'Best of TBH Politoons'
Baron Dave Romm
By Baron Dave Romm
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What do American airports have that South American airports don't? Drinking fountains. Even in ritzy South American hotels, the water is so bad the staff have to provide bottled water to brush your teeth. US regulations allow us in the states to drink tap water. Anyone who whines about government regulation is a commie.
Ushuaia bills itself as the Southernmost City In The World. People live south, but now many. Onboard the National Geographic Endeavour heading through the Beagle Canal in Tierra del Fuego, I looked for village lights in the mountainous islands, and saw some. But not many. The weather in Ushuaia is turning to autumn now, but it was summer when I was there Nov/Dec. I was in the city twice. First was a brief stop where we were herded from the airport to a tour of Tierra del Fuego National Park and then to the National Geographic Endeavour heading to Antarctica. We arrived almost twelve days later where some of us ventured out at night and all of us took a quick tour the next day. I would have liked to explore more, and wander farther away from the tourist places, but so it goes.
A word about nomenclature, since this was a frequently asked question of our guides: Patagonia refers to the southern region of South America, perhaps twice the size of California. It is not one nation and the political and geographic boundaries might vary by who you ask. Sort of like "New England" or "The Southwest". Some say that Tierra del Fuego is not part of Patagonia, but some say it is and the Fuegians don't seem to care much one way or another. Where the name comes from is also somewhat obscure, but seems to derive from Magellan's Spanish monster "Patagon" which either comes from "big feet" or a dog headed monster from a novel Magellan was fond of. Tierra del Fuego means "Land of Fire", as in the signal fires seen by Magellan. It is the archipelago at southern tip of South America, an extension of the Andes into the ocean, separated from the mainland by the Straights of Magellan. Farther south than the equivalent Cape Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa, the trip from Atlantic to Pacific and back is known for rough and unpredictable weather. View Tierra del Fuego web-cams. Both Argentina and Chile claim parts of Tierra del Fuego. Ushuaia is the capital of Tierra del Fuego; the Argentinean part, anyway. On the way from Santiago Chile, we stopped in Punta Arenas to have our passports stamped to exit the country (!), since Chile and Argentina still dispute each other's claims. Fortunately, their cold war was not in one of the flare ups.
Ushuaia is not a very big city, but is growing fast. The guides claimed that the city's population was 10,000 not long ago and is 36,000 now. Mostly, due to tourism, and a major tax incentive by Argentina The airport is new and a third major hotel is being built. South America has embraced the web, and US-style advertising hype, such as this site talking about Ushuaia's gastronomic infrastructure. I'm pretty sure they mean that the city has lots of restaurants (which they do, and they're open late), but the ship fed us very well and I didn't sample much of the local fare.
The rise in tourism in Ushuaia and similar places concerns naturalists heading to Antarctica: Perhaps 10,000 people visited The White Continent last season, with 16,000 expected soon. The warming trends make travel more enticing for some, but also make it more dangerous. More people will make the ecology harder to sustain. The precarious balance among existing animals such as penguins and krill is already threatened. One of the best parts about going on the expedition that everyone who went to Antarctica wanted to go to Antarctica. Anyone with the cash and free time can hop on a boat to cruise Hawaii or the Caribbean and still be bored. If you go to Antarctica, you are motivated from the start.
All pictures taken by Baron Dave. For the complete and unedited set of 2389 trip photographs plus a Best Of album, go to Porpoising To Antarctica.
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| Port of Ushuaia | Ships at berth, Ushuaia |
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| Port of Ushuaia | Tierra del Fuego National Park |
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| Tierra del Fuego National
Park storm over water |
Tierra del Fuego National
Park fungus which was a food staple |
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| Tierra del Fuego National
Park rabbits, sometimes hard to spot |
Tierra del Fuego National
Park touristy map of Ushuaia and environs on gift shop |
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| Tierra del Fuego National
Park Mugs in gift shop |
Tierra del Fuego National
Park what would tourism be without bathrooms? |
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| Ex Presidio, Ushuaia Model of Prison Guard |
Ex Presidio, Ushuaia Model of prisoner in cell |
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| Internet Cafe, Ushuaia Cheap international phone booths were very popular |
Ushuaia night life Many places open until 3am |
Remember this special offer: The Vernadsky Station CD, chock full of great pictures from the Ukrainian research station in Antarctica, goes for $20 US if you visit Antarctica For $40 plus $3P&H, I will make a copy of this CD and send all the price of the CD to Vernadsky. You'll get an unadorned CD plus thin case (pretty much how it comes) filled with astonishing pictures and the knowledge that you are helping a scientific station perform important work... but you don't have to travel to the South Pole! What a deal! E-mail Baron Dave for mailing address and details on how to order.
