Clipmarks | Turtle's clips

Missing 2-Headed Turtle

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 00:59:20 GMT

clipped by: Turtle

When Sean Casey called the police on Sunday to report that a nameless two-headed turtle had been kidnapped, the officer had him repeat the complaint two or three times.

The police arrived several hours later and took a stolen property report. The turtle, popular among the neighborhood children, had been kept by the window. Sometime on Sunday, between 11 a.m., when the store opened, and noon, when a child asked Mr. Casey where the turtle had gone, it disappeared.

Tags: turtle

Turtles face their biggest threat: Humans

Thu, 14 Dec 2006 00:36:33 GMT

clipped by: Turtle

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

Turtles are an ancient and pan-planetary clan, found in nearly every habitat at hand — including hostile locales like bogs and deserts that few other animals will set foot in. Paradoxically, however, scientists say that the turtle’s broad reach has only increased its vulnerability to human activities, and today at least half of the world’s 250 turtle species are considered endangered or threatened.

In crossing oceans and homing in on their birth beaches, for example, sea turtles encounter a bristling ordnance of threats: marine pollution from pesticide runoff; oil spills; the increasing popularity of international waters as free-for-all trash cans; nesting sites lost to Club Meds; artificial lighting that confuses newly hatched turtles, prompting them to run inland to their certain death rather than seaward; and shrimp trawlers and commercial fishing nets in which turtles become fatally entangled.

Jack Cover of Baltimore’s National Aquarium lamented that in Maryland, where the indigenous diamondback terrapin serves as the state reptile and the mascot for the University of Maryland teams (their slogan: Fear the Turtle), diamondbacks nonetheless are still being hunted and shipped east. “What kind of state sanctions the eating of its own reptile?” he asked.

And then there is our incidental, super-size predator, the automobile. In a recent study of a two-mile strip of highway built between two lakes in Tallahassee, Fla., researchers determined that 2,000 to 4,000 aquatic turtles were being crushed to death on the road each year, a disproportionate number of them females with eggs.

Tags: turtles

Great American Smokeout

Wed, 15 Nov 2006 23:49:45 GMT

clipped by: Turtle
clipper's remarks: The Great American Smokeout this year is Thursday, November 16th

Clip Source: www.cdc.gov

Since 1977, the American Cancer Society has sponsored the Great American Smokeout on the third Thursday in November to encourage smokers to quit. Approximately 45.1 million (20.9%) U.S. adults were current smokers in 2005 (1). Smokers can improve their chances of quitting by using proven cessation aids such as physician assistance, medications approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and behavioral counseling, including telephone quitlines (2). All 50 states, the District of Columbia, and certain U.S. territories now have quitlines, which can be reached by telephone: 800-QUIT-NOW (800-784-8669).

Other interventions that increase cessation include increasing the price of tobacco products, implementing sustained media campaigns, and reducing out-of-pocket treatment costs (3). Growing evidence indicates that, in addition to protecting nonsmokers from exposure to secondhand smoke, smoke-free workplace policies and smoke-free home rules help smokers quit (4). Comprehensive approaches are most effective in prompting smokers to make quit attempts and helping them to succeed (3).

Information on the Great American Smokeout is available at http://www.cancer.org/docroot/ped/ped_10_4.asp or by telephone: 800-227-2345. Information on how to quit smoking is available at www.smokefree.gov.

Tags: great american smokeout, smoking, tobacco, cancer

Stop AOL's e-mail tax

Mon, 06 Nov 2006 23:20:25 GMT

clipped by: Turtle
clipper's remarks: AOL wants to charge an "email tax" for sending email.

Sign the petition at MoveOn.org to protest.

Clip Source: civic.moveon.org

Giant bulk-emailers could pay to bypass AOL's spam filters and get direct access to people's inboxes. Those who don't pay would increasingly have their emails go undelivered. This is a threat to the free and open Internet where everyone operates on a level playing field and the little guy can turn small ideas into big ideas. Can you help change AOL's mind by signing this emergency petition?

