The black dots are meaningless. It is a new designation that has absolutely NO definition. I am confident it is propagandize the reality of the reporting service. This is Bush's Handy Work. Some kind of president, huh?
Friday, March 16, 2007
There are 79 "Large Incident" fires reported today in the USA
The black dots are meaningless. It is a new designation that has absolutely NO definition. I am confident it is propagandize the reality of the reporting service. This is Bush's Handy Work. Some kind of president, huh?
March 13, 2007
Las Vegas, Nevada
Photographer stated :: Las Vegas Bush Fire - A brush fire burns out of control that started before 5 p.m. Tuesday and spread quickly. Within minutes it swept through the county's desert Wetlands Park, smothering homes a block away in a thick could of black smoke. Just a few hours later it grew to well over 150 acres with fire crews wetting homes to make sure they didn't catch fire..©Photo by Gene Blevins/LA Daily News©
Click on for animation - the heat intrusion persists
Antarctica
March 16, 2007
6:00 PM
Okay. The first question I have regarding this picture is what in the heck is all that heat doing over WAIS.
I mentioned last time the winds were more than likely ionic because they reached all the way to the "jet stream." Today is no different.
See Below...
The vortex/jet stream of Antarctica was very, very still not long ago and provided the only air movement. The winds were calm.
This is not the case now. The vortex over Antarctica is directing the heat to areas over WAIS. The movement of heat is verified by observing some temperatures.
Vostok is very warm compared to where the reporting station was a short time ago:
Vostok, Antarctica
Elevation: 11220 ft / 3420 m
Temperature :: -57 °F / -49 °C
Conditions :: Clear
Humidity: 42%
Dew Point: -64 °F / -54 °C
Wind: 9 mph / 15 km/h from the North
Wind Gust: -
Pressure: (Steady)
Visibility: 12.0 miles / 20.0 kilometers
THE ENTIRE continent is registering higher temperatures (click on). There are many more reporting stations over zero today. That was not the case yesterday and far more 'temperate' reporting stations.
The warmest is on the Peninsula but no longer approaching zero:
Base Jubany, Antarctica
Elevation :: 13 ft / 4 m
Temperature :: 44 °F / 6 °C
Conditions :: Light Drizzle
Humidity :: 78%
Dew Point :: 39 °F / 4 °C
Wind :: 44 mph / 70 km/h from the NW
Wind Gust :: -
Pressure :: 29.15 in / 987 hPa (Falling)
Visibility :: 1.0 miles / 2.0 kilometers
UV :: 0 out of 16
Clouds :: Overcast 394 ft / 120 m
(Above Ground Level)
Click to Animate - In the face of all this evidence, the USA still has no Climate policy.
It is easily noted, especially in animation, the winds over the Blue Ice are moving to the lower elevations. The air gets heavier as it cools while subliming the Blue Ice. The humidity over Vostok is 48% with clear and the air pressure is steady, while the lower elevations of The Peninsula has a falling air pressure and increasingly poor weather. It's nearly autumn in Antarctica. I hope as we move closer to Winter this will cease, but, it won't if the heat is finally finding it's density so think above these high elevations that it cannot find relief anywhere by over the ice caps and high elevation ice fields.
The same heat distributions are seen on satellite over the mountains of Everest in Tibet. The heat density has returned to The Greenland Ice as well.
The governments of The West need to stop this insanity. There has to be a moratorium on carbon dioxide production and now ! This is no joke.
Morning Papers - continued ...
Michael Moore Today
http://www.michaelmoore.com/
"...if Karl thinks there is the political will to do it, then so do I."
Rove Is Linked to Early Query Over Dismissals
By David Johnston and Eric Lipton / New York Times
WASHINGTON, March 15 — Karl Rove, the senior presidential adviser, inquired about firing United States attorneys in January 2005, e-mail messages released Thursday show. The request prompted a Justice Department aide to respond that Alberto R. Gonzales, soon to be confirmed as attorney general, favored replacing a group of “underperforming” prosecutors.
The e-mail messages, part of a larger collection that the Justice Department is preparing to turn over to Congressional investigators, indicate that Mr. Rove and Mr. Gonzales, then the White House counsel, had considered replacing prosecutors earlier than either has previously acknowledged.
In a message on Jan. 6, 2005, one White House lawyer wrote to a colleague: “Karl Rove stopped by to ask you (roughly quoting) ‘how we planned to proceed regarding U.S. Attorneys, whether we were going to allow all to stay, request resignations from all and accept only some of them or selectively replace them, etc.’ ”
D. Kyle Sampson, who resigned this week as chief of staff to Mr. Gonzales, responded by e-mail three days later.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9419
Second Senate Republican calls for removal of Alberto Gonzales
New allegations could spell more trouble for Gonzales
By Elana Schor / The Hill
Two new revelations about alleged misconduct by the Justice Department kept the U.S. attorneys scandal roiling on Capitol Hill Thursday, with a second Republican senator calling for the ouster of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
In the most stunning turn, ABC News disclosed a new round of internal emails - slated for release to Congress as soon as Friday - that show senior White House adviser Karl Rove closely tied to the January 2005 genesis of a plan to fire all 93 U.S. attorneys, in direct contradiction to statements made by the White House. The emails also reveal that Gonzales was aware of the plan before he moved from the White House counsel’s office to the Justice Department in early 2005.
“It is now imperative that [Rove] testify before Congress and give all the details of his involvement,” Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), chairman of the Senate Judiciary subcommittee with jurisdiction over U.S. attorneys.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9420
Do Something, Saturday
Introducing the March on the Pentagon
Saturday, March 17, 2007
~ 40th anniversary of the historic 1967 march on the Pentagon ~
~ 4th anniversary of the start of the Iraq war ~
On March 17, 2007, the 4th anniversary of the start of the criminal invasion of Iraq, tens of thousands of people from around the country will descend on the Pentagon in a mass demonstration to demand: U.S. Out of Iraq Now! 2007 is the 40th anniversary of the historic 1967 anti-war march to the Pentagon during the Vietnam War. The message of the 1967 march was "From Protest to Resistance," and marked a turning point in the development of a countrywide mass movement.
In the coming days and weeks, thousands of organizations and individuals will begin mobilizing for the upcoming March on the Pentagon. Organizing committees and transportation centers are being established to bring people to the March on the Pentagon.
We will assemble at 12 noon at 23rd St. and Constitution Ave. NW.
http://answer.pephost.org/site/News2?id=8107
The Google
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=pentagon&layer=&sll=38.878071,-77.054672&sspn=0.080048,0.144882&ie=UTF8&z=16&ll=38.870821,-77.055702&spn=0.010007,0.025148&t=h&om=1
List of Fourth Anniversary of Iraq War Events in your Area
Events
Events listed are not necessarily endorsed or organized by UFPJ. This calendar is maintained as a resource for the entire peace and justice movement. For further information about any event listed, please click on the event listing and contact the person and/or email address listed as the contact for the specific event.
When looking at events in a particular category, please note that states appear in alphabetical order according to their postal code, not their name. E.g. North Carolina is listed before New Jersey, because "NC" comes before "NJ."
http://www.unitedforpeace.org/calendar.php?sortby=&caltype=51
Defund the war - Rebuild the Gulf Coast
In solidarity with the people of the Gulf Coast and understanding that every bomb dropped in Iraq explodes over the U.S. Gulf Coast, Veterans For Peace and partner organizations will return to the area devastated by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, to aid in reconstruction efforts. The project will raise money and volunteers to aid in rebuilding homes for survivors of the hurricanes. In addition, we will raise awareness of the continued plight of the gulf coast survivors and the persistent commitment to an illegal, immoral war fought at staggering costs, both financially and in human casualties.
http://veteransforpeace.org/Rebuilding_the_gulf_coast.vp.html
SDS: March 20 Student Day of Action Against the War
Blog for information about the March 20 student day of action against the war
http://march20antiwar.blogspot.com/
Bush should see families hurt firsthand, mom says
'When he knew he was going on a mission, I always said, "Be safe,' " and he replied, "I will,' " Nina Carr said.
By William K. Alcorn / The Vindicator
YOUNGSTOWN, OH - "How many more of our sons and daughters have to be sacrificed before we bring them home," said Christine Wortman through tears of anguish.
Her son Army Sgt. Robert Michael Carr was killed Tuesday in Baghdad, Iraq, when an improvised explosive devise exploded under the armored vehicle he was driving. Carr, known as Robbie, was assigned to the 212th Infantry, 2nd Infantry Division in Iraq, and was stationed at Fort Carson, Colo.
"President Bush should have to knock on the doors of the families of every soldier killed so he could understand and see the hurt and devastation," Wortman said Thursday at her Champion home.
"It's unbearable," she said of her sorrow.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9421
Dozens in GOP Turn Against Bush's Prized 'No Child' Act
By Jonathan Weisman and Amit R. Paley / Washington Post
More than 50 GOP members of the House and Senate -- including the House's second-ranking Republican -- will introduce legislation today that could severely undercut President Bush's signature domestic achievement, the No Child Left Behind Act, by allowing states to opt out of its testing mandates.
For a White House fighting off attacks on its war policy and dealing with a burgeoning scandal at the Justice Department, the GOP dissidents' move is a fresh blow on a new front. Among the co-sponsors of the legislation are House Minority Whip Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), a key supporter of the measure in 2001, and John Cornyn (R-Tex.), Bush's most reliable defender in the Senate. Rep. Eric Cantor (Va.), the House GOP's chief deputy whip and a supporter in 2001, has also signed on.
Burson Snyder, a spokesman for Blunt, said that after several meetings with school administrators and teachers in southwest Missouri, the House Republican leader turned against the measure he helped pass. Blunt was convinced that the burdens and red tape of the No Child Left Behind Act are unacceptably onerous, Snyder said.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9414
First GOP senator calls for Gonzales firing
Bush ‘not happy’ about handling of attorney firings, but stands by AG
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Sen. John Sununu of New Hampshire on Wednesday became the first Republican in Congress to call for Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' dismissal, hours after President Bush expressed confidence in his embattled Cabinet officer.
"I think the president should replace him," Sununu said in an interview with The Associated Press.
Gonzales has been fending off Democratic calls for his firing in the wake of disclosures surrounding the ousters of eight U.S. attorneys.
Sununu said the firings, together with a report last Friday by the Justice Department's inspector general criticizing the administration's use of secret national security letters to obtain personal records in terrorism probes, shattered his confidence in Gonzales.
"We need to have a strong, credible attorney general that has the confidence of Congress and the American people," said Sununu, who faces a tough re-election campaign next year. "Alberto Gonzales can't fill that role."
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9408
Second GOP Senator say Gonzales should go
http://americablog.blogspot.com/2007/03/second-gop-senator-say-gonzales-should.html
VA hospital turned away suicidal vet, family says
CNN
Although he earned two purple hearts for fighting in Iraq, Marine Jonathan Schulze was rejected by a Minnesota VA hospital when he needed urgent treatment.
Schulze was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by his family physician. He was prescribed Ambien, Valium, and Paxil, but they didn't help. When Schulze began to feel suicidal, he turned to the VA hospital in St. Cloud, Minnesota, about an hour outside Minneapolis.
His father and stepmother both insist they heard Schulze tell the intake nurse he was "suicidal." But instead of admitting him, the hospital told Schulze to go home and call back the next day.
The family says it was told the social worker who screens PTSD patients was too busy to see him. When Schulze called back the next day, his stepmom says she listened as he told the social worker he felt suicidal. The hospital then responded by telling him he was Number 26 on the waiting list for one of 12 PTSD patient beds. In other words, he'd need to wait at least two weeks before he could get treatment.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9409
Thursday, March 15th, 2007
'The Ides of March' ...Cindy Sheehan
A few days ago, I sent out a frustrated email to a small listserv that includes some major peace activists in the nation, including Dennis and Elizabeth Kucinich. My email reads as follows:
With the impending invasion of Iran, which will probably turn nuclear (or "nukular" as some say), why is no member of Congress introducing Articles of Impeachment?
We live in a rogue state...who will stop them?
I received the standard reply that I receive from many of our dear anti-war, progressive Congressional Reps, from Dennis' wife, Elizabeth:
DK feels that impeachment is a distraction of the real issue which is ending the war in Iraq.
Of course I agree that Iraq is the real issue, but King George has said himself that the war isn't ending while he is president. And, as the occupation of Iraq has been an unmitigated failure, an invasion of Iran (by the US or Israel) would be the prelude to Armageddon.
Also, if we subtract the issues of Iran and Iraq, King George has violated international law and has ripped our Constitution into confetti sized pieces. From unlawful invasions to stealing unprecedented executive powers using his fabricated "war on terror" BushCo has committed many impeachable offenses. Impeachment proceedings would compliment the peace movement...not distract or detract from it.
A couple of millennia ago there was a leader of a Republic that took imperial powers upon himself and declared himself "dictator for life"...his name was Julius Caesar. On the Ides of March (44 B.C.), some very reluctantly patriotic Senators who wanted to halt the slide of Rome from a Republic into an empire ruled by a dictator, took matters into their own hands and assassinated Julius Caesar on the "Ides of March," which is today.
Frustrated by this Congress, again, giving King George the green light for further wars of aggression, on the Ides of March, 2007, Rep. Dennis Kucinich took matters peacefully and patriotically into his own hands and with courage and integrity said the "I" word on the House floor in these remarks:
This House cannot avoid its Constitutionally authorized responsibility to restrain abuse of the Executive Branch.
The Administration has been preparing for an aggressive war against Iran.
There is no solid, direct evidence that Iran has the intention of attacking the United States or its allies.
The US is a signatory to the UN Charter, a constituent treaty among the nations of the world. Article II, Section 4 of the UN Charter states: "all members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state..." Even the threat of a war of aggression is illegal.
Article VI of the US Constitution makes such treaties the Supreme Law of the Land. This Administration has openly threatened aggression against Iran in violation of the US Constitution and UN Charter.
This week the House Appropriations Committee removed language from the Iraq war funding bill requiring the Administration, under Article I, Section 8, Clause 11 of the Constitution, to seek permission before it launched an attack against Iran.
Since war with Iran is an option of this Administration and since such a war is patently illegal, then impeachment may well be the only remedy which remains to stop a war of aggression against Iran.
The Congressional power of impeachment is the only thing that can restrain King George and his criminal court. Congress has given King George their powers to declare war and has not maintained its duty as a check on his illegal regal progression. If Congress doesn't snatch some of that power back, they will become as ineffectual and irrelevant as the Roman Senate under Julius' replacement, his nephew Caesar Augustus.
We as a progressive peace community need to thank and support Rep. Kucinich in his courageous stance against further dictatorial power grabs from The Usurpers.
Call Dennis Kucinich's office to thank him (202-225-5871) or email him.
Donate 15.00 for the 15th of March to his campaign.
Let's encourage and reward our Reps who do the right thing.
Let's help to save our Republic.
