Althouse: At the Ski Trail Café...

February 10, 2010

At the Ski Trail Café...

... follow us in here.

58 comments:

1775OGG said...: At least but not lastly, the trolls who comment here are greatly mistaken and totally wrong! Other than that, some occasionally have interesting yet completely wrong ideas but never facts!; 2/10/10, 8:55 PM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/10/10, 8:56 PM
Elliott A said...: There are many who are very tired of snow. Yet what a blessing theat the federal government has been closed all week!; 2/10/10, 9:07 PM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/10/10, 9:10 PM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/10/10, 9:11 PM
former law student said...: From today's improbable newsL

Report: Hundreds forced into labor, sex in Ohio

By MATT LEINGANG, Associated Press
COLUMBUS, Ohio – About 1,000 American-born children are forced into the sex trade in Ohio every year and about 800 immigrants are sexually exploited and pushed into sweatshop-type jobs, a new report on human trafficking in the state said Wednesday.

Ohio's weak laws on human trafficking, its growing demand for cheap labor and its proximity to the Canadian border are key contributors to the illegal activity, according to a report by the Trafficking in Persons Study Commission.

Toledo is America's fourth leading city in child sex slavery.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100211/ap_on_re_us/us_human_trafficking; 2/10/10, 9:14 PM
Triangle Man said...: It's hard to follow a child sex slave trafficking comment, but my wife and I were skiining at Odana Hills this afternoon and it looked just about exactly like those photos. A gorgeous day to be out sliding along!; 2/10/10, 9:28 PM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/10/10, 9:29 PM
1775OGG said...: Because of Anthropogenic Global Warming, we're adding radio antennas to our cars and putting bright orange balls on the tips to advertise the presence of our cars at intersections! Otherwise, the snowplow ridges make it quite dangerous because you can't see around or over those snow ridges! AGW is becoming quite regressive in all forms.; 2/10/10, 9:34 PM
MadisonMan said...: Aah, so that was Silvio I saw pulling out of the Odana parking lot at 3:30 today as I drove west on Odana, taking my son to practice.; 2/10/10, 9:47 PM
LonewackoDotCom said...: If you don't like the slavery story, how about doing something about it?

The contemporary slave trade inside the U.S. wouldn't be so large if "liberals" and crooked conservatives weren't such strong supporters of illegal immigration. That allows slavers to blend into the crowd.

One way to do something is to undercut the other side's pretend moral authority and fallacious arguments.

Simply whining in online echo chambers or waving loopy signs isn't effective. If you want to do something effective, see the link.; 2/10/10, 10:05 PM
Meade said...: Hey, MadMan, next time, give us a shout!

Triangle Man, were you that affable guy, cheerfully skiing the wrong way? And was that your lovely wife, skate skiing at about 90 mile per hour? Wow!; 2/10/10, 10:08 PM
Chip Ahoy said...: Skiing skilessly.

Crustless raspberry tort.; 2/10/10, 10:25 PM
Peter V. Bella said...: Theo Boehm,
Bissage was found dead in his driveway on Christmas Eve. Cause of death was blunt trauma.

Mrs. Bissage was interviewed by the police that evening. She served them dinner. Dinner consisted of a whole bone in leg of lamb she thawed out that day.

Though only a person of interest in the case, it is well known that Mrs. Bissage was angry at Bissage's unnatural attraction to Eve Ensler, creator of the vagina.

I mean vagina monologues.

NB: Twilight Zone; 2/10/10, 10:33 PM
Meade said...: Outstanding, Chip!

I'd gladly ski skilessly cross country for a bowl of your raspberries with sweetened ricotta and chocolate. (If it's a small country and a large bowl.); 2/10/10, 10:35 PM
Revenant said...: Report: Hundreds forced into labor, sex in Ohio

Not to be overly cynical or anything, but the commission finding that "weak laws" are causing child sexual slavery is run by the state Attorney General. Also known as the #1 beneficiary of tougher laws.

