ALMATY, Kazakhstan United Nations officials issued an urgent plea on Monday for some $25 million in emergency aid to Tajikistan, the Central Asian country hardest hit by the regions harshest winter in three decades.
As temperatures hover around minus 5 degrees, and snowfall has more than tripled last years total, rural communities in the heavily mountainous country have been cut off from food supplies, while cities are enduring drastically reduced electricity and water.
The United Nations reported that 500,000 people in Tajikistan may face food shortages and that at least 260,000 are in need of immediate food assistance.
#1
Mmm...I bet those UN officials are just salivating at this situation. $25 million in inadequately supervised cash! And the great part is, if you say that you will have no part in this, then they get to pillory you in the press. I went into the wrong line of business.
Afghanistan on Monday recognised Kosovos independence, a foreign ministry spokesman said, becoming the first country to officially do so. Afghanistan with respect to the will of the people of Kosovo and its commitment to democratic values, human rights, the right of sovereignty and expanding of good relations between countries... recognises the independence of Kosovo, Sultan Ahmad Baheen said. Afghanistan wishes prosperity in development to the people of Kosovo, he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Because nothing says endorsed like Afghanistan.
#2
I give those "democratic values" a very short lifetime. In will come the fundo Imams, then sharia law, dhimmi tax, weapons, serbs fleeing and a population explosion.
the muslims, now fundo, will lemming to the next place they've decided to overrun and claim "independance" based on numbers.
Algeria wants to return 15 fighter jets it bought from Russia because of their poor quality, the Kommersant daily reported on Monday, citing an official from Russia's state United Aerospace Corporation. The official said Russia was proposing to take back the MiG-29 jets, which were delivered to Algeria in 2006 and 2007, but only if Algeria bought more modern and expensive planes such as the MiG-29M2 or the MiG-35.
And then when they want to return them...?
Russians are also playing hardball with the Indians, not honoring contractual obligations, so that they buy upgraded Mig-29s instead of the F-18s
Both countries need to learn that you don't throw good money after bad ...
Take this simple test: Using a $4.95 calculator, tote up the number of pieces of Russian junk shot down since 1950 by U.S. aircraft. Then do a similar count of U.S. aircraft shot down since that date by Russian junk. Using the back of a used envelope, perform a rudimentary cost/benefit analysis using the two numbers. Use the result to determine your next purchase.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Keep the good stuff for ourselves, and get rid of the junk on unsuspecting buyers. Russians playing a poor hand well.
Zimbabwe's former finance minister Simba Makoni pledged on Wednesday to heal the southern African country's wounds as he unveiled his strategy to end President Robert Mugabe's 28-year rule in polls next month.
While the country's main opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai again ruled out an alliance at the ballot box, Makoni expressed confidence of toppling Mugabe after accusing him of engendering fear and despair. "The Zimbabwe of today ... is a nation full of fear, a nation in deep stress, a tense and polarised nation, a nation also characterised by disease and extreme poverty," Makoni said at the launch of his manifesto in the capital Harare.
If elected, Makoni promised to "address national issues that separate and divide us as a nation and institute a process of national healing and reconciliation".
Having been kicked out of Mugabe's ruling Zanu-PF, Makoni is standing as an independent in joint presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for March 29. The elections are taking place against a backdrop of economic meltdown in Zimbabwe, which has an official inflation rate of more than 26 000% - the highest in the world.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2008 00:00 ||
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#3
I have to wonder if he was really "Kicked out" or set up as a diversion?(As in Hillary saying "I run the country Not Bill") with Muggabe running "Behind the curtain"?
History will tell, but the fact he's still breathing and the "Head Thug" hasn't stepped in, is suspicious in, and of, itself.
Not normal "Thugocracy" tactics at all.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/19/2008 15:21 Comments ||
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Zimbabwe's ruling party, shaken by internal divisions and a potentially strong election challenge to President Robert Mugabe, will expel candidates running against its official nominees in the March vote, the official media said on Monday.
An independent observer group, meanwhile, reported widespread attempts by Zanu-PF members to buy votes in the ruling party's nominating contests before the March 29 presidential, parliamentary and local council elections.
Didymus Mutasa, a senior party official, said that in a number of key election districts more than one Zanu-PF candidate had registered to contest the same seat. Such duplicate registrations threaten to split the ruling party vote to the benefit of the opposition. "Given the large number of such cases, we will meet as a party and deliberate on how best we can deal with that," Mutasa told the state Herald newspaper. "Indiscipline can even be seen among senior party officials and that cannot be accepted," he said, adding that candidates who refused to withdraw would be kicked out of the party.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2008 00:00 ||
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What was Castro, exactly? See if you can follow the clues in this fun Reuters quiz:
Ailing Cuban leader Fidel Castro said on Tuesday that he will not return to lead the country as president, retiring as head of state 49 years after he seized power in an armed revolution.
Clue 1: "seized power in an armed revolution"
"I communicate to you that I will not aspire to or accept--I repeat not aspire to or accept---the positions of President of Council of State and Commander in Chief," Castro said in the statement published on the Web site of the Communist Party's Granma newspaper.
Clue 2: "Communist Party"
A charismatic leader famous for his long speeches delivered in his green military fatigues, Castro is admired in the Third World for standing up to the United States but considered by his opponents a tyrant who suppressed freedom.
Clues 3 and 4: "Charismatic leader" and "considered by his opponents a tyrant who suppressed freedom"
His illness and departure from Cuba's helm have raised doubts about the future of the Western Hemisphere's only communist state.
Clue 5: "communist state"
The bearded leader who took power in an armed uprising against a U.S.-backed dictator in 1959 had temporarily ceded power to his younger brother after he underwent emergency surgery to stop intestinal bleeding in mid-2006.
Clue 6: "armed uprising against a dictator" (note: was this other fellow only considered a dictator by his "opponents"?)
Castro has only been seen in pictures since then, looking gaunt and frail, though his health improved enough a year ago to allow him to keep in the public mind writing reams of articles published by Cuba's state press.
The free press in the free world is bending over backward not to call Castro what he really was: a communist dictator. Why? Perhaps this is an artifact of the Watergate-era notion of the "adversarial press." Journalists see themselves as standing in opposition to their own government, and since Castro was an enemy of the U.S. that put him on the same side. The enemy of my country is my friend, or at least my "unchallenged leader."
Posted by: Mike ||
02/19/2008 17:55 ||
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#1
See also REALCLEARPOLITICS > THE ECONOMIST - CUBA AFTER CASTRO: THE COMMANDANTE RETIRES - SORT OF; + TOPIX > AFTER CASTRO: STATUS QUO OR DEMOCRACY FOR CUBA?
Die already. Che awaits you in hell.
Cuba's ailing leader, Fidel Castro has announced he will not return to the presidency in a letter published by official Communist Party paper, Granma. "I neither will aspire to nor will I accept, the position of president of the Council of state and commander in chief," he wrote in the letter. Corpse beginning to stink too much to keep propped up?
Mr Castro handed over power temporarily to his brother, Raul, in July 2006 when he underwent intestinal surgery. The 81-year-old has ruled Cuba since leading a communist revolution in 1959. In December, Mr Castro indicated that he could possibly step down in favour of a younger generation. Imagine the celebrations in Little Havana when he does kick off, as well as the maudlin, tearful tributes from the media. The latter will have an adverse effect on media allies, including the Democrats, but this is their hero of heroes and they will just not be able to help themselves.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
02/19/2008 12:35 Comments ||
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#6
Lol, I don't even want to think about the despair of the Faithful and True Believers when the dealer maximo is finally going to croak, soon enough most probably, eaten from the inside out by cancer, a fitting end for his kind... so sad! Let's empathize!