Cindy Sheehan is the mother of Spc. Casey Sheehan who was killed in Bush's war of terror on 04/04/04.
She is the co-founder and president of Gold Star Families for Peace and The Camp Casey Peace Institute.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/mustread/index.php?id=841
Camp Casey Easter 2007
http://www.gsfp.org/article.php?id=320
'Camp Casey Easter 2007' ...by Cindy Sheehan
From: Casey's Mom
Sent: Wednesday, August 03, 2005 6:43 PM
To: [Undisclosed Recipients]
Subject: 7.67 deaths per day for August.
Dear Friends
We can relax now. From the war zone of Crawford, Texas, George said that we families of loved ones that have been killed in Iraq can: "rest assured that your loved ones died for a noble cause."
I am going to be in Dallas this weekend for the VFP convention, and I don't care how far Crawford is from Dallas, I am going to that expletive deleted ranch. I will not leave until he explains to me exactly what the noble cause is. I hope some VFP's will join me in the crusade to Crawford. If they don't, I know my sister will, and we will go alone if we have to.
It has to stop. The time is now. I mean it.
Peace soon,
Cindy Sheehan
This is the email that I sent to a group of about 300 people the day that 14 Marines from a reserve unit in Ohio were killed. I was upset. I was heartbroken. I was frustrated, but most of all, I was angry!
http://www.michaelmoore.com/mustread/index.php?id=836
Invite George Bush
http://www.whitehouse.gov/kids/contact/
Mohammed says responsible for 9/11 attacks
By Andrew Gray / Reuters
WASHINGTON - Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the September 11 attacks on the United States, has admitted responsibility for those and other major al Qaeda operations, according to the transcript of a hearing at Guantanamo Bay released on Wednesday.
"I was responsible for the 9/11 Operation, from A to Z," Mohammed, speaking through a personal representative, said according to the transcript of the hearing on Saturday at the U.S. military prison camp in Cuba released by the Pentagon.
Mohammed, a Pakistani national, also said he was responsible for a 1993 attack on New York's World Trade Center, the bombing of a nightclub in Bali, Indonesia, and an attempt to down two American airplanes using shoe bombs.
"I was the operational director for Sheikh Usama (Osama) Bin Laden for the organizing, planning, follow-up, and execution of the 9/11 operation," he said through his representative, a member of the U.S. military.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9413
Confessions of a Terrorist: I'm Guilty of 3,000+ Murders
By Brian Ross and Luis Martinez / ABC News
Presidents Clinton and Carter, Pope John Paul II, Henry Kissinger, the Empire State Building, the Library Tower in Los Angeles and the Sears Tower in Chicago were among the targets of al Qaeda attacks planned by captured al Qaeda terror commander Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, according to a written statement he filed this weekend at a hearing held at the American prison at Guantanamo.
Known as KSM, he also formally admitted responsibility for the 9/ll attacks, the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and the bombing of a nightclub in Bali, Indonesia.
KSM, captured in 2003 in Pakistan, was subjected by the CIA to waterboarding and other "extreme interrogation" techniques, according to current and former CIA officials.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9412
OFFICIAL IMPEACHMENT TEXT
WHEREAS, Jefferson's Manual section LIII, 603, states that impeachment may be set in motion by charges transmitted from the legislature of a State; and
WHEREAS, George W. Bush has intentionally misled the Congress and the public regarding the threat from Iraq in order to justify a war against Iraq, in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Section 1001 and intentionally conspired with others to defraud the United States in connection with the war against Iraq in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Section 371; and
WHEREAS, George W. Bush has admitted to ordering the National Security Agency to conduct electronic surveillance of American civilians without seeking warrants from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review, duly constituted by Congress in 1978, in violation of Title 50 United States Code, Section 1805; and
WHEREAS, George W. Bush has conspired to commit the torture of prisoners in violation of the UN Torture Convention and the Geneva Convention, which under Article VI of the Constitution are part of the "supreme Law of the Land"; and
WHEREAS, George W. Bush has acted to strip Americans of their constitutional rights by ordering indefinite detention of citizens, without access to legal counsel, without charge and without opportunity to appear before a civil judicial officer to challenge the detention, based solely on the discretionary designation by the President of a U.S. citizen as an "enemy combatant", all in subversion of law; and
WHEREAS, In all of this George W. Bush has acted in a manner contrary to his trust as President, subversive of constitutional government to the great prejudice of the cause of law and justice, and to the manifest injury of the people of the State of ___________ and of the United States.
Be it resolved that George W. Bush, by such conduct, warrants impeachment and trial, and removal from office and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust or profit under the United States.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/mustread/index.php?id=622
THOSE THAT PROTESTED the Vietnam War on USA soil, some of which lost their lives, were of the generation most afflicted with the war.
The Pot Heads. The Flower Children.
With Iraq, the opposition is across generations. We are powerful people, the demonstrators against this war. We are growing opposition to war while nurturing conscientious objectors from the grassroots up. I think all those involved in the cross generational Peace Movement are incredible Americans. I love you guys.
There have been a couple of interesting statements this past week:
In regard to peace, Joe Biden stated, "By summer there will be many more Republicans that will come to realize they cannot favor the President over the troops."
In regard to Human Induced Global Warming, Tony Blair stated, ' (Paraphrased) We don't need more economic growth so much as maintaining the economies we have." Much of what 'goes on' with development is deforestation of areas to make way for new building and lack of land use planning. I find Tony Blair to be an strong advocate for change in societies leading to the resolve of Kyoto. He takes the issue seriously and doesn't play with the lives and potential of the generations that are still too young to make their own stand.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/
"...if Karl thinks there is the political will to do it, then so do I."
Rove Is Linked to Early Query Over Dismissals
By David Johnston and Eric Lipton / New York Times
WASHINGTON, March 15 — Karl Rove, the senior presidential adviser, inquired about firing United States attorneys in January 2005, e-mail messages released Thursday show. The request prompted a Justice Department aide to respond that Alberto R. Gonzales, soon to be confirmed as attorney general, favored replacing a group of “underperforming” prosecutors.
The e-mail messages, part of a larger collection that the Justice Department is preparing to turn over to Congressional investigators, indicate that Mr. Rove and Mr. Gonzales, then the White House counsel, had considered replacing prosecutors earlier than either has previously acknowledged.
In a message on Jan. 6, 2005, one White House lawyer wrote to a colleague: “Karl Rove stopped by to ask you (roughly quoting) ‘how we planned to proceed regarding U.S. Attorneys, whether we were going to allow all to stay, request resignations from all and accept only some of them or selectively replace them, etc.’ ”
D. Kyle Sampson, who resigned this week as chief of staff to Mr. Gonzales, responded by e-mail three days later.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9419
Second Senate Republican calls for removal of Alberto Gonzales
New allegations could spell more trouble for Gonzales
By Elana Schor / The Hill
Two new revelations about alleged misconduct by the Justice Department kept the U.S. attorneys scandal roiling on Capitol Hill Thursday, with a second Republican senator calling for the ouster of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
In the most stunning turn, ABC News disclosed a new round of internal emails - slated for release to Congress as soon as Friday - that show senior White House adviser Karl Rove closely tied to the January 2005 genesis of a plan to fire all 93 U.S. attorneys, in direct contradiction to statements made by the White House. The emails also reveal that Gonzales was aware of the plan before he moved from the White House counsel’s office to the Justice Department in early 2005.
“It is now imperative that [Rove] testify before Congress and give all the details of his involvement,” Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), chairman of the Senate Judiciary subcommittee with jurisdiction over U.S. attorneys.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9420
Do Something, Saturday
Introducing the March on the Pentagon
Saturday, March 17, 2007
~ 40th anniversary of the historic 1967 march on the Pentagon ~
~ 4th anniversary of the start of the Iraq war ~
On March 17, 2007, the 4th anniversary of the start of the criminal invasion of Iraq, tens of thousands of people from around the country will descend on the Pentagon in a mass demonstration to demand: U.S. Out of Iraq Now! 2007 is the 40th anniversary of the historic 1967 anti-war march to the Pentagon during the Vietnam War. The message of the 1967 march was "From Protest to Resistance," and marked a turning point in the development of a countrywide mass movement.
In the coming days and weeks, thousands of organizations and individuals will begin mobilizing for the upcoming March on the Pentagon. Organizing committees and transportation centers are being established to bring people to the March on the Pentagon.
We will assemble at 12 noon at 23rd St. and Constitution Ave. NW.
http://answer.pephost.org/site/News2?id=8107
The Google
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=pentagon&layer=&sll=38.878071,-77.054672&sspn=0.080048,0.144882&ie=UTF8&z=16&ll=38.870821,-77.055702&spn=0.010007,0.025148&t=h&om=1
List of Fourth Anniversary of Iraq War Events in your Area
Events
Events listed are not necessarily endorsed or organized by UFPJ. This calendar is maintained as a resource for the entire peace and justice movement. For further information about any event listed, please click on the event listing and contact the person and/or email address listed as the contact for the specific event.
When looking at events in a particular category, please note that states appear in alphabetical order according to their postal code, not their name. E.g. North Carolina is listed before New Jersey, because "NC" comes before "NJ."
http://www.unitedforpeace.org/calendar.php?sortby=&caltype=51
Defund the war - Rebuild the Gulf Coast
In solidarity with the people of the Gulf Coast and understanding that every bomb dropped in Iraq explodes over the U.S. Gulf Coast, Veterans For Peace and partner organizations will return to the area devastated by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, to aid in reconstruction efforts. The project will raise money and volunteers to aid in rebuilding homes for survivors of the hurricanes. In addition, we will raise awareness of the continued plight of the gulf coast survivors and the persistent commitment to an illegal, immoral war fought at staggering costs, both financially and in human casualties.
http://veteransforpeace.org/Rebuilding_the_gulf_coast.vp.html
SDS: March 20 Student Day of Action Against the War
Blog for information about the March 20 student day of action against the war
http://march20antiwar.blogspot.com/
Bush should see families hurt firsthand, mom says
'When he knew he was going on a mission, I always said, "Be safe,' " and he replied, "I will,' " Nina Carr said.
By William K. Alcorn / The Vindicator
YOUNGSTOWN, OH - "How many more of our sons and daughters have to be sacrificed before we bring them home," said Christine Wortman through tears of anguish.
Her son Army Sgt. Robert Michael Carr was killed Tuesday in Baghdad, Iraq, when an improvised explosive devise exploded under the armored vehicle he was driving. Carr, known as Robbie, was assigned to the 212th Infantry, 2nd Infantry Division in Iraq, and was stationed at Fort Carson, Colo.
"President Bush should have to knock on the doors of the families of every soldier killed so he could understand and see the hurt and devastation," Wortman said Thursday at her Champion home.
"It's unbearable," she said of her sorrow.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9421
Dozens in GOP Turn Against Bush's Prized 'No Child' Act
By Jonathan Weisman and Amit R. Paley / Washington Post
More than 50 GOP members of the House and Senate -- including the House's second-ranking Republican -- will introduce legislation today that could severely undercut President Bush's signature domestic achievement, the No Child Left Behind Act, by allowing states to opt out of its testing mandates.
For a White House fighting off attacks on its war policy and dealing with a burgeoning scandal at the Justice Department, the GOP dissidents' move is a fresh blow on a new front. Among the co-sponsors of the legislation are House Minority Whip Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), a key supporter of the measure in 2001, and John Cornyn (R-Tex.), Bush's most reliable defender in the Senate. Rep. Eric Cantor (Va.), the House GOP's chief deputy whip and a supporter in 2001, has also signed on.
Burson Snyder, a spokesman for Blunt, said that after several meetings with school administrators and teachers in southwest Missouri, the House Republican leader turned against the measure he helped pass. Blunt was convinced that the burdens and red tape of the No Child Left Behind Act are unacceptably onerous, Snyder said.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9414
First GOP senator calls for Gonzales firing
Bush ‘not happy’ about handling of attorney firings, but stands by AG
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Sen. John Sununu of New Hampshire on Wednesday became the first Republican in Congress to call for Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' dismissal, hours after President Bush expressed confidence in his embattled Cabinet officer.
"I think the president should replace him," Sununu said in an interview with The Associated Press.
Gonzales has been fending off Democratic calls for his firing in the wake of disclosures surrounding the ousters of eight U.S. attorneys.
Sununu said the firings, together with a report last Friday by the Justice Department's inspector general criticizing the administration's use of secret national security letters to obtain personal records in terrorism probes, shattered his confidence in Gonzales.
"We need to have a strong, credible attorney general that has the confidence of Congress and the American people," said Sununu, who faces a tough re-election campaign next year. "Alberto Gonzales can't fill that role."
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9408
Second GOP Senator say Gonzales should go
http://americablog.blogspot.com/2007/03/second-gop-senator-say-gonzales-should.html
VA hospital turned away suicidal vet, family says
CNN
Although he earned two purple hearts for fighting in Iraq, Marine Jonathan Schulze was rejected by a Minnesota VA hospital when he needed urgent treatment.
Schulze was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by his family physician. He was prescribed Ambien, Valium, and Paxil, but they didn't help. When Schulze began to feel suicidal, he turned to the VA hospital in St. Cloud, Minnesota, about an hour outside Minneapolis.
His father and stepmother both insist they heard Schulze tell the intake nurse he was "suicidal." But instead of admitting him, the hospital told Schulze to go home and call back the next day.
The family says it was told the social worker who screens PTSD patients was too busy to see him. When Schulze called back the next day, his stepmom says she listened as he told the social worker he felt suicidal. The hospital then responded by telling him he was Number 26 on the waiting list for one of 12 PTSD patient beds. In other words, he'd need to wait at least two weeks before he could get treatment.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9409
Thursday, March 15th, 2007
'The Ides of March' ...Cindy Sheehan
A few days ago, I sent out a frustrated email to a small listserv that includes some major peace activists in the nation, including Dennis and Elizabeth Kucinich. My email reads as follows:
With the impending invasion of Iran, which will probably turn nuclear (or "nukular" as some say), why is no member of Congress introducing Articles of Impeachment?
We live in a rogue state...who will stop them?
I received the standard reply that I receive from many of our dear anti-war, progressive Congressional Reps, from Dennis' wife, Elizabeth:
DK feels that impeachment is a distraction of the real issue which is ending the war in Iraq.
Of course I agree that Iraq is the real issue, but King George has said himself that the war isn't ending while he is president. And, as the occupation of Iraq has been an unmitigated failure, an invasion of Iran (by the US or Israel) would be the prelude to Armageddon.
Also, if we subtract the issues of Iran and Iraq, King George has violated international law and has ripped our Constitution into confetti sized pieces. From unlawful invasions to stealing unprecedented executive powers using his fabricated "war on terror" BushCo has committed many impeachable offenses. Impeachment proceedings would compliment the peace movement...not distract or detract from it.