The news article could accurately be titled "Attorney General's Commission Finds that Attorney General Should Have More Power".; 2/10/10, 10:39 PM
Peter V. Bella said...: After viewing the Vagina Monologues several times, Bissage informed Mrs. Bissage that he really wanted to participate in oral sex.

Then he proceeded to discuss, hold forth, and continually give monologues on sex. Night after night. Mrs. Bissage was gasperflabbered by his behavior.

She was hurt, humiliated, and felt betrayed. She then discovered tell tale signs of his duplicitous behavior. Writings about the Vagina Monologues, a Face Book page dedicated to the VM with Bissage as a friend. Ticket stubs to several performances. Images of Eve Ensler on his computer. The usual.; 2/10/10, 10:48 PM
Revenant said...: A follow-up on that human trafficking report (which is available here.

It turns out that the figure of "1000 American-born children trafficked in Ohio" was arrived at via this method:

(1): All underage prostitutes are, by legal definition, "trafficked".

(2): An underage prostitution task force found 45 underage prostitutes in Lucas County over a three-year period.

(3): 45 divided by 3 gives 15 per year.

(4): Lucas county has 7.4% of the population of Ohio. 15/0.074 = 203

(5): A separate study found that the average underage prostitute knew of five other underage prostitutes. 5 * 203 = 1015.

In summary: they found 15 victims a year. They extrapolated another thousand from that. According to this reasoning, there are 300 million Americans who read the Althouse blog -- this is proven by the fact that I read it, and I am around one 300-millionth of the American population.

I have no idea if Ohio has a significant trafficking problem or not. But what I do know is that this study is unscientific, statistically invalid nonsense.; 2/10/10, 11:13 PM
Fred4Pres said...: Freshly groomed trails look...well groomed.; 2/10/10, 11:27 PM
William said...: The moral of the tale depends not upon the narrative, but the protagonists within it. We pass a different moral judgement on the nude modelling of Scott Brown than we do on that of Levi Johnson....According to an Instapundit post, Niall Ferguson has left his wife for Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Ferguson is a noted historian whose books can be read with enjoyment by conservatives. His wife is an ex editor and a Tory functionary. They have three children whose age is such that the divorce will leave a mark. Ali is no one's idea of a bimbo, but she's the Rielle figure in the drama. This isn't a sordid story, but it doesn't reflect credit on the principals....I don't know what to feel except confusion. If Ali had a different history, I would draw a different moral.; 2/10/10, 11:33 PM
Ralph L said...: No Fred, Meade may be a pistil, but he has really, really wide skis with funny grooves on the bottom.; 2/10/10, 11:38 PM
Revenant said...: We pass a different moral judgement on the nude modelling of Scott Brown than we do on that of Levi Johnson

Well, yeah. The former was asked to model because he won a "sexiest man" contest. The latter was asked to model because he knocked up a famous woman's underage daughter.

Ali is no one's idea of a bimbo, but she's the Rielle figure in the drama

Don't be silly. If she was the Rielle figure, the media wouldn't be due to report on the affair for another year or two. :); 2/10/10, 11:42 PM
AgingHippie said...: Please read this--this woman has a lot to say on the pain of getting old:

http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2009/nov/13/despite-what-they-say-i-know-i-am-invisible/

___________________; 2/10/10, 11:42 PM
JAL said...: Ha Meadehouse! *I* am in line for a meal with Chipper the next time I get to Colorado.

Which may be a long time. But I didn't want him to forget.; 2/10/10, 11:51 PM
William said...: Brown and Johnson both modelled to make money. I don't think Levi will use the money to go to law school, but both men had the same motivation......If Obama had left Michelle to go with Ali, I'm pretty sure I would find something of lofty moral purpose in the story. As it is, it's kind of disappointing that someone with Ali's resolve and courage ends up as the Ferrari in some middle aged intellectual's mid life crisis.; 2/11/10, 12:03 AM
rhhardin said...: (Vicki) Hearne's Law: whenever a stink about something appears in the news, it's because some politician or charity wants a stink about it in the news.; 2/11/10, 12:16 AM
rhhardin said...: Ski trails don't always lead to the frisbee.

