The Islamic world has always been prone to decorating firearms in an ornate fashion. Most examples I have seen have been Afghan and Arab “Jezail”- type muzzleloaders. Recently frequent reader and commenter “Johnny UK” was in Morocco where he photographed a modern example at the mausoleum of Mohammed V , the founder of modern-day Morocco. …
Author: Steve Bodio
Catching Up
Like Matt, I should soon have good news (though mine should continue to let me blog freely). I have been dealing with that and also Libby’s taking over the local Post Office so it has been a bit hectic here. Let me do a quick blogging news roundup and post some pics– with more to …
More Granddogs
Matt suggested I put up this photo of Nate’s lurcher Pearl and tazi girl Maty. Photo Nate Moody: Matt says: Ah…dog humor.
Mullahs Dis 300
The mad mullahs aren’t very coherent about it, but they sure don’t like the new movie “300”. A couple of reactions: “The government spokesman referred to the movie as part of the extensive cultural aggression aiming to degenerate cultures of world states.” And: “The Iranian embassy in Paris has termed the film an insult to …
Sympatric
A real find for evo- wonks: a likely case of sympatric speciation in finches. “Examples of sympatric speciation in nature are rare and hotly debated. We describe the parallel speciation of finches on two small islands in the Tristan da Cunha archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean.” For a fascinating book on the subject– by …
Ancient Enemies
Proof that at least one species of prehistoric cat, Megantereon, hunted humans– it’s in the isotopes. “”Paranthropus robustus and the early Homo species,Homo ergaster, had a diet that reflected a mix of carbon isotopes, suggesting that they were omnivorous, which is similar to what modern humans are today,” said Lee-Thorp. “Knowing the hominid carbon isotope …
More AR Follies: Kill Knut!
Now the idiots want to kill a popular polar bear cub in Germany because he was rejected by his mother. “”Feeding by hand is not species-appropriate but a gross violation of animal protection laws,” animal rights activist Frank Albrecht was quoted as saying by the mass-circulation Bild daily, which has featured regular photo spreads tracking …
PETA’s Jesus
Even for the notoriously irrational PETA, this is amazing. Having convinced themselves that Christ was a vegetarian, they have created this… installation: a “diner” made out of an Airstream trailer, featuring a model of Christ presiding over a Last Supper company composed of various famous real and alleged vegetarians– Ghandi, George Bernard Shaw, Paul McCartney …
Good Stuff #6: Calligraphy
I just found that our friend Sir Terence Clark does Arabic calligraphy as a pastime, Since he is “dog (saluki/ tazi) friend”, the subject of this piece is not surprising. In his words: “In this piece I have used at the top a line of poetry – “Without hunting there is no pleasure” – in …
Good Stuff #5: Peregrine Nest
As I mentioned in “Sick as a Doorknob” below, we climbed up to this Peregrine nest Sunday. The actual pic was taken last year– there is no snow that low this warm spring. The line of droppings that mark the ledge is just above the foreground snow…