December 31, 2008
December 24, 2008
December 20, 2008
Process:
Thinking is the operating skill with which intelligence acts upon experience for a puprose.
Thinking is the deliberate exploration of experience for a purpose:Feelings: A subjective response that reflects emotion, sentiment, or desire; generally occurs spontaneously
- Planning
- Decision Making
- Judgement
- Action
- Problem Solving
- Enjoyment
December 11, 2008
December 5, 2008
A Cause Célèbre...
The Dreyfus Affair was a political scandal which divided France from the 1890s to the early 1900s. It involved the conviction for treason in November 1894 of Captain Alfred Dreyfus, a young French artillery officer of Jewish background who was in advanced training with the Army's General Staff. Alfred Dreyfus was sentenced to life imprisonment, which he began to serve in solitary confinement on Devil's Island in French Guiana.
Two years later, in 1896, the real culprit was brought to light and identified: a French Army major named Ferdinand Walsin Esterhazy. However, French high-level military officials dismissed or ignored this new evidence which exonerated Alfred Dreyfus. Thus, in January 1898, military judges unanimously acquitted Esterhazy on the second day of his trial. Worse, French military counter-intelligence officers fabricated false documents designed to secure Dreyfus' conviction as a spy for Germany. They were all eventually exposed, in large part due to a resounding public intervention by writer Emile Zola in January 1898. The case had to be re-opened, and Dreyfus was brought back from Guiana in 1899 to be tried again. The intense political and judicial scandal that ensued divided French society between those who supported Dreyfus (the Dreyfusards[1]) and those who condemned him (the anti-Dreyfusards, such as Edouard Drumont director of La Libre Parole and Hubert-Joseph Henry).
Eventually, all the accusations against Alfred Dreyfus were demonstrated to be baseless. Dreyfus was exonerated and reinstated as a major in the French Army in 1906. He later served during the whole of World War I, ending his service with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel.
Two years later, in 1896, the real culprit was brought to light and identified: a French Army major named Ferdinand Walsin Esterhazy. However, French high-level military officials dismissed or ignored this new evidence which exonerated Alfred Dreyfus. Thus, in January 1898, military judges unanimously acquitted Esterhazy on the second day of his trial. Worse, French military counter-intelligence officers fabricated false documents designed to secure Dreyfus' conviction as a spy for Germany. They were all eventually exposed, in large part due to a resounding public intervention by writer Emile Zola in January 1898. The case had to be re-opened, and Dreyfus was brought back from Guiana in 1899 to be tried again. The intense political and judicial scandal that ensued divided French society between those who supported Dreyfus (the Dreyfusards[1]) and those who condemned him (the anti-Dreyfusards, such as Edouard Drumont director of La Libre Parole and Hubert-Joseph Henry).
Eventually, all the accusations against Alfred Dreyfus were demonstrated to be baseless. Dreyfus was exonerated and reinstated as a major in the French Army in 1906. He later served during the whole of World War I, ending his service with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel.
November 30, 2008
November 26, 2008
November 25, 2008
Principles of Guerrilla Strategy and Tactics
All warfare is based on deception.
Therefore, when capable, feign incapacity; when active, inactivity.
When near, make it appear that you are far away, when far away, that you are near.
Offer the enemy a bait and lure him; feign disorder and strike him.
When he concentrates, prepare against him; where he is strong, avoid him.
Anger his general and confuse him.
Pretend inferiority and encourage arrogance.
Keep him under a strain and wear him down.
When he is united, divide him.
Attack where he is unprepared; sally out when he does not expect you.
These are the strategists keys to victory.
Therefore, when capable, feign incapacity; when active, inactivity.
When near, make it appear that you are far away, when far away, that you are near.
Offer the enemy a bait and lure him; feign disorder and strike him.
When he concentrates, prepare against him; where he is strong, avoid him.
Anger his general and confuse him.
Pretend inferiority and encourage arrogance.
Keep him under a strain and wear him down.
When he is united, divide him.
Attack where he is unprepared; sally out when he does not expect you.
These are the strategists keys to victory.
November 23, 2008
Demise:
The conspirators never met openly, but they assembled a few at a time in each other's homes. There were many discussions and proposals, as might be expected, while they investigated how and where to execute their design. Some suggested that they should make the attempt as he was going along the Sacred Way, which was one of his favorite walks. Another idea was for it to be done at the elections during which he had to cross a bridge to appoint the magistrates in the Campus Martius; they should draw lots for some to push him from the bridge and for others to run up and kill him. A third plan was to wait for a coming gladiatorial show. The advantage of that would be that, because of the show, no suspicion would be aroused if arms were seen prepared for the attempt. But the majority opinion favoured killing him while he sat in the Senate, where he would be by himself since only Senators would be admitted, and where the many conspirators could hide their daggers beneath their togas. This plan won the day.
