Ever since the beginning of the Six Party Talks under Bush Sr. and the Agreed Framework under Bill Clinton and the subsequent repeated capitulations under W and Obama, all of which explicitly took military action off the table, war with North Korea was inevitable. The idiots and appeasers kept saying if we only conclude a non-aggression pact, or if we only enter into direct negotiations, or if we just stop military cooperation with South Korea, or if we just send them enough aid, that somehow magically they will become good world citizens have brought us here. Throughout all of it the Kims kept telling us their missile and nuclear programs were not open to negotiation, but again the fools and idiots in the white house and at Foggy Bottom thought it was a negotiation tactic on their part. It wasn't.

Congratulations! You've made the Second Korean War a necessity.

The time to act is now. It would be ironic, however, if they manage to blow the top of that mountain off and manage to contaminate half of their benefactors, China and Russia.


https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/5015910/north-korea-nuclear-test-japan-radio-signals-missile-base/

"Another North Korean nuclear test could be imminent, according to worrying reports from the South.

Seoul and their allies Japan are reported to have detected radio signals and radar activity coming from a missile base within the reclusive nation.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has infuriated the international community by firing around three rockets every month since April.

But none have been carried out since September 15 - when he launched a ballistic missile over the Japanese island of Hokkaido - leading some to believe international sanctions were working.

Now a government source has claimed a missile tracing radar has been switched on at the unspecified base, the South Korean-based Yonhap news agency has reported.

"It's true that active movements have been detected at a North Korean missile base," the source is quoted as saying.

"Signs like those spotted Monday have recently been detected frequently."

"We need to watch a while longer before determining whether the North is preparing a missile launch or gearing up for (its own) winter drill that starts Friday."

A South Korean defence ministry spokesman declined to comment on the report, but similar reports from Tokyo have negatively affected its stock exchange.

The Japanese government is on high alert after detecting the same radio signals, sources told the Kyodo news agency.

One said: "North Korea might launch a missile within the next few days.”

The Japanese sources suggested the signals may be related to the North’s winter military training as satellite images have not shown any missile or moveable launch pad.

Satellite images of a North Korean naval shipyard taken earlier this month indicated Pyongyang is pursuing an "aggressive schedule" to build its first ballistic missile submarine.

North Korea's leader Kim Jong-Un visited a new catfish farm northeast of Pyongyang this week in the latest outing to coincide with a lull in weapons testing, state news reported.

In September, the North conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test and staged an intermediate-range missile launch over Japan.

But tensions are expected to spike again as the United States and South Korea kick off a large-scale air force drill on Monday in a new show of force against the North.

The five-day exercise, Vigilant Ace, involves 12,000 US personnel and an unspecified number of South Korean service members flying more than 230 aircraft including F-22 Rapter stealth fighters and other cutting-edge weapons at US and South Korean military bases."

The plumber, who specializes in septic, and quite literally knows his shit, came Saturday and over the course of three hours managed to snake and unblock the septic tank.

A combination of factors contributed to the blockage.

1: A 1.6 gallon flush toilet running through terra-cotta with a fall from 1953 designed to 5 gallons at a time.

2: Our summer and fall of illness which interrupted our routine of once a week sessions in the Jacuzzi which dumped 95 gallons down that pipe and kept things clear.

3: Me spending a month voiding high potency antibiotics into the system.

4: Our being out for a year after our fire which resulted in what was in the tank at the time drying and solidifying like concrete.

Hopefully he has bought us to spring when we can have they joy of spending a good five grand to replace the tank and run new lines. I gotta get this tank out from under out patio and 250 gallons is absurdly small by today's standards.

Due to buying a faulty part.

About two months ago my alternator failed. The new one a friend and I put in has now failed in a completely different way. This time the bearing went. It scared the piss out of me as the sound it is making is VERY similar to a failed supercharger, which is a $4000 part.

The worst part is to get at this damn thing we have to pull the whole front bumper assembly, one wheel, and a fender well liner off just to get at it.

At least the part is still under warranty.

I see Macy's credit card system went down yesterday. There isn't a K-Mart nearby any long even if I wanted to go. Sears is now a 45 minute drive, all the closer ones closed. I think Amazon is going to eat Best Buy alive. What do you think?

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-42101456

"A Canadian dog walker could not have survived over two days in the wilderness without the help of her border collie, a boxer and a puggle.

