For What It's Worth

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http://bit.ly/2bQTJFB

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Pistachio Crisis!!

"Global production for 2015/16 is estimated to plunge 86,000 metric tons (tons) from the previous year to 529,000 as U.S. output declines and more than offsets a jump in Turkish production." 

Tree Nuts:World Markets and Trade (USDA)

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Progress: Ten Reasons to Look Forward to the Future by Johan Norberg                  

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Today in History: 8 September 1966 - Star Trek was first broadcast

Star Trek debuted in the United States on NBC on September 8, 1966.

“As early as 1964, Gene Roddenberry drafted a proposal for the science-fiction series that would become Star Trek. Although he publicly marketed it as a Western in outer space—a so-called “Wagon Train to the Stars” (like the popular Western TV series) — he privately told friends that he was modeling it on Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels, intending each episode to act on two levels: as a suspenseful adventure story and as a morality tale.”

“Roddenberry intended the show to have a progressive political agenda reflective of the emerging counter-culture of the youth movement, though he was not fully forthcoming to the networks about this. He wanted Star Trek to show humanity what it might develop into, if it would learn from the lessons of the past.”

“However, Star Trek has also been accused of evincing racism and imperialism by frequently depicting Starfleet and the Federation trying to impose their values and customs on other planets.”

“In early 1964, Roddenberry presented a brief treatment for a proposed Star Trek TV series to Desilu Productions comparing it to Wagon Train, “a Wagon Train to the stars.” Desilu worked with Roddenberry to develop the treatment into a script, which was then pitched to NBC.”

“NBC paid to make a pilot, “The Cage”, starring Jeffrey Hunter as Enterprise Captain Christopher Pike. NBC rejected The Cage, but the executives were still impressed with the concept, and made the unusual decision to commission a second pilot: “Where No Man Has Gone Before”.”

“The first regular episode (“The Man Trap”) of Star Trek: The Original Series aired on Thursday, September 8, 1966. While the show initially enjoyed high ratings, the average rating of the show at the end of its first season dropped to 52nd (out of 94 programs).”

“Unhappy with the show’s ratings, NBC threatened to cancel the show during its second season. The show’s fan base, led by Bjo Trimble, conducted an unprecedented letter-writing campaign, petitioning the network to keep the show on the air.”

“NBC renewed the show, but moved it from primetime to the "Friday night death slot”, and substantially reduced its budget. In protest Roddenberry resigned as producer and reduced his direct involvement in Star Trek, which led to Fred Freiberger becoming producer for the show’s third and final season.”

Star Trek (Wikipedia)

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When “losing” means getting richer a little more slowly

"All income groups in the world have seen gains in real income over the last few decades. That said, some have gained more than others. Between 1988 and 2008, for example, the lowest gains were made by people whose incomes fit beteen the world’s 75th to 90th income percentiles. That includes much of the middle and working class in rich countries."

"The Washington Post calls the people in this group the bitter “losers” of globalization. But, are they?"

"There are at least two problems with characterizing such people as “losers.” First, it seems to suggest that income growth rate matters more than absolute income level. Yet a person in the 80th income percentile globally would not want to trade places with or envy someone in the bottom 10th percentile, despite the latter’s much higher income growth rate."

Globalization’s So-Called Winners and Losers (Human Progress)

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Today in History: 7 September 1936 - The last thylacine died

“The thylacine was the largest known carnivorous marsupial of modern times. It is commonly known as the Tasmanian tiger (because of its striped lower back) or the Tasmanian wolf.”

“The thylacine had become extremely rare or extinct on the Australian mainland before British settlement of the continent, but it survived on the island of Tasmania along with several other endemic species, including the Tasmanian devil. Intensive hunting encouraged by bounties is generally blamed for its extinction, but other contributing factors may have been disease, the introduction of dogs, and human encroachment into its habitat. Despite its official classification as extinct, sightings are still reported, though none has been conclusively proven.”

“Surviving evidence suggests that it was a relatively shy, nocturnal creature with the general appearance of a medium-to-large-size dog, except for its stiff tail and abdominal pouch (which was reminiscent of a kangaroo) and a series of dark transverse stripes that radiated from the top of its back (making it look a bit like a tiger).”

