English: some of the sights in the city of homs, Syria. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Khaled EbnEl-Walid is an Arabic Hero. He was a grat leader of Muslems in their old battles. The Mosque in Homs/Syria is the place of his buried body. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: Road sign in Syria indicating directions for Homs, Palmyra and Iraq Français : Panneau routier en Syrie indiquant la direction de Homs, de Palmyre et de l'Irak (Photo credit: Wikipedia)Wise Egyptian TV Host Puts Bigoted Sectarian On His Ass (Source: MEMRI TV)
Video Title: TV Host Slams Head of Egyptian Community in Paris for Anti-Christian Remarks. Source: MEMRI TV. Date Published: May 4, 2014. In the video below, an Egyptian TV host speaks with a bigoted sectarian named Saleh Farhoud, an Egyptian living in Paris who made the statement that only a Muslim should be head of the treasury in Egypt, and that Christians should be banned from the position, giving no specific reason why. The TV host put the religious bigot on his ass directly on the spot and the clown hanged up. Egypt is a country with deep Christian roots, so this is a socially... more »
Are there "liberal" and "conservative" views on pain that correlate with liberal and conservative views on other stuff?
*"Pain is the most vivid experience we can never quite describe, returning us to the wordless misery of infancy."* *-- Melanie Thernstrom, in The Pain Chronicles* *by Ken* So you've had a great weekend, right? And you're just rarin' to get back to the workplace tomorrow for another week of stimulating and productive and of course generously compensated labor, right? What better time could there be for some seriously jolly chat about *pain*? I think it's a subject that's likely to be of interest to just about everybody, and when two people with both serious interest and serious cr... more »
Tasha Hussey Body - #Review and #Giveaway
I recently had the good fortune to try out some great body care products by Tasha Hussey Body. [image: Tasha Hussey Body - Review and Giveaway]*Eucalyptus Mint Body Butter* [image: Tasha Hussey Body - Review and Giveaway]*Eucalyptus Mint Loofah Soap* One of the things that I enjoy about doing reviews is getting to know the people behind the products. Tasha Hussey, who studied Fashion Design, had a clothing line for 12 years. Each item was made from natural or organic fibers. Currently, she has a line of Vintage re-purposed jewelry. Old focal pieces, some of which have been sittin... more »
METRO UPDATE | Roger Baker : The continuing Texas drought crisis
By Roger Baker | The Rag Blog | May 4, 2014 Roger Baker’s three-part Rag Blog series, “Can Austin survive the current Texas drought,” garnered much attention and was reposted widely, including by the highly-influential Resilience.org. Roger wrote the following … finish reading *METRO UPDATE* | Roger Baker : The continuing Texas drought crisis
War Watch May 4 , 2014 -- Syria in focus ........Rebel infighting ( this time the fighting seems centered around Syria's oil fields ) kills 62 fighters and force thousands to flee their homes in East Syria , Homs ceasefire holds for a second day as Rebel fighters prepare to leave their symbolic stronghold of Homs ( Syria Government slowly but surely retaking land held by the Rebels ) ...... Iraq Updates - Post election and while awaiting the results , the daily death dealing continues ....... Libya Updates - Still awaiting the next Prime Minister ( GNC unable to agree in its morning session on PM ) ........ Heavy fighting between Ansar Al- Sharia and Saiqa Special Forces in Benghazi
Catharsis Ours - 1 hour ago
Al Jazeera...... Aleppo next after the fall of Homs ? Report: Thousands flee Syria rebel clashes UK-based rights group says fighting between rival rebel groups have displaced 60,000 people in Deir Ezzor province. Last updated: 04 May 2014 13:22 [image: Listen to this page using ReadSpeaker] [image: Email Article] [image: Print Article] [image: Share article] [image: Send Feedback] The fighting comes as rebels agreed a deal with the Syrian government to withdraw from Homs [AP] At least 60,000 people have fled towns in the Deir Ezzor province in eastern Syria which has been the scene... more »
The southern and eastern parts of Ukraine used to belong to Russia for 400 years and were given to Ukraine by Lenin and Krushtev back when they were all part of the Soviet Union. Part of the agreement was that 16,000 Russian troops would remain in Crimea until 2040. Because most Crimeans are Russian speaking, they will surely support the Russian troops against the muderous goons of the west paid by the U.S. In the meantime the armed forces of Ukraine and Russia are disinclined fight each other.
