The Dukes of Hazzard (Photo credit: Wikipedia)Mathematical Impressions: Making Music With a Möbius Strip
*What fascinates me about this article and video is the relationship of
music and chords to the mobius strip (an abstraction of the surface of a
torus) and music notes to the torus. I'm not the hottest in math (I have to
work at - perhaps because I had so few good teachers in it) but it reminds
of the relationship in Calculus of the derivative to the integral. I've had
many discussion with GW Hardin about relationship of tones to the Rodin
coil, Solfeggio frequencies and the apparent musical nature of the
structure of the universe. This seems to also support that insight as the... more »
Eco-Friendly Tips For Autumn
Have you noticed the slight chill to the air lately? Autumn is upon us. The
days are getting shorter, leaves are beginning to fall and summer produce
has all but ended.
[image: Autumn leaves]
Before settling in for the season, let's look around our homes and ensure
that everything is ready for the colder months ahead.
Here are this year's Eco-friendly tips for Autumn:
Inside Our Homes
- Clean and test the furnace. Did you know that your furnace needs
cleaning? Yep ... it collects all kinds of dust and debris which not only
affects it's performance but could cause a ... more »
Frank Wolf (R-VA)-- Nothing Like John Quincy Adams
Most Congress observers aren't aware that Virginia Rep. Frank Wolf is a
raving lunatic and one of the worst religionist fanatics on Capitol Hill.
Most people just think of him as a run-of-the-mill conservative-- for
better or worse-- who was elected back when the most popular shows on TV
were *The Dukes of Hazzard*, *Mork & Mindy* and *Hill Street Blues*. But he
has also served as Dobson's cat's paw in Congress and helped him pester
other Members of Congress to join his cult. A virulent misogynist and
homophobic maniac, Wolf is the co-chair of the House Human Rights Caucus.
He has... more »
It's only a harvest moon
Real life took up my whole day again. On the bright side I was so lucky to
be in the exact right spot to see the harvest moon rise over the horizon
tonight. It was so huge and so beautiful, I almost wept. So this is the
night for Neil Young's Harvest Moon.
And of course, the whole Harvest Moon album.
"A Look to the Heavens"
“What's lighting up the Cigar Galaxy? M82, as this irregular galaxy is
also known, was stirred up by a recent pass near large spiral galaxy M81.
This doesn't fully explain the source of the red-glowing outwardly
expanding gas, however. Recent evidence indicates that this gas is being
driven out by the combined emerging particle winds of many stars, together
creating a galactic superwind.
*Click image for larger size.*
The above photographic mosaic highlights a specific color of red light
strongly emitted by ionized hydrogen gas, showing detailed filaments of
this gas. The fil... more »
Chet Raymo, "What Has Been So Long Composed"
* *
*"What Has Been So Long Composed" *
by Chet Raymo
"We have a sea horizon to the east. The sun comes up like a blaze of
molten gold, a river of gold that flows across the sea to the surf at my
feet. First a sliver, then a blister, then a bubble floating free. We
arrived on this tropic isle in mid-December when the sun was at its
southernmost extremity. Day by day it has been creeping northward, each
sunrise edging, it seems, our way. The planet leans into its curve, tilting
its northern hemisphere toward its star, grazing on the solar warmth. On
Sunday, March 20, the sun wi... more »
America's Main Middle East Client Regimes, Turkey And Saudi Arabia, Are Using Al-Qaeda To Suppress Kurdish Rights In Syria
America is not interested in Syria because it wants to defend the rights of
minorities, remove chemical weapons from the battlefield, and help
transition the country to a democracy. These are not its objectives, as
President Obama has falsely claimed them to be in his speeches and
statements.
Obama is a liar. His administration's covert support for Al-Qaeda has
caused the deaths of tens of thousands in Syria. His administration is
backing Jihadist terrorism in Syria not just to topple Assad's regime, but
to suppress Kurdish rights as well as the rights of religious minorities
such ... more »
FRIDAY MORNING RAMBLE: The “many a slip twixt cup and lip” edition
*"It is never wrong to be on the side of freedom - never."*
-- Victor Davis Hanson
It’s the politician versus the economist versus the philosopher. Greens’s
Russel Norman denies taxation is a burden—reckons it is “the price we pay
for civilisation.” Economist Eric Crampton reckons “burden” has a specific
economic meaning. Philosopher Tibor Machan reckons taxation should simply
be recognised as what it is--a most uncivilized way of obtaining funds,
given that it boils down to nothing less than extortion.”
*Russel Norman thinks tax is not a burden!* – KIWIBLOG
*Ladies and Gentlemen... more »
What if Iran Did Get the Bomb?
Casual observation suggests that the two most common answers to the
question above are: 1) there’s a very good chance that they’d start a
nuclear war with Israel; and 2) there’s no real reason to think any other
state would be impacted in any significant way. I find both unpersuasive
for reasons I’ll discuss below.
Continue reading
Blogger post editor - HTML and COMPOSE modes
Whenever you click the pencil icon or the NEW POST button, you will open
the post editor which can be either in the HTML mode or the Compose mode
(WYSIWYG or What You See Is What You Get mode) selectable by clicking the
relevant tabs [image: Blogger Compose and HTML tabs] at the top left of the
post editor.
The number of tool icons available in the tool bar of the 2 different modes
are different, less in the case of HTML mode and more with the COMPOSE mode:
[image: Blogger HTML mode toolbar]
Blogger post editor HTML mode toolbar
[image: Blogger Compose mode toolbar]
Blogger post edi... more »
"For the foreseeable future," says Dana Milbank, "gun control is dead," but as Adam Gopnik says, this is "no time to despair"
*"There are no more grounds for despair about gun control than there were
grounds for despair about the persistence of lynching in the face of the
fight against that horror. The truth is known, obvious and inarguable. It
cannot be said too clearly, and it cannot be said too often: guns make gun
violence happen, gun-control laws make it stop. Anyone who says that this
is 'dubious' or 'uncertain' or 'as yet undecided' or 'up for argument' is a
liar or a fool or -- well, the third possibility is that he is a true
'American exceptionalist'; that is, someone who believes that Americans ... more »
"Poor Vampire"
* "Poor Vampire"*
by Paulo Coelho
"What is a vampire? It is someone who at a certain moment in their
existence becomes immortal. In other words, after that moment their body
will no longer follow the normal course of nature; they will become forever
young, and they can live as long as they like without having to deal with
problems caused by growing old. The vampire’s only diet is a little blood
every day, and their only care with their skin is to avoid sunlight – but
after all, this is a very small price to pay to enjoy all the possibilities
of eternal life. Except for one thin... more »
Abdullah Senussi charged in Tripoli court; Saif still in Zintan ...... Libya Milita rule on full display ! Oil blockade seems to be lifting for now ...
Abdullah Senussi charged in Tripoli court; Saif still in Zintan
*By Ashraf Abdul-Wahab and Ahmed Elumami.*
[image: Abdullah Senussi being taken into court]
Abdullah Senussi being taken into court today
*Tripoli, 19 September 2013*:
Abdullah Senussi, Qaddafi’s intelligence chief and brother-in-law, made his
first appearance in court in Tripoli today to face charges of murder,
conspiracy to murder and human rights crimes during the revolution, along
with 36 other former regime defendants.
Saif Al-Islam Qaddafi, however, did not join Senussi in the court despite
an announcement yesterday ... more »
A Jewel at the Heart of Quantum Physics
Artist’s rendering of the amplituhedron, a newly discovered mathematical
object resembling a multifaceted jewel in higher dimensions. Encoded in its
volume are the most basic features of reality that can be calculated — the
probabilities of outcomes of particle interactions. Illustration by Andy
Gilmore
*
* *THEORETICAL PHYSICS*
*A Jewel at the Heart of Quantum Physics* By: Natalie Wolchover
September 17, 2013
Physicists have discovered a jewel-like geometric object that dramatically
simplifies calculations of particle interactions and challenges the notion
that space and time ar... more »
What Does Santorum Think Of The Pope Now?
I'm generally repulsed by religion but I'm a huge fan of Jesus Christ and
his message and I've got a very good feeling about this new Catholic Pope
Francis I and have since the day he was chosen to replace the Nazi Pope
someone seems to have made resign. I asked Ken, who's the resident expert
on all things Popish, is he wanted to do a post about the latest Francis
pronouncement but he punted it back to me. We can't let it go by unremarked
that the Pope told his followers that he's not a right-winger.
