MAY LOVE PREVAIL ON EARTH
July 23, 2004
The Green Holocaust Files #16: Hoping For Better Policies While Environmental Destruction Worsens
Hello everyone
At first I was going to include only environmental related news but then I realized I had time-sensitive material that I needed to send you immediately even if it does not pertain to the environment - see the first 4 items below.
This will obviously be my last compilation for this week.
And I guess its title is pretty self-explanatory...
Jean Hudon
Earth Rainbow Network Coordinator
Free subscription to such compilations by sending a blank email to earthrainbownetwork-subscribe@lists.riseup.net
This compilation is archived at http://www.earthrainbownetwork.com/Archives2004/GreenHolocaust16.htm
"William (Bill) Blum recently asked me; [He is the author of Killing Hope and Rogue State] Tell me, if love is the answer, what is the question? I responded: How do we save our species from going extinct? Love Is The Answer!
Mark R. Elsis mark@lovearth.net>
http://MarkElsis.com
"To cherish what remains of the Earth and to foster its renewal is our only legitimate hope of survival."
- Wendell Berry
"Computer models suggest there will be no rainforests left in 50 years."
- Taken from "How a century of destruction has laid bare the world's rainforests" below
REMINDER
A Day Out of Time. Sunday, July 25, 2004, the Day Out of Time on the 13 Moon/28 day calendar, was prophesied as the beginning of the shift toward 2012. This date, and the events occurring on it world wide, are more important than the Harmonic Convergence because it initiates the final approach to 2012. This day is called the "Day Out of Time," because on the 13 Moon/28 day calendar, it is the 365th day of the year - a day for forgiveness, freedom and a celebration of natural time. WE ARE PREPARING THE WORLD OF TOMORROW FOR THE CHILDREN OF TODAY. More details at http://www.lightwatcher.com/sustainus/html_pages/visions_humanity and at the bottom of http://www.aei.ca/~cep/ComplementFocus114.htm
CONTENTS
1. Urgent Action
2. Fahrenheit 911: The Other Half of the Story
3. Attention activists! Kerry is not regime change!
4. Reorganize the World!
5. The Price of Quenching Our Thirst
6. Research Library: Nature
7. Melting ice: the threat to London's future
8. Solar Storms Can Destroy Planets
9. Bush Rejection of Roadless Forest Policy a Bonanza for Timber Industry
10. How a century of destruction has laid bare the world's rainforests
11. Erring on the side of caution
See also:
Republicans Blast President Bush on Environment (20 July 2004)
http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/07202004/news/27695.htm
Concord, New Hampshire - One of the Environmental Protection Agencys earliest leaders, flanked by Republican state politicians, blasted the presidents record on the environment Monday during a news conference organized by an anti-Bush environmental group. Russell Train, a Republican, was the EPAs second chief under presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. But he said Bushs record is so dismal hes casting his presidential vote for Democrat John Kerry in November. "Its almost as if the motto of the administration in power today in Washington is not environmental protection, but polluter protection," he said. "I find this deeply disturbing. CLIP
Yeah, That's the Ticket - How does John Edwards stack up on the environment?
http://www.gristmagazine.com/muck/muck071604.asp
When John Edwards was tapped to be John Kerry's veep last week, everyone interested in ousting Bush erupted into convulsions of praise -- and the enviros were no exception."An excellent choice that sends a clear message about the need for change and renewed optimism in our nation's leadership for conservation, public health, and other issues important to the American people," said the League of Conservation Voters. "Yet another strong environmental leader [on] the Democratic presidential ticket," said Environment2004. "Sen. Edwards consistently stands up to preserve and strengthen the laws that keep Americans' air, water, and public land clean and safe," said Debbie Sease, the Sierra Club's legislative director. CLIP
China disaster toll at 659; typhoons loom (July 23, 2004)
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/26188/story.htm
BEIJING - Three typhoons are bearing down on China with storms that could kill still more people after 659 died this year in natural disasters such as floods, drought, wind, hail, earthquakes and mudslides. Premier Wen Jiabao urged local governments to take measures to ensure the fewest possible lives are lost. Natural disasters have killed 659 people this year and caused losses of about 39.26 billion yuan ($4.75 billion), the Xinhua news agency quoted the Ministry of Civil Affairs as saying. Floods accounted for more than half the deaths. Three typhoons are forecast to hit China next month, bringing devastating floods, the China Daily said. "More disastrous flooding or waterlogging is likely to occur," the newspaper quoted Zhang Guocai, an official of the China Meteorological Administration, as saying. Floods, drought, wind, hail, earthquakes, heavy snow, freezing, landslides and mud-rock flows have damaged about 18 million hectares (44 million acres) of crops, the ministry said. About 1.6 million hectares (3.9 million acres) of arable land yielded no harvest. An estimated 388,000 houses collapsed and 2.4 million were destroyed, forcing the relocation of nearly 1.3 million people. CLIP
Death toll in raging Indian floods rises to 293 as another 16 people die (July 23)
http://www.terradaily.com/2004/040723112824.hyaejz53.html
(...) The worsening floods have already displaced some 11.5 million people in the two states since the annual monsoon rains began mid-June. (...) The Assam government has described the floods as the worst in 25 years CLIP
Military, industry sonar harms whales - IWC report (July 23, 2004 - GOOD NEWS!))
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/26196/story.htm
ROME - Sonar used by the military to spot enemy submarines is to blame for increasing cases of whales being stranded on beaches and dying, the scientific committee of the International Whaling Commission said in a report this week. The IWC report adds weight to theories that sonar harms the giant sea mammals, a hypothesis that has been disputed by the military and by the oil and gas industry which uses the technology to search for energy reserves. "There is now compelling evidence implicating military sonar as a direct impact on beaked whales in particular," said the report, released at the IWC's four-day annual convention which was winding up yesterday. The report cited examples of bizarre and self-destructive whale behaviour that seemed to have been caused by military sonar, such as a mass stampede of 200 melon-headed whales into shallow water in Hawaii last month during a U.S.-Japanese naval training exercise. One animal died. Scientists are unsure exactly why sonar causes whales to get stranded. One theory is that the noise disrupts their communication and navigation systems. Another is that the signals confuse whales in deep water, forcing them to surface quickly, suffering rapid decompression and a form of the bends. The report may strengthen the hand of U.S. conservation groups which are threatening to sue the navy over its use of mid-frequency sonar. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has already secured an injunction limiting the U.S. Navy's use of new low-frequency sonar that can travel vast distances through the oceans, and is now targeting the more common mid-frequency sonar. "This is the first time such a broad, diverse group (of scientists) has made this finding," said NDRC lawyer Joel Reynolds. "Navies of the world do back-flips to deny any connection." CLIP
Whalers trying to silence IFAW
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/281495/
(...) If we don't act right now to make sure the International Whaling Commission (IWC) continues to protect whales, oceans will turn red with the blood of these gentle giants.As I write to you from the front lines of the IWC meeting in Italy, the IFAW team is fighting a fierce battle for the future of whales.By offering multi-million dollar fisheries grants to economically weak countries in exchange for pro-whaling votes, Japan is attempting to undo more than thirty years of whale conservation. But thanks to you, we've blown the Japanese vote-buying scandal wide open. (...) If you think we already saved the whale ... think again. Over 25,000 whales have been killed since the 1986 worldwide moratorium (ban) on whaling. Please help us stop the unnecessary killing of endangered whale. Take action through http://www.ifaw.org/ifaw/general/default.aspx?oid=329
Gray whale faces extinction over oil development, warns IWC (July 20)
http://www.terradaily.com/2004/040720121042.pv8hw9qr.html
The International Whaling Commissionsounded a warning Tuesday over the effects of a vast oil and gas project on the "critically endangered" western gray whale in the Russian Far East, only 100 of which are known to exist. The 57-member body adopted a resolution which "strongly recommends" that subsidiaries of oil giants Exxon, Royal Dutch Shell and BP halt seismic exploration activity to avoid disturbing the whales. Frenetic exploration activity is taking place in the gray whales' feeding ground in the Sea of Okhotsk, north of Russia's Sakhalin Island. CLIP
Undersea noise 'does harm whales'
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/science/nature/3916249.stm
Evidence that noise from humans sources harm whales and other marine mammals is overwhelming, scientists say. The International Whaling Commission, holding its annual meeting in Italy, says military sonar and oil and gas exploration are particular threats. The numbers of beached whales found may seriously underestimate the numbers actually killed by sound. CLIP
Take Action to Support the Law of the Sea Treaty
http://www.care2.com/go/z/15532
Top enviro groups, oil and mining companies, the Pentagon, the U.S. State Department, and a number of prominent Republicans all want the U.S. Senate to ratify the Law of the Sea treaty. Already ratified by 145 other nations, this wide-ranging agreement would provide critical tools for protecting ocean ecosystems, not to mention improving national security and boosting business opportunities. But Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) has refused to bring it to the Senate floor for a vote, bowing to the wishes of a small group of right-wingers. Tell him it's time to get this treaty implemented. Take action on behalf of the oceans!
