Monday, May 14, 2007
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Is Time Speeding Up
Some people believe time is speeding up. This idea is based on observation that the difference between subjective and objective assessments of time have increased over the past decade. For instance, time seems to be flying by faster than ever, or what used to take several years to accomplish now seems to be taking place in just a couple. In the 2012 paradigm, this idea serves to correlate the prophesied dissolution of time with immediate personal observations. I believe two simultaneous phenomena are contributing to this perception.
The first is that there has been an ongoing reduction in novelty among trivial trends. This means an increase in routine and repetition in all things mundane, both personal and cultural. Television and internet have also become more deeply embedded in modern life, increasing the amount of time we spend being mentally asleep during the day, decreasing the quality and quantity of memories. Due to distraction, repetition, and routine, the recent past offers less memorable content to reflect upon and thus appears shortened. When consulting the calendar we therefore notice the days flying by.
The second is that there has been a simultaneous increase in novelty among spiritually significant trends. Rate of growth among receptive individuals in terms of awareness and emotional maturity is accelerating. You may have changed more in the past two years than you did in the five years before that. When more personal growth is crammed into a shorter amount of time, it appears that things have picked up pace and more ground is being covered more quickly.
The combination of “days flying by” and “having come so far in so few years” contributes to our perception that time is speeding up. These may both be symptomatic of the shift from 3D to 4D if we recognize that linear time is giving way to nonlinear time, that priorities are shifting from the trivial to the spiritual in accordance with the 2012 and related paradigms. Linear time is measured in increments of trivialities such as astronomical or atomic motions, while nonlinear time is delineated in increments of freewill progressions. With a shift of priorities, trivialities fade into a repeating background pattern while spiritual events (leaps in awareness and maturity) increase in their frequency and novelty, both of which lead to the perception that time is speeding up for different reasons.
We may extrapolate this accelerating trend into the future and conclude that in the end, linear time will mean nothing and nonlinear time will mean everything. Or to put it another way, trivialities and the calendar will cease to exist for us altogether while increments of spiritual progress and freewill choices will be the new standard.
There is another interesting trend worth noting, which is that the more recently a person awakens from programmed sleep and into the pursuit of truth, the more rapid his or her growth from that point onward. I know several people who started their paths in the 1960s and 70s, and it took them about two decades to complete the first pass of their research, to come full circle and finally see the bigger picture. My awakening began in 1993 and I did not reach that point until 2003, so about a decade. Those I know who began in 2001 reached it by 2004, so three years. Now I am coming across people who are doing it in under a year, sometimes just a few months.
Part of that trend is due to the increased availability, quality, diversity, and accessibility of information pertaining to matters of truth. Those of the 60s and 70s had books, newsletters, telephone, personal meetings and mail correspondence. Then came fax machines, personal computers, BBS networks, personal printing and photocopying. Then came easy duplication of storage media, the internet with its websites, forums, and radio shows, and now we have broadband internet, wifi spots, p2p filesharing and free video streaming. For all its downsides, recent technology has served to accelerate the awakening, albeit indirectly and at the risk of de-socialization.
Another factor behind that trend may involve the fact that it doesn’t matter when or how we start, but when and where we end up. In other words, it doesn’t matter that someone started early but took longer while another starts late and through some crash courses has reached similar levels of awareness. What matters is that when the time comes, people are on the same page and capable of carrying out what they came here to do, and so those who start late will indeed have to learn more quickly to be ready in time.
I think both the technological and metaphysical parts are related, the first serving the latter as part of some greater plan. And yes, I am aware that Ahrimanic/NWO forces are behind the flowering of technology, that the internet is the perfect device for profiling dissenters and so on, however the dark side takes a gamble with everything it does and risks having its means unexpectedly judo-flipped into accomplishing unintentionally positive ends.
Now if we project this trend into the future, we can see that there will be an increasing number of people awakening, and they will have to get with the picture quicker than ever, perhaps due to the simple spreading of awareness among those desperate for answers in increasingly desperate times. This suggests that demand will skyrocket along with the availability and quality of information, but supply can only meet demand if there are more sources available to provide it, more people refining and providing it. We cannot expect technology like the internet to stick around forever, and so dissemination of guidance and information may increasingly shift towards personal rather than technological methods.
In a practical sense, for us this means we would do well to initially become better educated on matters of truth and grow more skilled in communicating them. It is a good idea to become more streamlined, discerning, and capable of providing primary sources like books, websites, videos, etc… to the receptive when the occasion arises. Why? Both to increase our capacity to meet the potential future demand, and to presently act as a channel for synchronicity to trigger the awakening and empowerment of others.
The first is that there has been an ongoing reduction in novelty among trivial trends. This means an increase in routine and repetition in all things mundane, both personal and cultural. Television and internet have also become more deeply embedded in modern life, increasing the amount of time we spend being mentally asleep during the day, decreasing the quality and quantity of memories. Due to distraction, repetition, and routine, the recent past offers less memorable content to reflect upon and thus appears shortened. When consulting the calendar we therefore notice the days flying by.
