Clipmarks | allenmarkowski's clips

Genetically Engineered Crops have Led to Massive Increases in Pesticide Use

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 07:31:17 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski
clipper's remarks: Note that not one claim by Monsanto has proven true.

According to a recent report compiled from U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) data, the growing of genetically engineered crops has led to a 383 million pound increase in U.S. pesticide use during the time period spanning from 1996 to 2008.

"herbicide-tolerant" (HT) GMO crops have resulted in new herbicide-resistant weeds that are sprouting up in farmers' fields. When farmers respond by increasing pesticide use, ever-stronger "superweeds" continue to appear.

Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto's RoundUp herbicide, is no longer effective at treating the weeds that result from the planting of "RoundUp-ready" crops. Thus millions of acres of farmland are now plagued by superweeds that are destroying the environment, ruining crops, and ultimately ruining farmers' businesses.

Not one claim made by the biotechnology industry concerning the benefits of GMOs has proven true. Independent scientific reports continue to show that industry assertions in favor of GMOs are patently false.

Nice People

Sat, 23 May 2009 06:47:58 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski

Clip Source: www.flickr.com

Nice people

Tags: education unusual note

New Medicine Discoveries of Dr. Hamer

Thu, 21 May 2009 08:44:56 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski

Clip Source: www.newmedicine.ca

The German New Medicine is a set of findings and principles that solidly bases the nature of disease on universal biological principles and on the interaction between the three levels that make up the organism: the psyche, the brain and the organ.

diseases have a biological meaning and are not mistakes of nature.

we can now categorize most of the diseases known to medicine in pairs of events. These pairs are actually programs of nature relating psychological and biological events. The programs are designed by Nature to either help the individual to cope or as a selection mechanism to serve the group.

the system Dr. Hamer has pieced together has extraordinary diagnostic and therapeutic success. Although the system stands traditional medicine on its head, it does not invalidate many of its practices or most of the knowledge that has been accumulated.

Tags: health, healthcare, medicine, science

Scientists say GE crops encourage stronger weeds

Fri, 24 Apr 2009 08:43:27 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski

Clip Source: www.nzherald.co.nz

Genetically engineered crops do little to improve yields and instead promote the proliferation of herbicide-resistant weeds that actually curb production, according to a study by the Union of Concerned Scientists.

"The two major types of traits now present in transgenic crops - insect resistance and herbicide tolerance - are often classic contributors to operational yield,"

"Neither trait would be expected to enhance potential or intrinsic yield, and indeed, there is virtually no evidence that they have done so."

Operational yield is obtained under normal field conditions and includes factors such as pests and other stressors, the report says. Intrinsic yield is the highest that can be achieved with crops grown under ideal conditions.

Volunteers-Eyes & Ears for National Weather Service

Sun, 01 Mar 2009 19:40:19 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski
clipper's remarks: As I volunteer a lot in our community I appreciate seeing articles like this in the media & I believe this kind of service will be the cornerstone of a new order of living. John Lennon said, "Imagine all the people sharing all the world...you may say I'm a dreamer but I'm not the only one"

Clip Source: www.ukiahdailyjournal.com

Weather watchers: National Weather Service relies on local volunteers

volunteer weather spotters are the "eyes and ears" of the National Weather Service.

Despite all the technological gains the Weather Service has acquired over the years, spotters enable the NWS to access on-the-ground, real time information about the weather in a given location. Spotters enable the NWS to issue accurate and timely warnings and advisories for the North Coast area.

thousands, or even tens of thousands, of lives have been saved by the timely and accurate reporting by volunteer spotters. Currently, Ashford estimates that there are about 143 spotters spread across Del Norte, Humboldt, Mendocino and Trinity counties.

Much High Fructose Corn Syrup Contaminated With Mercury, New Study Finds

Thu, 29 Jan 2009 08:38:42 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski

Clip Source: www.organicconsumers.org

Minneapolis - Mercury was found in nearly 50 percent of tested samples of commercial high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), according to a new article published today in the scientific journal, Environmental Health. A separate study by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) detected mercury in nearly one-third of 55 popular brandname food and beverage products where HFCS is the first or second highest labeled ingredient-including products by Quaker, Hershey's, Kraft and Smucker's.