"AOL, don't auction off preferential access to people's inboxes to giant emailers, while leaving people's friends, families, and favorite causes wondering if their emails are being delivered at all. The Internet is a force for democracy and economic innovation only because it is open to all Internet users equally--we must not let it become an unlevel playing field."

Tags: aol, e-mail, e-mail tax, moveon.org, petition

What to Do Before Tehran Gets the Bomb

Fri, 03 Nov 2006 03:23:42 GMT

clipped by: Turtle

Clip Source: www.cato.org

Few Americans want Iran to get nuclear weapons, but as European Union leader Javier Solana conceded, the European-led negotiations to stop it are going nowhere fast. Unless there is an unexpected breakthrough -- and soon -- our leaders face a set of highly imperfect options. The best by far is to try to strike a grand bargain with Iran.

Washington should offer to normalize diplomatic and economic relations with Iran, and pledge to refrain from efforts at forcible regime change. In exchange, Tehran would be expected to open its nuclear program to rigorous, on-demand international inspections to guarantee that no nuclear material was diverted from peaceful purposes.

We have little to lose by proposing a deal -- unless we let negotiations drag on endlessly. Making an offer to Tehran and indicating that it would remain on the table for a maximum of six months would have no significant downside. If the Iranians rejected the proposal -- or if they simply stalled -- all other options would still be available. If they accepted the agreement, we would have a reliable way to prevent Iran from joining the ranks of the nuclear-weapons powers.

Consider the alternatives. The use of pre-emptive air strikes against Iran's nuclear installations is the worst, most dangerous strategy. Weekly Standard Editor William Kristol lobbies for such strikes with an almost unfathomable disregard for their likely consequences. "Yes, there would be repercussions," writes Kristol, "and they would be healthy ones, showing a strong America that has rejected further appeasement."

Tags: iran, nuclear weapons, javier solana, diplomacy, ted galen carpenter

Oldest baseball vet dies at 111

Fri, 03 Nov 2006 03:16:44 GMT

clipped by: Turtle

Clip Source: www.post-gazette.com

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Silas Simmons, a pitcher-outfielder in Negro leagues who was said to be the oldest living professional baseball player, died two weeks after his 111th birthday.

Simmons, a left-hander, played for several teams from 1912-29, including the New York Lincoln Giants of the Eastern Colored League, the Cuban Stars and the Blue Ribbons of Germantown, who later became the Homestead Grays.

He was born in Middleton, Del., in 1895, the same year as Babe Ruth, and honored by the Center for Negro League Baseball Research on his birthday Oct. 14. A Tampa Bay Devil Rays fan, Simmons was presented with a No. 111 jersey. Researchers this year identified him as the oldest living man to have played professionally.

Tags: silas simmons, baseball, negro leagues

US Pushes Taiwan to Pass Arms Package

Sun, 29 Oct 2006 18:26:52 GMT

clipped by: Turtle

Clip Source: www.taiwansecurity.org

The de facto US ambassador to Taipei Stephen Young sternly asked the island's parliament to approve a controversial arms package, in comments that irked Taiwanese legislators.

Young, who has recently returned from the United States, said that the message from Washington was that "Taiwan needs to pass the robust defense budget in this fall's legislative session."

"The United States is watching closely and will judge those who take responsible position as well as those who play politics on this critical issue," warned Young, director of the America Institute in Taiwan.

Young said Taiwan badly needs the arms deal to boost its defense capabilities against rival China. The bill has been repeatedly shot down in parliament while Beijing has not sit idly by over the past five years, he added.

As a result, "the military gap between the People's Republic of China and Taiwan has been growing," he said.

"This is not about arms alone, and this also not about US arms companies' profits. I would be delighted that if any other countries who want to sell self-defense weapons to Taiwan, but it seems that there is no one who wants to do that," Young said.

Young made it clear that Washington can not sell Taiwan more F-16s if Taipei does not approve the arms package, which US President George W. Bush offered in 2001.

The United States is the leading arms supplier to Taiwan despite switching diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979.

