English: The NGC 2024 the Flame Nebula in Orion Credit:Davide De Martin - http://www.skyfactory.org (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Photo of Orion Belt with the stars Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka. The color picture was composited from digitized black and white photographic plates recorded through red and blue astronomical filters, with a computer synthesized green channel. The plates were taken using the Samuel Oschin Telescope, a wide-field survey instrument at Palomar Observatory, between 1987 and 1991. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
A picture of Barnard's Loop, which is a primary component of the nebula complex. Also seen in the image are the locations of other nebulae in the complex such as M42. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
This spectacular visible light wide-field view of part of the famous belt of the great celestial hunter Orion shows the region of the sky around the Flame Nebula. The whole image is filled with glowing gas clouds illuminated by hot blue young stars. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The spectacular star-forming region known as the Flame Nebula, or NGC 2024, in the constellation of Orion (the Hunter) and its surroundings. The famous Horsehead Nebula is in the lower right part of the image. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)"A Home Beyond What This World Knows..."
* * *"A Home Beyond What This World Knows..." * Author Unknown "You can chain my body But you cannot chain my soul. You can enslave my body But you’ll never own my soul. You can whip my body, But you cannot touch my soul. For my soul is mightier than your chains, My soul endures all your blows, My soul is eternal, eternally remains, My soul has a home beyond what this world knows. You can imprison my body, but you cannot jail my soul. You can break my body, But you’ll never break my soul. My soul is free as the eagle flying so high, Vast like a dark, starry sky, Deep as the ocean, wider ... more »
"A Look to the Heavens"
“The constellation of Orion holds much more than three stars in a row. A deep exposure shows everything from dark nebula to star clusters, all embedded in an extended patch of gaseous wisps in the greater Orion Molecular Cloud Complex. * Click image several times for largest image.* The brightest three stars on the far left are indeed the famous three stars that make up the belt of Orion. Just below Alnitak, the lowest of the three belt stars, is the Flame Nebula, glowing with excited hydrogen gas and immersed in filaments of dark brown dust. Below the frame center and just to...more »
The Realist Report
On this edition of *The Realist Report*, we'll be joined by Sofia Smallstorm to discuss her recent presentation at the Conspiracy Con 2013 conference in Milpitas, California. We'll be discussing the alleged Sandy Hook "shooting", the concept of media fakery and PSYOPS, and Sofia's research into chem trails and other environmental and health issues. Please visit *The Realist Report *on TalkeShoe to download this and past episodes.
Christy Clark Goes Down The Rabbit Hole(LNG Fantasty)
The British Columbia advantage when it comes to LNG exports, our unelected gabby premier Christy Clark has been blathering about out B.C advantage, yet everywhere I look, everything I examine tells me we don`t have an advantage we actually have disadvantages.. This fact may be the catalyst for Clark negotiating all potential provincial profits gone, Christy is in panic mode, her entire election campaign was based on selling a gullible public a fantasy about $trillions flowing to our province in the form of LNG dollars, those $trillions are being negotiated down to scant $millions,... more »
An Interview with Hooman Majd:Part 2: It’s the Economy & Threats Stupid!
(Photo Credit: GQ / Ken Browar) Hooman Majd is the grandson of an ayatollah, son of a career diplomat, and related by marriage to former Iranian president Mohammad Khatami. Born in Tehran, he spent his formative years globe-trotting for his father’s work and was educated in schools in San Francisco, New Delhi, Tunis, London and Washington D.C. After many years in the entertainment business,
An Interview with Hooman Majd:Part 1: The Presidential Election
(Photo Credit: House of Majd) Hooman Majd is the grandson of an ayatollah, son of a career diplomat, and related by marriage to former Iranian president Mohammad Khatami. Born in Tehran, he spent his formative years globe-trotting for his father’s work and was educated in schools in San Francisco, New Delhi, Tunis, London and Washington D.C. After many years in the entertainment business,
Guest Post - The Solar Timeline
Solar Energy has been touted as the clean sustainable answer to many of our energy problems. As recently as February this year Ofgem announced that between 2015 - 2018 we will be dangerously close to a crisis that will push up energy prices further, a worrying proposition. This may not come as a surprise to you, but you may be surprised to know that Solar energy has long been heralded the answer to our energy issues, as far back as 1905 when Einsteins paper, that later won the noble prize engaged the Photoelectric effect we celebrated using the Sun to power our world! So it struck ... more »
Is Debbie Wasserman Schultz Maneuvering To Get Charlie Crist Into The Senate?
Saturday, Florida Democrats had their big Jefferson-Jackson fundraiser at the Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa in Hollywood (the Hollywood in political boss Debbie Wasserman Schultz's Florida congressional district, not the actual Hollywood). The haul was reported to be around $850,000 and the theme was defeating Rick Scott next year when he tries for a second term as governor. Wasserman Schultz, however, used the conclave to continue trying to persuade Democrats that lifelong Republican Charlie Crist is not only a Democrat but has *always* been a Democrat. If she ever, by the grace of... more »
Chet Raymo, “The Sands of Time“
*“The Sands of Time“* by Chet Raymo “Here is a slab of 400-million-year-old Old Red Sandstone quarried from a nearby hill and placed here by the Kerry County Council as part of a seawall for Ventry Pier. On its face are beach ripples similar to those one might see any day at low tide on the sand flats of Ventry Harbor. Beach ripples inside a mountain! How did they get there? In a journal entry for May 21, 1831, the fossilist Gideon Mantell recounts an expedition he made with the great geologist Charles Lyell to a quarry at Horsham, in southeastern England, where they observed s... more »
"Courage, Bravery..."
“Courage is not the absence of fear but the judgment that something else is more important than fear. The brave may not live forever but the cautious do not live at all. For now you are traveling the road between who you think you are and who you can be.” - Meg Cabot “Bravery is being the only one who knows you're afraid.” - Franklin P. Jones We, the People, are many, they are few... - CP
Academic Freedom, Financial Allure, and Overseas Research, Programs, and Campuses: Do We Self-Censor?
Chen Guangcheng, the Chinese dissident who found refuge last year in the United States with a fellowship at NYU is now claiming that he is being pushed out of NYU because his human rights advocacy and criticisms of the Chinese government is upsetting NYU’s relationship with China. From the NYTimes: In a statement released Sunday, Continue reading
Looking For 'A New Devil’:Israeli Leaders & Supporters Scramble After Iran Election
Hassan Rouhani's unexpected victory in this weekend's Iranian election has sent Israeli hasbara into a tailspin. The desire for an Iranian bogeyman is so intense in the warmongering mainstream of Israeli and neoconservative discourse that any attempt to mask their pre-election desires and post-election frustration has been futile. Their entire game plan has been on display -- every Iranian
"Courage"
* "Courage"* by George Washington "It all comes down to courage... If you have courage, then you're willing to face that really stinky mess in the garage and clean it up. You have faith you can clean it up, because you've cleaned up other really stinky messes, or seen other people do it. In other words, you have faith because you have experience of succeeding in the past. Fat and Happy: We Americans have led a very pampered life for the past couple of decades. Sure, there has been inequality and exploitation, and some have had it a lot worse than others. But, other than stopping...more »
10 Books on My Summer To Be Read List
There is nothing I love more than laying outside in the summer on a blanket, reading a book. Here are a few books I am looking forward to reading this summer. Linking up with The Broke and the Bookish. - Glitch by Heather Anastasiu- As soon as I read the synopsis of this book, I was hooked. It almost sounds like it has a borg community type feeling to it. I am excited for this read. - Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan - Shatter Me by Taherh Mafi- I have heard great things about this dystopian book. It is one of my absolute must read... more »
Chet Raymo, “The Sands of Time“
*“The Sands of Time“* by Chet Raymo “Here is a slab of 400-million-year-old Old Red Sandstone quarried from a nearby hill and placed here by the Kerry County Council as part of a seawall for Ventry Pier. On its face are beach ripples similar to those one might see any day at low tide on the sand flats of Ventry Harbor. Beach ripples inside a mountain! How did they get there? In a journal entry for May 21, 1831, the fossilist Gideon Mantell recounts an expedition he made with the great geologist Charles Lyell to a quarry at Horsham, in southeastern England, where they observed s... more »
"A Liitle Tune For Big Brother And the Big, Bad, And Oh-So-Scary NSA"
Robert Palmer, “You're Gonna Get What's Coming” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgIebIQLiiQ&html5=1 • Your move, gents... Need I elaborate my thoughts on the matter? America, right? Freedom of speech, right? lol Don't give up, folks, don't you give up... - CP
Never let an economist get his hand on a lever
As if to prove the truism that most modern mainstream economists have never seen a policy lever they’ve never liked, the BNZ’s Tony Alexander came out over the weekend with a list of ways in which to meddle in the housing market. Tony’s Plan, as economist Eric Crampton* called it in criticising it**, consists of eight points ranging mostly from the fanciful to the farcical, including the creation of a Super-SOE “whose sole purpose is to undercut existing building materials suppliers,” “a new large state house building programme” using some sort of “efficient building systems” that... more »
Inventor of the day: Alessandro Volta and the fight about the frog’s legs
I’ll wager you have one of Alessandro Volta’s devices either in your pocket right now, or very close at hand. I”d win my bet, because it’s there in virtually every electronic device you type on, talk on or text on—and without it, it wouldn’t work. Alessandro Volta was the inventor of the “electric pile”—the forerunner of the modern battery. It came about because of a debate over frogs’ legs… In 1780, Volta had become engaged in a debate with Italian physician and scientist Luigi Galvani that would inspire his development of a device which would solve that problem and seal his pla... more »
DPP Chairman Su's visit to the US
*Went out yesterday to collect bug pics for a post but didn't shoot any good ones. But I did find this lovely bit of mimicry. Leaf mimicry is common (and beautiful) among butterflies and moths in Taiwan.* I blogged on DPP Chairman Su's visit to Taiwan over at Asian Correspondent _______________________ [Taiwan] Don't miss the comments below! And check out my blog and its sidebars for events, links to previous posts and picture posts, and scores of links to other Taiwan blogs and forums!
"Lakotah Instructions for Living"
* * *"Lakotah Instructions for Living"* "Friend do it this way- that is, whatever you do in life, do the very best you can with both your heart and mind. And if you do it that way, the Power Of The Universe will come to your assistance, if your heart and mind are in Unity. When one sits in the Hoop Of The People, one must be responsible because All of Creation is related. And the hurt of one is the hurt of all. And the honor of one is the honor of all. And whatever we do effects everything in the universe. If you do it that way- that is, if you truly join your heart and mind as On... more »
The Poet: Charles Baudelaire, "Contemplation"
* * *"Contemplation" * by Charles Baudelaire "Thou, O my Grief, be wise and tranquil still, The eve is thine which even now drops down, To carry peace or care to human will, And in a misty veil enfolds the town. While the vile mortals of the multitude, By pleasure, cruel tormentor, goaded on, Gather remorseful blossoms in light mood- Grief, place thy hand in mine, let us be gone far from them. Lo, see how the vanished years, In robes outworn lean over heaven's rim; And from the water, smiling through her tears, Remorse arises, and the sun grows dim; And in the east, her long shro... more »
The Forbidden Truth: The US Is Channeling Chemical Weapons To Al Qaeda In Syria, Obama Is A Liar And A Terrorist!
I have been watching the Jewish media news on and off over the last few days as they continue to harp the LIES about Syria, and how its own government under Al Assad has been using "chemical weapons" on its civilian population. I had to turn off this crap because I could not stomach the lies any longer.... It is so remarkable that the American public is again being spoon fed a bunch of pure horse shit in the push by their own criminal government to get another war of aggression started against another innocent country! I want to present the following article that comes from Profes... more »
Single publication rule in defamation does not apply in Ontario
Shtaif v. Toronto Life Publishing Co. Ltd., 2013 ONCA 405 holds the single publication rule in defamation does not apply in Ontario: [27] Many American States, either by judicial decision or statute, have adopted a "single publication rule" for mass publications. The rule holds that a plaintiff alleging defamation has a single cause of action, which arises at the first publication of an alleged libel, regardless of the number of copies of the publication distributed or sold. In other words, the entire edition of a newspaper, book or magazine is treated as a single publicat... more »
The Daily "Near You?"