------------------------------ *On the ground in the Ukraine* *What the occupation looked like in March* *A report from Simon Ostrovsky of Vice * I like VICE. They actually go places and show you what they look like and talk to real people. The Lame Stream news media could learn a few lessons. This footage is from March. We'll be showing more recent footage in future broadcasts. In this case, Russian civilians and Russian military units have just surrounded the Ukraine's Naval High Command in Sevastopol. They're blocking all the entrances and exists and the base is essential... more »
Randi to the Barricades Once More
Randi Weingarten was donning her rain gear today as she protested a meeting of Democrats for Education Reform (DFER) and the profiteering loser swine who get rich through corporate welfare privatizing strategies. Randi's dramatic photos and angry shouts would be much more compelling if AFT did not support and enable the primary corporate strategies that all the DFER guys were discussing today indoors in the dry. I speak of course of AFT's unrelenting support for Common Core and their long-standing embrace of the most numerous and diabolical charter school variety: the non-profit c... more »
KNOWING THE PLAYERS IN UKRAINE
In this video former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Timoshenko says, "I want to say big thanks to all who came and fight in Odessa for our Ukraine. Also I want to tell that all military action that will be released in nearest future will be against any mass meeting of people." In a leaked phone call on March 18 with Nestor Shufrych, former deputy secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, Tymoshenko said, "It's about time we grabbed our guns and killed those damn Russians together with their leader.""I hope I will be able to get all my connections involve... more »
A critical review of the National September 11 Memorial & Museum
Last Saturday, I arrived at La Guardia airport about 5pm Eastern time from San Diego to begin my 3 day, 4 night vacation in New York City. It was a much needed vacation - the first personal vacation I've had in quite a long time. I've been to New York City before, however, it had been about 7 or 8 years since the last time I visited. And it was a very nice, enjoyable visit, despite the cold, rainy weather the last day I was in town. As you probably noticed, I haven't been doing much blogging, and I wasn't able to host any radio programs this past week due to my trip. I will be back ... more »
The Myth of the Non-Profit Charter School
The AFT, NEA, and all their non-profit corporate hangers-on attempt to minimize their support for the total compliance segregated charter chain gangs by trying to distinguish between the "bad" for-profit charters and the "good" and the more numerous non-profit variety. There are 2 principle reasons this distinction is as phony as the idea that Dennis and Randi support the interests of teachers: 1) Many "non-profit" charters pay for-profit management companies to run them: How does it work? A non-profit group decides to form a charter school, submits its charter to the state, and... more »
“State Of Surveillance: Police, Privacy and Technology”
*“State Of Surveillance: Police, Privacy and Technology”* LA County Sheriff Admits Big Brother Is Here "But We Kept It Pretty Hush Hush" by "This is the future if nothing is done to stop it," is the ominous way The Atlantic describes the recent Big Brother tactics used by LA County Sheriffs to "police" areas such as Compton. Residents were unaware ("A lot of people do have a problem with the eye in the sky, the Big Brother, so to mitigate those kinds of complaints we basically kept it pretty hush hush")that, as the police stated, "we literally watched all of Compton during the time... more »
“It’s poverty stupid!”
What follows below is nothing original. It’s simply another reminder. I know this is an unpopular thing to say in certain education circles but someone has to say it: Common Core State Standards and the Smarter Balanced Assessments will do little to nothing to help eliminate the achievement gap! Why? Because the achievement gap is really […]
America Would Be SO Much Better Off Without Them
This week, Harry Reid says he's bringing the Energy Savings and Industrial and Competitiveness Act (S. 2262), sponsored by Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Rob Portman (R-OH) to the floor for a vote. Support for a bill that should be the height of uncontroversial is widespread... on both sides of the aisle. But Republican obstructionists, content with nothing less than the complete disruption of an orderly functioning of government have vowed to prevent passage. The obstructionists, led by extremists like Ted Cruz, Mitch McConnell, Mike Lee and the Southerners, still refuse to recognize ... more »
Kyle Bass discusses global risks and opportunities - presentation and video- great Q & A session ) .......proceed with caution !
