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curtkram

i didn't research this much, but i would think similar things happened with europeans in africa, rome expanding their realm, gehngis kahn, alexander the great, whoever else.  what columbus (who, in this case, is the son of columbus and not the columbus the holiday is named for, right?) did isn't unique in history, and it isn't unique to north america.  ultimately, conquest is different than genocide.   when the tutsis killed the hutus it wasn't really defense, political control, money, or even slavery.  same thing when milosevic ordered the deaths of bosnians. that was different than what columbus did.

wasn't de las casas referring to the settlement like a generation after christopher columbus's voyage?  in fact, wasn't de las casas's family actually quite wealthy because of christopher columbus's voyages?

de las casas viewed killing the native population as a mortal sin.  however, many of his contemporaries saw it as a war against idolatry, and they were fighting in the name of the same god.  you can say what happened is pretty fucked up, but it wasn't columbus that was screwed up, it's pretty much all of humanity.

Oct 14, 13 11:13 am  · 
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Agreed. Seems to be the human condition. Which doesn't do much for the definition of "human". Thus celebrating this behavior (Columbus Day) is antithetical to civilized behavior. Unless of course civilized means something else, too.

In the film Lilo and Stitch humanity is only tolerated because they are a food source for a galactically protected species - the mosquito.

Oct 14, 13 11:29 am  · 
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yesterday 3 miles of a major thoroughfare in louisville was shut down to car traffic for our version of bogota's ciclovia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ciclov%C3%ADa 

CycLOUvia, here in louisville. so much fun. 

Oct 14, 13 12:23 pm  · 
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****melt

I'd rather celebrate Bartolome de Las Casas Day

Oct 14, 13 12:56 pm  · 
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Sarah Hamilton
It is FREEZING in my guard post today. Should've brought a sweater.
Oct 14, 13 1:25 pm  · 
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Wilma Buttfit

It is Native American Day in South Dakota.

Oct 14, 13 2:43 pm  · 
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∑ π ∓ √ ∞

new scam i witnessed go down, some landscaping company sold the building adjacent to my home, the idea that ivy destroys brick buildings. aside from minor issues at some of the m.o.'s, the brick is sound, especially for a building over 100 years old.

Oct 14, 13 2:56 pm  · 
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snooker-doodle-dandy

there is no there....think they are still trying to recover from the worst storm in history to ever hit Western South Dakota, killed 1 million cattle. So don't think they are celebrating to much this week.

Oct 14, 13 3:12 pm  · 
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it's true that ivy's not so good for the mortar of brick buildings. what did the scam involve, beta? 

Oct 14, 13 3:37 pm  · 
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∑ π ∓ √ ∞

everything i've manage to read about ivy and brick suggests that if the building is sound, and there isn't loose brick, or poor mortar, that leaving ivy on the building can actually benefit the building. these guys removed all of the ivy from the building, no small achievement either.

Oct 14, 13 3:56 pm  · 
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I've heard ivy holds moisture close to the brick and that is what is not good for the brick, not specifically the mortar but the wall in general.  I guess it depends on your climate?

My dad makes the best margaritas.  Tonight I made the best shrimp and grits.

Oct 14, 13 8:09 pm  · 
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curtkram

if the brick is weeped so moisture can get out, and the mortar is raked in such a way as to shed water, shouldn't be too big of a problem. the ivy won't be holding water close to the building during freeze/thaw cycles right? if it's been there 100 years, that is better evidence than any theory.

Oct 14, 13 8:44 pm  · 
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∑ π ∓ √ ∞

Apparently older buildings with lime based mortar are perhaps more susceptible to weakened mortar, which may allow vines to help accelerate the damage already there. It would seem too, that the ivy helps to keep buildings cooler, and shed the elements. 

Oct 14, 13 9:35 pm  · 
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Sarah Hamilton
Yeah, but we've all seen dilapidated buildings, and they are almost ALWAYS covered in ivy. Must be true.
Oct 14, 13 11:14 pm  · 
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∑ π ∓ √ ∞

this building is SOLID. i stare at it, every, single day, it's my neighbor. the research says otherwise.

Oct 14, 13 11:54 pm  · 
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Wilma Buttfit

Snook, a million cattle died in the storm? Are you exaggerating? I heard 75,000. Still a lot of cattle. Sad.

Oct 15, 13 9:30 am  · 
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Sarah Hamilton

What?!  That means the price of beef is going to skyrocket.  NO!!!!!

Oct 15, 13 10:24 am  · 
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****melt

Beta-

So are your neighbors removing the ivy?  My parents' neighbors removed ivy after allowing it to climb all over their house for several years.  A few months later they had the area tuck pointed.

Oct 15, 13 12:57 pm  · 
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sarah why were you in a guard post?

also i am sick but getting better. ughhh congestion...

