[Biofuel] Designer monsters
http://members.aol.com/bblum6/aer40.htm
Anti-Empire Report, December 17, 2006
The Anti-Empire Report
Some things you need to know before the world ends
December 17, 2006
by William Blum
Designer monsters
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is a man seemingly custom-made for the White
House in its endless quest for enemies with whom to scare Congress,
the American people, and the world, in order to justify the unseemly
behavior of the empire. The Iranian president has declared that he
wants to "wipe Israel off the map". He's said that "the Holocaust is
a myth". He recently held a conference in Iran for "Holocaust
deniers". And his government passed a new law requiring Jews to wear
a yellow insignia, à la the Nazis. On top of all that, he's aiming to
build nuclear bombs, one of which would surely be aimed at Israel.
What right-thinking person would not be scared by such a man?
However, like with all such designer monsters made bigger than life
during the Cold War and since by Washington, the truth about
Ahmadinejad is a bit more complicated. According to people who know
Farsi, the Iranian leader has never said anything about "wiping
Israel off the map". In his October 29, 2005 speech, when he
reportedly first made the remark, the word "map" does not even
appear. According to the translation of Juan Cole, American professor
of Modern Middle East and South Asian History, Ahmadinejad said that
"the regime occupying Jerusalem must vanish from the page of time."
His remark, said Cole, "does not imply military action or killing
anyone at all," which presumably is what would make the remark
threatening.[1] Readers are advised that the next time they come
across such an Ahmadinejad citation to note whether a complete
sentence is being quoted, and not just "wipe Israel off the map".
At the conference in Teheran ("Review of the Holocaust: Global
Vision"), the Iranian president said: "The Zionist regime will be
wiped out soon, the same way the Soviet Union was, and humanity will
achieve freedom."[2] Obviously, the man is not calling for any kind
of violent attack upon Israel, for the dissolution of the Soviet
Union did not occur through force or violence.
As for the Holocaust myth, I have yet to read or hear words from
Ahmadinejad's mouth saying simply and clearly and unequivocally that
he thinks that the Holocaust never happened. He has commented about
the peculiarity of a Holocaust which took place in Europe resulting
in a state for the Jews in the Middle East instead of in Europe. And
he argues that Israel and the United States have exploited the memory
of the Holocaust for their own imperialist purposes. He also wonders
about the accuracy of the number of Jews -- six million -- killed in
the Holocaust, as have many other people of all political stripes,
including Holocaust survivors like author Primo Levi. (The much
publicized World War One atrocities which turned out to be false made
the public very skeptical of the Holocaust claims for a long time.)
The conference gave a platform to various points of view, including
six members of Jews United Against Zionism, at least two of whom were
rabbis. One was Ahron Cohen, from London, who declared: "There is no
doubt what so ever, that during World War 2 there developed a
terrible and catastrophic policy and action of genocide perpetrated
by Nazi Germany against the Jewish People." He also said that "the
Zionists make a great issue of the Holocaust in order to further
their illegitimate philosophy and aims," indicating as well that the
figure of six million Jewish victims is debatable. The other rabbi
was Moshe David Weiss, who told the delegates: "We don't want to deny
the killing of Jews in World War II, but Zionists have given much
higher figures for how many people were killed. They have used the
Holocaust as a device to justify their oppression." His group rejects
the creation of Israel on the grounds that it violates Jewish
religious law in that a Jewish state can't exist until the return of
the Messiah .[3]
Clearly, the conference -- which the White House called "an affront
to the entire civilized world"[4] -- was not set up to be simply a
forum for people to deny that the Holocaust, to any significant
degree, literally never took place at all. I think its safe to say
that very few of the attendees held this position, which is so
untenable.
As to the yellow star story of this past May -- that was a complete
fabrication by a prominent Iranian-American neo-conservative, Amir
Taheri. There are as well other egregious examples of Ahmadinejad's
policies and words being twisted out of shape in the Western media,
making him look like a danger to all that's holy and decent.