...his friends were alarmed at certain rumors and tried to stop him going to the Senate-house, as did his doctors, for he was suffering from one of his occasional dizzy spells. His wife, Calpurnia, especially, who was frightened by some visions in her dreams, clung to him and said that she would not let him go out that day. But Brutus, one of the conspirators who was then thought of as a firm friend, came up and said, 'What is this, Caesar? Are you a man to pay attention to a woman's dreams and the idle gossip of stupid men, and to insult the Senate by not going out, although it has honoured you and has been specially summoned by you? But listen to me, cast aside the forebodings of all these people, and come. The Senate has been in session waiting for you since early this morning.' This swayed Caesar and he left.
On the Ides of March (March 15; see Roman calendar) of 44 BC, a group of senators called Caesar to the forum for the purpose of reading a petition, written by the senators, asking him to hand power back to the Senate. However, the petition was a fake. Mark Antony, having vaguely learned of the plot the night before from a terrified Liberator named Servilius Casca, and fearing the worst, went to head Caesar off at the steps of the forum. However, the group of senators intercepted Caesar just as he was passing the Theatre of Pompey, located in the Campus Martius, and directed him to a room adjoining the east portico.
As Caesar began to read the false petition, Tillius Cimber, who had handed him the petition, pulled down Caesar's tunic. According to Suetonius, Caesar then cried to Cimber, "Why, this is violence!" ("Ista quidem vis est!"). At the same time, the aforementioned Casca produced his dagger and made a glancing thrust at the dictator's neck. Caesar turned around quickly and caught Casca by the arm. According to Plutarch, he said in Latin, "Casca, you villain, what are you doing?"Casca, frightened, shouted "Help, brother!" in Greek ("ἀδελφέ, βοήθει!", "adelphe, boethei!"). Within moments, the entire group, including Brutus, was striking out at the dictator. Caesar attempted to get away, but, blinded by blood, he tripped and fell; the men continued stabbing him as he lay defenceless on the lower steps of the portico. According to Eutropius, around sixty or more men participated in the assassination. He was stabbed 23 times. According to Suetonius, a physician later established that only one wound, the second one to his chest, had been lethal.
The dictator's last words are not known with certainty, and are a contested subject among scholars and historians alike. Suetonius reports that others have said Caesar's last words were the Greek phrase "καὶ σύ, τέκνον;"(transliterated as "Kai su, teknon?": "You too, child?" in English). However, Suetonius himself says Caesar said nothing. Plutarch also reports that Caesar said nothing, pulling his toga over his head when he saw Brutus among the conspirators. The version best known in the English-speaking world is the Latin phrase "Et tu, Brute?" ("And you, Brutus?", commonly rendered as "You too, Brutus"); this derives from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, where it actually forms the first half of a macaronic line: "Et tu, Brute? Then fall, Caesar." It has no basis in historical fact and Shakespeare's use of Latin here is not from any assumption that Caesar would have been using the language, but because the phrase was already popular at the time the play was written.
According to Plutarch, after the assassination, Brutus stepped forward as if to say something to his fellow senators; they, however, fled the building. Brutus and his companions then marched to the Capitol while crying out to their beloved city: "People of Rome, we are once again free!". They were met with silence, as the citizens of Rome had locked themselves inside their houses as soon as the rumour of what had taken place had begun to spread.
...his friends were alarmed at certain rumors and tried to stop him going to the Senate-house, as did his doctors, for he was suffering from one of his occasional dizzy spells. His wife, Calpurnia, especially, who was frightened by some visions in her dreams, clung to him and said that she would not let him go out that day. But Brutus, one of the conspirators who was then thought of as a firm friend, came up and said, 'What is this, Caesar? Are you a man to pay attention to a woman's dreams and the idle gossip of stupid men, and to insult the Senate by not going out, although it has honoured you and has been specially summoned by you? But listen to me, cast aside the forebodings of all these people, and come. The Senate has been in session waiting for you since early this morning.' This swayed Caesar and he left.
On the Ides of March (March 15; see Roman calendar) of 44 BC, a group of senators called Caesar to the forum for the purpose of reading a petition, written by the senators, asking him to hand power back to the Senate. However, the petition was a fake. Mark Antony, having vaguely learned of the plot the night before from a terrified Liberator named Servilius Casca, and fearing the worst, went to head Caesar off at the steps of the forum. However, the group of senators intercepted Caesar just as he was passing the Theatre of Pompey, located in the Campus Martius, and directed him to a room adjoining the east portico.
As Caesar began to read the false petition, Tillius Cimber, who had handed him the petition, pulled down Caesar's tunic. According to Suetonius, Caesar then cried to Cimber, "Why, this is violence!" ("Ista quidem vis est!"). At the same time, the aforementioned Casca produced his dagger and made a glancing thrust at the dictator's neck. Caesar turned around quickly and caught Casca by the arm. According to Plutarch, he said in Latin, "Casca, you villain, what are you doing?"Casca, frightened, shouted "Help, brother!" in Greek ("ἀδελφέ, βοήθει!", "adelphe, boethei!"). Within moments, the entire group, including Brutus, was striking out at the dictator. Caesar attempted to get away, but, blinded by blood, he tripped and fell; the men continued stabbing him as he lay defenceless on the lower steps of the portico. According to Eutropius, around sixty or more men participated in the assassination. He was stabbed 23 times. According to Suetonius, a physician later established that only one wound, the second one to his chest, had been lethal.