Languid Tigris Waters Mask Iraq's Pollution Menace (July 11, 2004)
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=scienceNews&storyID=5637059
WEEKLY GRIST SUMMARY -- Iraq's Once-Mighty Tigris River in Sad Shape -- Iraq's Tigris River is horrendously polluted and may be poisoning Iraqis, but no one is sure just how bad the problem is -- the near-total lack of security is preventing environmental researchers from properly testing the water. The decline of the once-mighty Tigris, which flows through the so-called "cradle of civilization," dates to the Iran-Iraq war in the early 1980s, which caused a massive diversion of state resources. It continued through the U.N. sanctions of the 1990s and was further exacerbated by the U.S. invasion and the subsequent looting, which left sewage facilities decimated. Now raw sewage, power-plant runoff, and medical waste flow uninhibited into the river, still used by many Iraqis for religious rituals, bathing, and drinking water. Researchers from the Iraqi Ministry of the Environment are attempting to gather samples to assess the river water, but are so far inhibited by Iraqi police, U.S. soldiers, and insurgents.
Carbon Dioxide Emissions May Harm Ocean Life (July 16, 2004)
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/26065/story.htm
WASHINGTON - The world's oceans have absorbed nearly half of the carbon dioxide emitted by humans during the last 200 years, creating potential long-term challenges for corals and free-swimming algae, according to two studies released yesterday. An international team of scientists found that oceans have taken in about 118 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide from human activities between 1800 and 1994, accounting for nearly a third of their long-term carrying capacity.These findings could pose a long-term risk for marine organisms, such as corals, which have greater difficulty in forming their outer shells as carbon dioxide levels increase, researchers found. CLIP
METHYL ADDICTS -- U.S. Seeks Another Exemption from Methyl-Bromide Ban
Over the past year, the U.S. requested and received a one-year exemption from the Montreal Protocol's provision banning the use of ozone-depleting pesticide methyl bromide, sparking international controversy. International controversy, however, is like crack to the current administration, so here we go again: At international talks this week, the State Department will request another year's exemption, extending through 2006. U.S. agricultural-industry reps claim that there is currently no economically viable alternative to the chemical, a fumigant injected into soil to kill pesky critters and weeds. Enviros, farm-worker advocates, and even some pesticide distributors disagree, as does the Natural Resources Defense Council, which claims that, according to the U.S. EPA's own figures, the requested exemption is actually larger than total current methyl bromide use.
The Washington Post, Juliet Eilperin, 13 Jul 2004
http://www.gristmagazine.com/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=2683
Bush Denies Funds for U.N. Population Programs (July 17)
http://www.truthout.org/docs_04/071904G.shtml
Washington - The Bush administration will withhold funds from the United Nations population agency for the third year in a row because the agency cooperates with activities in China that promote abortion, the State Department announced Friday. The decision to withhold $34 million from the United Nations Population Fund has dismayed supporters of the agency, who say it does not condone abortion and advocates voluntary family planning. CLIP
NASA denies funding for key satellite (July 19, 2004)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5460275/
Decision on orbiter frustrates scientists - NASA is allowing a highly successful satellite to fall out of Earth's orbit by refusing to fund it for as little as $28 million, dismaying the scientists and forecasters who use its unique abilities to study climate change and track hurricanes. NASA officials said engineers did not order a planned firing of its rockets in early July to hold the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission satellite in orbit 241 miles above Earth. Without periodic assists from its thrusters, atmospheric drag will send the satellite's remains to a watery grave in six to nine months.Engineers said the satellite, a joint venture with the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency, is working perfectly and could still be saved, but NASA officials said neither the Japanese nor other U.S. agencies were willing to contribute to the estimated $28 million to $36 million needed to keep the mission operating for as long as two more years. CLIP
Fires pollute Amazon rainforest (July 21, 2004)
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=3579481&thesection=news&thesubsection=world
Burning of the Amazon rainforest has made Brazil one of the world's top 10 polluters, raising pressure on the Government to curb destruction of the jungles.The Government should publish within months a long-delayed inventory of Brazil's greenhouse gas emissions, which is expected to challenge the view that the Amazon serves as the "lungs of the world" by converting carbon dioxide into oxygen.Instead, it will show that a majority of Brazil's greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to global warming, come from smoke linked to deforestation, and not fossil fuels.
Are you and your children guinea pigs?
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/282050/
(...) My family's story is long -- two grandsons with rare immune deficiencies who suffered for years with asthma, sinus and ear infections -- my husband has Alzheimers -- I have Type II diabetes --cumulatively, our family's list of health problems is 3 pages long!!!We live only 50 ft. from two high voltage powerlines -- one 69kv transmission line and one 230kv transmission line plus local powerline of about 8kv. We provided daycare for our sick grandsons. Over many years, I have measured EMF's (electromagnetic fields) from about 2.0 milligauss to as high as 8.0 milligauss in our front entry and masterbedroom.When our grandsons were diagnosed with "hypogammaglobulinemia" -- a description which means "low immune" -- there is no name for their 'disease' AND we were asked if children had died in our family PLUS being informed they may develop Leukemia, Lymphoma, stomach or colon cancers, we stopped caring for them in our home. CLIP
Lots of Environmental News
http://www.truthout.org/environment.shtml
Kerry and Bush are distant cousins!