#9
Hehe, he's been giving the US the finger quite succesfully for nearly 50 years
And what's it gotten him? 30 years of being a Soviet buttboy, 10 years of hanging on for dear life, and now a right fine sucking up to a Commie dilletante with oil who he probably thinks couldn't hold his jock.
Maybe he will move to Florida...
Absolute power over his serfs, lots and lots of money stolen from them and from being propped up by drug and foreign countries,... and more generally, the good, luxury life of being a tyran and a bloodthirty, brutal dictator... all the while applauded and supported by the useful idiots, sheltered far away of his commie paradize in their own comfortable capitalistic, well-off bubble, in the name of Progress and Good.
#11
Hehe, he's been giving the US the finger quite succesfully for nearly 50 years.
Yeah, he sure showed Uncle Sam. Too bad he had to sacrifice the Cuban people and their economy to do it. Pity that the fUSSR ran out of money to support his commie ass.
/me wonders why you never see people on makeshift rafts fleeing *to* Cuba, island paradise that it is.
#12
I understand the number of well educated hot Cuban prostitutes available for foreigners has grown exponentially so is it any wonder his rich foreign visitors like the place?
#15
I suppose the island could regain some of it's former glory once Castro's gone, but his brother will have to go as well.
It's the ideas, not the people that's the problem.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/19/2008 15:25 Comments ||
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#16
First thought is that Miami will empty as Cubans return to Cuba.
Second thought is they will go, and immediatly return to Miami once they see what Cuba has become.
We shall see. Huge celebrations either way, I forsee a yearly celebration like Mardi Gras, to celebrate castro's Death. Call it El Morte.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/19/2008 15:33 Comments ||
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#17
Was expecting this last week.
FOX NEWS + PRAVDA/FREEREPUBLIC [BreitBart] > reports that its unclear at this time whether FIDEL will give up control of the army to RAUL or CARLOS LAGE. DOING A PUTIN???
Yes, Castro turned Cuba into the largest country in the world, its government is in Caracas, its graveyards are in Africa, and its people in Miami.
If Castro is so wonderful, and this country so violent and horrible, why don't we see thousands fleeing to the worker's paradise? It is no farther from Miami than LeHavre is from London. Instead, our Coast Guard picks up people every day, EVERY DAY, who have risked their lives to flee to the dark shores of Florida.
It is Castro who has stuck only to winnable wars (ie the media war) since his disastrous interventions in Africa in the 70s and 80s. He should have learned his lesson after Bolivian soldiers and peasants tracked down and liquidated his psychopathic henchman, Che Guevara, in 1968.
Something that makes me laugh out loud: America-bashing Euros have no clue that they are merely tools of the American media-industrial complex (see the Casto-loving quotes in #7). The devils who run Hollywood and Madison Avenue are laughing at your gullible obeisance.
The smug, superior, nuanced peasantry of Europistan are as backward in my eyes as a tribe of cannibals in a cave somewhere. It will take you 50 years to wake up to how you are exploited by a demonic cultural elite, if you survive that long (which is very doubtful).
The elites don't care if they destroy you in the process, they will take their loot and flee to California or Vermont before the final collapse.
If you had guns you could deal with it but, given the phenomenol rate of ordinary violence and assault in the UK, you are probably too stupid to be trusted with them. In the city where I live, there are a quarter of a million guns and perhaps a dozen homicides a year. The UK authorities are cowards and liars but they are not fools: Let British yobs have guns and there would be thousands of shootings a day.
This may be nothing more than another third-world country with a gang and drug problem. But Guyana is next door to Venezuela, and Oogo has in the past openly wondered about incorporating the little country into his. So for what it's worth.
GEORGETOWN - Unknown gunmen shot and killed three police officers and nine civilians in an attack on a police station late on Sunday, Guyanese authorities said, in a sign of escalating gang violence in the small South American country.
In an attack that was similar to a massacre in Guyana last month, a gang of about 15 men led the attack in the town of Bartica, 79 miles (127 km) from the capital of Georgetown, Tianna Persaud, a regional information officer, said on Monday. They also stole weapons, ammunition and a police vehicle, she said. Eight people wounded in the attack were airlifted to hospitals in Georgetown.
The attack came just weeks after suspected gang leaders killed 11 people including sleeping women and children in a massacre that sparked angry protests and concerns of renewed ethic tensions between Guyanese of Indian and African descent in the former British colony. Police said it was too early to say if the two attacks were connected.
The assailants also stole weapons from the homes of Bartica residents, using sledgehammers to break through concrete walls, the spokeswoman said.
Police patrolled the streets of Bartica to maintain order. The violence is unusual in Bartica, a town at the edge of the Essequibo river often used by informal miners as a gateway to remote diamond and gold fields near the border with neighboring Venezuela.
Guyana, South Americas only English-speaking country, is struggling to control violence by roving gangs often linked to drug trafficking.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/19/2008 00:00 ||
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South Korean Defense Ministry says an army helicopter has crashed near a mountain, killing seven people on board.
The UH-1H went down in Gyeonggi province near Seoul around 1:40 a.m., the official said on anonymity of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak with the media.
The official said the cause of the crash wasn't immediately known.
Thousands of Serbs chanting "Kosovo is Serbia" marched Tuesday to a bridge dividing them from ethnic Albanians while others torched U.N. border checkpoints and cars to protest Kosovo's declaration of independence.
NATO troops later closed down the roads leading to the checkpoints, cutting off the only link between northern Kosovo and Serbia, said Besim Hoti, a U.N. spokesman. The move appeared to be due to fears that the reduction of U.N. control of the border could allow Serbian militants to return to fight in Kosovo, a land Serb nationalists consider the cradle of their state and religion.
Smoke billowed from two checkpoints separating Kosovo from Serbia and flames engulfed several U.N. vehicles set ablaze in protest against Kosovo's weekend proclamation of independence and anger over international recognition of the new nation.
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#4
I wonder how people would feel it this was California and Mexicans/la Raza doing this?
Europe and the UN would say it was their right to be independent and volunteer to send troops to insure their independence was assured. Of course, most NATO countries couldn't manage to dredge up more than a couple hundred so they'd all vanish into East LA gang country (or Richmond or south of Market in SF).
BANJA LUKA,Bosnia-Hercegovina - The main opposition Bosnian Serb party called Monday for the independence of the Serb-run half of Bosnia, citing Kosovo as a precedent.
The Serb Democratic Party is demanding Republika Srpskas institutions provide (Bosnian Serbs) the same rights being given to Kosovo Albanians, said the party, which was founded by war crimes fugitive Radovan Karadzic. We expect the (Bosnian Serb) government to meet previous promises and check the will of Republika Srpska citizens in a referendum, the SDS said in a statement.
Since its 1992-1995 war, Bosnia has consisted of two entities, the Serb-run Republika Srpska (RS) and the Muslim-Croat Federation, each with their own government, parliament and police force.
The SDS was established in the early 1990s by Karadzic, who remains at large around 12 years after the UN war crimes tribunal charged him with genocide over the Srebrenica massacre and siege of Sarajevo.
In Sarajevo, the international communitys top envoy here Miroslav Lajcak said any attempts to link the fate of Bosnia with that of Kosovo should be prevented. Every attempt to artificially link Kosovo to Bosnia or its constituent parts should be resolutely rejected, he said in a statement. In no case can Bosnia be held hostage to Kosovo, nor can it be brought into question.
