These drugs are 'helpful' but they aren't candy as they are currently treated. Over the counter drugs have their place, but, I am more than pleased the FDA are given back their 'teeth.'
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Another Airbus fell out of the sky. Somehow a surviving five year old is more important than the rest of the passengers.
The statistics with the table below is a little deceptive and in my opinion is trivial. The fact that Airbus is more popular in the countries where these recent accidents occurred could make a couple of statements.
Airbus wants everyone to believe it is the weather. It isn't the weather or wind conditions. The typhoon season in the North Indian Ocean ended in May with an occurrence of all of two storms this season. There is a 'Tropical Storm' season that occurs in September and October but the storms never get that strong these days. The two cyclones that occurred in this ocean didn't acheive Cat. 2 status. They had maximum winds of 50 to 65 miles per hour. There is absolutely no reason why a Jumbo Jet can't fly through turbulence of 40 to 60 mph. These planes have engines that create winds stronger than that when they are preparing for take off. I don't want to hear the excuses anymore.
Since the Airbus crash of Air France, the Bowing Dreamline is back to the drawing board and we many see a Dreamliner in commercial flight.
To begin what the heck are we building such huge jets for in the year 2009? In case no one noticed, these jumbos were used by al Qaeda to attack the infrastructure of the USA. Then there is the issue of fuel. While the Dreamliner is supposed to save fuel, there is no reason to be traveling in such huge planes that use huge capacities of fuel. It makes no sense. There is nothing 'green' about planes.
The issue that two crashes of Airbus occurred in close proximity of each other is however significant. It means the mechanisms, computers, software have a longevity different than the plances. The Super-Jumbos are simply too big to fly. They are loaded with computer software to help handle their bulk in flight, take off and landing. If Airbus has a problem it doesn't matter if they haven't had accidents before or if they have had a million. A problem is a problem. You won't find me on a plane.
Planes with fatal accidents to passengers (click here)
As rescuers search for survivors of the Yemenia Air Airbus A310 which crashed investigators will already be looking at possible causes.
Organisations record reams of data on commerical airliners around the world. This set - which includes the latest crash - is from consultancy Ascend. It shows us the most popular airliners in the world - and how many fatal passenger crashes each has had. It does not include terror attacks and there are other caveats too: for instance, the DC-9 have been in service for a long time and the current fleet is now reduced due to retirements. But it is a unique dataset - let us know what you think.
Airbus wants everyone to believe it is the weather. It isn't the weather or wind conditions. The typhoon season in the North Indian Ocean ended in May with an occurrence of all of two storms this season. There is a 'Tropical Storm' season that occurs in September and October but the storms never get that strong these days. The two cyclones that occurred in this ocean didn't acheive Cat. 2 status. They had maximum winds of 50 to 65 miles per hour. There is absolutely no reason why a Jumbo Jet can't fly through turbulence of 40 to 60 mph. These planes have engines that create winds stronger than that when they are preparing for take off. I don't want to hear the excuses anymore.
Since the Airbus crash of Air France, the Bowing Dreamline is back to the drawing board and we many see a Dreamliner in commercial flight.
To begin what the heck are we building such huge jets for in the year 2009? In case no one noticed, these jumbos were used by al Qaeda to attack the infrastructure of the USA. Then there is the issue of fuel. While the Dreamliner is supposed to save fuel, there is no reason to be traveling in such huge planes that use huge capacities of fuel. It makes no sense. There is nothing 'green' about planes.
The issue that two crashes of Airbus occurred in close proximity of each other is however significant. It means the mechanisms, computers, software have a longevity different than the plances. The Super-Jumbos are simply too big to fly. They are loaded with computer software to help handle their bulk in flight, take off and landing. If Airbus has a problem it doesn't matter if they haven't had accidents before or if they have had a million. A problem is a problem. You won't find me on a plane.
Planes with fatal accidents to passengers (click here)
As rescuers search for survivors of the Yemenia Air Airbus A310 which crashed investigators will already be looking at possible causes.
Organisations record reams of data on commerical airliners around the world. This set - which includes the latest crash - is from consultancy Ascend. It shows us the most popular airliners in the world - and how many fatal passenger crashes each has had. It does not include terror attacks and there are other caveats too: for instance, the DC-9 have been in service for a long time and the current fleet is now reduced due to retirements. But it is a unique dataset - let us know what you think.
Monday, June 29, 2009
After the people of South Carolina dry their tears over the melodrama, they need to impeach him if he won't resign.
His own Lt. Governor indicted him on insubordination of a Governor to this responsibilities.
The Lt. Governor appeared wtih Huckabee. It was obvious the State of South Carolina was in limbo the entire time Sanford went missing. The Lt. Governor didn't even know he was missing until someone called him in regard to where the Governor might be. (click here)
Part I
Part II
The Lt. Governor appeared wtih Huckabee. It was obvious the State of South Carolina was in limbo the entire time Sanford went missing. The Lt. Governor didn't even know he was missing until someone called him in regard to where the Governor might be. (click here)
Part I
Part II
Sanford is basically corrupt. He was wheeling and dealing outside USA federal policy. He and his supporters, which have invested heavily with him as a potential Presidential hopeful, may be trying to 'capture' sympathy through isolating this as a South Carolina issue, but, it may be that Sanford's lover might actually be his haven in case he 'got caught.'
...The Commerce Department halted high-level trade missions to Argentina after Argentina reneged on its debts. A Commerce Department official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to discuss the matter publicly, confirmed that Sanford's visit contradicted federal policy....(click title to entry - thank you)
Attack against Affirmative Action. So what else is new in the Robert's Court?
It would appear as though President Obama has chosen the perfect candidate to the Supreme Court. She is gifted enough to see past the 'Status Quo' and while this is not directly an Affirmative Action case, it has the underlying dynamics of one.
Firefighters' Case Shouldn't Haunt Sotomayor (click here)
By Eva Rodriguez
Make no mistake about it: The case of Ricci v. DeStefano will come back to haunt Obama Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor. In a fair world, it wouldn't.
A sharply divided 5-4 Supreme Court this morning overruled a decision issued by Sotomayor and two colleagues on the New York-based federal appeals court. Sotomayor upheld New Haven, Conn.'s decision to throw out tests for leadership posts in its fire department. The city took the action after test results showed that only white or Hispanic firefighters scored high enough to qualify for promotion; under this test, no African-American firefighters made the grade....
The real question is, why have caucasians done so well in leadership and primarily caucasian males? Some of that 'equation' is a 'cultural' issue. Not socio-economic, but, the 'culture' of leadership in American institutions. And yes, business and government are institutions with different 'characteristics.'
Some people don't do well on tests, yet perform beyond any expectations in 'the field.' There is a reason for that. It was absolutely correct to eradicate the test as a 'tool' to 'decide' a new leadership position. When there is a stark difference in the scores of minorities to their majority peers all kinds of red flags should go up. Absolutely, without a doubt.
Firefighters' Case Shouldn't Haunt Sotomayor (click here)
By Eva Rodriguez
Make no mistake about it: The case of Ricci v. DeStefano will come back to haunt Obama Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor. In a fair world, it wouldn't.
A sharply divided 5-4 Supreme Court this morning overruled a decision issued by Sotomayor and two colleagues on the New York-based federal appeals court. Sotomayor upheld New Haven, Conn.'s decision to throw out tests for leadership posts in its fire department. The city took the action after test results showed that only white or Hispanic firefighters scored high enough to qualify for promotion; under this test, no African-American firefighters made the grade....
The real question is, why have caucasians done so well in leadership and primarily caucasian males? Some of that 'equation' is a 'cultural' issue. Not socio-economic, but, the 'culture' of leadership in American institutions. And yes, business and government are institutions with different 'characteristics.'
We all know the expressions, "The Good 'Ole Boys Club," "The Glass Ceiling." They are real and not just expressions. They are real dynamics that provide barriers to accomplishments by minorities, including white women. As an example I offer 'The Good 'Ole Boys Over Reaching Club of Goldman Sachs.' (Correction : There may have been one token Black Man in the mix.)
When one looks at the men that come out of the institution to 'service' the government rhelm, they are all white men. So, I don't want to hear how there is NO problem in the USA with advancement of minorities, including white women, just because a 'limited' and 'hostile' Supreme Court made a ruling that is supposed to 'end it.' This does not 'end it.' It opens the country to a vulnerability of continued poor standards in the 'culture' of business and government.
The 'idea' of advancement in leadership should come with a well rounded background. But. Who provides the 'opportunity' to that background? Ideally, the 'process' should be as if the choice for a leadership position were blind to any dynamics, except, those needed for the leadership position. When a test is administered to 'find' advancement it should not be the do all and end all, but, a 'tool' for evaluation.Some people don't do well on tests, yet perform beyond any expectations in 'the field.' There is a reason for that. It was absolutely correct to eradicate the test as a 'tool' to 'decide' a new leadership position. When there is a stark difference in the scores of minorities to their majority peers all kinds of red flags should go up. Absolutely, without a doubt.
The underlying message to this Supreme Court decision is that everyone needs to study harder and with better concentration. What? It 'implies' those that did not do well are inferior to their peers that did well, hence a better leadership choice based on study habits. The Robert's Supreme Court today 'decided' to back 'a test' and not performance of someone that was to 'apply' 'knowledge' to leadership of a very dangerous profession. They literally 'dummied down' the options for achieving the best outcome. It is a hideous decision today. Absolutely.
Reading and writing has a place in determining leadership, however, that is a characteristic one needs to achieve to succeed at all. All to often 'tests' for 'placing' people in leadership positions are based in 'how to play the game.' In other words, 'What would your decision be if presented with X, Y, Z dynamics. As an executive what would be the best choice for 'organizing' decision making. Applying 'learned skills' to decision making based on 'what it best for the fire fighter' responding to a fire is not a matter of 'business decision making,' but, one of 'dynamic' decision making.Should there ever be a departure from that? Is there a position within leadership for fire fighters that should depart from 'experience' into a 'business' decision? Not in my opinion. Any fire fighter needs RADIOS that work. That decision to make the best choice of radio for fire fighters could have saved lives on September 11, 2001.