Oct 15, 13 1:05 pm  · 
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3tk

Sheesh, this cattle die-off in SD after the drought in TX really ought to put a crimp in the beef pipe-line.

Oct 15, 13 1:33 pm  · 
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∑ π ∓ √ ∞

melt, yeah, the business next to me had their ivy removed, and the guy heading it up told me it damages the building.

i thought hmmm, gosh, i mean, those crazy english people types, let ivy grow up and down all sorts of masonry buildings, and then there are all those fancy pants schools in the NE, that are often referred to as, wait for it; Ivies.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivy_League

the problem it seems is wrongly attributed to ivy growing, because it often hides/masks the damage, failure of the mortar, occurring beneath the growth.

as for beef dying, prices going up; i wonder the impact on slowing global climate change? <----j/k

Oct 15, 13 1:36 pm  · 
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Sarah Hamilton

Nam, after my 25 minute lunch, I am tasked with guarding the hall from students.  It sucks.  Can you believe I am a professional, with a 1.5 degrees, and I only get a 25 minute lunch.  Sucks balls.

Oct 15, 13 5:51 pm  · 
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that is crazy sarah.

cattle die off are common in mongolia too, with similar numbers.  it destroys the rural economy and sends herders to the cities.  Can't be much better for the folks in SD except americans have all that unwanted government support (although probably nor for much longer)...

Oct 15, 13 8:07 pm  · 
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wha?! you get to have a regular lunch?!  like, every day?!

; )

Oct 16, 13 8:57 am  · 
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Sarah Hamilton

Yeah yeah yeah....

Oct 16, 13 10:28 am  · 
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re: the South Dakota storm and impact on beef for those interested here is a link to peruse.

key graph

"State officials estimate a death toll of as many as 20,000 cows. Fetching about $2,000 a head and outnumbering South Dakotans by 5 to 1, cattle sales make up about a quarter of the state’s $24 billion agriculture industry, its largest economic driver"

otherwise, still fighting a cold/congestion...

Oct 16, 13 11:40 am  · 
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snooker-doodle-dandy

woops....not a million but a lot of cattle. Most likely a lot of ranches are going to be on the market in  Western South Dakota. 

Oct 16, 13 12:27 pm  · 
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Not so bad then.
In Mongolia it was 3.5 million animals killed (http://www.economist.com/node/15826325) in a few months time. Just a few years ago but no one really knows about it in the west. Weirdly it led to me being asked by govt to discuss master plan options for the capital city. Climate change is going to change our profession in huge ways. Pity that North Americans think its a hoax or something.
Oct 16, 13 7:19 pm  · 
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curtkram

pretty sure we know about it, we just don't care.  maybe it's like some mass suicide wish thing or something?  like hale bop?  maybe it's the fluoride in the water?  maybe they put something in the tea?

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/15/science/earth/something-is-killing-off-the-moose.html?_r=0

Oct 16, 13 8:17 pm  · 
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Sarah Hamilton
My dad thinks there is no global warming, and instead the temps are actually cooling. Then he said something about the magnetic core shifting from Canada to Russia. And something about sun flares and government cover-ups.
Oct 16, 13 9:08 pm  · 
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Sarah, give your dad a copy of Zinn's A People's History of the US.

Oct 16, 13 9:11 pm  · 
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Sarah Hamilton
I'll look into it.

On another note, we just bought a dog. I'm still fighting it on the inside, but I know I lost the battle. Held it off for 3 years though! Still, Husband wanted a dog, and Abram wanted one even though he's scared of every dog he meets. We pick up our new wire fox terrier on the 26th.
Oct 16, 13 9:24 pm  · 
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cool sarah!  would love to have a pet, but not really possible in tokyo.

magnetic north move all the time.  flips from north to south too, can't recall the cycle, like 30,000 years or so.

there is some real science for cooling trends to be made actually. In the 80's I think it was even a real concern amongst some scientists. But the process is definitely the other way and also definitely man made now.  The whole thing should never have been called global warming maybe.  Better to think of it as climate change or global weirding, cuz things are all f'ed up.

Our office is doing a lot of research on planning and architecture related to resilience building in the last year or two, coming straight from the needs set in front of us. In Mongolia 60% of the country lives in a single city now, in large part because of climate change forced migration, and they still heat their homes with coal, so the place is seriously in trouble, environmentally. Japan is changing radically too, because of disaster, but its all the same thing in the end.  America will change when it gets hit by the effects i suppose, like NY after Sandy, but it might be better to start learning to manage this stuff in advance...

anyway... carry on with drinks and surveilling the youth ;-)  much more interesting

Oct 16, 13 10:11 pm  · 
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gruen

Busy designing a second story addition to a 1 bedroom country home hand built by the new owner's uncle back in 'ole '48. The good news is that I can apply my skills to creating something nice for a family that desperately needs it (multigenerational, packed into a tiny apartment, hardworking, etc). The bad news is that the budget is teeny tiny and the taste level is very low. Remind self: every project can be interesting if you just apply yourself and make the most of the least. 

