region. The highest departures from normal occurred in the northern states of Oklahoma and Arkansas, where temperature anomalies ranged from 4 to 8 degrees F (2.22 to 4.44 degrees C) below normal. Similar anomalies were also observed in the north central counties of Texas, and in western Tennessee. Elsewhere, temperature anomalies ranged from near normal to 4 degrees F (2.22 degrees C) below normal. The only parts of the Southern Region that experienced warmer than normal temperatures was the western panhandle of Texas, and a few counties in central Mississippi, where temperatures varied from normal to 6 degrees F (3.33 degrees C) above normal. The statewide average temperatures for the month are as follows: Arkansas averaged 38.80 degrees F (3.78 degrees C), Louisiana averaged 50.40 degrees F (10.22 degrees C), Mississippi averaged 46.30 degrees F (7.94 degrees C), Oklahoma averaged 36.10 degrees F (2.28 degrees C), Tennessee averaged 38.80 degrees F (3.50 degrees C), and Texas averaged 48.50 degrees F (9.17 degrees C). For Arkansas, it was the nineteenth coldest February on record (1895-2014), while Oklahoma recorded its fourteenth coldest February on record (1895-2014). All other state rankings fell within the two middle quartiles.
- February precipitation in the Southern Region varied spatially with extreme dryness in the western half, and wetter than normal conditions along the south central Gulf coast. In the western half of the region, precipitation totals varied from under 5 percent of normal to 70 percent of normal, with most of Texas and Oklahoma receiving less than half the expected precipitation. This was also the case in northern and northwestern Arkansas. Most stations in the central portion of the region, (including southeastern Texas, northern Louisiana and southern Arkansas) reported precipitation totals that varied from 50 to 70 percent of normal. In Tennessee and northern Mississippi, precipitation totals were generally near normal to slightly below normal. Conversely, conditions were quite wet in southern Louisiana and southern Mississippi. Precipitation totals there varied from near normal to 200 percent of normal, however, most stations reported between 130 to 150 percent of normal. The statewide average precipitation totals for the month are as follows: Arkansas recorded 2.59 inches (65.79 mm), Louisiana recorded 5.48 inches (139.19 mm), Mississippi recorded 5.94 inches (150.88 mm), Oklahoma recorded 0.42 inches (10.67 mm), Tennessee recorded 4.65 inches (118.11 mm), and Texas recorded 0.70 inches (17.78 mm). For Oklahoma, it was their ninth driest February on record (1895-2014), while for Texas, it was their twentieth driest February on record (1895-2014). All other state rankings fell within the two middle quartiles.
- Drought conditions over the month of February remained relatively unchanged in most states of the Southern Region, although some abnormally dry areas (D0) were added (e.g., north western Arkansas, northern Louisiana, eastern Oklahoma), while others areas saw a reduction in abnormally dry conditions (e.g., northern Mississippi and southern Louisiana, east of the Mississippi River). In Texas, the relatively dry conditions that persisted throughout the month led to the introduction of moderate drought in the central counties.
- There was one day of severe weather in the Southern Region, which occurred on February 20, 2014. In Tennessee and Mississippi, dozens of wind reports were documented by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center. There were also some reports of tornadoes in southern Mississippi and south central Tennessee. These occurred in and around Marion County, Mississippi, and in around Franklin County, Tennessee. Some structural damage was reported, however, fortunately there were no reports of injuries or fatalities.
- In Texas, the lack of rainfall helped drought conditions spread rapidly after the last 2 months' dry conditions, causing a slew of new fire risks across central Texas. Water, as usual, remains a problem, holding at 64%, a record low for this time of year. The city of Wichita Falls is nearing the 25% water supply levels that will require the initiation of stage 5 water restrictions preventing any nonessential water usage. A cloud seeding proposal set out last month was approved, allotting $300,000 of the city's budget to the project. Several other cities, including San Antonio, El Paso, and Leander are looking at possible upgrades to their water restrictions as well. A total of 163 counties across the state now qualify for up to $2 million in federal disaster loans due to continuing short and long term drought conditions (Information provided by the Texas Office of State Climatology).
- In Texas, an ice storm affected much of the state on February 6, with sleet, snow and ice causing problems from Dallas to the northern suburbs of Houston. Hundreds of wrecks were caused by ice buildup on roadways. This winter has been costly for the Texas Department of Transportation. In San Antonio alone the department has spent over $88,000 on de-icing materials to put on roadways. In Austin the local homeless shelters have been full, and emergency shelters have been open twice as much as last winter. While no cost estimates have been announced, Dallas is looking into restructuring their winter weather response protocols after December's ice storm shut down the city for several days (Information provided by the Texas Office of State Climatology).
- For more information, please go to the Southern Regional Climate Center Home Page.
- Western Region: (Information provided by the Western Region Climate Center)
- Persistent ridging over the West Coast this winter weakened at times in February, allowing much-needed precipitation to reach the coastal states. Nevertheless, ridging prevailed over the West Coast this month, keeping temperatures warmer than normal over the Southwest and driving moisture into the Rocky Mountain region.
- The coastal states and northern Great Basin finally saw significant precipitation this month after dry conditions dominated for much of the winter season. A tap into subtropical moisture called an atmospheric river provided abundant rain and snow to northern California and southern Oregon between the 7th and 9th. Totals in northern California's coast range exceeded 20 in (508 mm), and over 10 in (254 mm) of rain fell along the western slope of the Sierra Nevada. A second atmospheric river pushed moisture into Washington and Oregon from the 12th -16th. Seattle, Washington and Medford, Oregon both saw their 7th wettest Februarys at 6.11 in (155 mm) and 4.55 in (116 mm), respectively. Seattle's records began in 1948 and Medford's in 1911. Further east, Boise, Idaho logged 2.2 in (56 mm) precipitation for the month for its 3rd wettest February in the past 75 years. To the south, Elko, Nevada received 1.92 in precipitation (49 mm) for the month, 229% of normal and the 9th wettest February in a 127-year record. A third atmospheric river favored central and southern California over the last few days of the month with storm totals of 3-4 in (75-100 mm) observed at low elevations and totals in excess of 10 in (254 mm) in the coastal ranges. These storms allowed snow water equivalent in the Sierra Nevada to increase from 15-20% of normal at the end of January to 30-50% of normal by the end of the February. Snowpack in the northern Cascades reached over 100% of normal at month's end, a significant improvement on the 45-75% of normal observed at the end of January. Drought conditions improved in the Pacific Northwest and northern Great Basin, though expanded in California.
