Oklahoma Braces for Major Ice Storm

Posted on 28. Jan, 2010 by M.L. Zupan in Local, Local Weather, Video

It has already being compared to the ice storm of 2007 and it hasn’t even arrived. Power lines were down, large old trees snapped like twigs under the weight of the thick heavy ice. Oklahoma City lay crippled under a blanket of ice.

Now, with the approach of the first major storm of 2010, Oklahoma residence are hoping for the best – but preparing for the worst.

Oklahoman Weather

If there is one thing that Oklahomans’ like to talk about – it’s the weather. And this year has given them much to share. Record snows of 14.5 inches fell of on Christmas Eve leaving Oklahoma in a state-of-emergency for almost a week. They have had ample time to sit around and compare it to storms past. And it was much to talk about – only six times in one hundred and fifty years has it ever snowed on Christmas Eve – and when it did it was never that much. Now the kids of today will sit around years from now and say to their kids: “I remember that big Snow of ‘09″.

In the same fashion people are talking about the “big ice storm of 2007″. And they had much to talk about. Over half a million people were out of power. It was reported as “one of the worst that the State of Oklahoma has experienced“.

Yesterday, Jan. 26, 2010 – with reports that the coming storm could be as bad as the “ice storm of 2007″ people were out in massé stocking up on all essential items and preparing to be ice in for several days. The Super Walmart parking lot on Pennsylvania Avenue near Memorial Ave. looked like “Black Friday” all over again – and that was in the middle of the afternoon. Aldi, Buy-4-Less and others looked the same way.

0815 hours: Temperatures have just reached freezing just north of central Oklahoma City and a light drizzling, freezing rain has begun to fall. At the moment the streets are relatively dry; however, south of Oklahoma City, conditions have already started to get worse.

For a current listing of Closings in the metro area visit Oklahoma Weather-Related Closings at NewsOK.com

We will be following the storm and conditions as they progress.

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Official Death Toll in Haiti Rises Over 111,000

Posted on 23. Jan, 2010 by M.L. Zupan in Feature, Hot Topics, Video, World

Over 111,000 have been confirmed dead from the 7.0 earthquake that rocked Haiti just over a week ago according to an official government figure released by the United Nations.

Over 600,000 people have been left homeless in and around the capital of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. In order to get a better understanding of what that means we have compared it to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Oklahoma City has an official population of 444,719 people. Over 25% of the people would be dead and the entire population would be without homes and still the numbers can’t compare.

No Food, No Water, No Electricity, No Shelter

The basic things that we take for granted – they have none. Not since the tsunami in Asia in 2004 has there been a natural disaster of  this magnitude.

A Glimmer of Hope!

After more than of week of herculean effort – relief aid is finally starting to arrive in quantities that will begin to do some good. Efforts had been blocked by the destruction in the port and at the airport. Little more than a few flights a day were able to arrive and take-off jamming the small airport. Military personnel and have been working round-the-clock to open the port. Now, Port-au-Prince is able to receive between 120-140 flights per day at their single-runway airport as opposed to 25 flights.

Haiti Is In Desperate Need Of Your Support

Posted on 18. Jan, 2010 by Editor in Hot Topics, Video, World

The Week in Haiti

CBS News’ Jeff Glor is in Haiti and provides a timeline of the events immediately after the devastating earthquake that has wrecked unthinkable destruction.
– CNN News

Now, as the city lies in ruins and rescue workers continue to try desperately for any remaining survivors,  the needs of the living continue to mount.

The needs of the living are many. Among one of the greatest needs is water and basic food items.

We at CIDANews.com would like to urge you to get involved in the rescue and relief effort. In a previous article: Haiti Earthquake Victims – An Urgent Appeal For Help – we talked about what you could do as part of the relief effort if you are unable to give money.

We will continue to bring ideas to the forefront with the hopes that everybody will get involved somehow.

“Texting for Haiti” Relief Fund:

Texting for Haiti is the newest way you can help by giving finances. By texting the word “Haiti” to the following number: “90999″ you will be able to give directly the “American Red Cross” Haiti relief effort. The donation is a $10.00 donation and will be applied to your next cell phone bill.

Also, you can contact your local Red Cross and ask them if you can bring products directly to them that will be distributed to Haiti. Things like:

• Cases of Water
• Cans of baked beans (or cases – they are easier to ship if they can be stacked)
• Cans of beans
• Jars (preferably plastic) of Peanut Butter
• Items high in protein (non-perishable)
• Baby Food will be in high demand – evaporated milk products, dry milk, etc…
• Blankets
• Rice
• Noodles
• Lentil Beans
• etc…

One item at a time can make all the difference in the world.