Pope Francis, in the first extensive interview of his six-month-old papacy,
sai... more »
Time to communicate . . .
CALL
YOUR MP or write or e-mail, or do all three. According to Mike Hudema
of Greenpeace Canada who has a post on TSS, aka TAR SANDS SOLUTIONS
NETWORK you should check out, then get hold of your worthy MP. “Tar
Sands spills – Over 1.5 million litres and still spilling!!” shows the
callous inertia of the Alberta government and the Stevie chimps,
especially as the Stevie chimps are doing
Satire: “Scalia Forms Search Committee for New Pope”
*“Scalia Forms Search Committee for New Pope”*
by Andy Borowitz
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)— “Saying he was “sorry it had to come to
this,” Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia said today that he was forming
an “independent search committee” to select a new Pope. The visibly upset
jurist appeared at a press conference with the sole other member of the
newly formed search committee, Justice Clarence Thomas.
Justice Scalia said he had “no other alternative” but to pick a new Pope
himself after reading what he called a “disturbing” interview with Pope
Francis today: “The Pope ... more »
Podcasting Killed the Lecturing Star
The first video ever played on MTV, back when MTV played music videos most
of the time, was the one-hit wonder “Video Killed the Radio Star” by The
Buggles. A lament about how new technology ended the career of a singer who
was well-adapted to the production standards and genre constraints of an
earlier era,
Continue reading
Dave's Dilemmas
"What the hell can the Tories do about UKIP?" asks Iain Martin in this
afternoon's *Telegraph*. What indeed? Their poll ratings have calmed down
since Farage-mania gripped the media back in May, but their consistent
score of between 10-12% has them ahead of the hapless LibDems. And,
unfortunately for the Tories, UKIP voters will not flock to their banner in
2015. Enough will stick with the purples to lay open very many marginal
seats. That is, unless, the Tories can pull a bunny out of the hat and win
over voters who are presently looking elsewhere.
I just don't think they can do i... more »
HEARING FROM ASSAD
Fox News interviews Assad in Syria. Former Rep. Dennis Kucinich and a
regular Fox News reporter do the interviewing.
Kucinich needs to look for another job - he is a lousy interviewer and
missed an opportunity to really provide the American people with a clearer
view of Assad and Syria. The regular Fox News reporter was even worse.
Assad saved the interview by telling the truth about US, British, French,
and Saudi intervention in the internal affairs of Syria by funding the
"rebels" who are largely Al-Quida terrorists.
There are many citizen critics in Syria and they should have... more »
The Daily "Near You?"
Melita, Malta. Thanks for stopping by.
"Always..."
“Focus on your priorities, but take things in stride. Make decisions, not
excuses. Live one moment at a time. Count your blessings, not your
troubles. Let the wrong things go. Look for lessons in unforeseen
obstacles. Ask for help. Give as much as you take. Make time for those who
matter. Laugh when you can. Cry when you need to. And always stay true to
your values.”
- Melchor Lim
“7 Totally Crazy Statements by Right-Wing Lunatics From This Week”
* *
*“7 Totally Crazy Statements by Right-Wing Lunatics From This Week”*
By Janet Allon
“*1. Ted Cruz: We need 100 more like Jesse Helms in the Senate.* Ted Cruz
gave a huge shout-out to North Carolina’s late unrepentant racist senator,
Jesse Helms. Granted, it was at the Heritage Foundation’s annual Helms
lecture, so he wasn’t the only person in the room who worshipped Helms. But
he did give a somewhat strange reason for being so fond of the bigot, and
wishing there were “100 more” like him in the U.S. Senate.
Apparently the actor John Wayne had praised Helms for being willing t... more »
TMoE Excerpt
Posted some days ago @thechalkface:
Part of the story we tell in *TMoE* focuses on how value-added modeling
(VAM) grew up out of the backwoods of Tennessee to become an essential
component of the national Common Core testing delivery engine that now
appears to be running on fumes way short of its destination.
Had anyone at the Gates Foundation or ED cared enough about how VAM has
affected learning in Tennessee over the past 20 years to do some of the
basic research that we did, they would have found little to recommend the
scaling up of VAM to its current level. Sadly, other prio... more »
Gaia Pummels Arctic Alarmists | Real Science
'Arctic ice area the highest since 2006, and average ice area for the year
to date is higher than 2006.'
More here
http://stevengoddard.wordpress.com/2013/09/19/gaia-pummels-arctic-alarmists/
I expect the BBC news website will be covering this news any moment....
Pub Quiz time
Which four European countries are not in the EU but use the Euro as their
currency?
Answer and rather good explanatory video tomorrow at noon...
Property Rights 6: IPRI 2013 Report
The International Property Rights Index (IPRI) 2013 Report was released
last week. Our think tank here in Manila, Minimal Government Thinkers, Inc. is
the Philippine partner of the Property Rights Alliance (PRA, USA) in
producing the annual IPRI.
There are many annual studies and reports measuring economic freedom,
economic competitiveness and related concepts of countries, and ranking
them. IPRI incorporates many of those factors and indicators, but it is
focused on studying property rights and their protection worldwide.
IPRI is composed of three main indicators, which themselves... more »
For no raisin
99.97% of all the energy on Earth comes from solar radiation. This
photosynthesis. It is the only process in nature that can fix sunlight into
a useful form. Photosynthesis evolved once. That's it. All plants fix
sunlight in exactly the same way as their common ancestor.
"A Life That Matters..."
“Always choose to heal, not to hurt, to forgive not to despise, to
persevere not to quit, to smile not to frown, and to love not to hate! At
the end of life, what really matters is not what we bought, but what we
built, not what we got, but what we shared, not our competence but our
character, and not our success but our significance. Live a life that
matters. Live a life that cares...”
- Ritu Ghatourey
What's the difference between the United Kingdom, Great Britain, England and the British Isles?
C.G.P. Grey explains and such as @Rulesthewaves would do well to watch and
learn.
I know I've posted this video before but it's damned interesting!
Some Republicans Are So Anti-Hispanic, They Even Want To Sabotage The Organization Of American States!
Some Republicans just want to say NO to everything... even when there's no
reason to. Many of them are dangerous anti-government nihilists. Several
have unresolved struggles with heavy drugs like Paul Broun (GA) and
domestic terrorism suspect Steve Stockman (TX).
Tuesday the House, just back from a long summer vacation, took up Bob
Menendez's bill-- which was cosponsored by Bob Corker (R-TN), Marco Rubio
(R-FL) and Tom Udall (D-NM) and passed the Senate without controversy and
without even obstructionists like Cruz, Lee, Sessions and the nuts in that
chamber objecting-- to tidy up... more »
"How It Really Is"
“How many times do you have to get hit over the
head before you figure out who's hitting you?”
- Harry S. Truman
“Danger! Exploding Wealth Gap!”
* *
*“Danger! Exploding Wealth Gap!”*
by Egon von Greyerz
“How can the Fed taper when the real U.S. economy is in a terrible state?
Add to that the massive problems in the eurozone. And Japan, the world’s
third-largest economy, is a guaranteed basket case.
In the U.S., the job participation rate is the lowest since the 1970s, real
unemployment (calculated on a consistent basis) is *23%*, workers’ real
wages have not gone up for decades, 50 million people are on food stamps,
government deficit runs at $1 trillion per year and government debt
including unfunded liabilities is $220 ... more »
Evidence of extrinsic misconduct
R. v. Samuels, 2013 ONCA 551:
[42] Evidence may be admissible for one purpose but inadmissible for
another. Where the evidence relates to conduct that is extrinsic to the
charges before the court, it may be irrelevant and inadmissible if used for
one purpose, but relevant and admissible if used for another. The trial
judge is required, as he did here, to weigh and balance the evidence to
determine if the prejudicial effect related to the forbidden purpose
outweighs its probative value for the proper purpose*.*
[43] The courts have observed in cases such as *R. v. D. (L... more »
The Birthing
You are ready for this. We are partners in this next dance, with all
sorts of accompanying music! Let’s listen to some of it…
A conversation with “Cosmic Awareness” as interpreted by Will Berlinghof,
from Rainbow-Phoenix.
Click here.
A conversation between Inelia Benz, Lucia Rene and Victoria More,
co-founders of A.W.A.K.E.N. Academy.
Click here.