- This winter's wetter than normal conditions continued for the Rocky Mountain region. Billings, Montana saw 37 in (94 cm) of snow this month, 30.8 in (78 cm) above the February normal and the highest February total since records began in 1934. It was also Billings' wettest February on record with a total 2.06 in (52 mm) precipitation, 429% of normal. Missoula, Montana recorded an impressive 40.2 in (102 cm) of snow this month for the second highest February snowfall total in 120 years of records. This February was also Missoula's second wettest with 2.43 in (62 mm). Cold temperatures accompanied the precipitation; Missoula had its 7th coldest February with an average 20.6 F (-6.3 C) and Billings tied for 6th coldest with 18.7 F (-7.4 C). With the exception of their extreme southern extent, snow water equivalent is above average throughout the Rocky Mountains. In contrast, the dry conditions seen in January continued this month in the Southwest. Phoenix, Arizona recorded no measurable precipitation this month, tied for driest February with four other years since 1933. Areas of drought expanded and increased in severity in southern Arizona and eastern New Mexico.
- Ridging over the Southwest this month resulted in warmer than normal temperatures. In southeastern California, several locations logged their highest February temperatures on record. Bishop hit 81 F (27.2 C) on 13th to tie February 27, 1986 for the highest February temperature in a 120-year record. Temperatures soared to 84 F (28.9 C) in Palmdale on both the 13th and 14th, the highest February temperature recorded since records began there in 1934. Fresno recorded its warmest February in a 67-year record with an average 56.8 F (13.8 C). Further east, Tucson, Arizona saw its second warmest February on record with an average 60.7 F (15.9 C). This winter (December-February) was the warmest in Tucson's 85-year record at an average 57.0 F (13.9 C), 3.8 F (2.1 C) above normal.
- Much of Alaska received less than 70% of normal precipitation this month. McGrath tied for 8th driest February in a 74-year record with 0.09 in (2 mm). The eastern Interior and North Slope saw totals slightly above normal. In Hawaii, the greatest positive departures from normal precipitation were observed in the northwestern part of the state. Lihue, Kauai recorded 8.69 in (221 mm) of rainfall this month, 5.53 in (140 mm) above normal and the 5th wettest February since records began in 1950.
- February 7-10: Freezing rain in Portland, Oregon area: Several days of snow followed by freezing rain impacted travel over several days in the Portland area. The storm also caused power outages, falling trees, and prompted school closures.
- February 26-28: Flooding in southern California: Flooding and mudslides prompted evacuations in the Colby Fire burn area near Glendora and closures along the coastal Highway 1 near Malibu and Carmel. Three rescues occurred on the Los Angeles River, and 15,000 Los Angeles area residents were without power for a period during the storm.
- February (all month): Drought conditions persist in California: By February 25, 26% of the state was categorized as D4, "exceptional drought" according the US Drought Monitor. At the beginning of 2014, no portion of the state qualified for this category. Most of this D4 region lies in the central part of the state, which received significant precipitation over the last few days of the month, so it is anticipated improvements will be seen in next week's iteration of the Drought Monitor. Rangelands are in very poor condition and hundreds of thousands of acres of agricultural land will likely be fallowed this growing season.
- For more information, please go to the Western Regional Climate Center Home Page.


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Posted 17 September 2010on:
And here are my HG cosmetics and tools:
- Make Up For Ever Full Cover Concealer in Ivory 6: Extremely pigmented, easy to work with and stays for hours. This is the only thing that covers my hyperpigmentation flawlessly.
- MAC Blush in Well Dressed: This has a satin finish and is the PERFECT baby pink. The color is not too warm or too cool on my skin and gives me the prettiest glow. I can wear this with anything, any look, anywhere. Nothing compares.
- Ben Nye Contour No. 1: This pressed powder creates the most natural looking facial contour ever. It doesn't look at all like makeup, just natural shadows.
- Lancome Star Bronzer Poudre Soleil: I have strong yellow undertones and can tan very easily (but now I won't!). I also don't buy different foundation shades with the changing seasons, so this is my most perfect, natural summer tan in pressed powder form. I use this year round and it gives my face such natural dimension and luminosity that I don't even consider this to be makeup!
- Ishizawa Lab ナチュデカ (Nachu Deka) Eyeliner in ネイビーグレー (Navy Grey): It's called "Navy Grey" but goes on black. It has a sharp, felt tip that makes application quick, easy and precise. This stays put until you take it off, but is also easy to remove.
- Chanel Stylo Yeux Waterproof Eyeliner: The best and only eyeliner I can use for the water line/lower lash line. It truly stays for hours and doesn't smudge. No raccoon eyes!
- Cle de Peau Extra Silky Lipstick: This lipstick hydrates my dry, often flaky lips, and the color lasts for hours. It feels amazing on and doesn't have any annoying scent or taste. The colors are so natural and just beautiful.
- Christian Dior 'Backstage' Powder Foundation Brush: This is a natural hair, flat top brush that I use to apply my liquid and spray foundation for a fast and easy airbrushed look, without streakiness.
- MAC 138 Tapered Face Brush: The perfect size, shape and softness for contouring the face.
- Shu Uemura Kolinsky Brush 5r: Firm enough to apply and soft enough to blend eyeshadow perfectly in my crease every single time. It is so easy to use and there isn't a single brush (even MAC) that compares to this.
- Seche Vite Top Coat: C'est vrai. Believe the hype. This stuff works! I hated doing my nails because I'm impatient and always make a mess, but this changed my mind completely.
Tags: Ben Nye, blush, bronzer, brushes, Chanel, Christian Dior, Cle de Peau, concealer, contour, cosmetics, eyeliner, Ishizawa Lab, Lancome, lipstick, MAC, Make Up For Ever, Seche Vite, Shu Uemura, tools, top coat

subset: commoncrawl


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Want to improve your auto insurance business conversion rate?
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Continue reading Auto insurance landing page designs to improve your conversion


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Food Poisoning Outbreaks Digested
The Food Poisoning Outbreaks Digested infographic is the static graphic winner for the Food Poisoning challenge put on by Kantar Information is Beautiful Awards. Designed by Andrew Park, the infographic ranks the number of food outbreaks within different categories like specific cuisine or the toxin/pathogen.
Using a Sankey diagram, the visualisation charts the percentage breakdown for food poisoning outbreaks by national cuisine, food type, pathogen/toxin and contributing factor where the cuisine type was known.
The diagram concludes with the "most lethal combination", highlighting the top factors that led to an outbreak.
I thought it would add context to frame the Sankey diagram in a human body, as though it was being eaten and spreading through the body like a disease.
I really like this approach to a Sankey Diagram that breaks the original total into four different categories of data.