Political science professor Virginia Tilley has written a good
account of this. "Why is Mr. Ahmadinejad being so systematically
misquoted and demonized?" Tilley asks. "Need we ask? If the world
believes that Iran is preparing to a
[Biofuel] concept power source, and possible coooling system for Earth
I keep remembering things like this... but there was a solar wind generator somewhere or another (maybe it was never built, i dont know, i read about it in a magazine in the dentists office) the design was a tower built on a massive greenhouse that was open at the bottom so solar energy could heat the air inside and drive a turbine in the upper tower. what would the implications be if this was built over a body of water and allowed to create a vapor plume into the atmosphere? would it increase cloud cover and slow insolation, or would it just increase the amount of heat trapped by the atmosphere? what about building it over a forest? the airflow over the trees would deposit CO2... there would have to be some kind of canal system for irrigation, but it could make a fantastic atrium/solar generator/CO2 scrubber. Jason ICQ#: 154998177 MSN: [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.431 / Virus Database: 268.15.24/592 - Release Date: 12/18/2006 1:45 PM ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
[Biofuel] venturi, and how to get one...maybe.
i was looking through the archives here just a bit ago, and i thought of something. my father in law's pressure washer has a line feed for soap bottles. if you can get a junked power washer you might just have a cheap venturi on your hands... Jason ICQ#: 154998177 MSN: [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.431 / Virus Database: 268.15.24/592 - Release Date: 12/18/2006 1:45 PM ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
Re: [Biofuel] The Origin of the 42-Year Stonewall of Vitamin C
my grandfather had polio when he was a kid. put him in leg braces for a while. after all was said and done, he still had a bum knee, but it didnt cause any significant lasting damage. Jason ICQ#: 154998177 MSN: [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Original Message - From: "Alan Petrillo" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: Sent: Tuesday, December 19, 2006 4:21 PM Subject: Re: [Biofuel] The Origin of the 42-Year Stonewall of Vitamin C > D. Mindock wrote: >> >> I think that this would make a pretty good docudrama. Peace, D. Mindock >> >> = >> >> >> The Origin of the 42-Year Stonewall of Vitamin C > > Of course it should be modulated by the fact that most cases of polio > were no worse than a bad case of influenza, and only about 15% of cases > developed full blown Polio-Myelitis. > > I'm not so sure about the "stonewall" either, given that Vitamin C is > probably the most supplemented vitamin in the world. > > > AP > > > > ___ > Biofuel mailing list > Biofuel@sustainablelists.org > http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org > > Biofuel at Journey to Forever: > http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html > > Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 > messages): > http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ > > > -- > No virus found in this incoming message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.5.431 / Virus Database: 268.15.24/592 - Release Date: > 12/18/2006 1:45 PM > > -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.431 / Virus Database: 268.15.24/592 - Release Date: 12/18/2006 1:45 PM ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
Re: [Biofuel] The Origin of the 42-Year Stonewall of Vitamin C
D. Mindock wrote: > > I think that this would make a pretty good docudrama. Peace, D. Mindock > > = > > > The Origin of the 42-Year Stonewall of Vitamin C Of course it should be modulated by the fact that most cases of polio were no worse than a bad case of influenza, and only about 15% of cases developed full blown Polio-Myelitis. I'm not so sure about the "stonewall" either, given that Vitamin C is probably the most supplemented vitamin in the world. AP ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
[Biofuel] The Negligents