On average, Americans consume about 12 teaspoons per day of HFCS. Consumption by teenagers and other high consumers can be up to 80 percent above average levels.

"Given how much high fructose corn syrup is consumed by children, it could be a significant additional source of mercury never before considered. We are calling for immediate changes by industry and the FDA to help stop this avoidable mercury contamination of the food supply."

"The good news is that mercury-free HFCS ingredients exist.

Tags: health, education, food

The Public's Right to Know

Mon, 29 Dec 2008 09:34:50 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski
clipper's remarks: We as a people need info available in real time & be able to search it as we please. I also believe it will allow for more democratic action.

Clip Source: www.cfac.org

CFAC and MAPLight sue for public access to state’s legislative database

Although the public currently can access this info one bill at a time through the state’s official website, that does not allow computer-assisted analysis of the data. MAPLight’s service, for example, highlights the influence of money on the legislative process by linking campaign contributions to specific legislative actions. This will prove embarrassing to legislators.

Clip Source: www.mercurynews.com

The California First Amendment Coalition and MAPLight.org said they wanted the information for a Web site that voters could use to look for a connection between special interest donations and a legislator's votes.

The Legislature's Web sites provide the information in a text form that is nearly impossible to analyze for trends in voting and patterns of campaign contributions

"Our congressional Web site is updated within an hour of each vote in Congress. We would like to have similar updates for transparency for the California Legislature."

Top 10 Reasons Trick/Treat Is Better Than Sex

Sun, 10 Aug 2008 19:24:21 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski

Clip Source: goosebmp.stumbleupon.com

Number 10.

You're guaranteed to get at least a little something in the sack.

Number 9.

Once you've done it, you don't have to wait an hour to do it again.

Number 8.

The uglier you look, the more likely you'll get some.

Number 7.

You don't have to make small talk with the person who gave you the treat.

Number 6.

The person giving it to you isn't fantasizing that you are someone else.

Number 5.

If you get a stomach ache, it won't last for 9 months.

Number 4.

If you wear a mask, no one thinks you're kinky.

Number 3.

It doesn't matter if the kids hear you moaning and groaning.

Number 2.

The next day you don't have to call the person that gave it to you.

And the ..Number 1 reason trick-or- treating is better than sex.....

Number 1.

If you don't get what you want, you can always go next door!!

Happy Trick or Treating!

Thomas Hunter

Sun, 20 Jul 2008 18:36:23 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski
clipper's remarks: I love good quotes & the first one pulled me in as I am a musician.

Clip Source: www.quotedb.com

"The music business is a cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs. There's also a negative side." - Copy to Clipboard

Tags: music quotes

Ghandi's Top 10 fundamentals for Changing the World

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 20:36:36 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski

Clip Source: www.positivityblog.com

1. Change yourself.

“You must be the change you want to see in the world.”

2. You are in control.

“Nobody can hurt me without my permission.”

3. Forgive and let it go.

“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”

“An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind.”

4. Without action you aren’t going anywhere.

“An ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching.”

5. Take care of this moment.

“I do not want to foresee the future. I am concerned with taking care of the present. God has given me no control over the moment following.”

6. Everyone is human.

“It is unwise to be too sure of one’s own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err.”

7. Persist.

“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.”

8. See the good in people and help them.

9. Be congruent, be authentic, be your true self.

10. Continue to grow and evolve.

Open Money-The Next Global Currency

Sun, 08 Jun 2008 05:28:19 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski
clipper's remarks: I'm all in favor. No more federal reserve/world banks. I like the point made that it's open source. We don't need money, what we need to do is the right thing like the rest of the creation around us.

Clip Source: www.thetransitioner.org

Open money is intended to become the next global currency system, at front end and infrastructure levels. It allows any community at local or global levels (groups of people, regions, countries, corporations, NGOs,...) to create currencies among its marketplace. Open money is always in sufficiency. Therefore people never get short of money, they can continue to proceed to their market exchange.

Consequences will be global and probably experienced as more profound than the emergence of the internet itself.

Advantages of open money

Decentralized: no need for a centralized issuer like a bank, which means no threats from a centralized power.