http://www.ancestry.netscape.com/landing/strange/bush4/tree.htm
Freak waves spotted from space (July 22)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/science/nature/3917539.stm
(...) Over the last two decades more than 200 super-carriers - cargo ships over 200m long - have been lost at sea. Eyewitness reports suggest many were sunk by high and violent walls of water that rose up out of calm seas. CLIP
Cool Fuel Cells Could Revolutionize Earth's Energy Resources (Jul 23, 2004)
http://www.spacedaily.com/news/energy-tech-04zz.html
Houston TX (SPX) As temperatures soar this summer, so do electric bills. Researchers at the University of Houston are striving toward decreasing those costs with the next revolution in power generation. Imagine a power source so small, yet so efficient, that it could make cumbersome power plants virtually obsolete while lowering your electric bill. A breakthrough in thin film solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) is currently being refined in labs at the University of Houston, making that dream a reality. (...) Compared to the macroscopic size of traditional fuel cells that can take up an entire room, thin film SOFCs are one micron thick the equivalent of about one-hundredth of a human hair. Putting this into perspective, the size equivalent of four sugar cubes would produce 80 watts more than enough to operate a laptop computer, eliminating clunky batteries and giving you hours more juice in your laptop. By the same token, approximately two cans' worth of soda would produce more than five kilowatts, enough to power a typical household.Keeping in mind that one thin film SOFC is just a fraction of the size of a human hair with an output of 0.8 to 0.9 Volts, a stack of 100 to 120 of these fuel cells would generate about 100 volts. When connected to a homeowner's natural gas line, the stack would provide the needed electrical energy to run the household at an efficiency of approximately 65 percent.This would be a twofold increase over power plants today, as they operate at 30 to 35 percent efficiency. Stand-alone household fuel cell units could form the basis for a new 'distributed power' system. In this concept, energy not used by the household would be fed back into a main grid, resulting in a credit to the user's account, while overages would similarly receive extra energy from that grid and be charged accordingly. CLIP
Omega-News Collection 21. July 2004
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/281273/
Omega-News Collection 23. July 2004
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/283013/
And from "Mark R. Elsis" mark@lovearth.net>...
http://www.CoralReefs.net
Bleak Outlook For Coral Reefs, Warns Researcher
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200407/s1152044.htmScientists
Call For Better Protection For Coral Reefs
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-06/uonu-scf062804.php
One Man - Against The Odds - Making A Difference: Paul Ellis Swims To Raise Public Awareness Of The Perils Facing The Coral Reefs
http://www.emediawire.com/releases/2004/6/emw135698.htm
The Destruction Of Coral Reefs
http://www.uwsp.edu/geo/courses/geog100/CoralReef.htm
Human-Induced Destruction Of Coral Reefs
http://www.co2science.org/edit/v4_edit/v4n38edit.htm
1.
TIMELY ACTION IN NEED OF LOTS OF SUPPORT
From: "David Harris" davidharris@votewin.info>
Subject: Urgent Action
Date: 21 Jul 2004
Jean, You have greater influence than you can know. Thanks for not giving up.
Your move to have a compilation about positive action to change direction and birth our Wisdom World was the final push that put me to work full time to honor Thomas Jefferson's wisdom that "Just to keep the government honest we need a revolution at least once every twenty years." It has taken me all this time since your push to create something I believe is worth reporting.
I will be giving a workshop in the Boston Social
Forum On the strategy for creating a Revolution/Evolution at the Democratic Convention We can create a patriotic Boston tea party!
Our Organizing workshop in the Boston Social Forum:
Title: Pledging Integrity - Creating a Revolution/Evolution for the Democratic Convention
Date: Sunday - July 25 - 2:30-4:00 p.m.
Location: McCormack hall building, room 212 University of Massachusetts
This may be our last chance for action to restore our Constitution, save our nation from big-money domination, and to take control from government that rejects its commitment to law and its accountability to our citizens.
When you read the proposed Proclamation and Pledge between Delegates and the Presidential Candidates evolved by delegates to our convention, through Vote Win, you will see the potential---through Candidate modification of it---for creating positive history in the Democratic National Convention. http://www.votewin.info/ProclamationFinal1.pdf
We will have copies at the workshop or you can copy this and give it to Delegates at their hotels to give to Kerry along with their own suggestions of how we can honor Thomas Jefferson's wisdom.
Meet us in Boston---evolve the Convention---and make history!!
David J. Harris, Founder,
http://www.votewin.info/
Printable Proclamation and Integrity Pledge
http://www.votewin.info/ProclamationFinal1.pdf
2.
THE FOLLOWING IS QUITE RELEVANT WITH REGARD TO SAVING THE US FROM BIG-MONEY DOMINATION, WHICH IS WHY IT IS INCLUDED RIGHT AWAY RATHER THAN NEXT WEEK AS I ORIGINALLY PLANNED
Subject: Fahrenheit 911: The Other Half of the Story
From: Terri Zink terri@careercrafting.com>
Date: 21 Jul 2004
Hi Jean,
Ed Griffin wrote the most important book of our time "The Creature From Jekyll Island" which tells how the Federal Reserve (a private, foreign corporation--not part of the government) gained complete power over our money system and thereby complete power over our country in 1913. Since that time, the Federal Reserve has had 90 years to consolidate that power and move "The People" into economic slavery.
Until we remove this controlling force in our country, elections, demonstrations, finding out the truth, telling the truth, etc. will have little or no real effect. The Democrats and the Republicans are both controlled by the Federal Reserve and the world banks behind them--IMF, UN, etc. To learn more, check out the video called "The Money Masters." It can be obtained at: http://www.themoneymasters.com
Please let your readers know.
Thanks,
Terri
terri@careercrafting.com
---
From: http://www.freedomforceinternational.org/freedomcontent.cfm?fuseaction=fahrenheit&refpage=issues
Fahrenheit 911; The Other Half of the Story
July 17, 2004
by G. Edward Griffin griffin@realityzone.com>
Last month, just four months before the 2004 presidential elections in the U.S., film producer, Michael Moore, released a feature-length documentary film entitled Fahrenheit 911. It was a powerful condemnation of the George W. Bush Administration with particular focus on the U.S. war in Iraq. Moore compiled an amazing collection of video clips showing Bush and key members of his Administration in off-guarded moments and in situations where a lack of sincerity was glaringly evident. The story that emerges shows the Bush family closely allied with Saudi princes and the bin Ladin Family in business ventures that profit from war production and from the vast oil reserves in the Middle East. It hammers hard on the human suffering caused by a war, not to destroy a terrorist stronghold, but to gain access to oil resources and provide lucrative government contracts. Moores creative talent was applied with precision and resulted in what may become a new genre of political filmmaking. The effect was devastating to Bush and his supporters who were left with little defense except to claim that the production was biased and that certain statements were not correct.
This is my analysis of Fahrenheit 911.
1. The program is biased, and certain statements are not entirely correct, but every important fact it portrays is true.
2. In addition to profits from oil resources and government war contracts, there is a second motive that also drives U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East and elsewhere. It is the creation of a New World Order based on the model of collectivism, and it is supported with equal vigor by leaders of both major political parties. Mr. Bush and his team are deeply committed to that goal. [For an in-depth examination of this agenda, see The Future Is Calling in the Issues section of the Freedom Force web site, http://www.freedom-force.org.] Fahrenheit 911 gives no attention to that agenda and even goes so far as to claim that it plays no role in these events. That theme was advanced in a statement from one of the on-camera experts who said, This has nothing to do with conspiracies or political agendas. Its all about oil and making money.
3. Omission of this bi-partisan political agenda makes it possible to deliver the message that Americas problems in the Middle East are caused by greedy, war-mongering Republicans who are in power and that the obvious solution is to replace them with humanitarian, peace-loving Democrats. This message was implied throughout the film, but it broke through in clear language when a young soldier said, I used to be a Republican, but when I get back home, Im going to work hard to get Democrats elected. If the film had acknowledged the New World Order agenda of the Bush Administration, it would have led to the fact that leaders of the Democrat Party, including its presidential candidate John Kerry, share the same vision, and the partisan message would not have been possible.