Any group of people that believe that they are a nation will be. The Bosnian Serbs don't want to live with the Bosnian Croats and Muslims. And the special envoy will not put Humpty-Dumpty back together.
Many Bosnian Serbs feel that their entity should follow Kosovos lead and be allowed to secede from Bosnia to be eventually attached to Serbia, which they see as their motherland. Some local politicians have hinted that the RS could try such a move.
Meanwhile, up to 3,000 Bosnian Serbs gathered in Banja Luka to protest against Kosovos independence. Europe shame on you, world shame on you and Hashim murderer, the protestors chanted in a reference to Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci. They also chanted offensive slogans using derogatory terms for Albanians.
The protest, organised by students, started with a minutes silence, followed by another minute of hissing to voice disagreement with Kosovos unilateral move. We are disappointed with the fate of (Serbian) people in Kosovo and we will continue to support them, representative of students Dejan Kragulj told journalists.
Its clear that Republika Srpska now has the right to secede from Bosnia, Zeljko, 23-year-old student, told AFP.
Europe respect international law, Kosovo RS, We dont give up Kosovo, read some of the banners carried by the protestors who also burned a Bosnian flag.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/19/2008 00:00 ||
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#3
If Kosovo can get it, there's no logical reason Republika Srpska can't. Efforts to stop it will be seen, and justifiably so, as anti-Serbian repression. Bosnia should simply dissolve into three pieces and de jure recognize what has been the de facto reality since the end of the Bosnian War.
Well, isn't that special...
Michelle Obama proclaimed yesterday that for the first time in her adult life, she was proud of America, as she spoke during a rally to support her husbands presidential bid.
While Barack Obama spent yesterday deflecting accusations from Hillary Clintons campaign of plagiarizing part of a speech delivered in 2006 by Bay State Gov. Deval Patrick, Mrs. Obama made her own headlines. Who, I'm sure has wet dreams about being Attorney General Deval Patrick...
Hope is making a comeback and, let me tell you, for the first time in my adult life, I am proud of my country. Not just because Barack is doing well, but I think people are hungry for change, she said during a rally in downtown Milwaukee.
I have seen people who are hungry to be unified around some basic common issues and it has made me proud, she told supporters. Oh, I'm sure she was "misquoted". Or "misconstrued". Or that wasn't what she said. Or...sumthin.
#1
Not sure how proud she's going to be of her husband, however. There's a YouTube out there with some guy stating he did drugs and homo sex with Obama in '99. See Howard Veit's blog. If this gets any traction, Obama's toast.
I despise the Clintons with every fiber of my being but I'll give them credit for this much: they are the dirtiest political fighters I've ever seen. There is nothing too low for them to stoop to, and no accusation too scurrilous for them to make. They play to win, no matter what or who it costs.
#2
Compare wid SALON.com > THE COURTS AND THE CONGRESS AFFIRMATIVELY ABET AND CONCEAL LAWBREAKING; + REDDIT > ONLINEJOURNAL - CONCENTRATION CAMPS IN AMERICA: THE CONSEQUENCES...
Also from REDDIT > ONLINE JOURNAL - WHAT DO WE STAND FOR:
* Vicious determination to rule the world?
* genocidal wars of aggression?
* torture?
* increasingly brutal authoritarianism [Govt. + anti-democracy/libertarianism] at home?
I guess we can add this to lifelong Yankee fan, and frustrated Marine wannabe...
WAUSAU, WIS. -- At a campaign stop this afternoon, Hillary Clintons focus was on the economy and health care but some in the crowd had other things on their minds. Clinton was asked to discuss gun control which prompted Clinton to talk about her days holding a rifle in the cold, shallow waters in backwoods Arkansas. Oh, yes. I just love it. Can't get enough of it.
Ive hunted. My father taught me how to hunt. I went duck hunting in Arkansas. I remember standing in that cold water, so cold, at first light. I was with a bunch of my friends, all men. The suns up, the ducks are flying and they are playing a trick on me. They said, were not going to shoot, you shoot. They wanted to embarrass me. The pressure was on. So I shot, and I shot a banded duck and they were surprised as I was, Clinton said drawing laughter from the crowd. And then I fell to my knees and begged Mother Gaia's forgiveness! Nah, not really. That parts's fake. But the hunting part? True. True, true, true. Yes sirrreee. Nothing better then getting out there in the freezing cold and blasting away at something. Anything.
Clintons story led one older gentleman to say, As long as you know how to use a gun, would you be willing to show Vice President Cheney how to use his? Both Clinton and the crowd erupted in laughter. Hello..Yes, sir. Hello, Mr. Vice President. How are you, sir?
Johnson, get that man's name.
Right away, Mr. Vice President...
That was good, that was really good, Clinton said. You know I couldnt believe that, I really thought that I have gotten over being totally outraged by the Bush Administration. Oh, god. I have to come up here and kiss a bunch of redneck yahoo's asses with hunting stories...this had better be fuckin worth it.
Clinton continued, Once he (Cheney) is out of office, the Secret Service is not around to protect people from him. We better be careful about where he goes hunting. Safety protocol would be useful, dont you think? How would you know?
Later Clinton was asked whether her daughter Chelsea would run for president in eight years following a Hillary Clinton presidency, to which an amused Clinton said, Oh no, no, no. If I get in, she won't have to run. We'll do it like Fidel in Cuba. Oh, shit, did I just say that? But, ya know, I think Chelsea loves hunting even more then I do...
#10
There's lots of inconvenient evidence buried in the cold, shallow waters of backwoods Arkansas.
Posted by: ed ||
02/19/2008 21:20 Comments ||
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#11
You could use a Punt Gun. It has an 8' barrel or so, and when it fires, it can kill scores of ducks. There is one in the Carson City State Museum in Nevada. Killed something like a hundred ducks or so on Pyramid Lake. Got to set it up on a punt in a lake. They are outlawed, BTW.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
02/19/2008 23:16 Comments ||
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Our favorite cholesterol armed revolutionaries are at it again:
BURLINGTON, Vt. - The founders of Ben & Jerry's endorsed Barack Obama on Monday, and lent his Vermont campaign two "ObamaMobiles" that will tour the state and give away scoops of "Cherries for Change" ice cream.
"If there was ever a need for real change, and if there ever was a candidate to inspire us and make that happen, it's now," said Ben Cohen.
I value Ben's opinion almost as much as I do that of Sharon Stone, Jerry's somewhat less. Or is it the other way around? Or was Sharon first? Damn. I can never remember.
Added Jerry Greenfield: "Barack is showing that when you lead with your values and follow what you have inside that good things will happen."
Echoing Obama, Greenfield said he and Cohen succeeded when they opened their ice cream shop 30 years ago in Burlington by doing things differently, instead of copying the "tired ways" of doing business. "What we saw is that when you want real change it's not a marketing slogan. You have to do things differently. And that is not going to be done by someone who's been involved in the system for years and years," Greenfield said. "It needs to come from inside and Barack Obama has it."
Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and his wife joined the ice cream duo to announce their radio campaign backing the Illinois senator. Cohen initially supported John Edwards, who dropped out of the race earlier this month.
Rob Hill, director of the Vermonters for Obama campaign, said he looked forward to getting behind the wheel of one of the two ObamaMobiles retrofitted Honda Elements.
#2
Done. Now, will that be cash or shall I put it on your account?
Posted by: Steve ||
02/19/2008 7:41 Comments ||
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#3
"Barack is showing that when you lead with your values and follow what you have inside that good things will happen."