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Donald K. Jarvis is the author of 'Nachalo: When in Russia . . . (Book 2) (Student Edition + Learning Comprehension Audio Cassette)', published 1997 under ISBN 9780079122056 and ISBN 0079122051.[read more]
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Retreat, part 2
This weekend we attended a retreat for international students and had a great time. There were about 40 people there from 17 countries, mostly in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. We spent the weekend playing games, getting to know one another, sharing about our cultures and experiences here in South Asia, exploring the area around us, and just having a good time. Here are some highlights from the weekend:
- Hearing so many different languages spoken all around me and listening to students share about their home countries.
- Travel...We took two trains, and then all piled into the back of trucks to get to the place we were staying. I counted at least 30 people in the back of the bigger truck!
- Nature tour: the place we stayed is kind of like a farm and hosts groups for agro tourism. We got to see all sorts of plants and animals, and it was GREAT to be out of the city for a few days!
- Gooooood food! We had chipatis (like wheat tortillas) and great vegetables at every meal....mmmm!
- *Swimming in the river and just having fun outside.
- Cultural night--students shared about their countries and performed songs and dances.
- *Making new friends and laughing about all of our various perceptions of this country!
- *But best of all...I RODE A WATER BUFFALO!!! Camels and elephants are fun, but wading into the water and trying to jump onto the back of a fiesty water buffalo was just awesome!


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COLUMBUS, Ga. - Election officials in Muscogee County are investigating a Columbus voter's complaint that another person was allowed to cast a ballot in his place during early voting.
The Columbus Ledger-Enquirer reports (http://bit.ly/PyAhgl ) that Willie J. Tate went to vote Tuesday at the Columbus Baptist Association and was turned away after being told records showed he had already voted four days earlier.
County elections director Nancy Boren says whoever voted in Tate's name showed a driver's license that matched his voter registration. Tate's family says he couldn't have voted previously because he was in the hospital the day the ballot was cast.
Tate was allowed to cast a provisional ballot Thursday. Boren says the elections board will count that vote if it determines an imposter voted in Tate's name earlier.


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Virtually Perfect
Hyperion Book CH, 1999 - Juvenile Fiction - 128 pages
Yip Turner spends more time playing computer games than with other kids. For him, virtual reality usually beats reality! So when his dad, a movie special-effects designer, brings home new software for creating virtual actors, Yip is psyched. He and his sister create "Victor," a boy who is smart, handsome, and charming-perfect in everyway. But when Victor leaves cyberspace and invades their world, Yip realizes that there are bugs in the virtual-actor software. Now his family-and possibly the whole country!-may be in danger….
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Alan Turing Babbage ball basement brain bunch of electrons camcorder character character's clicked computer-generated Construx cookies created cyberspace Dad's deleted door explained eyes F/X guy face fake feelings File locked floor football Freddy front George Lucas gigabytes going to Washington gonna grabbed Grandpa asked Grandpa Leo guess hair Harrison head hit return homework human hurt jerk K'nex King Kong kitchen knew knife Lucas math test Mount Rushmore mouse moved movie never nine-one-one Okay Paige asked Paige looked Paige's Peoria Ping-Pong table play playground pulled robbed screen simulated smart special effects Speech synthesis stairs started stopped stuff Summit Bank sure Synthespian software tell thing thought Tinkertoys told Turner Union address upstairs vacuum tube Victor asked Victor replied Victor typed virtual actor virtual reality walked What's Yeah


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NFWF business plans present clear strategies for our conservation programs. They outline the resources necessary to meet our conservation goals and create accountability by defining measurable outcomes. Our staff and partners use these business plans to make the most informed and important conservation investments.
NFWF business plans contain four core elements:
Conservation Goals
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Business plans represent more than just the goals of NFWF alone. They reflect the consensus of the many federal, state, academic and organization experts consulted during plan development.


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Stick's FaceBook Page
Stick's Instagram PageMy 2020 Marlin 7 with several upgrades... pedals, grips, mud guard on the front wheel, fork, brakes, rotors and new tires set up tubeless. This bike has been transformed, and I'm loving it! As well, I got a really great deal on the Revelate Viscacha saddle bag and the Sweetroll handlebar bag from the fine folks at @trailsandtreads in Tupelo, MS! I have been messing around and I can get just about my entire gear setup (for around 20F) in just these 2 bags, minus food, water and toiletries. I have a Revelate Gas Can coming for some bike tools and other small items too. Now I just need to figure out a good place to go for a little bikepacking adventure! :) #trek #trekowners #trekmarlin7 #marlin7 #2020marlin7 #marlinbikes #trailsandtreads #revelate #viscacha #sweetroll #bikepacking #maxxis #maxxistires #maxxisminion #dhf #dhr2 #rockshox #rockshoxreconrl #racefaceLoving my Trek Marlin 7. Of course I've also been enjoying tinkering and upgrading it too!! 🤗 #trek #trekmarlin7 #marlin7 #emeraldiris #bontrager #raceface #chesters #rockshox #rockshoxrecon #29er #trailsandtreads #tracestatepark #tupeloms #Pontotoc #trekownersAnother shot from today's ride. Notice that nice, new Rockshox Recon RL fork!! 🤗 #trek #marlin7 #mountainbike #mtb #tennesseetombigbeewaterway #getoutandride #highway25 #graffiti #emeraldiris #2020I just bought the 2020 Marlin 7 a couple of weeks ago. Since then I have swapped out: 1. The stock pedals for RaceFace Chester's, which have much better grip than the stock pedals. 2. The stock grips for RaceFace Gripplers, which honestly may not be as good as the stock XR Trail Comp grips, but I like that it has two screw locks rather than one. (I am holding onto the stock grips for future use though.) 3. The stock fork for a Rockshox Recon RL fork. This was the biggest upgrade, and one I didn't think I was going to do, but I couldn't help myself. I weigh 210 lbs and after reading the reviews of the stock Rockshox XC30 fork I felt it was better to just upgrade it. I actually did the install myself which was pretty straightforward, although I did end up breaking a Park Tools star nut setter (and after a phone call, they are kindly sending me the replacement piece). Even as a new rider, the new Recon fork does feel different... not as springy, and it's not bottoming out so easily (although a new spring for my weight in the XC30 may have resolved this, but probably not the springiness...) Anyway, I am really excited about the new fork and I feel it was a good option for this bike. So far I have about 45 miles on my Marlin now and I love it. The only other addition I am considering is a dropper seat post.... but that will have to wait. I have only been on 2 rides that were actual MTB trails and have really enjoyed those, and now that I have the new fork on, I can't wait to go back out on those again! Anywho, these photos are from my 16 mile ride this morning. These were along the Tombigbee waterway. I started at Highway 72 and rode 8 miles to this bridge (Highway 25), then turned around and went back. I even found an old GoPro and took it along... turns out it still has plenty of battery! And on another note, if anyone is interested in a basically new Rockshox XC30 fork, let me know, we may can work something out! 😁 #trek #marlin7 #mountainbike #mtb #tennesseetombigbeewaterway #getoutandride #highway25 #graffiti #emeraldiris #2020I think the DIY PVC bike stand looks better painted black! #diy #bikestand #pvcbikestand #trek #trekmarlin7 #marlin7 #emeraldirisTwo big helps since I've started biking... @sethsbikehacks and @trailsandtreads If you're on the web, check out Seth's YouTube channel, and if you find yourself in Tupelo, MS, be sure to stop in at Trails & Treads! #bicycles #sethsbikehacks #trailsandtreads #tupeloms #trek #trekbikes #trekmarlin7 #marlin #marlin7 #emeraldiris
