Damn, one of the few remaining TV shows that actually has a strong positive message and positive role model has been given the chop. After 4 series they must have ran out of ideas for ‘the list’. Hopefully one of the other channels will pick it up.
Either that or we’ll get some more mindless rubbish like 24 or Lost.
North Korea has claimed to have successfully tested nuclear weapons underground, something that appears to be confirmed by a US geological survey reading of a 4.7 magnitude quake 6 miles under the surface.
Ironically, Obama described the action as a threat to international peace. Are we expected to forgive and forget the US airstrikes that killed over 100 Afghan civilians just weeks ago? More importantly than that, and getting to the heart of a very serious issue that rarely gets a mention in the mainstream media, are we supposed to ignore the fact that the US government has outsourced almost its entire military, creating a corporate industry of war that is worth billions of dollars each year? That is the threat to international peace. Partcularly when you consider that many of the US foreign policy “advisors”, not technically employed by government, and therefore breaking no rules, are actually involved with these war profiteers. In fact, two of the very architects of this fraudulent ‘war on terror’, Cheney and Rumsfeld, were allegedly still involved with corporations (Halliburton and Gilead) that stood to profit from their own actions while they held a position of office - a clear conflict of interest [1, 2, 3]. Where is the consideration for international peace there?
A statement from North Korea said the tests were part of a self defense program to protect the sovereignty of the nation. Well what’s wrong with that? Perhaps if Iraq had tried that, it wouldn’t be in the apocolyptic state it is in today. Clearly, the UN weapons inspector openly declaring there are no weapons of mass destruction is not going to stop the “coallition” invading, so perhaps that is why Korea has abandonned that strategy and returned to its nuclear program. Wouldn’t you? The quest for global corporate dominance is of benefit to no one except the corporations themselves.
So next time you hear talk of a ‘threat to international peace’, just think for a second, which country is the only one on their entire planet to have actually used nuclear weapons in an act of aggression? Which country is the one that has engaged in an act of war almost every decade in its history? Which country is currently involved in an unjust war, a war of aggression that is against just about every related treaty? Which country is truly a threat to international peace? I don’t think you need me to answer that one for you.
Ah yes, the latest fear hype and scare tactics - swine flu. First it was avian flu, remember that? 150 million of us were going to die of ‘Bird Flu’. Did I fall asleep for a couple of hundred years or did that never happen? And now, the WHO has risen their emergency level to five out of six for swine flu. We are facing a ‘global pandemic’. All because 200 people have died. And I should point out, that is based on suspected deaths and rounded up figure. The actual confirmed number, for the entire planet, at this point is a whoping… 9. Nine people have died. I’m sure you are upset if you knew the dead, but let’s put this in perspective folks, that’s the equivalent of a semi-major traffic accident. Are you worried about being in a car? Why, I think not. More people, far more people, die of food poisoning in this country alone, but are you going to stop eating?
Now, I know this isn’t just about infections and deaths, it’s also about potential. It has passed from human to human, something the avian flu never managed. Is that a reason to be scared? Maybe. But in England, 5,000 people die every year from your regular human flu strain. In America the figure is 15,000. Do we get the same media saturation for that? Of course we don’t. Just a few old folks left to die alone, in the freezing cold because they have no money to pay heating bills because the government fucked up their pensions. Who has time to worry about that eh?
So anyway I was talking to someone who works for the NHS today, and I was told there is already a vaccine for this. If you don’t know how long it takes to prepare a vaccine, do some research. The fact that there is already a store of vaccine says to me that someone knew about this in advance. Apparently, plans have already been made for people to be sent to their local GP or hospital and vaccinated. And, I’m presuming you didn’t hear about the time Baxter, a pharmaceutical company developing vaccines for the dreaded avian flu, accidently or otherwise put a live strain into the product. Not surprisingly, this resulted in deaths - 21. That number is almost as many as the virus killed naturally. Or how about the 1976 outbreak in America? 1 person died of the flu. Of course, that does not include the 25+ that died as a result of the vaccine.
What relevance does this have? Let me remind you of the weaponised anthrax letters in the US of the same year. The letters were made out to be from muslim extremists, but in fact, the anthrax was traced back to US military Fort Detrick by 5 laboratories. Five. But did you see the big TV news stations reporting on that? Demanding an explanation? No, it was back to business as usual.
Back to swine flu. Viruses mutate all the time. That is why there is nothing to cure the common cold, because it is always changing. Viral strains will infect the host, and their reproduction mechanisms are such that they are geared for speed and mass production rather than accuracy. This, obviously, results in changes in their genetic material, or what we call mutations. The ‘progeny’ are thus different from the ‘parent’. Sometimes viruses will mutate into a form that is lethal to humans, as we have here. But sure enough, they will also mutate into a form harmless to humans.
