At first listen, you might think hydroxic acid might be a hallucinogenic cookie, which would be… you know… a good thing. But it’s not. Yet one more out of the countless man-made substances that is as pervasive as it is deadly, the bad news is this: hydroxic acid is – like so many other toxic solvents – everywhere and in everything. The badder news is it is almost impossible to filter out, clean up or remove from food it has contaminated.

Oh joy… a better life through chemistry, my rosy-pink Irish arse.

A team of scientists have been making some ground-breaking research into just how bad Hydroxic acid is, as well as chronically it’s myriad ill-effects and deadly consequences. technically called DHMO is more wide-spread and deadlier than radon. While small amounts can be dealt with, once you get over a certain thresh-hold, it’s a first-class ticket to Doom thereafter.

Used as an industrial solvent, Hydroxic acid has been detected in every aquifer in the United States, on some level, since the mid 1940s. And that’s just when that it was detected. the stuff’s been in use since the late 1800s. A very close relative, chemically-speaking, of Hydroxic Acid is used to make fuel rods for nuclear plants, as well as plutonium, for use in weapons. Additionally, every year, dozens of people die, or suffer horrible health effects from Hydroxic acid, and to some extent, it can be found in the tissues of humans and animals, the world over. It is also impossible to filter from water, in fact most filtering technology only serves to further refine the toxin.

It says something that there are industry spin-doctors, like the website DHMO.org that try to soften the image of the deadly chemical by renaming it Hydrogen Hydroxide. This is much like renaming a cobra as a “Giant-size Fun worm!”

It says something that my attempts to find out more about Hydroxic acid tried to redirect me to websites about water. Not the same, folks, not the same.

There are two significant stories about Princess Diana in the news today, proving that while the lady herself died some 13+ years ago, she still captivates the hearts, minds and – in one instance at least – the marketing schemes of millions of people. We here at Blogosaurusstampede still consider the best of the last several dcades of british Royal Family, which is, in itself, faint praise. let us just say that we still think of Princess Diana as a heroine.

In the first story, writer Ian Halperin alleges to have discovered a story known previously only to Diana’s closest friend, that she had been threatened by a very drunk Prince Philip that he “would make her sorry” for having refused to sleep with him, sometime back in 1997, before her death. despite the good prince being so far in his cups as to be a liquid himself, still his power and influence has Diana reportedly terrified by possible repercussions. Some even believe he could have had something to do with arranging the “accident” that took her life, although, so far, there has been no evidence presented to that effect. And even if it isn’t true, he’s still a drunk ol’ bastard and should be ashamed of himself, if such a thing is possible among the Royal Family at this point.

Even more shame should be felt by the Chinese lingerie company, Jealousy International, who has produced a series of ads depicting a Diana look-alike, sporting sheer panties and brasseries, while do Princess-y things like playing the cello, while using a small child as a music stand. Since the ads encourage the viewer to “feel the romance of British Royalty” I feel it should be noted that attempting just that is what got Prince Philip his villain’s role in our first Princess Diana-related story, now wasn’t it?

This time it’s Mariner Energy that is currently in the British Petroleum hot seat, as they are ther owners of the oil rig that just exploded today, 80 miles from the coast of Louisiana near Vermillion Bay. Fortunately, since Mariner Energy is such a tiny company, compared to BP, this seems to be an appropriately smaller mess-up.

Well, thank God for minor environmental miracles.

Other fortunate differences between the two events are: the Mariner Energy rig was not currently in production, so leaks will be much, much smaller, if they happen at all; the rig stands in only 320 ft of water (as opposed the BP rig, which stood in water up to 5,000 feet deep); and –decidedly unlike the British Petroleum disaster, the 13 workers on the rig escaped alive, with minor injuries.

Mariner Energy workers were able to shut down production on the well before they evacuated, and so far, the Coast Guard doesn’t believe that it has resulted in a significant oil leak, although they did report a mile-long oil sheen emanating from the rig.  And, even if there were, the relatively shallow depths will make it many times easier for repair crews to attend to.

Still, questions remain about off-shore drilling, and though we are fortunate to not have another major environmental catastrophe on our hands, we should be taking a closer look at Mariner Energy.

In his new book, Stephen Hawking is taking on God, in what has to be the most lopsided match-up in fighting history. In this corner, weighing in something close to 100 lbs, even with his pockets stuffed with dark matter , we have the man with a brain big enough to imagine the universe, but with a body that cannot dance. In the other corner, we have the Creator of Everything. Doesn’t seem very fair at all. Almost a Chuck Norris vs. Don Knotts style event. Still, it’ll be worth watching, right?

In his newest book The Grand Design, Hawking argues that all the laws of physics made the universe’s creation inevitable just from sheer gravity, and not a man with long hair, beard, and a thing for clouds and little people with wings.

Tuff talk from a man who’s motorized wheelchair can’t top 10mph. For (if you’ll pardon the term) God’s sake, Hawking didn’t even write the book by himself. He had Leonard Mlodinow, a fellow physicist, to help him out. All God had was him/her/itself. Score one for God.

