| Puppet Masters |
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Sputnik
2015-06-18 20:45:00
The United States is the primary instigator of the current tension with Russia, Pere Ortega, the head of the Barcelona-based Delas Center for Peace Studies, told Sputnik Wednesday. "The only one who benefits from all this pressure is the United States, which is the one straining the situation because it weakens Western Europe... Russia shouldn't fall into this trap," Ortega said. On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Moscow would reinforce its nuclear potential in 2015 by adding more than 40 new intercontinental ballistic missiles. Following the announcement, NATO Chief Jens Stoltenberg vowed to respond to Russia's "assertive" rhetoric by building up a military presence in Eastern Europe. "The escalation is verbal at the moment," but it is serious enough to "say that the leadership of both Russia and the United States especially and NATO, are in a very dangerous escalation [of the situation], which could put the threat of confrontation between Russia and Western Europe back on the table." Russia's relations with NATO became strained after the start of the Ukrainian armed conflict in 2014. The bloc accused Russia or participating in the conflict, and froze contacts with Moscow. Russia, in turn, has denied any involvement in the Ukrainian crisis, calling it a purely internal affair. | |
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Sputnik
2015-06-18 20:05:00
On the anniversary of one of the most explosive political scandals in American history, let Sputnik guide you through ten of the most shameful, shocking, deplorable embarrassments to ever rock Washington DC. In its nearly 240-year history, America has seen its share of political sideshows. Some were minor: former US Representative Anthony Weiner's sexting habits, the cost of John Edwards' haircut, Aaron Schock redecorating his Congressional office to look like the set of Downton Abbey. Others have become part of the national zeitgeist. Stories of the Boston Tea Party, Alexander Hamilton's duel to the death with Aaron Burr, George Washington chopping down that cherry tree, all occupy a special place in a shared American story. But none have become quite so grandiose as Nixon's great con on the American people, which occurred 43 years ago Wednesday. 1. Watergate In 1972, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, two reporters for the Washington Post, were contacted by an FBI informant known only as "Deep Throat." Later identified as the Bureau's associate director Mark Felt, he helped bring to light one of the most astonishing presidential scandals in US history, ultimately leading to the resignation of Republican President Richard Nixon. On June 17, 1972, five men were arrested after breaking into the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate office complex. Deep Throat unveiled a high-level cover-up which, once unraveled, revealed that the five men were paid by the Committee for the Re-Election of the President. Nixon's involvement in the affair was proven when the Supreme Court got its hands on the president's infamous tape recordings. "...People have got to know whether or not their president is a crook," Nixon said during a press conference. "Well, I'm not a crook. I've earned everything I've got." | |
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Dan Sanchez
Antiwar.com 2015-06-15 17:30:00
In the 1989 film Batman, after the caped crusader rescues a damsel in distress from the Joker using a fancy zipline gun, the clown prince of crime, played by Jack Nicholson, asks in bewilderment: "Where does he get those wonderful toys?"Especially upon seeing Batman's nicest toys — his armored Batmobile and his military-grade Batwing fighter plane, etc — the Joker must have assumed his adversary was financed by some seriously deep pockets. And indeed, hidden behind the cowl was billionaire Bruce Wayne all along. Similarly, upon seeing real-life fighters also garbed in black masks and jumpsuits, and running around the poverty-stricken Middle East with such "wonderful toys" as TOW anti-tank missiles, up-armored Humvees, M1A1 Abrams tanks, and fleets of gun-mounted Toyota pick-up trucks, any perceptive person must also assume that a wealthy patron lurked in the background. Where do they get those wonderful Toyotas? Indeed where do ISIS and al-Qaeda get those wonderful toys we so often see these days triumphantly bedecked with black flags? The ultimate source of virtually all of the jihadists' gear are the deep pockets of the United States government and its client states. Uncle Sam is the veritable Bruce Wayne of Jihad. This was basically admitted in a recently disclosed Defense Intelligence Agency report. But anyone who bothered looking into it could have known this long ago, even if restricting one's self to mainstream sources. Most support for the jihadists has come by way of the aid the US offers, along with its allies, to the insurgency in Syria battling to overthrow the government of Bashar al-Assad. Washington has given this support even though the Pentagon admitted internally as early as 2012 that extremists including al-Qaeda were, as the DIA report said, "the major forces driving the insurgency in Syria." | |
Comment:
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Sputnik
2015-06-18 19:55:00