China data a good lead in ...... China Manufacturing PMI Misses 6th Month In A Row As Home Sales Collapse 47% YoY [image: Tyler Durden's picture] Submitted by Tyler Durden on 05/04/2014 22:01 -0400 - China - Markit - Shenzhen inShare *For the 6th month in a row, China HSBC Manufacturing PMI missed expectations*. With a 48.1 print for April (vs 48.3 flash) this is a very modest rise from March's 48.0 but is the *4th month in a row of contraction* for the broader-based HSBC-version of the PMI *(as opposed to the official more-SOE-biased version which ... more »
Thomas Piketty’s Improbable Data
*Thomas Piketty has written a popular economics book. In 1936, a difficult-to-read academic book appeared that seemed to tell politicians they could do what they wanted. This was Keynes’s General Theory. Following on from an earlier Guest Post, Hunter Lewis argues that while **Piketty has been praised for his data collection, there are problems*. Keynes’s keynote book, *The General Theory*, is loaded with economic theory. There are only two pages of data in that book, and Keynes dismisses the scant data he cites as “improbable.” By contrast, Piketty’s new book, *Capital in the Twe... more »
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*Well there ain’t no time to wonder why, whoopie! we’re all gonna die ~Moosedenied*
The Getaway - BY SEYMOUR M. HERSH
ANNALS OF NATIONAL SECURITYTHE GETAWAYQuestions surround a secret Pakistani airlift.BY SEYMOUR M. HERSHJANUARY 28, 2002 - In Afghanistan last November, the Northern Alliance, supported by American Special Forces troops and emboldened by the highly accurate American bombing, forced thousands of Taliban and Al Qaeda fighters to retreat inside the northern hill town of Kunduz. Trapped with them were Pakistani Army officers, intelligence advisers, and volunteers who were fighting alongside the Taliban. (Pakistan had been the Taliban’s staunchest military and economic supporter i... more »
18+1 Questions for Mayors and Minister’s Blocking Christchurch’s Redevelopment
The oafish Gerry Brownlee is in denial about the disaster being made of Christchurch by his government’s top-down authoritarian management of the city’s (non) re-development. The latest entrepreneurs to confirm there is nothing in the central city worth moving to is The Enterprise Precinct Innovation Centre (Epic), who are moving out, “saying delays and overpriced land make the project infeasible.” EPIC (Enterprise Precinct Innovation Centre) co-founder Colin Anderson says the group has scuttled plans for an inner-city innovation "village" to house more than 50 small businesses. ... more »
It's Hitler.....Hurry up Americans and Intervene
Maybe you recall this tidbit of information? *- Social conditioning at work:* Mentioning Hitler makes Americans more willing to intervene in Ukraine- Contained in this previous post -Here "Mentioning Hitler makes Americans more willing to intervene in Ukraine" Only 21% of those asked in the conventional way favored U.S. involvement in the Ukraine. When this question was preceded by the questions about appeasement and comparing Putin to Hitler, support for U.S. involvement rose to 29%. It didn’t change the overall result — a majority of Americans still oppose getting involved in... more »
Watt's Jury Instructions: WITNESSES OF UNSAVOURY CHARACTER (VETROVEC WARNING)
[1] (NOW) testified for the Crown. There is a special instruction that has to do with his/her evidence. It is an instruction that you must keep foremost in your mind when you are considering how much or little you will believe of or rely upon his/her evidence in making your decision in this case. [2] You have heard that (specify characteristics of witness or other circumstances that require evidence to be treated with caution). [3] Common sense tells you that, in light of these circumstances, there is good reason to look at(NOW)'s evidence with the greatest care ... more »
"How do you define American?" Jose Antonio Vargas -- speaking for many other undocumented Americans -- asks us to think about it
*"Not Legal, Not Leaving"* A year after coming out about my undocumented status in the New York Times Magazine, I wrote an essay for TIME magazine—this time, addressing provocative questions that everyday Americans around the country, from Alabama to Arizona, have asked me. "Why haven’t you gotten deported?" That’s usually the first thing people ask me when they learn I’m an undocumented immigrant or, put more rudely, an “illegal.” Some ask it with anger or frustration, others with genuine bafflement. At a restaurant in Birmingham, not far from the University of Alabama, an ineb... more »
Lamar W. Hankins : The dishonesty of Clemson and its football coach
Not only does coach Dabo Swinney use his personal Christian beliefs to recruit, he also uses religion to manipulate, control, and motivate his players. By Lamar W. Hankins | The Rag Blog | May 4, 2014 For the last half-century, … finish reading Lamar W. Hankins : The dishonesty of Clemson and its football coach
New Blogs March - May 2014
For the few that care about such things, the new blog round-up hasn't gone away. It was resting. And if you glance at the wee list below, you can see why. There seems precious little in the way of new start ups emerging into what we used to call the blogosphere. Perhaps I've been out of circulation a bit and haven't happened upon the newbies, or could it be this is sign of a coming crisis in political blogging? Have all the established bloggers who've made it into official punditry kicked down the ladder that got them to the top, thereby thwarting the ambitions of would-be writers? T... more »
Fukushima Updates - great video from HexaMedia gives perspective on the devastation more than three years post - tsunami / earthquake / nuclear disasters........ Recent items of note from Energy News and Simply Info ........
Perspective......... Daily Mail......... Fukushima, the aftermath: Eerie drone footage reveals the apocalyptic wasteland of Japan's abandoned east coast - - - - *The footage was taken by Tokyo-based multicopter firm HEXaMedia* - - *During the video, the drone soars over the region’s barren landscapes* - - *Many of these areas are said to be covered in radioactive soil* - - *It travels over the coast capturing destruction caused by the 2011 tsunami* - - *This was triggered by the 9.0 Tohoku earthquake and led to the meltdown of Fukushima's nuclear react... more »
Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 Mystery May 3 , 2014 --- Eleven terrorists with links to Al Qaeda have been " arrested " ( brought in for questioning ) on suspicion of being involved in the disappearance of MH370 ???? Has it come down to blaming Al Qaeda ? Takeaway -- Eleven terrorists with links to Al Qaeda have been arrested on suspicion of being involved in the disappearance of MH370 ...... And another mystery ( not the unexplained editing of the recorded conversations between the pilots and air trafic controllers ) but rather the cargo.......Circus over and families told to leave Hotel .......
