Joel Salatin from 'Food, Inc.' for Food Day

A Happy Food Day to my readers!  Today, I'm continuing what I did last year in For Food Day, a guide to entries with answers to 'Food, Inc.' by discussing the worksheet for "Food, Inc."

When I showed "Food, Inc." to my students last week, I asked them which questions they had the must difficulty answering.  The ones that stumped them that I hadn't already answered involved Joel Salatin, owner and operator of Polyface Farms.  I can understand that.  The man has a complex and effusive way of speaking that throws out a lot of concepts in a short period of time.  It doesn't help that he also misuses words.  He says "spacious" instead of "specious" and "mystique" instead of "illusion."   The irony is that he has an English degree.

Watch Sustainable Solutions to Food Production, which puts together two of the three segments in which Salatin appears, then follow along as I use it to answer the questions below.

Is this the smartest man in the USA, or just a farmer with common sense? Please check out the documentary film "Food Inc.", and read Fast Food Nation. You deserve to know what you're eating. Note: for those who may be squeamish, please realise that the chicken you eat is no longer alive. This is a humane and relatively painless way of killing the animal.

Now time for the questions.

19. How does Joel Salatin, owner-operator of Polyface Farms, describe the advantages and disadvantages of industrial agriculture?

The advantages, which Salatin breezes through sarcastically, are that industrial agriculture grows food "bigger, fatter, faster, cheaper."  That's exactly what industrial agriculture is supposed to do.  The disadvantages are that it creates a lot of inefficiencies and externalities and removes the people who make decisions from the consequences of their decisions.  As a result, "no one is thinking about E. coli, Type II diabetes, and the ecological health of the whole system."  This also serves as an example of "There is no such thing as a free lunch," although there are better examples elsewhere in the movie.


20.What advantages does he give for his methods of organic farming?  He’ll explain more after you watch the material for questions 21-23.

Salatin describes how his pasture raised cattle handle food and waste a lot more efficiently than cattle on feedlots.  Salatin does not have to pay for the food and he does not have to pay to dispose of the manure.  Instead, the natural way of doing thing takes care of both.  As I sometimes tell my students, he manages to screw up a perfectly good explanation of "Nature knows best."

21. What ethical effects does he think the treatment of pigs as “a pile of protoplasmic material” would have on the treatment of people and other countries?

He thinks the people who do not respect "the pigness of the pig," will treat other people and other countries in the community of nations as disdainfully as they do the pigs and will try to control them the same way.  The film then jumps to a segment about Smithfield Farms that supports Salatin's contention.

24.How do the views of the owner of Polyface Farms and that of the former owner of Stonyfield Farm differ when it comes to growth and selling to Wal-Mart?

Salatin says he absolutely won't sell to Wal-Mart.  He thinks he will lose his integrity if he does, as he'll have to change what he thinks about his business, his product, and his customers.  On the other hand, Gary Hirshberg of Stonyfield Farms thinks he absolutely has to sell to Wal-Mart for his ideas to have any effect.  Watch him in Food, Inc. – Walmart's Going Organic.

What AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH was to the energy industry, Robert Kenner’s Academy Award-nominated documentary is to big agriculture. Based on Michael Pollan’s bestselling book of the same name, FOOD INC. examines the outrageously unhealthy practices of corporations like Monsanto and Perdue, exposing how little we really know about what we put on our plates. A must-see for proponents of sustainable and organic farming movements and anyone concerned about the future of our planet.

Both Salatin's refusal and Hirshberg's eager collaboration are examples of "A value expressed and a decision made based on that value."  It's a contrast I set up early in the semester, when I use Salatin as an example of someone who follows an ecological economics model and Hirshberg as someone who follows an environmental economics model.  Both agree about the importance of sustainability in economics, but they disagree about how to achieve it.  Salatin is setting up his own food distribution system, while Hirshberg is trying to reform the existing one.  I'm on Hirshberg's side; if the system can be improved, then it should be.  At least Salatin isn't doing what James Howard Kunstler advocates -- letting the system collapse first and hoping that something more sustainable will grow out of the wreckage.

That's it for today's observation of Food Day.  Stay tuned for a report on "The Rachel Maddow Show" winning two News and Documentary Emmy Awards, one for its coverage of the Flint Water Crisis.