If Donald Trump's presidential bid has left you asking "who in their right mind would vote for that man?" the answer could very well be: actors he's paid 50 bucks. Donald Trump is rich. Really, really, really rich. We know because he told us. "I'm really rich. I'll show you that in a second," he said during his presidential announcement on Tuesday, before waving around a copy of his net worth summary like a 4-year-old who just found an extra quarter at ChuckECheese. That summary is already being called into question. While Trump claims he's worth about $9 billion, Anand Chokkavelu, managing editor of investment site Motley Fool, told NPR, "I don't see any reason to take his self-reported net worth at face value." Still, we do have some indications that the Donald is as wealthy as he claims: he can afford to fill Trump Tower with paid supporters. | |
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Sputnik
2015-06-18 19:32:00
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko can't seem to get enough of foreign advisors telling his government how to carry out reforms, this time offering former British Prime Minister Tony Blair a job in his International Advisory Council for Reforms, a press release on the president's website reported. The press release, issued Wednesday, noted that the former prime minister had been invited "to share his experience of public administration" within the council, headed by corruption-mired former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, who has since moved on to become governor of the Odessa Region. Comment: Blair's experience of public administration amounts to hauling his country into a number of bloody conflicts that killed thousands of innocent civilians. "I discussed with Tony Blair the experience of reforms and state management. Despite the war, we have the opportunity to conduct reforms!" Poroshenko met with the former prime minister in Kiev. Blair, who served as prime minister between 1997 to 2007, called on the Ukrainian government to follow the values of "freedom, democracy and a desire to serve the people," adding that the country faces "great challenges" including corruption and "Russian aggression." Comment: Looks like Blair was taking the opportunity to remind Porky of the BS rhetoric that is behind the whole Ukraine conflict. | |
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Sputnik
2015-06-18 16:39:00
Russia's Foreign Ministry summoned the Belgian ambassador on Thursday, informing him that Russia may adopt reciprocal measures if asset seizures are not reversed. Russia may be forced to consider retaliatory measures if Belgium continues persists with the seizure of assets belonging to Russian organizations in the country, Russia's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday. A Belgian court instructed on Wednesday that 47 Belgian and Russian companies be stripped of assets to the tune of 1.65 billion euros ($1.87 billion) in connection to a settlement awarded to former Yukos shareholders by a Dutch arbitration court. Russia's Justice Ministry Alexander Konovalov said that Belgium's legal arguments for seizing Russian property are unclear and that it has requested information regarding through diplomatic channels. "The Belgian ambassador was informed that the Russian side considers such acts by competent authorities of the Kingdom of Belgium as openly unfriendly acts and flagrant violations of universally recognized norms of international law," the ministry said in a statement. | |
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RT
2015-06-17 16:34:00
The EU Council has agreed on a six-month extension of economic sanctions against Russia, according to a TASS source in Brussels. "The decision to prolong sanctions till January, 2016 was ratified by the Committee of Permanent Representatives of Member States of the EU," said the source Wednesday. The EU Council did not discuss the issue of tightening economic sanctions, added the source. The six-month extension is expected to be unanimously ratified at the foreign ministers meeting in Luxembourg on Monday. The EU summit in March adopted a declaration of intent to prolong the economic sanctions against Russia, but no formal decision had been made.
Ruble starts falling vs. US dollar and Euro https://t.co/K7zH7H1Co1— *Russian Market (@russian_market) June 17, 2015
The EU's decision to prolong sanctions against the Russian Federation was expected; nothing will change in relations between Moscow and Brussels, said the Chairman of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy Fyodor Lukyanov. "It seems to me that even if Moscow had any hopes the EU would change its stance after signing ... the Minsk Agreement a few months ago then it became clear that there is nothing to be expected. Therefore, there will be no disappointment," he said. | |
Comment: Extending sanctions will only play into Russia's favor, as it will continue to develop it's domestic manufacturing and agricultural sectors. They also give the Russian people another rallying point to support Putin's policies.
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Mike Krieger
Liberty Blitzkrieg 2015-06-17 12:43:00
This is one of the most important articles I will write all year. The statists are coming for your kids, and the conditioning has already begun. | |
Comment: What a terrible situation America has gotten itself into.