http://www.freezerbox.com/archive/article.php?id=475 Freezerbox Magazine - The Negligents BY BEN ZAITCHIK 12.07.2006 | SCIENCE In November, the United States Supreme Court heard arguments in their first case concerning global warming, Massachusetts vs. EPA. Not surprising anyone, Justice Scalia's attitude toward the very subject of climate change proved to be one of smarmy disregard. It was more surprising, however, when Justice Kennedy admitted that he too was confused about the issue. When told that the court needn't address scientific questions of climate change, he asked: "Don't we have to do that in order to decide the standing argument, because there's no injury if there's not global warming?" How did it come to pass that a man of Kennedy's influence and erudition could think there was still scientific uncertainty surrounding the fact of anthropogenic warming? The answer to that question begins with the American media. More specifically, it begins in our journalism schools. Somewhere in J-school they teach you how to write about science. The template looks something like this: * "Researchers at X University have found that Y leads to Z." * "Professor K, chair of the department, says that 'this discovery brings together P and Q showing us that S and T.'" * "But not all scientists are convinced. Dr. L, of the Institute of Concerned Experts, claims that Y and Z are unrelated. * "All sides agree that there is a need for more research." Generally speaking, there's nothing much wrong with this formulation. Science is a discipline defined by discovery and dissent, and it is useful to inform the popular audience that both exist. Besides, in most cases, it really doesn't matter who's right at a given moment. Scientific progress is incremental, and disagreements over single studies are resolved or ignored as research proceeds. Passions may flare at esoteric scientific meetings, but it is adequate for the popular press to sketch the ideas, frame the debate, and offer teasers on emerging knowledge. But the formula is not adequate in all applications. If the findings of Professor K have urgent implications for society, then it is important for policy makers and the public to understand the full weight of Dr. L's criticism. The greater the potential urgency of the topic, the more likely it is that Professor K or Dr. L is guided by non-scientific interests. In these situations the template for writing about science can be manipulated to give the illusion of scientific debate where no controversy exists. It's a simple manipulation, and the most valued qualities of scientific thought -- vigilant skepticism and honest uncertainty estimates -- make it easy for critics to obscure a socially important conclusion. The rigorous scientist can say very few things with certainty, while the skilled contrarian knows how to exploit this to maximize confusion. Climate change science isn't the only victim of an organized contrarian attack. Another firmly established scientific idea, Darwinian evolution, has suffered the same manipulation for years. In both cases the anti-scientific group has cloaked itself in the robes of "skepticism" while stonewalling the advance of scientific understanding into the classroom and the Congress. The claim to skepticism is a powerful rhetorical stance -- skepticism (Greek: skeptomai, to look about, to consider), after all, is an admirable quality. The Creationist claim is generally recognized to be weak; they are more strongly associated with Fundamentalism than they are with skepticism. But climate change "skeptics" have managed to hold the term, when their denial of change would more accurately be described as negligence (Latin: ne-, legenda, not reading). Where a skeptical argument would be grounded in creative research, climate negligence is all about willful ignorance. Their partially scientific rhetoric is designed to sow just enough doubt to slow public demand for action to mitigate climate change. As long as they succeed at this, popular concern is unlikely to lead to meaningful changes in policy. In the fog of scientific jargon it can be difficult to spot this negligent rhetoric for what it is. Take a step back, though, and climate Negligism looks a lot like Creationism. They both do textbook anti-science, and we should be able to dismiss the Negligent's claim to a "scientific debate" as easily as we dismiss biblical stories from biology class. * * * Evolution is a messy business. Mutations, pandemics, extinctions, refugee populations, developmental dead-ends, nature red in tooth and claw. Given the enormous diversity of evolutionary processes and outcomes, the difficulty of drawing evidence from a sparse fossil record, and the surprises that accompany each new discovery, the honest student of evolution finds herself bloodied every now and again. The science of evolution is not unique in this regard -- all empir
Re: [Biofuel] Herbicide-resistant weed worries farmers