There is not necessarily 'right or wrong' dynamics, but, more 'learned experience' application to those decisions. I doubt seriously any written test, even in essay, could bring the 'knowledge' of fire fighting to bear equitably to a candidate. No fire fighter has the very same experience as another. The choices minorities are making in applying for employment might very well be with other minorities where cultural backgrounds are not issues when working together. After all, fire fighting is life and death to any person involved, be it the professional responding or the victim.
The choices of fire fighters to their particular interest in serving in the field are based on intimate dynamics. These people pratically live together and know each other's personality well. They have preferences in what their companies are composed. It was about a year, maybe more, ago that a gay fire fighter was literally beaten by a peer. I don't site that as a 'fact' to this case, but, as an example of the underlying dynamics to being a part of a fire company.
I am quite confident the State of Connecticut did not go out of their way to compose a test that was discriminatory, however, the application of the test to the candidates proved there were severe deficits to the ability of all the candidates to apply their experience and knowledge. With that reality comes a decision itself. That decision SHOULD have lead to 'first' an evaluation of the candidates that were 'excluded' from doing well and why. Why indeed were minorities performing poorly on a very important test that I am confident every one of them took seriously? It is a question even today that has not been answered.
Today, the Supreme Court prohibited that question to take place. It excluded 'statistics' based in race, religion, culture or gender to be a 'factor' in preparation of tests to advancement. That is dangerous beyond any imaginary 'line' that exists which acts as a discriminatory 'tool.' The decision today is one of the most horrendous ever made by the Supreme Court. The decision was minimally biased if not bigoted itself. From where I stand it was an act of anger against the 'melting pot' that complicates the landscape of the USA. Make no doubt about it, the landscape of the populous of this country does not allow for efficiency so much as challenge. The Supreme Court failed the challenge today. No doubt in my mind. Attempting to 'simplify' the USA only makes it all worse. It just doesn't work. It is the nature of the beast.
The weather at Glacier Bay National Park (Crystal Wind Chime) is:
Local Time: 8:34 AM AKDT (GMT -08)
Lat/Lon: 58.8° N 137.0° W
Elevation :: 33 feet
Temperature :: 52 °F
Conditions :: Overcast
Humidity :: 76%
Dew Point :: 45 F
Wind :: Calm
Pressure :: 30.17 inches (Steady)
Visibility :: 10.0 miles
UV :: 1 out of 16
Clouds :: Overcast 3000 ft
(Above Ground Level)
Earth's in the emergency room (click title to entry - thank you)
BY DAVID YARNOLD
dyarnoldedf.org
...Continuing to delay the environmental care we urgently need will make the future much, much worse. Projections show the inland United States will warm up roughly 40 percent faster than the global average, with profound implications for American agriculture. In 2007, the prestigious Science magazine published research that ''predicted a permanent drought by 2050 in many parts of the country,'' creating 1930s Dust Bowl-like arid conditions from Kansas to California. Another study found that without action to address climate change, by 2100 Oklahoma will see temperatures above 110 degrees for 60 to 80 days a year -- within the lifetime of many children born today.
Just as emergency room care is always more expensive, waiting to address climate change will cost prohibitively more. Suppose we pass cap-and-trade climate legislation this year, with the law taking effect in 2012. To comply with the emissions target by 2020, businesses would need to cut annual emissions by about 2 percent.
Now let's look at another scenario: say we pass a cap-and-trade bill in 2010, and it doesn't take effect until 2014. To meet the same target, emissions would have to fall by 4.3 percent per year -- over twice as fast -- year after year until 2020, just to get to the same place. By 2020, emissions would have to be cut 23 percent below the starting point in 2014 compared to a 15-percent reduction if we begin just two years earlier. That's the cost of delaying action while the amount of global warming pollution in the atmosphere continues to rise....
Lat/Lon: 58.8° N 137.0° W
Elevation :: 33 feet
Temperature :: 52 °F
Conditions :: Overcast
Humidity :: 76%
Dew Point :: 45 F
Wind :: Calm
Pressure :: 30.17 inches (Steady)
Visibility :: 10.0 miles
UV :: 1 out of 16
Clouds :: Overcast 3000 ft
(Above Ground Level)
Earth's in the emergency room (click title to entry - thank you)
BY DAVID YARNOLD
dyarnoldedf.org
...Continuing to delay the environmental care we urgently need will make the future much, much worse. Projections show the inland United States will warm up roughly 40 percent faster than the global average, with profound implications for American agriculture. In 2007, the prestigious Science magazine published research that ''predicted a permanent drought by 2050 in many parts of the country,'' creating 1930s Dust Bowl-like arid conditions from Kansas to California. Another study found that without action to address climate change, by 2100 Oklahoma will see temperatures above 110 degrees for 60 to 80 days a year -- within the lifetime of many children born today.
Just as emergency room care is always more expensive, waiting to address climate change will cost prohibitively more. Suppose we pass cap-and-trade climate legislation this year, with the law taking effect in 2012. To comply with the emissions target by 2020, businesses would need to cut annual emissions by about 2 percent.
Now let's look at another scenario: say we pass a cap-and-trade bill in 2010, and it doesn't take effect until 2014. To meet the same target, emissions would have to fall by 4.3 percent per year -- over twice as fast -- year after year until 2020, just to get to the same place. By 2020, emissions would have to be cut 23 percent below the starting point in 2014 compared to a 15-percent reduction if we begin just two years earlier. That's the cost of delaying action while the amount of global warming pollution in the atmosphere continues to rise....
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Morning Papers - It's Origins
The Rooster
"Okeydoke"
The week past was marred by notable deaths.
The most incredible being the Democracy Now Demonstrators in Iran. I never expected such a strong and resilient front to the demand for the enforcement of democratic principles before within a country plagued with a ego-inflated demogogic figure as its President. While the current Ayatollah pleaded for the demostrators to stop their out cry, the Iranian government proceeded in declaring there were in fact inconsistencies in at least fifty cities within the election vote count, however it would not effect the outcome.
The demonstrating did not end in Iran. There were demonstrations around the world in support of the Iranians. One such demonstration proved to be confrontational in Sweden of all places.
By LOUISE NORDSTROM, Associated Press Writer
Fri Jun 26, 2:01 pm ET
STOCKHOLM – Angry demonstrators broke into the Iranian Embassy outside Stockholm on Friday, climbing in through shattered windows and injuring one embassy worker, police said.
More than 150 people had gathered outside the embassy to protest against the Iranian regime, when some of them attacked the building with rocks and tore down a fence to enter the embassy grounds, police spokesman Ulf Hoglund said.
"A few managed to climb through broken windows into the building," Hoglund said. He said one member of the embassy staff was injured inside the building, but didn't know how seriously.
Fifty police officers and an ambulance were dispatched to the scene. Hoglund said police had evicted the demonstrators from the building and arrested one person.
Organizers of the demonstration said a few of the protesters were injured in clashes with the embassy's security officers.
"We want a regime change," said Firouzeh Ghaffrpour, one of the organizers. "The Islamic system is not wanted by the people of Iran."
The protesters, mostly Iranians, also demanded the embassy be closed.
Police said the situation was under control later Friday, but demonstrators continued to block the entrance, preventing embassy personnel from leaving.
The protest followed several peaceful demonstrations in Sweden after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was re-elected in a June 12 vote that the opposition claims was marred by massive fraud.
More than 150 people had gathered outside the embassy to protest against the Iranian regime, when some of them attacked the building with rocks and tore down a fence to enter the embassy grounds, police spokesman Ulf Hoglund said.
"A few managed to climb through broken windows into the building," Hoglund said. He said one member of the embassy staff was injured inside the building, but didn't know how seriously.
Fifty police officers and an ambulance were dispatched to the scene. Hoglund said police had evicted the demonstrators from the building and arrested one person.
Organizers of the demonstration said a few of the protesters were injured in clashes with the embassy's security officers.
"We want a regime change," said Firouzeh Ghaffrpour, one of the organizers. "The Islamic system is not wanted by the people of Iran."
The protesters, mostly Iranians, also demanded the embassy be closed.
Police said the situation was under control later Friday, but demonstrators continued to block the entrance, preventing embassy personnel from leaving.
The protest followed several peaceful demonstrations in Sweden after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was re-elected in a June 12 vote that the opposition claims was marred by massive fraud.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad still remains President of Iran and is ratcheting up his rhetoric against The West, primarily with the USA as his target. He continues his inflammatory ranting which is taking away any legitimate authority of his office.
President Ahmadinejad is facing an even more difficult administration in DC that has been willing to talk with Iran regarding its aggressive nuclear proliferation which has already seen a resident enrichment facility.
Now, it would seem as though the attempts by the current administration in resolving sanctions agsinst Iran while seeking cooperation in the nuclear arms race in the Middle East is again being toyed with for increased rhetoric to garner time to complete nuclear armament of missiles. It is doubtable, especially now with threats of executions by an Iranian cleric, that peace talks will favor any outcome that was possible with Iran. It appears a rhetorical govenment is favored by the authority within that country as the world has watched Iran not only complete its nuclear facility, but, build enrichment facilities capable of weapon capacity. It is a 'strategy' favored by Iran in the face of sanctions that are disregarded as insignificant within the rhetoric of the authorities.
The Middle East Peace process has a poor margin of achievement with 'still' hopes of a Two State Agreement between Palestine and Israel as a conduit to everything else possible in resolving the New Cold War of countries such as Iran and North Korea. It is unrealistic to believe that 'settling' the Palestine-Israeli process will stop Iran or any other country within the Middle East from propagation of nuclear weapon capacity. The process between Israel and Palestine is unique to any outcome with Iran. Iran sees a greater picture as a champion for the Shi'ites, when in reality it is overshadowing a demise to such a benevolent people with nuclear capacity.
