Wednesday, December 03, 2014

3 Nov - Blogs I'm Following


An elated Parsekar who has strong RSS links, said, "I am very happy to be elected as the CM". Parsekar also thanked Parrikar for his mentoring adding, "From loosing my deposit to being an MLA, and Chief Minister of the state has been made possible by the mentorship of Manohar Parrikar". Rudy ...



1:08am MST

24 naval submarines involved in mishaps since 2011

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 7 minutes ago
[image: TRV-72]There have been 24 mishaps involving Indian naval submarines since 2011, claiming the lives of 22 personnel besides four others going missing, Rajya Sabha was informed today. While Boards of Inquiry (BoIs) have been instituted in all these cases, the findings of the completed BoIs indicate "human error and technical issues as the reasons behind the mishaps", Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said in reply to a written question. While three accidents each occured in 2011 and 2012, seven happened in 2013 and 11 till November 6, this year. The accidents in 2013 include... more »

Prop Rep vote in the House tomorrow

Alison at Creekside - 14 minutes ago
Here's what the last federal election results would have looked like under Prop Rep as compared to what we got with First Past the Post : Although the Cons increased their vote percentage by less than two points, this was enough to give them 24 more seats than in 2008, when they were already over-represented anyway. From Fair Vote Canada via email : Fair Vote Canada has just learned that NDP Democratic Reform Critic Craig Scott will introduce the following motion for PR to the House of Commons tomorrow afternoon (Wednesday December 3). *That, in the opinion of the House: * *... more »

Russia All Out In Preparation For War - New Tactical Submarines Shooting Under Arctic Ice; Mimics Pentagon’s Control Site

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 14 minutes ago
[image: Vladimir Monomakh SSBN]Russia has a new strategic nuclear submarine that can shoot lighter Bulava missiles even when moving and even when under the Arctic Ice, according to a Russian political news portal, PRAVDA.ru. This new submarine is named Vladimir Monomakh and will be in the hands of the Navy of Russia by mid-December. Vladimir Monomakh is just the first round of the many nuclear submarines of its type under the Russia's Project 955 Borei. Submarines under the Project 955 will all be equipped with "ascending rescue chambers." The next in the project is a submarine to ... more »

"A Look to the Heavens"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 15 minutes ago
"Will our Sun look like this one day? The Helix Nebula is one of brightest and closest examples of a planetary nebula, a gas cloud created at the end of the life of a Sun-like star. The outer gasses of the star expelled into space appear from our vantage point as if we are looking down a helix. The remnant central stellar core, destined to become a white dwarf star, glows in light so energetic it causes the previously expelled gas to fluoresce. *Click image for larger size.* The Helix Nebula, given a technical designation of NGC 7293, lies about 700 light-years away towards the const... more »

Chet Raymo, "Starlight"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 16 minutes ago
*"Starlight"* by Chet Raymo "Poor Calvin is overwhelmed with the vastness of the cosmos and no small dose of existential angst. He is not the first, of course. Most famously the 17th-century French philosopher Blaise Pascal wailed his own despair: "I feel engulfed in the infinite immensity of spaces whereof I know nothing and which know nothing of me. I am terrified...The eternal silence of these infinite spaces alarms me." And he didn't know the half of it. Not so long ago we imagined ourselves to be the be-all and end-all of creation, at the center of a cosmos made expressly for... more »

"Life..."

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 16 minutes ago
“Life don't owe you nothing.” - August Wilson, “Fences”

"Perhaps It Is Better..."

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 16 minutes ago
"Perhaps it is better to be un-sane and happy, than sane and un-happy. But it is the best of all to be sane and happy. Whether our descendants can achieve that goal will be the greatest challenge of the future. Indeed, it may well decide whether we have any future." - Arthur C. Clarke • Graphic: "La Marcha de la Humanidad"/ "The March of Humanity” By David Alfaro Siqueiros

"I Often Dream About Falling..."

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 16 minutes ago
"I often dream about falling. Such dreams are commonplace to the ambitious or those who climb mountains. Lately I dreamed I was clutching at the face of a rock, but it would not hold. Gravel gave way, I grasped for a shrub, but it pulled loose, and in cold terror I fell into the abyss. Suddenly I realized that my fall was relative; there was no bottom and no end. A feeling of pleasure overcame me. I realized that what I embody, the principle of life, cannot be destroyed. It is written into the cosmic code, the order of the universe. As I continued to fall in the dark void, embraced by ... more »

The Poet: Mary Oliver, “The Leaf and the Cloud: A Poem”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 22 minutes ago
* "Flare, Part 12"* "When loneliness comes stalking, go into the fields, consider the orderliness of the world. Notice something you have never noticed before, like the tambourine sound of the snow-cricket whose pale green body is no longer than your thumb. Stare hard at the hummingbird, in the summer rain, shaking the water-sparks from its wings. Let grief be your sister, she will whether or no. Rise up from the stump of sorrow, and be green also, like the diligent leaves. A lifetime isn't long enough for the beauty of this world and the responsibilities of your life. Scatter you... more »

The Daily "Near You?"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 22 minutes ago
Wellington, New Zealand. Thanks for stopping by.

"Hearing the Whisper Underneath the Noise"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 28 minutes ago
*"Hearing the Whisper Underneath the Noise"* by Madisyn Taylor, The DailyOM "There is beauty and power when we listen to the whisper. You may have noticed that if you want to speak to someone in a noisy, crowded room, the best thing to do is lean close and whisper. Yelling in an attempt to be louder than the room’s noise generally only hurts your throat and adds to the chaos. Similarly, that still, small voice within each of us does not try to compete with the mental chatter on the surface of our minds, nor does it attempt to overpower the volume of the raucous world outside. If we ... more »

“The Tragic Password Mistake Hackers Are Hoping You'll Make”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 28 minutes ago
*“The Tragic Password Mistake Hackers Are Hoping You'll Make”* By Jeff Fox “You’re smart. You don’t use passwords like the perennial 123456 and qwerty. Or even slightly better ones, like Cassie86 or Cubs1908. Because you put some thought into them, your passwords are better than those, right? Maybe. But unless you avoid a little-known mistake recently uncovered by password researchers, there’s a good chance your passwords will still be far easier for hackers to crack than you think. Can you tell how strong a password is? To see, try to figure out which of the four passwords below a... more »

Labour bare faced cheek faithfully reported by the propaganda arm of the Labour Party aka BBC News

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 43 minutes ago
The Labour Party's propaganda arm aka the BBC faithfully and with a straight face report in this article http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-30291460 that: '... shadow chancellor Ed Balls criticised Mr Osborne for failing to "balance the books". "Unless growth is strong and wages are rising for working people the deficit doesn't come down," he said. "Without a plan for jobs and work, it's not going to work."' Shameless is one word that comes to mind...

Yale/Oxford/MIT/Rockefeller theoretical physicist to lead Pentagon

Luboš Motl at The Reference Frame - 1 hour ago
Chuck Hagel resigned as the U.S. Secretary of Defense last week and no one wants to succeed him. Well, it seems that it's just "almost no one". After quite some time, I am impressed by the credentials of the likely pick (the credentials don't guarantee great outcomes, of course, but I still care about them). So far, Ashton Carter (*1954 Pennsylvania) has been the Deputy Secretary of Defense, a CEO of a sort, overseeing $0.6 trillion in expenses and supervising 0.0024 billion people. He's an expert in Star Wars, cyber warfare, and all real-world high-tech systems that America possess... more »

Airstrikes, Artillery & Advisers: Four Decades of Recycled U.S. Foreign Policy

Nima Shirazi at Wide Asleep in America - 2 hours ago
President Barack Obama announces expansion of U.S. military action against ISIS in Iraq and Syria, 9/10/2014 (Photo Credit: Saul Loeb) "Those whose lives have been ruined don't care about the geopolitics behind bomb attacks; they tend to blame the attackers. The failure of the American campaign in Cambodia lay not only in the civilian death toll during the unprecedented bombing, but also in

In the Name of the King III (2014)

Gentong Taek at MOVIE HD DOWNLOAD - 2 hours ago
2379386 Watch Movie In the Name of the King III High QualityDownload In the Name of the King III HD with duration 85 Min and released on 2014-02-05 and MPAA rating is 4. - *Original Title :* In the Name of the King III - *Movie title in your country :* In the Name of the King III - *Year of movie :* 2014 - *Genres of movie :* Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, - *Status of movie :* Released - *Release date of movie :* 2014-02-05 - *Companies of movie :* - *Countries of movie :* - *Language of movie :* English, - *Durationof movie :* 85 Min - *Average... more »

Bruce Springsteen Isn't Going To Back Chris Christie's Presidential Run-- And Neither Will Wall Street

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 3 hours ago
I was in the music business much of my life and I can tell you, everyone loves the fans-- the ones waiting on line to buy the records and tickets even before they're on sale, the ones who know more about the artists than the artists do, the ones who make the press realize that there's something going on out there they haven't tuned in to yet. But sometimes it gets a little too much and the difference between a fan and a stalker starts to blur... sometimes ominously. No one likes that. In the late 70s some friends and I had a small indie label in San Francisco, 415 Records. The ba... more »

Advanced Technology in Ancient Civilizations

Waking Times at Waking Times - 4 hours ago
*Video - *Ancient civilizations had advanced technology and this video will show you a demonstration on the Egyptians' science. The post Advanced Technology in Ancient Civilizations appeared first on Waking Times.