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Alexrpt
Red Pill Times 2015-06-18 14:30:00
Greece's former representative to the IMF, Panagiotis Roumeliotis, has testified that Greek journalists attended seminars funded by the IMF and were instructed to present the IMF in a favorable light. In what can only be described as a shocking testimony, Greece's former representative to the IMF, Panagiotis Roumeliotis, in front of the special parliamentary committee on the Greek debt, said that several Greek journalists were "trained" in Washington D.C. in order to support the positions of the IMF and the European Commission in Greek media. Roumeliotis testified that... | |
Comment: For more context on the Greek debt crisis:
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Jay Syrmopoulos
The Free Thought Project 2015-06-17 02:55:00
In an extremely unsettling ruling, a New York appeals court has ruled that your family members' organs can be kept by the medical examiner without having to notify the family of the deceased. The divisive ruling left the seven-member appeals court divided 5-2, with all justices wanting the state legislature to ultimately decide the issue. The morbid case ensued after a New York medical examiner, doing a routine autopsy on 17-year-old vehicular accident victim Jesse Shipley, kept the brain of the teenager, only to have it be discovered by classmates on a school field trip two months later. The organ was only discovered after a classmate of Shipley's, on a field trip to the Staten Island morgue, noticed a brain in a jar of formaldehyde type fluid labeled with Shipley's name on the outside of the container. The classmate then informed Shipley's sister Shannon. The right to claim the remains of deceased loved ones harkens back to old English common law and is called the "right of sepulcher," according to The Guardian. Although his parents did agree to have an autopsy done, in which the brain is removed, they were completely taken by surprise to find out that the body of their child, released to them by the medical examiner, and eventually buried, was missing the brain. The brain was eventually returned to the family and they then held a second funeral for their son. The family then sued the city for emotional distress, citing that they should have been made aware that their son's brain had permanently removed from the body. | |
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Zerohedge
2015-06-17 15:54:00
It was in April when we got a stark reminder of a post we first penned in April of 2011, describing Odious Debt, and why we thought sooner or later this legal term would become applicable for Greece, because two months ago Greek Zoi Konstantopoulou, speaker of the Greek parliament and a SYRIZA member, said she had established a new "Truth Committee on Public Debt" whose purposes was to "investigate how much of the debt is "illegal" with a view to writing it off." Moments ago, this committee released its preliminary findings, and here is the conclusion from the full report presented below: All the evidence we present in this report shows that Greece not only does not have the ability to pay this debt, but also should not pay this debt first and foremost because the debt emerging from the Troika's arrangements is a direct infringement on the fundamental human rights of the residents of Greece. Hence, we came to the conclusion that Greece should not pay this debt because it is illegal, illegitimate, and odious.As we predicted over four years ago, Greece has effectively just declared that it will no longer have to default on its IMF (or any other debt - note that the dreaded "Troika" word finally makes an appearance after it was officially banned) simply because that debt was not legal to begin with, i.e. it was "odious." | |
Comment: The above report and findings are crackerjack and lightning on paper; a real document and testament to this moment in time when the people of Greece took a stand for itself and its struggle for sovereignty. Integrity. Now let's see how the Troika responds to this rigorous and truthful examination of the problem that they have foisted on the Greeks. Probably with three words: Deny. Deny. Deny. But that's really it for them. The jig appears to be up -- unless, of course, they decide to overplay their hand further - which they may actually do.
