MetaFilter posts tagged with Utah

10 years is just a blink of the ever-watching galactic eye

filthy light thief — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 13:08:15 -0800

Inspired by its 10th anniversary, the Earth Observatory has pulled together a special series of NASA satellite images documenting how the world has changed. From these images, Wired Science has made 5 videos, presenting convenient time-lapse views of the world changing (mainly) because of human actions. Watch the urbanization of Dubai, specifically the growth of Palm Jumeirah. See the Aral Sea dry up - once the fourth largest lake, down to 10 percent of its original size (marked by the thin black line in the video) by 2007. View the clearing the Amazon, as observed from above the state of Rondônia in western Brazil. Behold the return of Mesopotamia's Wetlands, now in the process of being restored from near total destruction under the regime of Saddam Hussein. Witness the impact of drought on Southern Utah's Lake Powell, where water level dropped from 20 million to 8 million acre-feet from 2000 to 2005.

Mr. Huntsman -- Tear. Down. That. Wall.

mudpuppie — Fri, 15 May 2009 15:43:30 -0800

The 'Zion Curtain' has fallen. While existing Utah restaurants may remove partitions separating patrons and booze, known as the "Zion Curtain," new restaurants will be required to store liquor and mix drinks out of public view. In other Utah-/alcohol-related news, a restaurant membership is no longer required in order to purchase a drink. Oh, and hit-and-run accidents resulting in injuries are now felonies, but only if the driver has a previous DUI conviction.

The Hipster Grifter

R. Mutt — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 08:56:46 -0800

Kari Ferrell is on Salt Lake City's Most Wanted List. Apparently Ms. Ferrell has moved from Utah to New York and has been hanging out with the hipsters in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Within the space of a half-hour, Ms. Ferrell was peppering him with questions about his sexual history—how many women he’d slept with and so on. “She was coming on to me, and I was super into it for the first part of it,” he said. “I realized I could have fun after work—but then I was like, ‘Let me check this girl out.’”

Don't feed the bears

SeeAych4 — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 22:27:01 -0800

Yogi Bear may have been smarter than the average, but Ranger Smith had it right. Don't feed the bears. As a Montana game warden put it: human feeding "can lead to problems later and ultimately mean the animal has to be put down." A similar event had a Utah ranger upset, saying: "when you have a bear that becomes unafraid of humans, that's not a good thing."

Being Black in Utah

Brandon Blatcher — Sat, 31 May 2008 15:33:02 -0800

Being Black in Utah. The Washington Post chronicles some amusing stories (and some not) of racial interactions in the Beehive State. Yet despite their small numbers black people have been in Utah from the beginning.

Choo Choo Boo Boo

cashman — Sat, 03 May 2008 10:48:14 -0800

The first National Train Day is this coming Saturday. There will be events all over, and concerts, special guests and lots of train related attractions in four main cities, Washington D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles and New York City. The day is May 10th to commemorate May 10th, 1869 when the “golden spike” was driven into the final tie in Promontory Summit, Utah. It joined two major railways, ceremonially creating the nation’s first transcontinental railroad. Except that it really didn't. That did not actually happen until August 15th, 1870, near Strasburg, CO. Colorado State officials list it (pdf) as Comanche Crossing, saying "An unpretentious white monument marks the spot". The "drab concrete pylon" was moved from the actual site and now sits in Lions Park. Next to the monkey bars.

Tase! or "Youtube Justice"

mecran01 — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 09:21:05 -0800

"Officer, I don't know why you're doing what you're doing."
Refusing to sign a speeding citation in Vernal, Utah? That's a tasing. Requesting an investigation of the incident? That sounds like a job for YouTube. And if you sit through the entire thing, you can hear the officer creatively describe the encounter to a fellow officer--"I told him to turn around or I'd tase him." In other news, the tasee has asked those making death threats against the officer on youtube (which are being investigated by the FBI) to please stop. I was also struck by the bizarre levels of politeness demonstrated by both parties during the incident.