Oct 16, 13 10:41 pm  · 
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gruen, there is so much value and satisfaction in making your clients happy, even if their taste isn't the best.  Try to push them to expand their horizons a wee bit, but only to the point that they will still be happy with the place, both financially and aesthetically. 

I'd say to push harder if this was a public building, but it's a private residential project - the main point is that it be a reasonable neighbor and make its residents happy.

Oct 17, 13 12:01 pm  · 
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toasteroven

I've been helping one of my numerous siblings in her house search in a midwestern city.  She's been looking at mostly smallish vintage places in some of the "nicer" neighborhoods and we've been discussing cost of renovation and whatnot - which has been fun.  Anyway - the gridiron might have been good for equitably dividing land-parcels, but I've come to realize that this urban form + generous front yards produces some spectacularly boring neighborhoods.  You really have to rely heavily on the architecture to give them "charm and character."

Oct 17, 13 12:10 pm  · 
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In Big Win for Defense Industry, Obama Rolls Back Limits on Arms Exports

And to think Obomba "won" the Nobel Peace Prize.

Oct 17, 13 6:50 pm  · 
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snooker-doodle-dandy

I worked on a job a few years ago where the bread winner had been hurt in an accident and had gone thru multiple back  operations, with little success.  He was the uncle of a craftsman client of mine who I also did a house and  work shop for.  I remember meeting with him and his wife and they were really just good people. However during the meeting he stood the whole time, told me later he could not sit down  for any length of time because of his back problems.  It was a very small project and I didn't  fell like I could charge them a regular fee. It was also one of those sites where nothing met the planning an zoning regulations so we had to get  variances in a town where it is very difficult because everyone wants to live on 5 acre lots.  During the get to know the clients he was showing me how he made Cribbage Boards from the  Scrap lumber from his Nephew (former client).  I told him one ot those boards had to be part of my fee. He agreed. We set out on the mission.....ZBA  approved....working drawings, found them a local contractor, who became best of fiends.  Project done...and at Christmas time I received the nicest Letter and Card telling me how I had made there life so much better. I know how but never play Cribbage, but another  elder friend of mine does so  I gave him the board cause I wanted to see it used.  He was delighted cause it was a big board  and easy to put the pegs in the holes.  In return he gave me a complete set of  United States Postal Service Stamps  which are all architectural related.  Seems like his niece bought them  in an auction  along with a bunch of other stuff and knew he  collected collected stamps  so gave them to him.  I love how life goes around sometimes...unlike all the bull shit in Washington DC.

Oct 17, 13 7:35 pm  · 
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Love that post, snook.

Oct 17, 13 8:53 pm  · 
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snooker-doodle-dandy

Architecture is a profession where you can really make someones life better....and it all comes around.

Oct 17, 13 9:07 pm  · 
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nice, snooker.

Oct 18, 13 2:04 am  · 
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gruen
I need to start bartering for cool stuff. Neat :)
Oct 18, 13 8:09 am  · 
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morning all,

the weather has been amazingly crisp and autumnal lately. Still spirits have been in a bit of a funk lately. maybe partially result of being sick for last week, but even beyond that. just feeling like i need some extra pep/spice in life...

also, for a brief few years when younger, use to collect stamps, not sure whatever happened to my small collection though.

Oct 18, 13 9:30 am  · 
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Just listened to the latest from the 99% Invisible podcast. Best thing I've heard in a long time. Do yourself a favor, head over to 99pi.org and listen to "Wild Ones Live"



Have a great weekend. 


Oct 18, 13 10:15 am  · 
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...as spacey as possible.  I want every house I ever own from now forward to be as spacey as possible.

Thanks for that, Brian.  I listen to podcasts a lot at work and I always forget about 99% Invisible!

Oct 18, 13 2:23 pm  · 
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in a variety of ways, donna, your house is pretty spacey already!

Oct 18, 13 2:42 pm  · 
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OK serious help needed here:

I just ruined $200 worth of brand new clothing by thinking I could do a quick painting job here at work without getting paint on my clothes.  Big effin mistake.  So I'm committed to getting a pair of coveralls to keep here at the office - this is not the first time I've come to work dressed professionally only to have to do dirty work.

So, stylewise: do I go basic no-nonsense workwear, like this.

Or these supercute Swedish (!!) stylish coveralls here.

Note, price difference.  Though I may be able to get reimbursed, but if I buy the cute ones I might want to take them with me if I leave!

Oct 18, 13 3:02 pm  · 
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Those are impressive, curt, but the Swedish ones! with the sassy belt! What about them?!

Oct 18, 13 3:20 pm  · 
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I do like the idea of an architect dressed in Tyvek. Seems like utter capitulation.

Oct 18, 13 3:21 pm  · 
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