The dictator's last words are not known with certainty, and are a contested subject among scholars and historians alike. Suetonius reports that others have said Caesar's last words were the Greek phrase "καὶ σύ, τέκνον;"(transliterated as "Kai su, teknon?": "You too, child?" in English). However, Suetonius himself says Caesar said nothing. Plutarch also reports that Caesar said nothing, pulling his toga over his head when he saw Brutus among the conspirators. The version best known in the English-speaking world is the Latin phrase "Et tu, Brute?" ("And you, Brutus?", commonly rendered as "You too, Brutus"); this derives from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, where it actually forms the first half of a macaronic line: "Et tu, Brute? Then fall, Caesar." It has no basis in historical fact and Shakespeare's use of Latin here is not from any assumption that Caesar would have been using the language, but because the phrase was already popular at the time the play was written.
According to Plutarch, after the assassination, Brutus stepped forward as if to say something to his fellow senators; they, however, fled the building. Brutus and his companions then marched to the Capitol while crying out to their beloved city: "People of Rome, we are once again free!". They were met with silence, as the citizens of Rome had locked themselves inside their houses as soon as the rumour of what had taken place had begun to spread.
November 18, 2008
Oi!
I know that things are getting tougher When you can't get the top off from the bottom of the barrel. Wide open road of my future now...It's looking fucking narrow. All I know is that I don't know nothing We get to decide. Just like as if I'm not going to change my mind. All I know is that I don't know nothing. Whatcha gonna do with yourself, Boy better make up your mind, Whatcha gonna do with yourself boy, You're running out of time. This time I got it all figured out: All I know is that I don't know nothing. And that's fine.
November 15, 2008
Bleeding, Bleeding To my country The mounting costs My freedom's lost The death of liberty We live in a Kingdom of reigns The dogs of war rule the day The hypocrites roam in gangs The truth is lost It's wars first casualty Speak the truth If you've got something to say To lead the boys off to war Is to throw them away Depleted rounds kill RU-238 These troubled times Bringing on our darkest days Is this the death of liberty Is this the price that life has come to mean All our friends, now enemies The misery of Bleeding, Bleeding To my country The mounting costs My freedom's lost The death of liberty Tell the truth If you've got something to say No blood for oil, killing fields Halliburton money Wounded troops left to rot No help from the VA These troubled times Bringing on our darkest days Is this the death of liberty Is this the price that life has come to mean All our friends, now enemies The misery of Bleeding, Bleeding To my country The mounting costs My freedom's lost The death of liberty Speak the truth, Speak the truth or Throw it away Is this the death of liberty Is this the price that life has come to mean All our friends, now enemies The misery ofBleeding, Bleeding To my country The mounting costs My freedom's lost The death of liberty!
November 11, 2008
November 8, 2008
The Mass Psychology Of Fascism: " The Obama Factor"...
- Mankind is biologically sick.
- Politics is the irrational expression of this sickness.
- Whatever takes place in social life is actively or passively, voluntarily or unvoluntarily, determined by the structure of masses of people.
- This character structure is formed by socio-economic processes, and it anchors and perpetuates these processes. Man's biopathic character structure is, as it were, the fossilization of the authoritarian process of history. It is the biophysical reproduction of mass suppression.
- The human structure is animated by the contradiction of an intense longing for and fear of freedom.
- The fear of freedom of masses of people is expressed in the biophysical rigidity of the organism and the inflexibility of the character.
- Every form of social leadership is merely the social expression of the one or the other side of this structure of masses of people....
November 2, 2008
Pancho Villa:
"Don't let it end like this. Tell them I said something."
Mexican bandit & revolutionarty (1877-1923)
October 31, 2008
October 29, 2008
Don't Trust Anyone...
The mythology of the secret societies has many different specific embodiments, religious, and non-religious, liberal and conservative, but it always an example of the 'puppet theory' of politics. Claiming that the real makers of events are not the statesmen who strut before the public, but secret directors who manipulate them, sometimes with, sometimes without, their knowledge. These manipulators use their puppets as the instruments of great and usually sinister designs.
The most popular from of the myth is to identify the enduring secret societies as primarily the agents of political and social revolution. Their great aim, it is asserted, is to sap the stabilizing certainties of society (Church, State, Morality, Property, the Family) and set up a new order.
In Western Europe in the half-century before 1848 there were indeed real secrety societies at work with political aims; they were most important, and most celebrated and feared, in Italy, and Frace. Some of them owed much in their organization, tradition, and procedure to a much older movement which had already attracted public attention and distrust. It has always provided the most important and enduring themes in the mythology of the secret societies. Through almost the whole history of the myth, from the prurient suspisions of what really went on at 18th century masonic suppers to their condemnation by the 19th century Papacy and the attacks on the movement launched by the Nazis and the Bolsheviks, the freemasons are given a special role and emphasis. Although most of the story now to be unravelled runs through an unreal twilit world of legend, fancy, nightmare, and parnoia, its beginnings lie in the comonsensical, enlightened world of the early English freemasons. It is with them that it is best to begin....
The most popular from of the myth is to identify the enduring secret societies as primarily the agents of political and social revolution. Their great aim, it is asserted, is to sap the stabilizing certainties of society (Church, State, Morality, Property, the Family) and set up a new order.
In Western Europe in the half-century before 1848 there were indeed real secrety societies at work with political aims; they were most important, and most celebrated and feared, in Italy, and Frace. Some of them owed much in their organization, tradition, and procedure to a much older movement which had already attracted public attention and distrust. It has always provided the most important and enduring themes in the mythology of the secret societies. Through almost the whole history of the myth, from the prurient suspisions of what really went on at 18th century masonic suppers to their condemnation by the 19th century Papacy and the attacks on the movement launched by the Nazis and the Bolsheviks, the freemasons are given a special role and emphasis. Although most of the story now to be unravelled runs through an unreal twilit world of legend, fancy, nightmare, and parnoia, its beginnings lie in the comonsensical, enlightened world of the early English freemasons. It is with them that it is best to begin....
October 28, 2008
Brotherly Love:
The Soledad Brothers were three inmates at San Quentin State Prison charged with the murder of guard John V. Mills in 1970. George Jackson, Fleeta Drumgo and John Clutchette were said to have murdered Mills in retaliation for the killing of three black prisoners by a guard, O.G. Miller, at Soledad prison in California.
Activist and author Angela Davis took up the cause of the Soledad Brothers after reading about the case in February 1970, and became the chair of their defense committee. Davis said, "The situation in Soledad is part of a continuous pattern in the Black community. Three Black men who were unarmed, who were not trying to escape, are killed, and this is called justifiable homicide...One white guard is killed, and this is immediately called murder."
On August 3, 1970 the Marin County Civic Center, which houses the Marin County Superior Court, was the scene of an assault by a group of African-American political activists led by Jonathan Jackson, the 17-year old brother of Black Panther militant George Jackson, demanding the release of the "Soledad Brothers". The group released several prisoners in the courtroom and took a number of hostages including the presiding judge, Harold Haley. A shotgun was taped to the judge's neck. While they were attempting to escape, Haley and prisoners William Christmas, James McClain, and Jonathan Jackson were killed as they attempted to drive away from the courthouse.
On August 21, 1971, days before his trial in the guard's killing, the 29-year-old Jackson launched an uprising at San Quentin with a 9mm pistol. Gun in hand, he released an entire floor of prisoners from the maximum-security wing, crying, "This is it, gentlemen, the Dragon has come!" In the ensuing melee, three guards were killed, as were two prisoners suspected of being snitches, before George Jackson was killed by a guard.
The Soledad Brothers made sensational headlines on August 7, 1970 when George Jackson’s 17-year-old brother Jonathan burst into a Marin County courtroom with a machine gun, freed three San Quentin prisoners and took Judge Harold Haley as a hostage to demand freedom for the Soledad Brothers. Haley, prisoners William Christmas and James McClain, and Jonathan Jackson were killed by police fire as they attempted to drive away from the courthouse.
Jackson was buried with full honors as a Field Commander of the Black Panther Party and mourned as a revolutionary hero...
Activist and author Angela Davis took up the cause of the Soledad Brothers after reading about the case in February 1970, and became the chair of their defense committee. Davis said, "The situation in Soledad is part of a continuous pattern in the Black community. Three Black men who were unarmed, who were not trying to escape, are killed, and this is called justifiable homicide...One white guard is killed, and this is immediately called murder."
On August 3, 1970 the Marin County Civic Center, which houses the Marin County Superior Court, was the scene of an assault by a group of African-American political activists led by Jonathan Jackson, the 17-year old brother of Black Panther militant George Jackson, demanding the release of the "Soledad Brothers". The group released several prisoners in the courtroom and took a number of hostages including the presiding judge, Harold Haley. A shotgun was taped to the judge's neck. While they were attempting to escape, Haley and prisoners William Christmas, James McClain, and Jonathan Jackson were killed as they attempted to drive away from the courthouse.
On August 21, 1971, days before his trial in the guard's killing, the 29-year-old Jackson launched an uprising at San Quentin with a 9mm pistol. Gun in hand, he released an entire floor of prisoners from the maximum-security wing, crying, "This is it, gentlemen, the Dragon has come!" In the ensuing melee, three guards were killed, as were two prisoners suspected of being snitches, before George Jackson was killed by a guard.
The Soledad Brothers made sensational headlines on August 7, 1970 when George Jackson’s 17-year-old brother Jonathan burst into a Marin County courtroom with a machine gun, freed three San Quentin prisoners and took Judge Harold Haley as a hostage to demand freedom for the Soledad Brothers. Haley, prisoners William Christmas and James McClain, and Jonathan Jackson were killed by police fire as they attempted to drive away from the courthouse.
