January
Took new scarf back to store because it was too tight.
February
Fired from pharmacy job for failing to print labels.....
Helllloooo!!!.......bottles won't fit in printer !!!
March
Got really excited.....finished jigsaw puzzle in 6 months..... box said "2-4 years!"
April
Trapped on escalator for hours .... power went out!!!
May
Tried to make Kool-Aid.....wrong instructions.
...8 cups of water won't fit into those little packets!!!
June
Tried to go water skiing.......couldn't find a lake with a slope.
July
Lost breast stroke swimming competition.....learned later, the other swimmers cheated, they used their arms!!!
August
Got locked out of my car in rain storm..... car swamped because soft-top was open.
September
The capital of California is "C".....isn't it???
October
Hate M & M's.....they are so hard to peel.
November
Baked turkey for 4 1/2 days . .. instructions said 1 hour per pound and I weigh 108!!
December
Couldn't call 911 "duh".....there's no "eleven" button on the stupid phone!!!
THE BEST BLONDE JOKE OF THE YEAR
A man was in his front yard mowing grass when his attractive blonde female neighbor came out of the house and went straight to the mailbox.
She opened it then slammed it shut and stormed back in the house.
A little later she came out of her house again went to the mail box and again, opened it, slammed it shut again. Angrily, back into the house she went.
As the man was getting ready to edge the lawn, here she came out again, marched to the mail box, opened it and then slammed it closed harder than ever.
Puzzled by her actions the man asked her, "Is something wrong?"
To which she replied, "There certainly is!"
(Are you ready? This is a beauty...)
My stupid computer keeps saying, "YOU'VE GOT MAIL!"
About Me
- Trixie Racer
- When you fail to follow your dreams, you cheat yourself out of being you.
Be proud of who you are and don't back down.
Be a winner at the game of life!
Monday, December 31, 2007
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Thursday, December 20, 2007
The Verdict is in: Your 30 Year "Fixed" Mortgage is NOT fixed.....
The Verdict is in: Your 30 Year "Fixed" Mortgage is NOT fixed.....
I was one of those "company men" that worked and still does work for a Large commercially well known Mortgage Bank....I was set in my Ways of how I thought things worked or were supposed to work in regards to Institutional lending....I am your "typical" type A personality that thought I had it ALL figured out...
I WAS WRONG
I was Blown away when this finally sunk in....Be prepared to be shocked...continue reading....
"The Asher Institute for Consumers is a non-profit consumer advocacy organization that was formed in 2003 to educate and inform consumers about various issues so they can make informed decisions in regards to finances, banking and mortgages. The 25 page article, a.k.a. consumer guide, they wrote is entitled, "Profiting from the Banking Industry's Biggest Secret."
We will show how the mortgage profit game works and how consumers are misled into making a decision that ends up costing them their single best opportunity to be wealthy.
The Truth about the 30-Year Fixed Loan
When it comes to mortgages, most consumers are fairly knowledgeable and are able to choose between the various loan products available and select the one that best fits their needs and risk tolerance. The most highly promoted and most sought after loan is the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage.
Why? Because consumers like the stability of a low fixed rate and a low fixed payment. However, the Asher Institute revealed some shocking truths about the 30-year fixed that stunned both consumers and mortgage industry experts alike.
The Asher Institute found that only one of the two reasons consumers like the 30-year fixed mortgage was actually true.
Which one is false?
The part about the interest rate being fixed. Contrary to public opinion, the interest rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage is actually an ADJUSTABLE RATE MORTGAGE and the rate consumers are paying on them is much, much higher than they could ever imagine.
The rate is so high, in fact, that it completely blocks the average consumer's path to financial freedom.
In a couple of pages, you'll see an Amortization Schedule for an average American conforming loan, a $150,000 30-year loan at a "fixed" interest rate of just 6.0%. The Amortization Schedule shows how the loan really works.
Here are some of the facts gleamed from the Amortization Schedule:
Each year the consumer pays $10,792 but a different portion of that total gets credited to Principal and to Interest.
It takes 19 years before just half of the payment goes to Principal.
It takes 24 years before 2/3 of the monthly payment goes to Principal.
After 10 years, 84% of the starting balance is still owed.