The second is that there has been a simultaneous increase in novelty among spiritually significant trends. Rate of growth among receptive individuals in terms of awareness and emotional maturity is accelerating. You may have changed more in the past two years than you did in the five years before that. When more personal growth is crammed into a shorter amount of time, it appears that things have picked up pace and more ground is being covered more quickly.
The combination of “days flying by” and “having come so far in so few years” contributes to our perception that time is speeding up. These may both be symptomatic of the shift from 3D to 4D if we recognize that linear time is giving way to nonlinear time, that priorities are shifting from the trivial to the spiritual in accordance with the 2012 and related paradigms. Linear time is measured in increments of trivialities such as astronomical or atomic motions, while nonlinear time is delineated in increments of freewill progressions. With a shift of priorities, trivialities fade into a repeating background pattern while spiritual events (leaps in awareness and maturity) increase in their frequency and novelty, both of which lead to the perception that time is speeding up for different reasons.
We may extrapolate this accelerating trend into the future and conclude that in the end, linear time will mean nothing and nonlinear time will mean everything. Or to put it another way, trivialities and the calendar will cease to exist for us altogether while increments of spiritual progress and freewill choices will be the new standard.
There is another interesting trend worth noting, which is that the more recently a person awakens from programmed sleep and into the pursuit of truth, the more rapid his or her growth from that point onward. I know several people who started their paths in the 1960s and 70s, and it took them about two decades to complete the first pass of their research, to come full circle and finally see the bigger picture. My awakening began in 1993 and I did not reach that point until 2003, so about a decade. Those I know who began in 2001 reached it by 2004, so three years. Now I am coming across people who are doing it in under a year, sometimes just a few months.
Part of that trend is due to the increased availability, quality, diversity, and accessibility of information pertaining to matters of truth. Those of the 60s and 70s had books, newsletters, telephone, personal meetings and mail correspondence. Then came fax machines, personal computers, BBS networks, personal printing and photocopying. Then came easy duplication of storage media, the internet with its websites, forums, and radio shows, and now we have broadband internet, wifi spots, p2p filesharing and free video streaming. For all its downsides, recent technology has served to accelerate the awakening, albeit indirectly and at the risk of de-socialization.
Another factor behind that trend may involve the fact that it doesn’t matter when or how we start, but when and where we end up. In other words, it doesn’t matter that someone started early but took longer while another starts late and through some crash courses has reached similar levels of awareness. What matters is that when the time comes, people are on the same page and capable of carrying out what they came here to do, and so those who start late will indeed have to learn more quickly to be ready in time.
I think both the technological and metaphysical parts are related, the first serving the latter as part of some greater plan. And yes, I am aware that Ahrimanic/NWO forces are behind the flowering of technology, that the internet is the perfect device for profiling dissenters and so on, however the dark side takes a gamble with everything it does and risks having its means unexpectedly judo-flipped into accomplishing unintentionally positive ends.
Now if we project this trend into the future, we can see that there will be an increasing number of people awakening, and they will have to get with the picture quicker than ever, perhaps due to the simple spreading of awareness among those desperate for answers in increasingly desperate times. This suggests that demand will skyrocket along with the availability and quality of information, but supply can only meet demand if there are more sources available to provide it, more people refining and providing it. We cannot expect technology like the internet to stick around forever, and so dissemination of guidance and information may increasingly shift towards personal rather than technological methods.
In a practical sense, for us this means we would do well to initially become better educated on matters of truth and grow more skilled in communicating them. It is a good idea to become more streamlined, discerning, and capable of providing primary sources like books, websites, videos, etc… to the receptive when the occasion arises. Why? Both to increase our capacity to meet the potential future demand, and to presently act as a channel for synchronicity to trigger the awakening and empowerment of others.
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Defective pumps used to protect New Orleans
NEW ORLEANS - The Army Corps of Engineers, rushing to meet President Bush’s promise to protect New Orleans by the start of the 2006 hurricane season, installed defective flood-control pumps last year despite warnings from its own expert that the equipment would fail during a storm, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press.
The 2006 hurricane season turned out to be mild, and the new pumps were never pressed into action. But the Corps and the politically connected manufacturer of the equipment are still struggling to get the 34 heavy-duty pumps working properly.
The pumps are now being pulled out and overhauled because of excessive vibration, Corps officials said. Other problems have included overheated engines, broken hoses and blown gaskets, according to the documents obtained by the AP.
Col. Jeffrey Bedey, who is overseeing levee reconstruction, insisted the pumps would have worked last year and the city was never in danger. Bedey gave assurances that the pumps should be ready for the coming hurricane season, which begins June 1.
The Corps said it decided to press ahead with installation, and then fix the machinery while it was in place, on the theory that some pumping capacity was better than none. And it defended the manufacturer, which was under time pressure.
“Let me give you the scenario: You have four months to build something that nobody has ever built before, and if you don’t, the city floods and the Corps, which already has a black eye, could basically be dissolved. How many people would put up with a second flooding?” said Randy Persica, the Corps’ resident engineer for New Orleans’ three major drainage canals.
The 34 pumps — installed in the drainage canals that take water from this bowl-shaped, below-sea-level city and deposit it in Lake Pontchartrain — represented a new ring of protection that was added to New Orleans’ flood defenses after Katrina. The city also relies on miles of levees and hundreds of other pumps in various locations.