Catharsis Ours - 10 hours ago
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2619388/What-havent-told-cargo-MH370-Mystery-deepens-missing-flight-claims-loaded-2-3tonnes-items-not-listed-manifest.html Eleven terrorists with links to Al Qaeda have been arrested on suspicion of being involved in the disappearance of MH370 - *Suspects were arrested in the capital Kuala Lumpur and the state of Kedah* - - *Said to members of violent new terror group said to be planning attacks* - - *Interrogations came after demands from agencies including FBI and MI6 * - - *Manifest revealed presence of consignment but did ... more »
Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 Mystery Day 56 May 3 , 2014 --- ( From New Straits Times ) MAS requests media not to expose amount of compensation ..... Police have no plan to reveal findings of investigations now ....... Signals based on aircraft projection: MAS ......... ( From Malaysia Chronicle ) -- MH370: The more they say they have nothing to hide, the more THE WORLD DOUBTS M'SIA ........ WHAT'S GOING ON! M'sia suddenly reveals data from MH370 pilot’s flight simulator still UNRETRIEVED .......
Catharsis Ours - 11 hours ago
Zero Hedge ....... Voice Recording From Missing Flight MH370 Was Edited [image: Tyler Durden's picture] Submitted by Tyler Durden on 05/03/2014 12:15 -0400 - Boeing - NBC inShare It has been nearly two months since Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 disappeared without a trace on March 8. Since then, despite the endless coverage of CNN, there has been absolutely no progress in uncovering any clues about the fate of the missing Boeing 777. Perhaps the following may provide some clarity on why. On Thursday, for the first time, 7 minutes of audio recordings of the final co... more »
Here's looking at you, kid
Nine out of 12 big telecoms in Canada deigned to reply to Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart with info about their disclosure of customer info to law enforcement in 2011 - Law enforcement agencies made 1,193,630 requests for subscriber data in 2011 - Or, one request every 27 seconds - Three telecom providers alone disclosed information from 785,000 customer accounts - If each request had been for a different subscriber, that would work out to* one in every 28 Canadians including babies* - In 2010, 94% of RCMP requests for name and address were made without ... more »
Blue Dog Kurt Schrader Deserves To Lose His May 20th Primary
More Democrats who act like Republicans? No way! I was at a political fundraiser for Alan Grayson on Friday evening. Among the speakers besides Grayson were NYC Congressmembers Charlie Rangel, Carolyn Maloney, Eliot Engel and Yvette Clarke as well as progressive candidates Rob Zerban (D-WI) and Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ). Among other topics, Grayson talked about how Democrats can't win elections by acting like Republicans, something he's expounded on frequently in the past-- like in this classic video-- and something that flies in the face of DCCC conventional wisdom. Steve Israel... more »
garden of earthly delights
the garden of earthly delights
Teacher Vows to End the Madness
Posted at WaPo: *By Ralph Ratto* *Today was the first day I was ever ashamed to be a teacher.* *Today I finished administering the sixth day of New York State Common Core assessments. I was a facilitator in a process that made my 10-year-old students struggle, to the point of frustration, to complete yet another 90-minute test. * *I sat by as I watched my students attempt to answer questions today that were beyond their abilities. I knew the test booklets I put in front of them contained questions that were written in a way that 95 percent of them had no chance of solving. I even t... more »
Very Sad News
A friend at the University of Chicago reports to me that Gary Becker died last night. He was 83. Gary was one of the greatest economists of the past half century. You can read about his contributions here. I did not know him well, but based on every interaction I had with him, it seems that he was a truly nice man as well as a path-breaking scholar. He will be missed.
BAITING THE RUSSIAN BEAR (CONTINUED...)
