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Guest Hosting 'Malloy Show' Tuesday!
[Now UPDATED with tonight's audio archives below...] It's our final night for a while guest hosting the nationally syndicated Mike Malloy Show as the Malloys return from summer break tomorrow night! [Pausing for cheers.] So we're back for one more night, BradCasting LIVE 9pm-Mid ET (6p-9p PT) tonight, coast-to-coast and around the globe from the studios of L.A.'s KTLK am1150 in beautiful downtown
Indiana SoS Seeking 'Use Immunity' in Bid to Undermine His Own Prosecution for Voter Fraud The Suzie-Q ★ 39
Supreme Court Sides With Wal-Mart In Sex Bias Case
Supreme Court Sides With Wal-Mart In Sex Bias Case Huffington Post First Posted: 06/20/11 10:30 AM ET Updated: 06/20/11 02:16 PM ET WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Monday blocked a massive sex discrimination lawsuit against Wal-Mart on behalf of female employees in a decision that makes it harder to mount large-scale bias claims against the nation’s biggest companies. The justices all agre
Why Bilderberg Is Important
A lot of wack rumors have sprung up around what is happening at the Bilderberg Summit every year. I don’t put a lot of stock in a lot of those rumors; I don’t think, for instance, that they meet to divide up the slaves, and I don’t think that they meet to form instruction sheets for the world’s politicians. But I don’t know exactly what it is they do there, and nobody else who doesn’t get an invi
Why did Weiner resign, while Gingrich is running for POTUS
by geezerpower June 18, 2011 This video is compliments of Ask Anthony Weiner on his Youtube channel. Unlike many Youtube sites, Anthony asks for your questions and allows open comments. I just commented there and, so far the comments are not moderated. Needless to mention there are some derogatory messages from Faux New$ types, but overall, a lot of the comments are from folks that understand wha
(title unknown) ★ 6
sat’day riddymz
WOW!! It’s hard to fathom that it’s been 2 years ago today already that MJ died. I for one have come to appreciate his music more and more.
Father’s Day Medley
1. Far Better Men Than I: My Vision for My Sons 2. My Contribution to Society 3. We Were Once Kings 4. Sunday Chat with Dad 5. Call to Fatherhood 6. Rebirth of a Cool Dad 7. The Trials of Single Fatherhood
The Struggle for Dignity
One of the most arduous struggle one can go through, is the struggle to safeguard one’s human dignity, as well as the right to safeguard the integrity of one’s own body. These go hand in hand. This struggle is more intense than the struggle for food, shelter, clothing, political rights, religious rights, civil rights, gay rights, women’s rights, etc. This is not a matter of comparing or ranking th
Amygdala ★ 1
A Good Copyediting Job, And A Big Favor To Me
A GOOD COPYEDITING JOB, AND A BIG FAVOR TO MEA very important to me friend of mine -- not me -- with solid copyediting experience is looking for immediate freelance or permanent or temporary copyediting or proofreading work of any sort, either by mail/shipping, or locally in the Bay Area. CV upon request.She's also available at present for any sort of office work in the Bay Area, or other work su
Texas Liberal ★ 43
A Fourth Of July Reading List—It Is Up To You To Learn Your Past
The Fourth of July will be here soon. (Above–Black Americans observing the Fourth in 1939 in St. Helena Island, South Carolina.) What books would be helpful to learn more about the American Revolution and about America? As I’ve said before, I don’t believe the Revolution was a liberal or conservative event in the sense we think about such things today. Some of the Founding Fathers were religious.
Sea Levels Rising Ever Faster—But Don’t Tell Anybody
A new study says that sea levels are rising at the fastest rate in 2000 years. (Above–The sea is all around us.) Is this complete proof that global warming is taking place and causing the seas to rise? You can’t prove it for 100%. Any bit of doubt allows corporate intrests–and the Republican Party that corporate interests own–to avoid discussing this issue in any serious fashion. Here is the EPA
Good Riddance To Cantor And Kyl In Debt Ceiling Talks—Let’s Stand Up Against The Borderline Disloyal Republican Opposition
Extreme conservative House Majority Leader Eric Cantor has pulled out of the ongoing debt ceiling talks in Washington. Republican Senator John Kyl of Arizona–who has a problem with facts–has also left these talks. It appears that additional stimulus and possible tax increases for those most able to pay may be on the table as needed steps to help the economy. What a welcome difference from the Rep
Record Dead Zone Projected In Gulf Of Mexico—The Gulf Is America’s Drainage Basin
A record s0-called dead zone has been predicted for the Gulf of Mexico for 2011. (Above–One small patch of the Gulf of Mexico. Photo copyright 2011 Neil Aquino.) From USA Today— “The so-called dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico — a region of oxygen-depleted water off the Louisiana and Texas coasts that is harmful to sea life — is predicted to be the largest ever recorded when it develops later this
Escape Hatch
I’ve got a busy day ahead. So please allow me the escape hatch of telling you that this brief entry is all I have time for today at the blog. The escape hatch is from one of the Bolivar ferry boats that travel from Galveston Island to Bolivar Peninsula. I’ll be back on-board tomorrow with all the blogging action you’ve come to expect. Thanks for reading Texas Liberal.
