WoW Knothide Leatherworking Skills Progression

It's been awhile since my last blog entry. I'm making up for it by posting something here that you're only going to care about if you:

1) Play World of Warcraft online;

2) Are trying to level your Leatherworking skills.

Between levels 300 and 375, you're burning through a lot of Knothide leather.  Here's are some good sources for knothide:

* Blackwind Sabercats in Blackwind Valley (that's in the Skethyl Mountains near Terokkar Forest). At 73.5/71.7, there's a cave they hang out in.  You can farm the valley, then the cave, over and over. When skinned, they drop Knothide with a 100% frequency. Start at the cave (73.5/71.7). Kill the cats outside the cave, then go towards 71.7/73.2, killing cats as you find them. There are 5 or 6 outside the cave.  Run back towards the cave until you reach 73.3/73.0.  Turn East and fly through the canyon towards 77.0/73.7. You can usually find a couple more (up to 3) while the ones you just killed respawn.  Then it's back to the cave, and repeat. You'll have some rest time (you can kill a little faster than they can spawn), but the area is very productive.

* Nagrand at 54/46. Ignore the bison; concentrate on the antelope-looking mobs. I forget what they're called, but there are about 15 acres of mobs to farm there.

* Keep going back to the Masterwork Leather Trainer in Nagrand, and when you pick up patterns that require Fel Scales, switch to Shardhide Boars. They drop Fel Scales (about 50%) and produce Knothide when skinned at about 50% as well. They live on the Vortex Pinnacle, in Blades Edge Mountains. They're on the very top of a mountain at 31/72, on about five acres of flat ground. There are also Aether Rays there -- when skinned they produce knothide at about 95%.

* When you get patterns that don't require Fel Scales, switch back to the Blackwind Sabercats. Past level 350, I'm told you can get patterns that no longer require Knothide. I recommend that and will update this post when I experience this for myself.


I reproduced this post at my new WoW blog. I'm going to start posting there regularly. Mostly to help myself, but to help you too.

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My posts are here to advertise my consulting services. You can thank me by posting a link somewhere so Google can find it.

Benefits Comparison for Relocees

My sister emailed this to me, and I thought it was good enough to share.  This definitely doesn't need editorial help from me:

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If you cross the North Korean border illegally you get 12 years hard labor. If you cross the Iranian border illegally you are detained indefinitely. If you cross the Afghan border illegally, you get shot.  If you cross the Saudi Arabian border illegally, you will be jailed. If you cross the Chinese border illegally you may never be heard from again. If you cross the Venezuelan border illegally you will be branded a spy and your fate will be sealed. If you cross the Cuban border illegally you will be thrown into political prison to rot.

But if you cross the U.S. Border illegally, you get:

1) A job.

2) A drivers' license.

3) Social Security Card.

4) Welfare.

5) Food stamps.

6) Credit cards.

7) Subsidized rent or a loan to buy a house.

8) Free education.

9) Free healthcare.

10) A dedicated lobbyist in Washington.

11) Billions of dollars worth of public documents printed in your language, so you don't have to learn theirs.

12) The right to carry your country's flag while you protest that you don't get enough respect.

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Why not come to the U.S? It makes sense to me.

Hamas and Activism

For more than a generation, Israel has been trying to get along in the Middle East.  It started in 1967, when Egypt, Syria and Jordan (with the help of Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tunisia, Morocco  and Algeria) attacked Israel in concert with the intention of permanently wiping the state out.

Israel, however, kicked their combined asses and took a large chunk of new territory as compensation. This territory originally served as a buffer zone between her enemies and her people.  But before long, Israelis were moving into settlements in this territory.

These are the facts.  Since then, Israel has made concession after concession, in an attempt to achieve a level of peace within and without its borders. It's my opinion that concessions aren't needed -- when aggressors attack a peaceful country, they should expect to take their licks if they lose.

The international community, for the most part, doesn't see things that way. They see Israel as an enemy, and never miss a chance to cast this nation as the "bad guy" in every situation.

In 2005, Israel withdrew troops from Gaza. According to observers, this would be a gesture of trust and peace. Predictably, Hamas took advantage of this opportunity to seize military control of the territory. So Israel instituted a blockade, preventing any shipping except for certain types of humanitarian aid.

For the most part, they have been able to enforce the blockade until recently. A coordinated attempt by hundreds of individuals on scores of ships to storm the blockade resulted in 11 lives lost. The point of this effort, one might presume, was to get humanitarian supplies into Gaza. But Israel was already allowing these supplies in.

The true purpose of this activism was to get Israel to kill activists. This would generate international anger against Israel, causing more pressure and continued concessions.

But in wartime, storming a well-advertised blockade is an act of war. When these ships were boarded, and the people on the ships attacked the security forces attempting to enforce the blockade, those people ceased being activists. The Israelis had to defend themselves against these enemy soldiers, and people got killed. It's too bad, but that's what happens to soldiers in wartime. 