I am as distressed as I’ve ever been having watched a 24 minute video yesterday from Odessa, Ukraine as fascist Right Sector thugs set fire to a union hall where unarmed anti-Kiev protesters had taken refuge. You can see the video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVXm9nnY-AQ You have to be patient watching the video because it is obvious that a lot of the time the photographer was trying to be discreet as he filmed the pro-western nationalists attacking the people inside the union hall. At one point the photographer runs around to the backside of the building and films police auth... more »
We’ve got your bad explanation right here! (Not really all that wonky)
*SUNDAY, MAY 4, 2014* *In search of GodelThink:* Kurt Godel is one of the greats, or so you’ll routinely be told. The leading authority on his work says it went something like this: Kurt Friedrich Gödel (1906-1978) was an Austrian, and later American, logician, mathematician, and philosopher. *Considered with Aristotle and Gottlob Frege to be one of the most significant logicians in history, Gödel made an immense impact upon scientific and philosophical thinking in the 20th century,* a time when others such as Bertrand Russell, A. N. Whitehead, and David Hilbert were pioneering the... more »
Astra successfully test-fired from Sukhoi-30 MKI
[image: Astra BVAMRAAM]Astra, India's first indigenously developed Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air missile was successfully test-fired from a Sukhoi-30 MKI at a naval range in the Western Sector, marking a major step in missile-aircraft integration. The test-firing met all the mission objectives and the air-launch was captured by side and forward looking high-speed cameras and the separation was exactly as per simulation, according to a press release from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Congratulating the team, Avinash Chander, Sceintific Advisor to th... more »
Northerntruthseeker Rant For Sunday, May 4th, 2014
Yes, it is Sunday.... And it is time for me to take what I see from the liars in the mainstream media and all other bullcrap we have been told for the last while and tear it to pieces... First, and again, I have a real hard time in figuring out people and all their misconceptions about what is really going on in the Ukraine... The liars and sacks of goo in our media and government are continuing their propaganda bull crap and calling those in the Ukraine that seek peaceful referendums and their rights under international law to secede from Ukraine and join Russia, "rebels"..... All ... more »
Celebrities, Thank You, But…
Celebrities, Thank You, But…. via Celebrities, Thank You, But….Filed under: PAUL THOMAS: Becoming Radical
Mike's Story Part 13: Amateur Shrink Gone Wild
*By **Jenna** Orkin* If cities had the equivalent of national pastimes, New York's would be psychotherapy. While no match for Woody Allen, I've put in my share of time in therapists' offices and been grateful for what one or two of them had to offer; (the others ranged from indifferent to dishonest to insane themselves.) A well-known side-effect of such therapy is an eagerness to put one's newly acquired knowledge to use with, or on, friends, acquaintances and anyone else who asks. Mike was fertile ground for this amateur "shrink*age,*" as a friend who's an actual Clinical Psycho... more »
70% Of Employers Think Your Social Media Posts Are Their Business
A well-respected management-side firm (and sometimes opposing counsel of mine, I should add), Proskauer, released a study they did on social media this week, and I found it quite disturbing from the employee-side point of view. Their key finding: While nearly 90 percent of companies use social media for business purposes and almost half allow employees to use social media for non-business activities, more than 70 percent of employers report having to take disciplinary action against employees for misuse (a significant uptick from 35 percent in 2012). While the management-side fir... more »
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*Meet Save Lake Peigneur, Inc.* *Stephanie Grace: Pipeline bill has complicated politics* *Questions surround legal case of Marigny homeowner involved in shooting ~WVUE* *Drones deployed over disaster zones raise concerns at FAA ~Mark Strassman, CBS* *Jazz Fest Preview: Glen David Andrews Thinks Big ~My Spilt Milk*
Steve Israel Cedes Another Swing District To The Republicans Without A Fight-- This Time In Florida
Do you want to be in a party where corrupt scumbags like this call the shots? Rahm Emanuel loved recruiting Republicans to run for Congress as Democrats-- Republicans who would then join the Blue Dogs and New Dems and vote with the GOP on crucial legislation... until voters wised up and defeated them. Steve Israel, a pale shadow of Emanuel, likes doing that even more. And he just did it again. After losing Alex Sink the FL-13 special election to a corrupt, unknown K Street lobbyist, David Jolly, Israel tried recruiting self funder and ex-Wall Street bankster, Joel Cantor, who lives ... more »
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*Catholic School Celebrates 'Year of Lady Gaga'* *Buyer beware those promising a "Catholic education."* Saint Mary's Institute is the Catholic grade school in my wife's New York hometown, Amsterdam. It is affiliated with Saint Mary's Catholic Church, whose pastor Rev. John Medwid pens the opening to the Saint Mary's Institute annual newsletter. "In September at the opening Mass I officially announced that this was going to be the Year of Our Lady at SMI," the letter began. How nice. Except that's not what he wrote. There was someone else he had in mind to honor besides the Virgin... more »
Things Could Get Very Nasty
Kathleen Wynne has three opponents in Ontario's election -- Tim Hudak, Andrea Horwath and Stephen Harper. Her budget represents everything that Harper abhors -- government spending to stimulate the economy, an expanded pension plan and higher taxes on the wealthy. Mr. Harper immediately dismissed the Ontario Pension Plan. And, yesterday, Joe Oliver told Evan Solomon that Wynne's budget was "the route to economic decline, not the route to economic growth or job creation." Wynne is a threat to Harper because Ontario's provincial and federal ridings are congruent. Mike Harris engin... more »
Typical Elements of the “Hero’s Journey” Found in the Ituzaingó CE-3 (1985)
