New Precedent - People can apply for COBRA benefite retroactively.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act told people they could recapture their COBRA benefits and for nine months the Federal Government would help them pay 65% of their premium. That is a new precedent for COBRA. In other words, even though Aetna has kicked people of the rolls of the insured, those people should be able to reapply for the same insurance once the legislation goes through for reform of this industry.

The insurance companies like Aetna are purging their rolls now because once the reform bill goes through they won't be able to do it later. It has a lot to do with profits, but, mostly as a punishment to America for even conceiving of reform. Aetna's CEO likes the bonuses that come with the job and believes he is doing the best he can to insure those bonuses by purging their membership of individuals that won't enhance their bottom line AFTER the legislation is passed.

President Obama made new precedent when he modified the COBRA laws when the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was passed and people could 'go back' their health care of choice.

COBRA is strong law, but, President Obama made it stronger.

What has to occur with the passing of the Reform Legislation is to apply this new statue in that people having been expunged from Health Care Insurance Companies membership, should have the right to 'go back' and re-enroll if their loss occurred during the legislative period starting with the campaign of President Obama.

It was at that point when President Obama was a candidate that the nation started to talk seriously about reform and more than likely the insurance companies started to purge their memberships that diminish their profits.

See, it would be easy to do this if they were in small numbers. Aetna is purging their membership in large numbers so it was a stark reality to the people of the USA. But, each company across the country needs to be evaluated from the beginning of the Obama campaign ( AND Hillary Clinton's announcement as well. She as First Lady was organizing reform and it was part of her agenda for change in the USA as well.) as to their rate hikes and their epunging of members. Some health care insurers may have been far more covert than this and it needs to be realized the damage that was artificially created to insure their 'green bottom line' in the future.

I still believe to add enforcement to the laws of the reform legislation there has to be a 'trigger to Single Payer' to prevent the health care insurance folks from causing havoc and hardship in ruthless methodologies, in whatever form they take.

It is too late to turn back. If Aetna and those like Aetna thinks they can brutalize Americans to stop reform they have another thing coming. This is a democracy and we won't put up with abusive practices of private industry.

EVER !

We aren't going to allow 'the tail to wag the dog' anymore. Absolutely not !

The mixed message from American Health Insurance Companies: "We want your money, NOT your problems."

AETNA AWARDS GRANTS TOTALING APPROXIMATELY $340,000 TO 17 CHICAGO AREA ORGANIZATIONS (click here)
CHICAGO, October 19, 2007 – Aetna (NYSE: AET) and the Aetna Foundation announced that they have just completed their 2007 local grant-making process and awarded grants totaling nearly $340,000 to 17 non-profit organizations in the Chicago area. The amounts and recipients of the grants are:...

This is exactly the problem with American Health Care. They don't care about subscribers, they care about profit and FAVORABLE image. Aetna is only the first to act punitively against Americans, who will be next?

All Americans that can, should apply to Aetna, to see if they are accepted and why or why not. (click here) Then report it to the Executive Branch, the Senate and House and the Labor, Commerce and Treasury Department as to the underhanded tactics of Aetna.

Aetna don't really want you to choose and use your plan, it is all faux sentiment.

The legislature and ultimately the President of the USA needs to insure a good public option AND 'a trigger' to a Single Payer System with expectations of instituting it.

This is going to happen. The health insurance companies will spin their wheels doing all sorts of nasty stuff to their subscribers and the American public in general to make everyone regret tackling health care reform. That being the case the USA government needs to have 'in place' a Single Payer System when the insurance companies become to big for their britches. AT THE VERY LEAST, all tax incentives to donate for reductions in tax burdens needs to be repealsed by this industry alone. Why? Because it is all image making when they should be paying the bills of Americans. It is a mismanaged industry and we all know it.

No different than Wall Street. If they borrowed monies from the USA Treasury then they need to stop taking tax refunds for their donations AND their pay bonuses. If they want to exist in this country in this methodolgy, that's fine, they simply can't take tax cuts and advantages unless they are first doing 'good work' for the USA economy. I mean it.

Insurance Companies should not have to advertise, they will receive mandates to change and are expected to institute them. They will have more subscribers than they know what to do with once the legislation goes through. Advertising will become a frivilous need as they won't have to shop for subscribers without medical problems, they will run to the doorsteps of companies with good plans. They waste the American peoples' money by allowing such companies to build a faux image rather than carry out their responsibilites. No more tax advantages or tax cuts so long as the industry members act in ruthless ways that kill Americans and make them sicker.

December 4th, 2009 1:49 PM
Aetna Forcing 600,000-Plus To Lose Coverage In Effort To Raise Profits (click title to entry - thank you)
By Sam Stein / Huffington Post
Health insurance giant Aetna is planning to force up to 650,000 clients to drop their coverage next year as it seeks to raise additional revenue to meet profit expectations.
In a third-quarter earnings conference call in late October, officials at Aetna announced that in an effort to improve on a less-than-anticipated profit margin in 2009, they would be raising prices on their consumers in 2010. The insurance giant predicted that the company would subsequently lose between 300,000 and 350,000 members next year from its national account as well as another 300,000 from smaller group accounts.
"The pricing we put in place for 2009 turned out to not really be what we needed to achieve the results and margins that we had historically been delivering," said chairman and CEO Ron Williams. "We view 2010 as a repositioning year, a year that does not fully reflect the earnings potential of our business. Our pricing actions should have a noticeable effect beginning in the first quarter of 2010, with additional financial impact realized during the remaining three quarters of the year."...