Jackson was buried with full honors as a Field Commander of the Black Panther Party and mourned as a revolutionary hero...
October 26, 2008
I Drove To The Capital And Back Today...
" Finance is a gun. Politics, is knowing when to pull the trigger..."
October 24, 2008
The Decline...
"I pledge a greivance
to the flag of the United States of America
and to the blah blah
blah blah blah blah
blah blah blah
blah blah...
...with liberty for just us, not all."
Fundamentalism, And Matters Of Principle...
Among the key conclusions of PNAC's defense strategy document (Rebuilding America's Defenses) were the following:
- "Develop and deploy global missile defenses to defend the American homeland and American allies, and to provide a secure basis for U.S. power projection around the world."
- "Control the new 'international commons' of space and 'cyberspace,' and pave the way for the creation of a new military service--U.S. Space Forces--with the mission of space control."
- "Increase defense spending, adding $15 billion to $20 billion to total defense spending annually."
- "Exploit the 'revolution in military affairs' [transformation to high-tech, unmanned weaponry] to insure the long-term superiority of U.S. conventional forces."
- "Need to develop a new family of nuclear weapons designed to address new sets of military requirements" complaining that the U.S. has "virtually ceased development of safer and more effective nuclear weapons."
- "Facing up to the realities of multiple constabulary missions that will require a permanent allocation of U.S. forces."
- "America must defend its homeland" by "reconfiguring its nuclear force" and by missile defense systems that "counteract the effects of the proliferation of ballistic missiles and weapons of mass destruction."
- "Need for a larger U.S. security perimeter" and the U.S. "should seek to establish a network of 'deployment bases' or 'forward operating bases' to increase the reach of current and future forces," citing the need to move beyond Western Europe and Northeast Asia to increased permanent military presence in Southeast Asia and "other regions of East Asia." Necessary "to cope with the rise of China to great-power status."
- Redirecting the U.S. Air Force to move "toward a global first-strike force."
- End the Clinton administration's "devotion" to the Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty.
- "North Korea, Iran, Iraq, or similar states [should not be allowed] to undermine American leadership, intimidate American allies, or threaten the American homeland itself."
- "Main military missions" necessary to "preserve Pax Americana" and a "unipolar 21st century" are the following: "secure and expand zones of democratic peace, deter rise of new great-power competitor, defend key regions (Europe, East Asia, Middle East), and exploit transformation of war."
According to the PNAC report, "The American peace has proven itself peaceful, stable, and durable. Yet no moment in international politics can be frozen in time: even a global Pax Americana will not preserve itself." To preserve this "American peace" through the 21st century, the PNAC report concludes that the global order "must have a secure foundation on unquestioned U.S. military preeminence." The report struck a prescient note when it observed that "the process of transformation is likely to be a long one, absent some catastrophic and catalyzing event--like a new Pearl Harbor."
Many of PNAC's conclusions and recommendations are reflected in the White House's National Security Strategy document of September 2002, which reflects the "peace through strength" credo that shapes PNAC strategic thinking….
- "Develop and deploy global missile defenses to defend the American homeland and American allies, and to provide a secure basis for U.S. power projection around the world."
- "Control the new 'international commons' of space and 'cyberspace,' and pave the way for the creation of a new military service--U.S. Space Forces--with the mission of space control."
- "Increase defense spending, adding $15 billion to $20 billion to total defense spending annually."
- "Exploit the 'revolution in military affairs' [transformation to high-tech, unmanned weaponry] to insure the long-term superiority of U.S. conventional forces."
- "Need to develop a new family of nuclear weapons designed to address new sets of military requirements" complaining that the U.S. has "virtually ceased development of safer and more effective nuclear weapons."
- "Facing up to the realities of multiple constabulary missions that will require a permanent allocation of U.S. forces."
- "America must defend its homeland" by "reconfiguring its nuclear force" and by missile defense systems that "counteract the effects of the proliferation of ballistic missiles and weapons of mass destruction."
- "Need for a larger U.S. security perimeter" and the U.S. "should seek to establish a network of 'deployment bases' or 'forward operating bases' to increase the reach of current and future forces," citing the need to move beyond Western Europe and Northeast Asia to increased permanent military presence in Southeast Asia and "other regions of East Asia." Necessary "to cope with the rise of China to great-power status."
- Redirecting the U.S. Air Force to move "toward a global first-strike force."
- End the Clinton administration's "devotion" to the Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty.
- "North Korea, Iran, Iraq, or similar states [should not be allowed] to undermine American leadership, intimidate American allies, or threaten the American homeland itself."
- "Main military missions" necessary to "preserve Pax Americana" and a "unipolar 21st century" are the following: "secure and expand zones of democratic peace, deter rise of new great-power competitor, defend key regions (Europe, East Asia, Middle East), and exploit transformation of war."