Baron Dave Romm is a conceptual artist and a noble of Ladonia with a radio show, a Live Journal demi-blog, a very weird CD collection and an ever growing list of political links. Dave Romm reviews things at random for obscure web sites. You can read all his music recommendations from Bartcop-E , and you can hear the last two Shockwave broadcasts in Real Audio (scroll down to Shockwave). Thanks to everyone who has sent me music to play on the air.
Reader Comment
Re: Gridley?
Marty -
"Cathy Forst, christens the Arleigh Burke class guided missile destroyer USS Gridley, named after her great-great grandfather, Capt. Charles V. Gridley, Saturday, Feb. 11, 2006, at Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine. The ship is the fourth named after Gridley who commanded the protected cruiser USS Olympia at the Battle of Manila Bay in 1898, during the Spanish-American War."
Is this Gridley the same as "fire when ready Gridley"?
just curious
ducks
Thanks, ducks!
Yep, that's the Gridley
Reader Comment
Compliment
thanks for creating such a great read to go with coffee in the a.m. (and,
sometimes, tea in the p.m. to finish up).
an extra "thanks" for the great j.d. links and for adding the
flag page
-
fascinating to know that so many are enjoying the pictures, links and
informative clips you provide.
Jean, and the occasional family member reading over my shoulder : )
Thanks, Jean!
Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Al Franken: 'Reflections on the Wellstone memorial and the King funeral' (smirkingchimp.com)
I think a little more perspective is needed when addressing the comparison that right-wing bloggers and now some mainstream journalists (Howard Kurtz) have been making between the Wellstone Memorial and the Coretta Scott King Funeral.
Arianna Huffington: 'On fear, lizard brains, and 1984' (smirkingchimp.com)
The only way to break through this "fog of fear" is to keep shining a light on this cynical strategy, like Hillary Clinton did the other day at the UAW convention: "If you're paying attention, you saw two weeks ago, Karl Rove, in a room like this, telling the Republican National Committee, 'Here's your game plan, folks. Here's how we're going to win. We're going to win by getting everybody scared again.... We're going to keep playing the fear card.'"
Bhiksuni Thich Chan Chau Nghiem: Black Is Buddhafull (beliefnet.com)
How my Buddhist practice helped me make peace with a racist grandfather.
Jenny Kinscy: 'A Revolutionary Practice' (beliefnet.com)
Angel Kyodo Williams, author of 'Being Black,' talks about meditation, racism, and the true nature of American Buddhism.
Karel: The state of our unions (advocate.com)
The president mentioned gay and lesbian Americans in his State of the Union speech-for about eight seconds-but if you don't have anything nice to say, Mr. President, please don't say it at all!
Michael Jensen: An Interview With Stacie Andree, Laurel Hester's Partner (biggaypicture.com)
This post includes information about Laurel Hester, a lesbian suffering from terminal cancer in Ocean County, New Jersey who fought for, and won, the right to leave her pension benefits to her partner, Stacie Andree. What follows in an interview with Stacie herself.
Brent Hartinger: BREAKING! Explosive, Ground-Breaking, Wildly Important News! (biggaypicture.com)
I, ahem, have a new book out. Hey, give me a break, this blog is free! You can put up with a little shameless self-promotion now and then!
Seven Reasons Why Gay People Are Better Than Straight People (out.com)
EDITOR'S NOTE: We do not think all gay people are better than all straight people. We, in fact, do not think all gay people are anything. (Or all straight people, for that matter.) These are just some general observations. So please, lighten up.
The photos of Bush and Abramoff TOGETHER!
Reader Comment
Re: The Flags
"Here's the page of flags."
