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| Puppet Masters |
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Mark Landler
The New York Times 2013-05-16 15:06:00
"Israel is determined to continue to prevent the transfer of advanced weapons to Hezbollah," the Israeli official said. "The transfer of such weapons to Hezbollah will destabilize and endanger the entire region." "If Syrian President Assad reacts by attacking Israel, or tries to strike Israel through his terrorist proxies," the official said, "he will risk forfeiting his regime, for Israel will retaliate." The Israeli official, who had been briefed by high-level officials on Israel's assessment of the situation in Syria, declined to be identified, citing the need to protect internal Israeli government deliberations. He contacted The New York Times on Wednesday. | |
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Comment: Biased reporting one would expect from the New York Times
promoting the weapons transfer idea to justify unprovoked air-strikes.
The motives for Israel's warning could be to provide pubic support and
motivation for the 'rebel' opposition they are supporting with the US
and its allies to covertly overthrow the Assad regime.
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Rupert Neate and Terry Macalister
The Guardian 2013-05-15 14:34:00
European commission carries out 'unannounced inspections' to investigate claims prices were rigged for more than a decade The London offices of BP and Shell have been raided by European regulators investigating allegations they have "colluded" to rig oil prices for more than a decade. The European commission said its officers carried out "unannounced inspections" at several oil companies in London, the Netherlands and Norway to investigate claims they may have "colluded in reporting distorted prices to a price reporting agency [PRA] to manipulate the published prices for a number of oil and biofuel products". The commission said the alleged price collusion, which may have been going on since 2002, could have had a "huge impact" on the price of petrol at the pumps "potentially harming final consumers". | |
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Comment: The whole financial system is a rigged game.
This is just one in a long line of recent announcements of insider price
rigging. See: Banks have rigged everything: The biggest price-fixing scandal ever
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Timothy Alexander Guzman
Global Research 2013-05-16 14:26:00
It was recently announced at the World Economic Forum in Cape Town, South Africa that MasterCard and the Nigerian National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) under the government of Nigeria would form a partnership to distribute a new identity card to every Nigerian citizen. The purpose of the card is to have all Nigerian citizens participate in the financial services sector under the control of MasterCard, a multinational financial services corporation headquartered in New York. MasterCard's press release 'MasterCard to Power Nigerian Identity Card Program' stated: As part of the program, in its first phase, Nigerians 16 years and older, and all residents in the country for more than two years, will get the new multipurpose identity card which has 13 applications including MasterCard's prepaid payment technology that will provide cardholders with the safety, convenience and reliability of electronic payments. This will have a significant and positive impact on the lives of these Nigerians who have not previously had access to financial services. |
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| Society's Child |
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The Daily Mail, UK
In Istanbul, protesters faced police force in the European side of the city2013-05-16 14:29:00 This followed a day of tear gas and water cannons in Ankara The protesters oppose Turkey's support for Syrian rebels in the civil war Dozens of demonstrators were faced with tear gas and water cannons by police in Istanbul today as they protested against the Turkish government's policy towards Syria. Two groups of protesters were marching to Besiktas district near the Dolmabahce Palace on the European side of the city when officers blocked their path, reports the state-run Anatolia News Agency. Some of the demonstrators, said to be mainly students, tried to climb barriers while police used water cannons and tear gas on the groups. Others took refuge in the historic Dolmabahce Mosque.