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25 Awesome Backpacking Christmas Gifts for under $65
Christmas time is upon us, and while I will admit, gift-giving is not what it's all about, it is a tradition that many people take part in. So, with this in mind, I am sure that there are some that … Continue reading
Posted in Gift Ideas Tagged Adventure Outdoor Seat, alcohol stove, Backpacking, Boombot Rex, Caldera Sidewinder System, Carbon Fiber Tent Stakes, Cuben Fiber Rain Mitts, Down Hood, Down Socks, EvaRest CCF Pad, First-Aid Kit, Fosters Flat Bottom Cup, GetOutThere Kit, Gift Ideas, GLine Guy Lines, GoLite Poncho Tarp, Growers Cup Coffee, Hawk Vittles, Hiking, ISO-Clean Stove, Knife, Mini Atomic Stove, Newt Backpack, Pocket Profile Map, Polycro Groundsheet, Redneck Beer Cup, Rollover Stove, Safety Kits, Snuggly Toes, Spyderco Ladybug, Titanium Trowel, Titanium Windscreen, UltraLight Backpacking 12 Comments


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My Splendiferous and Serendipitous Soup – by Stephen Lendman
Despite the jaded palate of a persistent critic who dislikes my "Lendman soup" and whose name rhymes with phooey and hooey, I savor the splendor of my special soup I brew with sincerity and sanity. That's quite different from my gadfly whose comments are little more than shameless servings of senseless and sanctimonious slobbering. I understand his situation as so many others suffer from the same insufferable, sorrowful and stuporous state of insensibility. The sap has been seduced by the self-serving sickness of shallowness, subservience and surliness from having sold out to the simpletons he sucks up to and sanctifies. I've tried before to save the silly sucker, but he prefers to sink in his insipid stew and stay a schlump. Such a shame.
Why An Aging Retired Small Businessman Decided to Write
Living in the US for nearly 72 years, I've seen what ails our system, know how I want to heal it, and understand we'd better get about working for it or face a future no one will relish – or maybe no future at all. I rail about this all the time because our way is flawed, corrupted and based on plunder and exploitation for profit to benefit the privileged few and no one else. It treats people like commodities to be used and discarded like trash when no longer needed. It allows giant predatory corporations carte blanche to operate with no restraints on their divine right of capitalism, with no rules except the ones benefitting them. It needs endless war on the world for new markets, essential resources and cheap labor. It tolerates no "outliers" like Hugo Chavez and Evo Morales who have the temerity to think they can serve the interests of their own people above those of their dominant Northern neighbor that always had it the other way.
It's a flat borderless world where people everywhere lose out to the interests of power, profit and privilege. It's a world falsely extolled as the best of all possible ones, but, in fact, is just the opposite. It's a corrupted and failed world that can't be repaired. It's a cancer consuming us we must expunge before it's too late. It's a world unfit to live in unless you happen to be rich and powerful. It's a world unable to endure the abuse inflicted on it and will one day expire from it unless stopped and reversed. It's not the world I want, and I work every day for the one I do. I know how daunting a task that is because too few of us understand the problem, how it affects our own welfare, or have joined the fight to overcome it while there's still time.
It's not easy marshalling opposition to an empire when so many living under it are as easily seduced by its message as my gadfly. I too was once an adherent, was weaned to be a believer in the system and remained faithful to it much too long. It's hard feeling otherwise when the power of the message is so great, begins early on, and never ends.
It starts in the schools where everyone is fed only acceptable doctrine up to the highest levels. It was ingrained in me there, especially in college and through grad school where I was taught by experts who knew why they were there and did their job well. The idea was and is to make us all "proper" citizens and accept without question the notion of American "exceptionalism" and that we're blessed to live in the best of all possible countries. It's all a myth but one easy to sell to young minds ready to believe almost anything repeated often enough and from sources we think we can trust: our teachers in school, our favorites in the corporate media, the clergy, and all other institutions of power. The reality, however, belies their false message, and the only thing holding up their house of cards is its constant repetition backed up with invented fears of threats that don't exist and brute force at home and abroad to show we're fighting them. It's something Gandhi understood when he was once asked what he thought of Western civilization and answered "I think it would be a good idea." And he said that long before the age of George W. Bush.
It took me a while in the real world to awaken to the way things really are. Like everyone else, I was focused on work and family and early on didn't make the effort I should have. But once I started years ago I continued and then couldn't stop. For me, it was a gradual awakening, and it came by reading the works of many dozens of great social thinkers, scholars, and activists. They taught me what I now know and never learned at two of the most prestigious of all institutions of higher learning including the one where I got my MBA in 1960 before that credential got popular. That noted university ranks at the top among the "finishing schools" that train future corporate CEOs, some of them came from my class, and I knew a couple when they were just classmates. I chose not to follow in its tradition nor do I believe in its dogma that profit is "the be all and end all" and plunder is an acceptable way to achieve it. I doubt they'd welcome me back now, think of me as one of their own or cite me as one of their many success stories. I preach and practice a much different philosophy than theirs.
My view of things and the kind of world I want to live in and leave for others is one where people and their needs come first – not the message I got from Econ or Marketing 101. Despite my modest means, I think of myself as one of the privileged. But I identify myself with what Martinique born thinker, writer and activist Frantz Fanon called "The Wretched of the Earth" (the title of his best known book which I've read and own). Fanon deplored the horrors of colonial subjugation and championed the liberation of all people under its oppressive yoke. I'm no Fanon, but so do I, and I recognize and look at all people everywhere as my brothers and sisters and support them all and their right to social equity and justice.
