David Locklear
dlocklea...@gmail.com
I discovered a new aboveground cave today:
https://goo.gl/photos/3uMkSVACiVcnznXLA
It is in west side of Houston, Texas.
Unfortunately it only went 10 feet of walking passage and most of the roof
had collapsed creating a skylight.
So technically it was
It is interesting that there is no mention of scary mosquitoes in any of
the religious text even though they are believed to have predated all
hominids.
There is a common story about a giant immortal invisible talking snake that
travels the Earth faster than the speed of light talking
I am going to try the blog thing again:
Here is an update to my last post about my new
Linux computer, along with stuff I posted about
years ago:
http://david-locklear.blogspot.com/
David Locklear
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I am in a restaurant reading the tragic news of flight 804, on CNN with my
smartphone, and between the paragraphs of the top story is a
half-screen-size professional advertisement.
I guess that is normal nowadays.
But in this case, the ad is for Inner Mountain Outfitters and clicking on
that
This post is intended is an attempt to make a computer topic
related to caving.It is for any cavers out there still
using Windows 95 or 98.
I know many cavers know far more about computers
than I do. There are dozens of computer experts in the
caving community. The rest of you all
A creative caver could devote a whole Texas Caver issue with
interesting articles
on the subject matter of statistics associated with caving, and the NSS
and mortgage tips for cavers.
I would be interested how many cavers use Linux as their primary
computer system. ( This message is coming to
I am guessing the original intention ( way back when ?? ) to exclude
non-members from an official grotto function was that at specific events
there were free-loaders and non-cavers showing up just to party and drink
beer and they knew a caver or had some connection to a cave or group of
cavers, or
I have seen dozens of people very interested in caving come to one caving
meeting and either never come back or only go on one caving trip.
I would like to formally propose that caving organizations offer all new
visitors and the general public an Introductory 3 Month Membership for $ 5
for
Sam's Club has a 2-pack of Bushnell headlamps for $ 19 plus tax.
These lamps are suitable for beginners to use in most beginner trips to
Travis County caves and any small dry caves like Enchanted Rock Cave.
Suitable as an emergency lamp or as a backup.
Not suitable as a primary headlamp on any
There is really too much to talk about when it comes
to speleo-stuff on the internet.
Here is a relaxing video to put you to sleep of a cave
that cavers used to go to back in the day, just south of
Monterrey, Nuevo Leon.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ar3L9Lg-EpA
Around 20 years ago or so,
Mr. Mixon was asking about Boqueron.
I quickly skimmed thru YouTube and found 2 videos in Spanish and one
below in French.
The link below might have been the video I saw in 1985:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JwYMeGwJhQ
Which truly inspired me to want to get down there and go caving.
I can only guess there is stuff on YouTube in Spanish and French about the
awesomeness of the karst near Zongolica, Veracruz.
https://youtu.be/G0pZsNokJHE
I saw a French VHS video-clip of cavers in Sumidero Boqueron at an A.S.S.
meeting in October of 1985.
The river cave in the YouTube link
In December of 1985, I got to tag along with 4 experienced cavers in a
spectacular karstic area about 1/4 mile or less upstream from the Sumidero
Boqueron ( which we could allegedly hear roaring from our camp along the
river bank. ( The nearest village was Comalapa, Veracruz about an hour
hike
Allegedly premiers in September
A rare varitey of flying squirrel has allegedly been found in
"Shuanghe Cave."
http://english.cri.cn/mmsource/images/2016/05/01/447a35ac6c734618978f28fcd12fd870.jpg
http://english.cri.cn/mmsource/images/2016/05/01/f5c47e3e6cd646c1b86d03f4af6a0286.jpg
The National Institute of Health has ( according to Fox News ) supported a
grant to see if LGBT people are more likely to live in neighboorhoods where
tobacco is readily available.
So why not get a similar study financed related to caving ? One suggestion
would be to study to see if people who
There is now a pink headlamp suitable for real caving.
It is sold under the NEO brand ( which I think is a marketed by the same
folks that do Coast lights )
Academy has it for $ 25 plus tax.
This lamp could be a back-up light to keep in the pack, if you are on a
trip to a big cave.
Anonymous
Julie should be nominated for posting the top 5 worst post on Cavetex in
its 17 ( ? ) year history, behind the thread around 2000 that went on and
on about something so silly, I forgot what it was.
Even my worst post, of which there are dozens, are not in the top 50.
I will accept the Award for
The Queen of Speleo-slander will not stop until somebody gives her a
Brownie-Button.