Shovelling handy dog trails in the backyard is one of the annual entertainments, however.; 2/11/10, 12:18 AM
Peter V. Bella said...: So, you see, Theo, the cops are stuck. They have no murder weapon, so they have no case. It is rumored that the rejected Mrs. Bissage is planning to open up a housing shelter in the Congo for the victims of sex trafficking from Ohio.

Now you know the rest of the story.; 2/11/10, 12:24 AM
Penny said...: Peter, I would prefer to think that Bissage hitched a ride with Santa Claus and had the time of his life this past Christmas Eve.

Look for him to return next year with a bag full of adult toys for all the "kids" here at Althouse.; 2/11/10, 12:57 AM
Penny said...: AgingHippie, I followed your link, only to find Natalie Dupree was the author. I remember her well from the pre-Food Network days. Her claim to fame was "new southern cooking". Unlike Paula Dean, if my memory serves me, she was trying to take some of the fat out of standard southern recipes while leaving every bit of flavor in there.

Unlike you, I found no "pain" in her article. Instead she quite cleverly pointed out some advantages of falling off the radar screen...ie, no need to put on panties to get the morning newspaper.; 2/11/10, 1:13 AM
Revenant said...: Brown and Johnson both modelled to make money.

Taking money isn't the morally questionable part of Johnson's behavior. Neither was getting naked for the public.

The immoral behavior was his exploitation of ill-gotten fame.; 2/11/10, 3:04 AM
Scott said...: Maybe Bissage got tired of this blog and moved on to something else.

Snowed in in New Jersey. Worked from home yesterday; working from home today. Job interview with a big investment bank on Friday; hoping for some more interesting and more remunerative work. If they make me an offer, I may abandon ambitions to go for a MSW degree, at least for now. (MSWs are hard to get part-time because of the field work requirement.)

Wishing my bf would get back to NJ soon.

Going to the Rehoboth Roundup this weekend with one of my lesbian cronies. :); 2/11/10, 5:57 AM
Ned said...: A White balance adjustment will correct the blue cast...or it can be done in post...if you are shooting RAW.

Enjoy your pictures!; 2/11/10, 6:35 AM
Unknown said...: As for Bissage, he may be on vacation in the Caribbean, stuck in a hospital someplace with a busted foot and can't get a ride to the airport because Mrs. Bissage doesn't speak the language.

Or he may have decided to wait until Spring.

Peter V. Bella said...

Theo Boehm,
Bissage was found dead in his driveway on Christmas Eve. Cause of death was blunt trauma.

Mrs. Bissage was interviewed by the police that evening. She served them dinner. Dinner consisted of a whole bone in leg of lamb she thawed out that day.

Though only a person of interest in the case, it is well known that Mrs. Bissage was angry at Bissage's unnatural attraction to Eve Ensler, creator of the vagina.

I mean vagina monologues.

NB: Twilight Zone

That's Alfred Hitchcock, not TZ.

WV "prespro" Hooker who hangs out at CNN.; 2/11/10, 7:32 AM
AllenS said...: I see there is a right lane and a left lane for skiers. This only works until someone from England shows up.; 2/11/10, 7:44 AM
kjbe said...: I've golfed and skied and ran this course many times (over the couple and a half decades living nearby) and love figuring out exactly where the pics are taken. Welcome to the neighborhood, everyone.; 2/11/10, 8:01 AM
Fred4Pres said...: Al Gore is a liar and his pants are on fire...; 2/11/10, 8:41 AM
Peter V. Bella said...: edutcher,

You are probably right. I just relied on the memory of the show and thought it was TZ. Thanks for the correction. Hey, it was a good show though!; 2/11/10, 8:44 AM
MadisonMan said...: Meade, I was gonna honk, but there was a slow-poke in front of me on Odana.; 2/11/10, 8:48 AM
MadisonMan said...: (and I didn't want them to think I was honking at them).

I notice, btw, that the Federal Govt in DC has been shut down for 4 days by weather.

And the world hasn't ended!