So am I worried? No. If the death toll rises to levels in excess of the standard human flu, maybe I will begin to worry. Not to mention “scientists see this flu strain as relatively mild“. But until the death toll rises uncontrollably, I’ll continue to see it as just the usual mindless media yammering, scare tactics, and lies. This is a medical issue, do not forget that. Do you really trust politicians and journalists as you do doctors? I don’t think so. Put things into perspective. Did they forget to mention we are currently in the biggest economic ‘crisis’ (I use in the loosest possible terms) for over 50 years? Wake up.
UPDATE: So, swine flu turned out to not be the downfall of humanity as it was hyped up to be. Isn’t that a surprise. Nice little earner for the drug companies though eh? And now they have moved on to their latest diversionary topic, MP expenses. Anything to keep attention away from the true ruling influence, the economy?
According to this article.
Science education is failing.
Pirates have taken hold of another ship off the coast of Somalia, and this time war ships are being sent. The US does not negotiate with terrorists, remember? But hang on a minute, let’s take a closer look at this.
A BBC article dated October last year quotes a Puntland resident as saying these pirates do not call themselves pirates, they call themselves coastguard. Around the same time, Al Jazeera posted an article on the same topic. However, their article told another story, and painted a different picture entirely.
In it, the ‘pirates’ claim that European countries have been dumping toxic waste off their shore for near 20 years. Apparently the tsunami of 2004 was so powerful that it washed up the rusted barrels of waste, which is now destroying the coastline of the Puntland region of Somalia.
The ransom demand is a means of “reacting to the toxic waste that has been continually dumped on the shores of our country for nearly 20 years”, Januna Ali Jama, a spokesman for the pirates, based in the semi-autonomous region of Puntland, said.
“The Somali coastline has been destroyed, and we believe this money is nothing compared to the devastation that we have seen on the seas.”
But that’s not all:
Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, the UN envoy for Somalia confirmed to Al Jazeera the world body has “reliable information” that European and Asian companies are dumping toxic waste, including nuclear waste, off the Somali coastline.
“I must stress however, that no government has endorsed this act, and that private companies and individuals acting alone are responsible,” he said.
Here’s a quote from Nick Nutall, of the UN Environmental Program:
“Somalia has been used as a dumping ground for hazardous waste starting in the early 1990s, and continuing through the civil war there,” he said.
“European companies found it to be very cheap to get rid of the waste, costing as little as $2.50 a tonne, where waste disposal costs in Europe are something like $1000 a tonne.
“And the waste is many different kinds. There is uranium radioactive waste. There is lead, and heavy metals like cadmium and mercury. There is also industrial waste, and there are hospital wastes, chemical wastes – you name it.”
He goes on to say that since the containers came ashore, hundreds of residents have fallen ill, suffering from mouth and abdominal bleeding, skin infections and other ailments.
Hard to believe? It gets worse. The UN Envoy Ould-Abdallah claims that the practice of dumping radioactive nuclear waste in that region is still occurring. Not only that, but there is an international treaty between the vast majority of the world’s countries that bans hazardous waste trade, and the shipping of hazardous waste to a war zone. Somalia has been in the grip of civil war for almost 20 years, following the collapse of government. They have not had an effective government since that time. But of course, this isn’t reported on our evening news or in the papers.
Now, back to the issue of the US sending in a Destroyer to challenge 4 pirates and 1 hostage in a lifeboat. That startling fact should no longer surprise you, given the military actions of the US over the past 40-50 years. These pirates are thieves. They hold people hostage in exchange for a ransom, upon which they are released unharmed. The BBC even reported that the crew of the Ukrainian vessel, MV Faina, were being well looked after. Sure enough, after 5 months of holding the ship and crew hostage, a ransom of over $3million was paid and the ship and crew were released. None of the hostages died or were injured by the pirates. This is theft. This does not require the US military. But then again, just ask the Davidians what simple tax evasion will get you in the land of the free and the home of the brave. Anyway, I did a quick search and found one instance in which a hostage had died, which happened only yesterday. That was during an operation by the French military to rescue the hostages. But wait:
Military sources last night said it was unclear whether Lemaçon, the owner of the yacht, had been killed accidentally or whether he had been murdered. General Jean-Louis Georgelin, the army chief, said the 28-year-old had been shot inside the yacht during an exchange of fire between French forces and the pirates.
It is not even clear the pirates killed this hostage. For all we know, and if you believe the above statement, for all they know, he could just as well have been killed by the French military personnel. There was one other instance which happened in 2007. One hostage killed. Out of 50+ hijackings each year.
Whether these pirates are taking the money to repair the damage done by waste dumps is irrelevant, the act has undoubtedly fuelled their actions. What these people need is help. Banks around the world are being bailed out to the tune of trillions of dollars, another trillion is being spent on a war which nobody wanted. I’m sure if our elected officials spent our tax money a little more wisely, we could easily make effective donations to countries like Somalia. They are taking hundreds of millions in ransom every year, but after 20 years of civil war and 20 years of hazardous waste being dumped off their coast, is it really a surprise they want a better life?
UPDATE: Well, the captain is free, and surprise surprise, the American military killed the ‘pirates’. Now, if you will excuse me, I’ve got some waste I need to dump.