Ukraine Warming: With Russian troops playing war games on the Ukraine border, Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said Russia wants to start World War III. Yatsenyuk said on live television, “Attempts at military conflict in Ukraine will lead to a military conflict in Europe.”

Speaking in cooler terms, Secy. Of State John Kerry said that economic sanctions that have already done measurable damage to the Russian economy are only a preview of what could follow. The US is threatening much worse if Russia doesn’t pull its sticky fingers out of Eastern Ukraine. Kerry said, “Our intelligence community tells me that Russia’s intelligence and military intelligence services and special operators are playing an active role in destabilizing eastern Ukraine with personnel, weapons, money, operational planning, and coordination.”

In turn, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused the West of wanting to “seize” Ukraine.

World: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has bailed on Palestinian peace talks in objection to a unity pact between the Fatah and Hamas factions. Netanyahu said Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who heads the Fatah faction, must abandon its link to Hamas. Netanyahu told the BBC, “As long as I’m prime minister of Israel, I will never negotiate with a Palestinian government that is backed by Hamas terrorists that are calling for our liquidation.”

Over for Everest:The base camp at Mt. Everest is emptying out after last week’s avalanche killed 16 Sherpa guides. The majority of Sherpas voted to abandon the season and foreign climbers are for the most part unable to go on without them. Expeditions are trying to figure out how to recover equipment carried up to Camps 1 and 2. They may have to use helicopters.

Representatives of the Nepalese government are expected to visit base camp to try to convince some Sherpas to stay. Mountaineering brings millions of dollars to Nepal. But climber Kent Stewart writes on his blog post that a small group of Sherpas is threatening any others who continue. Tim Rippel of Peak Freaks reports the same, but also says the glacier is not safe. “As I give this dispatch I hear an avalanche. Earlier today I listened to another coming from the same direction off the western shoulder that killed 16 Sherpas on April 17th.”

Free Man: Cliven Bundy, the Nevada rancher at the center of a grazing rights standoff with the federal government, stepped on a cow pie when he gave an impromptu evaluation of the state of “the Negro” in America. Bundy told reporters that after seeing unemployed black citizens of Las Vegas he has often wondered, “are they better off as slaves, picking cotton and having a family life and doing things, or are they better off under government subsidy?”

Bundy recently attracted the gun-toting patriot crowd when federal rangers tried to confiscate 500 head of cattle because he’s refused to pay grazing fees since 1993. He owes a million dollars, but doesn’t recognize the legitimacy of the federal government. Bundy’s been adopted as a hero by Fox News and Sen. Rand Paul.

With the Feds backing off for now, Bundy finished his off-topic discourse on “the Negro” saying, “They didn’t get no more freedom. They got less freedom.” Now his conservative fans in Washington are running away.

Pine Pitch: Yankee pitcher Michael Pineda has been suspended for 10 games after he was caught using pine tar in Wednesday might’s game against Boston. Pineda had a visible smear of the banned substance on the right side of his neck. He admitted using the tar in the second inning to get a better grip on the ball in chilly weather. Batters can use pine tar, but not pitchers, although many of them do anyway. Pineda was also seen with tar on his hand on April 10^th, also against Boston, but nothing was done about it. It’s cheating, but it’s a game built on cheating. The understanding is that you’re not supposed to be so obvious about it.

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