4. The carefully crafted content of the film and the timing of its release make it clear that it was conceived as a covert campaign tool for the Democrat Party and the John Kerry campaign. It follows what I call the Quigley Formula, based on the strategy advocated by Professor Carroll Quigley, President Clintons mentor when he was a student at Georgetown University. In his book, Tragedy and Hope, Quigley explained the value of allowing people to believe that, by choosing between the Democrat and Republican parties, they are determining their own political destiny. To a collectivist like Quigley, this is a necessary illusion to prevent voters from meddling into the important affairs of state. If you have ever wondered why the two American parties appear so different at election time but not so different afterward, listen carefully to Quigleys approving overview of American politics:
The National parties and their presidential candidates, with the Eastern Establishment assiduously fostering the process behind the scenes, moved closer together and nearly met in the center with almost identical candidates and platforms, although the process was concealed as much as possible, by the revival of obsolescent or meaningless war cries and slogans (often going back to the Civil War).
The argument that the two parties should represent opposed ideals and policies, one, perhaps, of the Right and the other of the Left, is a foolish idea acceptable only to the doctrinaire and academic thinkers. Instead, the two parties should be almost identical, so that the American people can throw the rascals out at any election without leading to any profound or extreme shifts in policy.
Either party in office becomes in time corrupt, tired, unenterprising, and vigorless. Then it should be possible to replace it, every four years if necessary, by the other party, which will be none of these things but will still pursue, with new vigor, approximately the same basic policies. [Carroll Quigley, Tragedy and Hope: A History of the World in Our Time (New York: Macmillan, 1966), pp. 1247-1248.]
Inevitably, the mind turns to the question: Was this the intention of Michael Moore? My opinion no, that is too strong a word my suspicion is that Moore probably was not consciously implementing the Quigley Formula. However, there are powerful economic factors that would have compelled him to follow it in any event. Anyone who has done as much research into this matter as he has must have come across voluminous information about the political agenda. However, if any of it had appeared in his film, it would have been unacceptable to the Democrat Party. Without the enthusiastic support of that powerful sector, there would have been small chance for film distribution and even less for box-office success.
Many people want simple solutions for political problems. They are not interested in complexities. When confronted with the fact that both major parties are committed to the same agenda, their reaction is: OK, but who ya gonna vote for? That, of course, reveals that they don't really understand the Quigley Formula. They honestly believe that their vote for one of the two major presidential candidates makes a difference. This simplifies things a lot for them, because all the complex issues can be boiled down into just one decision: Who ya gonna vote for?
In the real world, things are not that simple. First, presidents are not yet absolute monarchs, although that clearly is the trend. Their power still can be curtailed by Congress. We may not have much influence in the election of a president, but we can, with sufficient effort at the precinct level, have significant effect on the outcome of Congressional races.
Second, there are candidates from other parties who may be worthy of our support. But he cant win, is the common response. My reply is so what? Elections are not football pools in which the object is to win a bet. The purpose of an election is, not to pick winners, but to support candidates who reflect our political philosophy. Even if a candidate does not win, the size of his vote is a visible measure of the number of people who support his philosophy, and that can become an important element in shaping public policy. There is no virtue in voting for a winner if he is a collectivist dedicated to our enslavement.
Casting votes and working for candidates, as important as those activities are, represent merely the entry-level of political activism. As long as candidates and issues are chosen by collectivists, there is no hope for meaningful reform. The real action lies in participating in the process that selects the candidates and defines the issues. This is possible only by seeking influence and leadership in political parties, government agencies, educational institutions, media organizations, and other power centers of society. That is the mission of Freedom Force International.
*****
The political agenda omitted from Fahrenheit 911 is revealed in these books and videos, available from the Reality Zone:
Hope - A History of the World in Our Time, by Professor Carroll Quigley
This is the book that blows the lid off the secret organization created by Cecil Rhodes to quietly gain control over the nations of the world and establish a global government based on the model of collectivism. (More at http://www.realityzone.com/tragedy.html)
The Anglo-American Establishment
by Professor Carroll Quigley
What is not so widely known is that Rhodes in five previous wills left his fortune to form a secret society,
. And what does not seem to be known to anyone is that this secret society
continues to exist to this day. (More at http://www.realityzone.com/aae.html)
The Creature from Jekyll Island
A Second Look at the Federal Reserve, by G. Edward Griffin
This book is about money, banking, and much more. It's all here: the cause of wars, boom-bust cycles, inflation, depression, prosperity. Your world view will definitely change. Youll never trust a politician again or a banker. (More at http://www.realityzone.com/creatfromjek.html)
America's Secret Establishment
by Dr. Antony Sutton
This book is about an occult, secret society at Yale University whose members are the Who's Who of the American Establishment. It's not just a college fraternity. These people are dead serious about acquiring power. Both G.W. Bush and John Kerry are members. (More at http://www.realityzone.com/amseces.html)
The Hidden Agenda
Merging America into World Government
In this video interview by G. Edward Griffin, Norman Dodd, Congressional investigator of tax-exempt foundations, reveals their concealed plan for merging America into world government based on the model of collectivism. (More at http://www.realityzone.com/hiddenagenda.html)
Who's Who of the Elite
The Bilderbergs, CFR, and Trilateralists
What are the names of the people who actually rule the world and what positions do they hold? This compendium answers that question. (More at http://www.realityzone.com/whoswho.html )
---
See also:
9/11 Commission Report Takes on Patriot Act, Government Secrecy; ACLU Outlines Civil Liberties Problems With Cabinet-Level (July 22, 2004)
http://www.aclu.org/SafeandFree/SafeandFree.cfm?ID=16150&c=206
WASHINGTON - The official 9/11 Commission report, released today, takes aim at the USA Patriot Act and the excessive amount of official secrecy in the Bush administration. "Regarding civil liberties, the 9/11 Commission report essentially says that the Justice Department and White House have not made a compelling case for either the administrations obsession with secrecy or its Patriot Act," said Anthony D. Romero, ACLU Executive Director. "This bipartisan report should serve as a wake-up call for Congress that it must maintain the sunsets in the Patriot Act." CLIP
3.
VERY RELEVANT TOO!
Date: 22 Jul 2004
From: The Sacred Earth Society info@sacredearth.org>
Subject: Attention activists! Kerry is not regime change!
Attention activists! Kerry is not regime change!
That's why there will be massive demonstrations outside the Democratic convention. The corporate wing of the Democratic Party has chosen their man. Skull and Bones Bush is out. Skull and Bones Kerry is in. The Wars shall continue, and the Patriot act shall remain. Israel shall get more of our money and weapons so that the blood keeps flowing in the Middle East. The Military/ Industrial complex will thrive under Kerry. "The brotherhood of death" has America firmly in its grip.
Is it all over" Not quite! We still have a convention. It didn't take place yet. There is still time to say no to Bush, Kerry, and Skull and Bones! We don't want anymore Skull and Bones secret societies ruling America! This corrupt east coast Yale establishment has done enough harm to us. It is time to rebel!
That's why we are asking you to join us in asking the delegates to the Democratic National Convention to stage a rebellion and not vote for Kerry. We cannot expect the delegates to do this on there own they need to be convinced that people want this and that's were you come in. We have created a letter to the delegates"
http://SacredEarth.org/dear_delegate.htm
We are asking those of you who will be in Boston to download the letter, (click on the Printer friendly button) and print and distribute it to the delegates. Find out were they are and hand it to them. Our Congress gave Bush carte blanche and look what happened. The delegates should not give Kerry carte blanche either. They should carefully scrutinize were Kerry stands on War, the Patriot Act, and funding the Military/Industrial complex. and stop him.