A couple of millennia ago there was a leader of a Republic that took imperial powers upon himself and declared himself "dictator for life"...his name was Julius Caesar. On the Ides of March (44 B.C.), some very reluctantly patriotic Senators who wanted to halt the slide of Rome from a Republic into an empire ruled by a dictator, took matters into their own hands and assassinated Julius Caesar on the "Ides of March," which is today.
Frustrated by this Congress, again, giving King George the green light for further wars of aggression, on the Ides of March, 2007, Rep. Dennis Kucinich took matters peacefully and patriotically into his own hands and with courage and integrity said the "I" word on the House floor in these remarks:
This House cannot avoid its Constitutionally authorized responsibility to restrain abuse of the Executive Branch.
The Administration has been preparing for an aggressive war against Iran.
There is no solid, direct evidence that Iran has the intention of attacking the United States or its allies.
The US is a signatory to the UN Charter, a constituent treaty among the nations of the world. Article II, Section 4 of the UN Charter states: "all members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state..." Even the threat of a war of aggression is illegal.
Article VI of the US Constitution makes such treaties the Supreme Law of the Land. This Administration has openly threatened aggression against Iran in violation of the US Constitution and UN Charter.
This week the House Appropriations Committee removed language from the Iraq war funding bill requiring the Administration, under Article I, Section 8, Clause 11 of the Constitution, to seek permission before it launched an attack against Iran.
Since war with Iran is an option of this Administration and since such a war is patently illegal, then impeachment may well be the only remedy which remains to stop a war of aggression against Iran.
The Congressional power of impeachment is the only thing that can restrain King George and his criminal court. Congress has given King George their powers to declare war and has not maintained its duty as a check on his illegal regal progression. If Congress doesn't snatch some of that power back, they will become as ineffectual and irrelevant as the Roman Senate under Julius' replacement, his nephew Caesar Augustus.
We as a progressive peace community need to thank and support Rep. Kucinich in his courageous stance against further dictatorial power grabs from The Usurpers.
Call Dennis Kucinich's office to thank him (202-225-5871) or email him.
Donate 15.00 for the 15th of March to his campaign.
Let's encourage and reward our Reps who do the right thing.
Let's help to save our Republic.
Cindy Sheehan is the mother of Spc. Casey Sheehan who was killed in Bush's war of terror on 04/04/04.
She is the co-founder and president of Gold Star Families for Peace and The Camp Casey Peace Institute.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/mustread/index.php?id=841
Camp Casey Easter 2007
http://www.gsfp.org/article.php?id=320
'Camp Casey Easter 2007' ...by Cindy Sheehan
From: Casey's Mom
Sent: Wednesday, August 03, 2005 6:43 PM
To: [Undisclosed Recipients]
Subject: 7.67 deaths per day for August.
Dear Friends
We can relax now. From the war zone of Crawford, Texas, George said that we families of loved ones that have been killed in Iraq can: "rest assured that your loved ones died for a noble cause."
I am going to be in Dallas this weekend for the VFP convention, and I don't care how far Crawford is from Dallas, I am going to that expletive deleted ranch. I will not leave until he explains to me exactly what the noble cause is. I hope some VFP's will join me in the crusade to Crawford. If they don't, I know my sister will, and we will go alone if we have to.
It has to stop. The time is now. I mean it.
Peace soon,
Cindy Sheehan
This is the email that I sent to a group of about 300 people the day that 14 Marines from a reserve unit in Ohio were killed. I was upset. I was heartbroken. I was frustrated, but most of all, I was angry!
http://www.michaelmoore.com/mustread/index.php?id=836
Invite George Bush
http://www.whitehouse.gov/kids/contact/
Mohammed says responsible for 9/11 attacks
By Andrew Gray / Reuters
WASHINGTON - Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the September 11 attacks on the United States, has admitted responsibility for those and other major al Qaeda operations, according to the transcript of a hearing at Guantanamo Bay released on Wednesday.
"I was responsible for the 9/11 Operation, from A to Z," Mohammed, speaking through a personal representative, said according to the transcript of the hearing on Saturday at the U.S. military prison camp in Cuba released by the Pentagon.
Mohammed, a Pakistani national, also said he was responsible for a 1993 attack on New York's World Trade Center, the bombing of a nightclub in Bali, Indonesia, and an attempt to down two American airplanes using shoe bombs.
"I was the operational director for Sheikh Usama (Osama) Bin Laden for the organizing, planning, follow-up, and execution of the 9/11 operation," he said through his representative, a member of the U.S. military.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9413
Confessions of a Terrorist: I'm Guilty of 3,000+ Murders
By Brian Ross and Luis Martinez / ABC News
Presidents Clinton and Carter, Pope John Paul II, Henry Kissinger, the Empire State Building, the Library Tower in Los Angeles and the Sears Tower in Chicago were among the targets of al Qaeda attacks planned by captured al Qaeda terror commander Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, according to a written statement he filed this weekend at a hearing held at the American prison at Guantanamo.
Known as KSM, he also formally admitted responsibility for the 9/ll attacks, the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and the bombing of a nightclub in Bali, Indonesia.
KSM, captured in 2003 in Pakistan, was subjected by the CIA to waterboarding and other "extreme interrogation" techniques, according to current and former CIA officials.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9412
OFFICIAL IMPEACHMENT TEXT
WHEREAS, Jefferson's Manual section LIII, 603, states that impeachment may be set in motion by charges transmitted from the legislature of a State; and
WHEREAS, George W. Bush has intentionally misled the Congress and the public regarding the threat from Iraq in order to justify a war against Iraq, in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Section 1001 and intentionally conspired with others to defraud the United States in connection with the war against Iraq in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Section 371; and
WHEREAS, George W. Bush has admitted to ordering the National Security Agency to conduct electronic surveillance of American civilians without seeking warrants from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review, duly constituted by Congress in 1978, in violation of Title 50 United States Code, Section 1805; and
WHEREAS, George W. Bush has conspired to commit the torture of prisoners in violation of the UN Torture Convention and the Geneva Convention, which under Article VI of the Constitution are part of the "supreme Law of the Land"; and
WHEREAS, George W. Bush has acted to strip Americans of their constitutional rights by ordering indefinite detention of citizens, without access to legal counsel, without charge and without opportunity to appear before a civil judicial officer to challenge the detention, based solely on the discretionary designation by the President of a U.S. citizen as an "enemy combatant", all in subversion of law; and
WHEREAS, In all of this George W. Bush has acted in a manner contrary to his trust as President, subversive of constitutional government to the great prejudice of the cause of law and justice, and to the manifest injury of the people of the State of ___________ and of the United States.
Be it resolved that George W. Bush, by such conduct, warrants impeachment and trial, and removal from office and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust or profit under the United States.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/mustread/index.php?id=622
THOSE THAT PROTESTED the Vietnam War on USA soil, some of which lost their lives, were of the generation most afflicted with the war.
The Pot Heads. The Flower Children.
With Iraq, the opposition is across generations. We are powerful people, the demonstrators against this war. We are growing opposition to war while nurturing conscientious objectors from the grassroots up. I think all those involved in the cross generational Peace Movement are incredible Americans. I love you guys.
There have been a couple of interesting statements this past week:
In regard to peace, Joe Biden stated, "By summer there will be many more Republicans that will come to realize they cannot favor the President over the troops."
In regard to Human Induced Global Warming, Tony Blair stated, ' (Paraphrased) We don't need more economic growth so much as maintaining the economies we have." Much of what 'goes on' with development is deforestation of areas to make way for new building and lack of land use planning. I find Tony Blair to be an strong advocate for change in societies leading to the resolve of Kyoto. He takes the issue seriously and doesn't play with the lives and potential of the generations that are still too young to make their own stand.
Sparks fly over forestry credits - THERE is a problem when biotic areas are used as Carbon Credits.
March 11, 2007
Yorba Linda, California
Photographer states :: 60 foot flames - Red Flag conditions and hot dry Santa Ana winds drive flames towards these upscale homes.
Biotic areas are not 'stable.' Their conditions acting as a carbon sink varies. If one uses forests as Carbon Credits then what happens when a company pays for carbon credits and the following day the forest burns to the ground?
This is not a good idea. It's stupid actually. Carbon Dioxide emissions has to be regulated along with NOX and SOX.
New Zealand Herald
Wild camels 'mad with thirst' rampage outback
9:10AM Thursday March 15, 2007
By Kathy Marks
Two wild camels in front of rock monoliths known as The Olgas in central Australia. Photo / Reuters
They helped to build the Australian nation and had a cross-continental railway named after their handlers. But now the camel population here is wreaking havoc in the desert and remote communities because a desperate lack of water.
Wild camels, descendants of the beasts that helped early explorers to open up the country's vast arid interior, have rampaged through a settlement in Western Australia, trampling toilets, taps and air conditioners in a frenzied effort to find water.
A severe drought has exacerbated the problems posed by the animals, which cause damage to the environment, agriculture and property. They are "mad with thirst", according to Glenn Edwards, of the Northern Territory Parks and Wildlife Service.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=26&objectid=10428924
Global warming affecting investors' decisions
2:42PM Wednesday March 14, 2007
Global warming is starting to impact upon investors' decisions, a UK study shows.
A total 62 per cent of active investors say global warming could affect their investment decisions, following the UK's warmest 12-month period on record.
Some 14 per cent of 1000 active investors polled by Britain's Association of Investment Companies (AIC) said climate change would definitely affect their investment decisions and 48 per cent said it might do.
Annabel Brodie-Smith, communications director at the AIC, said: "With 2007 predicted to be the warmest year ever, it's obvious that global warming has become an issue for active investors."
The research, also undertaken among 2000 members of the general public, found that the public's biggest financial concern is another interest rate rise (19 per cent), whereas active investors' greatest worry is a stock market crash (36 per cent).
Some 71 per cent of active investors plan to use their individual savings account (ISA) allowance this year, compared to 31 per cent of the general public, the studies found.
The research was conducted online by YouGov amongst 2374 adults and by Hemscott amongst 1017 private high net worth investors.
- REUTERS
Sparks fly over forestry credits
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By Geoff Cumming
The war of words is generating enough heat to ignite the central North Island forests. Photo / Hawke's Bay Today
To thousands whose retirement comfort hinges on profits from felling trees, Roger Dickie is a white knight, battering down the Government's attempt to steal "their" carbon credits to offset the country's greenhouse gas excesses when our Kyoto obligations kick in next year.
To Agriculture and Forestry Minister Jim Anderton, Dickie - who has spent 30 years persuading mums and dads to invest in forests - is spreading "wilful ignorance and deceit" and needlessly fuelling deforestation.
Consultation meetings on the Government's climate change proposals for agriculture and forestry, unveiled in December, have been hijacked by a well-funded campaign fronted by Dickie's Kyoto Forestry Association and the larger Forest Owners Association. Act leader Rodney Hide and National's climate change spokesman Nick Smith have been fanning the flames in Parliament.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=26&objectid=10429169
Chance of a Doha breakthough 'remote'
5:00AM Wednesday March 14, 2007
By Brian Fallow
French Trade Minister Christine Lagarde in Wellington where she met Phil Goff. Photo / Mark Mitchell
The prospects of any decisive breakthrough in the Doha Round of world trade talks this year are remote, says French Trade Minister Christine Lagarde.
"My personal view? It's not impossible, but especially before the [mid-year] expiry of the Trade Promotion Authority [the US Administration's negotiating mandate from Congress] the prospects are remote," said Lagarde, who was in Wellington for talks with her New Zealand counterpart Phil Goff.
"In the areas of services and industrial products we are not making progress. Unless that happens and there is clear indication of progress and opportunities in places where we have offensive [as opposed to defensive] interests it's going to be extremely difficult to expect success. Because it cannot be a one-sided deal."
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=26&objectid=10428637
Dick Hubbard: Every city can help to save the planet
5:00AM Thursday March 15, 2007
I recently returned from a trip to Kyoto (at no expense to ratepayers) representing New Zealand mayors at a world mayors' conference on climate change. We sat in the assembly room where 10 years ago the Kyoto Protocol was agreed. I think future generations will regard it as a shrine.
Why should mayors be debating issues of world climate change that are seen as the domain of national governments?
Well, half the world's population now live in cities and globally that figure is increasing by one million people a week. Half the world's population uses 70 per cent of the world's energy.
The message from Kyoto is that cities can make a significant difference to greenhouse gas emissions within a short time, often without legislative change, just by changing practices within existing structures.
Small solutions having a major effect, often with no politics involved.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=26&objectid=10428795
CIA spy at heart of leak scandal speaks out
WASHINGTON - The ex-CIA spy at the heart of a scandal that snared Vice President Dick Cheney's top aide said today her undercover career was cut short when Bush administration officials revealed her identity.
Speaking publicly for the first time in the four years since a newspaper article blew her cover, Valerie Plame Wilson told a congressional committee: "I felt like I had been hit in the gut."
"I could no longer do the work which I had been trained to do," she said.
The much-anticipated testimony by the striking blonde, the subject of a photo spread in Vanity Fair magazine, drew dozens of reporters and photographers and was shown live on cable TV news channels.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429302
Monitors for dementia patients
New 8:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
The Palmerston North Red Cross is introducing tracking devices for dementia sufferers after two local men disappeared from rest homes last year and were later found dead.
Patients will be given pendants containing VHF transmitters that send out silent beeps to be monitored by an emergency response unit.
Mugabe accuses own officials of plotting with the West
8:30AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Robert Mugabe
HARARE - Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe accused officials in his own party of joining a Western-backed plot on Friday as the main opposition chief left hospital after treatment for what he said was an orgy of police beatings.
Morgan Tsvangirai, head of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), had been treated for a head wound and other injuries following his arrest on Sunday at an anti-Mugabe protest. He said he would fight on to end Mugabe's long rule.
"Freedom is not cheap," the 55-year-old Tsvangirai, who has challenged Mugabe in several elections, told Reuters at his home in the capital Harare shortly after he was discharged.
Images of a badly bruised and limping Tsvangirai on his way to the hospital earlier this week fuelled international outrage and threats by the United States and other nations to tighten sanctions against Mugabe and other senior Zimbabwean officials.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429303
Khmer Rouge trial rules agreed at last
8:30AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Tourists look at pictures of child victims of the Khmer Rouge on display at the Toul Sleng genocide museum in Phnom Penh. Photo / Reuters
PHNOM PENH - The trials of surviving Khmer Rouge leaders moved a big step closer on Friday as international and Cambodian judges said they had finally agreed on the rules of the tribunal.
"The review committee discussed in exhaustive detail many points and resolved all remaining disagreements, although some fine tuning remains to be done," they said in a statement at the end of 10 days of talks.
Disagreements which had held up the start of the tribunal, set up last year by Cambodia and the United Nations, ranged from admissibility of evidence and witness protection to the height of the judges' chairs.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429304
Ripped off for their art
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By Nick Squires
Some Aboriginal artists work in reputable art centres, while others are in squalor. Photo / Getty Images
Ngarlie Ellis applies the finishing touches to an intricate dot painting, its yellow and ochre patterns depicting an ancient Dreamtime story of a kangaroo spirit visiting a desert waterhole.