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra – One of The Most Anticipated Movie of 2009.

Posted on 03. Jan, 2010 by Saisha Jones in Entertainment, Movie Reviews, Video

G.I Joe: The Rise of Cobra is a 2009 American live-action film adaptation of the G.I. Joe toy franchise, the story follows two American soldiers, Duke and Ripcord, who join the G.I. Joe Team after being attacked by MARS troops. Filming took place in Downey, California and Prague’s Barrandov Studios, and six different companies handled the visual effects.

The plot of the movie begins with the Scotsman Klan McCullen being accused of selling weaponry to both the Scots and French. The jury brands his face with a white-hot mask in order to humiliate him, rather than executing for treason. In the near future, weapons expert James McCullen (Christopher Eccleston) creates a nanotechnology-based weapon capable of destroying an entire city. His company MARS sells four warheads to NATO, and the U.S. Army is tasked with delivering the warheads. Duke and Ripcord are rescued by Scarlett (Rachel Nichols), Snake Eyes (Ray Park) and Heavy Duty (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje). Duke (Channing Tatum) and Ripcord (Marlon Wayans) are delivering the warheads when they are ambushed by the Baroness (Sienna Miller), who Duke recognized to be his ex-fiance Ana Lewis. The warheads are taken to The Pit, G.I. Joe’s command center in North Africa, and upon arriving rendezvous with General Hawk (Dennis Quaid), the head of the G.I. Joe Team. Hawk takes command of the war-heads and excuses Duke and Ripcord, only to be convinced to have them join his group after Duke reveals that he knows the Baroness.

The filming of this movie began on February 11, 2008, in Los Angeles, California. The Downey sound-stage was chosen as Paramount needed a large stage to get production underway as soon as possible. The first two levels of the Pit were built there, to complement the rest of the building which would be done with special effects. Downey also housed Destro’s MARS base in the Arctic, his legitimate weapons factory in an ex-Soviet state, as well as various submarines interiors, including a SHARC (Submersible High-speed Attack and Reconnaissance Craft) manned by two G.I. Joes.

Digital Domain which handled the Paris action, sequences and the opening convoy sequence was the most prominent of the six different visual effects companies who worked in The Rise of Cobra. For the Eiffel Tower destruction, a special code for depicting how the crumbling metal works was written. The technicians had access to the original building plans, and built a digital model so complex that could not fit in a single file to create the digital Eiffel Tower. The nanomites used two different proprietary software for their depiction, one by Digital Domain, and another by, which also created tools to generate 3D cloud and sky environments for the aerial scenes. The landing platform of the Pit, the Cobra ice caverns, and the final underwater battle were the scenarios which were almost fully developed by computer-generated imagery.

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra is a record-breaking movie with all the latest effects & adventures. G.I JOE was a mass enthralling movie which ruled the box office for years & its sequel is creating a widespread trend all over.

What is the final verdict? Is it a “watcher”, “keeper” or “filer”? A “watcher” is a movie that you could watch one time, it was good once but you could live without seeing it again. A “keeper” is a movie that you have-to-have in your movie collection for all time to pass down to your children and your children’s children. And a “filer” – well you have probably heard of “File 13″ that place designated for trash. It’s a “why did I waste my money on it once movie – I hope nobody saw me coming out of the movie theater or dvd rental store with that movie” a “I wouldn’t wish that on my neighbors dog movie and I don’t even like my neighbors dog”.

Oklahoma City Blizzard Winter Storm Aftermath 2009

Posted on 26. Dec, 2009 by M.L. Zupan in Local, Local Weather, Video

Blizzard of the Century Dumps Record Snow on Oklahoma City

Forty eight hours after the worst winter storm in decades dumped record snow on Oklahoma City – Oklahomans are still looking for snow plows to clear off roadways.

Although the state-of-emergency is officially over and the highways and interstates are once again opened to traffic – the roads are still treacherous. Vehicles are still stuck along the roadways and now the roads are iced over as well as buried in with snow.

Coming from a state where they are used to having feet of snow each time it snows, I am not used to the in-efficiency of the oklahoman road crews as far as getting the roads cleared for traffic.

One would at least expect to see the main thoroughfares plowed and transversable. Alas, that is not to be. I must resign myself to the fact that this is a southern state and is – in general – ill equipped, and ill-prepared to handle any serious amount of snowfall.

