Good news out of California.

Microstamping is another tool for police investigators to discover the criminals. But, the rightwing gun rightists want to prevent that from happening.

“Forensic testing of ammunition used in a crime is the most effective way of tracing criminal activity.” (click here)

- Former Republican Governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger

...A technology called “microstamping” has made comprehensive ballistic identification a reality. Microstamping technology utilizes lasers to make microscopic engravings on the breech face and firing pin of a gun. As the gun is fired, a code identifying the weapon’s serial number is stamped onto the cartridge. This enables police to trace a gun without ever physically recovering it. A traced firearm is a valuable lead in a criminal investigation, because investigators can then connect that weapon to its first purchaser, who may become either a suspect or a source of information helpful to the investigation....

Smith and Wesson states it will effect profits. So, let me get this right. Smith and Wesson believes most of their semi-automatic weapons end up at crime scenes?  For real. The only reason NOT to comply is that Smith and Wesson's profit margin depends on criminals purchasing their products or there are straw purchasers for the criminals that prefer their products. Does Smith and Wesson actually have market research to that effect?

There is every reason for honest citizens that keep weapons for self-protection to like this law. There is simply no way their weapons can be misidentified as a weapon at a crime scene unless it was stolen. So, I don't get it. Why would any gun manufacturer object to protecting innocent people be they gun owners or the victims of gun violence? I find that very odd.

January 24, 2014 12:05pm EST
By Chloe Albanesi 

...Gun makers Smith & Wesson and Sturm, Ruger Co. (click here) said this week that a new California law requiring semiautomatic pistols to be equipped with technology called microstamping could result in fewer of their weapons available for sale in the state.
"Smith & Wesson does not and will not include microstamping in its firearms," the company said in a Thursday statement. Ultimately, California's mandate "will result in a diminishing number of Smith & Wesson semi-automatic pistols available for purchase by California residents."...

It is the manufacturer's choice to withdraw their product. Fine then. It is NOT the new law that is forcing these guns out of the California gun market. So, let's get that straight.

By Perry Chiaramonte

Published January 24, 2014
FOX News.

A new gun law proponents (click here) say helps law enforcement has driven Smith & Wesson and Sturm Ruger out of California, and affirmed the suspicions of firearms rights advocates that the measure is really about making handguns obsolete.

The two companies have announced they will stop selling their wares in the nation's most populous state rather than try to comply with a law that requires some handguns to have technology that imprints a tiny stamp on the bullet so it can be traced back to the gun. The companies, and many gun enthusiasts, say so-called "microstamping" technology is unworkable in its present form and can actually impair a gun's performance.... 

...“The microstamping mandate and the company’s unwillingness to adopt this so-called technology will result in a diminishing number of Smith & Wesson semi-automatic pistols available for purchase by California residents....

How it works.

...Microstamping (click here) represents a significant improvement over existing ballistic identification technology. Through the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN) program, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) currently deploys Integrated Ballistics Imaging System (IBIS) equipment and technology to state and local law enforcement agencies for use in comparing ballistic evidence found at crime scenes....

This is the same O"Keefee strategy. O'Keefe and Huckabee are coming out at the same time; they have somewhat different audiences.

Recently on Bill Maher, Mary Matalin explains the labido of Republican women in that, "...Tucker Carlson is hot." Go figure. Who knew?

According to "People Magazine" Tucker Carlson didn't make the "Sexiest Man Alive 2013." Sorry, Mary, Carlson is an alternate reality.

Look up "man" in the dictionary, (click here) and you'll see a photo of Elba next to the entry. We kid – we think – but the 41-year-old Brit really is the picture of masculinity with his strong features, deep voice and towering height (he's 6'3"!). He's a bit of a troublemaker – his road to fame was dotted with some slightly naughty behavior – but it seems all is forgiven when he smiles. Not that he minds the bad-boy reputation. "The way I live my life, I'm two drinks from being in the tabloids every day. I'm no national treasure," he told Esquire U.K."I'm a f–ing [dirty] rude boy!" Rarr!

The backlash against the comments by Governor Cuomo isn't isolated to his comments.

The Right Wing is even CREATING 'character' issues with State Senator Wendy Davis.

O'Keefe is at it again. Let's get something straight, O'Keefe is NOT a documentarian. He is a cartoon artist.

The rightwing is attempting to get a foothold for 2014 over this issue. I don't find Governor Cuomo's comments offensive. The rightwing is causing huge problems in the USA. The Pro-Life 'bit' is just part of their song and dance that when candidates are elected cause all kinds of problems including credit ratings changes for the USA.