Thanks for the modification, marty. I have often wondered just how many countries in the world there are (plus or minus 3), so it's very cool of you to tell us.
Just wondering still, though....do you verify that people are really from where they say? I mean, there ARE some simians (apologies to real simians everywhere...yanno, even when I use the term "slug bait" when referring to the BFEE and it's supporters, I feel like I should apologize to the slug bait) who might click on a false country. Do you have to rely on people's honesty?
Plus, also curious...do you have all the States? (they aren't listed separately anymore and I figure the answer is "yes" but thought I'd ask anyway)
It's also interesting to see what places are still not on the list...ok, so I can understand N. Korea or Myanmar, but no Monaco? no Bahamas?
nice job, marty.
sarah
Thanks, sarah!
My stat counter provides a break-down by a variety of factors, like country, state, city, and ISP.
Here's a sample:
Number Percent Country Name
62 73.81% United States
5 5.95% Canada 
3 3.57% Spain 
2 2.38% Netherlands 
2 2.38% Germany 
2 2.38% Unknown -
2 2.38% Peru 
1 1.19% Belgium 
1 1.19% Slovakia 
1 1.19% Portugal 
1 1.19% New Zealand 
1 1.19% Hungary 
1 1.19% France 
1:26pm
Num Percent Country Name
60 66.67% United States
9 10.00% Canada
6 6.67% United Kingdom 
3 3.33% Switzerland 
3 3.33% Australia 
3 3.33% Spain
2 2.22% Chile 
1 1.11% France
1 1.11% Unknown -
1 1.11% Netherlands
1 1.11% Philippines 
3:50pm
They don't offer flags for states or I'd be using them, too.
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Sunny and warmer than seasonal, but very nice.
Added a new flag - Bolivia 
Rock Archives Stream Online
Bill Graham
Some of rock's most intriguing content is now in cyberspace via
Wolfgang's Vault
. The memorabilia seller offers treasures from the stash of promoter Bill Graham, programmer of San Francisco's legendary Fillmore, who died in 1991.
A 75-song playlist culled from 7,000 to 8,000 vintage audio and video concert recordings made between 1966 and 1999 began streaming on the
Wolfgang's Vault
Web site February 8, at no cost to consumers. The owner of the Graham archive is optimistic that some of the seminal performances will make it to retailers' shelves as CDs and DVDs by year's end.
Entrepreneur Bill Sagan paid more than $5 million for the cache in 2003. He named it in honor of Graham, who was born Wolfgang Grajonca in Germany.
There is no cost to stream the music at 128k at the
Wolfgang's Vault
site. Sagan says he hopes the feature will draw more fans to the site and sell more merchandise.
Bill Graham
Sundance a Bit Too Intense
Robert Redford
The Sundance Film Festival is too intense for Robert Redford, who says he wasn't around for all of it this year.
"To the outside world, it's a big fat market where you have people like Paris Hilton going to parties. Now, she doesn't have anything to do with anything. I think the festival is close to being out of control," the festival's creator told Newsweek.
When asked if his "movie-star-ness" kept him from being taken seriously, he said it was difficult.
"You work hard to move away from it, and you're only partly successful. If I go up there to speak about an issue, they're playing "The Sting."
Robert Redford
Bravo Provides New Home
Trio Network
The spirit of the Trio network lives on.
With an aggressive broadband push, Bravo is reincarnating the pop-culture-oriented channel with the recent launch of TrioTV.com and the future launch of OutzoneTV.com and BrilliantButCancelled.com, all inspired by programming created by the now-defunct network.
All three channels exist under the umbrella of the network's original site, BravoTV.com, and will be linked to the parent site.
Trio Network
To Debut In 2007
Video Game Awards Show
The Academy of Interactive Arts and Science has unveiled a new annual television event, a co-venture with Dick Clark Prods. designed to showcase the year's best video games and the creative teams that made them possible.
The announcement came last week during the nonprofit organization's DICE 2006 Summit in Las Vegas.
"The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences Presents: The Year in Games" is set to debut in first-quarter 2007.
Video Game Awards Show
University Wants Apology
'Glory Road'
Officials at Texas A&M University-Commerce want Walt Disney Co. and the makers of "Glory Road" to apologize for inaccurately linking their school to some of the film's most racially charged scenes.