In DC, a primary vote regarding Climate Change legislation passed by a reasonable margin. The opposition admits Earth needs to be a partner in government oversight of carbon dioxide emissions, however, they say the 'timing' for such legislation is a bad idea as it is an economic 'strain' on the already compromised global economy. Tell me that makes sense. I want to hear how all that makes sense. The people that would make such statements also were able to achieve peace in the Middle East, right? Sure.
Let's see. Ignoring the devastation of high tropospheric carbon dioxide levels for nearly five decades has brought the globe to a deadly pattern of Climate Change. In the 1960s when the Greenhouse Effect promoted the first Earth Day, the verbiage Climate Change was never spoken. Climate Change became popular with the Republican leadership and a substitute for Human Induced Global Warming. Somehow, the verbiage would make the 'reality' managable. The problem the Neocons ran into was not a PR issue, only the reality that they couldn't declare war on Earth to garner cooperation in their priorities. Although, the arguement can be made war against Earth has been a priority of Republican leadership since Earth Day.
A President for the Future, someone the American people have needed for the five decades following the alarming news from our scientists. I congratulate him for his resolve on the issues of the day. There is no treading water for President Obama as there has been by Republicans. He isn't a rhetorical figure that laces 'happy talk' with reality. He 'explains' the direction of this administration based in 'the truth' and resolves leading in 'answers' to the issues. He is a remarkable person.
Reflecting on President Obama's family values and on the lighter side of American life, Bo received his official White House portrait and the Los Angeles Times had fun with the idea of "Universal Pet Insurance." An interesting idea, considering pets now receive such advanced technologies as radiation and chemotherapy for cancers.
Well, it didn't take long. And came as no surprise.
Just weeks after moving into the Democratic White House, Bo Obama used the occasion of his official photograph release today to call for universal pet health insurance.
Looking just darling and tilting his head as generations of successful public dogs have endearingly done to capture human hearts, the Portuguese water dog said that a society that could send chimpanzees into space certainly could afford to pay for such essential insurance for their beloved home companions....
Just weeks after moving into the Democratic White House, Bo Obama used the occasion of his official photograph release today to call for universal pet health insurance.
Looking just darling and tilting his head as generations of successful public dogs have endearingly done to capture human hearts, the Portuguese water dog said that a society that could send chimpanzees into space certainly could afford to pay for such essential insurance for their beloved home companions....
The Los Angeles Times is quite right, pets have come a long way from the RCA Victor Dog. Nice blog article, thank you.
Oh, perhaps I need to qualify one statement that seems like rhetoric. I stated this is a 'tougher' administration the Middle East and primarily Iran has to face.
My favorite quote of any American President to date is the 'theme' for this blog. “I never give them hell. I just tell the truth and they think it’s hell.” – Harry Truman. Something Michael Moore has been able to capture as a methodolgy in life. Imagine that.
At any rate, having Iran and the global community face the facts of the burgeoning nuclear proliferation in the Middle East by staring down Ahmadinejad rhetoric and lies while STILL demanding to 'talk' is far tougher a stance than simply sitting in the Oval Office and ranting about dropping bombs. An administration that seeks peace through progressive talks and demanding verification of disarmament and non-proliferation strategies does not allow for rhetoric by Mahmoud or any other 'traditionally' considered Rouge State.
Opening up and even demanding a peace process and method of nuclear non-proliferation with ultimate disarmament as a goal to stop any insane ideologies of annihilating half the populous of humans on Earth (Assuming of course only half the planet would oppose the other half.) is a tough stance and one the entire global community (at some level) would seek to disavow.
Seeking peace and nuclear non-proliferation is far more difficult than chronic nuclear brinkmanship. It exposes the 'under belly' of the global community. A dangerous place indeed.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Mir Hossein Musavi, Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Iranian demonstrators called to be executed.
If an Iranian Cleric is calling for the demonstrators to be executed, how far behind can be the leaders that called for the demonstrations. We know that Musavi is under house arrest and family members of Rafsanjani have been arrested. It is time for the United Nations and World Courts to step in before this becomes a fire storm. 
If this clerics call for executions becomes a fire storm, I don't see any resolve to the nuclear proliferation crisis except to destroy the reactor. The global community was seeking 'reason' and acceptance of the people's unrest as a sign of a more open Iran; this call for executions is only the beginning of a more unreasonable country. It 'hallmarks' some of an unexpected sentiment towards its own people. I am rather surprised.
Iranian cleric says "rioters" should be executed (click title to entry - thank you)
Fri Jun 26, 2009 7:03am EDT
By Parisa Hafezi
TEHRAN (Reuters) - A hardline Iranian cleric on Friday called for the execution of "rioters" in the latest sign of the authorities' determination to stamp out opposition to the June 12 presidential election.
EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on their ability to report, film or take pictures in Tehran.
Iran's top legislative body, the Guardian Council, said it had found no major violations in the election, which it called the "healthiest" vote since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
The council had already rejected a call for the annulment of the vote by moderate former Prime Minister Mirhossein Mousavi, who has led mass protests since he was declared a distant second in the election behind incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
"I want the judiciary to ... punish leading rioters firmly and without showing any mercy to teach everyone a lesson," Ahmad Khatami told worshippers at Tehran University.
Iranian state television said on Thursday eight Basij militiamen were killed by "rioters" during the protests. State media previously said 20 people were killed in the marches.
Iranian authorities have accused Mousavi of being responsible for the bloodshed, while the moderate former prime minister says the government is to blame.
Khatami, a member of the Assembly of Experts, said the judiciary should charge the leading "rioters" as being "mohareb" or one who wages war against God.
"They should be punished ruthlessly and savagely," he said. Under Iran's Islamic law, punishment for people convicted as mohareb is execution.
Mousavi's supporters plan to release thousands of balloons on Friday with the message: "Neda you will always remain in our hearts," in memory of the young woman killed last week who has become an icon of the demonstrations.
CRACKDOWN
The authorities have used a combination of warnings, arrests and the threat of police action to drive large demonstrations off Tehran's street since Saturday with small gatherings dispersed with tear gas and baton charges.
Seventy professors were detained after meeting Mousavi and his campaign manager was among many arrested. The professors were released on Thursday.
The 12-man Guardian Council's statement leaves little scope for more legal challenges, short of an attack on the position of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has expressed strong support for Ahmadinejad.
"The Guardian Council has almost finished reviewing defeated candidates' election complaints ... the reviews showed that the election was the healthiest since the revolution ... There were no major violations in the election," said Abbasali Kadkhodai, spokesman of the council.
If this clerics call for executions becomes a fire storm, I don't see any resolve to the nuclear proliferation crisis except to destroy the reactor. The global community was seeking 'reason' and acceptance of the people's unrest as a sign of a more open Iran; this call for executions is only the beginning of a more unreasonable country. It 'hallmarks' some of an unexpected sentiment towards its own people. I am rather surprised.
Iranian cleric says "rioters" should be executed (click title to entry - thank you)
Fri Jun 26, 2009 7:03am EDT
By Parisa Hafezi
TEHRAN (Reuters) - A hardline Iranian cleric on Friday called for the execution of "rioters" in the latest sign of the authorities' determination to stamp out opposition to the June 12 presidential election.
EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on their ability to report, film or take pictures in Tehran.
Iran's top legislative body, the Guardian Council, said it had found no major violations in the election, which it called the "healthiest" vote since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
The council had already rejected a call for the annulment of the vote by moderate former Prime Minister Mirhossein Mousavi, who has led mass protests since he was declared a distant second in the election behind incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
"I want the judiciary to ... punish leading rioters firmly and without showing any mercy to teach everyone a lesson," Ahmad Khatami told worshippers at Tehran University.
Iranian state television said on Thursday eight Basij militiamen were killed by "rioters" during the protests. State media previously said 20 people were killed in the marches.
Iranian authorities have accused Mousavi of being responsible for the bloodshed, while the moderate former prime minister says the government is to blame.
Khatami, a member of the Assembly of Experts, said the judiciary should charge the leading "rioters" as being "mohareb" or one who wages war against God.
"They should be punished ruthlessly and savagely," he said. Under Iran's Islamic law, punishment for people convicted as mohareb is execution.
Mousavi's supporters plan to release thousands of balloons on Friday with the message: "Neda you will always remain in our hearts," in memory of the young woman killed last week who has become an icon of the demonstrations.
CRACKDOWN
The authorities have used a combination of warnings, arrests and the threat of police action to drive large demonstrations off Tehran's street since Saturday with small gatherings dispersed with tear gas and baton charges.
Seventy professors were detained after meeting Mousavi and his campaign manager was among many arrested. The professors were released on Thursday.
The 12-man Guardian Council's statement leaves little scope for more legal challenges, short of an attack on the position of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has expressed strong support for Ahmadinejad.
"The Guardian Council has almost finished reviewing defeated candidates' election complaints ... the reviews showed that the election was the healthiest since the revolution ... There were no major violations in the election," said Abbasali Kadkhodai, spokesman of the council.
Former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a Mousavi ally, chairs the Assembly of Experts which has the constitutional power to depose Khamenei. The assembly has never tried to do so and Rasfanjani is seen as unlikely take such a radical step.
Group of Eight powers meeting in Trieste will issue a statement calling on Iran to settle the crisis soon through democratic dialogue and peaceful means.
"We deplore post-electoral violence which led to the loss of lives of Iranian civilians and urge Iran to respect fundamental human rights including freedom of expression and ensured by the international treaties it has ratified," the final draft said.
President Barrack Obama has said he was "appalled and outraged" by the security crackdown in the world's fifth largest oil exporter.
The condemnation by Obama, who had been trying to improve ties with Iran before the election, prompted Ahmadinejad to accuse him of behaving like his predecessor and say there was not much point in talking to Washington unless Obama apologised.
Mousavi said he was determined to keep challenging the election results despite pressure to stop.