Porno-Terrorism?

UseyurBrain — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 18:14:18 -0800

Is Porn out of Control? As the internets exploded, Clinton didn't seem to care.. Should the government now focus on shutting down the industry? Some loudly think so.

The Life and Death of Gary Gilmore

Nathanial Hörnblowér — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 06:28:05 -0800

Thirty years ago today, Gary Gilmore was executed at the Utah State Prison, the first prisoner to be put to death since the moratorium on executions was established four years prior, and the first execution in Utah in sixteen years. His refusal to appeal his death sentence confounded his lawyers and attracted the attention of the ACLU, among others, who fought to keep Gilmore alive, against his wishes. His frustrations with the uncertainty of his sentence led him to attempt suicide in prison twice.

His life and death have been recounted in several books, films, inspired a few songs, and even an SNL skit. His final words, “Let’s do it,” led to a major marketing campaign.

Got WMDs?

owhydididoit — Thu, 31 Aug 2006 15:50:10 -0800

The Deadly Deseret Chemical Depot is one of the scariest places on Earth, if you believe Alien Dave, which most people probably don't. Seen anomalous wildlife in Utah? Alien Dave wants to know about it. Need deprogramming? Dave's got you covered. But as for the chemical depot, its days as one of the biggest concentrations of chemical WMDs on the planet are numbered.

You can't put hands on a leg...

Orb — Thu, 24 Aug 2006 00:31:01 -0800

Have fun with your food! You may never look at fair foods the same way again thanks to this year's ad campaign for the Utah State Fair. (Warning: videos auto-start)

Shouldn't retard be singular?

nooneyouknow — Thu, 27 Jul 2006 17:08:50 -0800

Caution: Retards In Area

Questing primally across Utah's deserts

rlef98 — Tue, 27 Jun 2006 17:16:44 -0800

While many in the world are glued to the outcomes of the World Cup there is another high-profile international sporting event toiling itself away in the Utah deserts. Primal Quest, a 417 mile expedition adventure race consisting of desert trekking, mountain biking, wilderness navigation, kayaking, and canyoneering, has a prize-purse of $100,000 and many professional, international, and amateur teams have arrived to compete to be the best endurance athletes in the world. Considered by many to be the successor of Mark Burnett's Eco-Challenge the Primal Quest has an expected finishing time of 4 days for the winners and 10 days for the slower teams. Along with the Raid series, Primal Quest continues to give competitive adventurers a grand outlet at the international level but it is to be noted the sport of adventure racing has not been without its problems in the past.

Big Vegetable Oil Strikes Again

mr_crash_davis — Sun, 11 Jun 2006 10:19:22 -0800

Home-brewing of biodiesel is under attack in Salt Lake.

This is "Anyone but Bush" Country!

insomnia_lj — Tue, 16 May 2006 09:40:31 -0800

Bush out of favor in 47 out of 50 states. The SurveyUSA 50-state-poll shows some interesting details on Bush's approval rating, which has fallen to just 35% in North (and South) Carolina, 29% in Missouri, and 42% in Texas. He remains popular in only three states: Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming. Could the Democrats have a shot even in Utah in the not-too-distant future? A lot of Utahns think so.

A Delicate Situation

mr_crash_davis — Tue, 09 May 2006 09:14:33 -0800

"What has our world come to if we cannot join nature by climbing one of nature's most beautiful features?" asks Dean Potter after he free-climbs Utah's Delicate Arch and pisses off the Park Service. Again.