The drainage-canal pumps were custom-designed and built under a $26.6 million contract awarded after competitive bidding to Moving Water Industries Corp. of Deerfield Beach, Fla. It was founded in 1926 and supplies flood-control and irrigation pumps all over the world.
Ties to Jeb Bush
MWI is owned by J. David Eller and his sons. Eller was once a business partner of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush in a venture called Bush-El that marketed MWI pumps. And Eller has donated about $128,000 to politicians, the vast majority of it to the Republican Party, since 1996, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
MWI has run into trouble before. The U.S. Justice Department sued the company in 2002, accusing it of fraudulently helping Nigeria obtain $74 million in taxpayer-backed loans for overpriced and unnecessary water-pump equipment. The case has yet to be resolved.
Because of the trouble with the New Orleans pumps, the Corps has withheld 20 percent of the MWI contract, including an incentive of up to $4 million that the company could have collected if it delivered the equipment in time for the 2006 hurricane season.
Misgivings about the pumps were chronicled in a May 2006 memo provided to the AP by Matt McBride, a mechanical engineer and flooded-out Katrina victim who, like many in New Orleans, has been closely watching the rebuilding of the city’s flood defenses.
The memo was written by Maria Garzino, a Corps mechanical engineer overseeing quality assurance at an MWI test site in Florida. The Corps confirmed the authenticity of the 72-page memo, which details many of the mechanical problems and criticizes the testing procedures used.
About a dozen of the 34 pumps on order were already in place in New Orleans when Garzino wrote her report, according to Bedey.
In her memo, Garzino told corps officials that the equipment being installed was defective. She warned that the pumps would break down “should they be tasked to run, under normal use, as would be required in the event of a hurricane.”
The 2006 hurricane season turned out to be mild, and the new pumps were never pressed into action. But the Corps and the politically connected manufacturer of the equipment are still struggling to get the 34 heavy-duty pumps working properly.
The pumps are now being pulled out and overhauled because of excessive vibration, Corps officials said. Other problems have included overheated engines, broken hoses and blown gaskets, according to the documents obtained by the AP.
Col. Jeffrey Bedey, who is overseeing levee reconstruction, insisted the pumps would have worked last year and the city was never in danger. Bedey gave assurances that the pumps should be ready for the coming hurricane season, which begins June 1.
The Corps said it decided to press ahead with installation, and then fix the machinery while it was in place, on the theory that some pumping capacity was better than none. And it defended the manufacturer, which was under time pressure.
“Let me give you the scenario: You have four months to build something that nobody has ever built before, and if you don’t, the city floods and the Corps, which already has a black eye, could basically be dissolved. How many people would put up with a second flooding?” said Randy Persica, the Corps’ resident engineer for New Orleans’ three major drainage canals.
The 34 pumps — installed in the drainage canals that take water from this bowl-shaped, below-sea-level city and deposit it in Lake Pontchartrain — represented a new ring of protection that was added to New Orleans’ flood defenses after Katrina. The city also relies on miles of levees and hundreds of other pumps in various locations.
The drainage-canal pumps were custom-designed and built under a $26.6 million contract awarded after competitive bidding to Moving Water Industries Corp. of Deerfield Beach, Fla. It was founded in 1926 and supplies flood-control and irrigation pumps all over the world.
Ties to Jeb Bush
MWI is owned by J. David Eller and his sons. Eller was once a business partner of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush in a venture called Bush-El that marketed MWI pumps. And Eller has donated about $128,000 to politicians, the vast majority of it to the Republican Party, since 1996, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
MWI has run into trouble before. The U.S. Justice Department sued the company in 2002, accusing it of fraudulently helping Nigeria obtain $74 million in taxpayer-backed loans for overpriced and unnecessary water-pump equipment. The case has yet to be resolved.
Because of the trouble with the New Orleans pumps, the Corps has withheld 20 percent of the MWI contract, including an incentive of up to $4 million that the company could have collected if it delivered the equipment in time for the 2006 hurricane season.
Misgivings about the pumps were chronicled in a May 2006 memo provided to the AP by Matt McBride, a mechanical engineer and flooded-out Katrina victim who, like many in New Orleans, has been closely watching the rebuilding of the city’s flood defenses.
The memo was written by Maria Garzino, a Corps mechanical engineer overseeing quality assurance at an MWI test site in Florida. The Corps confirmed the authenticity of the 72-page memo, which details many of the mechanical problems and criticizes the testing procedures used.
About a dozen of the 34 pumps on order were already in place in New Orleans when Garzino wrote her report, according to Bedey.
In her memo, Garzino told corps officials that the equipment being installed was defective. She warned that the pumps would break down “should they be tasked to run, under normal use, as would be required in the event of a hurricane.”
Monday, February 26, 2007
The Case Of The Vanishing Bees
(CBS) In spite of all the advances in agriculture, honeybees remain indispensable. By moving pollen from flower to flower, bees are the only efficient way for many crops to pollinate, CBS News correspondent John Blackstone reports.
