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http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_2977273.html
A Surrey woman has a light bulb which is still going strong - after 70 years.
The Swann-Edison filament bulb was bought by the stepfather of Mo Richardson's husband Jim in Redhill, Surrey, in 1938.
When he died, the family moved to the Isle of Wight, taking "Old Faithful" with them, reports the Daily Mirror.
Mo said: "I can't believe it is still going strong - it is as good as it has ever been. It has always been fairly dim but it still lights up the place perfectly well."
First Mo and Jim put the bulb in the downstairs toilet of their three-bedroom home in Cowes. But when they redecorated, it was moved to the upstairs landing.
After Jim died 10 years ago, the bulb, which is made of hand drawn glass, now has added sentimental value.
Mo, 60, said: "It reminds me of Jim. It sounds cheesy but I like to keep it lit up because it's like my husband is looking over me."
Standard light bulbs have a life-span of between 750 and 1,000 hours - but Mo reckons her bulb has been switched on for around 600,000 hours.
She said: "I am forever having to change my other lights. This shows how things were made to last back in the old days.
"I will be devastated when it finally goes out but I don't think that will happen for many years to come."
Edison's original plan was that they would last indefinitely...but like many of the inventions of Tesla and Edison corporations and men with money made it so that the idias were modified to make them more money...and of course free energy was nixed altogether...
Gold-Plated Church Windows Purify Air
http://www.livescience.com/health/080821-church-windows.html
By LiveScience Staff
posted: 21 August 2008 01:36 pm ET
Medieval stained-glass windows colored in gold nanoparticles help purify air when lit by the sun, a new study finds.
"For centuries people appreciated only the beautiful works of art, and long life of the colors, but little did they realize that these works of art are also, in modern language, photocatalytic air purifier with nanostructured gold catalyst," said Zhu Huai Yong, a material scientist at the Queensland University of Technology.
When energized by the sun, tiny gold particles can destroy certain airborne pollutants. These pollutants, called volatile organic compounds, create the "new" smell often detected in new furniture, carpets and paint in good condition. Even in small amounts, these compounds, like methanol and carbon monoxide, are not good for your health.
An electromagnetic field generated by sunlight couples with the gold electrons' oscillations to create a resonance, said Zhu. The magnetic field of the gold nanoparticles can expand up to hundred times, breaking apart the pollutant molecules.
Zhu said the byproduct of the reaction is carbon dioxide, which is comparatively safe, particularly in the small amounts that would be created through this process.
The high price of gold notwithstanding, using gold nanoparticles to drive these chemical reactions is more energy-efficient than conventional air-purifying processes, the researcher says, and it might be possible to commercialize it.
"Once this technology can be applied to produce specialty chemicals at ambient temperature, it heralds significant changes in the economy and environmental impact of the chemical production," said Zhu.
"There are only two things we should fight for. One is the defense of our homes and the other is the Bill of Rights. War for any other reason is simply a racket."
-General Smedley Butler USMC
Nobody posts, (except me) and pretty soon this board is going to go moribund...
Perhaps one of the biggest jokes in the world is "Liquid Paraffin Lamp Oil," priced at about $20.00 per gallon. As few people these days have any familiarity with the history of lamps, their design, or their fuel, they actually buy "Liquid Paraffin Lamp Oil" to burn in kerosene lamps. The lamps were all basically designed before 1890 to burn coal oil, so they are still called "oil lamps" even though coal oil was replaced by kerosene well over 125 years ago. But some marketing genius realized that kerosene is called "paraffin" in England, but by that name is a solid waxy substance in the US, so why not call clear kerosene "Liquid Paraffin Lamp Oil" and fleece the unwary? It worked! Just a few weeks ago (early February, 2006) I purchased 16 gallons of Low Odor Mineral Spirits at a True Value hardware store to use in my B & H, P & A and Kosmos lamps...on sale at $4.19 a gallon. While I was checking out with the best lamp fuel available, others were waiting to purchase "Liquid Paraffin Lamp Oil" on sale for $19.95 a gallon.
http://www.endtimesreport.com/lighting.html
Before Salmonella Outbreak, Disease-Ridden Mexican Peppers Repeatedly Stopped at Border
Mexican Peppers Posed Problem Long Before Outbreak
Monday, August 18, 2008
By Garance Burke, Associated Press
Grow your own or eat locally.
http://www.cnsnews.com/public/Content/Article.aspx?rsrcid=34260
Fresno, Calif. - Federal inspectors at U.S. border crossings repeatedly turned back filthy, disease-ridden shipments of peppers from Mexico in the months before a salmonella outbreak that sickened 1,400 people was finally traced to Mexican chilies.
Yet no larger action was taken. Food and Drug Administration officials insisted as recently as last week that they were surprised by the outbreak because Mexican peppers had not been spotted as a problem before.
But an Associated Press analysis of FDA records found that peppers and chilies were consistently the top Mexican crop rejected by border inspectors for the last year.
Since January alone, 88 shipments of fresh and dried chilies were turned away. Ten percent were contaminated with salmonella. In the last year, 8 percent of the 158 intercepted shipments of fresh and dried chilies had salmonella.
On Friday, Dr. David Acheson, the FDA's food safety chief, told reporters peppers were not a cause for concern before they were implicated in the salmonella outbreak.
"We have not typically seen problems with peppers," Acheson said. "Our import sampling is typically focused on areas where we know we've got problems or we've seen problems in the past, which is why we're now increasing our sampling for peppers."
On Monday, the FDA said Acheson's comment was in relation to outbreaks or illness associated with Mexican peppers, not the rejection of pepper shipments at the borders. Calls to the FDA seeking elaboration were not immediately returned.
Still, food-safety advocates question why the agency did not pay more attention to the peppers being stopped at the border and why it took the nation's largest foodborne illness outbreak for the agency to ratchet up its screening of companies known for shipping dirty chilies.
"If the fact that they were showing up on problem lists for a year doesn't make them high-risk, I don't know what does," said Ami Gadhia, policy counsel with Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports magazine. "If it's across the board, then that's a systemic problem that FDA needs to be able to nimbly respond to."
The agency initially suspected that fresh tomatoes had caused the outbreak. Then officials determined in mid-July that jalapenos could also be sickening people and eventually traced implicated pepper shipments all the way back to two farms in Mexico.
The agency doesn't keep count of what percentage of the nearly 491,200 metric tons of Mexican peppers imported last year were turned away at the U.S. border. In general, the federal government inspects less than 1 percent of all foreign food entering the country.
According to the Department of Agriculture, 84 percent of all fresh peppers eaten in the U.S. come from Mexico.
In the last year, the agency's data shows that dozens of cases were turned back due to filth, illegal pesticides and in one case, something poisonous.
Bob Buchanan, a former senior science adviser at FDA, said part of the problem may be that the agency sets its priorities for the food it considers to be high-risk years in advance.
Dried peppers and other imported spices were considered sufficiently risky to be mentioned on a 2006 FDA manual instructing inspectors on which high-risk foods deserved a more careful check.
The agency has long considered salmonella to be a risk in dried chilies, since foreign spice traders often leave peppers to dry in the sun where they're vulnerable to contamination from birds and other animals, Buchanan said.
Inspectors might have looked over the odd box of fresh Mexican chilies, but no one paid raw peppers much attention since they were not mentioned as a high-risk crop, he said.
"Somebody could have picked up a box and looked at peppers if they wanted to, but I'm not sure that would have been a high priority," Buchanan said. "It would require a big leap to think that salmonella in dried peppers could be related to problems in fresh chilies."
Since the salmonella outbreak began in April, 1,423 people have fallen ill and the produce industry has lost more than $200 million as consumers have shied away from buying fresh produce.
Federal investigators are now focusing their probe on fresh hot peppers from Mexico jalapenos and serranos but still suspect that tainted tomatoes were initially involved.
This month, the agency put a dozen Mexican growers or distributors on its "import alert" list for tougher border screening.
On Friday, Acheson said the agency had stepped up testing of certain Mexican produce and uncovered more cases of salmonella contamination just not the same strain that caused this particular outbreak in jalapenos, basil and cilantro.
In July, six separate shipments of fresh jalapenos and serranos were stopped after inspectors found they were contaminated with salmonella, FDA data shows.
One crate detained on July 29 came from Agricola Zaragoza, a Mexican packinghouse that handled produce from two farms where chilies linked to the outbreak were traced.
"If so many of the peppers we eat in the U.S. come in from Mexico, you'd think we would want to pay more attention," said Mike Doyle, director of the University of Georgia's Center for Food Safety, which works with industry to improve growing and packing practices. "Something isn't working."
More businesses try bartering to keep the books balanced
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080819/BUSINESS06/808190386&GID=gKnCfN6w0bnFh8J/U+7aoIXWBB3XlUO8gxhKfe9SBiU%3D
BY GRETA GUEST • FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER • August 19, 2008
In a tough economy, more businesses are turning to bartering to make ends meet.
Jason Iras, vice president of Naturalistic Landscapes in Shelby Township, said his business has increased 20% since joining TradeFirst.com two years ago.
In exchange for landscaping services, Iras said his company gets materials on trade such as mulch, trees and topsoil, maintenance on company vehicles -- even a treadmill.
"We decided to give it a shot. It brings in business that we normally wouldn't get," he said. "We get a chance to do a job before our competition down the street that is not in trade."
Oak Park-based TradeFirst.com was founded 30 years ago. Then it was called Trade Exchange of America.
It matches its 5,000 members in Michigan, Ohio and Florida and stretches dollars by trading services, products and meals.
The business-to-business exchange is similar to consumer-oriented sites like uSwapIt.com, U-Exchange.com and Craigslist.
Businesses in TradeFirst's member rolls are promoted to other members through ads on the Web site, newsletters, weekly faxes and in the annual membership directory, said Frederic Detwiler, founder and president.
"Some of the greatest market-share advantages occur during a soft economy," he said.
TradeFirst acts like a bank, keeping track of deposits and withdrawals in each member's trade account.
Matt Prentice, CEO of the Matt Prentice Restaurant Group, joined TradeFirst in 1980 and said the key to making bartering work is to make sure other businesses are giving him the same deal they would if he paid in cash.
For example, his staff was buying light bulbs from another trade member until he found he could buy them for less at another company if he paid in cash.
"Trade, if it is done right, can be very beneficial," Prentice said. "The key is finding the right vendors."
Prentice, owner of restaurants Coach Insignia, Deli Unique and Shiraz, said he trades meals for cleaning services in his restaurants, heating and cooling work, uniforms, car washes and some advertising.
"It's great for service companies because it allows you to grow your business," he said. "The economy is definitely a great reason to get into trade because it is automatically going to drive your trade."
Also makes the IRS crazy so you know it has to be good.
Are You Ready For Nuclear War?
By Paul Craig Roberts
http://vdare.com/roberts/080818_you.htm
The nice thing about living at ground zero is you don't have to get ready for a nuke. If they drop one on us I will be dead before I even hear the boom...if I'm lucky I might get to see the flash...so getting ready for that has nothing to do with bomb shelters or stocking food. I've been ready to go home for a long long time, but I keep waking up every day so might as well live happy and watch all the fun stuff that's going on...got a front row seat as long as there is the internet...~THG
Pervez Musharraf, the puppet installed by the US to rule Pakistan in the interest of US hegemony, resigned August 18 to avoid impeachment. Karl Rove and the Diebold electronic voting machines were unable to control the result of the last election in Pakistan, the result of which gave Pakistanis a bigger voice in their government than America's.
It was obvious to anyone with any sense—which excludes the entire Bush Regime and almost all of the "foreign policy community"—that the illegal and gratuitous US invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, and Israel's 2006 bombing of Lebanon civilians with US blessing, would result in the overthrow of America's Pakistani puppet.
The imbecilic Bush Regime ensured Musharraf's overthrow by pressuring their puppet to conduct military operations against tribesmen in Pakistani border areas, whose loyalties were to fellow Muslims and not to American hegemony. When Musharraf's military operations didn't produce the desired result, the idiotic Americans began conducting their own military operations within Pakistan with bombs and missiles. This finished off Musharraf.
When the Bush Regime began its wars in the Middle East, I predicted, correctly, that Musharraf would be one victim. The American puppets in Egypt and Jordan may be the next to go.
Back during the Nixon years, my Ph.D. dissertation chairman, Warren Nutter, was Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs. One day in his Pentagon office I asked him how the US government got foreign governments to do what the US wanted. "Money," he replied.
"You mean foreign aid?" I asked.
"No," he replied, "we just buy the leaders with money."
It wasn't a policy he had implemented. He inherited it and, although the policy rankled with him, he could do nothing about it. Nutter believed in persuasion and that if you could not persuade people, you did not have a policy.
Nutter did not mean merely third world potentates were bought. He meant the leaders of England, France, Germany, Italy, all the allies everywhere were bought and paid for.
They were allies because they were paid. Consider Tony Blair. Blair's own head of British intelligence told him that the Americans were fabricating the evidence to justify their already planned attack on Iraq. This was fine with Blair, and you can see why with his multi- million dollar payoff once he was out of office.
The American-educated thug, Saakashkvili the War Criminal, who is president of Georgia, was installed by the US taxpayer funded National Endowment for Democracy, a neocon operation whose purpose is to ring Russia with US military bases, so that America can exert hegemony over Russia.
Every agreement that President Reagan made with Mikhail Gorbachev has been broken by Reagan's successors. Reagan's was the last American government whose foreign policy was not made by the Israeli-allied neoconservatives. During the Reagan years, the neocons made several runs at it, but each ended in disaster for Reagan, and he eventually drove the modern day French Jacobins from his government.
Even the anti-Soviet Committee on the Present Danger regarded the neocons as dangerous lunatics. I remember the meeting when a member tried to bring the neocons into the committee, and old line American establishment representatives, such as former Treasury Secretary Douglas Dillon, hit the roof.
The Committee on the Present Danger regarded the neocons as crazy people who would get America into a nuclear war with the Soviet Union. The neocons hated President Reagan, because he ended the cold war with diplomacy, when they desired a military victory over the Soviet Union.
Deprived of this, the neocons now want victory over Russia.
Today, Reagan is gone. The Republican Establishment is gone. There are no conservative power centers, only neoconservative power centers closely allied with Israel, which uses the billions of dollars funneled into Israeli coffers by US taxpayers to influence US elections and foreign policy.
The Republican candidate for president is a warmonger. There are no checks remaining in the Republican Party on the neocons' proclivity for war. What Republican constituencies oppose war? Can anyone name one?
The Democrats are not much better, but they have some constituencies that are not enamored of war in order to establish US world hegemony. The Rapture Evangelicals, who fervently desire Armageddon, are not Democrats; nor are the brainwashed Brownshirts desperate to vent their frustrations by striking at someone, somewhere, anywhere.
I get emails from these Brownshirts and attest that their hate-filled ignorance is extraordinary. They are all Republicans, and yet they think they are conservatives. They have no idea who I am, but since I criticize the Bush Regime and America's belligerent foreign policy, they think I am a "liberal commie pinko."
The only literate sentence this legion of imbeciles has ever managed is: "If you hate America so much, why don't you move to Cuba!"
Such is the current state of a Reagan political appointee in today's Republican Party. He is a "liberal commie pinko" who should move to Cuba.
The Republicans will get us into more wars. Indeed, they live for war. McCain is preaching war for 100 years. For these warmongers, it is like cheering for your home team. Win at all costs. They get a vicarious pleasure out of war. If the US has to tell lies in order to attack countries, what's wrong with that? "If we don't kill them over there, they will kill us over here."
The mindlessness is total.
Nothing real issues from the American media. The media is about demonizing Russia and Iran, about the vice presidential choices as if it matters, about whether Obama being on vacation let McCain score too many points.
The mindlessness of the news reflects the mindlessness of the government, for which it is a spokesperson.
The American media does not serve American democracy or American interests. It serves the few people who exercise power.
When the Soviet Union collapsed, the US and Israel made a run at controlling Russia and the former constituent parts of its empire. For awhile the US and Israel succeeded, but Putin put a stop to it.
Recognizing that the US had no intention of keeping any of the agreements it had made with Gorbachev, Putin directed the Russian military budget to upgrading the Russian nuclear deterrent. Consequently, the Russian army and air force lack the smart weapons and electronics of the US military.
When the Russian army went into Georgia to rescue the Russians in South Ossetia from the destruction being inflicted upon them by the American puppet Saakashvili, the Russians made it clear that if they were opposed by American troops with smart weapons, they would deal with the threat with tactical nuclear weapons.
The Americans were the first to announce preemptive nuclear attack as their permissible war doctrine. Now the Russians have announced the tactical use of nuclear weapons as their response to American smart weapons.
It is obvious that American foreign policy, with is goal of ringing Russia with US military bases, is leading directly to nuclear war. Every American needs to realize this fact. The US government's insane hegemonic foreign policy is a direct threat to life on the planet.
Russia has made no threats against America. The post-Soviet Russian government has sought to cooperate with the US and Europe. Russia has made it clear over and over that it is prepared to obey international law and treaties. It is the Americans who have thrown international law and treaties into the trash can, not the Russians.
In order to keep the billions of dollars in profits flowing to its contributors in the US military-security complex, the Bush Regime has rekindled the cold war. As American living standards decline and the prospects for university graduates deteriorate, "our" leaders in Washington commit us to a hundred years of war.
If you desire to be poor, oppressed, and eventually vaporized in a nuclear war, vote Republican.
Paul Craig Roberts [email him] was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury during President Reagan’s first term. He was Associate Editor of the Wall Street Journal. He has held numerous academic appointments, including the William E. Simon Chair, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Georgetown University, and Senior Research Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He was awarded the Legion of Honor by French President Francois Mitterrand. He is the author of Supply-Side Revolution : An Insider's Account of Policymaking in Washington; Alienation and the Soviet Economy and Meltdown: Inside the Soviet Economy, and is the co-author with Lawrence M. Stratton of The Tyranny of Good Intentions : How Prosecutors and Bureaucrats Are Trampling the Constitution in the Name of Justice. Click here for Peter Brimelow’s Forbes Magazine interview with Roberts about the recent epidemic of prosecutorial misconduct.
R u guys cookin beanz?
http://www.endtimesreport.com/pinto_beans.html#HONEY%20BAKES%20BEANS
Smellz likit...
Culddie havsum?
http://www.endtimesreport.com/pinto_beans.html
When government suspends "rights" tyranny inevitably follows
From the July 2008 Idaho Observer
History proves that there is always advance warning when governments enter the final stages of transitioning from freedom to tyranny. The three most obvious warnings are sounded when government begins openly spying on people, publicly punishing opinions and raising up standing armies. The U.S. government and its state, county, municipal and corporate minions have legalized unwarranted surveillance, searches and seizures; those who speak and write in opposition to government policies are subject to punishments ranging from character assassination and harassment to prison sentences and sudden, suspicious deaths and; police at all levels are being militarized in dress, weaponry, demeanor and tactics. What Thomas Jefferson pointed out as historical fact over 200 years ago is supported in contemporary experience as described by Ron Paul. The truth is plain to see: The U.S. government has become obsessed with surveillance and the enforcement of its increasingly unpopular policies with militarized police authority.