Let Kerry know that there will be a big walkout of delegates if he does not honor Thomas Jefferson's wisdom that "Just to keep the government honest we need a revolution at least once every twenty years." Kerry can show good faith in changing direction by honoring the Delegates Declaration and integrity Pledge.
http://votewin.info/proclamation.html
Mahatma Gandhi showed us how to resist peacefully. Time for us to go into action! Buy some more ink and paper, and roll the presses for the second American Revolution. It's time for another Boston tea party!
4.
EVEN MORE RELEVANT! (from a long-time ERN subscriber)
From: SpiritNet@webtv.net
Date: 20 Jul 2004
Subject: Reorganize the World!
Aloha Jean ~ May I further advance the idea that there is Light at the end of the darkened tunnel in which humanity finds itself? My personal perspective is below. Much thanks for your obviously immense efforts in gathering and disseminating vital information!
With gratitude,
Triaka
----
SITUATION
There are greedy people of all political persuasions everywhere on earth who use the powers of governments to coerce, control and manipulate the masses of people for their own personal, corporate or otherwise collective benefit. Such governmental "initiatory physical force" has manifested wars, genocide, weapons of mass destruction, massive secrecy, corruption, abuse of power, unfair treatment of many, favoritism for a few, monetary fraud, indebtedness, taxation without representation, and denial of individual human rights, among many other life-threatening, anti-social, disempowering and destructive behaviors.
All forms of existing governments everywhere are essentially concentration camps employing varying degrees of enslavement - applying terroristic methods of compulsion - that will continue as long as the general population lends support to these uncivilized systems that embrace threats, intimidation and other involuntary means of submission in perpetuity.
SOLUTION
Systemic evolution is required for universal "equal protection" of both individual and collective Rights grounded in a body of unchanging natural laws for a sustainable future. Accordingly, the proposed CONSTITUTION of UNITED DIVERSITY (The New Earth Cooperative) creates an "umbrella form" of global order under which a full spectrum of voluntary political, social, health/wellness, cultural, religious, monetary, agricultural and other people-initiated system are empowered to function in an environmentally-sound harmonious peace!
Please participate and forward this new paradigm...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/uniteddiversity
Goodwill to you in the Spirit of Aloha,
Triaka
Note from Jean: check also Triaka's 2 websites:
http://community.webtv.net/cosmiclaws/doc
http://www.globalvisions.org/cl/swn/
5.
From: http://www.worldwatch.org/pubs/goodstuff/beverages
The Price of Quenching Our Thirst
In 2002, thirsty Americans consumed 189 billion sodas, juice drinks, and other beverages packaged in plastic or glass bottles and aluminum cans. That's over 650 containers per person per yearor almost two containers a day for every person living in the United States. Sadly, fewer than half of these bottles and cans were recycled; the majority were trashedlandfilled, burned, or littered along roads, beaches, parks, and other scenic places.
This is a huge amount of wasted resources: a quarter of a million tons of aluminum metal, a million and a half tons of plastic bottles, and nearly 7 million tons of glass bottlesand just for one year in the United States! On a global scale, the quantity of wasted containersand their contribution to the world's trash burdenis mounting steadily as sales of throwaway beverages outstrip recycling efforts.
Most of us agree that litter is unsightly and expensive to clean up. But how many of us think about how much energy and material is usedand how many pollutants are generatedto manufacture the billions of new cans and bottles to replace the ones we don't recycle? Often, the impacts of this production are felt elsewhere. In Brazil, which exported about half of the 1.3 million tons of primary aluminum it produced in 2002, rivers and indigenous people in the Amazon basin are increasingly threatened by the development of new aluminum smelters.
People in the U.S. consume more packaged drinks per capita than in any other countryabout 350 aluminum cans per person per year, compared to 103 in Sweden, 88 in the United Kingdom, and 14 in France.
In 2001, 285 million Americans failed to recycle some 51 billion cansenough to encircle the Earth 153 times if laid end-to-end. (That same year, 451 million residents of 18 European nations wasted only 8.9 billion cans.)
Making 1 million tons of aluminum cans from virgin materials requires 5 million tons of bauxite ore and the energy equivalent of 32 million barrels of crude oil. Recycling the cans, in comparison, saves all of the bauxite and more than 75 percent of the energy, and avoids about 75 percent of the pollutants.
Recycling just one aluminum can saves enough electricity to run a laptop computer for 4 hours.
Making 1 million tons of plastic bottles from virgin materials (petroleum and other fossil fuels) generates an estimated 732,000 tons of climate-altering greenhouse gases.
Plastic bottles made from PET (polyethylene terephthalate) can be recycled into many products, including beverage bottles, plastic strapping, fleece jackets, sleeping bags, and carpets. Yet in 2002, less than a fifth of all plastic beverage bottles in the U.S. were recycled.
Recycling glass yields a 10 percent energy savings and preserves the life of the glass furnace. Yet currently, less than a third of glass bottles sold in the United States are recycled.
In 10 U.S. states, several Canadian provinces, and some countries in Europe and South America, consumers pay a deposit when they buy a beverage and are later refunded the full amount when they return the bottle or can for recycling. The state of Michigan achieves a 95 percent recycling rate with its 10¢ container deposit law, and Sweden achieves an 86 percent aluminum can recycling rate with its 50 öre deposit system. In India, high recycling rates are achieved by way of a deposit value equivalent to about 50 percent of the price of the beverage.
At 87 percent, Brazil has one of the highest aluminum can recycling rates in the world. (The U.S. can recycling rate, in comparison, slipped from 65 percent in 1992 to 48 percent in 2002.) Aluminum can recycling in much of the developing world is not entirely cause for celebration, however, since low wages and poverty make collecting a necessity for thousands of people.
Refill your water bottle at the tap rather than buying a new one.
Buy large size containers (2 liters or 64 ounces) for juices, soda, and water, rather than single serving sizes.
If you have a choice, buy beverages in refillable (rather than single use) recyclable bottles.
Recycle! Use the deposit system, curbside recycling or drop-off programs, or recycling bins found in public places like malls or airports.
If there's no recycling program in your workplace or apartment building, organize one!
Advocate for legislation that favors refillable containers over single use ones.
Form a coalition to advocate for a container deposit-return system in your province or state, either through the legislature or through voter referendum. This is much more effective than a one-time recycling event or awareness day, which ultimately does little to change the infrastructure of recycling.
Container Recycling Institute ( http://www.bottlebill.org and http://www.container-recycling.org) serves as a clearinghouse for bottle and can recycling information, and promotes deposit systems.
GrassRoots Recycling Network (GRRN) (http://www.grrn.org) works to achieve the goal of zero waste. GRRN and the Institute for Local Self Reliance co-produced a report on the history of and prospects for refillable bottles, at http://www.grrn.org/beverage/refillables/index.html.
Tomra (http://www.tomra.com) is an international purveyor of reverse vending machines and other beverage container recycling systems
Raymond Communications (http://www.raymond.com) offers a subscriber service for information about recycling laws and policies around the world.
6.
From: http://www.worldwatch.org/topics/nature/
Research Library: Nature
Biodiversity
http://www.worldwatch.org/topics/nature/species/
The world lives amid the greatest mass extinction since the dinosaurs perished 65 million years agoóand most of this loss is caused by human activities. Habitat loss, the introduction of exotic species through trade and travel, and climate change all contribute to biodiversity decline. Worldwatch research has examined the mystery of amphibian disappearances, the decline in bird populations, and the rapid loss of primates as part of its work on species loss. Current work focuses on sources of hope, including the potential for restoring important habitat such as forests and waterways that have long been degraded.