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Justin Caba
Medical Daily 2013-05-16 12:16:00
Doctors in Poland said they have delivered a baby with 4.5 g of alcohol in its system which is considered 23 times over the country's drunk driving limit. Mirror.co.uk reported the shameless mother had been drinking heavily in the final months leading up to her pregnancy. While attempting to feed her habit at a local liquor store, the 24-year-old expecting mother fainted. Emergency medical services rushed the unresponsive pregnant woman to the hospital where doctors were forced to perform an emergency caesarean section in order to save the child's life. "The unborn baby was in severe danger of being poisoned to death. When he came out his heart was barely beating and he had 4.5g of alcohol in his blood," hospital spokeswoman Wojciech Zawalski said in a statement. |
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NBC Miami
2013-05-15 16:17:00
The defeated North Miami mayoral candidate who claimed that Jesus Christ endorsed her now says that the city chose Lucifer over the son of God. In a post-election statement on her Facebook page, Anna Pierre questioned Tuesday's results, in which she finished last among seven candidates. She also re-affirmed her Christian faith. "My Jesus has control over my life & the title of mayor doesn't define who I am as a person," Pierre wrote. "North Miami chose 'Luciefer' (sic) over Jesus. Thank you for your trust & support, your financial contribution, and most importantly - your prayers! I have lost a hard fought battle but not a war." |
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Gwynn Guilford
Quartz 2013-05-14 21:38:00
It was in most respects a typical heist that happened in Dublin last month. Masked men, roughed-up security guards, $650,000 in stolen booty. But this wasn't art or jewelry that was stolen. The contraband, instead, was four rhinoceros heads. Or, more specifically, their horns. And this wasn't the first time. A rhino-head heist spree swept Europe in 2011, as thieves raided museums and auctions houses in seven countries, prompting 30 investigations by Europol, 20 of which are ongoing. Similar heists have also been on the rise in Africa, as well as in the odd American backwater town. Meanwhile, an online business thrives as well - including one dealer on Facebook who only accepts bitcoin. What is driving this "highly organized" crime ring? If you guessed "China," you were wrong. The answer is Vietnam. The country's appetite for rhino horn is so great that it now fetches up to $100,000/kg, making it worth more than its weight in gold. (Horns average around 1-3 kg each, depending on the species.) |
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RT
2013-05-15 15:42:00
Wind farms kill about 83,000 hunting birds each year, including hawks, falcons and eagles. Killing an American eagle is federal crime, but despite the mass die-offs, the Obama administration has never once fined or prosecuted a wind energy company. At wind farms throughout the US, iconic and protected birds regularly fly into spinning turbines. The crippled bodies of eagles are often found at the base of the machines after being cut up by the quickly spinning blades. These birds of prey were once included on the list of threatened and endangered species - and although they are no longer listed, their population is still significantly less than it was in the early 20thcentury. Under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act of 1940, disturbing, killing or taking the birds or their eggs is a federal offense punishable by a maximum of two years imprisonment and a $250,000 for an individual felony conviction, and $500,000 for a felony conviction of an organization. The Obama administration has prosecuted oil companies when birds died in their waste pits and power companies when they were electrocuted, but has never once fined or prosecuted a wind farm. |
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Billy Hallowell
The Blaze 2013-05-15 10:24:00
According to Hendershott, the IRS audited her in 2010 and demanded to know who was paying her. While they did not ask directly it seemed as though the agent wanted to know about the leanings of these particular organizations. It all started with a phone call she received at her home in May of that year - a call during which Hendershott was told she would be audited. A letter that followed on May 19, 2010 solidified the IRS's request to meet her in person two months later in July. While IRS investigations are certainly not uncommon occurrences, the professor believes that the situation surrounding hers was more-than-curious. "The IRS calls my house and says ... 'I just wanted to let you know that we're going to be auditing your business' and I said 'My businesses?' and he said, 'You know the expenses you take off for writing," the academic recalls. Hendershott was surprised she was being audited on business grounds considering she does not operate an entrepreneurial endeavor in the traditional sense. In addition to her academic work, she told TheBlaze that she occasionally freelances for Catholic outlets and for the Wall Street Journal. But can this really be considered "business" activity? |
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Steve Bunnell
Fox40.com 2013-05-06 18:29:00
The debate between vegan students and those that eat meat at Elk Grove High School has made its way onto Instagram and other social networks, and the words being used aren't all that pleasant. "[One student] keeps posting about goats and sheep and pigs and dead pictures and them being slaughtered," said agriculture student Katie Velon. The online allegations also include angry words for the schools Ag program, saying it "leads to the slaughtering of animals" and even describing how animals are drained of blood while their hearts are still beating. But Ag students say they're proud of what they do and of what they're learning. |