According to the PNAC report, "The American peace has proven itself peaceful, stable, and durable. Yet no moment in international politics can be frozen in time: even a global Pax Americana will not preserve itself." To preserve this "American peace" through the 21st century, the PNAC report concludes that the global order "must have a secure foundation on unquestioned U.S. military preeminence." The report struck a prescient note when it observed that "the process of transformation is likely to be a long one, absent some catastrophic and catalyzing event--like a new Pearl Harbor."
Many of PNAC's conclusions and recommendations are reflected in the White House's National Security Strategy document of September 2002, which reflects the "peace through strength" credo that shapes PNAC strategic thinking….
October 19, 2008
Operation Castle:
The "Yankee" shot, 14 May 1954 (GMT), during the Castle series of nuclear weapons tests in the South Pacific. While its predicted yield was 9.5 megaton, the actual yield was 13.5 megatons, making it the second largest nuclear test in U.S. history. According to the caption on the back of the photo, "this photo was taken at a height of approximately 12,000 feet--50 miles from the detonation site. Two minutes after Zero Hour, the cloud rose to 40,000 feet--the height of 32 Empire State Buildings. Ten minutes late, as it neared its maximum the cloud stem had pushed upward about 25 miles, deep into the stratosphere. The mushroom portion went up to 10 miles, and spread for 100 miles."
Teapot:
Wasp: 18 February, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 1.2 kiloton
Moth: 22 February, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 2 kilotons
Tesla: 1 March, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 7 kilotons
Turk: 7 March, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 43 kilotons
Hornet: 12 March, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 4 kilotons
Bee 22: March, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 8 kilotons
Ess 23: March, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 1.2 kiloton
Apple-1: 29 March, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 14 kilotons
Wasp: Prime 29 March, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 3.2 kilotons
Ha: 6 April, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 3.2 kilotons
Post: 9 April, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 2 kilotons
Met: 15 April, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 22 kilotons
Apple-2: 5 May, 1955 Nevada Test Site, 29 kilotons
Zucchini: 15 May, 1955 Nevada Test Site 28 kilotons
October 18, 2008
Excerpt:
"...for every tear that is unanswered - we shall answer you.We came in fire and we were burned: we came in water and we were drowned: we the remnants walk in rivers of blood, the blood reaches our necks, our mouths, our eyes, and from the fire and water and blood, trembling arms are raised, voices cry out, and from the mouths and eyes and trembling arms and fingers, from the water and fire and blood, from there we are coming up, we are coming. Woe unto you!"
October 16, 2008
October 15, 2008
October 14, 2008
Keep The Destination. I Just Want The Journey...
It’s all about where you put the horizon Said the Great John Ford to the young man rising
You got to frame it just right and have some luck of course
And it helps to have a tall man sitting on the horse
Tell them just enough to still leave them some mystery
A grasp of the ironic nature of history
A man turns his back on the comforts of home
The Monument Valley to ride off alone
And when the dust all settles and the story is told
History is made by the side of the road
By the men and women that can persevere
And rage through the storm, no matter how severe
And whether it’s a horse or a car or a train
There’s gonna be some fine times and there’s gonna be some pain
In the end it’s a silhouette framed by the sun
And just The Monument Valley when the evening comes
It’s a strong wind blowing on the open range
It’s gonna be beautiful and it’s gonna be strange
It’s where to plant the camera and when to say action
When to print the legend and when to leave the facts in
And when to turn your back on the comforts of home
And wander round The Monument Valley alone....
Goes Without Saying...
Freedom of speech is the concept of being able to speak freely without censorship. It is often regarded as an integral concept in modern liberal democracies. The right to freedom of speech is guaranteed under international law through numerous human rights instruments, notably under Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, although implementation remains lacking in many countries. The synonymous term freedom of expression is sometimes preferred, since the right is not confined to verbal speech but is understood to protect any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used.
In practice, the right to freedom of speech is not absolute in any country, although the degree of freedom varies greatly. Industrialized countries also have varying approaches to balance freedom with order. For instance, the United States First Amendment theoretically grants absolute freedom, placing the burden upon the state to demonstrate when (if) a limitation of this freedom is necessary. In almost all liberal democracies, it is generally recognized that restrictions should be the exception and free expression the rule; nevertheless, compliance with this principle is often lacking....
In practice, the right to freedom of speech is not absolute in any country, although the degree of freedom varies greatly. Industrialized countries also have varying approaches to balance freedom with order. For instance, the United States First Amendment theoretically grants absolute freedom, placing the burden upon the state to demonstrate when (if) a limitation of this freedom is necessary. In almost all liberal democracies, it is generally recognized that restrictions should be the exception and free expression the rule; nevertheless, compliance with this principle is often lacking....
October 13, 2008
October 11, 2008
Big Swinging Dickheads....
The subprime mortgage crisis is an ongoing financial crisis characterized by contracted liquidity in global credit markets and banking systems. A downturn in the housing market of the United States, risky practices in lending and borrowing, and excessive individual and corporate debt levels have caused multiple adverse effects on the world economy. The crisis, which has roots in the closing years of the 20th century but has become more apparent throughout 2007 and 2008, has passed through various stages exposing pervasive weaknesses in the global financial system and regulatory framework.