Governor Cuomo is 'sufficently' correct to say it.

It is no different than the complaints in California about adding fluoride to water. That has been SOLID public policy for generations, but, the rightwing will state 'I have a right NOT to have it in my water, therefore, no public policy.' That complaint is not about fluoride in water, it is about public policy in spending. If the rightwing doesn't want fluoride in their water then go buy water without it. Why? Because the MAJORITY of the people in this nation BENEFIT from the public policy that adds fluoride to their water. That's why. The USA and democracy in general RECOGNIZES the need of the MAJORITY.

Now, tell me the rightwing loves the USA Constitution, because I am still trying to find the focus by them that tells me that. The Pro-Life movement is like the obstructionists in the Senate. They actually believe the minority has right to power that inhibits the nation.

The attack on Governor Cuomo is a nationwide strategy.

The rightwing prankster (click here) and documentarian whose videos have drawn blood at ACORN and NPR, says his organization is being harassed by the state of New York.

Do extreme conservatives pranksters and videographers have no place in New York State either?

Late last week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo ignited a firestorm of criticism in right-wing media when he told a public radio host that  “extreme conservatives who are right-to-life, pro-assault-weapon, anti-gay … have no place in the State of New York.”

Cuomo was referring to the prospects of far-right political candidates in the deeply Democratic Empire State, not the prospects of his own far right constituents. Nevertheless, conservative talkers like Sean Hannity said they were moving out of state, conservative bloggers called for a boycott of state businesses and products, and New York Republicans demanded an apology.           

An interesting aspect of manipulating facts about human health. A study of let's say 1000 patients proves there are carcinogens in a product. But, when DILUTED by a much larger population the result is far more diffuse.

The Saccharine Brain Tumor Outbreak was the day of Dick Howser.

By George Vecsey
Published: February 22, 1987

YES, Dick Howser conceded, (click here) there were a few changes in the manager who won the World Series in 1985. He does not remove his cap in public these days, and his uniform has been altered because he has lost 17 pounds.

''Don't do it the way I did it,'' he added, with a twinge of baseball irony. ''Do it some other way.''

He is not recommending two operations for brain cancer, although he does not mind admitting he came out of the first operation ''looking for the Lord'' ahead of any of the loved ones in his life.

''I'm just glad that happened to me at 50 and not 60 - or when it's too late,'' Howser said yesterday, back in his workplace....

The way carcinogens in food is discussed with the public is in isolation as if this was a novel event. The bigger picture is rarely seen except by crack pots screaming at the top of their lungs.

Understanding the toxicity of flavoring is a bit more complicated than just pointing fingers at one substance.

This is a study from 2004. The compounds used in flavorings are highly organic. They react easily with human body chemistry. The 'components' that make up these compounds break down and are distributed throughout the body as if a nutrient. 

EFSA Journal(2004) 166, 1-44

...According to the default MSDI approach, the six flavouring substances in this group have intakes in Europe from 0.0012 to 3.1 microgram/capita/day which are below the threshold of concern value for both structural class I (1800 microgram/person/day) and structural class II (540 microgram/person/day) substances....

The reason I bring this up is because 'additives' to foods have been under fire for a long time. They are known to create carcinogens within the body chemistry. Perhaps one might recall the outrage over saccharine some time ago. It was proven to cause brain tumors. At one point in the USA there was an epidemic spoken of in the circles of neurosurgeons, but, that understanding never made it into the public conscience. I know these conversations were taking place because I witnessed one at the Cleveland Clinic.

Is there an association between artificial sweeteners and cancer? (click here)

Questions about artificial sweeteners and cancer arose when early studies showed that cyclamate in combination with saccharin caused bladder cancer in laboratory animals. However, results from subsequent carcinogenicity studies (studies that examine whether a substance can cause cancer) of these sweeteners have not provided clear evidence of an association with cancer in humans. Similarly, studies of other FDA-approved sweeteners have not demonstrated clear evidence of an association with cancer in humans.

In the day of saccharine popularity there were so many tumors the neurosurgeons had a 'population' of patients that enabled a better understanding of the best treatment of these monstrosities and treatment regimes were refined and reclassified in many instances. Some of the rarest form of tumors showed up in larger numbers and then better understood.

It is my opinion this understanding of caramel color is an opportunity to view the entire idea of chemical manipulation of food.

