Assad states he is confronting al Qaeda. That might be the case.

Assad might want to ask himself why he is facing down al Qaeda?

A man watches Syria's embattled President Bashar Assad making a public address on the state-run Syrian TV, on Sunday in Damascus (AFP photo)

Syria opposition rejects Assad reconciliation plan (click here)

Ya think?

AFP | Jan 06, 2013 | 15:50

..."We said at the founding of the National Coalition that we want a political solution, but ... there are now over 60,000 martyrs. The Syrians did not make all those sacrifices in order to bolster this tyrannical regime," he said.

Bunni said that the speech was directed primarily at the "international community, which engaged in a real effort to create a political solution that meets the aspirations of the Syrian people and ends the tyranny of the Assad family regime."

Assad will not accept "any initiative that does not restore stability to his regime and put him at the helm of control", Bunni said.

The president, he added, has "excluded the possibility of any dialogue with the rebels".

"He wants negotiating partners of his own choosing and will not accept any initiative that could meet the aspirations of the Syrian people or ultimately lead to his departure and the dismantling of his regime."

Assad's call to dialogue "excludes those who revolt" and is addressed to "those who did not rise up or who will gladly accept the return of stability despite all the sacrifices made by the Syrian people," Bunni said.

Assad in a rare speech denounced the opposition on Sunday as "slaves" of the West and called for national dialogue to draft a new charter and pave the way for legislative polls....

Slaves of the West? I doubt that, sincerely. Not that the opposition wouldn't want some help, but slaves of the West? Nah.

Demonstrators hold placards during a protest against Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Kafranbel, near Idlib June 19, 2012. Russia and China have not agreed to any plan for the removal of al-Assad from power but recognize the dangers of an all-out civil war in the country, U.S. President Barack Obama says as Assad's forces bombard the city of Homs and clash with rebels. Picture taken June 19, 2012. REUTERS/Shaam News Network/Handout

I see it like this. The Rebels welcome global nuclear conflict between the USA and Russia, so long as they aren't at the center of the annihilation. I sincerely believe if those young men are still alive in Syria and they were at the center of a global nuclear conflict they would have been misunderstood.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

...As the action unfolded in Syria, (click here) world leaders aired their differences over the conflict at the G20 Summit at the Mexican resort of Los Cabos.

U.S. President Barack Obama said Assad, whose family have ruled Syria for four decades, had lost all legitimacy and that it was impossible to conceive of any solution to the violence that left him in power.

But Russian President Vladimir Putin told reporters at the end of the summit: "We believe that nobody has the right to decide for other nations who should be brought to power, who should be removed from power."

Alarmed but apparently impotent to resolve the crisis, the outside world is deeply divided in its response to the increasingly sectarian conflict that threatens to become a proxy war for regional powers....

The problem in Syria is the same as Syria's presence in Lebanon for so many decades. This is the Assad's issue. Assad has been carrying out violence in Lebanon for a very long time. The rebels he backed in Lebanon killed leaders within that country. If Assad actually believes he is welcome as a leader at all then he is profoundly diluted.

That is a blatant fact, by the way. Syria has been an extremely disruptive and violent force in Lebanon. It is that reality I simply can't believe Russia has rejected to support Assad for far too long.

I realize, Syria has been a port in the Middle East for Russia for a long time and there is an understanding about an ally's responsibility in having a port there. But, I also believe Russia has not been a long term strategist in the understanding Syria is a problem in the Middle East. By being short sighted, Russia is deeply entrenched in what might be an incredibly out of control human rights violator in President Assad.

Russian Oligarchs are a problem. They need to back the best outcome for the Syrian people and those people do not necessarily have access to the sovereign wealth of the Assad family/regime.

Russia needs to pressure their oligarchs to stop their shipments into Syria because 'their commerce' is killing large amounts of people which they can be held responsible for at The Hague.

I have a challenge for Keith Suber.

Mr. Suber has a Foundation seeking to make a difference. The Foundation works from the knowledge gang members can change with interaction, feedback and hope.

Mr. Suber needs to solicit mayors across the USA to hold Town Meetings with their gang communities to begin that initiative to them. The majors need to know their schools are going to actively seek to be a broker to breaking the cycle of impoverishment, drug economy and the violence that never resolves without the PROMISE of a better life.