After 21 years, half of the starting balance is still owed. (At that point, the consumer will have paid $226,800 with only $75,000 of it going to Principal.)
Amortization Schedule
$150,000 30-YEAR FIXED-RATE MORTGAGE AT 6.0%
"THE LENDER" "THE CONSUMER" PAYMENT = $899.33
Year_________Interest____________Principal___________Balance
1............$8,949.89...........$ 1,842.02..........$148,157.98
3............$8,715.66...........$ 2,076.25..........$144,126.11
6............$8,307.30...........$ 2,484.61..........$137,096.93
9............$7,818.63...........$ 2,973.28..........$128,685.25
12...........$7,233.84...........$ 3,558.07..........$118,619.16
15...........$6,534.04...........$ 4,257.87..........$106,573.27
18...........$5,696.60...........$ 5,095.31..........$ 92,158.18
21...........$4,694.45...........$ 6,097.45..........$ 74,907.92
24...........$3,495.20...........$ 7,296.71..........$ 54,264.88
27...........$2,060.08...........$ 8,731.83..........$ 29,561.75
30...........$ 342.70...........$10,449.21..........$ 0.00
The numbers are heavily skewed in favor of the lender because they are designed to be. It's due to something most consumers are familiar with - front-end load interest.
The result of this system is that the lender collects their interest first, up front. Seems fair, right? But, the Asher Institute also found that the front-end load completely throws off the fixed interest rate schedule.
Look at Year 1. The consumer pays $10,792 ($899.33x12) but only $1842 of it gets credited back to Principal.
What if this house was sold after the first year? Would it seem like 6.0% interest rate was paid? Look at what happens if we were to sell after 9 years. The consumer will have paid $97,128 but less than $21,315 will have gone to Principal. That's not a 6.0% interest rate!
The same holds true for a longer period of time like 21 and 24 years.
So if a 30-year fixed mortgage loan is kept for even 1 month less than 30 years, the rate consumers really wind up paying is higher. How much higher?
The Asher Institute came up with a formula, called the "Effective Rate Formula", that reveals what the real interest rate would be if a front-end load loan was kept for less than the entire 30-year term.
When they applied this formula to the sample 6.0% 30-year loan, the results were scary:
After 25 years, the consumer would have paid almost $270K, with only $104K in loan equity. The actual rate paid would be 9.43%, not 6.0%!
After 20 years, the effective actual rate paid would be 14.82%
Holding on to that low 6.0% interest rate for 10 years would result in paying an actual 43.48% interest rate!
Holding it for 3 years yields an actual 182% rate
1 year --> a 580% rate! <--
Hundreds of consumers and mortgage industry experts were informally polled with the following question:
If you held a 6.0% 30-year fixed-rate loan for 7 years, considering that the interest is front-end loaded and you're not waiting the 30 years, what rate do you think you'd really wind up paying?
The responses given by consumers were what spurred the Asher Institute to develop their consumer guide. Without fail, each consumer and expert guessed between 8% and 12% with an occasional high guess of "triple" which would represent 18%.
The guesses were logical but so far off that it was clear that a major misconception existed!
It was also clear that these numbers had never been disclosed to consumers. No one had ever heard of an "Effective Rate Formula" - it seemed like consumers were aware that mortgage interest is front-end loaded but no one realized exactly how front-end loaded it really is.
Due to the interest rate being front-end loaded, the rate becomes ADJUSTABLE based upon how long the loan is kept. On a 6.0% 30-year fixed, the low "fixed" 6.0% Note Rate is the absolute MINIMUM rate the consumer will pay.
Even though the monthly payment is fixed, the consumer may wind up paying as much as a 580% interest rate, thereby actually making this fixed-rate mortgage an Adjustable Rate Mortgage.
The banks have been relying upon consumers to concentrate on the fact that it will all even out 30 years later. But who keeps the same mortgage, let alone the same house, for 30 years? Nationally, homeowners keep their mortgages for 5 years on average.
Millions of consumers believe that the 30-year mortgage is a smart home loan with many benefits.
But that belief has been very costly - Americans have been standing in line to sign up for loans that are the equivalent of giant credit cards with APR's well over 100%!