And finally, a song:
“Happy” is oozing through the air today. This is new, and not because of
any external event in this 3D life being lived, quite the contrary. There
are people whom I love... more »
Pope Franky Spanks the Vatican
Pope Francis continues to rock the Vatican.
*Pope Francis, in the first extensive interview of his six-month-old
papacy, said that the Roman Catholic Church had grown “obsessed” with
preaching about abortion, gay marriage and contraception, and that he has
chosen not to speak of those issues despite recriminations from some
critics. *
*In remarkably blunt language, Francis sought to set a new tone for the
church, saying it should be a “home for all” and not a “small chapel”
focused on doctrine, orthodoxy and a limited agenda of moral teachings. *
*“It is not necessary to talk ab... more »
How Fantasy Becomes Fact
The flooding in Colorado has wreaked tremendous devastation, by one
estimate the costs will total about $2 billion. Some people remain
unaccounted for and it will be many months if not longer before the Front
Range recovers. If you'd like to contribute to the recovery, please see this
page with resources.
As is often the case in the aftermath of extreme events and disasters,
people look for some way to put them into a bigger perspective. With
respect to floods, a common way of establishing this perspective is through
the N-year flood, which is defined as a flood with 1/N probabili... more »
If Syria has a dictatorship, then what is your government, really?
Recall the helicopter shot down? I mentioned this incident the other day.
Here.
"The helicopter strayed 2 kilometers into Turkish airspace, but crashed
inside Syria after being hit by missiles fired from the jet"
So, the Syrian helicopter had turned back into Syrian territory and the
Turks shot it down with a fighter jet.
* "rebel fighters captured one of the pilots, while the fate of the
other one was unclear"*
NATO fighters captured the one living pilot and given the track record of
the NATO mercs, I expect this guy will wish he died in the crash.
After my brief tirade we a... more »
Talk Like A Pirate
Arr, it be International Talk Like A Pirate Day. So talk like a pirate, ya
scurvy dog!
Those Obamacare Rape Ads Are a Scam on Conservatives, and That's Not the Worst Part
I suppose I have to talk about the creepy anti-Obamacare ads that everyone,
or at least all the liberal bloggers, are talking about today.
Look, folks: this is a very obvious scam.
This is not about stopping the ACA.
This is about money.
Oh, for the donors, it's presumably about stopping Obamacare.
But for the people putting together the ads, unless they are incredibly
stupid and naive, it's almost certainly about raising money from those
donors. And, perhaps, making a name for themselves (or a bigger name -- I'm
not looking to see who is responsible) within the conservative moveme... more »
Kurdish Sunni Muslim Women: FSA and Al Nusra mercenaries are not Muslims!
America, Israel, Turkey, Qatar, France, England, and Saudi Arabia unleashed
the plague Al-Qaeda on Syria and on the different religious groups and
ethnicities inside that country. The blood of Kurds is on their hands. They
let loose these heartless monsters and racist cannibals who chop up humans
like cow meat.
These criminal states and countries will ultimately pay the price for these
crimes, in one form or another, whether physically or spiritually,
economically or strategically, whether in the arena of global public
opinion or on the battlefields of the Middle East, whether tomor... more »
John Cusack Wants To Know (We ALL Do)
You just gotta love this guy's integrity and determination to speak out on
issues important to us all. (As most celebrities are happy to just nitpick
a little and then slide back into the money (h/t to Fitzgerald).) I know I
do. I think I feel a crowd growing. At least I hope so. (Emphasis marks
have been added - Ed.) Will Eric Holder Guarantee NSA Reporters' First
Amendment Rights? By
Are We Medicating Ourselves to Death?
A report from the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) wades into the tens
of thousands of lives claimed in America each year from overuse of
antibiotics.
*Each year in the United States, at least 2 million people become infected
with bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics and at least 23,000 people
die each year as a direct result of these infections. Many more people die
from other conditions that were complicated by an antibiotic-resistant
infection. *
* *
*Antibiotic-resistant infections can happen anywhere. Data show that most
happen in the general community; however, mo... more »
Talk Like A Pirate Day Cupcakes
We are over the top in this house. We eat a completely green meal on St.
Patrick's Day and heart attack our own house on Valentine's Day. My mom
always had fun things for us to do on each holiday, but I get my over the
top-ness from my older sister. My sister is a party planner, cake maker
extraordinaire. She makes and sells cakes in South Carolina, and she is
pretty much amazing. I'm not just saying that either, check out her
Facebook page, Creative Cakes by Jana for proof.
One of the things I have learned from my sister is that any reason can be a
reason to celebrate. Today is I... more »
Democrats Still Love Obama-- When He Sticks To His Knitting
When Obama sticks to Democratic Party values and grassroots principles, he
engenders tremendous affection and support from the huge coalition that
elected him twice. When he strays off into corporate Republican territory--
whether in regard to Austerity (like Chained CPI), atrocious anti-worker
trade policies, or bombing Syria-- his support drops. That simple. But his
fiercest opponents within the Democratic Party-- whether Raul Grijalva on
Chained CPI or Alan Grayson on blowing shit up in small nasty countries--
are also his fiercest supporters when he's doing what the American pe... more »
On the road ...
I'm in transit today. Doing a lot of errands that have no money attached.
Hope it's not as stressful as this:
Happy trails to me.
Untitled
*Brees Hits Out at Goldson for Going After Saints ~Steven Babcock, NOLA
DEFENDER*
*House Money ~moosedenied*
~Well, shit. So much for Sean Payton's Revenge Tour.
The Saints are off to a second consecutive 0-2 start and it sure doesn't
look like these guys have it in 'em to climb out of the early hole they've
dug for themselves. Just our luck, right? The defensive retooling has so
far exceeded even our most wildly optimistic expectations, but right on
cue, our formerly historically-great offense has suddenly turned to
complete dogshit. Because, of course. Drew Brees and Sean Payton ... more »
What Is Policy Relevance, and (How) Should We Reward International Relations Scholars for It?
The subfield of international relations seems to suffer from an inferiority
complex. While most subfields of political science do their research and
trust that the results are relevant to policy for a good reason, many an
international relations scholar complains that the subfield is not relevant
enough. The latest example is Campbell and Desch, who
Continue reading
Ottawa: Doubledecker bus and train collision
*TRANSIT ACCIDENT: An official photographed the scene of an accident
involving a bus and a train in Ottawa Wednesday. Six people died and at
least 11 others were critically injured after a VIA Rail passenger train
and an Ottawa city transit bus collided, local authorities said. (Chris
Wattie/Reuters)*
There are allegations that the driver of the bus was careless. Very sad. It
made international news. Media tends to pick up the tragic stories like
these quite fast. It was reported on CNN and NBC.
Tony Abbott's Australia Will Have Nothing to Do With Climate Commission
Australia has just come through its hottest twelve months on record in time
to sweep into power Tony Abbott's wonky coalition government. And, true
to form, Tony's been busy doing a little sweeping of his own. After
manfully wrestling with the issue of how he would find space for a woman in
his 19-man cabinet, he decisively moved on to scrap Australia's independent
Climate Commission.
*The commission, which was established in 2011, has compiled 27 reports on
various aspects of climate change. Its most recent major report, The
Critical Decade, warned that the world must "virtua... more »
Whenever I See the Gathering Clouds of Nihilism, It's Strangelove For Me.
At times it can seem that, as a species, we're backsliding. Egalitarianism
seems to be in rout. The drive for equality has stalled and is quietly
reversing. We now focus on the short term, the relatively trivial stuff
and pursue means and goals that are outdated, even discredited, while we
give a pass to the long term issues and challenges that confront us. Why
does it feel like we're getting back to this mentality?
Government Shutdown: “Dumb And Dumber”
* “Dumb And Dumber”*
By CAP Action War Room
“The federal government is hurtling toward two critical deadlines where a
failure to act will be extraordinarily damaging to the US economy. But
Republicans think it’s okay to play political games even if it means
sabotaging our economy.
*Deadline 1:* To avoid government shutdown, Congress needs to pass a
spending bill to fund the federal government by September 30. Republicans
have been engaged in a civil war for weeks over how best to use this
deadline to manufacture a crisis. Those on the far right, led by Senators
Marco Rubio and ... more »
No right to serve foreign prison sentence in Canada
Divito *v.* Canada (Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness),* *2013 SCC
47:
*Date:* 20130919
*Docket:* 34128
[45] The ability of prisoners to serve their
sentence in Canada is therefore a creation of legislation. Independent of
the*ITOA*, there is no right to serve a foreign prison sentence in Canada.