It it Oklahoma’s fault? Absolutely not! Why should they prepare for the worst snowfall in Oklahoman recorded history with expensive equipment and hundreds of extra manpower when they are only going to use it every 128 years? No reason that I can think of!

Did I say 128 years?

Yes! Oklahoma had a record of 14.1 inches of snowfall in the blizzard on Dec. 24, 2009. That is the most snowfall in a 24hour period that has fallen since they started recording accurate weather data back in 1890.

Oklahoma Work Crews

If you do not have to be out during this time in the snow and the ice – please be advised to stay home. Give the work crews that are out there working hard to clear the roads the room to move about without having to worry about vehicles in the ditches or stopping in the middle of the road. If they don’t have to work around you  they will be able to do a much better job.

If you do have to be out there on the roadways – drive with caution! Remember that under the snow is ice and bridges are especially dangerous. Take an extra blanket and put it in your car in case you get stranded. You may be driving fine – however, you may get stuck behind someone else who is less fortunate.

Make sure your cell phone is charged before you go out. If you do happen to get stuck – you will be able to phone for help. And above all – dress warmly. It sounds simple; but I saw a man this morning in nothing more than a t-shirt getting into his truck. It was 20°F. When the sun is shining, the temperature may feel warm but it can be deceptive. Frostbite is not worth the price to pay for looking cool in sub-zero temperatures.

This is M.L. Zupan for CIDANews.com – Be safe, be warm and enjoy this beautiful white Christmas season.

Oklahoma City Gets White Christmas

Posted on 24. Dec, 2009 by M.L. Zupan in Local, Local Weather, Video

Winter blizzard blankets Oklahoma City

The cold weather has been coming for weeks in Oklahoma City this year. Already we have had more below freezing temperatures than all of last year. And finally, the big winter storm of the season has hit with ferocity.

Unrelenting, the wind has been blowing 30-35 mph all day and the blizzard conditions have prevailed. With temperatures dropping down to 23°F and a wind chill factor of -6°F – the National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma issued a severe winter storm warning for central and northern Oklahoma.

Progression of the winter blizzard of 2009
Oklahoma City Photos

Energy Efficient “Luscious” – Going Electric on Who’s Dime?

Posted on 27. Sep, 2008 by Editor in Hot Topics, Video

Energy Efficiency, Really?

CNN posted a great video interview today on their website called “Cars go electric at ‘Luscious’” and I applaud them for their story. As a matter of fact, check out the video and see for yourself in the article:

Carolyn Coquillette, owner of Luscious Garage is doing everything in her knowledge helping individuals save gas, become less dependent on fossil fuels, and more efficient on the motorways. Her garage turns regular hybrid, gas dependent vehicles into electric dependent vehicles with gas backup. This is a great concept and we applaud her and her work.

Unfortunately, what is not being reported is “Who is going to pay for the electricity”?

If news agencies like CNN would face the truth and really dig into a story that is worthwhile – they would be pointing out such discrepancies in their articles. Let’s face the facts and write about them.

• Fact: Automobile manufactures have been able to produce fully electric cars for at least twenty years.
  • Question: Why don’t they?
• Fact: Oil companies are getting fat manipulating the production of oil into gasoline.
  • Question: Who makes the profit on electric cars?
• Fact: Electric Automobiles are a great idea!
  • Question: Who pays for the electricity used?

The problem is not energy efficient automobiles or all electric automobiles – the problem is “who is going to pay for the electricity?”

Picture if you will – You are a business owner of a truck stop in the Midwest of America. You sell fuel. Then, all of a sudden one hundred vehicles per/day start stopping at your truck stop to fuel up – but not on gas, on your electrical outlets. They are using your electricity charging their vehicles and there go your profits. The Electric Company in your neighborhood might send you a special card at Christmas for the added profits to their coffers – but how does it help you?

That is only one scenario. I am sure that the local grocery store will be glad to foot the bill for your electric car when you pull in to buy groceries. What about your local hairdresser? Or your favorite fast-food restaurant? Wouldn’t they just love to pay for your energy efficient car to be able to fuel up while you eat? I don’t think so!

And these are just some of the reasons that electric, energy efficient automobiles have not become popular in reality. Nobody else wants to foot the bill for your electric usage while you fuel up your batteries and two: the electric companies have not figured out a cost effective means to charge you for it.

Real solutions to the energy crisis have yet to be brought out into the open. Perhaps these questions will help to bring some new ideas to mind and the means to accomplish the mission. If we really want to – we can come up with a solution – otherwise it is all just talk.

If you have any ideas that could really be part of the solution write them in comments – we would love to hear from you.