Charles Denson & Keith Suber, Coney Island Film Festival 2011 (click here)

The Last Immortal

A Documentary Feature by Charles Denson

Best Documentary Feature, Coney Island Film Festival, 2011

The Coney Island History Project Presented a Free Screening at Liberation High School on Saturday, November 5, 2011 at 7:00 pm

Keith Suber is a forty-five year old reformed Coney Island gang leader, an original Rollin’ 60’s Crip who’s been shot six times and served ten years in a federal penitentiary. He’s returned to his Coney Island roots and founded an organization whose mission is to stop the gun violence that is plaguing the community.

Keith’s brothers, “Blue,” “Molock,” and the “Colonel” ran the 1970’s Coney gangs that the movie The Warriors was based on. This film, shot on the streets of Coney Island and at juvenile detention centers, shows the reality of gang violence, its influence on the Coney Island community, and Suber’s efforts at saving lives through youth mentorship, job training, and intervention....

Has the USA House hurt the marketing of USA crops to nations able to pay for them and desperately is in need of them?

American Farmers need take the destination of their crops into their own hands.

COOPERATIVES.

There is every reason to believe if the American Farmer were to have a lobbyist in Saudi Arabia they could get better prices for their products.

American Farmers can control their outcomes without a dysfunctional Congress. There is every reason to plant fence post to fence post. The USA has always had the reputation of feeding the world. Well, what is stopping them, Congress?

Has the American Farmer noticed the increased cost of food to American consumers? It isn't because the American Farmer is charging more money for their crop harvests, it is because Wall Street takes advantage of a limited commodity called petroleum and natural gas to allow increases in every consumer product from baby diapers to parsley. 

ARAB NEWS

Sunday 6 January 2013

Last Update 5 January 2013 11:04 pm

‘Six-month food stock needed’ for security (click here)

..."The world is facing a significant shortage in basic food commodities accompanied by an increase in demand. This has led to a sharp rise in the prices of goods and food in general," said Al-Rwais.
He pointed to the problems caused over the past two years in many parts of the world by adverse natural conditions, the effects of climate change, drought and recurrent frost formation. This caused the destruction of large grain fields in some major agricultural countries such as Australia, China, Argentina and India, which in turn affected the supply of food grains and a resultant spike in global prices.
"It has become necessary for the Kingdom to achieve food security by maintaining a strategic stock of wheat, rice, vegetable oil, sugar, meat and poultry that is enough for domestic consumption for at least six months," he added. He said some countries exporting agricultural products impose high tariffs and set up restrictions on exports in times of shortages....

Congress needs to be drastically reoriented to a reality that they have a responsibility to the American people in protecting the food supply in the USA and not just by regulations of the FDA.

Drought and water is a commodity becoming increasingly sparse around planet Earth. The Climate Crisis is the reason. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia uses desalination plants for a water supply. The Kingdom has done that for a very long time. 

Congress has a real job to do. They need to address the Climate Crisis within the Farm Bill as well as the falling food supply to people globally. The American Farmer needs to have their own lobbyists to bring PARITY to their farm operations. Forget about the grain silos as a means to a paycheck as harvest time. 

I have said it over and over and over; the Agricultural Sector of the USA economy needs to take control of their operations and product destination as well as the solvency of their operations through COOPERATIVES. Cooperatives need to address fuel supply to the farm operations, including production of their own biodiesel. They need to address management of their income potentials including having their own lobbyists in places like Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia  seeks food supplies because their own production does not meet the demands of their people. 

The Agricultural Sector of the USA should not through the baby out with the bathwater and continue to sell some of their harvest to the grain elevator (Wall Street), but, they need to take larger initiatives to sell their products to these countries and receive better prices. If the American Farmer went to Saudi Arabia for sales of their harvests rather than the grain elevator, I am fairly sure they would find ships waiting at the docks on either coast ready and waiting to be loaded for their home ports of call.

ANY nominee to the USA Department of Defense is about money. Just that simple.

I don't care if Chuck Hagel doesn't like aggressive gay men. He has a right not to be sexually harassed.

Posted by Greg Sargent on December 21, 2012 at 4:01 pm
...But in an interview this afternoon, (click here) the target of the 1998 slur, leading gay philanthropist James Hormel, told me he never received an apology from Hagel himself, questioned the sincerity of the apology, and said the incident should still raise questions about whether Hagel is the right man to oversee the repeal of don’t ask don’t tell....

If Hormel came on to the Senator then it is he that should apologize. I think Senator Hagel is married. The former Senator is not being nominated to Secretary of State, it is the DOD and Hagel has a reputation that dictates prudent decision making when approaching the role of the USA in the world. 