Found at: http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/rnr/515488387.html
I was one of those "company men" that worked and still does work for a Large commercially well known Mortgage Bank....I was set in my Ways of how I thought things worked or were supposed to work in regards to Institutional lending....I am your "typical" type A personality that thought I had it ALL figured out...
I WAS WRONG
I was Blown away when this finally sunk in....Be prepared to be shocked...continue reading....
"The Asher Institute for Consumers is a non-profit consumer advocacy organization that was formed in 2003 to educate and inform consumers about various issues so they can make informed decisions in regards to finances, banking and mortgages. The 25 page article, a.k.a. consumer guide, they wrote is entitled, "Profiting from the Banking Industry's Biggest Secret."
We will show how the mortgage profit game works and how consumers are misled into making a decision that ends up costing them their single best opportunity to be wealthy.
The Truth about the 30-Year Fixed Loan
When it comes to mortgages, most consumers are fairly knowledgeable and are able to choose between the various loan products available and select the one that best fits their needs and risk tolerance. The most highly promoted and most sought after loan is the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage.
Why? Because consumers like the stability of a low fixed rate and a low fixed payment. However, the Asher Institute revealed some shocking truths about the 30-year fixed that stunned both consumers and mortgage industry experts alike.
The Asher Institute found that only one of the two reasons consumers like the 30-year fixed mortgage was actually true.
Which one is false?
The part about the interest rate being fixed. Contrary to public opinion, the interest rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage is actually an ADJUSTABLE RATE MORTGAGE and the rate consumers are paying on them is much, much higher than they could ever imagine.
The rate is so high, in fact, that it completely blocks the average consumer's path to financial freedom.
In a couple of pages, you'll see an Amortization Schedule for an average American conforming loan, a $150,000 30-year loan at a "fixed" interest rate of just 6.0%. The Amortization Schedule shows how the loan really works.
Here are some of the facts gleamed from the Amortization Schedule:
Each year the consumer pays $10,792 but a different portion of that total gets credited to Principal and to Interest.
It takes 19 years before just half of the payment goes to Principal.
It takes 24 years before 2/3 of the monthly payment goes to Principal.
After 10 years, 84% of the starting balance is still owed.
After 21 years, half of the starting balance is still owed. (At that point, the consumer will have paid $226,800 with only $75,000 of it going to Principal.)
Amortization Schedule
$150,000 30-YEAR FIXED-RATE MORTGAGE AT 6.0%
"THE LENDER" "THE CONSUMER" PAYMENT = $899.33
Year_________Interest____________Principal___________Balance
1............$8,949.89...........$ 1,842.02..........$148,157.98
3............$8,715.66...........$ 2,076.25..........$144,126.11
6............$8,307.30...........$ 2,484.61..........$137,096.93
9............$7,818.63...........$ 2,973.28..........$128,685.25
12...........$7,233.84...........$ 3,558.07..........$118,619.16
15...........$6,534.04...........$ 4,257.87..........$106,573.27
18...........$5,696.60...........$ 5,095.31..........$ 92,158.18
21...........$4,694.45...........$ 6,097.45..........$ 74,907.92
24...........$3,495.20...........$ 7,296.71..........$ 54,264.88
27...........$2,060.08...........$ 8,731.83..........$ 29,561.75
30...........$ 342.70...........$10,449.21..........$ 0.00
The numbers are heavily skewed in favor of the lender because they are designed to be. It's due to something most consumers are familiar with - front-end load interest.
The result of this system is that the lender collects their interest first, up front. Seems fair, right? But, the Asher Institute also found that the front-end load completely throws off the fixed interest rate schedule.
Look at Year 1. The consumer pays $10,792 ($899.33x12) but only $1842 of it gets credited back to Principal.
What if this house was sold after the first year? Would it seem like 6.0% interest rate was paid? Look at what happens if we were to sell after 9 years. The consumer will have paid $97,128 but less than $21,315 will have gone to Principal. That's not a 6.0% interest rate!
The same holds true for a longer period of time like 21 and 24 years.
So if a 30-year fixed mortgage loan is kept for even 1 month less than 30 years, the rate consumers really wind up paying is higher. How much higher?
The Asher Institute came up with a formula, called the "Effective Rate Formula", that reveals what the real interest rate would be if a front-end load loan was kept for less than the entire 30-year term.