As growing season begins in California's Central Valley, there is nothing quite as busy as a beekeeper. Farmers pay them to put their hives in their fields and orchards.
"It means the difference between profit and loss for them," says beekeeper Lance Sundberg.
But beekeepers like Sundberg have a mystery in their hives this year. Bees are disappearing at an alarming rate.
"Colonies are going down. The bees aren't dead in the box or aren't out front," says Jerry Bromenshenk, a bee researcher at the University of Montana. "They've just disappeared. Just vanished."
Bromenshenk is leading a team of bee researchers looking for a cause. He's even listening to hives for signs of distress. Beekeepers in 22 states have reported bees dying in huge numbers.
Jeff Pettis of the U.S. Department of Agriculture says parasites and disease have killed bees in the past, but never anything like this.
"We went through multiple hives and we couldn't find anything that I would even call a beehive, so it was depressing," Pettis says.
Part of the mystery is that colonies can go from active and healthy to dead and gone within days. For beekeepers, that's a loss that stings.
They "just disappeared," says beekeeper Louise Rossberg. "There's nothing there. There's no bees on the ground anywhere. There's just a completely empty hive."
In just a few weeks, Rossberg has seen hundreds of her hives go empty. "I don't know what to do," she says. "And I'm not alone."
For now, plenty of beekeepers are stacking up silent and empty hives. But scientists are working hard to find the cause and a cure for what's ailing the bees. After all bees do for us, it's the least we can do for them.
As growing season begins in California's Central Valley, there is nothing quite as busy as a beekeeper. Farmers pay them to put their hives in their fields and orchards.
"It means the difference between profit and loss for them," says beekeeper Lance Sundberg.
But beekeepers like Sundberg have a mystery in their hives this year. Bees are disappearing at an alarming rate.
"Colonies are going down. The bees aren't dead in the box or aren't out front," says Jerry Bromenshenk, a bee researcher at the University of Montana. "They've just disappeared. Just vanished."
Bromenshenk is leading a team of bee researchers looking for a cause. He's even listening to hives for signs of distress. Beekeepers in 22 states have reported bees dying in huge numbers.
Jeff Pettis of the U.S. Department of Agriculture says parasites and disease have killed bees in the past, but never anything like this.
"We went through multiple hives and we couldn't find anything that I would even call a beehive, so it was depressing," Pettis says.
Part of the mystery is that colonies can go from active and healthy to dead and gone within days. For beekeepers, that's a loss that stings.
They "just disappeared," says beekeeper Louise Rossberg. "There's nothing there. There's no bees on the ground anywhere. There's just a completely empty hive."
In just a few weeks, Rossberg has seen hundreds of her hives go empty. "I don't know what to do," she says. "And I'm not alone."
For now, plenty of beekeepers are stacking up silent and empty hives. But scientists are working hard to find the cause and a cure for what's ailing the bees. After all bees do for us, it's the least we can do for them.
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Music Industry Sues Augusta Man
In its running legal battle against unauthorized downloaders, five recording companies have sued an Augusta man in federal court claiming he illegally pirated and shared copyrighted music.
Scott Hinds, 23, is a defendant in one of a number of lawsuits by Recording Industry of America affiliates seeking to halt illegal sharing of copyrighted songs -- a once-widespread practice some maintain was "fair use," encouraged by certain computer software.
As artists attempt to regain control of their music -- and reap profits from sales -- recording industry spokeswoman Amanda Hunter said 18,000 individuals have been sued in similar lawsuits since September 2003, but Hinds is one of only six defendants in Maine.
Hinds said he is not yet represented by a lawyer.
Monday, he wondered: "Why choose me?"
"Every single person has done this," he said, saying he doesn't listen to music online presently.
The lawsuit, filed last week in U.S. District Court for the District of Maine, alleges Hinds illegally downloaded:
n "Automobile" by NWA, Priority Records, LLC;
n "All Over You" by LIve, UMG Recordings Inc.;
n "Fast Car" by Tracy Chapman, Elektra Entertainment Group;
n "Don't Know Why" by Norah Jones, Capitol Records Inc.; and
n "What Would You Say" by Dave Matthews Band, BMG Music.
The allegation is that Hinds used an "online media distribution system" to download tunes, then distributed the copyrighted material to others.
The lawsuit doesn't identify the download service Hinds allegedly used, nor does it identify individual users who allegedly obtained the copyrighted music from Hinds.
According to the association, "online investigators searched for copyrighted recordings made available by individuals on peer-to-peer networks."
They then filed a lawsuit against Internet service providers prompting them to identify individuals who allegedly shared music files.
Hinds faces a minimum civil penalty of $750 per song. There can be criminal penalties as well.
If guilty, Hinds would hardly be the first person found downloading music on the Internet; the Internet has been chockablock with sites offering free music almost since there have been browsers and bandwidth.
The most well-known site -- Napster, founded in 1999 by 18-year-old college dropout Shawn Fanning -- signed up 25 million users in its first year.
In 2000, the Recording Industry Association of America sued Napster, charging "tributary copyright infringement" -- an allegation that Napster was not violating copyright itself, but was contributing to and facilitating other people's infringement.
