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HeroRATS

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 23:27:33 GMT

clipped by: Johanna_G
clipper's remarks: Bericht in deutscher Sprache: Riesenhamsterratte Rosie, Landminensucherin

Clip Source: www.herorat.org

HeroRATS are trained sniffer rats that detect explosives and diagnose disease. This unusual idea has been developed into a competitive technology by a group of Belgian and Tanzanian researchers and animal trainers under the umbrella organization called APOPO. APOPO was initiated in response to the global landmine problem. In the mid 90's it was well recognized that most mine clearance techniques in use were slow, expensive, and dependant on foreign expertise.

Clip Source: www.herorat.org

Direct Detection
In the field, leashed rats systematically search the mined areas and pinpoint the location of the buried explosives by scratching on the top soil. Detection of buried landmines, is the last step before landmine removal, and it is one of the most crucial, but also tedious jobs of the demining process.

Remote Explosive Scent Tracing

Clip Source: www.herorat.org

Allan

Allan is a HeroRAT in training to assist with remote mine detection

Chosen One

Chosen One is a HeroRAT in training to detect landmines in the field.

Rosie

Sargon

Ziko

Tags: herorats, rats, landmines detection

Woman overpowers thief with tea and sympathy

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 23:01:07 GMT

clipped by: Socratoad
clipper's remarks: A nice cupa has been known to bring battles to a standstill.

Clip Source: www.reuters.com

Woman overpowers thief with tea and sympathy

TOKYO (Reuters) - A Japanese woman and her six-month-old baby escaped unhurt from a knife-wielding thief this week after the mother calmed him down with a cup of tea and a chat.

The 30-year-old Tokyo woman was walking along a corridor in her apartment building with her daughter Monday when a man brandishing a knife demanded money, the Asahi newspaper said.

When the housewife told him she had none, the man barged into her apartment. Hoping to calm him, the woman made the thief a cup of tea, whereupon he put his knife away and began a 20-minute monologue about his life.

A Dying Breed

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 00:38:08 GMT

clipped by: Socratoad
clipper's remarks: This is so sad Such striking beauty should be preserved.

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

A Dying Breed

Herd Extinct: The Ankole cow could disappear within 50 years.

GERSHOM MUGIRA COMES from a long line of cattle-keepers. His people, the Bahima, are thought to have migrated into the hilly grasslands of western Uganda more than a thousand years ago, alongside a hardy breed of longhorns known as the Ankole. For centuries, man and beast subsisted there in a tight symbiotic embrace. Mugira’s nomadic ancestors wandered in search of fresh pasture for their cattle, which in turn provided them with milk. It is only within the last few generations that most Bahima have accepted the concept of private property. Mugira’s family lives on a 500-acre ranch, and one sunny day in November, the wiry 26-year-old showed me around, explaining, with some sadness but more pragmatism, why the Ankole breed that sustained his forebears for so many generations is now being driven to extinction.

G8 Leaders ponder world hunger over 18-course feast

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 05:56:12 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: After Gordon Brown calls for prudence and thrift in the kitchen

Clip Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

Summit that's hard to swallow - world leaders enjoy 18-course banquet as they discuss how to solve global food crisis

Just two days ago, Gordon Brown was urging us all to stop wasting food and combat rising prices and a global shortage of provisions.

But yesterday the Prime Minister and other world leaders sat down to an 18-course gastronomic extravaganza at a G8 summit in Japan, which is focusing on the food crisis.

The dinner, and a six-course lunch, at the summit of leading industrialised nations on the island of Hokkaido, included delicacies such as caviar, milkfed lamb, sea urchin and tuna, with champagne and wines flown in from Europe and the U.S.

G8 leaders discussing the world food crisis in Japan raise their glasses ahead of an 18-course dinner

On Sunday, Mr Brown called for prudence and thrift in our kitchens, after a Government report concluded that 4.1million tonnes of food was being wasted by householders.

Tags: g8, hunger

Black hole now a racist term?

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 03:39:58 GMT

clipped by: n2sooners

Clip Source: cityhallblog.dallasnews.com

A special meeting about Dallas County traffic tickets turned tense and bizarre this afternoon.

County commissioners were discussing problems with the central collections office that is used to process traffic ticket payments and handle other paperwork normally done by the JP Courts.

Commissioner Kenneth Mayfield, who is white, said it seemed that central collections "has become a black hole" because paperwork reportedly has become lost in the office.