In my view, although the *ITOA *contemplates a mechanism by which a citizen
may return to Canada in the limited context of continuing incarceration for
the purpose of serving their foreign sentence, s. 6(1) does not confer a
right on Canadian citizens t... more »
Nepal: Colourful religious rituals
*GIRLS’ WORSHIP: Nepalese girls wore traditional attire as they waited for
a worship ceremony for girls meant to offer protection from evil and good
luck in the future in Katmandu, Nepal, Tuesday. (Narendra Shrestha/European
Pressphoto Agency*
Achievement Gap? Nope, parts 1 and 2
The term “achievement gap” is misleading and thus one of the problems with
the education reform debate.
Please see the following posts addressing why:
Achievement Gap Misnomer for Equity Gap, pt. 1
Achievement Gap Misnomer for Equity Gap, pt. 2
New Report on Race to the Top Finds Many Wrecks in the Ditch or Over the Cliff
EPI and The Broader, Bolder Approach have an important important report on
how things are going with Race to the Top (RTTT), or as it may be more
aptly known, HUAP (Hurry Up and Privatize). In examining what the states
have done to get some of Arne's 3.4 billion bucks, the authors find
confusion, conflict, corruptionism, confoundedness, and cautious dread
(that's as optimistic as it gets in RTTT land these days).
In looking at the how bonus bribe points for RTTT grant applicants were
stated, I have responded (after each below) to what this has meant in the
RTTT golden state of Tenn... more »
‘My ELF Weapon’: More Proof Navy Yard Shooter Targeted with Mind Control Weapons
[image: Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...]
*Discussion that would have instantly caused anyone involved to be labeled
a ‘crazy conspiracy theorist’ even a few weeks ago has now made its way
into the mainstream media.*
Melissa Melton
Following reports that suspected Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis had called
police just weeks before the mass shooting in D.C. to claim he was the
victim of gang stalking and a target of microwave energy weapons that left
him hearing voices and unable to sleep, now reports are surfacing that the
military contractor had carved “My ELF Weapo... more »
“A Letter to Nancy Pelosi”
* *
*“A Letter to Nancy Pelosi”*
by Bill Bonner
“As expected, Ben Bernanke is not going to taper in the final months of his
term. Too risky. Instead, *laissez les bons temps roulez...!* The Dow
jumped 144 points yesterday. And look at gold. It soared $56 an ounce
yesterday.
The newspapers are full of retrospectives on the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy
and what it meant. We have an observation of our own: Five years after the
financial crisis hit the headlines it’s amazing how so much fantasy,
delusion and conceit have built up around the event.
According to Nancy Pelosi – then Spea... more »
Business 360 11: Avoiding Middle Income Trap
* This article was published twice. First in Business 360 magazine in
Kathmandu, Nepal, September 2013 issue; then in the Economic Freedom
Network (EFN) Asia website today.
-------------
Many Asian economies are now among the “engine of growth” for some
countries within and outside the continent due to their huge contribution
to international trade as big exporters/producers and big
importers/consumers, as well as big recipients of foreign remittances.
Such opportunity has allowed many Asian economies to move from low income
to middle-income levels, and for the lucky and more techn... more »
New Baghdad Administration Finds Millions Stolen In Corrupt Construction Deals
In 2013, most of Iraq’s provinces received new governments following
elections. One of the first things many of the new administrations did was
announce that the previous governorate councils walked away with millions
of dollars in corrupt development deals. Over 200 of such cases were just
discovered in Baghdad. The new governor blamed the theft for the lack of
services in the province. The problem is the new officials are likely to be
just as crooked as the old ones as stealing government funds is considered
a privilege of holding office in Iraq.
In September, new Baghdad Gove... more »
Alison Stewart's Great History of D.C.'s Dunbar High School
Alison Stewart's *First Class *brings us full circle. Actually, Stewart
guides us through a variety of recurring social, moral, and educational
cycles that undoubtedly will continue to repeat themselves in one way or
another. Her history of the rise and fall of Washington D.C.'s elite Dunbar
High School tells a story that cannot be ignored if we really believe that
education can be the civil rights movement of the 21st century.
Stewart begins with her mother, Carol Stewart, as she watches the
inauguration of President Barack Obama. Carol, a retired biology teacher,
marvels, "What a ... more »
Untitled
EPI and The Broader, Bolder Approach have an important important report on
how things are going with Race to the Top (RTTT), or as it may be more
aptly known, HUAP (Hurry Up and Privatize). In examining what the states
have done to get some of Arne's 3.4 billion bucks, the authors find
confusion, conflict, corruptionism, confoundedness, and cautious dread
(that's as optimistic as it gets in RTTT land these days).
In looking at the how bonus bribe points for RTTT grant applicants were
stated, I have responded (after each below) to what this has meant in the
RTTT golden state of Tenn... more »
Coups, MI5 and the British Labour Movement
24 Hours - Yesterday's Men (16 June 1971) from Spike1138 on Vimeo.
Straight-dealing is one of the principles of BBC programme making, but it
has not always been followed. The BBC enraged Harold Wilson and his
outgoing government after they lost the 1970 General Election. They were
effectively tricked into taking part in a programme that would ridicule
them.
Had Wilson and his front-benchers known, for example, that the programme
would take as its title a soundbite from their own campaign against the
Conservatives (they called the Tories "yesterday's men"), they would not
have ag... more »
Untitled
*Canal Street ferry to be pedestrians-only starting Monday**~Jackson Avenue
Ferry Terminal to be auctioned off Thursday*
*Knight Foundation awards The Lens $50,000 to create "local government
contracts" database ~Steve Meyers*
*The Giant Big Oil Lawsuit That Bobby Jindal Wants to Make Disappear ~Tim
Murphy, Mother Jones*
*FEMA: Only Congress can keep flood insurance rates down ~Jordan Blum*
*Mid-Barataria project could be first of 10 in state aimed at reinforcing
eroding coast ~Amy Wold, Advocate*
*New fun at City Park! New Boats! New Bikes!*
6 Things Hawaii can Teach Us About Health and Happiness by Elizabeth Renter
6 Things Hawaii can Teach Us About Health and Happiness
by Elizabeth Renter
Natural Society, 18 September 2013
*Hawaiians are generally happier** than their landlocked countrymen, and
there are several reasons why.* At first blush, it’s tempting to say, “Who
wouldn’t be happier?—living in a place as beautiful as Hawaii, spending
time on the beach with an umbrella in your glass.” But, Hawaiians aren’t on
a permanent vacation. They work just like we do, pay bills, and deal with
life stressors. Through it all, however, they manage to stay happier and
even live longer. *So, what ca... more »
Mexico: Severe weather is an international phenomanon in 2013
Floods in Mexico have established new records.
*"Zipline rescues from Mexico floods*
*Hundreds of local and foreign tourists have arrived in Mexico City, after
the country's military sent a plane to transport them out of the resort
city of Acapulco where they were stranded after some of the most damaging
storms in decades. ITV’s Lewis Vaughan Jones reports."*
A one-day mission of national import!
*THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2013*
*Plus, Salon interviews Ravitch:* If this is Thursday, we're off on a
mission of national import involving the professional development of a
superlative group of managers within several departments in the federal
government.
We'll return to our sprawling campus tomorrow. For those who are interested
in public school issues, we'll recommend Salon's interview with Diane
Ravitch, which we will review in detail at some point.
Can we talk? When we read interviews with Ravitch, we sometimes get the
feeling that she doesn't know a gigantic amount about the i... more »
Judges presumed to know and apply the law
*R. v. Burns *(l994) 89 C.C.C. (3d) l93 at l99 to 200, states the following:
Failure to indicate expressly that all relevant considerations have been
taken into account in arriving at a verdict is not a basis for allowing an
appeal under s. 686(l)(a). This accords with the general rule that a trial
judge does not err merely because he or she does not give reasons for
deciding one way or the other on problematic points ... The judge is not
required to demonstrate that he or she knows the law and has considered all
aspects of the evidence. Nor is the judge required to explain why h... more »
We Are Beings Of Light - A Poem by M.N. Hopkins
**
*We are beings of Light*
**
*Surrounded by images of darkness*
**
*Darkness directed*
**
*By those of dark determination*
**
*Who are weak of mind*
**
*And will*
**
*Separated from Spirit*
**
*Easily influenced*
**
*And *
**
*Corrupted*
**
*Dimming their vision*
**
*As they dim ours*
**
*Distracting our thoughts*
**
*Our emotions*
**
*Away from*
**
*Self-reliance*
**
*Self-determination*
**
*Self-direction*
**
*Self control*
**
*Until the day of illumination*
**
*When Light is unleached*
**
*Projected outward again*
**
*Pushing the darkness further away*
**
*Then*
**
*Once again*
**
*W... more »
If John Boehner Really Had Chutzpah...