Jonquière, Quebec, Canada. Thanks for stopping by.
"Are You?"
"A person needs a little madness, or else they never dare cut the rope and be free." - Nikos Kazantzakis
HALF WAY HOME IN MAINE WITH DRONE BILL
*Drone bill wins in Maine Senate - Goes to House on Tuesday* Great news. Our drone bill (LD 236) minority report won big in the State Senate in Augusta today. Your calls and emails worked. Now we need you to make one more round of calls/emails to House members in Augusta as the bill will come before the House on Tuesday. You can find their *contact info* at http://www.maine.gov/legis/house/hbiolist.htm (House) The minority report not only put the warrant requirements back into the bill (which Attorney General Mills repeatedly tried to kill) but also declares a two-year mor... more »
A spokesman clarifies Pope Francis's announced concerns about the "gay lobby" in the Vatican
Eye of the Tiber *Is it any wonder the Holy Father is so concerned about the gay lobby in the Vatican?* *by Ken* The issue of a reputed "gay lobby" burst into public consciousness when its existence was offered as a possible reason for the sudden resignation of Pope Cardinal Ratguts (aka Benedict XVI), who was said to have cut and run rather than risk the fireball resulting from public exposure of this allegedly powerful coterie within the Vatican. More recently, his successor, Pope Francis, made disparaging reference to the supposed gay lobby. Just yesterday Howie was speculating... more »
The Professor and the Mad Man
Edward Snowden is now more popular than Barack Obama. Young people, especially, are abandoning the president in droves. What was once considered hot shit has collapsed into a puddle of cold diarrhea in the wake of massive unemployment and recent revelations of abusive domestic surveillance. And as much as it pains me to say this, the high school refugee that the pundits love to hate actually sounds more intelligent than the Harvard Law grad Prez. Compare and contrast what they said during their two interviews today. First, here's a snippet from Snowden's spirited online press confer... more »
"A Thought Experiment"
* * *"A Thought Experiment"* by TheOilDrum "Imagine that someone you absolutely believe (god, an omniscient alien, your mother, a republican talk show host, tarot card reader, etc. whoever it might be for you personally) told you with 100% certainty that the worst case scenario WAS going to happen, and that by say, 2015 there would be permanent blackouts, no food on grocery store shelves, mad-max communities, basically A World Made By Hand, in relatively short order. If you KNEW this, and internalized it to the point where it felt 100% certain, would you change what you are doin...more »
Nick Mount on T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land
Nick Mount on T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land. Source: TVOBigIdeas. Published: February 15, 2013. Description: University of Toronto English professor, Nick Mount, explores T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land.
"Each Morning..."
"Each morning when I open my eyes I say to myself: I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn't arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I'm going to be happy in it." - Groucho Marx
"Human Destiny- the Grace of the Present Moment"
*"Human Destiny- the Grace of the Present Moment"* by Michael Dowd "Our present situation, I think, can be summarized by the following three sentences: 1. The glory of the human has become the desolation of the Earth. 2. The desolation of the Earth is becoming the destiny of the human. 3. Therefore, all human activities, professions, programs and institutions must henceforth be judged primarily by the extent to which they inhibit, ignore or foster a mutually enhancing human/Earth relationship." — Thomas Berry "A thing is right when it tends to preserve the diversity, stability, ... more »
Obamacare must die
For the GOP's hardcore crackpot caucus there is only one overriding mission. They must kill Obamacare by any means possible and they don't care who gets hurt in the process. So this presents an interesting test for the more practical establishment GOPers. It's inevitable a law as complicated as the ACA is going to need some tweaking. Only as the provisions go into effect will the unintended consequences resulting from the massive partisan horse trading be revealed. One such problem is the law leaves self-insured religious organizations in the lurch. Months of outreach to Republic...more »
PRISM / NSA's PRIVATIZED RETRIVAL AND INFORMATION SPECTRUM MANIPULATION
** ** *So now it's common knowledge that America has built a massive full spectrum privatized information retrieval apparatus (PRISM) which becomes fully operational this fall and confirms that we are now living in Orwell's invasive Oceania ~ where technology is being consciously used to manipulate the public as well as crush human liberty and deny our privacy. All of this is preparation for the fast approaching New World Order: Allen L Roland* *Once we roared like lions for liberty and now we bleat like sheep for security.* Coming face to face with PRISM is like the cave... more »
"Know What's Weird?"
"Know what's weird? Day by day, nothing seems to change, but pretty soon... everything's different." - Calvin, from "Calvin and Hobbes"
Oops . . .
— Hybrid Sons of Tifton 85 — THE INQUISITR has an article you should check out: “Genetically Modified Grass Begins Releasing Cyanide, Kills Texas Cattle”. Really. That bears repeating, “Genetically Modified Grass Begins Releasing Cyanide, Kills Texas Cattle”
It makes me wonder why all the amateurs have come to education
As promised, my latest at Huff Post Politics. Tagged: amateurs, education reform, huffington post politics
Bitcoin dead in the cross hairs of Government - that the CFTC might take steps to regulate Bitcoin after failing to address silver manipulation for more than 5 years , is sadly comical !
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-06-17/us-treasury-denies-it-trying-torpedo-bitcoin US Treasury Denies It Is Trying To Torpedo Bitcoin [image: Tyler Durden's picture] Submitted by Tyler Durden on 06/17/2013 19:37 -0400 - Fail - Home Equity - SPY *Submitted by Simon Black via Sovereign Man blog,* In remarks given late last week to the curiously named United States Institute for Peace, the head of the *Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) vociferously denied any attempts at regulating digital currency... specifically Bitcoin.* The speech, entitled ... more »
Gordon Duff - Morsi Meltdown
*Who is the man in this relationship?* Below is an excerpt from Gordon Duff's article called, *"Obama, Morsi, Plunge Middle East Into Chaos"*: *MORSI MELTDOWN* Morsi, this week, called for a holy war on Islam’s Shia sect, which makes up nearly 40% of the Muslim population of the Middle East. Morsi referred to Shia Muslims as “unclean” and called for the extermination of what would constitute the majority of the population of Iraq, Iran, large portions of Kuwait, Azerbaijan, Yemen, Nigeria, Ghana, Lebanon, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and a dozen other nations. Morsi called for Egyp... more »
"Fox Kit, Head Stuck In A Jar, Approaches 2 Men For Help"
*"Fox Kit, Head Stuck In A Jar, Approaches 2 Men For Help" * By Cavan Sieczkowski "Wild foxes aren't known to hang around humans too often, but that changed for one little fox that turned to two men for help after getting stuck in a jar. Two men walking along a dirt road in Russia came upon a red fox with its head stuck in a glass jar. The fox walked toward them, and one of the men bent down to help. He grabbed the jar, pulled the scruff of the animal's neck and freed it. As the kit scampered away, the man joked, "Where's my thank you?" according to a Huffington Post translati... more »
Oglala President taken to jail by Nebraska lawmen, standing in solidarity at White Clay
Published on Jun 17, 2013 Oglala Lakota President Bryan Brewer Sr. is taken to jail by Nebraska lawmen for standing with his people against the liquid genocide of White KKKlay Nebraska. The Sheridan County Sheriff’s office arrested Oglala Sioux Tribe President Bryan Brewer Monday morning in Whiteclay during a protest outside a beer store. Brewer paid a fine and was released Monday afternoon.
Greece top Court blocks ERT closure ! AS a result , the Coalition will continue talks to see whether any resolution of the current standoff can be found....PM Samaras plan to to keep a mere skeleton staff of a coupl of hundreds employees while the new State media company was set up hits the skids....Meanwhile taskmaster Germany watches and waits to see what Greece does next !
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2013/jun/17/eurozone-crisis-greek-government-broadcaster-markets Eurozone crisis: Greece's top court blocks immediate closure of state broadcaster - as it happened • Closing summary • Council of State: ERT must keep running temporarily • Greek government: it's not a defeat • But PM had already offered concessions • Helena Smith: Government is badly shaken by this crisis Yannis Koutsomitis @*YanniKouts* Venizelos: New coalition leaders meeting on Wednesday. /via @*doleross* #* ERT* #*Greece* 4:03 PM - 17 Jun 2013 Closing Summary *The dramatic court rulin... more »
Harper's Parade of Perps with Perks #6
Bunch up everyone to make room for Steve's latest Perp with Perks, Saulie Zajdel. Arrested today and facing five counts of corruption, breach of trust, and fraud from 2006 to 2011 in the anti-corruption sweep that also bagged the mayor of Montreal, Zajdel is better known to us as the guy who was put on the public payroll as a "cultural liaison" by Heritage Min James Moore for an alleged $60G's to act as the Cons' shadow pretend MP in Irving Cotler's riding after he lost to him in the 2011 election. Here's Steve campaigning for Zajdel three days before Election Day. After his ... more »
Harvey Organ and Ed Steer's gold and Silver Reports - June 15 , 2013 ...Comex gold continues to meltaway while JP Morgan continues to avoid fulfilling posted contacts .... Comex Default in gold looming ?
Catharsis Ours - 6 hours ago
http://jessescrossroadscafe.blogspot.com/2013/06/physical-vs-paper-shanghai-gold.html 15 JUNE 2013 Physical vs. Paper: The Shanghai Gold Exchange vs. the COMEX When push comes to shove, the COMEX is only pushing paper. Weighed, and found wanting. SHANGHAI GOLD EXCHANGE (SGE) [image: Weekly Gold Delivery From Shanghai Gold Exchange Vaults] Weekly Gold Delivery From VaultThe above graph of physical gold delivery out of the Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE) vaults was prepared by *@KoosJansen* based on the weekly reports from the Chinese portion of the *SGE* site. The SGE has confirmed th... more »
Satire: "Americans Sent Over a Hundred Million Father’s Day Messages, Says N.S.A."
* * *"Americans Sent Over a Hundred Million * *Father’s Day Messages, Says N.S.A."* by Andy Borowitz WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)— “Americans sent over a hundred million Father’s Day messages on Sunday, the National Security Agency reported today. The hundred-million number, while robust, falls short of the hundred and twenty million Mother’s Day messages collected by the N.S.A. in May. The difference between the two figures is “not surprising,” said N.S.A. director General Keith B. Alexander. He added, “On the whole, mothers take Mother’s Day more seriously—if the e-mails we... more »
"How It Really Is"
It's called misdirection, a form of deception in which the attention of an audience is focused on one thing in order to distract its attention from another. - CP
"Cui Bono?"
Cui bono, Latin, "to whose benefit?" Cui bono is the idea that the responsibility for an act can usually be determined by asking who stands to gain as a result of the act. "From the moment when the machine first made its appearance it was clear to all thinking people that the need for human drudgery, and therefore to a great extent for human inequality, had disappeared. If the machine were used deliberately for that end, hunger, overwork, dirt, illiteracy and disease could be eliminated within a few generations. But it was also clear that an all-round increase in wealth threate... more »
The Tortilla Curtain
T Coraghessan Boyle's *The Tortilla Curtain* is by no means a new book. But 18 years after publication it remains as fresh and relevant as it was when it rolled off the presses. In many ways, it is a quintessential anti-American novel. Not because it propounds the sorts of views that would make a megachurch-goer offer up prayers for its misguided author, or cause the casual reader to hunger for the flesh of babies. It does something far more subversive than that. It takes hold of the American Dream, turns it inside out and exposes it for the fraud it is. Be warned, this review cont... more »
Eavesdropping for fun and profit
As I said in my earlier post, private contractors with the ability to hack surveillance programs might be tempted to hack someone for personal reasons. One might be potential blackmail, but it's just as likely to be just for fun. Via Atrios, this piece from 2008 reminds us in Iraq, NSA personnel were hacking calls for amusement. Faulk says he and others in his section of the NSA facility at Fort Gordon routinely shared salacious or tantalizing phone calls that had been intercepted, alerting office mates to certain time codes of "cuts" that were available on each operator's comput... more »
"NSA Surveillance: American As Apple Spy"
Rep. Alan Grayson, "NSA Surveillance: American As Apple Spy" - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffSD2zRX-kQ&html5=1 • Verizon, huh? You mean like those clowns from Ashburn, Virginia who have spent so much time right here on this little blog lately? - CP
Brian's Blog: Fix The World Documentary & A Quick Update
*Fix The World Documentary* June 17, 2013 My apologies to all of those patiently waiting for me to write about my thoughts and perceptions of the trip to Morocco. The day after I got back I was already back in the car on a trip up the California coast to visit a few of Brittany's friends for a BBQ/Engagement party. So, today is the first day I've had to unwind from the long journey. I'm sure I will have an opportunity to discuss some of the details on tonight's radio show, but I promise to also put together a blog post (with plenty of pictures!) to fill in the gaps for w... more »
Open borders: to have, or not to have—that is today’s question.