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Sputnik
2015-06-17 21:13:00
As the United States continues to move more heavy weaponry into Eastern Europe, a group advocating a more aggressive policy in the region has been hired by the Pentagon to develop future military alliances there. On June 5, the military's Office of Net Assessment commissioned the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) for a study and war games called Gaming Allies: Geostrategic Change and Alliances, Pentagon records obtained by USA Today show. The contract announcement said CEPA will conduct "a study on shifting dynamics in US alliance networks in East Asia, the Middle East and Central and Eastern Europe." Comment: The shifting dynamics are simply that Russia and China are two countries that are finally showing a willingness to stand up to Western imperialism. Prior CEPA studies have called for abandoning the policy of "strategic patience" in favor of moving defenses closer to the borders with Russia on behalf of countries like Poland, Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia — all NATO members. | |
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Sputnik
2015-06-17 21:02:00
Former presidential candidate John McCain revealed what he believes to be most shameful chapter of his country's history. Is it the invasion of Iraq, might you ask? Or using chemical weapons in Vietnam? Or dropping atomic bombs on Japan? The answer is none of those. Senator McCain mostly regrets not starting yet another war - this time, in Ukraine. In a bizarre attempt to reinterpret history, US Senator John McCain said that the US not providing Ukraine with weapons for its armed conflict is "one of the most shameful chapters in American history." McCain, a war veteran and overall-armed-conflict- Not only that, but over 50 percent of Americans are against arming Ukraine. Yes, that does leave senator McCain with a little over 40 percent of the country's population to impress with his warmongering rhetoric, but even they might be skeptical when they consider the fact that one of the world's youngest nations is also one of the most bellicose. | |
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| Society's Child |
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Sputnik
2015-06-18 19:25:00
Aside from self-defense, some US states allow police officers to use weapons to suppress opposition to arrest and control crowd violence. "The United States has failed to track how many people are killed by law enforcement officers. No-one knows exactly how many people are killed each year but estimates range from 400 to over 1,000," the Amnesty International USA stated in the report. People of African-American descent and those with darker skin color in the United States often fall victim to a disproportionate use of lethal force by police, the human rights group highlighted. | |
Comment: Since law enforcement organizations are not required to report how many citizens they have killed, it's likely that the number of citizens killed by police is much larger than 1,000.
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Nicole Winfield
AP 2015-06-15 16:48:00
The archbishop of St. Paul, Minnesota, and a deputy bishop resigned Monday after prosecutors there charged the archdiocese with having failed to protect children from unspeakable harm from a pedophile priest. The Vatican said Pope Francis accepted the resignations of Archbishop John Nienstedt and Auxiliary Bishop Lee Anthony Piche. They resigned under the code of canon law that allows bishops to resign before they retire because of illness or some other "grave" reason that makes them unfit for office. Earlier this month, prosecutors charged the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis as a corporation of having "turned a blind eye" to repeated reports of inappropriate behavior by a priest who was later convicted of molesting two boys. No individual was named in the indictment. The resignations came just days after Pope Francis approved the creation of a new tribunal inside the Vatican to hear cases of bishops who failed to protect children from sexually abusive priests. Francis' decision followed years of criticism that the Vatican had never held bishops accountable for having ignored warnings about abusive priests and simply moved them from parish to parish rather than report them to police or remove them from ministry. | |
Comment: It seems that the Pope is genuinely trying to improve the Church, only time will tell if his direction will yield fruit however. For those interested in some of the events surrounding the formation of this abuse tribunal you can read more here:
The Vatican's Sex-Abuse Tribunal and the Cover-Up that Went Unpunished | |
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RT
2015-06-18 16:29:00
Shots were fired into a church in Memphis, Tennessee on Wednesday night. Police found no victims at the site. The shooting reportedly happened during night choir practice at St. Matthew Missionary Baptist Church. The Deacon of the church told FOX13 that he noticed holes from the bullets when he was leaving the building after the event early Thursday morning. Local police say there are no suspects so far. This comes as 9 people were killed when a gunmen opened fire in a historic church in Charleston, SC., killing 9 people. "There is nothing indicating that this shooting is connected in any way to the shooting in South Carolina," Memphis police told FOX13. | |
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RT
2015-06-18 16:11:00
Two Ukrainian servicemen have confessed to the murder of a mother and daughter in the Kiev-controlled portion of eastern Ukraine, the local prosecutor's office reported on Wednesday. The soldiers shot the women in the head with a machine gun. The two residents of the Luganskoe village in the Donetsk region, a 77-year old woman and her 45-year old daughter, were killed on Monday, the statement from the press service of the prosecutor's office in Donetsk region said. The women died of bullet wounds to the head. An investigation was launched by the local prosecutor's office, which is under the jurisdiction of the Kiev authorities, and two Ukrainian Armed Forces servicemen were detained. The soldiers, both in their twenties, have confessed to the murder. "It has been established that on June 15 the soldiers entered the house of the victims, whom they suspected of separatist sympathies, and killed them with machinegun fire," the official statement said. The two men have been charged with premeditated murder. If found guilty, they face a jail sentence between seven years and life in prison. | |
Comment: Kiev is engaged in an 'anti-terrorist operation'. Separatists are now defined as terrorists. It's OK to kill terrorists. These soldiers were just doing their job. Sound logic, right? This is Ukraine's new normal. Take Dmitry Korchinsky, founder and ex-leader of the Ukrainian National Assembly - Ukrainian National Self-defense, who recently said:
Hard to argue with that logic! Democracy = concentration camps, nuclear war, bombing civilians.