Bioinvasion
http://www.worldwatch.org/topics/nature/bioinvasion/
In an increasingly globalized world, plants, animals, and microbes are introduced more and more frequently into regions that had never hosted them. These "invasive" or "exotic" species can be a destabilizing influence in ecosystems that lack the natural enemies needed to check the spread of exotics. Without such checks, exotics can overrun ecosystems, leaving an impoverished and less resilient environment that is more vulnerable to stresses. Worldwatch research, especially through the book Life Out of Bounds, has been influential in positioning this new challenge to biodiversity on the global public agenda.
Forests
http://www.worldwatch.org/topics/nature/forests/
The world has lost nearly half its forested area in the past 8,000 years, and the majority of that loss occurred in the 20th century, when cultivated area expanded rapidly and consumption of wood and paper jumped dramatically. Worldwatch research documents forests' value as providers of goods and natural services, such as erosion prevention and flood control. It offers a vision of the sustainable use of forests, and is currently focused on the role of illegal logging in deforestation, and on the critical issue of forest restoration.
Freshwater Ecosystems
http://www.worldwatch.org/topics/nature/freshwater/
The world's freshwater ecosystems are rich but greatly imperiled. At least 20 percent of all freshwater species globally are extinct or at risk; the figure is twice as high in North America. Freshwater systems suffered in the 20th century from huge increases in water withdrawals for human use, extensive pollution, a proliferation of dams, and widespread draining of wetlands. Worldwatch research examines how to promote and maintain healthy freshwater systems, in order to protect aquatic species and to provide clean water, flood control, abundant fisheries, and other services of vital interest to human societies.
Natural Disasters
http://www.worldwatch.org/topics/nature/natural/
Economic losses from natural disasters were greater in the 1990s than in the previous four decades combined. Poor development choices, from deforestation and river engineering to poor siting of cities and buildings, have made humanity more vulnerable to disaster than ever. Over one third of the world's people live near a coast, for example, and nearly half live in cities, concentrating humanity in some of the riskiest areas. Vulnerability to disasters will likely grow as severe storms and rising sea levels associated with climate change increasingly pound coastal areas. Worldwatch research on disasters has focused on the policies and practices that can eliminate hazards stemming from human activities that cause natural calamities or worsen their effects.
Oceans
http://www.worldwatch.org/topics/nature/ocean/
Our planet's vast oceans have been viewed throughout history as an inexhaustible resource, both in terms of what they can produce and what they can absorb. But the ecological limits of oceans became apparent in the past decade. Eleven of the world's 15 most important fisheries, and 70 percent of commercial fish species are now fully exploited or overexploited. And pollution of coastal waters often contaminates many remaining marine species. Worldwatch oceans research examines the policies needed to protect fisheries, keep oceans free of pollution, and ensure the livelihoods of those who make their living from the sea.
Pollution
http://www.worldwatch.org/topics/nature/pollution/
Despite growing support from the chemical industry and environmentalists for phasing out several highly toxic and long-lived substances, new compounds continue to be introduced into global commerce at a rapid rate. Because the health effects of such substances often become apparent only long after their introduction, Worldwatch research emphasizes avoiding the use of toxic chemicals. It shows how industry leaders, farmers, public health officials, and community members have adopted safe and economical alternatives to toxics, in the process realizing countless health and environmental benefits.
7.
From: http://www.guardian.co.uk/climatechange/story/0,12374,1260825,00.html
Melting ice: The threat to London's future
Paul Brown, environment correspondent
July 14, 2004
There is more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere than for 55m years, enough to melt all the ice on the planet and submerge cities like London, New York and New Orleans, Sir David King, the government's chief scientific adviser has warned.
Speaking on his return from Moscow, where he has been acting as the prime minister's "unofficial envoy" to persuade the Russians to ratify the Kyoto protocol to fight climate change, Sir David said the most recent science bore out the worst predictions.
An ice core 3km deep from the Antarctic had a record of the climate for 800,000 years and showed the direct relationship between the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and warm and cold periods for the planet.
Critical in climate records is the quantity of ice at the poles and in glaciers. Records show that at the peak of the ice age 12,000 years ago, the sea was 150 metres below where it is now. "You might think it is not wise, since we are currently melting ice so fast, to have built our big cities on the edge of the sea where it is now obvious they cannot remain.
"On current trends, cities like London, New York and New Orleans will be among the first to go.
"Ice melting is a relatively slow process but is speeding up. When the Greenland ice cap goes, the sea level will rise six to seven metres, when Antarctica melts it will be another 110 metres," he said.
Records of the 3km deep Antarctic ice core showed that during ice ages the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere was around 200 parts per million (ppm), and during warm periods reached around 270 ppm, before sinking back down again for another ice age. That pattern had been repeated many times in that period but had now been broken because of the intervention of man.
Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere had reached 360 ppm in the 1990s and now was up to 379 ppm and increasing at the rate of 3 ppm a year - reaching a level not seen for 55 million years when there was no ice on the planet because the atmosphere was too warm.
"I am sure that climate change is the biggest problem that civilisation has had to face in 5,000 years," he concluded.
Sir David, who is also to visit China and Japan, was speaking at the launch of a scientific expedition to Cape Farewell in the Arctic, which aims to raise awareness of climate change in students. It will also study the oceans' currents with the help of Southampton University, particularly the fate of the gulf stream which warms northern Europe but is slowing down because of excess fresh water in the north Atlantic caused by ice melt.
Dr King described how the ice caps like those on Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, had been continuous for hundreds of thousands of years and survived through successive warm periods but were now expected to disappear in 30 to 40 years.
He said that the realisation of the scale of the crisis was what prompted him to say in January that climate change was a bigger threat than global terrorism. "We are moving from a warm period into the first hot period that man has ever experienced since he walked on the planet."
He said the heatwave of last summer in which 25,000 Europeans died had killed more people than terrorism, yet had not been given anything like the same level of attention.
The prime minister had charged him with talking to governments ahead of the G8 summit to convince them of the urgency of action on climate change, of research and development of renewables. He warned of the slow response of the climate system and said we were already doomed to 30 or 40 years of climate heating because of the carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere, hence the need to multiply effective flood defences such as the Thames barrier.
Sir David said because there was no ice on the planet 55m years ago, it was impossible to tell how much carbon dioxide there was in the atmosphere but it was probably only slightly more than "we are currently heading towards".
Sir David was backed up last night by Margaret Beckett, the environment secretary, speaking at the Green Alliance about the value of the EU's campaign to fight climate change.
"Climate change is the predominant global environmental issue where European leadership is vital," she said.
"But, of course, we need to persuade others to come with us, and we need to inject new momentum into international discussions on climate change.
"Above all, we also need to demonstrate that countries do not have to choose between their environmental and economic aspirations, to forfeit one or the other, but that these aspirations can not only be compatible but mutually reinforcing."
She said that the government had set ambitious targets for 2010 and beyond for virtually every big environmental issue.
But there needed to be a greater emphasis on assessing progress and identifying action needed to deliver existing commitments.
There also needed to be more consistent implementation of EU rules across the union, she said.
8.
From: http://www.unknowncountry.com/news/?id=3937
Solar Storms Can Destroy Planets
11 July 2004
Scientists hope that the solar wind will form a barrier that will protect us from solar radiation during the upcoming pole shift here on Earth. When the poles reverse on Earth, which has happened many times before, the magnetic shield that protects us from solar radiation is temporarily weakened. Mars wasn't so lucky.