That's why I take on the leaders of my country, their one-sided support for giant corporate interests and the rich, and the policies they adopt at home and abroad to work on their behalf and against ours. It's a tradition that goes back to our roots, born in the original sin of slavery and white supremacy, best expressed by one of the nation's Founders and First Supreme Court Chief Justice John Jay when he said "Those who own the country ought to govern it." That notion is more alive now than ever and barely disguised anymore. But today is just an extension of the past in a nation weaned on war, imperial expansion, extreme racism and classism and the belief that all the (white only) rich and powerful were created equal but no one else. I guess that leaves me out and most everybody else.
How Hugo Chavez Treats His People Compared to George Bush – Pick the Leader You'd Want
Compare how things are in the US now to the way they are today under Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. The stark difference between them almost seems like they're happening on two different planets. My country is the hostile planet earth of George Bush that's indifferent to essential human needs and believes imperial oppression is good for us. Venezuela is quite different because of Hugo Chavez's alternate vision. It's a people-friendly one dedicated to helping all Venezuelans (especially the most needy) by providing an array of essential social programs and services unimaginable in the US: free universal health and dental care for all, free education to the highest levels, food security and clean water, micro credit and support for small business, land and home ownership for the people, worker cooperatives and independent community radio free from the poison spread by the corporate-owned media and much more. And along with all that, Chavez instituted a participatory democracy under which ordinary people have a real say in how the country is governed. Can anyone imagine those things happening in the US? Impossible.
There's more, lots of it but here's just a sample. Hugo Chavez aids his neighbors and doesn't threaten to invade them or any others; the country has no secret prisons; no illegal political prisoners or illegal detentions; doesn't practice torture; doesn't ethnically cleanse its population from neighborhoods wanted for redevelopment or entire cities like the US did to its black population of New Orleans to turn that city into a giant theme park for the rich and tourist trade; has never suspended constitutional law even in the face of a coup d'etat, mass street riots and a crippling US-instigated oil lockout and shutdown; and is working to clean up and change a legacy and systemic climate of corruption and inefficient state bureaucracy.
Now compare that record to how the US operates. It devotes its immense resources to plunder, slaughter and destruction and treats ordinary people like production inputs or commodities – to be used as needed and dumped when they no longer are. The Bush administration, in its infinite arrogance, claims the right to forcibly oust any government it views as a threat to its security. It doesn't matter if it is, just that we say it is. It sees Chavez as such a threat and has tried and failed three times to remove him with a fourth attempt likely well underway. I've said before Hugo Chavez is the greatest of all threats to US hegemony everywhere – the threat of a good example that left in place may grow and spread to other countries in the region and beyond.
The Bush administration won't tolerate that and is either fomenting another coup to oust Chavez, likely with intent to kill him so he won't rise again from the deposed, or will go to war if that's what it takes to get the job done. Should it happen, as I'm convinced it will, it will be no different from how the US has treated its Latin American neighbors for over 150 years. Over that time, the US invaded Mexico and stole the half of the country it wanted. That began what became a tradition as from then until now it continued to remove the governments of a dozen Latin American countries it disapproved of (none of which posed a threat except to our hegemony) by coup or armed incursion and did it four dozen different times for whatever convenient reasons it concocted to justify its action. We even gave names to our hostile actions using benign language Orwell would have approved of. My favorite was Herbert Hoover's (and later Franklin Roosevelt's) Good Neighbor Policy. It was about as good as his economic policy at home that with lots of help from the Federal Reserve caused The Great Depression that ravaged the country for a decade and took the German and Japanese aggression and world war they started (with our nudging) to pull us out of it. War is good for business, and a big one is terrific.
Look at more examples of how different things are in Venezuela. Hugo Chavez wants no part of the destructive neoliberal policies imposed by the WTO, IMF and World Bank but preferred by Washington because they only favor us. Instead he's used the nation's resources for the public good and promoted the Bolivarian notion of Latin American integration through economic aid and joint ventures that benefit those countries participating in them equally. Some difference from the Washington Consensus that's a one-way street with a dead-end for developing countries sucked into it.
Now look at the differences between the two countries in some of their current economic data. In Venezuela, an economic boom lifting all boats is the result of Chavez's policies (helped by high oil prices, of course). The economy is soaring, inflation and unemployment are down, and Chavez has continued his policy since 2000 of raising the minimum wage each year by 20 – 30%. He just raised it again in the first quarter of 2006 by another 10%. Data from Venezuela's National Statistics Institute show the result. The poverty rate stood at 80% for many years before Chavez was elected. A year before he came into office in 1997 it was an official 61%. The latest figures available as of the end of 2005 show the rate now down to under 44%, a dramatic change in a short time.
It was all different before Chavez's Bolivarian Revolution that began in 1998. The country was a sham 40 year elite-controlled "democracy" (for the rich and powerful only) with 80% of the people in desperate poverty and 75% of the arable land owned by 5% of the population; its schools and hospitals were crumbling and two-thirds of the people had no access to basic medical care and most everything else; it was mostly an oil-based economy and political system controlled by and benefitting the rich and well-off middle class only and all under the giant shadow and dominance of the US that just cared about it's access to and control of the nation's oil and as much other wealth as it could suck out of the country. It took plenty. In all of Latin American from 1990 – 2002, US banks and transnational corporations earned about $1,000,000,000,000 ($1 trillion) in profits and were the main beneficiary of nearly $180 billion of state-owned enterprises privatized and thus expropriated from the people.
Now compare the Chavez achievements to the US under George Bush. We're by far the richest country in the world with nearly enough resources to be able to pave the streets with gold if they were used responsibly. The US's 2005 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was over 90 times greater than Venezuela's with a population about 12 times greater. Here's another comparison I cited in an earlier article on VHeadline.com. The largest US corporation in 2005, Exxon-Mobil, alone had gross sales about 2.8 times greater than Venezuela's total GDP.
So with all that wealth, what do the numbers show. Over 46 million Americans have no health insurance and millions more have too little; inner city schools are so deliberately degraded that millions of kids in them finish up unable to read, write or do math; the official US Department of Education illiteracy rate is about 20% compared to Venezuela where it's virtually zero; adjusted for inflation, the average working person in the US earns less than 30 years ago and the federal minimum wage (a paltry $5.15 an hour) hasn't been raised since 1997; the growing wealth gap between rich and poor has never been greater in modern times; the average CEO in 2004 earned 431 times the income of the average working person, a ten-fold increase in the spread since 1980; the official poverty rate is 12.7% or about 37 million people in 2005 and rising, but it's widely acknowledged the number is rigged and true figure is much higher; the prison population is the largest in the world and growing by 1000 new inmates a week; higher paid manufacturing and many high-tech jobs are being exported to low wage countries and replaced by low-paying service ones with few or no benefits; the ranks of organized labor have dropped from about one third of all workers in 1958 to under 13% today; and the level of racism is as great as before the landmark civil rights legislation in the 1960s that was passed to end it.