When they applied this formula to the sample 6.0% 30-year loan, the results were scary:
After 25 years, the consumer would have paid almost $270K, with only $104K in loan equity. The actual rate paid would be 9.43%, not 6.0%!
After 20 years, the effective actual rate paid would be 14.82%
Holding on to that low 6.0% interest rate for 10 years would result in paying an actual 43.48% interest rate!
Holding it for 3 years yields an actual 182% rate
1 year --> a 580% rate! <--
Hundreds of consumers and mortgage industry experts were informally polled with the following question:
If you held a 6.0% 30-year fixed-rate loan for 7 years, considering that the interest is front-end loaded and you're not waiting the 30 years, what rate do you think you'd really wind up paying?
The responses given by consumers were what spurred the Asher Institute to develop their consumer guide. Without fail, each consumer and expert guessed between 8% and 12% with an occasional high guess of "triple" which would represent 18%.
The guesses were logical but so far off that it was clear that a major misconception existed!
It was also clear that these numbers had never been disclosed to consumers. No one had ever heard of an "Effective Rate Formula" - it seemed like consumers were aware that mortgage interest is front-end loaded but no one realized exactly how front-end loaded it really is.
Due to the interest rate being front-end loaded, the rate becomes ADJUSTABLE based upon how long the loan is kept. On a 6.0% 30-year fixed, the low "fixed" 6.0% Note Rate is the absolute MINIMUM rate the consumer will pay.
Even though the monthly payment is fixed, the consumer may wind up paying as much as a 580% interest rate, thereby actually making this fixed-rate mortgage an Adjustable Rate Mortgage.
The banks have been relying upon consumers to concentrate on the fact that it will all even out 30 years later. But who keeps the same mortgage, let alone the same house, for 30 years? Nationally, homeowners keep their mortgages for 5 years on average.
Millions of consumers believe that the 30-year mortgage is a smart home loan with many benefits.
But that belief has been very costly - Americans have been standing in line to sign up for loans that are the equivalent of giant credit cards with APR's well over 100%!
Found at: http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/rnr/515488387.html
Monday, December 17, 2007
Looking for a soulmate? Date me first! - w4m
That's right, I'm offering to be the primer for the love of your life. Come one, come all! I am currently running a 92% success rate. If you are looking to be married or domestically partnered, date me first, and you are assured to find your soul mate as soon as we break up! Current data has shown that the more intense we get, the more quickly you will find that special someone...so don't hold back!
HELPFUL HINTS: From analyzing 15 years of accurate data (verifiable by friends and family), the following may be helpful:
1. Practice makes perfect. Please use phrases like "I want to spend the rest of my life with you" and "I want you to have my children". Studies 3, 7, and 12 demonstrate a 100% success rate with this practice run alone!
2. Introduce me to your family. Studies have shown (1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 9, 11, and 12) that odds increase when you bring me home to meet your gene pool. Bonus points include having a mother whose Hummel collection I can admire, taking me to a wedding where I can dance the Chicken Dance, and having an incredibly creepy family member who likes to stare at my breasts.
3. Have a tragic past (1, 3, 5, 6, and 10). I am proficient at sitting quietly, gently stroking your back, while you sob about a.) your parent's divorce, b.) your inability to find meaning in your life, c.) past relationships (pictures a plus!), and d.) abuse in any way, shape, or form...most successful in this arena has been the ambiguous lone sexual interaction with a distant relative (see 2).
So that's right, folks...all you men looking for a soul-mate, I AM your answer. I will guarantee an earnest, naive belief that you either love me "like you've never loved anyone before" or that you've actually "never really been in love before now".
I will patiently buy into your confusion while you slowly fall in love with a.) your child's ballet teacher, b.) your ex-wife, c.) the woman who works at the used bookstore where you obsessively buy Cheever hardbacks, or d.) your Tai Chi instructor. These, of course, are just a few examples of the many potential soulmates towards whom you can rebound after (or before) leaving me!
With a 92% success rate, you are almost GUARANTEED to find your sweetie. And if you act now, I will throw in an offer to actually BE FRIENDS with you after we break up - that's right, just picture it - you, me, and the love of your life can all go to the movies! What more could you want? There's someone out there just waiting for you to date me.
