11 March 2015. From the Russian Web… THIS is How Cold It Was In New York…

______________________________

It so cold in New York City that parts of New York harbour froze over… a very rare occurrence. Oddly enough, this cold snap is part of Global Warming. As the Arctic ice melts, it gets taken up into the air and falls as snow in the winter. When you couple it with Arctic air inversions, an illusion of ice age conditions comes about. We had a very cold bitter snap for about four weeks here, but it’s up a little over 5 (41 Fahrenheit) today, and the snow is rapidly receding. It was NOT an Old School Northeast winter, as that’d mean significant snowfall in December. We didn’t have major snowfall until February, so, the bitter winter only lasted about a month.

BMD

8 October 2013. Perhaps, the Most Fave Internet Meme in Russia… “Иван Грозный убивает… всех” … “Ivan Grozny Kills… All”

Ivan Grozny kills… the Statue of Liberty

******

Ivan Grozny kills… R2D2

******

Ivan Grozny kills… Kenny

______________________________

It’s one of the most fave internet memes in Russia. It’s gotten even more popular after the recent kafuffle concerning Repin’s painting. If you don’t believe me, run a Google search on Иван Грозный убивает… всех (you have to do it in Russian for it to work properly). Most of ’em are a hoot-and-a-half, and you’ll laugh your fool head off at some of them (I certainly did). There’ll always be a Russia… thank God for that! Have a smile…

BMD

28 October 2012. RIA-Novosti Infographics. The Statue of Liberty: A Present from France to the People of America

______________________________

The formal dedication of the Statue of Liberty took place on 28 October 1886, on Bedloe’s Island in New York Harbour. This sculpture was a gift from the French people for the 100th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, celebrated in 1876. It was late by ten years, but the symbolism of it wasn’t lost, for it became not only a navigational aid pointing the way to New York City, but also the main pictorial symbol of America.

French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi created the Statue of Liberty. Many believe that French beauty Isabella Eugenie Boyer, the wife of industrialist and inventor Isaac Singer, acted as the artist’s model for the famous sculpture. By mutual agreement, the USA would build the pedestal, and France would craft the sculpture and install it at its final destination. However, there was a lack of funds on both sides of the Atlantic. In France, charitable donations, along with various entertainment events and lotteries raised 2.25 million francs (1.125 million USD at the exchange rate of the time). In the USA, raising money wasn’t easy, so the promoters used theatrical performances, art exhibitions, auctions, and boxing matches to raise the funds needed. Financing for the pedestal was only complete in August 1885. On 17 June 1886, the statue was taken to New York on board the French frigate Isère disassembled in 350 pieces packed in 214 crates. For four months, workmen assembled the statue upon its new pedestal, and, in October 1886, in the presence of thousands of spectators, France officially donated the sculpture to the American people.

28 October 2012

RIA-Novosti

http://en.ria.ru/infographics/20121028/176939715.html

4 July 2012. A Parting Thought for the Fourth of July…

______________________________

The Fourth of July‘s coming to a close… what would I like to see in the coming years? We DO have a choice… do we choose sinful greed or do we choose godly cooperation? If we choose the former by voting for Romney, then, I fear that Senator Sanders will be correct. A new Dark Age, stamping out all vestiges of Social Justice, would swallow us up. We can avert that… vote on 6 November for President Obama… your life DOES depend on it.

BMD