Don't take your guns to town, son

mr_crash_davis — Fri, 10 Mar 2006 08:49:49 -0800

When Gregg Revell packed his bags for a trip to Pennsylvania last April, he had no idea how far he'd be traveling. Before the week was out, the 57-year-old suburban real estate agent and grandfather would be arrested, thrown into one of the country's most notorious jails, strip searched and inoculated against his will. The soft-spoken Utah native would be on his way to becoming a poster child for the National Rifle Association in a $3 million lawsuit.

a strong cup of coffee

punkbitch — Thu, 09 Feb 2006 16:51:10 -0800

Man kills jealous boyfriend with coffee mug. This is from my local paper (see also stoner busts self). Just to show you the kind of interesting stuff that goes on here in Utah...(more inside)

He spells his last name: "C-H-E-N-E-Y." "Yeah," he says. "Distant relatives."

PenguinBukkake — Tue, 31 Jan 2006 06:15:32 -0800

"The mind-set of Utah". The Washington Post (BugMeNot) visits Randolph, Utah, the place where they like George W. Bush more than any other place in America.

Works best in a one-party state

orthogonality — Wed, 25 Jan 2006 21:32:54 -0800

"The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, elected by the people thereof...." The Seventeeth Amendement provides for the direct election of U.S. Senators. Originally, Article I Section 3 of the United States Constition provided that each state's senators be chosen by that state's legislature.

The Populist Party platform from 1892 on, called for direct senatorial election; and the Progressive movment made it, along with Prohibition (18th Amendment) and Women's Suffrage (19th), a cornerstone of reform. The 17th was ratified 8 April 1913, when the required 36th of 48 states, Connecticut, approved it. Utah, however, had rejected it 41 days earlier, on 26 February 1913. Although Utah never subsequently ratified it, the 17th Amendment, as part of the Federal Constitution, applies in Utah as in all U.S. States.

But in the name of re-invigorating States' Rights, some on the Right -- and some less easy to label -- have called for the repeal of the 17th Amendement. In 2003 Montana's Senate, after passing it out of committee, indefinitely postponed by floor vote a bill calling on Congress to repeal the 17th. Now, the President of Utah's 29-member State Senate [pdf], with 19 co-sponsers, thinks he's figured out a way around the Constitution's 17th Amendment. Debate on the S.B. 156 began yesterday.

Hello, my name is...

littleme — Fri, 20 Jan 2006 09:29:21 -0800

OK, so some professional sports players have less-than-usual first names. Certainly not ones that are likely to appear on the top ten list. But if you really want weirdness in names (and, quite possibly, other things) you need to head over to Utah. (Frameset page; click on 'The Cream of The Crop'.) Personal favorite: VulvaMae

Cattle ranching conservationism

mr_crash_davis — Sun, 30 Oct 2005 14:49:58 -0800

If you're going to to break into the cowboy business, this is as good a place as any to do it. [more inside]

So you left Utah?

Oyéah — Wed, 05 Oct 2005 09:08:32 -0800

If you are going to Fall, well this is the place... I started visiting the orchards and farms of northern Utah a few years ago, to take my Dad out for drives, and to take pictures. I met many farmers up there, and came to love the front of Willard Peak, and the amazing canyons, water drainage, warm western rocky slopes; that make the best peaches anywhere. Perry, Utah has a mountain behind it, that is a sight to behold, and to the West is the National Migratory Bird Refuge. Shane Whitlock has covered this area pretty well, he is an enthusiastic photographer and chronicles the small town of Perry, the rodeos, the birds, the animals and the great fortune of small town existence.Here is my Dad's best friend's, barn. Mantua, Utah. Usually, the Utah "outsiders" see, is the red rock canyons of the southern part of the state. Northern Utah with the Great Salt Lake, and the Wasatch and Uinta mountain ranges is continuously elegant season to season, and peopled with all kinds of wonderful, tame and wild life.

Illegal drugs in the United States

dilettante — Sat, 13 Aug 2005 10:40:47 -0800

What does the DEA say about drugs in your state? (Some states take a very hard line against gateway drugs...)

Not Affiliated with the LDS Church

mr_crash_davis — Mon, 07 Feb 2005 16:41:17 -0800

Tired of EBay scams? Think EBay is a haven for criminals? Maybe you ought to surf on over to MormonBid.com.