...what he'd do today is convince over 100 Members of his conference who
have been griping about Ted Cruz and the Crazy Caucus to stand with him
while he makes the following statement:
--
Over the last several months, I was convinced by enthusiastic Tea Party
conservatives that their defund Obamacare idea really had a chance to work.
I admit I was against it at first. But they convinced me that I was trapped
in politics-as-usual Washington thinking, and that what we had here was a
one-time opportunity to turn the tables on Barack Obama and the Democrat
Party. They were right. A Hou... more »
FORGET LIMBAUGH! Work to Restore The Fairness Doctrine/Communications Act of 1934
*By Len Hart, The Existentialist Cowboy*
FORGET LIMBAUGH Limbaugh is just a symptom. He's the ugly pimple that
refuses 'off-the-shelf' remedies. It's time to drain the boil, pop the
pimple. The REMEDY --the only remedy that will work and had worked until
the election of Ronald Reagan. That is ---RESTORE THE FAIRNESS DOCTRINE.
The Fairness Dcotrine dates to the Communications Act of 1934. The 'Act'
limited the concentration of media into very few hands. Radio and TV
station owners were required to provide equal time to opposing views.
Individual broadcasters who operated electronic ... more »
Achievement Gap? Nope, parts 1 and 2
The term “achievement gap” is misleading and thus one of the problems with
the education reform debate. Please see the following posts addressing why:
Achievement Gap Misnomer for Equity Gap, pt. 1 Achievement Gap Misnomer for
Equity Gap, pt. 2 Tagged: achievement gap
Alison Stewart's History of Dunbar H.S. Is a Must Read
Alison Stewart's *First Class *brings us full circle. Actually, Stewart
guides us through a variety of recurring social, moral, and educational
cycles that undoubtedly will continue to repeat themselves in one way or
another. Her history of the rise and fall of Washington D.C.'s elite Dunbar
High School tells a story that cannot be ignored if we really believe that
education can be the civil rights movement of the 21st century. Stewart
begins with her mother, Carol Stewart, as she watches the inauguration of
President Barack Obama. Carol, a retired biology teacher, marvels, "What a
... more »
Did Kerry And His Clique Plot An End Run Around Obama On Syria?
Susan Rice is as much a hawk and a creature of the Military-Industrial
Complex as John Kerry ever was. But McCain and Lindsey Graham, America's
two most preeminent warmongers, sandbagged and sabotaged Rice and demanded
that Obama appoint Kerry Secretary of State. Policy-wise there is no
difference between Rice and Kerry and today she serves as National Security
Advisor and he serves, thanks to McCain and Graham, as Secretary of State.
The difference is that her loyalty is unquestionably to Obama. Kerry
doesn't give a crap about Obama.
In fact, impeccable Beltway sources have told ... more »
Latest Mass Shooting in the U.S.
*Eric Draitser of StopImperialism.com appears on RT hours after the latest
mass shooting in the US. Draitser provides perspective on the incident,
discussing the nature of “private military contractors” and the connection
between US militarism and violence at home. He also examines the critical
role that private mercenaries play in US “black ops” and what that tells us
about the types of individuals who might work for them. Also, Draitser
reminds viewers of the uncertainty surrounding the early details in this
story and the need to maintain a critical perspective.*
Two busy links:
I am bogged down with a crapload of work that seems unlikely to clear for a
couple more days, so you should be reading...
Frozen Garlic: The Courts are Run by the KMT:
When the Taipei District Court handed down its ruling last Friday, Ma’s
lawyer made an interesting comment to the press. In his disappointment with
the news, he turned to the reporters and said something to the effect of,
“I hope no one ever says the courts are run by the KMT again.” This was a
reference to an infamous statement from about 20 years ago. Hsu Li-teh 徐立德,
who was then Vice-Premier, Hsu Shui-teh 許水德, wh... more »
Stephen Harper: Love affair with America
He should do the right thing and move to U.S. Maybe George W. will provide
him accommodation. And they both can have fun at Dubya's ranch.
After all he called Canada in 1997: *"Welfare state in the worst sense."
Stephen Harper *
Greece updates - September 19 , 2013 ... Aftermath of Pavlos Fyssas murder continues to roil Greece ... Will there be further austerity - depends on whether you listen to Troika representatives or PM Samaras .....Quarterly unemployment drops for the first time in four years - down to 27.1 percent....
*Samaras pleads for calm and unity in wake of Fyssas murder*
Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said on Thursday that his government would
not allow the “successors of the Nazis” to destabilize Greece in the wake
of the murder of antifascist rapper Pavlos Fyssas by a Golden Dawn member.
“Democracy is much stronger than its enemies realize,” said the New
Democracy leader in a brief televised statement.
Samaras pleaded with the public and his political colleagues not to allow
further violence.
“Violence is a downhill slide that destroys any chance of Greece achieving
what it deserves, in ot... more »
Back To Where We've Been
The Harper government has repeated the same mantra for seven years: We know
best how to manage the Canadian economy. But, Edward Greenspon writes, the
truth is opposed to the mantra:
With exceptions such as the drive to rebalance the budget, ours is a
government that dabbles in economic policy, often with little consistency,
coherence or conviction. Telecom is just a recent manifestation. Policy has
been predicated on a simple — and simplistic — proposition: introduce a
fourth player in the market and prices will plummet. The government has
been at it since greasing the wheels for... more »
Syria updates for September 19 , 2013 - US and France backs dow from Use of Force Provision in UN Resolution... Chemical Weapon Convention delayed - first of many ... Al Qaeda turns up heat on " moderate " rebels as in fighting continues ... US training of Al Qaeda rebels proposed , will join CIA in joining jihadists !
In Syria, It Is Now A Rebel-Eat-Rebel World
[image: Tyler Durden's picture]
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/19/2013 18:57 -0400
- Iraq
inShare3
Just when you thought the situation in Syria was stabilizing (despite
dueling op-eds), last week saw a new battle begin - dubbed "Expunging
Filth". In spite of the catchy name, as the WSJ reports, an al-Qaeda
spinoff (a jihadist group known as ISIS) is seizing territory across Syria
from the US-backed Free Syrian Army and the Government.
*"It's a three-front war,"* a U.S. official said of the FSA rebels' fight:
They face the Assad r... more »
Read Stuff, You Should
Happy Birthday to Kim Richards, 49. Not only was she Tia (and the kid who
played Tony really couldn't act at all), but was also a regular on "James
at 16", which is a huge big deal for many people my age...it was sort of a
1970s Degrassi, but less Canadian. And she was on "Hello, Larry."
Gut yontif to all those observing the holiday -- you really can't knock a
holiday that basically just celebrates happiness for a week, can you?
Meanwhile, some good stuff:
1. Sarah Binder on the politics of the Fed.
2. House Republicans have a "replace" plan for ACA, after all. Austin Frakt
and A... more »
Zionism in the Third Reich
From the front page of *The People*, 17th October 1943:
Following World War I, King Faisal's conquest of Damascus and the glorious
victory of the British Empire at Battle of Meggido (in the Valley of
Jezreel, NOT witnessed by a man named Bügenhäagen, the possessor of 12
ceremonial daggers - at least as far as I know), the Ottoman Province of
Palestine was partitioned amongst the Great Powers by League of Nations
mandate.