Like Carter and Clinton did, eh?
#4
Purveyors of fat, Hucksters of obesity, Congestors of circulation, the exempted of denunciation to the evil plague of weight that the Left harps upon daily in their moral crusade of the Perfect man Proletariat.
#14
NEWSVINE > CLINTON CAMP SEEKS TO UNDERMINE OBAMA, + ANN COULTER EXPLAINS WHY SHE IS TRYING TO ASSOCIATE OBAMA WITH SADDAM HUSSEIN.
OH ANN, IFF ONLY YOU KNEW - I could tell her, but then I'll have to kill her ala MAVERICK to KELLY MCGILLIS in TOP GUN. SHe'll have to wear skimpy sexy clothing, go back to being a brunette every now and then as I remember her, and then be willing to engage in intense political-national affairs discussions during nasty sex, then I'll considering asking her to marry me.
A committee of the Arizona Legislature is weighing arguments made today over a proposal to let people with permits to carry concealed weapons bring guns to K-12 schools, community colleges and universities.
The Senate's Judiciary Committee listened to more than two hours of testimony about the proposal, but didn't take a vote.
The testimony came four days after a gunman opened fire during a lecture at Northern Illinois University, killing five young people before turning a gun on himself.
Supporters say the permit-holders should be allowed to carry guns at schools so they can defend themselves and others if a gunman starts shooting people and police haven't yet arrived at the scene. Quick quiz. How long before the shooter opens up in a free-fire zone (aka School) and someone calls 911 and the police respond? 5 minutes? 10? 20 in rural areas? Ok now how many bodies can you pile up in that time?
Opponents say police officers urgently responding to a school shooting might have difficulty distinguishing innocent permit-holders from the gunman.
#1
Opponents say police officers urgently responding to a school shooting might have difficulty distinguishing innocent permit-holders from the gunman.
Too easy, "innocent permit holders" holster their weapons upon demand and assume the position.
#2
The truth of the matter is that while CC at school is good, unless the students with CC are organized by the school into a "defensive militia", it will have little effect.
Tactically, this is because few if any will even be aware that a hostile incident has taken place, unless they are notified. Even then, they will be at a severe disadvantage "in the attack" against the shooter.
The way around this is for a paging system, to alert CC students of an incident. Then, with their cell phones, they call a prearranged number to get information including approximate location. From that point, they are all on the same sheet of music, and this is where it gets interesting.
They DO NOT go "hunting" the gunman. Instead, all CC students go to a concealed area at or near the front of whatever building they are in (assuming the shooter is not right on top of them.)
They DO NOT "brandish", and instead keep a defensive position, looking for armed and hostile individuals.
This gives them and everybody a much better tactical position. To begin with, they are in a safer, defensible place.
Second, a hostile shooter who leaves his first position will be in the open and visible, and much more likely to be observed, whether he tries to move to a new location or even leave campus. The CC students will still have their cell phones.
Third, they will not become targets themselves by law enforcement who think they are the shooter.
Granted, most school administrations would *never* want CC students in the first place, *nor* to have anything to do with them in the second, so both of these things have to be mandated by the State governments. In addition, schools would have to be ordered to test the system at intervals, to insure that it worked.
But doing things this way, as a voluntary system, would be a way to have an "instant campus security system".
Importantly, though CC holders would prefer to "go it alone", organizing such a group themselves, it wouldn't work as well as a school run militia, as continuity in such groups is terrible, and ordinary attrition is high. That is, 100% of seniors leave each year, and 50% of freshman attrit for academic reasons.
#5
I would be interested to know -- at any of the college campuses, how many combat experienced vets and active military, active police folks are on campus? Plus ROTC folks, usually are all over those campuses.
More and more of our returning vets are attending college, lots of National Guard attend college -- they have joined to serve, and on any given day, most buildings on campus is probably got at least one if not more of these folks there.
Seems to me, they joined to protect us, their role is to protect us -- so let's let them do it.
#6
Every place there have been armed citizens, the attempted slaughters have failed. Appalachian Law School, and more recently the church in Colorado. Every gun-free zone they have killed and wounded lots more.
#7
My daughters' classes are fairly thick with veterans, Sherry - but she is going to a junior college in San Antonio, a town better known as "The Mother-In-Law of the Air Force", due to all the AF personnel who have married and/or retired there.
When the Virginia Tech shooting happened, it was the talk of her classes, especially among those who are young veterans. She and two of her USMC veteran friends basically worked out a defense plan which called for them to get everyone else down and quiet on the floor, with the classroom doors locked and the lights turned off, in hopes that any roving gunman would think the classroom was unoccupied and move on. She and the other two veterans did plan to barricade the door with chairs and desks, if that didn't work.
Just to know what real gunfire sounds like, to have some kind of action plan skulled out beforehand and the willingness to act on it is about the best defense possible against a VT-type shooter, short of permitting CC on campus.
#8
The truth of the matter is that while CC at school is good, unless the students with CC are organized by the school into a "defensive militia", it will have little effect.
No it will have NO effect, the School will demand that any "Evil Guns" be locked in a safe that only the principal has any key too, no guns available, no "defense".
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/19/2008 15:43 Comments ||
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#9
Sgt. Mom -- that's good to know! And I bet, like your daughter, most vets in school have done the same thing she and her friends have done!
And, I know about Military City, USA -- I'm just up the road a ways!
#10
Redneck Jim: I got over that point at the very start, with the State legislature *having* to mandate that student CC on campus was legal. That means no gun locking up by the administration.
From there, the State would *also* have to mandate the school provide a paging system that works, and test and use that system.
Sure, there is always the danger that the school wouldn't use the system in a real emergency, so there would have to be a redundancy demand on individuals responsible for doing so.
If they do not use the system, or refuse to, they are *personally* liable for student injury and death after the time when they could have notified CC holders, but didn't.
Administrators are jellyfish, but are very clear on the concept of: "Do this or you will get your personal butt sued off, without university support."
It's a day of making up for lost time for Sen. Hillary Clinton. Her surrogates, Bill and Chelsea Clinton, arrived in the Badger State days before she did. So, too, did her TV ads criticizing Sen. Barack Obama's health care policy and asking why her Democratic rival won't debate her in the state. "Why won't Barack Obama debate these differences?" the announcer says in the ad. "Wisconsin deserves better."
But when Clinton finally did set foot in the state, she was forced to cancel three rallies yesterday because of inclement weather. She's packing in four events today, stopping at St. Norbert College in De Pere, near Green Bay; at the Wausau Labor Temple in Wausau; then in Eau Claire, in the northwestern part of Wisconsin; and finally in Madison, the state capital. Some 1,200 showed up here at De Pere, the campaign said, though Clinton's staffers had to organize the crowd to make the space appear more packed. "Hey, folks, there are at least 15 more seats here on the side, if you want to move from the back," a staffer told the crowd.
Escorted by Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton -- the first woman to hold that job -- Clinton talked about her economic policies. Earlier in the day, aides passed around a 12-page glossy brochure entitled "Hillary Clinton's Economic Blueprint for the 21st Century." It's detailed and heavily-bulleted, with plans such as "creating at least 5 million new green collar jobs by transitioning from a carbon-based economy to a green energy-efficient economy" and "ending tax breaks for companies that shop jobs overseas and investing those resources in the innovative potential of our own economy." Clinton's been striking economic populist tones in stops in Texas and Ohio, but the campaign was such in a rush to release the brochure that typos were inevitable. On the second page, the brochure read: "Oil prices recently hit $100 a barrel, and consumers are feeling the increased cost at the pump and in their energy bills. Gas is over $3.00 a barrel... " They meant to say $3.00 a gallon, and corrected the mistake when they e-mailed the brochure to reporters later. "The middle class is the backbone of America," Clinton said in her speech. "It's time to take care of the middle class again."