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| Secret History |
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Owen Jarus
LiveScience 2013-05-16 15:42:00
The peak period for baby-making sex in ancient Egypt was in July and August, when the weather was at its hottest. Researchers made this discovery at a cemetery in the Dakhleh Oasis in Egypt whose burials date back around 1,800 years. The oasis is located about 450 miles (720 kilometers) southwest of Cairo. The people buried in the cemetery lived in the ancient town of Kellis, with a population of at least several thousand. These people lived at a time when the Roman Empire controlled Egypt, when Christianity was spreading but also when traditional Egyptian religious beliefs were still strong. So far, researchers have uncovered 765 graves, including the remains of 124 individuals that date to between 18 weeks and 45 weeks after conception. The excellent preservation let researchers date the age of the remains at death. The researchers could also pinpoint month of death, as the graves were oriented toward the rising sun, something that changes predictably throughout the year. The results, combined with other information, suggested the peak period for births at the site was in March and April, and the peak period for conceptions was in July and August, when temperatures at the Dakhleh Oasis can easily reach more than 100 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius). The peak period for the death of women of childbearing age was also in March and April (exactly mirroring the births), indicating that a substantial number of women died in childbirth. Although attempts have been made in the past to piece together ancient Egyptian birth patterns using census records, researchers say this is the first time that these patterns have been determined by looking at burials. "No one has ever looked at it using the actual individuals themselves, the biological aspects of it," said lead researcher Lana Williams, a professor at the University of Central Florida, in an interview with LiveScience. The team presented their research recently at the annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology in Honolulu. |
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| Science & Technology |
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NASA
2013-05-15 13:49:00
On May 31, 2013, asteroid 1998 QE2 will sail serenely past Earth, getting no closer than about 3.6 million miles (5.8 million kilometers), or about 15 times the distance between Earth and the moon. And while QE2 is not of much interest to those astronomers and scientists on the lookout for hazardous asteroids, it is of interest to those who dabble in radar astronomy and have a 230-foot (70-meter) -- or larger -- radar telescope at their disposal. "Asteroid 1998 QE2 will be an outstanding radar imaging target at Goldstone and Arecibo and we expect to obtain a series of high-resolution images that could reveal a wealth of surface features," said radar astronomer Lance Benner, the principal investigator for the Goldstone radar observations from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. "Whenever an asteroid approaches this closely, it provides an important scientific opportunity to study it in detail to understand its size, shape, rotation, surface features, and what they can tell us about its origin. We will also use new radar measurements of the asteroid's distance and velocity to improve our calculation of its orbit and compute its motion farther into the future than we could otherwise." The closest approach of the asteroid occurs on May 31 at 1:59 p.m. Pacific (4:59 p.m. Eastern / 20:59 UTC). This is the closest approach the asteroid will make to Earth for at least the next two centuries. Asteroid 1998 QE2 was discovered on Aug. 19, 1998, by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Near Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) program near Socorro, New Mexico. |
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| Earth Changes |
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Louise Gray
The Telegraph, UK 2013-05-15 15:47:00
The deadly tree disease, that first appeared in the UK last autumn, was until now confined mostly to the east coast and newly planted sites. Of the 500 cases spotted so far, 295 are newly planted and the most far east infection was in established woodland in Kent. But in a worrying development the infection was found for the first time in mature trees in the seaside town of Ferryside in Carmthenshire, Wales. As trees start to burst into bud it is expected a lot more infected trees will be discovered by people spotting the tell-tale signs of curled, blacked leaves rather than spring green. It was hoped the disease might be contained to newly planted sites or the eastern seaboard, where the fungus could have blown in from the Continent. But the first case in mature trees in Wales suggests it is taking hold across the country via imports and the Government has admitted it is too late to stop the spread. Members of the public are now being asked to keep an eye out for further cases by looking for trees with blackened leaves. The first infected trees in Wales were discovered in Carmarthenshire by Natural Resources Wales (NRW) staff last week. |
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Kelly Corbett
Three wildlife conservationists have noticed increases in the amount of dead and sick birds found on local beaches.luminanews.com 2013-05-14 12:52:00 While scouting the beach for sea turtle nests, Wrightsville Beach Sea Turtle Project coordinator Nancy Fahey noticed several dead birds along the beach strand. These reports appear to be part of a larger trend of an increase of dead and sick birds along the North Carolina coast.