The crisis can be attributed to a number of factors pervasive in both the housing and credit markets, which developed over an extended period of time. Some of these include: the inability of homeowners to make their mortgage payments, poor judgment by the borrower and/or the lender, speculation and overbuilding during the boom period, risky mortgage products, high personal and corporate debt levels, financial innovation that distributed and perhaps concealed default risks, central bank policies, and regulation (or lack thereof)…..
The crisis can be attributed to a number of factors pervasive in both the housing and credit markets, which developed over an extended period of time. Some of these include: the inability of homeowners to make their mortgage payments, poor judgment by the borrower and/or the lender, speculation and overbuilding during the boom period, risky mortgage products, high personal and corporate debt levels, financial innovation that distributed and perhaps concealed default risks, central bank policies, and regulation (or lack thereof)…..
Achievement...
The Apollo program was a human spaceflight program undertaken by NASA during the years 1961–1975 with the goal of conducting manned moon landing missions.
In total, six Apollo missions landed astronauts on the Moon, the last one in 1972. These six Apollo spaceflights are the only times humans have landed on another celestial body. The Apollo program, specifically the lunar landings, is often cited as the greatest achievement in human history.
Apollo was the third human spaceflight program undertaken by NASA, the space agency of the United States. It used Apollo spacecraft and Saturn launch vehicles, which were later used for the Skylab program and the joint American-Soviet Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. These later programs are thus often considered to be part of the overall Apollo program.
The goal of the program, as articulated by President Kennedy, was accomplished with only two major failures. The first failure resulted in the deaths of three astronauts, Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chaffee, in the Apollo 1 launch pad fire. The second was an in-space explosion on Apollo 13, which badly damaged the spacecraft on the moonward leg of its journey. The three astronauts aboard narrowly escaped with their lives, thanks to the efforts of flight controllers, project engineers, backup crew members and the skills of the astronauts themselves.
In total, six Apollo missions landed astronauts on the Moon, the last one in 1972. These six Apollo spaceflights are the only times humans have landed on another celestial body. The Apollo program, specifically the lunar landings, is often cited as the greatest achievement in human history.
Apollo was the third human spaceflight program undertaken by NASA, the space agency of the United States. It used Apollo spacecraft and Saturn launch vehicles, which were later used for the Skylab program and the joint American-Soviet Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. These later programs are thus often considered to be part of the overall Apollo program.
The goal of the program, as articulated by President Kennedy, was accomplished with only two major failures. The first failure resulted in the deaths of three astronauts, Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chaffee, in the Apollo 1 launch pad fire. The second was an in-space explosion on Apollo 13, which badly damaged the spacecraft on the moonward leg of its journey. The three astronauts aboard narrowly escaped with their lives, thanks to the efforts of flight controllers, project engineers, backup crew members and the skills of the astronauts themselves.
October 9, 2008
Let It Begin...
Dissent is a sentiment or philosophy of non-agreement or opposition to an idea (eg. a government's policies) or an entity (eg. an individual or political party which supports such policies). The term's antonyms include agreement, consensus (when all or nearly all parties agree on something) and consent (when one party agrees to a proposition made by another).
Dissent may be expressed in many ways. In some political systems, dissent may be formally expressed by way of opposition politics, while politically repressive regimes may prohibit any form of dissent, leading to suppression of dissent and the encouragement of social or political activism. Individuals who do not conform or support the policies of certain states may be described as "dissidents," or in extreme cases, "enemies of the state". Several thinkers have argued that a healthy society needs not only to protect, but also to encourage dissent….
Dissent may be expressed in many ways. In some political systems, dissent may be formally expressed by way of opposition politics, while politically repressive regimes may prohibit any form of dissent, leading to suppression of dissent and the encouragement of social or political activism. Individuals who do not conform or support the policies of certain states may be described as "dissidents," or in extreme cases, "enemies of the state". Several thinkers have argued that a healthy society needs not only to protect, but also to encourage dissent….
History Lesson: Sept. 15th 1963
The "16th Street Baptist Church Bombing" was a racially motivated terrorist attack on September 15, 1963 by members of a Ku Klux Klan group in Birmingham, Alabama in the United States. The bombing of the African-American church resulted in the deaths of four girls.
The attack was intended to instill fear among Americans who had been demonstrating for an end to segregation and to disrupt court-ordered integration of public schools. Instead, the bombing caused public outrage and helped build support for civil rights legislation by the Kennedy Administration.
The three-story Sixteenth Street Baptist Church was a rallying point for civil-rights activities through the spring of 1963. The demonstrations led to an agreement in May between the city's black leaders and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to integrate public facilities in the country. Integration was the holy grail to the Civil rights movement. Seeing blacks and whites in the same place was more than just a goal, it was a representation of equality.
In the early morning of Sunday, September 15, 1963, Bobby Frank Cherry, Thomas Blanton, Herman Cash, and Robert "Dynamite Bob" Chambliss, members of United Klans of America, a Ku Klux Klan group, planted 19 sticks of dynamite with a delayed-time release outside the basement of the church.