"A major rigging has happened," his website reported him as saying. "I am prepared to prove that those behind the rigging are responsible for the bloodshed."
He called on his supporters to continue "legal" protests and said restrictions on the opposition could lead to more violence.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Jobless Claims Unexpectedly Inch Higher
Rise By 15,000 Attributed To Layoffs Connected To School Year Ending (click title to entry - thank you)
WASHINGTON, June 25, 2009
(AP) The government says the number of people filing first-time claims for jobless benefits increased last week, partly due to layoffs related to the end of the school year. The Labor Department says new jobless claims rose by 15,000 to a seasonally adjusted 627,000. Economists expected a drop to 600,000 claims, according to Thomson Reuters. A department analyst says that states reported more claims than expected from teachers, cafeteria workers and other school employees. The number of people continuing to receive unemployment insurance rose by 29,000 to 6.74 million, slightly above analysts' estimates of 6.7 million.
County unemployment climbs to 13.7 percent in May (click here)
By Jim Faile
Published: June 24, 2009
Darlington County’s (South Carolina) unemployment rate reached its highest level in nearly 16 years in May at 13.7 percent, an increase of 1.2 percentage points over April’s 12.5 percent, the S.C. Employment Security Commission reported Friday.
That is the highest monthly jobless level reported since September of 1993 when the county reported unemployment at a rate of 13.9 percent.
As recently as March the county reported a jobless rate of 13.5 percent.
The news comes as the commission reported South Carolina’s jobless rate for May at a record level of 12.1 percent, up 0.7 of a percent from April.
Chesterfield County’s rate for the month remained virtually unchanged at 17.1 percent versus 17 percent in April, according to the commission’s unadjusted figures.
Despite the rise in joblessness, the state saw increases in jobs in all but one employment sector - manufacturing, which lost 2,200 jobs in May. In the last year, manufacturing has lost 29,000 jobs statewide, said Roosevelt T. Halley, the commission’s executive director.
“The decline in manufacturing jobs does not bode well for the state’s chances of an economic recovery in the short term,“ Halley said....
When Bush/Cheney were in office, they 'disfavored' strongly Democratic states. They were discriminatory, because, they thought they'd teach them a lesson they won't forget. They succeeded in teaching the nation a lesson they wouldn't forget. I don't see Obama doing that at all, actually. He bends over backward to try to bring the nation together. It's the Republicans that keep shooting themselves in the foot.
U.P. (Michigan) unemployment dips (click here)
Mackinac County accounted for the gain in jobs.Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 5:43 p.m.
UPPER PENINSULA -- Reversing a trend, the unemployment rate in the Upper Peninsula actually dropped during May.
It was 12.6 percent, down from 12.9 percent in April.
The main reason for the drop? Mackinac County, which saw its unemployment rate plummet from 20.9 percent in April to 8.1 percent in May.
The summer season has started there, which means there has been massive hiring.
The highest jobless rate in the UP can still be found in Baraga County at 26.2 percent, which approaches the level of a Depression.
After Mackinac County, the next lowest rate was in Marquette County at 10.8 percent.
Tracking the Stimulus Spending with Recovery.org (click here)
Wed Jun 24, 2009 3:44pm EDT
By Marc Gunther - Marc Gunther
Marc Gunther: Hi, this is Marc Gunther for GreenBiz. I'm speaking with Eric Gillespie, the chief information officer for Onvia. Onvia is the company that started Recovery.org (click here). That's a place where you can track all of the spending coming out of the federal government's $787 billion stimulus bill. Eric, tell us a little bit about Onvia and why you started Recovery.org. Eric Gillespie
Eric Gillespie: Onvia is a business that tracks the procurement activity of all federal, state, and local governments' activity. So, you know, as a business we take all that information real time as it's happening in the marketplace every day, we aggregate it, and we provide that to our clients who are largely small and medium businesses who are interested in selling their goods and services to those government entities. So we alert them when the government wants to buy what they have. That's the business we're in....
Biden says 'everyone guessed wrong' on jobs number (click here)
Jun 14, 2009
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Joe Biden says "everyone guessed wrong" on the impact of the economic stimulus.
Biden says the economy was worse off than anyone thought when officials estimated the number of jobs that could be saved or created under the administration's $787 billion stimulus spending.
Biden says White House economists used standard formulas to estimate that 3.5 million jobs would be saved or created under the plan Congress passed earlier this year.
Biden says money is flowing out of Washington to help states and cities build roads, hire teachers and update infrastructure. He promised 600,000 new jobs in the coming months.
Biden appeared Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press" from his hometown of Wilmington, Del.
Biden Talks Green Technology In Ohio (click here)
Posted: 4:33 pm EDT June 23, 2009
PERRYSBURG, Ohio -- Vice President Joe Biden spent time in Ohio Tuesday talking about the economy.
Biden was visiting an area close to Toledo and said the state can recover from the auto industry meltdown by developing green technologies.
The Vice President said wind power, solar energy, battery technology and other innovations will be vital to bringing back Ohio's manufacturing sector.
Biden said, "There's no reason why those shuttered factories can't throw open those shutters and allow the light of a new, clean, renewable, green energy come streaming through those windows."
Vice President Biden gave Tuesday's speech at a solar panel manufacturing facility in Perrysburg.
She can hold her head high. She brought down the Governor of South Carolina. The strength of her character wouldn't allow the lie. I like her.
Jenny Sanford sent him packing while upholding her dignity and that of her children. She has character strength her husband could never match.
Thursday, Jun. 25, 2009
Sanford met with mistress on taxpayer-funded trip (click title to entry - thank y0u)
Gov. Mark Sanford met with his mistress on a taxpayer funded trip to Brazil and Argentina last year, according to documents released by the S.C. Department of Commerce and e-mails exchanged between Sanford and the woman.
The S.C. Department of Commerce paid more than $8,000 for the trip to Brazil and Argentina June 21-28 of last year, according to documents Commerce released today.
Sanford, in a statement, acknowledged the meeting and said he would reimburse the state....
The spineless 'dick' the STILL Governor Sanford is, first apologized to his mistress, then everyone else and I think Jenny fell in some where around four or fifth only to be followed by the children.
Sanford needs to resign. I think Jenny should run for office, if she could stand to spend time away from the boys. I didn't see The New York Times or any other news media regardless of region 'harass' Sanford for his resignation. Democrats, take notice.
There are doubts Jenny brought down the Governor of South Carolina. Give me a break. It was two weeks since he had sex. His dream to be with his Argentina lover was coming true. He was on top of the world. Well, on top of something. Testosterone is a bitch, isn't it? When is his next trip? Or will he have to 'hire' his next lay?
Sanford's mistress is 43, athletic: report (click here)
June 25, 2009
BY WLTX-TV/GNS
COLUMBIA, S.C. - A newspaper in Argentina is reporting the name of South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford’s mistress.
La Nacion in Buenos Aires, Argentina, names the woman as 43-year-old Maria Belen Chapur.
Chapur is reportedly a divorced mother of two, and works for an agricultural company. The paper said she speaks several languages and keeps in shape by playing sports.
In his Wednesday news conference admitting the affair, Sanford said that the woman with whom he had the relationship had two children.
Sanford called the woman a “dear, dear friend” in his statements. He said he met the woman eight years ago, and that their relationship turned romantic about a year ago.
During his recent five-day absence, Sanford went to Argentina and visited the woman....
Jenny and boys.
The Entertainment Industry got a double dose today.
'"FARRAH FAWCETT: HER LIFE, HER LOVES, HER LEGACY," A Barbara Walters Exclusive Report, On "20/20" (click here)
Jun 25, 2009 - 12:03:49 PM
Airing on a Special Edition of "20/20," Thursday, June 25 on ABC
Barbara Walters reports on the life, love and legacy of actress and iconic beauty Farrah Fawcett, who appears to be in her final days, losing her battle with cancer. Walters sat down just a few days ago with some of the people closest to Fawcett, including the man she has described as the love of her life, Ryan O'Neal.
Walters also speaks to fellow "Charlie's Angel" Jaclyn Smith, close friend and confidante Alana Stewart, Dr. Lawrence Piro, who has been treating Fawcett for over two years, Jose Eber, the legendary hairstylist who has worked with her for over 30 years, and Leonard Goldberg, co-creator of "Charlie's Angels."
The exclusive report, which also includes classic and revealing moments from Walters' past interviews with Fawcett -- who rarely spoke to the media in depth -- airs on "20/20," Thursday, June 25 (10:00-11:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.
Death at any age is sad, this is tragic. He received many awards in his life and was loved worldwide.
He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice.
He had 13 Guinness World Records—including one for "Most Successful Entertainer of All Time."
He accumulated 19 Grammy Awards, 22 American Music Awards, 12 World Music Awards, 40 Billboard Awards, 7 BRIT awards, 13 MTV Awards, 14 NAACP Image Awards, 56 RIAA Awards, a Golden Globe Award and the sale of over 750 million units worldwide.
Winning numerous awards for his humanitarian endeavors, the singer has been honoured by two Presidents of the United States. He has also been named as the artist of "the Decade", "Generation", "Century" and "Millennium".
He always impressed me as a 'delicate' person. There were several incidents in his life that were surprising in regard to his health, including, being on fire for a commercial. He appeared in poor condition during a recent trial and at one time couldn't make it into court and finally arrived in pajamas. A virus could have attacked his heart or just the plague of being a Black American Man. It truly is tragic. My sympathies to the family, friends and fans of a Superstar.
Bye, Michael.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Cocky. No Stimulus? Only another woman. He's proud of himself. How Southern is that? He's not getting older, he's getting better.
It is his wife getting older after all. She has had four children and shows it, you know? I am sure he's in for a promotion somewhere, even if it is Argentina.
So, no stimulus, just sparks.
There is this incredible phenomena in the South. It is called, "Why get married?"