The excuse that militarizing police is necessary for making the homeland safe from terrorists is as ancient as tyranny itself. The U.S. government is committed in the direction of tyranny; it cannot and will not turn itself around. To turn an infamous quote from President Bush on its head, "You are either with us [the people] or you are with the terrorists [the U.S. government]."
Thomas Jefferson on surveillance, opinions and standing armies
"There are rights which it is useless to surrender to the government and which governments have yet always been found to invade. These are the rights of thinking and publishing our thoughts by speaking or writing; the right of free commerce; the right of personal freedom. There are instruments for administering the government so peculiarly trustworthy that we should never leave the legislature at liberty to change them. The new Constitution has secured these in the executive and legislative department, but not in the judiciary. It should have established trials by the people themselves, that is to say, by jury. There are instruments so dangerous to the rights of the nation and which place them so totally at the mercy of their governors that those governors, whether legislative or executive, should be restrained from keeping such instruments on foot but in well-defined cases. Such an instrument is a standing army."
~Letter to David Humphreys (1789)
"Freedom of religion; freedom of the press; freedom of person under the protection of the habeas corpus; and trial by juries impartially selected, I deem [among] the essential principles of our government, and consequently [among] those which ought to shape its administration." ~1st Inaugural Address (1801)
"One of the amendments to the Constitution... expressly declares that ‘Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press,’ thereby guarding in the same sentence and under the same words, the freedom of religion, of speech, and of the press; insomuch that whatever violates either throws down the sanctuary which covers the others."
~Draft Kentucky Resolutions (1798)
"A right of free correspondence between citizen and citizen on their joint interests, whether public or private and under whatsoever laws these interests arise (to wit: of the State, of Congress, of France, Spain, or Turkey), is a natural right; it is not the gift of any municipal law, either of England, or Virginia, or of Congress, but in common with all other natural rights, it is one of the objects for the protection of which society is formed and municipal laws established." ~Letter to James Monroe (1797).
"Did we ever expect to see the day, when, breathing nothing but sentiments of love to our country and its freedom and happiness, our correspondence must be as secret as if we were hatching its destruction!" ~Letter to Elbridge Gerry (1799)
"The attempt which has been made to restrain the liberty of our citizens meeting together, interchanging sentiments on what subjects they please and stating their sentiments in the public papers, has come upon us a full century earlier than I expected."
~Letter to William Branch Giles, 1794.
"No provision in our Constitution ought to be dearer to man than that which protects the rights of conscience against the enterprises of the civil authority."
~Letter to New London Methodists (1809)
"Subject opinion to coercion: whom will you make your inquisitors? Fallible men, governed by bad passions, by private as well as public reasons. And why subject it to coercion? To produce uniformity? But is uniformity of opinion desirable? No more than of face and stature."
~Notes on Virginia (1782)
"None but an armed nation can dispense with a standing army. To keep ours armed and disciplined is therefore at all times important." ~Written comment (1803)
"The supremacy of the civil over the military authority I deem [one of] the essential principles of our Government, and consequently [one of] those which ought to shape its administration." ~1st Inaugural (1801)
"Standing armies [are] inconsistent with [a people’s] freedom and subversive of their quiet." ~Reply to Lord North’s Proposition (1775)
"Bonaparte... transferred the destinies of the republic from the civil to the military arm. Some will use this as a lesson against the practicability of republican government. I read it as a lesson against the danger of standing armies." ~Letter to Samuel Adams (1800)
"The Greeks and Romans had no standing armies, yet they defended themselves. The Greeks by their laws, and the Romans by the spirit of their people, took care to put into the hands of their rulers no such engine of oppression as a standing army. Their system was to make every man a soldier and oblige him to repair to the standard of his country whenever that was reared. This made them invincible; and the same remedy will make us so."
~Letter to Thomas Cooper (1814).
"Our duty is... to act upon things as they are and to make a reasonable provision for whatever they may be. Were armies to be raised whenever a speck of war is visible in our horizon, we never should have been without them. Our resources would have been exhausted on dangers which have never happened instead of being reserved for what is really to take place."
~6th Annual Message (1806)
Ron Paul on surveillance
Last month, the House amended the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) to expand the government’s ability to monitor our private communications. This measure, if it becomes law, will result in more warrantless government surveillance of innocent American citizens.
Though some opponents claimed that the only controversial part of this legislation was its grant of immunity to telecommunications companies, there is much more to be wary of in the bill. The House version, Title II, Section 801, extends immunity from prosecution of civil legal action to people and companies including any provider of an electronic communication service, any provider of a remote computing service, "any other communication service provider who has access to wire or electronic communications," any "parent, subsidiary, affiliate, successor, or assignee" of such company, any "officer, employee, or agent" of any such company, and any "landlord, custodian, or other person who may be authorized or required to furnish assistance." The Senate version goes even further by granting retroactive immunity to such entities that may have broken the law in the past.
The new FISA bill allows the federal government to compel many more types of companies and individuals to grant the government access to our communications without a warrant. The provisions in the legislation designed to protect Americans from warrantless surveillance are full of loopholes and ambiguities. There is no blanket prohibition against listening in on all American citizens without a warrant.
We have been told that this power to listen in on communications is legal and only targets terrorists. But if what these companies are being compelled to do is legal, why is it necessary to grant them immunity? If what they did in the past was legal and proper, why is it necessary to grant them retroactive immunity?
In communist East Germany, one in every 100 citizens was an informer for the dreaded secret police, the Stasi. They either volunteered or were compelled by their government to spy on their customers, their neighbors, their families, and their friends. When we think of the evil of totalitarianism, such networks of state spies are usually what comes to mind. Yet, with modern technology, what once took tens of thousands of informants can now be achieved by a few companies being coerced by the government to allow it to listen in on our communications. This surveillance is un-American.
We should remember that former New York governor Eliot Spitzer was brought down by a provision of the PATRIOT Act that required enhanced bank monitoring of certain types of financial transactions. Yet we were told that the PATRIOT Act was needed to catch terrorists, not philanderers. The extraordinary power the government has granted itself to look into our private lives can be used for many purposes unrelated to fighting terrorism. We can even see how expanded federal government surveillance power might be used to do away with political rivals.
The Fourth Amendment to our Constitution requires the government to have a warrant when it wishes to look into the private affairs of individuals. If we are to remain a free society we must defend our rights against any governmental attempt to undermine or bypass the Constitution.
Excerpts from Ron Paul’s "farewell address" to Congress—Sept. 19, 1984
"Thousands of men and women have come and gone here in our country’s history, and except for the few, most go unnoticed and remain nameless in the pages of history, as I am sure I will be. The few who are remembered are those who were able to grab the reins of power and, for the most part, use that power to the detriment of the nation. We must remember that achieving power is never the goal sought by a truly free society. Dissipation of power is the objective of those who love liberty."
"We learned nothing from the Depression years and continue to pay farmers to raise crops not needed, then pay them to stop planting. Our policies drive prices of commodities down, so we prop up the prices and buy up the surpluses. The consumer suffers, the farmer suffers, the country suffers, but our policies never change; we just legislate more of the same programs that cause the problems in the first place."
"We pay for bridges and harbors throughout the world and neglect our own. If we feel compulsion to spend and waste money, it would make more sense at least to waste it at home. We build highways around the world, raise gasoline taxes here, and routinely dodge potholes on our own highways."
"Certain individual groups, against the intent of the Constitution and the sentiments of a free society, agitate to make illegal privately owned guns used for self-defense. At the same time, they increase the power of the state whose enforcement occurs with massive increase in government guns – unconstitutionally obtained at the expense of freedom. Taking away the individual’s right to own weapons of self-defense and giving unwarranted power to a police state can hardly be considered progress."
"We have strict drug laws written by those who generously use the drug alcohol. Our laws drive up the price of drugs a thousandfold, to the delight of the dealers, the pushers, and terrorist nations around the world who all reap huge illegal profits."
"The crisis we face is clearly related to a loss of trust – trust in ourselves, in freedom, in our own government and in our money. We are a litigious welfare society gone mad. Everyone feels compelled to grab whatever he can get from government or by suit. The "something for nothing" obsession rules our every movement, and is in conflict with the other side of man’s nature—that side that values self-esteem and pride of one’s personal achievement. Today the pride of self-reliance and personal achievement is buried by the ego-destroying policies of the planned interventions of big government and replaced by the "satisfaction" of manipulating the political system to one’s own special advantage. Score is kept by counting the federal dollars allocated to the special group or the congressional district to which one belongs. This process cannot continue indefinitely. Something has to give—we must choose either freedom and prosperity or tyranny and poverty."
http://www.proliberty.com/observer/20080730.htm
Two Large Solar Plants Planned in California
Go for pics:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/15/business/15solar.html?_r=1&em&oref=slogin
Companies will build two solar power plants in California that together will put out more than 12 times as much electricity as the largest such plant today, the latest indication that solar energy is starting to achieve significant scale.
Solar plants like this one in Bavaria, Germany, have taken photovoltaic technology from home rooftops to utility-size projects.
The plants will cover 12.5 square miles of central California with solar panels, and in the middle of a sunny day will generate about 800 megawatts of power, roughly equal to the size of a large coal-burning power plant or a small nuclear plant. A megawatt is enough power to run a large Wal-Mart store.
The power will be sold to Pacific Gas & Electric, which is under a state mandate to get 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2010. The utility said that it expected the new plants, which will use photovoltaic technology to turn sunlight directly into electricity, to be competitive with other renewable energy sources, including wind turbines and solar thermal plants, which use the sun’s heat to boil water.
“These market-leading projects we have in California are something that can be extrapolated around the world,” Jennifer Zerwer, a spokeswoman for the utility, said. “It’s a milestone.”
Though the California installations will generate 800 megawatts at times when the sun is shining brightly, they will operate for fewer hours of the year than a coal or nuclear plant would and so will produce a third or less as much total electricity.
OptiSolar, a company that has just begun making a type of solar panel with a thin film of active material, will install 550 megawatts in San Luis Obispo County. The SunPower Corporation, which uses silicon-crystal technology, will build about 250 megawatts at a different location in the same county.
The scale is a leap forward.
“If you’re going to make a difference, you’ve got to do it big,” said Randy Goldstein, the chief executive of OptiSolar. The scale of the two plants will “bring a new paradigm to bear” for the industry, he said.
At 800 megawatts total, the new plants will greatly exceed the scale of previous solar installations. The largest photovoltaic installation in the United States, 14 megawatts, is at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, using SunPower panels.
Spain has a 23-megawatt plant, and Germany is building one of 40 megawatts. A recently built plant that uses mirrors to concentrate sunlight, called Nevada Solar One, can produce 64 megawatts of power.
Solar power remains expensive compared with making electricity from coal or natural gas, but it is bounding ahead, driven by quotas set by the states.
California’s 20 percent renewable standard is one of the toughest, and companies there are afraid they will miss a deadline in 2010. Pacific Gas & Electric expects that when the new plants are completed, its total will rise to 24 percent, but not until 2013.
Both plants require numerous permits, and plans could still go awry. The companies involved said they expected that building gargantuan plants would achieve economies of scale in the cost of design, installation and connection to the electric grid.
The companies said they were forbidden by contract terms to talk about price, and a spokeswoman for Pacific Gas & Electric said her company was trying to obtain the best possible deal for ratepayers by not telling other suppliers of renewable energy what it was willing to pay.
But all three companies said the costs would be much lower than photovoltaic installations of the past.
SunPower’s panels are mounted at a 20-degree angle, facing south, and pivot from west to east over the course of the day to face the sun. OptiSolar’s are installed at a fixed angle. They are larger and less efficient, but also much less costly, so the cost per watt of energy is similar, company executives said.
Both are good at producing power at a time of day when the prices tend to be high, in the afternoon.
Neither approaches the economy of fossil-fuel burning plants, said Ms. Zerwer, the spokeswoman for Pacific Gas & Electric. But they will be competitive with wind power and with power from solar thermal plants, which are equipped with mirrors that use the sun’s heat to boil water into steam. And prices will fall, she predicted.
Her company, she said, was “going to contribute to the virtuous cycle of technology innovation and lower unit manufacturing cost, by purchasing on such a scale.”
Cheap, clean drinking water purified through nanotechnology
http://www.nanowerk.com/news/newsid=6744.php
(Nanowerk News) Scientists at the University of South Australia have discovered a simple way to remove bacteria and other contaminants from water using tiny particles of pure silica coated with an active nano-material.
The water treatment process is a new concept, not used anywhere else in the world, which has the potential to make a significant contribution to the health of nations worldwide.
A recent UNESCO report reveals that more than 6,000 people die every day from water-related diseases, and the availability of drinking quality water, especially in the developing world, is fast becoming a major socio-economic issue.
Current water purification techniques are often complicated and use sophisticated equipment, which is expensive to operate and maintain, and includes a final, costly disinfection stage. This can then result in by-products like trihalomethane, which can have serious effects on human health.
Professor Peter Majewski, Research Director for the school along with Chiu Ping ‘Candace’ Chan of the Ian Wark Research Institute at University of South Australia, believe that nanotechnology could provide a simple answer to the problem of expensive and complicated water purification technology.
Tiny particles of pure silica coated with an active material could be used to remove toxic chemicals, bacteria, viruses, and other hazardous materials from water much more effectively and at lower cost than conventional water purification methods.
Peter and Candace have investigated how silica particles can be coated easily with a nanometer-thin layer of active material based on a hydrocarbon with a silicon-containing anchor. The coating is formed through a chemical self-assembly process so involves nothing more than stirring the ingredients to make the active particles.
The exciting aspect for our undergraduate students, says Peter, is that the nanotechnology stream of studies will expose students to revolutionary applications of this exciting area of mechanical engineering.
Nanotechnology will provide significant socio economic benefits within the next decades covering all major sectors, i.e. health (like new cancer treatments, cleaner water), energy (novel concepts for solar energy and photocatalytic concepts), protection of the environment (nanomaterials will replace environmental unfriendly conventional materials and allow re-designing of manufacturing processes to make them environmental friendly), and sustainability of manufacturing (nanotechnology will provide much wider use of recyclable concepts, reduced materials requirements in manufacturing, significant reduction of energy and water in manufacturing).
The fabrication of nanomaterials is often still one the bench scale. Like the semiconductor industry, the nanotechnology industry needs to develop and build novel machinery and equipment for an up-scaled manufacturing of f.e. nanoparticles, nanomaterials and nanostructured materials. This aspect will also deliver significant opportunities for the area of mechanical engineering and people who are trained in nanotechnology related fabrication and manufacturing.
Source: University of South Australia
Solar Collector Could Change Asphalt Roads Into Renewable Energy Source
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/08/080812135702.htm
ScienceDaily (Aug. 14, 2008) — Anyone who has walked barefoot across a parking lot on a hot summer day knows that blacktop is exceptionally good at soaking up the sun’s warmth. Now, a research team at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) has found a way to use that heat-soaking property for an alternative energy source.
Through asphalt, the researchers are developing a solar collector that could turn roads and parking lots into ubiquitous—and inexpensive–sources of electricity and hot water.
The research project, which was undertaken at the request of Michael Hulen, president of Novotech Inc. in Acton, Mass, which holds a patent on the concept of using the heat absorbed by pavements, is being directed by Rajib Mallick, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering.
On Monday, Aug. 18, 2008, team member Bao-Liang Chen, a PhD candidate at WPI, will present the results of research aimed at evaluating the potential for transforming stretches of asphalt into a cost-effective energy source at the annual symposium of the International Society for Asphalt Pavements in Zurich, Switzerland. The study looks not only at how well asphalt can collect solar energy, but at the best way to construct roads and parking lots to maximize their heat-absorbing qualities.
“Asphalt has a lot of advantages as a solar collector,” Mallick says. “For one, blacktop stays hot and could continue to generate energy after the sun goes down, unlike traditional solar-electric cells. In addition, there is already a massive acreage of installed roads and parking lots that could be retrofitted for energy generation, so there is no need to find additional land for solar farms. Roads and lots are typically resurfaced every 10 to 12 years and the retrofit could be built into that cycle. Extracting heat from asphalt could cool it, reducing the urban ‘heat island’ effect. Finally, unlike roof-top solar arrays, which some find unattractive, the solar collectors in roads and parking lots would be invisible.”
Mallick and his research team, which also includes Sankha Bhowmick of UMass, Dartmouth, studied the energy-generating potential of asphalt using computer models and by conducting small- and large-scale tests. The tests were conducted on slabs of asphalt in which were imbedded thermocouples, to measure heat penetration, and copper pipes, to gauge how well that heat could be transferred to flowing water. Hot water flowing from an asphalt energy system could be used “as is” for heating buildings or in industrial processes, or could be passed through a thermoelectric generator to produce electricity.
In the lab, small slabs were exposed to halogen lamps, simulating sunlight. Larger slabs were set up outdoors and exposed to more realistic environmental conditions, including direct sunlight and wind. The tests showed that asphalt absorbs a considerable amount of heat and that the highest temperatures are found a few centimeters below the surface. This is where a heat exchanger would be located to extract the maximum amount of energy. Experimenting with various asphalt compositions, they found that the addition of highly conductive aggregates, like quartzite, can significantly increase heat absorption, as can the application of a special paint that reduces reflection.
Finally, Mallick says the team concluded that the key to successfully turning asphalt into an effective energy generator will replacing the copper pipes used in the tests with a specially designed, highly efficient heat exchanger that soaks up the maximum amount of the heat absorbed by asphalt. “Our preliminary results provide a promising proof of concept for what could be a very important future source of renewable, pollution-free energy for our nation. And it has been there all along, right under our feet.”
Adapted from materials provided by Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
See also:
Matter & Energy
* Thermodynamics
* Energy Technology
* Solar Energy
Earth & Climate
* Energy and the Environment
* Renewable Energy
* Environmental Science
Reference
* Solar radiation
* Solar panel
* Power station
* Traffic engineering (transportation)
DOHERTY: NEW SCIENTIFIC DATA JUSTIFIES REPEALING GLOBAL WARMING RESPONSE ACT
By bguhl - August 14, 2008 - 1:48pm
Release Date: Aug 14 2008
DOHERTY: NEW SCIENTIFIC DATA JUSTIFIES REPEALING GLOBAL WARMING RESPONSE ACT
http://www.politickernj.com/bguhl/22291/doherty-new-scientific-data-justifies-repealing-global-warming-response-act
URGES STATE TO HOLD OFF ON DAMAGING NEW REGULATIONS AS CLIMATE CHANGE THEORIES CLASH
Responding to various new scientific reports questioning the concept of global warming, Assemblyman Michael Doherty today called on Governor Corzine to hold off on proposing any new regulations associated with the state’s Global Warming Response Act and urged the Legislature to repeal that act when it returns to legislative business after Labor Day.