The Freeman website hosts a ‘debate’ between two allegedly libertarian authors on the subject of open borders: to have, or not to have. The allegedly libertarian A.M. Fantini argues that if we “apply libertarian principles to the real world” then “if an immigrant arrives who eschews assimilation, derides local customs, rejects cultural norms and mores, and believes in ideas and values that are directly opposed to classical liberalism … then even the staunchest advocate of open borders should think twice.” Grounds then, you would have thought, for mass eviction in most polities—and... more »
Chicago's Busy Fathers' Day Weekend
Big Fathers' Day weekend in Chi-town. 46 people shot in under 72-hours. That's approaching Baghdad-level violence. What do kids buy Dad for Fathers' Day in Chicago - ammo? *While mass shootings are more likely to attract the headlines — by ThinkProgress’ count there have been 14 since December — everyday gun violence in the U.S. adds up to a Newtown every single day (Slate counts more than 5,000 gun deaths since December). * ** *Gun advocates tend to use Chicago to argue that gun violence laws are not effective. Chicago has some of the strictest laws in the nation — it had a ban ... more »
"Orwell Revisited: Privacy in the Age of Surveillance"
* * *"Orwell Revisited: Privacy in the Age of Surveillance" * By John W. Whitehead “You had to live- did live, from habit that became instinct- in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized.” - George Orwell, "1984" "There’s a reason George Orwell’s 1984 is a predominant theme in my new book "A Government of Wolves: The Emerging American Police State." It’s the same reason Orwell’s dystopian thriller about a futuristic surveillance society has skyrocketed to the top of book charts in the wake of recent revelations... more »
How Long Is The World's Memory?
*Source of photo*. The U.S. government is constantly trying to reshape perceptions about past events, mold the world's memories to its liking, and alter perceptions of the consequences of U.S. wars. With the helpful aid of the "mainstream" media, they've done a pretty good job at creating fake memories about the most important events of this century, especially the 9/11 false flag attacks and the fake assassination of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan. One of the reasons Washington is able to get away with crimes against humanity like funding Jihadist terrorists in Syria, which it has ... more »
Jonathan Bernstein captures the culture!
*MONDAY, JUNE 17, 2013* *There’s no harm in rumor and guesswork:* At the Columbia Journalism Review, Brendan Nyhan observed the inane reactions to Hillary Clinton’s recent tweets, as we did last week. He then asked a question which pretty much answers itself: “Will all 2016 coverage be this dumb? TBD...” Will *all* the coverage be this dumb? Based on twenty-plus years of precedent, the answer will almost surely be yes. Nyhan’s piece would have been much more valuable if he had simply said that. Will the inanity persist through another White House cycle? Almost surely, the answer ... more »
Breaking: Boehner Is Constrained By His Conference.
There's a lot of nonsense on the "Hastert Rule" going around, and a lot of nonsense on John Boehner as a "weak" Speaker. I've talked about many times, but here's the short version: There's just no way that a Speaker is going to habitually do things that his conference doesn't want. Any Speaker who did that wouldn't last very long at all. A Speaker isn't "weak" because he's constrained that way; Nancy Pelosi was equally constrained by her caucus, and so were Jim Wright and Newt Gingrich, and so are all of them. That doesn't need to be incorporated into any formal rule; it's just how ... more »
Will We Have To Go Back To Drinking Wine Instead of Water Because Of Corporate Pollution?
If you were listening to NPR Saturday, you may have heard their report about water rights in the U.S. "Oil was probably the fluid of last century where there was a lot of turmoil, and I think water is the fluid of this century," explained Michael Walsh, a major general with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. So often, we take water for granted. We turn on the faucet and there it is. We assume it's our right in America to have water. And yet, water is a resource. It's not always where we need it, or there when we need it. Rivers don't follow political boundaries-- they flow throug... more »
SELLING HIGH TECH WAR
This is video of the Directed Energy Weapons lobby set up in the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington. The Military Industrial Complex is not shy about courting members of Congress. They had models of some laser weapons on display, sandwiches and drinks, chocolates and little gadgets to give away.
Untitled
*New Orleans alt-weekly fires ‘know-it-all’ columnist for plagiarism ~Jim Romenesko*
On Speaking Out Loud....
By American Kabuki My friend Carmelle came along right before my encounter with Heather Tucci-Jarraf and paved the way for me as to how to live in the now and manifesting my own reality. The universe manifested this wonderful being to get me up to speed for my encounter with the OPPT. One of the things Carmelle has said is to speak my needs out loud. I am not so good at that kind of thing, you probably notice I don't do a whole lot of Internet radio shows, and I need to change that. When I was a child I spoke my mind quite openly, but that was not too popular with my father a... more »
Have Canadians Won the Man-Powered Helicopter Challenge?
The Canadian team, AeroVelo, may have won the prize for the first, man-powered helicopter flight. Here's the tweet they sent yesterday: "*Hit 3.3 metres & 65 sec on our flight. Submitted the flight to the American Helicopter Society; waiting for validation before commenting.*" The competition requires helicopter flight, solely human-powered, to a height greater than 3-metres for a duration of 60-seconds. The helicopter has to remain within a small, 10-square metre area. The winner takes the Sikorsky prize of $250,000. Here's the AeroVelo Atlas. The pilot is on the bicycle in th... more »
The perverse joys of anti-capitalism
Turkish trade unions are calling for a 24-hour general strike on Monday with demonstrations to converge on the recently cleared Taksim Square in Istanbul. It's a perverse comfort that no matter where you go the main unions are a little bit crap. What do we need, comrades? I'll tell you what we need. We need a token one-day strike after the movement has been battered off the streets. We need one more belated gesture, comrades, one more - that'll show 'em!
Snowden isn't lying, he's bragging
Been processing this story for a while now and reviewing the sum of Snowden's leaks so far. The more Snowden talks the less credible he seems, particularly when he has to revise the dramatic details of his life as Edward Snowden, international spy. Looking at his language carefully, he's not so much telling us what the government *is* doing. He's describing what he *can* do, as a paid outside agent of the government. Or at least he *could* have done if he had stayed undercover. Meanwhile as Snowden makes the story about himself, an important point is being lost. Namely, Snowden is ... more »
Nuclear Logic (Why Lautenberg Probably Doesn't Matter)
Greg has some reporting out today on the concerns among Senate Democratsthat Frank Lautenberg's death may tip things against majority-imposed reform; with several Democratic defections possible and at least a couple likely, losing that one sure vote for reform could be the difference. I don't question his reporting -- that is, I'm sure that Democrats are saying what he reports they're saying -- but I don't really believe it. I continue to believe it's highly unlikely that the Democrats will act unless they're very close to being unanimous. One defection, maybe; two, perhaps; more, a... more »
Abortion? What a Riot!!!
Bloggers rejoice! What could possibly go wrong with the RAPEublicans' plan to make abortion funny. “How do you make abortion funny?” That was a key question mulled at a major conservative gathering Friday on how to make social conservatism appealing to young people, after an election where Republicans got trounced in the battle for millennial voters (who are are moving even further and further away from the Christian-right on marriage and other issues). Abortion has to be made funny, the thinking goes, because funny sells on social media, and that’s where one goes to court young peo... more »
Blog Comments have been turned on...
I have turned back on blog comments and will do my best to moderate them as I can. There was simply no way for me to keep up with the work load earlier so we'll see how this goes on a trial basis. -American Kabuki
The manuscript of survival – part 324
* * * * *The manuscript of survival – part 324 * June 16, 2013 Aisha North Fear, pain, struggle and toil. For many, this will be a very accurate description of the last few days, and for all of you, you have been in touch with at least one component of this heady mix of conflicting symptoms lately. For yes, they are indeed symptoms of a profound transformation taking place within you all, and as all symptoms go, they can in may ways effectively mask the reason for their appearance. For all of these unpleasant effects can easily be classified as negative, and for some, even be cons... more »
DAVID ICKE EXPLAINED
*David Icke. Does the CIA use 'holographic reptile imagery', and drugs, as part of its mind control programme? * In a recent edition of Rupert Murdoch's Zionist *Sunday Times, *Will Storr had an article about David Icke. It's a jungle out there | The Sunday Times Storr attempts to discredit Icke. *Will Storr* Will Storr would appear to be a Materialist, who has had a few problems in life. "Plagued by 'delusional jealousy, pathological drinking and theft', Will Storr just about retained the ability to function in his own life, but clung none the less to the presumption that pe... more »
You have no idea of the wonders that await you
* * * * *You have no idea of the wonders that await you* 06/16/2013 by John Smallman When the moment for humanity’s awakening arrives – as it most surely will because it is God’s Will – joy and amazement will engulf you all. You have no idea of the wonders that await you – wonders that will uplift and inspire even the most skeptical among you. Once humanity has awakened you will find yourselves in a different world, one that has changed out of all recognition, and yet, it will also be the same world! That is indeed a paradox, one that you will understand with absolute clarity wh... more »
Iraq Prime Minister Maliki’s State Of Law Fighting Back For Control of Provinces
Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s State of Law (SOL) was the biggest winner in the 2013 local elections, but things have not worked out the way it planned. It came away with wins in seven provinces, Baghdad, Basra, Babil, Qadisiyah, Dhi Qar, Karbala, and Muthanna. The premier was hoping that this would be a stepping stone to the 2014 parliamentary vote. Things quickly turned against him however, when the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI) broke an early deal with State of Law, and aligned with the Sadr Trend’s Liberal bloc to try to shut out him out. Maliki is now fighting back ... more »
Told You So: New World Order Proceeds On Schedule - Answering More (Than Assange's) Questions About the Media's New Favorite Treasoner (Leaker)
If you haven't figured out yet why all the great leakers leave 9/11 alone . . . you've got some more surprises upcoming. UK's Cameron Rallies World Leaders to N.Ireland Sweeping US-EU Trade Talks To Start in July Investors Guess Fed's Actions, Push Stocks Higher Food Companies Work To Make It Look Natural Billionaire's Coal Struggles Irking Biz Owners "When you do business with a
Tommy and Andrew, the day after
The above post seems to have generated an unprecedented number of page-views, at least for this modest blog. Since Craig and I are not in the business of self-promotion and don’t self-link or Tweet, the attraction must have been the title ‘Andrew and Tommy’ which pops up near the top of the list when you Google Andrew Neil and Tommy Robison. Note to self: must remember Google when blogging. It was written in the heat of the moment, obviously. It might have been a little knee-jerk and reflexive. Later I read other interesting takes, but apart from the Huffpo article most bloggers a... more »
Syria- G8. Why the chemical weapon lie? John Bolton opines (Updated)
*VIDEO UPDATE AT THE BOTTOM. Israeli 'business man' in the business of supporting terror.* * **Geez.* The Western media is so full of nonsense and bravado today! No wonder most citizens from the so called ‘civilized nations’ are soooooo..... ignorant. Trying to find an article of substance regarding the G-8 meeting is difficult. Thankfully Chinese media had a decent one. *Xinhua-U.S., Russia able to overcome differences on Syria by "minimum consensus"* Despite disagreements on the Syrian crisis, the United States and Russia are expected to reach at least "minimum consensus" on ways ... more »
Out of This World - What Does Walt Natynczyk Have That Canada Needs for Space?
In my humble opinion, no Canadian general directly associated with the fiasco of our war in Afghanistan should be a candidate for government perks. That's certainly true for Rick Hiller who, by all accounts misled then prime minister Martin, into approving Canada's shoestring Kandahar combat caper. It should likewise hold true for the army general who succeeded Hillier and headed the armed forces for the past four years, Walt Natynczyk. Afghanistan wasn't Walt's only failed war. He also led the 35,000 strong Multi-National Corps (Iraq) during *Operation Iraqi Freedom*, the disa... more »
Assad Says Europe's Backing of Jihadist Opposition Will Harm Long-Term European Interests
Source of Interview with Assad: *German paper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ)*. Source of Translation: *"friday-lunch-club" blog*. "The Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad has warned the European nations against supplying weapons to the Syrian rebels. "If the Europeans deliver these weapons to Europe's backyard, and Europe will pay the price for it," Assad said in an exclusive interview with the *"Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung"*in Damascus. "Hardened terrorists will learn how to use these weapons & return to Europe equipped with extremist ideology.": A series of arms shipments to ... more »
Glitter 2x4 Flag
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*Have you entered the giveaways for tickets to The Princess Festival at Thanksgiving Point, Mugging Mixes from Shirley J or the HUGE book stashyet? * I am a little obsessed with glitter right now. I had this 2x4 Flag displayed in my house and while I liked it, I didn't love it, so I decided it needed a little glitter. With a little glitter paper and some loose glitter, it is now one of my favorite holiday decorations. You will need: a 2x4 cut into pieces, you need two 7-inch blocks and 3-3.5 inch blocks Contact paper or a large star sticker Red, White and Blue paint American... more »
We Need A Nobel Peace Prize Winner In The White House-- One Who Earned The Award
No one knows exactly why Obama got a Nobel Peace Prize before he had done anything other than run for president as a vaguely pro-peace candidate, unless it was just the Nobel committee trying to express their relief that Bush was out of the White House. I wonder how embarrassed they are about their selection now? So what's new on the peace front? Well... Iran sent 4,000 Revolutionary Guard troops to Syria to bolster Assad. And Putin warned David Cameron that arming the Syrian rebels would be a mistake. Putin, who has made no secret of his opposition to US president Barack Obama... more »
Nigella Lawson in happier times
I hear that Nigella Lawson is having a difficult time of it at the moment, this weekend's story in The People was rather disturbing. I know that I've posted this piece of video before but I think it worth a repeat, as Nigella talks dirty.. Do follow that link for more Nigella Lawson innuendo.
When He's Not Kissing Ass, He's Kicking Ass - It's the Only Game Harper Knows
He used to lambaste the Chinese - before he became Beijing's *bitumen bumboy* - but Sideshow Steve Harper has shown he still has game when it comes to Russia and Vlad Putin. On the eve of the G8 summit, Steve has denounced Putin for backing "*the thugs of the Assad regime*" in Syria. And then, as though that wasn't enough diplomacy, Steve added another Putin smackdown, “*I don’t think we should fool ourselves. This is G7 plus one. OK, let’s be blunt.*” Steve has a convenient recollection of history. The only reason Canada got into the G7, or shall we call it the 'G6 plus One'... more »
Privacy
Some people argue that loss of privacy to Facebook, Google, etc. is the same as the loss of privacy to government, so why complain? But this is a completely fallacious argument. First of all, my loss of privacy on FB, Google etc. is *voluntary*. Secondly, FB gives me a great tool to keep in touch with friends and family, make new friends, etc., all for free; in return, they sell ads to show me, just like TV only "better" because they are targeted. I accept that trade. Likewise for Google. Safeway uses their "courtesy card" to keep track of everything I buy, but in return gives me co... more »
PAR NoT PARCC in New Jersey
Looking to replace the test driven, evaluation and merit pay systems dreamed up by the psycho psychometricians, know-nothing politicians and hacks, who are funding and benefitting from this multi-billion dollar sorting complex and “metric based” profit scheme? I thought so, me too. Montclair, NJ is leading the way against the Common Core Standards in New […]
KIPP in Arkansas Gives “Whatever It Takes” New Meaning
Recent conversations with KIPP high school teachers reveals many cracks in KIPP’s Five Pillars. Apparently, KIPP’s Helena, AK high school has interpreted “whatever it takes” to include violating state laws for student transcripts and what can count as course credits. From The Inside Scoop Online: The Arkansas Department of Education has determined that the Helena-West […]
Chinese Dissident Says We're Becoming Just Like Them
Chinese artist and persecuted dissident, Ai Weiwei, has an interesting take on the U.S. NSA Prism scandal in today's *Guardian* in which he says America is behaving like China. *I lived in the United States for 12 years. This abuse of state power goes totally against my understanding of what it means to be a civilised society, and it will be shocking for me if American citizens allow this to continue. The US has a great tradition of individualism and privacy and has long been a centre for free thinking and creativity as a result.* *In our experience in China, basically there is no... more »
Untitled
*Steve Gleason's Son Rivers Fuels His Motivation to Continue to Fight ALS* *Guest MMQB: Steve Gleason on his life with ALS, mission for a cure ~Peter King* *Tropical depression two has formed off the coast of Belize*~According to the National Hurricane Center, the center of the storm was is located at 16.2 north and longitude 87.6 west. The depression is moving toward the west-northwest near at 13mph. The center of the depression will move inland over southern Belize Monday afternoon. The depression could emerge into the Bay of Campeche on Tuesday. Maximum sustained winds are near 3...more »
The More Things Change....
Back in the mid-70's I managed to snag a quick interview with the head prosecutor of the Quebec crime commission while the fellow was in Ottawa. I thought I'd hit him with a "gotcha" question. I mentioned something about how, outside Quebec, Canadians had a perception that Quebec politics were riddled with corruption. Then I asked, is this really true? I was floored by his response when he said, "*Yes, but it's getting better*." That memory came flooding back when I read this morning that Montreal's "anti-corruption" mayor, Michael Applebaum, had been slapped with 14-corruptio... more »
Finding a House Majority on Immigration
The news on immigration today is John Boehner rejecting the option of passing a bill with mostly Democratic votes. Or so he says; Jonathan Chait points out that Boehner's position makes him prone to bluffing. But for now: "I just don't think that's the winning formula here," Cole told The Washington Examiner. "What the speaker wants to do is have a hopefully bipartisan product -- certainly one that has the majority of Republicans -- pass the House. This has got too much emotional, political impact and I think it really has to be genuinely bipartisan." I'm sure that the Speaker wants... more »
An excerpt of a new Huffington Post submission, the cult of amateurs
I don’t know why, but some things I reserve for different audiences, perhaps to speak to a different cohort of people. But for the first time in about two months, I uploaded a new post to the Huffington Post. Hopefully it makes it through. If not, then I’ll post it here. But here’s an excerpt […]
Why Canada Should be Wary of U.S. Missile Defence
There has been talk that Ottawa might jump aboard the U.S. missile defence programme out of fear of a rogue missile launch from North Korea. Before we do, let's make sure it works. There are plenty of dirt cheap reasons to think otherwise. America's hyper-expensive missile interceptors (does that sound familiar, ...cough, cough, F-35) are essentially untested. Okay, they've been tested with reasonable success against target missile warheads. They have not, however, been tested against the sort of warheads a 21st century enemy would use, warheads equipped with counter-measures... more »
The Baby Penalty
I keep seeing this article pop around websites this morning: “Rule No. 1 for Female Academics: Don’t Have a Baby.” I’m happy to see all the family friendly policies mentioned concerning assistant professors. But, as the article points out, the “baby penalty” is also a concern for graduate students who are parents. My question: do Continue reading
Wind Turbine Problems in Miaoli... Wait a second
[image: random_34] *A protest against the Infravest project in Yuanli winds down.* The Taipei Times ran an article on the wind power protests in Yuanli in Miaoli today. I'm a longtime proponent of wind energy, back to when I was working in Washington DC writing on US energy policy in the early 1990s. It was then that I became a huge wind enthusiast. When I first heard about the protests in Yuanli a while back I assumed that some of the locals were engaging in the common tactic of using public "protests" as a way to extract some cash from the the big firm. I've encountered this on ma... more »
Pay: $75-85K to Promote Fascism
Yep - you too can have a job that destroys democracy and promotes fascism. Here's your chance. * **APPLY NOW*
Montclair, NJ Parents Fight to Maintain Integrity of Schools
From Stan Karp: Montclair parents are pushing back against new Supt. Penny MacCormack’s “strategic plan,” which includes a proposal to implement quarterly “common assessments” in all district schools. MacCormack is a former assistant commissioner at NJDOE who was recruited from Connecticut by NJ Education Commissioner Chris Cerf to oversee implementation of the common core standards and […]
ALI ON TURKEY AND STRATEGY
Tariq Ali is a famous writer and filmmaker. He has written more than two dozen books on world history and politics, and seven novels (translated into over a dozen languages) as well as scripts for the stage and screen. He is an editor of New Left Review and lives in London.
CARTOON TIME
United States of Surveillance from MarkFiore on Vimeo.
SYRIA - 'THREATS TO OBAMA'S LIFE'
*Ennis-kill-en* *Tarpley: Syria, The Shadow Government and Threats to Obama's Life. from Paul Coker * * * *Bomb kills 11 at Enniskillen* * ** * *Tarpley: Syria, The Shadow Government and Threats to Obama's Life. from Paul Coker on Vimeo.*
An excellent journey to Dreamland!
*MONDAY, JUNE 17, 2013* *Keeping the world alive:* On Saturday, a young relative was experiencing her final day as a 6-year-old. She wanted to play us a favorite new song. Luckily, her selection came from the album, Acoustic Dreamland, “an exquisite selection of classic and contemporary acoustic songs for bedtime and relaxation.” In fact, her selection was the album’s opening song, Dreamland. It was written by Mary Chapin Carpenter, sung quite beautifully by Lucy Kaplansky. You can hear one minute here. Instantly, we were glad that Carpenter wrote this song, although we did have o... more »
Read Stuff, You Should
Happy Birthday to Stu Tate, 51. His cup of coffee was in 1989, age 27. He had 18 remaining professional innings (in AAA in 1991). Pitching is brutal. Good stuff: 1. Dan Hopkins on the Latino vote. 2. David Roberts is incredibly sensible about the nuclear (power) debate. 3. Nicole Flatow talks to a retired federal judge about the limitations of the judicial check on intelligence gathering. 4. And, off topic, but: Peter Biskind has tapes of (an aging) Orson Welles in conversation. Good fun.
Detroit Goes Under: “There Is No Way Out But Collapse”
Mac Slavo Though most Americans go through their day thinking everything is now returning to normal, the fact of the matter is the situation is anything but stable. With crime rates skyrocketing, home prices dropping to under $500 for a house, and the local government out of solutions, the city of Detroit is the latest to join the likes of Stockton, California, having just defaulted on its loans from creditors. Despite promises to the contrary, it should come as no surprise that the city is unable to meet its obligations. And it won’t be the last. City and state governments all ... more »
When It Happens Again – Will You Be Prepared?
Wikimedia Commons Earl Griffin The world’s weather is in turmoil. Odd, dangerous, and deadly weather is in the news everyday it seems. When the weather is consistently severe the food supply becomes tighter. Dangerous weather makes it difficult to successfully grow and harvest food crops. If you are a farmer you know this all too well. If you are not a farmer you see the reality of it in the grocery store. Food prices are higher. The cost of food, noticeably beef, has been on the steady increase for some time. Drought, late frost, hurricanes, monsoons, and tornadoes are all impac... more »
The Times reports on “ability grouping!”
*MONDAY, JUNE 17, 2013* *We’ll examine that piece next week:* On June 10, the New York Times featured a front-page report about “ability grouping” in the public schools. The report was fascinating, in various ways. We don’t necessarily mean that as a compliment, though we found the report quite intriguing. We realized we couldn’t do the piece justice in a single report. What has happened to “ability grouping” in recent years? We plan to look at this front-page report in a series next week, starting with a basic question: Questions of quality to the side, why in the world was *this* ... more »
Has World War 3 Already Begun?
*Youtube* Subscribe to Storm Clouds Gathering StormCloudsGathering.com Enter your email address to subscribe to our newsletter: Delivered by FeedBurner Be the Change! Share this using the tools below.
Native Americans prepare to defend homelands, walk across America
Red Butte Havasupai sacred land Photo Dawn Dyer Native Americans prepare to defend homelands, walk across America Longest Walk 1978 By Brenda Norrell Native Americans focused on defending their homelands and upholding the Rights of Nature during June, as they prepared for non-violent resistance to the threats of the tarsands pipeline, uranium mining and coal-fired power plants
TWO KINDS OF FACTS: A commenter’s wish for the public schools!
*MONDAY, JUNE 17, 2013* *Part 5—One commenter wants information:* On June 9, in the Sunday Review, the New York Times featured a piece by Hacker and Dreifus about the public schools. For part 1 in our series, click this. In extremely fuzzy prose, Hacker and Dreifus asked a good question about the effects of the Common Core standards which will soon take effect in the schools. But alas! Along the way, they included a familiar type of bogus claim about the performance of American students on international tests. How well *do* American students perform on international tests? It seem... more »
ALEC - "Not geared to be a fair debate"
Previously I have written about how ALEC members are going to Alberta to be wined and dined by the tar sands companies. May 2013 the ALEC blogsite had an article on it March 2013 the ALEC blogsite had an article on it Today on PRWatch – there is this paragraph in an article about ALEC and the tar sands companies that answered a question I consistently had – Who paid for these trips? (You will note that I use the plural “these trips” – because I believe that there has been more than one - I think we are foolish and naive to think this only happened once.) *ALEC Tours the Tar Sands... more »
Law enforcement accesses increasingly massive facial recognition databases with few legal standards
image credit: AV-1/Flickr Madison Ruppert According to a new report, the National Security Agency’s massive surveillance program isn’t all Americans have to be concerned about. Searchable facial recognition databases are growing increasingly massive and few legal safeguards are in place. Facial recognition systems in the United States are on the rise thanks to a wide variety of initiatives including the FBI directly sharing facial recognition software with police departments while also deploying a $1 billion facial recognition system around the country. Since facial recognition s... more »
New Jersey Has A Senate Front-Runner Nearly As Sickening As It's Gubernatorial Front-Runner
You never know what's going to actually happen in a low turn out, late summer primary special election. Who will even show up at the polls? Polling shows a big preference among New Jersey Democrats for the much-hyped Newark Mayor, Cory Booker. Last week Monmouth University released a poll that confirms what all the other polls show-- Booker leads his opponents. Among potential voters in the August Democratic primary – i.e. registered Democrats who regularly vote in general elections and say they may vote in the Senate primary – Booker holds a commanding lead over his challengers,... more »
Criteria for overturning discretionary decisions
*Mission Creek Mortgage Ltd. v. Angleland Holdings Inc*., 2013 BCCA 281 holds a discretionary decision should be overtruned only where the decision was clearly wrong or the court of first instance gave insufficient weight to one or more relevant considerations: [53] This court can interfere with the discretion exercised by the chambers judge only as discussed by Tysoe J.A. in *Dhillon v. Pannu,* 2008 BCCA 514 (CanLII), 2008 BCCA 514: *[26] The order under appeal was a discretionary order. The appellate standard of review in respect of discretionary orders has been expressed in ...more »
Hudak Should Watch His Back
When Tim Hudak was elected the leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservatives, he came in with Mike Harris' blessing. He was, after all, one of Harris' young guns. But, since his ascension, Hudak has proved repeatedly that he can't shoot straight. Two elections ago, he began with an overwhelming advantage and blew it. In his second contest with Dalton McGuinty, the man who recently departed Queen's Park with a whimper came within one seat of a majority government. And, during Ontario's recent budget negotiations, Hudak simply refused to play. He assumed that another election was ... more »
Are eBooks An Advert Free Zone?
Yahoo has filed two US patent applications which are based on delivering adverts to ebooks and even offering a variable price that is dependent on the advert placement. Some will cry, ‘not on my watch and it will never happen,’ but perhaps we need to at least consider the implications further before we dismiss it. If we step back to the Victorian and Edwardian times, the book was often full of adverts for goods which had no connection to the genre or story. The Pamphleteers of the Victorian age also included many adverts in the ‘Penny Dreadful’ and periodicals. Dicken’s own Pickwic... more »
NSA: "But They Would NEVER Do That..."
* "But They Would NEVER Do That..."* by Karl Denninger "My oh my you folks have short memories... "Two weeks ago, a US security company came up with conclusive evidence that the second key belongs to NSA. Like Dr van Someren, Andrew Fernandez, chief scientist with Cryptonym of Morrisville, North Carolina, had been probing the presence and significance of the two keys. Then he checked the latest Service Pack release for Windows NT4, Service Pack 5. He found that Microsoft's developers had failed to remove or "strip" the debugging symbols used to test this software before they re... more »
`Oops, we used up all our water,'
Last year I wrote an entry about how Colorado farmer had been outbid by fracking companies for water rights in Colorado – asking the question which is more important, food or fracking. Today another water/fracking story hit the press on HuffPo. Think about it Using water reserves for fossil fuel production The goal is energy independence Think about it You can go weeks without food before you die You only can go a week to ten days without water before you die. `Oops, we used up all our water,' Energy independence means nothing – if you are dead. The only thing that this energy in... more »
Seeds of Death: Unveiling the lies of GMO
*If you eat food. If you care about your health. You need to watch this. * *HT Noor @ Snippets & Snappets*
Untitled
*NOPD, protectors of the highest murder rate in the nation, become TV stars* *Sea change in criminal jurisprudence becomes law**~“It eliminates lawsuits and appeals,” said state Rep. Joseph Lopinto, R-Metairie. “It’s easy for a defendant to say, ‘If I would have known about that, I would have made a different argument.’ This takes away that ability.”* *La. delegates totally clueless on NSA data-mining practices* *Federal judge dismisses lawsuit to stop demolition of Dixie brewery ~Danny Monteverde* *Sacramento Levee Risk, a Man-made Disaster in waiting, makes New Orleans a sister c...more »
The Secret War
Ah yes. What you see in the press is what China has been apparently able to do. What you do not see is what the counter has been. This also has a long history and do not for a second think that it has not been effective and that includes actions defending against China. We are also seeing an increase in apparent conflict hitting the press with the USA appearing to be almost inactive. That is nonsense and this article gives us a glimpse. You cannot operate in the modern world without your systems been open to penetration and that includes China. Their fire wall only stiffl... more »
The internet is expanding - The first half will only make sense if you're over the age of 30 and the second half ...
Monkey Dust's view of the expanding Internet and the sad people who live on it.
The dangers of working from home
The moral being - never buy a laptop with a built-in camera.
What did Tommy Robinson say that was racist?
What I found interesting in the above clip was the number people who kept telling Tommy that "you've had your chance to talk" whilst shouting him down and ignoring his points, preferring to use the tried and tested leftist technique of shutting down debate by calling someone 'a racist'. Do watch this video clip and please explain what Tommy Robinson said that was racist.
Argentina: The 2010 Laguna del Monte Case - Revisited
*Source: Fundación Argentina de Ovnilogía & Planeta UFO Date: 06.17.2013* *Argentina: The 2010 Laguna del Monte Case – Revisited* *By Victor Manuel Jara* [*Readers of INEXPLICATA will recall the strange alleged CE-3 we featured on July 28, 2010, brought to us by Luis Burgos of the Fundación Argentina de Ovnilogía and his team. We now present a follow-up on the photo analysis – SC*] SAN MIGUEL DEL MONTE is the seat of the district bearing the same name in the province of Buenos Aires, located 107 kilometers distant from Capital Federal. Its extensive lagoon and proximity to our cit... more »
The Shadow CIA Was Instrumental In The Taking of American Hostages In Iran
*'Argo' rehashes the popular myths about the Iranian Islamic Revolution of 1979. The film's production was overseen by CIA consultants just like the film 'Zero Dark Thirty' that dramatized the lie about the official death of Osama bin Laden. * "It is not the writers who have reintroduced the devil, but it is our present world which has forced them to take notice of him again. As a friend of mine once remarked: ‘I don’t know about angels, but I don’t see how one can possibly doubt the devil.’ Luther’s advice to laugh at the devil *quia est superbus spiritus et non potest ferre con... more »
Alex Jones - Obama's Orwellian Panopticon Surveillance Grid
Photo: The President of America monitoring your phone calls (to stop the terrorists, of course). Alex Jones - Obama's Orwellian Panopticon Surveillance Grid
Since 2012
Okay. So, since 2012 we've known about the election fraud (on top of contempt for Parliament, and the cynical abuse of the power of prorogation to a) avoid a vote of non-confidence and b) avoid scrutiny on war crimes). This is a fact. The harpercons' abuses have been monumental since 2009 and they went into overdrive in 2011. From 2011 to today, 2013, we have been living under a corrupt, anti-democratic, fraudulently elected regime. And what have we done about it??? What have the Opposition parties done about it? What have the leaders of the protest movements done about it? What ha... more »
Montreal Mayor Michael Applebaum reportedly in custody CBC News
No details yet. But a story that makes Toronto's follies looks like a trifle! Quebec is always a leader in Canada,,,
The BBC protecting Barack Obama's reputation in the UK
CNN are reporting that: 'President Barack Obama’s approval rating dropped 8 percentage points over the last month, and for the first time in his presidency more than half of the public doesn’t feel that the president is honest and trustworthy, a new CNN/ORC International poll shows. A sharp 17-point drop among Americans under 30 fueled the drop in Obama’s approval rating. The poll was conducted as the White House has been under siege over telephone and Internet surveillance, the Internal Revenue Service’s targeting of conservative groups, its handling of the terror attack on the... more »
Pol. Ideology 43: On BIG Government Fetish
A friend in our UPSE Alumni yahoogroups, a senior government official, asked if my critique of BIG government has any reference to him/her. I said NO, my critique is always on the institution, never on any person. I myself was a fan of BIG, socialist government more than two decades ago. I wanted the fruits of the profit system and capitalism to be confiscated by the state, to be given to the poor including the lazy and irresponsible people. I prefer to attack institutions that are creators of many urban legends, like the UN, WWF, Greenpeace for their "man-made" or anthropogenic glo... more »
Kahlil Gibran, "A Poet's Voice XV, Part Four"
"A Poet's Voice XV, Part Four" by Kahlil Gibran "You are my brother, but why are you quarreling with me? Why do you invade my country and try to subjugate me for the sake of pleasing those who are seeking glory and authority? Why do you leave your wife and children and follow Death to the distant land for the sake of those who buy glory with your blood, and high honor with your mother's tears? Is it an honor for a man to kill his brother man? If you deem it an honor, let it be an act of worship, and erect a temple to Cain who slew his brother Abel. Is self-preservation the f... more »
"What Is Your Task?"
"Said a philosopher to a street sweeper, “I pity you. Yours is a hard and dirty task.” And the street sweeper said, “Thank you, sir. But tell me, what is your task?” And the philosopher answered saying, “I study man's mind, his deeds and his desires.” Then the street sweeper went on with his sweeping and said with a smile, “I pity you too.” - Kahlil Gibran
Monday Morning Linkage
Good morning. Here are some loosely connected articles on development, bureaucracy, and state power… I am quite take by James Ferguson‘s metaphor of “swarming state power” as an alternative to James Scott’s “controlling state power” and thus as a way of understanding contemporary “development” (a discourse whose objects have apparently all but abandoned progress for Continue reading
"What Will We Talk About Today, You and I?"