Percentage of population married in South Carolina :: 59% (down from 62% in 1990, 72% in 1970)
Percentage of population in South Carolina never married :: 24%
Percentage of marriages with a rotating door in South Carolina :: 10% (up from 8% in 1990, 6% in 1980)
Percentage of people who have ever been married by the age of 25: Males: 32%; Females: 50%
Number of unmarried couples living together :: 5.5 million
Percentage of unmarried couples living together that are heterosexual :: 89%
The Percentage of people in South Carolina BELOW the poverty line :: 15.7% (10th in the nation)
But.
No Stimulus Dollars. No government health care. No state social programs. But, hey, get your thrills with a good roll in the hay with anyone deserving of the cod piece. This is a Red State. The Governor is an example of how a man 'takes care' of himself.
Four members of the Rarest species of Turtle have been stolen.
A male Plowshare tortoise, or 'angonoka' (Astrochelys yniphora) lives in Madagascar and is considered "Critically Endangered" by the IUCN (click here). The article at the title to this entry is translated below, thank you:
Four were stolen from a rare turtle in Madagascar 2009.
May 29 10:57
The world's rarest species of four land tortoise stolen from a breeding program in Madagascar hosting site,
The turtles csőrösmellű - Astrochelys yniphora - The Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust raised, making an attempt to reinforce the wild population. The species is so rare that the researchers of less than 500 individuals living in the wild.
The environmentalists magánkollekciók of the animals stolen in Europe, America or Asia. The theft occurred in May sixth. The thieves, the legislation Bay National Park in a fenced area of the animals are raised. Eight turtles were held in quarantine before being returned to them in the open air. Such areas are in a secret place, and visitors are not available
All four individuals have been stolen was nearly mature animals that are sacrificed, years felnevelésére organized. The turtles of the group included 44 individuals, which are free to want to allow. Csőrösmellű The turtle lives in north-west Madagascar, and the turtles are the largest on the island. The adults reach a length of 45 cm. The entire wild population of the legislation Bay National Park area. The species is a critical risk in the World of Nature (IUCN) Red List.
The threat to species survival, the bushfires in the river and pigs, as well as the illegal állatkereskedelem (poaching - these turtles are killed for their shell and used by artisans for sale elsewhere to the public. There meat is also consumed.). Because of the rarity of turtles in each of thousands of dollars a share farmer. The local authorities have kept the theft secret while the investigation continued. Since then, a number of people arrested who are associated with the offense, but the missing animals have not yet been found.
It is stated by the IUCN there is also an illegal 'pet' trade. Anyone in possession of such a species should contact the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust and add it to the population to return the species to a larger number.
Species that have been pulled back from the brink include the Assam pygmy hog, St Lucia whiptail lizard, Mallorcan midwife toad, as well as helping to save more species of birds then any other conservation organisation on the planet. The Trust’s dedicated expert conservationists are hard at work in threatened habitats around the world continuing the battle to protect and conserve many more.
Durrell uses hands-on conservation expertise to help endangered species recover and survive in the long-term, working with animals in the wild; in protected environments overseas and at its international headquarters at the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust in Jersey.
Over the course of the last 50 years, the Trust has built up a worldwide reputation for its pioneering conservation techniques, developed under the leadership of its founder, the late renowned author and naturalist Gerald Durrell....
Obama to meet Pope on July 10: Vatican source
Pope Benedict XVI waves as he leaves at the end of his general audience is Saint Peter's Square at the Vatican June 24, 2009.
Wed Jun 24, 2009 9:07am EDT
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama will meet Pope Benedict for the first time on July 10 during a visit to Italy to attend a G8 heads of state meeting, a Vatican source said Wednesday.
Obama has angered many American Catholics with his support for abortion rights for women and his decision to lift restrictions on stem cell research.
The Vatican source said Obama would hold a brief audience with the Pope in the afternoon, after the conclusion of the July 8-10 summit of the Group of Eight industrialized nations.
A Vatican spokesman declined to confirm or deny the timing of the meeting.
The Vatican and Italian Church leaders condemned Obama's decision in March to lift restrictions on federal funding for human embryonic stem cell research put in place by his predecessor George W. Bush.
His subsequent invitation to speak at Notre Dame, a premier U.S. Catholic university, sparked criticism last month. While some heckled Obama during his speech, his appeal for a "fair-minded" discussion on abortion was received with several standing ovations. The G8 summit is due to discuss a response to the ongoing international economic crisis and global warming. It will take place in the central Italian city of L'Aquila, which bore the brunt of an earthquake in April that killed nearly 300 people.
(Editing by Lin Noueihed)
Author: Don Margolis Source: The Repair Stem Cell Institute
Adult Stem Cells Help Dilated Cardiomyopathy (click here)
Stem Cell Research continues to show that Adult Stem Cells can help Dilated Cardiomyopathy patients. Before Adult Stem Cell treatment, there really was no treatment for cardiomyopathy, just a drug regimen to minimize the symptoms of the dreaded heart disease eventually resulting in congestive heart failure and then a heart transplant or death....
How can moral people be Pro-Choice?
Because it is non-judgemental. It has nothing to do with personal religious or spiritual belief. It is allowing others to carry out their experience with life uninterrupted, realizing everyone's life EXPERIENCE (not strategy) is as different as their fingerprints. It is the BEST methodology for government anywhere on Earth. Morality that addresses the 'needs' of 'life' rather than passing judgement on 'the allowance' of life insures Earth has a balance that belongs exclusively to it, not human domination that causes life threatening issues such as Human Induced Global Warming.
Morality of 'tolerance' also doesn't break the law or inflict emotional or psychological pain:
Police: Warren Hern's Boulder Abortion Clinic threatened (click here)
Doctor under federal protection
BOULDER, Colo. — Boulder police said Tuesday they have learned of a threat against a prominent Boulder abortion clinic and have sent the information to the U.S. Marshals Service.
Dr. Warren Hern and his Boulder Abortion Clinic, 1130 Alpine Ave., have been under the protection of the Marshals Service since Dr. George Tiller, of Wichita, Kan., was gunned down in May. U.S. Attorney Eric Holder ordered the protection of a "number of individuals and facilities" after Tiller's death.
Hern is one of a few doctors in the U.S. still providing late-term abortions. Tiller also was providing them before his death, and his slaying has increased concern for Hern and his office.
Boulder police wouldn't comment on the credibility or severity of the threat Tuesday because the investigation was being conducted by the Marshals Service. Police also didn't say how frequently they learn of threats against Hern and his office.
Calls to the federal agency's office in Denver were not returned Tuesday night.
Hern was not in office Tuesday afternoon and was unavailable for comment.
Absence from service is an oppressive victory for the violent Religious Right.
Abortion and the Bible (click here)
June 23, 1:53 PM
NOWHERE in the bible does it say that abortion is wrong. Priests, pastors, rabbis and other religious leaders interpret the bible to suit their own agendas. They spread them like a plague to their ignorant constituents to lazy to think for themselves and research in their bible if what they are being told is truth. Believers follow blindly, spewing their opinions as if it's based on some written biblical text, which it is not.
Christians are the most vocal leaders of the anti-abortion movement. The fact is, most don't even know the misinterpreted passages out of their bible from which they preach their anti-abortionist point of view. They quote their religious leader’s rhetoric—warped biblical interpretation like this:
(Genesis 1:27): "God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them."
Priests and pastors conjured this to mean their bible teaches that human life is different from other types of life, because human beings are made in the very image of their god, therefore the deliberate destruction of a child in the womb is wrong. Of course, this text does NOT say any of this. Nor does it even infer abortion is sinful....
Here we go again. The next generation of right wing violent extremists. The more they believe they are successful, the more violent and determined they become.
Morality of 'tolerance' also doesn't break the law or inflict emotional or psychological pain:
Police: Warren Hern's Boulder Abortion Clinic threatened (click here)
Doctor under federal protection
BOULDER, Colo. — Boulder police said Tuesday they have learned of a threat against a prominent Boulder abortion clinic and have sent the information to the U.S. Marshals Service.
Dr. Warren Hern and his Boulder Abortion Clinic, 1130 Alpine Ave., have been under the protection of the Marshals Service since Dr. George Tiller, of Wichita, Kan., was gunned down in May. U.S. Attorney Eric Holder ordered the protection of a "number of individuals and facilities" after Tiller's death.
Hern is one of a few doctors in the U.S. still providing late-term abortions. Tiller also was providing them before his death, and his slaying has increased concern for Hern and his office.
Boulder police wouldn't comment on the credibility or severity of the threat Tuesday because the investigation was being conducted by the Marshals Service. Police also didn't say how frequently they learn of threats against Hern and his office.
Calls to the federal agency's office in Denver were not returned Tuesday night.
Hern was not in office Tuesday afternoon and was unavailable for comment.
Absence from service is an oppressive victory for the violent Religious Right.
Abortion and the Bible (click here)
June 23, 1:53 PM
NOWHERE in the bible does it say that abortion is wrong. Priests, pastors, rabbis and other religious leaders interpret the bible to suit their own agendas. They spread them like a plague to their ignorant constituents to lazy to think for themselves and research in their bible if what they are being told is truth. Believers follow blindly, spewing their opinions as if it's based on some written biblical text, which it is not.
Christians are the most vocal leaders of the anti-abortion movement. The fact is, most don't even know the misinterpreted passages out of their bible from which they preach their anti-abortionist point of view. They quote their religious leader’s rhetoric—warped biblical interpretation like this:
(Genesis 1:27): "God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them."
Priests and pastors conjured this to mean their bible teaches that human life is different from other types of life, because human beings are made in the very image of their god, therefore the deliberate destruction of a child in the womb is wrong. Of course, this text does NOT say any of this. Nor does it even infer abortion is sinful....
Here we go again. The next generation of right wing violent extremists. The more they believe they are successful, the more violent and determined they become.
Suspect predicts more antiabortion violence (click here)
Scott Roeder, charged with murder in the shooting death of Dr. George Tiller, said from his jail cell that similar attacks were planned around the nation for as long as abortion remains legal.