Had enough, or can I throw in one more for good measure for those who follow the monthly reports from the US Labor Department. The official unemployment rate it reports is dead wrong according to some economists willing and honest enough to speak out about it. They claim (and I agree with them) the true current figure would be about 12% instead of the reported 4.7% if the rate today was calculated the same way it was during The Great Depression when it rose to a peak of 25% and the Roosevelt administration was alarmed enough to think its consequences might cause a Russian-style revolution. That's why we got all the great New Deal social programs from a government that cared enough or was scared enough to give them to us. Now George Bush wants to end them all including our landmark Social Security along with Medicare, Medicaid and about everything else to transfer more wealth to the rich and fund his war machine. Bush's policies are the opposite of Franklin Roosevelt's. He's the greatest wrecker of social programs since the late 19th century and age of the "robber barons" when the country had few social gains to reverse and didn't think about adding any.
And in case any VHeadline readers need reminding: under the Bush Big Oil administration, the average price of a gallon of gasoline in the US is just under $3 as a result of blatant market manipulation mostly at the refinery level to deliberately keep it high. That's perfectly acceptable to the Bush administration run by former oil men and one woman who had an oil tanker named after her. Compare that to Venezuela where gasoline costs 12 cents a gallon. Anyone detect a strange odor? It's coming from the smell of corruption from the Capitol and White House. Anyone thinking it's about time we stopped putting up with this outrage and began acting to take our government back. It's up to us to do it because no one there will give it to us.
Back to My Splendid Soup I Want to Share with All
I know why I write and hope my readers do as well. The world today is not the one I want, and I intend to work not just to change it but to help save it before it's too late. I agree with Noam Chomsky who fears that unless we change course we face the possibility of one or more three unpleasant outcomes: the real threat of passing from a republic to tyranny, a nuclear holocaust and/or environmental destruction. None of us would relish those alternatives, but we'd better realize they're real and one or more of them may happen in our lifetime or even quite soon. I intend to keep brewing my special soup and season it well with sincerity, sanity as well as lots of hope and hard work for social equity and justice for all. It's even there for the naysayers and disbelievers to sample. They ought to try some. They might discover a whole new flavor far better than the witch's brew they now prefer.
Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com. Also visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.


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Ten African American teenagers cluster together in the center of a public high school classroom in Ossining, a northern suburb of New York City. School ended half an hour ago; in the hallway outside, janitors sweep the refuse of the day into neat piles. Some students head across the street for a slice of pizza; others are suiting up for sports practices. Downstairs in the auditorium, theater kids rehearse "You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown."
But these 10 young men are, for just a moment, solemnly silent. They stand and bow their heads. Then they recite a pledge:
As the black men of Ossining High School,
We will be positive.
We will strive to succeed.
We will help one another.
We will not allow anyone to interfere with us achieving our goals.
The students are members of Project Earthquake, the flagship program of their school district's controversial effort to close the achievement gap by providing minority students -- boys in particular -- with social support and enrichment they may not get at home. At their Wednesday afternoon meetings, the Earthquakers discuss topics ranging from responsible fatherhood to interracial dating to long-term career planning. They fill out worksheets in which they're asked to imagine adult lives as intellectuals, entrepreneurs, artists, and family providers. If a student walks into the meeting late, he immediately drops to the floor, unasked, and does 15 push-ups.
"Some people are saying Earthquake is a cult," laughs sophomore Jamal Rodney. "I was never really a good student in eighth grade, but in ninth grade, everything turned around. I joined Earthquake, and now I'm making the high honor roll. I got chosen to be in the National Honor Society." He and the other club members proudly say that last year, all but one of Project Earthquake's seniors graduated and headed on to higher education.
The Earthquakers are wise to seek support; the odds for success in high school and beyond are against them. In Ossining in 2006, 93 percent of white public school students graduated high school within five years, compared to 48 percent of blacks and 54 percent of Hispanics. Nationwide, about half of black males drop out of high school. Of those who do make it to college, only 43 percent will graduate, compared with 63 percent of white students. More young black males are behind bars than in university lecture halls.
These statistics have penetrated deep into the consciousness of Ossining's school administrators, who for the past two years have declared it a foremost priority to combat them. Using earmarked funding -- much of it donated by a nonprofit founded by upper-middle-class white parents in the district -- Ossining is providing segregated enrichment activities to at-risk black and Hispanic boys in kindergarten through 12th grade, as well as parenting support for their caregivers.
The theory behind such programming is that poor minority kids need something different from their school experience than their affluent, white peers. But Ossining is swimming against the tide. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court ruled that Seattle's integration program -- which considered race when assigning students to schools -- was unconstitutional. Immediately, all public school programs that categorize students according to race became potentially illegal. On the legislative front, President Bush's No Child Left Behind Act mandates that schools close the academic achievement gaps among races and classes by 2014 or risk losing federal funding. But the menu of solutions NCLB funds mostly ignores the benefits of integration.
Still, Ossining is standing by its methods. Having committed itself decades ago to integration, it now depends on that integration -- and the largesse of its wealthier families -- for the resources to segregate and educate by race and gender. Superintendent Phyllis Glassman says that as an Ossining administrator since 1992, she's seen enough numbers to convince her that the district's focus on males of color makes sense. "I believe that we're doing the right thing on behalf of students," Glassman says. "If it is challenged in the courts, then let the courts decide."
Although Ossining lies in affluent Westchester county, its demographics set it apart from its neighbors. About 30,000 people live there alongside the Hudson River; the classic gangster movie line "I'll send you up the river" refers to Ossining's infamous prison, Sing Sing. The local economy was vibrant in the days of boat trade up and down the Hudson, when streetcars transported shoppers from residential neighborhoods to Main Street. But today, like many post-industrial communities, Ossining can't seem to revive its downtown. Locally owned shops flounder. Palatial downtown Victorians have been split into low-income rental units inhabited mostly by African Americans and recent immigrants, while wealthier and whiter residents have fled to newer homes and subdivisions in the hills.
When I entered kindergarten in Ossining in 1989, about 60 percent of public school students were white and a quarter were black. But the district has undergone a profound demographic shift over the past 20 years, due mostly to an influx of immigrants from rural Ecuador. Today, white children account for 40 percent of students in the public schools and black children 16 percent, while the Latino population has grown from 15 percent to almost 40 percent. One-third of students qualify for reduced-price or free school lunches. Ten percent of Ossining students (and more in the lower grades) are English-language-learners, and a small ESL program has been supplemented by a few full-time bilingual classes in kindergarten through third grade.