It’s all about the spontaneous, argues Hawking, claiming that God just isn’t necessary when you have Science. First, in A Brief History of Time, Hawking says it wasn’t necessary to believe in a God, and now he’s saying that God would be simply redundant. Wow… and God always spoke very highly of you Stephen Hawking. How rude. that’s one more for God.

Just because Hawking is on a quest to merge The Theory of Relativity (big stuff) with Quantum Physics (sub-atomic, or not-big, stuff) doesn’t mean he should forget his manners just because he has a new book to promote.

In wrapping it all up, just because of recent discovery of life-sustainable planets orbiting other stars, it doesn’t depart from reason to think God made this one, or the others, for that matter. For all Science dis-assembles and reconstructs even the tiniest gears and cogs of what makes reality, it still never seem to be able pin-down, or even identify, what animates it all, what gives it sentient life.

In the final analysis, the judges in my brain call the whole fight off, because it just wouldn’t be fair. Still, Stephen Hawking? You would’ve gotten your ass kicked. Just sayin’…

News of the specific comments that got Rob Dibble fired fill me with the oddest emotion I’ve ever had when addressing an issue regarding a loud, obnoxious sports-radio mouthpiece… I actually feel bad for him. Go figure, right?

Rob Dibble who is, I mean, was what is described as a “color analyst” (whatever that is… can someone tell me?) for the Washington Nationals who has somewhat of a reputation for being a “bad boy” who will just say whatever wacky, usually-offensive, wild comment that runs straight from his mind to his mouth without coming anywhere near his brain’s critical judgement center on the way. A former ESPN radio commentator (gee, I wonder why he’s a “former”…) Rob Dibble was already suspended for some stupid comments he made about some women on last week’s broadcast.

This time though, it was his unsympathetic, Drill-Sargent rant against Washington Nationals’ pitcher Stephen Strasburg was apparently the straw to the Washington Nationals managements camel of patience. Mocking him at the time as a little cry-baby because his arm hurt, Rob Dibble looked quite the ass when it was announced that Strasburg had suffered a torn ligament in his elbow, something quite a bit more severe than a “boo-boo.” The surgery and rehab is expected to take Strasburg, the #1 2009 Draft Pick out of the game for anywhere from a year to a year-and-a-half.

But really, other than being loud, obnoxious and opinionated (which I always thought were job requirements in his field), what did Rob Dibble do? Yes, he’s a lout, but is that illegal now? There’s a difference from making some racist, disgustingly sexist or homophobic remarks, but all he did was mock Strasburg. Sure, he was as wrong as he was an ass, but if that were the case everyone from Howard Stern on down would all be unemployed now. It just seems like a bit of over-reaction to me, even a First Amendment case, possibly.

Still, this on top of all Rob Dibble’s bountiful other foot-in-mouth-isms were too much for Washington Nationals management, who have announced that, with Rob Dibble fired, gone, pink-slipped, post-employed etc., he will be replaced by Ray Knight, for the near future.

Sizzurp, which I’m told is another name for Purple Drank, may also be involved in the drug charges that rapper T.I, and his wife, Tiny, are facing, after they were pulled over by West Hollywood, CA police for reasons that are yet to be released to the media or the public. There is also, just to pour some kerosene on the gasoline fire, a rumor of methamphetemines as well.

For the uninitiated, Purple Drank (or, by its new name Sizzurp…? Tell me that name wasn’t quoted from someone so f***ed up they could barely make vowels work, much less consonants) is a heady mixture of codeine-laced cough syrup, mixed with soda and just a hint of Jolly Rancher (or some such candy) thrown in for, I guess, that extra sugar-high. Apparently, it is hip to drink Sizzurp from a styrofoam cups (no, I don’t know why either… maybe the economy is just too tight for Crunk goblets anymore?) and two cups figure ominously in arrest photos of the car T.I. and Tiny (aka Tameka Cottle) were driving in.

Oh, T.I…. if all these charges are true, this isn’t going to make your parole officer very happy at all. He may even use hurtful words on you like “wrong” and “bad” and “you’re going back to jail.”

This makes T.I.’s new album King Ungcaged, a proposition as short-term as it is ironic. I guess people are right when they say Sizzurp will f*** you up.

Like I told you earlier, here comes Hurricane Earl, set to get all up in North Carolina’s face this evening, looking to start something, being all rowdy on the coast. Hurricane Earl is looking for a fight. What up, North carolina?

Hurricane Earl is now a Category 4 storm, which means when it opens a can of whoop-ass, the contents come out at over 140 mph. Accordingly, FEMA (in a rare before-things-get-%$^%$#-ed-up move) has warned residents of the coast line to prepare for the storm, which was a scant 300 miles off the coast only this morning. Moving at about 20 mph, the storm should hit sometime late this evening.

And for those of us along the Southern N.E. Coast (specifically RI and MA) should expect to be hit tomorrow at some point. Accordingly, I hope you have flashlights, candles, food, water and ghost stories to get you all through any times of power outage, which is quite likely, give the wind, the trees, etc. Depending on how close Hurricane Earl comes to us, we could face tropical storm-, or even hurricane-force winds. Be prepared, Ok?