This is the entire title of the study I referred to above.

Opinion of the Scientific Panel on Food Additives, Flavourings, Processing Aids and Materials in contact with Food (AFC) on a request from the Commission related to Flavouring Group Evaluation 11 (FGE.11):

Aliphatic dialcohols, diketones, and hydroxyketones from chemical group 10

(Commission Regulation (EC) No 1565/2000 of 18 July 2000)

(Adopted on 9 December 2004)

4-methylimidazole or 4-MeI is the compound being regulated in the article in the LA Times, however, it is not found in nature. It is a synthesized final product that results from a manufacturing process.

There are many 'specific' organic reactions known within the understanding of ORGANIC CHEMISTRY. They are reactions known as laws of chemical reactions. They are consistent and result in the same reaction time and time again. They are somewhat vital in the 'creation' of pharmaceuticals. But, in this case they are also used in the production of food products.

4-Methylimidazole is synthesized by using two methods. Either Debus-Radziszewski synthesis (reactions of methylglyoxal with ammonia and formaldehyde) or by reacting hydroxyacetone and formamide in ammonia.

In this particular reaction the "imidazole" is the parent compound that makes caramel coloring possible.

Imidazole is an organic compound with the formula (CH)2NCH. It is a colourless solid that dissolves in water to give mildly alkaline solution. In chemistry, it is an aromatic heterocycle, classified as a diazole and as an alkaloid.

Now I can go on and on with this description, but, at some point a working knowledge of organic chemistry is necessary to understand why these 'ingredient compounds' are so dangerous.

The point it this. Anytime a reaction results in a food additive there is always the possibility it is toxic over time to the body resulting in carcinogens. Why take additives into your food unless it is found in nature such as iodine in table salt?

This isn't the first time Caramel Coloring has been viewed as a carcinogen.

CSPI Says Artificial Caramel Coloring is Quite Different from Real Caramel (click here)

February 16, 2011
WASHINGTON—The “caramel coloring” used in Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and other foods is contaminated with two cancer-causing chemicals and should be banned, according to a regulatory petition filed today by the Center for Science in the Public Interest....


By David Pierson

January 23, 2014, 6:53 a.m.

Caramel color is an additive (click here) that gives your bubbly soda that distinct amber hue.

But some of the artificial coloring also contains a potentially carcinogenic chemical called 4-methylimidazole or 4-MeI.

Although there are no federal limits on its use, California added the chemical to its Proposition 65 list of carcinogens in 2011. That required any food or beverage to carry a health warning label if it exposed consumers to more than 29 micrograms of 4-MeI a day.

A study released Thursday by Consumer Reports magazine says at least two soft drinks come close to breaking that rule: Pepsi One and Malta Goya....

Dr. Chalfin is one of the two Directors of "Center for Science in the Public Interest." They were the first to announce the dangers of 4-methylimidazole in 2011.

Dr. Lynn Silver Chalfin, Sonoma County's health officer (click here) for about a year and a half, announced her resignation this week in e-mails to co-workers and health care colleagues.

Silver Chalfin, 55, said Friday she was taking a public health job in the Bay Area but was not at liberty to disclose the position.

“I love the county. It's an amazing place,” she said, adding that she hopes to collaborate with Sonoma County on health issues in the future.

Silver Chalfin's last day in the job that pays $202,555 a year will be Dec. 5.

Silver Chalfin said her departure has nothing to do with her strong advocacy for a controversial plan to put fluoride in most of the county's drinking water.

“I'm definitely not leaving because of fluoridation,” she said, calling it “an absolutely correct and important public health policy.”...

Snyder is hopeless. He hasn't got a clue to what he is doing.

3:05 PM, January 23, 2014

...The proposal dovetails (click here) with two other immigration plans Snyder offered in his State of the State speech last week: opening an Office for New Americans to attract and help immigrants better adjust to life in Michigan and designating the state as an Employer Based or EB5 center to expedite visas and permits for immigrants who want to open businesses in the state with investments of at least $500,000 and 10 employees.

“Let’s ask the federal government to change regulations to bring in highly skilled immigrants to the state,” Snyder told the Free Press on Wednesday. “We’d like to see 50,000 immigrants over five years coming to live and work in Detroit.”...

First he removes democracy from Detroit with an emergency manager, then he asks the court to close out pensions and now he wants to repopulate Detroit with immigrant labor. And Why? Because he believes ANY immigrant is more intelligent and more ambitious than any American.

What jobs?

Detroit has got jobs? 

