Honey, We’ve Shrunk the Bees

This is an important (dire) issue that not enough people are paying attention. Thank you, Wes!

CollTales

The Unbearable Silence of
Disappearing Pollinators

Be quiet for a moment. Can you hear it? Probably not, but it’s not all your fault. The sound that is missing is the buzzing of billions of bees, that have been disappearing at an alarming rate lately. And the deafening silence from most people, who remain aloof to all of it.
They’re up to a rude awakening, however. Managed care of honeybees, used to pollinate a third of U.S. foods, is on the verge of collapsing, in synch with the insects’ own collapse because of, you guessed it, our own doing. And the proposed solution won’t be enough to stop it.
Consider the Obama administration’s plan, announced this week, to counter a 42% loss of colonies reported last year by U.S. beekeepers. It’s been greeted with dismay by environmentalists because it doesn’t address the key factor that may be single-handedly causing their

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Jumble Spoiler – 05/23/15

Lawn in front of the White House, Washington, DC. Français : La pelouse devant la Maison Blanche, Washington (District de Columbia), États-Unis. Italiano: Il giardino di fronte alla Casa Bianca a Washington, Stati Uniti d’America. 日本語: ワシントンD.C.ホワイトハウス前の芝地。 Polski: Trawnik ogrodu Białego Domu, Waszyngton, Dystrykt Columbia (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Visual Description:  Jeff Knurek and Stephan Pastis . . . persons of interest.

DRAYT  =  TARDY,  CINEE  =  NIECE,  KANEEW  =  WEAKEN,  TOATOT  =  TATTOO   —   Giving us:  ARDNIEWENTTTO

Clue/Question:  When the cartoonist sketched the White House guard, he – – –

White House on Reverse of US $20 bill. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Answer:  DREW ATTENTION

(Oh, yeah.  That’s a groaner.  Even by yer uncle’s standards!  We had no new clue words today, but all of the jumbles are coming up as new, for me.  The answer letter layout made for another great jumble.  There was even a bit of misdirection in the middle of it.  I’m sure some of you thought the first word to the answer might be WENT.  I know I did.  But, then I realized our guys would never make a mistake like that.  The cartoon is very detailed and very amusing.  But, why bring Pastis into this???  Couldn’t the cartoon just as easily have had Hoyt standing behind a kneeling Knurek???  Enquiring minds want to know!  LOL!  Be well and do good, friends.)   —   YUR

PS.  —  Drawing your own money . . . will definitely draw some attention!   —   YUR

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Cryptoquote Spoiler – 05/23/15

American writer Dorothy Parker (1893-1967) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“Four be the things I’d been better without:  love, curiosity, freckles, doubt.”   —   Dorothy Parker

Веснушки (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

(Both; too poetic, and too lazy . . . for my taste.  Too poetic because I thought there was some kind of mis-print in the beginning of the cryptoquote.  People haven’t spoken this way since Elizabethan times.  Too lazy because love, curiosity and doubt are essential for growth.  Sure, all can cause a certain amount of pain.  But, hey!  No pain, no gain.  Right?  Even freckles!  They help you to develop a kind of thicker skin.  And, they generally fade as you get older anyway.  The line may rhyme, but it just doesn’t resonate.  Be well and do good, friends.)   —   YUR

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