I know at least 2 cavers who can wake up every morning and see their
grandkids and kids and thank Oztotl I was there to save them in a Mexican
cave.
Not a single member of any of my caving trips has ever got
From David Locklear
There is no reason to continue the thread on my lack of knowledge of Travis
County Caves. It serves no purpose, except to those who get a kick out of
flame wars.
I seem to have a special gift for getting on some people's nerves, but I
will talk about that some other time.
I
The purpose of this message is to help a few cavers save a few dollars, but
is intended for those who plan to go to the movies over the holidays.
I saw 50 movies this year, and the one that stood out above the others was,
PK.
Anonymous
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The recent post, some judged as harsh, seems worthy of a rebuttal.
I know diddly about Travis County caves. That is a true statement.
In the fall of 84, I went in about 6 of them as a newbie led by newbie
A.S.S. cavers. Afterwards, I became the self-appointed A.S.S. trip leader,
and from 1985
This best picture I know of is in a Texas Caver in 1980 ( plus or minus 4
years ) of Erika Heinenen near the entrance of the storm sewer or in the
sewer.
I have never heard any public or private chatter about this cave except for
the 2 recent post on Cavetex
My 2 cents is that
Kiwi Sink is a
Just curious how many times this cave has received a deluge of water since
the last push trip. A wild guess would be at least ten.
And was the sump dived.
I was told by a caver in 1989 that they left an unchecked pit in a side
passage when they were in the cave years earlier.
I believe he was
This email is a rebuttal to Mr. Mixon's.
First of all, I am a card-carrying member to both the Terry Raines Fan
Club, and the Bill Mixon Fan Club.
In the fall of 1989, there was an urgent need to get a caving book out
about Mexico, because everything was out of print or in very limited
supply,
The original post about the cave in Austin mentioned something about the
city acquiring land.
The storm sewer lies in a highfalutin neighborhood. It does not seem
practical to buy a land preserve there.
The cost of ripping out the storm-sewer and doing a gov't authorized dig
would be a million
In 2014, you were statistically far more likely to die by eating a
pre-packaged caramel-coated apple in Texas than by going caving.
Not sure if the same could be said for the whole nation though.
Feel free to correct me on the statistical part.
I bet you could say the same thing about many
http://youtu.be/FUmr0JusmY0
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http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2014/12/16/first-public-auction-military-humvees-causing-buzz/
A Humvee Ambulance would look nice with some caver paraphonelia all over it.
David Locklear
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Just for fun:
Presume there were a large cave passage on the planet Mars.
Would the cave blow or suck at the entrance ?
Could methane or other similar gases be trapped in the cave ? If so, could
they seasonally escape ?
If there were a liquid flowing vertically downwards, would it look like a
I did not read the details of the last post, but just skimmed it.
I do not recall that the cave that I went to being across the Colorado
river, as the report indicated.
My previous post about the vicinity of the cave seem to be mistaken.
I drove down every street in the neighborhood using
Bill's post mentioned something about the cave being in the hills.
My fuzzy recollection of the neighborhood of the cave I was in was in an
area that was flat by Austin standards, whereas across the river as the
report stated is where the hills are.
I only know 2 cavers that know where the storm
This is a brief summary of only part of the Bexar Grotto Holiday Party,
[ Disclaimer: posted by David Locklear, but with permission ]
Geary Sue Schindel sent out a public invitation to attend the party.
I think 74 people attended. I have no idea how many were cavers, as it
seems like half the
Just for fun:
Some websites announced today that someone overheard the leader of the
Catholic community subtly indicating there is an after-life for
cave-critters.
For his ideology to hold water, it would have to include the extinct
cave-bear. Right?
Also, if this notion could be even remotely
Since the news media is so focused on the issue of police interaction with
the public, I thought I would share some personal stories.
In early July of 1987, I was on a solo recon trip to ridgewalk on the east
face of Cerro de la Silla, east-southeast of Monterrey. I had no
information to go on,
Oops, I didn't sign the last one. David Locklear.
In December of 1995, I was sitting around the caver-campfire at Mexpeleo.
It was cold, damp and foggy. I came to a major decision in my life at
that very moment, while staring into the hypnotic flames. ( Thanks to a
young caver-girl from
The tv show, Moonshiners has an episode today of what appears to be a
large bat-cave in the Carolinas.
If the cave is closed, it would seem the WNS policy is not working there.
David Locklear
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My best guess is at this location
http://goo.gl/maps/BXoOH
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I was really surprised when I looked on Google Street view at that location.
In the very spot I thought should be a storm sewer, there is a sinkhole
with a sheet of plywood over it.