“There are many credible members of the scientific community who have questioned the theory of global warming, and now we have some scientists actually suggesting the earth’s temperatures may be entering a period of dramatic cooling,” said Doherty, R-Warren and Hunterdon. “With this growing level of scientific uncertainty, it makes no sense to enact a new set of economically damaging regulations prompted by the global warming hysteria of recent years.”
The Global Warming Response Act was signed last year by Corzine, which requires the state to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 20 percent by 2020 and 80 percent by 2050. The law required the state Department of Environmental Protection to release a report detailing how the state would meet the goals, with recommendations now expected to be issued this fall.
According to recent news reports, a top observatory that has been measuring sun spot activity predicts that global temperatures will drop by two degrees over the next 20 years as solar activity slows and the planet drastically cools down. They suggest this could potentially herald the onset of a new ice age. Following the end of the sun’s most active period in over 11,000 years, the last 10 years have displayed a clear cooling trend as temperatures post-1998 leveled out and are now decreasing.
Earlier this year, John Coleman, the founder of The Weather Channel, stated that manmade global warming is “the greatest scam in history,” adding, “I am amazed, appalled and highly offended by it. Global Warming; It is a scam.” Coleman said the theory of global warming is based on fraudulent science.
“New Jersey’s tax and regulatory climate is already chasing jobs from this state left and right and these new regulations will make matters worse,” Doherty said. “Rather than conforming our policies to questionable scientific theories, we should be looking at the concrete economic indicators that show our state’s economy is in trouble. And we should be taking steps to help people who are losing jobs and being forced out of their homes by this state’s anti-economic growth agenda – not making matters worse.”
Pub beats the credit crunch by allowing punters to barter home-grown food for beer
By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 10:38 AM on 15th August 2008
Yet another reason to learn how to grow your own food...~THG
Punters at a village pub have developed an ingenious way of beating the credit crunch without compromising on their daily pint.
Thrifty punters have begun bartering home-grown produce in exchange for beer and even pub meals.
Various items of fresh fruit, fish, meat and vegetables have been exchanged, with the amount of pints, meals or vouchers offered linked to the size, quantity and quality of the items presented.
tim abbott
Barter board: Head chef Tim Abbott (left) lets locals, including Henry Sturman seen here, barter their home grown produce for free food or drink
A sign placed inside the pub says: 'If you grow, breed, shoot or steal anything that may look at home on our menu, then bring it in and let's do a deal.'
So far pints have been swapped in place of potatoes, mackerel and a kilo of fresh fruit.
Locally shot rabbits, pheasants and pigeons have also been exchanged for beer.
The Pigs pub, in Edgefield, near Holt, Norfolk, even encourages locals to contribute to its traditional food menu in return for free alcohol.
Manager Cloe Wasey, 24, said the offer has taken off as people have started to feel the pinch financially.
'We've been doing it for almost two years now but the success of it has only just recently started to boom with the credit crunch setting in,' she added.
barter board
Novel approach: The barter board has been a big hit
'People need to find different ways to go out and this helps.
'It's also great for us because we get produce at a good price, although we have high standards so the food we get in has to meet those.
'We find the home grown stuff is often much better than what we can get from the suppliers.
'Someone will say "that rabbit tasted great" and we say 'here, meet the person who shot it".'
Driver Derek Feast, 64, a regular in the pub, recently swapped some of the free range chicken eggs he breeds for a pint.
'I have a job where I earn the national minimum wage so this little bit of extra money helps me get out,' he said. 'The odd penny here and there really helps.'
Miss Wasey, who runs the pub with her business partner Tim Abbott, 24, who is head chef, said the scheme has helped cement the pub's place at the heart of the village community.
'It gives us a more local feel,' she said.
Beer we go: Vegetables and eggs can be exchanged for ale at The Pigs
for you~ for all your efforts~
a friend of a friend
iknowaguy
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=31479237
Aloha
14 now and you rock
its only 9:30 over there
we're having a big lightening storm on the coast tonite
cheers from the mainland
We have 13 board marks,
that means 13 people ought to be posting
SOMETHING...
It's no fun if it's all THG all the time...
The Depleted Uranium Threat
Thomas D. Williams
"The DoD, the nation's biggest polluter, is now cleaning up 29,500 currently or formerly contaminated sites in every state and territory. California alone has 3,912 contaminated sites on 441 current and former DoD installations. Many of DoD's facilities have already contaminated groundwater sources of drinking water.... The cost to clean up toxic munitions contamination and unexploded ordnance at active and former military installations around the country may reach $200 billion." - The National Resources Defense Council, April 21, 2004.
"The Defense Department is refusing to comply with orders or sign contracts to clean up 11 hazardous waste sites, including one in Hawaii, and has asked the White House and Justice Department to intervene on its behalf." - The Associated Press, July 1, 2008.
While attempting to act as the planet's nuclear watchdogs, the United States and Great Britain have become two of the world's largest, cancer-causing radiated dust and rusty depleted uranium projectile polluters.
Using tanks and planes, the US and British military have fired hundreds of tons of radioactive depleted uranium munitions (DU) while fighting the first Gulf War, the Balkans War, and the more recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. For two decades, successive US and British government leadership has done little overall to clean up the hazardous war waste. And, when repeatedly asked questions about it, spokespersons for Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown and US President George W. Bush, as well as the two presidential candidates, Senator Barack Obama (D-Illinois) and Senator John McCain (R-Arizona), didn't respond to a large number of e-mails and telephone calls over a month's time.
Ironically, while firing this nuclear by-product all over Iraq, Afghanistan and the former Yugoslavia, both Britain and the US regularly criticized and put financial or political pressure on Iran, Syria, North Korea and Pakistan for developing nuclear weapons. Of those four countries, only Pakistan is said to possess depleted uranium munitions, but their military forces have not been notorious for using them.
Depleted uranium is a by-product of the enrichment of natural uranium for nuclear reactor-grade or nuclear weapons-grade uranium. It is additionally used as an armor to protect tanks. Its metallic density is ideal for manufacturing munitions that readily pierce tank and other armor by burning and burrowing through it. But, while doing so, the munition creates large quantities of radioactive dust that the wind can carry for 20 to 30 miles. Sometimes the projectiles didn't explode. Instead, they buried themselves and degraded. Now they pollute or threaten water supplies, soil, plants, birds and animals in war-torn regions.
Potentially Serious Health Impacts
Dangerous DU debris is credited by some with creating higher child cancer and other illness rates in Europe and the Middle East. DU's fine particles can be harmful as well to the kidneys, skin and the lenses of the eyes. And, when inhaled or swallowed by humans, animals or fish, that dust can create serious and permanent health hazards. Expended DU is a permanent terrain contaminant with a half-life of 4.5 billion years. Uranium dust can linger in the lungs, the blood and other organs for years. It is reported to have caused some of the so-called mysterious ailments among the more than 350,000 US service members, many of whom unsuccessfully sought medical treatment after the first Gulf War.
At least four states - New York, California, Louisiana and Connecticut - passed bills in an unsuccessful attempt to force the Department of Defense to better test and care for war veterans for DU exposures. Their legislatures and governors were all concerned about sick service members exposed to DU wartime dust.
"Large numbers of corroding depleted uranium penetrators embedded in the ground might pose a long-term threat if the uranium leaches into water supplies," a British Royal Society scientific study says. After shell firings, the ground becomes polluted with depleted uranium particulate waste and some parts of the munitions themselves. DU contamination should be removed from areas around known penetrator impact sites," says the Royal Society. "Long-term environmental sampling, particularly of water and milk, is required and provides a cost-effective method of monitoring sensitive components of the environment, and of providing information about uranium levels to concerned local populations. Monitoring may need to be enhanced in some areas, by site-specific risk assessment, if the situation warrants further consideration."
Although the Royal Society insists threats of health damage to those inhaling depleted uranium dust is remote and limited to those who took in large quantities, a study of Iraqi children, exposed to wartime DU dust, contradicts that assessment. Dr. Souad N. Al-Azzawi, a member of the Brussels Tribunal Advisory Committee, says that children breathing or swallowing those radiated particles in areas of intense United States DU munitions firings "offer strong evidence of the correlation between low level radiation exposure and result(ing) health damages." DU exposures created "a shift of leukemia incidence rates towards younger children during the recent years," said the doctor. Another inquiry by three professors at the University of Massachusetts and Tufts University concludes: "In aggregate the human epidemiological evidence is consistent with increased risk of birth defects in offspring of persons exposed to DU."
Four years ago, Iraq's provisional government sought help from the United Nations in cleaning up wide swaths of its country, littered with expended munitions projectiles, DU destroyed equipment, broken random particles and wind showers of DU dust. The United Nations, without effective result, urged the British and U.S. military to clear many of the DU hazards they had created. In fact, United Nations environmental cleanup specialists asked U.S. and British officials for locations where the munitions were fired in Iraq, but they only reported receiving DU firing coordinates from Britain.
DU Cleanup Required But Ignored
Neither British nor U.S. authorities have offered to augment the $4.7 million donated mainly by Japan to the United Nations to evaluate sites of wartime contamination that health experts say threaten the well-being of millions of Iraqi civilians. But, contrary to scientific evidence, in late October 2004, Army Lt. Col. Mark Melanson said a five-year, $6 million Defense Department experiment with a simulated DU tank explosion shows "the chemical risks of breathing in uranium dust are so low that it won't cause any long-term health risks," even for the tank crew.
However, U.S. Army regulation 700-48 and its Technical Bulletin 9-1300-278 have for years required cleanups of the residue of depleted uranium firings and destruction. "Radioactive material and waste will not be locally disposed of through burial, submersion, incineration, destruction in place, or abandonment without approval from overall commander," says the regulation. "If local disposal is approved, the responsible commander must document the general nature of the disposed material and the exact location of the disposal." Radioactive equipment under that same regulation must be cleaned up and disposed of as soon as practicable. Other crucial military regulations call for DU tank drivers to be medically examined if they are exposed to dust or other radioactive debris. Similar British requirements prohibit unauthorized collection of radioactive waste.
One of the most salient examples of the problems with depleted uranium munitions and their dangers to the public recently opened a new chapter in the munition's long, nagging history. In the face of the Pentagon's and the Army's repeated denials of the need to follow their own regulations, that very same leadership was involved this spring in one final large and expensive DU munitions cleanup of Camp Doha, a 500-acre base in Kuwait.
Despite the potential health dangers to anyone walking close to the area, most of the particulate hazards remained right there in the soil above and below ground at this active military camp for more than a decade and a half. In the years since 1991, the site's larger waste hazards have been cleaned up in varying incomplete manners. This sloppiness caused health issues for all living nearby or stationed there. The military camp is on a peninsula relatively close to Kuwait City, holding the capital's government offices. Its population was about 191,000 people when a depleted uranium munitions accident occurred. Right around the corner is Kuwait City International Airport.
Seventeen years ago, during the first Gulf War, Doha was the site of one of the largest fires and explosions of a depleted uranium munitions and tank storage area ever. On July 11, 1991, at about 10:20 a.m., says a Pentagon inquiry, a defective heater in an M992 ammunition carrier loaded with 155mm artillery shells caught fire and set off a sustained series of explosions and fires. The blaze and blasts sent chemicals and radiation dust from munitions and tanks into the air for miles, as the black hazardous smoke rose high into the sky. Tanks, other equipment, vehicles and a huge store of munitions were scorched. Fifty American and six British soldiers were injured. Two American soldiers' injuries were serious. It took many months and hundreds of millions of dollars to rebuild this significant military base. "The destruction was overwhelming," said a Pentagon inquiry. "The fire and explosions damaged or destroyed 102 vehicles, including four M1A1 tanks and numerous other combat vehicles. More than two dozen buildings sustained damage as well. Among the estimated almost $15 million in damaged or destroyed ammunition were 660 M829 120mm DU sabot rounds."
Initially, the Army worked for months on a major cleanup. Then in late 1991, the second and final phase of hazardous equipment removal was assigned to the Environmental Chemical Corporation. And the Pentagon's investigation report said: "Personnel packing the drums with DU penetrators wore surgeon's caps, safety glasses, half face protective masks, coveralls, butyl rubber aprons, rubber surgeon's gloves with cotton inserts, and rubber 'booties' over their normal work boots. A total of eight drums were filled with about 250 DU penetrators."
The Kuwaiti government hired its own U.S. private contractor, the Halliburton Corporation, to move most of the burned-out hulks in the vicinity of Kuwait City to a dump in the western desert. But, not until three years ago, when the U.S. planned to stop using the base, did the Army dispose of additional shell fragments. And, it was just in April of this year that the rest of this gigantic mess was finally neutralized on site. The cleanup, accomplished by MKM Engineers, headquartered in Stafford, Texas, was financed by the Kuwaiti government.
David Foster, an Army public affairs spokesman, said "under the circumstances, the Army had no legal obligation to clean up the (particulate) material" at Camp Doha. The Army originally brought the munitions and equipment to protect Kuwait, so it was now Kuwait's responsibility to pay for the cleanup, transportation of the hazards and final, safe burial, he said.
A total of 6,700 tons of contaminated sand with particles of depleted uranium and lead from Kuwait was shipped in April to the Port of Longview in Washington. The barrels were then transferred to railway cars for final delivery to the American Ecology Corporation's Idaho's Grand View low-level radiation waste facility, 70 miles southeast of Boise in the Owyhee Desert.
"Based on the very low levels of contamination present," American Ecology spokesman Chad Hyslop, "the soil is not regulated as 'radioactive material' by the US Department of Transportation." Damaged depleted uranium penetrators were separated out by MKM and sent separately to the United States for disposal, said Army spokesman Foster. Both the Department of Environmental Protection and the Nuclear Regulatory Agency, accepting the Army's tests and descriptions of the hazards of the dust, allowed this form of disposal.
EPA and NRC Leave Cleanup and Burial to the Army
Those two agencies' officials took the Army's word that these shipments of depleted uranium dust did not pose a threat to humans or the environment while in transit or stored away in its final Idaho waste site. Mark MacIntyre, an EPA spokesman, said: "The Army is responsible for characterizing the material for the purposes of complying with transportation and disposal requirements.... The EPA does not have a specific standard related to depleted uranium. For the purposes of disposal, depleted uranium is considered a low level radioactive waste and is subject to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulations." Neil Sheehan, a spokesman for the NRC, explained: "The sand - with small amounts of depleted uranium being sent to the U.S. Ecology Idaho facility for disposal - contains 'exempt' concentrations of uranium, less than 0.5-percent weight. If the concentrations were greater than this, we would have oversight."
Retired Army Maj. Doug Rokke, who has a Ph.D. in education - physics and technology - from the University of Illinois, fought the use of DU for years through the Internet and other means. He believes this current Doha DU waste-disposal operation violates safe guidelines. He worked with the special operations team, the 3rd U.S. Army captured equipment project team, and with the 3rd U.S. Army Depleted Uranium Assessment team during Gulf War One. As a result of his DU cleanup work, Rokke says he is ill with radiation damage to his lungs and kidneys. He also has radiation cataracts, fibromyalgia, rash, hearing loss, diarrhea, reactive airway disease, brain lesions, teeth breaking off and falling out, and neurological abnormalities.
It is ludicrous, said Rokke, for the NRC, the EPA and the Army to deny the Doha depleted uranium's dangers. They are doing this, he said, even as the U.S. government is mandating a huge cleanup of the Concord, Massachusetts, depleted uranium munitions manufacturer Starmet's Superfund site, and is indeed taking those pains to ship DU from Camp Doha, Kuwait, to the United States while endangering the environment and all persons who come anywhere near that shipment.
Health Destroyed by DU
Former First Lt. Todd Lightfoot is one of many Army veterans who believes he became sick from the aftermath of the fire while stationed at Camp Doha in 1991. He explains at his Internet web site that: "During my entire tour; one could say that, 'I was in the loop' (in the know about operations)." Lightfoot added that he has reviewed "my notes from all of the meetings we had ... and we had meetings twice a day every day ... and many times having a meeting or two in between. I can still not find one mention of potential health hazards from depleted uranium or the possible contamination of any area at Camp Doha." and "I've been sick now since about 1995," said Lightfoot. "I have what they call IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), but they've not been able to treat it with any success. (It creates constant) bad, bad cramping in the lower abdomen, severe fatigue, bad joint pain, all of the norms rolled up into the 'Gulf War Illness' tag!"
"As for what I believe is the cause of my declining health," said Lightfoot, "there were three constants when I arrived a DOHA. There were the burning oil well fires. There was a constant presence of insects/pesticides. And then there was the DU. I've always believed that there is more to the DU than the US government and DoD would like us to believe." Army spokesman Foster did not answer queries about Lightfoot.
International Calls to Ban and Clean Up DU
Back as far as 1999, a United Nations committee called for a DU munitions ban worldwide because its long-term adverse health impact on civilians violates international law. More recently, in January, the United Nations voted to approve an inquiry among member nations to determine the harmful impacts of depleted uranium munitions. Three years later, the World Health Organization recommended that "young children's exposure to depleted uranium must be monitored and preventive measures taken, and heavily affected impact zones for depleted uranium munitions should be cordoned off and cleaned up." United States officials failed to effectively warn the government of Afghanistan about that very danger. BBC News reported in April: "Doctors in Afghanistan say rates of some health problems affecting children have doubled in the last two years. Some scientists say the rise is linked to use of weapons containing depleted uranium (DU) by the U.S.-led coalition that invaded the country in 2001. A Canadian research group found very high levels of uranium in Afghans during tests just after the invasion. A U.S. forces spokesman denied its weapons were affecting the health of Afghans or the country's environment."
Some cleanups were conducted in the Balkans, but otherwise the recommendations found little cooperation. Finally, in late May, the European Parliament passed a global ban on such weapons with a landslide approval vote. The rationale: "Ever since its use by the allied forces in the first war against Iraq, there have been serious concerns about the radiological and chemical toxicity of the fine uranium particles produced when such weapons impact on hard targets. Concerns have also been expressed about the contamination of soil and groundwater by expended rounds that have missed their targets and their implications for civilian populations. Despite the fact that scientific research has so far been unable to find conclusive evidence of harm, there are numerous testimonies as to the harmful and often deadly effects on both military personnel and civilians. The last few years have seen great advances in terms of understanding the environmental and health hazards posed by depleted uranium, and whereas it is high time that this was reflected in international military standards, as they develop. The use of depleted uranium in warfare runs counter to the basic rules and principles enshrined in written and customary international, humanitarian and environmental law."
Press spokespersons for both President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have told this reporter in the past they rely upon the Pentagon for advice about the use of depleted uranium munitions, their health impacts and cleanups. Neither British Prime Minister Gordon Brown nor the British Environment Agency specifically answered this reporter's repeated queries about their policies toward DU munitions and cleanups.
The British Ministry of Defense says on its Internet site: "There is no reliable scientific or medical evidence to link DU with the ill health of either Gulf or Balkans veterans or people living in these regions. Many independent reports have been produced and researchers continue to consider the battlefield effects of using DU munitions. These reports include work by the Royal Society, the European Commission, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Health Organization (WHO). None of these organizations has found a connection between DU exposure and illness, and none has found widespread DU contamination sufficient to impact the health of the general population or deployed personnel."
Jasem Al-Budaiwi, first secretary of the Kuwaiti Embassy in Washington, sent this reporter's inquiries to his government, but no reply came back. Repeated inquiries to presidential candidates Senator Barack Obama (D-Illinois) and Senator John McCain (R-Arizona) over a month's time netted no answer to phone calls or e-mails.
It was not until October 2006, after decades of complaints about the hazards that President Bush signed into law a Congressional bill calling for a study of the health effects of depleted uranium munitions' firings on American troops, but not on the millions of foreign civilians exposed. As a result, a legislative committee is expected to ask the Army to review the accuracy of acute exposures and the cancer risks posed by them.
This summer, a Canadian Member of Parliament, Alex Atamanenko (British Columbia Southern Interior, NDP) called on his government "to undertake every measure possible to ensure that depleted uranium weapons of mass destruction are banned forever." Atamanenko continued: "Belgium has banned the use of uranium in all conventional weapon systems. However, at least 18 countries, including the U.S., use depleted uranium in their arsenals. They are considered weapons of mass destruction under international law. According to a Canada-U.S. agreement, Canadian uranium exports may only be used for peaceful purposes." Nonetheless, he said, Canada provides raw uranium to the United States and other countries for processing and the resulting depleted uranium is then used in weapons.
DU Munitions Abandoned by Some
Now says Dai Williams, a British uranium expert, who posts on www.eoslifework.co.uk, most DU munitions are becoming passé, but in their wake, undepleted uranium shells made of natural uranium have been fired and are being manufactured by arms makers worldwide. "Why is this a problem?" asks Williams. "Because natural uranium in the general environment is mostly in large particles created from natural weathering processes. The body seems to be able to eject these. But weapons uranium dust is formed at very high temperature into ultra-fine particles described as aerosols that can pass through cell walls etc. In the lungs these will go into soft tissue and stay there, rather than being coughed out," Williams explains. In the meantime, he says, tons of the old DU munitions are still in storage for potential firing by countries including the Great Britain and the United States. The British, he said, are now using the hard metal tungsten to manufacture munitions formerly made of uranium. Even the U.S. Navy and Marines have abandoned depleted uranium munitions in light of their potential health hazards.
A Government Accountability Office investigation two years ago found the military's and the Department of Energy's handling of depleted uranium and other nuclear waste a fiscal quagmire to clean up. In the United States, DU munitions manufacturing operations have created numerous hazardous-waste concerns. The military has had to deal with firing range cleanups of DU, while the Energy Department is responsible for oversight of nuclear installations. "The nation's military installations and nuclear weapons production facilities," said the GAO, "have accumulated many types of waste and contamination over the years. The federal government estimated its environmental liability to clean up this waste at $249 billion in fiscal year 2004, representing the federal government's third-largest reported liability. It represents a significant future outflow of funds at the same time as many other competing demands for federal dollars, but is currently not auditable," the GAO said.
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© 2008 Thomas D. Williams
SOURCE: http://www.truthout.org/article/the-depleted-uranium-threat
URL: http://www.thepeoplesvoice.org/cgi-bin/blogs/voices.php/2008/08/14/the_depleted_uranium_threat
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What's in a Bill Name?
Rep. Ron Paul
Texas Straight Talk
Aug 12, 2008
http://www.321gold.com/editorials/paul/paul081208.html
Recently Congress passed the American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act., also known as the Housing Bill. Its passage was lauded by many who are legitimately concerned about foreclosures and the housing market in our country's economy. I was asked how I could vote against a bill to help American homeowners, but I found this bill to have more to do with helping big banks than helping average Americans.
The answer is that there is more to any bill than its name or the headlines surrounding it. If one only paid attention to bill titles, one could happily vote for almost any bill put to a vote on the floor. Titles do not tell the complete story of a bill's provisions, and many titles are downright deceptive and come close to emotional blackmail of legislators. But we cannot afford to be fooled by fancy titles. The housing bill could perhaps be more aptly named The Big Banking Bailout at Taxpayer Expense Act as large sections of it were written by big banking lobbyists according to Evans and Novak reporter Tim Carney's Capitol Hill sources. At least that title would be honest.
Also, many of these magnanimous sounding foreign aid bills and so-called human rights resolutions have counterproductive and hypocritical language tucked into the fine print. The recent bill on China was a good example. This resolution calls on China to hold meetings with the Dalai Lama without preconditions, when that is something our own government will not do with Iran. How our government has the authority to tell China what to do it [is] beyond me, especially when we demand something so hypocritical. On foreign aid bills and legislation that on the surface seems very charitable, upon closer examination we find strings attached and a lot of manipulation of the marketplace. Many times, these bills purport to help the destitute, but actually help multinational corporations or prop up dictators that might otherwise be deposed by their people.
The other point to take into consideration on legislation and House resolutions is that intentions are not enough. It is not enough to want to solve a problem with legislation, and name a bill to that effect. The crafters of the legislation need to demonstrate a clear and honest understanding of the problem, in order to put forward a realistic strategy to solving it. Too many times, I just don't see that. Instead I see more taxes, more restrictions, more violations of the Constitution, and more unintended consequences.
One shouldn't judge legislation based on titles, good intentions, or what someone says the bill will do. Imagine if all the legislation in the history of this country actually did what the title of the bills proclaimed they would do. How very different this country would be! There would be no poverty, no drugs, no crime. In fact if it was that easy, Congress by now would have probably repealed the law of gravity, and supply and demand as well, and replaced them with unlimited wealth and given all Americans the power of flight. What a fanciful world our legislators live in at times!
Though I am at times accused of being mean-spirited regarding the many bills I vote against, I don't so much think of my vote as against the legislation, as much as FOR the Constitution, according to my duties as a Congressman.
Aug 11, 2008
Rep. Ron Paul
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Rep. Ron Paul's website.
321gold Ltd
The Perfect (Economic) Storm
Ronald R Cooke
The Cultural Economist
Aug 12, 2008
Introduction
When two or more storm cells come together and then form a larger and more violent storm, the event is often called a "Perfect Storm". The reference is to the increased ferocity of the combined cells as drenching rain, high winds and rolling gray clouds cover the landscape. It is an event fit for neither man nor beast.
That reference came to mind when I wrote the scenarios for Oil, Jihad and Destiny. "What is the worst case scenario?", I wondered. "What is the probability it could happen?" Although the "Perfect Storm" scenario is discussed in my book, I did not publish the results of my analysis. I could not bring myself to believe an economic catastrophe of that magnitude was probable.
No more. All of the elements are in place. This storm has begun.
Storm Cell One: Higher Oil Prices
During a presentation on energy and economics last fall, someone asked me if we were headed for a recession. "Yes," I replied, "we should be in a recession right now."
My response, of course, was based on a previous analysis of the link between oil consumption and the price of oil, versus the occurrence of past recessions (see Reference 1 below). In theory, the American economy should have been reacting to higher oil prices the way it had in several past recessions. But according to the Bureau Of Economic Analysis in Washington, America's economy was still growing - however poorly.
Puzzled by that discrepancy, I did the research and analysis for three other essays on Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and unemployment (see Reference 2 below). My conclusion is that the Federal Government's methodology overstates GDP, understates the CPI, and takes a very "optimistic" view of unemployment.
Recent events suggest America is experiencing declining rates of GDP, higher rates of inflation and increased unemployment (see Reference 3 below). One of the key drivers is the price and availability of oil, not only because of oil's value to American commerce, but also because of the accompanying impact oil has on the price and availability of all our energy resources. Sales of coal and natural gas increase because they are an alternative to expensive oil. Wind and solar power become competitive energy options. Given the long term volatility of production and pricing, these realities of the world oil market are unlikely to change - ever. There is a relationship between oil consumption, expenditures and recessions. Significant increases in the amount of money America spends on oil (1973, 1979, 1990 and 2000) were followed by a recession. Yes. Other factors contributed to the decline in GDP that characterized these recessions. However, one can not escape a nagging fear that sharp increases in oil expenditures may cause a subsequent recession. World oil prices have increased by over 350% since 2002. If oil price and consumption history is any predictor of future events, our economy is in big trouble.
Storm Cell Two: A Decimated Financial System
Let's not mince words. America's financial system is a mess.
Private Debt. We have gorged ourselves on unlimited private and public credit. With the complicity of a dysfunctional Congress, and a deficient regulatory system, Wall Street has been able to create multiple financial instruments of dubious integrity. Billions and billions of dollars are now tied to devalued assets and financial documents that have the value of wet toilet paper. We have not experienced the full impact of this brutal devaluation. Last year I estimated international financial institution losses would exceed $700 billion. Current thinking exceeds $1 trillion. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac teeter on the brink of disaster. The financial strength of many regional banks has been compromised.
Public Debt. The federal budget deficit is projected to more than double in size to $482 billion in the 2009 budget year (which ends on September 30, 2009). Add to this the cost of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the costs of the mortgage rescue measure, a likely restructuring of Fannie May and Freddie Mac, the escalating costs of Medicare, as well as underfunded Social Security and Government pension obligations - and it should be obvious America is pushing its ability to fund federal operations. Although Congress has increased the national debt limit to $10.615 trillion, the ability of the United States to pay its debts will increase public debt loan costs and will eventually restrict the issue of additional public debt obligations. Now add these costs to the more than $2.2 trillion in State and Local debt the United States is carrying on its books, and one begins to wonder if public debt payer solvency will become an issue.
Business Credit. Thanks to America's debt crisis, our banking system has been forced to restrict the availability of business credit. Hardest hit are the retail, travel, transportation, and automotive industries which are dealing with declining credit availability, higher costs, lower revenues and troublesome profit margins. Although some very big corporate names will take a hit, small and medium sized businesses will suffer the most damage. Without easy credit, they will be forced to restrict their activity. It is possible that over a million businesses and more than three million jobs will be lost before the end of 2009. By then, over 3.5 million of America's self-employed individuals will also be unable to find adequate employment.
Household Credit. Household debt service payments exceed 14% of disposable personal income. Total debt, which includes $2.6 Trillion of consumer credit obligations, is approaching a total of $14 Trillion. Revolving credit appears to be increasing a rate of 7 percent per year. Because consumers have less (or negative) home equity to fund additional loan obligations, they have increased their credit card exposure to fund current purchases. Struggling to regain its health, our financial system has been forced to decrease the availability and size of revolving credit account balances. This will reduce potential consumer spending.
And of course, we live in a global economy. America's financial crisis is the world's financial mess. Few nations will be immune to the deterioration of the world's financial markets. Change a few names and numbers, and one could write an essay like this for many of America's trading partners.
Storm Cell Three: Iran
Let's add a little thunder and lightning. The Middle East. Endemic hatred, deadly civil confrontation, uncompromising theology, and the smoldering embers of war threaten to erupt into a devastating political crisis. Into this arena come the leaders of Iran. These people have a definite agenda. Increased political and economic power. Sanctimonious beliefs justify aggression. They firmly believe they will win.
The opposition is uncertain. Poorly organized. And plenty worried. From weakness comes tragedy. Desperation makes poor decisions. The American elections add to the potential for disaster. Another struggle for political power. Domination. The imposition of self-righteous political theology. Here are a few thoughts. Will President Bush attack Iran before he leaves office? Would that be his way of giving Nancy Pelosi the "bird". Do the leaders of Israel believe they must neutralize Iran's nuclear threat before Bush leaves office? Will Iran move to block oil shipments through the straits of Hermuz?
However this all plays out, any prolonged disruption of oil shipments would have a devastating impact on the world's economy. When Iran deposed the Shah in 1979, the resulting turmoil reduced Iranian oil production by almost 40%. The price of oil jumped by 125%. American inflation notched up to 11.26%. The subsequent 1980 - 1988 confrontation between Iran and Iraq devastated oil production in both nations. American inflation was 13.52% in 1980, 10.37% in 1981 and 6.13% in 1982. Our GDP, adjusted for inflation, was ? 4.72% in 1980, 1.83% in 1981 and ? 2.13% in 1982. During 1982, unemployment reached 9.7%.
Storm Cell Four: Political Theology
No storm would be complete without gale force winds. It's election time and the Democrats are pandering to pop culture theology. "If we can't drill our way out of oil shortages", goes the mantra, "then let's not drill at all".
Few have asked a key question: how does Congressional failure to develop a comprehensive energy plan impact our economy?
If the Democrats continue to block oil exploration and the development of a comprehensive energy program, then this storm will last forever. Many reason that higher gasoline and diesel prices are good. It does not matter if fuel oil and propane become unaffordable. Why? Because higher prices force us to consume less oil, and that reduces the production of carbon dioxide.
Clean air. No matter what the human cost. How many families will not be able to afford heating oil or propane during the long cold winters that lie ahead? How many men and women will be thrown out of work by a very sick economy?
Ominous Clouds
So. What are the odds of a Perfect Economic Storm? In the Internet era, financial change can be as powerful as a hurricane and as spectacular as lightning. Just ask Bear Sterns. Higher oil prices? Done deal. Along with higher prices for gasoline, diesel, propane and heating oil fuels, as well as food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and just about everything else you buy.
Higher rates of current expense inflation? Under way. The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) rose 1.1 percent in June, 2008. Although that's a run rate of 13.2% per year, I expect the average rate of inflation for 2008 to be closer to 8%.
Financial system contraction? Happening. In order to get their balance sheets back into shape, banks are setting higher standards for loans, and scrambling for cash. These moves decrease the availability (and increase the cost) of commercial and personal credit.
Devaluation of fixed assets? In process. It would appear my previous projection of a 30% residential housing devaluation is on track. Commercial real estate and business property are also taking a beating.
Credit market collapse? Current events. As discussed in the above text, only Devine intervention will prevent a further deterioration of world credit markets. Somehow, I do not think that will happen. Volatility, disruptions, deteriorating credit performance, and bankruptcy lie ahead.
Consumer spending? Austerity is a virtue. Although we can expect consumers to push the limits of their credit resources, a contraction is inevitable as they maximize their credit options.
Positive political leadership? Missing. Will America ever have a constructive, positive and well managed energy policy? Does Congress have the will, organization, leadership and business competence needed to create one? Or will current proposals lead us to a politically correct document laced with theology, corruption, over-regulation, and confusion (see Reference 4)? You decide.
Stock Market? High downside risk. The American stock markets have entered "Bear" territory with 52 week declines of 20% or more. If economic growth is down and inflation is up, profits will suffer at most companies for the next several quarters. Add in higher interest rates (along with a dose of consumer "blahs") and it is hard to see how we will escape the downside risk.
Iran. Only the addition of an Iranian confrontation remains uncertain. You tell me. What are the odds of adding war and oil shortages to our torrent of bad news?
A Perfect Storm Scenario
Can we project the outcome? To find out I fired up my trusty spread sheet, made several key assumptions about the factors described above, added a dose of historical data going back to 1929, and ran the numbers. If past economic performance in times of economic stress and higher oil prices is any indicator of future performance, then it is likely 2009 will not be a good year. Thanks to a decimated financial system, irresponsible political theology, and a lack of constructive leadership, our economic malaise could last for years. Depending on the data you chose to use, and the assumptions you make, the results of the Perfect Economic Storm scenario can be described in many ways.
Here are two graphs our political leaders should memorize because they will come back to haunt them.
The following chart graphs the Rate Of Change calculation for North American oil consumption (includes Canada, the United States and Mexico), and American GDP adjusted for inflation. The chart shows actual historical data from 1970 through 2007, and then graphs my projections through 2030. Since 1970, the rate of change in oil consumption has closely matched the rate of change of adjusted U. S. GDP. The sharp decline in oil consumption and GDP shown for 1973/1974, 1979/1982 and 1991 were primarily due to the effect of oil production shortfalls in the Middle East. America was forced to use less oil. Less oil means less commerce. Less commerce means a lower GDP. These are the facts of economics.
As you view this graph, please note: I have assumed a gradual increase in the use of alternative mobile fuels, as well as electricity, as the automotive force for public and personal transportation. This assumption increases the gap between oil consumption and GDP by 2030. Also please note: the findings of this scenario are consistent with past economic events from 1970 through 2007. Given the assumptions used to construct this scenario, a deep recession is likely. The projected trends through 2030 are consistent with the projected production, consumption, availability and price of oil.
Unless we find salvation, net inflation adjusted GDP will continue to deteriorate though 2030. American GDP per capita will decline, placing additional stress on consumer spending. Low and middle income Americans will see a continuing decrease in their standard of living.
In the second chart, I have graphed actual inflation and unemployment data from 1970 through 2007, and then charted the results of my analysis from 2008 through 2030. Please note: given the economic circumstances described above, these projections are entirely consistent with prior history.
Inflation is a tough call. Asset devaluation and unemployment act to push down the rate of inflation. Higher oil prices lead to higher product transportation costs. Fixed asset deflation versus current expense inflation. Although my model suggests higher inflation lies ahead, a rapid decline in asset values is entirely possible. When the financial markets collapsed in 1929, the CPI fell by 26.3% from 1929 through 1933. On the other hand, the oil crisis of 1973 set off a wave of inflation that lasted until 1982. The worst period was 1979 through 1981, when the net increase in the CPI exceeded 35%. Either scenario is possible.
In this scenario, unemployment could easily exceed 9% for the better part of three years, 2011-2013. Under-employment will increase to more than 16%. That means at least 25% or the American work force will be unhappy. Furthermore, average annual unemployment rates will be higher than we want through 2030.
A word to the wise. My estimates of bad news are typically understated. For example I thought last year that financial system losses from the global credit crisis would exceed $700B. Current estimates from other sources run from $1.5 to $2.0T. One could construct a perfectly logical scenario that shows far higher rates of unemployment and inflation.
But wait. Could things really be worse? Sure. This scenario assumes relative stability in the Middle East and elsewhere. If there is a prolonged disruption in the flow of oil, then the recession will be deeper and last longer. Remember. There are no quick fixes. It will take from 15 to 20 years to restructure America's how America uses its energy resources. (see Reference 5). The longer Congress piddles around, the worse the lingering devastation of a perfect economic storm.