“Like the tigers and wolves of the Northern Hemisphere, from which it obtained two of its common names, the thylacine was an apex predator. As a marsupial, it was not closely related to these placental mammals, but because of convergent evolution it displayed the same general form and adaptations.”

“ Its closest living relative is thought to be either the Tasmanian devil or the numbat. The thylacine was one of only two marsupials to have a pouch in both sexes (the other being the water opossum). The male thylacine had a pouch that acted as a protective sheath, covering his external reproductive organs while he ran through thick brush. The thylacine has been described as a formidable predator because of its ability to survive and hunt prey in extremely sparsely populated areas.”

“The last captive thylacine, later referred to as “Benjamin”, was trapped in the Florentine Valley by Elias Churchill in 1933, and sent to the Hobart Zoo where it lived for three years.”

“The gender of the last captive thylacine has been a point of debate since its death at the Beaumaris Zoo in Hobart, Tasmania. Recent detailed examination of a single frame from the historic motion film footage taken by David Fleay in 1933, has confirmed that the thylacine was male. In Fleay’s historic film footage of the last captive thylacine, the thylacine is seen seated, walking around the perimeter of its enclosure, yawning (exposing its impressive gape), sniffing the air, scratching itself (in the same manner as would a dog), and lying down. When frame III is enlarged the scrotum can clearly be seen, confirming the thylacine to be male.“

“The thylacine died on 7 September 1936. It is believed to have died as the result of neglect—locked out of its sheltered sleeping quarters, it was exposed to a rare occurrence of extreme Tasmanian weather: extreme heat during the day and freezing temperatures at night.”

Thylacine (Wikipedia)

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More athletes sitting out national anthem

"U.S. soccer star Megan Rapinoe knelt during the national anthem Sunday night before the Seattle Reign's game against the Chicago Red Stars "in a little nod" to NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick."

"Seattle Seahawks cornerback Jeremy Lane showed his support for Kaepernick by sitting on the bench during the national anthem at a preseason game in Oakland."

"Kaepernick's refusal to stand for the national anthem to protest racial injustice and minority oppression came to public notice when he remained seated on the bench before a preseason game against Green Bay. On Thursday night in San Diego, he and safety Eric Reid knelt during the anthem before a game against the Chargers."

Soccer Star Rapinoe Kneels During National Anthem (ABC)

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In Chicago in 1919, white gangs had looted and burned selectively, seeking to drive out black residents in the disputed borderlands along the Black Belt. In Greenwood (Oklahoma), all black homes and businesses were targets as marauding whites sought to destroy every sign of black prosperity and to kill as many blacks as possible - a pogrom. By noon on Tuesday, May 31, the mob had leveled Greenwood, killed dozens of blacks, and routed the remaining black defenders. More than 1,200 homes burned down in a fire that covered a thirty-six square block area. Reflecting on the cost of the pogrom more than seventy-five years later, black resident Mabel Little said, “at the time of the riot, we had ten different business places for rent. Today I pay rent.”

1919, The Year of Racial Violence: How African Americans Fought Back by David F. Krugler 

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It's said that a firearm you own is more likely to be used to shoot someone you know than someone you don't. Here's an example.

“Investigators said that Cochran got angry over a Facebook post and began beating Toni Davis.”

“When her mother tried to intervene, Cochran pushed her down then held a knife to Toni Davis's throat and threatened to kill her.”

“That's when her mother shot Cochran.”

Mother shoots daughter's boyfriend (WALB)

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"Clinton ... wasn’t a technocratic and savvy manipulator of State Department email protocol who gamed the system for her own good. She barely understood what the protocol was."

The FBI report on Hillary Clinton’s private email server, explained (Vox)

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Woman killed by her pet dog

16 July 2016

“Authorities said Elizabeth Rivera died in the attack. She died of a crush injury to the neck.”

“The incident happened about 8 p.m. at her home.”

“The dog, one of four in the home, bit the woman, knocking her down, and then bit her throat, severing her jugular vein. She died at the scene.”