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RT
2015-06-18 16:00:00
A video posted online purports to show an Israeli sniper shooting dead an unarmed Palestinian in the occupied West Bank village of Silwad. The soldier is shown aiming at the faraway figure, then a shot rings out and the person collapses. "Got it! Wow, got it. Got video, too!" the sniper allegedly says in Hebrew after what looks like a kill shot. This is followed by the camera veering away and the video ending. According to Israeli website Mako, the soldiers in the video come from the Heredi Netzah Yehuda Batallion of the Kfir Brigade, implicated a few days ago in the controversy over the excessive use of force near a refugee camp in Ramallah.
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Comment: Yes, this is how the IDF operates, and how they have been operating for decades. It needs to stop.
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RT
2015-06-17 15:52:00
Police have recorded a substantial increase in the number of sexual assaults on children, with an average of 85 incidents recorded each day, new figures show. According to research by the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC), the number of allegations of sexual assaults on children in England and Wales has risen by more than one-third in a single year. They found a total of 31,238 allegations of rape, grooming and other sexual offenses had been made in 2013/14, a rise of 38 percent on the previous year. Comment: And these are just the reported cases. The NSPCC said more than 75 percent of reported abuses were perpetrated against girls. They further found that while the majority of victims were aged between 12 and 16, over 8,000 crimes were perpetrated against children under the age of 11. Nearly 3,000 were estimated to be under the age of five and 94 were babies. | |
Comment: The West is becoming more 'exceptional' and 'free' every day. How many children have to suffer as a result?
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Taylor Berman
Gawker 2015-06-18 15:20:00
The Charleston shooting suspect has reportedly been identified as Dylann Storm Roof, a 21-year-old from Lexington County, S.C., currently out on bond in connection with recent arrests on drug and trespassing charges. Roof's uncle told Reuters that he recognized his nephew from the surveillance photos released earlier today and that Roof received a new gun for his 21st birthday in April. Law enforcement agentsare, according to the uncle, speaking with Roof's mother at her home. WLTX reports that authoritiesare searching for the suspect in Richland County.
Gunman's car said to be a black Hyundai with vehicle tag LGF330. May still be driving. If spotted, call 1-800-CALL-FBI. #CHSShooting— Glenn Smith (@glennsmith5) June 18, 2015
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nbc12.com
2015-06-18 08:47:00
South Carolina Senator Clementa C. Pinckney is among the nine people who were shot and killed inside a downtown Charleston church late Wednesday night, according to local civil rights activist Elder James Johnson. Charleston Police confirm nine people were killed after shots were fired during a prayer meeting inside Emanuel AME Church on Calhoun Street around 9:05 p.m. Police Chief Greg Mullen said officers arrived to find eight people dead inside the church. A ninth victim died later at a nearby hospital. Elder James Johnson, President of the Charleston Chapter of the National Action News, said Pinckney was shot inside the church. Pinckney, 41, served as pastor for Emanuel AME in addition to his role as a state senator for District 45.
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RT
2015-06-17 01:22:00
A group of 45 former American military members have issued a jointly signed letter pushing drone operators to step away from their controls and refuse to fly any more lethal missions. The letter draws attention to the controversial operation of drones in foreign nations, where lethal strikes in countries such as Afghanistan and Pakistan have damaged terrorist networks but havealso claimed the lives of innocent civilians. "At least 6,000 lives have been unjustly taken by US drone attacks in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, Iraq, the Philippines, Libya and Syria. These attacks are also undermining principles of international law and human rights," the authors write, according to the Guardian. KnowDrones.com, which sent out the letter, is also looking to distribute them by hand outside several military bases where drone operators are known to work, including Beale Air Force Base in California and Hancock Field Air National Guard Base in New York. | |
Comment: It is good to hear some sane voices in this insane world. Hope this group gets some traction.