Hello Peter Aarghh!!! The RoundUp won't work! It's the end of CAWKI! LOL! So we just can't farm without Monsanto, right. How is your patch of forest getting along, Peter? Best Keith >Hi All ; > > >From Yahoo today : > >http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061218/ap_on_sc/monster_weed > >By ELLIOTT MINOR, Associated Press Writer >Mon Dec 18, 4:20 PM ET > >TIFTON, Ga. - The cotton industry is concerned about >the discovery of a herbicide-resistant weed that >spreads easily, can grow an inch a day even during >droughts and could force farmers to return to older >growing methods that were harsher on the environment. > >ADVERTISEMENT > >"It is potentially the worse threat since the boll >weevil," said Alan York, weed scientist at North >Carolina State University in Raleigh, referring to the >voracious beetle that devastated Southern cotton crops >in the early 1900s and forced farmers to switch to >alternatives such as peanuts. > >The boll weevil was eradicated in some states in the >late 1970s and early 1980s, paving the way for the >return of cotton as one of the nation's major crops, >worth $4.7 billion. It is grown in 16 states from >coast to coast. > >The weed that is causing concern is Palmer amaranth, a >type of pig weed that grows 6 to 10 feet tall. >Amaranth that resists the most common herbicide used >in cotton, glyphostate, has been confirmed in 10 of >North Carolina's 100 counties, four of Georgia's 159 >counties and is suspected in Tennessee, South Carolina >and Arkansas, scientists say. > >If someone were trying to design a particularly nasty >weed, Palmer amaranth could be the model, York said. > >"It's an extremely competitive weed," he said. "It's >extremely prolific. It's an efficient ... bad weed." > >In Georgia, where the weed has been confirmed in 48 >fields, amaranth took over some fields and the cotton >had to be cut down, rather than harvested, said >University of Georgia weed scientist Stanley >Culpepper. The weed can damage cotton pickers, the >huge machines that pluck the world's leading natural >fiber from the cotton bolls. > >Glyphostate is sold under several brand names, but the >leading product is Roundup, made by Monsanto. > >The company revolutionized cotton growing in the 1990s >when it introduced BT cotton cotton that was >genetically engineered with its own built-in pest >defenses. Monsanto also introduced Roundup Ready >cotton plants that wouldn't perish with the weeds >when a field was sprayed with a glyphostate herbicide. > >Those two developments enabled cotton growers to >drastically reduce the amount of chemicals used in >their fields and to switch to conservation tillage, >which reduces soil erosion and helps to retain >moisture in the soil. The improved efficiency also >lowered costs for such things as labor, equipment and >fuel. > >"That technology I think is the most valuable >agronomic tool there is and sustaining it is essential >to the viability of the family farm," Culpepper said. > >He said Roundup has been "so good, so economical and >such a benign herbicide, that we became dependent on >it." > >It had everything everyone would need," he said. "But >when you rely too heavily on one technology, >resistance will eventually develop." > >Before Roundup Ready cotton, farmers often had to plow >the field to bury weeds and their seeds and then >protect the crops from pests with heavy chemical >applications. Now many use conservation tillage, which >barely disturbs the soil. > >"If we lost conservation tillage in the Southeast, the >financial and environmental consequences would be >nothing short of catastrophic," said Eddie Green, who >grew 1,750 acres of cotton on a family farm near >Unadilla and suspects he may have some of the >resistant Palmer amaranth. > >He farms in Dooly County, where the resistant weed has >been confirmed. It has also been confirmed in nearby >Macon, Taylor and Lee counties. > >Monsanto, which posted a letter in April alerting >growers to the problem, has worked with the >Memphis-based National Cotton Council to develop an >online course on weed control and is assisting >Culpepper, York and others with the resistance >problem. > >"This is something we do look at very seriously," said >Monsanto representative Michelle Starke. "We want >growers to be successful with our products." > >Monsanto has suggested using Roundup in combination >with other herbicides known to kill the resistant >weed. Culpepper and others also recommend alternative >herbicides. > >"We can for sure say it's going to cost more money," >said York. "You're going to have more herbicides to >try to beat it back. Is it going to put us out of the >cotton business? I hope not, but it's going to make it >more challenging." > >Andy Jordan, the Cotton Council's vice president for >technical services, predicted the threat from >glyphostate-resistant amaranth will spur farmers to >re-examine their weed-management practices. > >"The glyphostate-resistant technology in the cotton >pla
[Biofuel] Herbicide-resistant weed worries farmers