Associated Press
Wichita, Kan. -- The man charged in the slaying of a high-profile abortion doctor claimed from his jail cell Sunday that similar violence was planned around the nation for as long as the procedure remained legal, a threat that comes days after a federal investigation was launched into his possible accomplices.A Justice Department spokesman said that the threat was being taken seriously and that additional protection had been ordered for abortion clinics last week.
But a leader of the antiabortion movement derided the accused shooter as "a fruit and a lunatic."...
We have heard these words before. James W. von Brunn was stated by Liz Cheney as a psychotic. The Right Wing emulates these views yet their answer when violence occurs is they are crazy people. Well, those 'crazies' belong to 'crazy organizations' that vote for you. Do something !
Suspect Too Ill to Be in Court, Prosecutors Say (click here)
By Del Quentin Wilber
Washington Post Staff Writer Wednesday, June 24, 2009
The 88-year-old white supremacist charged with murder in the killing of a security guard at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum this month was discharged from George Washington University Hospital last week but is too ill to appear in court, federal prosecutors said yesterday....
The Republicans can try this on for size as a position on Abortion and White Supremists. "We believe the government should reflect the views of the MAJORITY of Americans and to hell with the rest of them. At least, as a party, we get all the votes we need."
Just in case one doesn't 'get it.' That is not governing, that is oppression. Sorry for the fine print.
Why did the turtle cross the road? To get to the other side. Why do Republicans ALWAYS call conservation projects pork?
Because Republicans can't get out of their own way !
That is a heck of perspective on life. He looks like some kind of Geico commercial or something. Maybe a good Wall Street icon instead of bulls.
Don't laugh, some of these babies live longer than you.
Look, these species are hard wired. They only know what their internal compass tells them and that is either feeding or nesting or mating grounds are this way. They don't discern that humans are ? smart ? enough to put a road in their path. The least a human being can do when impinging on a natural habitat because of ? progress ? is accommodate the species they are destroying. Get real. The turtles have a right to life and need a safe passage.
It is called morality. Different from 'Republican Life Strategy.' Get your mind around it.
Turtle deaths soar on Cape May County roads (click here)
by The Associated Press
Tuesday June 23, 2009, 9:25 AM
MIDDLE TOWNSHIP -- Researchers are trying to figure out why the number of diamondback terrapins killed on Cape May County roads has soared during the past two years.
The Wetlands Institute said turtle deaths jumped by 51 percent from 2007 to last year. The deaths are on pace this year to match the 2008 total of 575....
According to the "IUCN Red List," (click title to entry - thank you) Malaclemys terrapin is considered near threatened.
While there might be an increase in turtle births of the Diamondback Terripins, that is no reason to ignore or be ignorant of the fact these are considered a "Near Threatened" species.
The birth rate is not necessarily known to have increased in relation to deaths either. It could be the traffic on the road increased as more people were threatened with a poor economy and the danger to the turtles therefore increased. Republicans are antiquated in their approach to any subject and obsolete in a majority of their values.
Oh, wait.
Values?
I forgot, they only value a theocarcy. I guess they are consistent then. Does that mean Republicans are 'Near Threatened' species as well? Doesn't matter, there are always the Nixon tapes and library.
That is a heck of perspective on life. He looks like some kind of Geico commercial or something. Maybe a good Wall Street icon instead of bulls.
Don't laugh, some of these babies live longer than you.
Look, these species are hard wired. They only know what their internal compass tells them and that is either feeding or nesting or mating grounds are this way. They don't discern that humans are ? smart ? enough to put a road in their path. The least a human being can do when impinging on a natural habitat because of ? progress ? is accommodate the species they are destroying. Get real. The turtles have a right to life and need a safe passage.
It is called morality. Different from 'Republican Life Strategy.' Get your mind around it.
Turtle deaths soar on Cape May County roads (click here)
by The Associated Press
Tuesday June 23, 2009, 9:25 AM
MIDDLE TOWNSHIP -- Researchers are trying to figure out why the number of diamondback terrapins killed on Cape May County roads has soared during the past two years.
The Wetlands Institute said turtle deaths jumped by 51 percent from 2007 to last year. The deaths are on pace this year to match the 2008 total of 575....
According to the "IUCN Red List," (click title to entry - thank you) Malaclemys terrapin is considered near threatened.
While there might be an increase in turtle births of the Diamondback Terripins, that is no reason to ignore or be ignorant of the fact these are considered a "Near Threatened" species.
The birth rate is not necessarily known to have increased in relation to deaths either. It could be the traffic on the road increased as more people were threatened with a poor economy and the danger to the turtles therefore increased. Republicans are antiquated in their approach to any subject and obsolete in a majority of their values.
Oh, wait.
Values?
I forgot, they only value a theocarcy. I guess they are consistent then. Does that mean Republicans are 'Near Threatened' species as well? Doesn't matter, there are always the Nixon tapes and library.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
The weather in Antarctica (Crystal Ice Chime) is troubled:
Reported in The Boston Globe. One of my favorite newspapers. They are always 'perfect' in their reporting, always consumer oriented and believes in the strength of the 'personage' of the USA. It makes sense that such a fine newspaper is threatened by the hostile fiscal times of the ages we live in. The Boston Globe doesn't compromise 'the truth.' They aren't power brokers. No one in this world is ever rewarded for telling the truth. Now. Are they?
I believe in the mission of The Boston Globe. Not just that. I love the mission of The Bostoon Globe.
Go, Boston, Go !!!
A blow by blow of world wind potential (Please click title to entry - thank you)
Posted by bdaley June 23, 2009 06:55 AM
Will the turbines replace the coal plants? (AP photo)
...Reporting in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences the researchers, led by Michael McElroy, examined global wind resources and determined that a super-connected network of 2.5 megawatt wind turbines could meet global electricity demands – even if they only operated at 20 percent capacity....
The entire reference PDF (click here)
June 23, 2009
1800 GMT
Antarctica Vortex (48 hour loop)
There is an interesting phenomena occurring in the upper troposphere with the Antarctica vortex (jet stream). It is very disrupted, rather than some of the nearly stalled meandering of the summer time vortex. However, in the 48 loop it is noted the 'area' of WAIS with the coldest air mass according to the temperature map below, there is the most disruption to the vortex with the arrival of a heat transfer system. It is as though the heat transfer system arrival disrupts the air mass over Antarctica enough to cause the movement of denser, colder air to be displaced to 'meet' the heat arrival.
In this phenomena it is to be realized there is 'profound' loss of 'ice calories' to counter the heat transfer. What does that mean? It means that the 'anticipated' discovery of more sea ice might not occur as the movement of frigid air is negated with the arriving heat. So, to say the discovery of additional sea ice in East Antarctica is an improvement does not 'account' for the entire condition of the 'climate' of the continent.
June 23, 2009
9:00 PM UTC
Antarctica Surface Wind Map (click here for 24 hour loop)
It is easily discerned in the 24 hour loop, the winds are carrying the air primarily from east to west over the continent. There are high intermittent winds over the coastal area of East Antarctica.
June 23, 2009
12:00 AM UTC (GMT)
Antarctica Temperature Map (click here for 24 hour loop)
Noted in the temperature map above there is more 'frigid' air over WAIS (West Antarctica Ice Sheet) than any other area of the continent. It is a good estimate to realize there will be an increase in sea ice over those seas in the East Wind Drift if this trend sustains, no different than it was off East Antarctica last year when the same phenomena occurred due to high winds and dynamics of the arrival of heat transfer systems.
June 23, 2009
1931 GMT
Antarctica
With the arrival of the Summer Solstice on June 21st at 5:45 GMT. The difference in the frigid air mass with the arrival of winter in Antarctica is notable. Even with arriving 'heat transfer systems' the build up of 'cold' is in a greater mass on June 23rd.
June 21, 2009
1931 GMT
Antarctica
The coldest reporting stations in Antarctica:
Nico, Antarctica
Local Time: 10:54 PM GMT (GMT +00)
Lat/Lon: 89.0° S 90.1° E
Temperature :: -76 °F
Wind :: 14 mph from the
Wind Gust: :: -
Pressure :: in (Rising)
Elevation :: 9629 ft
Clean Air, Antarctica
Local Time: 10:57 PM GMT (GMT +00)
Lat/Lon: 89.9° S 0.0° W
Temperature :: -69 °F
Conditions :: Ice Crystals Blowing Snow
Wind :: 15 mph from the ESE
Pressure :: 29.07 in (Rising)
Visibility :: 1.0 miles
UV :: 0 out of 16
Clouds :: Few 6000 ft
(Above Ground Level)
Elevation :: 9285 ft
The warmest reporting stations :
Casey 66.28S 110.52E, Antarctica
Local Time: 7:04 AM WST on June 24, 2009 (GMT +08)
Lat/Lon: 66.3° S 110.5° E
Temperature :: 23 °F
Conditions :: Overcast
Humidity :: 91%
Dew Point :: 21 °F
Wind :: 50 mph from the East
Wind Gust :: -
Pressure :: 29.13 in (Rising)
UV :: 0 out of 16
Elevation :: 131 ft
Palmer Station, Antarctica
Local Time: 7:05 PM CLT (GMT -04)
Lat/Lon: 64.8° S 64.1° W
Temperature :: 17 °F
Humidity :: 45%
Dew Point :: 5 °F
Wind :: 13 mph from the ESE
Wind Gust :: -
Pressure :: 29.00 in (Rising)
Elevation :: 26 ft
I believe in the mission of The Boston Globe. Not just that. I love the mission of The Bostoon Globe.
Go, Boston, Go !!!
A blow by blow of world wind potential (Please click title to entry - thank you)
Posted by bdaley June 23, 2009 06:55 AM
Will the turbines replace the coal plants? (AP photo)
...Reporting in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences the researchers, led by Michael McElroy, examined global wind resources and determined that a super-connected network of 2.5 megawatt wind turbines could meet global electricity demands – even if they only operated at 20 percent capacity....