Tipsy Bartender Drinks for 4/20

I've been promising "marijuana legalization news for 4/20 on Wednesday" all week, but this morning I have other things I need to do and am not feeling like writing a serious post.  Instead, I'm referring my readers to Reclassifying Marijuana Would Be Game-Changing at You Might Notice A Trend as well as three posts here and posting something less serious--drink recipes from Tipsy Bartender.  Welcome to another of my "I can't be all DOOM all the time" moods!

I begin with yesterday's Marijuana Jungle Juice Bowl with Banana Leaf Straws.

Celebrate this 420 with our super potent MARIJUANA JUNGLE JUICE BOWL with Banana Leaf Straws!
...
MARIJUANA JUNGLE JUICE BOWL
Kiwi Slices
Pineapple Slices (shaped like marijuana leaves)
3 oz. (90ml) Bacardi 151
3 oz. (90ml) Everclear
4 oz. (120ml) Coconut Rum
4 oz. (120ml) Melon Liqueur
4 oz. (120ml) Captain Morgan 100
10 oz. (300ml) Pineapple Juice

Normally, Skyy uses Nickey, who is an adult film model, for drinks about sex, which is why I usually don't post videos with her here.  Today, he's using her for a video about drugs because she's from Colorado, where pot is legal.  Sex and drugs--now all she has to do is host a video for a drink about rock'n'roll.

Now last year's offering, Marijuana Jello Shots.

What better way to start your 420 party that with marijuana leaf shaped jello shots! We also used the Liquid Marijuana Shot recipe.
...
420 MARIJUANA LEAF SHAPED JELLO SHOTS
*Marijuana Cookie Cutter: http://amzn.to/1FZhBKk

White Layer:
1 Cup Water
2 Packets Gelatin
1 Can Condensed Milk
1 Cup Coconut Rum

Green Layer:
1 Cup Pineapple Juice
2 Packets Gelatin
1/3 Cup Spiced Rum
1/3 Cup Midori Melon Liqueur
1/3 Cup Blue Curacao

So it's food instead of a drink--munchies!

There are lots more, but I'm going to be a good environmentalist and conserve my resources.  I'll also recycle and point my readers to 2014's drink on this theme at Tipsy Bartender drinks for St. Patrick's Day.

Here's a toast to marijuana legalization following in the tracks of marriage equality!

St. Patrick's Day drink recipes from Tipsy Bartender for 2016

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  If it's a drinking holiday, then it's time for the appropriate drink recipes from Tipsy Bartender, beginning with this year's Irish Fishbowl.

Nothing says St Patrick's day fun like this IRISH FISHBOWL.
...
IRISH FISHBOWL
Green Apples
Melon Balls
4 Leaf Clover Cookie Cutter
6 oz. (180ml) Jameson Irish Whiskey
4 oz. (120ml) Apple Juice
4 oz. (120ml) Sour Apple Pucker
4 oz. (120ml) Midori Melon Liqueur
2 Green Apple Sodas
1 1/2 oz. (45ml) Blue Curacao
Top with Apple Juice

Welcome back, Sophia!

Follow over the jump for two recipes that I missed last year, but didn't include in a follow-up like 2014.

Pi facts and pie for Pi Day

Happy Pi Day!  This year, instead of drum corps and second slices, I'm going to play today simultaneously more straight and more silly, beginning with Nerdist's The Pi Episode: Math Bites with Danica McKellar.

Join host Danica McKellar as she explains the joys and mysteries of the wonderful world of Pi! The irrational number, not the food. Welcome to Math Bites! New episodes every Thursday.

Featuring Chris Hardwick, Simon Pegg, Felicia Day, Jonathan Bennett, Jim O'Heir, Jonah Ray and Matt Mira.

I told you it would be simultaneously more on topic and silly than my usual.  Speaking of silly, follow over the jump for some pies for Pi Day.