Across America, fewer and fewer school districts are as diverse as Ossining's. Next door in Briarcliff Manor, 88 percent of public school students are white and less than 1 percent qualify for free lunch. Such homogenous schools are the norm nationwide. Two-thirds of black children attend schools that are "minority majority" and 40 percent attend schools that are between 90 percent and 100 percent black.
Pedagogical trends reinforce the segregationist standard: Current thinking suggests that poor children from unstable homes need rigorous, test-based standards taught through repetition, while privileged kids are free to enjoy the fun stuff -- science experiments, journal writing, and music lessons. That kind of thinking can make it seem natural that different kinds of children should learn in different classrooms.
But there's a problem with that argument: Research shows that students who attended racially and socioeconomically integrated schools have better life outcomes than their nonintegrated peers of similar socioeconomic status. Integrated kids of all classes and races grow up into more tolerant adults. And although integrated schools don't always do a better job of sending poor, nonwhite kids to college, studies have shown that black students are more likely to be successful in the workforce if they've attended integrated schools.
Ossining has long embraced the integrationist model in innovative ways. In 1974, after several years of racially motivated violence between white and black high school students, the board of education redrew the lines of the neighborhood elementary schools in order to lessen de facto segregation based on housing patterns. The district instituted an even more radical program in 1981, which came to be known nationally as the Ossining Plan. Each of three elementary schools would house every student in the district for two years: kindergarten and first grade in one building, second and third grade in another, and fourth and fifth grade in the last. Since then, all the town's children have moved together through these schools, and then on to middle school and high school. With these programs, the school district sidestepped controversies over busing while still pursuing integration.
When the former superintendent suggested last spring that the district consider moving back to K-5 elementary schools, in part because studies show that transitions from school to school can depress some students' achievement, the public outcry was enormous, mostly due to fears of re-segregation. "I think there's a feeling in the community that the Ossining Plan is sacrosanct, that it's one of those things you just don't touch," explains Superintendent Glassman.
Ossining is "one of the few remaining brave liberal social experiments," says Nancy Gutman, PTA president for two of the district's elementary schools and a part-time college professor. "The values of this district from the superintendent to the custodians are egalitarian."
One of the ways those values manifest is through Ossining Matters, a local nonprofit foundation founded by upper-middle-class parents in 2003. While parents across the country have established educational foundations to enrich their children's public schools, rarely do those organizations explicitly tackle the achievement gap. Ossining Matters, on the other hand, a group whose board of directors is largely white, has donated about $200,000 to the schools, much of it targeted toward programs for African American and Latino students. In essence, the group redistributes wealth in the district from the most to the least privileged.
In the high school, Ossining Matters supports Project Earthquake and writing workshops for Latino students, and donates thousands annually to a Guidance Discretionary Fund, which relieves poor kids of fees for college-level courses, the SAT or ACT exam, and college applications. At the middle school level, there's High Hopes and Expectations, which introduces African American boys and their families to college preparation. In the elementary schools, Ossining Matters helps fund literacy training for immigrant parents and field trips for targeted African American boys, those who wouldn't otherwise go to museums or professional athletic events on the weekends.
Ginny Loughlin, a stay-at-home mom of a ninth-grader, is the current president of Ossining Matters. Loughlin, who is white, used to live in Manhattan and work in the financial district. She still occasionally takes on freelance work, but today the foundation is her main project.
"It's not the responsibility of one group to deal with the achievement gap," Loughlin says at the local Starbucks, pausing frequently to wave hello to acquaintances she knows through volunteering. "If some students are walking away from the educational process with less than others, that's something we need to address together as a community."
Yet critics on both the left and right are skeptical of Ossining's attempt to close the achievement gap through programming that explicitly targets children for special opportunities according to their race. For one thing, this is exactly the logic the Supreme Court overturned in the Seattle integration case, Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District. Already the conservative New York Civil Rights Coalition has filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education against Ossining's programs for African American and Latino boys.
Even some progressive education experts argue for a move away from race and toward class as a way of integrating schools and screening kids for special help -- a step that would help programs like Ossining's avoid legal pitfalls in an anti–affirmative action political atmosphere. Richard Kahlenberg, a senior fellow at the Century Foundation, is a pioneer in the class-based movement. "I'd be concerned about discrimination against girls," he says of Ossining's programming. "And I'd be concerned about political backlash. If these are all goodies that are being provided to students, and a big chunk are being excluded -- that is, all girls and all whites -- then you've taken on an unnecessary political problem."
Indeed, many Ossining parents agree that girls from low-income families and girls of color would also benefit from targeted support in preparing for college and, equally important, avoiding pregnancy. Nationwide, 42 percent of Latina students drop out of high school, and one-third of them cite pregnancy or marriage as the reason. African American girls have a 41 percent national high school dropout rate. In Ossining, Project Earthquake has inspired two sister organizations, Prestigious Ladies (for black female students) and Latina Power. But neither of these demographics receives the same intense attention or funding that the district reserves for boys of color.
There's also another concern heard around Ossining, one that's familiar across the country. Some parents of gifted students -- mostly affluent, white parents -- feel that the district has doubled down on enrichment for at-risk students while cutting back on instruction geared toward their own kids. Indeed, a once-a-week, full-day pull-out class for gifted elementary school students was cancelled in order to pursue a sort of achievement integration: The gifted kids and the struggling kids all learn together, the idea being to push all students to perform at the advanced level. Not all parents think it is working. "Gifted kids are getting tapped to be teaching assistants," says Gutman, the PTA president. And while she believes passionately in integrated schools, she also worries that the district could undermine the support of the upper-middle-class parents who make these programs financially possible.
The question, of course, is whether Ossining's strategy is working. And here the picture gets even murkier. The district is looking carefully at the impact of its enrichment programs; every black male elementary schooler has his progress tracked by teachers, counselors, and administrators. "Regrettably," says Superintendent Glassman, "we still have not cracked the code here."
Pedro Noguera is a New York University sociologist and nationally recognized expert on the achievement gap who has been working with Ossining administrators and teachers for two years. While some of the students participating in Ossining's social support programs are doing very well, Noguera advises caution in calling Ossining's race- and gender-targeted approach a model for other districts.
"What I give them credit for already is their willingness to do something and not sort of throw up their hands and blame kids and blame parents," Noguera says. "Now it's a question of getting them to focus on the kinds of activities that will give the best results. They're doing a lot of things, but it's not clear that they're working." He says the results of his research are forthcoming.