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
"Hey, folks, there are at least 15 more seats here on the side, if you want to move from the back,"
Welcome to Vigorous Pace, Wisconsin -- population 15.
#3
Darrell: Ahem. Excuse me, Wisconsin has some major cultural centers, like Phelps, pop. 400 or so, "The Playground of the North."
I think that Hillary did most of her campaigning in Democrat-friendly Milwaukee and here in "Berkeley on the Lake". The Madison newspapers have been full of campaign reports on visits from the Clinton Clan and Obama. Huckabee and McCain got some space; but I don't think they spent as much time here. Huckabee was up in Eau Claire, I think. All the other candidates are making automatic phone calls; Obama's campaign had real live human beings calling. Twice. I gave each caller a polite piece of my mind.
I can't see Hilary's act playing up north.
Voter turnout may be less than 35 percent. We've had subzero and ice storms and we're running out of salt. Double the usual snowfall this year. Current weather score: Jet Stream 1, Groundhog 0.
#4
I can understand your weather sentiment 'mom'; but remember only three people need show up at the primary, three to make it decisive, two for a draw and one to win!
Sen. John McCain, trying to solidify his support among conservatives amid resolute competition from former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, today won the endorsement of former President George Bush.
Welcoming "an old friend back to Texas," Bush called McCain -- who served as a Navy pilot during the Vietnam War and was captured and tortured by the Viet Cong -- "a remarkable patriot."
"Few men walking among us have sacrificed so much in the cause of human freedom," the former president said, adding that McCain has "the right values and experience to guide our nation forward at this historic moment."
Asked about conservative unease with McCain, the 41st president read from the diaries of former President Ronald Reagan, who was also assailed by the Right during his presidency for being "a turncoat." Bush dismissed conservative criticism of McCain as "an unfair attack," and said the Arizona senator has "a sound conservative record but not above reaching out to the other side,"
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2008 00:00 ||
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Navy will likely attempt to shoot down a faulty spy satellite Thursday, the day after the space shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to land, two officials told CNN Monday. The officials said the idea is to leave as much time as possible so a second attempt could be made if necessary.
Because the 5,000-pound satellite malfunctioned immediately after launch in December 2006, it has a full tank of fuel. It would likely survive re-entry and disperse potentially deadly fumes over an area the size of two football fields, officials have said.
The Navy plans to fire at the satellite as it enters Earth's atmosphere at an altitude of about 150 miles. Officials want the missile to hit the edge of the atmosphere to ensure debris re-enters and burns up quickly. Without any intervention, Pentagon officials have said they believe the satellite would come down on its own in early March.
The Missile Defense Agency estimated the cost of a sea-based attempted intercept at $40 million to $60 million.
The option of striking the satellite with a missile launched from an Aegis cruiser was decided upon by President Bush after consultation with several government and military officials and aerospace experts, said Deputy National Security Adviser James Jeffrey.
NASA Administrator Michael Griffin said there's nothing the military can do to make the outcome worse. "If we miss, nothing changes. If we shoot and barely touch it, the satellite is just barely in orbit" and would still burn up somewhat in the atmosphere, Griffin said. "If we shoot and get a direct hit, that's a clean kill and we're in good shape," he added.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/19/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Oh, goody! Things that go BOOM! and are magical. Because electronics is nothing but magic! Pure F&%#*ing Magic!
#3
C2CAM Website > DANGER ROOM/WIRED.com > INSIDE AMERICA'S SATELLITE-KILLING MISSLE. AEGIS SM-3's have a dangerous weakness vv guidance control system cracks, plus a lack of realistic HIGHER-ALTITUDE testing for this kind of mission. ARTICLE - MISSLE "CAN'T HIT WHAT IT CAN'T SEE".
*OTOH, "IF IT MISSES, NOTHING CHANGES". Famous last words - remember this vv RELIABLE PLANETARY DEFENSE? = DATA MGT? when the world sees MOON EXPLOSIONS come 2030, KAMALEN, plus any and all space events after 2010. REMEMBER, TU24 WAS SUPPOSED TO PASS EARTH AS A SINGLE, SAFE, ORGANIZED/UNIFIED OBJECT, AND WAS NOT SUPPOS TO HAVE FIREBALLS BEFORE AND DURING ITS PASSAGE [Fragments?]. NASA-JPL in 2008 = OWG in 2030, STARFLEET or SUPREME HEADQUARTERS, ASTEROID/ALIEN DEFENSE ORGANIZATION, etc? has yet to explain the fireballs nor other observed space boom-booms that occurred.
D *** NG IT, OWG MADONNA FANS OF AMERIKA/USSA DEMAND PERFECT PLANETARY DEFENSE AND ASTEROID MANAGEMENT, SPACE ROCKS CAN'T BE TRUSTED - SPOCK LOST HIS BRAIN, AND CAPTAIN KIRK TURNED INJUN!
Hmmmmm, now that I think of it, what happened to SPock, Kirk involved SPACE ROCK SPACE BABES > MMMMMUUUULLLLTTIIPPAAAAASSSSSS.......DON'T DATE ROBOTS!
#5
Although the animations on tv show an evening or night launch, does anyone know yet if that will be the case? A night detonation should look pretty decent up there, and the closer we get to TMinus, the navy may let everyone know where the first intercept will be. I would assume the Interceptor will have a proximity homing trigger for contact, but if it misses, will the missile continue on into space with it's escape velocity unarmed or fall back to Earth unarmed? Any thoughts?
#6
The Space Shuttle solid rocket boosters separate at about 30 miles up, and fall back, I've learned, but not sure if gravity would pull back accelerating thrust projectile at 150 miles?? I guess it depends on the vector!
#10
If it works, and it should, it will be a pretty big deal. Still, the critics will say:
1) The defunct satellite was just loping along compared to an ICBM warhead package.
2) Said satellite is the size of a Greyhound bus, while a MIRV bus is about the size of a Hummer.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
02/19/2008 10:00 Comments ||
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#11
They are taking it out probably in one of the 3 orbits that take it over the west coast of the US near sunset. A hit there would ensure that it happened away from the US mainland, but close enough to be captured by ground based instruments that will be very valuable in judging how well the SM-3 and the Aegis targeting system worked
Those of you on the left coast oughta get a nice light show if they hit that 50Kg tank of Hyrazine. 246Km alt or close to that (Pretty sure its approaching perigee)
For those of you able to understand how to calc astronomical coordinates, this site has a very nice coordinate and pointing system that does the calcs for you, and will even estimate the brightness, etc. Just punch in the date of 21 Feb 2008 1800 PST (convert to whatever your time zone is). Usually by your IP it will guess the proper timezone.
Its near civil twilight o the west coast (just below the horizon), so it should be a slightly darker sky, and the satellite itself is still very much in sunlight and well above the local horizon, so it should be a a spottable little bugger with the right gear and pointing instructions.
For example, if you were in San diego, the satellite will be 11 magnitude when it appears over the horizon to the west (260 degrees) and will travel in an arc across the lower part of the north western quadrant of the sky, until it passes out of sight below the northern horizon just a bit past due north (9 degrees) at magnitude 5. It will be 1800Km away at the ends, and about 1000Km away at mid point in the visible part of its orbit (which is likely when the shot will be taken). Once its out of sunlight it will not be visible using purely optical means.