Record page views, comments, and 100th follower: Monthly meta for October 2015

October 2015 was another record-setting month.  First, page views shattered the previous high of 14,981 page views during August 2015 by 7,500 with a new record of 22,491.  Second, last month exceeded last month's 74 comments with 89, another new record. Finally, the blog reached a milestone with its 100th follower, Robin of Your Daily Dose and TV Function Junction.  I'm  celebrating the record month by sharing the entries with the most comments, most likes, and most page views, beginning with the post that also got the most comments last month, "Science fiction speaks to our current anxieties."  Thanks to a battle with several persistent spammers, this post is now the most commented on entry in the history of the blog with 52 comments, half of them deleted.  Fourteen more came in October, beating out the next entry by eight.

"Hurricane Joaquin as viewed from Michigan," posted October 2, 2015, came in second with six comments thanks to Paul W. and I having a conversation.  It was the entry actually posted last month with the most comments.  All those comments only gained it 112 page views according to the raw counter, not enough to earn it a place on the top ten lists otherwise.  It also earned its page views by being shared at Kunstler's blog.

Follow over the jump for the most read and liked entries of October 2015.

Doctor Carson and his Amazing Technicolor Labcoat

Dr. Ben Carson has finally said something outlandish enough that it induced me to remark on it.  I'll let Wonkette have the honors of explaining: Surprise, Dr. Ben Carson’s Latest Pyramid Scheme Involves Actual Pyramids.*

My own personal theory is that Joseph built the pyramids to store grain. Now all the archeologists think that they were made for the pharaohs’ graves. But, you know, it would have to be something awfully big if you stop and think about it. And I don’t think it’d just disappear over the course of time to store that much grain.

Carson, of course, is referring to the well-known biblical account of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, in which a dream warns Joseph, held as a slave by the Pharaoh, to stockpile grain during a period of plenty to tide Egypt over during a seven-year famine, saving the grateful nation and inspiring a musical treatment by Andrew Lloyd Webber, which is why the Egyptians worshipped Cats. And to Carson, it’s obvious the huge granaries for that project would still have to be around, since everything in the Bible actually happened, like Noah’s Ark.

I guess Dr. Carson accepts the following advice, whether it comes from the Bible, folklore, or Andrew Lloyd Webber.


After all, it made the character of Potiphar from the Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat film rich.

Starring Maria Friedman as the Narrator, Joan Collins as Potiphar's wife and Donny Osmond as Joseph. From the 'film version of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.'

Follow over the jump for more.

Courser and Gamrat lose primaries for lost seats

Examiner.com articles on city council and millage elections concluded with a programming note.

I'm not done with 2015 elections.  I have a little dancing on political graves to do before I return to coverage of the 2016 presidential contest.

I begin with the news.  WXYZ has the honors of going first with Former Reps. Todd Courser, Cindy Gamrat lose bids for re-election.

They made national headlines when they tried to cover up their affair at the state capitol, and now, former State Reps. Todd Courser and Cindy Gamrat will not be heading back to Lansing.

WOOD-TV has a more detailed report in Courser, Gamrat lose bids for old House seats.

Two Michigan lawmakers who were forced from office over an extramarital affair and a convoluted cover-up scheme lost longshot bids Tuesday to win back their seats (Nov. 3, 2015).

After all that, I actually feel sorry for Gamrat.  I wish her well in whatever she does as long as it isn't politics.  Courser, on the hand, I have no sympathy for at all.  God may have a plan for him, but it may come as an unpleasant surprise.

Finally, I'd like to say that it looks like the story that I began with Quatloos for "dinghy lovebirds" Gamrat and Courser and continued through First Courser and Gamrat, now Kelly and Mack, which is getting a lot of attention in the wake of last night's results, John Oliver on Courser and Gamrat, and Gamrat expelled, Courser resigns has come to a close, but that would be premature.  There is still the ABC 20/20 report to come as well as an investigation by the Michigan State Police and Attorney General.  Those might be worth following up on.  Stay tuned. 

A farewell drink for Larry Lessig

I concluded Drinks for Republican candidates: Graham, Pataki, and Gilmore with "I'll have one more drink recipe entry for Larry Lessig.  Expect to see it in November."  It's November, but Lessig has already dropped out.  Vox reports Lawrence Lessig quits Democratic race, says party changed rules to exclude him from debate.

On Monday, campaign finance reform activist and Harvard law professor Lawrence Lessig announced he was ending his long-shot campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Lessig blamed the national Democratic Party for, he said, changing the rules in a way that made it impossible for him to qualify for the party's next debate. "It is now clear that the party won't let me be a candidate," he said. "I must today end my campaign for the Democratic nomination."