*Typical Elements of the “Hero’s Journey” Found in the Ituzaingó CE-3 (1985)* *By Andrés Salvador* (Appeared originally in Alternativa OVNI, April 2014 No.4) *In all of these cases, the presence of “Aliens”, catalogued as dependent upon, equal to or superior to humans, always takes place with a process of humanization, to the extent that the aberrant ethnography brought about by a variety of alien figure, turns in to a true and correct reservoir of typically human symbols and characters*. - Francisco Ferrini, *Que es verdaderamente ciencia ficción* This paper seeks to establish ... more »
Where adders and wild haggis live side by side
Brickbats down, bouquets out: I thought this morning's *The Living World* was wonderful. It dealt with the unexpected topic of adders living along the shoreline of Loch Lomond, and did so by having an enthusiastic presenter, Trai Anfield, guided around by a very engaging expert, Chris McInerny. There was no background music. There wasn't even a mention of climate change. Bliss. As they say in all enthusiastic radio reviews, 'I was enthralled', and I learned a lot. (I'm resisting all urges to write a pun-based joke about 'slippery adders', 'bonnie banks' and the Royal Bank of S... more »
Something understood...about nationalism
I remember, many moons ago, how bad a reputation the word 'nationalism' had back in my student days (in the 1980s). Everyone agreed [or felt obliged to agree] that nationalism was a 'bad thing', and that its polar opposite - internationalism - was a 'good thing'. (There were universities at the time that contained Young Conservatives, but not mine). 'Patriotism' was a silly concept only held by 'fascists'. The 'nation state' was 'an outdated construct'. Of course, when some mischievous soul moved the discussion away from British or European or East Asian or American nationalism [s... more »
ECFA's Early Harvest Toll on Taiwan
*After the rain, I went to get some pics.* Commonwealth scores with another great piece on the ECFA early harvest list (kudos also to the translator for a very readable translation, all their translators are great). Another failed policy, which goes a long way toward explaining the widespread public opposition to the services pact. This piece is based on Chinese export data obtained by the magazine. Commonwealth notes: On the surface, since coming into effect in 2011 Taiwan's exports of items to China on the early harvest list have grown by a *sizable 35 percent, outpacing overal... more »
Happy Star Wars Day
For Star Wars Day, if you have to ask then you really are not a fan! Here's the more than two hour hour long 100% fan sourced "Star Wars: A New Hope" fan film... 'In 2009, Casey Pugh asked thousands of Internet users to remake "Star Wars: A New Hope" into a fan film, 15 seconds at a time. Contributors were allowed to recreate scenes from Star Wars however they wanted. Within just a few months SWU grew into a wild success. The creativity that poured into the project was unimaginable. SWU has been featured in documentaries, news features and conferences around the world for its uni... more »
Sunday, Flipping Sunday
This morning's edition of *Sunday *on Radio 4 dwelt on many of its favourite subjects - internal Catholic Church issues, clerical abuse within the Catholic Church, the government's welfare reforms, and rows about women priests and ethnic minority representation within the Church of England. It began though with an interview with Monsignor Paul Fisher of Corpus Christi Church in Leeds about the *murder of teacher Ann Maguire*. Mgr Paul Fisher, whose parish the school is in, told of how the doors of the church had been opened in the wake of the killing. First came parents, then many ... more »
Iran Test-Fires Home-Made Missile with Indigenous Air Defense System
[image: Mersad missile defense system]The Iranian Air Defense Force on Sunday carried out the first operational test of ‘Mersad’ missile defense system paired with ‘Shalamcheh’ indigenous missile. The test was conducted Sunday in the presence of Commander of Khatam al-Anbiya Air Defense Base Brigadier General Farzad Esmaili and a number of high-ranking officials representing the Defense Ministry. During the test, the Shalamcheh missile, launched by the Mersad medium-altitude missile defense system, could successfully hit a domestic drone, dubbed Karrar. Read more
China steps up as exporter of military aircraft
[image: K-8 Karakorum]China has yet to complete tests on its J-31 stealth fighter but already ranks third in the world for export contracts for multi-role fighters for 2010 to 2017, behind the United States and Russia. This shows the country has become a major exporter of military aircraft without relying on fourth- and fifth-generation aircraft. China has exported 1,700 aircraft to other countries since it began to do so 35 years ago. Read more
U2 spy plane delays HUNDREDS of flights from LAX after it overloaded air traffic control system
[image: U-2 Dragon Lady]A U-2 spy plane is being blamed for a software glitch at a Californian air traffic control center which led to delays earlier this week. Hundreds of flights were either cancelled or delayed on Wednesday afternoon and it was a relic from the Cold War that appears to be to blame. According to NBC News, the U-2 was flying at 60,000 feet, but air traffic control computers were attempting to keep it from colliding with planes that were actually miles beneath it. Read more
Another View: Ukraine crisis puts focus on danger of nuclear war
[image: Ohio class SSBN]The ongoing crisis in Ukraine has made it clear that the danger of nuclear war is still with us and may be greater than at any time since the height of the Cold War. What does that mean for United States nuclear policy? There are today more than 15,000 nuclear warheads in the world. The vast majority, more than 95 percent, are in the arsenals of the United States and Russia. Some 3,000 of these warheads are on "hair-trigger" alert. They are mounted on missiles that can be fired in 15 minutes and destroy their targets around the world less than 30 minutes late... more »
Truong Sa submarine denied test site
[image: Nguyen Quoc Hoa and his submarine]The setback came as discouraging news to Nguyen Quoc Hoa, developer of the sub, and other interested scientists. Hoa and his colleagues had been convinced that the testing license was forthcoming from the local authorities, right up until the final decision was made. Vu Manh Hien, Director of the Thai Binh Department of Science and Technology, had told the local press on April 23 that he was certain that the Truong Sa would receive permission to go to sea. “I cannot see any problems with the experiment. All new products need to be tested,” ... more »
Inappropriate wedding songs
Tim Hawkins is probbaly not the guy you want to play at your wedding...