Joanna Lei, legislator from the leading opposition Kuomintang (KMT), said she was unhappy about Young's "harsh tone" and his "ultimatum."

"Taiwan is not a US colony," she added.

Tags: taiwan, china, military, military buildup, arms

The Vatican's Pagan Cemetery

Sat, 21 Oct 2006 04:11:11 GMT

clipped by: Turtle
clipper's remarks: The Vatican likes to point out that some of the bones in the necropolis belonged to people who were "on the verge of conversion to Christianity."

Clip Source: msnbc.msn.com

Oct. 13, 2006 - Just inside the Vatican's fortified walls, directly below the street connecting its private pharmacy and its members-only supermarket, lies a 2,000-year-old graveyard littered with bizarre, often disturbing displays of pagan worship. Under one metallic walkway, the headless skeleton of a young boy rests in an open grave. At his side, a marble replica of a hen's egg, which to pagans represented the rebirth of the body through reincarnation. Nearby, countless skeletons lie scattered among the remnants of terra cotta vases used in pagan ceremonies. The underground air is damp with the smell of wet dirt, and the clay tubes used by the pagans to feed their dead with honey and syrup still protrude, fingerlike, from the ground.

Walking among the exposed bones of any ancient graveyard would be chilling enough. But when it’s a pagan necropolis directly beneath Vatican City, arguably Christianity’s holiest shrine, then the situation redlines right into completely unnerving. Or it would be if it weren’t so enthralling, especially for anyone who has ever pondered Roman Catholicism's pagan roots. The Necropoli dell'Autoparco (literally Necropolis of the Parking Garage), a 2,000-year-old burial ground, which opens to the public Oct. 20, offers a rarely seen glimpse of the close ties between pagans and Christians during the Augustan era (23 B.C.-14 A.D.). "You see a mix of social class and even religious beliefs here,” says Francesco Buranelli, director of the Vatican Museums, who believes that including the pagan graveyard as part of the Vatican’s museums will foster awareness of the roots of Catholicism and the importance of its Roman history. The site “brings together the rich and the poor, the plebes and the nobles," he says. “We have not opened an exhibit as historically significant in recent history."

Tags: vatican, cemetery, graveyard, pagan, necropoli dell'autoparco, necropolis, christianity

Who leader Townshend can't stand old rock stars

Thu, 19 Oct 2006 22:28:03 GMT

clipped by: Turtle

Clip Source: today.reuters.co.uk

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Not sure whether to see the Who on their latest tour?

Here's some advice from the rock band's leader, Pete Townshend: he wouldn't bother going.

"I don't want to go out and see Bob Dylan. I don't want to go out and see the Stones. I wouldn't pay money to go see the Who, not even with new songs," Townshend, 61, added in the interview.

Speaking of self-congratulation, the admitted "ageist" declared that he was at the top of his artistic game. He recalled that he felt like a "triumphant liberating giant come to release a million captive children" when the Who played a recent show in Spain.

"I may never get any better," he said. "But I can try."

Tags: peter townshend, the who, rock music

A new Beatles album

Thu, 19 Oct 2006 03:32:24 GMT

clipped by: Turtle

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

The surviving Beatles have backed the project

A new Beatles album, overseen by their most famous producer Sir George Martin, is to be released next month.

Existing master tapes were used to remix songs into what is described as a "unique soundscape" entitled Love.

Love began life as a collaboration between the surviving Beatles and entertainment troupe Cirque Du Soleil for their Las Vegas show.

Sir Paul McCartney said: "This album puts the Beatles back together again." Love will be released on 20 November.

Sir Paul added: "Suddenly there is George and John with me and Ringo. It's kind of magical."

The project has also been backed by Yoko Ono and Olivia Harrison.

The 28 track album uses the full range of the group's output from I Want To Hold Your Hand to Get Back.

Love will be released in a 78-minute stereo CD version and in an 81-minute audio-only version which will play through DVD systems.