Also, the old houses have been demolished and they are building a new house
there.
I hope that is not the spot
Has anyone crawled thru the metal pipe at the bottom of the storm drain
since the last big flood in that area ?
It has been 20 years for me, but my recollection was that some one could
get hurt if that fell. I think I kicked it to see if it was loose, and it
did not budge, but it was suspended
Just an owl swimming on Lake Michigan:
http://youtu.be/YnCPJ8FPbtw
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Sometime in 1993, I think, I convinced some Aggie Cavers to dig in the
cave. We called it Project R.A.C.K.
(Restoration of Austin Caverns and Karst )
We rented a Uhaul trailer and tied a bucket and pulley to the tree next to
the entrance.
We filled up the trailer with dirt.
They all thought I
Next time you are on a road-trip in southeast Texas heading towards a cave,
pull into a Buc-cees and see if they have any crawfish pie and stock up on
it.
The are about a $ 1 per bite.
I would guess each station carries local special items like this, so maybe
it is just a thing here at our
Check out this rock-climber's confidence on the over-hanging cliff face:
( sorry for the Facebook link )
https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=780279402027526refid=17
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What is the status of this cave ?
It was the first thing that came to mind when I read Geary's call to take a
caver dignitary on a special trip.
David Locklear
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I had the pleasure today to split a homemade pecan pie with old-timer James
Manning and listen to caver stories from the late 50's and early 60's.
James was VP of the Texas Region in 1959, I think. He talked of going to
the early trips to Diablo Cave, and Bustamante, and cavers he knew, Ewers
and
Opening plastic retail packages is more dangerous than vertical caving with
old used natural-fiber rope.
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This is about a nylon sack to carry stuff in.
Lowe's hardware store has a new product that they are calling a cinch bag.
It looks like a practical thing to throw in your car for a road trip.
It is a rugged nylon sack with a small zipper compartment on the outside to
put your headlamp, and 2
In the fall of 1987, about 6 A.S.S. members camped on a small river bank at
the following location
22.853128, -99.121751
http://goo.gl/maps/hVUlI
The trip was lead by Tim Jones ( who now owns a software business in
Austin, I think )
We spent a day ridgewalking here, and tried our best to find
This falls under personal opinions and not caving related. I am only
posting it because it is related to today's big news story.
By David Locklear
dlocklea...@gmail.com
I hope I can make this sound caving related, but that is probably
stretching it.
I have heard rumors there are non-U.S.
About 3 years ago, I proposed an idea that it would be great if caving
groups, such as the NSS, had their own touchscreen app on smartphones and
tablets.
Shortly after that, I went on a 3-month rant about how Google Plus was
great and almost such an app. ( Looks like Google Plus is not going to
The new app that I just mentioned let's you put the NSS or any caving
group, directly on the gadget's home screen for one-touch access.
David Locklear
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Most of you like to drink alcohol. Please do not drive after having a
drink.
I work for attorneys that claim to help drivers, boaters and motorcyclist
whose license is suspended.
It has become nearly impossible in southeast Texas to get the suspension
reduced or dismissed. And while that may
I mentioned recently that my step-father was treated for a bat bite or
scratch.
He had 1 of 5 rabies shots and that allegedly cost $23,000. He did not get
the other 4 shots, because after he had the first shot, the results showed
the bat did not test positive.
He was sick after all that, so
Charles, you have to imagine a gas-powered choo-choo train and giant LCD
tv's mounted on the walls showing you what stalamgasites are, and how
they are formed.
David Locklear
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Last I have heard the comet probe is in hibernation for at least 24 hours.
Here is another interesting picture, but still too blurry to say if it
anything other than a rock.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/intc40tqdpahmbn/IMG_20141113_223831_2.jpg?dl=0
Looks like the prehistoric bones of a mega-bat.
http://siberiantimes.com/upload/information_system_38/1/7/4/item_1740/information_items_1740.jpg
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I have not uploaded the photo yet, so go to Twitter and check it out.
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Never mind. It was just a fuzzy picture of the Philae Landers leg
mechanism, ( possibly covered in frost ? )
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There appears to be crystals in the rock near the Lander's leg - Dogtooth
Spar like crystals . I spot 3 or 4 of them. Photo is to blurry to really
tell.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/sw10h7kmz43l3rh/IMG_20141113_223831_1.jpg?dl=0
David Locklear
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I first went to Carrizal in December of 1984 with 5 other newbie Aggie
Cavers, and was the least experienced of the group.There was a large
sign posted out front warning of danger in the cave that was old and faded.