The entire reference PDF (click here)
June 23, 2009
1800 GMT
Antarctica Vortex (48 hour loop)
There is an interesting phenomena occurring in the upper troposphere with the Antarctica vortex (jet stream). It is very disrupted, rather than some of the nearly stalled meandering of the summer time vortex. However, in the 48 loop it is noted the 'area' of WAIS with the coldest air mass according to the temperature map below, there is the most disruption to the vortex with the arrival of a heat transfer system. It is as though the heat transfer system arrival disrupts the air mass over Antarctica enough to cause the movement of denser, colder air to be displaced to 'meet' the heat arrival.
In this phenomena it is to be realized there is 'profound' loss of 'ice calories' to counter the heat transfer. What does that mean? It means that the 'anticipated' discovery of more sea ice might not occur as the movement of frigid air is negated with the arriving heat. So, to say the discovery of additional sea ice in East Antarctica is an improvement does not 'account' for the entire condition of the 'climate' of the continent.
June 23, 2009
9:00 PM UTC
Antarctica Surface Wind Map (click here for 24 hour loop)
It is easily discerned in the 24 hour loop, the winds are carrying the air primarily from east to west over the continent. There are high intermittent winds over the coastal area of East Antarctica.
June 23, 2009
12:00 AM UTC (GMT)
Antarctica Temperature Map (click here for 24 hour loop)
Noted in the temperature map above there is more 'frigid' air over WAIS (West Antarctica Ice Sheet) than any other area of the continent. It is a good estimate to realize there will be an increase in sea ice over those seas in the East Wind Drift if this trend sustains, no different than it was off East Antarctica last year when the same phenomena occurred due to high winds and dynamics of the arrival of heat transfer systems.
June 23, 2009
1931 GMT
Antarctica
With the arrival of the Summer Solstice on June 21st at 5:45 GMT. The difference in the frigid air mass with the arrival of winter in Antarctica is notable. Even with arriving 'heat transfer systems' the build up of 'cold' is in a greater mass on June 23rd.
June 21, 2009
1931 GMT
Antarctica
The coldest reporting stations in Antarctica:
Nico, Antarctica
Local Time: 10:54 PM GMT (GMT +00)
Lat/Lon: 89.0° S 90.1° E
Temperature :: -76 °F
Wind :: 14 mph from the
Wind Gust: :: -
Pressure :: in (Rising)
Elevation :: 9629 ft
Clean Air, Antarctica
Local Time: 10:57 PM GMT (GMT +00)
Lat/Lon: 89.9° S 0.0° W
Temperature :: -69 °F
Conditions :: Ice Crystals Blowing Snow
Wind :: 15 mph from the ESE
Pressure :: 29.07 in (Rising)
Visibility :: 1.0 miles
UV :: 0 out of 16
Clouds :: Few 6000 ft
(Above Ground Level)
Elevation :: 9285 ft
The warmest reporting stations :
Casey 66.28S 110.52E, Antarctica
Local Time: 7:04 AM WST on June 24, 2009 (GMT +08)
Lat/Lon: 66.3° S 110.5° E
Temperature :: 23 °F
Conditions :: Overcast
Humidity :: 91%
Dew Point :: 21 °F
Wind :: 50 mph from the East
Wind Gust :: -
Pressure :: 29.13 in (Rising)
UV :: 0 out of 16
Elevation :: 131 ft
Palmer Station, Antarctica
Local Time: 7:05 PM CLT (GMT -04)
Lat/Lon: 64.8° S 64.1° W
Temperature :: 17 °F
Humidity :: 45%
Dew Point :: 5 °F
Wind :: 13 mph from the ESE
Wind Gust :: -
Pressure :: 29.00 in (Rising)
Elevation :: 26 ft
Monday, June 22, 2009
When I heard of the tragedy, my first thought was "Where is Vice President Biden?" Then. I thought how avoidable this could have been.
Two trains on the same track going in opposite directions is virtually impossible on magnetic rail.
District of Columbia fire and emergency workers at the site of a rush-hour collision between two Metro transit trains in northeast Washington, D.C. on Monday.
My sympathies to the survivors, families and friends of the deceased.
District of Columbia fire and emergency workers at the site of a rush-hour collision between two Metro transit trains in northeast Washington, D.C. on Monday.
My sympathies to the survivors, families and friends of the deceased.
The resolve of the Iranian Vote is not over. The leaders are committed to fairness.
There is a reporting today in The New York Times that the Iranian leadership is finding a disparity in the accuracy of the voting. I find this interesting and somewhat trustworthy to realize they have not dismissed the protestors.
When they ask to have the protests stopped, they are seeking safety for their citizens from the vigilantes that murdered people. They are carrying through with their promise to the Iranian people. I don't believe the protests are 'causing' them to carry through with their promise.
I sincerely believe they are concerned about the people of their nation and the choices in their government. I do not believe the Iranian leadership is being sinister. A Holy Man is a Holy Man and there are higher powers they answer to in all instances. I believe patience is still paramount to the outcome.
...The warning, on the Guards’ Web site, was issued despite an admission by Iran’s most senior panel of election monitors that the number of votes cast in 50 cities exceeded the actual number of voters, according to a state television report two days after the country’s supreme leader pronounced the ballot to be fair....
Iran's former president, Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, in Tehran in April.
Former President Rafsanjani is an interesting character. He openly states he is also concerned. That cannot be dismissed either. I believe there are people involved in this 'post-election' review that will see this effort through. I am concerned for everyone's safety. They are all very brave people to confront such a volitile issue, but, the more transparency there is, the safer it is for all the people of Iran, including their leadership on both sides of the voting validation problem. I am somewhat heartened by the progess taking place in Iran.
When they ask to have the protests stopped, they are seeking safety for their citizens from the vigilantes that murdered people. They are carrying through with their promise to the Iranian people. I don't believe the protests are 'causing' them to carry through with their promise.
I sincerely believe they are concerned about the people of their nation and the choices in their government. I do not believe the Iranian leadership is being sinister. A Holy Man is a Holy Man and there are higher powers they answer to in all instances. I believe patience is still paramount to the outcome.
...The warning, on the Guards’ Web site, was issued despite an admission by Iran’s most senior panel of election monitors that the number of votes cast in 50 cities exceeded the actual number of voters, according to a state television report two days after the country’s supreme leader pronounced the ballot to be fair....
Iran's former president, Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, in Tehran in April.
Former President Rafsanjani is an interesting character. He openly states he is also concerned. That cannot be dismissed either. I believe there are people involved in this 'post-election' review that will see this effort through. I am concerned for everyone's safety. They are all very brave people to confront such a volitile issue, but, the more transparency there is, the safer it is for all the people of Iran, including their leadership on both sides of the voting validation problem. I am somewhat heartened by the progess taking place in Iran.
President Obama has my praises on his comments on Iran.
The inflammatory Republicans are 'at it' again. They want to rant and rave while they know nothing about what they are speaking.
There cannot be any endorsement of one party over another in Iran if the USA is to be considered serious in their negotiations or otherwise regarding nuclear proliferation. Those making statements supporting meetings with Mr. Mousavi are irrelevant to the reality of the circumstances. It would be an inflammatory directive and one that undermines any 'intent' of the USA. We are interested in peace without nuclear threat, the truth regarding the Jewish Holocaust and Non-proliferation, NOT, over throwing and destabilizing governments.
Mousavi is basically an unknown commodity when dealing with Nuclear Proliferation. While a Moderate politically, there is no telling what would occur with the nuclear proliferation within Iran even if he were elected.
I praise the Iranian people for believing so deeply in their commitment to free speech and progressive views. I look forward to a peaceful world and one that lives with 'the truth,' regardless of the status of Mr. Ahmadenajad.
There cannot be any endorsement of one party over another in Iran if the USA is to be considered serious in their negotiations or otherwise regarding nuclear proliferation. Those making statements supporting meetings with Mr. Mousavi are irrelevant to the reality of the circumstances. It would be an inflammatory directive and one that undermines any 'intent' of the USA. We are interested in peace without nuclear threat, the truth regarding the Jewish Holocaust and Non-proliferation, NOT, over throwing and destabilizing governments.
Mousavi is basically an unknown commodity when dealing with Nuclear Proliferation. While a Moderate politically, there is no telling what would occur with the nuclear proliferation within Iran even if he were elected.
I praise the Iranian people for believing so deeply in their commitment to free speech and progressive views. I look forward to a peaceful world and one that lives with 'the truth,' regardless of the status of Mr. Ahmadenajad.
The weather at Glacier Bay National Park is (Crystal Wind Chime) warm and cloudy, which hods the heat next to Earth:
Local Time: 3:48 AM AKDT (GMT -08)
Lat/Lon: 58.8° N 137.0° W
Elevation :: 33 feet
Temperature :: 46 F
Conditions :: Overcast
Windchill :: 46 F
Humidity :: 93%
Dew Point :: 45 F
Wind :: Calm
Pressure :: 29.00 inches and rising
Visibility :: 10.0 miles
UV :: 0 out of 16
Clouds :: Overcast 8000 feet
(Above ground level)
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Saturday, June 20, 2009
The Pakistan Military is succeeding. The people are supportive of the effort.
Pakistani protesters seen at a demonstration against the Taliban, in Lahore, Pakistan, Friday, June 19, 2009. Dozens of protesters gathered at a rally against Taliban militants who are fighting against Pakistan's security forces in Pakistan. (AP Photo/K.M.Chaudary) (K.m.chaudary - AP)
Officials: 50 militants dead in Pakistan fighting (click title to entry - thank you)
Pakistani protesters seen at a demonstration against the Taliban, in Lahore, Pakistan, Friday, June 19, 2009. Dozens of protesters gathered at a rally against Taliban militants who are fighting against Pakistan's security forces in Pakistan.