Source: http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/msr/512225813.html
HELPFUL HINTS: From analyzing 15 years of accurate data (verifiable by friends and family), the following may be helpful:
1. Practice makes perfect. Please use phrases like "I want to spend the rest of my life with you" and "I want you to have my children". Studies 3, 7, and 12 demonstrate a 100% success rate with this practice run alone!
2. Introduce me to your family. Studies have shown (1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 9, 11, and 12) that odds increase when you bring me home to meet your gene pool. Bonus points include having a mother whose Hummel collection I can admire, taking me to a wedding where I can dance the Chicken Dance, and having an incredibly creepy family member who likes to stare at my breasts.
3. Have a tragic past (1, 3, 5, 6, and 10). I am proficient at sitting quietly, gently stroking your back, while you sob about a.) your parent's divorce, b.) your inability to find meaning in your life, c.) past relationships (pictures a plus!), and d.) abuse in any way, shape, or form...most successful in this arena has been the ambiguous lone sexual interaction with a distant relative (see 2).
So that's right, folks...all you men looking for a soul-mate, I AM your answer. I will guarantee an earnest, naive belief that you either love me "like you've never loved anyone before" or that you've actually "never really been in love before now".
I will patiently buy into your confusion while you slowly fall in love with a.) your child's ballet teacher, b.) your ex-wife, c.) the woman who works at the used bookstore where you obsessively buy Cheever hardbacks, or d.) your Tai Chi instructor. These, of course, are just a few examples of the many potential soulmates towards whom you can rebound after (or before) leaving me!
With a 92% success rate, you are almost GUARANTEED to find your sweetie. And if you act now, I will throw in an offer to actually BE FRIENDS with you after we break up - that's right, just picture it - you, me, and the love of your life can all go to the movies! What more could you want? There's someone out there just waiting for you to date me.
Source: http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/msr/512225813.html
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Saturday, December 8, 2007
Friday, December 7, 2007
Leaving Las Vegas
Yeah! It's about time! While Vegas is a fun place to visit, it's a terrible place to live. Of course I'll still come back for conventions and to dance. BYE-BYE!!!!
:-) :-)
:-) :-)
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
If you could see into the future
If you could see into the future, would you make a preemptive strike against someone you knew was going to screw you over?
I wouldn't. Most people probably would.
I wouldn't. Most people probably would.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Taking risks in love
Life is a gamble. Everything you do has consequences: some good, some bad. This is why you should always stay true to yourself. Do what you want, be who you want, live as you want. When something feels really right, do whatever it takes to pursue it.
"Good things take time. Great things happen all at once."
Last year a met a man at work. He and I kept in contact and in August we started dating. Soon I will be getting rid of almost all my belongings and moving in with him. Why? It feels too right to not. My basic motto for life is "minimizing regret". And if this relationship is as serious as I think, I am making one of the best choices of my life. Everything is a gamble. At worst, I will have given away my material things and moved thousands of miles for a failed relationship. At best, I joined my soulmate. Worst case scenario isn't that bad and easily worth risking for true love and happiness.
"Good things take time. Great things happen all at once."
Last year a met a man at work. He and I kept in contact and in August we started dating. Soon I will be getting rid of almost all my belongings and moving in with him. Why? It feels too right to not. My basic motto for life is "minimizing regret". And if this relationship is as serious as I think, I am making one of the best choices of my life. Everything is a gamble. At worst, I will have given away my material things and moved thousands of miles for a failed relationship. At best, I joined my soulmate. Worst case scenario isn't that bad and easily worth risking for true love and happiness.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
My Wish List
So...you want to make me smile or bribe me? ;-p
Click below for a list of items I will appreciate:
My Wish List
Click below for a list of items I will appreciate:
My Wish List
Monday, November 26, 2007
Anxiety
I've been off my anxiety meds for the past 4 months. During the Thanksgiving holiday I took a few Xanax. They didn't make me feel drugged at all and helped me deal with stress. This makes me believe that I should go back on meds.
Advanced Global Personality Test Results
| Advanced Global Personality Test Results
|
personality tests by similarminds.com
Stability results were moderately low which suggests you are worrying, insecure, emotional, and anxious.