Then advertise through employment offices and agencies around the country and have Americans fill the jobs and settle in Detroit.

This plan of Snyder's is bizarre. He expects to go to DC and have the law changed so 50 thousand visas are dedicated to, not just Michigan, but one city. Amazing. The people of Michigan can't possibly put him back in office. He hasn't got a clue to what he is doing. As a private sector CEO the brain trust of Michigan was enough for him to sell a company grown by Michigan grad students to a major Wall Street pharmaceutical firm. But, when it comes to giving jobs to that very brain trust in Michigan or otherwise in the USA he wants immigrants to fill the city of Detroit.  

I think I've heard it all now. I think this closes the book on new schemes of politicians. Snyder is a very strange man that actually is burdened by the very thought of democracy. He really needs his own little island so he can be dictator. Maybe an artificial one like "Palm" in Abu Dhabi. Given this is Michigan he could call his island "Melting Pot Peninsula." He could locate it on Lake Superior between the USA and Canada.

"The Century Foundation" has a blog entitled, of all things, "Reinventing Detroit." This is their vision for Detroit.

JACOB ANBINDER
JULY 22, 2013

...But today’s news of a new study (click here) on economic mobility from researchers at Harvard and Berkeley shows that effective solutions could be far simpler.

The study, which found Detroit to be below average in the likelihood of its citizens experiencing upward mobility, establishes several commonalities for governments that do it well. Mixed-income neighborhoods, strong civic engagement, and good schools and public transportation are all elements of environments that allow poor people to become middle- and upper-middle class.

So while right-sizing and urban farming are both interesting proposals, it’s clear there are several far more practical solutions Detroit could seek to get itself back on its feet post-bankruptcy. Here are four relatively quick fixes:...

Mixed Income Neighborhoods does not mean Snyder goes on a fishing expedition to find immigrants with wealth to populate and build a new city. It means THE STATE invests in the redevelopment of a city to provide vital infrastructure for people to begin again.

1. Implement “tax choice”

2. Reinstate the residency requirement

      Make Detroit city workers live in Detroit.
3. Incentivize land-use transfers
4. Create a regionally focused transit system
      Transit advocates have proposed shiny new toys like a light-rail system for Woodward Avenue.

It’s a sexy subject, but Detroit’s biggest transit issue is far more mundane than a lack of trains. It’s that, for political and geographic reasons, there isn’t one single bus system serving the Detroit area. DDOT runs the buses within the city, while SMART, a separate authority, operates routes within the near suburbs and from those suburbs to downtown Detroit.

The problem with this arrangement is that many of the Detroit area’s major employment centers are actually in the suburbs, as this map from the organization Reconnecting America shows. If a commuter lives in Detroit but works in Warren or Dearborn, taking public transportation to their job requires changing bus systems at the city limits.

He has not got one clue about what he is doing.

Immigrants. Did any of them attend Michigan State or the University of Michigan? Maybe Snyder can start there.

He has a major US city with the Mayor and Council mostly mute to any future plans for it. He has instilled bankruptcy on a major US city and now he has a dreamscape of magically wonderful immigrants ready to be picked from a tree to make their dreams come true in Detroit.

The new immigrants are to come bearing gifts to Snyder of a half a million a piece. 50,000 immigrants coming to Detroit with a half a million each. That would be $25,000,000,000 US. $25 billion for Snyder to build his city on the hill. Amazing. Simply amazing. I didn't know the USA immigration department asked for a down payment of $500,000 in order to apply for a Visa.

The corruption his man sees as legitimate is unbelievable.

Why would any business person simply believe "If they built it, they would come?" That is the problem in Detroit. There is a very poor economic base. If immigrants came into a blighted and depleted city in hopes of making their dreams come true, they simply end up as bankrupt as the city is.

The way it usually works, is that the city and/or state has a reinvestment plan and offers entrepreneurs the opportunity of grants or matching funds to reinvigorate the economy.

I have to admit, if nothing else when Snyder dreams he dreams big. Well, there he goes outsourcing hope. Detroit is not Monacco, governed by Prince Albert where immigrants can wager in hopes they will not lose their half million. I realize there is a casino or two in Detroit, but, last I looked they weren't seeking immigrants to come to their tables with a half million US in their fists.

Fukushima needs to pay attention!