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| Secret History |
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Rossella Lorenzi
Discovery News 2015-06-18 20:47:00
Kennewick Man, one of the oldest and best-preserved skeletons ever found in North America, is closely related to Native Americans, says a year-long genetic study on the 8,500-year-old bones. The international study, published in the journal Nature, is likely to reignite a bitter legal and scientific battle over the ultimate fate of the skeleton. "Kennewick Man's genome sequence is closer to that of Native Americans than any other contemporary people's including the Ainu and Polynesians," senior author Eske Willerslev, from the University of Copenhagen's Centre for GeoGenetics, told Discovery News. The researchers from the University of Copenhagen and Stanford University School of Medicine used the latest in DNA isolation and sequencing techniques to analyze the genetic material in the ancient bones. "Although the exterior preservation of the skeleton was pristine, the DNA in the sample was highly degraded and dominated by DNA from soil bacteria and other environmental sources," lead author Morten Rasmussen said. "With the little material we had available, we applied the newest methods to squeeze every piece of information out of the bone," he added. Willerslev, Rasmussen and colleagues compared the DNA sequences from the skeleton with those of modern Native Americans. They concluded that, although it is impossible to assign Kennewick Man to a particular tribe, he is closely related to members of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation in Washington. | |
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Simon Worrall
National Geographic 2015-06-18 12:41:00
Two hundred years ago, Napoleon Bonaparte and The Duke of Wellington met at Waterloo, in what is now Belgium. At stake was world dominance. Many books have been written about this epic battle but most have concentrated on military tactics and strategy. In Waterloo: The History of Four Days, Three Armies, and Three Battles, Bernard Cornwell, author of the best-selling Sharpe series of historical novels, has made his first foray into non-fiction to tell the story of ordinary soldiers caught up in the chaos and terror of the battle. Talking from his home on Cape Cod, he explains why Waterloo made Great Britain the dominant, global power for the next 100 years; how Wellington's keen eye for geography was a decisive factor in the battle; and recalls his strange childhood in Britain with a fundamentalist sect known as the "Peculiar People." | |
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| Science & Technology |
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Sputnik
2015-06-18 11:00:00
The Russian Defense Ministry will construct more than ten complexes of new-generation space surveillance systems, increasing the precision of space observation. This would "reduce the minimum size of space objects detected by 2-3 times," the press release said. Roscosmos plans to launch more satellites and set up global imaging center to become a major player in Earth remote sensing services and meet commercial orders for imagery from foreign states and private companies. The facility will bring together all Russia's satellite imaging equipment for taking pictures of the Earth and aims to have 20 satellites at its disposal by 2025. | |
Comment: Is Russia expecting trouble in Kazakhstan? A number of earthquakes already hit the region:
Kazakhstan also experienced cases of increased animal deaths:
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Anna Salleh
ABC Science, Australia 2015-06-18 02:19:00
People who use cochlear implants may one day be able to better understand speech against a noisy background thanks to a new Australian discovery. Biomedical engineer Professor David Grayden, of the University of Melbourne, and colleagues, have identified how the brain uses neurones called 'octopus cells' to pick up the unique rhythm of someone's speech. The findings are published in a recent issue of PLOS ONE. One of the biggest challenges for people who use a cochlear implant (also called a bionic ear) is picking out particular speech in the presence of background noise, especially in a room full of other people talking. "The worst situation is what's called the 'cocktail party situation'," says Grayden. Current cochlear implants deal with this problem by using directional microphones pointing to the front of the head. Even then, however, the target speech needs to be 10 to 15 decibels louder than the background sounds in order to be heard properly, says Grayden. Grayden and colleagues figured that if they could work out how the brain manages this challenge, they could pave the way for improving the performance of bionic ears. | |
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| Earth Changes |
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Phys.org
2015-06-15 18:13:00
A couple of unexplained large scale changes in the waters off the northeast coast of the U.S. have oceanographers perplexed: an accelerated rate of sea level rise compared to most other parts of the world; and the disturbing signs of collapsing fisheries in the region. A new study by physical oceanographers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), published in the Journal of Geophysical Research, shows that water temperatures in this continental shelf region have been trending upward, with unprecedented warming occurring over the last 13 years. The study also suggests a connection between sea level anomalies and water temperature along the continental shelf. "The warming rate since 2002 is 15 times faster than from the previous 100 years," says co-author Glen Gawarkiewicz, a WHOI senior scientist. "There's just been this incredible acceleration to the warming, and we don't know if its decadal variability, or if this trend will continue." The scientists compared their findings with a study of surface waters using data collected by Nantucket Light ship, and other light ships up and down the East Coast between 1880 and 2004, previously analyzed by Steve Lentz of WHOI and Kipp Shearman of Oregon State University. The new study shows that recent accelerated warming is not confined to the surface waters, but extends throughout the water column. "Others have reported on the temperature increase in this region," says Gawarkiewicz's colleague, WHOI assistant scientist Magdalena Andres, "but they've been confined to looking at the surface temperatures from satellites or buoys." And Gawarkiewicz and Andres wanted to understand how deep the warming went. The research is based upon a rare collection of temperature data from the waters off the northeast coast of the U.S. that were collected in collaborative effort between scientists and the operators of the container ship Oleander, which routinely travels between Bermuda and New Jersey. The effort, which began in the late 1970s with funding from NOAA/NMFS, involved launching bathythermographs along the ship's track to collect temperature data approximately 14 times each year. Later the program was funded through the National Science Foundation and the University of Rhode Island and Stony Brook University. The bulk of the prior analysis has been on velocity data also collected by the Oleander. | |
Comment: Perhaps increased methane outgassing and undersea volcanic activity (it is estimated there are up to one million of these 'submarine volcanoes') are contributory factors to the "unprecedented warming occurring over the last 13 years"?