By ROHAN SULLIVAN
The Associated Press Saturday, June 20, 2009; 6:12 AM
CHUPRIAL, Pakistan -- Pakistani troops backed by jet fighters and artillery have killed about 50 militants in a volatile northwestern tribal region near Afghanistan where the country's top Taliban leader is believed to be entrenched with thousands of his fighters, officials said Saturday.
They were the first known militant casualties in South Waziristan - where Pakistan Taliban head Baitullah Mehsud and al-Qaida figures are believed to be hiding - since the military started pounding the area with artillery about a week ago. Mehsud is blamed for a series of suicide attacks that have killed more than 100 people since late May....
Pakistan: Swat fighting almost over (click here)
Published: June 20, 2009 at 1:49 AM
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, June 20 (UPI) -- Pakistani officials announced the military campaign against the Taliban in the Swat Valley is almost finished and said residents may begin coming home Saturday.
The fighting is believed to have displaced about 2 million people, The Daily Telegraph reported. The Guardian said about 10 percent of the population remained in Swat throughout the fighting and is now short of vital supplies, especially food.
The top Taliban leaders in the Swat Valley have not been found and may have escaped to Afghanistan, the report said.
Defense Minister Ahmed Mukhtar said the military focus is shifting from Swat to South Waziristan, the base of Baitullah Mehsud, the top Taliban leader in the country. The Pakistani military bombed the area Friday, preparing for a military offensive there.
Emerging Threats
Al-Qaida leaders hit by Pakistani forces (click here)
Published: June 17, 2009 at 12:13 PM
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, June 17 (UPI) -- A senior al-Qaida military commander was allegedly killed in Pakistani operations along the volatile border with Afghanistan, intelligence reports say.
Qari Zia Rahman was reportedly killed by Pakistani forces in anti-Taliban operations in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan, various Asian news services report.
Rahman was allegedly a commander of a brigade of the so-called Shadow Army of al-Qaida operating in the Bajour district of FATA, the online Long War Journal reports, citing U.S. intelligence officials.
The Shadow Army contains members from several regional terrorist outfits operating in coordination with al-Qaida to take on U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, Tahir Yuldashev, the commander of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, an al-Qaida-backed group, was reported wounded during clashes with Pakistani troops in the tribal regions.
The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan operates in the Fergana Valley, which includes portions of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. Following an Uzbek government crackdown in the 1990s, its members and sympathizers scattered across the region, including parts of Afghanistan.
These insurgents inevitably formed relationships with Taliban and al-Qaida militants prior to the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, surfacing today in the volatile Swat Valley in Pakistan.
The Pakistani military has ramped up its efforts to tackle a growing Taliban insurgency in the volatile tribal areas following the collapse of a cease-fire agreement reached in March.
The region contains the issue of harboring al Qaeda. If Russia will kindly recall, the attacks on the school in Beslan were primarily Uzbeks (post mortem revealed that reality). They were reasonably well funded and one cannot conclude they were independantly funded so much achieving monies from al Qaeda.
Subject: Terrorists Attack Russian School - Hold 400 Hostage Including 200 Children (click here)
Roman
9/1/2004 4:00:57 AM
MOSCOW, Russia (CNN) -- Armed attackers have seized a school in a town in southern Russia, and Russia's ITAR-TASS news agency says about 400 people, including 200 children, are being held. The Interfax news agency, citing Ismel Shaov, a regional spokesman for the Federal Security Service, said there were 17 attackers, both male and female, and the gang included some who were wearing explosive belts. Wednesday's seizure took place on the first day of the Russian school year, in the town of Beslan in North Ossetia, Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said....
The Pakistan People are bravely taking on the issues of occupation by networks of global criminals, with their own agenda for human life on Earth. Those people are the key to the conclusion of instability in the region. If unrest in Pakistan can be displaced forever and a quality of life returned to the people there it would set an example of possiblity for the entire region.
They have backed their government during a very difficult time. Quite unexpectedly. In their hearts of hearts they wanted to rid their country of this menace.
I believe the people of Islam (in the many forms that takes) want to be progressive while advancing their societies.
We are seeing the same unrest manifest in different ways in Iran as well.
That level of discontent is proving difficult for their authorities to contain.
An oppressed people definitively reach a point of no return.
Perhaps.
The attacks of September 11, 2001 and the subsequent rise of oppressive government has brought about the need for the people of these countries to replace hatred of The West with peace within their own desires for it. At no point in time, excluding some of the Hamas leadership, have I ever heard people of Islam justify the acts against the USA on that day.
Kashmir shuts down over deaths (click here)
A shutdown in protest against the alleged rape and murder of two young women has once again disrupted life in parts of Indian-administered Kashmir.
Separatists have called for a march to the northern town of Baramullah. Security forces have sealed off the town and suspended traffic.
Businesses in most towns across the valley are closed.
Protests over the deaths have raged in the Muslim-majority Kashmir valley since the bodies were found on 30 May.
The town of Shopian, where the bodies of the two women were found, remained shut for the twelfth consecutive day.
The bodies of the two young women were found in a canal in the town of Shopian on 30 May. They had gone missing the previous evening.
The police is treating the deaths as rape and murder. The state government has announced a judicial inquiry into the incident.
At least two people protesting against the deaths have died in clashes with the security forces.
The BBC's Altaf Husain in Srinagar says the incident has put a big question mark on the credibility and ability of the state chief minister, Omar Abdullah.
Mr Abdullah told reporters days after the incident that initial investigations indicated there were no rape and murder.
US military deaths in Afghanistan region at 634 (click here)
The Associated Press Saturday, June 20, 2009
Of those, the military reports 468 were killed by hostile action.
Outside the Afghan region, the Defense Department reports 67 more members of the U.S. military died in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Of those, three were the result of hostile action. The military lists these other locations as Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba; Djibouti; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Jordan; Kenya; Kyrgyzstan; Philippines; Seychelles; Sudan; Tajikistan; Turkey; and Yemen.
There were also four CIA officer deaths and one military civilian death.
The latest deaths reported by the military:
— No new deaths reported.
The latest identifications reported by the military:
— No new identifications reported.
On the Net:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/
2 US troops killed in southern Afghanistan (click here)
By NOOR KHAN – 17 hours ago
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) — A roadside bomb blast in southern Afghanistan killed two U.S. troops Friday, the U.S. military said.
The explosion occurred in Kandahar province, the spiritual birthplace of the Taliban. No other information, including the victims' names or which branch of the military they served in, was released.
U.S. military officials have said they expect a 50 percent rise in the number of roadside or suicide bomb attacks this year. At least 76 U.S. troops have died in Afghanistan so far in 2009, a record pace.
Elsewhere in the Afghan south, international and Afghan forces killed 16 Taliban militants in a gunbattle, police said Friday. One police officer also died in the fighting, they said.
NATO forces confirmed there was a clash in Uruzgan province on Thursday, but spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Christopher Hall said they only had reports of five dead, all of them militants.
Uruzgan Deputy Police Chief Mohammad Nabi said the NATO and Afghan forces also arrested one armed insurgent in the battle waged through most of Thursday, and captured a handful of guns and four motorbikes.
Asked about the lower death toll given by NATO, Nabi said he had confirmed reports from the ground of the 17 dead.
Meanwhile, a university student in the capital of neighboring Kandahar province was found dead with his throat cut Friday morning in a side room of a mosque where he had gone to study.
Sadullah Khan, a police official in Kandahar City, said they were investigating the death of the third-year medical student, but did not yet have any information on who might have been responsible for the killing.
US says Afghan strikes broke rules, orders retraining (click here)
Sat Jun 20, 2009 4:18am EDT
...The bombings took place while Defense Secretary Robert Gates was on his way to Afghanistan to inform the commander of U.S. forces that he would be replaced. The new commander, General Stanley McChrystal, has said he will take new steps to reduce civilian casualties, which threaten Afghan support for the war.The report faulted the public response, saying U.S. forces "must develop a more effective method" of communications....
Next 18 Months Critical in Afghanistan, McChrystal Says (click here)
Office of the Secretary of Defense Public Affairs
Story by Jim Garamone
Date: 06.19.2009
Posted: 06.19.2009 02:28
..."I think that the next 18 months are probably a period in which this effort will be decided," Army Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal told Tom Bowman in a National Public Radio interview. "I don't think it will be over. But I think that not only the American people, I think the Afghan people are looking and deciding which way this will go." McChrystal took command of coalition and U.S. efforts in Afghanistan, June 15. His job is to carry out the new strategy for the region. The general said the conflict should not be viewed solely as a military struggle. It is not a question of whether the United States is winning, he said, but whether the Afghan people are winning. The Afghan government is the ultimate deciding factor, and while the government is not winning the war on extremists, "I don't say they're losing," McChrystal said. "That's an old axiom in counterinsurgency: If you're not winning, you're losing," he said. "And the danger there is that that is true. So we see it as very, very important, probably over about the next 12 to 24 months, that we absolutely get a trend where we are clearly winning." McChrystal has spent much of his career in special operations, hunting down and killing or capturing terrorists. "What I learned is that much of the terrorism we fought years ago was very small groups that were finite. They were fanatical, and they could be attacked that way," he said. "Nowadays, we have to fight the cause of terrorism, because terror is a tactic. You win by taking away from the enemy the one thing the insurgent absolutely has to have, and that's access to the population."...
Troops in Afghanistan would get new uniforms (click here)
By Rick Maze - Staff writerPosted : Thursday Jun 18, 2009 12:49:51 EDT
Congress is about to order new combat uniforms for troops in Afghanistan after hearing complaints that camouflage that was fine in Iraq doesn’t work so well in a mountainous and often muddy environment.
“Soldiers deployed to Afghanistan have serious concerns about the current combat uniform which they indicated provides ineffective camouflage given the environment in Afghanistan,” lawmakers say in the report accompanying HR 2346, the 2009 supplemental appropriations act.
The bill passed the House of Representatives on Tuesday, 226-202. It heads to the Senate for approval.
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