The Columbia River (click here) was critical to Hanford during its plutonium production mission since river water was used to cool down the nuclear reactors when they were in operation. So, construction crews built all nine of the reactors within close proximity to the Columbia. In addition, Hanford’s 300 Area, a complex of buildings used to conduct experiments as well as manufacture equipment for use throughout the Site, is also located near the river shore. The Columbia River Corridor accounts for about 220 square miles of the Hanford Site....

Washington Closure Hanford (click here) manages the $2.3 billion River Corridor Closure Project for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Richland Operations Office.

The company is responsible for protecting the Columbia River by cleaning up 555 waste sites, demolishing 329 buildings, placing two plutonium production reactors and one nuclear facility in interim safe storage, and operating the Environmental Restoration Disposal Facility.

January 22, 2014

RICHLAND, WA – Hanford’s River Corridor contractor, (click here) Washington Closure Hanford, has met a significant cleanup challenge on the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Hanford Site by removing a 1,082-ton nuclear test reactor from the 300 Area.

The River Corridor is a 220-square-mile section of land bordering the Columbia River and is DOE’s largest environmental cleanup closure project. The 300 Area is located about a mile north of Richland and a quarter-mile from the Columbia River. It was home to Hanford’s research, development and fuel fabrication activities for nearly 60 years.

“Removing the reactor was one of the most complex and hazardous projects Washington Closure has faced since beginning work on the Columbia River corridor in 2005,” said Scott Sax, Washington Closure president. “It took months of detailed planning and extensive preparatory work to reach the point where the reactor could be removed. This achievement was made possible because of our highly skilled workforce committed to completing this job safely to protect the Columbia River.”

The Plutonium Recycle Test Reactor was the largest of Hanford’s experimental reactors used for developing and testing alternative fuels for the commercial nuclear power industry. The reactor operated from 1960 to 1969 and was housed underground beneath the 309 Building’s dome structure. Washington Closure removed the 67-ton dome in early 2011 and its associated 100-foot-tall exhaust stack in 2010....

People are terrified of the chronic problems Fukushima poses and now Canadians are worried about radiation sickness. Canada needs to set up government monitoring to provide citizens with a clear understanding of their circumstances.


By Dan Fumano
The Province
January 22, 2014

Reached in Ottawa, (click here) Ahier said Health Canada has heard about cases of Canadians using potassium iodide unnecessarily.

As with many other medications, some people could have an adverse reaction to potassium iodide, and require medical treatment if taken, Ahier said.

Potassium iodide is sometimes prescribed by a physician or homeopathic practitioner to help with a “sluggish thyroid,” said Cristina Alarcon, a pharmacist with the Hollyburn Medical Centre in West Vancouver.

Hollyburn occasionally sells potassium iodide from behind the counter. It doesn’t legally require a prescription, but Alarcon said she asks for one.

“I prefer to see a prescription, either from a physician or a naturopath, just so that I know that the person’s thyroid has been checked, their condition has been checked, and it’s not just out of a whim that they’re going to take it and potentially harm their health,” said Alarcon. “You could potentially do yourself more damage by taking something like that.”

But some local pharmacists question Health Canada’s recommendation and believe in the efficacy of potassium iodide, continuing to sell the product to concerned customers without a prescription....

Monitoring reviews are conducted regularly by the US EPA with transparency at their website. The USA has a great investment in tourism along the west coast, in Hawaii and Alaska. There needs to be a clear understanding to the extent there could be exposure to residents in those areas as well as tourists from the USA and internationally.

Fukushima Information and Resources (click here)

EPA is aware of some public concern that has been raised by recent articles about the impact of the potentially ongoing radioactive leaks from the damaged nuclear reactors in Fukushima. EPA’s air monitoring data have not shown any radioactive elements associated with the damaged Japanese reactors since late 2011, and even then, the levels found were very low—always well below any level of public health concern.

Situational Updates – International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) (click here)

An IAEA expert team (click here) today completed a review of Japan's efforts to plan and implement the decommissioning of TEPCO's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. The International Peer Review of Japan's Mid-and-Long-Term Roadmap towards the Decommissioning of TEPCO's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station Units 1-4 conducted its visit from 25 November to 4 December 2013....

The face of hate in Russia. Immoral icons of hate send widows to carry out their own death to include innocent people.

A picture taken (click here) on January 18, 2014, shows people walking past an information banner with the photos of police wanted suspected terrorists in a department store in the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi. The sign under the colour photo (bottom R) reads: Ruzanna Ibragimova, born in 1991 in North Ossetia. Islamist insurgents based in North Caucasus republics such as Dagestan who are seeking their own independent state have vowed to disrupt the Sochi Games in order to undermine Russian President Vladimir Putin.

22 year old widow. She has no reason to live? Jihad is too convenient a word for iconic strikes against governments and innocent people. These militants remind of the KKK. They have high esteem for themselves while they objectify others.

US intelligence has been accepted by Russia to help with Olympic security.

The response to the violence caused by this region of Russia created different majority hate groups. The Russian government needs to dialogue with the public to suppress hate driven speech. The more these Muslims are hated, the more the hate will be returned. 

Russia has an intractable situation with it's people in regard to the Caucuses. Russia can return function to their society by dialoguing first with peaceful demonstrators in Moscow. I am sure these demonstrators have some leaders that can carry their message. If Russia promotes respectful speech it would begin to defuse hatred. 

It is not unusual in the USA for minority populations to have community leaders that understand circumstances of the people. These leaders come forward at the times of trouble. They speak for the people. Often, the community leaders can move government to solve the problems the people are facing. If nothing else it proves the government can respect individuals and agree to seek solutions to problems.

The Caucasus Region can have community leaders as well that understand respect and the importance of avoiding violence to move a government to solutions and not confrontation. It may be that violence has become a solution because the current iconic leaders will be arrested and held accountable for deaths. The community leaders have to come to realize these iconic leaders have hurt the outcome of their people. They have to realize if they step back from the violence they will have better outcomes because the government will respond to them. If Russia is chronically faced with militarized response, there is no chance for real solutions to develop.

I believe Russia is locked into intractable circumstances. It isn't as though Russia is incapable of settling disputes. Russia understands diplomacy. They need to practice it domestically as well. The hatred in this case is based in ethnic and religious differences. Better outcomes need to fight not each other, but, poverty.

11.06.13
On Monday afternoon, (click here) Russian nationalists and fascists marched in 15 well-organized blocs down Moscow’s streets in honor of national Unity Day. Their leaders said some 20,000 people turned out to agitate in the Russian capital; officials put the number lower, around 8,000. They shouted demands that ranged from “A Visa Regime for Central Asian and Caucuses migrants!” (currently, immigrants from the region do not need visas to work in Russia) to race-based obscenities. The angriest group, comprised mostly of teenage boys and men in their early 20s, damned the Caucuses using the rudest verb in Russian slang. Some even humiliated the name of Allah....

Is social and judicial reform possible in Russia?

MOSCOW, January 23 (RIA Novosti) – Russia’s Supreme Court (click here) on Thursday reduced the jail sentence of an associate of former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky to time served, setting the stage for his imminent release.

Platon Lebedev was jailed in 2003 and then convicted of tax evasion in 2005 and embezzlement and money laundering in 2010, charges that his supporters have maintained were Kremlin retribution for Khodorkovsky’s political ambitions.

Lebedev’s lawyer said Thursday that his client could be released from jail later in the day....

MOSCOW, January 23 (RIA Novosti) – President Vladimir Putin (click here) has nominated an outspoken Kremlin critic as Russia’s next ombudsman.

Putin told rights activists Tuesday that he would formally nominate Ella Pamfilova, former head of the Kremlin human rights council, to the post after a meeting with her. No date was set.

Pamfilova, 60, has not commented on the prospective appointment as of this article’s publication.

The outgoing ombudsman Vladimir Lukin endorsed Pamfilova’s nomination, as did a number of prominent independent activists....

...The Kremlin advisory body has a track record of criticizing Russian authorities, including on the cases of the jailed Yukos head Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who was freed last month, and the death in custody of lawyer Sergei Magnitsky....

Russia needs to dedicate more assets to these complaints. That seems to be a problem. Where complaints are numerous, an increase in employees in regional authority will increase the ability to solve the complaints rather than shelving them.

Russia is more than capable of solving problems by adding those that administer a resolve to the complaints. Perhaps this aspect of the Russian government needs advisers to evaluate the lethargic nature of handling of important complaints. Some complaints are more urgent than others.

It isn't as though Russia isn't concerned about it's people, but, by lacking resolve to problem the country is viewed by a global community as oppressive and not progressive, victimizing rather than respectful. Russian citizens deserve the respect of their government when they complain. The way this works best is; To resolve complaints usually leads to fewer and fewer complaints as time goes by. Negligence of citizen complaints only compounds the problem while people lose faith in their government.

Ex. If delivery of oncology drugs are timely and effective, the future will resolve to no complaints as treatment receives a better reputation. In issues of life and death, accountability is vital to any government. The more people are satisfied in their treatment of issues important to them the less discontent will exist.