Orderliness results were medium which suggests you are moderately organized, hard working, and reliable while still remaining flexible, efficient, and fun.
Extraversion results were moderately high which suggests you are, at times, overly talkative, outgoing, sociable and interacting at the expense of developing your own individual interests and internally based identity.
trait snapshot:
expressive, open, self revealing, loves large parties, loud, social, outgoing, does not like social isolation, assertive, social chameleon, positive, always busy, likes to fit in, likes to stand out, enjoys leadership, brutally honest, trusting, optimistic, desires attention, dominant, aggressive, attachment prone, wants to be understood, realistic
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Brrrr..
Just got back from Michigan. At one point it was 21 degrees! Vegas was 40 when the plane arrived and it felt wonderful. This trip ended up being to busy to meet up with Lori. Hopefully next time! ;-)
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Going to the snow!
Spending the holidays in Michigan with my boyfriend's family. I don't even have snow clothes. If time permits, Lori Anderson and I may meet up for coffee. She's a hottie! ;-)
Monday, November 19, 2007
Can't stop looking at porn & Craigslist
This summary is not available. Please
click here to view the post.
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Climate change report to warn of potentially 'irreversible' impacts
by Marlowe Hood
Fri Nov 16, 1:31 PM ET
VALENCIA, Spain (AFP) - Less than three weeks before a crucial conference on climate change, UN experts agreed Friday on a draft report that warns global warming may have far-reaching and irreversible consequences.
The report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is designed to guide policymakers for the next five years.
Delegates to the Nobel-winning scientific authority agreed the draft after night-long negotiations, chief French delegate Marc Gillet told AFP.
Human activities "could lead to abrupt or irreversible climate changes and impacts," the agreed text said.
The report will be officially adopted on Saturday, followed by a press conference attended by United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon.
It summarizes three massive documents issued this year covering the evidence for climate change; the present and possible future impacts of it; and the options for tackling the peril.
After Saturday, attention shifts to a key meeting in Bali, Indonesia, where governments must set down a "roadmap" for negotiations culminating in a deal to slash carbon emissions and help developing nations cope with climate change.
The IPCC experts agreed that the rise in Earth's temperature observed in the past few decades was principally due to human causes, not natural ones, as "climate sceptics" often aver.
The impacts of climate change are already visible, in the form of retreating glaciers and snow loss in alpine regions, thinning Arctic summer sea ice and thawing permafrost, according to the three IPCC reports issued earlier this year.
But sometimes sharp disagreement emerged during the five days of negotiations in Valencia to hammer out the summary, even though the main findings remained untouched.
US delegates in particular said references to "irreversible" climate change and impacts were imprecise.
They argued, for example, that the melting of glaciers or ice sheets -- which could raise ocean levels by several meters (a dozen feet) -- was not "irreversible" as ice could eventually reform.
"But we are not dealing with geological time scales of tens of thousands of years," said one delegate, irked by this reasoning. "We are talking about dire consequences to humans and the environment in the coming decades."
By 2100, global average surface temperatures could rise by between 1.1 C (1.98 F) and 6.4 C (11.52 F) compared to 1980-99 levels, while sea levels will rise by between 18 and 59 centimetres (7.2 and 23.2 inches), according to the IPCC's forecast.
Heatwaves, rainstorms, drought, tropical cyclones and surges in sea level are among the events expected to become more frequent, more widespread and/or more intense this century.
As a result, water shortages, hunger, flooding and damage to homes will be a heightened threat.
"All countries" will be affected, according to the IPCC. Those bearing the brunt, though, will be poor countries which incidentally bear the least responsibility for creating the problem.
Green groups applauded the provisional report, saying it hiked pressure on world leaders to curb greenhouse gases.
"The result appears to be much better than we had expected going into the meeting," said Stephanie Tunmore of Greenpeace, which along with the WWF is an official observer at IPCC meetings.
"It could be a groundbreaking document to pave the way for deep emissions cuts by developed countries," said WWF's Stephan Singer.
Belgian IPCC delegate Jean-Pascal van Ypersele said his concerns that the synthesis would only be a "cut-and-paste" rather than a coherent summary proved unfounded.
He pointed to a draft section on "key vulnerabilities" that distilled the main reasons for concern about global warming.