The premise of the civil lawsuit against Hinds is a December 2005 decision in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court's 2004 opinion in MGM Studios, Inc., v. Grokster Ltd.
In the latter case, the court found "that a distributed file-sharing system is engaged in contributory copyright infringement when its principal object is the dissemination of copyrighted material.
"The foundation of this holding is a belief that people who post or download music files are primary infringers."
Scott Hinds, 23, is a defendant in one of a number of lawsuits by Recording Industry of America affiliates seeking to halt illegal sharing of copyrighted songs -- a once-widespread practice some maintain was "fair use," encouraged by certain computer software.
As artists attempt to regain control of their music -- and reap profits from sales -- recording industry spokeswoman Amanda Hunter said 18,000 individuals have been sued in similar lawsuits since September 2003, but Hinds is one of only six defendants in Maine.
Hinds said he is not yet represented by a lawyer.
Monday, he wondered: "Why choose me?"
"Every single person has done this," he said, saying he doesn't listen to music online presently.
The lawsuit, filed last week in U.S. District Court for the District of Maine, alleges Hinds illegally downloaded:
n "Automobile" by NWA, Priority Records, LLC;
n "All Over You" by LIve, UMG Recordings Inc.;
n "Fast Car" by Tracy Chapman, Elektra Entertainment Group;
n "Don't Know Why" by Norah Jones, Capitol Records Inc.; and
n "What Would You Say" by Dave Matthews Band, BMG Music.
The allegation is that Hinds used an "online media distribution system" to download tunes, then distributed the copyrighted material to others.
The lawsuit doesn't identify the download service Hinds allegedly used, nor does it identify individual users who allegedly obtained the copyrighted music from Hinds.
According to the association, "online investigators searched for copyrighted recordings made available by individuals on peer-to-peer networks."
They then filed a lawsuit against Internet service providers prompting them to identify individuals who allegedly shared music files.
Hinds faces a minimum civil penalty of $750 per song. There can be criminal penalties as well.
If guilty, Hinds would hardly be the first person found downloading music on the Internet; the Internet has been chockablock with sites offering free music almost since there have been browsers and bandwidth.
The most well-known site -- Napster, founded in 1999 by 18-year-old college dropout Shawn Fanning -- signed up 25 million users in its first year.
In 2000, the Recording Industry Association of America sued Napster, charging "tributary copyright infringement" -- an allegation that Napster was not violating copyright itself, but was contributing to and facilitating other people's infringement.
The premise of the civil lawsuit against Hinds is a December 2005 decision in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court's 2004 opinion in MGM Studios, Inc., v. Grokster Ltd.
In the latter case, the court found "that a distributed file-sharing system is engaged in contributory copyright infringement when its principal object is the dissemination of copyrighted material.
"The foundation of this holding is a belief that people who post or download music files are primary infringers."
Friday, February 02, 2007
A Ring of Debris Is Forming in Orbit Around the Earth
Can we say dur? Does not take a genius to tell you that any type of debri in orbit would form a ring. Notice the debris of rock around Saturn? It is a ring huh? The earth is very big and though you may not realize it, it is spinning very fast. How ignorant it was of them to do that. We are monkey's with technology....
China's Space-Weapon Test Could Endanger Astronauts and Satellites. Engineers Say Ring of Debris Is Forming in Orbit, and a Marble-Sized Piece Could be Dangerous
By NED POTTER
Feb. 1, 2007 — - When the Chinese government destroyed one of its weather satellites in a military test last month, it sent a chill through the U.S. military.
And engineers say it had a serious side effect -- it increased the amount of orbiting space junk by about 10 percent.
That could mean danger -- to other satellites, and even, possibly, to astronauts on the International Space Station and future space shuttle flights.
"There's a lot of stuff up there in low-Earth orbit," said T.S. Kelso, a veteran space-surveillance analyst who is now at the Center for Space Standards and Innovation in Colorado Springs, Colo. "While we can't tell them that 'five months from now, you're at risk for being hit,' it's not unreasonable to expect that it's going to affect a lot of stuff in orbit."
500 Pieces of Debris, Possibly Thousands More
The Chinese test, carried out on Jan. 11, was at once complex and very simple. An old weather satellite, passing 537 miles overhead, was targeted by a missile launched from a Chinese military base.
The missile hit the satellite with deadly precision. The missile carried no bomb because it didn't need one. The satellite was pulverized by the impact.
But what followed was chaos in space. As of today, Kelso reports that American radar is tracking at least 525 pieces of debris from the collision -- each at least the size of a baseball.
There are probably hundreds, if not thousands, of smaller ones.
The pieces are gradually spreading out in a ring around the Earth, creating a vast area where spacecraft face increased danger of being hit.
"We've already seen in the range of 500 to 600 events where some piece of debris from this one event was coming within 5 kilometers [about 3 miles] of some payload," said Kelso.
Space 'Pollution'
It's a growing problem. The U.S. Air Force was already tracking almost 14,000 objects in orbit.
Three times in the last 15 years, U.S. satellites have reportedly been disabled or damaged by collisions with space junk. NASA is worried enough about the problem that each shuttle crew now spends the entire day before landing taking pictures of its ship's heat shield tiles, just in case there's been a small but potentially fatal impact.