This looks all to familiar.

The lawsuits are meaningless except for those receiving the wrath of those still alive but injured and traumatized and the families and friends of those that died. We all should be learning from each other. These tragedies are not exclusive to the USA.


In this Feb. 20, 2003 photo released by the Rhode Island Attorney Generals office, nightclub worker Scott Vieira, right front, and Daniel Biechele, right, tour manager for the band Great White, appear near the stage in the Station nightclub, in West Warwick, R.I., as foam behind the stage bursts into flames.

Great White offers $1M to settle club fire suits (click title to entry - thank you)
100 people died in Rhode Island blaze sparked by band’s pyrotechnics
updated 4:44 p.m. ET, Tues., Sept . 2, 2008
PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Members of the 1980s rock band whose pyrotechnics sparked a nightclub fire that killed 100 people have agreed to pay $1 million to survivors and victims’ relatives, according to court papers filed Tuesday.
The settlement offer from Great White is the latest stemming from the February 2003 fire at The Station nightclub in West Warwick. Roughly $175 million has now been offered by dozens of defendants to settle lawsuits over the blaze, which also injured more than 200 people and was the fourth-deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history....

Afghanistan Opium - It is good to know Iran is not interested in propagating the trade of drugs.

...Still, the Iranian government has in the past been able to put aside its anti-Americanism to cooperate with the U.S. on Afghanistan. (click title to entry - thank you) After the 9/11 attacks, Washington and Tehran worked quietly together: Iran had helped train, arm and finance many of the fighters and commanders of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance, which worked with the U.S. to overthrow the Taliban and drive out al-Qaeda. James Dobbins, the Bush Administration's first envoy to Afghanistan after 9/11, worked with Iranian officials to set up the post-Taliban government. But relations soured when President George W. Bush balked at a broader relationship with Iran and included Tehran in his rhetorical "Axis of Evil."...

If President Karzai wants his people to be prosperous and productive he has to recuit enough soldiers to fight this war and secure the country. Otherwise. The global community will be forced to close of the borders of Afghanistan and begin sanctions the country will be unable to bear.

I really love 'No Fly Zones' / 'No Go Zones' with drones. Don't you? No? I think it is a great idea. It keeps the Taliban from emigrating to Pakistan and moving their opium further than the Afghan border. It is about time NATO set up its own "No Go Zones." No White Phosphorus.

On the Front Lines in the Battle Against the Taliban (click here)

Ambush (click above link)

A soldier with the Afghan National Army, Second Weapons Company, Third Battalion, repels Taliban fire.

The USA's economy is turning around. Don't stop now.

Siemens AG - Global Enterprise (click here)

Due to higher, more consistent wind speeds at sea, offshore wind turbines can generate substantially more energy than onshore wind turbines. Offshore wind farms may reach capacity factors in the range of 50%. Even considering the planning constraints relating to shipping lanes, fishing, bird migration, and the like, the world has abundant space for offshore projects....

Siemens' Service Departments (click here)
Siemens Wind Power offers wind turbine service all over the world through our wind power service offices or through Siemens' global network of service offices. Our service departments are always up to date with the most recent developments, and they are able to provide service at very short notice, always subject to the highest priority to quality and safety.
BRANDE, Denmark (main office)
BREMEN, Germany
NEWTOWN, Wales, UK
WICKSHAW, Scotland, UK
HOUSTON, Texas, USA
The service departments carry out service on 4,000 turbines all over the world. Furthermore, in collaboration with customers and business partners, the service of an additional 1,300 turbines is supported.


Wind turbine instillation.

...A total of 43% of Americans say the national economy is getting worse, which is the highest in American Research Group monthly polling since June and is up from 25% in September. And 9% say their household financial situations are getting better, which is down from 16% in August, 14% in September, and 12% in October. (click here)...


Wind turbine installation.


Wind turbines being transported.


Wind turbine assembly plant.

...Main Street received a pleasant surprise on Dec. 4 (click title to entry - thank you): The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that in November, with the jobless rate edging lower to 10.0%. Some market players were worried that job losses would actually exceed the median estimate of economists of 114,000—and that the unemployment rate would actually move as high as 10.5%, according to market "whisper" numbers reported by Action Economics....

Morgan Freeman to Screen 'Invictus' for Nelson Mandela (click here)

Imagine getting a phone call from Nelson Mandela asking to screen a movie that honors him? Wow.

Wednesday, 15 August, 2001, 15:38 GMT 16:38 UK
Mandela 'responding well to treatment' (click here)
...According to the statement, seven doctors met on 3 August to review Mr Mandela's treatment.
They decided that due to the good response, the same radiotherapy would be continued until the end of its seven-week course.
The tumour is said to be "microscopic" and should not reduce Mr Mandela's life expectancy....


December 3, 2009
A TRIUMPH OF THE HUMAN SPIRIT (click here)
Robben Island inmates used soccer to survive, overcome old SA practices
By Michael LewisBig
www.BigAppleSoccer.com
Editor
ROBBEN ISLAND, South Africa -- The ball, as they say, is round. And because of that, anything can happen.And on Robben Island, something did. The impossible happened.The inmates of that insidious prison managed to convince the powers that be to allow them to play soccer one day a week, giving themselves a self-made life-preserver to keep their sanity and their spirits up....

The USA does not need new sources of oil and gas, it needs to develop alternatives. I don't see Canada abandoning us anytime soon.

A moratorium should be placed on further exploration of fossil fuels in the USA. The companies are using extreme measure to exploit these sources and it is simply time to stop. The Alternatives are being investigated and begun and the USA needs to know how it stands with Altervatives before further exploitation of any 'distant' reserves is taken.

Leave everything where it is, there is every indication those reserves, to whatever capacity they exist belong to future generations and not us. We have over extended our use of fossil fuels in the last century and basically didn't explore alternatives feeling entitlement to finite resources that belong to future generations of Americans. Earth and a global community is paying the price for exploitive USA Energy policies.

Future generations of Americans have a right to this country's resources no different than the current generations do. Greed has replaced justice.

An energy answer in the shale below? (click title to entry - thank you)
New technology opens vast stores of natural gas, and the land rush is on
...This corner of the state is at the forefront of an old-fashioned land rush that has implications far beyond Conklin, N.Y. Oil and gas companies are vying to stake out territory where they can tap natural gas trapped in shale rock. Just a few years ago, the industry didn't have the technology to unlock these reserves. But thanks to advances in horizontal drilling and methods of fracturing rock with high-pressure blasts of water, sand and chemicals, vast gas reserves in the United States are suddenly within reach....

This is no small matter. All those involved in seating guests and allowing people into the State Dinner should testify. It's only right.

...Rogers' late father, Roy Glapion, (click here) was president of the prestigious Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club, New Orleans' oldest black Mardi Gras krewe. She was Queen of Zulu, an honor usually extended to a debutante or young woman deemed to be socially important, in 1988 and 2000. After college at Wellesley and business school at Harvard, Rogers and her then-husband, John Rogers (president of Ariel Capital Management) cut a high-profile swath through Chicago's glittery gratin. And she's regularly cited as one of the country's best (and okay, most adventurously) dressed women.
All great preparation for her current job at the White House.
But Rogers' style and glamour are a double-edged sword, one that might have drawn a little political blood over the past few days after the gate-crasher snafu....

I am please President Obama feels very sage in his home at 1600 Pennsylvania Blvd., but there is a limit to being generous when it comes to securing himself and the First Lady and their daughters.

The White House, the Senate and House need to come to understand how this all occurred. It can be an upsetting set of circumstances that should be taken very seriously. All the facts need to be known and I don't see that one set of 'particulars' are any more or less important than another.

Basically, what went right and what didn't.

This isn't that difficult.

There is absolutely no reason for blood sport. This isn't about anything except understanding the issues as they presented themselves.

I would hope everyone at the State Dinner would be eager to solve this mystery. I would hope.

The Beluga Whale has critical habitat protected after a severe drop in population.

The current population of Beluga Whales is very low, only 300 individuals. That number runs the risk of genetic loss and diversity. The Beluga whales of Cook Inlet must be protected. There is little time to waste.

Habitat protection proposed for endangered Cook Inlet beluga whale (click title to entry - thank you)
Wednesday, 02 December 2009 10:31
THE United States federal National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) today took an important step toward protecting critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) for the Cook Inlet beluga whale in Alaska by proposing to designate more than 3,000 square miles of the endangered whale’s habitat for protection.
The overdue proposal comes after a 2007 petition by various local and national groups to NMFS to list the beluga under the ESA, and on the heels of a formal notice of intent to sue by the Center for Biological Diversity.
Once habitat is designated, federal agencies are prohibited from taking any actions that may “adversely modify” it. Species for which critical habitat has been designated have been found to be more than twice as likely to be recovering, and less than half as likely to be declining, as those without it.
“NMFS has clearly relied on the best available science to identify and designate the habitat needed to give the Cook Inlet beluga whale a fighting chance at survival,” said marine mammal biologist Craig Matkin, Executive Director of the North Gulf Oceanic Society.
In October 2008, NMFS listed the whale as endangered over the objections of then-governor Sarah Palin. The listing occurred following petitions and litigation by the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) and local and national organizations. However, rather than designate critical habitat for the beluga at the time of listing as required by the Endangered Species Act, NMFS deferred habitat protection for a year. That year came and went with no action by NMFS, and on October 29, 2009, CBD formally notified the agency that it would file a lawsuit to force the overdue designation.
“If we quickly act to designate and protect the critical habitat of the Cook Inlet beluga, this highly imperiled whale has a real chance of recovery,” said Rebecca Noblin, attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity’s Anchorage office. “A species as critically imperiled as the Cook Inlet beluga whale should not have to endure further delay before its habitat is truly protected.”
Today’s proposal triggers a public comment period and likely public hearings before the rule is finalized and takes legal effect.
“Cook Inlet beluga whales are one of the most endangered populations of marine mammals in the world,” said Taryn Kiekow, staff attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council’s Marine Mammal Protection Project. “The decision to designate critical habitat is long overdue and absolutely necessary to preserving and protecting this unique population from further harm.”
The Cook Inlet beluga whale is a genetically distinct and geographically isolated population whose numbers have plummeted in recent decades. Recent surveys show the Cook Inlet beluga whale’s population now hovers between 300 and 400 animals, down from an estimated population of approximately 1,300 whales in the 1980s. The Cook Inlet beluga whale is one of five populations of beluga, or white whales, in Alaska.
“Historic data shows that ESA listings and healthy economies go hand in hand, said Toby Smith, Executive Director of the Alaska Center for the Environment. “This habitat designation will bring about the balance we need to promote truly responsible development while protecting one of Alaska’s most popular wildlife icons.”
The original decline of the Cook Inlet beluga was likely caused by unregulated harvests, but the population has failed to rebound since hunting was curtailed in 1999, indicating that other factors likely are interfering with its recovery....