Next in our Celebrity Drug Bust-a-thon comes Rapper T.I. arrested on drug charges, along with his wife, Tameka Cottle, who’s first name comes up as a spelling error on this computer. Doesn’t mean a damn thing, but I just thought I’d point it out. Good for you, Tameka. See, there, it happened again.

T.I. (aka Clifford Harris, Jr.) and his wife, Tameka “Tiny” Cottle were driving around West Hollywood, when they were pulled over because of (shades of Paris Hilton in Vegas) a big cloud of marijuana smoke was coming from the car, which made even California police take notice. I’d like to ask, at this point, have celebrities ever thought of closing the tinted windows and letting the AC disappate the smoke? Or even wait until you get to the VIP room to light up? I’m just sayin’, it might reduce these sort of hassles.

Speaking of hassles, TI had just been let out of prison back in March, after serving time on a weapons charge, so this little escapade constitutes violation of parole, and that’s never good.  So far, the arresting officers, nor the Sheriff’s Office have commented on why T.I. was pulled over, which is odd. You’d think if it was a traffic violation, they’d say that. What’s the secret here?

“TI arrested” news probably doesn’t surprise a lot of people, given his record and his rep, but it does raise a few questions.

News that there has been yet another Gulf of Mexico oil rig explosion should come as no surprise to environmental activists, scientists, local residents, and really, anyone with IQ points in the triple digits.

Early today, there was another oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico, just to the west of the site of British petroleum’s “Big April Uh-Oh,” that you may or may not have heard about over the last half-year. I mean, again, for the triple-digit IQers, yes, of course, you’ve heard of what was the greatest environmental disaster in U.S. History, but if you are one of the Tea Party People, you must’ve missed it while you were feeling bad for British Petroleum’s Big talking-To from the Obama administration, and chanting “Drill, Baby, Drill!” along with Sarah Palin, and other environmental double-digit folk.

Reports sent by a helicopter in the region, reported an explosion close to 9:30 am. Several Coast Guard boats and helicopters were dispatched to the area, which is some 80 miles out into the Gulf of Mexico from the central Louisiana shoreline. Fortunately, unlike the the April rig explosion, no one has been reported dead, and all 13 crew members have escaped.

This time, fortunately, the rig – which is in water 2.5 thousand feet deep, was not active, since we really don’t need anymore than the 200+ barrels of oil that leaked from BP’s Folly, and cost the lives of 11 American citizens, who have gone fairly forgotten in the whole mess.

But, as we would like to point out, it is, yet another Gulf of Mexico oil rig explosion, so maybe – just maybe – it’s time to take another look at what is going on down there. We don’t need another Gulf of Mexico oil rig explosion; we need active research and development of solar, wind and geothermal power. Now, please.

There was a tense hostage situation today at the Discovery Communications building, as a man armed with a gun and with several “unidentified canisters” strapped to his body, entered the Cable network’s HQ in Silver Springs, MD early this afternoon, where he took a total of three hostages. All of the rest of the nearly 2,000 employees made it out safe, all with all the children at the company provided daycare.

Police have identified the man, as James J. Lee, an unemployed man who said he had been inspired by two recent environmental call-to-arms, and was upset at Discovery Communications for what he saw as dangerous programming that has betrayed the environmentalist movements.

After clearing the building as much as possible, police attempted to negotiate with the man, who had been arrested once before in front of the Discovery Communications building, for disorderly conduct, back in 2008.  Reports of that arrest show that Lee had hired homeless people, at $100 each, to help carry protest signs. he even gave $1,000 to someone for an essay they wrote. Then, as people surrounded him, Lee began throwing money in the air, declaring it “useless and wrong.”

While he was ordered to have a doctor’s evaluation and stay away from the building, Lee only spent a short time in jail for that event.

Lee stated in a 2008 tirade on his website, that Discovery Communications is doing real damage, while hiding behind a veil of “environmental concern.” In particular he accused one program, Planet Green, as a mere shill for expensive products, and instead of trying to help save the planet, Discovery Communications were in fact, harming the planet. For one, they weren’t doing enough, in Lee’s mind, to stop population growth by promoting sterilization.

Apparently Whale Wars, where the struggle of animal activists vs. whaling ships is chronicled, just didn’t cut it for James. No word what he though of shows like Cash Cab, much less what, if anything, he thought of shows on TLC (another Discovery Communication’s property) that features such ozone-savaging garbage as Kate Plus Eight and American Chopper.

In the end, the hostage crisis was ended when police shot James. His condition is unknown at this time. Also, there were reports of an explosion within the building, but that too is unconfirmed.

So… here’s my question: was Lee an concerned activist who was driven over the edge by the size of the fight he sees in front of us all, as a species? Or was he a distraction? A way for Discovery Channel – and by extension, most of the Environmentalist movement – to be discredited, thereby casting aspersions on anyone who believes animals are being driven to extinction, polar ice caps are melting, etc., etc.

Either way, one man is shot, nearly 2000 were scared, and the polar ice caps are still vanishing, and Discovery Communications is still there.