Scraping Off the Hedge Fund Scum

Jim Horn at Schools Matter - 4 hours ago
Anticorruption activist Zephyr Teachout in a protest on the the steps of the Tweed Courthouse in New York City. Molly Hensley-Clancy for BuzzFeed News From BuzzFeed: A small group of parents and activists targeted hedge fund billionaires Dan Loeb, Paul Singer, and Paul Tudor Jones in a protest today over New York state education funding. Led by Zephyr Teachout, an anti-corruption activist who ran against Andrew Cuomo in the recent New York governor’s race, the protestors decried the political influence of New York’s wealthiest financiers on public education — namely through t... more »

Understanding The Science of Water

WakingTimes at Waking Times - 5 hours ago
*Brendan D. Murphy* - "Water is central and absolutely essential to the process of every cell in our body...." The post Understanding The Science of Water appeared first on Waking Times.

Never Make The Game Harder Than It Has To Be (K.I.S.S.- Keep It Simple St—d)

David Greene at @ THE CHALK FACE - 5 hours ago
Never Make The Game Harder Than It Has To Be (K.I.S.S.- Keep It Simple St—d). via Never Make The Game Harder Than It Has To Be (K.I.S.S.- Keep It Simple St—d).Filed under: SHAUN JOHNSON, PHD: Musings from the Chalk Face

Let's look at two problems built into ACA-based health-care coverage, one of which we have a shot at doing something about

KenInNY at DownWithTyranny! - 6 hours ago
*by Ken* This evening I want to think about two major problems with the way Obamacare works -- one having to do with the way it's set up, which could probably be fixed fairly straightforwardly but won't be because it would require Congress to do the fixing, and one that requires only a change in the way health-care consumers shop for coverage which probably won't be solved because, well, it's just too difficult for shoppers. *THE STRUCTURAL PROBELM FOR FAMILIES* This morning on the radio I heard a report that persuasively called attention to what indeed struck me as a serious pro... more »

U.S. Stealth Fighters Cannot Hide From Chinese Missiles And Radar

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 6 hours ago
F-35 and F-22. Photo from Military Photos And Photoshops *How China Will Track—and Kill—America’s Newest Stealth Jets -- Bill Sweetman, Daily Beast* *A gang of advanced missiles and a bleeding-edge radar unveiled at a Chinese air show could mean big trouble for the Pentagon’s best fighters.* Once, no magic act was complete without the magician’s revealingly dressed assistant. Her job was not merely to be sawn in half but to dominate the mostly male audience’s attention at moments when a focus on the whereabouts of the rabbit might blow the gaff. That was a useful lesson to bear in... more »

Satire: "Obama's Boldest Executive Order Yet"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 6 hours ago
*“Obama Signs Order Converting Little-Used Government* * Building into Housing for Amnestied Immigrants”* by Andy Borowitz WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report) – "In what some are calling his boldest executive order to date, President Obama signed an order on Tuesday that would convert a little-used government building in the nation’s capital into housing for amnestied immigrants. Signing the order in an Oval Office ceremony, the President said that American taxpayers would finally receive some value for a building that remains empty and unused for much of the year. “It will be a cause ... more »

Greece Updates ( December 2 , 2014 ) - New Democracy submits proposals for constitutional reforms ( including reducing Parliament from 300 to 200 ) ..... Greece and Troika still wrangling over the most recent program review - Greece already has tabled a sharp increast for its VAT on Hotel Services and phasing out early pensions ( Troika seeks more of course ) .... Will we see early elections next Spring ?

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 6 hours ago
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite1_1_02/12/2014_545083 *Conservative MPs submit proposals for constitutional review* A committee of New Democracy MPs asked by Prime Minister Antonis Samaras to propose changes to the Greek Constitution suggested Tuesday that the number of lawmakers in Parliament should be reduced from 300 to 200 and that the president of the republic should be given greater powers. The proposals submitted by the panel Tuesday also included changes to the law providing ministers and MPs with immunity from prosecution and for the president to be ele... more »

Is Crumbling Oil Prices Making Russian President Putin Weaker And More Dangerous?

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 7 hours ago
*Crumbling Oil Makes Putin More Dangerous: Expert -- Matthew J. Belvedere, CNBC* Russian President Vladimir Putin is being pushed "further into a corner" by falling oil prices, leaving him little option but to continue his aggression toward Ukraine and confrontation with the West, Eurasia Group President Ian Bremmer told CNBC on Tuesday. Putin has "gone all-in on an anti-U.S., must-keep-Ukraine nationalist engagement," Bremmer said on "Squawk Box." He said it's "completely inconceivable" for Putin to back down. "This is what is behind all his approval ratings. It's behind who he ... more »

W A N D E R E R S

Oberon at GlobaLove Think Tank - 7 hours ago

Terror at 24 hours notice

Peter Cresswell at Not PC - 8 hours ago
Thank *goodness* for Andrew Little’s timely intervention, so that 48 hours of “emergency” warrantless surveillance by spy agencies was reduced from 48 hours to only 24 in National’s new rushed-through anti-terrorism bill – and the bill’s “sunset clause” for when its powers expire was brought forward to 2017. Because those 24 hours make *so* much difference. Yes, that is sarcasm you’re hearing there. In his explanation for agreeing to vote for the bill, Little appeared more concerned about its timetable than its content. "People should always be sceptical when there are demands... more »

Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- December 2, 2014

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 8 hours ago
*Ashton Carter, the Wonk Who Would Lead the Pentagon -- Shane Harris & Tim Mak, Daily Beast * Obama is widely believed to tap an ex-physicist who cuts military waste like a laser to become the next secretary of defense. Call it the revenge of the wonk. After being passed over for Defense Secretary last year while serving as the Pentagon’s No. 2, Ashton Carter, a widely admired manager noted for his knack for wrangling budgets and weapons contracts, left government. It seemed as if he’d never serve in the top slot. But now, with Carter’s former boss, Chuck Hagel, having crashed an... more »

The Art of Rock Balancing

Oberon at GlobaLove Think Tank - 8 hours ago
Gravity Glue Balancing The Stones

"How It Really Is"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 8 hours ago

World News Briefs -- December 2, 2014 (Evening Edition)

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 8 hours ago
Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko (C) holds up the hands of newly appointed Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk (R) and newly appointed Parliament Speaker Volodymyr Groysman during a parliament session in Kiev, November 27, 2014. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich *Ukraine Parliament Votes In New Government, Fresh Ceasefire Hopes Fade -- Reuters* (Reuters) - Ukraine's parliament voted in a new government on Tuesday, putting foreign technocrats in key financial roles and renewing terms for the foreign and defense ministers in a signal that no major change in policy is likely on the rebellious e... more »

The Economy: “5 Complete Lies About America's New $18 Trillion Debt Level”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 8 hours ago
*“5 Complete Lies About America's New $18 Trillion Debt Level”* by Simon Black “On October 22, 1981, the government of the United States of America accumulated an astounding $1 TRILLION in debt. At that point, it had taken the country 74,984 days (more than 205 years) to accumulate its first trillion in debt. It would take less than five years to accumulate its second trillion. And as the US government just hit $18 trillion in debt on Friday afternoon, it has taken a measly 403 days to accumulate its most recent trillion. There’s so much misinformation and propaganda about this; le... more »

Another Bermuda triangle we can do without

Peter Cresswell at Not PC - 8 hours ago
Grant Dalton is about to go the taxpayer government to talk turkey about getting “support” for a sum from the government taxpayer to help prop up his budget -- projected to be “north of $100 million” -- for Team Dalton to contest the next America’s Cup, announced yesterday to be held in Bermuda. Dalton didn’t make the argument in his round of interviews this morning, presumably because he thought he wouldn’t need to, that New Zealand involvement would be good for New Zealand business. He was only concerned it would be good for Team Dalton. But since others will be making that ca... more »

How Not to Start a Trending Topic

Phil at All That Is Solid ... - 9 hours ago
We're practically in perpetual motion territory. It's swollen to the size of a Jovian red spot that preys on lesser Twitter squalls, and rips the energy from them to power its own storm engine. We're talking #CameronMustGo again, the unstoppable, irrepressible social media phenomenon of the last week and a bit. Sure thing it got a bit of a push yesterday after snarky attacks on it in the press which were sooo predictable that Mystic Meg here pointed out their foolishness a week ago. Embarrassing. But perhaps even more cringeworthy than professional journos pontificating from platfor... more »

Did 2014 Create A More Moderate Version Of Congressional Republicans?