Farewell, Larry!  Here's a drink in your honor, the Harvard Cocktail.

1 oz brandy
1 oz sweet vermouth
4 dashes bitters
1/4 oz simple syrup

I'm now done with the project that started with recipes for Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, and Martin O'Malley.  My drink orders for Paul W.'s Democratic Debate Drinking Game for October 2015 are now complete.

Follow over the jump for Lessig's account of what led him to drop out and my brief rant about how Democratic and Republican candidates have behaved very differently in response to their likelihood of getting the nomination.

Halloween drinks from Tipsy Bartender for 2015

Happy Halloween from Crazy Eddie's Motie News!  To celebrate the holiday, I'm presenting this year's version of Halloween drinks from Tipsy Bartender.  A couple of years ago, the theme was zombie drinks inspired by "The Walking Dead."  This year, it seems to be pumpkins and bloody eyeballs.  I'll save the eye scream for later and start with the Halloween Pumpkin Cooler.

The world's most awesome Halloween beer cooler ever!
...
THE HALLOWEEN PUMPKIN COOLER
1 Big Pumpkin
24 pack of beer
Dry Ice

That's an impressive, artistic, natural, and functional centerpiece!

Enough of the decorations.  Follow over the jump for the actual drink recipes.

China ends one child policy

ODN (formerly ITV) has the story in China ends its decades long one-child policy.

All couples in China can now have two children as the country's ruling Communist party announced an ease of family planning restrictions. Report by Claire Mewse.

After 35 years, the "basic national policy" has served its purpose by dramatically restricting Chinese population growth.  It's about time for a two child policy for all Chinese, which will still keep China's population from outgrowing its economy.

This change comes just as I am about to start my lectures on human population, so it's very timely.  On the one hand, it will get the students' attention.  On the other, I'll have to update the lecture by replacing the NTDTV video in China's top six environmental problems embedded in the same slide as the poster above with the ODN video.  That's an easy fix. 

By the way, this news has prompted interest in relevant entries from my back catalog.  In particular, people were reading China's gender imbalance: Student sustainability video festival 45.  The change is policy should ease that problem, along with allowing its working age population to stabilize, both issues explored in Next Media Animation thinks low birth rates in the U.S. and China aren't all good.  Looks like China recognized that NMA was right.

Republicans on climate change and energy at the CNBC debate

CNBC asked only one candidate a question about climate change in last night's prime time debate.  Climate Eye on YouTube has the clip in Christie asked sole climate question at prime time GOP debate.


I'm going to be a good environmentalist and recycle what I wrote about Christie's response last time in Republicans vs. Democrats on climate change at the debates so far.

Here is a meme I posted at Michigan Liberal last year.

My comment at the time was "I think we're hitting stage three, with a few people transitioning to stage four.  So, how long before we get to stage five?"  Rubio has moved to stage four, while Christie is starting to move to stage five.  That's an improvement of sorts, but not much.  At least they recognize that climate change is real, but they [don't] prioritize it very highly.

With this answer, Christie has definitely moved to state five, except that his response is in the present tense, not the past tense.  At least he's recognizing climate change as a problem and renewable energy as a solution and doing so in a way that's consistent with his party's ideology.  I can live with a position like that.

While the main event had only one question about climate change, the early debate had three responses to the topic.  Follow over the jump for clips of George Pataki, Lindsey Graham, and Rick Santorum addressing the issue.

Halloween and Friday the 13th bring space visitors

I haven't posted about asteroids and the threat of asteroid collision since July.  Three months later, nature is providing me the opportunity, as two space objects will visit Earth over the next three weeks.

The first is the "Great Pumpkin" asteroid, which will pass by Earth with 300,000 miles on Halloween.  TomoNews US gives its slightly silly take on the story in Halloween asteroid flyby will 'narrowly' miss Earth at the end of October.

MAUI, HAWAII — Scientists at NASA's Pan-STARRS observatory in Hawaii say that an unusually large and fast asteroid will fly by Earth this Halloween. The asteroid, named 2015 TB145, came as a surprise to the scientists, who spotted it less than two weeks ago.