A Comment: Long time readers know there is zero tolerance for racism and bigotry here. This article contains the vile "N" word, which you will never see here again, expressed repeatedly by the articles author. In their book "Cobra II," Michael R. Gordon and Gen. Bernard E. Trainor offer this ugly comment from a senior officer of the US Army's 4th Infantry Division: "The only thing these sand niggers understand is force and I'm about to introduce them to it." While not admitted publicly, that term is widely used within the American military, along with "ragheads", "jihadis" and othe... more »
"A Prayer for the World"
* * *"A Prayer for the World"* "Let the rain come and wash away the ancient grudges, the bitter hatreds held and nurtured over generations. Let the rain wash away the memory of the hurt, the neglect. Then let the sun come out and fill the sky with rainbows. Let the warmth of the sun heal us wherever we are broken. Let it burn away the fog so that we can see each other clearly, So that we can see beyond labels, beyond accents, gender or skin color. Let the warmth and brightness of the sun melt our selfishness, So that we can share the joys and feel the sorrow of our neighbors. And let the... more »
"What Is Life?"
"What is life? An illusion, a dream, a fiction, and the biggest well is small, because all life is a dream, and the dreams, themselves are only dreams.' - Calderon de la Barca
"Bright Terrible Spirit"
* "Bright Terrible Spirit"* "But in days past, I was a lawyer. Yes, a lawyer, can you believe it? It seems… ridiculous now, doesn't it? An orderly system meant to govern human society, to establish justice, to advance the progress and enlightenment of the human race. Yet that system, that civil cosmos – to which I was so passionately committed – embraced and protected the most wretched evils, entrenched the powerful in their unjust privilege, oppressed the poor and weak most relentlessly and wickedly, yet at every step – at every step – sang hosannas to itself as some kind of d...more »
Monsanto Video Revolt: Massive Grassroots Campaign Launched Against GMOs, Monsanto
Monsanto Video Revolt: Massive Grassroots Campaign Launched Against GMOs, Monsanto Natural Society, 14 June 2013 It is with great excitement that I am able to announce a massive new grassroots campaign against Monsanto that kicks the intellectual war against GMOs into warp speed. Following the great success of campaigns like March Against Monsanto, the new* Monsanto Video Revolt brings the online revolution against Monsanto to life by enabling powerful activism on and before July 24th, 2013*. The Monsanto Video Revolt campaign acts as a proverbial stake into the barely-beatin... more »
Fighting censorship...
Apparently the Chinese authorities are stopping their population from seeing this lovely comparison of Winnie the Pooh and Tigger with Chinese president Xi Jinping and Barack Obama. How cruel...
TOP PEOPLE TURN AGAINST ZIONISTS ON SYRIA
*Zbigniew Brzezinski* Zbigniew Brzezinski says that the decision to arm the Syrian rebels is a huge mistake. Zbig: Obama Syria plan is 'chaos, baffling, a mess, tragedy *Popular London Mayor Boris Johnson, representing the non-Zionist faction.* *In the UK, London Mayor Boris Johnson, a rival to the Zionist UK prime minister David Cameron, says: 'Don't arm the Syria maniacs.'* *Ex-Army leader Lord Dannatt, and a majority of Cameron's own members of parliament, agree with Johnson. * Cameron has been warned that he could be defeated in parliament if there is a vote on arming the re... more »
If you don't have the time to read the whole article, fast forward to the short video at the end (where the 2006 version of Joe Biden debates the 2013 version of Barack Obama)!
------------------------------ On Prism, partisanship and propaganda Addressing many of the issues arising from last week's NSA stories ------------------------------ Glenn Greenwald guardian.co.uk, Friday 14 June 2013 20.17 BST ------------------------------ James Clapper, on Saturday decried the release of the information and said media reports about it have been inaccurate Photograph: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images*(Updated below - Update II - Update III)* I haven't been able to write this week here because I've been participating in the debate over the fallout from last wee... more »
All proofs in natural and social sciences ultimately depend on probabilities
Mel B. has sent me a link pointing to a rather incredible attack by an economics professor on the statistical methods in science that was published in the Financial Post: Junk Science Week: Unsignificant statistics Stephen Ziliak doesn't want to believe the existence of the Higgs boson – or any other "proof" in science that is based on the notion of statistical significance. In fact, we learn – in big fonts – that Statistical significance is junk science, and its big piles of nonsense are spoiling the research of more than particle physicists. Wow. It's remarkable because with this... more »
Musical Interlude: Moody Blues, "Dawning Is The Day"
Moody Blues, "Dawning Is The Day" - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRBSsyowtVc
June 16, 1973
The Ervin Committee hearings have been continuing. The most important witness so far has been Jeb Magruder, but at this point everyone is waiting for John Dean. On the 16th, Dean does his pre-testimony in a closed session. That was the standard committee procedure, but Dean had resisted -- he and his lawyers wanted to stage manage his own testimony, and the executive session ran the risk that his bombshells would be leaked according to someone else's agenda. Dean was supposed to begin his public, televised testimony during the week of June 18th, but Leonid Brezhnev, the Soviet leade... more »
FREE WORLD ORDER - Rap Juice Media - Robert Foster does NSA/Prism whistleblower Edward Snowden
did he really just use the phrase FREE WORLD ORDER? nice IS THE PUBLIC INTERESTED? we'll have to wait until nobody says nothin'
Your moment of Zen
He said, she said and the sun don't care. [Photo credit via Saffron606]
Since Brad Wall Is On A Roll ... He Should Ask Stephen Harper To Come Clean With Canadians About The Duffy/Wright Affair...
[image: Progressive Bloggers] * * *Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall is on a roll. His challenge of Justin Trudeau's speaking fees (while sitting as an MP) garnered lots of attention. Enough attention that Mr. Trudeau has since reconsidered his original stance.* * **So .. Premier Wall .. you're on a roll. Pick up the phone and call your old friend, the Prime Minister.* ** *Ask him how Nigel Wright's 'cheque' went from being an 'honourable act' to requiring his rapid departure from the PMO.* * **Surely Canadians have a right to know what happens with our tax money ... you know the wage... more »
Drug Price Control 34: No Single National Price, And a Wailing Cat
Among the reasons often cited why some groups propose government price control of certain commodities is that the local price of the same product by the same manufacturer is higher compared to other countries in the developing world. The assumption is that since it is (a) same product (b) made by the same manufacturer, then the price should be generally the same. This assumption is intrinsically wrong because it assumes that there is only one price in one country or city for each product that satisfies (a) and (b) conditions above. For instance, the price of a can of coca cola 350 ... more »
Happy Father's Day & Updates
Three things I'd like to mention quickly. *First*, Happy Father's Day Dad, I miss you already. Thanks for being the honest, hard-working, dedicated father you always have been and always will be. You truly are one of a kind. I feel blessed knowing I have such a wonderful, responsible father I can always and forever count on. Below is a photo of my Dad and I fishing where the Platte River meets the Missouri River when I was visiting Nebraska recently. Makes me want to move back to Nebraska! *Second*, I set up a TalkShoe account where I will be broadcasting The Realist Report... more »
#SurveillanceState: As I was saying on the phone last night…
As I was saying on the phone last night… The right to privacy rests largely on a presumption of innocence [says Wendy McElroy]. It assumes that — in the absence of evidence of wrongdoing — an individual has a right to shut his front door and tell other people (including government) to mind their own business. Today, this assumption has been twisted inside out so that a desire for privacy means you have something to hide. You are expected to prove your innocence by revealing every financial transaction, by filling in pages of government paperwork, by allowing state agents to frisk ... more »
Meet & Greet Monday (#MtaGt) - Crazy 4 Green
Welcome to Meet & Greet Monday, a regular series designed to grow our green community. [image: A link-up for green blogs on Reduce Footprints Blog] Banner by Art Ist Grab our banner for your site:
*The rules:* 1. Use the link-up tool below to share your green-living blog or collection of environment... more »
*The rules:* 1. Use the link-up tool below to share your green-living blog or collection of environment... more »Oh no, Pam Spaulding is closing down "Pam's House Blend"
*Thanks, Pam!* *by Ken* Just because the bombshell wasn't all that surprising doesn't make it less of a bombshell, or less of a cause for sadness. Today Pam Spaulding made it official: "Goodbye Pam’s House Blend: after nine years, closing the coffeehouse July 1." ("Pam's House Blend" is currently hosted at FireDogLake.) All good things must come to an end, even after numerous awards and accolades, it’s time to acknowledge that I cannot continue to run on fumes alone. The Blend could continue limping along, but my health and well-being come first; over the last few years burning t... more »
Jan Brewer, crazy but not stupid
No news because, Father's Day weekend, but didn't get around to posting this earlier and it's still worth mentioning. She's been a poster girl for crackpot conservatism, but apparently Jan Brewer understands the value of free money and figured out the economics of keeping uninsured people out of the ER is cost effective for the state's finances. After a marathon session that lasted until nearly 4 in the morning on Thursday, the Arizona House approved a plan backed by Republican Gov. Jan Brewer to expand Medicaid under President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act by providing health... more »
Does opposing Obama make you a racist?
Does opposing Obama make you a racist? No? Then how about opposing the Maori Party? Content is copyright PC.BlogSpot.Com © Please contact author for permission to republish: (organon at ihug.co.nz)
Click-bait journalism means never having to admit you screwed up
So last night CNet's Declan McCullugh posted a story with the red siren hed, "NSA admits listening to U.S. phone calls without warrants — National Security Agency." You'll be shocked to learn, by this morning Declan's sloppy click-baiting turned out to be pretty much false, apparently based on his misinterpretation of a stray comment by Congressman Jerrold Nadler at some hearing. Congressman Nadler corrected the misreporting today. [Transcript of the full convo at the link.] As The Atlantic notes in their piece the NSA click-baiting is even bigger than just this one point. Seeing... more »
Business 360 8: TPP, RCEP, SAARC and Free Trade
* This is my article for the June 2013 issue of the business magazine in Kathmandu, Nepal. The person in the cover is a friend, Robin Sitoula, President of a free market think tank in Kathmandu, Samriddhi Prosperity Foundation. -------- *TPP, RCEP, SAARC and Free Trade* If people are left alone to buy or sell something, they would wish that they are given full freedom to choose their buyers and sellers. They would not wish some external bodies to tell and prohibit them from trading with certain groups of people or economies. In the Asia-Pacific area, the Asia Pacific Economic Coope... more »
Political Science 101 . . .
Yup, that pretty much sums 'er up.
AMAZEBALLS: Rachel Maddow's Ignorance on Iran
MSNBC host Rachel Maddow has a penchant for saying smug, self-satisfied and generally stupid things about Iran. She has claimed that the Iranian Revolution in 1979 marked the establishment of a dictatorship in that country, rather than end of one; one that just so happened to be a monarchic dynasty that was proudly supported for decades by the United States government. Just two months ago, she
Quote of the day: Keynes takes a bath
"Keynesians think that you can take water from the deep end of the swimming pool, pump it into the shallow end of the swimming pool and somehow the water level of the swimming pool will rise." – Thomas Woods Discuss, with reference to this cartoon… [image: BrokenWindowsI] Content is copyright PC.BlogSpot.Com © Please contact author for permission to republish: (organon at ihug.co.nz)
Can Florida Democrats Blow The 2014 Gubernatorial Race?