Britain retained control of Egypt, the Sinai and the lucrative Sinai Canal
Zone (built with Anglo-French Capital), the French obtained control of
Syria, th... more »
TPP IS LIQUDATION OF EVERYTHING WE'VE BUILT
In this parody of Star Wars, episode 4, a new hope- It is a period of class
war. The DIDACTIC EMPIRE, striking from a hidden base, have won a major
victory against the OPEN ALLIANCE with the passage of NAFTA (North American
Free Trade Agreement). During the battle to fast track the TPP
(Trans-Pacific Partnership), Luke Whistleblower managed to steal secret
plans to the Empire's ultimate weapon, the DEATH STAR, which has enough
power to make nations subservient to corporations. Pursued by Emperor
Pipeline and Dark Banker with their captive Barack Obama, Princess Laidoff
is able to ... more »
Alison Stewart's Great History of D.C.'s Dunbar High School
Alison Stewart’s *First Class *brings us full circle. Actually, Stewart
guides us through a variety of recurring social, moral, and educational
cycles that undoubtedly will continue to repeat themselves in one way or
another. Her history of the rise and fall of Washington D.C.’s elite Dunbar
High School tells a story that cannot be ignored if we really believe that
education can be the civil rights movement of the 21st century. Stewart
begins with her mother, Carol Stewart, as she watches the inauguration of
President Barack Obama. Carol, a retired biology teacher, marvels, “What a
... more »
HILARY CLINTON, COREY HAIM, SULTANA BEGUM, CHARLOTTE COLQUHOUN, PRINCE OSMAN, MICHAEL ROCKEFELLER
front.moveon.org
A family can be up one one minute and down the next.
*"Bill Clinton appearing on CBS's '60 Minutes' in January 1992 with Hillary
looking on as he denies any affair with Gennifer Flowers." *www.dailymail.
Gennifer said: ‘What Bill told me ... was that he was aware that Hillary
was bisexual and he didn’t care. He should know.
'He said Hillary had eaten more p***y than he had.’
*www.dailymail.*
Teen idol Corey Haim was ‘broke and destitute’ when he died at age 38 in
2010.
*Sultana Begum. **dailymail*.
Sultana Begum is a descendant of India's last emperor.
Sul... more »
Alison Stewart's First Class is a Must Read
Alison Stewart’s *First Class *brings us full circle. Actually, Stewart
guides us through a variety of recurring social, moral, and educational
cycles that undoubtedly will continue to repeat themselves in one way or
another. Her history of the rise and fall of Washington D.C.’s elite Dunbar
High School tells a story that cannot be ignored if we really believe that
education can be the civil rights movement of the 21st century. Stewart
begins with her mother, Carol Stewart, as she watches the inauguration of
President Barack Obama. Carol, a retired biology teacher, marvels, “What a
... more »
Untitled
*Regata al Sol: Epic Journey to the Sun ~Troy Gilbert, Yucatan Living*
Untitled
*Opportunity's cost ~Library Chronicles*
So Who Will Pay The eBook VAT on 1st January 2015?
We are all aware that the EU VAT rules will change at the beginning of 2015
and that this will effectively end the offshore tax loophole operations of
the ebook operators. This EU rule change will not impact the corporation
tax loophole and so we will not see a mass migration from those countries
who offer low corporation tax today, but it demonstrates that the EU as a
block has the ability when pushed to change the rules.
The EU official statement is available on their taxation and customs site.
http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/taxation/vat/traders/e-commerce/
What it mean is... more »
Barack Obama - orator, genius, athlete?
Including "the time for come has changed", "Israel is a strong friend of
Israel's", Barack Obama's teleprompter troubles and of course the extensive
'um ah' tapes.
Be honest have you seen many or even any of these gaffes on the BBC? A BBC
who delighted in ridiculing George W. Bush for less.
Aspartame – The GMO Excrement Polluting Your Body by Christina Sarich
Source of Poster: http://jenniferaccomando.com/tag/adhd-aspartame/
Aspartame – The GMO Excrement Polluting Your Body
by Christina Sarich
Natural Society, 19 September 2013
If you switched to diet soda hoping to avoid refined sugar, or any other
fizzy drink or aspartame-sweetened food, you are now guzzling down a
product created by one of the GM Giants – Monsanto. *Many scientists are
calling for further study of a genetically modified bacteria which is used
to create aspartame, but the evidence is already quite glaring, that the
stuff is no good.*
It has been a secret until ve... more »
Matt Strassler's debate with anti-string conspiracy theorists
Matt Strassler decided to waste some hours with a lengthy discussion with
activist crackpots (Dilaton did some work to improve the general decency of
the participants, thanks),
Did the LHC Just Rule Out String Theory?!
Apparently for the first time, Matt saw someone stating something like
“Results from the Large Hadron Collider [LHC] have blown string theory out
of the water” (such insane statements have been around for years, however!)
so he decided to elaborate on the basic explanations why such claims are
utterly preposterous.
The first weird and manifestly pathological feature ... more »
Beings Of Light - A Poem by M.N. Hopkins
**
**
*Your Light shines bright*
**
*From*
**
*A never ending Source*
**
*An infinite beacon*
**
*That lights ones way*
**
*Through the finite*
**
*With it's storms*
**
*It's turmoils*
**
*It's troubles*
**
*That never end*
**
*A Light that is*
**
*So bright*
**
*It illuminates*
**
*And*
**
*Enlightens ones heart*
**
*And mind*
**
*A never ending Source of*
**
*Warmth*
**
*Of visions*
**
*Of inspirations*
**
*That nourish*
**
*And *
**
*Enrich*
**
*We are Pilgrims*
**
*On our finite paths*
**
*Of*
**
*Suffering and Strife*
**
*Following a beacon*
**
*A beacon that lights*
**
*Our ways*
**
... more »
beautiful iPhone5 promotional video
I don't go to infowars very much these days, I got too addicted to the
shouting Jonesy, but I couldn't resist this morning and found this
ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUSLY SCRIPTED iPhone5nsa promotional video.
Enjoy the cynicism.
"It puts your brain in your hand." classic.
*AFTERNOON JOGGING UPDATE:* seven miles in one hour. A (kinda) new record,
for me, for that distance. Yay!
War has always been good for business!
"War has always been good for business! It's about selling weapons that
destabilise countries, that then enable the exploitation of that country's
Natural Resources." so says John McDonnell MP in this new interview with
Artist Taxi Driver, talking about the Corporate War Machine.
*OMEGA RED SUPER SOLDIER REFERENCE:* Nate Grey, Michael Prince, and James
Rink go at it with an interview on human mutants, cloned super soldiers,
cybernation, and more. And they're both dropping loads of Marvel comic book
character code names and M.O.s, enhancements. Very nice reference to Victor
Alie... more »
Marilyn Katz : A Different Path for Syria, and Hopefully for Chicago
Child
at funeral in Chicago. Image from The Old Black Church.
And for Chicago?
A different path for Syria
Will U.S. diplomacy in Syria carve a new path towards peace at home and
abroad?
By Marilyn Katz / The Rag Blog / September 19, 2013
CHICAGO -- The example of our leaders cannot help but guide the thinking
of our youth: Might makes right and those who are "wrong" -- who
disagree with our
Johnny Hazard : Tanks Versus Teachers in Mexico City
Striking
teachers at Zócalo plaza in Mexico City, Friday, September 13, 2013.
Photo by Eduardo Verdugo / AP.
Tanks vs. teachers:
Federal police drive striking teachers
from Mexico's Zócalo plaza
By Johnny Hazard / The Rag Blog / September 19, 2013
"In addition to promoting just causes and altering business as usual for
awhile (and hoping that such alterations will be permanent), marches,
Evidentiary sufficiency as opposed to absence of evidence is a question of fact
Jai Inder Singh Sandhu et al. v., 2013 MBCA 82 :
[5] While it is trite to say that a finding of fact made in
the absence of any supportive evidence is an error of law, I have not been
convinced that is what happened in this case. After considering the
material filed, including the supplemental motion briefs, and the
submissions of counsel, I have been persuaded, for the reasons which
follow, that the issue raised by the applicant relates to one of
evidentiary sufficiency as opposed to one of absence of evidence. The
issue raised is therefore not a question of law o... more »
Aangirfan - meet your next president - and other extreme-edge reporting
Who is Stanley Weiss and what's his new job gonna be?
Thus begins the latest report from extreme-edge blog Aangirfan.
*Stanley Weiss is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.*
*And he's a member of the American Ditchley Foundation, the International
Institute for Strategic Studies, and the Royal Institute in the UK.*
*Weiss tells us who is going to be the next president*. [source AANGIRFAN]
The whole site (if not some sick and complex joke on *You The People*)
needs to win a journalism award of some kind for keeping this kinda
atrocity foremost in its editorial remit.