Senator Hagel is a conservative in the truest sense of the word. He doesn't like WASTEFUL SPENDING, putting young American lives in harm's way without a definitive reason and he won't put up with pork barrel projects and costly overruns.

The real reason for opposing Senator Hagel to the Department of Defense was stated in The Washington Post:

...The editors of the Washington Post (click here) surprise us this morning by opposing Hagel strongly for his views on defense cuts and Iran: “Mr. Hagel’s stated positions on critical issues, ranging from defense spending to Iran, fall well to the left of those pursued by Mr. Obama during his first term — and place him near the fringe of the Senate that would be asked to confirm him ....

Senator Hagel's greatest strength is his ability to be honest, examine the facts and change his mind. He changed his mind on Iraq and while he saw no reason for sanctions with Iran, he may change his name. 

The greatest hurdle to effective sanctions with Iran is the demand for natural gas as an alternative to Russia's Gasprov. It is why the EU doesn't like to move on sanctions to Iran. They want Iran's natural gas. 

Senator Hagel can speak for himself, but, I always believed he didn't endorse sanctions with Iran because they are unenforceable. Pakistan was going to continue a relationship with Iran no matter what the EU and USA did to limit foreign trade and impose sanctions. Once Musharraf was no longer in the Presidency and Zadari was elected, the change in Pakistan's position with Iran was obvious and the pipeline is still under contention. So, Senator Hagel may very well see the USA relationship with Iran has changed and the sanctions more enforceable.

Senator Hagel's greatest strength is he does not endore war as a first strategy against any country, including Iranb.

The Debt Ceiling is not about entitlements, it is about paying the bills.

The USA economy and it's national debt are not about guessing what will work, it about knowing what the numbers are and what will work.

It is not about skating along waiting for the next set of rhetoric to 'get it right.' It is about the nation knowing what the facts are and paying the bills.

Understanding where the country is, where it is going is not about trusting instincts or what seems natural; it is knowing the facts by asking questions and getting honest answers.

Living in the USA, believing in the truth, understanding the course we are mapping out to solve our problems is what we call leadership. 

If Eric Schmidt can go to North Korea without fear and look for hope in new relationships through in roads; then the people of the USA can come to terms with the truth and bring understanding to the fiscal condition of the USA and why the Republicans can no longer take the country hostage for political reasons.

Google exec chairman to visit NKorea (click here)

By By JEAN H. LEE
Associated Press – 2 days ago

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Google's executive chairman is preparing to travel to one of the last frontiers of cyberspace: North Korea.

Eric Schmidt will be traveling to North Korea on a private, humanitarian mission led by former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson that could take place as early as this month, according to two people familiar with the group's plans who asked not to be named because the visit had not been made public.

The trip would be the first by a top executive from U.S.-based Google, the world's largest Internet search provider, to a country considered to have the most restrictive Internet policies on the planet.

North Korea is in the midst of what leader Kim Jong Un called a modern-day "industrial revolution" in a New Year's Day speech to the nation Monday. He is pushing science and technology as a path to economic development for the impoverished country, aiming for computers in every school and digitized machinery in every factory....

Do Americans want to solve the problems we all face so our children don't have to? Or do we want to play games with their future?

The USA jobs report turns the head to global investors. They like it.

Doug Carroll, USA TODAY

8:47a.m. EST January 4, 2013

The economy ended 2012 (click here) with 155,000 more jobs last month and a 7.8% unemployment rate.

That was unchanged from November's unemployment rate, which was revised up from 7.7% to 7.8%.

Ahead of today's Labor Department report, many economists had forecast the economy added 150,000 to 160,000 jobs overall in December. But job market data released Thursday raised the prospect of a positive surprise.

Payroll processor ADP on Thursday said its monthly survey found private employers added 215,000 jobs last month, far more than expected. And outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said announced job cuts in December fell 43% from November to the second-lowest monthly total of the year....

All to frequently the USA jobs recovery is criticized for political fodder, but, the real facts are the global market place finds the USA economy and its recovery very attractive. 

...Wall Street was expected (click here) to open slightly higher though, with S&P 500 futures up 0.1 percent and contracts for the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq 100 up 0.2 percent.

U.S. stocks will largely depend on the non-farm payrolls report due at 1330 GMT and any clues it gives on the health of the U.S. and global economies.

