If you are interested in learning more about World War I, you will want to obtain a copy of A Decade Like No Other, Countdown to Catastrophe  by Dennis Cross. It is a month-by-month history of the War and the runup to it.  Dennis is my daughter's father-in-law and a brilliant man. Not only is he an interesting writer, he works at the nation's World War I memorial in Kansas City. 

Generous, in some places excessive, rain will fall the next seven days over the eastern half of the nation.  Badly needed rains will fall in the Northwest with the first of the autumn cold fronts. Hopefully, it will be a season of generous rainfall in the West. 

The intelligence communities' Utah data center,  one of a number they run. It is rumored that part of it is underground. ...even though the legal authorization for its existence has expired .  Proving once again that "bi-partisan" =  "especially bad," the Patriot Act -- passed in a rush in the weeks after September 11 --  has been once of the worst pieces of legislation in the history of our nation. It allowed the government to spy on us without warrants. Call an abortion clinic? The government knows. Use your cellphone while on the road? The government knows not only about the use of the phone but also your location .  The examples are endless -- and, dangerous.  Edward Snowden is a hero who brought all of this to our attention yet he has been pursued by politicians of both parties who do not wish for the workings of Deep State to be revealed. I urge you to read the entire article at the red link above. 

I want to introduce my readers to The Patient and the Weather  which is a web site devoted to helping readers with chronic pain anticipate when the weather might cause pain levels to increase. There is no question that weather can affect people with chronic pain and the site might be useful to you. 

This month is the 60th anniversary of Hurricane Carla. Not only did that storm cause tremendous damage near the coast, it caused record flooding well inland, including south Kansas City where I lived at the time. Many of these records still stand.  While the 1900 Galveston Hurricane was the most deadly in the history of the United States, 1961's Carla was the biggest to strike Texas. For historic purposes, the Weather Bureau (now National Weather Service) made this video (in its usual kitschy style) about using the radar to track the storm. It was the first time  a hurricane had been tracked in this say.   Former CBS News anchor Dan Rather made his bones covering Carla. AccuWeather has that story, here . 

  Sales of  Warnings: The True Story of How Science Tamed the Weather  and  When the Sirens Were Silent  have been brisk recently. I want each of you to know how much I appreciate it.  "Downburst in Kansas," #452181428 And, if you are in the market for commercial stock photography, selected photographs of mine are available at  Adobe Stock Photography . Note: there are more of my photos available than are shown on the preview page. 

Nicholas was a borderline hurricane.