The weather at Glacier Bay National Park (Crystal Wind Chime) is:

Local Time: 11:51 AM AKST (GMT -09)

Lat/Lon: 58.8° N 137.0° W

Temperature :: 39 °F

Conditions :: Scattered Clouds

Windchill :: 33 °F

Humidity :: 70%

Dew Point :: 30 °F

Wind :: 9 mph from the SSE

Pressure :: 30.18 in (Rising)

Visibility :: 10.0 miles

UV :: 0 out of 16

Clouds:
Scattered Clouds 5000 ft
(Above Ground Level)

Elevation :: 33 ft

12/1/09

The Native American whale hunt should be banned. The children, especially, should not be exposed to these high levels of toxins. It is a matter of health care policy and public concern and not native American rights.


...Alaska Native beluga whale subsistence hunt at Point Lay, Alaska (Chukchi Sea). With the assistance of the North Slope Borough Department of Wildlife Management, specimens from this population of beluga whales have been archived by AMMTAP. Samples of blubber from these animals have been analyzed by NIST and DFO Canada (D. Muir) for PCB's and chlorinated pesticides; liver samples have been analyzed by NIST for 35 elements, including: mercury, methyl mercury, selenium, cadmium, silver, arsenic, copper, and zinc. (This photo is from the collection of G. Carroll, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Barrow, AK)

President Obama took responsibility for all the nations involved in Afghanistan and got a good response from NATO.

The follow up to the President's speech regarding the efforts with Afghanistan is impressive. It looks as though all the 'good will' and speeches by our President resulted in a NATO commited to filling in the gap to 40,000 troops requested by General McCrystal. The General should find some solice in realizing his President has provided a strong international platform for his strategy.

Leaving Afghanistan isn't as easy as leaving Iraq. I am not referring to logistics, I am referring to treaties and allies. We aren't the only North American country committed to this effort. That is what is so reprehensible about the negligence of the previous administration in regard to supporting the Afghan government and the allies that see the effort as vital to their National Security.

I have listened and read the view points of my peers and they are correct. This is very painful. We have a President we love and are loyal to, yet, we disagree sincerely with his decision. The decision by the way was praised as 'contemplative' during the time he took to make it. We praised his reflection on the facts. He believed in him during that time.

When McCarther wasn't allowed to move against China, we had only one goal in mind and that was to secure South Korea. We did that. When Ford removed the troops from Vietnam it was a unilateral decision with hideous conditions. It was an easy decision to make. Vietnam was about wrongful economics and politics as well as a country without nuclear ambitions.

The decision President Obama made with a great deal of fact finding and thought wasn't as easily reached as his predecessors. He had a lot hanging in the balance and needed to believe in his General and the possibility NATO didn't carry the burden through years of neglect by the USA for no reason.

I would be more critical of President Obama if he hadn't been so transparent and forthright about the vast corruption that existed in Afghanistan as he executed his fact finding mission and made tough choices. However, this is still a very painful period of time.

The USA has been manipulated in its priorities with Iraq vs Afghanistan and we are all very suspicious of a continued war, even if both Iraq and Afghanistan engagements end in 2011. However, I understand his priorities and we are contributing to the national security of our allies as we are compelled to do under treaties. President Obama is going above and beyond with this commitment to NATO. He didn't have to do it, but, felt it necessary to uphold the integrity of our alliances. He is correct on that count. This is also not a strategy that is being touted as a 'marginal' effort. General McCrystal is stating he anticipates victory and success.

I don't look forward to the next 18 months in anticipation of a successful and rewarding war. I find nothing thought provoking about discussions of strategies and death of enemies. But, I do recognize the fact that NATO has 'stood the line' while Bush and Cheney dabbled in Iraq. They stood the line in hopes that a USA President would be elected to finish the fight and establish stability in the region. We have an obligation to them and we can't look the other way.

I hope General McCrystal is successful, he states he will be. The USA by majority is not a warring country, it is difficult for its citizens to support prolonged wars, especially when they have gone as "W"rong as this one. But, through the graces of an intelligent President, the effort has more time and more troops. I am pleased President Obama has resolved to put a limit on this effort and return economic stability to the USA over and above prolonged efforts in Afghanistan. The people of Afghanistan need to believe in their country and take on the responsiblity of defending it. It is time for that transition and we can only hope the Afghan people live up to their responsibility as we stand down from ours.

If I were President Obama I wouldn't pay much attention to the media, except for pundits and sincere journalists, during the next eighteen months. They are going to use it to hack away at his credibility in regard to this effort, as example, even the wayward Rove is attempting to be Advisor and Chief. I mean, who is he to say squat? I guess its a paycheck for him. Then in a completely laughable moment, Murdoch's Hannity stated, "He doesn't think the deployment is worth the effort, so why bother at all." There is no way that is ANYTHING but propaganda for the Right Wing seeking a political 'wedge' on the issue for their own priorities and outcomes.

I stand with my President. I believe he did the 'best' he could, but, I look forward to the return of our troops. These next eighteen months will give all the NATO countries time to make their own decisions and prepare for an Afghanistan yet to be realized.