I once had a picture of the sign, but it is probably lost.Didn't it
say
This may be the closest we ever get to ridgewalking on comets.
This image was just released by ESA a few minutes ago.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B2Q7tdNIMAAYbTe.jpg:large
I do not see any karst.A wild guess is the lander took this photo 100
meters above the surface. Hopefully it did
I would like to claim title to an extraterrestrial cave - a talus cave on
the comet in the news today.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/9wi5kqdh7fhwz5p/IMG_20141112_173900_1.jpg?dl=0
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I believe it was Dr. Halliday, that had a discussion about speleothems
outside
of caves.
Here appears to be something that resembles a shield formation on the
surface of
the comet, comet 67p/churyumov-gerasimenko:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/3yxp9fp2ykz6psx/shield.jpg?dl=0
My guess is that it is
I believe the photos that I posted were not taken by the lander but taken
earlier by the
orbiter.
Here is another odd formation, which also appears to have been taken by the
orbiter.
Feel free to correct me.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/l16im2nul01023x/formation.jpg?dl=0
Note the rectangular
I strongly believe that the most constructive potential project for Mexican
and US cavers to work together on a long term project is at Las Grutas de
Carrizal.
Has anyone recently tried to push the leads ? How accurate and complete is
the map ? What other caves are within hiking distance ?
A
Here is an interesting looking vehicle at that seems to have a nice
price.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ford-E-Series-Van-dually-2001-ford-e-350-4-x-4-box-van-/321578457577?forcerrptr=truehash=item4adf91d9e9item=321578457577pt=US_Cars_Trucks
While that vehicle is certainly way too big to drive into
I saw this on the side of the road in the town of Cypress, TX
https://www.dropbox.com/s/1ryqd2o6da75f2z/IMAG0447.jpg?dl=0
They think it is worth $ 15 grand.
It has been off-road quite a bit by the looks underneath.
But has not passed inspection for 15 months.
Call 832-483-2279
I do not need
You got to come to Houston to see the caving related billboard along
Interstate 45.
Not a cave within 200 miles , but we got a billboard.
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The sketch below is featured in a children's book about some kids on an
adventure. It was published in 2007 by Hyperion.
Who can be the first to guess the title of the book ?
https://www.dropbox.com/s/2sk4j485jdqkxup/IMAG0424_1.jpg?dl=0
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I guess I gave too many hints.
Logan wins the prize . Thank you.
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I am posting this here because most cavers seem to be more environmentally
conscious than most people.
What do you think of the idea known as pee-cycling ?
It sounds like a great idea to me , and I have been making a faithful
effort to experiment with this for several months.
I have found that
This post is from David Locklear, dlocklea...@gmail.com
Several years ago when I was on a rampant about LED lights, I mentioned
that lanterns were still far behind the game compared with other LED
products.
Well not any more.
A well known company called Zippo has stepped up the game.
Here is
Coast lights has a new headlamp called the HL46 sold at Lowe's for $30 plus
tax.
It looks like the perfect newbie headlamp for those that want to start with
something nice.
I do not like the switches on their low end products, meaning this one.
But it is compact enough for the average west
Anybody heading from TCR to the border or into
Mexico on Sunday ?
And if so, do you have room for a large elderly lady
and lots of luggage ?
The only way I can come to TCR is to bring
my daughter's maternal grandmother with me and then
dump her off on somebody heading near the direction she
On Friday afternoon, October 6th, my step-father
found a bat on the ground at the children's playground
at his church in the town of Cypress.
He thought the bat was dead, and figured maybe it
got hurt in the storm that had passed through.
He put on some thin disposable latex gloves.
The Dallas Cavers should all wear surgical mask at TCR, and pink latex
gloves, and hair-nets, and pose for a funny group photo just for historical
sake.
And maybe have a caver in a haz-mat suit, hosing them down.
That would be fun.
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Italian automaker Fiat, is building a small off-road vehicle similar to the
old Isuzu Amigo Sport. It will have a Jeep-like grill and even have the
Jeep emblems on it.
It is supposed to arrive next spring, and rumors are it will go to tight
bumpy places that the bigger Cherokee might have a
Even without Logan's hint, got to be Marion Smith.
DL
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A lot of you knew Bob really well, or at least once did.
I only briefly knew Bob.
I lived in Dallas in late 1987 for about a year and attended several caving
functions were he was not only present but actively involved in.
He offered me a ride to one event, but I can't remember what it was. My
Joe Pearce mentioned Bill Helmer.That is a name I haven't heard spoke
of in
caving circles in a while.When I was a newbie, sitting around the
campfire in
Carta Valley, or somewhere out west, cavers spoke of him like a legend.