(Dynastic Grifters Arise! You've Nothing To Lose But Sliding Into the Next Position - Selfies on Facebook Become Targets?) Exceptional Americans Can Take Unique Abuse (Imprint of a Violent Logic Repeating - Gotta Revolution? Not Yet) What's Been and What's Next)
(Latest Outrage (Horrors!): Right Wingers Propagandize Fake Newt/Crazies Economic Video Proving Obama & Liberals Not Dubya & Cheney Caused 2008 Financial Collapse and Implemented Wrong Solution) Behind Blue (Blood-Stained) Eyes Paul Ryan (Credit: AP/Jacquelyn Martin) (Right click to view both beady eyes.) If the GOP as a whole has pretty much given up on the whole “rebranding” thing,
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*Meet the Billionaire Obama and Reid Listen To* *Tom Steyer, co-founder of Advanced Energy Economy, speaks to the delegates on the second night of the 2012 Democratic National Convention* You’ve got to hand it to billionaire Tom Steyer. He tells Barack Obama and Harry Reid to jump, and they obediently reply: How high? Mr. Steyer pulled off the policy coup of the year last week when the White House announced it would place the Keystone XL pipeline in regulatory purgatory for another six months at least. Mr. Steyer has promised $100 million to Democrats to beat back Republicans in ... more »
Just a reminder of what the ROC claims
What the ROC claims. Which also includes Mongolia and will, soon in the future, likely include Okinawa. The South China Sea claims are in the text at the bottom. _______________________ [Taiwan] Don't miss the comments below! And check out my blog and its sidebars for events, links to previous posts and picture posts, and scores of links to other Taiwan blogs and forums!
Kurt's Blog and Trip Update
For those of you who are interested in following Kurt's journey to Costa Rica and his thoughts on living there, you can follow his new blog at: costaricakurt.BlogSpot.com. We are also keeping this blog running, but it will mostly be my separate blog going forward! For a quick update, Kurt left for Costa Rica on 4/24 at 600 PM and arrived tonight at 1000 PM in Jaco. About a day earlier than expected. Him and his travel partners, Barney and Dean, have checked into two separate hotels in Jaco. Jaco is very busy right now and they could not find two rooms at one hotel that accepted ... more »
"Pressing needs" in American education
S. Krashen Diane Ravitch recently observed that there has been a big hurry to implement the Common Core. In 2009, she urged the authors of the Common Core to field test it before implementation, advice they did not follow. Again in 2010, at the White House, she urged field testing, but officials "quickly dismissed the idea. They were in a hurry. They wanted Common Core to be rolled out as quickly as possible, without checking out how it works in real classrooms with real teachers and real children." ( http://dianeravitch.net/2014/05/02/my-reply-to-alexander-nazaryan-of-newsweek/ ) ... more »
It All Comes Out-- I Was In A Mental Institution... With The Cramps And The Mutants
Next month it will have been 36 years since The Cramps and The Mutants played a show at what was then Napa State Mental Hospital northwest of San Francisco. I had some involvement in organizing that Saturday morning excursion and one of the few records of it-- aside from the video up top-- is an article I wrote about it immediately afterwards for the *New York Rocker*. (If you don't want to subscribe, you can read it here on The Mutants' website.) Lately there is a lot of renewed interest and in the last few months I've been interviewed 4 or 5 times about the show. In some cases,... more »
"Chromaradio: Choose Your Own Musical Interlude"
"Our purpose is to offer a wide range of music selections that fit any style. Ranging between Greek and international mainstream hits, New Age, the sounds of nature, smooth jazz, Soul and Christmas. You just click on the icon representing the stream you want to listen. A pop-up window with flash player will appear to your screen. Music will play automatically. If not you can click on the icons below. A file will be downloaded to your windows, Mac os or linux based PC. Double click the downloaded file (for example playlist-1.asx.asf) and your player will start play the stream. For m... more »
“Beaten Dogs”
*“Beaten Dogs”* by CoyotePrime “And so, the audit of the Federal Reserve was released in September, 2013... $16 TRILLION dollars of YOUR money, “lent” at 0% interest not only to the Too-Big-To-Fail American megabanks, but trillions of dollars to many foreign banks as well. When was the last time YOU received a 0% loan? Slowly but surely, the truth of how savagely we, the People, have been financially raped, over and over again, is coming out, and as it does, a tiny minority of our population shudders in horror… And fear comes now, at last, to the “Ruling Elite”. Not the fear of fi... more »
Free Download: Aldous Huxley, "Brave New World"
“Till at last the child's mind is these suggestions, and the sum of the suggestions is the child's mind. And not the child's mind only. The adult's mind too- all his life long. The mind that judges and desires and decides- made up of these suggestions. But all these suggestions are our suggestions...” - “Brave New World: Suggestions from the State” • Freely download “Brave New World", by Aldous Huxley here: - http://freepdfdb.com/pdf/brave-new-world
"A Look to the Heavens"
"Face-on spiral galaxy M77 lies a mere 47 million light-years away toward the aquatic constellation Cetus. At that estimated distance, the gorgeous island universe is about 100 thousand light-years across. Also known as NGC 1068, its compact and very bright core is well studied by astronomers exploring the mysteries of supermassive black holes in active Seyfert galaxies. *Click image for larger size.* M77 is also seen at x-ray, ultraviolet, infrared, and radio wavelengths. But this sharp visible light image based on Hubble data follows its winding spiral arms traced by obscuring du... more »
"The Wisdom of Satchel Paige"
“Age is a case of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it don't matter.” “Don't look back. Something might be gaining on you.” “Ain't no man can avoid being born average, but there ain't no man got to be common.” “Money and women. They're two of the strongest things in the world. The things you do for a woman you wouldn't do for anything else. Same with money.” “How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are?” "Work like you don't need the money. Love like you've never been hurt. Dance like nobody's watching." - Satchel Paige
"As Far As We Can Go..."