Tags: beatles, music, george martin, paul mccartney, ringo starr, circ du soleil

AIDS spreading in China 'like Africa'

Thu, 19 Oct 2006 03:05:08 GMT

clipped by: Turtle

Clip Source: www.smh.com.au

AIDS in China has spread beyond high risk groups and is fast becoming 'like Africa' in how the virus is transmitted, a senior health official says.

"There are 190 new HIV infections every day ... and one per cent of all pregnant women in China are infected," said Hao Yang, deputy director general of the bureau of diseases prevention and control at the Ministry of Health.

To combat the problem, it is now mandatory for all entertainment spots in China to make condoms available and methadone clinics have mushroomed all over the country to help drug addicts kick the habit.

Tags: aids, china, hiv, epidemic

Chinese must pluck Kim from nuke perch

Wed, 18 Oct 2006 23:56:14 GMT

clipped by: Turtle
clipper's remarks: Carpenter explains how ousting Kim Jong II is in the best interests of the US as well as China

Clip Source: www.nydailynews.com

The prospect of a nuclear North Korea is almost as unappealing to China as it is to the United States. The move stands to push an already aggressive Japan into remilitarizing, reasserting itself in East Asia and perhaps also building nuclear weapons.

Until now, Beijing has been reluctant to put any serious economic pressure on Pyongyang. China worries that, if it undermines Kim Jong Il's regime, the North Korean state will unravel.

Tags: north korea, kim jong ii, china, nuclear weapons, ted galen carpenter

Iraq For Sale: The War Profiteers

Wed, 18 Oct 2006 02:40:16 GMT

clipped by: Turtle
clipper's remarks: This film is quite an eye-opener - all about a handful of greedy corporations that are reaping exorbitant profits in Iraq at the expense of human lives and taxpayers' dollars and the political machinery that allows them to get away with it. You can buy the DVD at this site or rent it from Netflix.

Clip Source: iraqforsale.org

Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers is the story of what happens to everyday Americans when corporations go to war.

Acclaimed director Robert Greenwald (Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price, Outfoxed and Uncovered) takes you inside the lives of soldiers, truck drivers, widows and children who have been changed forever as a result of profiteering in the reconstruction of Iraq. Iraq for Sale uncovers the connections between private corporations making a killing in Iraq and the decision makers who allow them to do so.

Tags: iraq, iraq for sale, robert greenwald, profiteering, war, corporations, halliburton, caci, titan, kbr, blackwater

Interview with Borat

Wed, 18 Oct 2006 02:23:02 GMT

clipped by: Turtle
clipper's remarks: Borat's movie will be released here November 3rd

Clip Source: www.ew.com

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Are your friends and family treating you differently now that you're a big Hollywood movie star?
BORAT: They has start to asking me for favours. My mother want a pretty hat, my 12 year old son, Hooeylewis, want eat beef jerky and my 11 year old son, Bilak, want to do a sexytime with Lindsay Lohans. Of course, these has not all be possible, but I am hope soon to find the hat for my mother.

The Kazakh government has shut down your website and threatened to sue Sacha Baron Cohen for defaming the people of Kazakhstan. What do you say in response?
Firstly I am respectable, professional journalist and I will not be drawn into mudslingings with anyone — especially not a Jew. Second, I would like thank the glorious Premier of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, for recent travel to Washingtons to support me and promote this moviefilm.

Tags: sacha baron cohen, borat, kazakhstan, film, humor

Sterilize bad parents?

Wed, 04 Oct 2006 00:44:18 GMT

clipped by: Turtle

Clip Source: www.myrtlebeachonline.com

CHARLESTON, S.C. - A City Council member, reacting to a video store holdup believed to have been carried out by children, says parents who can't properly care for their kids should be sterilized.

"We pick up stray animals and spay them," Larry Shirley said in a story published Saturday by The Post and Courier of Charleston. "These mothers need to be spayed if they can't take care of theirs. Once they have a child and it's running the street, to let them continue to have children is totally unacceptable."

"What we've got is a failure in society, whether it's in Mount Pleasant with yuppie parents or whether it's on the East Side with poor crackhead parents," he said, referring to areas in and around Charleston.

Tags: south carolina, charleston, bad parents, sterilization, funny