...VLADIMIR PUTIN: I see that it includes specific issues. (click here) An appeal to carry out an inspection in the Moscow Region on the infractions in providing medicines to people who suffer from oncology diseases (I just opened it up randomly), and there is a response from the government of Moscow Region.

Overall, in your opinion, how is cooperation with government agencies being carried out?

VLADIMIR LUKIN: As always, it is erratic. A commissioner rarely encounters a rude answer or a flat “no.” But it is infrequent – rarer than we would like – for our complaints to be given proper attention.

I would like to draw your attention to the following figure. In 2011, out of the total number of complaints we received, only about 10 percent (9.9 per cent) were settled, and this year, that figure was 7.5 percent. Naturally, this may have to do with a variety of circumstances, including temporary fluctuations.

But nevertheless, I feel there is some carelessness in the way people react to what we have to say in connection with peoples’ complaints. And it would be nice if this percentage were to increase. This figure is not lower than the corresponding figures human rights commissioners get in other nations (more than 100 countries have established such institution), but it would be good if it were higher.

Thus, we have long wanted to suggest that we send reports to governors, and you could work through the Presidential Executive Office to recommend that the governors respond to complaints coming from their regions. Then we would get feedback and be able to present more specific information to society, the President, and all government agencies on what is being done regarding the complaints.

VLADIMIR PUTIN: I fully agree with you. I hope that the governors will hear us after today’s meeting. And the Presidential Executive Office will send that signal during corresponding meetings, and the governors will get those instructions.

VLADIMIR LUKIN: If I may, I want to say a few words about the regional aspects: the Central and Volga federal districts had the greatest number of complaints, while the North Caucasus and Far East federal districts are at the bottom of the list....

Emerging Markets. There is nothing emerging about them.

By Maria Levitov

January 23, 2014

Emerging-market stocks fell (click here) the most in two weeks after data showed Chinese manufacturing contracted. Turkey’s lira pared losses as the central bank unexpectedly intervened in the market for the first time in two years.

Why wouldn't it contract? The companies that set up shop in China don't care about quality just 'quick fix' profits from cheap labor? Why wouldn't they contract? What ORIGINAL market emerged from China? These are all westernized companies that have taken advantage of human beings without the minimal safety laws. They are so poorly paid they can't even be a customer to the products they produce. WHAT emerging markets? These people can't purchase anything and when they do it is because the quality of their native products are so poor they turn to imports from The West. That is an emerging market? Poverty is an emerging market? Please tell me Wall Street isn't this stupid?

The MSCI Emerging Markets Index retreated 0.7 percent to 969.88 as of 10:38 a.m. in London, the largest slide since Jan. 9. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index sank 2.1 percent, the steepest decrease since Jan. 3. The lira depreciated 0.5 percent versus the dollar after falling as much as 1.7 percent in the longest losing streak since 2001, while South Africa’s rand weakened for a second day. Ukraine’s stocks lost 1 percent, extending a rout after clashes between police and protesters turned deadly....

Could a forest be the next great World Heritage site?

Where is it? Australia, NOT the USA. Think about it.

The Greater Blue Mountains Area (click here) consists of 1.03 million ha of sandstone plateaux, escarpments and gorges dominated by temperate eucalypt forest. The site, comprised of eight protected areas, is noted for its representation of the evolutionary adaptation and diversification of the eucalypts in post-Gondwana isolation on the Australian continent. Ninety-one eucalypt taxa occur within the Greater Blue Mountains Area which is also outstanding for its exceptional expression of the structural and ecological diversity of the eucalypts associated with its wide range of habitats. The site provides significant representation of Australia's biodiversity with ten percent of the vascular flora as well as significant numbers of rare or threatened species, including endemic and evolutionary relict species, such as the Wollemi pine, which have persisted in highly-restricted microsites.

This is what the USA does to their old growth forests. They argue about the right for the trees to exist while it's indicator species becomes dangerously endangered. It doesn't matter the forest exists and is beautiful and important, the blasted land isn't producing as much PROFITS as it SHOULD.

By Chuck Bolsinger 

Published: Saturday, October 15, 2011, 12:03 PM

As Oregonians (click here) once again debate the topic of forest management, an old question comes up: How much old-growth forest was here before Europeans arrived? Some believe the whole Northwest was a sea of old trees, an impression one could get reading Stewart Holbrook's books, "Burning an Empire" and "Fifty Years in the Timber," though he did not say as much. At the other extreme are those who insist there were more brushfields and young stands than old-growth when Europeans arrived.

