Yeah, I know, picky picky.  But, for two+ years I've been reading on this forum, the mis-spelling of "original" has bugged me.  Kind of like a grain of sand in my sock.  Would it be difficult to remove that "o" from the title of this section?  If so, just ignore me.  BTW, mis-spellings in other posts don't really annoy, (not to pick on you Doug!)    This one I see every time I log on, and is a constant annoyance - just a minor peeve however.  Don't mean to be an proper English nazi, just thought I'd ask.  Thanks,
Ray

Yeah, you are right, I haven't ever seen a plane crash into a building or other solid object.  But, according to the video I saw, there was only one hole in the Pentagon, and it doesn't make sense to me that two 12 ton engines could have hit the concrete wall at several hundred mph without making a mark.  Kind of defies the laws of physics IMHO.  I'm still willing to be convinced, but haven't seen any actual evidence that supports the official version. 

Having said that, my faith in my government was pretty shaken a few decades ago when they wanted me to go kill some southeast Asians because they didn't believe in capitalism.   Though I still vote and participate in society in other ways, I don't necessarily believe everything they tell me.  I'll remain a skeptic until I see some physical proof.   
Ray

Re:  Dollar vs. Euro oil, Robt. Newman did a quite funny video on the History of Oil, in which he illustrates the effect of Saddam deciding to do oil exchanges in Euros vs. the dollar.
 http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7374585792978336967&q=genre%3Acomedy

All this stuff is quite complex, and likely impossible to explain in any visual medium.  Pretty interesting anyway.  How the peak oil effects will shake out is impossible to say - the advice in the peak oil webpage is quite good though - to be found on the bottom of the last page.  #1, get out of debt, #2 take care of your health, etc., etc.  Good advice no matter what happens in the next decade.  Hope  your New Year is a good one.   
Ray

If you have a fast connection and a couple hours, this movie will change the way you look at the world.  While aimed at those living in the US, it's relevant to nearly anyone.  Even if you don't believe it, you will look at social institutions a bit differently.
http://www.zeitgeistmovie.com/
Every one have a great new year - life is just too short not to enjoy it, at least occasionally, IMHO.   
Ray

Just a fyi, I guess.  Did my first oil change on my listeroid today - no filter, magnet, using 30 wt. detergent oil, ~30-40 hours, no meter so that's a guess.  Oil is a little darker, plenty of sludge down where it is supposed to be, some fur on the magnet, mostly covered with sludge.  The engine's been outside, covered, but subject to sun, rain & snow.  Likely some condensation in the oil.  It's a pain to change the oil, scraping out the sludge from the settling area.  If I was planning to live another 50 years, I might think of a filter, but probably it will be someone else's problem in 30 or less, so I'm not going to worry about it.   
Ray

I put 18"x3/4" j-bolts in concrete, with ~3" pieces of 3" pipe around the j-bolts, then mortared them in.  One thing I found was that the holes in the base of my Listeroid were only 5/8" in diameter.  I would have liked to drill them out to 3/4", but you need carbide drill bits to do that.  I ended up mounting the frame to the j-bolts, then bolting down the 5/8" mounting bolts to a connector.  So far so good, but think running the j-bolts up through the base of the Listeroid would be better.  You can get all sizes of j-bolts from McMaster, up to 24".  Best of luck.
Ray

Sigh       

I had avoided changing anything in the fuel system prior to this, because I was paranoid about all the fuel leaks that would occur.  Sadly, I have proven myself right - filter housing leaks now, regardless of how I feel about the filter, I think I'm going to have to replace the whole thing.  Likely will skip the traditional look and find a mounting for a spin-on filter, preferably one easy (and cheap) to replace.  It's all just money and time.   
Ray

My local heavy metal problem is residual mercury left in all the local streams from gold mining from 1850-1940.  Basically nothing can be done except limiting the amount of local fish one eats over time.  Much of it seems to sit in puddles deep in cracks and crevices.  A small amount is converted to methyl-mercury, which concentrates in insects then fish.  Then there is the tiny amount of DDT used on pear orchards in the '50's and '60's that likely shows up in my home grown vegetables.  I find it best to not even think about any of it much.
   
Ray