The 32-year-old is fortunate her canvas will be sold to a respectable gallery by the art centre in which she works in the isolated settlement of Ltyentye Apurte, 80km down a corrugated dirt track from Alice Springs.
But many other Aborigines are being ripped off by unscrupulous dealers who pay them with alcohol, drugs and worn-out second-hand vehicles, or corral them into squalid sweatshops where they are forced to churn out poor-quality paintings.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429240
Prison smuggling mystery
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By Elizabeth Binning
The doctor accused of helping a convicted rapist smuggle sperm out of Rimutaka prison has been cleared of any wrongdoing.
The Department of Corrections launched an investigation two weeks ago after it was revealed Peter McNamara's partner Joanne Percy had given birth at Tauranga Hospital in January.
The convicted rapist, who was granted leave from prison for the birth, initially told officials a prison-contracted doctor had helped smuggle his sperm out of prison.
This week a lawyer acting for the doctor wrote to media and Corrections saying his client had "absolutely nothing to do with it and had no knowledge of it whatsoever".
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10429267
Man arrested for biting off reporter's ear
9:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Doug Laing after the assault yesterday. Photo / Hawke's Bay today
Police have arrested a Lower Hutt man for the home invasion of a Napier journalist who had part of his ear bitten off.
Acting Detective Sergeant Nic Clere said a 27-year-old was arrested late yesterday afternoon after a house near the victim, Hawke's Day Today newspaper reporter Doug Laing's residence, was searched.
The man had been charged with wounding with intent and burglary and would appear in Napier District Court today.
Laing was at his home soon after midnight yesterday when a man smashed his way in and attacked him, biting part of his ear off.
Laing said he tried to fight off his attacker, who was "growling like an animal" and seemed intent on hurting him.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10429307
Star NCEA school looks at new exam
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By Claire Trevett and Elizabeth Binning
St Cuthbert's College - considered a poster-school for the NCEA because of its academic success and staunch defence of the qualification - is now considering offering an overseas qualification.
The private girls' school in Auckland has supported the National Certificate of Educational Achievement since its introduction and is one of the top performing schools under the system.
It is now considering whether to offer the Cambridge International Examinations or the International Baccalaureate as well as the NCEA.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10429284
Shagadelic - and the more the merrier
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By James Ihaka and Jon Stokes
Opening sequence still picture from the programme The Sex Life of Us.
Move over, younger generation. The middle-aged really do rock - when it comes to group sex, that is.
A Maori Television documentary, The Sex Life of Us, will show 15 per cent of those aged 45 to 54 have had group sex more than once, and up to 10 times.
The Sex Life of Us, presented by comedian Mike King and Stacey Morrison, bares all on the sexual preferences of the nation and looks at other matters going on between the sheets.
The show surveyed 1000 people, 400 of whom were Maori. The TNS-led research has a margin of error of 4.9 per cent.
While the figures don't quite match up with a claim by Clint Rickards' lawyer that "half the country is doing it", figures suggest that one in six Maori have had group sex more than once, compared with one in 10 non-Maori.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1501119/story.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=10429278
Exclusive Brethren's 'Elect Vessel' tours NZ
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By Louisa Cleave
Bruce Hales is rarely photographed.
The world leader of the Exclusive Brethren is touring New Zealand on a private jet, meeting members who know him as the Elect Vessel and the Man of God.
Sydney-based Bruce Hales was in Tauranga last night and his tour includes meetings at churches and private homes throughout the North Island, including Whangarei, Lower Hutt and Wanganui.
It is believed the publicity-shy Mr Hales is travelling with a personal bodyguard who has previously guarded Prime Minister Helen Clark as a member of the police diplomatic protection squad.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10429286
Cost of London 2012 Olympics soars to $25.9b
5:00PM Friday March 16, 2007
By Adrian Croft
A computer-generated view of the Aquatics Centre during the 2012 Games. Photo / Reuters
LONDON - The government more than doubled the estimated cost of staging the 2012 London Olympics to 9.3 billion pounds ($25.9 billion) today, drawing charges of "massive financial incompetence" from an opposition party.
Sports minister Tessa Jowell's announcement confirmed that the expense of staging the Olympics would be far higher than thought when Britain was awarded the games in July 2005.
London's bid estimated the cost of building the main Olympic sports infrastructure in east London at about 3 billion pounds and threw in another 1 billion pounds for regeneration of the dilapidated surrounding area.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429130
Fiji must hold elections by August next year, forum decides
7:00PM Friday March 16, 2007
South Pacific governments have decided to tell Fiji's military rulers they must hold free and fair elections by August next year.
Foreign Minister Winston Peters said after a meeting of South Pacific Forum representatives in Vanuatu today there was no tolerance of the coup last December that ousted Fiji's civilian government.
"I think the Fijian interim government knows that the international community means business, and so does the forum," he told NZPA.
"The decision taken today means, in effect, that they will be requested to have elections by August 2008."
Ministers representing 16 Forum member states considered a report prepared by an Eminent Persons Group of four respected regional figures which recommended Fiji return to democratic rule within 18 to 24 months.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429159
'Presidential' wines probed for fraud
\5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
A bottle from the Jefferson collection.
Three of the most expensive bottles of wine ever to be sold, each one worth more than $280,000, are at the centre of an FBI and US Justice Department investigation into the international trade in vintage wine after allegations of fraud. The inquiry also focuses on the role played by Christie's auction house in London.
The investigation will examine Christie's relationship with a controversial German wine merchant, Hardy Rodenstock, a former pop promoter who has a reputation for unearthing rare vintage wines that sell for huge sums. Rodenstock had a close relationship with a director of Christie's who was present at many of his exclusive vintage wine tastings.
In December 1985, Christie's sold one of Rodenstock's wines to US billionaire Malcolm Forbes for the record price of £105,000.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429217
Obituary: Hero Cherokee saw action in Vietnam
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Billy Walkabout, a Cherokee Indian whose actions in Vietnam made him one of the most decorated soldiers of the Vietnam War, has died, aged 57.
Walkabout received the Distinguished Service Cross, Purple Heart, five Silver Stars and five Bronze Stars. He was believed to be the most decorated Native American soldier of the war, according to US Department of Defence reports.
Walkabout died of pneumonia and renal failure. He had complications related to his exposure to the Agent Orange defoliant used during the Vietnam conflict and had been on a kidney transplant waiting list, having dialysis three times a week.
"War is not hell," Walkabout said in 1986, "it's worse."
Iranians help Hamas brace for attack
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By Abraham Rabinovich
Israel has drawn up detailed plans for a large-scale incursion. Photo / Reuters
Hamas is busily fortifying the Gaza Strip with the help of Iranian expertise and funding for what may be the fiercest fighting that embattled enclave has ever seen.
"They're digging bunkers and tunnels 20m underground equipped with air conditioning," said Brigadeer General Shalom Harari, a retired Israeli intelligence officer. "That's something the Iranians taught them."
Since Israel's withdrawal from Gaza a year and a half ago, hundreds of Hamas fighters have made their way to Iran for intensive military training sometimes lasting months, according to the head of the Shin Bet security service, Yuval Diskin. Iranian experts have also reportedly reached Gaza.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429205
Four soldiers killed in Shiite Baghdad
New 8:15AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Four US soldiers were killed in a roadside bombing in mainly Shiite eastern Baghdad and the military said it found a sophisticated weapon at the site of the type Washington believes is being supplied by Iran to Shiite militias.
Car bombings also struck Baghdad yesterday, killing at least 14 people.
Prince sues Fox News for fraud claims
7:15AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Prince Frederic von Anhalt has sued Fox News and talkshow host Bill O'Reilly after the latter called him a fraud for claiming he could be the father of Anna Nicole Smith's baby.
Von Anhalt, who is married to Zsa Zsa Gabor, filed the defamation suit seeking at least US$10 million ($14.5 million) in damages on Thursday.
Maoists kill officers in Indian jungle
6:15AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Forty-nine Indian policemen and local tribal militias were killed yesterday in an attack by Maoist guerrillas on a jungle security camp in the east of the country.
The rebels used hand grenades and petrol bombs in an attack that was said to underline the presence of Maoists in much of rural India where they have formed a "red corridor" stretching from the southern tip of India to Nepal.
continued ...
Wild camels 'mad with thirst' rampage outback
9:10AM Thursday March 15, 2007
By Kathy Marks
Two wild camels in front of rock monoliths known as The Olgas in central Australia. Photo / Reuters
They helped to build the Australian nation and had a cross-continental railway named after their handlers. But now the camel population here is wreaking havoc in the desert and remote communities because a desperate lack of water.
Wild camels, descendants of the beasts that helped early explorers to open up the country's vast arid interior, have rampaged through a settlement in Western Australia, trampling toilets, taps and air conditioners in a frenzied effort to find water.
A severe drought has exacerbated the problems posed by the animals, which cause damage to the environment, agriculture and property. They are "mad with thirst", according to Glenn Edwards, of the Northern Territory Parks and Wildlife Service.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=26&objectid=10428924
Global warming affecting investors' decisions
2:42PM Wednesday March 14, 2007
Global warming is starting to impact upon investors' decisions, a UK study shows.
A total 62 per cent of active investors say global warming could affect their investment decisions, following the UK's warmest 12-month period on record.
Some 14 per cent of 1000 active investors polled by Britain's Association of Investment Companies (AIC) said climate change would definitely affect their investment decisions and 48 per cent said it might do.
Annabel Brodie-Smith, communications director at the AIC, said: "With 2007 predicted to be the warmest year ever, it's obvious that global warming has become an issue for active investors."
The research, also undertaken among 2000 members of the general public, found that the public's biggest financial concern is another interest rate rise (19 per cent), whereas active investors' greatest worry is a stock market crash (36 per cent).
Some 71 per cent of active investors plan to use their individual savings account (ISA) allowance this year, compared to 31 per cent of the general public, the studies found.
The research was conducted online by YouGov amongst 2374 adults and by Hemscott amongst 1017 private high net worth investors.
- REUTERS
Sparks fly over forestry credits
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By Geoff Cumming
The war of words is generating enough heat to ignite the central North Island forests. Photo / Hawke's Bay Today
To thousands whose retirement comfort hinges on profits from felling trees, Roger Dickie is a white knight, battering down the Government's attempt to steal "their" carbon credits to offset the country's greenhouse gas excesses when our Kyoto obligations kick in next year.
To Agriculture and Forestry Minister Jim Anderton, Dickie - who has spent 30 years persuading mums and dads to invest in forests - is spreading "wilful ignorance and deceit" and needlessly fuelling deforestation.
Consultation meetings on the Government's climate change proposals for agriculture and forestry, unveiled in December, have been hijacked by a well-funded campaign fronted by Dickie's Kyoto Forestry Association and the larger Forest Owners Association. Act leader Rodney Hide and National's climate change spokesman Nick Smith have been fanning the flames in Parliament.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=26&objectid=10429169
Chance of a Doha breakthough 'remote'
5:00AM Wednesday March 14, 2007
By Brian Fallow
French Trade Minister Christine Lagarde in Wellington where she met Phil Goff. Photo / Mark Mitchell
The prospects of any decisive breakthrough in the Doha Round of world trade talks this year are remote, says French Trade Minister Christine Lagarde.
"My personal view? It's not impossible, but especially before the [mid-year] expiry of the Trade Promotion Authority [the US Administration's negotiating mandate from Congress] the prospects are remote," said Lagarde, who was in Wellington for talks with her New Zealand counterpart Phil Goff.
"In the areas of services and industrial products we are not making progress. Unless that happens and there is clear indication of progress and opportunities in places where we have offensive [as opposed to defensive] interests it's going to be extremely difficult to expect success. Because it cannot be a one-sided deal."
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=26&objectid=10428637
Dick Hubbard: Every city can help to save the planet
5:00AM Thursday March 15, 2007
I recently returned from a trip to Kyoto (at no expense to ratepayers) representing New Zealand mayors at a world mayors' conference on climate change. We sat in the assembly room where 10 years ago the Kyoto Protocol was agreed. I think future generations will regard it as a shrine.
Why should mayors be debating issues of world climate change that are seen as the domain of national governments?
Well, half the world's population now live in cities and globally that figure is increasing by one million people a week. Half the world's population uses 70 per cent of the world's energy.
The message from Kyoto is that cities can make a significant difference to greenhouse gas emissions within a short time, often without legislative change, just by changing practices within existing structures.
Small solutions having a major effect, often with no politics involved.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=26&objectid=10428795
CIA spy at heart of leak scandal speaks out
WASHINGTON - The ex-CIA spy at the heart of a scandal that snared Vice President Dick Cheney's top aide said today her undercover career was cut short when Bush administration officials revealed her identity.
Speaking publicly for the first time in the four years since a newspaper article blew her cover, Valerie Plame Wilson told a congressional committee: "I felt like I had been hit in the gut."
"I could no longer do the work which I had been trained to do," she said.
The much-anticipated testimony by the striking blonde, the subject of a photo spread in Vanity Fair magazine, drew dozens of reporters and photographers and was shown live on cable TV news channels.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429302
Monitors for dementia patients
New 8:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
The Palmerston North Red Cross is introducing tracking devices for dementia sufferers after two local men disappeared from rest homes last year and were later found dead.
Patients will be given pendants containing VHF transmitters that send out silent beeps to be monitored by an emergency response unit.
Mugabe accuses own officials of plotting with the West
8:30AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Robert Mugabe
HARARE - Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe accused officials in his own party of joining a Western-backed plot on Friday as the main opposition chief left hospital after treatment for what he said was an orgy of police beatings.
Morgan Tsvangirai, head of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), had been treated for a head wound and other injuries following his arrest on Sunday at an anti-Mugabe protest. He said he would fight on to end Mugabe's long rule.
"Freedom is not cheap," the 55-year-old Tsvangirai, who has challenged Mugabe in several elections, told Reuters at his home in the capital Harare shortly after he was discharged.
Images of a badly bruised and limping Tsvangirai on his way to the hospital earlier this week fuelled international outrage and threats by the United States and other nations to tighten sanctions against Mugabe and other senior Zimbabwean officials.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429303
Khmer Rouge trial rules agreed at last
8:30AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Tourists look at pictures of child victims of the Khmer Rouge on display at the Toul Sleng genocide museum in Phnom Penh. Photo / Reuters
PHNOM PENH - The trials of surviving Khmer Rouge leaders moved a big step closer on Friday as international and Cambodian judges said they had finally agreed on the rules of the tribunal.
"The review committee discussed in exhaustive detail many points and resolved all remaining disagreements, although some fine tuning remains to be done," they said in a statement at the end of 10 days of talks.