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 10 hours ago
Monday there was a big buzz over Alex Isenstadt's Obama Republicans? post in *Politico*. The premise is that the new Congress will include 26 Members from districts that Obama won in 2012 and another 47 from districts Obama *nearly* won, many of which are absolutely Hillary Clinton territory. Isenstadt makes the point that the Republicans in these seats-- *if* they behave rationally (and, of course, there is no reason whatsoever to assume they all will)-- may be less likely to go the way of the crackpot teabaggers and neo-fascists and stick to a more moderate mainstream conservati... more »

As Oil Prices Continue To Plunge, A Look At Its Impact On Geopolitics And The Global Economy

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 10 hours ago
*As Oil Prices Plunge, Wide-Ranging Effects For Consumers And The Global Economy -- Steven Mufson, Washington Post* Tumbling oil prices are draining hundreds of billions of dollars from the coffers of oil-rich exporters and oil companies and injecting a much-needed boost for ailing economies in Europe and Japan — and for American consumers at the start of the peak shopping season. The result could be one of the biggest transfers of wealth in history, potentially reshaping everything from talks over Iran’s nuclear program to the Federal Reserve’s policies to further rejuvenate the ... more »

ISIS. Dirty Bomb/Nuclear Weapon. Obama's justification for war expansion

Penny at Penny for your thoughts - 10 hours ago
*Today's news:* Does ISIS Have A Nuclear Weapon? Islamic State Supporter Claims Militants Have Dirty Bomb *Islamic State group has reportedly developed a nuclear weapon made from radioactive material stolen* from an Iraqi university, according to a militant who claims insider knowledge. Hamayun Tariq, a British ISIS member now based in Syria, claimed on social media that the group obtained the uranium from Mosul University and now *possesses a “dirty bomb”* that it is now *considering detonating in a public area.* If true, this would confirm fears voiced by Iraq’s United Nations a... more »

La Revolte d'Atlas

Peter Cresswell at Not PC - 10 hours ago
[image: image] If you’re a student of French political protest, you’ll realise that every single French class, interest group and pressure group has been in protests or on strike but one: French students hurl rocks when fees increase, French farmers burn crops when tariffs decrease, and French truck drivers block roads for every other perceived wrong. But there is one kind of men and women in France who rarely protest. Every other kind and class have stopped, when they so wished, and have presented demands, claiming to be indispensable. This week however it was the turn, long o... more »

Free Speech in Germany?

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 10 hours ago
Abby Martin speaks with author and journalist Max Blumenthal about his recent trip to Germany and how he why he was treated like an anti-Semite for his criticism of the state of Israel.

Body Image, Eating Disorders & Marketing – Is This the Real Barbie?

WakingTimes at Waking Times - 10 hours ago
*April McCarthy* - An entire generation of young girls is being psychologically damaged by the onslaught of 'sexy' marketing tactics... The post Body Image, Eating Disorders & Marketing – Is This the Real Barbie? appeared first on Waking Times.

Brain science without the brain

Peter Cresswell at Not PC - 10 hours ago
There’s an old story about a lawyer questioning a doctor about an autopsy. *Lawyer: "Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a pulse?" Witness: "No." Lawyer: "Did you check for blood pressure?" Witness: "No." Lawyer: "Did you check for breathing?" Witness: "No." Lawyer: "So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?" Witness: "No." Lawyer: "How can you be so sure, Doctor?" Witness: "Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar." Lawyer: "But could the patient have still been alive nevertheless?" Witness: "Yes, it ... more »

The Mind-Boggling Stupidity of Our "Mission" in Iraq

thwap at thwap's schoolyard - 10 hours ago
Sometimes it just sort of creeps up on you, gradually, inexorably. The complete and utter insanity that's going on in the Middle East right now. Let's review: Saddam Hussein murders his former leader and takes over Iraq and the CIA gives him a list of Iraqi communists to kill. Saddam is happy with the benevolence of the CIA but he's more enamoured with the Stalinist mode of national industrial development, so he opts for the Soviets to be his protector. In 1979, the Shah of Iran is overthrown in a revolution led by pretty much the entire country (angered at his corruption and viole... more »

Einstein Never Would Have Passed a Standardized Test

freetoteach at Schools Matter - 10 hours ago
Albert Einstein might or might not have had dyslexia but he didn't do well with the standardized curriculum in Germany primarily because of its authoritarianism . That's a fact and his parents left Germany because they didn't like the rote memorization and mindlessness inherent in the German schools. It's all in his biography. Mindlessness and blind obedience is not a recipe for a healthy society. From the American Museum of Natural History: He loathed Germany's rigid education system, which was based upon rote learning. "It's a true miracle," he commented years later, "that modern... more »

Is The U.S. About To Create A 'Safe Zone' In Syria And A New Front Against The Islamic State?

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 10 hours ago
*U.S. Considers Opening New Front Against Islamic State To Create A Safe Zone In Syria -- Washington Post* The Obama administration is weighing the opening of a new front in the air war against the Islamic State in Syria, part of an offensive to push back militants along the western part of Syria’s border with Turkey and create a relatively safe zone for U.S.-backed Syrian rebel forces to move in. Under the plan, U.S. aircraft flying from Turkey’s Incirlik air base would target positions the militants currently hold along the border north of Aleppo, eastward toward the besieged tow... more »

While America Faces Economic Collapse - US Jewish Controlled Government To Give (For Free Of Course) To Israel Some Of Its "Top" F35 Fighter Jets!

Northerntruthseeker at Northerntruthseeker - 11 hours ago
I have long shown in previous articles where the newest US "fighter" aircraft, known as the F35 "Lightning II" is an absolute LEMON.... It is a horrible aircraft that is much too slow, much too heavy, cannot fly in the rain or at night, can only carry a very limited amount of armaments, does not have "stealth" no matter what the proponents claim, guzzles fuel at a stupidly alarming rate, is useless in any dogfight, and is hyper-overpriced... It is disgusting that the sucker American taxpayers are continuing to pay for and support such a ghastly ridiculous aircraft that will leave Am... more »

Know Your Rights This Holiday Season – Police Checkpoints

WakingTimes at Waking Times - 11 hours ago
*Video* - Knowing your rights when dealing with police and law enforcement officers is essential these days as police become more aggressive with citizens... The post Know Your Rights This Holiday Season – Police Checkpoints appeared first on Waking Times.

Taking a Stand

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 12 hours ago
BuzzFeed's Jazmin Michole writes: On Saturday, November 29, 2014, days after the Grand Jury Decision, Knox College Women’s Basketball Player Ariyana Smith bravely held a one woman demonstration at the Knox College v. Fontbonne University game held in Clayton, MO. During the singing of the national anthem, Ariyana walked with her hands up towards the American flag and fell to the ground for a full 4.5 minutes to bring awareness to the inhumane killing of Micheal Brown in which his body was left to lay on a neighborhood street for 4.5 hours. While Ariyana lay on the ground in hon... more »

U.S. Confirms Reports That Iran Is Now Bombing Islamic State Targets In Iraq

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 12 hours ago
*Iranian Jet Struck Islamic State Targets In Iraq, U.S. Official Says -- Washington Post* Iranian aircraft conducted strikes against Islamic State positions in Iraq last weekend, expanding Tehran’s presence as a close ally of Iraq’s Shiite-led government. “We do think they did do some airstrikes at targets in Iraq,” a senior U.S. defense official said, adding that “we have no reason to doubt those reports.” “We’ve long said they have a presence in Iraq, contributing to helping the Iraqis against ISIL,” the official said. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity given th... more »

Can the West co exist with Islam?

Steve at Thinking Aboot - 12 hours ago
If Turkish leader and general all all round religions nut is any indication the answer is no. There is just way to much wacky thought even by so called moderates. I think the solution is to go right back to the separation of Church and State. No exceptions for religion. One law fits all. Also a zero tolerance forigren policy. That means if you are lead by a nutter, we do not do business with you. Join the nutter alliance.

Dec. 2: Bad journalism - a classic example....

Graeme Decarie at The Moncton Times@Transcript - Good and Bad - 12 hours ago
"What are N.B.'s protocols for law enforcement gun use?" is on A1 of the Dec. 1 edition of the Moncton TandT. It's also one of the longest stories I have seen in the Irving press and, for all its length, it says nothing whatever. The blame for this does not lie with the reporter. It lies with the assignment editor and the page editor. For a start, this is obviously piggy-backing on the police shooting of a black teenager in Ferguson, Missouri. What's wrong with that? Well, this isn't Ferguson, Missouri. I don't know of any fear that is terrifying the people of Moncton as they wait f... more »

Islamic State Militant Tweets That They Have Built A "Dirty Bomb'

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 12 hours ago
*Islamic State Has A 'Dirty Bomb' Says British Jihadi, Amid Claims 40kg Of URANIUM Was Taken From Iraqi University -- Daily Mail* * Chemical was stolen from Mosul University, northern Iraq, in July * UN ambassador wrote letter at time of theft fearing 'mass destruction' * Hamayun Tariq among jihadis to boast of explosives on Twitter * Hinted at the potential destruction of such a bomb if detonated in London * British 37-year-old had social media account suspended afterwards Islamic State fanatics claim to have constructed a dirty bomb after stealing 40kg of uranium from an Iraqi u... more »

Former Pentagon Second-in-Command Ashton Carter To Be Nominated As U.S. Defense Secretary

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 12 hours ago
*Obama Settles on Ashton Carter as Defense Secretary, Officials Say -- New York Times* WASHINGTON — President Obama has settled on Ashton B. Carter to be the next defense secretary, senior administration officials said on Tuesday, but is not prepared to announce the move because the White House has not completed its vetting of him. A former deputy defense secretary with a long history at the Pentagon — though no uniformed military service — Mr. Carter was on a short list of prospective defense secretaries from the moment that Chuck Hagel announced his resignation, under pressure,... more »