The asteroid's flyby is expected to happen on October 31st, when it will pass within 310,000 miles, or 1.3 lunar distances, from Earth at an "unusually" high velocity of nearly 78,000 miles per hour. 2015 TB145 has an "eccentric" and "high-inclination" orbit, which may explain its late discovery.

Estimated to be between 920 to 2,000 feet in diameter, the asteroid may seem far away enough, but actually it is flying by Earth dangerously close for an object of its size. According to NASA, if an asteroid of its size and velocity was to hit Earth, it would devastating our planet.

Scientists say the next time any celestial object this large will pass by this close to Earth will be in 2027 when the mile-wide AN10 asteroid passes within one lunar distance.

Fortunately, the fly-by will be an exciting near-miss.

The next scary day will be Friday the 13th, which brings its own visitor from space.  Unlike the asteroid, this one will collide with Earth.  Fortunately, it's much smaller and was originally from this planet in the first place.  Teletechnology brings the story of WT1190F, whimsically called "WTF."

WT1190F is predicted to crash into the Indian Ocean on 13 November. The object, dubbed WT1190F, is set to land in the Indian Ocean, around 40 miles (65km) off the southern tip of Sri Lanka, at 6:20 UTC on 13 November. It measures up to 7ft (2 metres) long and it could be a piece of rocket stage from a recent lunar mission, or even part of an Apollo program craft that has been in space for more than 40 years.

This will be much less dangerous than an asteroid impact, although I wouldn't want to be in a boat inside the expected debris field.  Pieces of metal falling at terminal velocity might be terminal for anyone in their way.  Just the same, this will provide a good opportunity for scientists to observe how spacecraft break up in the atmosphere and it will also remove one more piece of space junk.  Good viewing and good riddance!

Chewbacca arrested as Darth Vader campaigns for Mayor of Odessa, Ukraine

Last year, I reported on the aborted campaign of Darth Vader for President of Ukraine.

[S]omeone posing as Darth Vader ran for President of Ukraine on the Internet Party ticket this spring before his candidacy was rejected.  Too bad about that.  His campaign would have been more fun to report on that what actually happened in Ukraine this summer.

The Dark Lord of the Sith granted my wish, as he's now running for Mayor of Odessa.

Darth Vader is among the candidates vying for the post of Mayor in the Ukrainian port city of Odessa.  He joins Peking Duck and a man calling himself Putin in the leadership race.

Unfortunately, things are running about as smoothly as last time.  Follow over the jump for the Sith Lord's misfortunes.

'The Martian' returns to number one as most Halloween films bomb

The weekend held great promise for several scary films, two of which The Wall Street Journal profiled in Halloween Movies 2015: 'Crimson Peak' and More.

Halloween cinema releases this year include Guillermo Del Toro’s ‘Crimson Peak,’ and ‘The Last Witch Hunter’ starring Vin Diesel. Mark Kelly reports.

Unfortunately for the hype, both of them bombed, as Daily Variety reported via Reuters in Box Office Massacre: 'Last Witch Hunter,' 'Paranormal Activity 6' and 'Steve Jobs' Flop.

It was a pre-Halloween massacre at the multiplexes.

Four new films, including "Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension" and Vin Diesel's "The Last Witch Hunter," crowded into theaters this weekend and were swiftly pulverized and left for dead. Another, "Steve Jobs," expanded after a brisk limited run in a few key cities, only to be given the cold shoulder by the general public.

Their failures allowed a trio of holdovers -- "The Martian," "Goosebumps," and "Bridge of Spies" -- to retain the top three spots on the box office chart.

Congratulations to "The Martian" for being number one at the box office again.  Last week, "Goosebumps" was the top film, knocking off "The Martian" after two weeks on top.

As for the rest, "The Last Witch Hunter" was the only new release in the top five, coming in fourth ahead of "Hotel Transylvania 2."  "Paranormal Activity," which should have been a lock for Halloween as part of successful franchise, came in sixth, "Steve Jobs," which might still get some Oscar nominations for writing and acting, came in seventh, and "Crimson Peak," which might get some nominations for costumes and production design, came in eighth.  Honestly, it looked like a weekend where the teens stayed away from the theaters while adults and families with kids attended and not that many adults, as otherwise "Steve Jobs" might have had more viewers.