On May 1, Fahey reported 13 dead dovekies, three dead common loons and one dead green heron found along the Wrightsville Beach strand to the Wildlife Health Event Reporter website, www.whmn.org/wher "I have found more dead birds during these two weeks of monitoring than I've ever noticed on Wrightsville Beach," Fahey said. "And I think primarily those little dovekies added to that number or that observation, because it is a rare event for them to be down here." Typically dovekies are found in the North Atlantic Ocean. Fahey also found three live common loons from May 3 to May 9. "I've never found three live loons in a two-week timeframe before, ever," said Fahey, who has been a WBSTP volunteer since 1995 and coordinator since 2004. |
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Rania Spooner
The Sydney Morning Herald 2013-05-16 12:11:00
Stormy weather has been blamed for an unusually large spate of native bird deaths on Western Australia's south coast in recent weeks. About 130 dead flesh-footed shearwaters have washed up at Mandalay Beach and areas west of Walpole over the past fortnight, according to the Department of Environment and Conservation. DEC Frankland District nature conservation coordinator Alison McGilvray said about 25 dead birds, which were mostly fledglings and sub-adults, were first discovered on Friday, May 3. |
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The Extinction Protocol
Eruptions from Pavlof Volcano continued on Wednesday after rumbling to
life earlier in the week. The 8,261-foot peak on the Alaska Peninsula
awoke Monday morning, kicking off a "low-level eruption of lava,"
according to the Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO). Sitting about 30
miles northeast of the community of King Cove, Pavlof is a
frequently-active volcano that last erupted in 2007. The volcano's
rumbling has strengthened this week. At about noon Tuesday, satellite
images showed a lava flow had coursed a third of a mile down the
northern side of the volcano.2013-05-16 10:03:00
By late Tuesday, an ash plume extended 15,000 feet above sea level, moving downwind to the northeast for up to 100 miles before dispersing. The National Weather Service issued a "Significant Meterological Event" warning, called a SIGMET, to alert pilots of hazardous conditions in the area. Pavlof continued to rumble Wednesday, with one pilot reporting a dark ash cloud reaching 20,000 feet. Residents of Cold Bay, located 37 miles southwest of the volcano, observed incandescent glow at the summit during the night. Pilot reports and photographs from yesterday afternoon indicate that the lava flow extending down the northwest flank is still active and has generated debris-laden flow deposits, presumably from interaction of hot lava with the snow and ice on the flank. |
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The Extinction Protocol
A tropical storm has lashed coastal areas of Bangladesh, killing 12
people, destroying thousands of huts and forcing up to a million people
to flee. Officials had prepared for a cyclone, but the storm, called
Mahasen, weakened considerably before making landfall. The storm hit
Patuakhali district on Thursday with heavy rain and wind of up to
100km/h (60mph). Early reports suggest Muslim Rohingya living in camps
on both sides of the Burma border were spared the worst. The United
Nations had warned that 8.2 million people were at risk from Mahasen in
Bangladesh, Burma and north-east India. Several Indian states issued
storm alerts and warned people to take precautions against severe
weather conditions.2013-05-16 10:00:00
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Dallas Morning News
2013-05-16 08:54:00
A massive emergency response is under way in the Granbury area, where at least six people were killed and dozens injured by up to three tornadoes as a relentless storm system raked across North Texas on Wednesday evening. At a press conference Thursday morning, Hood County Sheriff Roger Deeds said all six people who died were adults, although he did not have their names or other details. He said 37 others were injured, and about 110 homes were damaged or destroyed. Deeds said the death toll could rise as seven people remain unaccounted for and nearby rural areas just outside the Rancho Brazos subdivision had not been searched thoroughly. But he said he didn't expect anyone else to be found in the rubble. Search-and-rescue efforts were to wrap up by 10 a.m., just before a scheduled media tour of the hardest hit neighborhood. Police and sheriff's deputies had the neighborhood blocked off this morning. Debris littered the roads approaching the subdivision, and volunteers with the Red Cross were out in force, seeking to help those in need find shelter and other provisions. At an emergency shelter set up by the American Red Cross at First Christian Church, about 20 people woke up in beds that were not their own. Volunteer Jeff Watson said the extent of the damage to the families' homes was still unclear, but after breakfast, volunteers will conduct interviews to determine what other services the relief organization should be offering in the coming hours and days. The sheriff added that many residents quickly left the area after the storm to stay with friends or relatives, so it was difficult to know where everyone went. Those from the damaged areas were encouraged to register at the Red Cross's Safe & Well program so officials and families would know who was all right. Deeds said 250 people were taken from the Granbury area, about 90 of them from the Rancho Brazos subdivision. Sixteen were taken to Fort Worth hospitals and 38 to the local hospital in Granbury. Fourteen were admitted there. |