The movie chronicled the history-making Texas Western Miners, who won the 1966 NCAA title with the first all-black starting lineup in a championship game. It included a "completely false" depiction of a game against East Texas State University, the name of Texas A&M-Commerce at the time, spokeswoman Lorraine Pace said Friday.
In the movie, East Texas fans are shown throwing drinks and popcorn and yelling racial slurs at Texas Western, now known as the University of Texas at El Paso, during a regular-season game in Commerce, Texas. A scene after the game shows a vandalized hotel room, with racial slurs written on the walls in red.
"These events - specifically depicted as taking place at ETSU and in the Commerce area - are completely fabricated and go beyond the realms of literary license and decency," A&M-Commerce President Keith McFarland said in a statement.
'Glory Road'
NBC's Offer
Michelle Kwan
Faced with the loss of its biggest Winter Olympics star only two days into the Turin Games, NBC tried to keep Michelle Kwan - in the broadcast booth.
Kwan turned down the job offer, saying she didn't want to be a distraction for the remaining members of the U.S. Olympic figure skating team, NBC Sports spokesman Michael McCarley said Sunday.
NBC Sports had first contacted Kwan's agent in January, when it had appeared unlikely that she would be competing, McCarley said. NBC Universal Sports Chairman Dick Ebersol made Sunday's offer only an hour after her news conference, when she had come to NBC's studios to be interviewed by Bob Costas.
Michelle Kwan
Offers Glimpse Of Film-In-Progress
Marilyn Manson
Shock rocker Marilyn Manson paid a visit to the Berlin International Film Festival on Sunday to drum up interest for his directorial debut, a surreal-horrific look at the life of English writer Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, better known by his "Alice in Wonderland" pseudonym Lewis Carroll.
Manson, who will play Carroll as well as composing the score for the film, "Phantasmagoria: The Visions of Lewis Carroll," screened a teaser and answered questions at a press conference Sunday at the Berlin Marriott Hotel. He was accompanied by U.K. supermodel Lily Cole, who has been cast in the role of Alice in the film.
"Phantasmagoria's" producer, Wild Bunch's Alain de la Mata, said the $4.2 million film will begin shooting this summer. Casting is still under way. Manson confirmed that he had discussed the project with Angelina Jolie but said he was not currently in negotiations with her.
Marilyn Manson
Communities at Odds Over Honors
Merle Haggard
A dispute is brewing over which of two central California communities should be the first to honor country music legend Merle Haggard.
Bakersfield planning commissioners voted last week to turn a stretch of road into Merle Haggard Way. That didn't sit well with Oildale native Tom Clark, who appealed the decision Friday.
Clark said Haggard grew up in Oildale and that the small community north of the Kern River should be the first to honor the singer.
Bakersfield wants to honor Haggard as part of a driving tour of sites around the city important to the history of the Bakersfield sound. Jaeger said he's open to speaking with Clark, and community officials will speak before the Bakersfield City Council takes up Clark's appeal.
Merle Haggard
In Memory
Peter Benchley
Peter Benchley, whose novel "Jaws" made millions think twice about stepping into the water even as the author himself became an advocate for the conservation of sharks, has died at age 65, his widow said Sunday.
Wendy Benchley, married to the author for 41 years, said he died Saturday night at their home in Princeton, N.J. The cause of death, she said, was idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a progressive and fatal scarring of the lungs.
Benchley, the grandson of humorist Robert Benchley and son of author Nathaniel Benchley, was born in New York City in 1940. He attended the elite Philips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire, then graduated from Harvard University in 1961. He worked at The Washington Post and Newsweek and spent two years as a speechwriter for President Johnson, writing some "difficult" speeches about the Vietnam War, Wendy Benchley said.
The author did not abide by the mayhem his book evoked. In fact, he was quite at ease around sharks, his widow said. She recalled a trip to Guadeloupe, Mexico last year for their 40th wedding anniversary, when the two went into the water in a special cage.
Besides his wife, Peter Benchley is survived by three children and five grandchildren. A small family service will take place next week in Princeton, Wendy Benchley said.
Peter Benchley
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