Remember this is roughtly a 5x10 meter object so its tiny up there in space 1000-2000km away. Suffice to say you will need a telescope.
If the Navy does its job it should get VERY bright for a fraction of a second.
San Fran on the coast (not in the city - light pollution) will get a very good view of it as it goes staight overhead on that orbit, as will non-urban coastal areas to the south and north (except where the line of sight crosses an urban area).
Folks in Idoaho, N Utah, Montana and North Dakota should be the first to spot the initial debris as it burns up on reentry. Pretty sparsely populated areas too, on up into Canada then the N Atlantic on down to western africa and the bulk of the remaining orbit over nothign but oceans and off the SE part of Australia - good calculation by the BMD guys for that entry footprint.
Probably take a few orbits to completely decay out all the larger fragments, and about 20 to completely clear everything except a few "nuts and blots" type of fragments, depending on what kind of vector the explosion imparts on said fragments.
OH, and the reason I posted it here is that I didnt want to steal the guy's bandwith by putting it on the front page.
However, feel free to copy it local bandwidth and do a post of the above for the Rantburg U's Astronomy and BMD Class.
#12
Cruiser will be someplace off S Alaska. - allows it to grab the satellitle at an off angle. seeker warheard will have a good angle on the targte, the night side will be behind it and it will still be sunlit from one side, making it a very bright object (relatively speaking),
#14
OldSpook, is the platform going to be a cruiser? Not a Burke Class destroyer?
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
02/19/2008 12:18 Comments ||
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#15
I'm hoping for some unclassified pics of a nice contact after this happens.
Do the Arleigh Burkes even carry the newer SM3?
You know, I would have thought this would be perfect for a THAAD intercept. My guess is that they've got the land based platforms issues worked out pretty well and are working on the sea-based ones?
#18
But is its the USS Lake Erie (CG-70), a Baseline 4 Ticondergoa class. Radars and software are the upgraded version of whats on the Burkes. She's been refitted as probably the primary SMD-BMDS/KW testbed ship in the Navy.
#19
FYI - The main target is the hydrazine in a beryllium-lined fuel tank. Someone told me my 50kg estimate was wrong, that there is actually 1,000 pounds in there. It uses a surface screen catalyst (a very fine mesh of alumina and molybdenum coating), not a separate fuel mixture for the ignition reactions. Thats for the orbital maneuvering system. This satellite must have been completely crippled if they couldn't even send it commands to vent the tank.
#20
Symptoms of acute exposure to high levels of hydrazine include irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, temporary blindness, dizziness, headache, nausea, pulmonary edema, seizures, and coma in humans. Acute exposure can also damage the liver, kidneys, and the central nervous system (CNS) in humans.
The liquid is corrosive and may produce chemical burns and severe dermatitis from skin contact.
Acute animal tests in rats, mice, rabbits, and guinea pigs have demonstrated hydrazine to have high acute toxicity from inhalation and ingestion and extreme acute toxicity from dermal exposure.
#21
Anon 4021, the reason using an SM3 is the geometry is wrong for the land based stuff. Go lock at the orbital tracks - the come up out of the south pacific and cruise up north over Canada. Much mor of a polar inclination, and also more than 90 degrees off angle from what a korean or shinese. launch would be (coming from the southwest instead of the northwest)
#22
Impact in the red circle (picture below) would ensure that it happened away from the US mainland, but close enough to be captured by ground based instruments that will be very valuable in judging how well the SM-3 and the Aegis targeting system worked
#25
A successful intercept with the SM-3 would say we can position this sea-based system any damn place we choose, to defend our assets and allies around the world and not just CONUS.
#29
If its Wednesday then it will not be as easy to observe. Orbit must b e decaying a bit more rapidly.
And that picture tells you why the THAADs in Alaska are out - they are oriented the wrong way - they are set for a different threat direction, and the intercept geometry is simply not good (their optiomal launch paths run almost parallel to the statellite tracks).
Thats the advantage of ship based BMD - they can move and get a better angle based on threat detection.
#30
The angles are counterintuitive unless you know spherical geometry and orbital mechanics (especially relative orbital motions and the earth's rotation). The math ain't easy. That's why they call it Rocket Science.
New NOTAMS: 0230 UTC Thursday to 0530 UTC
Thats 1830-2130 PST Wednesday 20 FEB.
track data All times PST
1830 - over west africa
1845 - east coast of South Africa
1900 - just off the antarctic coast mid way between Oz and Africa
1915 - E of Oz N of NZ
1930 - over Pacific
1935 - off the West Coast, past the night time terminator but still illuminated and visible.
Thats my bet right there 1935 PST. Lat 211°29'54" +39°36'34" Lon, alt 246 Km.
The shots will be further south than the picture above. If its visible it will be from San Diego, with smaller debris, if any is left, coming in visible across CA, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming
#32
If they had to move the shoot back, I'd bet its due to due to orbital decay - the shots I outlined above are much more optimal for getting optical and radar instrumentation on everything (from the coast of CA, etc, and some of the OTH stuff in Alaska).
If that's the case then it will be from the area NE of Hawaii.
#33
If the Air Force had any flash, they would just zoom over to the wayward satellite and pluck it from the sky. Leave it to the Navy to do the heavy lifting, he said, dousing himself with Inter-Service Rivalry brand gasoline.
#35
YAHOO NEWS > Shootdown may occur this Wednesday night instead of Thursday.
HOWZABOUT AFTER MIDNITE WEDNESDAY MORNING [Guam time] > two fiery surface-to-air thingys wid rocket tails were visually spotted taking off from the direction of northern Guam, blasting off straight up and then angling to only-God-knows-where into the cloud bands. TWAS RAINING + HEAVY DOWNCAST > looks like the USAF-DOD used the lousy weather as opportunity to conduct a COVERT TEST/MISSLES LAUNCH from Andersen AFB since nothing was announced in the local medias??? SPACE SHUTTLE TARGET TEST???
#38
I believe the Aegis cruisers are the only US ships what currently are outfitted with the SM-3. Nothing prevents the destroyers from also deploying the SM-3 (Japanese Aegis destroyers) other than cost and a desire to stick to anti-air duties. Both the cruisers' and destroyers' radars and computers are being upgraded to track ballistic missiles.
What's interesting, other than vastly understating SM-3 range, is that if the Aegis and SM-3 can intercept a satellite going 17,000mph, it can also intercept ICBMs during decent. Or by increasing missile size (Mk-41 VLS can launch 21 diam. missiles) it has a good chance of knocking down SLBMs/ICBMs in midcourse, esp. the new Russian ICBMs with fast burn motors and lower trajectories (1000km height).
Posted by: ed ||
02/19/2008 20:48 Comments ||
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#39
Hey Old Spook and all Rantburgers - is there any chance we could have Rantburgers on OS suggestions to keep an eye to sky tomorrow night and post if they see anything? Could be our first RB live intel session.... Just an idea and not sure if it is plausible.
Thanks again for the great info OS - love learning this stuff!
Posted by: Yosemite Sam ||
02/19/2008 20:48 Comments ||
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#40
I bet every amateur astronomer, and some no so amateur, will be trying to track that satellite tomorrow.
Posted by: ed ||
02/19/2008 20:54 Comments ||
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#41
People in Hawaii are likely to have the best eyeball on it - look N and E about 30 degrees above the horizon at 0335 UTC. Luckily you will be looking away from the setting sun and into the evening sky.