Free: no interest is practiced because there is no issuer that makes a business of it.

Peer-to-peer: the total quantity of money in the community is determined in realtime by peer-to-peer exchange.

Controlled by the people: the rules of circulation, credit limits, taxes, decision making processes, etc, are controlled by the community itself.

Sufficient

Follow the Leader: Democracy in Herd Mentality

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 17:30:59 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski
clipper's remarks: I believe this is where we are moving as the human race in the area of government.

Clip Source: www.livescience.com

Bees do it. Birds do it. So do fish and wildebeests. They are all able to gracefully flock or swarm in a particular direction even though not every member of the group knows where they are going.

"Groups of animals move purposefully, yet often only relatively few individuals have pertinent information as to where to travel," said Iain Couzin

"There's no explicit signaling in our model," Couzin told LiveScience. "No one is saying, 'I know something - come follow me.'"

The only requirement seems to be a balance between a need to stay in the group and a desire on the part of some to go off in their own preferred direction. These goal-oriented individuals look just like their naïve colleagues.

"[This study] demonstrates the power of the little guy,"

"You don't need avowed leaders, you don't need complex signaling."

In nature, it is likely that the number of leaders is kept as low as possible.

using very simple rules - the group will choose the majority. It's almost like a democratic decision."

El Sistema: Changing Lives Through Music

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 20:15:09 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski
clipper's remarks: This is something I really believe in & have been working hard at the last few years in the area where I live. I think its absolutely tragic that millions of kids in our country have no musical education or training.

Clip Source: www.cbsnews.com

What comes to mind when you mention Venezuela? Hugo Chavez probably, or oil, or baseball. What probably does not come to mind is classical music.

And yet, Venezuela is the home of a music program that’s so extraordinary it has been hailed as the future of classical music itself.

In the world of classical music, the Simon Bolivar National Youth Orchestra is unique. The musicians, kids mainly, are not graduates of some conservatory or music school: they're alumni of the school of hard knocks in the slums of Venezuela. And their orchestra is about the exuberance of youth.

Abreu, a 68-year-old retired economist, trained musician, and social reformer founded "the system" in 1975 and has built it with religious zeal, based on his unorthodox belief that what poor Venezuelan kids needed was classical music.

"Essentially this is a social system that fights poverty," Abreu explained. "A child's physical poverty is overcome by the spiritual richness that music provides."

the vehicle for social change

Humans Are the Sex Organs of Technology

Tue, 05 Feb 2008 02:20:33 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski

Clip Source: www.kk.org

eventually technology will far more autonomous than it is today. Right now not only are we the parents of the technium, we are also the sex organs of technology. From technology’s view, we are the mysterious walking-around glands that reproduce them. They may be able to operate on their own, but they need us to reproduce them. This is already changing. Most computer chips in the world today are designed in part by other computer chips. Most robotic devices are manufactured in part by other robotic devices. As we improve chips and robots, there is no reason to believe that at some point computers will wholly design some other computers, and some robotic systems wholly manufacture other robotic systems. The next step seems inevitable: technology will reproduce itself.

Technology cannot reproduce itself without our help at the moment, but it is expanding, growing more complex, and smarter.

Like any child, it has its demands. So far, humanity as a whole is in denial that it even has a child.

Do-It-Yourself Cartography

Tue, 22 Jan 2008 08:29:22 GMT

clipped by: allenmarkowski

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

The most influential mashup this year

was an online street map of Chicago overlaid with crime statistics. Chicagocrime.org, which was created by the journalist Adrian Holovaty, was one of the first Web sites to combine publicly available data from one site (in this case, the Chicago Police Department's online database) with a digital map supplied by another site (in this case, Google).

This summer, Google released software tools that make this sort of mashup simple to create, even for casual Web users. Thousands of people began to make useful, often elegant, annotated maps. It turns out that the best way to organize much of the information online is geographically

The latest twist is "memory maps," in which you annotate a satellite photo of your hometown with your personal history.

Maps have shifted from read-only to do-it-yourself in the course of just a few months. Martin Dodge

says, "I can't think of a period of Western cartographic history that was so alive."

Tags: crime, maps, database