Woman, 71, killed by pit bull in Detroit identified (Detroit Free Press)

[4wiw]

Happy 87th Birthday to Bob Newhart

“George Robert “Bob” Newhart (born September 5, 1929) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. Noted for his deadpan and slightly stammering delivery, Newhart came to prominence in the 1960s when his album of comedic monologues The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart was a worldwide bestseller and reached number one on the Billboard pop album chart—it remains the 20th best-selling comedy album in history. The follow-up album, The Button-Down Mind Strikes Back! was also a massive success, and the two albums held the Billboard number one and number two spots simultaneously.”

“Newhart later went into acting, starring in two long-running and award-winning situation comedies, first as psychologist Dr. Robert “Bob” Hartley on the 1970s sitcom The Bob Newhart Show and then as innkeeper Dick Loudon on the 1980s sitcom Newhart. He also had two short-lived sitcoms in the nineties titled Bob and George and Leo. Newhart also appeared in film roles such as Major Major in Catch-22 and Papa Elf in Elf. He provided the voice of Bernard in the Walt Disney animated films The Rescuers and The Rescuers Down Under. In 2004 he played the library head Judson in The Librarian, a character which continued in 2014 to the TV series The Librarians. In 2011, Newhart made a cameo in the film Horrible Bosses, and in 2013 he guest starred in three episodes of The Big Bang Theory, for one of which he won his first Primetime Emmy Award on September 15, 2013″

Bob Newhart (Wikipedia)

From last year:

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Today in history: 4 September 1882 - The first commercial electrical power plant came online

After devising a commercially viable electric light bulb on October 21, 1879, Edison went on to develop an electric “utility” designed to compete with the then existent gas lighting utilities. In 1889 he patented a system for electricity distribution and on December 17, 1880, he founded the Edison Illuminating Company. The company established the first investor-owned electric utility in 1882 on Pearl Street Station, New York City. It was on September 4, 1882, that Edison switched on his Pearl Street generating station’s electrical power distribution system, which provided 110 volts direct current (DC) to 59 customers in lower Manhattan.

Thomas Edison - Electric power distribution (Wikipedia)

“Experiments in electric generation had been under way for decades, and by 1878, the Avenue de l'Opera in Paris was lit with electric arc lamps. But arc lamps gave off a harsh light, and while many inventors tried to create a more pleasing and durable light, none met with success until Thomas Edison turned his thorough and methodical attention to the problem.”

“Backed by financiers, including J.P. Morgan and the Vanderbilt family, Edison established the Edison Electric Light Company to own and license his patents in the electric light field. After more than a year of experiments, Edison and his young assistant, Francis Upton, finally developed a carbon filament that would burn in a vacuum in a glass bulb for forty hours. They demonstrated the light bulb to their backers early in December 1879, and by the end of the month were exhibiting the invention to the public.”

“Edison then concentrated on developing a complete system of electric generation and distribution that would turn his light bulb into a commercially efficient and economical business. The Edison Electric Illuminating Company of New York was incorporated on December 17, 1880, to develop and install a central generating station. Edison’s system would consist of the large central power plant with its generators (called dynamos); voltage regulating devices; copper wires connecting the plant to other buildings; the wiring, switches, and fixtures in the interiors of those buildings; and the light bulbs themselves. The method of supplying electricity from a central station to illuminate buildings in a surrounding district had already been demonstrated by Edison in London in 1881, and self-contained plants were in place in some of Edison’s buildings and in a few private residences in New York, like that of J. P. Morgan.”

“Edison received more than two hundred patents between 1879 and 1882 as he solved numerous problems in the generation, distribution, and metering of electric current. He had to develop even the most basic equipment — fuses, sockets, fixtures, switches, meters — and he had to build and test each part. Following the model for gas and water distribution, Edison was an early proponent of underground electric mains and services, and the first street mains were installed in New York during the summer of 1881.”

“At the Pearl Street station in lower Manhattan, Edison’s team installed the largest dynamos ever built. Each “Jumbo” dynamo (named after a popular circus elephant) weighed about 27 tons and had an output of 100 kilowatts — enough to power more than 1,100 lights. Each of the six dynamos was driven by a steam engine, which received steam from boilers located in another part of the plant.”