And Joe, yes - I updated iti with the NOTAMS data. 1830-2130 Pacific Time tomorrow night.
likely time for west coast is 1935 local in the SW sky. If its later than that it will be over the howrison to the west if they want to do visual/optical observation (it gets eclipsed on subsequent orbits furhter west and later).
Mods - you may want to contue this thread into tomorrow so we dont lose the data.
#43
West Coast = mucho cloud cover and rain...no visuals likely, but Will notarized and catchers' mitt (and cup) ready. I'll need a snort or two for corage, but standing in position! Back to RBHQ!
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/19/2008 23:02 Comments ||
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NEW DELHI - India will soon conduct its first test of a submarine-based ballistic missile which can be tipped with a nuclear warhead, an official announced on Monday. The experimental missile will be fired from a submerged pontoon, said S. Prahlada, chief controller of Indias Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). We have completed all preparations for the first-ever test launch of the missile and are awaiting the governments nod, Prahlada told reporters on the sidelines of a major arms fair in the Indian capital.
The missile, named K-15, has a top range of 700 kilometres (438 miles). If the test is successful, India will be capable of launching missiles from air, land, ships and submarines, and it will join an elite group that includes the United States, Russia, France and China, experts said.
Prahlada said the K-15 missile, following its experimental launch, will be integrated with a nuclear-powered submarine that India is building.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/19/2008 00:00 ||
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Assisting their Indian counterparts in investigations into the INS Jalashwa gas leakage, the US Navy has confirmed three previous hydrogen sulphide leakages on its ships, including one that left three workers dead on board aircraft carrier USS Harry S Truman on July 12, 1997.
While the Court of Inquiry into the February 1 incident, that claimed six lives, is expected to be completed in a week, the 16,700-tonne landing platform dock is slated for a complete overhaul of its sewage pipes and holding tanks with the US Navy sending all the related maintenance manuals. The overhaul and refitting will be done in Vizag as soon as the troop carrier docks after the completion of the inquiry at sea this month.
Although INS Jalashwa (formerly USS Trenton) underwent a total overhaul before being handed over to India at Norfolk in September 2007, the inquiry is likely to establish whether there were any shortcomings during the maintenance upgradation of the second largest vessel of the Indian Navy. Through its defence attaches abroad, the Defence Ministry has also found out incidents of hydrogen sulphide leakages in the Australian Navy.
However, prima facie investigations have established that hydrogen sulphide and methane gas leaked from sewage pipes below the onboard gymnasium. Although it has not been conclusively established, there are strong indications that the gas gauge aboard the ship malfunctioned and personnel who went down to repair or reset it were the first ones to fall prey to the leakage. The only saving grace was that the ship did not catch fire. Hydrogen Sulphide is an extremely corrosive gas that attacks the nervous system and causes death within minutes if the exposure is more than 350 parts per million.
Significantly, all Indian Navy warships except for the US-built INS Jalashwa have in-built sewage treatment plants (STPs) that discharge secondary or tertiary treated water into the sea. However, like other US Navy ships, INS Jalashwa only has holding tanks for sewage that is pumped out to specially designed barges for sewage treatment after the ship docks at the port. In short, the Indian Navy is not used to this method of sewage treatment.
The incident has sent shockwaves within both the navies as the ship was refitted and sold to India just last year after a complete overhaul that cost $39.5 million. The US Navy has also informed their Indian counterparts that two incidents of gas leakage had taken place on its facilities on-shore, while three ship workers of Newport Shipbuilding lost their lives due to hydrogen sulphide gas leakage in the run-up to the commissioning of USS Harry S Truman.
Posted by: john frum ||
02/19/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Is hydrogen sulfide generated by the raw sewage or some form of sewage treatment?
#3
Observing the Snipes (usually HTs, Hull Technicians) working the CHT systems(that's what its called, honest), this airedale was pretty impressed by the regimen employed: full chemical suits, self contained or forced air breathing equipment, 2 man rule and first and foremost: a gas free engineer sniffed the worksite for oxygen levels and then continuously monitored. I would hazard a guess that there was a breakdown in protocol for this to happen to the USN ships; it might just be that no such protocol existed for India.
#4
USN,
Note that the USN deaths were yard workers, not active duty. The shipyards should have the same safety protocols (or even more stringent) that regulars do, but probably somebody cut corners, like you said.
Posted by: Rambler in California ||
02/19/2008 18:45 Comments ||
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I was going put my own headline on this - Famine Alert - but decided it was too goulish. If there isn't a good N. American harvest this year then that is what the world is facing. It's due to a combination of factors, but diversion of crops to biofuel production combined with the current abrupt climate cooling will probably tip us over the edge.
I think it was Herschel in 1801 who observed when sunspot numbers were low, wheat prices were high. Sunspots are currently at their lowest level for at least a century.THE price of wheat on the JSE futures exchange broke through R4000 a ton yesterday to a new record on supply concerns, making increases in the price of bread and other foodstuffs inevitable.
After hovering around R3900 a ton for some time, the future prices for delivery in May broke the psychological barrier of R4000 a ton, and the price for delivery in July closed at R4000, although it was as high as R4030 during the day yesterday. Wheat prices have now more than doubled from R1878 a ton a year ago, and further increases are expected.
Milling and bread companies warned yesterday that with the steep hike in the price of wheat, further increases in the price of bread were unavoidable.
While there has been an outcry in SA, bread prices here still lag behind global prices, with bread in the US, UK and Australia costing as much as R15 a loaf, according to the National Chamber of Milling.
Supply is constrained by a range of factors, said Jannie de Villiers, executive director of the chamber. Wheat planting has been curtailed by drought, and farmers worldwide have switched to more lucrative maize to feed the world's biofuels frenzy, causing a considerable reduction in hectares planted to wheat. Moreover, growth in China and India has led to increased beef consumption, further stoking demand for wheat.
The supply situation might ease somewhat when the northern hemisphere harvest season started in June-July, he said.
"We are facing quite a dilemma," De Villiers said. "It is a challenge to keep the mills going, given the difficulty to procure enough good quality wheat at these high prices, combined with the power cuts we have experienced lately."
According to figures from the South African Grain Information Service, better qualities of wheat from the US are now trading at R7250 a ton, while Canadian wheat costs R6766 a ton to import. Cheaper German wheat can be bought for R4200 a ton.
But De Villiers noted that some net exporting countries were now opting to close their markets in a bid to ensure food security and ease food inflation. Argentinian wheat, for instance, is at R3640 a ton, but the Argentinian government has opted not to sell current wheat stocks.
As a net importer of wheat, SA is, however, unable to shield itself against price increases. The country produced 1,77-million tons of wheat last year, but consumed 2,8-million tons.
"In the past we (SA) relied on free trade for food security, but the world has changed. The message that the government needs to hear is that there has been a fundamental shift globally and this needs to be addressed in policy. Farming has for long been treated as the black sheep in policy making," De Villiers said.
Tiger Brands corporate affairs executive Jimmy Manyi said yesterday a price increase was inevitable; it was "just a question of time".
Rising wheat prices meant the company's under-recovery would widen and add to the pressure it was experiencing. Tiger Brands was attempting to contain price increases and should have hiked the price of bread again this month, but was holding back, Manyi said.
A price increase of 40c a loaf last month had unions crying foul. Bakers have been under fire after allegations of price-fixing, which resulted in Tiger Brands paying R99m for its role in the scandal. The Competition Commission is still investigating allegations of price fixing in the baking and milling sector.
Manyi said Tiger Brands was seeing margins in its bread division being "eroded to the core" .