Analysts polled by Reuters expect a 150,000 rise in jobs, with unemployment holding steady at 7.7 percent. However, after a better-than-expected ADP employment report on Thursday, many may now be betting on an above-consensus jobs number.

"The Fed has made it clear that it will keep policy loose until unemployment drops to 6.5 percent or below, so strong jobs data will undoubtedly raise expectations of a more hawkish Fed,"analysts at Tradition brokerage said in a note.

From the same article:

By Marc Jones

London, Jan 4 (Reuters)

World shares edged lower and the dollar rose before U.S. jobs data on Friday which investors will watch even more closely than usual after Fed officials raised concerns about possible side effects of its stimulus programme....

The global investment community like the USA economy so much along with its recovery, even the dollar has gained value in the face of every estimation it would loss value. Most Americans forget this was a "Global Great Recession." The USA is doing just fine and we are not losing interest or investors in it's bonds. The Dollar is okay.

MSCI is a global equities indices. (click here) They rank countries into three primary categories, Developed, Emerging and Frontier markets (click here).

IN CONTEXT rather than politically stranded, the USA economy as guided by President Obama is nothing short of genius.

Could Demcratic Leader Tim Gremil be the next Michigan Governor?

Will the Former Governor Granholm weigh in on who is best qualified to be Governor in Michigan?

Michigan's end of year legislation signed by the Governor has been some of the most anti-citizen in the history of the country.

Believe it or not, Snyder reinstated an emergency manager laws after a state referendum removed it. If that isn't Anti-Citizen legislation, don't ask me what is?

"The House Democratic Causus (click here) in extremely disappointed in Gov. Rick Snyder signing the new emergency manager legislation into law. By pushing essentially the same legislation the voters just rejected in less than two months ago,...

Michigan citizens are under siege from a man who sold Michigan Brain Trust inventions to a Wall Street company for his own benefit. The Michigan voters were handed a bill of goods from the Snyder election campaign and the voters believed it was time for a change. The Michigan voter has been experiencing trauma ever since.

It would be 'a help' if Former Governor Granholm would keep in touch with the Michigan DNC to bring about sincere return to sanity for the state. But, there is leadership within the Michigan Democratic Party that could return 'the citizen' to in charge of their state government. 

This bill that returned an emergency manager to the landscape of Michigan after it was removed by the electorate is a huge ethical violation. Who do these people believe they are? They aren't interested in serving the people or solving problems. They are interested in power without regard to any citizen agenda for their state. It could be said, Michigan has an occupying force in the state government.

There are 10 million people in Michigan of which 1.3 million are senior citizens. Snyder and his Republicans swept in during the 2010 elections can do a lot of damage to people before the next Governor election in 2014. But, if the search for the best Democratic candidate begins now there could be a significant victory to bring 'the citizen' back into power in the Governor's office and in the state legislature.

I hear the Former Governor has time on her hands and could be encouraged to assist in the hunt for the best candidate for Governor in 2014. It is time to put the citizen first again in Michigan.

A banner welcomes United Association members to Ann Arbor during August. (click here) County officials are questioning the likelihood the union will return to Michigan for the annual convention after the passage of right-to-work legislation in December.

By AMY BIOLCHINI
County, health and environment reporter
Posted on Fri, Jan 4, 2013 : 5:59 a.m

...The potential loss of several major union conventions that bring millions of dollars and thousands of visitors annually to the area could be the biggest impact to the county as a result of the legislation, ssaid Paul Gallagher, an Ann Arbor lawyer who represents both the county and local unions.

Gallagher was one of several speakers asked to contribute to theWashtenaw County Board of Commissioners’ discussion on the impacts of right-to-work during its first working session of the new term Thursday night....

In Michigan, average age of citizens is 35.5. There are 51% women in the state with 49% men. So, the woman's agenda is important to Michigan.

One of the most important aspects to the future agenda of Michigan is eliminating all that CO2 emissions from burning coal. Michigan is ranked 10th in carbon emissions in the nation which has a result of being 31 in carbon footprints. 

Michigan resides among the highest wind dynamics in the nation. There simply is no reason for such high carbon emissions from a state sharing borders with Canada. The Former Governor Granholm did excellent studies for wind maps in the lakes. The potential of wind energy as the primary source of electricity in Michigan has no limits. 

The anti-wind turbines opposition in Michigan is the usual; unsightly turbines from resort areas, noisy and expensive. There is also a constituency of small wind mill merchants in the state whom believes large turbines would destroy their business by property owners. This constituency will back the promotion of coal and/or biomass power plants to bring the good conscience to citizens to purchase private small wind mills for their property.

4:33 pm, November 1, 2011

Updated: 12:11 pm, November 2, 2011

A cascade of coal ash, (click here) dirt and mud fell into the shore of Lake Michigan yesterday after a large section of bluff collapsed beside the We Energies Oak Creek Power Plant in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin. It is unknown how much coal ash fell from the pile, but the spill left behind a debris field about 120 yards long, the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel reports.

The potential for Michigan Wind Turbines could mean a sincere surplus to the state's economy. The Michigan/Canada wind maps reveal a strong output of electricity which could be sold to surrounding states.

A Frenchman attains Russian citizenship by the Russian President to become a tax refugee.

...Belgian and French (click here) press reports Monday quoted officials in Belgium confirming the 64-year old performer has moved into a house he bought in the village of Néchin, just one mile from the French border. Speculation is rampant that the move has allowed Depardieu to shift his legal residenceto Belgium to dodge the 75% tax on income over $1.27 million that Socialist President François Hollande will apply as of 2013 as part of his response to France’s debt crisis. The nation salutes your fiscal patriotism, Gégé....


Perhaps President Putin should send his Foreign Minister to negotiate a settlement.


Good friends ... Vladimir Putin, right, and French actor Gerard Depardieu. Photo: AP

SPINO

SPeaker In Name Only

Police officers are a source of stability in growth and development for elementary school children.

The sign post that used to mark the entrance to the Sandy Hook Elementary school is seen empty in Newtown (Shannon Stapleton, Reuters)

In terms of social and emotional development, (click here) six-year-olds are confident and delight in showing off their talents. They start to display an increasing awareness of their own and others' emotions and begin to develop better techniques for self-control. Six-year-olds enjoy sharing toys and snacks with friends, although conflicts among peers may remain quite frequent. 

Predictable routines are important sources of stability and security for children this age. Six-year-olds also draw emotional stability from their interactions with adults with whom they feel secure, particularly during challenging situations and circumstances.

Police Officers in Connecticut can provide a great deal of emotional satisfaction for these children. I found President Obama's comments to the community enlightening to the quality of life these children enjoy. He stated one of the children approached a police officer after the death of so many and said, "I can lead everyone out because I know karate."

Very brave and reassured to his well being when validated by officers whom they connected. They are very secure children accepting of the authorities around them.

My only concern, as I am sure the parents' concerns, is the presence of guns, accidental opportunities for children's inquisitive nature and any reporting of suspicious activity to the school's principal to follow trends. Police Officers in these circumstances should not be traffic cops on the beat to simply protect those inside; they should provide daily briefing to the principal at the end of every day to follow any trends. These police officers have different focus. They can safely put aside some of their limitations as fact finders. That is not necessarily exclusive to detectives in the community. Police officers are very smart about 'what goes on.' That resource should not be ignored.

This is an elementary school with predictable activity, attendees and adult populations. Police officers should have their own sense of well being on the job as well.

By AMANDA FALCONE, afalcone@courant.comThe Hartford Courant

7:51 p.m. EST, January 2, 2013

MONROE ——

On the way from Newtown to Monroe Wednesday morning, (click here) there were green and white signs welcoming Sandy Hook Elementary School students, parents and staff.

At the edge of the once vacant Chalk Hill School driveway, there was a sign and balloons — as well as several police officers.

Once a middle school, the former Chalk Hill School has been given a makeover and renamed. It is now Sandy Hook Elementary School — a nod to its new occupants who will begin classes in the building Thursday....

No one is playing with this disaster either. No pun intended. I can't help but believe Adam Lanza visited the school in anticipation of his murders of these children. They and the school were objects to him, not living wonderful promises to the future as he once was. I think what bothers me about the gunman is not his mental health issues, because, normally these children receive significant attention from professionals during their growing up years. What is more significant than any mental health issues, is the question what the heck happened to turn him into a killing machine?

Jean Henry (click here) was placed on paid leave by the Chief State Medical Examiner H. Wayne Carver II, pictured, after he learned Henry allowed her husband to view the body of Adam Lanza. (Michael McAndrews, Hartford Courant / January 3, 2013)

I would love to see Representative King as Speaker of the House.