More U.S. troops in Afghanistan will help Canada’s mission: minister (click here)
By Peter O’Neil and Allison Cross, Canwest News Service
Canada’s Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon said Wednesday an injection of 30,000 more American troops into Afghanistan will help Canada better achieve its own objectives in the war-torn country.
Mr. Cannon made these remarks in a teleconference with media from Brussels, where he is meeting with other NATO foreign leaders.
“Canada welcomes the additional military and civilian resources the U.S. will deploy to Afghanistan, in particular to the south,” he said. “This will allow Canada to further concentrate its efforts on its . . . priorities and . . . signature projects.”...

From (L), Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton (click title to entry - thank you), Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen testify on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, 02 Dec 2009, before the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on US strategy in Afghanistan Gerald Herbert

...The Secretary of State spend a full day in Congress Wednesday with other senior administration officials defending President Obama's decision to send 30,000 additional U.S. troops to Afghanistan.
After another hearing Thursday, she leaves for Brussels for talks on Afghanistan Friday with fellow NATO foreign ministers, and those of other participants in the 43-nation International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, ISAF.
Clinton said she spoke with NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen between Congressional hearings and said he gave an encouraging report on his efforts to generate new troop pledges among the allies....

NATO chief: Allies will provide 5,000 more troops (click here)
By Craig Whitlock

Washington Post Foreign Service

Wednesday, December 2, 2009; 2:28 PM

...In Brussels, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen pledged that U.S. allies would "send at least 5,000 more soldiers to this operation, and probably a few thousand on top of that." He told reporters in Brussels, "This is not just America's war. This is our fight, together."...

Tiger needs to realize his wife loves him before anyone else. He should value her more.

From what I was reading about Rachecl Uchitel, she was dating a whole lot of male atheletes. Tiger was one of many. Scary thought if it were me, both from an emotional issue, a father issue and an STD issue.

Men don't often put the possibility of they being ONLY one of many as a reality when they cheat. That should cross their minds before they take the ultimate dive into sexual excitement for the sake of variety and testing their limits.

The conversations released were racy, but, lacked real substance. It was about sex. So. There is no substance there. Is the old adage that states, "All men want is sex anyway.," really true? Is that what men live for? Is that what they see as paramont as respect by other men?

Tiger is the luckiest man, he has a wife that loves him, provided him a family and wants a marriage and not just a 'Romper Room Bedroom.'

I hope it works out. I hope she decides to stay with him. I hope the couple can put all this mess behind them and I hope he goes on to continue a successful career.

See, because, if it doesn't? He is the only one that will be miserable when he finds out, "He wasn't the only one."



...“I have let my family down (click title to entry) and I regret those transgressions with all of my heart,” the allegedly guileful golfer apologized online.

The eloquent mea culpa stood in stark contrast to a sext message he purportedly sent to California cocktail waitress Jaimee Grubbs this fall: “I will wear you out. . . When was the last time you got (expletive)?” It was one of several published by Us Weekly magazine, reportedly sent on Sept. 27....

Iran is playing politics while they expand their nuclear capacity and develop long range weapons.

The release of 'innocent' people being detained wrongly is not a reason to elevate the trust of Iran.


Britons captured in Iran: Luke Porter (click here)
Age1, Luke Porter has been sailing since the age of eight. His parents, Charles and Beverly, run the Beachland Hotel near Weston Super Mare and live in a nearby village....

British sailors released: Luke Porter's family speaks of relief (click here)
With wide grins and relief etched on their faces, Charles and Beverly Porter got the call they had been waiting for shortly after 8am on Tuesday morning.
...Mr. Porter said hew did not think they would see their son until December 17: “I think he is going straight back to work, he has got a great work ethic.
“He is fit and ok and I am sure they will be put back to work.”
Both parents paid tribute to the Foreign Office Mrs Porter said: “We owe so many thanks to the Foreign Office for their hard work. We do appreciate that so much must have gone on behind the scenes.
“We are grateful to Iran for seeing it for what it was.”
Mr Porter said: “All the people involved could see it for what it was – a pure mistake.
“It appears now there was a problem with the boat – they never meant to be there.”
He joked: “I think Luke’s mother may give him a bit of a telling off…”
His wife joined in: “It may not be the first thing I say, but a close second. And maybe there won’t be so much washing to bring home as he normally does.
“We might have to have a few words about his navigational skills, maybe get him an early Christmas present and send him on a course.”

The imprisoning of any Iranian citizens due to demonstrations regarding the illegitmate vote count in the last Presidential election is a human rights violation. We have witnessed people being beaten and killed as well, as they demonstrated peacefully for a redress of the vote counting. Iran claims it had no control over the violence that occurred which caused citizens their lives. That in and of itself is of grave concern indicating Iran does not have control over its sovereignty if there are militias at work on the streets.

There is absolutely no reason for jailing any demonstrator as that is an act of oppression, especially considering there was indeed an inconsistency in the vote count. The citizens were acting peacefully within their rights of freedom of speech and it is inexcusable any harm came to them. They acted lawfully in casting votes in the first place in belief of their Constitution.

Iranian pro-reform economist jailed for nine years (click here)
Page last updated at 10:14 GMT, Wednesday, 2 December 2009
A prominent Iranian economist has been jailed for nine years for protesting over the disputed election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in June, his lawyer says.
Saeed Laylaz was convicted of attending illegal gatherings and possessing classified documents by a court, Iranian media reported.
Mr Laylaz, a prominent reformist, had been critical of President Ahmadinejad's policies.
Reports say 81 people have been jailed since the protests over the polls....

In recent days President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been in in the Western Hemisphere using inflammatory rhetorical words against the USA. He has stated we are an occupying force and trouble to the global community, therefore there was need by Iran to continue its nuclear program.