At about 10:22 a.m., when 26 children were walking into the basement assembly room for closing prayers of a sermon entitled "The Love That Forgives," the bomb exploded. According to an interview on NPR on September 15th 2008, Dennise McNair's father stated that the sermon never took place because of the bombing. Four girls: Addie Mae Collins (aged 14), Denise McNair (aged 11), Carole Robertson (aged 14), and Cynthia Wesley (aged 14), were killed in the blast, and 22 additional people were injured.
The explosion blew a hole in the church's rear wall, destroyed the back steps, and left intact only the frames of all but one stained-glass window. The lone window that survived the concussion was one in which Jesus Christ was depicted leading young children, and Christ's face was blown away. In addition, five cars behind the church were damaged, two of which were destroyed, while windows in the Laundromat across the street were blown out.
The attack was intended to instill fear among Americans who had been demonstrating for an end to segregation and to disrupt court-ordered integration of public schools. Instead, the bombing caused public outrage and helped build support for civil rights legislation by the Kennedy Administration.
The three-story Sixteenth Street Baptist Church was a rallying point for civil-rights activities through the spring of 1963. The demonstrations led to an agreement in May between the city's black leaders and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to integrate public facilities in the country. Integration was the holy grail to the Civil rights movement. Seeing blacks and whites in the same place was more than just a goal, it was a representation of equality.
In the early morning of Sunday, September 15, 1963, Bobby Frank Cherry, Thomas Blanton, Herman Cash, and Robert "Dynamite Bob" Chambliss, members of United Klans of America, a Ku Klux Klan group, planted 19 sticks of dynamite with a delayed-time release outside the basement of the church.
At about 10:22 a.m., when 26 children were walking into the basement assembly room for closing prayers of a sermon entitled "The Love That Forgives," the bomb exploded. According to an interview on NPR on September 15th 2008, Dennise McNair's father stated that the sermon never took place because of the bombing. Four girls: Addie Mae Collins (aged 14), Denise McNair (aged 11), Carole Robertson (aged 14), and Cynthia Wesley (aged 14), were killed in the blast, and 22 additional people were injured.
The explosion blew a hole in the church's rear wall, destroyed the back steps, and left intact only the frames of all but one stained-glass window. The lone window that survived the concussion was one in which Jesus Christ was depicted leading young children, and Christ's face was blown away. In addition, five cars behind the church were damaged, two of which were destroyed, while windows in the Laundromat across the street were blown out.
October 7, 2008
The Future...
Give me back my broken night my mirrored room, my secret life it's lonely here, there's no one left to torture Give me absolute control over every living soul And lie beside me, baby, that's an order! Give me crack and anal sex Take the only tree that's left and stuff it up the hole in your culture Give me back the Berlin wall give me Stalin and St Paul I've seen the future, brother:
it is murder. Things are going to slide, slide in all directions Won't be nothing
Nothing you can measure anymore The blizzard, the blizzard of the world has crossed the threshold and it has overturned the order of the soul When they said REPENT REPENT
I wonder what they meant When they said REPENT REPENT I wonder what they meant
When they said REPENT REPENT I wonder what they meant You don't know me from the wind you never will, you never did I'm the little jew who wrote the Bible I've seen the nations rise and fall I've heard their stories, heard them all but love's the only engine of survival Your servant here, he has been told to say it clear, to say it cold: It's over, it ain't going any further And now the wheels of heaven stop you feel the devil's riding crop Get ready for the future: it is murder
Things are going to slide ... There'll be the breaking of the ancient western code Your private life will suddenly explode There'll be phantoms There'll be fires on the road and the white man dancing You'll see a woman hanging upside down her features covered by her fallen gown
and all the lousy little poets coming round tryin' to sound like Charlie Manson and the white man dancin' Give me back the Berlin wall Give me Stalin and St Paul Give me Christ or give me roshima Destroy another fetus now We don't like children anyhow I've seen the future, baby: it is murder Things are going to slide ... When they said REPENT REPENT ...
October 4, 2008
October 3, 2008
October 2, 2008
October 1, 2008
10 Days That Shook The World...
The October Revolution, also known as the Soviet Revolution or Bolshevik Revolution, refers to a revolution—as part of the Russian Revolution—that began with an armed insurrection in Petrograd (also regarded as a coup d'état by the worker and soldier masses) traditionally dated to October 25, 1917 Julian calendar (November 7, 1917 Gregorian calendar). It was the second phase of the overall Russian Revolution of 1917, after the February Revolution of the same year.
The October Revolution overthrew the Russian Provisional Government and gave the power to the Soviets dominated by Bolsheviks. It was followed by the Russian Civil War (1917–1922) and the creation of the Soviet Union in 1922.
The revolution was led by the Bolsheviks. Bolshevik armed forces began the takeover of government buildings on October 24; however October 25 JC was the date when the Winter Palace (the seat of the Provisional government located in Petrograd, then capital of Russia), was captured…
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)