The Economy: "Don't Bet on $70 Oil Lasting Long"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 12 hours ago
*"Don't Bet on $70 Oil Lasting Long"* by Bill Bonner "You puttin' the hurtin' on ‘em now." – Tommy Wilkerson "Again, we quote our old friend. Mr. Market has been puttin' the hurtin' on gold bulls. Yesterday, he went after the gold shorts. Gold rose $42.60 – or 3.6%. That's proportionally equal to a move of 640 points on the Dow. But today our sympathies go to poor Vladimir Putin and Nicolás Maduro. In Russia, the ruble is falling and growth is grinding to a halt. In Venezuela, the whole economy is falling apart. The proximate cause of this hurtin' is a fall in the price of oil. Ye... more »

Transpicuous New ep 4: Kissing bugs, Belly dancing, and the Chinese Circus comes to town

D ... Breaking The Silence at Removing The Shackles - 12 hours ago
Good Day everyone and Welcome to Transpicuous News, episode 4. This week we are going to talk about the "New Aids", Christine Lagard's belly dancing offer, where to stuff your money, what happens when someone decides to mint their own solid gold coins, and watching the Chinese circus come to town- coming soon to a country near you!! Love D http://transpicuousnews.blogspot.com/2014/12/transpicuous-new-ep-4-kissing-bugs.html http://the-one-network.org/transpicuous-news-ep-4-kissing-bugs-belly-dancing-and-the-chinese-circus-comes-to-town/ A Disease Doctors Call A 'Silent Kil... more »

Gordon Brown is retiring at the end of this Parliament

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 12 hours ago
Gordon Brown is retiring at the end of this Parliament. Whilst the BBC eulogise over his greatness, I prefer to remember him somewhat differently. This selection has been sitting on a page of this website called Gordon Brown's greatest hits, here it is in all its glory. Gordon Brown picks his nose If this had been a senior Conservative politician the BBC topical news programmes would never tire of this footage but as it was a Labour Chancellor and then Prime Minister I don't believe I've ever seen it mentioned. Gordon Brown just about keeping his temper Fraser Nelson nails Gor... more »

Breaking: International Luxury Conference now underway in Miami!

bob somerby at the daily howler - 12 hours ago
*TUESDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2014Also, the latest from T:* We rarely see the hard-copy version of the Sunday New York Times. Too expensive! Two weekends ago, we saw it. We also saw the November 16 edition of T: The New York Times Style Magazine, which the paper publishes fifteen Sundays per year. We’ll have to admit it—we were surprised by the utter foppishness of the magazine's offerings. Among a wide array of entries, we perused these: A profile of “England’s most revered interior designer;” a report on the comeback of the adult tricycle; nine wallpaper studies, in which “the artist L... more »

UAH AMSU: 2014 probably 3rd or 4th warmest year

Luboš Motl at The Reference Frame - 13 hours ago
*RSS AMSU rank: 6th-9th* Even in the heretical Czech nation, the media recently published articles such as This year will be the warmest one in the history, U.S. climatologists have calculated I don't know what they smoke, whether the difference is due to the general satellite-surface deviations, or due to the satellites' inability to see the very vicinity of the poles but the article above won't correspond to the reality as determined by UAH AMSU, a satellite dataset. *A new weather building at UAH* We should be using the lower troposphere (near-surface) UAH dataset v5.6 and s... more »

The Music Industry Exposed – Misuse and Abuse of Esoteric Symbols

WakingTimes at Waking Times - 13 hours ago
*David Gardner* - Does the increasing use of the all-seeing eye in the music industry reflect an increasing control that the elite members of society have over performers? The post The Music Industry Exposed – Misuse and Abuse of Esoteric Symbols appeared first on Waking Times.

Dollfuss

Spike EP at News Spike - 13 hours ago
Also, consider this paragraph in a book by Dorothy Thompson (*Let the Record Speak*, 1938, p. 135): *"In 1933, to please another despot, Mussolini, Dollfuss himself dissolved the Social Democratic Party and shot workmen in their home. Not to please Austria. To please Mussolini. And the little daughter of Dollfuss said to the child of a friend of mine: "Does your father cry all the time. Mine does."* *An excerpt from the book The Mind of Adolf Hitler The Secret Wartime Report by Walter C. Langer* *Basic Books Inc. - 1972, hard cover* from pages 111 - 113 *The Hitler Family* FATH... more »

Time For Student Debt Forgiveness?

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 14 hours ago
Elizabeth Warren's position on intolerable student debt isn't bad; it's a reasonable, moderate compromise. Cutting accruing interest from exorbitant rates meant to bolster banksters-- and government-- bottom lines, to market rates banksters pay to borrow is a good first step. But it isn't enough, not by a longshot. Sunday I had dinner with a senior congressional staffer who is very worried that the focus on interest rates will leave the real problem-- wealth creation-- to fester and choke economic development. There was a *New York Times* editorial over the weekend that explains t... more »

Tensions Continue To Rise Between NATO And Russia

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 14 hours ago
*NATO Slams Russia Over Ukraine -- Washington Post* BRUSSELS — NATO accused Russia on Tuesday of destabilizing Ukraine, amid rising concern of a broader confrontation after Moscow announced it would hold more military exercises next year. In a display of anger from the alliance, which is providing advisers and nonlethal aid to the government in Kiev, foreign ministers from the 28 countries that make up NATO chastised Moscow for its troop build-up in and around eastern Ukraine. “We strongly condemn Russia’s continued and deliberate destabilization of eastern Ukraine in breach of i... more »

“Motivated by greed with a complete disregard for food safety and biodiversity.” Why Food Sovereignty Should Not Be Handed To GMO Biotech Corporations

Colin Todhunter at East by Northwest - 14 hours ago
RINF, Global Research, Countercurrents 2/12/2014 After a four*-*year legislative battle, the European parliament has granted member states the ability to decide for themselves whether or not they want to allow crops of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) on their soil. Writing in The Parliament Magazine, Member of the European Parliament Marc Tarabella notes that the wishes of several pro-GMO lobbies, led by several multinationals and Britain, did not prevail [1]. A legal basis was obtained for allowing member states to ban the implementation of GMO crops and an extension of the ... more »

Kenya Replaces Security Chiefs After Latest al-Shabaab Massacre

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 14 hours ago
*Kenya al-Shabab Massacre: Kenyatta Replaces Security Chiefs -- BBC* Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has replaced his interior minister and police chief following a massacre by Islamist group al-Shabab. The president asked Kenyans to unite, and said: "We will not flinch in war against terrorists." Kenya's police chief David Kimaiyo stood down, while Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku was dismissed. Earlier, al-Shabab killed 36 quarry workers in the north-eastern Mandera region near the Somali border. The group attacked the workers around midnight on Monday while they were asleep... more »

The Beatings Will Continue

Karen Garcia at Sardonicky - 14 hours ago
Barack Obama's answer to racial and economic injustice in America is not to withhold domestic weapons of mass destruction from local police departments. To the contrary -- the police simply need more intensive training in how to assault people with accuracy and professionalism. They must learn to lob tear gas canisters responsibly, and to use proper steering techniques when deploying tanks in mall parking lots. As the Kill List president knows all too well, state violence is both an art and a science: *Obama plans to issue an executive order before the end of February 2015, direct... more »

Kate Pullinger Releases a New Episode of 'Inanimate Alice'

Martyn Daniels at Brave New World - 15 hours ago
In March 2008 we interviewed Kate Pullinger, who was then creating stories that were innovative and which exploited multimedia and technology. She had embarked on a digital fiction project, ‘Inanimate Alice.’ and after a break of six years has just published a new episode. The project hasn’t stood still, has been taken up by many children around the world and has been translated into Spanish, French, Italian, German, Indonesian, and Japanese. It also remains a multimedia story which is free for all to experience. We obviously had to remind ourselves of the early episodes before we... more »

KRISTOF VILLAGE: Gene Robinson traffics in facts!

bob somerby at the daily howler - 15 hours ago
*TUESDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2014Part 2—We didn’t know that was allowed:* Increasingly, our journalism is characterized by overreaction. Also, by single vision—by the refusal to see an event from more than one point of view. In this morning’s Washington Post, sports columnist Sally Jenkins provides a strong example. Then too, there’s the new slop at Salon. Jenkins writes *about* an overreaction—the overreaction of a St. Louis police association to a gesture by five members of the St. Louis Rams. Whatever you think of the players’ gesture, the police association overreacted in its offic... more »

New Capabilities & New Customer for Rheinmetall MASS Ship Protection System

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 15 hours ago
[image: MASS Ship Protection System]Rheinmetall continues to expand its range of ship protection products. The Düsseldorf-based system supplier has added to the capabilities of its tried-and-tested Multi Ammunition Softkill System, or MASS. Since space and weight always present a limiting factor on any platform, Rheinmetall has integrated an anti-torpedo capability into MASS. The current concept offers the possibility of launching up to four anti-torpedo decoys from a single MASS launcher. Existing launchers can be easily equipped with the new anti-torpedo upgrade kit without modif... more »

Islamic State Leader's Wife And Son Detained In Lebanon

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 15 hours ago
*Islamic State Leader’s Wife Said To Be Held In Lebanon -- Bloomberg* Lebanon has detained a wife and son of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, a senior military official said, a development that may give intelligence officials new information on the shadowy militant commander. The woman, an Iraqi national who said she was Baghdadi’s second wife, was detained more than 10 days ago, the official said on condition of anonymity in line with standing regulations. The boy is younger than 10, he added. *Read more* ..... *More News On The Islamic State Leader's Wife And Son Bein... more »

It's Tuesday...