If a shuttle crew ever does find damage, the astronauts would have to seek safe haven on the International Space Station, and wait for a second shuttle to get them. Such an accident, NASA's administator, Michael Griffin, has said, would probably mean the end of the shuttle program.
The Chinese weather satellite, designated Fen Yung-IC, was in an orbit that took it over the North and South poles. It's an orbit that's popular for weather, reconnaissance and Earth-science satellites because it allows daily pictures of virtually every part of the planet below.
"There are about 125 or 130 satellites in that same orbit," said Theresa Hitchens, head of the Center for Defense Information, a Washington-based group that provides information on national defense and aerospace isues. "It's a highly used orbit, and it's an orbit that's already fairly polluted."
Shuttles travel in a very different path; all but one of the remaining 13 missions is scheduled for assembly of the space station, about 220 miles high. But the ring of debris from the Chinese debris has already spread out enough that the station passes through it twice on every 90-minute orbit of the earth.
How great is the danger? They don't call it "space" for nothing; there is a lot of empty void in the realm where most spacecraft orbit. NASA has said it's not worried.
But the debris from the Chinese test has added to the small chance of a big catastrophe.
"We can't see it, we can't track it," said Hitchens, "and something as small as a marble can shatter a satellite."
China's Space-Weapon Test Could Endanger Astronauts and Satellites. Engineers Say Ring of Debris Is Forming in Orbit, and a Marble-Sized Piece Could be Dangerous
By NED POTTER
Feb. 1, 2007 — - When the Chinese government destroyed one of its weather satellites in a military test last month, it sent a chill through the U.S. military.
And engineers say it had a serious side effect -- it increased the amount of orbiting space junk by about 10 percent.
That could mean danger -- to other satellites, and even, possibly, to astronauts on the International Space Station and future space shuttle flights.
"There's a lot of stuff up there in low-Earth orbit," said T.S. Kelso, a veteran space-surveillance analyst who is now at the Center for Space Standards and Innovation in Colorado Springs, Colo. "While we can't tell them that 'five months from now, you're at risk for being hit,' it's not unreasonable to expect that it's going to affect a lot of stuff in orbit."
500 Pieces of Debris, Possibly Thousands More
The Chinese test, carried out on Jan. 11, was at once complex and very simple. An old weather satellite, passing 537 miles overhead, was targeted by a missile launched from a Chinese military base.
The missile hit the satellite with deadly precision. The missile carried no bomb because it didn't need one. The satellite was pulverized by the impact.
But what followed was chaos in space. As of today, Kelso reports that American radar is tracking at least 525 pieces of debris from the collision -- each at least the size of a baseball.
There are probably hundreds, if not thousands, of smaller ones.
The pieces are gradually spreading out in a ring around the Earth, creating a vast area where spacecraft face increased danger of being hit.
"We've already seen in the range of 500 to 600 events where some piece of debris from this one event was coming within 5 kilometers [about 3 miles] of some payload," said Kelso.
Space 'Pollution'
It's a growing problem. The U.S. Air Force was already tracking almost 14,000 objects in orbit.
Three times in the last 15 years, U.S. satellites have reportedly been disabled or damaged by collisions with space junk. NASA is worried enough about the problem that each shuttle crew now spends the entire day before landing taking pictures of its ship's heat shield tiles, just in case there's been a small but potentially fatal impact.
If a shuttle crew ever does find damage, the astronauts would have to seek safe haven on the International Space Station, and wait for a second shuttle to get them. Such an accident, NASA's administator, Michael Griffin, has said, would probably mean the end of the shuttle program.
The Chinese weather satellite, designated Fen Yung-IC, was in an orbit that took it over the North and South poles. It's an orbit that's popular for weather, reconnaissance and Earth-science satellites because it allows daily pictures of virtually every part of the planet below.
"There are about 125 or 130 satellites in that same orbit," said Theresa Hitchens, head of the Center for Defense Information, a Washington-based group that provides information on national defense and aerospace isues. "It's a highly used orbit, and it's an orbit that's already fairly polluted."
Shuttles travel in a very different path; all but one of the remaining 13 missions is scheduled for assembly of the space station, about 220 miles high. But the ring of debris from the Chinese debris has already spread out enough that the station passes through it twice on every 90-minute orbit of the earth.
How great is the danger? They don't call it "space" for nothing; there is a lot of empty void in the realm where most spacecraft orbit. NASA has said it's not worried.
But the debris from the Chinese test has added to the small chance of a big catastrophe.
"We can't see it, we can't track it," said Hitchens, "and something as small as a marble can shatter a satellite."
Texas Requires Cancer Vaccine for Girls
Drug companies will get there way...drugs made mandatory that you pay for which will make them even richer. If it truly is needed for health reasons then shouldn't the Government make sure you get it for free? It is a scam. The law is lobbied by the drug companies. The ones who profit from the law. Think about that crap....
Texas Requires Cancer Vaccine for Girls
By LIZ AUSTIN PETERSON
Associated Press Writer
AUSTIN (AP) -- Gov. Rick Perry ordered Friday that schoolgirls in Texas must be vaccinated against the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer, making Texas the first state to require the shots.
