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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72" style='word-wrap:break-word'><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #E1E1E1 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal><b>From:</b> spike@rainier66.com <spike@rainier66.com> <br><b>Subject:</b> ian came home<o:p></o:p></p></div></div><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>>…The eye of Ian is right over top where I cheerfully squandered my tragically misspent youth. …<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Well, they’re doing it again. In 2016 several news agencies were caught making storm news reports which were exaggerated: reporters in the wind, dramatically shouting into their microphones, leaning the wrong way, pretending to fight the ferocious wind, as pedestrians with no protective gear stroll by in the background with no apparent effects. As you may recall, I got on my soapbox at the time. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Technology and market forces have given us protective clothing designed for that purpose, freely available at the local riding apparel outlet: motorcycle gear. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>I went about this morning looking for news on my old stomping grounds, and once again found “news” stories made by “reporters” with loose-fitting windbreakers, all the better to flap in the breeze, shouting into a microphone, all completely unnecessarily, phony as a three dollar bill. All those “news” agencies, and none of them have thought of just having their reporter wear a Kevlar riding suit? Have they no motorcycle riders anywhere on their staff?<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Kevlar suits are already rain and wind resistant, so no need for the theatrical wet windbreakers, already made for having 70 mph winds, sturdy, tight fitting, protective, microphone already built into a protective full face helmet designed for high speed impact with bugs and bits of debris you don’t want embedded in your goddam eye, no need to shout into a microphone, for it is easy to talk in a normal voice while going highway speed with such an outfit. The “news” agencies have no actual need for anything more sophisticated than a cell phone and a motorcycle riding suit.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>And yet… for some reason (such as dramatic news sells but calm logical news does not) we still have these absurd faked and exaggerated “news” stories.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>These news agencies are STILL trying to fool us. Those of us who think of stuff like this are not fooled. I am betting if you are still reading down this far, you are not fooled either.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>spike<o:p></o:p></p></div></body></html>