Commissioner John Wiley Price, who is black, interrupted him with a loud "Excuse me!" He then corrected his colleague, saying the office has become a "white hole."

That prompted Judge Thomas Jones, who is black, to demand an apology from Mayfield for his racially insensitive analogy.

Mayfield shot back that it was a figure of speech and a science term. A black hole, according to Webster's, is perhaps "the invisible remains of a collapsed star, with an intense gravitational field from which neither light nor matter can escape."

Tags: racism, politics, science, humor, ignorance

Congressional Democrats Aim to Censor Twitter and Qik

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 04:07:17 GMT

clipped by: n2sooners

Clip Source: mashable.com

I’ve seen some discussion around the blogosphere that has correlated with an email I got this morning from the office of Representative John Culberson (the US House GOP leader) talking about a Democrat plan hatched to curtail free speech from members of Congress on the Internet’s various social media websites.

As Robert Scoble and Andrew Feinberg unmasked to us in the Web 2.0 crowd, there are a couple of members of congress who actually do get social media, and use it personally. John Culberson is one of those folks, and has actively used Twitter and Qik in the past to communicate not only with his constiuency but the general wilds of the web.

Rep. Michael Capuano, Chairman of the Congressional Commission on Mailing Standards, seeks to end this.

The upshot is that Michael Capuano for some reason is uneasy or afraid of the shift towards openness in access to our nations legislators made possible by social media, and rather than encourage the change, he aims to have it cut off at the head.

Tags: congress, politics, free speech, twitter

Maliki calls for withdrawal timetable; Rebuffed by Bush

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 22:39:20 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Al-Maliki said, “The goal is to end the presence of foreign troops.” Now we'll see how much Iraqi sovereignty matters!

Clip Source: www.democracynow.org

Maliki Calls for Timetable for US Troop Withdrawal

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has for the first time publicly called for a timetable for the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq. The Bush administration has been secretly negotiating a long-term agreement with Iraq that would allow the US to keep permanent military bases in Iraq. But al-Maliki said Iraq only wants to sign a short-term agreement that includes a withdrawal timetable. Al-Maliki said, “The goal is to end the presence of foreign troops.” In Washington, the Bush administration rebuffed Maliki’s request. Pentagon spokesperson Bryan Whitman criticized timelines as “artificial.” State Department spokesperson Sean McCormack questioned whether Maliki might have been misquoted.

Tags: iraq

Lawsuit against US Biz's that profited from Apartheid

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 22:34:54 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Despite int'l sanctions, some US corporations kept doing business in S Africa during apartheid years, benefiting from legal wage and labor suppression of black people there.

Clip Source: www.democracynow.org

Landmark Case Returns to NY Seeking Millions from Corporations that Profited from South African Apartheid

It seeks damages from the companies for doing business with the apartheid government despite international sanctions and boycotts. The companies include the oil giants BP and ExxonMobil, banks such as Citigroup and UBS, and the car giants General Motors and Ford Motor

The case was initially dismissed in November 2004 but reinstated last October. The Supreme Court was set to rule on the case in May but sent it back to district court after four justices disclosed they own shares in some of the companies named in the suit

I grew up in Port Elizabeth, for instance, which was the headquarters both of Ford and GM, and they were using black labor, but it was very cheap black labor, because there was a law in South Africa which said (a) blacks are not allowed to join trade unions, and (b) they’re not allowed to strike, so that they were forced to accept whatever wages they were given

Tags: race, business

Barbara Boxes and Fairy Tales

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 05:27:16 GMT

clipped by: mklosinski
clipper's remarks: I am accusing Barbara Boxer of gross ignorance and believing in Fairy tales.

Clip Source: www.reuters.com

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A leading U.S. Senate Democrat accused the Bush administration on Tuesday of a "cover-up" aimed at stopping the Environmental Protection Agency from tackling greenhouse emissions.

"This cover-up is being directed from the White House and the office of the vice president," said Sen. Barbara Boxer, the California Democrat who chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

Tags: boxer, epa, global warming, greenhouse gases

Befriending Iraqi children is crucial, major says

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 00:59:06 GMT

clipped by: missjackson

Clip Source: www.bpnews.net

HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah (BP)--During his deployment in Iraq, Air Force Maj. Chris Gay learned firsthand that a key component of succeeding in the war is befriending Iraq's youth and showing them a level of kindness and goodwill they may never encounter otherwise.

