In the summer of 1962, U.S. defense officials detonated a hydrogen bomb buried deep beneath the desert of Frenchman Flat, Nevada. The blast was so robust that the land around it rose by some three hundred feet and burst open like a very bad boil, leaving a crater eight hundred feet across. Blast debris went … Continue reading
Monthly Archives: March 2008
Bangladeshi Retirement Plan
An employee of the country’s biggest state gas firm who earned $100 a month allegedly used his post to pocket $145 million in bribes over 12 years. Not a bad retirement plan… Continue reading
Europe’s Richest Man?
President Vladimir Putin of Russia has been likened to an African plutocrat after a controversial political scientist claimed that he had acquired control of £20 billion in energy assets – enough to make him Europe’s richest man. Stanislav Belkovsky, a colorful figure on the political scene, claimed that Mr Putin had made a multi-billion pound … Continue reading
Tourism in Afghanistan & Pakistan – 1 (or Afternoon Tea & Scones with Karen Sprague)…
I have been asked a great number of times why I am going to Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran… The comments/questions always follow the line of A) Why would anyone ever want to go there? or B) You’re going to die… The questioners/commenters may be right. I might get beheaded. However, they could die driving to … Continue reading
Highway 49 Road Trip – The Yuba River, Downieville, Sierra City, Sierra Valley And More…
Looking for a solid road trip through the Sierras? Look no further… This 317-mile long state highway, dubbed the “Golden Chain” Highway, meanders through nine counties in the heart of the California Gold Country. Oakhurst anchors its south end while Vinton and Loyalton are found to the north. The miles along Highway 49 described on … Continue reading
Why is this law never enforced?
California Code of Regulation Turning Out of Slow-Moving Vehicles Vehicle Code 21656: On a two-lane highway where passing is unsafe because of traffic in the opposite direction or other conditions, a slow-moving vehicle, including a passenger vehicle, behind which five or more vehicles are formed in line, shall turn off the roadway at the nearest … Continue reading
India’s Only Female Motorcycle Racer
17-year-old, Alisha Abdullah, is India’s only female motorcycle racer… She has not merely stormed a male bastion but Alisha Abdullah has actually been racing past her male competitors on her 115 cc four-stroke bike. This 17-year-old Chennai college girl is the only woman bike racer on the current circuit. She has had quite a few … Continue reading
The Velvet Rocket 