Those are lies, propaganda and used to justify Iran's actions in regard to its continued escalation of its nuclear program. Those words are a very clear indication that Iran seeks not peaceful use, but, weapons use of its uranium enrichment.

A peaceful nuclear program would not in any way amount to an understanding as an enhancement to national defense. We are left to conclude by that statement alone that Iran wants a nuclear weapon arsenal.

We have witnessed this pattern many times before with Iran in order to ignore the global community and its responsibility to run a peaceful nuclear program. Iran continues to increase its enrichment practices even after agreeing to work with Russia and Europe to dismantle those facilities and receive 'energy grade' uranium in a peaceful method.

Iran rejects IAEA resolution as "illegal" - TV (click here)
Wed Dec 2, 2009 7:45am EST
TEHRAN, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad rejected on Wednesday as "illegal" a U.N. nuclear watchdog resolution over the country's disputed nuclear activities, state television reported.
Ahmadinejad also said Israel could not do a "damn thing" to stop the Islamic state's nuclear programme, which the West suspects is a front to build bombs. Iran denies the claim.
"Under pressure of a few superficially powerful countries ... the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) passed an illegal resolution against the Iranian nation," Ahmadinejad said in a televised speech in the central city of Isfahan.
The IAEA passed a resolution on Friday censuring Iran for covertly constructing a second enrichment plant near the holy city of Qom, in addition to its IAEA-monitored one at Natanz, and demanding a construction halt....

Iran is completely ignoring its responsibility to its people and the international community. This is still ANOTHER nation too unstable to allow nuclear proliferation to continue.

The United Nations as well as all the party countries to the Iran issue need to approach this assault against civilization differently. Rather than simply 'disenfranchisement' of 'good will' as measures against its nuclear activities, the World Court needs to recognize its responsibility with these countries. Their sovereignty is not intact and they have very dangerous programs. They are a danger to the entire populous of the planet and they should be disarmed.

It is time to hold President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for 'crimes against humanity' in its aggressive enrichment of nuclear material while demonstrating its intention to increase the range of its missile systems. This is in direct violation of human rights laws and international treaties in 'the threat' exists when it should not. Iran is not one of the five legitimate nuclear countries in the world, THAT itself, is a human rights violation by the simple fact the leadership acts as criminals to treaties widely recognized.

Iran will enrich uranium to 20%: Ahmadinejad (click here)
By Hiedeh Farmani (AFP) – 3 hours ago
TEHRAN — A defiant President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Wednesday that Iran will itself enrich uranium up to 20 percent purity in a blow to Western efforts to stop Tehran's sensitive nuclear activities.
Ahmadinejad also said that even the Islamic republic's arch-foe Israel would be unable to do a "damn thing" about Iran's nuclear programme.
He reiterated that as far as Tehran is concerned, the nuclear issue is "over" and said the Islamic republic will "not back down from its rights."
"The Iranian nation will by itself make the 20 percent (nuclear) fuel (enriched uranium) and whatever it needs," the hardliner announced in a speech broadcast live on state television from the central city of Isfahan....

It is irresponsible of the World Court to allow such dangers to exist for the global community and needs to act to remove leaders such as President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from their seats of power to a court where they can be held responsible for threats against any other nation. To wait in anticipation of 'peaceful use of nuclear materials' with Iran is foolish when the President of that country has openly exhibited hostility and genocidal ideals toward other nations as well as demonstrating oppression of the will of the Iranian people to conduct democratic principles. Iran's intentions are obvious, it is not a stable nation and oppressive practices with its own people clearly demonstrate misuse of the authority of their laws.

Security Council
5612th Meeting (AM)
SECURITY COUNCIL IMPOSES SANCTIONS (click title to entry - thank you) ON IRAN FOR FAILURE TO HALT URANIUM ENRICHMENT, UNANIMOUSLY ADOPTING RESOLUTION 1737 (2006)

Measures Will Be Lifted if Iran Suspends Suspect Activities;
Report Due from Atomic Energy Agency on Compliance within 60 Days
Determined to give effect to its unmet 31 July demand that Iran suspend all uranium enrichment-related and reprocessing activities, the Security Council today imposed sanctions on that country, blocking the import or export of sensitive nuclear materiel and equipment and freezing the financial assets of persons or entities supporting its proliferation sensitive nuclear activities or the development of nuclear-weapon delivery systems.

This has gone on too long with no demonstration by Iran to comply with the global community. Iran is making fools of everyone in definance of 'reasonable' requests with formal proceedings recognized globally as legitimate. It is time to indict the authorities in the Iranian government responsible for the threats to the global community.

In this case, words are not benign, they are indications of hate and intentions to kill. It will be too late when Iran covertly assembles it's missiles and kills millions of people in a single act of hatred.

Pre-empting a nation like Iran from developing nuclear weapons is a responsible act by the World Courts. It is a methodology that maintains peace while denying 'economic war strategies' from taking place as witnessed in recent years with Iraq. When seats of power are held responsible for their escalation of danger to humanity in irresponsible and oppressive policies, the world will be a far better place and diplomacy will have deeper meaning.

The Afghan People need to Deploy to the Defense of their Nation. The USA has a Real President and a General willing to lead a victory.

If we can get past the numbers and just go forward with assisting the Aghan people to securing their nation. The troop deployment ends July 2011. No time to waste.