Why Is It Hot In The Summer?—What Lessons Can We Draw From The Heat Of Summer?
Today is the first day of summer. (Above–Summer. Photo by Kwanesum) Why does it get hot in the summer and colder in the winter? Here is why from the Library of Congress— “It is all about the tilt of the Earth’s axis. Many people believe that the temperature changes because the Earth is closer to the sun in summer and farther from the sun in winter. In fact, the Earth is farthest from the sun in
infowarsnews at Yahoo! Groups ★ 30
Alex Jones: Beyond The Box
Alex Jones: Beyond The Box Paul Joseph Watson Infowars Saturday, June 25, 2011 In this exclusive new video for Prison Planet.tv subscribers, Alex Jones gives
Texas Lawmakers Go AWOL For Vote On TSA Groping Bill
Texas Lawmakers Go AWOL For Vote On TSA Groping Bill More dirty tricks by feds who previously intimidated Senators with threats of federal blockade? Paul
Obama Administration Caught Running False Flag Against Second Amendm
Obama Administration Caught Running False Flag Against Second Amendment Most damning evidence indicates Operation Fast and Furious was a deliberate assault on
Perry Supporter Claims Alex Jones Works For Obama
Perry Supporter Claims Alex Jones Works For Obama In accusing Infowars of being an Obama propaganda front to disseminate conspiracy theories about Rick Perry,
TSA Set To Take Legal Action Against Texas Groping Ban
TSA Set To Take Legal Action Against Texas Groping Ban Bill that would criminalize invasive pat downs set for hearing on Friday Paul Joseph Watson Prison
New Study Finds Direct Link Between Vaccines and Infant Mortality
New Study Finds Direct Link Between Vaccines and Infant Mortality United States, which administers highest number of vaccines in developed world, also has
Obsidian Wings ★ 16
The arc of history
has bent once more toward justice. (by Doctor Science) from twitpic As Andrew Sullivan says, "This is the moment that marriage for gay couples became irreversible in America." New York is too big, too rich, and too important for marriages made there not to be accepted elsewhere in the country. And the NY State Senate has a *Republican* majority, and the bill was promoted by a *Republican* NYC
Of mice and men Friday open thread
I am more convinced of the existence of synchronicity, because as the Weiner gate storm was unfolding, there were news stories like this, that I put below the fold. They are about the excitement of archeologists discovering sacks of human excrement discovered under the ancient Roman city of Herculeum. While the title sounds like their find was pre-bagged, reading the article makes it seem like &#
You Are Now Leaving the First World
by Doctor Science The United States is no longer a First World country, not all the way through. A meme-engendering 1895 cartoon in "Punch", by George Du Maurier. We're not a First World country because we no longer have one of their most important characteristics: a high and steadily-increasing life expectancy. A study released this week shows that in significant areas of the US life expectan
How to tell harassment from the P Game
by Doctor Science Now that Anthony Weiner has made a noise like a hoop and rolled away, I've been able to get someone to tell me, coherently, what he *did*. During the melee last week it was impossible for me to get information about the most important issue, because it was so hard to find anyone who would talk about it. I felt as though the entire news media was playing a game which I'm told is
Your Friday rainy season thread
Japan, my students tell me dutifully, is a country with 4 seasons, but I have never figured out which one they take out to make room for the rainy season. Fortunately, I was prepared for the whole concept by these torrential downpours we used to have in Southern Mississippi, but other places in the US would have had me less prepared. I still have that Pacific Northwest habit of never using an umbr
The Trauma of War: Going or Staying Behind
by Doctor Science An absolutely not-to-be-missed discussion is taking place in the comments to Ta-Nehesi Coates' post, "The Great Trauma Of Your Generation". TNC front-pages a comment on Shelby Foote:While other celebrated [the Japanese surrender] in the streets, Foote was devastated that World War II was over. According to Tony Horowitz, he had "missed the great trauma of his own generation's ad
Hatewatch | Southern Poverty Law Center ★ 46
Fundraising Drive Under Way to Help Jailed White Supremacist
August B. Kreis III, who calls himself the director of the Aryan Nations, will remain in jail in South Carolina unless he can come up with a $50,000 secured bond. A wealthy, elusive racist, who once bought a house for the late Aryan Nations leader Richard Butler, already is heading up an Internet fundraiser for [...]
News Roundup for June 24, 2011
Two men have been arrested in a plot to attack a U.S. military recruiting post in Seattle. The men, ex-convicts and Muslim coverts, allegedly planned to take over the post and shoot military personnel there to gain media attention. Six New York teens charged with murder are now under indictment for committing a hate crime in [...]
A Skinhead’s Story: Bryon Widner and ‘Erasing Hate’
It’s hard enough trying to overcome a history of violence and race hatred for a new life of redemption and purpose. Imagine trying to do so with the evidence of your evil past etched indelibly on your face in the form of tattoos proclaiming racist and violent themes. After spending 16 years as a vicious brawler [...]
Fox News Uses Hate Group’s Graphic to Illustrate Unfounded Accusation
Rumors that migrants attempting to cross the border illegally are the source of Arizona’s wildfires are spreading like, well, wildfire. Never shy about fanning the flames of extremism, Fox News yesterday ran a surveillance photo, created on June 12 by Glenn Spencer, racist head of the anti-immigrant hate group American Border Patrol (described by Fox as [...]
News Roundup for June 23, 2011
A settlement has been reached in a lawsuit over “blatantly racist and offensive” comments made by white Philadelphia officers on the popular police Internet forum Domelights.com. The settlement requires the city to hire an anti-discrimination consultant as well as enhance anti-discrimination training within the department. Two New York men pleaded not guilty to charges of attempting [...]
Anti-Muslim Activist Geller Attacks Latest SPLC Intelligence Report Issue
It didn’t take long, following Tuesday’s release of the Summer 2011 edition of our Intelligence Report magazine, for one of the principal figures profiled in it – professional Muslim hater Pamela Geller – to “warn” the SPLC that she and her allies will continue their efforts to panic Americans into believing that an Islamic caliphate [...]
Obsolete ★ 25
Unfunny short post.
Osama bin Laden was apparently considering changing the name of al-Qaida. He was pondering altering it to the frankly dull Monotheism and Jihad Group, or failing that, the Restoration of the Caliphate Group. Personally, I think he ought to have had a look at the average British high street and take inspiration from there: how about Jihads R Us, or even better, Caliphate-U-Like? If not, he could
Paul Dacre must die!
It's always nice being surprised. Just when you think those behind this nation's tabloids couldn't be any more hypocritical, pathetic or cowardly, along comes the legal threat from the Daily Mail to Kevin Arscott, blogger at Angry Mob. Two years ago he wrote a furious post on an atypical piece of Mail immigration dog-whistling which took what was a heart-warming story on the number of babies tre
All aboard the Lulz boat.
The media, just in case you haven't noticed, is a strange beast. The people behind it get terribly excited about sexy, new things like "hacking", even if they have even only a very rudimentary knowledge of the subject; then they suddenly remember that the people behind it are mostly bedroom or basement dwelling virgins with greasy hair and bad teeth, qualities they share with a fair few bloggers
And yet again, the tabloids win.
Who could possibly have wanted to be Ken Clarke over the past few weeks? At least when John Reid, David Blunkett or Jacqui Smith found themselves in the temporary eye of a tabloid storm over crime it was primarily a result of their failing to live up to the very image they had courted of themselves as common sense, salt of the earth hard liners, in tune with what the editors of the Daily Mail and
How to put a crack in Cameron's façade.
As someone who at least attempts to try and understand politics, albeit badly as this blog's archives palpably demonstrate, it's slightly embarrassing to admit that I simply don't understand the appeal of David Cameron. Having rid ourselves of a messianic, slick, smarmy centrist authoritarian from a public school, we've now given power to a slick, smarmy Eton-educated self-described liberal Conse
Syria Comment ★ 25
What is new on the Economy (24 June 2011): Oil Sanctions
Ehsani tries to answer these two questions: Is bringing down the economy and bankrupting the country a realistic danger? And as for the Lira. Is there a way to manipulate the currency from outside the country? Is it technically possible to put pressure on the Lira from governments outside? First, it is important to note that everything we read and write about Syria’s economy is speculative a
“The Alawi Dilemma – Revisited,” By Khudr
The Alawi Dilemma – Revisited By Khudr For Syria Comment June 20, 2011 Basil-Hafiz-Bashar Dr. Joshua, You are completely right when you say that most Alawis these days either support the regime (better to say that they support Assad family rule) or are living in complete denial of the situation. I have discovered that a number of my fellow Alawis who used to be staunch critics of Asad family r
Jisr al-Shaghour – the Government Story as told by a Foreign Member of the Organized Press Visit
I asked a friend who joined the organized Foreign Press Corps visit to Jisr al-Shaghour to tell me what his take was on the visit. This is his account: We got a tour of the place with lots of press. The story is that the Syrian Military Intelligence (SMI) garrison was attacked and seized over the course of about 36 hours between 4 and 5 June. 500 “armed criminals” attacked. The detachment, abou
“Where is the Truth in Conflicting Reports? Not in the Middle but at the Extremes,” by a Foreigner in Syria
“Where is the Truth? Not in the Middle but at the Extremes,” by a Foreigner in Syria (who has lived, studied and traveled there for years.) For Syria Comment June 20 2011 The stories people are hearing from their friends and family certainly give cause to question the narrative being carried by the international media. Cartoon in Jamahir Newspaper June 12, 2001, Sent by author “Eye Witness to al-
President Assad: Speech #3, (Monday 20 June 2011) “We Control Events, rathern than Events Control Us”
DAMASCUS, (SANA)_ President Bashar al-Assad Speaks to the Nation He reiterated Monday that Syria’s option is to look forward into the future and to control the events rather than to be led by them. In a speech to the citizens at Damascus University Auditorium, President al-Assad said “Credibility has formed the basis of the relation between the People and me, the credibility which has been built
How the Opposition Plans to Take Down the Syrian Regime
Cracking the Syrian Regime (Joshua Landis & Ausama Monajed)
WWF - Latest News ★ 25
World’s biggest cement producer fights climate change by cutting emissions and developing energy efficient buildings
Gland, Switzerland – WWF and Lafarge, the world’s largest cement maker, today agreed to continue working together to further reduce the company’s greenhouse gas emissions and to help build hundreds of energy-efficient buildings – targets that will help fight the effects of climate change. As part of its ongoing partnership with WWF, Lafarge committed to further reduce its net greenhouse gas emiss
Arrests made in Uganda mountain gorilla death
Three men have been arrested for killing a critically endangered mountain gorilla in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, according to Ugandan officials. The male gorilla was discovered dead by Uganda Wildlife Authority trackers on June 17. Officials say the gorilla was speared through the neck and shoulder by the suspects who encountered it in the park while illegally poaching antelopes. Autho
Sweet news for environment as sustainable sugar comes to market
Sao Paulo, Brazil: A mill in Sao Paulo, Brazil has become the first to have its sugar cane production certified under the new Bonsucro sustainability standard. “This will change the sugar cane industry forever,” said Kevin Ogorzalek, WWF-US programme officer and Chairman of the Bonsucro Board. “Sugar is everywhere, on our tables, in our drinks, and in the food we eat. Increasingly sugar cane is
Brazilians reject axing of forest protections
Brasilia, Brazil: Nearly 80 percent of Brazilians want President Dilma Rousseff to veto proposed changes to the country’s Forest Law that would dramatically slash forest protection measures and offer wide-ranging amnesties for illegal deforestation. The finding was contained in poll results carried out by the Datafolha polling institute in early June at the request of environmental organizations
Massive destruction of “Europe’s Amazon” planned ahead of Croatia’s accession to the EU
Osijek, Croatia – 111 kilometres of "Europe’s Amazon”, comprising parts of the natural meandering river stretches of the Danube, Drava and Mura rivers in Croatia could be channelled in a way that would destroy Europe’s largest river protected area without bringing any real economic benefit to the region. What is more, this old fashioned way of river management is being enforced ahead of the coun
Soy meet ends on high note
Buenos Aires, Argentina - The Round Table on Responsible Soy (RTRS) concluded its annual conference on Thursday with a note of optimism about its progress, buoyed by the announcement earlier this month of the first RTRS certified farms and the renewed commitment expressed by buyers and funders for certified soy. The meeting, June 15-16, focused on sharing lessons learned by RTRS producers, and t
altmuslim ★ 13
Clothing and society: Encounters with the niqab
She came to interview for an internship. We had spoken earlier on the phone, a benign exchange of niceties and logistics that had belied anything unusual. Now she sat before me, blue eyes peering at me through her beige niqab. Her name was Christy, she was from Ohio and she had converted to Islam two months ago at a local mosque. I began to conduct the interview, going down my list of queries abou
Osama bin Laden: Pepsi, pot, porn… and politics
News sources have recently reported on an interesting assortment of materials at Osama bin Laden’s Abbottabad compound. Not only was bin Laden living far from any cave on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, his house apparently had a large supply of Pepsi and Coke (inexplicably, Pakola wasn’t good enough), a significant stash of pornography, and marijuana plants on the property. On the one hand, thes
Muslim identity: How Islamic is “Islamic”?
A Malaysian political leader has asked political parties in his country to stop using the word “Islam” in their names so that, “nobody can make use of the religion for their political gains.” This progressive thought is ironically closer to the classical understanding of Islam’s sacred texts. For in the early century of Islam, use of the word “Islamic” (Islamiyyah in Arabic) was limited in its sco
Nuclear Pakistan: Curse of the bomb
It is said that Pakistan was born on Aug 14, 1947. But like other hazy snapshots in the tampered-with album of our wishful history, this fact, nurtured through rote and repetition, has faltered under the weight of reality. If the fervor of homage and sacrifice is a reason to reconfigure Pakistan’s creation story, then the country was actually born on May 28, 1998. On that day, Pakistan announced
Finance: What if the IMF head was a Muslim?
The inflation adjusted billion dollar question has become, ‘what nationality should lead the International Monetary Fund (IMF)?’ It used to be the $64,000 question, and then became the million dollar question. This says something about the ‘naked’ dollar or US influence or both. The tradition has been the Managing Director of the IMF was European. The tradition and traditional thinking has gotten
Afghanistan & Pakistan: Going beyond victim narratives
There’s a reason they say that people who live in glass houses should not throw stones. Eventually, someone throws a few rocks your way. And you suddenly find yourself surrounded by shards of broken glass, wondering what hit you. The question then becomes whether you have it in you to pick up the pieces. This metaphorical ramble was inspired by my recent participation in a seminar on South Asian s
Centauri Dreams ★ 20
Pesticide Action Network ★ 18
Birth defects linked to pesticides, again
It's been more than a few years now, but I remember the roller coaster ride of pregnancy like it was yesterday. Nine months of bouncing from giddy excitement to mind-bending worry, pure joy to frantic nesting. Powerful emotions are amplified by equally powerful hormones, working overtime. As scientists report yet again this week, those churning hormones also make exposure to pesticides dur
Pesticides to be stripped from Clean Water Act - Call your Senator!
Last week we alerted readers to behind-the-scenes lobbying in Congress that would strip pesticide protections from our nation's stongest environmental laws. On Tuesday, June 21st, the Senate Agriculture Committee quietly approved legislation to exempt pesticide applications from permitting requirements under the Clean Water Act — with no notice, and no press. The bill, Reducing Regulatory
Tell Obama: Good food = fair food
This morning, while my boys are eating breakfast, I’m going to take a moment to mentally thank our local dairy farmers for the milk on our table and our chicken farmers for our eggs. Then I’m going to pick up the phone and call the President. It won’t take long, and it’s really important. Family farmers and ranchers' livelihoods are on the line. read more
U.S. Pesticide law is broken - and industry knows it
Right now, behind closed doors in DC, pesticide industry lobbyists are maneuvering to strip critical pesticide protections from federal law. This week it's the Clean Water Act, next week it may very well be the Endangered Species Act. And they think nobody’s watching.read more
Pesticide residues: From fork to farm
Apples and celery this week. Cilantro a couple back. Stories about pesticide residues on food are making the rounds again. After my umpteenth media call, a blog seemed in order. As I told the LA Times, here's my basic response: "It’s the farmers, farmworkers and residents of rural communities who are really most at risk" from pesticides, not consumers. While these folks are expos
It's the (political) economy, stupid!
A New York Times Environment reporter has been pumping out a series of attention-getting blogs on agriculture, climate change and the environment. So far, so good. But, while glad to see serious attention given to this intersection, I was disappointed by the author’s apparent infatuation with the promise of technological miracle cures to increase yields, evident in his near-reverential regard fo
Pickled Politics ★ 26
Did Geert Wilders deserve to be acquitted over ‘free speech’?
Reuters reports: Dutch populist politician Geert Wilders was acquitted of inciting hatred of Muslims in a court ruling on Thursday that may strengthen his political influence and exacerbate tensions over immigration policy. The case was seen by some as a test of free speech in a country which has a long tradition of tolerance and blunt talk, but where opposition to immigration, particularly from
Crowing over Brian Haw’s death
You may have heard that peace campaigner Brian Haw died last week. Haw wasn’t a perfect man by any stretch of the imagination. But he had good ideals, he was campaigning for peace and he stuck by his mission. I deeply respect him for that. LBC radio regularly called me for a comment on why Haw should have the right to occupy that space and I resolutely defended his right every time. Far from showi
EDL’s Guramit Singh on BBC West Midlands Radio
The English Defence League’s “Sikh” spokesman Guramit “Singh”, who recently posted a message on Facebook publicly announcing his resignation, was interviewed by BBC West Midlands radio a few days ago. The issue of Guramit’s potential excommunication was one of the subjects mentioned during his radio interview; it was subsequently discussed in detail by a number of other programme participants, and
Open Source Water Clarification Technology
This is a guest post by Jeremy Fordham. Jeremy is an engineer and advocate of process optimization and renewable energy. The developing world occupies an often- misunderstood and scary place in the grand scheme of global progress. It harbours connotations of rampant disease, economic stagnation, even death. If we strip this term of its comparative fabric and Western bias, however, we can see that
Getting more disabled people into work
Recently the Conservative MP Philip Davies argued that disabled people should be allowed to work for less than the minimum wage, as they face greater barriers to employment: The people who are most disadvantaged by the national minimum wage are the most vulnerable in society. My concern about it is it prevents those people from being given the opportunity to get the first rung on the employment la
ArmsControlWonk ★ 18
Nuclear Matters 2011
The Office of the Deputy Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Nuclear Matters — DATSD(NM) — has issued the 2011 edition of Nuclear Matters, which is significantly revised and expanded from the copy I have. (Here is a link to the 2008 edition.) Nuclear Matters is probably the most useful reference book in my library on a day-to-day basis. (I know, you are thinking “Assistant to the Secretary
Moving forward on China, Pakistan, and the NSG
Just a couple of weeks after I joined the Carnegie Endowment at the beginning of March last year, I found myself in a musty agricultural exhibition hall in east Beijing, across Dongsanhuan Beilu from the Sanlitun diplo quarter. In the corner of one wing of that Mao-flavoured building, an engineering subsidiary of China’s leading nuclear state-owned enterprise, China National Nuclear Corp, display
Reflections of A Nuclear Weaponeer
Most readers probably know how much I love books and that I have amassed a formidable library of rare books relating to nuclear weapons. There are some holes in the collection, though and Frank Shelton’s privately printed memoir, Reflections of a Nuclear Weaponeer, is one of them. A copy of Reflections of a Nuclear Weaponeer is available for sale on Amazon. At $1,745, this one is way out of my l
Hunting, Muting, and Filtering
Why do television ads use males acting stupidly to sell products? Why do so many people drink Bud Lite? Or worse yet, lite beers with lime flavoring? Is advertising making us dumber, not to mention unhealthy, obese, attention deficit disordered, and prone to recreational shopping? And how can I possibly connect these stray thoughts to arms control? My favorite invention of the modern age, besi
B61 Mod 12 Revisited
video Question: What’s a national lab to do when the GAO releases a report warning that a major effort, the B61 Lifetime Extension Program, is headed for trouble? Answer: Write an article about how essential the B61 LEP is to “21st Century Deterrence” with a seriously creepy patch that shows a Genie going bowling. I can’t make this stuff up. Actually the article, 21st Century Deterrence by Dan Borovi
More on the Gerdab Nuke Test Story
Well, we finally have some clarity on that very strange post on an IRGC website about the day after Iran’s first nuclear test. It appears that the website in question, Gerdab.ir, reposted content from an Iranian blog. The blogger-in-question appears to have contacted Julian Borger, who wrote the original story for The Guardian. He also (it appears) left a comment on this site. As I thought, it
Craig Murray ★ 22
Afghan Drawdown, Libyan Murder
Could anyone watch Jeremy Bowen’s piece on BBC News last night, which showed a grieving father hugging the wrapped bodies of two tiny children killed in a NATO bombing? The fact the tiny childrens’ grandfather was a Gadaffi minister seemed to Jeremy Bowen a possible justification – he posed a dichotomy that by killing these children, more civilian lives could be saved. But how could this warping
Christian Values
Nadira has been refused the hire of our local church hall in Ramsgate for rehearsal because Medea is “Greek” and “Pagan”. I had thought that the Church of England had come fully to terms with the classical world since before Gibbon. And we are talking the church hall, not the church. It is a tremendous mistake for the Church of England to start taking an interest in religion. Promoting intolera
Lib Dem Foreign Policy
It has been pointed out to me that there has been a reply to my Independent on Sunday article on our illiberal foreign policy, by the obscure and evidently untalented Baroness Falkner. Craig Murray’s polemic against the Liberal Democrats gives examples which are inaccurate, ill-informed or at best unknowing (“The biggest threat to Clegg lies overseas”, 5 June). On Trident, Mr Murray says we have g
Persian Speakers Wanted
At least I think it is Persian. I have found a transliteration but not a translation of the poem on Shah Shuja’s coinage, and the parody of it by Kabul wits popular in 1840. It is from the Afghan historian Ghulam, recorded in Christine Noelle’s State and Tribe in Nineteenth Century Afghanistan. She transliterates it thus: sikka zad bar sim o zar raushantar az khurshed o mah nuur-i-chasm-i durr-
Illegal Blockades
A new Gaza freedom convoy is preparing to sail, this time including a US flagged vessel. My friends Ann Wright and Ray McGovern are going to be on it. Ray tells me the ship, which is registered in Delaware, has been renamed “The Audacity of Hope”. I am not quite sure if he is joking. I hope it is true as the irony is delicious. The boarding of a US flagged ship on the High Seas is something wh
World Weary
A couple of interesting articles in today’s Independent. Yet more evidence of the terrible human rights violations in Bahrain, with a report from Medecins sans Frontieres. And the Americans are fed up with Karzai for sometimes telling the truth about the occupation. Last week a report cited in the Guardian named Afghanistan as the worst country in the world for women. We do seem to have come t
Phronesisaical ★ 31
Another Way To Look At Community Organizing
From Ezra Klein: When presidents succeed in presiding over great change, they do so by recognizing an existing opportunity, not squeezing one from the stone of existing opposition. The way I've been saying it is that Obama is trying to get the rest of us energized and moving toward whatever it is we want. We are the people, after all, and he can't and shouldn't be doing it alone.Add in something I
Reworking Paradigms
Perry Link writes about his disillusionment, as a convinced Marxist, with the China he actually saw. Pure ideology usually doesn't stand up to reality. I keep hoping that the Republicans will experience something like this, but I can't think just now of a country that practices pure whatever it is that they seem to believe in. One of the ways to hang on to an ideology is to make it abstract or cha
Bits and Pieces - June 21, 2011
It's hard to be cheerful these days. The Republicans have abdicated any pretense of being a responsible political party and want to destroy the country in order to get elected. I think that they would change that last infinitive to "to save it," but that gets harder and harder to believe. Balloon Juice front-pagers keep using the metaphor of the circus clown car for the Republican presidential fie
Nuclear Misinformation Followup
This is what smoke looks like. Not at all like that video. This picture is of the Pacheco Canyon Fire, northeast of Santa Fe, last night. The smoke is way down today. The tankers have been overhead yesterday until dark and all day today. Sorry the image is blurry. For some reason, the camera was very uncooperative.Update: Unfortunately, the wind has whipped the fire up again. Here's a better pictu
Truth, Fact, and Misinformation
Something else is bothering me about that post with the fraudulent Fukushima video. I’m seeing misinformation swaying people I respect, and there seems to be a feeling that misinformation is all right in “a good cause.” You can see some of this in the comment thread here, but I have experienced it in other venues. At a speech by Helen Caldicott, a friend said, “Don’t fact-check it, but she’s good.
IPS Inter Press Service Earth Alert: Confronting Climate Change ★ 39
U.N. Chief Quashes Reports of Run for President of Korea
Ban Ki-moon, who has been re-elected Secretary-General of the United Nations for a second five-year term beginning next January, dismissed longstanding speculation that he plans to run for the office of president in his home country, South Korea.
Poor Countries Host Vastly More Displaced People Than Wealthier Nations
The hardest part of Jan Egeland's job is coming home at the end of the day. He is the Director of the Norwegian Institute for International Affairs and the former U.N. Emergency Relief Coordinator, and has travelled to the farthest reaches of the world to help protect refugees and displaced people.
Carbon Markets Are Not Cooling the Planet
Carbon markets have been widely promoted as the only way to generate enough money to enable industries and countries to reduce their carbon dioxide emissions, which are largely responsible for global warming. The only problem is that nearly 20 years after their conception, they have failed to work, and have also been subject to fraud and other financial crimes.
Burkina Faso Losing Thousands of Hectares of Forests Each Year
The Burkina Faso authorities have sounded the alarm over the increased rate of degradation of forests in this Sahelian country.
OP-ED: Growing Goat Herds Signal Global Grassland Decline
After the earth was created, soil formed slowly over geological time from the weathering of rocks. It began to support early plant life, which protected and enriched it until it became the topsoil that sustains the diversity of plants and animals we know today. Now the world's ever-growing herds of cattle, sheep, and goats are converting vast stretches of grassland to desert.
Postponing Emissions Cuts Carries Steep Price-tag
If we're lucky, by the time a tough but fair international treaty to meet the climate change challenge is finalised, it will be largely unnecessary. The snail's pace of negotiations certainly gives countries plenty of time to understand the financial, social and environmental advantages of kicking their dangerous addiction to fossil fuels.
American Leftist ★ 10
Taking Care of My Mother
So, I probably won't be posting anything until early next week. But I do anticipate getting back in the regular routine soon. I have, however, had enough time to notice that the Greek situation is getting more and more turbulent, with the US, through the IMF, trying to muscle through a full bailout of European lenders. Can the Greeks on the street stop it? Can they pull down the edifice of the
Blockade of Greek Parliament Planned for Tomorrow
My mother is ill, and I am visiting her to assist with some medical issues. Meanwhile, there is a blockade of the Greek parliament planned for tomorrow to prevent it from approving yet another, more severe austerity plan imposed by the IMF, the EU, and the European Central Bank. For an anti-authoritarian perspective as events unfold, go here. While protesters are about to engage in a massive di
The Perpetual Warfare State
The leadership of the United States is bent upon proving that the truth of the old anarchist maxims about the relationship of the state to violence, as concisely articulated by Randolph Borne: War is essentially the health of the state. One cannot access any news source in the US without being confronted with stories about US military actions in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen and Libya, with articl
Zionist Food Coop of Sacramento
The saga continues. For those of you who read the linked article, you will discover that it describes activities reminscent of what transpired in regard to the attempted takeover of KPFA in the late 1990s. In both instances, the governing boards acted to concentrate power in themselves so as to render them unaccountable to anyone else. At KPFA, the Pacifica Board wanted to prepare the ground fo
Zionist Food Coop of Sacramento
Faced with the competitive peril of the direct delivery of organic produce by local farmers, it is hard to imagine how the embrace of Zionism by the Sacramento Natural Foods Coop is going to help.
GeneSharpTaughtMe
I don't recall if I have posted about it here, but I have ascerbically commented elsewhere upon the ethnocentrism associated with the belief that American radical pacifist Gene Sharp played a promiment inspirational role in regard to the Egyptian protests that brought down Mubarak, as reported in the New York Times in February: Few Americans have heard of Mr. Sharp. But for decades, his practical
Green & White ★ 14
pepper.pk releases Hazardous Highway for Android
Pepper.pk has released a car racing game on Android Market place, its called Hazardous Highway. Again as is with these games its simple you move along a racing path and avoid hitting other cars while collecting bonus items (fuel etc) on your way. pepper.pk has had an astounding success in Blackberry app space and rightly their main focus remains their, with apps for other platform trickle out ever
iDress – your online designer
iDress.pk is a very innovative idea with great interface. The idea takes online shopping to a whole new level. Its refreshing to see that some one thought of creating a new and niche site for online selling, instead of just building another e-shop for mobiles, laptops and electronics. iDress.pk is targeting a great potential potential market, something which can work really well. Again as I said e
Downloads on Ovi store for content by TenPearls cross 1 million
TenPearls, the company that bagged the 1st prize in the Nokia Calling All Innovators competition last year, has achieved yet another milestone. Cumulative downloads for content by TenPearls on the Nokia Ovi Store have crossed the 1 million mark. TenPearls has been finding great success with its content on the Ovi Store, including the Pakistan Theme, Animal 101 and the Mother’s Day Greeting appli
Qurtaba releases Alif Bay Pay – Urdu Alphabets for Toddlers
Qurtaba the company behind NaanMap has brought their second product to market, This one is not as exciting as NaanMap nevertheless addresses a very unique need. Basically its an iPhone app for Urdu Letters (or a Qaida as they say) called Alif Bay Pay. Application is simple it shows you the urdu haroof (alphabets) and their sounds plus some thing to spell it. I think it will help people specially
Whacksy Taxi makes it to number two on top charts
Wow this is huge, Whacksy Taxi released by MindStorm studios few months back, has scaled up to number 2 in Top Free Apps. They also won an award in mobile games category in P@SHA ICT Awards. This is huge, MindStorm studios have shown time an again that its very much possible to compete on global scale, sitting in Pakistan.