The girls will have to get Merck & Co.'s new vaccine against strains of the human papillomavirus, or HPV, that are responsible for most cases of cervical cancer.
Merck is bankrolling efforts to pass laws in state legislatures across the country mandating it Gardasil vaccine for girls as young as 11 or 12. It doubled its lobbying budget in Texas and has funneled money through Women in Government, an advocacy group made up of female state legislators around the country.
Details of the order were not immediately available, but the governor's office confirmed to The Associated Press that he was signing the order and he would comment Friday afternoon.
Perry has several ties to Merck and Women in Government. One of the drug company's three lobbyists in Texas is Mike Toomey, his former chief of staff. His current chief of staff's mother-in-law, Texas Republican state Rep. Dianne White Delisi, is a state director for Women in Government.
Toomey was expected to be able to woo conservative legislators concerned about the requirement stepping on parent's rights and about signaling tacit approval of sexual activity to young girls. Delisi, as head of the House public health committee, which likely would have considered legislation filed by a Democratic member, also would have helped ease conservative opposition.
Perry also received $6,000 from Merck's political action committee during his re-election campaign.
It wasn't immediately clear how long the order would last and whether the legislation was still necessary. However it could have been difficult to muster support from lawmakers who champion abstinence education and parents' rights.
Perry, a conservative Christian who opposes abortion rights and stem- cell research using embryonic cells, counts on the religious right for his political base.
But he has said the cervical cancer vaccine is no different than the one that protects children against polio.
"If there are diseases in our society that are going to cost us large amounts of money, it just makes good economic sense, not to mention the health and well being of these individuals to have those vaccines available," he said.
Texas allows parents to opt out of inoculations by filing an affidavit stating that he or she objected to the vaccine for religious or philosophical reasons.
Even with such provisions, however, conservative groups say mandates take away parents' rights to be the primary medical decision maker for their children.
The federal government approved Gardasil in June, and a government advisory panel has recommended that all girls get the shots at 11 and 12, before they are likely to be sexually active.
The New Jersey-based drug company could generate billions in sales if Gardasil _ at $360 for the three-shot regimen _ were made mandatory across the country. Most insurance companies now cover the vaccine, which has been shown to have no serious side effects.
Merck spokeswoman Janet Skidmore would not say how much the company is spending on lobbyists or how much it has donated to Women in Government. Susan Crosby, the group's president, also declined to specify how much the drug company gave.
A top official from Merck's vaccine division sits on Women in Government's business council, and many of the bills around the country have been introduced by members of Women in Government.
Texas Requires Cancer Vaccine for Girls
By LIZ AUSTIN PETERSON
Associated Press Writer
AUSTIN (AP) -- Gov. Rick Perry ordered Friday that schoolgirls in Texas must be vaccinated against the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer, making Texas the first state to require the shots.
The girls will have to get Merck & Co.'s new vaccine against strains of the human papillomavirus, or HPV, that are responsible for most cases of cervical cancer.
Merck is bankrolling efforts to pass laws in state legislatures across the country mandating it Gardasil vaccine for girls as young as 11 or 12. It doubled its lobbying budget in Texas and has funneled money through Women in Government, an advocacy group made up of female state legislators around the country.
Details of the order were not immediately available, but the governor's office confirmed to The Associated Press that he was signing the order and he would comment Friday afternoon.
Perry has several ties to Merck and Women in Government. One of the drug company's three lobbyists in Texas is Mike Toomey, his former chief of staff. His current chief of staff's mother-in-law, Texas Republican state Rep. Dianne White Delisi, is a state director for Women in Government.
Toomey was expected to be able to woo conservative legislators concerned about the requirement stepping on parent's rights and about signaling tacit approval of sexual activity to young girls. Delisi, as head of the House public health committee, which likely would have considered legislation filed by a Democratic member, also would have helped ease conservative opposition.
Perry also received $6,000 from Merck's political action committee during his re-election campaign.
It wasn't immediately clear how long the order would last and whether the legislation was still necessary. However it could have been difficult to muster support from lawmakers who champion abstinence education and parents' rights.
Perry, a conservative Christian who opposes abortion rights and stem- cell research using embryonic cells, counts on the religious right for his political base.
But he has said the cervical cancer vaccine is no different than the one that protects children against polio.
"If there are diseases in our society that are going to cost us large amounts of money, it just makes good economic sense, not to mention the health and well being of these individuals to have those vaccines available," he said.
Texas allows parents to opt out of inoculations by filing an affidavit stating that he or she objected to the vaccine for religious or philosophical reasons.
Even with such provisions, however, conservative groups say mandates take away parents' rights to be the primary medical decision maker for their children.
The federal government approved Gardasil in June, and a government advisory panel has recommended that all girls get the shots at 11 and 12, before they are likely to be sexually active.
The New Jersey-based drug company could generate billions in sales if Gardasil _ at $360 for the three-shot regimen _ were made mandatory across the country. Most insurance companies now cover the vaccine, which has been shown to have no serious side effects.
Merck spokeswoman Janet Skidmore would not say how much the company is spending on lobbyists or how much it has donated to Women in Government. Susan Crosby, the group's president, also declined to specify how much the drug company gave.