Annette Poitras, 56, was walking the three dogs on Monday in the British Columbia backcountry when she fell, injured herself and lost her phone.

She was rescued on Wednesday afternoon after a long hunt by Coquitlam search and rescue.
Her husband says the three dogs helped Poitras stay alive during the ordeal.

Marcel Poitras told Global News that his wife and the dogs - a collie called Chloe, a boxer named Roxy, and Bubba, a pug-beagle mix - took care of each other over two days and two nights, with no supplies and periods of "torrential" rain.

Mr Poitras said Annette put her coat over Roxy, the short-haired boxer, to keep the dog warm.

She also watched one of the dogs dig a hole in the undergrowth to sleep in, and did the same.

"One of them was cuddling and one of them was on guard and the other one was looking for food," he said.
He said the dogs did not leave her side.

Over 100 searchers combed the wilderness near Eagle Mountain to try and find Ms Poitras after her husband reported her missing on Monday. Two helicopters were also used in the search.

Some rescuers finally heard faint cries for help and loud barking and tracked down the small group in an area described by the Mounties as "well outside the normal trail system", according to The Surrey Now Leader.

The rescue team said she was "alive and in good condition" quite far into the Coquitlam Watershed and off trail, in dense bush and swamp.

Mr Poitras says his wife is recovering and will be released from hospital this week.
He says they are looking forward to "quiet, peace, walking dogs, visiting family" now the ordeal is over."

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5114827/Hundreds-evacuated-Oxford-Circus.html

"Hundreds of people fled Oxford Street in panic today as reports of shots being fired led to armed police flooding the area.
People ran and screamed on one of the busiest shopping days of the year as police moved in to close down Oxford Circus tube station.
Armed police have arrived on scene and are responding 'as if the incident is terrorist related' after reports of shots fired.
A large area is now in lockdown, from Oxford Circus tube station to Bond Street. There have been unconfirmed the incident maybe gang-related.
MailOnline journalist Keiligh Baker was walking towards Carnaby Street from Oxford Street when the incident unfolded.
She said: 'Lots of armed police arrived and stormed Oxford Street. They were shouting "move, move, move!".
'Then the uniformed officers started shouting "go, go, go". People were sprinting and screaming.'"

My septic tank decided to fill yesterday and consequently the toilet would not flush. Well I had it pumped to no avail and learned a few things:

1: The idiot who owned this house before me put the tank in the stupidest place, under the back patio.
2: Said idiot idiotically put in a tank with baffles and then only put a hatch for one baffle, meaning I can only clean a small portion.
3: Most likely the patio will have to come up and the whole tank will need to be replaced or reworked.
4: The potion that can be cleaned is not where the outlet is which means I am still blocked.
5: My electric snake is about 4 feet too short to reach the tank outlet.

So I'm going to have to call a plumber with a longer snake. At best it will be a temporary fix until spring when the whole works will have to come up.

In the meantime my wife and I are spending Thanksgiving doing numbers one and two in a bucket.

On edit: well she is. I'm peeing in the back yard.

https://www.texastribune.org/2017/11/22/us-rep-joe-barton-deciding-how-respond-after-graphic-photo-circulates-/

"U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Ennis, released a statement on Wednesday apologizing for a graphic nude photo of him that circulated on social media earlier this week.

"While separated from my second wife, prior to the divorce, I had sexual relationships with other mature adult women," he said. "Each was consensual. Those relationships have ended. I am sorry I did not use better judgment during those days. I am sorry that I let my constituents down."

Barton, who announced his re-election bid earlier this month, is navigating in a political environment charged with emerging stories of sexual misbehavior in politics, in business, and in the media. The photo, which appeared on an anonymous Twitter account, set off speculation within Texas GOP circles about his political future.

In a phone interview with The Texas Tribune on Tuesday, Barton said he was deliberating that.

"You're as aware of what was posted as I am," he said. "I am talking to a number of people, all of whom I have faith in and am deciding how to respond, quite frankly."

It is unclear how the photo got onto social media, or who put it there.

Barton, the former chairman of the powerful House Energy and Commerce committee, joined the House in 1985 and is the longest-serving member of Congress from Texas."

https://thumbnails.texastribune.org/Wn03xkxZ63Iy60XU3G5A-Y5zZeE=/1250x838/smart/filters:quality(80)/