Why shouldn't they all take 25% paycuts and just work 3 weeks out of 4 every month?; 2/11/10, 9:16 AM
TosaGuy said...: How long does it take for skate ski gearhounds to wreck the middle classic ski track?; 2/11/10, 9:24 AM
AllenS said...: I'm sure everybody has watched the Haiti relief commercial that former POTUSs George Bush and Bill Clinton have done. How did Clinton become so pink? Check it out next time it's on.; 2/11/10, 9:25 AM
garage mahal said...: Warmest January on record, temps in the 50's threatens events at Olympic Games

Headlines you won't see on Drudge.; 2/11/10, 9:30 AM
JAL said...: rh @ 12:18

She afraid of getting her ankles and tootsies snowy?; 2/11/10, 9:50 AM
JAL said...: Bissage has taken a vacation from his blog too. :-(

Memo to self: Leave paper trail of online haunts and passwords. Just in case.; 2/11/10, 9:52 AM
JAL said...: @ Garage

in Vancouver; 2/11/10, 9:53 AM
Triangle Man said...: Meade,
Nope, that wasn't us. We were skiing classic style. That affable guy was skiing the wrong way to meet up with us though.

We must have just missed you. You may also have seen Eric Heiden's dad skate skiing at about the same time.; 2/11/10, 9:54 AM
Meade said...: Memo to self:
Try to be polite to every single living being while out skiing. For a duck may be Triangle Man's mother.; 2/11/10, 10:12 AM
former law student said...: I may abandon ambitions to go for a MSW degree, at least for now.

Not economically favorable, per our goddaughter. The jobs pay little compared to the debt you rack up getting it. Debt forgiveness is possible, but means working on an Indian reservation. See if you can make it pencil out before you commit yourself.; 2/11/10, 10:22 AM
rhhardin said...: Breaking News Alert
The New York Times

Alexander McQueen, Fashion Designer, Is Found Dead

The breaking news genre is a little different over at the NYT.; 2/11/10, 10:55 AM
former law student said...: The breaking news genre is a little different over at the NYT.

New York is a company town for fashion and theatre. It would be like the San Jose Mercury coverage of whenever Sergey Brin passed away.

vw; bilic
Croatian soccer player (not making this up); 2/11/10, 11:03 AM
Unknown said...: Peter V. Bella said...

You are probably right. I just relied on the memory of the show and thought it was TZ. Thanks for the correction. Hey, it was a good show though!

Peter, no problem. I remember because that was the only episode on TV in those days where the bad guy (girl, in this case) was allowed to get away with it, partly because the episode was played for laughs. Needless to say, there were howls of protest.

As someone a little older than me at the time said once, "The good old days really were".

AllenS said...

I'm sure everybody has watched the Haiti relief commercial that former POTUSs George Bush and Bill Clinton have done. How did Clinton become so pink? Check it out next time it's on.

Willie looks to be in really bad health; all those years of you-know-what and his heart seem to be catching up with him. It may be makeup, although, having been in those latitudes a couple of weeks ago, I can say the sun is really harsh and can burn you quickly if you're not careful.

WV "satonce" What the girl who sunbathed nude on the day at sea between San Juan and Aruba did that night at supper.; 2/11/10, 11:21 AM
Irene said...: There's more proof that gliding through life as a married person is good for one's health!; 2/11/10, 11:26 AM
Scott M said...: What made that trail? Is there such a thing a snow Zamboni?; 2/11/10, 11:55 AM
Triangle Man said...: Is there such a thing as a snow Zamboni?

They use a small snow groomer with one of these behind it.; 2/11/10, 12:05 PM
Fat Man said...: Ann: Did you know that your picture as a law student was being used to illustrate a web article?

http://www.businessinsider.com/the-most-wanted-law-schools-2010-2#the-roundup-12; 2/11/10, 12:30 PM
kentuckyliz said...: Groomed trails are for weenies.

I didn't read anything about pain in that linked article. She only discussed invisibility. Nothing seemed to hurt or ache...not that she mentioned anyway.

I live in pain, so I know the difference.; 2/11/10, 1:11 PM
Trooper York said...: Don't worry about Bissage. He is a lawyer you know.

He needs some time off to shed his skin.; 2/11/10, 3:26 PM