Adrienne at Adrienne's Corner - 15 hours ago
*and I have a busy day ahead.* The events of the past few days have left me speechless. That is all.

World News Briefs -- December 2, 2014

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 15 hours ago
*1.7m Syrian Refugees Face Food Crisis As UN Funds Dry Up -- The Guardian* World Food Programme forced to suspend food voucher scheme to refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt More than 1.7 million Syrian refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt are facing a disastrous and hungry winter after a funding crisis forced the UN’s World Food Programme to suspend food vouchers to hundreds of thousands forced into exile by the conflict. Since the war began in March 2011, the WFP has brought food to millions of Syrians inside the country, and has used the voucher pr... more »

Sinatra and the Reagans

Spike EP at News Spike - 15 hours ago
*"So, the Kitty Kelley bitch comes forward, and she writes that Nancy Reagan - and sometimes her husband, but mostly Nancy Reagan - was having secret meetings, in the back of the White House, with no record being kept.* *Don't buy into the Sex Theory - those meetings were not about sex.* *Those meetings were about her husband, the President, having no-one left that he trusted to keep him safe, and protct his Presidency other than the damn Mafia..."* *- Bro. Steve Cokely, 1991* *Sinatra, Governor Pat Brown and Dean Martin, 1966* 'Sinatra's antipathy towards Reagan in 1966 was intens... more »

Hard Times in a Boom Town: Pennsylvanians Describe Costs of Fracking

WakingTimes at Waking Times - 16 hours ago
*Sharon Kelly* - "If you're looking for the shale gas boom, northeastern Pennsylvania is the place to start." The post Hard Times in a Boom Town: Pennsylvanians Describe Costs of Fracking appeared first on Waking Times.

Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- December 2, 2014

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 16 hours ago
Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers take part in a training exercise at a military base in Kabul November 23, 2014. Credit: REUTERS/Omar Sobhani *Insight - Afghan Forces Ill Equipped To Fight Taliban Without NATO -- Kay Johnson and Mirwais Harooni, Reuters* (Reuters) - Afghan district police chief Ahmadullah Anwari only has enough grenades to hand out three to each checkpoint in an area of Helmand province swarming with Taliban insurgents who launch almost daily attacks on security forces. "Sometimes up to 200 Taliban attack our checkpoints and if there are no army reinforcements,... more »

2015 OAIS Blogging Awards: Call for Nominations!

Jon Western at Duck of Minerva - 16 hours ago
It’s that time of year folks. We are now receiving nominations for the third annual Online Achievement in International Studies (OAIS) Blogging Awards — aka the Duckie Awards. We are asking Duck readers to reflect back over the past year to consider the best blogging contributions to the field of International Studies and to submit Continue reading

Aisha North: A short update on the energiesDecember 2, 2014

Obi-Wan Kabuki at AMERICAN KABUKI - 16 hours ago
*A short update on the energies* December 2, 2014 by Aisha North Once more the time seems to have speeded up, and rightly so, for now things have indeed been set into motion that will have an effect far and wide. Let us explain. As we have already mentioned, the last week’s events did indeed put into place a whole new set of coordinates into this gargantuan “machine”, and as such, we have been able to proceed at a much higher speed, and so, these events will continue to unfold in ways and in numbers that may take more than a few of you by surprise. You see, now there is no longer ... more »

Green Enchilada Chicken Soup for Your Soul, Not Your Waistline

Debra Hawkins at Housewife Eclectic - 16 hours ago
It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas... if only inside my house. Normally there's a foot of snow on the ground where I live, but nothing this year. But there have definitely been cold days and on those chilly days nothing sounds better than a nice warm bowl of soup. I love soup, but my husband is rather picky about soup so it takes awhile to find something he will willingly eat. His soups usually need to have some substance to them, or have a unique take. But I know his weakness: Mexican food. He loves it, even enough to try a Mexican food inspired soup. So this Green Ench... more »

Must Read

sue at Is the BBC biased? - 16 hours ago
I’ve been “away from the office” recently, but I have to mention two outstanding ‘must-reads’. The first has already been highlighted by Elder and BBC Watch, and has, no doubt, already been devoured by anyone who is concerned about the BBC’s damaging portrayal of Israel. It’s another media related tour de force by Matti Friedman, who pleased many frustrated BBC watchers with his earlier piece “An Insider’s Guide to the Most Important Story on Earth” August 2014, Tablet magazine. We wrote about it here. In Friedman’s latest article, published in The Atlantic is titled “What the Med... more »

Dropping Oil Prices And Iraq’s Budget Woes

Joel Wing at MUSINGS ON IRAQ - 16 hours ago
The sudden decline in world petroleum prices is proving a daunting challenge for Iraq. The country was never able to pass the 2014 budget due to the political maneuverings of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki before the national elections and then due to all the time it took to put together Premier Haider Abadi’s new government. Now with oil prices collapsing Baghdad has decided to draw up a new draft budget leading to another delay. Iraq is one of the most oil dependent countries in the world, so when prices recently collapsed the country was put into a bind. In October for example... more »

BREAKING NEWS: Ashton Carter To Be Named As The New U.S. Secretary Of Defense

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 17 hours ago
*Meet Chuck Hagel's Expected Replacement As Defense Secretary -- CNN* Washington (CNN) -- Ashton Carter, the former second-in-command at the Pentagon appears to be the top choice to replace outgoing Secretary Chuck Hagel. Barring any last minute complications, Ash Carter will be President Barack Obama's choice as the new Secretary of Defense, several U.S. administration officials told CNN. An administration official had said that Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, a former General Counsel at the Pentagon, was also still on the list of possibilities, but on Tuesday morning, ... more »

U.S. Congress Acts To Block President Obama From Closing Guantanamo

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 17 hours ago
*Congress Deals Blow To Plan To Shut Guantanamo Prison -- Reuters* (Reuters) - Lawmakers dealt a blow to President Barack Obama's five-year-long effort to close the prison camp at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba by omitting a plan to shut the facility from an annual defense authorization bill. U.S. Senator Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told reporters on Monday that the final version of the massive bill will not allow the president to transfer inmates to the United States. "Our language (on Guantanamo) ... will not be in," Levin said. The defen... more »

Skin-cell spray gun drastically cuts healing time for burns

Obi-Wan Kabuki at AMERICAN KABUKI - 17 hours ago
*Skin-cell spray gun drastically cuts healing time for burns* Feb 08, 2011 by Lin Edwards (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists in the US have developed a new technique that sprays a burn patient's own cells on the burn to help regenerate the skin and drastically reduce recovery time. The gun has been under development since 2008 and has now been used to successfully treat more than a dozen patients. The Skin-cell Gun works essentially like a sophisticated paint spray gun. It was developed by Professor Joerg C. Gerlach and colleagues of the Department of Surgery at the University of Pittsbu... more »

How Tommy Chong Beat Cancer with Homegrown Cannabis Medicine

WakingTimes at Waking Times - 17 hours ago
*Alex Pietrowski* - In a recent interview, Tommy Chong talks in greater detail about how he beat cancer with homegrown CBD oil... The post How Tommy Chong Beat Cancer with Homegrown Cannabis Medicine appeared first on Waking Times.

Mohawk Nation News 'Stir the Mind'

brendanorrell@gmail.com at CENSORED NEWS - 17 hours ago
STIR THE MIND Posted on December 1, 2014 Mohawk Nation News  Please post & distribute. Nia:wen. MNN. Dec. 2, 2014. The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake is calling for a one-day community consultation on the supposed loss of the Seigneury of Sault St. Louis SSSL by the Mohawks of Kahnawake. It was not lost. We always knew where it was! We are not the intruders. Yet we are being asked if we

Syrian Death Toll Now Over 200,000 As U.N. Suspends Food Aid

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 17 hours ago
*Syria Death Toll Now Exceeds 200,000: Monitor -- Al-Monitor* The death toll from Syria’s 4-year-old civil war has risen to more than 200,000, announced Britain-based rights monitoring group on Tuesday. "We have documented the killing of 202,354 people since March 2011," Agence France Presse reported Rami Abdel Rahman, director of Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, as saying. More than 130,000 of them were combatants, he added. *Read more* .... *More News On Syria's Death Toll And The UN Suspending Food Aid* Syria war death toll now ‘more than 200,000’ -- Global Post/AFP UN foo... more »

Colombian General Released By FARC Guerrillas Has Resigned

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 17 hours ago
*Colombian General Resigns Day After Being Released By FARC Guerrillas -- FOX News* Bogotá, Colombia (AP) – An army general whose surprise capture by leftist rebels nearly derailed two years of peace talks has resigned after coming under pressure for venturing into guerrilla territory dressed as a civilian and without bodyguards. Gen. Rubén Alzate, in his first remarks since being freed Sunday by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, said he regretted that his decision not to follow military protocol had tarnished the institution he's served proudly for more than 33 years. ... more »