“The development of our cerebral cortex has been the greatest achievement of the evolutionary processes. Big deal. While allowing us the thrills of intellect or the pangs of self-consciousness, it is all too often overruled by our inner, instinctive brain - the one that tells us to react, not reflect, to run, rather than ruminate. Maybe we have gone as far as we can go and the next advance, whatever that may be - will be made by beings we create ourselves, using our own technology. Life forms we can design and program not to be ultimately governed and constricted by the rules of sur... more »
"Eureka!"
“The true delight is in the finding out rather than in the knowing.” - Isaac Asimov
The Daily "Near You?"
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. Thanks for stopping by.
"Fate..."
“Sooner or later, fate puts us together with all the people, one by one, who show us what we could, and shouldn’t, let ourselves become. Sooner or later we meet the drunkard, the waster, the betrayer, the ruthless mind, and the hate-filled heart. But fate loads the dice, of course, because we usually find ourselves loving or pitying almost all of those people. And it’s impossible to despise someone you honestly pity, and to shun someone you truly love.” - Gregory David Roberts, “Shantaram”
"The Answer Why..."
"At last, the answer why. The lesson that had been so hard to find, so difficult to learn, came quick and clear and simple. The reason for problems is to overcome them. Why, that’s the very nature of man, I thought, to press past limits, to prove his freedom. It isn’t the challenge that faces us, that determines who we are and what we are becoming, but the way we meet the challenge, whether we toss a match at the wreck or work our way through it, step by step, to freedom." - Richard Bach, “Nothing by Chance”
Chet Raymo, "Seeing"
*"Seeing"* by Chet Raymo "There was a moment yesterday evening when the elements conspired to evoke these few lines, spoken by Macbeth: "Light thickens, And the crow makes wing to the rooky woods, Good things of day begin to droop and drowse." The fading light. The crows gliding down the fields to the trees in Ballybeg: "Light thickens, And the crow makes wing to the rooky woods, Good things of day begin to droop and drowse." It's all there, in those few lines- the mysterious power of poetry to infuse the world with meaning, to anoint the world... more »
"Clinging to the Core When Our World Falls Apart"
*"Clinging to the Core When Our World Falls Apart"* by Madisyn Taylor, The DailyOM "When external factors shift we have an opportunity to rediscover our core which is the only truly safe place to call home. There are times when our whole world seems to be falling apart around us, and we are not sure what to hold onto anymore. Sometimes our relationships crumble and sometimes it’s our physical environment. At other times, we can’t put our finger on it, but we feel as if all the walls have fallen down around us and we are standing with nothing to lean on, exposed and vulnerable. These... more »
ORDINARY VOICES
This is a very interesting video of various Ukrainian citizens across the east of the country who are non-violently resisting the thugs, fascists, and mercenaries being set upon them by the US-EU sponsored Kiev 'government'. They speak clearly and passionately about the repression they are facing as they organize in opposition to the nationalist forces being armed and controlled by the US installed regime in Kiev. While Crimea has already had a referendum, the situation in other Ukrainian regions is still unstable. People want their voices to be heard and are demanding a vote. Ma... more »
Economist at it again
The Economist's blatant favoritism toward the KMT was on display again this week. Consider the first paragraph: ....When [Lin I-hsiung] began his vigil, he said he would fast to death if necessary, until the government (a reformed and elected KMT) reversed a national energy policy that sees nuclear power as vital for the island. Not wanting to have a martyr on its hands, the government caved in. On April 30th Mr Lin ended his fast. The country’s nuclear policy lies in tatters. "The country's nuclear policy lies in tatters." This pro-KMT remark sets the tone for the entire piece. We ... more »
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