Poop Man Bob

The bear didn't scream; those were hounds barking.

Done. You crazy kids, with your tennis balls.

Looks like Obama pulled the upset and raked in over 38% of the vote. Edwards comes in second; Clinton third. On the republican side, Huckabee won big over Romney, with Thompson and McCain fighting for third. Next came Paul. Lots more info here.

Nope, I didn't. I'll try to do that at some point, though.

Work related, but I was able to get out and wander some, too.

The University of Texas-El Paso, the region’s major university, is just over that hill. More of the endless amounts of slag. To top off all of the other concerns about ASARCO, the company declared bankruptcy in 2005. The company has left taxpayers from 75 communities in 16 states - from Tacoma, Washington to Corpus Christi, Texas - with almost $11 billion in environmental remediation and clean-up costs.

The Smeltertown cemetery is just that - the cemetery that served the town’s residents. Although it's on company property now, it's pretty easy to access. A lot of the graves are simply cobblestones piled on top of one another with a handmade headstone. Some are nicer.

I recently took a trip to El Paso, Texas. The large smokestack you see on the right is owned by ASARCO (American Smelting and Refining Company). In some shape or form, the smelter has been there since 1882. When it was originally built, it was on the outskirts of town but now sits smackdab in the middle of an international metroplex of over 2 million people. A lead smelter for over 100 years, the facility now produces copper. Or it did - the smelter has been shutdown since 1999, when copper prices were at historic lows. Now, however, prices are at historic highs, so since 2002 the company has been attempting to get their air permit back from the state's environmental agency. Local opposition has been vocal and steady, but the final decision lays in hands of the three commissioners of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality - all of whom were appointed by our pro-business, Republican governor, Rick Perry. The air permit would allow ASARCO to emit over 7,000 tons of pollutants into the region's airshed annually. Since the smelter has been operating for over a century, it has left behind quite a footprint of pollution. Hell, look at the Google Maps image of the area - it's not hard to figure out where the facility is. What you see in the photo above is the buildup of years and years of slag - a byproduct of the smelting process. The heavy metal-laden slag sits there and filters rainwater, which flows directly into the canal that provides much of the region's water supply. The 828-foot main smokestack. A giant, candy cane-striped phallic symbol which when constructed in 1966 was the largest in the world. About 500 feet from the smelter is the remnants of Smeltertown. Smeltertown was created in the 19th century as a company town for the hundreds to thousands of employees who worked a stone's throw away. For decades, Smeltertown residents accepted ASARCO's pollution as a fact of life. However, in the late 1960s, El Paso leaders grew concerned over potential lead poisoning in the area surrounding the smelter, including Smeltertown. The city and state sued the company, settled out of court, and Smeltertown was vacated and razed. To view a larger (and easier to read) version, click here. New Mexico on the left; Texas on the right. The mountains in the distance are part of Mexico. Border Patrol maintains a heavy presence in the area.

Wow, lots of old posters coming out for this thread. Hi!

Glad to hear you and your daughter are safe.

Kick ass. Ch0 needs more of these travel/fun time/well-thought-out threads. Mams wins the Internet for the day.

i went to a party tonight. guy does the whole homebrewing thing. i had a lot of his chocolate raspberry stout. it was fucking good.

Did you know Lincoln was actually killed by getting hit in the ass with a hammer too much? It's true. Watch the video.

Best of luck, man.

Re: Great Pictures~ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/gallery/2007/11/12/GA2007111201621.html Awesome set of images from a motion-tripped camera set up along the Appalachian Trail.

Re: What so you Wikipedia? Dammit. I wasn't even being serious. [GOB voice] C'MON! [/Gv]

REAL GRAFFERZ RUN SHIT!

Re: What so you Wikipedia? That's funny, because I read about how experts know that Ferraris are about a thousand times better than Lamborghinis.

Destro does Biggie.

Re: i want to cmeup later 2007ola Who has red hair?

No drug talk.

Re: i want to cmeup later 2007ola Yes?

I help write and pass these:

Never seen one, thank god.