Map: Foreign forces in Afghanistan (click here)
Of the 71,030 NATO troops, 34,800 are from the USA (click here - bottom of page)

NATO needs to commit their troops to end the war in Afghanistan, the USA will not fight a forever war. All nations are accountable for their participation. The USA is carrying the heaviest burden to secure NATO, while building a strong Homeland Security, by sending American troops into the most dangerous regions of Afghanistan. Regions the Afghan military have to come to defend by themselves.

I am proud of my President. I wish General McCrystal success and above all valor for his commitment and dedication to his country. I thank them both.

It is my estimate there should be no weakening of the Pakistani forces in regard to their efforts, regardless, of the strategy of General McCrystal. There are methods the General can use that do not have to be disclosed to anyone. Quite frankly, it would be better if the American effort in the toughest regions of Afghanistan were left in secret while carrying out a successful campaign.

...He said (click here) that US National Security Adviser James Jones had contacted Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in Frankfurt and informed him about the US decision.
Mr Qureshi said that Pakistan had no objection to the increase in the number of US troops in Afghanistan, but wanted details about their deployment.
‘We want to know how they will be deployed and in which areas,’ the foreign minister said.
President Obama called President Asif Ali Zardari a few hours before the announcement of his new Afghan strategy.
According to presidential spokesman Farhatullah Babar, President Obama mentioned broad outlines of the new policy.
President Zardari was among the five world leaders contacted by the US president, the others being the leaders of France, Canada, Australia and Afghanistan....

The issue with al Qaeda does not exist in Afghanistan alone.

Aid workers feared kidnapped by al-Qaeda's north Africa wing (click here)
Three Spanish aid workers kidnapped in Mauritania on Monday are believed to be being held by the group linked to al-Qaeda which beheaded a British hostage in June.
By Mike Pflanz, West Africa Correspondent
Published: 6:00AM GMT 01 Dec 2009
Gunmen fired shots to stop the vehicle carrying the two men and one woman, which was at the back of a 13-car convoy heading north from the capital Nouakchott to deliver aid.
"I heard my colleagues in one of the cars who said 'soldiers, soldiers, machine guns, machine guns'," Joseph Carbonell, head of the aid group Barcelona-Accio Solidaria, told Reuters....

As the noose tightens on Afghanistan Opium, the 'enterprise' of kidnapping gains momentum for the terrorist network. I looks as though Africa is choice real estate for the funding operations of al Qaeda and the Somali pirates. Something tells me 'times are getting tough' for al Qaeda.

Sahel: Al-Qaeda and the "business" of Western hostages (click here)
ennahar 01 December, 2009 03:50:00
DAKAR - For Al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), always menacing but in financial difficulty, the kidnapping of Westerners in the Sahel countries constitutes increasingly a "business" to bail out, according to experts.
In less than a week, a French has been kidnapped in north-eastern Mali and three Spaniards captured in northern Mauritania: two actions usually attributed to the jihadist movement, even if they have not yet been claimed. The abductions have "multiplied in recent months, the degradation is continuous for over five years," said Alain Antil, a researcher at the French Institute for International Relations (IFRI) in Paris....





Brown’s Bin Laden remark irks Pakistan (click here)
Azhar Masood
Arab News
ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office of Pakistan expressed its surprise on Monday over the latest British demand that Pakistan should hunt Al-Qaeda leaders, including Osama Bin Laden’s second in command, Ayman Al-Zawahiri.
“We have eliminated about 7,000 pro-Al-Qaeda militants and Pakistan’s forces are still making extraordinary efforts to track down and eliminate militants,” said Foreign Office Spokesman Abdul Basit. “We ask the British government or other NATO powers to provide us intelligence reports that suggest a presence of Al-Qaeda elements. We totally deny these inaccurate reports that Al-Qaeda’s leaders are present in Pakistan.”
Interior Minister Rehman Malik also urged the British government to pass on any information about whereabouts of Bin Laden. “If anyone has information about the presence of Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan, then it must be shared with our government. We would take action,” he told reporters....

Somali pirates hijack Greek-flagged supertanker (click here)
Agencies
NAIROBI, Kenya: Somali pirates seized a supertanker carrying crude oil from Saudi Arabia to the United States in the increasingly dangerous waters off East Africa, an official said on Monday, an attack that could pose a huge environmental or security threat to the region.
The Greece-flagged Maran Centaurus was hijacked on Sunday northeast of the Seychelles about 1,300 km off the coast of Somalia, said Cmdr. John Harbor, a spokesman for the EU Naval Force....

With a month to go in 2009, The Boston Globe starts to look back at the year that closes the first decade of the 21st Century.

Notable deaths of 2009 (click title to entry - thank you)



Harvard buys Updike archive (click here)
Collection includes late writer’s reviews, letters, manuscripts
By Tracy Jan
Globe Staff / October 7, 2009
...The university will announce today that Houghton Library, Harvard’s primary repository for rare books and manuscripts, will house the John Updike Archive, making the library the center for studies on the life and work of the two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and prolific novelist, poet, and critic. College officials would not disclose how much Harvard paid to acquire the papers of Updike, who died in January at 76....

Michaele Salahi was "Miss District of Columbia" in the "Miss USA" pagent. Huh? The scandal is a political stunt. Wait and see. Where is Rove?

See it goes like this. If the Republicans can portray the Obama Administration as being vulnerable in enough buffoonery, they can start to instill more fear in the electorate in saying America is more vulnerable.

Why do you think Cheney is out there ranting and carrying on? To protect his own hide? No. To do the same exact 'Darth Vader' fear mongering that won him the war in Iraq. That is why Cheney is out there.