Hi All ; >From Yahoo today : http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061218/ap_on_sc/monster_weed By ELLIOTT MINOR, Associated Press Writer Mon Dec 18, 4:20 PM ET TIFTON, Ga. - The cotton industry is concerned about the discovery of a herbicide-resistant weed that spreads easily, can grow an inch a day even during droughts and could force farmers to return to older growing methods that were harsher on the environment. ADVERTISEMENT "It is potentially the worse threat since the boll weevil," said Alan York, weed scientist at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, referring to the voracious beetle that devastated Southern cotton crops in the early 1900s and forced farmers to switch to alternatives such as peanuts. The boll weevil was eradicated in some states in the late 1970s and early 1980s, paving the way for the return of cotton as one of the nation's major crops, worth $4.7 billion. It is grown in 16 states from coast to coast. The weed that is causing concern is Palmer amaranth, a type of pig weed that grows 6 to 10 feet tall. Amaranth that resists the most common herbicide used in cotton, glyphostate, has been confirmed in 10 of North Carolina's 100 counties, four of Georgia's 159 counties and is suspected in Tennessee, South Carolina and Arkansas, scientists say. If someone were trying to design a particularly nasty weed, Palmer amaranth could be the model, York said. "It's an extremely competitive weed," he said. "It's extremely prolific. It's an efficient ... bad weed." In Georgia, where the weed has been confirmed in 48 fields, amaranth took over some fields and the cotton had to be cut down, rather than harvested, said University of Georgia weed scientist Stanley Culpepper. The weed can damage cotton pickers, the huge machines that pluck the world's leading natural fiber from the cotton bolls. Glyphostate is sold under several brand names, but the leading product is Roundup, made by Monsanto. The company revolutionized cotton growing in the 1990s when it introduced BT cotton cotton that was genetically engineered with its own built-in pest defenses. Monsanto also introduced Roundup Ready cotton plants that wouldn't perish with the weeds when a field was sprayed with a glyphostate herbicide. Those two developments enabled cotton growers to drastically reduce the amount of chemicals used in their fields and to switch to conservation tillage, which reduces soil erosion and helps to retain moisture in the soil. The improved efficiency also lowered costs for such things as labor, equipment and fuel. "That technology I think is the most valuable agronomic tool there is and sustaining it is essential to the viability of the family farm," Culpepper said. He said Roundup has been "so good, so economical and such a benign herbicide, that we became dependent on it." It had everything everyone would need," he said. "But when you rely too heavily on one technology, resistance will eventually develop." Before Roundup Ready cotton, farmers often had to plow the field to bury weeds and their seeds and then protect the crops from pests with heavy chemical applications. Now many use conservation tillage, which barely disturbs the soil. "If we lost conservation tillage in the Southeast, the financial and environmental consequences would be nothing short of catastrophic," said Eddie Green, who grew 1,750 acres of cotton on a family farm near Unadilla and suspects he may have some of the resistant Palmer amaranth. He farms in Dooly County, where the resistant weed has been confirmed. It has also been confirmed in nearby Macon, Taylor and Lee counties. Monsanto, which posted a letter in April alerting growers to the problem, has worked with the Memphis-based National Cotton Council to develop an online course on weed control and is assisting Culpepper, York and others with the resistance problem. "This is something we do look at very seriously," said Monsanto representative Michelle Starke. "We want growers to be successful with our products." Monsanto has suggested using Roundup in combination with other herbicides known to kill the resistant weed. Culpepper and others also recommend alternative herbicides. "We can for sure say it's going to cost more money," said York. "You're going to have more herbicides to try to beat it back. Is it going to put us out of the cotton business? I hope not, but it's going to make it more challenging." Andy Jordan, the Cotton Council's vice president for technical services, predicted the threat from glyphostate-resistant amaranth will spur farmers to re-examine their weed-management practices. "The glyphostate-resistant technology in the cotton plant has been a real boon to weed control and efficient cotton production," he said. "If we don't respond ... it could be very serious." BR Peter G. Thailand __ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo
