10:37pm MST
Wretched ConservaDem Marty Chavez... Still Shilling For His Corporate Benefactors-- This Time Against Net Neutrality
*DWT* has been covering vile right-wing New Mexico Democrat Marty Chavez
for a decade. When he ran for mayor of Albuquerque in 2005 he opposed
raising the minimum wage and ran as an anti-taxing, anti-spending and
anti-liberal faux-Dem. The DCCC has always been interested in getting him
into Congress; he's their kind of guy. As mayor he managed to piss off
unions, environmentalists and social progressives cobbling together a
coalition of conservatives across party lines. He's remembered for having
endorsed several Republicans in local races and for his endorsement of
Republican Pet... more »
DARPA Projects To Watch In 2015
*Defense Tech:* *DARPA Projects to Watch in 2015*
*WNU Editor: *A lot of cool tech being developed. For anyone who is
interested in more .... the DARPA website* is here*.
Russian And Chinese News Agencies Are Starting To Compete Against The BBC
*John Lloyd, Reuters*: Russian, Chinese ‘news’ coming to a TV near you
*WNU Editor:* I have started to use both news services RT and CCTV this
past year. And while I do not trust them for the news that they report
within their own borders .... outside and on the global scene I do find
that these agencies do provide a consistent counterpoint from the standard
main stream media. But as regular readers of this blog know .... I always
identify the sources that I used for this blog. On a side note .... another
advantage with RT and CCTV is on the issue of copyright .... unlike some
wes... more »
Ebola In Graphics
(Click on Image to Enlarge)
*Economist:* *Ebola in graphics - The toll of a tragedy*
*WNU Editor:* This Economist post has an excellent collection of tables,
graphs, and maps on the Ebola epidemic .... check it out.
A Look At Who Has Conquered The Most Territory In Syria In The Past 10 Months
#Syria Map 1: March 10, 2014 Map 2: January 1, 2015
pic.twitter.com/neW5esfjWy
— Pieter Van Ostaeyen (@p_vanostaeyen) January 1, 2015
*WNU Editor: *In short .... the Syrian Free Army has been crushed, the
Syrian government has lost the east, the Kurds are getting squeezed at
Kobani, and the Islamic State and Al Qaeda affiliated groups now control
half the country.
The Failure of the Post-Colonial State in the Middle East: A Conversation with Chris Giannou
*Wikipedia:*
Chris Giannou (born 1949) is a Greek Canadian war surgeon and served chief
surgeon for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) until
December 2006.
Giannou left his official post with the ICRC after 7 years as the head of
Unit Surgery, and today carries out international surgical missions around
the world on their behalf. He is the topic of the Cineflix film "On the
Border of the Abyss" which covers his lifetime of work in helping
less-fortunate people and in mastering the concepts of war surgery. The
documentary was aired, as "War Surgeon: Chris Giannou"... more »
U.S. Military Vet Says That It Is Easy To Be Recruited To Fight Against The Islamic State In Syria
Watch the latest video at video.foxnews.com
*FOX News*: US vet says fighting in Syria was as easy as buying airplane
ticket to Miami
*WNU Editor: * I am not surprised .... *US vet says fighting in Syria was
as easy as buying airplane ticket to Miami.* If supporters of the Islamic
State could easily go to Syria to join the Islamic State .... why not for
the other side. But what is disturbing about the above FOX report is that
according to this U.S. military vet, many who do go there are not qualified
to fight .... and for those who want to leave .... even for him .... there
are obs... more »
MNN 'MENACE FROM WITHIN'
MENACE
FROM WITHIN
MENACE FROM WITHIN
Please post & distribute. Nia:wen. MNN, 1 Jan. 2015. The
military sends in an advance force which is often sacrificed in battle.
The band councils, national,...
View on mohawknationnews.com
Preview by Yahoo
Manly P. Hall: Author and Mystic
*Manly Palmer Hall (March 18, 1901 – August 29, 1990) was a Canadian-born
author and mystic. He is perhaps most famous for his work The Secret
Teachings of All Ages: An Encyclopedic Outline of Masonic, Hermetic,
Qabbalistic and Rosicrucian Symbolical Philosophy, which is widely regarded
as his magnum opus, and which he published at the age of 25 (or 27, 1928)*
*He has been widely recognized as a leading scholar in the fields of
religion, mythology, mysticism, and the occult.*
*Carl Jung, when writing Psychology and Alchemy, borrowed material from
Hall’s private collection.*
... more »
The Islamic State Is Winning The Hearts And Minds Of Fellow Islamic Radicals
*NBC, Robert Windrem:* Is ISIS Winning Battle for Islamic Radicals' Hearts
and Minds?
*WNU Editor*: U.S. intelligence is clearly worried that this is a growing
trend .... *The Pentagon Is Trying To Understand Why The Islamic State Is
So Dangerous*. What's my take ... the Islamic State has a lot of enemies
.... but they also have a lot of supporters. In this context Lt. General
James Terry's remarks (see above video) makes sense .... it is going to
take time for the Islamic State to be routed on the battlefield, and it is
going to take even longer to extinguish their appeal among t... more »
Let's kick off the new year with an upbeat thought from psychologist Dacher Ketner: "We are built to be kind"
*"We are built to be kind"*: *A question that has intrigued UC Berkeley
psychologist Dacher Keltner is why people, who we know to be motivated by
self-interst to perpetuate the species, are "so frequently and routinely
good, and generous, and sacrificing?" And he insists that nobody understood
this better than Charles Darwin, who believed that "communities that have
the most sympathetic members will flourish and raise the greatest number of
offspring."*
*by Ken*
Hat tip to The Frisky's Rebecca Vipond Brink ("Here's Why Humans Are Built
to Be Kind") for sharing this upbeat lesson f... more »
U.S. Intensifying Its Military Commitment To Iraq
American troops and equipment have begun arriving at Al Asad Air Base in
Anbar Province. American commanders say their goal is to train 5,000 Iraqi
recruits every six weeks. Credit Ayman Oghanna for The New York Times
*Washington Post:* *U.S. advisers in Iraq stay out of combat but see
fighting edging closer*
*WNU Editor*: U.S. soldiers who are on the ground may be staying away from
the combat .... but the U.S. air force has certainly been busy over the
skies of Iraq and Syria this past week .... *New Year bomb attack on ISIS:
America launches TWENTY NINE air strikes over Syria an... more »
Crisis In Ukraine -- News Updates January 1, 2015
*Bloomberg:* Ukrainian Army, Rebels Trade Blame Amid Warning of Hard 2015
*WNU Editor:* With both sides far apart on the key issues .... I do not see
peace coming to eastern Ukraine. My prediction .... come springtime the war
will restart with the ferocity of what happened last summer. For the rest
of Ukraine .... the economy has .... for all intents and purposes ....
collapsed. This will become the number one issue in Ukraine later this year
.... aside from the war.
*Ukraine Crisis -- News Updates January 1, 2015*
Ukraine says rebels keep up attacks into New Year -- Reuters
Kiev ... more »
Musical Interlude: Kevin Kern, “Dance Of The Searching Souls”
Kevin Kern, “Dance Of The Searching Souls”
- https://www.youtube.com/
"The Eternal Silence of Infinite Spaces..."
"The eternal silence of infinite spaces frightens me. Why now rather than
then? Who has put me here? By whose order and direction have this place and
time have been ascribed to me? We travel in a vast sphere, always drifting
in the uncertain, pulled from one side to another. Whenever we find a fixed
point to attach and to fasten ourselves, it shifts and leaves us; and if we
follow it, it eludes our grasp, slips past us, and vanishes for ever.
Nothing stays for us. This is our natural condition, most contrary to our
inclination; we burn with desires to find solid ground and an ultima... more »
"A Look to the Heavens"
“Big, beautiful NGC 5584 is more that 50,000 light-years across and lies 72
million light-years away toward the constellation Virgo. The winding spiral
arms of this gorgeous island universe are loaded with luminous young star
clusters and dark dust lanes. Still, for earthbound astronomers NGC 5584 is
not just another pretty face-on spiral galaxy.
*Click image for larger size.*
Home to some 250 Cepheid variable stars and a recent Type Ia supernova
explosion, key objects for astronomical distance determinations, NGC 5584
is one of 8 galaxies used in a new study that includes additional... more »
The Universe
"What you pay for in life, you get. What you don't pay for, you don't get.
The currency is a concerted, persistent effort in thought, word, and deed.
Each designed to raise expectations, instill optimism, and imply your
inevitable success. And to make "things" happen even faster, understand to
the absolute core of your being that this is how you created everything now
in your life. What you pay for in life, you get."
"You buy that?"
The Universe
"Thoughts become things... choose the good ones!"
www.tut.com
"And Never, Never Forget..."
"To love. To be loved. To never forget your own insignificance. To never
get used to the unspeakable violence and the vulgar disparity of life
around you. To seek joy in the saddest places. To pursue beauty to its
lair. To never simplify what is complicated or complicate what is simple.
To respect strength, never power. Above all, to watch. To try and
understand. To never look away. And never, never, to forget."
- Arundhati Roy
Chet Raymo, “Pointless?”; “They Don't Know Neither Do I So There You Are”
*“Pointless?”*
by Chet Raymo
"Theresa drew our attention to the Templeton Foundation's two-page ad the
New York Times that gave the responses of a dozen prominent scientists and
scholars to the question "Does the universe have a purpose?" You can read
the complete essays here. I am reminded of a previousMusing* in which I put
the question to three famous (fictional) characters. Specifically, I asked
for a response to Nobel prize-winning physicist Steven Weinberg's famous
remark near the end of his 1977 best-selling book, "The First Three
Minutes": "The more the universe seems comp... more »
"The Question To Ask..."
"Don't spend your precious time asking "Why isn't the world a better
place?" It will only be time wasted. The question to ask is "How can I make
it better?" To that there is an answer."
- Leo Buscaglia
"No BS Theory of Life"
* "No BS Theory of Life"*
by Dr. Robert Lanza
"Forget the self-help books. No book or person can promise you happiness.
Christmas time is the mostly likely time of the year to experience
depression. We share our love with friends and family, and get lots of
gifts. So why aren't we all joyous? What the hell is going on?
Did you ever wonder why people like Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson
didn't fare any better than you or I despite all their money, fame, and
access to people of wisdom? The answer lies in your own backyard. Look at
the shrubs, tangled with vines, with here and there... more »
The Daily "Near You?"
Prescott Valley, Arizona, USA. Thanks for stopping by.
"Intellectual Prostitutes!"
"There is no such thing, at this date of the world's history, in America as
an independent press. You know it and I know it. There is not one of you
who dares to write your honest opinions, and if you did you know beforehand
that it would never appear in print.
I am paid $150 a week for keeping my honest opinion out of the paper I am
connected with. Others of you are paid similar salaries for things, and if
any of you would be so foolish as to write honest opinions would be out on
the streets looking for another job. If I allowed my honest opinions to
appear in one issue of my pape... more »
“Cold-War-Style Propaganda Posing as News”
*“Cold-War-Style Propaganda Posing as News”*
by Dave Lindorff
“As shameful a propagandist for Washington’s war machine as the New York
Times has been over the years, sometimes I still cannot believe the
brazenness of its abandonment of even a pretext of dispassionate
journalistic standards. One of those moments came today, when I read the
left-column page-one article by Jim Yardley and Jo Becker headlined “How
Putin Forged a Pipeline Deal that Derailed.” In this Putin hit piece, the
two journalists write that the pipeline in question, the so-called South
Stream, which was intended ... more »
India - Pakistan Border Clashes Continue
*Voice of America:* India, Pakistan Trade Deadly Fire in Kashmir
*WNU Editor*: I have lost count on the number of gun battles that have
occurred on this disputed border. But this one was intense .... and both
sides are not backing down.
*More News On The Border Clashes Between India And Pakistan*
Five dead in New Year's Eve clashes on India-Pakistan border -- Reuters
Kashmir: Five troops killed in India, Pakistan clashes -- BBC
Skirmishes Flare on India-Pakistan Border -- NYT
3 soldiers killed in Kashmir gunfight between India and Pakistan -- CNN
India and Pakistan exchange deadly fi... more »
"The Ultimate Choice..."
"That man can destroy life is just as miraculous a feat as that he can
create it, for life is the miracle, the inexplicable. In the act of
destruction, man sets himself above life; he transcends himself as a
creature. Thus, the ultimate choice for a man, inasmuch as he is driven to
transcend himself, is to create or to destroy, to love or to hate."
- Erich Fromm
Ring In The New Year With “Tubular Bells”!
Mike Oldfield, “Tubular Bells”
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5gDGcXIEQE
Waking Times’ Top 20 Most Popular Articles of 2014
*Dylan Charles* - 2014 was a phenomenal year in so many ways, and it is
with abundant gratitude and appreciation that we say thanks
The post Waking Times’ Top 20 Most Popular Articles of 2014 appeared first
on Waking Times.
Rip-off News round-up 2014. Our pick of the last year's media
Welcome to our eye-watering compilation of some of the rippingest rip-offs of 2014
January
RBS payouts to UK
staff expected to total £500m despite an £8bn loss
The bank is now expected to show an £8bn loss after announcing
that mis-selling scandals and legal bills in the US were forcing it to take a
£3bn hit. Analysts at Credit Suisse calculated the bank's total losses since
the 2008
"Letters to the Future"
* "Letters to the Future"*
by Olaf Stapledon
“In 1917 the author Olaf Stapledon published “Letters to the Future,” a
series of 4 letters addressed to his great grandson in the year 1999. This
post is Letter 1, excerpted. How remarkably relevant they seem today...
“To my Great Grandson in early manhood. Sir,
If ever you come upon this letter, forgive its preglacial dialect, and have
patience to spell out its meaning. How gladly would I address you in
whatever speech lives in your ears! The thoughts which follow must, I know,
reach you only as dead and fragile specimens; but today th... more »
Professor Richard Bulliet: Religion and the State in Islam: From Medieval Caliphate to the Muslim Brotherhood
*Wikipedia:*
Richard W. Bulliet is a professor of history at Columbia University who
specializes in the history of Islamic society and institutions, the history
of technology, and the history of the role of animals in human society
*Amazon Biography of Richard W. Bulliet:*
I have been teaching at Columbia University since 1973. Before that I
taught at Harvard for six years and at UC Berkeley for two. All that
redeems me from being identified as a pure academic is the enjoyment I
derive from writing fiction. My first novel, Kicked to Death by a Camel,
was nominated for an Edgar in... more »
Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- January 1, 2015
*Top Story:* Obama Envoy John Allen: No 'Short-Term Solutions' for Stopping
Islamic State -- Interview Conducted By Matthias Gebauer and Holger Stark,
Spiegel Online
*Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- January 1, 2015*
Iran in Iraq and Syria: Death of a general -- The Economist
Will President Obama's strategy on Iran work? -- Adam Garfinkle, American
Interest
Saudi King in Hospital: Succession Crisis Looms -- Simon Henderson,
Washington Institute
Palestinian statehood: a lost cause? -- Inside Story/Al Jazeera
Afghan War is over (except that it's not) -- Jules Witcover,
... more »
Crackpot Utopia: The Year in Republican Crazy, Part 10
*• Newsmax -- Beyond Drudgery*
*• Crazyspeak of the Year nominees Nos. 12 and 13: Michele Bachmann,
Kimberly Guilfoyle*
*Newsmax, says Noah, "tells republicans what they want to believe." (See
No. 1.) And the way Newsmax sees it, who better to tear President Obama
down than "political analyst" Dick Morris? In this segment (watch it here),
Dick's "news" is that Obama is blowing off national-security briefings --
part of his determined effort to undermine national security.*
*Crackpot Utopia:* *A dream world as envisioned by republicans; a
manifestation or expression of the deranged,... more »
“The Secret To A Happy Life- Courtesy of Tolstoy”
*“The Secret To A Happy Life- Courtesy of Tolstoy”*
by Roman Krznaric
“Tolstoy, who was born in 1828 and died in 1910, was a member of the
Russian nobility, from a family that owned an estate and hundreds of serfs.
The early life of the young count was raucous, debauched and violent. "I
killed men in wars and challenged men to duels in order to kill them," he
wrote. "I lost at cards, consumed the labor of the peasants, sentenced them
to punishments, lived loosely, and deceived people…so I lived for ten
years." But he gradually weaned himself off his decadent, racy lifestyle
and rej... more »
World News Briefs -- January 1, 2015
*Top Story:* World Welcomes 2015 With Cheers, Fireworks, Hopes
*MIDDLE EAST*
U.S., partners hit *Islamic State in Syria, Iraq*.
Civilian death toll in Iraq doubles to *17,000 in 2014 'due to rise of
ISIS'*.
Syria's war *'killed 76,021' in 2014*. Over 76,000 killed in *Syrian war in
2014: NGO*.
Syrian president visits front line *of civil war on New Year's Eve*.
Syria opposition group: *Assad must go for any peace plan to work*.
Lebanon hit hard by Syrian war, *growing ISIL support*.
Death toll of Yemen anti-Huthi *bomb blast rises to 49*.
Suspected 'terrorist' arrested *near P... more »
happy new year from wmtc
"Hey Diego, wanna hear a secret...?"It's been an exciting year here in wmtc-Joy
of Sox-land: me working full-time in my new career, completing a year as a
youth-services librarian, Allan publishing a new book, which was well
received and got great reviews.
It looks to be an exciting year ahead, too: I was recently elected head of
our library workers' union. Our membership finally has an appetite for a
stronger union, and we have a revamped leadership team to show for it. I
expect all my accumulated experience and skills will be put to the test as
I navigate some brand-new territory.... more »
Me at the ASSA Meeting
I have a busy few days at the upcoming ASSA meeting in Boston. For those
interested, I will be involved in the following public events:
Jan 03, 2015 8:00 am, Sheraton Boston, Independence Ballroom
American Economic Association
*A Discussion of Thomas Piketty's "Capital in the 21st Century"* (D3)
*Presiding*: N. Gregory Mankiw (Harvard University)
Capital and Wealth in the 21st Century
David N. Weil (Brown University)
[Download Preview]
TBD
Capital Taxation in the 21st Century
Alan J. Auerbach (University of California-Berkeley)
Kevin Hassett (American Enterprise Institute)... more »
What armed struggle?
Current media coverage of the Israel / Palestinian conflict roughly boils
down to whose word is trusted and believed. Who said what. “One side said
this; the other said that.”
Not that I count this blog as actual ‘media coverage’, but I’m aware that
the principle ‘whose word do I trust” applies to me too, but I might boast
that I try to look below the surface where many others appear not to bother
In the absence of objective historical research combined with a lack of
intellectual curiosity on the part of BBC bosses, we’ve ended up with a BBC
consensus that has opted, on some sort ... more »
Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- January 1, 2015
*IBTimes: **ISIS Update: Iran, Iraq Agree To Military Pact To Combat
Islamic State Militants*
*WNU Editor: *I guess the Iraqis do not have confidence in U.S./allied
promises and commitments to train their military and to combat the Islamic
State.
*Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- January 1, 2015*
Iranian military commander: We have forces in Syria, Yemen and Iraq --
Middle East Monitor
Iran Holds Navy Parade Marking End of Six-Day Military Drills: Reports --
Sputnik
US aims to quickly train Iraq forces for anti-IS fight -- AFP
US Ends 2014 with More Airstrikes in Iraq a... more »
Over 17,000 Iraqi Civilians Killed From Warfare And Terrorism In 2014
24 civilians killed in #Iraq 31 December. 1,190 in December. 17,073 in 2014.
— Iraq Body Count (@iraqbodycount) January 1, 2015
*RT*: Civilian death toll in Iraq doubles to 17,000 in 2014 'due to rise of
ISIS'.
*WNU Editor:* Here is an easy prediction .... expect this number to double
by years end.
*More News On This Year's Civilian Death Toll In Iraq*
Report says Iraqi civilian deaths roughly doubled last year, driven by ISIS
-- CNN
More than 17,000 Iraqi civilians killed in 2014 by ISIS and its enemies,
NGO says -- Haaretz
Iraqi civilian deaths spike in 2014 -- The Hill
Over 15... more »
Jan.1: Oh-my-God...
The front page, banner headline in the TandT is, "Spirit of Moncton is
newsmaker of the year". That is surely an embarrassing reminder of the
worst of the small-town boosterism of the 1920s. Yeah, greatest little city
in the world. Yeah. Great new hockey rink that will bring the world to our
doorstep, too. And, hey, buy yer forests here - cheap.
Look, there are cities in this world that have suffered the deaths of
innocent people in the hundreds of thousands - and have survived. Moncton
is not unique. When policemen were murdered, what did the editors think
would happen? That eve... more »
Did Ancient Egyptians Have Airplanes?
It is completely plausible that an individual inventor tackled the problem
of flight using mechanical contraptions. After all, we did when our Iron
Age was still pretty crude. Such an inventor would and could make simple
hand models as gifts and teaching tools. We can also be sure that some form
of kite making also existed in Egypt. After all they did have papyrus. Even
the paper airplane worked with that.
What was lacking of course was a light weight power plant. All experiments
were thus tentative and suggestive only. Yet ample enough to generate the
clear evidence we see.
T... more »
Even in Colour, Comet 67P is Grey
So far, so good. As i have posted long before, I expect to have a great
deal of elemental carbon which does not lend itself to easy analysis. All
evidence conforms to comets been formed from what we class as volatiles
which also includes water obviously. Yet water does not have to be nor is
likely to be the dominant component at all. That is much more likely to be
methane.
Thus when such a body passes close to the sun, the surface temperature sky
rockets and the methane and every other organic breaks down driving of the
hydrogen while leaving elemental carbon. The elemen... more »
A Look At The Syrian Civil War From Space
Nighttime light in Syria, as viewed from space in March 2011 (top image)
and February 2014 (bottom) ( Xi Li/Deren Li )
*The Atlantic: **The Syrian Civil War, From Space*
*My Comment:* So .... this is what a disintegrating country looks like from
outer space .... and I suspect that if a satellite image was taken today
(the image above was taken in February) .... there will be even less light.
Top false flag stories of this week - and of 2014!
*TODAY’S NEWS STORIES AND THEIR SOURCE LINKS*
*False-flag to trigger collapse in 2015?*
*1) 2015 collapse will be unprecedented*
http://www.shtfplan.com/headline-news/chain-reaction-of-problems-coming-in-2015-collapse-will-be-on-a-scale-that-is-many-magnitudes-greater-than-2008_12292014
2)
Economy isn’t going to recover and government preparing in not nice
ways
http://investmentwatchblog.com/the-economy-isnt-going-to-recover-u-s-government-preparing-for-collapse-and-not-in-a-nice-way/
3)
Markets panic over possibility of democracy in Greece
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/12/29/135... more »
2014 Deadliest Year In Syria's Civil War, 76,021 Reported Killed
A Free Syrian Army fighter sprays graffiti on a wall prior to the new year
in Aleppo December 31, 2014. Jalal Al-Mamo/Reuters
*Al Jazeera:* *Syria's war 'killed 76,021' in 2014*.
*WNU Editor: *This has been the deadliest year in Syria's civil war ....
and the prediction is that 2015 will be even more bloodier.
*More News On The Death Toll In Syria's Civil War*
Syria's war killed 76,021 in 2014 - monitor -- Reuters
Over 76,000 killed in Syria war in 2014, deadliest year yet: monitor -- AFP
Syrian Conflict Death Toll: 76,021 People Killed In 2014, Report Says --
IBTimes
2014 deadliest... more »
100 imágenes hermosas para empezar el año con alegría
Hola mi gente bonita! Para empezar el año con el pie derecho, nada mejor
que una sobredosis de imágenes bonitas sobre diversos temas. Espero que
esta colección le ayude a ver el mundo de una manera diferente y que juntos
avanzamos día con día disfrutando de nuestra enorme biodiversidad. Saludos
en la distancia. -José Luis Ávila Herrera
Untitled
*Video: Saints coach Sean Payton talks about what the team did right and
wrong this season ~Advocate *
*Bears request permission to interview Saints’ Ryan Pace ~Mike Triplett,
ESPN*
*Much of David Duke’s ’91 Campaign Is Now in Louisiana Mainstream ~Jeremy
Alford, NYT*
*Greater New Orleans Housing Alliance Working To Create Affordable Housing
~Eve Abrams, WWNO*
*Historians: Battle of New Orleans crucial for US ~Cain Burdeau, AP*
*'Apes' visual effects team turns New Orleans into San Francisco ~Patrick
Kevin Day, LA Times*
The main headline on the BBC early evening news, why?
Three Egyptian journalists will get a retrial. Why is that the most
important news story for the BBC? Is it anything to do with the BBC's
obsession with promoting the interests of the Muslim Brotherhood and
Islamism?
Hasn't Anybody Heard Of Blowback?
The resilience of the Baghdad government has admittedly surprised me. I
didn't expect it to be here by now. One big reason it has survived is that
the Islamic State extremists are bigger fools than I thought, as well.
They've managed to alienate enough people in the Middle East to ensure that
they won't have the success that, say, the communists had in Southeast
Asia. I was wrong to compare the Baghdad government to the Saigon
government. I admit it.
Plus, the ISIL militants have proved so barbaric in their standard
practices that they can't be ignored. It can be argued that they ar... more »
Syrian Presidency Releases Video Showing Assad (In A Rare Public Appearance) Visiting Soldiers
*Voice of America*: *Syria's Assad Visits Troops on Front Line Near
Damascus*
*WNU Editor:* This conflict is now entering the fourth year and everyone is
getting tired of the never-ending war .... he had to show up .... morale is
bad enough .... failing to show his face would not be helping the situation.
*More News On Syrian President Assad Visiting Soldiers On The "Front Lines
Near Damascus"*
Syria's Assad visits embattled Damascus district: presidency -- Reuters
Syrian President Bashar Assad makes rare appearance, visits front lines in
Damascus -- AP
Assad eats hummus with troo... more »
Video Shows Iranian Aircraft 'Buzzing' U.S. Navy Destroyer Near The Strait Of Hormuz
*Aviationist:* *Video shows Iranian Aircraft buzz U.S. Navy Destroyer, warn
it to leave exercise area in Strait of Hormuz*
*WNU Editor: *It looks like the video was taken by the co-pilot in the
Iranian aircraft .... and they are indeed flying very close to the U.S.
destroyer. From the U.S. destroyer's perspective, the Iranian Fokker 27
would *look like this.*
*Update:* Iranian Navy's Warning Pushes Back US Warships --
Military.com/FARS News Agency
Very Different Kinds Of Republican Party Purges In Arizona And Hawaii
You may have heard that McCain, in preparation for his reelection run in
2016-- if he wins, he'd be 86 when his term expires-- is trying to purge
the Arizona GOP of extremists. Aside from "who would be left?" we might
wonder what McCain is afraid of. And, of course it's a primary challenge by
a teabagger like Dave Schweikert or Matt Salmon. McCain is trying to purge
the party apparatus of the worst of the fascists and racists who dominate
it.
Prior to Aug. 26, when the races for the party offices were held, the vast
majority of the 3,925 precinct slots were filled by people McCai... more »
HarperCollins omits Israel from school atlas
The Telegraph reports
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/11318286/HarperCollins-omits-Israel-from-school-atlas.html
that Harper Collins omitted Israel from a map with this explanation...
'... Collins Bartholomew, the subsidiary of HarperCollins that specialises
in maps, said that including Israel would have been "unacceptable" to their
customers in the Gulf and the amendment incorporated "local preferences".'
Well they are correct because to a vast number of Muslims in the Middle
East, and beyond, Israel's presence is "unacceptable" and their preference
... more »
Collins Bartholomew Wipes Israel From Its Maps
Omitted: The map in the Collins Bartholomew atlas, sold to English-speaking
schools in the majority-Muslim Gulf, omits Israel
*The Tablet:* *Publisher HarperCollins omits Israel from school atlas 'to
meet local preferences'*
*WNU Editor:* If it is not on the map .... it does not exist. What a novel
way of approaching the world and teaching in school .... to say that this
is stupid is an understatement.
*More News On Collins Bartholomew Deleting The State Of Israel From Its
Maps*
Publishing Giant HarperCollins Apologizes for Middle East Atlas That Wiped
Israel Off Map (UPDATE) -- ... more »
Self-Evident Truths?
[exaggerating for effect]"EnMasse" has dwindled to about 10 regular users,
but it's still managed to attract some of the stupidest fucking people on
the fucking planet.[/exaggerating for effect]
Check out this quote from one of my bête noires, the anarchist
super-radical "Slumberjack." In response to my assertion that we on the
left have to come up with a revolutionary agenda equal in significance to
the bloody tragedies of the World Wars and the Great Depression, because Thomas
Piketty has pretty convincingly demonstrated that they and they alone
produced the only real change in th... more »
Khorasani Brigade Another Iraq Militia That Returned Home From Syria To Fight The Insurgency
There are now a plethora of militias operating in Iraq. Some have been
around a long time like the Badr Organization that was formed in the 1980s,
while others are relatively new. One of the latter is the Khorasani
Brigade, which first came out into the public eye at the end of 2013. It
was one of many pro-Iranian Iraqi militias deployed to fight the rebels in
Syria. It has now moved to Iraq where it has taken part in some of the most
recent security operations. Two of those were in Tuz Kharmato in Salahaddin
and Jalawla in Diyala. Now the brigade is involved in a dispute between
... more »
The Price To Buy Venezuelan Oil Has Collapsed To $48 Per Barrel
*Latin American Herald Tribune*: *Maduro Says Venezuela Oil Prices Drop to
$48 Per Barrel, Blames the U.S.*
*WNU Editor:* If this keeps up .... Venezuela will face default on its
international debt obligations later in 2015. And if that happens .... the
crisis in Venezuela will then certainly explode. On a side note .... the
faithful in the revolution still believe in the "cause", but they are
getting old .... *Latin American Leftist Exiles Hold Faith in Maduro's
Venezuela* (VOA)
*More News On The Impact Of Falling Oil Prices On Venezuela*
Maduro blames plunging oil prices on U.S... more »
Hugh Hendry declares he's taking the blue pills now - First , what further proof do we need that fiction is becoming part of our new normal reality ? Second , that investors should think hard as to where they place their funds in 2015 !
*fred walton* @fredwalton216 4m
4 minutes ago
Hugh Hendry Embraces The Central-Planning Matrix: "I Am Taking The Blue
Pills Now" http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-12-3
1/hugh-hendry-embraces-central-planning-matrix-i-am-taking-blue-pills-now …
*fred walton* @fredwalton216 2m
2 minutes ago
@fredwalton216 Message to Hugh - You have been down that road before.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlztKOlqiEQ …
YouTube
Matrix 01 You have been down that road before
"You have been down that Road Before"
View on web
Hugh Hendry Embraces The Central-Planning Matrix: "I Am Taking Th... more »
White House Stung By Cuba's Recent Crackdown On Dissidents
*Washington Times*: *Obama administration stung by Cuban crackdown on
dissidents, complicating detente*
*WNU Editor:* They are stunned?!?!?!?! The Castro brothers have been
running a communist dictatorship for almost 55 odd years .... they thought
that by recognizing them they would then change?
*More News On U.S. Reaction To Cuba's Crackdown On Dissent*
United States 'deeply concerned' by Cuba dissident arrests -- BBC
U.S. condemns Cuba's reported arrest of 6 dissidents -- CNN
Cuba Dissident Sanchez Says She Was Arrested Before Rally in Early Test of
U.S. Deal -- Bloomberg
Cuban A... more »
Sol goes bottomless.... and topless?
I am posting these pictures of Sol, without any comment..... because I
seriously have never seen anything like this before and given the videos
last week with the sun's "lightening storm", I'm sitting here sorta
scratching my head and saying "WTF?!"
December 29 2014
I have never seen coronal holes like this before. I mean, we've seen huge
ones in the past, but not with the entire bottom of the sun encompassed by
a Coronal hole.
If that isn't weird enough, chick out the video of the bizarre lightening
"storm" coming from the sun.
*Published on Dec 23, 2014*
UPDATE: W.T.F... more »
Guess Who's Watching The Hen House?
During the election, we talked a bit about how the CIA and other spy
agencies worked hard to insert their own operatives into Congress as
members, with the object of getting control over oversight of their own
agencies. There were some successes (William Hurd in Texas) and some
failures (Kevin Strouse and Bobby McKenzie) but electing Members of
Congress isn't the only way the National Security State can keep control of
their shit. This week, investigative journalist Lee Fang, writing for *Republic
Report*, exposed another: high-paid lobbyists being hired by Intelligence
shills to ... more »
Top 100 Independent Tweeting Bloggers 2014
I know at least two people have been looking forward to this year's
independent bloggers' list. Sure, it's a bit different from the
curmudgeonly elder sibling, but that's all for the good. Here's where
blogging folk are keeping it real and (mostly) doing it because it's a
passion, not a payslip. If you want to geek out over definitions have a look
at last year's. If the commentators list is the top 40 as revealed by Radio
1 every Sunday afternoon, then think of this as your alternative/indie
chart tucked away in the pages of the *NME*.
Enough of that. Here's the list for 2014. How ... more »
Breaking: New Year dawns on schedule!
*THURSDAY, JANUARY 1, 2015With us in a distant locale:* Yesterday, we
journeyed to the Hudson Valley to attend a bit of a memorial service.
The new year has dawned bright and clear in this locale. With apologies, we
expect to resume our current series on Saturday.
Untitled
*Climate change caused the AirAsia crash*
*You knew it, didn't you?*
The AirAsia jet in which 162 people lost their lives this week behaved in
ways "bordering on the edge of logic" according to Indonesian aviation
analyst Gerry Soejatman citing leaked information from the air crash
investigation team.
The Airbus 320-200 climbed in a way that was impossible to achieve by the
pilot, adding that it subsequently "didn't fall out of the sky like an
aeroplane", he told Fairfax Media.
"It was like a piece of metal being thrown down. It's really hard to
comprehend … The way it goes down... more »
Ukraine - Russia Situation - After the travails of 2014 , what lies ahead for 2015 ? Recent items of note touching upon the complicated geopolitical situation of Russia and Ukraine.
Tweets......
*Al Arabiya English* @AlArabiya_Eng 7m
7 minutes ago
Oil falls towards $57 as demand concerns outweigh supply disruptions http://
english.alarabiya.net/en/business/en
ergy/2014/12/31/Oil-falls-towards-57-as-demand-concerns-outweigh-supply-disruptions.html
…
[image: Embedded image permalink]
*zerohedge* @zerohedge · 11h11 hours ago
Guest Post: 2014 - A Russian Viewpoint http://www.
zerohedge.com/news/2014-12-31/guest-post-2014-russian-viewpoint …
*Holger Zschaepitz* @Schuldensuehner · 43m43 minutes ago
#Lithuania Adopts #Euro as #Russia Worries Rattle ... more »
Untitled
*Student, 13, Shares Lunch, Gets Detention *
A 13-year-old boy at Weaverville Elementary School in California shared his
school lunch — a chicken burrito — with his friend who was hungry. For
this, he got detention. The food-sharing miscreant, Kyle Bradford, told
KRCRTV:
“It seemed like he couldn’t get a normal lunch so I just wanted to give
mine to him because I wasn’t really that hungry and it was just going to go
in the garbage if I didn’t eat it,” said Bradford.
But the Trinity Alps Unified School District has regulations that
prohibit students from sharing their mea... more »
Election Expulsions
[image: DSC03693]
*Bike paths to nowhere: this boondoggle travels along the HSR right of way
in Miaoli for a kilometer and then dies. Brilliant.*
Sorry about the light blogging, but I am swamped with work.
Well, it's a new year, but same old politics. First, Clara Chou, the talk
show host who accused the President of getting under the table money, six
million US bucks worth, from the Ting Hsin Group, has been expelled from
the KMT. The TT reports:
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday denied media personality
Clara Chou (周玉蔻) a chance to present herself at the party’s Centra... more »
Echo Chambers
Just a passing thought about the BBC News website's busy *Echo Chambers *
blog.
It's strapline is "Blogging global opinion, clearly" and its "About this
Blog" mission statement reads:
Echo Chambers unscrambles the noise of the global debate, from social media
to scholarly journals, Kansas City to Kathmandu.
Well, let's just put it this way: You won't read much from Kathmandu at *Echo
Chambers. *It's Kansas City all the way, being almost entirely a blog about
the U.S.A.
It's strapline should, therefore, be changed to "Blogging U.S. opinion,
clearly" and its "About this Blog" missio... more »
Iraq / Syria Regional War ( January 1 , 2015 ) - Battlefield and political news of note touching on Iraq and Syria .....
Links.....
*Can ISIS Extend Current Momentum In 2015?*
*Shi'ite Militias Redraw the Map in Central Iraq*
*Jordan Stopped ISIS Airstrikes After Pilot's Capture*
*US Begins Training Recruits; 231 Killed Across Iraq*
Syria Rebels: Obama Administration Ignored Early Plan to Stop ISIS
Is ISIS Winning Battle for Islamic Radicals' Hearts and Minds?
British Woman Held Over Syria Terror Offenses
Tweets....
*Rudaw English* @RudawEnglish · 3h3 hours ago
Pictures of #Peshmerga-ISIS confrontations on New Year's Eve http://
fb.me/77n3ZkQ95
*Rudaw English* @RudawEnglish · 3h3 hours ago
#S... more »
Tugging at the heartstrings
Here's a well-made point from Biased BBC:
deegee
December 31, 2014 at 12:50 pm
[image: Child-with-flag.png]
The BBC ends the year as it intends to continue. Above is a screen grab
from the BBC News homepage (International edition). Surely this fails every
test for neutrality? The ‘brave’ child with the Palestinian flag
‘confronts’ armed Israeli soldiers. Tugs at your heartstrings.
Some might call that *child abuse* but in reality the child was in no
danger unless, of course, someone off camera decides to up the ante. I
would call it blatant propaganda.
UN Security Council rejects Pal... more »
Here's to 2015!
Well, here it is then, 2015. Hope it's a good one!
*****
BBC Radio 4 is beginning the year by paying handsome tribute to one of its
star presenters, James Naughtie.
In honour of his famously long and elaborate questions on *Today* - each
consisting of a minimum of six sentences, an-over-50-words-long main clause
and at least 30 subordinates clauses - the station is broadcasting a
day-long dramatisation of the book which the *Today* man's questions most
frequently bring to the listener's mind: Tolstoy's *War and Peace*.
*War and P*e*ace *is often said to have a conservative bias ... more »
Happy New Year!
A.D. 2014 has been a great year. First of all, my mother celebrated her
69th birthday on December 6th. In 2005, when she was 59, she went missing
for a week during Hurricane Katrina. When the storm hit, she was alone at
my sister’s house in Meraux, which filled with water in five minutes as […]
I Survived Another Happy New Year!
WNU Editor: Groannnn .... I am getting too old for this .... blogging will
resume when I wake up.
Cartoon For Today
*(Click on Image to Enlarge)*
Videos: The Strength of The Egyptian Military In Egyptian Politics And Its Controversial Reconciliation With Qatar
*"Supporters of Egypt's military chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi set fire to a
Qatari national flag during a demonstration outside the Qatari embassy in
Cairo on November 30, 2013 (AFP Photo/Mahmoud Khaled)" [Source: AFP,
"Egypt, Qatar plan reconciliation summit: diplomat" December 24, 2014].*
*Title: Mona El-Ghobashy on the Egyptian Military's Role in Curtailing
Democratization. Source: DU Center for Middle East Studies. Date Published:
September 21, 2014. Description:*
CMES Director Nader Hashemi sits down with Mona El-Ghobashy, former
Assistant Professor at Barnard College, to discus... more »
Johnny Palacios Hidalgo - natural surrealism - sublime
*Peruvian painter Johnny Palacios Hidalgo [1970] was born in Lima, Peru and
studied art between 1988-1998 in the National Art Museum and the National
School of Fine Arts.* [source TUTTART]
The only thing Free Planet can say about Johnny's work is, "Sublime."
Did President Obama Free A Nuclear Terrorist From Guantanamo?
*Photo:* Former Gitmo detainee Mohammad Zahir
*Frontpage Magazine:* *Obama Frees a Nuclear Terrorist*
*WNU Editor:* The 4 Guantanamo detainees who were recently released to
Afghanistan were let go on the recommendation of the Guantanamo Review Task
Force who deemed them .... "cleared for release." The implication is that
they had been "cleared" of any wrongdoing and their release is risk-free.
Apparently that is not true.
The Long War Journal did some digging and found a very different story .... *4
Gitmo detainees transferred to Afghanistan are veteran insurgents, files
allege*.... more »
Free Planet resolution - Pancakes Tomorrow - real life choices
*image from Bee Movie (2007)*"Pancakes Tomorrow," that's what I said last
night, and I meant it.
Pancakes, here in England, is not something one normally has for breakfast.
But last night I made the effort to 'make it happen'. I had the recipe, I
had the ingredients, I had the Canadian maple syrup. I had the intention to
make pancakes.
Well, I didn't. The wife did. She did all the work on this one. *Pancakes
Tomorrow* was her idea. But it was a revelation (and, by jove, they were
tasty) in the sense that it was one of those moments in life where you
go... a Road to Damascus moment... more »
Government austerity cuts are being carried out without thought or care. So say top civil servants with no axe to grind. What are you going to do about it in this General Election Year?
The
Welfare State was hard won by generations of Britons before us. It is
as much an inherited right as is the unearned income received by some
from their inherited property and financial assets.
Doubtless the Welfare State can be reformed and improved. However,
evidence from independent top civil servants shows government reforms of
the Welfare State are not driven by well considered
When Worlds Collide.
World-views anyway.
Here are two therapeutic handbooks, both widely used in psychological
counseling.
The first is
The Christian World View of Psychology and Counseling
www.reformation.net/COR_Docs/Christian_Worldview_Psychology.pdf
Mr. George C. Scipione, Th.M., M.A., Chairman
Dr. Lawrence Crabb, Ph.D., Co-Chairman
Dr. Ed Payne, M.D., Co-Chairman
With contributions by members of the Psychology and Counseling Committee of
The Coalition on Revival
Dr. Jay Grimstead, D.Min., General Editor
Mr. E. Calvin Beisner, M.A., Assistant to the General Editor
*6. Scientific MethodWe affi... more »
The Pentagon’s Top Ten New Year’s Resolutions
The Pentagon’s New Year’s Resolutions -- Time
You make them, I make them, we all make them…but few of us keep them. In
keeping with the seasonal delusion, let’s imagine our favorite world’s
biggest office building is a sensate creature, and suffered shortcomings
and regrets just like the 25,000 humans who toil there:
Read more ....
My Comment: This list is from 2012 .... but it is still appropriate for
today.
Five Most Popular Posts for December
Most read this last month were:
1. Top 100 Tweeting Politics Commentators 2014
2. *The Sun* vs Russell Brand
3. Man Haron Monis: It's Not About Islam
4. How Not to Start a Trending Topic
5. Market Socialism: Basic Ideas
No prizes for guessing that my annual link-baity list came tops in
December. *It does so every year*. And the rest speak for themselves.
As I'm a touch hung over from last night's festivities, I'll eschew the
usual rambling and leave it there.
CIA Admits That They Were Responsible For At Least HALF Of All UFO Sightings In The 1950's And 60's
#1 most read on our #Bestof2014 list: Reports of unusual activity in the
skies in the '50s? It was us. http://t.co/BKr81M5OUN (PDF 9.26MB)
— CIA (@CIA) December 29, 2014
*Daily Mail:* CIA says at least HALF of all UFO sightings in the 1950's and
60's were spy planes, NOT aliens
*WNU Editor*: OK .... so they were responsible for half .... what about the
other half?
*More News On The CIA Admitting That They Were Responsible For At Least
HALF Of All UFO Sightings In The 1950's And 60's*
CIA Behind UFO Sightings in 1950s and 1960s -- Newsweek
UFO or CIA? Agency takes credit for '50s ... more »
2015: International Year of Light and Soils
*Man's evolving understanding of light*
Welcome to the year 2015 = MMXV = 13*5*31 (it took me a minute to write the
product in this nicely symmetric way). Hours ago, my hometown of Pilsen
(along with Mons, Belgium) became the European Capital of Culture. One of
the minor advantages is that whatever I will write on this blog in this
year will automatically become the official opinion of the European Union.
I could talk for hours about every place shown in this video. For example,
around 2:34-2:36, you see the spot where I enjoyed a collision with a big
dog in the summer. ;-) Big ce... more »
End of year notes
Well, this past year was certainly eventful. Some ups, some downs, some
progress, some setbacks, all of which is to be expected as we continue on
this journey. I'd like to close out 2014 with the following blog post which
will give readers some updates and include some final thoughts for the year
from yours truly. I'll keep this brief.
*First of all*, I am not hosting a radio program at the moment, obviously.
I simply do not have the time in my schedule right now. Also, I've felt a
bit fatigued lately. I just don't have the passion and energy at the
moment, and haven't for at least ... more »
Watch A Stunning Video Of Jets Being Launched From A U.S. Aircraft Carrier
*Business Insider/The Aviationist*:* Stunning GoPro Footage Brings You
Aboard An Aircraft Carrier During Fighter Launches*
*WNU Editor:* When we see airplanes on carriers .... it is usually from the
pilot's perspective. This one is different .... it is from the perspective
of the crew that prepares the jet for its launch.
From *YouTube*: The Catapult Topside Petty Officer's job is to ensure the
safety of all personnel on the flight deck during launching operations, and
to ensure the proper hook-up of the aircraft to the catapult. The video
starts with about one minute until launch... more »
2015 A Pivot Year.
Another year is upon us and in the midst of all the turmoil out there, i
think it is appropriate to make a few important predictions. Quite
honestly the pivot has already occured with the abrupt decline in the price
of oil from $95 to $50. Most expect a recovery. Do not count on it.
Better yet, organize your life to accommodate the removal of oil from all
our lives. Simple mass manufacturing can displace every oil based engine
inside of five years.
There is nothing we do on Earth that is more capable of changing how we all
live than the removal of the oil industry that pre... more »
Harvard Study: This is What Meditation Literally Does to the Brain
Good advice here also. It is really easier than most make it into. we
need to step back and not stress the mind. That is how it really works
best.
What we continue to show is that the process of relaxation and *intention *guides
the brain to enhance itself beneficially. I see no reason to describe this
process any other way. Intent is the one factor that everyone has left out
yet is is obvious.
Intend to become smart and voila, it occurs.
A physical assist is also available by hanging a northward pointing magnet
around your throat to stimulate the pineal g... more »
Problems Continue With The F-35. Program May Be Delayed For Four More Years!
Reuters
*Daily Beast (Dave Majumdar)*: *New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun
Until 2019 *
*WNU Editor*: Apparently the software is 4 years behind!?!?!?! And while
the F-35 will still be armed with missiles, its 25 mm cannon will not be
functional?!?!?! So much for the advocates of this program who have been
stating repeatedly that the F-35 is the *plane of the future for protecting
ground troops .... not the A-10*. More at this link .... *The Air Force's
Rationale For Retiring The A-10 Warthog Is Bullshit* (Fox Trot Alpha).
*More News On The F-35 Program's Problem In Not being ... more »
North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un Says He Is Open To High Level Talks With South Korea
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un guides the multiple-rocket launching drill
of women's sub-units under KPA Unit 851, in this undated photo released by
North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang December 30,
2014. Credit: Reuters/KCNA
*Bloomberg*: *Kim Jong Un Says Open to ‘Highest-Level’ Talks With South
Korea*
*WNU Editor:* This is not the first time that the two Koreas have gone down
this road. If the past is any indication .... my advice will be to not be
optimistic.
*More News On North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un Saying He Is Open To High
Level Talks With South... more »
Happy New Year 2015
*WNU Editor*: Wishing everyone a Happy New Year! And my prediction for the
new year is a simple one .... it is going to be an interesting 2015.
Lying Liars Still In Charge (Don't Ask - It's Really A Little Bit Late for the Citizens To Get Incensed) But Some Are Trying To Shine A Light
Happy Birthday, Patti Smith! 2015 will ring in either the wake-up call
we've all been awaiting since the election of our non-progressive nightmare
in 2008 or it will be the final death knell of representative democracy in
the United States of America. And there is nothing that can be done about
it. (If a largely turned-off or apathetic out of political PTSD population
doesn't get involved
The Next Generation Of NYPD Looks To Be About As Rotten As The Current One
Over the past few days we talked about the corrupting nature of the culture
of policing-- from the perspective of victims and from the perspective of good
apple police officers who were sickened by the entire filthy enterprise. By
now, everyone has read about the spoiled brat attitude the police took in
turning their backs on Mayor De Blasio last Saturday at the funeral of
slain policeman Rafael Ramos. Monday, De Blasio spoke at Madison Square
Garden at the graduation ceremonies for 884 new police officers from the
city's Police Academy. The assholes booed and heckled him, while h... more »
Celebrity Deaths 2014 (Video)
*WNU Editor:* I know that this video has nothing to do with wars and
conflicts .... but culture and entertainment does have an impact on all of
our lives .... and this is that one time in the year that this blog
acknowledges it.
Happy New Year To All Of My Readers
I have been laid up, so to speak, for the last few days with one heck of a
cold... But I am a stubborn and persistent blogger, and I want to send this
message off to everyone...
Happy New Year to all of my readers.... I am truly crossing my fingers that
this year will be one of good fortune for everyone.... But with the Jews
and their plans to implode the entire world economy this year, it could be
one of hardship and uncertainty....
Again, let us all hope for the best for this coming year... But always be
prepared for the worst!
More to come
NTS
RT Wraps Up The Events That Shaped 2014 (Video)
*WNU Editor: *A link to even more videos from RT on the events that shaped
2014 *are here*.
Site C Dam Not Required, British Columbia Could Save $15 Billion Dollars
That`s my answer to all provincial political parties, I would never give
money to the corrupt BC Liberal Government or party, the Greens are not a
political force as of yet and the BC NDP is lost in the wilderness,
although that hasn`t stopped them from sending me at least 300 emails in
the last two months asking for money...Requests coming in Carole James,
David Eby, John Horgan`s name and a dozen others, plus continual asks from
the Federal side of the NDP party for casholla....
*The answer is HELL NO...!*
To be perfectly clear, Thomas Mulcair squandered Jack Layton`s foot in t... more »
Sandra Rambler 'Born and Die Apache'
By
Sandra Rambler, San Carlos Apache
Traditionally Speaking
Photo Jennifer Johnson
Apache Messenger
"The words of our ancestors still hold true today, 'You
are born an Apache! You will die as an Apache! Don’t ever act like the
White Man—the enemy!'"
How do you respond to a White Man whose name is Paul Gosar,
an Arizona Congressman who recently said, “
The Tender Carnivore
Paul Shepard was an animal with a PhD who made the astonishing discovery
that he really was an animal, and so was everyone else. This sort of
thinking makes us sweaty and nervous, because we prefer to believe that we
are the creator’s masterpiece — not the cousins of disgusting baboons and
orangutans. It’s insulting to call someone’s kid a cute animal.
Two-legged primates evolved as hunters and gatherers in healthy wild
habitats, living in groups of a dozen or so. These highly intelligent
animals were perfectly at home in natural surroundings, but today’s
two-legs are overwhelme... more »
The 50 Most Unforgettable Photos Of 2014
In June, ISIS took over the Iraqi city of Mosul. Kurdish peshmerga fighters
have led the fight against ISIS in Iraq. Here, a fighter held a grenade
launcher overlooking the edge of Mosul in September.
*WNU Editor:* The link to these 50 photos* is here*.
*Update: *Photographers Reveal The Stories Behind 2014's Most Powerful
Pictures (Business Insider).
"Party Like It's 1969!"; plus five New Year's wishes
*AMC sez, "Party Like It's 1969":* *This is no ordinary New Year's
libation. It's the Mad Men Champagne Cocktail.*
*by Ken*
From the folks at Mad Men Social Club (links onsite):
*The Mad Men Cocktail Guide: Party Like It's 1969!*
Want to make this evening's New Year's Eve bash a memorable one? Ditch the
pedestrian champagne flutes and mix things up with the *Mad Men* Cocktail
Guide. From Gimlets to Greyhounds, Mai Tais to Manhattans, you'll find
inspiration, ingredients, and instructions that'll have you ready for a
midnight toast to remember all year long. So when it's time to be... more »
U.S. Department of Defense: 2014 Year In Photos
U.S. special forces soldiers provide security while an Afghan special
forces soldier directs other Afghan soldiers during a firefight with
insurgents in the Gelan district in Afghanistan's Ghazni province, Feb. 8,
2014. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. David Devich
*WNU Editor*: The link to this impressive photo gallery *is here.*
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year, folks!
Wishing you the very best in 2015, and thank you all for stopping by!
Dec. 31: "Tomorrow, and tomorrow and tomorrow"
"Creeps in this petty pace from day to day
To the last syllable of recorded time;"
The lines above are proof that William Shakespeare must have read the
Irving press every day. That is probably why he became aware of creeping
in this petty pace.
The editorial advises us to "..reflect on 2014'. But the reflection is
pretty narrow, strictly local, stuff. The whole thing is really just
staring at the editor's unattractive belly button. Its closing advice is to
start a new slate to find solutions to issues. How's that for thoughtful
and precise advice?
And we all know that if anybod... more »
The White House Releases 'Best Photos Of 2014'
"The President sits for a 3D portrait being produced by the Smithsonian
Institution. There were so many cameras and strobe lights flashing but the
end result was kind of cool. See the video at here."
(Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
*WNU Editor:* The White House link *is here*.
*Update #1:* From President Obama's emotional embrace with an Ebola
survivor to the First Lady's trip to China with her daughters: The White
House releases best photos of 2014 -- Daily Mail
*Update #2:* Bill Murray, Corvettes, and 3D portraits: these are the White
House's photos of the year -- The ... more »
NY Theater
My family and I have spent the past several days in New York City enjoying
some theater (and fine dining). We much enjoyed *A Gentleman's Guide to
Love and Murder*. But the revival of *Cabaret* with Emma Stone as Sally
Bowles and Alan Cumming as the Emcee was amazing. It is open only for a few
more months. I strongly recommend you see it if you can.
The Verge 50: The Most Important People Of 2014 (Video)
*WNU Editor:* A non-political/non-business list of the top 50 for 2014.
A Look At Some Of The Top Stories Of 2014
*Top News Stories For 2014*
World in 2014: the stories of the year -- The Telegraph
The Top 5 Events of 2014 -- George Friedman, Stratfor
Year in Review: The Top Stories of 2014 -- NBC
2014 Year in Review: The Events That Shaped a Turbulent Year -- Wall Street
Journal
Top International Stories of the Year 2014 -- Chosun Ilbo
2014: not such a bad year after all -- The Guardian
What (not) to look forward to in 2015: ISIS, life on Mars, Europe's mood --
Tim Lister, CNN
Here are the top military stories on Checkpoint in 2014 -- Washington Post
Stripes.com's top 10 most read stories... more »
man's failure
All war
is a symptom
of man's failure
as a thinking animal.
John Steinbeck
Musical Interlude: 2002, “Falling Through Time”
2002, “Falling Through Time”
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xn5SjXaxc74
"A Look to the Heavens"
“Drifting through the one-horned constellation Monoceros, these dusty
streamers and new born stars are part of the active Monoceros R2
star-forming region, embedded in a giant molecular cloud. The cosmic scene
was recorded by the VISTA survey telescope in near-infrared light. Visible
light images show dusty NGC 2170, seen here just right of center, as a
complex of bluish reflection nebulae.
*Click image for larger size.*
But this penetrating near-infrared view reveals telltale signs of ongoing
star formation and massive young stars otherwise hidden by the dust.
Energetic winds and r... more »
The Poet: John Gillespie Magee, Jr., "High Flight"
*"High Flight"*
"Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of — wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,
I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air...
Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue
I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace.
Where never lark, or even eagle flew —
And, while with silent lifting mind I have t... more »
"Pass It On..."
"Have you had a kindness shown? Pass it on;
'Twas not given for thee alone, Pass it on;
Let it travel down the years,
Let it wipe another's tears.
Pass it on."
- Rev. Henry Burton
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