Astronomers report that Mars had extensive oceans (and probably life) until 3.5 billion years ago, huge solar storms of the kind that flared up in the fall of 2003 hit Mars repeatedlly and sucked up all its water, leaving it a dead planet.
What scientists want to know is: could it happen to us? Deborah Zabarenko quotes NASA's Ed Stone as saying, "These (solar) radiation events can affect the surface of Mars because Mars has so little protection." But during the pole shift, which is now underway, we may not have any protection either.
---
From: http://www.unknowncountry.com/news/?id=3798
The Dangers of the Coming Pole Flip
We know the Earth's magnetic poles will flip soon and that they've done it before in the past. But the magnetic field is what protects us from being roasted by the sun's ultraviolet rays, as well as by cosmic rays from space. How are we going to survive the long period when this field is weakened during the pole reversal? Some scientists are hoping that we'll be protected by the very solar wind that will do vast damage to our electronic infrastructure.
Marcus Chown writes in New Scientist that the Earth could interact with the solar wind to create a replacement field in the upper atmosphere during the switch. Before this, scientists feared we'd be left without any protection for thousands of years. But since the pole flip has occurred hundreds of times in the past 400 million years and life has survived, they assumed there was some kind of protection they didn't know about.
Astronomers Guido Birk and Harald Lesch created a computer program that shows what will happen during the pole reversal. The solar wind, which is a million-mile-an-hour stream of hydrogen and helium coming from the sun, will wrap itself around the Earth in a way that creates a magnetic field as strong as the one it's replacing. Lesch says, "We were quite surprised about its effectiveness." This knowledge comes just in time, since the strength of the north pole is dropping at a rate of 5% every 100 years. Lesch says, "This is the fastest decrease since the last reversal 730,000 years ago."
The model, unfortunately, leaves open a window of an unknown number of weeks or months when the earth will be exposed to the solar wind, before the substitute magnetic field self-generates. During this period, there will be vast damage to everything from electronic infrastructure to growing crops, to people exposed to the outdoors.
Unexplained by this scientific team is why the solar wind does not form a similar shield around Mars, which has no magnetic field of its own. One of the reasons that Mars is sterile of higher surface-dwelling life forms is that the solar wind strikes the planet directly.
MORE DETAILS ON THIS AT http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994985
9.
From: CoetaMills@aol.com
Date: 15 Jul 2004
Subject: Bush Rejection of Roadless Forest Policy a Bonanza for Timber Industry
BUSHGREENWATCH Tracking the Bush Administration's Environmental Misdeeds http://www.bushgreenwatch.org
July 15, 2004
BUSH REJECTION OF ROADLESS FOREST POLICY A BONANZA FOR TIMBER INDUSTRY
The Bush administration's announcement this week that it plans to open nearly 60 million acres of pristine, roadless National Forests to logging, mining, oil and gas drilling and road building may be one of the largest environmental rollbacks of the modern era. It also dramatizes the urgent need for genuine campaign finance reform.
Industries that opposed protections for roadless areas on National Forests have given nearly $25 million in campaign donations to President Bush and the Republican Party, according to the Heritage Forests Campaign. [1] These same industries have contributed close to $5 million to Democrats. President Bush alone has received nearly $5 million in campaign contributions from industries that oppose environmental preservation.
Shortly after President Bush took office, the selection of Mark Rey as under secretary for Natural Resources and the Environment at the U.S. Department of Agriculture -- which oversees the U.S. Forest Service -- signaled that conservation policies were in jeopardy.
Mr. Rey came to the White House after a long career as a leading timber industry lobbyist, including stints as vice president of Forest Resources for the American Forest and Paper Association (AF&PA), the leading national voice for more logging in national forests; executive director of the American Forest Resource Alliance, a coalition of 350 timber corporations formed by the National Forest Products Association; and vice president of Public Forestry Programs for the National Forest Products Association.
While the decision this week to open huge swaths of roadless forests to more clear-cutting and old-growth logging will have dire consequences for clean water, wildlife habitat, fisheries and forest ecology, America's taxpayers will also have to pony up.
Under the Forest Service's antiquated road building policies -- which the Bush ruling put back into play with its rejection of the Clinton-era roadless rule -- taxpayers pay the entire cost of building new roads into forests in order to provide logging trucks and drilling rigs access to the public's resources.
Currently, the USFS has a $10 billion maintenance backlog for the already existing network of roads in National Forests, many of which primarily benefit private industry. [2] The public will pay the tab.
The Bush proposal is open to public comment for the next 60 days. During two public comment periods, one under President Clinton and one under President Bush, nearly 95% of the 2.5 million comments supported the roadless policy. [3]
###
TAKE ACTION
Send your comments to the Bush administration today:
http://ga3.org/ct/DdzV76Y19aGS/.
###
SOURCES:
[1] Heritage Forest Campaign, http://ga3.org/ct/KdzV76Y19aGM/ .
[2] Taxpayers for Commonsense,
http://ga3.org/ct/KpzV76Y19aG2/ .
[3] Heritage Forest Campaign, http://ga3.org/ct/K7zV76Y19aGN/
***
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10.
From: http://omega.twoday.net/stories/277688/
How a century of destruction has laid bare the world's rainforests
by Steve Connor, Science Editor
10 July 2004
It is estimated that an area of rainforest the size of Poland - some 78 million acres of land - is destroyed each year by logging, mining, farming, fire and other human activities.
Rainforests cover about 2 per cent of the earth's surface yet they harbour the greatest concentration of wildlife on earth, which led Norman Myers, the Oxford environmentalist, to describe them as "the finest celebration of nature ever known on the planet".
Between 40 and 50 per cent of all known and yet-to-be-discovered species are thought to live in the relatively small space stretching from the forest undergrowth to the tree canopy.
The richest rainforests occur in tropical climates - as opposed to the cooler rainforests of more temperate regions -- which stretch along the equator from South America and Africa to east Asia. The Amazon is home to the biggest tropical rainforest on earth but has been subjected to one of the most sustained deforestation programmes in recent history.
Last May, a team of American and Brazilian scientists found that the rate of deforestation in the Amazon has accelerated significantly since 1990 despite claims by the government in Brasilia that it is trying to curb both legal and illegal logging.
William Laurance, an expert on rainforest destruction at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama, said forest loss has shot up by 50 per cent in the southern and eastern regions of the Amazon since 2002.
"The recent deforestation numbers are just plain scary. During the past two years nearly 12 million acres of rainforest have been destroyed - that's equivalent to about 11 football fields a minute," he said.
Scientists link the increase in deforestation to Brazil's $40bn (£22bn) development drive, launched in 2000 to build new roads, power lines, gas pipelines, hydroelectric power stations and river-drainage schemes.
Brazilian politicians argued that the development was needed to lift millions of people with no access to basic sanitation or education out of poverty. However, some scientists believe land speculation and the rapid expansion of soybean farming and cattle ranching has led to a deforestation rush.
Philip Fearnside, of Brazil's National Institute for Amazonian Research, explained: "Soybean farms cause some forest clearing directly, but they have a much greater impact by consuming cleared land, savannah and transitional forests, thereby pushing ranchers and slash-and-burn farmers even deeper into the forest frontier.
"Soybean farming also provides a key economic and political impetus for new highways and infrastructure projects, which accelerate deforestation by other actors," he said.