Israel should stop making concessions. Something they understand, but too many others don't, is that there is only one thing they can do that will ensure peace for Israelis: surrender and die. Their enemies are hate-filled, angry, illogical, ignorant people who cannot be reasoned with.  They won't be satisfied until all Israelis are dead and Arabs are the only people left.

And then, they'll turn their hate-filled eyes towards other non-Muslim nations. Oh wait -- they already have.

Another Illegal Immigrant who is a Criminal

Edgar Zarate, New Mexico, Child porn.

Mommy, Why is my Skin Color a Crime?

I was just reading this news about a protest being held in Arizona this Saturday against SB 1070. Juan Baez, a trucker, created a t-shirt that says, "We are hard workers, not criminals! We believe in USA justice. Arizona's SB 1070 is not justice."

Am I the only one who's angry about this?  Juan Baez was an illegal alien who was allowed to stay due to an amnesty law signed by Ronald Reagan in 1986. He has learned something that all poor people south of the border know: Sneak in your poor, your tired, your huddled masses! America doesn't want you. But in the end, they will embrace you!

Ostensibly, Juan Baez considers a law valid only if he agrees with it. Juan, I don't agree with the amnesty you were given. I only agree that you committed a crime coming here. But unfortunately, I have no say. You have already been given the keys to my kingdom. I agree with you on one point: SB 1070 is not justice. It's a law. And even if it's applied zealously, justice won't come for you or your ilk. The worst that could have happened if you hadn't received amnesty would have been your deportation. But Justice, rotting corpse that she is, still demands from the grave that you be punished for your crimes. And unfortunately, that's not going to happen.  

I'd like to see you tried for the crime of entering this country illegally. The crime of stealing WIC, welfare and food stamps. The crime of getting medical care and not paying for it. The crime of impersonating an American. The crime of stealing our jobs. The crime of attending our schools, schools funded by and for hard-working Americans. And scores of other crimes you committed, stealing from tax-funded programs intended for poor Americans, in the course of survival here as an illegal alien while you waited, loudly and impatiently, for an unprincipled politician to sign a paper making you legal.

At this demonstration, where illegal aliens attended in force, another family pushed a toddler who held a placard that said, "Mommy, why is my skin color a crime?"

Why say that? It's not true, and nobody is stupid enough to believe it is. Even the person who created the placard knows that the simple purpose of the law is to make it a state crime to enter the nation illegally. This is a conscious act that has nothing to do with skin color.

But I know why rhetoric like this is being used.

It's simple. These people know that the politicians in our government are easily moved by public sentiment. They know that a public outcry trumps principles, morals and common sense in this country every time it's heard. And they know that if they accuse Americans of any form of prejudice, Americans will let them have their way.

So they sneak into our country, knowing that eventually they will be allowed to stay. In the meantime, they loudly accuse us of racism, while openly admitting their undocumented status. They celebrate Cinco de Mayo in our schools, and call the patriotic Americans who object and are paying for their education, racist.  They scream, "La Raza!," refuse to learn English, take advantage of our social programs, while waiting for their chance at the asylum they have learned to expect. They ridicule our ways, and take advantage of our economy and freedom. They wear t-shirts that display the Mexican flag. They also display this symbol of offense on bumper stickers, hats, flags and handkerchiefs.

As a people, we're not doing them any favors by allowing them to be here. They could demonstrate against the political system in their country that creates the economic mess they are currently escaping by coming here. They could effect positive changes there. Maybe these people who "just want to work" could replace their government with one that would give them better opportunities to do so.

But if they really believe what they're saying about us, they're too stupid to be Americans anyway. We have enough stupid people already living here. We don't need more.

No, young child. Your skin color is not a crime. Your mother and father are teaching you to be a self-entitled, dogmatic racist. They are here illegally, and though they are able to hurt the economy where they live, they can be picked up and sent back if law enforcement is given that power. But don't worry--you were born here. Unlike them, you are an American. You have been given the power, not just to continue this parasitic cycle, but to accelerate it. Not just with your life, but with your vote. 

Congratulations!

Fixing the Unemployment Rate

I'll admit this is a short blog entry. Read the bullets below. If there's anything else I need to say, please let me know what it is.

• 15 million Americans are out of work. 
• 12 million illegal immigrants are in the United States. 
• Illegal immigrants are just here to work. 

If they're not taking our jobs, maybe we should cut down on the number of strawberries we're growing and they'll just go back home quietly.

Republican Backlash Coming?

In Hawaii's First Congressional District, Republican Charles Djou won a special election last night. In Hawaii's history, Rep. Djou is only the third Republican ever elected to fill that seat.

What does this mean?  Maybe nothing.  But maybe what just happened in Hawaii is a sign of things coming in November's midterm elections.  Maybe people are realizing that voting for the Democratic party two years ago was a mistake.

Maybe people are tired of big government. Maybe people are tired of high taxes. Maybe people are tired of a high deficit. Maybe people still believe in the Constellation project. Maybe people are starting to care about the country, instead of their own bellies.

Nah.  People are stupid, and the people with the most votes are the have-nots.  Besides, it's not like the Republicans are going to get this country back to a place where the Constitution is respected.