One might ask, Who cares? Why can't folks agree on a number and move on? Actually, the old-growth disagreement is a fallout of the philosophical differences between environmentalists and the timber industry, and the notion some hold that public forests should be managed to preserve as much old-growth in perpetuity as they "originally" had. Which would encourage industry folks to promote the idea of little original old-growth, and environmentalists to favor a lot....

Who cares if all that beautiful land was forested with dense forest, it is OLD GROWTH and sustainable. Forests always start out as small crops of trees and GUESS WHAT, they produce seeds that are carried by wind, water or animal vectors and the forest becomes larger and larger over decades and then centuries.

How many Americans know the size of the Redwoods and Sequoias were the size of the entire continent of trees within North America? The longer a tree lives, no matter the species of trees it enters Old Age and have incredible diameters and an upper canopy that touches the sky. The argument of the lumber industry only PROVES they can't wait for a tree to reach it's minimal girth in order to cut it down. The lumber industry has no clue as to what a real forest actually looks like. In this case in Oregon, their argument is completely void of competency, knowledge or morality.

This is an American invention. China want to buy it? Then one wonders why they fight with Japan.

By Janie Morton
January 21, 2014
A humanoid robot, (click here) which resembles the classic character from Lost in Space, has become the first of its kind to hit the New Zealand market.
But the age of robots washing our dishes, emptying our rubbish and putting the kids to bed is still the stuff of science fiction, an expert says.
American company Rethink Robotics says its Baxter Research Robot, which has long flexible arms and a screen for a face, is going on sale in New Zealand and Australia.
Baxter, previously available only in the US, Europe and Japan is being distributed and supported through an Australian supplier.
It has an open source platform, allowing its users to customise it for a range of uses....

The reaction of a robot replacing a human being in need of work was more than interesting than not. A small family owned business going to a global network is aware of the importance of job availability to the USA. I hope that morality continues and means something to them realizing they can cause poverty to occur rather than an expanding demand in their market.

An automated company cannot have a market place without employees to purchase the products they support in the market place.

Look at the garbage we have to put up with now. Dog treats that are poison and robbing American companies.

The Wealth Class has no loyalty. None. Their only loyalty is to money and 'mo money. Amazing. They expect people to work for nothing, then sell companies as if they sell donuts. Wall Street full of jerks.

By Liam Tung 
January 23, 2014 -- 10:18 GMT (02:18 PST)

Lenovo's interest (click here) in acquiring IBM's low-end server business hasn't exactly been a secret, and today the company has confirmed it will snap up the unit, leaving IBM to focus on other businesses including its cognitive computing effort Watson.

Lenovo and IBM announced on Thursday they have signed a definitive agreement that will see the Chinese hardware giant acquire the IBM's x86 server business for the tidy sum of $2.3bn, with approximately $2bn to be paid in cash and the balance in Lenovo stock....

Why would a company worth anything purchase a major American company just so they can compete better? If Lenovo was a serious company inventing the next better mouse trap would it actually pat IBM on the back and say 'go get 'em we are actually happy to be second best.' No, of course not. Lenovo is purchasing IBM's unit to put it out of business as a competitor and consumers are going to be STUCK with more and more Chinese garbage.

If Chinese company's actually were making better products they would be actually be selling and IBM would be worried about the next fiscal quarter and have to up their game. That is not what is happening. The Super wealthy are putting companies out of business. Just that simple.

The magical works of Chinese hackers. They can enter operating systems, but, can't invent them.

"The Idea Phone" will sell in the USA because it has a longer lasting lithium battery. I don't think so. Buying a Chinese phone is worse than having the NSA's storage facility.

...Lenovo's quietly (click here) introduced IdeaPhone P770 at least theoretically challenges its American counterpart by cramming a 3,500mAh lithium polymer battery into a thicker 11.9mm (0.47-inch) body. That's 200mAh more than Motorola's energy champion, and enough for the company to flaunt a 29-hour talk time....

You want to know why it is being introduced quietly? Because it is garbage and no one wants it. That is why it is so flyin' quiet. The Pop-ups brings you right to the most deadly dog treats on the planet without any other competition in the market place. Buy them that will be mailed to your house directly from a hog farm in China or your phone will blow up.

They want to sell it to Americans because the Chinese sweat shop employees can't afford it.