Of course we need to transition our nation to alternative forms of energy. And most Americans want to sustain the cleanest possible environment for human habitation. But as a cultural economist, my key issue is:
How do we get from here to there without totally screwing up our economy?
It is impossible to run a complex and sophisticated economy without adequate resources of energy. That enduring fact is true for all nations. But in the United States, current political theology ignores the human consequences of a dysfunctional energy policy. A recessive economy increases personal misery. It is that simple. Although we can (and must) increase the efficiency with which we consume energy, Congressional failure to enable greater access to all forms of energy is an act of criminal neglect. The result? Millions of Americans will endure the deprivation of a failed economy.
There are times I really hope I am wrong. This is one of them. Maybe we will continue to enjoy the benefits of cheap and readily available oil. Perhaps our economy will prove to be amazingly resilient. Maybe most of the credit crunch is behind us. It's possible 2009 will be an "OK" year. The Federal Reserve Board's Federal Open Market Committee, for example, believes inflation will moderate later this year. If so, unemployment should continue below 6.5% and "real" GDP should be slightly positive into 2009.
So. Who is right? You decide.
Ron
Ronald R. Cooke
The Cultural Economist
email: tce@tce.name
The following essays may be found on my web site www.tce.name. A detailed explanation of scenarios and how I use them may be found in my book "Oil, Jihad and Destiny", at Amazon.
Reference 1: Look in TCE
..Will High Oil Prices Fuel Inflation?
..Warning: Recession Ahead
Reference 2: Look in TCE
..Unemployment: What Is The Real Story?
..CPI: Sophisticated Economic Theory, Terrible Ethics
..American GDP: Can We Trust The BEA Data?
Reference 3: Look in TCE
..Yes Virginia, This Is A Recession
Reference 4: Look in TCE/Energy
..The Energy Policy Act of 2005, Legislative Achievement or Management Fiasco?
As a point of information, I am qualified by prior experience to develop the kind of energy program America needs.
..Reference 5 may be found on the Internet:
Peaking of World Oil Production: Impacts, Mitigation, and Risk Management, published by the U.S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory, February 2005; Robert L. Hirsch, SAIC, Project Leader, Roger Bezdek, MISI, and Robert Wendling, MISI.
The executive summary of the report warns that "as peaking is approached, liquid fuel prices and price volatility will increase dramatically, and, without timely mitigation, the economic, social, and political costs will be unprecedented. Viable mitigation options exist on both the supply and demand sides, but to have substantial impact, they must be initiated more than a decade in advance of peaking."
321gold Ltd
Plastic Water Bottles: Healthy Alternatives
Posted by Dr. Nicole Sundene on April 21st, 2008
http://kitchentablemedicine.com/plastic-water-bottles-healthy-alternatives/
Posted in: Water, Estrogen, American Sickcare System, Kitchen Sink
The pic was such an important part of the article I just had to post it...
Thanks to the latest news, pretty much everyone knows that drinking out of plastic water bottles is bad because of the BPA and potential for other contaminants.
So what are the alternatives to plastic water bottles?
Until someone invents an environmentally friendly “force field” to contain our beverages we will need to stick with glass and stainless steel.
As a biochemist and long time “jar drinker” this just further supports my theory that we all need to get as much plastic out of our kitchens as possible.
Plastic is the latest EVIL VILLAIN of Dr. Nicole for upsetting the hormonal balance of all of her patients!
Especially cooking with plastic. Please only cook in glass, cast iron, or stainless steel.
Do not use teflon or any other “new” man-made products. The “new” thing today will inevitably be the banned thing tomorrow.
Nature is perfect. Man is not.
You would think that someone like me with such a love for chemistry would be a friend of chemicals…but you would be wrong. I view all man made chemicals as potential poisons, threats to our health, and threats to our environment.
Perhaps I was just irreversibly scarred as a child by Lily Tomlin’s performance in “The Incredibly Shrinking Woman” that resulted from the compilation of all the chemicals in her diet and personal care products. But it sure did get me thinking…
Most of the MD’s I worked with at Virginia Mason Medical Center quickly learned that my thinking was much more conservative than theirs. I don’t care what the latest studies say telling me that some chemical is safe. First of all…who paid for that study? Most often it is the company that made the product. Second of all, I like products that have passed the test of time, that are natural, and that intuitively just make sense to me. Third of all, the more money a product makes the longer it will be kept out on shelves as money can buy “research” that shows that it is safe.
*Dr. Nicole looks around in paranoia worried that she may be “offed” for her thoughts on the conspiracy theory scandals that run rampant in Biochemical Land.*
Frankly, plastic has never made sense to me.
Whenever a chemical we commonly use becomes re-called it just reminds me how skeptical to be of all chemicals. I know that God gave us livers and cytochrome p450 systems to filter out toxins, but why burden the liver anymore in an already polluted environment? From my biochemistry background I know first hand how easily chemical reactions can go backwards and forwards and backwards again. Sometimes they even go sideways or in full circles. The metabolites and products that are off shooted along the way may have a different physiological impact than their inert cousins. Who knows what is all somersaulting around in our systems?
Now which chemical were we testing again to ensure that it was “safe”? The original, the end product, or the millions of potential metabolites along the way?
The more I learn about chemicals in the environment, the I more I understand about biochemistry and human physiology… the more I think that perhaps the Amish have it completely right. Maybe it is time for me to pack up my covered wagon and head to Pennsylvania to make quilts by the light of some beeswax candles.
Well we can’t all pack up and join the Amish, and since I highly doubt they will let me bring my laptop, what are the more practical solutions?
Today’s tip is to take a look at our kitchens and start to figure out how to get as much plastic and teflon out as possible. This is especially important for those that are pregnant, have small children, have hormonal issues (plastic is thought to mimic estrogen), have cancer, autoimmunity, or other chronic disease. Getting your kitchen green is a wonderful gift to the whole family.
kleankanteengroups.jpgMy friend Dr. Ben Lynch can set you up with a great new dishwasher safe stainless steel water bottle over at HEALTHeGOODS.com. I love these Klean Kanteen bottles because I can easily make up a big batch of green tea for the morning, and then switch over to using it as a water bottle for the rest of the day.
Children should also have these stainless steele bottles for school lunches because glass is just not a practical option for them.
Dr. Ben carries only high quality highly researched products in his store. He also cares enough about this issue that he actually called the owners of Klean Kanteen, and reviewed their lab safety testing to confirm that their products are without lead, aluminum and other contaminants that we do not need to be drinking all day long.
Take home message: Do NOT microwave in plastic…and heaven forbid DO NOT microwave plastic baby bottles! Purchase stainless steel drinking containers or drink out of recycled glass juice jars whenever possible.
Happy Water Drinking People!
Dr. Nicole Sundene
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The good news in our DNA: Defects you can fix with vitamins and minerals
http://www.physorg.com/news131645933.html
General Science / Biology
As the cost of sequencing a single human genome drops rapidly, with one company predicting a price of $100 per person in five years, soon the only reason not to look at your "personal genome" will be fear of what bad news lies in your genes.
"I'm looking for the good news in the human genome," said Jasper Rine, UC Berkeley professor of molecular and cell biology.
"Headlines for the last 20 years have really been about the triumph of biomedical research in finding disease genes, which is biologically interesting, genetically important and frightening to people who get this information," Rine said. "I became obsessed with trying to decide if there is some other class of information that will make people want to look at their genome sequence."
What Rine and colleagues found and report this week in the online early edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) is that there are many genetic differences that make people's enzymes less efficient than normal, and that simple supplementation with vitamins can often restore some of these deficient enzymes to full working order.
First author Nicholas Marini, a UC Berkeley research scientist, noted that physicians prescribe vitamins to "cure" many rare and potentially fatal metabolic defects caused by mutations in critical enzymes. But those affected by these metabolic diseases are people with two bad copies, or alleles, of an essential enzyme. Many others may be walking around with only one bad gene, or two copies of slightly defective genes, throwing their enzyme levels off slightly and causing subtle effects that also could be eliminated with vitamin supplements.
"Our studies have convinced us that there is a lot of variation in the population in these enzymes, and a lot of it affects function, and a lot of it is responsive to vitamins," Marini said. "I wouldn't be surprised if everybody is going to require a different optimal dose of vitamins based on their genetic makeup, based upon the kind of variance they are harboring in vitamin-dependent enzymes."
Though this initial study tested the function of human gene variants by transplanting them into yeast cells, where the function of the variants can be accurately assessed, Rine and Marini are confident the results will hold up in humans. Their research, partially supported by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the U.S. Army, may enable them to employ U.S. soldiers to test the theory that vitamin supplementation can tune up defective enzymes.
"Our soldiers, like top athletes, operate under extreme conditions that may well be limited by their physiology," Rine said. "We're now working with the defense department to identify variants of enzymes that are remediable, and ultimately hope to identify troops that have these variants and test whether performance can be enhanced by appropriate supplementation."
In the PNAS paper, Rine, Marini and their colleagues report on their initial analysis of variants of a human enzyme called methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase, or MTHFR. The enzyme, which requires the B vitamin folate to work properly, plays a key role in synthesizing molecules that go into the nucleotide building blocks of DNA. Some cancer drugs, such as methotrexate, target MTHFR to shut down DNA synthesis and prevent tumor growth.
Using DNA samples from 564 individuals of many races and ethnicities, colleagues at Applied Biosystems of Foster City, Calif., sequenced for each person the two alleles that code for the MTHFR enzyme. Consistent with earlier studies, they found three common variants of the enzyme, but also 11 uncommon variants, each of the latter accounting for less than one percent of the sample.
They then synthesized the gene for each variant of the enzyme, and Marini, Rine and their UC Berkeley colleagues inserted these genes into separate yeast cells in order to judge the activity of each variant. Yeast use many of the same enzymes and cofactor vitamins and minerals as humans and are an excellent model for human metabolism, Rine said.
The researchers found that four different mutations affected the functioning of the human enzyme in yeast. One of these mutations is well known: Nearly 30 percent of the population has one copy, and nine percent has two copies.
The researchers were able to supplement the diet of the cultured yeast with folate, however, and restore full functionality to the most common variant, and to all but one of the less common variants.
Since this experiment, the researchers have found 30 other variants of the MTHFR enzyme and tested about 15 of them, "and more than half interfere with the function of the enzyme, producing a hundred-fold range of enzyme activity. The majority of these can be either partially or completely restored to normal activity by adding more folate. And that is a surprise," Rine said.
Most scientists think that harmful mutations are disfavored by evolution, but Rine pointed out that this applies only to mutations that affect reproductive fitness. Mutations that affect our health in later years are not efficiently removed by evolution and may remain in our genome forever.
The health effects of tuning up this enzyme in humans are unclear, he said, but folate is already known to protect against birth defects and seems to protect against heart disease and cancer. At least one defect in the MTHFR enzyme produces elevated levels in the blood of the metabolite homocysteine, which is linked to an increased risk of heart disease and stroke, conditions that typically affect people in their post-reproductive years.
"In those people, supplementation of folate in the diet can reduce levels of that metabolite and reduce disease risk," Marini said.
Marini and Rine estimate that the average person has five rare mutant enzymes, and perhaps other not-so-rare variants, that could be improved with vitamin or mineral supplements.
"There are over 600 human enzymes that use vitamins or minerals as cofactors, and this study reports just what we found by studying one of them," Rine said. "What this means is that, even if the odds of an individual having a defect in one gene is low, with 600 genes, we are all likely to have some mutations that limit one or more of our enzymes."
The subtle effects of variation in enzyme activity may well account for conflicting results of some clinical trials, including the confusing data on the effect of vitamin supplements, he noted. In the future, the enzyme profile of research subjects will have to be taken into account in analyzing the outcome of clinical trials.
If one considers not just vitamin-dependent enzymes but all the 30,000 human proteins in the genome, "every individual would harbor approximately 250 deleterious substitutions considering only the low-frequency variants. These numbers suggest that the aggregate incidence of low-frequency variants could have a significant physiological impact," the researchers wrote in their paper.
All the more reason to poke around in one's genome, Rine said.
"If you don't give people a reason to become interested in their genome and to become comfortable with their personal genomic information, then the benefits of much of the biomedical research, which is indexed to particular genetic states, won't be embraced in a time frame that most people can benefit from," Rine said. "So, my motivation is partly scientific, partly an education project and, in some ways, a partly political project."
Marini and Rine credit Bruce Ames, a UC Berkeley professor emeritus of molecular and cell biology now on the research staff at Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute, with the research that motivated them to look at enzyme variation. Ames found in the 1970s that many bacteria that could not produce a specific amino acid could do so if given more vitamin B6, and in recent years he has continued exploring the link between micronutrients and health.
"Looked at in one way, Bruce found that you can cure a genetic disease in bacteria by treating it with vitamins," Rine said. Because the human genome contains about 6 billion DNA base pairs, each one subject to mutation, there could be between 3 and 6 million DNA sequence differences between any two people. Given those numbers, he reasoned that, as in bacteria, "there should be people who are genetically different in terms of the amount of vitamin needed for optimal performance of their enzymes."
This touches on what Rine considers one of the key biomedical questions today. "Now that we have the complete genome sequences of all the common model organisms, including humans, it's obvious that the defining challenge of biology in the 21st century is not what the genes are, but what the variation in the genes does," he said.
Rine, Marini and their colleagues are continuing to study variation in the human MTHFR gene as well as other folate utilizing enzymes, particularly with respect to how defects in these enzymes may lead to birth defects. Rine also is taking advantage of the 1,500 students in his Biology 1A lab course to investigate variants of a second vitamin B6-dependent enzyme, cystathionine beta-synthase.
He also is investigating how enzyme cofactors like vitamins and minerals fix defective enzymes. He suspects that supplements work by acting as chaperones to stabilize the proper folding of the enzyme, which is critical to its catalytic activity. "That is a new principle that may be applicable to drug design," Rine said.
Source: University of California - Berkeley
U.S. puts brakes on Israeli plan for attack on Iran nuclear facilities
By Aluf Benn, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: U.S., nuclear program, Iran
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1010938.html
GOD! There is so much going on behind the scenes that I'd love to know about...I sure hope this means we avoid war with IRAN for a little longer. If McCain gets in the chances of war go WAY up, but they are still good with Obama...
But this is HAPPY NEWS.
Dumbfucks in DC can see the Russians aren't to be toyed with, and going into IRAN would cause a similar response to Georgia...and even though the banksters could care less the White House and the Pentagon haven't the stomach for it at the moment...~THG
The American administration has rejected an Israeli request for military equipment and support that would improve Israel's ability to attack Iran's nuclear facilities.
A report published last week by the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) states that military strikes are unlikely to destroy Iran's centrifuge program for enriching uranium.
The Americans viewed the request, which was transmitted (and rejected) at the highest level, as a sign that Israel is in the advanced stages of preparations to attack Iran. They therefore warned Israel against attacking, saying such a strike would undermine American interests. They also demanded that Israel give them prior notice if it nevertheless decided to strike Iran.
As compensation for the requests it rejected, Washington offered to improve Israel's defenses against surface-to-surface missiles.
Israel responded by saying it reserves the right to take whatever action it deems necessary if diplomatic efforts to halt Iran's nuclearization fail.
Senior Israeli officials had originally hoped that U.S. President George Bush would order an American strike on Iran's nuclear facilities before leaving office, as America's military is far better equipped to conduct such a strike successfully than is Israel's.
Jerusalem also fears that an Israeli strike, even if it succeeded well enough to delay Iran's nuclear development for a few years, would give Iran international legitimacy for its program, which it currently lacks. Israel, in contrast, would be portrayed as an aggressor, and would be forced to contend alone with Iran's retaliation, which would probably include thousands of missile strikes by Iranian allies Hezbollah, Hamas and perhaps even Syria.
Recently, however, Israel has concluded that Bush is unlikely to attack, and will focus instead on ratcheting up diplomatic pressure on Tehran. It prefers to wait until this process has been exhausted, though without conceding the military option. Israel's assumption is that Iran will continue to use delaying tactics, and may even agree to briefly suspend its uranium enrichment program in an effort to see out the rest of Bush's term in peace.
The American-Israeli dispute over a military strike against Iran erupted during Bush's visit to Jerusalem in May. At the time, Bush held a private meeting on the Iranian threat with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Ehud Barak, and the Israelis presented their request for certain specific items of military equipment, along with diplomatic and security backing.
Following Bush's return to Washington, the administration studied Israel's request, and this led it to suspect that Israel was planning to attack Iran within the next few months. The Americans therefore decided to send a strong message warning it not to do so.
U.S. National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mike Mullen both visited here in June and, according to the Washington Post, told senior Israeli defense officials that Iran is still far from obtaining nuclear weapons, and that an attack on Iran would undermine American interests. Therefore, they said, the U.S. would not allow Israeli planes to overfly Iraq en route to Iran.
The Americans sent a similar message to Iraq, which had objected vociferously to the idea of its air space being used for an Israeli attack on Iran.
These private messages were accompanied by a series of leaks from the Pentagon that Israel interpreted as attempts to thwart any possibility of an attack on Iran. For instance, the Americans revealed details of a major Israel Air Force exercise in the Mediterranean; they also said they doubted Israel had adequate intelligence about Iran's nuclear facilities. In addition, Mullen spoke out publicly against an attack on Iran.
Two weeks ago, Barak visited Washington for talks with his American counterpart, Robert Gates, and Vice President Richard Cheney. Both conversations focused on Iran, but the two Americans presented conflicting views: Gates vehemently opposes an attack on Iran, while Cheney is the administration's leading hawk.
Barak presented Israel's assessments of the Iranian situation and warned that Iran was liable to advance its nuclear program under cover of the endless deliberations about sanctions - which have thus far produced little in the way of action. He also acknowledged that effective sanctions would require cooperation from Russia, China and India, all of which currently oppose sanctions with real teeth.
Russia, however, is considered key to efforts to isolate Iran, and Israeli officials have therefore urged their American counterparts in recent months to tone down Washington's other disputes with Moscow to focus all its efforts on obtaining Russia's backing against Iran. For instance, they suggested that Washington offer to drop its plan to station a missile defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic - a proposal Russia views as a threat, though Washington insists the system is aimed solely at Iran - in exchange for Russia agreeing to stiffer sanctions against Iran. However, the administration rejected this idea.
In an attempt to compensate Israel for having rejected all its proposals, Washington then offered to bolster Israel's defenses against ballistic missiles. For instance, Gates proposed stationing an advanced radar system in Israel and linking Israel directly into America's early warning satellite network; he also offered increased American funding for the development of two Israeli missile defense systems - the Arrow-3, an upgrade of Israel's existing Arrow system for intercepting ballistic missiles, and Iron Dome, a system designed to intercept short-range rockets. In addition, Washington agreed to sell Israel nine Super Hercules long-range transport aircraft for $2 billion. However, it would not agree to supply Israel with any offensive systems.
Now, Israel is awaiting the outcome of the latest talks between the West and Iran, as well as a formal announcement of the opening of an American interests section in Tehran. Israel views the latter as sure proof that Washington is not planning a military strike.
Related articles:
# Mofaz: Iran is the root of all evil, threat to world peace
# Report: Iran tests naval destroyer with 300-km range
# Report: Obama 'gets the feeling' Israel to strike Iran if sanctions fail
I love your board! Absolutely on the right track and every American, especially, should learn these things and understand what is happening in our world. It is unfortunate how many in this country have lost the ability to think for themselves which will ultimately end in the majority of our citizens being caught out when things start to happen. I fully believe that it will be similar to the Great Depression in fact that things will be seemingly normal one day and life as we know it will be gone the next. So many will be unprepared when this happens that it will indeed be every man for themselves I fear.
A few good keys to survival for the long term: Learn how to can and store your own food. Learn how to dig out a food cellar so that animals or other humans cannot take what you've accumulated. Learn what things found naturally growing in your area are edible.
And for the poster that is in southern Florida, dont feel bad, I'm in northern Florida and I feel absolutely trapped. Why? Because in order to get out of this city my family and I will have to cross over three major bridges and we live about three miles from the second most important strategic naval base in the country. Can you say target?
Global Warming, Global Myth
http://www.libertyunbound.com/archive/2008_09/contoski-warming.html
by Edmund Contoski
"Unless we announce disasters, no one will listen."
— Sir John Houghton, first chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and lead editor of its first three reports.
During the 20th century, the earth warmed 0.6 degree Celsius (1 degree Fahrenheit), but that warming has been wiped out in a single year with a drop of 0.63 degree C. (1.13 F.) in 2007. A single year does not constitute a trend reversal, but the magnitude of that temperature drop — equal to 100 years of warming — is noteworthy. Of course, it can also be argued that a mere 0.6 degree warming in a century is so tiny it should never have been considered a cause for alarm in the first place. But then how could the idea of global warming be sold to the public? In any case, global cooling has been evident for more than a single year. Global temperature has declined since 1998. Meanwhile, atmospheric carbon dioxide has gone in the other direction, increasing 15–20%. This divergence casts doubt on the validity of the greenhouse hypothesis, but that hasn't discouraged the global warming advocates. They have long been ignoring far greater evidence that the basic assumption of greenhouse warming from increases in carbon dioxide is false.
Edmund Contoski is a columnist for FORCES International Liberty News Network, a blogger, and author of three books. He is a retired environmental consultant.
Manmade emissions of carbon dioxide were not significant before worldwide industrialization began in the 1940s. They have increased steadily since. Over 80% of the 20th century's carbon dioxide increase occurred after 1940 — but most of the century's temperature increase occurred before 1940! From 1940 until the mid-1970s, the climate also failed to behave according to the greenhouse hypothesis, as carbon dioxide was strongly increasing while global temperatures cooled. This cooling led to countless scare stories in the media about a new ice age commencing.
In the last 1.6 million years there have been 63 alternations between warm and cold climates, and no indication that any of them were caused by changes in carbon dioxide levels. A recent study of a much longer period (600 million years) shows — without exception — that temperature changes precede changes in carbon dioxide levels, not the other way around. As the earth warms, the oceans yield more carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, because warmer water cannot hold as much carbon dioxide as colder water.
The public has been led to believe that increased carbon dioxide from human activities is causing a greenhouse effect that is heating the planet. But carbon dioxide comprises only 0.035% of our atmosphere and is a very weak greenhouse gas. Although it is widely blamed for greenhouse warming, it is not the only greenhouse gas, or even the most important. Water vapor is a strong greenhouse gas and accounts for at least 95% of any greenhouse effect. Carbon dioxide accounts for only about 3%, with the remainder due to methane and several other gases.
Not only is carbon dioxide's total greenhouse effect puny, mankind's contribution to it is minuscule. The overwhelming majority (97%) of carbon dioxide in the earth's atmosphere comes from nature, not from man. Volcanoes, swamps, rice paddies, fallen leaves, and even insects and bacteria produce carbon dioxide, as well as methane. According to the journal Science (Nov. 5, 1982), termites alone emit ten times more carbon dioxide than all the factories and automobiles in the world. Natural wetlands emit more greenhouse gases than all human activities combined. (If greenhouse warming is such a problem, why are we trying to save all the wetlands?) Geothermal activity in Yellowstone National Park emits ten times the carbon dioxide of a midsized coal-burning power plant, and volcanoes emit hundreds of times more. In fact, our atmosphere's composition is primarily the result of volcanic activity. There are about 100 active volcanoes today, mostly in remote locations, and we're living in a period of relatively low volcanic activity. There have been times when volcanic activity was ten times greater than in modern times. But by far the largest source of carbon dioxide emissions is the equatorial Pacific Ocean. It produces 72% of the earth's emissions of carbon dioxide, and the rest of the Pacific, the Atlantic, the Indian Ocean, and the other oceans also contribute. The human contribution is overshadowed by these far larger sources of carbon dioxide. Combining the factors of water vapor and nature's production of carbon dioxide, we see that 99.8% of any greenhouse effect has nothing to do with carbon dioxide emissions from human activity. So how much effect could regulating the tiny remainder have upon world climate, even if carbon dioxide determined climate?
During the Ordovician Period, the carbon dioxide level was 12 times what it is today, and the earth was in an Ice Age.
Since carbon dioxide is a very weak greenhouse gas, computer models predicting environmental catastrophe depend on the small amount of warming from carbon dioxide being amplified by increased evaporation of water. But in the many documented periods of higher carbon dioxide, even during much warmer climate periods, that never happened. During the time of the dinosaurs, the carbon dioxide levels were 300–500% greater than today. Five hundred million years ago, the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere was 15–20 times what it is today. Yet the catastrophic water-vapor amplification of carbon dioxide warming never occurred. Today we're told catastrophic warming will result if carbon dioxide doubles. But during the Ordovician Period, the carbon dioxide level was 12 times what it is today, and the earth was in an Ice Age. That's exactly opposite to the "runaway" warming that computer models predict should occur. Clearly the models are wrong; they depend upon an assumption of amplification that is contrary to the climate record of millions of years. There is no reason to trust the computer predictions — or base public policies on them. Reid Bryson, founding chairman of the Department of Meteorology at the University of Wisconsin, has stated, "You can go outside and spit and have the same effect as doubling carbon dioxide."
There are other examples where the computer models fail to agree with reality. According to the greenhouse hypothesis, the warming should occur equally during day and night. But most of the warming that has been observed has occurred at night, thus falsifying the models.
All of the models agree — for sound theoretical reasons — that warming from a greenhouse effect must be 2–3 times greater in the lower atmosphere than at the earth's surface. This is not happening. Both satellites and weather balloons show slightly greater warming at the surface. These atmospheric temperature measurements furnish direct, unequivocal evidence that whatever warming has occurred is not from the greenhouse effect.
Everyone knows the sun heats the earth, but the public is generally unaware that the sun's heat is not uniform. Solar radiation is affected by disturbances on the surface of the sun, called "sunspots," which correspond to the sun's 11-year magnetic cycle. There are also several solar cycles of longer duration. Superimposed, these cycles might augment or cancel each other. There are also periods when sunspots "crash," or almost disappear, which can lead to dramatic cooling of the earth for several decades. This is what happened 400 years ago during the Maunder Minimum, which was the coldest part of the Little Ice Age. During one 30-year period during the Maunder Minimum only about 50 sunspots were observed, compared to a typical 40–50 thousand.
Atmospheric temperature measurements furnish direct, unequivocal evidence that whatever warming has occurred is not from the greenhouse effect.
Sunspots have now virtually vanished. You can check out pictures of the sun day after day after day for the last few years here. Very few show more than one sunspot and many show none. We are currently at a solar minimum, awaiting the start of the next solar cycle. If sunspot activity does not pick up soon, we could be in for some seriously cold climate. The jury is still out on sunspot numbers.
In any case, some climate scientists believe the length of past solar cycles points to a cool phase in this century. Professor Habibullo Abdussamatov, head of the Pulkovo Observatory in Russia, believes a slow decline in temperatures will begin as early as 2012–15 and will lead to a deep freeze in 2050–60 that will last about 50 years. Climatologist Tim Patterson thinks that by 2020 the sun will be starting its weakest 11-year sunspot cycle of the past two centuries, likely leading to unusually cool conditions on earth. He says, "If we're to have even a medium-sized solar minimum, we could be looking at a lot more bad effects than 'global warming' would have had."
The global warming advocates make all sorts of false claims about dire consequences of global warming. They claim it will result in the spread of malaria, food shortages, more human deaths, more violent weather, and a loss of biological diversity through the extinction of species. All untrue. The largest number of species — the greatest biological diversity — is in the tropics. As you move away from the equator, you find fewer and fewer species, until you reach the earth's poles, where there is zero diversity because nothing can live there.
Agricultural productivity is also reduced by cold climate, not a warmer one. That's why Siberia and Alaska are not noted for agricultural abundance. A warmer climate would mean longer growing seasons and would make agriculture possible in areas where it isn't today. And there are at least 300 studies showing plants and forests grow faster and more luxuriantly under conditions of increased carbon dioxide.
The argument that a warmer climate will bring more violent weather can only be made by people who have no knowledge.
Our bodies require heat. We are warm-blooded and have no fur. We wear clothes, build homes, and heat them with fires, all as protection against the cold. Far more people move to Florida, California, or Arizona because of warm climate than move to Alaska, North Dakota, or Montana. Canada is the world's second largest country, but 90% of the population lives within 100 miles of its southern border. Worldwide, far more people die every year from cold than from heat. So why should global warming be bad for us?
Global warming will not result in the spread of malaria. Paul Reiter, of the Pasteur Institute in Paris, is one of the world's foremost experts on insect-borne diseases. He says, "The global warming alarm is dressed up as science, but it is not science. It is propaganda. I was horrified to read the [IPCC] 2nd and 3rd Assessment Reports because there was so much misinformation." For example, the IPCC states "mosquito species that transmit malaria do not usually survive where the mean winter temperature drops below 16–18 degrees C." This is "clearly untrue," says Reiter. "In fact, mosquitoes are extremely abundant in the Arctic. The most devastating epidemic of malaria was in the Soviet Union in the 1920s. There were something like 13 million cases a year and something like 600,000 deaths, a tremendous catastrophe that reached up to the Arctic Circle. Arkhangel [a city 300 miles further north than Helsinki, Finland] had 30,000 cases and about 10,000 deaths. So it's not a tropical disease. Yet these people in the global warming fraternity invent the idea that malaria will move northward."
New York City and Boston had long histories of malaria. In 1933, when President Roosevelt authorized the Tennessee Valley Authority, a third of the population in the area had malaria. Malaria was not eliminated in the United States until 1951. It was done through the use of DDT — which the environmentalists prevailed upon the United States to ban, resulting in 40–50 million unnecessary deaths from malaria since 1972.
The environmentalists have also invented the idea that the polar bear is threatened by global warming. Today there are 22–25 thousand polar bears, compared to 8–10 thousand 40 years ago and only 5,000 in 1940, before the big rise in carbon dioxide. Eleven of the 13 polar bear groups in Canada today are stable or increasing. The two that are decreasing are in an area where the climate has gotten colder! Furthermore, the polar bears survived many periods of much warmer temperatures, some lasting thousands of years. They survived the Medieval Warm Period a thousand years ago, when the Vikings settled both Iceland and Greenland. Greenland actually was green then and could support agriculture; but when the cold returned a few centuries later, the people there all starved to death. Today Greenland is covered by a sheet of ice. Six thousand years ago the earth's climate was much warmer than now, and the polar bears survived. Ten thousand years ago the earth's climate was a whopping six degrees C (11 degrees F) warmer than now, and the bears survived. Polar bears have been a distinct species for 125,000 years (they descended from grizzly bears) and they've survived far warmer climates than anything they face today or in the foreseeable future. A Canadian polar bear expert, Mitch Taylor, says, "They are not going extinct, or even appear to be affected."
NASA has "adjusted" recent temperatures upward and older temperatures downward, which creates the appearance of warming.
The argument that a warmer climate will bring more violent weather can only be made by people who have no knowledge of climate history or simply dismiss it because it contradicts their propaganda. And they rely on the public — and the media — being uninformed enough and gullible enough to believe them. There is abundant historical evidence that the earth had far more violent weather in times of colder climate, such as the Little Ice Age, than in warmer times. It is well known, too, that what determines violent weather is the temperature differential between the equator and the poles. All the computer models predict the greatest warming from the greenhouse effect will be at the poles, which will reduce that differential and violent weather.
There are four sources of global temperature measurements: NASA, The UK Meteorological Office's Hadley Center for Climate Studies, the University of Alabama at Huntsville, and RSS (Remote Sensing Systems). NASA is out of step with the other three. The others show global temperatures declining since 1998 while NASA shows them increasing at a record pace. How can that be? Statistician Steve McIntyre tracks climate data closely at www.climateaudit.org. Recently he ran an article titled "NASA is Rewriting History, Time and Time Again." It explains that NASA has "adjusted" recent temperatures upward and older temperatures downward, which creates the appearance of warming. The man behind these changes is James Hansen, the scientist who started the whole global warming hysteria by testifying before a Senate committee in June 1988 that he was "99% sure" greenhouse warming was already under way. The same media which scarcely a decade earlier were touting a coming ice age now seized upon Hansen's unsupported testimony and began touting global warming. Hansen has been trying ever since to come up with evidence to support his claims, now even tampering with the actual temperature record. Steven Goddard asks, "How could it be determined that so many thermometers were wrong by an average of 0.5 degrees in one particular year several decades ago, and an accurate retrofit be made? Why is the adjustment 0.5 degrees one year, and 0.1 degrees the next?" Statistically, the odds are 50/50 of an error being either up or down. But Hansen adds an upward correction to the average of thousands of temperature measurements annually across the globe in more than 55 years out of 70. That's like flipping a coin 70 times and having it turn up heads 55 times. The odds of that happening are about one in a million.
Nor is that the only example of manipulation of data for the good of the cause. The centerpiece of the IPCC Third Assessment Report was the "hockey stick" graph by Michael Mann, et al. It showed a thousand years of "reconstructed" global temperatures as a long horizontal trend looking like the long handle of a hockey stick — with a sharp rise since 1900 looking like the blade of the hockey stick, due to global warming. This work has now been thoroughly discredited. It was the product of multiple inaccuracies from errors, omissions, obsolete data, and manipulations in "reconstructing" data, all of which was then processed through an invalid statistical procedure. That procedure was found to produce a "hockey stick" even from random inputs, and Mann himself later admitted it would find a "hockey stick" where there wasn't one. The National Academy of Sciences found a "validation skill not significantly different from zero." The issue was presented to the National Academy of Sciences by the Wegman Panel, consisting of three independent statisticians chaired by an eminent statistics professor, Edward Wegman, who also testified about it at a congressional investigation. After explaining the incorrect mathematics in Mann's procedure, Wegman stated: "I am baffled by the [Mann] claim that incorrect mathematics doesn't matter because the answer is correct anyway[!]" Ideology trumps mathematics! (Incidentally, this graph is still being used on TV programs on global warming. I was on one such program less than a year ago that displayed this graph four or five times in an hour and allowed Mann plenty of airtime to tout it, and the program provided no rebuttal. And I have been told by students and parents that the "hockey stick" graph is still being used in schools.)
Here's an example of the global warming alarmists completely ignoring contrary data, or even denying it exists. Some scientists assert that the current level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere (about 380 parts per million) is the highest in 800,000 years. The media sucks this up and broadcasts it all over the airwaves and the newspapers, and the public, not knowing any better, believes it must be true. But how could such learned men be so ignorant in their own field of expertise as to not know of the abundant temperature records that give lie to their claim? How could they not know of the monumental compilation by Ernst-Georg Beck of more than 90,000 direct carbon dioxide measurements, between 1812 and 1961, from 175 published technical papers? Zbigniew Jaworowski, M.D., Ph.D., D.Sc., says these measurements were ignored for three decades "not because they were wrong. Indeed, these measurements were made by top scientists, including two Nobel Prize winners, using techniques that are standard textbook procedures. . . . The only reason for rejection was that these measurements did not fit the hypothesis of anthropogenic global warming. I regard this as perhaps the greatest scientific scandal of our time."
What about the ice core samples? Same story: omission or denial of whatever doesn't fit the global warming doctrine.
What about the ice core samples? Same story: omission or denial of whatever doesn't fit the global warming doctrine. The 2007 IPCC Summary report states: "The global atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide has increased from a pre-industrial value of about 280 ppm to 379 ppm in 2005. The atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide in 2005 exceeds by far the natural range over the last 650,000 years (180 to 300 ppm) as determined from ice cores." In fact, the ice cores show measurements of over 400 ppm as recently as about 1700 A.D. and 420 ppm about 200 A.D. Ice cores show similar carbon dioxide levels intermittently over the last 10,000 years. So who is wrong, the ice cores or the IPCC? Just who are the "deniers" of reality?
Jaworowski has studied climate for over 40 years, organized 11 glacier expeditions researching 17 glaciers in the Arctic, Antarctic, Alps, Norway, Himalayas, Peruvian Andes, and other mountainous regions. He has also published about 20 papers on climate issues, most of them about ice cores. He writes that the ice core information in the 2007 IPCC Summary Report was "plagued with improper manipulation of data, an arbitrary rejection of high readings from old ice, and an arbitrary rejection of low readings from young ice, simply because they did not fit the preconceived idea of man-made global warming ."
Furthermore, from over 90,000 direct measurements of carbon dioxide, Beck graphed five-year averages, which further discredit the IPCC claim. These show 440 ppm carbon dioxide for the years 1820 and 1940, and 390 ppm for 1855. Can there be any doubt that the IPCC is distorting science for political purposes?
Why is it that the global warming advocates are unfazed by any contrary evidence, no matter how strong? All their claims of disasters from global warming have been debunked. All their computer models have been shown to be false, to be based on flawed assumptions, incapable of being reconciled with the observable facts. Vaclav Klaus, President of the Czech Republic and a university professor before he became president, is the author of a book on global warming and has spoken often on the subject. He says, "What frustrates me is the feeling that everything has already been said and published, that all rational argument has been used, yet it does not help." It does not help because global warming alarmism is not based on rational argument. It is not based on science. It is not based on reality. It is based on political ideology. If rational argument doesn't fit, then phony arguments must be invented: the spread of malaria, the loss of biological diversity, polar bears disappearing, etc. If computer models can predict disaster scenarios only by programming unrealistic assumptions, then that will be done. If global warming does not fit the observable temperature measurements, then a new "reality" must be invented to fit the ideology: the actual temperature records must be altered or dismissed. The global warming advocates are not disturbed by all this because, in their view, ideology trumps reality.
James Hansen revealed his hatred of capitalism in an impassioned email denouncing the attention paid to errors in NASA data.
Patrick Moore, a cofounder and director of Greenpeace, resigned because of its "trend toward abandoning scientific objectivity in favor of political agendas." After the failure of communism, he says, there was little public support for collectivist ideology. In his view, a "reason environmental extremism emerged was because world communism failed, the [Berlin] wall came down, and a lot of peaceniks and political activists moved into the environmental movement bringing their neo-Marxism with them and learned to use green language in a very clever way to cloak agendas that actually have more to do with anticapitalism and antiglobalism than they do anything with ecology or science."
"I think if we don't overthrow capitalism, we don't have a chance of saving the world ecologically," said Judi Bari, principal organizer of Earth First!
James Hansen revealed his hatred of capitalism in an impassioned email denouncing the attention paid to errors in NASA temperature data: "The deceit behind the attempts to discredit evidence of climate change reveals matters of importance. This deceit has a clear purpose: to confuse the public about the status of knowledge of global climate change, thus delaying effective action to mitigate climate change. The danger is that delay will cause tipping points to be passed, such that large climate impacts become inevitable . . . the ones who will live in infamy if we pass the tipping points, are the captains of industry, CEOs in fossil fuel companies such as EXXON/Mobil, automobile manufacturers, utilities, all of the leaders who have placed short-term profit above the fate of the planet and the well-being of our children."
Klaus states:
We succeeded in getting rid of communism, but along with many others, we erroneously assumed that attempts to suppress freedom, and to centrally organize, mastermind, and control society and the economy, were matters of the past, an almost-forgotten relic. Unfortunately, those centralizing urges are still with us. . . . Environmentalism only pretends to deal with environmental protection. Behind their people and nature friendly terminology, the adherents of environmentalism make ambitious attempts to radically reorganize and change the world, human society, our behavior and our values. . . .
The followers of the environmentalist ideology, however, keep presenting us with various catastrophic scenarios with the intention of persuading us to implement their ideas. That is not only unfair but also extremely dangerous. Even more dangerous, in my view, is the quasi-scientific guise that their oft-refuted forecasts have taken on. . . . Their recommendations would take us back to an era of statism and restricted freedom. . . . The ideology will be different. Its essence will, nevertheless, be identical — the attractive, pathetic, at first sight noble idea that transcends the individual in the name of the common good, and the enormous self-confidence on the side of the proponents about their right to sacrifice the man and his freedom in order to make this idea reality. . . . We have to restart the discussion about the very nature of government and about the relationship between the individual and society. . . . It is not about climatology. It is about freedom.
Do you ever wonder how communism could last for 70 years in Russia? Surely there was plenty of evidence, for decades, that the system was failing: food shortages, declining life expectancy, increased infant mortality, low standards of living, primitive hospitals, and sanitation facilities lagging far behind those in Western Europe and America — not to mention pollution far worse than in the West. But to diehard communists, the facts did not matter. All the observable negatives of collectivism were trumped by ideology. The same is true of the ideology behind global warming.
We just can't win, same BS different day. LOL
Aussie Bank to Bring America’s Biggest Bankers to Their Knees?
August 12, 2008 | From theTrumpet.com
http://www.thetrumpet.com/index.php?q=5365.3712.0.0
With American banks already in trouble, an Australian bank made matters worse—by telling the truth! By Robert Morley
July 25 was a particularly bad day for Australia’s four biggest banking stocks. In a matter of hours, $16.2 billion in stockholder value was erased from existence—the worst fall since Black Monday in October 1987.
Investors jumped ship following the decision by the National Australia Bank to take a 90 percent write-down on a chunk of mortgage-backed assets that were supposedly aaa-rated. Yet, the full implications of the announcement were largely missed by the media. To them, July 25 was just one more bad day in a bad year in which Australian financial stocks ground lower and lower.
The “aaa” assets in question were bundles of U.S. mortgages that National Australia Bank (nab) had purchased for around $1.2 billion prior to the U.S. real-estate and lending bubble bust. The problem with the mortgages arose after American home valuations plunged and homeowners began defaulting on their mortgages in record numbers. All of a sudden, the market for mortgage-backed investments dried up, and no one wanted to buy the formerly triple-A-rated securities anymore.
So the accounting question that American banks faced was: What is a bundle of mortgages worth when nobody is willing to bid on them at auction? This was an important question because U.S. banks and investors held “trillions” worth of mortgages.
So banks used fancy computer models and mathematical equations to come up with the answer for accounting purposes—typically valuing their mortgage holdings near or somewhat less than what they paid for them. The result was the banks’ balance sheets continued to look strong, even though house prices were plunging and defaults were rising. As long as no one technically knew what the true market value of the mortgage bundles were, no losses need be admitted, and the game could continue.
But, if a bundle of mortgages was sold, then a market value could be determined, and the banks would have to adjust their accounting books accordingly, marking their investments to market value. Because the mortgage attrition rate has been so fearful, U.S. banks have been doing just about everything possible to avoid having to find out what their investments are actually worth.
But now nab has let the cat out of the bag. nab has revalued its package of U.S. mortgages down to about 10 cents on the dollar. Now U.S. banks will face pressure to similarly down-mark the value of their portfolios of mortgages. The losses could be huge.
“The National Australia Bank’s decision to write off 90 percent of its U.S. conduit loans will have dramatic repercussions around the world,” reports the Business Spectator. “Wall Street will be deeply shocked when they understand the repercussions of what nab has done. It is clear global banks have nowhere near provided for their exposures to U.S. housing loans which … are experiencing a ‘meltdown.’”
But it could even be worse—and the losses are snowballing.
The nab write-down was apparently linked to Merrill Lynch’s recent write-down, which was announced four days later. Merrill Lynch sold a bundle of mortgages with a face value of over $30 billion for 22 cents on the dollar.
But here is the real kicker. Merrill actually sold the mortgages for much less than was reported to the media. In Merrill’s press release, it was revealed, “Merrill Lynch will provide financing to the purchaser for approximately 75 percent of the purchase price.”
According to analyst Morgan Housel, the sale terms also say that if the mortgages go bad, the buyer is not on the hook for the Merrill loan either. “To put it another way, if there wasn’t a we’ve-got-your-back loan attached to the sale, it’s almost certain that [the purchaser] would have only agreed to purchase the assets for much, much less than $0.22 on the dollar.” The real purchase price is probably closer to 6 cents on the dollar.
If you think it is beginning to sound like a peanut shell game, where banks have been desperately trying to cover up losses, you are probably more right than wrong.
But U.S. banks’ balance sheets are probably about to get whacked again, as nab and Merrill force the big banks to own up to the current market value of many of their mortgages. “U.S. banks have written down $450 billion in bad housing loans,” notes the Business Spectator. “The revelation from nab means that they will now certainly need to take provisions to $1,000 billion. But write-downs of $1,300 billion and perhaps even more are on the cards.”
Many banks will fail, merge or be bought out, and the credit crunch could easily intensify. Jobs will be lost, and it could become much more difficult to get a loan or qualify for a credit card. For an economy that is so reliant on consumer spending fueled by borrowing, the fallout from a banking crisis will not be pretty.
Exactly you can have your choice of CFR...
CFR McSame
CFR Change (Obama)
Or you could choose CFR, if you don't like CFR....
Obama advisor: Brzezinski on CFR, Bilderberg, and Trilateral Commission
Brzezinski is one of Senator Barack Obama's foreign policy advisers for the presidential campaign of 2008.
Zbigniew Brzezinski was interviewed on C-SPAN's Q & A on March 27, 2007. In this clip, Brzezinski comments on the CFR, Bilderberg, and the Trilateral Commission.
Q. With this guy as Obama's advisor how can you have Change?
A. YOU CAN'T.... You are being deceived.
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=3dd_1208895924
Brzezinski: Obama May Make Soviets' Mistake
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/brzezinski_warns_obama/2008/07/21/114735.html
Monday, July 21, 2008 10:36 AM
By: Rick Pedraza Article Font Size
Former national security adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski warns Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama not to make the same mistake the Soviet Union made more than 20 years ago when it deployed more troops in Afghanistan only to suffer a disastrous military defeat.
“It is important for U.S. policy in general – and for Obama more specifically – to recognize that simply putting more troops into Afghanistan is not the entire solution,” Brzezinski tells The Financial Times.
Brzezinski, an Obama supporter, [WOW, what an understatement that is. Brzezinski is the Obama creator not just an Obama supporter.] offered his advice on the heels of Obama's trip to Afghanistan this weekend, where the senator from Illinois is calling for a more concerted effort to focus resources and more troops in Afghanistan.
“We are running the risk of repeating the mistake the Soviet Union made,” Brzezinski says. “Our strategy is getting in deeper and deeper.”
Obama has said prior to the trip that he would like up to 10,000 more troops deployed to Afghanistan. Brzezinski, however, says doing so could risk a similar fate suffered by the Soviets.
The Soviet war in Afghanistan was a nine-year conflict involving Soviet forces supporting the Marxist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) government against the mujahedeen resistance. Final troop withdrawal ended in 1989, but due to the interminable and inconclusive nature of the war, the conflict in Afghanistan has often been referred to as the Soviet equivalent of the United States' Vietnam War.
“We have to be careful not to overestimate the appeal of the democratic Afghan elite, because we run the risk that our military presence will gradually turn the Afghan population entirely against us,” Brzezinski warns, noting that Afghan society both then and now is deeply conservative and resistant to dramatic change.
“I realize that in an electoral campaign you don’t want to antagonize large groups which are highly motivated,” he says. “This is a very dangerous period of time with very unpredictable consequences. You have three countries [Iran, Israel and the U.S.] doing a kind of death dance on the basis of confusion, division and fear.”
Brzezinski says, “If we end up with war in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, [and] Iran at the same time, can anyone see a more damaging prospect for America’s world role than that? That’s the fundamental foreign policy dilemma at the back of this election. A four-front war would get us involved for years . . . It would be the end of American predominance.”
© 2008 Newsmax. All rights reserved.
Air Force Purge Confirms Brzezinski/Obama Faction in Control, Neo-Cons are Out
http://www.free-press-release.com/news/200806/1212860127.html
United States of America (Press Release) June 7, 2008 -- By Webster G. Tarpley
Washington DC, June 6 – Yesterday's extraordinary simultaneous ouster of the Secretary of the Air Force and the Air Force chief of staff, followed by the naming of Trilateral Commissioner and Carter administration veteran James Rodney Schlesinger to purge USAF generals and colonels, dramatically documents the fact that power in Washington DC is no long in the hands of the Bush-Cheney-neocon clique, but has passed to the Brzezinski-Trilateral faction.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced the firing of Air Force Secretary Michael W. Wynne and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley, citing the failure of the Air Force to maintain the security of strategic nuclear forces, as shown in the infamous rogue B-52 incident of late August 2007, when a B-52 intercontinental strategic bomber with six nuclear armed cruise missiles flew from North Dakota to Louisiana totally outside of the purview of the USAF command control and communications systems. Gates also mentioned that four high-tech electrical nosecone fuses for Minuteman nuclear warheads were sent to Taiwan in place of helicopter batteries, along with other failures.
Gates is a leading member of the Principals' Committee, an interagency group which now runs the US government from day to day with scant reference to the discredited outgoing lame ducks Bush and Cheney, who stay on mainly as figureheads. The Principals' Committee has been in charge of the US government since no later than early May, around the time of the Indiana and North Carolina primaries, when the controlled corporate media began trumpeting that Obama was the winner of the Democratic nomination. The Principals' Committee is made up of Pentagon boss Gates, Secretary of State Rice, NSC director Hadley, Joint Chiefs of Staff head Mullen, intelligence czar McConnell, along with a few others. These figures are now marching to the tune of Trilateral Commission bigwigs like Zbigniew Brzezinski, Joseph Nye, and the Rockefeller family. These are the same forces who own and control the Wall Street Manchurian candidate Obama. It is notable that the high-profile purge of the USAF came less than 48 hours after Obama had unilaterally proclaimed himself the Democratic presidential nominee.
The rogue B-52 flew with six nuclear cruise missiles from Minot AFB North Dakota to Barksdale AFB Louisiana last August 30. Source reports published by Wayne Madsen suggest that the B-52 was stopped by patriotic low-level USAF personnel. As the issue of whether to allow the plane to fly on to the Middle East went up the chain of command and expanded to involve the intelligence agencies, it transpired that the majority of the government and the establishment did not want the plane to attack targets in the Middle East. The scandal of the rogue B-52 broke on September 5, and a stand-down and nuclear census of the entire USAF soon followed. According to all indications, the B-52 was under the extra-legal control of the Cheney faction, which evidently planned to fly it to the Middle East and quite possibly use one or more of the nuclear cruise missiles in an attack on Iran and/or Syria, probably in cooperation or coordination with the Israeli air attack on Syria which occurred on September 6. The fact that the B-52 was blocked may have represented the last gasp of the Bush-Cheney-neocon faction, and the beginning of the hegemony of a different and far more dangerous group, namely the Brzezinski-Trilateral faction.
The Gates purge indicates that the new Trilateral masters of Washington DC do not trust the USAF generals who are so deeply compromised with the Bush-Cheney-neocon faction. The USAF was up to its neck in 9/11, and then in the rogue B-52 affair. The Trilaterals are accordingly driving out the old rogues, and replacing them with new rogue generals of their own, who are loyal to the insane Trilateral agenda. Brzezinski does not want nuclear weapons wasted on Iran, which he intends to turn into an expendable puppet or kamikaze pawn in his apocalyptic showdown with Russian and China. This is what Obama's appeasement of Iran actually aims at: Iran as a US asset to be played against Russia and China. Brzezinski wants to be in control of those nukes, since he may soon need them for use against Russia and China. Those who might celebrate the defeat of the Bush-Cheney-neocon group must rather face the fact that the US has just jumped out of the frying pan of conventional invasions and into the fire of looming thermonuclear confrontations among the great powers. This is the real nature of the change for which Obama is the public symbol.
Obama's foreign policy will be dictated in every respect by Trilateral co-founder Brzezinski. Obama is now supported and surrounded by Trilateral members David Rockefeller, Jay Rockefeller, Joseph Nye, Paul Adolph Volcker, Jimmy Carter, and many more. With James "Rodney the Robot" Schlesinger now helping to purge the Pentagon, including its associated intelligence agencies, the Trilateral grip on Washington DC is tightening. Obama's choice of a vice president will be dictated by long-time Trilateral stalwart Jim Johnson.
The rogue B-52 incident was forecast by me in an essay entitled "Cheney Determined to Strike in US with WMD This Summer," issued on July 21, 2007, and widely distributed on the internet and in print form. This was followed by the Kennebunkport Warning, which was posted online in the evening of August 26, 2007, less than 72 hours before the rogue B-52 nuclear missiles were loaded. By September 3, the Kennebunkport Warning was posted on 110,000 web sites worldwide. The precision and timeliness of this warning represent an unprecedented intelligence achievement.
But now, the danger of a US attack on Iran is very low. Brzezinski's hit list is much more ambitious, and includes Sudan, Pakistan, Burma, and China, all stepping stones to the final reckoning with Moscow. The main possibility of an attack on Iran in the present situation comes from disgruntled Israeli factions like the one around Netanyahu who are aghast that they are being demoted from their previous role as the hub of US strategy to the status of just another expendable pawn in Brzezinski's lunatic plan for confrontation with Beijing and Moscow. The Israelis are horrified by Obama, just as everyone in the world should be. The winning faction of the US-UK establishment does not want the attack on Iran, and the Israelis would be foolhardy to try it on their own. The threats today from former IDF chief and Israeli Transport Minister Shaul Mofaz about an Israeli solo attack on Iran because of the failure of economic sanctions to stop nuclear development are indicative of deep discontent, but the guess here is that they are a bluff. We will soon find out: if the Israelis do not strike Iran in the next few weeks, they will have lost their chance as the Trilaterals continue to consolidate their power.
Webster Griffin Tarpley is the author of the new book, Obama, The Postmodern Coup, an analysis of the forces backing Barack Obama.
Rep. Ron Paul: The US is heading into an illegal attack on Iran
by Attorney Harold H. Burbank II
Global Research, August 9, 2008
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=9775
Rep. Ron Paul (R-Tex.) has warned millions of radio listeners that the United States is heading into an illegal attack on Iran, stating his amazement at members of Congress who have openly voiced support for a criminal nuclear strike.
"If we do (attack) it is going to be a disaster," the congressman told the Alex Jones radio show. "I was astounded to see on one of the networks the other day that the debate was not are we going to attack, but are we going to attack before or after the election?" Paul continued.
Paul recently voiced concern over House Congressional Resolution 362 which he has dubbed a "virtual Iran war resolution."
"If that comes up it is demanding that the president [put in place] an absolute blockade of the entire country of Iran, and punish any country or any business group around the world if they trade with Iran," Paul told listeners.
Experts have predicted gas will rise to $6 per gallon if the resolution passes. Paul believes that may happen anyway, just by anticipation.
"The frightening thing is they say they are taking no options off the table, even nuclear first strike," Paul said. Paul believes from talking with his contacts in and around Congress that a strike on Iran has already been green-lighted.
Bottled Water: Illusions of Purity
Bottled water manufacturers are good at implying things. With glossy ads and labels depicting quiet mountain streams, a consumer is led to believe what they’re drinking is healthier than what comes from the tap. But chances are it’s not. In fact, municipal water is more tightly regulated than bottled water.
Tap water is regulated by the EPA as well as state and local governments, but bottled water is only checked by the Food and Drug Administration. FDA doesn’t even get to most food plants every year, with some plants going five or ten years between inspections. Though the FDA is supposed to test bottled water at the same standards as the EPA, FDA guidelines are years behind the EPA’s. Here are some of the more disturbing examples:
* Municipal water is not permitted to contain E. coli or fecal coliform bacteria. FDA rules for bottled water include no such prohibitions.
* Municipal water from surface sources must be filtered and disinfected, or it must have strict pollution controls. There are no filtration or disinfection requirements for bottled water at the federal level. The only source-water protection, filtration or disinfection provisions for bottled water are delegated to the states, and many states have adopted no meaningful programs.
* Cities must have their water tested by government-certified labs. No certification requirement exists for bottlers.
* Municipal tap water must be tested for coliform bacteria 100 or more times a month. New York City takes 500,000 samples of its water per year. That’s nearly once a minute alla bottle of water year long. Bottled water plants only have to test once a week.
The Natural Resources Defense Council conducted an extensive battery of tests on more than 1,000 bottles of water of 103 brands to find out just how clean it is. Nearly one in five brands contained, in at least one sample, more bacteria than allowed under microbiological-purity guidelines adopted by some states, the industry, and the European Union.
Bottled water likes to sell itself as being pure in its little clear bottles, but the fact is nearly 40 percent of bottled water is tap water with added minerals or filtration and there’s no guaranteed safety just because it’s wrapped in plastic – and in fact there’s some risk. Municipal water has an advantage in that it is constantly moving, keeping fresh and avoiding stagnancy. Water bottles, though cleaned, are not sterilized. Relatively low amounts of bacteria at bottling can multiply to a much larger problem by the time bottles hit store shelves. Bottled water frequently is not chlorinated, allowing bacterial and fungal growth within the bottle.
If that weren’t enough, the bottles themselves can cause trouble. Phthalate is a chemical used to soften plastics and make it less brittle. But when heated, even from a hot day in the car, they begin to leach into the contents of the bottle. Phthalates can cause reproductive difficulties, liver problems and increased risk of cancer . While phthalates are regulated in tap water, the FDA maintains an exemption for bottled water.
What You Can Do
* Reduce your bottled water consumption.
* Carry your own bottle. Lined aluminum, glass, or stainless steel are alternatives to plastic bottles. See the Green Guide for a discussion of safe plastics,
* Take the pledge to break the bottled water habit! Spread the word!
* Support funding for public drinking water and water treatment.
* America has some of the safest tap water in the world but many cities operate water systems that were built before World War I. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that there is a shortfall of more than $22 billion per year between the funds available for repair and upgrade of pipes and treatment plants and what is needed to keep water safe for human and environmental health.
* Tell Congress to increase funding to keep America’s water clean and safe.
Hypertext:
http://www.fwwatch.org/water/bottled/bottled-water-illusions-of-purity
Right now it's a misnomer but I was thinking ahead.
Right now the board should be called:
THG's Pre-Apocalyptic IHub Paradise.
I know.
But we won't stay "PRE" for long...when this board is as old as the JFSAG board is now we will be well into "POST"....
Think about that...
Gardening is fun:
MUST HAVE BOOKS:
All New Square Foot Gardening: Grow More in Less Space!
http://www.powells.com/cgi-bin/biblio?inkey=2-9781591862024-2
How to grow world record tomatoes
http://www.powells.com/s?kw=how+to+grow+world+record+tomatoes&x=0&y=0
Get some of this:
http://www.azomite.com/
Good prices on filters not the best prices on housing and systems:
http://www.waterfilters.net/
Good prices on housing not the best on filters...
http://www.filtersfast.com/
DYODD for cheapest stuff. A GAC 5 is a GAC 5, but you can only get Seychelle from Seychelle...
I use GAC's cuz they're cheap and easy to get...and work just fine in the shower, under sink, in line etc...
Anyhow pays to shop around the shower filter housing I like uses a GAC5 filter it costs 13 bucks on filtersfast.com and 27 on waterfilters.net for the SAME THING.
The best water filters out there:
http://www.seychelle.com/Default.asp?RepID=10001&BasketID=
Get a canteen: you have drinking water in the ugliest swamp...
Stock is looking attractive way down here too...
thanks for the link to the silver
i'm about to get a water filter, looking at a few besides katadyn ie. berkeley and aquarain
http://www.pleasanthillgrain.com/berkey_light_big_berkey_water_filter_british_berkefeld_portable_purifier.aspx
http://www.internet-grocer.net/aqua.htm
any that you particularly like?
buying some more silver this week
Colodial Silver...
Supersilver 10...
http://www.ihsite.com/category/super_silver_solution/
Bernie Mac should still be alive today...
Watch Vid...
Yerba Mate, Nutrition and Health
Yerba Mate: For Better Health
By Daniel Mowrey, Ph.D.
Add the dried tea to your food locker.~THG
Yerba Mate, or Mate as it is often called, is a South American herb that has won many admirers in wide-ranging parts of the world. In the search for a natural stimulant devoid of side effects and toxicity, Mate currently holds the most hope. An invigorator of the mind and body, a natural source of nutrition, and a health promoter par excellence, Mate deserves the attention of every person interested in optimum health. Yerba Mate was introduced to colonizing and modern civilizations by the primitive Guarani Indians of Paraguay and Argentina. It has seemingly always been the most common ingredient in household cures of the Guarani. In modern Argentina and Paraguay, however, Mate tea has become almost pathologically ritualized in a manner reminiscent of coffee and tea abuse in Western and Eastern countries. Among the native Guarani, on the other hand, the natural use of Mate for healthful purposes has persisted. They use it to boost immunity, cleanse and detoxify the blood, tone the nervous system, restore youthful hair color, retard aging, combat fatigue, stimulate the mind, control the appetite, reduce the effects of debilitating disease, reduce stress, and eliminate insomnia.
Mate (flex paraguariensis) is an evergreen member of the holly family. It grows wild in Argentina, Chile, Peru, and Brazil, but is most abundant in Paraguay where it is also cultivated. The plant is classified vaguely, according to Western herbal medicine, as aromatic, stimulant, bitter, aperient (laxative), astringent, diuretic, purgative, sudorific (sweat inducing), and febrifuge (fever reducing). Mate contains numerous vitamins and minerals. There is the usual array of resins, fiber, volatile oil, and tannins that characterize many plant substances. And there is also carotene; vitamins A. C, E, B-1, B-2 and B-complex; riboflavin; nicotinic acid; pantothenic acid; biotin; magnesium; calcium; iron; sodium; potassium; manganese; silicon; phosphates; sulfur; hydrochloric acid; chlorophyll; choline; and inositol. In 1964 one group of investigators from the Pasteur Institute and the Paris Scientific Society concluded that Mate contains practically all of the vitamins necessary to sustain life.
In addition to the regular nutrients, Mate contains a substance belonging to a specialized class of chemical compounds called xanthines. Though only small amounts of these substances occur in Mate, their presence has generated a huge amount of attention. The primary xanthine in Yerba Mate is called Mateine. The substance probably contributes little, if anything, to the overall activity of the plant, but has drawn a disproportionate share of speculation. Some xanthines are obviously less desirable, such as caffeine. Others, such as theophylline and theobromine, have specialized action and a characteristic set of side effects. Although the xanthines have similar chemistries, each has a unique set of properties. Researchers at the Free Hygienic Institute of Hamburg, Germany, concluded that even if there were caffeine in Mate, the amount would be so tiny that it would take 100 tea bags of Mate in a 6-ounce cup of water to equal the caffeine in a 6-ounce serving of regular coffee. Consequently, the active principle in Yerba Mate is not caffeine!
There is only one effect that seems to be shared by all xanthines: smooth muscle relaxation. It is this action that makes them (with the exception of caffeine, in which smooth muscle relaxant effects are diminished by other side effects) good clinical dilators of the bronchi and hence useful in the treatment of asthma. Mateine appears, then, to possess the best combination of xanthine properties possible. For example, like other xanthines, it stimulates the central nervous system; but unlike most, it is not habituating or addicting. Likewise, unlike caffeine, it induces better, not worse, attributes of sleep. It is a mild, not a strong, diuretic, as are many xanthines. It relaxes peripheral blood vessels, thereby reducing blood pressure, without the strong effects on the medulla oblongata (end part of the brain connecting to the spine) and heart exhibited by some xanthines. We also know that it improves psychomotor performance without the typical xanthine-induced depressant after effects. Dr. Jose Martin, Director of the National Institute of Technology in Paraguay, writes, "New research and better technology have shown that while Mateine has a chemical constituency similar to caffeine, the molecular binding is different. Mateine has none of the ill effects of caffeine." And Horacio Conesa, professor at the University of Buenos Aires Medical School, states, "There is not a single medical contraindication" for ingesting Mate. Clinical studies show, in fact, that even individuals with caffeine sensitivities can ingest Mate without adverse reactions.
GASTROINTESTINAL PROPERTIES
Perhaps the main area to benefit from Mate is the gastrointestinal tract. Reported effects range from immediate improvement in digestion to the ability to repair damaged and diseased gastrointestinal tissues. Constipation, acute or chronic, can easily be overcome through the use of Mate. Mate appears to work mainly by softening the fecal mass, but it also appears to stimulate normal movement of the intestines to some degree.
EFFECTS ON THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
Better than any other xanthine alkaloid, Mate has the ability to increase mental alertness and acuity and to do it without any side effects such as nervousness and jitters. It seems to act like a tonic, stimulating a weakened and depressed nervous system and sedating an overexcited one. Our knowledge of Mate's effects is currently limited to observations of behavior changes such as more energy and vitality; better ability to concentrate; less nervousness, agitation, and anxiety; and increased resistance to both physical and mental fatigue. Improvement in mood, especially in cases of depression, often follows drinking aspects of Mate is that it does not interfere with sleep cycles; in fact, it has a tendency to balance the cycles, inducing more rapid eye movement (REM) sleep when necessary, or increasing the amount of time spent in delta states (deep sleep).
CARDIOVASCULAR EFFECTS
Heart Ailments of all kinds have been treated or prevented through Yerba Mate use. Yerba Mate supplies many of the nutrients required by the heart for growth and repair. In addition, it increases the supply of oxygen to the heart, especially during periods of stress or exercise. Mate has become a favorite of body builders and anyone interested in the health benefits of exercise. The metabolic effects of Mate appear to include the ability to maintain aerobic glycolysis (breakdown of carbohydrates) during exercise for longer periods of time. This results in burning more calories, increasing cardiac efficiency, and delaying anaerobic glycolysis and the resulting buildup of lactic acid during exercise. Reports of Mate reducing blood pressure are not uncommon.
EFFECTS ON THE IMMUNE SYSTEM
A consistent observation in most South American literature on Mate is that it increases the immune response of the body, stimulating natural resistance to disease. This results in a nourishing and strengthening effect on the ill person, both during the course of the illness and during convalescence, sometimes dramatically accelerating recovery times. Exact mechanisms of Mate's action have not been worked out, but they involve both a direct action against infectious organisms, and an effect on overall resistance to disease. The nutritional content of the plant probably plays a major role here, but it is also probable that other constituents contribute to the action by stimulating the activity of white blood cells.
NUTRITIONAL PROPERTIES
The interaction of the many nutrients in Mate have never been systematically studied. But the stories surrounding the nutritional application of Mate tea are nothing short of amazing. Mate is often used as a staple food, sometimes substituting for such important foods as bread and vegetables. It easily eliminates the sensation of hunger and can impart as much invigoration as a full meal, according to the well-known Chilean herbalists J. Zin and R. Weiss. Peace Corps workers have reported cases in which large groups of natives remain in good health for extended periods of drought and famine, even though they eat only one small meal per day. How so? By drinking copious amounts of Yerba Mate tea. Some natives spend their entire lives on such a diet and live to very advanced ages, sometimes in excess of 100 years. South American governments have adopted the practice of encouraging mothers, especially in the poorer regions, to include Yerba Mate in the diet of their school-age children. the tea.
This may be a direct or indirect result of increased energy.
Dr. Mowrey received his doctorate in experimental psychology (with an emphasis on psychopharmacology) from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah
http://www.miyerbamate.com/content/Yerba_Mate_Nutrition_and_Health.htm
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A Collection of articles and posts that prepare the gentle reader for the disruption that comes.
Pure Ugly Ahead. May as well make the best of it.
"When a well-packaged web of lies has been sold gradually to the masses over generations, the truth will seem utterly preposterous and its speaker a raving lunatic." ~ Dresden James
"Men think in herds, go mad in herds, but recover their senses one by one." ~ Charles Mackay
There will never be a really free and enlightened State until the State comes to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power, from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats him accordingly. ~ Henry David Thoreau
OF COURSE:
http://www.loompanics.com/
http://www.canningpantry.com/
This is must a read site, has a bit of everything:
http://www.endtimesreport.com/
You can spend days reading it. The other thing you can do to prepare is "spend a week with the Amish"....
100 Items to Disappear First
1. Generators (Good ones cost dearly. Gas storage, risky. Noisy...target of thieves; maintenance etc.)
2. Water Filters/Purifiers
3. Portable Toilets
4. Seasoned Firewood. Wood takes about 6 - 12 months to become dried, for home uses.
5. Lamp Oil, Wicks, Lamps (First Choice: Buy CLEAR oil. If scarce, stockpile ANY!)
6. Coleman Fuel. Impossible to stockpile too much.
7. Guns, Ammunition, Pepper Spray, Knives, Clubs, Bats & Slingshots.
8. Hand-can openers, & hand egg beaters, whisks.
9. Honey/Syrups/white, brown sugar
10. Rice - Beans - Wheat
11. Vegetable Oil (for cooking) Without it food burns/must be boiled etc.,)
12. Charcoal, Lighter Fluid (Will become scarce suddenly)
13. Water Containers (Urgent Item to obtain.) Any size. Small: HARD CLEAR PLASTIC ONLY - note - food grade if for drinking.
16. Propane Cylinders (Urgent: Definite shortages will occur.
17. Survival Guide Book.
18. Mantles: Aladdin, Coleman, etc. (Without this item, longer-term lighting is difficult.)
19. Baby Supplies: Diapers/formula. ointments/aspirin, etc.
20. Washboards, Mop Bucket w/wringer (for Laundry)
21. Cookstoves (Propane, Coleman & Kerosene)
22. Vitamins
23. Propane Cylinder Handle-Holder (Urgent: Small canister use is dangerous without this item)
24. Feminine Hygiene/Haircare/Skin products.
25. Thermal underwear (Tops & Bottoms)
26. Bow saws, axes and hatchets, Wedges (also, honing oil)
27. Aluminum Foil Reg. & Heavy Duty (Great Cooking and Barter Item)
28. Gasoline Containers (Plastic & Metal)
29. Garbage Bags (Impossible To Have Too Many).
30. Toilet Paper, Kleenex, Paper Towels
31. Milk - Powdered & Condensed (Shake Liquid every 3 to 4 months)
32. Garden Seeds (Non-Hybrid) (A MUST)
33. Clothes pins/line/hangers (A MUST)
34. Coleman's Pump Repair Kit
35. Tuna Fish (in oil)
36. Fire Extinguishers (or..large box of Baking Soda in every room)
37. First aid kits
38. Batteries (all sizes...buy furthest-out for Expiration Dates)
39. Garlic, spices & vinegar, baking supplies
40. Big Dogs (and plenty of dog food)
41. Flour, yeast & salt
42. Matches. {"Strike Anywhere" preferred.) Boxed, wooden matches will go first
43. Writing paper/pads/pencils, solar calculators
44. Insulated ice chests (good for keeping items from freezing in Wintertime.)
45. Workboots, belts, Levis & durable shirts
46. Flashlights/LIGHTSTICKS & torches, "No. 76 Dietz" Lanterns
47. Journals, Diaries & Scrapbooks (jot down ideas, feelings, experience; Historic Times)
48. Garbage cans Plastic (great for storage, water, transporting - if with wheels)
49. Men's Hygiene: Shampoo, Toothbrush/paste, Mouthwash/floss, nail clippers, etc
50. Cast iron cookware (sturdy, efficient)
51. Fishing supplies/tools
52. Mosquito coils/repellent, sprays/creams
53. Duct Tape
54. Tarps/stakes/twine/nails/rope/spikes
55. Candles
56. Laundry Detergent (liquid)
57. Backpacks, Duffel Bags
58. Garden tools & supplies
59. Scissors, fabrics & sewing supplies
60. Canned Fruits, Veggies, Soups, stews, etc.
61. Bleach (plain, NOT scented: 4 to 6% sodium hypochlorite)
62. Canning supplies, (Jars/lids/wax)
63. Knives & Sharpening tools: files, stones, steel
64. Bicycles...Tires/tubes/pumps/chains, etc
65. Sleeping Bags & blankets/pillows/mats
66. Carbon Monoxide Alarm (battery powered)
67. Board Games, Cards, Dice
68. d-con Rat poison, MOUSE PRUFE II, Roach Killer
69. Mousetraps, Ant traps & cockroach magnets
70. Paper plates/cups/utensils (stock up, folks)
71. Baby wipes, oils, waterless & Antibacterial soap (saves a lot of water)
72. Rain gear, rubberized boots, etc.
73. Shaving supplies (razors & creams, talc, after shave)
74. Hand pumps & siphons (for water and for fuels)
75. Soysauce, vinegar, bullions/gravy/soupbase
76. Reading glasses
77. Chocolate/Cocoa/Tang/Punch (water enhancers)
78. "Survival-in-a-Can"
79. Woolen clothing, scarves/ear-muffs/mittens
80. Boy Scout Handbook, / also Leaders Catalog
81. Roll-on Window Insulation Kit (MANCO)
82. Graham crackers, saltines, pretzels, Trail mix/Jerky
83. Popcorn, Peanut Butter, Nuts
84. Socks, Underwear, T-shirts, etc. (extras)
85. Lumber (all types)
86. Wagons & carts (for transport to and from)
87. Cots & Inflatable mattress's
88. Gloves: Work/warming/gardening, etc.
89. Lantern Hangers
90. Screen Patches, glue, nails, screws,, nuts & bolts
91. Teas
92. Coffee
93. Cigarettes
94. Wine/Liquors (for bribes, medicinal, etc,)
95. Paraffin wax
96. Glue, nails, nuts, bolts, screws, etc.
97. Chewing gum/candies
98. Atomizers (for cooling/bathing)
99. Hats & cotton neckerchiefs
100. Goats/chickens
From a Sarajevo War Survivor:
Experiencing horrible things that can happen in a war - death of parents and
friends, hunger and malnutrition, endless freezing cold, fear, sniper attacks.
1. Stockpiling helps. but you never no how long trouble will last, so locate
near renewable food sources.
2. Living near a well with a manual pump is like being in Eden.
3. After awhile, even gold can lose its luster. But there is no luxury in war
quite like toilet paper. Its surplus value is greater than gold's.
4. If you had to go without one utility, lose electricity - it's the easiest to
do without (unless you're in a very nice climate with no need for heat.)
5. Canned foods are awesome, especially if their contents are tasty without
heating. One of the best things to stockpile is canned gravy - it makes a lot of
the dry unappetizing things you find to eat in war somewhat edible. Only needs
enough heat to "warm", not to cook. It's cheap too, especially if you buy it in
bulk.
6. Bring some books - escapist ones like romance or mysteries become more
valuable as the war continues. Sure, it's great to have a lot of survival
guides, but you'll figure most of that out on your own anyway - trust me, you'll
have a lot of time on your hands.
7. The feeling that you're human can fade pretty fast. I can't tell you how many
people I knew who would have traded a much needed meal for just a little bit of
toothpaste, rouge, soap or cologne. Not much point in fighting if you have to
lose your humanity. These things are morale-builders like nothing else.
8. Slow burning candles and matches, matches, matches
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