“At 3 p.m. on September 4, 1882, Edison’s electric illuminating system went into operation. With the opening of Pearl Street, it was now possible for homes and businesses to purchase electric light at a price that could compete with gas. By October 1, 1882, less than a month after the opening of the station, Edison Electric boasted 59 customers. By December 1, it had 203, and a year later, 513. Pearl Street became the model that led the way for electrification in cities and towns across the United States.”

A brief history of Con Edison (coned.com)

“Pearl Street Station was the first central power plant in the United States. It was located at 255-257 Pearl Street in Manhattan on a site measuring 50 by 100 feet (15 by 30 m), just south of Fulton Street and fired by coal. It began with one direct current generator, and it started generating electricity on September 4, 1882, serving an initial load of 400 lamps at 82 customers. By 1884, Pearl Street Station was serving 508 customers with 10,164 lamps. The station was built by the Edison Illuminating Company, which was headed by Thomas Edison. The station was originally powered by custom-made Porter-Allen high-speed steam engines designed to provide 175 horsepower at 700 rpm., but these proved to be unreliable with their sensitive governors. They were removed and replaced with new engines from Armington & Sims that proved to be much more suitable for Edison’s dynamos.”

“Pearl Street Station not only holds the distinction of being the world’s first central power plant, but it was also the world’s first cogeneration plant. While the steam engines provided grid electricity, Edison made use of the thermal byproduct by distributing steam to local manufacturers, and warming nearby buildings on the same Manhattan block.”

Pearl Street Station (Wikipedia)

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Today in History: 3 September 1895 – John Brallier become the first openly professional American football player

“John Kinport “Sal” Brallier (December 12, 1876 – September 17, 1960) was one of the first professional American football players. He was nationally acknowledged as the first openly paid professional football player when he was given $10 to play for the Latrobe Athletic Association for a game against the Jeanette Athletic Association in 1895.”

“Brallier was born in Cherry Tree, Pennsylvania, near Indiana. He was the son of Dr. Emanuel Brallier, a physician, and his wife, Lucy M. Kinport Brallier.“

“As a boy, Brallier remembered having worked in a glass factory. His first recollection of football was in 1890, at the age of 13, playing in high school for the West Indiana Public School team. By his sophomore year in 1892, he was the captain and right halfback.”

“In 1893, while still attending high school, also played quarterback for the Indiana Normal football club in 1893 and 1894. The team won three of four games played that year.”

“During the fourth game of the 1894 season, Normal lost, 28–0, to Washington & Jefferson College. However, Brallier’s outstanding play led the Presidents coach E. Gard Edwards to write from Pittsburgh asking Brallier to play football for his team. Further correspondence followed through the winter between Brallier and Washington & Jefferson Presidents manager H. Wilson Boyd. The result was that Brallier agreed to go to Washington & Jefferson "if all expenses are paid for the entire year."

The young football star graduated from Indiana Public School that spring and was awaiting the start of college.”

Meanwhile:

“In 1895 the town of Latrobe established a formal football team. However, just before the start of the season, Latrobe quarterback Eddie Blair found himself in a scheduling conflict. Blair, who also played baseball in nearby Greensburg discovered that the team’s first football game against the Jeannette Athletic Club conflicted with a prior baseball commitment.”

And so:

“Manager David Berry, who was now seeking a replacement for Blair, had heard of Brallier’s performance as Indiana Normal’s quarterback. He contacted the 17-year-old at his home in Indiana and offered him expenses to play for Latrobe. However, Brallier was not particularly anxious to play, anticipating his entrance into Washington & Jefferson College in a few weeks. The young quarterback was afraid that an injury would jeopardize his scholarship, so the Latrobe offered to pay him to "make it worthwhile”. Finally, Berry offered $10 a game plus expenses, while promising several other games and he threw in “some cakes”. This offer made Brallier the first openly paid football player.”

“The quarterback arrived in Latrobe the night before the game and practiced with the team under a street light. Latrobe would go on to win the game. Brallier kicked two field goals for a final score of 12–0.”

“Brallier remained with Latrobe for a second game against an Altoona squad before leaving for college.”