Disagreements which had held up the start of the tribunal, set up last year by Cambodia and the United Nations, ranged from admissibility of evidence and witness protection to the height of the judges' chairs.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429304
Ripped off for their art
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By Nick Squires
Some Aboriginal artists work in reputable art centres, while others are in squalor. Photo / Getty Images
Ngarlie Ellis applies the finishing touches to an intricate dot painting, its yellow and ochre patterns depicting an ancient Dreamtime story of a kangaroo spirit visiting a desert waterhole.
The 32-year-old is fortunate her canvas will be sold to a respectable gallery by the art centre in which she works in the isolated settlement of Ltyentye Apurte, 80km down a corrugated dirt track from Alice Springs.
But many other Aborigines are being ripped off by unscrupulous dealers who pay them with alcohol, drugs and worn-out second-hand vehicles, or corral them into squalid sweatshops where they are forced to churn out poor-quality paintings.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429240
Prison smuggling mystery
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By Elizabeth Binning
The doctor accused of helping a convicted rapist smuggle sperm out of Rimutaka prison has been cleared of any wrongdoing.
The Department of Corrections launched an investigation two weeks ago after it was revealed Peter McNamara's partner Joanne Percy had given birth at Tauranga Hospital in January.
The convicted rapist, who was granted leave from prison for the birth, initially told officials a prison-contracted doctor had helped smuggle his sperm out of prison.
This week a lawyer acting for the doctor wrote to media and Corrections saying his client had "absolutely nothing to do with it and had no knowledge of it whatsoever".
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10429267
Man arrested for biting off reporter's ear
9:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Doug Laing after the assault yesterday. Photo / Hawke's Bay today
Police have arrested a Lower Hutt man for the home invasion of a Napier journalist who had part of his ear bitten off.
Acting Detective Sergeant Nic Clere said a 27-year-old was arrested late yesterday afternoon after a house near the victim, Hawke's Day Today newspaper reporter Doug Laing's residence, was searched.
The man had been charged with wounding with intent and burglary and would appear in Napier District Court today.
Laing was at his home soon after midnight yesterday when a man smashed his way in and attacked him, biting part of his ear off.
Laing said he tried to fight off his attacker, who was "growling like an animal" and seemed intent on hurting him.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10429307
Star NCEA school looks at new exam
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By Claire Trevett and Elizabeth Binning
St Cuthbert's College - considered a poster-school for the NCEA because of its academic success and staunch defence of the qualification - is now considering offering an overseas qualification.
The private girls' school in Auckland has supported the National Certificate of Educational Achievement since its introduction and is one of the top performing schools under the system.
It is now considering whether to offer the Cambridge International Examinations or the International Baccalaureate as well as the NCEA.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10429284
Shagadelic - and the more the merrier
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By James Ihaka and Jon Stokes
Opening sequence still picture from the programme The Sex Life of Us.
Move over, younger generation. The middle-aged really do rock - when it comes to group sex, that is.
A Maori Television documentary, The Sex Life of Us, will show 15 per cent of those aged 45 to 54 have had group sex more than once, and up to 10 times.
The Sex Life of Us, presented by comedian Mike King and Stacey Morrison, bares all on the sexual preferences of the nation and looks at other matters going on between the sheets.
The show surveyed 1000 people, 400 of whom were Maori. The TNS-led research has a margin of error of 4.9 per cent.
While the figures don't quite match up with a claim by Clint Rickards' lawyer that "half the country is doing it", figures suggest that one in six Maori have had group sex more than once, compared with one in 10 non-Maori.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1501119/story.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=10429278
Exclusive Brethren's 'Elect Vessel' tours NZ
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By Louisa Cleave
Bruce Hales is rarely photographed.
The world leader of the Exclusive Brethren is touring New Zealand on a private jet, meeting members who know him as the Elect Vessel and the Man of God.
Sydney-based Bruce Hales was in Tauranga last night and his tour includes meetings at churches and private homes throughout the North Island, including Whangarei, Lower Hutt and Wanganui.
It is believed the publicity-shy Mr Hales is travelling with a personal bodyguard who has previously guarded Prime Minister Helen Clark as a member of the police diplomatic protection squad.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10429286
Cost of London 2012 Olympics soars to $25.9b
5:00PM Friday March 16, 2007
By Adrian Croft
A computer-generated view of the Aquatics Centre during the 2012 Games. Photo / Reuters
LONDON - The government more than doubled the estimated cost of staging the 2012 London Olympics to 9.3 billion pounds ($25.9 billion) today, drawing charges of "massive financial incompetence" from an opposition party.
Sports minister Tessa Jowell's announcement confirmed that the expense of staging the Olympics would be far higher than thought when Britain was awarded the games in July 2005.
London's bid estimated the cost of building the main Olympic sports infrastructure in east London at about 3 billion pounds and threw in another 1 billion pounds for regeneration of the dilapidated surrounding area.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429130
Fiji must hold elections by August next year, forum decides
7:00PM Friday March 16, 2007
South Pacific governments have decided to tell Fiji's military rulers they must hold free and fair elections by August next year.
Foreign Minister Winston Peters said after a meeting of South Pacific Forum representatives in Vanuatu today there was no tolerance of the coup last December that ousted Fiji's civilian government.
"I think the Fijian interim government knows that the international community means business, and so does the forum," he told NZPA.
"The decision taken today means, in effect, that they will be requested to have elections by August 2008."
Ministers representing 16 Forum member states considered a report prepared by an Eminent Persons Group of four respected regional figures which recommended Fiji return to democratic rule within 18 to 24 months.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429159
'Presidential' wines probed for fraud
\5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
A bottle from the Jefferson collection.
Three of the most expensive bottles of wine ever to be sold, each one worth more than $280,000, are at the centre of an FBI and US Justice Department investigation into the international trade in vintage wine after allegations of fraud. The inquiry also focuses on the role played by Christie's auction house in London.
The investigation will examine Christie's relationship with a controversial German wine merchant, Hardy Rodenstock, a former pop promoter who has a reputation for unearthing rare vintage wines that sell for huge sums. Rodenstock had a close relationship with a director of Christie's who was present at many of his exclusive vintage wine tastings.
In December 1985, Christie's sold one of Rodenstock's wines to US billionaire Malcolm Forbes for the record price of £105,000.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429217
Obituary: Hero Cherokee saw action in Vietnam
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Billy Walkabout, a Cherokee Indian whose actions in Vietnam made him one of the most decorated soldiers of the Vietnam War, has died, aged 57.
Walkabout received the Distinguished Service Cross, Purple Heart, five Silver Stars and five Bronze Stars. He was believed to be the most decorated Native American soldier of the war, according to US Department of Defence reports.
Walkabout died of pneumonia and renal failure. He had complications related to his exposure to the Agent Orange defoliant used during the Vietnam conflict and had been on a kidney transplant waiting list, having dialysis three times a week.
"War is not hell," Walkabout said in 1986, "it's worse."
Iranians help Hamas brace for attack
5:00AM Saturday March 17, 2007
By Abraham Rabinovich
Israel has drawn up detailed plans for a large-scale incursion. Photo / Reuters
Hamas is busily fortifying the Gaza Strip with the help of Iranian expertise and funding for what may be the fiercest fighting that embattled enclave has ever seen.
"They're digging bunkers and tunnels 20m underground equipped with air conditioning," said Brigadeer General Shalom Harari, a retired Israeli intelligence officer. "That's something the Iranians taught them."
Since Israel's withdrawal from Gaza a year and a half ago, hundreds of Hamas fighters have made their way to Iran for intensive military training sometimes lasting months, according to the head of the Shin Bet security service, Yuval Diskin. Iranian experts have also reportedly reached Gaza.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10429205
Four soldiers killed in Shiite Baghdad
New 8:15AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Four US soldiers were killed in a roadside bombing in mainly Shiite eastern Baghdad and the military said it found a sophisticated weapon at the site of the type Washington believes is being supplied by Iran to Shiite militias.
Car bombings also struck Baghdad yesterday, killing at least 14 people.
Prince sues Fox News for fraud claims
7:15AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Prince Frederic von Anhalt has sued Fox News and talkshow host Bill O'Reilly after the latter called him a fraud for claiming he could be the father of Anna Nicole Smith's baby.
Von Anhalt, who is married to Zsa Zsa Gabor, filed the defamation suit seeking at least US$10 million ($14.5 million) in damages on Thursday.
Maoists kill officers in Indian jungle
6:15AM Saturday March 17, 2007
Forty-nine Indian policemen and local tribal militias were killed yesterday in an attack by Maoist guerrillas on a jungle security camp in the east of the country.
The rebels used hand grenades and petrol bombs in an attack that was said to underline the presence of Maoists in much of rural India where they have formed a "red corridor" stretching from the southern tip of India to Nepal.
continued ...
Lance Mackey wins the Iditarod
Lance Mackey
Lucky 13 and a race for the ages
Published: March 15, 2007
Last Modified: March 15, 2007 at 03:27 AM
'Unreal" is the word Lance Mackey used on Nome's Front Street Tuesday night.
We'll take the champion's word for it.
It's as good a word as any to describe what he accomplished in a month of mushing this year. He and his dogs won their third straight Yukon Quest between Whitehorse in Canada's Yukon Territory and Fairbanks, took 10 days to regroup and refit, then won the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race from Anchorage to Nome.
"Unprecedented," was how four-time champion Jeff King described such an accomplishment earlier in the Iditarod, before Lance Mackey took command.
The 1,000-mile Yukon Quest and the 1,100-mile Iditarod. Back to back. By a cancer survivor suffering frostbite. A Hollywood writer would have no trouble selling the story.
The numbers add to the story: Lance Mackey won the Iditarod on his sixth try, just like his father, Dick (1978), and half-brother, Rick (1983). Like them, he wore bib number 13.
Is there a way to calculate the odds of this wonderful confluence of numbers and family and gumption actually coming true? For perspective, just what do you compare it to? You probably have to be a dog driver to fully appreciate what Lance Mackey has done. The rest of us can merely cast about for "likes," as in "That's like climbing Mount McKinley, taking a week off and then climbing Mount Everest," or "That's like a pitcher throwing a complete game shutout in the World Series, then coming back the next day on no rest and throwing another one," or "That's like winning the Tour de France, taking a week off, then winning it again against a fresh field of cyclists."
It's like nothing most of us know or ever will.
"Unreal" is an overused word, but not as Lance Mackey used it Tuesday night. He said the word while celebrating the reality of the deed.
After Rick Mackey won in 1983, Dick Mackey said the money was nice but didn't mean anything compared to the champion's belt buckle. The accomplishment and the adventure were for keeps.
Now the Mackeys count three among the 18 Iditarod champions.
The father of the Iditarod, the late Joe Redington Sr., would have had the right words for Lance Mackey:
"You done good."
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Lance Mackey first into Iditarod halfway point; missing musher found
Musher Sigrid Ekran, from Norway, drives her dog team out of the Takotna, Alaska checkpoint. (AP Photo/Al Grillo)
Eagles Vie with Landowners for Waterfront Property - Two Part Series. Very upsetting news.
The Eagle Web cam is presented by BioDiversity Research Institute and made possible through the generous support of FPL Energy Maine Hydro, National Wildlife Federation, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, and US Fish and Wildlife Service
This is an Eagle Webcam (click on). There are many around the nation. It is a real Eagle in a real nest. Beautiful bird and an incredible national symbol on the verge of be 'IN DANGER' of dwindling numbers again because George Walker Bush wants to remove them from the 'Endangered Species List.' I don't know about anyone else, but, I don't ever see an American Bald Eagle hunted and hanging over the mantle in any home.
Morning Papers - continued ...
Zoos
Smithsonian Book of Giant Pandas
Susan Lumpkin and John Seidensticker (2002)
On January 23, 1984, the giant panda was listed as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act. It is also protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). However, the preservation of the giant panda is not a matter of governments and international treaties alone. Rather, it is and has to be, as with all other endangered species, a multifaceted, worldwide effort that involves everyone—ordinary citizens and officials alike.
The Smithsonian Book of Giant Pandas was written with just such an effort in mind. In it, Susan Lumpkin, director of communications of Friends of the National Zoo, and John Seidensticker, senior scientist at the Smithsonian Zoological Park, share their understanding of, and personal experience with, giant pandas in the United States and China. They also describe the panda’s natural and cultural history and discuss problems in preserving the species. More than 170 full-color photos accompany the text and illustrate in beautiful detail the giant panda, newborn to full-grown, in its natural habitat and in zoos.
http://advocacy.britannica.com/blog/advocacy/2007/03/smithsonian-book-of-giant-pandas/
Los Angeles Zoo's African Elephant Moves
2007-03-13 00:40:55 -
LOS ANGELES, March 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Los Angeles Zoo Director John Lewis today jointly announced that, after years of helping to educate the Southern California community about elephants, Ruby the elephant will be moved to the Performing Animal Welfare Society in Northern California (PAWS). The 46-year old African elephant has led a fulfilling life at the Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens (LA Zoo) where she has lived for nearly 10 active and healthy years.
The Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association (GLAZA), the nonprofit organization created to support the LA Zoo and representing 70,000 member households (more than 300,000 individuals), has closely followed today's decision.
"Ruby has played a vital role in educating the 1.5 million annual visitors to the LA Zoo about elephants," said Tom Mankiewicz, Chairman of the Board of Trustees for GLAZA. "Ruby's contribution to the education of millions of children and families, who were lucky enough to see her during her stay at the LA Zoo, indebts us all to this wonderful animal. This was the right decision for this animal at this time, and we send our best wishes as she enters a new chapter in her life."
http://www.pr-inside.com/rss/los-angeles-zoos-african-elephant-moves-r63313.htm
Petting zoo at the rodeo
Lana Berkowitz
The petting zoo is a favorite place to visit.
There are about 95 animals in the two free petting zoos set up in Reliant Center's AGventure as part of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. Maura Rosie knows all of them on a first-name basis.
She pointed out Ruby, the 6-month-old kangaroo that was resting in a red sling; Terry the goat, who had the nibbles for shirt tails; and Gretchen, another goat, who thought a notebook would be a tasty treat Monday morning.
"It's like having a class," said Rosie, who manages the menagerie. "You learn their names."
Rosie helped raise many of the animals that are part of a traveling exhibit from Kids and Critters in Medford, Oregon.
The deer, goats, potbellied pigs, wallabys, llamas, miniature donkeys and sheep grew up in the zoo and enjoy human attention.
http://blogs.chron.com/tmi/2007/03/post_35.html
Peacocks Threaten Quiet Bucks Co. Street
Imagine. Being in your house in a quiet cul-de-sac while, outside, a menace lurks. Four menaces, actually. How would you deal with the multiple menaces, almost enough for a basketball team, who could be lurking right around the corner of your deceptively-small single home?
That's the situation in Bucks County, where peacocks are running free on Dublin Way in East Rockhill. The blue-and-green menaces are... wait, peacocks? That's all? Zoos don't even lock up peacocks. Zoos! And they don't even let sheep roam free. Sheep!
So, yeah, the residents of Dublin Way are all nasty and pissed off because there are peacocks in their neighborhood. Me, I'd think that was awesome, a giant peacock roaming down Spruce Street. I'd attach a little stop sign to its feathers so the cars know not to hit it.
However, these whiny suburbanites might not get their wish anyway. As KYW 1060 reports:
Pennridge Regional police chief David Mettin says police do not have any way to catch wild peacocks, and "it's not something police get involved in."
You hear that? The popo will protect the rights of the peacocks, whether you like it or not!
http://willdo.philadelphiaweekly.com/archives/2007/03/peacocks_threat.html
West Meade playwright looks at world through zoos
By SARAH B. GILLIAM | sgilliam@tennessean.com | 259-8066
Sonia Justl plays a right-wing newscaster in the Baghdad Zoo play, one of six short political plays in the Zoologies collection by Christine Mather. Centrist newscaster Ashley Beam and left-wing newscaster Phil Perry acted out possible zoo scenarios while Justl described the scene. (SARAH B. GILLIAM / THE TENNESSEAN)
Ashley Beam plays a centrist newscaster in the Zoologies rehearsal, a series by West Meade resident and playwright Christine Mather. Phil Perry and Sonia Justl act as right-wing and left-wing newscasters in a scene from the Baghdad Zoo. (SARAH B. GILLIAM / THE TENNESSEAN)
Zoologies director Marc Mazzone
Zoologies playwright Christine Mather, a West Meade resident
If you go
Tickets for the shows at Bongo After Hours Theatre, 2007 Belmont Blvd., are $12, $10 for students and seniors. Zoologies contains strong language and is most suitable for mature teenagers and adults.
Call 352-3806 for reservations/more information for the show and/or the preview.
Six-play 'Zoologies' examines human drama through animals from Baghdad to New Orleans
"Save the zoos, save the world," is the message West Meade resident and playwright Christine Mather hopes to portray in her six plays titled "Zoologies."
The plays will be performed at 7:30 p.m. March 22, 23, 24, 29, 20 and 31 at Bongo After Hours Theatre.
"The plays use our strong connection to animals to dramatize concerns from Baghdad to New Orleans in an amusing and provocative way," she said. "We need to take care of the things we say we're going to be responsible for. If we take animals out of the wild or raise them domestically or in zoos, we are making a commitment. We're saying you aren't on your own, you're dependent on us. That is really true of everything."
http://my.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070312/MICRO02020602/703140322
Koala’s mission: Just mate, mate
The skittish new male koala at Riverbanks Zoo might never be seen by the public, but zoo officials throughout the world hope people will see plenty of his descendants.
This 5-year-old male, named Great, has the right genetic stuff to diversify, and thus strengthen, the captive koala population worldwide. That’s why he was transported via jet Monday from the San Diego Zoo to join the two female koalas at Riverbanks.
Koalas are found in the wild only in Australia, which strictly limits the export of its iconic species.
The few koalas shipped to zoos outside Australia decades ago generated two main family lines — those bred in Japanese zoos and those bred at the San Diego Zoo. Experts worry the lack of genetic diversity in those families could make the koalas more susceptible to diseases and skeletal injuries.
http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/16896795.htm
Georgian's veterinary program scores top marks
Date: Mar 15, 2007
The Canadian Council on Animal Care recently awarded Georgian College's Veterinary Technician program one of its highest honours - accreditation as a "Good Animal Practice" facility.
"This is a big deal for us," said Tine Curran, program co-ordinator at the Orillia campus, adding that accreditation is not easy to attain.
"The Council's requirements are very detailed and stringent, as they should be. We were fortunate that we were able to research and plan ahead of building construction to ensure our on-site veterinary hospital was correctly built to exceed standards."
Faculty and advisors worked closely with architects to ensure the $800,000 facility maximized teaching and learning opportunities. The 3,800-square-foot hospital, which contains examination rooms, X-ray and surgical suites, officially opened in February 2003.
The Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC), established in 1968, is responsible for setting and maintaining standards for the care and use of animals used in research, teaching or testing.
The CCAC believes that the humane care and use of animals should be the prime concern and responsibility of all individuals using animals for research, teaching or testing.
http://www.simcoe.com/article/34312
Sea World pledges penguins will return
Gold Coast theme park Sea World says it will rebuild its population of fairy penguins after a mystery toxin killed 25 of them in the past week.
The toxin, which is still in the process of being identified, attacks the brain, kidneys and liver of penguins.
The birds became ill on Thursday last week and by the weekend, 25 of the 37 penguins at the park were dead.
Sea World vets have isolated the surviving penguins while tests were being carried out.
Sea World marine sciences director Trevor Long said the 12 surviving penguins were in quarantine and the population would be rebuilt.
"We're very fortunate in that we've got a good group of birds in Australia," Mr Long told ABC Radio.
"There are birds in all zoos in Australia and there's a good stud book, so we'll be communicating with the stud book coordinator and with the other zoos, getting surplus birds and breeding back up.
"We've still got a reasonable mixture of genetics ourselves, so we'll be able to continue breeding."
Department of Primary Industries (DPI) general manager of animal biosecurity Ron Glanville said disease already had been ruled out, while tests for bird flu also had proved negative.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/sea-world-pledges-penguin-willl-return/2007/03/15/1173722603773.html
Sea World penguins 'pining for dead mates'
The mysterious deaths of 25 fairy penguins at a Queensland theme park would have a devastating effect on the surviving birds because fairy penguins mate for life, says a Victorian expert.
As an urgent investigation continues into what killed the penguins at Sea World on the Gold Coast, Ros Jessup, a spokeswoman for Victoria's Penguin Parade at Phillip Island, said the surviving penguins would pine for their dead mates.
"They would have a group dynamic and there would be pair bonds between the pairs that are breeding," Ms Jessup told ABC radio.
"The divorce rate in penguins is a little bit less than in humans, so those (surviving) penguins will be looking for their partners."
http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/sea-world-penguins-pining-for-dead-mates/2007/03/14/1173722518143.html
Cabin fever cures: Zoo and golf
At last, sun warms the outdoor adventurer
BY QUAN TRUONG | QTRUONG@ENQUIRER.COM
Grab the kids, fill up the van and don't forget the camera.
After a late but frigid winter, Greater Cincinnati was rewarded with an early spring Friday when temperatures nearly broke 70 degrees.
Thousands of people shook off the winter blahs and headed for the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden.
About 2,500 people showed up Friday, five times the daily average for March, zoo officials said.
"Lots of moms and strollers and minivans covered the parking lot," spokesman Chad Yelton said. "It sure was a sign of spring - sounds and sights we haven't seen in some time with this weather."
Local golf courses are getting busy, too.
"With this kind of weather, they'll come out of the woodwork to play golf," said Tom Ellis, an employee at Elks Run in Batavia.
Elks Run picked the perfect day to open for the season on Friday, with more than 60 people stopping in by late afternoon for their fix of golf.
In North Bend, about half of the 90 golfers at Aston Oaks were walk-ins.
http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070310/NEWS01/703100359/1077/COL02
Pale pink flamingos at the zoo
Wikipedia says that a flamingo with pale coloring usually means it is not healthy. At the same time, it does not seem to be uncommon for flamingos in captivity to appear pale not necessarily because they are unhealthy but because due of insufficient amounts of carotene in their diet.
I’m not an expert in flamingos but these birds don’t look unhealthy to me. They appear to be talking to one another.
http://www.pearloftheorientseas.com/2007/03/10/pale-pink-flamingos-at-the-zoo/
Zoo in Zurich
Funny campaign by Zurich Zoo. Text: “Our animals love visitors”. Agency: Publicis. -Quang.
http://haha.nu/creative/zoo-in-zurich/
Black Bears, Bobcats In New Home At Zoo
PORTLAND - The Oregon Zoo has added a $36 million expansion containing wildlife of the great Northwest.
The new exhibit was unveiled Friday morning. It features a new home for black bears that can be viewed by visitors from a 100 foot long suspension bridge. The bears will roam about 14 feet below the bridge.
Gerry, the 305 pound black bear, has a new home after living in a different part of the zoo more than a decade ago. New friends Pete and Homer are also on display. The new wild-born bears are named for Homer and Petersburg, Ala., near where they were orphaned.
A pair of bobcats can also be found in the new exhibit. Bears and bobcats are naturally reclusive. The exhibit explains how humans are encroaching on their lives.
3/10/2007
http://www.koin.com/Global/story.asp?S=6208402
Rare banded linsang born at zoo
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (UPI) -- A banded linsang, the rarest member of the civet family, has given birth at the Taiping Zoo in Malaysia.
The month-old linsang is the first born in captivity in Malaysia, the Malaysia Star reported.
'It`s a beautiful animal but very little is known about the banded linsang, not even the female`s gestation period or mating cycles,' Kevin Lazarus, the zoo director, told reporters at a news conference. 'We missed the mating, otherwise we could have gauged the gestation period.'
The banded linsang is a member of the family of viveridae, catlike mammals that include civets and genets. The banded linsang is found only in the rain forests of Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia and is totally protected throughout its range.
http://science.monstersandcritics.com/news/article_1275567.php/Rare_banded_linsang_born_at_zoo
Zoo Day Celebrated with Animal Birth
It was anything but a lazy day for the animals and their keepers. For the first time in 18 years the Jackson Zoological Park celebrated the AT&T Zoo Day.
Mississippi musicians entertained families as they made their way through the zoo. Children enjoyed games and educational exhibits, while parents visited arts and crafts booths from local artists. Zoo officials planned a number of fun activities, but it was an unscheduled event that became the Zoo Day main attraction.
On Saturday, Christopher Mims with the Jackson Zoo said, "One of the most exciting things that happened today was we had a birth. Our tapir gave birth in front of thousands of visitors around 11:00 today. And it was just so extraordinary, so we've just had a wonderful day."
The baby tapir took his first steps while visitors looked on. Zoo officials say both mother and baby are doing well.
http://www.wlbt.com/Global/story.asp?S=6209632&nav=2CSf
Detroit Zoo has volunteer opportunities for lovers of animals, nature
For Ellen Gruskin of Oak Park, Evelyn Silverman of Southfield and Gini Sutherland of Birmingham, the Detroit Zoo is not just a place to volunteer; it is their passion. The three women were part of the zoo's first docent class of 1977 and for 30 years they have been actively educating thousands of visitors about the zoo's animals and habitats.
"There were 300 applicants for 30 available docent positions that first year and I was thrilled to be chosen," recalls Gruskin. "Little did I know I'd be embarking on an adventure that would captivate me for so many years." Born and raised in the Detroit area, Gruskin loved the zoo as a child and still treasures her original red Zoo Key.
Silverman's interest in the zoo's docent program was piqued when she spotted an article in the newspaper. "I thought I'd enjoy being outdoors, learning new things, and communicating with diverse groups of people," she said. Silverman enjoyed it so much, she recruited her sister and several friends into the docent program.
http://www.hometownlife.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070311/NEWS25/703110586/1019/rss02
Taking good care of Lulu at the Toledo Zoo
The zoo’s rhino gets lots of attention, especially after an eye problem surfaced
Ms. Gould is the rhino's confidante as well as caretaker.
( THE BLADE/JETTA FRASER )
By JENNI LAIDMAN
BLADE SCIENCE WRITER
Every day is spa day for Lulu. First she showers. Then, while her skin still glistens with moisture, she gets a rubdown to exfoliate dead cells.
Next, the pedicure.
Zoo keeper Robin Gould doesn’t look the part of beautician in her boots and khakis, but to Lulu she’s stylist, personal trainer, confidante.
“Come here, sweet pea,” Ms. Gould said in a lilting falsetto. The 4,300-pound white rhinoceros toook a step forward, her massive body swaying. Then she paused to rub her flank on the bars of the stall. “Come on. Move up,” Ms. Gould said gently. “You have to be patient with rhinos. They just don’t move like that,” she explained, snapping her fingers.
She has a knack with rhinos. She can lie on the ground and trim Lulu’s toes with a woodworking tool, and not get stepped on by the constantly swaying giant.
“If she doesn’t trust you, how are you going to take care of her?” Ms. Gould said. She and Lulu recently proved the importance of such trust.
http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070311/NEWS38/70311011
A trip to the зоопарк ('zoo park')
This morning, Selma and I met up with our translator, Yulia Zmulyukova, and her boyfriend Dima, and we took a walking tour of the city. We spent a few hours exploring the Kharkiv Zoo, which is 111 years old.
The zoo is right near my house. Admission costs 10 grivni -- $2 -- for adults. Here are some random photos. You'll find more on my Google Picasa Web Album at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jeffrey.south/KharkivZoo
http://jeff-south.blogspot.com/2007/03/trip-to-zoo-park.html
Milwaukee County Zoo brings millions to Milwaukee County
UWM study demonstrates zoo's economic impact
The Milwaukee County Zoo has a total annual economic impact of $112 million annually in the four-county region, according to a University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee study.
Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker said Wednesday that the zoo is a magnet and has a profound impact on the economy of the four-county area, which includes Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Washington and Waukesha counties.
Walker said the finding, which was completed by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Institute for Survey and Policy Research, showed that the zoo was a very shrewd investment.
The total estimated direct and indirect impact of the Milwaukee County Zoo on the four- county area is $112.1 million in output, $38.1 million in earnings and 1,297 jobs, the study found.
Walker said the study showed that the zoo has direct economic contributions from out-of-area visitors expenditures of about $56.7 million in output, $18 million in earnings and 795 jobs. Direct economic contributions from future construction are estimated to be $10.7 million in output, $3 million in earnings and 105 jobs, he said.
http://www.uwmpost.com/article/c58b6a051109ce0c0111439bbdff004f
State zoo turning into major research centre
By A Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI, March 11 – Slowly the Assam State Zoo is being transformed to embrace a larger range of objectives. The artificial refuge of more than 700 species of wildlife, the facility is now being shaped into a major research arena, which could further help educate the masses on various aspects of biodiversity. Spread over 175 hectare, the State Zoo is now in the midst of a complete overhaul with bigger, scientifically constructed enclosures replicating the natural habitat of the residents, better information dispensing equipment, and more research activities, especially involving wildlife difficult to study in their natural habitat.
Narayan Mahanta the zoo DFO told The Assam Tribune that the facility has been expanded to meet the objectives of captive breeding, research and education, apart from conservation of flora and fauna, which has already been there. “The stress is on research on the endemic wildlife of the North East, many of which are rare and endangered. Captive breeding programmes are already going on and among those which have been successful concern the one-horned rhino, tiger, golden langur, jungle cat to name a few. Plans are on to increase the number of species, which could be bred in captivity.
http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/details.asp?id=mar1207/at06
Naples Zoo kicks off ‘Save the Panther Week’By Jennifer Brannock (Contact)
Monday, March 12, 2007
Florida panthers may be elusive in the wild, but they’re appearing all over Naples this week.