iSkreen – Anti Glare Eyewear designed in Pakistan
Most of us who have an idea, they keep tinkering with it then some one comes along implements it and we say ‘oh shit’ and then go day dreaming again on another idea. Then there are exception who have an idea execute it and see if it fails or sticks, mostly its these type of people who taste success. Farhan Riaz is one of the few i know who when has an itch tries to put it to rest by actually doin
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Jun 25
'Flying Deer' Knocks Out Montana Power Line
On today's episode of "Amazing Animal Feats," a deer fawn that knocked out power in Montana. Her carcass was retrieved from a power line, up in the air. But how did she get up there? ...Read the full story on TreeHugger
Old Jeans Recycled With Antique Style Furniture By LegendBlues
Photos: LegendBlue website Everyone has their favorite pair of jeans, which may be hung onto like a cherished memory, long past the time when those jeans actually fit. But some, like furniture designer Liz Richardson of LegendBlues, may be hanging onto them to create something completely different, as she has done with her collection of down-to-earth yet elegant, antique-styled chairs and ottoman
Stay a Night in a Bridge Made from Reclaimed Wood, Built Over a River-to-Be
All Images Courtesy of Observatorium Looking at the bridge, you wonder what it's doing there. It sits on dry, flat land. It doesn't connect anything to anything else. And its zig-zagging shape doesn't exactly scream practicality. That's because this is no ordinary bridge: it's also a hostel, a picnic site and an art project. And while the surrounding land is dry for the moment, it won't stay tha
Sweet Skins Organic Apparel on Sale This Month Only
Summer dresses by Sweet Skins. Photo: Sweet Skins To celebrate summer style Oregon-based organic fashion label Sweet Skins is offering up a deal for sale-hungry shoppers. If you've been eying their Rasberry Scoop Tank Dress or their Slate Blue Spring Day Dress, now's your chance to get it on discount, but you only have a few days to scoop up this sweet deal. Read on:...Read the full story on Tre
Senate Introduces Bill to Limit Use of Antibiotics in Livestock
Photo: aaron13251 Antibiotic resistance has finally made its way onto the Senate radar again and with good reason considering that we've seen antibiotic resistance across British farms and this year in US hospitals and nursing homes to name just a few. It's a problem that's only getting worse with the expanded overuse of antibiotics. It's this practice tha...Read the full story on TreeHugger
Jun 24
Check Out This Sweet VW Camper Van Tent!
Image via Firebox I'm loathe to admit an affinity for any branded product, but I can't help it, I'm a sucker for VW buses and vans. Ergo, I love this tent! It's an officially licensed 1:1 scale of the iconic 1965 T1 camper van that comes in red, blue or yellow. ...Read the full story on TreeHugger
Everything You Need to Know About Extreme Weather in 2010
Q: How crazy was the weather in 2010? A: Really, really crazy. Insane, even. No, scratch that. More like super, uber, unprecedentedly batshit crazy. Don't believe me? Then just ask the celebrated meteorologist Jeff Masters, who co-founded Weather Underground, and writes immaculately detailed blog posts there. In fact, don't ask him -- check out his most recent work, where he comprehensively anal
Behold: The World's First 24/7 Solar Plant is Up and Running
Earlier this week, I spoke with Kevin Smith, the CEO of Solar Reserve, about the vast potential of concentrated solar power. The grand advantage of solar thermal is that it can serve as baseload power -- CSP can store energy, often in molten salt, for use when the sun's not shining. Above, check out the video of the new Gemasolar plant -- the world's first commercial scale CSP array. Here are
World's Top-Selling Weedkiller Causes Birth Defects, Scientists Say
Photo credit: Bug-E via Flickr/CC BY Quick -- name a brand of weedkiller. What popped into your head? Was it, by any chance, Roundup? The most popular and most widely-used herbicide in the world? If it was, that's great; the ubiquitous weedkiller will be our topic for discussion today. Why? Because a new, comprehensive review of existing data again reveals, once again, that scientific evidence s
"There is No Such Thing as Global Warming": Presidential Candidate Rick Santorum
And so it has come to this. The friendly competish amongst GOP presidential candidates to see who could most fully disavow the existence of climate change has been won. Tim Pawlenty gave it a pretty good run for his money, apologizing for ever trying to limit carbon pollution. Palin, Bachmann, and Herman Cain had already expressed the requisite doubts over climate change was even caused by man.
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