If this proves to be the case, the Salahis lives aren't ruined. They have made a name for themselves in a far different way than they expected. They have a 'beef' with whomever started this rumor and not anyone else.

Evidently, the Salahis may very well be very connected in "DC Social Circles" (click title to entry - thank you) and may have even been 'set up' to have this play out.

Mrs. Salahi is obviously involved in the public rhelm and may very well feel very 'at home' at a state dinner, an official function, of the White House. If that is the case, the media and everyone that jumped to faux conclusions owe them a sincere apology. I think the evidence 'on the web' speaks somewhat for itself.

Apologies to the Secret Service as well if it is discovered this was nothing more than a political trick to embarrass the President and First Lady. We await the investigation.



...The crew followed the Salahis to the White House (click here) but could not get into the dinner.
"Everything we've worked for," she told NBC, "for me -- 44 years -- destroyed."
The Salahis declined to tell NBC who invited them to the dinner, saying they had turned over documents including e-mails to Secret Service investigators....

I believe any government has the right to 'limit' the building and influence of religion as an issue of sovereignty.

The Swiss are not excluding the practice of Islam nor are they advocating for the destruction of buildings where the faith is practiced.

This is not a matter of hate or bais.

The Swiss are simply saying 'enough' Islamic structures already exist in the country considering the populous that practice the faith. No religion should ever overpower a government's right to freedom of expression or cultural standards.

Iran condemns Swiss minaret ban as "Islamophobic act" (click title to entry - thank you)
www.chinaview.cn

2009-12-02 01:37:49
TEHRAN, Dec. 1 (Xinhua) -- An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Tuesday condemned a Swiss referendum banning the construction of minarets in the country, local English language satellite Press TV reported.
Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast described the Swiss minaret ban as an "Islamophobic act" and a blow to the religious freedom declared in the West, the report said.
"We consider such acts as inappropriate, a move that is against the Western claims of democracy and religious freedom," he told reporters, adding that "surprisingly some of the actions of the West have Islamophobic roots."
The majority of Swiss voters on Sunday said yes to a ban on the construction of Muslim minarets. The Swiss government said in a statement that it respected the decision made by Swiss voters, and "consequently the construction of new minarets in Switzerland is no longer permitted."
Minarets are distinctive architectural features of Islamic mosques. As well as providing a visual cue to a Muslim community, the main function of the minaret is to provide a vantage point from which the call to prayer is made.
Also on Tuesday, Turkish President Abdullah Gul said that the Swiss minaret ban is contrary to fundamental rights and freedoms.
"This is a shame for the Swiss," Gul was quoted by the semi-official Anatolia news agency as saying at the Esenboga airport in Ankara prior to his departure for an official visit to Jordan.

Does every child have a right to life unencumbered by disease? World AIDS Day.

Happy Holidays America, compliments of Georgie and Dickie.

The Republicans will continue to attempt to derail domestic improvements in the USA, including a national health care reform strategy. They will argue the cost of the wars cannot increase the USA debt, but, must be fought while trimming domestic programs and entitlements. The Democrats maybe seeking a tax to support the remaining years of the war.

...When asked whether the Bush administration's focus on Iraq (click here) was responsible for the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan, Cheney reportedly said, "I basically don't," without elaborating....



...As President Barack Obama prepares to unveil his new way forward for Afghanistan which, according to reports, includes a surge of 30,000 troops, some of the greatest skeptics, interestingly enough, are to be found in Afghanistan....

...One of the Afghans' major concerns is that the additional troops will only add to the sense among Afghans that the U.S. is an occupying force....

That point of view is bogus. We are not occupying Afghanistan and they know it. The fact of the matter is, Karzai has a corrupt infrastructure and those benefitting from it don't want to lose their control or influence. The bias against NATO and the USA has to do with a corrupt nation 'hooked' on power and poppies.

It is only the beginning of the end. Why are men killing police officers so successfully and with ambush tactics?

Suspected cop killer slain by police (click here)
By CASEY MCNERTHNEY and SHANNON FEARS
SEATTLEPI.COM STAFF
...The officer shot and killed Clemmons, wanted for gunning down four Lakewood cops, as he fled in a Rainier Valley neighborhood.
"Everything indicates that this is the person we've been looking for," Seattle Police Assistant Chief Jim Pugel told a news conference at the scene about 5:20 a.m. Tuesday morning.
Clemmons was the sole suspect in the slayings of four Lakewood police officers as they sat in a coffee shop Sunday morning....

Clemmons should not have been out of prison in the first place. What the heck was Huckabee thinking? There is something very "W"rong here. Who was getting paid for pardons?

...Huckabee (click here) is one of the Republican Party's most popular figures, but he has been dogged by questions over the more than 1,000 commutations and pardons he issued -- more than his three predecessors combined -- during his 10-year tenure.
In his 2008 presidential campaign, he faced similar questions over the release from prison of convicted rapist Wayne DuMond, who was convicted of another rape and a murder....

The Executives of Halliburton OWE the people of Dubai a great deal of money. I suggest King Abduallah be sure they get it.

Otherwise tell them to take their business elsewhere.

5 Places Halliburton Executives Need To Know In Dubai (click title to entry - thank you)

March 15, 2007 at 12:12 PM

Gold Souk

...Dubai loves gold. Local Indians and Iranians take their wares to Gold Souk where hundreds of shops compete for your attention and dollars. You can find virtually any type of gold object you are looking for, and more often than not bargaining pays off. Even if you don't want to buy golden objects, Gold Souk is a great place to people watch....