Last week, Florida politics expert Steve Schale had a cautiously optimistic analysis of how his state's electorate has changed since 2006 and what it portends for the future. Since the 2006 election, the total number of active registered voters in Florida has grown from 10,433.849 to 11,934,446 voters and of those million and a half new voters, 61% are either black or Hispanic. Here's the kicker: only 6% of them registered as Republicans. On top of that, over 50% of Hispanic voter registration growth has accrued to the Democrats, while the Republicans account for only 12%. Schale e... more »
Musical Interlude: Liquid Mind, “Whisper To Me”
Liquid Mind, “Whisper To Me” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpfrRz-jcS8
Musical Interlude: Liquid Mind, “Whisper To Me”
Liquid Mind, “Whisper To Me” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpfrRz-jcS8
"A Look to the Heavens"
“Sharpless 115 stands just north and west of Deneb, the alpha star of Cygnus the Swan in planet Earth's skies. Noted in the 1959 catalog by astronomer Stewart Sharpless (as Sh2-115) the faint but lovely emission nebula lies along the edge of one of the outer Milky Way's giant molecular clouds, about 7,500 light-years away. *Click image for larger size.* Shining with the light of ionized atoms of hydrogen, sulfur, and oxygen in this Hubble palette color composite image, the nebular glow is powered by hot stars in star cluster Berkeley 90. The cluster stars are likely only 100 ... more »
Chet Raymo, “The Sea Grows Old In It”
* * * “The Sea Grows Old In It”* by Chet Raymo “The poet, like the electric [lightning] rod, must reach from a point nearer to the sky than all surrounding objects down to the earth, and down to the dark wet soil, or neither is of use. The poet must not only converse with pure thought, but he must demonstrate it almost to the senses. His words must be pictures, his verses must be spheres and cubes, to be seen, and smelled and handled.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson “Ah, Mr. Emerson. This seems about as good a description of poetry as one is likely to find. I love the image. Not a hand r... more »
Washington Aims To Provoke A Sunni-Shiite Conflict To Destroy The Muslim World
*Obama Embraces Neocons' War Against Syria*. There is no sectarian war in Syria. The war is about political issues, not religious differences. The Sunni-Shiite rivalry is being played up by Washington and its money-loving slaves in the Gulf states in order to divide the Muslim world and eventually destroy it. Washington is doing this because it does not want Muslims to unite and challenge its hegemonic policies and Israel's aggressive, expansionist agenda. The biggest crime is that Washington is funding the massacre of innocent Shiite citizens in Syria to get a Sunni-Shiite wa... more »
Piece of Shit
Canadians did not have proper respect for their democracy. And so they elected cretins and allowed themselves to be fleeced. Some of us went through the futility of ceremonial protests. And trolls show up here and snicker and giggle like the demented shit-stains that they are.
On What I Eat These Days
"I forget most of what I have read, just as I do most of what I have eaten, but I know that both contribute no less to the conservation of my mind and my body on that account." - Georg Christop Lichtenberg on food frequency questionnaires. I've procrastinated about this ever since Peter Hyperlipid posted his own classic eating update a while back, trying to contextualize what purpose a similar post of my own might serve. Ah-Ha! I see. OK then. Basically, it's good to know these things can be done, are being done, and the reasons for certain decisions are probably worth revisiting. M... more »
Paulo Coelho
* * *"The Code of the Desert”* by Paulo Coelho "Two men were crossing the desert when they saw a Bedouin’s tent and asked him for shelter. Even though he did not know them, he welcomed them in the way that the conduct of nomads dictates: a camel was killed and its meat served in a sumptuous dinner. The next day, the two strangers woke early and decided to continue on their journey. As the Bedouin was not at home, they gave his wife a hundred dinars, apologizing for not being able to wait, because if they spent any more time there, the sun would become too strong for them to trave...more »
The five stages of living in a #SurveillanceState
Over the weekend, the extent of NSA surveillance of Americans became even more evident: Not just metadata: "NSA admits listening to U.S. phone calls without warrants as well." So you might say that yesterday's conspiracy theory is today's sad reality... Bryce Edwards answers, or tries to, the question that might occur to every New Zealander about now: Many have been wondering this week if New Zealanders are routinely spied upon by the United States’ NSA. International reports would suggest that we are and many journalists and commentators asking the Government whether it receiv... more »
The Daily "Near You?"
Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. Thanks for stopping by. (The building pictured, by the way, is a railway station. - CP)
The Economy: “Washington Signals Deep Dollar Concerns”
*“Washington Signals Deep Dollar Concerns”* by Paul Craig Roberts “Over the past month there has been a statistically improbable concurrence of events that can only be explained as a conspiracy to protect the dollar from the Federal Reserve’s policy of Quantitative Easing (QE). Quantitative Easing is the term given to the Federal Reserve’s policy of printing 1,000 billion new dollars annually in order to finance the US budget deficit by purchasing US Treasury bonds and to keep the prices high of debt-related derivatives on the “banks too big to fail” (BTBF) balance sheets by pur... more »
Video of Northrop Frye Receiving An Honorary Degree In Zagreb, Croatia In 1990
"I come from a country which has been fortunate in having less violence, bloodshed, and tyranny, and betrayal, and uprising, than most of the countries of Europe. Nevertheless, I feel that I have lived through as much history of the 20th century in Canada as should I have done in any other country." - Northrop Frye in a speech upon receiving an honorary doctorate at the University of Zagreb in Croatia in September 1990. Frye "was a Canadian literary critic and literary theorist, considered one of the most influential of the 20th century," (*Wikipedia*). Video Title: Northrop H. ... more »
Washington Arms Cannibals In Syria
An excerpt from *"Putin warns West not to arm organ-eating Syrian rebels,"*by Alexei Anishchuk (Reuters, June 16): Russian President Vladimir Putin questioned on Sunday why the West would want to arm Syrian rebels who he said ate human organs, saying plans to give them weapons contradicted basic human values. Speaking after meeting Prime Minister David Cameron in London ahead of a G8 summit on Monday, Putin said both the Syrian government and Syrian rebelswere to blame for the bloodshed. *"You will not deny that one does not really need to support the people who not only kill ... more »
Defend Havasupai Sacred Land from Uranium Mining at Grand Canyon June 2013
Photo Dawn Dyer/Censored News Red Butte photo Dawn Dyer/Censored News Protest reopening of Canyon Uranium Mine June 21, 2013 at Red Butte, Havasupai land, Grand Canyon Protesters Take Action Against Grand Canyon Uranium Mine Friday June 21, 2013 at 7am Press statement Photo Dawn Dyer/Censored News Photos by Dawn Dyer Censored News www.bsnorrell.blogspot.com Grassroots
"Philly Closes 23 Public Schools, Generously Builds $400 Million Prison Where Kids Can Hang Instead"
* * *"Philly Closes 23 Public Schools, * *Generously Builds $400 Million Prison Where Kids Can Hang Instead"* By Kristen Gwynne "Philadelphia is so broke the city is closing 23 public schools, never mind that it has the cash to build a $400 million prison. Construction on the penitentiary said to be "the second-most expensive state project ever" began just days after the Pennsylvania School Reform Commission voted down a plan to close only four of the 27 schools scheduled to die. Facing a $304 million debt, the Commission instead approved a measly $2.4 billion budget that would... more »
End housing inflation now
Property commentator Hugh Pavletich reckons yesterday's TV One *Sunday*programme on house pricesis a “must view.” The economist Shamubeel Eaqub … explained exceptionally well the massive risks of bubble housing markets and excessive mortgage debt… In normal housing markets, housing does not exceed 3.0 times annual household income, requiring mortgage loads of about 2.5 times. (Lending multiples must mirror median multiples.) As Shamubeel Eaqub explained (with Auckland and Christchurch currently on 7 Median Multiples), $100,000 household income families are loading themselves up... more »
Hilarion June 16, 2013
June 16-23, 2013 Beloved Ones, The days that are before you bring deeper connections to the light that is within you. Most of you are now connecting your innate being to Mother Earth on a daily basis and this is helping you to stay grounded in your perceptions of the world around you. There is much that is happening that is helping to create the changes that are necessary to move humanity forward into greater awareness and consciousness. The awakening on a mass level is now occurring and this is something that every soul upon the planet has chosen at their soul level. At soul... more »
Sunday Question for Liberals
Eric Holder: weak link in the Obama cabinet who should be replaced, or target of a bum rap?
INSIDE THE BASKETBALL STORY
After making basketball history playing alongside the North Korean National Team, Vice Correspondent, Ryan Duffy and the Harlem Globetrotters sit down for a meal with the North Korean players, sharing highlights from the game and reactions to the surprise appearance of the Grand Marshall, Kim Jong Un.
Two years ago . . .
AS THE PERSECUTION of Julian Assange was getting organized, things were in their early stages, and on 23 of June, 2011 a secret five hour meeting took place between Julian and Eric Schmidt, who is the CEO of Google. Wikileaks has the complete transcript. It gets a bit technical, but you can get through that, and ponder. This meeting discusses the current state-of-things, and gives an
Inventor of the Day: Leo James
[image: James-Leo_1]I’d like to help bring back an almost-forgotten word: the word “inventor,” being a person taken for granted by economists and politicians yet without whom our lives would be very much worse. Or, to put it positively, a person who by ingenuity or imagination produces a new means by which human life is made better—demonstrating the fundamental role that reason plays in furthering human life. This post then is the first in an occasional series on this blog of inventors who’ve improved, or will improve, our lives. Our inventor of the day today is Leo James and hi... more »
Reactionary New Dems Help GOP Pass A Fatally Flawed National Defense Authorization Act
On Friday, the House passed Buck McKeon's tragically flawed National Defense Authorization Act, 315-108. All but 18 Republicans voted YES. The Democratic minority was much more split. Hoyer and Steve Israel led 103 of the more corrupt and conservative Democrats over to the Republican side of the aisle, while Pelosi, Clyburn and Becerra led a contingent of 90 more progressive Democrats against it, folks like Alan Grayson, Barbara Lee, Raul Grijalva, Keith Ellison, John Conyers, Mark Pocan, Jerry Nadler, Jan Schakowsky. As always, uber-corrupt New Dem Colleen Hanabusa, who takes imm...more »
Sunday Question for Conservatives
Chris Christie: half (at least) RINO who at best is the best to hope for in New Jersey, but certainly should be nowhere near a national ticket? Or: a promising conservative presidential candidate?
Elder of Ziyon: Egyptian cleric recommends viewers read "Protocols of Elders of Zion"
More news from Egypt that you won't hear on the BBC... including: '*The confrontation [with the Jews] is inevitable. Our Prophet does not lie*. He told us that there would be a confrontation between the Muslims and the Jews before the Day of Judgment, and that the Muslims would vanquish them to the point that the Jews would hide behind the stones and the trees, but the stones and the trees would say: "Oh Muslim, oh servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him." *Prepare for that day, for it will surely arrive*, because the divine revelation harbors no lies.' More h... more »
SATANIC SAVILE
*Satanist?* *The following is from:* *Interview prep........* "I remember a man who I think was Savile sticking his tongue in my mouth when I was a toddler and a group of men in suits laughed about it. "After that I was taken to various places by various rings and was introduced to someone who definitely was Savile and was told not to let on I had met him before... *William Hague, UK Foreign Secretary, with his friend Savile.* "We moved out to the country when I was four... I have a strong sense of ritualised abuse becoming very normal to me very early... "One time he took me... more »
Princess Festival at Thanksgiving Point Giveaway!
I am so lucky to have a sweet little princess in my life. She is full of spunk and most of all curiosity. She loves to dress up as any numbers of things, but princesses rank at the very top. Our trip to Disneyland this year fell through and she was really disappointed that we weren't going to be able to see "real princesses," I was completely delighted to find the Princess Festival and to know that I can make her dream come true. I can't wait to see the look on her face when we walk into the festival this week. The Largest and Longest Running Princess Adventure Event in America,... more »
Is that that the reflection of a cornflower, Steve Case, or an egret in the ionosphere?