Pioneer Foods milling and baking executive Tertius Carstens said Sasko was determining what steps to take, but it was clear that a "significant" but unspecified price increase was imminent.
#3
This ought to be viewed with optimism. Those poor african farmers should benefit from the higher prices and spur production. I would like to here Ox Fam's take on the higher prices since the US agriculture has blamed for all Africa's ills because of food programs and overproduction.
#11
Read a report from the BC Canadians this weekend; although expenses are up, the price for wheat is double from just a 'few' months ago; as a result, BC farmers are in a buying frenzy; replacing all sorts of equipment. The banks have stated that they are watching to ensure the farmers don't over-extend, and all in all, it sounds like the BC forecast for this year is positive. (spent the w/end in BC, read a lot of their papers)
#12
Colorado has been cold, but not a bunch of snow. Just dribbles. In the mountains we are getting record setting snowfall so the reservoirs will be full for the farmers. The winter wheat crop has done well this year too so far.
#13
1/3 of the US corn crop is now used to make ethanol and the US produces 40% of the world's corn. The offset is that the mash is used as a feed. Less energy but higher protein.
The US doesn't use wheat to make ethanol. Europe does, but has to priced out of the market without extraordinary subsidies. Which they have. Euro farmers even get a subsidy for designating farmland for biofuel crops.
The other major driver is meat demand has more than doubled in China and India as their income rise. A rule of thumb is 8 pounds of grain produces 1 pound of beef.
Don't forget the new mantra: One barrel for one bushel.
Posted by: ed ||
02/19/2008 20:27 Comments ||
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#3
Just remember that the "Barrel" refered to is not the 55 gallon drum we're familiar with, but is an arbitrary measure of 44 US gallons.
(Higher than it seems at first glance.)
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/19/2008 17:55 Comments ||
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#4
The cited article goes on to say "Oil prices are still within the range of inflation-adjusted highs set in early 1980."
That kind of thinking is B.S. -- the rising price of oil imports since 1973 has been a major driver of inflation. Might as well say, "Prices in general, after correcting for inflation, have not changed at all since 1980."
#5
Have you noticed there's always the same set of excuses for rising oil prices? Cold weather: prices go as more heating oil is burned. Warm weather: prices go up as Americans drive more. If refineries don't explode, one of them is shut down for maintenance to make sure they don't explode in the future. Bloomberg.com points at another factor, in plainer language: "Oil also rose as a weakening dollar prompted some traders to invest in commodities as a hedge against inflation."
#6
See also REDDIT > THE OIL DRUM - WE WON'T STOP GLOBAL WARMING + FOUR BILLION CARS BY 2050; + NINE WAYS/REASONS GLOBAL WARMING CAN ***** HUMAN CIVILIZATION.
#7
OPEC, the commies, and the arab street are all tuned in to CNN® for the critical Wisconsin race! Each tick of the Obama bomb is tightening sphincters all over the world!
#8
Tell me this: whis does crude oil cost more when its a REFINERY thats down? How does that cut crude oil production? If anything it backlogs it, meaning the cost should go down since they cannot sell it as quickly.
#2
I simply don't buy it. Mexicans like their puerco...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
02/19/2008 13:37 Comments ||
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#3
Much ado about nothing. 75,000 out of 30 million is insignificant. Even 200,000 is less than 1% of all hispanics. The figures also pale in comparison to Blacks, where 10% of Blacks are estimated to the Muslim. In fact, these numbers are in line with White Anglo converts. I.e. not very.
Al
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
02/19/2008 13:59 Comments ||
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#4
I don't doubt it, same as African-Americans joining the Nation of Islam. Conversion as a statement of "nationalism". I wouldn't be surprised if there were a strong overlap between converts and La Raza membership or at least attitudes.
#5
I'm not worried. The Santa Muerte cultists outnumber them by 15 to 1. A bizarre combination of the Catholic "Mary as goddess" and the Aztec Mictlantecuhtli, they are severely condemned by the Catholic church, but have little chapel-bunkers all over Mexico, often with bullet holes in the windows.
Drug dealers, criminals, peasants, and a lot of others worship what is essentially a pagan death diety. Not a cult you want to mess around with.
If the Muslims try it on, they will end up having the heart cut out of their chest with an obsidian knife.
Citigroup has barred investors in one of its hedge funds from withdrawing their money, and a new leveraged fund lost 52 percent in its first three months, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.
The largest U.S. bank suspended redemptions in CSO Partners, a fund specializing in corporate debt, after investors tried to pull more than 30 percent of its roughly $500 million of assets, the newspaper said. Citigroup injected $100 million to stabilize the fund, which lost 10.9 percent last year, the newspaper said...
The US is already moving towards de facto nationalization of the banks, as loans by the Fed (and foreign governments) become the primary source of new capital. The large scale government interventions advocated by several of the leading Presidential candidates (e.g. Clinton) indicate what we can expect if conditions continue to deteriorate.
A recession - especially if long and deep will accelerate deterioration of both households and businesses, forcing this nationalization process to continue. The Japan solution is the course of least political resistance: prop up the banks with lightly hidden government help and wait for natural forces to heal the economy over time.
There are many ways to socialize the debt. The government (via the Fed or the Treasury) could expand its loans to banks in both size and duration, similar to what Japan did when they re-capitalized their banks with convertible preferred stock. Or government-sponsored mortgage agencies could be the hidden hand providing support. Either way, the mechanics are conceptually simple. For example, a government program could allow you to exchange your existing mortgage for a 30-year, low interest, fixed rate mortgage (non-refinancable, with recourse, principle and interest government guaranteed to the creditor). Done well this might require small cash outlays (hence minimal adverse fiscal impact), but would have severe impact on the governments balance sheet (although few care about such things, yet).
This would require strong legislative action of dubious constitutionality. Neither is unprecedented in American history; both are commonplace in the past fifty years.
Rantburgers who think this is irrelevant to the WOT haven't been paying attention.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
ALMATY, Kazakhstan United Nations officials issued an urgent plea on Monday for some $25 million in emergency aid to Tajikistan, the Central Asian country hardest hit by the regions harshest winter in three decades.
Algeria wants to return 15 fighter jets it bought from Russia because of their poor quality, the Kommersant daily reported on Monday, citing an official from Russia's state United Aerospace Corporation. The official said Russia was proposing to take back the MiG-29 jets, which were delivered to Algeria in 2006 and 2007, but only if Algeria bought more modern and expensive planes such as the MiG-29M2 or the MiG-35. 
Zimbabwe's former finance minister Simba Makoni pledged on Wednesday to heal the southern African country's wounds as he unveiled his strategy to end President Robert Mugabe's 28-year rule in polls next month. 
I'm amazed Hillary Fudd's eyes didn't tear up when she recounted killing Daffy Duck. 
A committee of the Arizona Legislature is weighing arguments made today over a proposal to let people with permits to carry concealed weapons bring guns to K-12 schools, community colleges and universities.
It's a day of making up for lost time for Sen. Hillary Clinton. Her surrogates, Bill and Chelsea Clinton, arrived in the Badger State days before she did. So, too, did her TV ads criticizing Sen. Barack Obama's health care policy and asking why her Democratic rival won't debate her in the state. "Why won't Barack Obama debate these differences?" the announcer says in the ad. "Wisconsin deserves better." 
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Navy will likely attempt to shoot down a faulty spy satellite Thursday, the day after the space shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to land, two officials told CNN Monday. The officials said the idea is to leave as much time as possible so a second attempt could be made if necessary.