Coordinators kicked off opening day of “Save the Panther Week” at the Naples Zoo on Sunday morning. Volunteers with several environmental and animal agencies gathered along the zoo corridor near the panther exhibit to distribute information on the endangered species.
While viewing the two panthers housed at the zoo, visitors chatted with experts about the importance of land conservation for and protection of the panther.
“This is a way for us to draw attention to an endangered species that attracts children and adults as well,” said Leslie Walker, volunteer naturalist for J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island.
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2007/mar/12/naples_zoo_kicks_save_panther_week/?local_news
Zoo growth plan on table this week
March 12, 2007
BLANK PARK ZOO officials want to add $50 million in exhibits and attractions. The 10-year plan requires space, so they have considered part of Fort Des Moines Park, which is controlled by the Polk County Conservation Board.
FORT DES MOINES PARK has more than 100 acres. It includes a fishing lake, a playground, shelters and a rare stand of oak trees. Peter Heimdahl of the Save Fort Des Moines Committee fears that "public green space is fair game" if parkland is used for a zoo project.
THE IDEA of a zoo expansion into Fort Des Moines Park has been talked about for about 18 months. After preservationists objected, the plan was modified to expand the zoo into a portion of the Blank Park Golf Course. That idea was abandoned when the zoo's consultant said it would take years to develop the space, while the park offered a turnkey move.
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070312/NEWS05/703120334/-1/SPORTS09
L.A. Zoo to retire elephant to animal sanctuary
Animal rights activists praise decision on Ruby, which ends months of speculation on her fate.
By Carla Hall, Times Staff Writer
March 12, 2007
The Los Angeles Zoo is expected to announce today that it is retiring its female African elephant, Ruby, to an animal sanctuary in Central California.
The decision ends months of speculation over whether the pachyderm would go to another zoo or a sanctuary, and was praised by animal rights activists who lobbied for several years for her retirement to a preserve.
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who has expressed concern about the conditions for elephants at the L.A. Zoo, plans to discuss the decision to relocate Ruby at a news conference today.
"I am very pleased that the city and the zoo recognize that it's best to send Ruby to a sanctuary, which unlike a zoo can provide the vast space and natural conditions that elephants need," Catherine Doyle, elephant campaign director for In Defense of Animals, said Sunday night.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-ruby12mar12,0,4279339.story?coll=la-home-headlines
Moscow Zoo changes to spring schedule
12.03.2007
With the beginning of spring Moscow Zoo has prepared some surprises for visitors. First of all the zoo administration has prolonged working hours – now the zoo works daily (except Monday) 10am-18pm; ticket offices work till 5pm.
Secondly, the zoo has opened a website moscowzoo.ru, which contains not only maps, lists of animals, and other visitor information, but also web cameras set in two cages with image updating every 20 seconds. Unfortunately, English version of the website is not available, but one can find the web cameras here.
One more innovation is a new giant monument on the central square of the zoo – a figure of the Moa bird which became extinct 300 years ago.
Source: www.kp.ru
http://www.russia-ic.com/news/show/3587/
Maryland Zoo's Baby Penguin Gets Novel Operation
When workers at the zoo noticed the penguin stumbling shortly after he was born they began a slew of tests to examine his condition. Veterinarians found the bird's vertebrae were angled abnormally. At first they thought he might still be able to function normally because they had seen a similar but less-serious problem before.
"We were wrong; he started having trouble walking and eventually was tumbling over," Bradford said.
Zoo veterinarians sent the yet to be named penguin - whose coat will remain gray until he reaches adulthood - to get an MRI at the IAMS Pet Imaging Center in Northern Virginia. The imaging confirmed what veterinarians feared, the hump on his back was the result of vertebrae misalignment, resulting in the need for a complicated procedure - the first of its kind for a penguin.
http://penguinsland.blogspot.com/2007/03/maryland-zoos-baby-penguin-gets-novel.html
Miller Park Zoo could get new hospital
03/12/2007 04:43:48
Miller Park Zoo is hoping to build a new animal hospital so animals can get more medical care in-house. Tonight, the city council will vote on a plan for a $400,000 facility for the zoo. Zoo director John Tobias says now, the zoo has a few lab rooms in the basement of the zoo, and often has to take animals across town to a clinic. In that case, the animals are exposed to many other diseases. He says the zoo needs its own hospital...
Listen:
Tobias says the new hospital would include a treatment room, operating room, recovery room, quarantine space, and facilities for staff. It would go west of the feline exhibit, and would have a window into the treatment room so that visitors can watch procedures being done. Tobias hopes the hospital could be finished by September.
The new hospital is included in phase one of the Zoo's Operation Roar, which will also result in the renovation of the Katthoefer Animal Building, built in 1914.
http://www.wjbc.com/wire2/news/00396_Zoo-Hospital-1-web_054358.htm
Smithsonian Book of Giant Pandas
Susan Lumpkin and John Seidensticker (2002)
On January 23, 1984, the giant panda was listed as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act. It is also protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). However, the preservation of the giant panda is not a matter of governments and international treaties alone. Rather, it is and has to be, as with all other endangered species, a multifaceted, worldwide effort that involves everyone—ordinary citizens and officials alike.
The Smithsonian Book of Giant Pandas was written with just such an effort in mind. In it, Susan Lumpkin, director of communications of Friends of the National Zoo, and John Seidensticker, senior scientist at the Smithsonian Zoological Park, share their understanding of, and personal experience with, giant pandas in the United States and China. They also describe the panda’s natural and cultural history and discuss problems in preserving the species. More than 170 full-color photos accompany the text and illustrate in beautiful detail the giant panda, newborn to full-grown, in its natural habitat and in zoos.
http://advocacy.britannica.com/blog/advocacy/2007/03/smithsonian-book-of-giant-pandas/
Los Angeles Zoo's African Elephant Moves
2007-03-13 00:40:55 -
LOS ANGELES, March 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Los Angeles Zoo Director John Lewis today jointly announced that, after years of helping to educate the Southern California community about elephants, Ruby the elephant will be moved to the Performing Animal Welfare Society in Northern California (PAWS). The 46-year old African elephant has led a fulfilling life at the Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens (LA Zoo) where she has lived for nearly 10 active and healthy years.
The Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association (GLAZA), the nonprofit organization created to support the LA Zoo and representing 70,000 member households (more than 300,000 individuals), has closely followed today's decision.
"Ruby has played a vital role in educating the 1.5 million annual visitors to the LA Zoo about elephants," said Tom Mankiewicz, Chairman of the Board of Trustees for GLAZA. "Ruby's contribution to the education of millions of children and families, who were lucky enough to see her during her stay at the LA Zoo, indebts us all to this wonderful animal. This was the right decision for this animal at this time, and we send our best wishes as she enters a new chapter in her life."
http://www.pr-inside.com/rss/los-angeles-zoos-african-elephant-moves-r63313.htm
Petting zoo at the rodeo
Lana Berkowitz
The petting zoo is a favorite place to visit.
There are about 95 animals in the two free petting zoos set up in Reliant Center's AGventure as part of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. Maura Rosie knows all of them on a first-name basis.
She pointed out Ruby, the 6-month-old kangaroo that was resting in a red sling; Terry the goat, who had the nibbles for shirt tails; and Gretchen, another goat, who thought a notebook would be a tasty treat Monday morning.
"It's like having a class," said Rosie, who manages the menagerie. "You learn their names."
Rosie helped raise many of the animals that are part of a traveling exhibit from Kids and Critters in Medford, Oregon.
The deer, goats, potbellied pigs, wallabys, llamas, miniature donkeys and sheep grew up in the zoo and enjoy human attention.
http://blogs.chron.com/tmi/2007/03/post_35.html
Peacocks Threaten Quiet Bucks Co. Street
Imagine. Being in your house in a quiet cul-de-sac while, outside, a menace lurks. Four menaces, actually. How would you deal with the multiple menaces, almost enough for a basketball team, who could be lurking right around the corner of your deceptively-small single home?
That's the situation in Bucks County, where peacocks are running free on Dublin Way in East Rockhill. The blue-and-green menaces are... wait, peacocks? That's all? Zoos don't even lock up peacocks. Zoos! And they don't even let sheep roam free. Sheep!
So, yeah, the residents of Dublin Way are all nasty and pissed off because there are peacocks in their neighborhood. Me, I'd think that was awesome, a giant peacock roaming down Spruce Street. I'd attach a little stop sign to its feathers so the cars know not to hit it.
However, these whiny suburbanites might not get their wish anyway. As KYW 1060 reports:
Pennridge Regional police chief David Mettin says police do not have any way to catch wild peacocks, and "it's not something police get involved in."
You hear that? The popo will protect the rights of the peacocks, whether you like it or not!
http://willdo.philadelphiaweekly.com/archives/2007/03/peacocks_threat.html
West Meade playwright looks at world through zoos
By SARAH B. GILLIAM | sgilliam@tennessean.com | 259-8066
Sonia Justl plays a right-wing newscaster in the Baghdad Zoo play, one of six short political plays in the Zoologies collection by Christine Mather. Centrist newscaster Ashley Beam and left-wing newscaster Phil Perry acted out possible zoo scenarios while Justl described the scene. (SARAH B. GILLIAM / THE TENNESSEAN)
Ashley Beam plays a centrist newscaster in the Zoologies rehearsal, a series by West Meade resident and playwright Christine Mather. Phil Perry and Sonia Justl act as right-wing and left-wing newscasters in a scene from the Baghdad Zoo. (SARAH B. GILLIAM / THE TENNESSEAN)
Zoologies director Marc Mazzone
Zoologies playwright Christine Mather, a West Meade resident
If you go
Tickets for the shows at Bongo After Hours Theatre, 2007 Belmont Blvd., are $12, $10 for students and seniors. Zoologies contains strong language and is most suitable for mature teenagers and adults.
Call 352-3806 for reservations/more information for the show and/or the preview.
Six-play 'Zoologies' examines human drama through animals from Baghdad to New Orleans
"Save the zoos, save the world," is the message West Meade resident and playwright Christine Mather hopes to portray in her six plays titled "Zoologies."
The plays will be performed at 7:30 p.m. March 22, 23, 24, 29, 20 and 31 at Bongo After Hours Theatre.
"The plays use our strong connection to animals to dramatize concerns from Baghdad to New Orleans in an amusing and provocative way," she said. "We need to take care of the things we say we're going to be responsible for. If we take animals out of the wild or raise them domestically or in zoos, we are making a commitment. We're saying you aren't on your own, you're dependent on us. That is really true of everything."
http://my.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070312/MICRO02020602/703140322
Koala’s mission: Just mate, mate
The skittish new male koala at Riverbanks Zoo might never be seen by the public, but zoo officials throughout the world hope people will see plenty of his descendants.
This 5-year-old male, named Great, has the right genetic stuff to diversify, and thus strengthen, the captive koala population worldwide. That’s why he was transported via jet Monday from the San Diego Zoo to join the two female koalas at Riverbanks.
Koalas are found in the wild only in Australia, which strictly limits the export of its iconic species.
The few koalas shipped to zoos outside Australia decades ago generated two main family lines — those bred in Japanese zoos and those bred at the San Diego Zoo. Experts worry the lack of genetic diversity in those families could make the koalas more susceptible to diseases and skeletal injuries.
http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/16896795.htm
Georgian's veterinary program scores top marks
Date: Mar 15, 2007
The Canadian Council on Animal Care recently awarded Georgian College's Veterinary Technician program one of its highest honours - accreditation as a "Good Animal Practice" facility.
"This is a big deal for us," said Tine Curran, program co-ordinator at the Orillia campus, adding that accreditation is not easy to attain.
"The Council's requirements are very detailed and stringent, as they should be. We were fortunate that we were able to research and plan ahead of building construction to ensure our on-site veterinary hospital was correctly built to exceed standards."
Faculty and advisors worked closely with architects to ensure the $800,000 facility maximized teaching and learning opportunities. The 3,800-square-foot hospital, which contains examination rooms, X-ray and surgical suites, officially opened in February 2003.
The Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC), established in 1968, is responsible for setting and maintaining standards for the care and use of animals used in research, teaching or testing.
The CCAC believes that the humane care and use of animals should be the prime concern and responsibility of all individuals using animals for research, teaching or testing.
http://www.simcoe.com/article/34312
Sea World pledges penguins will return
Gold Coast theme park Sea World says it will rebuild its population of fairy penguins after a mystery toxin killed 25 of them in the past week.
The toxin, which is still in the process of being identified, attacks the brain, kidneys and liver of penguins.
The birds became ill on Thursday last week and by the weekend, 25 of the 37 penguins at the park were dead.
Sea World vets have isolated the surviving penguins while tests were being carried out.
Sea World marine sciences director Trevor Long said the 12 surviving penguins were in quarantine and the population would be rebuilt.
"We're very fortunate in that we've got a good group of birds in Australia," Mr Long told ABC Radio.
"There are birds in all zoos in Australia and there's a good stud book, so we'll be communicating with the stud book coordinator and with the other zoos, getting surplus birds and breeding back up.
"We've still got a reasonable mixture of genetics ourselves, so we'll be able to continue breeding."
Department of Primary Industries (DPI) general manager of animal biosecurity Ron Glanville said disease already had been ruled out, while tests for bird flu also had proved negative.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/sea-world-pledges-penguin-willl-return/2007/03/15/1173722603773.html
Sea World penguins 'pining for dead mates'
The mysterious deaths of 25 fairy penguins at a Queensland theme park would have a devastating effect on the surviving birds because fairy penguins mate for life, says a Victorian expert.
As an urgent investigation continues into what killed the penguins at Sea World on the Gold Coast, Ros Jessup, a spokeswoman for Victoria's Penguin Parade at Phillip Island, said the surviving penguins would pine for their dead mates.
"They would have a group dynamic and there would be pair bonds between the pairs that are breeding," Ms Jessup told ABC radio.
"The divorce rate in penguins is a little bit less than in humans, so those (surviving) penguins will be looking for their partners."
http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/sea-world-penguins-pining-for-dead-mates/2007/03/14/1173722518143.html
Cabin fever cures: Zoo and golf
At last, sun warms the outdoor adventurer
BY QUAN TRUONG | QTRUONG@ENQUIRER.COM
Grab the kids, fill up the van and don't forget the camera.
After a late but frigid winter, Greater Cincinnati was rewarded with an early spring Friday when temperatures nearly broke 70 degrees.
Thousands of people shook off the winter blahs and headed for the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden.
About 2,500 people showed up Friday, five times the daily average for March, zoo officials said.
"Lots of moms and strollers and minivans covered the parking lot," spokesman Chad Yelton said. "It sure was a sign of spring - sounds and sights we haven't seen in some time with this weather."
Local golf courses are getting busy, too.
"With this kind of weather, they'll come out of the woodwork to play golf," said Tom Ellis, an employee at Elks Run in Batavia.