Not all of Ossining's programs have a racial component -- some are set up to cast a wider net and may turn out to be more effective simply by virtue of reaching more students. In the high school, all tenth- and eleventh-graders are now required to take the PSAT exam, which gets teenagers thinking about college earlier than many otherwise would. The district covers the test fee for all students, and on the day of the exam, freshmen and seniors have their choice of visiting one of 12 nearby college campuses. Additionally, the Guidance Discretionary Fund has written checks to more than 60 students who told their guidance counselors they could not afford test-prep courses, college application fees, and the like.
The school has also revised its curricula to lure a more diverse body of students into advanced courses. In addition to standard Advanced Placement classes, the high school now offers college-level courses affiliated with Syracuse University and the State University of New York. "Racism, Classism, Sexism" and "Black History," both SUNY classes, are team taught by two teachers, one black, one white. More personal and freewheeling than the test-driven and Eurocentric curriculum of AP United States History and AP English Literature, the classes draw primarily nonwhite students.
In October, students in the black history class discussed the Clark doll test, which found that in 1940s America, black children regarded white dolls as "prettier" and "nicer" than black dolls. The research, conducted by psychologists Kenneth and Mamie Clark, was presented as key evidence in Brown v. Board of Education to show that segregation depresses black children's self-esteem. In Racism, Classism, Sexism one day, students debated the extent to which adults push children toward traditional gender roles, and talked about the categories of gay, straight, masculine, feminine, and transgender. Posters displayed in the classroom in which both courses meet defined Marxist Criticism, Biographical Criticism, New Criticism, and Deconstruction, all important movements in the academic humanities, none of which are probed at any depth in Advanced Placement curricula.
Still, these SUNY classes aren't regarded as the most elite either within Ossining High School or by college admissions officials. Advanced Placement remains the gold standard, and AP classes, according to Ossining students, are still heavily white.
Ossining administrators say they're addressing the problem in part by training teachers and guidance counselors to hold students of color to higher expectations. But some students say they continue to feel judged by some of the adults around them. "When you, a black student, walk into class, they say, 'It's great if he gets a B,'" explains senior Damian Gillespie, president of Project Earthquake. "But if the white student gets a B, it's, 'You could do better, you gotta do better, don't settle for less.' That's what Earthquake is trying to do. We're trying to say to the black community, 'don't just settle.'"
The fact that Project Earthquake needs to exist -- that a district as diverse as Ossining still struggles to guide African American boys toward graduation -- is a reminder that integrated school buildings aren't enough to improve the academic achievement of poor, minority kids. Indeed, the persistence of the achievement gap in Ossining echoes the national data available on race, class, and academic success in integrated schools. A study of about 1,200 children from poor families who relocated to subsidized housing in mixed-income areas during the late 1990s showed that the academic achievement of those children did not improve with the move. The findings were most discouraging for boys, who in some cases did even worse in integrated schools.
But that same study revealed other facts, facts that support Ossining's efforts to maintain diversity: While academically stagnant, those same poor children, when living in the suburbs, were healthier and less likely to get involved in drugs or gangs. For Project Earthquake member Jamal Rodney, a racially integrated education has proven to him that "even though somebody might be white or Hispanic, it doesn't necessarily mean they're going to act wrong towards me." Fellow Earthquake member Jonathan McRae says that because of the group, "I actually had a dream of going to Harvard. Harvard Law."
Whether Project Earthquake and race-specific programs like it can get McRae to Harvard remains to be seen. Since Ossining initiated its targeted programs in 2002, the percentage of students going on to college has risen only slightly. And due to the potential legal and political pitfalls of the programs, it's unclear how long the district will be able to continue its experimentation. What is clear is that without integration, Ossining wouldn't have either the will or the way to provide poor students of color with so many extras. There aren't very many suburban towns in America where white stay-at-home moms spend their time raising money for African American masculinity support groups.
On an overcast fall afternoon, two Ossining High School students walk home together from school, heading downtown in the direction of Sing Sing prison. One is Wesley Dyer, a black freshman in a baseball cap. His friend is Liz O'Hanlon, a white freshman wearing the hipster uniform of the day: leggings, ballet flats, a long shirt, and a wide belt.
"It's really diverse in our school, but I also heard that they're trying to break the elementary schools into neighborhoods again," O'Hanlon says, referring to the controversies of the previous year. "If you notice, there are some neighborhoods that are mostly black and some that are mostly white. Some are mostly Hispanic. If they broke it up into neighborhood schools, then you wouldn't really get a mix of people."
That O'Hanlon has gotten to know so many different kinds of people at her school sets her apart from the vast majority of suburban American 14-year-olds. She says integration is her favorite thing about Ossining. Dyer nods seriously in agreement. Neighborhood schools "would be like going back to segregation," he says. "It wouldn't make any sense to go back."


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Ann Romney said Friday that her husband's judgment in choosing Paul Ryan as his running mate was vindicated during the Wisconsin congressman's debate with Vice President Joe Biden.
"I think people can understand why Mitt made that choice," Mrs. Romney told a cheering crowd during a rally in this western Michigan town the morning after the vice presidential candidates squared off. "Because what he saw in Paul was a level head, very smart. You can tell, it came through, the kind of character that this man has. He has such integrity. ... We need those two guys in the White House and Michigan can help us get that job done."
Polls show a tightening race in the Romneys' home state, where President Barack Obama had enjoyed a comfortable lead over the former Massachusetts governor before the president's lackluster performance in their first debate last week.
Mrs. Romney reminisced about the couple's high school romance and drew laughs by speaking eagerly of the next stop on her campaign tour: a tour of the Franklin Cider Mill in Bloomfield Hills, which she visited often as a child.
"This is the home that Mitt and I grew up in," she said. "This is the state where George Romney was governor. This is the place that was turned around with a Romney administration. We want another Romney administration to turn this state around."
While Michigan's economy is enjoying a modest uptick, Mrs. Romney said the state still suffers from high unemployment.
"This has been a jobless recovery, if you even want to call it a recovery," she said.
"One thing that I can say about Mitt, he does not fail. And he will not fail the American people. He is going to get it right, he is going to get us back to recovery, he is going to get Michigan back and charged again."
With her husband and Obama preparing for their second debate next Tuesday, Mrs. Romney said their initial encounter gave people a chance to see the Republican presidential nominee as she does.
"Because there was no filter any more, it was only Mitt on the stage," she said. "And what came through is the Mitt that I know, that I've been waiting for ... a very long time for the American people to see who this guy is."