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iwdg.ie
2013-05-14 06:11:00
Some unusual stranding events have occurred in recent days off the northwest coast. On Sunday 12 May, seven common dolphins (five adults and two juveniles) live stranded at Tarmon Beach near Blacksod on the Mullet Peninsula, Co. Mayo. Attempts to refloat them were successful on a number of occasions but one of the juveniles was found dead this morning and another was found alive but in poor condition and had to be euthanased. On Five Fingers Strand, Inishowen, Co Donegal a beaked whale was found in very fresh condition late on Sunday evening 12 May. This is a female True's or Sowerby's beaked whale with current opinion more in favour of True's beaked whale, due to the shape of the head and length of the beak. In adult males it is possible to tell these species apart by the position of the two teeth on the lower jaw but in females and juveniles the two teeth are not visible. Samples have been taken and will be sent for analysis to confirm i.d. Either way it is a rare stranding as neither of these two species have been recorded since 2009 in Ireland. There are only nine records for True's beaked whales and fourteen records for Sowerby's beaked whales on the IWDG Strandings Database. Earlier today (14 May) a dead beaked whale calf was also found stranded in very fresh condition nearby at Trawbreaga Bay and it seems likely that both strandings are connected. Both individuals are being recovered to Athlone Regional Vet Lab tonight for post-mortem examination tommorrow. Interestingly a Sowerby's beaked whale live stranded in mid-Wales a few days ago . We will update this new piece with further information as and when it becomes available. |
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| Fire in the Sky |
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Paul Mortfield
Comet Lemmon (C/2012 F6), which is receding from the sun not far beyond
the orbit of Earth, has just experienced a "disconnection event." A
cloud of dusty plasma is propagating down the comet's tail, shown here
in a photo taken by amateur astronomer Paul Mortfield on May 15th:Space Weather 2013-05-15 09:47:00
"I was pretty surprised to see this disconnection event when I processed the images," says Mortfield. "The comet is a challenge to photograph because it is so low in the sky at the start of morning twilight." Disconnection events can be caused by CME impacts. A famous example is that of Comet Encke in 2007. Comet Lemmon, however, is not on the same side of the sun as active sunspot AR1748. It's hard to see how the recent X-flares can be responsible. Nevertheless, solar activity is high, so now is a good time to monitor comet tails. They are very sensitive to stormy space weather. |
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| Health & Wellness |
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Perri Klass, M.D.
The New York Times 2013-05-13 18:50:00
Poverty is an exam room familiar. From Bellevue Hospital in New York to the neighborhood health center in Boston where I used to work, poverty has filtered through many of my interactions with parents and their children. I ask about sleeping arrangements. Mother, father, older child and new baby live in one bedroom that they're renting in an apartment, worrying that if the baby cries too much, they'll be asked to leave. I encourage an overweight 9-year-old who loves karate, and his mother says, "We had to stop; too expensive." I talk to a new mother who is going back to work too soon, leaving her baby with the cheapest sitter she can find. |
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| Science of the Spirit |
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No new articles. |
| High Strangeness |
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No new articles. |
| Don't Panic! Lighten Up! |
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Heather Manes
Opposing Views 2013-05-13 00:00:00
One well-meaning NYPD officer got into a little bit of trouble while attempting to get a cat out of a tree. After kids from Public School 213 in Oakland Park, Queens, convinced a cop to save the kitty in question, the cop got stuck himself and had to get saved by the FDNY. "You gotta get the cat! You gotta get the cat," they kids reportedly told the police officer. But, as soon as the officer climbed higher up the tree, the cat did as well. And when the cop attempted to follow the cat, well, he got stuck. |
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Becket Adams
The Blaze 2013-05-15 01:45:00
When Internal Revenue Service agents decided to target conservative groups with "unnecessary" information requests, they probably weren't expecting Marion Bower, an Ohio woman who in 2010 founded her own Tea Party group. "I was trying to be very cordial, but they wanted copies of unbelievable things," the 68-year-old founder of American Patriots against Government Excess told ABC News Tuesday. "They wanted to know what materials we had discussed at any of our book studies." Yes, when applying for the group's tax-exempt status, the IRS actually asked her for information regarding the books she and her colleagues read. "They wanted a synopsis of all the books we read," she said. "I thought, I don't have time to write a book report. You can read them for yourselves." So she sent the IRS official handling her tax-exempt request in Cincinnati a copy of "The Five Thousand Year Leap" (a Glenn Beck favorite) and a paperback version of the United States Constitution. |