During that time, he visited the largest of eight internally displaced persons camps in Iraq. The camp housed more than 2,500 Iraqis who fled their homes during terrorist and sectarian violence.

Clip Source: www.bpnews.net

When he discovered the children there didn't have sufficient clothing and blankets to cope with the winter weather, Gay organized a campaign to have his Sunday School class at Mountain View Baptist send boxes of garments that he could pass out to the children.

"I have two kids myself, so I had compassion for the kids," he told Baptist Press.

In the process of completing what he dubbed Operation Warm Winter, Gay said he gained a better understanding of the Iraqis living in the camp.

"We are making a tremendous difference," he said

living on the edge: 2 stunningly scary clifftop communities

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 03:49:03 GMT

clipped by: constantskeptic
clipper's remarks: wow

Clip Source: deputy-dog.com

living on the edge: 2 stunningly scary clifftop communities

[above] welcome to ronda (google maps here), a beautiful city in southern spain which is split in two by el tajo gorge. as a result, certain buildings have been perched on the edge of the gorge’s verticall walls, enormous cliffs bridged by the 200 year old peunte neuvo. now, although living on the edge of that gigantic 130m crack would give me the shakes, i’d much rather live there than bonifacio…

[above] this is bonifacio in corsica (google maps here). this fragile looking citadel sits precariously above limestone cliffs which over the years have been battered by the mediterranean sea, a process which is apparent by both the piles of eroded stone at the base and the overhang of the cliff walls. how long before the next building gets swallowed? no idea, but from the look of the first photo it can’t be long.

anyone know of any more frightening clifftop towns?

Congressional Performance

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 01:01:42 GMT

clipped by: jatfla
clipper's remarks: Single digits, huh? Ms. Pelosi and Mr. Reid promised so much...but the final number says it all. Most of us believe that Congressmen & women are more interested in promoting their careers rather than dealing with issues. No one called me, but I couldn't agree more. I saw Sen. Warner talking about lowering the speed limit to 55mph again. What an embarrassment!

Clip Source: rasmussenreports.com

Congressional Performance

The percentage of voters who give Congress good or excellent ratings has fallen to single digits for the first time in Rasmussen Reports tracking history. This month, just 9% say Congress is doing a good or excellent job. Most voters (52%) say Congress is doing a poor job, which ties the record high in that dubious category.

Voters hold little positive sentiment about the future. Just 41% find it at least somewhat likely that Congress will address important problems facing our nation in the near future, while 55% find this unlikely.

Most voters (72%) think most members of Congress are more interested in furthering their own political careers. Just 14% believe members are genuinely interested in helping people.

61 yr. old Librarian Denied at McCain Town Hall Meeting

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 20:45:46 GMT

clipped by: sahara

Clip Source: blog.puppetgov.com

61-year-old librarian denied at McCain town hall for holding sign

[Video]

Puppetgov: Enjoying the Free Speech soldiers are dying for?

Watch as Carol Kreck, a 61-year-old librarian from Denver, Colorado, is escorted away from a John McCain town hall event and threatened with arrest if she returns.

Tags: free speech, fascism, mccain

First Clip

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 06:44:46 GMT

clipped by: cjessup3
clipper's remarks: I don't know what to do with this...I just wanted practice clipping

Clip Source: www.getmiro.com

Tags: first clip

Augustine and the relationship of the two cities in law

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 02:43:09 GMT

clipped by: willhelm
clipper's remarks: --Christopher Neiswonger
"But this confusion of proper ends toward merely pragmatic or “proximate” goals is ordained by God, so that there will be some semblance of peace on the Earth during this time when there are two worlds grinding against each other. A city of God and a city of man. We use the same Law but to a different final end."

Clip Source: neiswonger.wordpress.com

Augustine on the relationship between the two cities in law.

The motivation of those outside of Christ is always less than the highest good, and thus the reason for Law and the order it brings is merely personal peace in this life to those without a spiritual life. Egoistically speaking, Augustine sees that the non-Christian has as an intent only selfishness, and so though they may receive the Laws of God for practical purposes and their morality might have points of identity with Christian ethics on how a Civil state should be governed, being outside of the grace of God and having their own pleasure and well being as their ultimate goal, in every good law they ordain, they still break the Law. The Law is love, and love of the self the source of every ill of man. As Calvin said it, self denial is the essence of every Christian virtue.