The significant increase of fish die off's and strange migratory behaviour of marine life could be considered other potential signs of such activity also. As the number of volcanoes erupting right now is greater than the 20th century's YEARLY average, a comparable escalation in activity of their underwater counterparts seems logical. | |
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newsminer.com
2015-06-17 06:42:00
Anyone visiting Alaska this week would be wise to pack plenty of shorts and T-shirts. The far-north state is sweltering under unusually hot, dry weather that has broken records and intensified conditions fueling two large wildfires in the state. The tinderbox setting got an early start during a warm winter with comparably little snow. Here's a brief primer on this summer's baked Alaska: HOW HOT IS IT? Summers can get warm even in Alaska, but this week's temperatures set records. Anchorage, for example, had a record high of 83 degrees Tuesday, topping the old record of 82 set in 1969. The normal high for Alaska's largest city this time of year is in the low 60s, National Weather Service meteorologist Dave Snider said. | |
Comment: Alaska bakes while other parts of the world experience unseasonal cold. Is the world's weather reaching a tipping point of some kind with these extremes on both ends of temperature? If you are interested in reading more about why this happening and what is to come, then read Earth Changes and the Human Cosmic Connection: The Secret History of the World.
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Todd C. Frankel
The National Post 2015-06-17 01:43:00
Drought-stricken California is not the only place draining underground aquifers in the hunt for fresh water. It's happening across the world, according to two new studies by U.S. researchers released Tuesday.
~1/3rd of Earth's largest groundwater basins are being rapidly depleted says new study: http://t.co/sEMnRmFSe7 pic.twitter.com/YBo4f30FFL— NASA (@NASA) June 17, 2015
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Comment: It doesn't appear that this situation will reverse any time soon. Get prepared.
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Ted Ranosa
Tech Times 2015-06-17 00:58:00
Thousands of barrel jellyfish (Rhizostoma pulmo) have washed ashore on a beach in Carmarthenshire in the United Kingdom. The sea creatures were found on Cefn Sidan Beach over the weekend, with 50 more jellyfish spotted at the harbor of Burry Port. Members of the Carmarthenshire council believe the barrel jellyfish, which can grow to about 35 inches in diameter, were drawn to the area en masse because of the warm temperatures of the sea. The condition provides a suitable feeding ground for the jellyfish, as plankton are known to thrive in warm weather. While the sea creatures do not pose an immediate threat to humans, beachgoers are still advised not to disturb or touch the jellyfish. | |
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| Fire in the Sky |
No new articles.