Why he isn't, is a good question. He has paid all the dues to be one. I differ with him on many topics, but, if one thing is plainly obvious he never cowers from taking on tough challenges. I am sure that is what his constituents value about him. 

He has a point. If the House is going to back down from handling the business of the nation due to politics, what does that say about the importance of the business of the nation?

...King immediately name-checked Boehner (click here) (and not in a good way) in a speech on the floor. His show of fury intensified when he later appeared on Fox News. “I’m saying right now, anyone from New York or New Jersey who contributes one penny to congressional Republicans is out of their minds,” he said. “Because what they did last night was put a knife in the back of New Yorkers and New Jerseyans. It was an absolute disgrace.”...

It looks like a star formation and it isn't even household lights.

Northwestern North Dakota (click here) is one of the least-densely populated parts of the United States. Cities and people are scarce, but satellite imagery shows the area has been aglow at night in recent years. The reason: the area is home to the Bakken shale formation, a site where gas and oil production are booming.

Posted: Monday, October 1, 2012 11:10 am

A 3.3-magnitude earthquake (click here) shook ground 11 miles southeast of Williston on the morning of Friday, Sept. 28.

The quake was registered by the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology at 5:53 a.m. near the Missouri River. Deborah Smith of the MBMG said there wasn’t a good solution collected on it because the earthquake was too far away from any station....

It took days before this earthquake was even reported in the media. Above the posting is on October 1, 2012 and the earthquake occurred days before.

M3.3 - 22km ESE of Williston, North Dakota2012-09-28 10:53:42 UTCWhat seems to be the media problem in North Dakota?

Tectonic Summary (click here)

Earthquakes in the Stable Continental Region

Most of North America east of the Rocky Mountains has infrequent earthquakes. Here and there earthquakes are more numerous, for example in the New Madrid seismic zone centered on southeastern Missouri, in the Charlevoix-Kamouraska seismic zone of eastern Quebec, in New England, in the New York - Philadelphia - Wilmington urban corridor, and elsewhere. However, most of the enormous region from the Rockies to the Atlantic can go years without an earthquake large enough to be felt, and several U.S. states have never reported a damaging earthquake. The earthquakes that do occur strike anywhere at irregular intervals.

The odd fact there was a 3.3 magnitude earthquake in the exact location of the highest density domestic oil field is no coincidence. This is the North American Carton

...Now it underlies 70 percent (click here) of North America. Parts of the craton contain rocks that range in age from 2.5 to 4 billion years, including Earth's oldest-known rock. Most were highly deformed and metamorphosed as the craton was assembled....

This is the oldest, most stable rock on Earth. And at the very location of high intensity petroleum activity it is quaking. Give me a break. The Petroleum Industry is not this stupid, but, they are this media savvy.

The North Dakota state government is corrupted by petroleum money and don't give a damn about any environmental effects of their indulgences.

North Dakota

Seismic Hazard Map (click here)

It ain't suppose to happen here.

The only activity of any significance in North Dakota has always been in regard to 'felt quakes.' They were tremors 'felt' from other areas of the North American Carton where there was movement deep within the rock. Carton quakes are never severe quakes as the rock is very stable, it is mostly thought to be related to tectonic movement of the entire plate on which the carton is situated. 

The earthquake is not a minor quake. It is a Class III on the Mercalli Intensity Scale: III. Felt quite noticeably by persons indoors, especially on upper floors of buildings. Many people do not recognize it as an earthquake. Standing motor cars may rock slightly. Vibrations similar to the passing of a truck. Duration estimated.

This may seem insignificant to people as there is no major damage, but, for a carton quake this is among the highest that occurs. 

AGAIN. The dangers to high intensity petroleum drilling and hydraulic fracturing is related to the rising possibility of liquefaction.

Liquefaction (click here) occurs when vibrations or water pressure within a mass of soil cause the soil particles to lose contact with one another. As a result, the soil behaves like a liquid, has an inability to support weight and can flow down very gentle slopes. This condition is usually temporary and is most often caused by an earthquake vibrating water-saturated fill or unconsolidated soil.

There was a time when in the USA governments they actually took the threat seriously rather than sacrificing it for jobs (easily political posturing of old world energy sources) and wealth.

Posted October 6, 2012

...Art McGarr, a geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey, (click here) who is not familiar with North Dakota geology but has studied earthquakes since 1962, said based on his experience and the amount of industrial activity going on in the Williston area, said he believes the most likely hypothesis is that wastewater injection triggered the earthquake.