A top official from Merck's vaccine division sits on Women in Government's business council, and many of the bills around the country have been introduced by members of Women in Government.
Orange Smelly Snow is Falling in Russia
Russia probes smelly orange snow...
Oily yellow and orange snowflakes fell over an area of more than 1,500sq km (570sq miles) in the Omsk region on Wednesday, Russian officials said.
Chemical tests were under way to determine the cause, they said.
Residents have been advised not to use the snow for household tasks or let animals graze on it.
"So far we cannot explain the snow, which is oily to the touch and has a pronounced rotten smell," said Omsk environmental prosecutor Anton German, quoted by the Russian news agency Itar-Tass on Thursday.
The origin of the orange effect is still a mystery (pic: Russian TV)
"We are waiting for the results of a thorough test on samples."
But Vladimir Gurzhey, an official with the civil defence ministry in Omsk, told the Russia TV channel that the snow had four times the normal levels of iron in it.
The TV also reported that coloured snow had fallen in the neighbouring regions of Tomsk and Tyumen.
Omsk, in western Siberia, is a centre of Russia's oil industry. About 27,000 people live in the areas affected by the snow, Russian officials said.
Oily yellow and orange snowflakes fell over an area of more than 1,500sq km (570sq miles) in the Omsk region on Wednesday, Russian officials said.
Chemical tests were under way to determine the cause, they said.
Residents have been advised not to use the snow for household tasks or let animals graze on it.
"So far we cannot explain the snow, which is oily to the touch and has a pronounced rotten smell," said Omsk environmental prosecutor Anton German, quoted by the Russian news agency Itar-Tass on Thursday.
The origin of the orange effect is still a mystery (pic: Russian TV)
"We are waiting for the results of a thorough test on samples."
But Vladimir Gurzhey, an official with the civil defence ministry in Omsk, told the Russia TV channel that the snow had four times the normal levels of iron in it.
The TV also reported that coloured snow had fallen in the neighbouring regions of Tomsk and Tyumen.
Omsk, in western Siberia, is a centre of Russia's oil industry. About 27,000 people live in the areas affected by the snow, Russian officials said.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
What Do the Russians Say About America?
Think about this! This is taken from another article. The first part is about Bush acting on his own as always. I felt this part should be read. Notice the calling at the end saying that America is a dictatorship not a Democracy anymore....so wtf are we doing in Iraq trying to give them democracy? It is all lies.....
When other nations start to not see us as a democracy, how long will it take the people in this country to see it? I do not know, but it will be too late by then....
Wake the fuck up!
Russian Legal Analysts familiar with American Law state in these reports that the significance of these actions being taking against American citizens by the US War Leaders shows the ‘complete ascendancy’ to ‘total power’ of the American President, and who now is free to rule his Nation by decree free from interference by either the US Congress, or the American people themselves.
So powerless have the US Congress and American people become, that as outrage continues to build within the United States against the expansion of the war in Iraq, and the planned US attack upon Iran, the spokesman for the American War Leader has stated in response to a US Congressional move to block further war making:
"Presidential spokesman Tony Snow said resolutions passed by Congress will not affect Bush's decision-making. "The president has obligations as a commander in chief," he said. "And he will go ahead and execute them."
Russian Intelligence Analysts in these reports to President Putin have asked, “If President Bush feels that he is not constrained by either the elected representatives of the American people, or the American people themselves, we must then consider that he, and his Administration, have become powers unto themselves and that the United States should therefore be considered a dictatorship, not a democracy.”
To the American people themselves, they remain in abject denial of the dark Fascist forces descending around them; but soon, and much sooner than they could believe, and with their families and neighbors disappearing into the vast American Gulag, what they once believed in as the American Dream, will soon be shown for what it really is, an American Nightmare.
When other nations start to not see us as a democracy, how long will it take the people in this country to see it? I do not know, but it will be too late by then....
Wake the fuck up!
Russian Legal Analysts familiar with American Law state in these reports that the significance of these actions being taking against American citizens by the US War Leaders shows the ‘complete ascendancy’ to ‘total power’ of the American President, and who now is free to rule his Nation by decree free from interference by either the US Congress, or the American people themselves.
So powerless have the US Congress and American people become, that as outrage continues to build within the United States against the expansion of the war in Iraq, and the planned US attack upon Iran, the spokesman for the American War Leader has stated in response to a US Congressional move to block further war making:
"Presidential spokesman Tony Snow said resolutions passed by Congress will not affect Bush's decision-making. "The president has obligations as a commander in chief," he said. "And he will go ahead and execute them."
Russian Intelligence Analysts in these reports to President Putin have asked, “If President Bush feels that he is not constrained by either the elected representatives of the American people, or the American people themselves, we must then consider that he, and his Administration, have become powers unto themselves and that the United States should therefore be considered a dictatorship, not a democracy.”
To the American people themselves, they remain in abject denial of the dark Fascist forces descending around them; but soon, and much sooner than they could believe, and with their families and neighbors disappearing into the vast American Gulag, what they once believed in as the American Dream, will soon be shown for what it really is, an American Nightmare.
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