Me, I ... more »
The sheer class that is Sarah Silverman
What a classy girl...
Tories Handed a Little RoboCall ComeUppance.
The Tories, being the pricks that they are, thought they'd teach the
petitioner/plaintiffs a lesson in the Robo-Call case. Not content on
skulking away with their small, tactical, "trench warfare" win after having
been found to have committed electoral fraud and voter suppression, they
decided to grind the applicants with a bill of costs for $355,907.
They got caught with their slimy hands in the cookie jar and without the
slightest shame immediately sought to break the petitioners on a hurdle.
Well it fell to another judge to tell the scumbag Tories where to put their
claims for... more »
“The Deepening Crisis At Fukushima”
* *
* “The Deepening Crisis At Fukushima”*
By ENENews
“*Harvey Wasserman*,* host:* We don’t even know where these cores are, do
we? That’s a really amazing situation.
*Gordon Edwards*, *nuclear expert and president of the Canadian Coalition
for Nuclear Responsibility:* That’s correct. What’s happening is, how far
these cores have penetrated through the floor of the reactor building, or
not, is really unknown because the radiation levels are so intense, that
not only can humans not go in there, but even robots that they sent in
there, the gamma radiation is so intense that it fri... more »
Thursday Morning Linkage
After last week’s diplomatic overtures on Syria, we’ve entered a period of
relative calm and back to our mixed bag of stories of interest. NPR is
running a fabulous series on Brazil in the lead up to the World Cup, which
is also timely since the Brazilian president cancelled her plans to visit
the United
Continue reading
Is there a way toward a solution in Syria that protects the Syrian people in a way consistent with legitimacy and morality?
*by Ken*
If indeed "diplomatic action combined with the threat of force moves the
Syrian regime toward putting its chemical weapons under international
control," Michael Ignatieff writes in a NYRB blogpost, "How to Save the
Syrians," "it will be a victory for international law, for the authority of
the UN Security Council, and for peace." What it won't be is salvation for
the Syrian people. "It is only too obvious," Ignatieff says, "that thus far
the peoples of the democratic states have failed in our responsibility to
protect the people of Syria."
This is hardly a failure to int... more »
A Good Political Leader Knows When To Step Down - Adrian Dix Leaving Leadership Of BC New Democrats ...
*B.C. NDP Leader Adrian Dix has announced his resignation as party
leader today in Vancouver, following the party's surprising defeat by the
Liberals in the May provincial election.*
* **Dix said he accepted responsibility for the election loss and felt it
was in the best interests of the party for a new leader to take over.*
* **“Since our defeat in the election on May 14, I have reflected both on
my future as leader of the B.C. NDP and on the future of our party.*
* *
- *B.C. NDP caucus meets as leadership questions mount*
- *NDP Leader Adrian Dix to reveal future plans next ... more »
Guest Post - Hybrid Cars–A Step Towards A Greener World
What is the future of the car industry? Whilst electric powered cars used
to be nothing more than a pipe-dream, as we watched vehicles like the ill
fated Sinclair C5 fail to capture the UK public's imagination, it now seems
like advances in battery technology are providing the public with the means
to use electrically powered engines in the same way in which they've used
petrol engines for decades. However, it seems like we're not quite ready
for an overall switch to electrically powered cars – as batteries appear to
limit the range of these vehicles to around 100 miles, making them ... more »
America, Turkey, And Saudi Arabia Are Waging War On Kurds In Syria Via Al-Qaeda
*America, Turkey, And Saudi Arabia: These nations are led by Evil
Scumbags and Shitty Souls. America, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia should get
together with their Al-Qaeda love buddies and form their own separate
United Nations called the United Terrorist League. *
*Understand this and take it to heart: the tyrants who speak for America,
Saudi Arabia, and Turkey will be defeated in Syria and the Middle East.
They have already lost their war against Syria and the Kurds because they
have no ideas or solutions to offer, only terror and chaos. They are arming
and sheltering Al-Qaeda t... more »
Jersey Jazzman Reviews “Reign of Error”
Jersey Jazzman Reviews “Reign of Error”. This review really gets to the
crux of the education deform paradox, its fundamental contradictions, and
what may well be the key chapter in Diane Ravitch’s new book: the
inseparable link between outlooks on education and outlooks on the larger
society in which it is embedded. And the […]
Rouhani, Like Countless Iranian Officials Before Him, Affirms: Iran Will Never Seek Nuclear Weapons
NBC's
Ann Curry interviews Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in Tehran,
September 18, 2013
(Photo Credit: David Lom / NBC News)
Speaking in Tehran to NBC's Ann Curry in his very first interview with
an American media outlet, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani again - and
repeatedly, considering Ms. Curry kept asking him the same question over
and over - asserted Iran's wholesale condemnation
UN Commission of Inquiry has more news for Gareth Morgan
The head of a UN Commission of Inquiry into the place Gareth Morgan
recently described as “just fantastic”—a place whose economic achievements
have been “magnificent”—calls North Korea a place harbouring “unspeakable
atrocities.” Retired Australian judge Michael Kirby, who has spent recent
months gathering evidence in South Korea and Japan from North Korean
defectors and other victims, says "testimony heard thus far points to
widespread and serious violations in all areas."
He said the evidence, both sobering and heart-rending, had "given a face
and voice to great human suffering... more »
Five years “stimulus” in one graph
Pic from Not_Jim_Cramer
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Musical Interlude: Yanni, "Magical Concluding Musical Performance"
Yanni, "Magical Concluding Musical Performance"
-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbBAlUnNKjM&html5=1
"A Look to the Heavens"
“Have you ever seen the Pleiades star cluster? Even if you have, you
probably have never seen it as dusty as this. Perhaps the most famous star
cluster on the sky, the bright stars of the Pleiades can be seen without
binoculars from even the depths of a light-polluted city. With a long
exposure from a dark location, though, the dust cloud surrounding the
Pleiades star cluster becomes very evident.
* Click image for larger size.*
The above exposure took about 20 minutes and covers a sky area several
times the size of the full moon. Also known as the Seven Sisters and M45,
the ... more »
Musical Interlude: Brulé, “Indian Summer Showcase 2012”
Brulé, “Indian Summer Showcase 2012”
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOYW4oOSIPQ&html5=1
"The End of Innocence"
* *
*"The End of Innocence" *
by John W. Whitehead
“Just as the post-war generation was gaining a sense of social
consciousness and angst, John F.
Kennedy arrived on the scene, in a time of social and political turmoil. In
his farewell address, Eisenhower startled his conservative supporters by
warning the nation against business lobbies greedy for government munitions
contracts and fat profits. Thus, even before Kennedy took the reigns of
power, an ominous cloud covered the American cultural landscape.
Kennedy, however, took the oath of office during anxious times.
Soviet-suppor... more »
Kahlil Gibran, "Pain"
"Your pain is the breaking of the shell
that encloses your understanding.
Even as the stone of the fruit must break, that its
heart may stand in the sun, so must you know pain.
And could you keep your heart in wonder
at the daily miracles of your life, your pain
would not seem less wondrous than your joy;
And you would accept the seasons of your
heart, even as you have always accepted
the seasons that pass over your fields.
And you would watch with serenity
through the winters of your grief.
Pain is the bitter potion by which the
physician within you heals your sick self.
Therefore tr... more »
"Natives"
"If you live on this land, and you have ancestors sleeping in this land,
I believe that makes you a native to this land.
It has nothing to do with the color of your skin.
I was not raised to look at people racially.
What I was taught is that we're flowers in the Great Spirit's garden.
We share a common root, and the root is Mother Earth."
- Oh Shinnah Fastwolf, Shishindi Nation (Apache)
“The Dream of a Ridiculous Man”
"For I have seen the truth; I have seen and I know that people can be
beautiful and happy without losing the power of living on earth. I will not
and cannot believe that evil is the normal condition of mankind. And it is
just this faith of mine that they laugh at. But how can I help believing
it? I have seen the truth- it is not as though I had invented it with my
mind, I have seen it, seen it, and the living image of it has filled my
soul for ever. I have seen it in such full perfection that I cannot believe
that it is impossible for people to have it. And so how can I go wrong?... more »
UHC 19: Health is a Right, Health is a Responsibility
Last week, September 10, 2013, I attended the “Health System Shapers
Roundtable Discussion” for NGOs and private research institutes, held at
the DOH. The Health Shapers forum is held for various sectors, like the
private hospitals, drugstores/pharmacies and pharmacists, patient groups,
drug manufacturers, and so on. The event is jointly sponsored by the
Universal Health Care (UHC) Study Group, the AIM Zuellig Center for Asian
Business Transformation (AIM-ZCABT) and the DOH.