Oilfield wastewater, including water that results from hydraulic fracturing, is disposed of by injecting it underground into disposal wells. North Dakota has about 390 disposal wells....

Mr. McGarr is with the USGS and not the North Dakota Department of Minerals Management. Mr. McGarr doesn't have to worry about his job and a pink slip from the North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple. Dalrymple was elected to office in 2010 in the infusion of Tea Party extremists. The USGS carries brevity in opinion. It is the correct opinion. And I'll explain why.

There are oil vats and gas vats in the craton. They are liquid or gaseous. They are under high pressure. When there is tectonic movement these liquid / gaseous vats move along with the movement of the plate. It is these areas within the craton that can emit 'felt quakes' because they are under high pressure. The oil and gas vats within the craton actually serve as shock absorbers to the movement of the plate. These vats of liquid and gas protects the craton. They distribute the movement in ways that minimize impact of plate movement to the rock. The felt quakes are low in magnitude to some extent because of these liquid / gaseous areas.

The dangers of the petroleum industry in removing these non-rock areas and replacing it with wastewater containing chemicals that dissolve rock is that they dissolve rock. This is the North American Craton. Why does anyone want to dissolve the rock that serves as the basis of an entire continent? For jobs? You've got to be joking!

When the rock dissolves and liquefaction FILLS IN THE VATS the quakes are no longer felt quakes, are no longer minor quakes and the danger to instability of the craton comes into reality!!!!!!

The shock absorbers cannot be replaced. Once they are gone, they are gone. The areas where wastewater now RESIDES removes the safety zone into dissolving rock and instability. Jerks.

These areas within the craton fall into a category similar to Rossby Waves in the ocean. They are planetary places of stability. It is a potential vorticity issue. How do I put this in plain English? English. Right. Playing billiards. Directing the direction of balls on a billiard table can occur if here is a little bit of 'English' put on the ball. The same is true in Baseball. Pitchers use their ability to change the flight of the ball in a game to out wit the batter. In other words, a 'spin' can be put on the ball while it is traveling straight. That is the kind of dynamic the petroleum industry is playing with when they dissolve rock within a craton. I am sure no one understands it, but, dissolving a craton is not an exceptionally billiant idea. Earth has limits. The Christmas tsunami of 2004 caused the tilt of the planet to change. It is important to understand seismic activity on Earth. Seriously.

A BIOTIC planet as Earth is better have shock absorbers. Earth is highly dynamnic. This antiquated form of energy is completely absurd in the year 2013. Happy New Year.

The Sword of Damocles, Grover? 

Really?

Isn't that semantics?

The Bush Tax Cuts were an act of greed and desperation in the first place. The Bush Economy was designed to destroy the entitlements, was it not?

The Bush Tax Cuts removed any restraint on wealth to inspire investment into the country. It literally moved monies out of the USA federal government into the pockets of the wealthy. No one can deny that. The Bush Tax Cuts raided the reserves of the federal government of every dime, sent the country into debt after a surplus, groveled for some kind of economy for 'job seekers,' while pandering to China and creating the largest population of food stamp recipients in recent history in the USA before the crash.

Along with the Bush Tax Cuts, the defense budget was moved out of the national budget and was always submitted for funding as a supplement. The reason for that was a strategy to bring the entitlements to a greater portion of the national treasury and cause a destruction of them.

Now, give me a break here, Grover. The Bush years were designed by intent to move the USA into bankruptcy to destroy the entitlements. The recovery from that strategy has been grueling. And what is even more humorous than The Sword of Damocles is the Heritage Foundation. They are dying to call the USA an entitlement society in the aftermath of the Bush Great Recession.

More than Half of All Federal Spending Will Be on Entitlement Programs in 2012 (click here)

In the desperation of having any kind of purpose, The Heritage Foundation (click here), has included Food Stamps as an entitlement to contrive some kind of reality to stop "The Entitlement Society."

Every aspect of the 'Crying Towel' the Republicans now have in common was designed by The Heritage Foundation. 

Grover.

Get a new life, while the rest of the country continues to rescue itself from the unartful and down right crude administration that left in it's wake a floundering country and emptied treasury. I am grateful for the entitlements as the very base of an economy that nearly was no more. Little did FDR know what he had inspired to protect the vitality of the USA economy. If FDR realized that while seeking compassion for our elderly, then he was more a genius than he ever gets credit for. Go away, Grover; you have become an annoyance, irrelevant and historical joke.