Despite the box office disappointments, last week was a good one for film topics.  I'm sure I'll see most of the new releases when they come to cable, although I might wait until they're free.  This week is another story.   The best film will be "Our Brand is Crisis."  After that, it's a sharp drop-off to "Scout's Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse."  That's a great title and concept, but I expect the film to be another dumb comedy.  I might pass on them and look ahead to Spectre, the next Bond film instead.  Stay tuned.

Final 'Star Wars VII' trailer and reaction

I've blogged about the trailers for "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" three times before, so for the sake of completeness, I'm going to write about the last one.  I begin with the video itself: Star Wars: The Force Awakens Trailer (Official).

Watch the official trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, coming to theaters December 18, 2015.

Never mind me.  I'm geeking out with Paul W..  May the Force be with us.

OK, that's over.  Follow over the jump for two reaction videos.

John Oliver and 'Food, Inc.' explain chicken farming

A Happy Food Day to my readers!  This year, I'm blogging about the movie Food, Inc. to celebrate, just as I did in 2013.  Today, I'm answering questions about chicken farming from the "Food, Inc." worksheet, which my students worked on this week, the way I answered questions about corn and energy.  Follow over the jump for those as well as a video from "Last Week Tonight by John Oliver" on the indignities of contract chicken growing.

Driving update for October 2015: Pearl

When I wrote the driving update for Dez earlier this month, I already knew that I'd post another one for Pearl this month, too.  Yesterday, I said that the next entry would be that driving update.  So, here it is.

Pearl rolled over 23,000 miles on Wednesday Tuesday, October 20th.  That's 58 days since it hit 22,000 miles on August 23rd.  My driving has increased markedly since August, when I had been driving 14.1 miles per day or 430.1 miles per standard month of 30.5 days since I bought the car in July.  I'm now driving it 17.24 miles per day, which translates to 525.86 miles per standard month.  That's even more than the 16.95 miles per day and 516.95 miles per standard month I drove Ruby between May and July.  I'm not surprised.  I'm driving more because I'm teaching at two campuses instead of one and I'm attending an average of a committee meeting a week on top of the increased requirements of my more car-dependent neighborhood.  I expect to post a driving update for Pearl every other month from now on.

Of course, the important statistic isn't how much I drive my car; it's how much my wife and I drive our cars.  Adding Dez's 9.71 miles/day and 296.1 miles/standard month to my driving results in totals of 26.95 miles/day and 822.0 miles/month.  That's better than the 1000 total miles per month we were driving our cars in April, a statistic I did not use for a new baseline because of pair of one-time trips to Flint and Mount Pleasant.   Even so, it's more than the cumulative average of 22.52 miles/day and 686.86 miles/month from January 2015's update and much more than the previous cumulative update on December 28, 2013.  My wife and I are definitely adding to the trend of increasing miles driven since gas prices fell last year.  At least I drive a high-mileage car!

Stay tuned for a post about Food, Inc. starring John Oliver for Food Day.

Limbo Kitty returns as prices fall to new post-summer lows

When WXYZ passed along a gas price spike warning, the corner station was selling regular for $2.37 and the two stations down the street listed it for $2.33.  Since then, the price has fallen.  On Thursday of last week, all the stations in my old neighborhood were selling regular for $2.32.  When I drove through my old stomping grounds on Tuesday of this week, all outlets displayed $2.19 for regular.  The price spike is over.

Not only that, but prices have fallen below their previous post-summer low of $2.24 back in September.  I told my readers then to "watch for another return of Limbo Kitty."  Lo, and behold, Limbo Kitty is back!

GasBuddy shows that these prices are still holding.  In addition, the site shows that they are exactly where they should be given the Detroit average of $2.29.  Also, at least one station in the metro area is selling regular at $1.99.  That's not enough for me to say that gas has fallen below $2.00; that would take either the stations in my old neighborhood or the metro average to hit or fall below $2.00.  I'm still expecting that to happen between Halloween and Thanksgiving.  That should happen, as the local average has dropped 15 cents in the past two days and is still falling.

The data from Oil-Price.Net supports a continued price drop, as it shows WTI closing Tuesday at $45.55, five dollars below the $49.43 it was two weeks ago, while and Brent was at $48.71, more than four dollars below the $53.05 of two weeks ago.  In addition, RBOB is selling for $1.28, well below the $1.41 being quoted at the last report.  It looks like I'll be using Limbo Kitty to illustrate quite a few of my entries between now and Christmas.

Stay tuned for a driving update on Pearl.

Back to the Future Day!

Paul W. reminded me of a special science-fiction day Drinks for the Democratic debates: Bernie Sanders.

If he shouts out halfway through the debate "Great Scott!  It's almost October 21, 2015!  I need to go warn Marty about this!" and hops into a nearby DeLorean with a flux capacitor and flies off, take three drinks in honor of the Back to the Future trilogy.

That's today, so here's the Back to the Future Day official trailer to celebrate.

This 21 October 2015, Universal Pictures’ Back to the Future trilogy returns to the big screen internationally.

Marking the date when Marty and Doc travel forward in time in Back to the Future II, hundreds of cinemas internationally are celebrating this unique anniversary for a special one-day cinema release through Universal and Park Circus. 2015 also marks the 30th anniversary of Back to the Future.

Park Circus is releasing Robert Zemeckis' Back to the Future films across Latin America, Japan, New Zealand and the following territories in Europe: Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. Universal is handling the release in the UK, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France and Australia.

So much for the fantasy of the day.  Now for the reality in Everything BACK TO THE FUTURE II Got Right (and Wrong)

In Back to The Future II, Marty McFly travels into the future to the year 2015, our present day. But how accurate were the film's predictions about the future?

Chris Demarais is expressing the disappointment I described in Where's my retro future?  Sorry, no flying cars or fusion power, either.  The best we can do are the four energy predictions Back to the Future 2 got almost right I quoted in SciFi is Now: Energy and other technologies for 2014.

As for one other prediction that didn't come true, no World Series win for the Cubs, either.  They'll be playing the fourth game of the NLCS instead.  At the rate they've been playing so far, it will be they're last game this year.  Too bad.  I'd really like that prediction to come true.

Record comments and 500,000 page views for September 2015 and other meta

September 2015 was a month of milestones.  I posted the 2500th entry, the blog surpassed 500,000 page views over its history, and it set a new record for comments during a month with 74.  The blog also earned 12,893 page views.  Time to review my page view goals from Record page views for August 2015 and other monthly meta to see how that stacked up with expectations.

I conclude with my readership goals for September, which aren't very high.  September 2014 saw only 11,785 page views.  To beat that will require 393 page views per day for 11,790, which is the minimum goal.  The low goal of ending a day ahead entails 406 page views per day for a total of 12,180 total.  The medium goal of a five percent increase over last year would be 12,390 total or 413 page views per day.  The high goal would be at least 13,000 page views to keep the streak going, which would mean 434 page views per day.  As of tonight, the blog is exceeding all these goals, but it's only the first week.  There are 23 days left in September.  Stay tuned.

While it was the first month since February not to exceed 13,000, it still met all other readership goals by increasing page views over September 2014 by 1108, 9.4%.  As a consequence, the blog earned 429.77 page views per day and 368.37 page views per post.  Those weren't records, but they were good.  On the other hand, the blog had an average of 2.47 comments per day and 2.11 comments per entry.  Those are records!

To celebrate both the 500,000th page view and 2500th entry, which was Happy Labor Day from Detroit!, I'm posting the theme song for this blog, (Nothing but) Flowers.


Also to celebrate the record number of comments, I'm sharing the most commented on entries last month.

Thanks to a battle with several persistent spammers, Science fiction speaks to our current anxieties, posted August 3, 2014, is now the most commented on entry in the history of the blog with 52 comments, half of them deleted.  It started off with eight comments.  Thirty more were posted during September 2015, making this the most commented on entry this month.  Fourteen more came in October, so it will likely be the most commented on entry this month as well.

The most commented on entry actually posted during September was Blog recommendation: You Might Notice a Trend posted September 25, 2015.  It earned seven comments thanks to a conversation with the writer of the blog that was recommended.  That wasn't enough to place it in the top ten, as it earned only 69 page views last month, 85 according to the raw counter.

Follow over the jump for the most liked and most read entries of September 2015.