Hambone v3.0

Monday Open Comments

Curiosity rover finds key ingredient for past life on Mars

New  samples collected and analyzed by NASA’s Curiosity rover are pushing researchers closer than ever to finding out if Mars was once truly capable of supporting life. According to a paper published on April 18 in Nature, ancient geologic samples indicate the Red Planet at one time featured a carbon cycle—an atmospheric condition that’s necessary for sustaining liquid water on the Martian surface. Taken together with previous evidence pointing to the existence of dried rivers, lakes, and possibly even oceans, it’s looking increasingly likely that Earth’s neighbor featured at least some form of life in its distant past.

… One of the mission’s long term goals has been digging deep enough into the geological layers so that researchers can peer as far back into the planet’s history as possible. Recently, Curiosity achieved just that at three sulfate-rich drill sites located on Gale Crater’s Mount Sharp.

/snip

“The discovery of large carbon deposits in Gale Crater represents both a surprising and important breakthrough in our understanding of the geologic and atmospheric evolution of Mars,” Tutolo said in a statement. “The abundance of highly soluble salts in these rocks and similar deposits mapped over much of Mars has been used as evidence of the ‘great drying” of Mars during its dramatic shift from a warm and wet early Mars to its current, cold and dry state.”

Previously, experts learned the ancient Martian atmosphere was rich in carbon dioxide (CO2), but lacked enough evidence of sedimentary carbonate materials. These materials would suggest that Mars once included enough carbon dioxide in its atmosphere to support not just ice, but liquid water. …

“The broader implications are [that] the planet was habitable up until this time, but then, as the CO2 that had been warming the planet started to precipitate as siderite, it likely impacted Mars’ ability to stay warm,” Tutolo explained.

/snip

“The most remarkable thing about Earth is that it’s habitable and it has been for at least four billion years. Something happened to Mars that didn’t happen to Earth,” said Tutolo, before offering a word of caution:

“Studying the collapse of Mars’ warm and wet early days also tells us that habitability is a very fragile thing.”

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44 responses to “Monday Open Comments”

  1. Dr phil Good-E=1984 Avatar
    Dr phil Good-E=1984

    According to uncklo’s 8:10pm post from yesterday he was actually living the part of Peter Gibbons.

    Ahh, I’m going to have to go ahead and ask you to come in on Sunday, too…

  2. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    Pope Francis has died on Easter Monday aged 88.

    At 9:45 AM, Cardinal Kevin Farrell, Camerlengo of the Apostolic Chamber, announced the death of Pope Francis from the Casa Santa Marta with these words:

    “Dearest brothers and sisters, with deep sorrow I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis. At 7:35 this morning, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the Father. His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and of His Church. He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage, and universal love, especially in favor of the poorest and most marginalized. With immense gratitude for his example as a true disciple of the Lord Jesus, we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the infinite merciful love of the One and Triune God.”

    The Pope was admitted to the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic Hospital on Friday, February 14, 2025, after suffering from a bout of bronchitis for several days.

    Mornin’ Gang

  3. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    Re: Pope Francis

    Gone, gone, the damage done.

  4. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    What do you want to bet that the next Pope will be black? You know, diversity, much more important than qualifications.
    Remember you heard it here first. 🙁

    1. Texpat Avatar
      Texpat

      Maybe, but…the southern hemisphere Catholic clerisy, as well as Protestant denominations, has been far more conservative and traditional in their principles and ideology than the European and American versions.

      Pope Francis was from Argentina which makes him far closer to Italy in heritage, attitude and culture than Mexico or Brazil.

  5. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    Speaking of the Pope, where is Tedtam? I know it’s early but I figured we’d here from our Catholic expert.

  6. wagonburner Avatar
    wagonburner

    Do they still bonk the recently departed popes on the noggin with a silver mallet to make sure they’re not faking it?

    1. Bonecrusher Avatar
      Bonecrusher

      Just to be sure they are completely dead .

  7. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    Bang, bang, Maxwell’s silver hammer came down upon his head….

  8. Dr phil Good-E=1984 Avatar
    Dr phil Good-E=1984

    The rogue and Supremely corrupt court of kangarooed penguins defiles America in the dead of night and on the 250th anniversary of Paul Revere’s midnight ride.

    the Kenyan has his fourth term via the federal and supremely corrupt kangaroos and a republicant’s do nothing congress. again.

    https://www.zerohedge.com/political/alito-calls-supreme-court-block-venezuelan-gang-deportations-legally-questionable

  9. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    I didn’t want to jump into the dead pope discussion too enthusiastically, so I went through my usual ritual of coffee and beads and prayer. I prayed five decades for Bergoglio (the Sorrowful mysteries, dealing with Jesus’ agony and torture, and sacrifice on the cross – I thought it was appropriate).

    While I am glad he is gone, and am fighting the urge to dance on his grave, I am also reminded that no matter how misguided he was, how much damage he did to Jesus’ Church, no matter how far he may have been into the hands of evil – his soul still belongs to God, and by God he will be judged and sentenced for his eternity. God is merciful, but also just. I do not know if pachapapa’s last thoughts were “forgive me, Lord” or his first revelation on the other side of the veil was “oops!”. That is between him and God. I pray for his soul, because God wants all souls with him in Heaven. For this He sent His only begotten Son, and yesterday is a reminder of just how much He loves us all.

    So, now my focus is on prayers for the cardinals in the next conclave. Believe it or not, we could do worse than the last one. If Cardinal Roach Roche is elevated – and he is among the papabile – things become infinitely worse for us traditional Catholics. Pietro Perolin has openly been politicking for the job, and he’s maybe one notch better. The St. Gallen Mafia has already been meeting and preparing to do again what they did the last time.

    I pray for my beloved Church daily.

    I would love for Vigano to be made Pope, but those odds are about the same as me giving birth again. Cardinal Sarah, from Africa, has a better chance, but he’s a moderate candidate who will probably not do the house cleaning needed at the Vatican. In my dreams, I pray for Fr. Altman to be elevated – that would mean massive cleaning, returning to the traditional faith and norms, and a real shepherd. Again, those odds….but I can dream.

    Contrary to the belief held by some, the Holy Spirit does *not* select the next Pope. Otherwise the horrific Popes from the past would not have been elected. The Holy Spirit is available to the cardinals for guidance, but they have free will to listen to it or not, and many of those channels for receiving God’s will are blocked by personal ambition, greed, or fear.

    Many of us are now praying for the Cardinals. May their choice be just, righteous, and fearless.

  10. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    I hear the secular media is already trying to canonize pachapapa.

    That speaks volumes about what kind of Pope he was.

    1. Super Dave Avatar
      Super Dave

      That speaks volumes about what kind of Pope he was.

      AMEN!!!!

  11. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    I missed Malone’s Friday Funnies.

    If y’all figure out the license plate one, let me know.

    1. Bonecrusher Avatar
      Bonecrusher

      Chemical formula for glucose
      The car is a cube so it is a sugar cube

      1. Tedtam Avatar
        Tedtam

        SUGAR CUBE! I get it now!

  12. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    Not much of a C&C roundup today, so I guess I have to dive in first. It’s judicially related, so I anticipate Mr. C. will be wearing his lawyer hat prominently today.

    Good morning, C&C, it’s Monday! I hope everyone enjoyed a joyful and fulfilling holiday weekend. Today, we have two amazing stories, twin tales of double judicial meltdown. Let’s get after it.

  13. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    Wow. Just wow.

    On March 3rd, Las Cruces Magistrate Judge Jose Cano (D) quietly resigned from the bench after three re-elections since 2011. On the same day, prosecutors were down the street in federal district court arguing that a recent arrestee, a Venezuelan national named Christhian Lopez-Ortega, 23, was a Tren de Aragua gang member and a flight risk.

    The two men’s connection defies belief.

    While Christhian was caught entering illegally, he was released several days later. Homeland was tipped off that he was living at Judge Cano’s casita, a guest cottage in his back yard.

    Did the judge’s family actually think they were rehabbing this felon? Let’s just say the evidence indicates that they failed, but the illegal was grateful for their support and their cover. I won’t describe the picture that was included in the evidence against him.

    Troublingly, the local federal Magistrate judge overruled Lopez-Ortega’s bond, rebuffing federal prosecutors and saying something like, “I’m sure he’s okay if he’s living with Judge Cano.” The federal judge even tried to remit the gang member back into Nancy Cano’s custody.

    /snip

    This story involves two judges. The first, a sitting state judge embroiled in what appears at minimum to be a non-traditional relationship with a member of a designated terrorist organization, an illegal, gang-tattooed alien the Cano family shared everything with including their firearms, and a second local federal judge who in open court said he would release the man because he was friends with the first judge.

    /snip

    … the corruption of local judiciary is one of the first and most critical steps that cartel-style organizations take when consolidating soft territorial control.

    Biden built that!

    Cartels are cagey, sly, and experienced. They don’t roll into a new area in hummers holding assault rifles. They quietly assimilate and get a read on the local judicial and law enforcement arena….

    I’ve heard this technique being used on border agents: you’re either with us or you’re dead. “Plata or plomo. Silver or lead.”

    So the cartels have figured out that the judiciary is their ticket into controlling our society. And the libs are more than happy to jump onto that ride. /spits/

    Here’s a link to the government’s motion for reconsideration, but note that some of the final attachments are graphic.

    Thus, we begin to see the abolition of the judiciary. And over the weekend, the Supreme Court made things much, much, worse. Or more interesting, depending how you look at it.

  14. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    Next up: the SCOTUS deportation decision:

    In another record-shattering development, the New York Times ran a non-story, a story that was no story at all, topped with an intentionally neutral headline, and just reprinting a Supreme Court dissent in full. The headline only said, “Read Justice Samuel Alito’s Dissent in the Alien Enemies Act Case.” The ‘story,’ if you can call it that, was a single sentence. All the Times could manage to eke out was, “Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote that the Supreme Court’s decision to block the Trump administration from deporting Venezuelan migrants under a wartime law was premature.”

    Hardly. He said a lot more than that. At midnight on Saturday night, Justice Samuel Alito, joined by Justice Thomas, filed a scorcher of a dissent. It responded to a previous midnight decision in AARP vs. Trump, in which the seven other justices had joined on an emergency basis. Justice Alito’s dissent was white-hot.

    Basically, the SCOTUS is trying to avoid the “oops, those illegals are already in international space, judge”. Others see this as SCOTUS overreaching, much like the lower courts, lacking jurisdiction for this ruling.

    … I think everything is going to work out fine, and I don’t want to waste time with the details of yet more leftwing lawfare that is going nowhere.

    But this snap, midnight Supreme Court decision put what could be the final polish on a galaxy-sized issue that nobody has dared to consider so far.

    The U.S. Constitution mentions an archaic, oddly-named privilege called the writ of habeas corpus in its Article I, Section 9, Clause 2. Let’s read Clause 2 together:

    “The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.”

    Lincoln suspended habeas corpus during the Civil War: even though SCOTUS tried to force Lincoln to abide by their decision:

    … since Clause 2 appears in Article I, it’s a power held by Congress, not by the Executive Branch.

    Lincoln merely extended his very long middle finger and ignored the Court. And the finger remained in its vertical position, despite the Court’s efforts to free Merryman, the individual who was the focus of the legal fracas.

    …in the years following Merryman, the Supreme Court has carefully danced around the authority issue and has never formally held that a sitting president cannot suspend the writ without Congress.

     

  15. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    A hard core left wing rabbi I know told me 10 years ago he was thrilled with Pope Francis. I looked at him and just shook my head. I knew then we were in deep trouble.

  16. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    I think I may have won an appeal with my prescription plan to cover a special drug I take for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis that will save me $10,000 a year.

  17. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    Has Trump been preparing for just this legal argument? Upon planting hisself in Oval Office chair, he immediately declared an “invasion”.

    Invasion is one of only two constitutional grounds for suspending the writ. Second, Trump has invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 —the Act at the heart of these key cases— which invokes precedent for wartime-style legal authority over foreign nationals, bypassing peacetime due process protections.

    Trump’s legal dancing around Boasberg’s rulings is pushing the issue.

    Third, and maybe most importantly, everything we can see is barreling toward galvanized public support for suspending the writ. Trump and his allies have consistently described the crisis as unlawful judges defying the will of the people —just as in Lincoln’s day— and interfering with the President’s electoral mandate to remove foreign terrorists and cartel gangs from American shores.

    In about twenty different ways, Trump has recently said things like, “I’m trying to protect the country—but judges are protecting criminals.”

    Mr. C. reminds us that our system is designed for individual court hearings, not large scale deportations. Hearings for the estimated 20M illegals would take us into the end times before they were all completed.

    … Removal at scale is impossible unless one of two things happens: either a massive, rapid expansion of the legal system, which is unlikely to say the least, or removal of the judicial bottleneck.

    Here’s where things get spicy. Trump, citing judges making it impossible for him to fulfill his mass deportation promises, could next ask Congress to authorize suspension of the writ in a continuing resolution, which circumvents the Senate filibuster….

    If Trump succeeds via the CR, then we have a Lincoln-type situation: two branches against one, and SCOTUS would be impotent. Since Congress can suspend the writ, there’s no legal standing to refuse it.

    Again, it looks like Trump is playing chess against his opponents’ checkers. Mr. C. gives a few possible alternatives by the Court, but…

    But instead, the Courts are walking right into the trap. In their institutional vanity, procedural rigidity, and Trump derangement, the courts are doing exactly what executive strategists want them to do: lean hard into due process formalism, telegraph hostility, and issue sweeping rulings that look like they’re siding with gang-affiliated aliens over national security.`

    Yeah, that’s a bad look on ya’ judges.

    It practically invites defiance. It lets Trump rightfully say, Look, I didn’t want to ignore the courts—but I have no choice. They’ve made the country ungovernable.

    Trump is forcing the courts into a clear choice: cooperate or become irrelevant.

  18. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    Mr. C. makes the strategy so clear:

    And so we return to Justice Alito’s scathing dissent, which reads like a manifesto for suspension of the writ. The logic and tone of Alito’s dissent make it clear that he sees judicial overreach as the true constitutional crisis, rather than executive enforcement.

    When Alito wrote, “Both the Executive and the Judiciary have an obligation to follow the law,” he was saying that when the Executive uses legal tools like the Alien Enemies Act and constitutional powers during a crisis, the Court’s role is to tread lightly.

    By pointing out the absurdity of class-wide habeas, and the procedural circus of midnight TROs based on speculative harms, Alito implictly argued that the writ is being abused by the courts— which sets the stage for suspending it entirely.

    There’s more, but I’ll let you read it for yourself.

  19. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    AG Hamilton is the pseudonym of a very bright attorney who is a frequent poster on X.

    I wonder how many of these Tucker Carlson believes.

    In just the last few months, Candace Owens has said or insinuated that:

    – Israel was involved with 9/11

    – The earth may be flat

    – It’s absurd to believe dinosaurs roamed the earth and were killed by an asteroid

    – Macron’s wife is secretly a man

    – Jews were behind the Bolshevik revolution and it was secretly a genocide targeting Christians that was worse than the Holocaust

    – The Holocaust is either fake or severely exaggerated

    – The crimes of the allies in WWII and post-WWII were worse than anything the Nazis did

    – The deportation of ethnic Germans from the rest of Europe post-WWII was worse than The Holocaust

    – US dropped the bomb on Nagasaki to target Christians

    – Israel/AIPAC/Jews were secretly behind the JFK assassination

    – A secret cabal of Hollywood Jews were behind the death of Michael Jackson and people around him.

    If you can’t see what she’s doing and the extent to which she’s trying to normalize the most absurd and offensive beliefs, I don’t know what to tell you.

    1. Shannon Avatar
      Shannon

      She’s beginning to make Louie Farrakhan look like a piker.

    2. wagonburner Avatar
      wagonburner

      The butter slid off her noodles quite a while ago.

  20. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    When I woke up early this morning I was laughing to myself about the conspiracy morons claiming Trump sent JD Vance to the Vatican to secretly kill the Pope. It was my own inside joke. Sure enough, hours before sunup, the people who should be confined to asylums were already at it.

    Look at him and his poisonous handshake. No wonder the Pope dropped dead the day after.

    plus,

    I’d probably die the next day if I was forced to meet JD Vance too so I feel the energy Pope Francis. Insane aura to pull this off though, perfect way for a great man to go out, with great symbolism. Likely to be the last “woke” Pope for the rest of history if I had to guess.

    1. Shannon Avatar
      Shannon

      Stupid woman doesn’t understand that you don’t offer a full handshake to a Pope – or any frail elderly person..

  21. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    I don’t keep up with 99% of celebrity gossip mainly because I don’t know who most of them are. However, this is so weird I was completely convinced it is a hoax.

    In one of the more shocking relationship reveals, Elizabeth Hurley announced on Easter Sunday that she’s in a relationship with Billy Ray Cyrus. 

    “Wait….what?” actress Melissa Gilbert, who played Laura Ingalls on Little House on the Prairie, wrote on Instagram. 

    Exactly, Melissa.

     

    This one caught everyone off-guard considering you’re taking an elite British bikini model and throwing her into a relationship with a tatted-up, possibly plastic surgeried 63-year-old Billy Ray (99.5% chance he’s had some work done) who has this weird dyed black beard thing going on. 

    Hurley, 59, seemed to be at an age where she had her choice of men who don’t look like they beg for change on a Nashville street corner, but here we are with Billy Ray stealing her achy, breaky heart.

    1. Shannon Avatar
      Shannon

      I actually remember Hurley. And Cyrus.
      They’re a couple of Hollywood / Entertainment types.
      What’s so surprising about them getting together?

      1. Shannon Avatar
        Shannon

        I quit trying to figure out Women’s Taste In Men at least sixty years ago.

  22. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    I’m finally getting hungry. Think I’ll have some eggs. And bacon. Lent is over.

    Bacon. Just because I can.

  23. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    Getting my HEB shopping done, two days late.
    18 cnt large (Burton, TX) eggs – $4.45

    1. Super Dave Avatar
      Super Dave

      About $3 Bucks a dozen, sounds like eggs are back to normal? FWIW; I’ve not bought an egg since early 2019. 😉

  24. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    From the Clown News Network:

    Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem fell victim to a thief while eating dinner at a downtown Washington, DC, restaurant Sunday night, the secretary confirmed Monday.

    /snip

    The Secret Service, which provides security for Noem, reviewed security camera footage at the Capital Burger restaurant and saw an unknown white male wearing a medical mask steal her bag and leave the restaurant, a law enforcement source said.

    The thief got away with Noem’s driver’s license, medication, apartment keys, passport, DHS access badge, makeup bag, blank checks, and about $3,000 in cash…

  25. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    Corny Ball question/comment for the day;
    What has two Butts and kills people?
    An Assassin. 😀

  26. Dr phil Good-E=1984 Avatar
    Dr phil Good-E=1984

    As I predicted gorsack and the drunk sided with phony Barrett and in the John roberts, the highly compromised one, in their midnight hour travesty.

  27. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    This. So true.

  28. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    Her joy is so beautiful to watch.

    I did hear one good piece of news over the weekend: a record number of new Catholics were brought into the Church at the Easter vigil on Saturday night/Sunday morning. In France alone, over 10,000 were baptized, and I heard that at least 10% of those were from Islam.

    We need more, but that’s some good news.

    1. Bonecrusher Avatar
      Bonecrusher

      Dusty in here.

  29. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    From several posts on X:
    Pope Francis dies, Klaus Schwab resigns.

    I’m just saying what you’re all thinking…

  30. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    Harry Houdini action doll. 😀

  31. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    I just saw a TikTok posted by Walz’s daughter…who thinks that scumbag in El Salvador is equivalent to Jesus.

    I’m not really sure how we deal with 160,000,000 verifiable lunatics in one country.

  32. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    I just hope Disney isn’t to big to die.

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