Dr. Ivanhoe Escartin, Director of the National Center for Health Promotion,
DOH, gave the welcome remarks. D... more »
INTERVIEW / Jonah Raskin : Occupy's Nathan Schneider on Anarchy and Radical Catholicism
Nathan
Schneider, June 17, 2012. Photo from Occupy.
Interview with Occupy’s Nathan Schneider:
Anarchy, activism, and radical Catholicism
By Jonah Raskin / The Rag Blog / September 19, 2013
"It's hard to pick a revolution about which one doesn't have major
misgivings. But they also have peak moments: the nuns kneeling before
Marcos' tanks in the Philippines; the queer crusaders emerging
Influence of the #commoncore in my classroom: None.
See, that wasn’t so bad, was it? Despite my math books, which I have yet to
actually use, being labeled as “Common Core” approved, the Standards really
have no impact or effect on my Kindergarten classroom. Now, this tells me
two things. One, that the standards are entirely benign and unthreatening,
imaginative. Two, that this […]
Analytic Eclecticism, Phantom Confrontations, and Dialogue: On Reus-Smit´s “Beyond Metatheory?”
[Editor's Note: This is a guest post by Guzman Castro of the University of
Pennsylvania. This post refers to an article and post in the European
Journal of International Relations-Duck of Minerva symposium on "The End of
International Relations Theory?"by Christian Reus-Smit and the
corresponding post by Milja Kurki.] Christian Reus-Smit’s and Milja Kurki’s
interventions
Continue reading
Helena Cobban: Syria Needs A "South Africa-Style Negotiated Transition To Democracy"
*"The Superpowers and the Syrian-Israeli Conflict"* by Helena Cobban
(1991).
Description of "The Superpowers and the Syrian-Israeli Conflict" (*Source:
Google Books*)
This study investigates the evolution of the military balance between
Israel and Syria between 1978 and 1989 and the effects of the close
strategic ties that developed in this period between these states and their
respective superpower partners. The fighting in Lebanon in 1982 is closely
examined, both because it proved to be a key strategic turning point for
Israel and Syria, and because it provided important l... more »
American-Turkish Policy Towards Syria: A Tough Balancing Act
Below is an excerpt from, *"In Kurdish Syria, a Different War,"* by Daniel
Wagner and Giorgio Cafiero, published in Foreign Policy In Focus on
September 5, 2013.
As the majority of Syria’s oil and gas reserves exist in northeastern
Syria, the stakes are high for both sides. The geopolitical ramifications
of an established autonomous Kurdish region—or independent Kurdish state—in
northeastern Syria are complicated. From Turkey’s vantage point, a PKK-run
Syrian Kurdistan would constitute a major setback given the likelihood that
the PKK would utilize the territory to launch attacks ag... more »
Mike Klonsky : Forbes Calls Charter Schools 'Part of a Corrupt System'
Demonstration in New York against school privatization.
'Part of a corrupt system':
Forbes piece pounds charters
About the only thing charters do well is limit the influence of teachers’ unions. And fatten their investors’ portfolios.
By Mike Klonsky / The Rag Blog / September 18, 2013
An article appearing in the September 10 issue of Forbes gives a swift kick in the rear end to
DCCC Has Its Dander Up Again-- The Hypocrisy Is Spilling All Over DC
The last time-- the 41st time-- the House voted to defund Obamacare, every
single Republican voted yes, making each one a potential target for an
"engaged" DCCC. There was a slight glitch. The Republicans are calling it a
"bipartisan vote." Why? Because 5 reactionary Blue Dog Democrats voted to
defund Obamacare as well-- John Barrow (GA), Collin Peterson (MN), Mike
McIntyre (NC), Jim Matheson (UT) and Dan Lipinski (IL).
Worse still, three of them-- Barrow, McIntyre and Matheson-- are dependent
on the DCCC for their reelection efforts. Last year the DCCC spent over $4
million of th... more »
The True Size of the Shadow Banking System Revealed (Spoiler: Humongous)
in The Physics arXiv Blog
https://medium.com/the-physics-arxiv-blog/5e1dd9d1642
*The True Size of the Shadow Banking System Revealed (Spoiler: Humongous)*
The shadow banking system is vastly bigger than regulators had thought, say
*econophysicists* *who have developed a powerful new way to measure its
hidden impact*
In most parts of the world, the banking system is closely regulated and
monitored by central banks and other government agencies. That’s just as it
should be, you might think.
But banks have a way round this kind of regulation. For the last decade or
so, it has beco... more »
Think about it . . .
Toxoplasma
gondii
THE ATLANTIC has a fascinating article on how parasites can change how
you think and react. No foolin’, they have found that infected people
have more car accidents, for example. “How Your Cat Is Making You
Crazy”, by Kathleen McAuliffe looks at the research of a Czech
scientist, Jaroslav Flegr whose research on a single-cell parasite
called Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii or
The Taper That Wasn't
*Guest post by Fed-watcher Peter Schiff, who reckons the U.S. Central Bank,
whose non-decision yesterday left financial markets in all sorts of
confusion, have dug themselves a hole we won’t easily climb out of.*
The Fed's failure yesterday to announce some sort of tapering of its QE
program, despite the consensus of an overwhelming percentage of economists
who expected action, once again reveals the degree to which mainstream
analysts have overestimated the strength of the U.S. economy. The Fed
understands, as the market seems not to, that the current "recovery" could
not survive... more »
Liberty Notes from Larry Reed (3)
A continuation of useful quotes from Lawrence "Larry" Reed, President of
the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE) in the US. Posted in his
facebook wall.
Photos below -- 1st row: Larry Reed, Friedrich Hayek; 2nd row: Ludwig von
Mises, Franklin D. Roosevelt; 3rd row: Thomas Szasz, Rand Paul.
Government is awful at fighting poverty. That's because its expertise is in
fighting prosperity. And it ought to be small enough that you have to go
looking for it, instead of it always looking for you.
-- Lawrence Reed
Top of Form
There is all the difference in the world between treating peo... more »
Chet Raymo, “Palm Reading”
*“Palm Reading”*
by Chet Raymo
“I find myself looking at the palm of my hand. The pattern of lines in
which palm readers claim to read my fate. A criss-cross of indentations
that is apparently unique to me. Then I look at my other palm. The same
pattern, in mirror image. And I'm gobsmacked.
It all started out as a single fertilized cell. 2. 4. 8. 16. 32.
Eventually, tens of trillions of cells. How do the cells multiplying in my
left hand know what the cells in my right hand are doing? How is such
perfect symmetry maintained across what is in effect molecular light-years?
Gene... more »
Flooded oil and gas wells - Colorado flooding has wrecked holy hell as a result of the inland oil and gas industry there. Apart from wrecked road , landslide and wreckage water and sewage problems - coming into focus is contamination from the natural gas and oil exploration facilites wrecked by the storms....
Flooded oil and gas wells spark fears of contamination in Colorado
by Renee Lewis
September 18, 2013 12:30PM ET
Activists say ruptured pipelines, gas leaks and oil spills in
flood-stricken Weld County put environment at risk
Topics: Environment Energy Fracking
**
**
**
[image: Weld County]
An oil storage tank on a well pad lies toppled by flood waters in Weld
County -- environmental activists have raised concerns about leaks of gas,
oil and hazardous materials from compromised oil and gas industry
infrastructure.Rick Wilking/Reuters
As Colorado reels from a prolonged flooding disast... more »
The Daily "Near You?"
Waynesville, North Carolina, USA. Thanks for stopping by.
"Want To Fly Like An Eagle?"
“Want to fly like an eagle? Thanks to a GoPro camera, you can!”
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3QrhdfLCO8&html5=1
Do watch this fullscreen...
•
Hat tip to Alex Noble for this material.
"Find Another Way..."
“Never let your head hang down. Never give up and sit down and grieve. Find another way. And don’t pray when it rains if you don’t pray when the sun shines.” - Leroy Satchel PaigeRelated articles
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Pope Says Church Is 'Obsessed' With Gays, Abortion and Birth Control - New York Times(nytimes.com)
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