Elks Run picked the perfect day to open for the season on Friday, with more than 60 people stopping in by late afternoon for their fix of golf.
In North Bend, about half of the 90 golfers at Aston Oaks were walk-ins.
http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070310/NEWS01/703100359/1077/COL02
Pale pink flamingos at the zoo
Wikipedia says that a flamingo with pale coloring usually means it is not healthy. At the same time, it does not seem to be uncommon for flamingos in captivity to appear pale not necessarily because they are unhealthy but because due of insufficient amounts of carotene in their diet.
I’m not an expert in flamingos but these birds don’t look unhealthy to me. They appear to be talking to one another.
http://www.pearloftheorientseas.com/2007/03/10/pale-pink-flamingos-at-the-zoo/
Zoo in Zurich
Funny campaign by Zurich Zoo. Text: “Our animals love visitors”. Agency: Publicis. -Quang.
http://haha.nu/creative/zoo-in-zurich/
Black Bears, Bobcats In New Home At Zoo
PORTLAND - The Oregon Zoo has added a $36 million expansion containing wildlife of the great Northwest.
The new exhibit was unveiled Friday morning. It features a new home for black bears that can be viewed by visitors from a 100 foot long suspension bridge. The bears will roam about 14 feet below the bridge.
Gerry, the 305 pound black bear, has a new home after living in a different part of the zoo more than a decade ago. New friends Pete and Homer are also on display. The new wild-born bears are named for Homer and Petersburg, Ala., near where they were orphaned.
A pair of bobcats can also be found in the new exhibit. Bears and bobcats are naturally reclusive. The exhibit explains how humans are encroaching on their lives.
3/10/2007
http://www.koin.com/Global/story.asp?S=6208402
Rare banded linsang born at zoo
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (UPI) -- A banded linsang, the rarest member of the civet family, has given birth at the Taiping Zoo in Malaysia.
The month-old linsang is the first born in captivity in Malaysia, the Malaysia Star reported.
'It`s a beautiful animal but very little is known about the banded linsang, not even the female`s gestation period or mating cycles,' Kevin Lazarus, the zoo director, told reporters at a news conference. 'We missed the mating, otherwise we could have gauged the gestation period.'
The banded linsang is a member of the family of viveridae, catlike mammals that include civets and genets. The banded linsang is found only in the rain forests of Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia and is totally protected throughout its range.
http://science.monstersandcritics.com/news/article_1275567.php/Rare_banded_linsang_born_at_zoo
Zoo Day Celebrated with Animal Birth
It was anything but a lazy day for the animals and their keepers. For the first time in 18 years the Jackson Zoological Park celebrated the AT&T Zoo Day.
Mississippi musicians entertained families as they made their way through the zoo. Children enjoyed games and educational exhibits, while parents visited arts and crafts booths from local artists. Zoo officials planned a number of fun activities, but it was an unscheduled event that became the Zoo Day main attraction.
On Saturday, Christopher Mims with the Jackson Zoo said, "One of the most exciting things that happened today was we had a birth. Our tapir gave birth in front of thousands of visitors around 11:00 today. And it was just so extraordinary, so we've just had a wonderful day."
The baby tapir took his first steps while visitors looked on. Zoo officials say both mother and baby are doing well.
http://www.wlbt.com/Global/story.asp?S=6209632&nav=2CSf
Detroit Zoo has volunteer opportunities for lovers of animals, nature
For Ellen Gruskin of Oak Park, Evelyn Silverman of Southfield and Gini Sutherland of Birmingham, the Detroit Zoo is not just a place to volunteer; it is their passion. The three women were part of the zoo's first docent class of 1977 and for 30 years they have been actively educating thousands of visitors about the zoo's animals and habitats.
"There were 300 applicants for 30 available docent positions that first year and I was thrilled to be chosen," recalls Gruskin. "Little did I know I'd be embarking on an adventure that would captivate me for so many years." Born and raised in the Detroit area, Gruskin loved the zoo as a child and still treasures her original red Zoo Key.
Silverman's interest in the zoo's docent program was piqued when she spotted an article in the newspaper. "I thought I'd enjoy being outdoors, learning new things, and communicating with diverse groups of people," she said. Silverman enjoyed it so much, she recruited her sister and several friends into the docent program.
http://www.hometownlife.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070311/NEWS25/703110586/1019/rss02
Taking good care of Lulu at the Toledo Zoo
The zoo’s rhino gets lots of attention, especially after an eye problem surfaced
Ms. Gould is the rhino's confidante as well as caretaker.
( THE BLADE/JETTA FRASER )
By JENNI LAIDMAN
BLADE SCIENCE WRITER
Every day is spa day for Lulu. First she showers. Then, while her skin still glistens with moisture, she gets a rubdown to exfoliate dead cells.
Next, the pedicure.
Zoo keeper Robin Gould doesn’t look the part of beautician in her boots and khakis, but to Lulu she’s stylist, personal trainer, confidante.
“Come here, sweet pea,” Ms. Gould said in a lilting falsetto. The 4,300-pound white rhinoceros toook a step forward, her massive body swaying. Then she paused to rub her flank on the bars of the stall. “Come on. Move up,” Ms. Gould said gently. “You have to be patient with rhinos. They just don’t move like that,” she explained, snapping her fingers.
She has a knack with rhinos. She can lie on the ground and trim Lulu’s toes with a woodworking tool, and not get stepped on by the constantly swaying giant.
“If she doesn’t trust you, how are you going to take care of her?” Ms. Gould said. She and Lulu recently proved the importance of such trust.
http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070311/NEWS38/70311011
A trip to the зоопарк ('zoo park')
This morning, Selma and I met up with our translator, Yulia Zmulyukova, and her boyfriend Dima, and we took a walking tour of the city. We spent a few hours exploring the Kharkiv Zoo, which is 111 years old.
The zoo is right near my house. Admission costs 10 grivni -- $2 -- for adults. Here are some random photos. You'll find more on my Google Picasa Web Album at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jeffrey.south/KharkivZoo
http://jeff-south.blogspot.com/2007/03/trip-to-zoo-park.html
Milwaukee County Zoo brings millions to Milwaukee County
UWM study demonstrates zoo's economic impact
The Milwaukee County Zoo has a total annual economic impact of $112 million annually in the four-county region, according to a University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee study.
Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker said Wednesday that the zoo is a magnet and has a profound impact on the economy of the four-county area, which includes Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Washington and Waukesha counties.
Walker said the finding, which was completed by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Institute for Survey and Policy Research, showed that the zoo was a very shrewd investment.
The total estimated direct and indirect impact of the Milwaukee County Zoo on the four- county area is $112.1 million in output, $38.1 million in earnings and 1,297 jobs, the study found.
Walker said the study showed that the zoo has direct economic contributions from out-of-area visitors expenditures of about $56.7 million in output, $18 million in earnings and 795 jobs. Direct economic contributions from future construction are estimated to be $10.7 million in output, $3 million in earnings and 105 jobs, he said.
http://www.uwmpost.com/article/c58b6a051109ce0c0111439bbdff004f
State zoo turning into major research centre
By A Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI, March 11 – Slowly the Assam State Zoo is being transformed to embrace a larger range of objectives. The artificial refuge of more than 700 species of wildlife, the facility is now being shaped into a major research arena, which could further help educate the masses on various aspects of biodiversity. Spread over 175 hectare, the State Zoo is now in the midst of a complete overhaul with bigger, scientifically constructed enclosures replicating the natural habitat of the residents, better information dispensing equipment, and more research activities, especially involving wildlife difficult to study in their natural habitat.
Narayan Mahanta the zoo DFO told The Assam Tribune that the facility has been expanded to meet the objectives of captive breeding, research and education, apart from conservation of flora and fauna, which has already been there. “The stress is on research on the endemic wildlife of the North East, many of which are rare and endangered. Captive breeding programmes are already going on and among those which have been successful concern the one-horned rhino, tiger, golden langur, jungle cat to name a few. Plans are on to increase the number of species, which could be bred in captivity.
http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/details.asp?id=mar1207/at06
Naples Zoo kicks off ‘Save the Panther Week’By Jennifer Brannock (Contact)
Monday, March 12, 2007
Florida panthers may be elusive in the wild, but they’re appearing all over Naples this week.
Coordinators kicked off opening day of “Save the Panther Week” at the Naples Zoo on Sunday morning. Volunteers with several environmental and animal agencies gathered along the zoo corridor near the panther exhibit to distribute information on the endangered species.
While viewing the two panthers housed at the zoo, visitors chatted with experts about the importance of land conservation for and protection of the panther.
“This is a way for us to draw attention to an endangered species that attracts children and adults as well,” said Leslie Walker, volunteer naturalist for J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island.
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2007/mar/12/naples_zoo_kicks_save_panther_week/?local_news
Zoo growth plan on table this week
March 12, 2007
BLANK PARK ZOO officials want to add $50 million in exhibits and attractions. The 10-year plan requires space, so they have considered part of Fort Des Moines Park, which is controlled by the Polk County Conservation Board.
FORT DES MOINES PARK has more than 100 acres. It includes a fishing lake, a playground, shelters and a rare stand of oak trees. Peter Heimdahl of the Save Fort Des Moines Committee fears that "public green space is fair game" if parkland is used for a zoo project.
THE IDEA of a zoo expansion into Fort Des Moines Park has been talked about for about 18 months. After preservationists objected, the plan was modified to expand the zoo into a portion of the Blank Park Golf Course. That idea was abandoned when the zoo's consultant said it would take years to develop the space, while the park offered a turnkey move.
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070312/NEWS05/703120334/-1/SPORTS09
L.A. Zoo to retire elephant to animal sanctuary
Animal rights activists praise decision on Ruby, which ends months of speculation on her fate.
By Carla Hall, Times Staff Writer
March 12, 2007
The Los Angeles Zoo is expected to announce today that it is retiring its female African elephant, Ruby, to an animal sanctuary in Central California.
The decision ends months of speculation over whether the pachyderm would go to another zoo or a sanctuary, and was praised by animal rights activists who lobbied for several years for her retirement to a preserve.
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who has expressed concern about the conditions for elephants at the L.A. Zoo, plans to discuss the decision to relocate Ruby at a news conference today.
"I am very pleased that the city and the zoo recognize that it's best to send Ruby to a sanctuary, which unlike a zoo can provide the vast space and natural conditions that elephants need," Catherine Doyle, elephant campaign director for In Defense of Animals, said Sunday night.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-ruby12mar12,0,4279339.story?coll=la-home-headlines
Moscow Zoo changes to spring schedule
12.03.2007
With the beginning of spring Moscow Zoo has prepared some surprises for visitors. First of all the zoo administration has prolonged working hours – now the zoo works daily (except Monday) 10am-18pm; ticket offices work till 5pm.
Secondly, the zoo has opened a website moscowzoo.ru, which contains not only maps, lists of animals, and other visitor information, but also web cameras set in two cages with image updating every 20 seconds. Unfortunately, English version of the website is not available, but one can find the web cameras here.
One more innovation is a new giant monument on the central square of the zoo – a figure of the Moa bird which became extinct 300 years ago.
Source: www.kp.ru
http://www.russia-ic.com/news/show/3587/
Maryland Zoo's Baby Penguin Gets Novel Operation
When workers at the zoo noticed the penguin stumbling shortly after he was born they began a slew of tests to examine his condition. Veterinarians found the bird's vertebrae were angled abnormally. At first they thought he might still be able to function normally because they had seen a similar but less-serious problem before.
"We were wrong; he started having trouble walking and eventually was tumbling over," Bradford said.
Zoo veterinarians sent the yet to be named penguin - whose coat will remain gray until he reaches adulthood - to get an MRI at the IAMS Pet Imaging Center in Northern Virginia. The imaging confirmed what veterinarians feared, the hump on his back was the result of vertebrae misalignment, resulting in the need for a complicated procedure - the first of its kind for a penguin.
http://penguinsland.blogspot.com/2007/03/maryland-zoos-baby-penguin-gets-novel.html
Miller Park Zoo could get new hospital
03/12/2007 04:43:48
Miller Park Zoo is hoping to build a new animal hospital so animals can get more medical care in-house. Tonight, the city council will vote on a plan for a $400,000 facility for the zoo. Zoo director John Tobias says now, the zoo has a few lab rooms in the basement of the zoo, and often has to take animals across town to a clinic. In that case, the animals are exposed to many other diseases. He says the zoo needs its own hospital...
Listen:
Tobias says the new hospital would include a treatment room, operating room, recovery room, quarantine space, and facilities for staff. It would go west of the feline exhibit, and would have a window into the treatment room so that visitors can watch procedures being done. Tobias hopes the hospital could be finished by September.
The new hospital is included in phase one of the Zoo's Operation Roar, which will also result in the renovation of the Katthoefer Animal Building, built in 1914.
http://www.wjbc.com/wire2/news/00396_Zoo-Hospital-1-web_054358.htm
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
March 13, 2007
1303 gmt
The Southern Hemisphere
The heat displacement over Antarctica continues.
Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, Antarctica
Time :: 12:50 AM NZDT
Elevation: 9285 ft / 2830 m
Temperature :: -68 °F / -56 °C
Conditions :: Blowing Snow
Wind :: 17 mph / 28 km/h from the NNE
Visibility :: 1.0 miles / 1.0 kilometers
UV :: 0 out of 16
Clouds :: Mostly Cloudy 2953 ft / 900 m
Clouds :: Overcast 5906 ft / 1800 m
(Above Ground Level)
Vostok, Antarctica
Time :: 6:00 PM VOST
Elevation: 11220 ft / 3420 m
Temperature: -67 °F / -55 °C
Humidity: 28%
Dew Point: -77 °F / -60 °C
Wind: 10 mph / 17 km/h from the West
Visibility: 12.0 miles / 20.0 kilometers
Base Jubany, Antarctica
Time :: 12:00 PM GMT
Elevation: 13 ft / 4 m
Temperature :: 32 °F / 0 °C
Conditions :: Snow Grains
Humidity: 100%
Dew Point: 32 °F / 0 °C
Wind: 12 mph / 18 km/h from the SW
Pressure: 29.46 in / 998 hPa (Rising)
Visibility: 6.0 miles / 10.0 kilometers
UV: 0 out of 16
Clouds: Overcast 984 ft / 300 m
(Above Ground Level)
There are heat accumulations at high altitudes.
March 17, 2007
1307 gmt
Northern Hemisphere satellite
Noted the 'heat' accumulation 12 o'clock on this satellite. It has been there from the time Antartica was observed, a week ago, to have the same type of phenomina over the Blue Ice. In the previous satellite there was a noted 'heat accumulation' over the Libia desert at the edge of the Mediterranian. This heat mass today has moved to displacement over the Himalayas. The Tibetan Plateus is at 12 o'clock on this satellite. This is new 'heat displacement' as I recall it.
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