History has shown that whenever a road is built through pristine rainforest, deforestation of the surrounding area quickly follows with miners and illegal loggers finding it easier to move in with heavy equipment.
Illegal logging for tropical hardwood is particularly difficult to police given the remoteness of the locations and the ease with which it can be done with chainsaws and trucks.
Mark Cochrane of Michigan State University said that these initial forays into a pristine forest often go unnoticed by satellite observations: "When you view these forests from a distance, they look OK, but when you stand in them, you can see they've been thinned, and that they've changed," he said.
"You can see how they've been chewed up. It's like they have holes punched in them. These holes can make a rainforest dry out and be vulnerable to fire," he added.
Fire is perhaps the most destructive force in rainforest ecology. Both deliberate and unintentional fires are devouring millions of acres each year.
"These rainforest fires are much more frequent than these ecosystems can resist. These fires are flying under the radar and people don't realise what's happening," Dr Cochrane said.
Furthermore, a study by the University of Sao Paulo and the Smithsonian Institution has found evidence that rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere - caused by global industrial pollution - cause some trees to grow faster at the expense of others, potentially destabilizing the ecosystem.
"In general, large, fast-growing trees are winning at the expense of smaller trees that live in the forest understorey," said Alexandre Oliveira at Sao Paulo.
RAINFORESTS IN FIGURES
Brazil's rainforest is the world's biggest, covering two million square miles of the Amazon river basin
Brazil is top of the list for deforestation with more than 2.5 million hectares (6.2 million acres) being lost each year
Indonesia is second, losing more than a million hectares of rainforest, followed by the Congo, Bolivia, Mexico, Venezuela, Malaysia, Burma, Sudan and Thailand
Computer models suggest there will be no rainforests left in 50 years
Sixty per cent of the anti-cancer drugs developed over the past 10 years come from tropical forests.
An area the size of Mexico and Indonesia combined lost its rainforest over the past 15 year
---
See also:
Amazon burning makes Brazil a leading polluter (July 20, 2004)
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/26107/story.htm
BRASILIA, Brazil - Burning of the Amazon rainforest has made Brazil one of the world's top 10 polluters, raising pressure on the government to curb destruction of the jungles, scientists say. The government should publish within months a long-delayed inventory of Brazil's greenhouse gas emissions, which is widely expected to challenge the view that the Amazon serves as the "lungs of the world" by converting carbon dioxide into oxygen.Instead, it will show that a large majority of Brazil's greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to global warming, come from smoke linked to deforestation of the Amazon, and not fossil fuels which are the main culprit in most countries. Paulo Moutinho, a researcher at the nongovernmental Institute for Amazon Research, said the inventory should show that Brazil produces around 300 million tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalent a year, 200 million of which comes from logging and burning of the world's largest tropical forest.That puts Brazil above bigger economies like Italy and Canada and among the globe's top 10 leading polluters. "The report will be thorough, but it will certainly put Brazil in a situation where it will have to look more closely at its emissions," said Moutinho. "It will be official recognition of the large dimension of burning in the Amazon."Destruction of the Amazon jungle, which is larger than the continental United States and home to up to 30 percent of the globe's animal and plant species, reached its second-highest level last year. An area of 5.9 million acres (2.38 million hectares), bigger than the U.S. state of New Jersey, was destroyed as loggers and farmers hacked and burnt the forest in 2003. CLIP
11.
From: "Joe Bryant" succeed@alt3.net>
Subject: Erring on the side of caution
Date: 21 Jul 2004
Greetings,
On many occasions over the years I have asked "why does not government err on the side of caution when the health of its citizens is at risk".
This question must be asked in relation to artificial sweeteners and again and again about fluoride.
We have an overweight problem, there is increasing evidence that it is caused by fluoride, upsetting the thyroid, but no precautionary actions by government, no erring on the side of caution, in fact the opposite as governments pushes for wider fluoride use in water supplies.
Every time you see an add on TV for a food product announcing absolutely no sugar they are selling an artificial sweetener, but not saying so, artificial sweeteners have proved to be life threatening. Where is the creditable evidence that a reasonable amount of sugar threatened life of the majority of the population.
The question remains, what is going on? Who is government listening to? How much is paid over to get government to compulsorily medicate the population by administer a daily dose of fluoride. Paid not to err on the side of caution. Who pays who, to keep the lid on the facts about dangerous, even possible dangerous food additives, and dangerous or possible dangerous medications.
While all this lack of reasonable caution within government circles is going on we find governments seeking to limit the use of natural food supplements about which there is absolutely no evidence to say they are dangerous to the populations health, in fact quite the opposite.
What all this amounts to is that for a price your good heath is up for sale, do the majority of the medical profession care, NO, because there is no money to be made for them, out of healthy people.
Artificial sweeteners and fluoride are but two of a mass of modern "health" issues that are more about making dollars than a healthy population. Question is how long will you remain silent about what government is doing to you and your children by not erring on the side of caution.
Regards,
Joe Bryant
http://www.saveoursupplements.com.au
---
From: Dr. Betty Martini Bettym19@mindspring.com>
Sent: July 20, 2004
Subject: In answer to Dieters will have another option by Alice Kelly (Splenda)
Dear Editor:
The consumer public should never be mislead as industry doesn't always tell the truth. Sucralose or Splenda is not safe. In original research Splenda caused many problems such as:
Shrunken thymus glands (up to 40% shrinkage)
Enlarged liver and kidneys
Atrophy of lymph follicles in the spleen and thymus
Increased cecal weight
Reduced growth rate
Decreased red blood cell count
Hyperplasia of the pelvis
Extension of the pregnancy period
Aborted pregnancy
Decreased fetal body weight and placental weights
Diarrhea
Splenda is synthetic and has a chlorinated base like DDT so can cause autoimmune disease. Let's not repeat the aspartame fiasco which has caused a global epidemic. H. J. Roberts, M.D., wrote the medical text, Aspartame Disease: An Ignored Epidemic, http://www.sunsentpress.com
Even a new movie has just been released on aspartame titled Sweet Misery: A Poisoned World. You can get a copy from cori@soundandfuryproductions.com or by calling 1 866 624-9710.
Go to http://www.wnho.net and read about the lawsuits filed in California against
some of the world's largest companies for knowingly poisoning the world
with aspartame. Click on aspartame and check out many articles on the
dangers of Splenda as well. Also remember that aspartame is a chemical
hypersensitization agent and victims react using other toxins or unsafe
sweeteners as well as vaccines.
Dr. Betty Martini, Founder, Mission Possible International, 9270 River Club
Parkway, Duluth, Georgia 30097
770 242-2599
http://www.wnho.net
http://www.dorway.com
RELATED ARTICLES BY DR. MERCOLA ON HIS WEB SITE:
Splenda is Not a "Healthy" Sweetener
http://mercola.com/2003/aug/23/splenda.htm
Splenda's Dangers: One Man's Personal Story That You Should Know
http://mercola.com/2003/nov/8/splenda_dangers.htm
12 Questions You Need to Have Answered Before You Eat Splenda
http://mercola.com/2004/jan/10/splenda_questions.htm
The Dangers of Chlorine and Issues With Sucralose
http://mercola.com/2001/jun/23/chlorine.htm
Sucralose (Splenda) U.S. Product List
http://mercola.com/2000/dec/3/sucralose_products.htm
Why Nutrasweet was so Successful and Will Likely Never be Replaced by Splenda
http://mercola.com/2004/feb/11/nutrasweet.htm
Aspartame News
http://www.wnho.net/aspartamenews.htm
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