The 2 links below are related and mention someone with the same
Anybody know of any particular caves that took on large volumes of water
this past week ?
Did Kiwi Sink flood ?
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How would an independent nation of Scotland affect U.K. caving ?
Does the BRF worry about this ?
What would U.S. cavers have to do differently caving there or travelling
there.
Do Scottish cavers in general support independence ?
What about U.S. cavers proud of their Scottish heritage ? I
from David Locklear
In about a month, the probe to land on Comet 67P will hopefully
have a smooth touchdown.
That may be exciting to see if it takes good pictures on the surface of a
comet.
In theory, the probe is on a ridgewalking mission.Right ? Except it
will not be walking but making
Here is a robot that looks like it could navigate the trails of some
commercial
caves. Maybe we will have robotic tour guides in the next 20 years ?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMKQbqnXXhQ
Can you think of some caves that this robot would be able to
navigate on its own ?
David Locklear
From David Locklear
dlocklea...@gmail.com
I would like to thank about a dozen cavers for helping this past week
develop my new business flyer.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/4yuhd2oqwj8qgpz/Criminal%20Process%20Server.pdf?dl=0
It isn't perfect yet, but it is far better than what I could have put
It is worth noting that 324 years ago, the Spanish government stole the
cave from an Indian tribe who owned it and those indians most likely stole
it after conquering a tribe that owned it before them. Although the
Spanish owned it for only 131 years, they apparently never ventured
anywhere near
Fritz mentioned in his last post, the Briscoe Estate. Below is my personal
story about that place.
By David Locklear
dlocklea...@gmail.com
In the late 1980's and early 90's, I wasted numerous hours trying to
initiate a relationship with the Briscoe's, over the course of about 7
years.
I wrote
If you are using Linkedin, please check your contact list
and look to see if CaveTex is one of your contacts, and delete
it if you wish.
Linkedin, is starting to p*ss me off. The developers can not see the
forest for the trees. I have mentioned that before here.
I see it as a great tool
I am only posting this here, because quite a few of you are using Linkedin.
When you click on the box to list all contacts. It will not only
list your Linkedin contacts,
but anybody you have emailed using Gmail, and anybody you are in a
Google Plus Circle with.
So you will have to decide if
I disagree that age should be a factor.
A person must show proof they are an Old-timer to receive this sacred title.
Here are examples of proof,
1 ). NSS # issued before 1970.
2 ). A certificate of caving merit issued before 1975, or a photo or major
article in a respected caving publication,
I found this rare book today for just 59 cents.
https://www.dropbox.com/sc/p2zot2uccdpspty/AACzy2jWyeIjblwvXyA51k6Va
I might even be able to read and understand this one.
David Locklear
Amateur speleo-hoarder
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At the store, 99 cents, is a hardbound pamphlet for kids on topics
related to the Earth. A half-page is devoted to caves and shown below.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/6am6u87q4gjn2ix/cave-intro.jpg?dl=0
That was the best image I could get.
I guess my question to authors is that if you are only
The link below shows what $ 7 will get you at The Goodwill Store, if you
have a trained eye for such bargains.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/xtj1zvhgqb7fnpv/Speleothems.jpg?dl=0
It is in a 24 x 36 frame.
I know I have seen this photo somewhere similar to this before.
I waited a week to buy it, and
The link to the video below shows how just a small amount of static electricity
affects falling water.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhWQ-r1LYXY
It might seem after watching that, that this is one likely explanation
for helictites.
The question is what in the air is causing the static
Sure smells like Spam
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from David Locklear, dlocklea...@gmail.com
Have any of you had the unpleasant experience of having to abort a caving
trip ?
I sort of had that experience, over the holiday weekend.
Here is a road-trip story from this past Sunday.
Background info:
__
There is a cave that I
We got some new laws as of yesterday.
Hit and Run accidents can have double the penalty.
Knives like switchblades are legal, so you got to watch out for robbers
pulling those on you.
School zones and driving while gadgeting is now illegal everywhere.
Feel free to correct me, or add to it.
Hit delete button now.
This post is from David Locklear.
dlocklea...@gmail.com
This is a follow-up to a post 2 weeks ago about helping a retired caver
clean out his old house.
Today, I delivered some of his donated items to my rental unit in Brenham.
Some of the items once belonged to caver
Cooper. Hit delete button now.
The link below is an article about a college professor hoping to get
some speleo-interaction
going between US and Cuban cavers.
http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=105639
I am only posting this because it seems to be one of the more recent
news articles
that might
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