“It was not until after his death in 1960 that evidence proved John Brallier was not in fact the first professional football player, but merely the first one to openly admit he was paid. William “Pudge” Heffelfinger of the Allegheny Athletic Association is now considered the first professional player.”

John Brallier (Wikipedia)

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Today in History: 3 September 301 - The oldest still surviving constitutional republic was founded

“San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino, also known as the Most Serene Republic of San Marino, is an enclaved microstate surrounded by Italy, situated on the Italian Peninsula on the north-eastern side of the Apennine Mountains. Its size is just over 61 km2 (24 sq mi) and has an estimated population of about 32,000. Its capital is the City of San Marino and its largest city is Dogana. San Marino has the smallest population of all the members of the Council of Europe.”

“San Marino claims to be the oldest surviving sovereign state and constitutional republic in the world, as the continuation of the monastic community founded on 3 September 301, by stonecutter Marinus of Arba. Legend has it that Marinus left Rab, then the Roman colony of Arba, in 257 when the future emperor, Diocletian, issued a decree calling for the reconstruction of the city walls of Rimini, which had been destroyed by Liburnian pirates.”

“Saint Marinus left the island of Arba in present-day Croatia with his lifelong friend Leo, and went to the city of Rimini as a stonemason. After the Diocletianic Persecution following his Christian sermons, he escaped to the nearby Monte Titano, where he built a small church and thus founded what is now the city and state of San Marino. The official date of the founding of what is now known as the Republic is 3 September 301.“

“San Marino is governed by the Constitution of San Marino (Leges Statutae Republicae Sancti Marini), a series of six books written in Latin in the late 16th century, that dictate the country’s political system, among other matters. The country is considered to have the earliest written governing documents (constitution) still in effect.”

“The country’s economy mainly relies on finance, industry, services and tourism. Despite having an extremely small economy for a nation state, it is one of the wealthiest countries in the world in terms of GDP (per capita), with a figure comparable to the most developed European regions. San Marino is considered to have a highly stable economy, with one of the lowest unemployment rates in Europe, no national debt and a budget surplus. It is the only country with more vehicles than people.”

San Marino  (Wikipedia)

[4wiw]

Happy 93rd Birthday to Mort Walker

“Addison Morton Walker (born September 3, 1923), popularly known as Mort Walker, is an American comic artist best known for creating the newspaper comic strips Beetle Bailey in 1950 and Hi and Lois in 1954.”

“Born in El Dorado, Kansas, he grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. He had his first comic published at age 11 and sold his first cartoon at 12. At age 14, he regularly sold gag cartoons to Child Life, Flying Aces and Inside Detective magazines. When he was 15, he drew a comic strip, The Lime Juicers, for the weekly Kansas City Journal, and at age 18, he was the chief editorial designer for Hallmark Cards. Graduating from Northeast High School, he attended the University of Missouri, where today a life-sized bronze statue of Beetle Bailey stands in front of the alumni center.”

“In 1943, Walker was drafted into the United States Army serving in Italy, where he was an intelligence and investigating officer and was also in charge of a German POW camp. After the war he was posted to Italy where he was in charge of an Italian guard company. He was discharged as a first lieutenant in 1947. He graduated in 1948 from the University of Missouri.”

“He then went to New York to pursue a career in cartooning. He began doing Spider, a one-panel series for The Saturday Evening Post, about a lazy, laid-back college student. When he decided he could make more money doing a comic strip, Spider morphed into Beetle Bailey, eventually distributed by King Features Syndicate to 1,800 newspapers in more than 50 countries for a combined readership of 200 million daily.”

“In 1954, Walker and Dik Browne teamed to launch Hi and Lois, a spin-off of Beetle Bailey. Under the pseudonym “Addison”, Walker began Boner’s Ark in 1968. Other comic strips created by Walker include Gamin & Patches, Mrs. Fitz’s Flats, The Evermores, Sam’s Strip and Sam and Silo (the last two with Jerry Dumas).”

“In 1974, Walker opened the Museum of Cartoon Art, the first museum devoted to the art of comics, initially located in Greenwich, Connecticut and Rye Brook, New York before moving to Boca Raton, Florida in 1992.”

Mort Walker (Wikipedia)