Despite sharp challenges, especially from the US, the text remained intact, making "the problems more prominent," he said.
The IPCC won this year's Nobel Peace Prize alongside climate campaigner and former US vice president Al Gore.
The December 3-14 conference in Bali aims at deepening and accelerating cuts in greenhouse-gas pollution after 2012, when current pledges under the UN's Kyoto Protocol expire.
There is now broad agreement on the amplifying scale of the problem, but countries remain sharply divided on how to tackle it, fearing economic costs and loss of competitive advantage.
* source:
Fri Nov 16, 1:31 PM ET
VALENCIA, Spain (AFP) - Less than three weeks before a crucial conference on climate change, UN experts agreed Friday on a draft report that warns global warming may have far-reaching and irreversible consequences.
The report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is designed to guide policymakers for the next five years.
Delegates to the Nobel-winning scientific authority agreed the draft after night-long negotiations, chief French delegate Marc Gillet told AFP.
Human activities "could lead to abrupt or irreversible climate changes and impacts," the agreed text said.
The report will be officially adopted on Saturday, followed by a press conference attended by United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon.
It summarizes three massive documents issued this year covering the evidence for climate change; the present and possible future impacts of it; and the options for tackling the peril.
After Saturday, attention shifts to a key meeting in Bali, Indonesia, where governments must set down a "roadmap" for negotiations culminating in a deal to slash carbon emissions and help developing nations cope with climate change.
The IPCC experts agreed that the rise in Earth's temperature observed in the past few decades was principally due to human causes, not natural ones, as "climate sceptics" often aver.
The impacts of climate change are already visible, in the form of retreating glaciers and snow loss in alpine regions, thinning Arctic summer sea ice and thawing permafrost, according to the three IPCC reports issued earlier this year.
But sometimes sharp disagreement emerged during the five days of negotiations in Valencia to hammer out the summary, even though the main findings remained untouched.
US delegates in particular said references to "irreversible" climate change and impacts were imprecise.
They argued, for example, that the melting of glaciers or ice sheets -- which could raise ocean levels by several meters (a dozen feet) -- was not "irreversible" as ice could eventually reform.
"But we are not dealing with geological time scales of tens of thousands of years," said one delegate, irked by this reasoning. "We are talking about dire consequences to humans and the environment in the coming decades."
By 2100, global average surface temperatures could rise by between 1.1 C (1.98 F) and 6.4 C (11.52 F) compared to 1980-99 levels, while sea levels will rise by between 18 and 59 centimetres (7.2 and 23.2 inches), according to the IPCC's forecast.
Heatwaves, rainstorms, drought, tropical cyclones and surges in sea level are among the events expected to become more frequent, more widespread and/or more intense this century.
As a result, water shortages, hunger, flooding and damage to homes will be a heightened threat.
"All countries" will be affected, according to the IPCC. Those bearing the brunt, though, will be poor countries which incidentally bear the least responsibility for creating the problem.
Green groups applauded the provisional report, saying it hiked pressure on world leaders to curb greenhouse gases.
"The result appears to be much better than we had expected going into the meeting," said Stephanie Tunmore of Greenpeace, which along with the WWF is an official observer at IPCC meetings.
"It could be a groundbreaking document to pave the way for deep emissions cuts by developed countries," said WWF's Stephan Singer.
Belgian IPCC delegate Jean-Pascal van Ypersele said his concerns that the synthesis would only be a "cut-and-paste" rather than a coherent summary proved unfounded.
He pointed to a draft section on "key vulnerabilities" that distilled the main reasons for concern about global warming.
Despite sharp challenges, especially from the US, the text remained intact, making "the problems more prominent," he said.
The IPCC won this year's Nobel Peace Prize alongside climate campaigner and former US vice president Al Gore.
The December 3-14 conference in Bali aims at deepening and accelerating cuts in greenhouse-gas pollution after 2012, when current pledges under the UN's Kyoto Protocol expire.
There is now broad agreement on the amplifying scale of the problem, but countries remain sharply divided on how to tackle it, fearing economic costs and loss of competitive advantage.
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Saturday, November 17, 2007
Friday, November 16, 2007
Playboy Mansion party
I am hoping to go to the Playboy Mansion party tomorrow night. If so, I may show up bodypainted.