The Nazi Titanic

Spike EP at News Spike - 17 hours ago
*From the Till report of June 1945: * *"The Intelligence Officer with 83 Group RAF has admitted on two occasions; first to Lt H. F. Ansell of this Team (when it was confirmed by a Wing Commander present), and on a second occasion to the Investigating Officer when he was accompanied by Lt. H. F. Ansell, that a message was received on 2 May 1945 that these ships were loaded with KZ prisoners but that, although there was ample time to warn the pilots of the planes who attacked these ships on the following day, by some oversight the message was never passed on... From the facts and fr... more »

Birmingham's first Islamic school 'spent £1m of public money on school in Pakistan' per Education News in The Independent

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 17 hours ago
'Council officials in Birmingham are investigating claims that a trust running the city's first-ever Islamic school spent £1 million of public money funding a new school in Pakistan. The allegations concern the Al-Hijrah school, a voluntary-aided state funded school for four to 18-year-olds which was set up in 1999 and run by a trust. The school was at the centre of controversy earlier this year when it was placed in special measures after an inspection by education standards watchdog Ofsted declared it to be "inadequate". An interim board was appointed by Birmingham City Council... more »

Like Mitch McConnell, Rickie Lee Jones Isn't A Scientist-- But Her Perspective On Energy Isn't Based On Bribes From Big Oil

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 18 hours ago
Yesterday we looked at two perspectives of the issues around Climate Change, one regarding a planet hurtling towards uninhabitability and another, by Jack Hannold, about how current price fluctuations in the oil market will impact supply. *Rickie Lee Jones' turn: * The unfortunate thing about states whose economies depend on destroying the land to harvest a natural resource is that the residents will serve the interests of the company with the fury of religion. They don't have to hire anyone, the $15 an hour employee will fight the environmentalist trying to save the local pelican... more »

A Pig In A Poke

Owen Gray at Northern Reflections - 18 hours ago
http://dailyenglish.cz/ Stephen Harper hopes to be re-elected on his boast that he knows -- better than anyone else -- how to manage the Canadian economy. But the evidence keeps suggesting that he doesn't know what he's doing. Murray Dobbin writes: However you see it -- as separate from society or integral to it -- Canada's "economy" is increasingly at the mercy of a risk-averse, inept corporate elite addicted to government tax breaks, and an ideologically addled government which more than anything else is simply incompetent. It ... more »

Untitled

jonjayray at EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL - 19 hours ago
*A Better Reason to Ditch E-rate Subsidies* It seems even Republicans on the Federal Communications Commission can’t think of good reasons why the agency shouldn’t hike everyone’s phone taxes to expand a wasteful federal program that lines the pockets of business cronies in the name of getting poor kids broadband access and laptops at school. The E-Rate program tax hike, which the commissioners can impose with no act of Congress, has been pending for years as an integral part of President Barack Obama’s push for further embedding technophilia within education. The current proposa... more »

Untitled

JR at GREENIE WATCH - 19 hours ago
*NOAA is trying to tell Americans that 2014 is shaping up as hottest year on record* *Steve Goddard comments: "It was obvious to me since about April that NOAA had decided that 2014 was going to be the hottest year ever. The White House needed this for their political objectives"It's going to be a tough sell considering the unusual cold weather Americans have been experiencing -- but the main point never mentioned is that this year is projected to be hotter than other 21st century years only by hundredths of a degree Celsius. It will indeed be hotter by some tenths of a d... more »

Black ice kills electric transportation across Czechia

Luboš Motl at The Reference Frame - 19 hours ago
Up to the end of November, Czechia managed to avoid any snow and ice in 2014. I haven't recorded the weather in any detail but I think that for several years, we didn't have such a late arrival of the winter. In Fall 2014, it wasn't really "warm" but the temperatures managed to stay above the freezing point all the time. Well, it's dangerous to extrapolate. From the last night on, i.e. since December 1st, Czechia's transportation system has been crippled by black ice. It's the first time in the history of electric trams in Prague (which began in 1891; not counting horse-driven ... more »

Cryptid Encounter - State Game Lands 331 - Clearfield Co., PA

arclein at Terra Forming Terra - 19 hours ago
Once again we have a clear eyeballed to consider. Importantly we do have the snout and this eliminates any confusion regarding the possibility of a Bigfoot. Again this does fit the developing pattern of the Giant Sloth. The problem there is that the female is most human like but should also sport a tail. None is noted here at all. The hair is also short and it been November, it should be growing out. All this makes it likely that it is a completely different creature or an outright hoax. The hoax conjecture cannot hold up if the height and foot prints are correct. The... more »

Has Sugar Lost its Sweet Spot?

arclein at Terra Forming Terra - 19 hours ago
[image: A crop of Stevia is seen in Asuncion, Paraguary, in this file photo taken July 24, 2007. Stevia, the increasingly popular no-calorie "natural" sweetener extracted from a Paraguayan plant, has stolen a big portion of the $1.3 billion global market for artificial sweeteners. REUTERS/Jorge Adorno] Stevia is the clearest and best answer to the sweetening problem. I have been posting on it since 2007 when i started this blog. Better than that it has a century of industrial usage in Japan and Europe. Thus using it is no serious trick at all. Yet in its most mature market... more »

U of Surrey events TODAY and TOMORROW on PRC united front strategy

Michael Turton at The View from Taiwan - 20 hours ago
[image: DSC03450] *On the Miaoli 49.* U of Surrey sent this around. Today Tues Dec 2 and Tomorrow TODAY (Tuesday 2 December 2014) at 16:00 in 02AC01 at the University of Surrey. PR CHINA’S UNITED FRONT STRATEGY TOWARDS TAIWAN AND EAST ASIA http://www.surrey.ac.uk/politics/news/events/2014/pr_chinas_united_front_strategy_towards_taiwan_and_east_asia.htm We have a similar event TOMORROW at the LSE: China’s United Front Strategies: Lessons from Taiwan, Hong Kong and its neighbours Wednesday 3 December 2014 18:30-20:00 in NAB.2.14 (LSE) The speakers are: Dr Wu Jieh-min – Associate Res... more »

Estonia buys 44 combat vehicles from the Netherlands

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 20 hours ago
[image: CV90 infantry vehicle]The Estonian government has decided to buy 44 CV90 infantry vehicles for the Estonian Defence Forces from the Netherlands, in what is the largest defence procurement project ever for the country. Previously, the largest Estonian defence procurement projects were the purchase of MBDA-made Mistral missiles for about USD84.5 million in 2009, and three Sandown-class minehunter vessels from the UK’s Royal Navy for about USD64 million in 2007. “The infantry vehicles will take the Estonian defence ability to a new level,” Defence Minister Sven Mikser said. Th... more »

The Last Days of Michael Hutchence

Spike EP at News Spike - 21 hours ago
*"That night Hutchence spoke of how proud he was that his step-daughters called him 'Daddy'..."* The Last Days of Michael Hutchence from Spike EP on Vimeo. Medical conspiracy theories from the "experts" - a forensic pathologist who has worked on the Bloody Sunday Inquiry, 9/11 and the Diana Inquiry; this man is a Spook Pathologist. Rampant, baseless speculation - none of which addresses the fact that his face and body were covered in bruises and "bore signs of a heavy beating". He mentions (of course) that cocaine increases the libido, but fails to mention (of course) that Proz... more »

Diana : Dodi Lives.

Spike EP at News Spike - 22 hours ago
Dispatches : "The Accident" - Princess Diana "Documentary" (1998) from Spike EP on Vimeo. Starring Jeff Steinberg of Executive Intelligence Review and Adnan Kohshoggi of Iran-Contra, "The World's Richest Man", and Mohammad al-Fayedd's Brother-in-law. Ostensibly a hit-piece deconstructing the Fayedd side of the Diana assassination myth (they were engaged, they were in love, she was pregnant, Fayedd is "an outsider" to the British Establishment because he is a Muslim (he is anything but), and that the security detail at the Ritz were unconnected to British Military or Secuity Servi... more »

Boeing to Continue Providing ICBM Guidance Systems to the U.S. Air Force

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 22 hours ago
[image: LGM-30 Minuteman III ICBM]Boeing will continue to repair and supply the guidance systems of the Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) to the U.S. Air Force through September 2015, keeping the weapon system adequately stocked with spare missile guidance sets and on constant alert. Under a $46.8 million contract, Boeing will serve as sole provider of maintenance and sustainment services on the NS50 guidance system, the navigational heart of the ICBM. Since 1998, Boeing has maintained the guidance systems in Heath, Ohio, ensuring spares are available for fli... more »

Balotelli 'Super Mario' post and the BBC

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 22 hours ago
The BBC's coverage of Mario Balotelli's anti Semitic tweet is striking different from its recent coverage of racist, homophobic and sexist remarks by other football related people. The BBC's article about Mario Balotelli's tweet http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/30287413 is short and lacking in the sort of detail and prominence that they gave the comments of Malky Mackay. Nowhere in the BBC article does the text of the offending tweet appear although it is in the equivalent article in The Telegraph - "Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli posts image about gaming character Super Mario... more »

Agni-IV launch successful

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 22 hours ago
[image: Agni-IV strategic missile]India on Tuesday successfully test-fired Agni-IV strategic missile for its full strike range of 4,000 km from the Wheeler Island, off the Odisha Coast. The nuclear weapons capable long range missile in deliverable version was launched for the first time by the Army’s Strategic Forces Command (SFC) around 10.15 am. Carrying a one-tonne dummy warhead, the missile splashed down near its pre-designated target point in the waters of Indian Ocean with high degree of accuracy as two naval ships located nearby recorded the terminal event. Read more

Germany proposes 'shared' multinational NH90 helicopter fleet

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 22 hours ago
[image: NH90 TTH]Germany is proposing that 22 NH Industries (NHI) NH90 troop transport helicopters it currently has on option could be acquired and used to form a pool of rotorcraft to be shared by NATO partners. The concept, which it calls the “multinational helicopter unit”, is part of a broader framework agreement the nation’s defence ministry hammered out with Airbus Helicopters as it looks to formalise planned cuts to its overall NH90 order. Berlin initially committed to 120 NH90 TTHs, but in 2013 it concluded a memorandum of understanding with the airframer – which is the majo... more »

See Russian Jet Fighter Nearly Collide With NATO F-16 In Skies Over Norway In Startling Video

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 23 hours ago
A Russian jet fighter came within a mere 60 feet of a NATO F-16 in an incident that could have ended with a disastrous mid-air collision in the skies over Norway — and the Norwegian military caught the whole frightening encounter on video. Norway made the incredible video public on Sunday, to add visual proof of Russia’s increasing military brinksmanship. The video is viewable above. According to the Norwegian military, the plane that appears directly in front of the Norwegian NATO F-16 in the video is a Russian Mig-31, during an incident in which Norway scrambled two of its own ... more »

What caused the mysterious 'loud bangs' heard in Surrey?

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 23 hours ago
Mystery still surrounds a series of loud bangs heard across Surrey and the rest of the country on Saturday night (November 29), with chins wagging and conspiracy theories doing the rounds over what might have caused the strange sounds. Speculation has suggested the loud noises, heard the length and breadth of Britain between 10pm and 10.30pm, could have been caused by a secret spy plane. One scientist claimed the sound was like a "pulse detonation engine" - the technology which he and a team of experts are working on developing - which has been linked to the so-called Aurora spy j... more »

"A Precious Moment..."

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 23 hours ago
"For, finally, what is man in nature? He is nothing in comparison with the infinite, and everything in comparison with nothingness, a middle term between all and nothing. He is infinitely severed from comprehending the extremes; the end of things and their principle are for him invincibly hidden in an impenetrable secret; he is equally incapable of seeing the nothingness from which he arises and the infinity into which he is engulfed." - Blaise Pascal but... "In this galaxy there’s a mathematical probability of three hundred million Earth-type planets. And in the universe, 100 bi... more »

New Warships, Frigates Join Iran Navy’s Fleet

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 23 hours ago
Two warships equipped with missile systems and 4 frigates for maritime patrol joined the Iranian Navy’s fleet on Monday. Speaking to reporters in Iran’s southern port city of Bandar Abbas on Monday, Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said the two warships, a Sirik-class and a Kalat-class, have been equipped with surface-to-surface missile systems. He also noted that the four frigates, dubbed Fajr, Shams, Fath and Nour, are employed for maritime patrol operations, adding that they are armed with “sensitive and indigenous missiles.” Read more

France pushes for Rafale deal, but talks still stuck

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 23 hours ago
[image: Dassault Rafale]India and France have decided to step-up bilateral cooperation in counter-terrorism and maritime security as well as hold a major aero-naval exercise in the Indian Ocean early next year, signaling their intent to further bolster their "strategic partnership". But what could be the biggest project between the two, the almost $20 billion MMRCA (medium multi-role combat aircraft) project for 126 Rafale fighters, remains stuck in the final stretch of negotiations. The two sides, however, resolved to sort out the 'differences' in a 'fast-track' manner, sources s... more »

China dispatches escort fleet to Somali waters

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 23 hours ago
[image: Type 054A frigate (Weifang)]The 19th Chinese naval squad left Qingdao, a coastal city in east China's Shandong Province, on Tuesday to conduct escort missions in the Gulf of Aden and Somali waters. The fleet, sent by the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy, comprises of missile frigates Linyi and Weifang, as well as supply ship Weishanhu, with two helicopters and more than 700 troops. It will replace the 18th escort fleet currently conducting similar missions in the area. It is the first time the two frigates will undertake the job. Read more

BREAKING: MA resigns KMT chairmanship

Michael Turton at The View from Taiwan - 23 hours ago
Ma has officially quit, a day early. http://www.appledaily.com.tw/realtimenews/article/politics/20141202/517141/ So much damage to Taiwan and to his own party... Break out the hot dogs and popcorn! It's carnival time for KMT watchers. _______________________ [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!

Defence Secretary announces new warships will be built in Scotland

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 23 hours ago
[image: Type-26 FFG]Britain’s new fleet of Royal Navy frigates will be built in Scotland it has been announced. There were fears that the Type 26 warships – some of which are likely to be based at Devonport – could be built overseas. But Defence Secretary Michael Fallon yesterday said there should be “no confusion” over where the new generation of frigates will be constructed. Read more

Russia’s Cold War nuclear missile train back on track in new arms race

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 23 hours ago
[image: RT-23 Molodets (SS-24 Scalpel) ICBM]Russian scientists are reviving Soviet-era nuclear missile trains as part of the Kremlin’s $530 billion overhaul of its armed forces. Disguised military trains loaded with nuclear missiles first rumbled across Russia’s railways in the 1980s. They could travel more than 1000km a day without being detected and could launch missiles from any part of their route, making them a key part of the ­Soviet Union’s Cold War arsenal. Read more

Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov explains facts of life on US global ambitions vs US real potential - Is there a persuasive argument presented ?

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 23 hours ago
Tweets...... *zerohedge* @zerohedge · 4h4 hours ago Tensions Between US & Russia Are Worse Than You Realize – Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-12-0 1/tensions-between-us-russia-are-worse-you-realize-%E2%80%93-foreign-minister-sergey-lavrov … [image: Tyler Durden's picture] Tensions Between US & Russia Are Worse Than You Realize – Foreign Minister Sergey LavrovSubmitted by Tyler Durden on 12/01/2014 - 22:30 "*Many reasonable analysts understand that there is a widening gap between the global ambitions of the US Administration and the country’... more »

Russia's Black Sea Fleet to Develop Bases in Crimea in 2015

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 23 hours ago
[image: Varshavyanka-class SSK]Russia's Black Sea Fleet is planning to focus on the combat training of its new units, reconstructing ranges and building infrastructure in Crimea, the fleet's press service said Monday. "The main efforts will be focused on the organization of combat training of newly formed units, reconstruction of ranges, construction of infrastructure of military camps in Crimea and along the coast of Caucasus and preparing for the reception of new ships, submarines and auxiliary vessels by the fleet," the statement said. Earlier in October, Navy commander-in-chief ... more »

Arihant’s maiden sea sortie shortly; stringent safety audits to curb accidents, says Admiral Dhowan

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 1 day ago
[image: INS Arihant]The Indian Navy's future cruise will be guided by a perspective plan mapped to perfection after taking into account factors like threat perception, technological needs, likely environment in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and India's state as a maritime nation. In an exclusive interview to OneIndia, ahead of the Navy Day on December 4, the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral R K Dhowan said that the Indian Navy's structured phase of transformation has received a boost with the launch of the dedicated satellite -- Rukmini -- last year. The country's maiden dedicated mil... more »

North Korea Is In The Process Of Developing A Fleet Of Nuclear Missile-Capable Submarines

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 1 day ago
[image: Kim Jong Un poses on a North Korean submarine]North Korea is attempting to develop submarines capable of launching nuclear armed ballistic missiles, Debalina Ghoshal writes for USNI News. North Korea is developing a new class of submarines based on the designs of the Soviet-era Golf-II class submarine. Although these vessels have been surpassed by later US and European models and are basically obsolete by modern standards, North Korea is gaining technological insight from the submarines that could lead to a functioning ballistic missile vessel. Read more

Australia rules out open tender for new submarines, Japan in box seat

Ko Savonije at Naval Open Source INTelligence - 1 day ago
[image: Soryu class SSK]Australia will not hold an open tender to replace its ageing Collins-class submarines, government officials said on Tuesday, a decision that bolsters Japan's position as the likely builder of the new multibillion-dollar fleet. Reuters reported in September that Australia was leaning towards buying as many as 12 off-the-shelf stealth submarines from Japan despite domestic pressure to build them at home. Since then, several European defence contractors have said they would be price competitive with Japan and do the work in Australia in a bid to win a piece of ... more »

China Changes Narrative on Organ Harvesting

arclein at Terra Forming Terra - 1 day ago
The sad truth is that the weight of evidence is overwhelming in terms of numbers alone. This was the only way in which demand could have been met and yes it was met. Those who benefited are apparently been punished while the innocent are left to pick up the loose ends. That includes those in charge now and they are trying to sweep it all under the carpet. This identifies a shift in general intensity driven by constant foreign coverage. This has finally put the government itself on the defensive. Add in the production of military provocations and we see a pretty clear linkage b... more »

The Viral Infection that makes nearly HALF of us more Stupid (and it lasts for YEARS)

arclein at Terra Forming Terra - 1 day ago
[image: The virus - called chlorovirus ATCV-1 - was previously only known to appear in green algae in freshwater lakes] Obviously this is not good news. We have discovered a problem that appears to have been with us a long time and it affect brain function significantly. We really do not know what the vector happens to be but it will be there. The fact that it affects almost half of the population is suggestive of an occasional contact that is not actually pervasive. This will make it hard to define. We do want to reverse this problem. At least we have identified the... more »

Harper's Perps with Perks #13

Alison at Creekside - 1 day ago
Michael Sona, fall guy robocall perp sentenced to nine months in jail for his role in the 2011 election robocall scandal, has served 12 days of that sentence and would like to go home now while he waits for the appeal of both his conviction and sentence. OK, said Judge Harry Laforme today, releasing Sona til May 29, 2015. As Sona's trial progressed from his being an unlikely criminal mastermind whose friend and fellow Guelph campaign co-worker received immunity to give evidence against him that turned out to be so self-serving that even the prosecution said it should "be approache... more »

New York Charter Approval Process an Object Lesson Against Common Core?

deutsch29 at @ THE CHALK FACE - 1 day ago
In November 2014, the New York State Education Department (NYSED) and New York State Regents approved a charter to open September 2015 in Rochester, New York: Greater Works Charter School (GWCS). The lead applicant of GWCS, Ted J. Morris, Jr., lied about his credentials. Still NYSED and Regents approved GWCS. As his fraudulent credentials and […]

Heirs to Forgotten Kingdoms: Journeys Into the Disappearing Religions of the Middle East

Saman Mohammadi at The Excavator - 1 day ago
*"Heirs to Forgotten Kingdoms: Journeys Into the Disappearing Religions of the Middle East" by Gerard Russell (2014).* *WikiSpooks:* Gerard Russell is a career diplomat in the British foreign service and the former head of the Islamic Media Unit. Gerard Russell, is the former Head and Spokesman for the Islamic Media Unit; In this country, few would know the name of Gerard Russell, but to millions of Arabs he is the voice of Britain. *Video Title: Heirs to Forgotten Kingdoms: The disappearing religions of the Middle East. Source: New America. Date Published: November 14, 2014. Des... more »

"A Look to the Heavens"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
“A lovely starfield in the heroic northern constellation Perseus holds this famous pair of open or galactic star clusters, h and Chi Perseii. Also cataloged as NGC 869 (right) and NGC 884, both clusters are about 7,000 light-years away and contain stars much younger and hotter than the Sun. *Click image for larger size.* Separated by only a few hundred light-years, the clusters' ages based on their individual stars are similar - evidence that they were likely a product of the same star-forming region. Always a rewarding sight in binoculars, the Double Cluster is even visible to the u... more »

The Poet: Manuel Bandeira, "Be Like A River"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
*"Be Like A River"* “Be like a river that flows Silent in the middle of the night Not fearing the dark of the night, Reflecting any star that is in the sky. And if the sky fills with clouds, Clouds are water, like the river, so Reflect them too with no regret In the silent depth.” - Manuel Bandeira, Brazilian poet

"Imagination..."

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
“Imagination is the outreaching of mind, the bombardment of the conscious mind with ideas, impulses, images and every sort of psychic phenomena welling up from the preconscious. It is the capacity to "dream dreams and see visions...” - Rollo May

Paulo Coelho, "Walking the Path"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
"Walking the Path" by Paulo Coelho "I reckon that it takes about three minutes to read my text. Well, according to statistics, in that same short period of time 300 people will die and another 620 will be born. It takes me perhaps half an hour to write a text: here I sit, concentrating on my computer, books piled up beside me, ideas in my head, the scenery passing by outside my window. Everything seems perfectly normal all around me; and yet, during these thirty minutes, 3,000 people have died and 6,200 have just seen the light of the world for the first time. Where are all those t... more »

Chet Raymo, “Supernatural and Metanatural”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
*“Supernatural and Metanatural”* by Chet Raymo "I first wrote about Jan Vermeer's "The Milkmaid" back in the late-summer of 2009, when the painting was the star of a show at New York's Met. I was so enchanted with the painting that I made it the desktop on one of my laptops, where it has remained ever since. (Click image to enlarge.) What I like about the painting is the way it celebrates the commonplace, especially the way it illuminates simple material things - bread, milk, wicker, brass, cloth, ceramic, wood, plaster, skin. We see these things as they are, but also - though the ... more »

Ukraine Announces A Temporary Ceasefire With Pro-Russian Rebels

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 1 day ago
A scene from mid-October of the devastation at Donetsk airport as Ukrainian troops searched for the remains of a fellow soldier. (Photo Sergei Loiko) *Kiev Says Limited Truce With Pro-Russian Separatists Reached -- Wall Street Journal* Fighting Around Donetsk Airport Stops as Russian, Ukrainian Officials Negotiate Cease-Fire KIEV, Ukraine—The Ukranian government said Monday that it had reached a truce with pro-Russian separatists in one of the hottest spots of the monthslong conflict in eastern Ukraine, potentially signaling progress in the implementation of frequently violated p... more »

In A Major Diplomatic Defeat, Russia Announces That It Will Not Build The South Stream Gas Pipeline To Europe

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 1 day ago
*In Diplomatic Defeat, Putin Diverts Pipeline to Turkey -- New York Times* MOSCOW — President Vladimir V. Putin said Monday that he would scrap Russia’s South Stream gas pipeline, a grandiose project that was once intended to establish the country’s dominance in southeastern Europe but instead fell victim to Russia’s increasingly toxic relationship with the West. It was a rare diplomatic defeat for Mr. Putin, who said Russia would redirect the pipeline to Turkey. He painted the failure to build the pipeline as a loss for Europe and blamed Brussels for its intransigence. The decis... more »

Britain's Foreign Secretary Raises Concerns On Russian Planes 'Probing' U.K. Air Space

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 1 day ago
Britain's Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond addresses the media after a meeting with Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz in Vienna October 29, 2014. Credit: Reuters/Leonhard Foeger *Philip Hammond: Russian Planes 'Probing UK' -- BBC* Britain is concerned about the "extremely aggressive probing" of its airspace by Russian aircraft, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has said. He made the remark while being questioned by a Commons committee about arms export licences to Russia. He told MPs the UK was responding to Russia's role in the Ukraine crisis via EU-wide sanctions. But the... more »

The Daily "Near You?"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
Rock Springs, Wyoming, USA. Thanks for stopping by.

"If The Government Had To Dig A Hole"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago

"Mourn Not..."

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
“Mourn not the dead. But rather mourn the apathetic throng - the cowed and meek who see the world's great anguish and its wrong, and dare not speak.” -Ralph Chaplin

Fracking Isn't Going To Save The World

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 1 day ago
*-by Jack Hannold* The price of gasoline has been falling lately because U. S. oil production has soared to its highest level in decades, producing a worldwide surplus. OPEC’s Thanksgiving Day announcement that its members won’t soon cut oil production means prices will remain low for now. One Russian oil executive thinks OPEC wants to crash the U.S. shale oil boom, which he compares to the dot-com boom of the 1990’s. He predicts prices will rise again in 2016, after OPEC finishes “cleaning up the American marginal market.” Fracking for shale oil costs more than conventional dri... more »

World AIDS Day 2014: Five Data Points, Four News Items, and Three Films

Josh Busby at Duck of Minerva - 1 day ago
Today is World AIDS Day, an annual day of remembrance and reflection on the global AIDS crisis held since 1988. Overshadowed this year by the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, we should keep in mind that this problem is not over even if it has receded from news coverage in recent years. Here are 5 facts Continue reading

"Leaving the Earth a Better Place: A Legacy of Love"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
*"Leaving the Earth a Better Place: A Legacy of Love"* by Madisyn Taylor, The DailyOM "It is a great act of love to leave the earth a better place when we leave than which we found her. We inherit this great planet from our parents and from the generations that came before. Then, in concert with the surrounding culture, our elders teach us how to care for the land and the sea, ourselves and each other. They model ways of being in relationship with every other expression of life on earth. But whether they act with care or carelessness, compassion or cruelty, generosity or greed, we h... more »

"How It Really Is"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago

And So It Goes (2014)

Gentong Taek at MOVIE HD DOWNLOAD - 1 day ago
Download And So It Goes For FreeWatch Movie And So It Goes HD with duration 94 Min and broadcast on 2014-07-18 and MPAA rating is 15. 2465146 2465146 *Original Title :* And So It Goes *Movie title in your country :* And So It Goes *Year of movie :* 2014 *Genres of movie :* Comedy, Drama, Romance, *Status of movie :* Released *Release date of movie :* 2014-07-18 *Companies of movie :* Envision Entertainment, ASIG Productions, Castle Rock Entertainment, *Countries of movie :* United States of America, *Language of movie :* English, *Durationof movie :* 94 Min *Averag... more »

Legal bills based on hourly rates not always appropriate; value not hours matters

James C Morton at Morton's Musings - 1 day ago
Bank of Nova Scotia v. Diemer, 2014 ONCA 851: [35] Having said that, it is evident that the fairness and reasonableness of the fees of a receiver and its counsel are the stated lynchpins in the *Bakemates *analysis. However, in actual practice, time spent, that is, hours spent times hourly rate, has tended to be the predominant factor in determining the quantum of legal fees. [36] There is a certain irony associated with this dichotomy. A person requiring legal advice does not set out to buy time. Rather, the object of the exercise is to buy services. Moreover, th... more »