Here is a link to a list of words that get you marked out by the NSA as a potential terrorist. These are merely some of the highlights: Firewalls Archives Spookwords SASP SACLANT BECCA CONUS WANK TEXTA Spetznaz Reese 15kg Cornflower Iris Talent Trump Reflection Guppy Ionosphere Data havens Keyhole Artichoke Daisy Egret Sugar Grove Retinal fetish Bess Railgun 1997 8142 1911 1984 Squib Primacord Becker Nerd Fangs Sneakers Steve Case
Sunday Classics: Father's Day special -- Wagner's Daland usually knows better than to trust in the wind
*DALAND*: [*coming down from the cliff*]: No doubt! Seven miles away the storm has driven us from safe port. So near our goal after a long voyage, this trick was saved up for me! *STEERSMAN* [*on board, shouting through cupped hands*]: Ho! Captain! *DALAND*: On board with you -- how goes it? *STEERSMAN* [*as before*]: Good, captain! We have firm grounding. *DALAND*: It's Sandwike! I know the bay well. *Damn! I already saw my house on the shore. Senta, my child, I imagined myself already embracing. Then came this blast from the depths of hell. Who trusts in wind trusts in Satan's mercy. W... more »
"Gangsta Government"
* * *"Gangsta Government"* by William O'Connor “I’ll let you have the $10,000 for three points. That’s only because I know you.” I’m listening to Tony yak, my Shylock. Yak, yak has earned the moniker. He never gives his mouth a rest. Yak’s giving me the loan at street price: $30 for every $1,000. That’s “juice.” Every week I’ll pay $300, but nothing comes off the top. Usury’s a felony. The Yak did a three-and-a -half year stretch for it. That’s the way it was back in the day. Now, credit card companies make cash loans at 28 percent with Congress’ blessing. Many Credit card compan... more »
Hillary Mann Leverett On American-Iranian Relations: "We Need To Stop Making This A Zero-Sum Game"
"We need to stop making this a zero-sum game, the United States and our allies vis-à-vis Iran. It is destroying the Middle East. We need to come to terms with Iran, accept it, and have constructive relationships with these countries as they are." - Hillary Mann Leverett, former director of Iran and Afghanistan Affairs at the National Security Council. Source: CNN.
SYRIA: BRZEZINSKI ATTACKS INTERVENTION; Hands Off Syria Rally - Sydney
Hands OFF Syria | Facebook *Brzezinski attacks intervention in Iraq, Libya and Syria.* *Pro-Assad in Australia*
Merkel in trouble ? Bild polls indicate the answer might be yes ! AFD polling much stronger than let on.....
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2013/06/germany-election-update-afd-soars-in.html Sunday, June 16, 2013 1:16 PM Germany Election Update: AFD Soars in Online Poll Reader Bernd from Germany (not Bernd Lucke, AfD anti-euro party leader) has emailed me several times since Friday about polls conducted by the German tabloid Bild. Emphasis must be placed on the the word "tabloid" because intellectuals and academics do not tend to read the paper, nor even acknowledge its existence. Nonetheless, Bild is the number one readership paper in Germany, by far, with about 20 million r... more »
NO JUSTICE IN NIGERIA
What would white folks say if their communities were turned into oil cesspools like this? Why do Nigerians have to live this way?
“Inside 'Prism' Success: Even Bigger Data Seizure”
* * *“Inside 'Prism' Success: Even Bigger Data Seizure” * By Stephen Braun, Anne Flaherty, Jack Gillum and Matt Apuzzo WASHINGTON — “In the months and early years after 9/11, FBI agents began showing up at Microsoft Corp. more frequently than before, armed with court orders demanding information on customers. Around the world, government spies and eavesdroppers were tracking the email and Internet addresses used by suspected terrorists. Often, those trails led to the world's largest software company and, at the time, largest email provider. The agents wanted email archives, accoun... more »
'PM'
Some of my recent posts have rather slipped away from my original intention to avoid cherry-picking, but the cherries were ripe and hanging low, so I picked them. Time then to rummage through a whole supermarket shelf of flavoursome fruits instead, and do so without a pre-prepared shopping list. (OK, I'll stop that metaphor now!) How about listening to a whole week's worth of editions of Radio 4's *PM*? Any bias? Individual segments may seem unbalanced, but what about the entirety of the programme's output over all its available episodes? If *PM*is strongly biased, some evidence of... more »
Consequences? Did Anyone Say "Consequences?"
Glasnost On the Potomac Under Obama? Not Quite WelL, it would be just like it except that this praise belongs to those who sold out their progressive followers by instituting Bush III government. But if you truly think that's a good thing (even just for security's sake), then you perhaps should move back (in time) to Soviet Russia, which collapsed due to the inward rot occurring because the
Forgotten Libya news - Militia mayhem ......Qatar faces regime change - due to health concerns or US pressures ? Depends on whom you believe......
Catharsis Ours - 1 day ago
Libya news of note ..... Militias still calling the shots..... http://www.libyaherald.com/2013/06/13/34848/ Qatar Airways suspends Benghazi flights *By Maha Ellawati and Aimen Eljali.* Qatar Airways suspends flights to Benghazi *Benghazi/Tripoli*. Qatar Airways has suspended flights between Benghazi and Doha following an incident yesterday at Benghazi’s Benina Airport when protestors prevented non-Libyan passengers arriving from Doha from going through passport control. Said to be mostly Bangladeshis, they were forced to fly back to Qatar. Libyan passengers heading to Doha were also... more »
Zapatistas Events Summer 2013
Photo street artist Banksy Space full in communities for the Zapatista little school Zapatista Army for National Liberation Mexico Seminar Tata Juan Chávez Alonso' open to all in CIDECI, San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Chiapas, beginning on August 17, 2013 June 2013 Espanol: http://enlacezapatista.ezln.org.mx/2013/06/17/scuola-posti-esauriti/ Reposted from Enlace Zapatista at Censored
Northerntruthseeker Rant For Sunday, June 16th, 2013
It is Sunday again, and time for my weekly rant about exactly what the hell is happening in our sick world.... First and foremost.... Today is of course Father's Day, and I want to send out a Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there.... We do indeed do a lot, and put up with a lot.... It is nice to have one day for us.... My father passed away almost 13 and 1/2 years ago due to the ravages of Alzheimer's Disease... He was in the last stages of Dementia, and his mind was finally shutting down. It was sad to have to pull the plug on him and watch him pass away, though peacefully.... more »
Your second moment of Zen
A Lady Liberty, photo taken in 1925. [via]
GAIA PORTAL: Shifting and Reversal of Selected Gateways and Portals…
* * *Shifting and Reversal of Selected Gateways and Portals…* by ÉirePort Shifting and reversal of selected gateways and portals occurs at this moment. Required to accommodate slowing of some Light worker's ascension patterns, some of these will revert to prior energetic states, whereas others will retain the new configuration. Much occurs during the 6-15-13 (a 6-6-6) to the 6-18-13 (6-9-6) period. ÉirePort | June 16, 2013 at 07:59 | Categories: Uncategorized | URL: http://wp.me/p2sFUY-mw
Mohawk Nation News 'Bums Rush'
BUMS RUSH Posted on June 16, 2013 Mohawk Nation News MNN. Jun 15, 2013. We are the biggest contributors in history. Our real estate, Great Turtle Island, has been illegally put up by foreigners for the largest economy in the world! The crooks are rushing to eject us from our land to try to squeeze the last bit of our rights and ever growing $105 trillion Indian Trust Fund. They will
Obesogens - Have you ever heard of obesogens?
The first paragraphs from an article on Mother Jones – made me take a journey this morning – I had not planned to make. I found it interesting and after I found the third source – I felt comfortable to take the tin foil hat off – and ask the question, “Why aren’t we seeing this reported anywhere else?” A chemical common in food packaging—Bisphenol-A (BPA)—has for years been scrutinized for potential links to reproductive problems, heart disease, cancer, and even anxiety. And now new research suggests BPA, which leeches out from things like aluminum cans, drink straws, plastic packa... more »
NSA admits to warrantless wiretapping which only needs an analyst's decision ( no national security letter or FISA warrant ) - Snowden proven correct despite all the blather to the contrary..... At this rate , he will be in Hong Kong many years.....
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-06-16/nsa-admits-warrantless-wiretapping-according-house-judiciary-committee-member ( Hmm , didn't Edward Snowden say an analyst could wiretap any phone ? ) NSA Admits To Warrantless Wiretapping According To House Judiciary Committee Member [image: Tyler Durden's picture] Submitted by Tyler Durden on 06/16/2013 10:26 -0400 - FBI - national security - Verizon More confusion, or just more lies? You decide. In an exchange first caught by CNET, Rep Gerrold Nadler, a New York Democrat, questioned FBI Director Robert Mueller late last we... more »
Escaping from Earth? See Kepler's Catalog for your journey - we may not be alone after all!
link: http://youtu.be/ZbijeR_AALo Are we alone in the Cosmos? No, we aren't... Then: where are 'they'? Hereand there. Between science-fiction and *science-fact* sits the NASA KEPLERProject. High-Science of the very best on Earth. It will take another 2 or 3 years (if the project continues) to deliver *conclusive evidence* that our planet may not be the single, unique one to support life. The next step might be a revision of propulsion methods and systems to venture out "where nobody went before". Interesting stuff for travel agents! What about some holidays on Gliese 581g? I can hard... more »
Is It Time to Wake Up - People?
*Think about it people!* *It's really time to stop * *and think about it.* Across the United States they are hellbent on destroying any and every union (which is the most salient representation of democracy in the US). They came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist. Across the United States they are hellbent labeling activists terrorist - whether it is a peaceful rally, an action against XL or actions against animal cruelty. I think of the persecution and prosecution of activists like Aaron Schwartz and members of Anonymous. ... more »
Education Isn't Enough Anymore
On Friday, Paul Krugman wrote that the technological revolution is leaving even some of the well educated behind: Today, however, a much darker picture of the effects of technology on labor is emerging. In this picture, highly educated workers are as likely as less educated workers to find themselves displaced and devalued, and pushing for more education may create as many problems as it solves. I’ve noted before that the nature of rising inequality in America changed around 2000. Until then, it was all about worker versus worker; the distribution of income between labor and cap... more »
Harvey Organ's Gold and Silver Report - June 13 , 2013 ! Ed Steer's Report for June 14 , 2013 .....Data , News and Views !
Catharsis Ours - 1 day ago
http://www.caseyresearch.com/gsd/edition/goldmoney-interviews-sprotts-john-embry-on-golds-prospects GoldMoney Interviews Sprott’s John Embry on Gold’s Prospects Jun *14* - Yesterday in Gold and Silver - Critical Reads - The Funnies - The Wrap RetweetShare "We're still stuck in the sub-$1,400 holding pattern in gold." ¤ YESTERDAY IN GOLD & SILVER Gold's attempt to rally in morning trading in the Far East ran into a seller of last resort around noon in Tokyo...and from there it was all quietly down hill into the 9:30 open of the New York equity markets. The subsequent ral...more »
ACTION: Support Bernie Sanders Privacy Act
*This man fights for US every day in every way - he is one of a kind in today's usele$$ Congre$$.* *Show him some love by bookmarking his webpage* *AND* *Signing the things that he puts on his webpage.* *The Restore Our Privacy Act * *Sign your name and support the Restore Our Privacy Act. * *>>>>HERE<<<* Sen. Bernie Sanders introduced the Restore Our Privacy Act to put strict limits on sweeping powers used by the National Security Agency and Federal Bureau of Investigation to secretly track telephone calls by millions of innocent Americans who are not suspected of any wrongdoing. ... more »
We’re #10, We’re #10 !
Ah yes, the public likes lists. We like to quantify even the unmeasurable and know where we stand. Hence the annual ranking of school districts by a publication in the Buffalo area that no one ever reads, except when it publishes a list of “top school districts”. What a great marketing ploy. And it works. […]
Greek Gamble - muzzling reporting - what about democracy?
Link: http://youtu.be/GNwaVrZa-9o One might argue that State Television is for propaganda purposes only. But what competition offer commercial networks? For instance check-out the German media infrastructure, their state run ZDF and ARD entertainment-, news- and information programs versus the commercial ones. Take a look at Bayern TV as well and its bewildering 24/7 naive love-song on the beauty of the region, only now and then interrupted by mostly conservative political propaganda and some insignificant documentaries about religion, exotic foreign sceneries, cooking and rural ac...more »
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