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| Health & Wellness |
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Joshua Krause
Ready Nutrition 2015-06-16 16:59:00
Even though bee colonies have been collapsing in droves in recent years, people still manage to disturb their hives on a frequent basis. Whether you're on a hike in the wilderness, or just clearing brush on your property, running into a bee hive can prove disastrous for your health, or at the very least, ruin your day. Just last week a man from Kingman Arizona was nearly killed by a swarm of bees as he was working in his yard. He managed to run to his car, but in that short distance he was stung between 500 and 1000 times. He had to be rushed to the hospital, but is in stable condition. It just goes to show you how fast you have to think and act if you ever raise the ire of these insects. And just like dealing with any other type of dangerous animal, there's a few things you should know ahead of time before you encounter them. | |
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Jennifer Jenner
Prevent Disease 2015-06-17 16:39:00
Antibiotics can kill infectious bacteria and have helped to a certain extent save lives. But now there is disturbing evidence that they may be contributing to the disease--in other words, certain antibiotics may increase the risk of developing diabetes. The connection is the ecosystem of bacteria in our gut that scientists call the microbiome. It affects digestion and immunity, and an unhealthy microbiome has been linked to diseases as diverse as obesity, certain cancers, inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis and...diabetes. Several studies have shown that type 2 diabetes, the kind that affects most people, is more common in people who have microbiomes with altered or low bacteria diversity. What we eat and drink changes the composition of the bacteria, and so can the medication we take...especially antibiotics. Trillions of bacteria are hostile and can cause disease, while many others are friendly and have established a symbiotic, mutually beneficial relationship with us over the millennia. These friendly bacteria have also been referred to as "probiotics" and are being used increasingly by mainstream clinicians for both preventive and therapeutic purposes. | |
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Holly Grigg-Spall
Green Med Info 2015-06-15 22:59:00
Blood clots, strokes, and heart attacks: the serious negative side effects of hormonal contraceptives are undeniable. Last month saw the release of a new study that makes the connection, not for the first time, between newer birth control pills and the risk of serious injury or death. Researchers from the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom revealed that a woman using a brand of oral contraceptive with a more recently created formulation has 4 times the risk of developing a blood clot when compared to a woman who is not taking any brand of birth control pills. These pills contain newer synthetic progestins with the names drospirenone, desogestrel, gestodene, and cyproterone. Women using older formulations with older progestins still have a risk that is 2.5 times the risk of non-users. Even when the researchers took into account other contributing factors such as obesity and smoking, the connection was still stark. New formulations of the birth control pill are created partly in response to the side effects experienced with older types, but also partly so that new patents can be purchased, allowing for the higher profits of bringing "new," "improved," and often more expensive products, to the market. This study may be new evidence, but it's not exactly "news". The makers of the drospirenone-containing Yaz and Yasmin brands, which were the top selling oral contraceptives for some time, have had to settle thousands of cases of women injured or killed by deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, strokes and heart attacks out of court, with a cost of $1.7 billion dollars. Those in the media that report these findings are often accused of scare mongering. Women are encouraged to keep taking the pills, consult with their doctor, and then ask about switching brands to lower, but not remove, the risk. These days we also see the suggestion that women should instead use the hormonal IUD device, implant or the shot. However, all of these other delivery systems hold their own set of side effects and risks. The blood clot risk might not be as high, but the danger to a woman's health and wellbeing does not disappear when we replace one hormonal contraceptive with another. | |
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Sonja Schmitzer
DocCheckNews 2015-05-20 13:54:00
After sweeteners last year ended up being the suspects as the possible cause of glucose intolerance, now the evidence is piling up that emulsifiers have a role of partial responsibility in the huge increase in inflammatory diseases in recent decades. Scientists were able to show in a recent study on mice that emulsifiers can promote metabolic syndrome, obesity and chronic inflammation in the intestine. Doctors working under Andrew Gewirtz and Benoit Chassaing of Georgia State University suspect that the increasing use of emulsifiers in the food industry and the increase of inflammatory diseases in recent decades are closely linked, as they write in the journal Nature. This is because both metabolic syndrome and chronic inflammatory bowel disease accompany change in the composition of intestinal flora. "Despite the human genome's unchanging state these diseases have increased dramatically. The suspicion that an environmental factor is very likely instrumental in it acquires probability", says Chassaing. He adds: "What we eat has a direct impact on our intestinal flora, therefore we examined whether modern food additives alter intestinal bacteria such that they increasingly promote inflammation". In their experiments, the scientists tested the effects of two common emulsifiers, polysorbate 80 and carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) on the intestinal flora of mice. They added the substances to the drinking water of mice at a concentration at which they also occur in food (1%). | |
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| Science of the Spirit |
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| High Strangeness |
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| Don't Panic! Lighten Up! |
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Online Athens
2015-06-16 06:04:00
OnlineAthens.com, the website of the Athens Banner-Herald, was the victim of an online miscue early Monday when an unauthorized updated news item atop the site announced "the sun just exploded." The item was taken off the site and the Banner-Herald is investigating. "We're currently trying to determine what happened to ensure it doesn't happen again," said Joel Kight, Director of Digital of the Athens Banner-Herald. The erroneous message on OnlineAthens, which is being shared across social media this morning read, "And to our knowledge, the sun has not exploded," Kight said. |
