The 12 days of Chavmus

There are no accidents around here

"There are no accidents around here" (Lay Your Hands On Me - Peter Gabriel)

Chinese Govt to set up centre for weather control

A national command center for weather modification will be built before 2010 to coordinate the practices of rainmaking and hail suppression around the country.

China regularly suffers from natural disasters, and its weather-modification operations are the largest in the world, a report by the Xinhua News Agency said yesterday.

Thirty of the country's 34 provinces, municipalities, autonomous regions and special administrative regions and 1,952 of about 2,900 counties have been involved in such operations and they are equipped with 7,113 anti-aircraft guns, 4,991 special rocket launchers and more than 32,300 people, figures from the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) said.

Since 1999, some 250 billion tons of rain have been created and 470,000 sq km of land have been protected from hail. By 2010, the volume of artificial rain is expected to reach 50 billion tons a year, the Xinhua report said.

Weather modification is even being used to help Beijing prevent a downpour forecast for the opening day of the 2008 Olympics.

The report said that by 2010, all weather-modification efforts would be coordinated by central government with support from provincial, municipal and county administrations. A national weather-modification experimental base will also be launched, it said.

Having a national command center and experimental base will better protect the country against extreme weather conditions, the report quoted an unnamed official from the meteorological office as saying.

China is at more risk of being hit this year by extreme weather, such as drought, floods and typhoons, than at any time over the past decade because of climate change. Droughts could seriously affect northern areas, while heavy rainfalls could hit the south, Zheng Guoguang, director of the CMA, told China Daily last month.

Consideration is also being given to the health and safety of those involved in modification efforts.

In May last year, the operator of an anti-aircraft gun in Pengshui County of Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality had his right arm blown to pieces and a passer-by was shot dead.

The county has four such guns for use in weather modification.

On Friday in Jinan, capital of East China's Shandong Province, a meeting to discuss safety issues was held between officers from two of China's seven military areas headquartered in Jinan and Nanjing, capital of East China's Jiangsu Province, and representatives of the North Sea Fleet of the navy, all of whom are involved in local weather-modification efforts.

Source: China Daily



Many years ago a friend told me of a story of how the Russians controlled the weather in Red Square in Moscow (making it brilliantly sunny for parade days) by using crop dusters to "dust the clouds" However the weather in the surrounding areas would turn pretty bad as a result

Holy Sprog Nativity Spoof

The Milton Show - Singing the Man Song

Christmas Pictures of London 2007

Christmas Tree Trafalgar Square 2007






Looking towards Big Ben 2007

LIFE IS A LAUGH

Life Is A Laugh




A Panda Bear's Head at Gloucester Road Tube Station



An Undercover Trains Inspector at Embankment Tube Station (well he was undercover!!!)

Phillipines - Jeepney Drivers Launch Strike

Jeepney drivers in many parts of the Philippines did not ply their routes today to protest oil price increases which they branded as “unwarranted”, “unchecked” and “oppressive”.

Manila Jeepney
A Jeepney in Manila (from Wikipedia)

The jeepney drivers group PISTON declared the strike a success, with the government saying it did not affect traffic.

Bloggers took note of the strike in their own way:

Highway 53 complained about the cancellation of an orchestra practice at the University of the Philippines and noticed few jeeps serving students.

Writing passionately in Filipino, as if in a dream tells how she managed to go to the University of Santo Tomas only to find out that the administration cancelled classes at 3:00 pm. The blogger said she was able to get a seat in a “free bus” courtesy of the university and enjoyed the ride with other Thomasians.

Val Makasiar MD complains to Piston about jeepney drivers who cut their trips.

Another student-blogger, some grape juice for new year's day, also managed to get a ride and also found out belatedly about cancelled classes. The blogger hopes:

Sana, kung anuman kahantungan ng strike na yan, makakabuti sa bayan, hindi lang sa malalaking kumpanya. Sayang naman ang paghihirap ng mga Pilipino kung iba rin ang makikinabang.

Whatever is the outcome of the strike, I hope it is for the good of the country and not of the big companies. The efforts of suffering Filipinos will go to waste if others will be the ones to benefit.]

Aude Sapere does not mince words for what he dubs as “Piss-ton”:

These jeepney drivers, who did nothing but pollute the environment, break traffic laws, cause too much heavy traffic, and hike up transport fares, are protesting the series of increases in oil prices. Too bad the only affected party is the average Filipino commuter, who are mostly students and employees.

For every diligent student that was forced to absent themselves from their classes, for every workman who lost his daily wage today, for all the kids in grade school who were forced to walk a couple of kilometers to school, for each and every grim story this strike has caused, I curse you PISTON.

Elsewhere, i.am.bliss tries to understand the jeepney drivers' and consumers' situation:

Hindi mo masisisi ang mga tsuper. Ang ginawa nilang tigil-pasada ang natatanging paraan para maiparating nila sa pamahalaan ang kanilang hinaing

We cannot blame the drivers. The strike was their way of informing the government of their grievances.

Ang linggo-linggong pagtataas ng gasolina ay damang-dama ng mga tsuper. Sa pamilya namin, meron kaming anim na sasakyang pinatatakbo ng gasolina

Drivers suffer from the weekly oil price hikes]

The bloggers adds:

Bilang isang pasahero, hassle nga naman na ma-late sa pupuntahan… Trabaho, eskwela, gimik, atbp. Pero isipin mo, one-time hassle lang ‘to eh. Yung pinaglalaban ng mga tsuper, ng mga kasapi ng PISTON, yung kanilang isinisigaw, ang dahilan ng malawakang tigil-pasda… kaya nila yun ginagawa dahil merong mas malubhang problema, mas masama kesa sa ilang beses kang mahuhuli sa trabaho mo. Kung walang tigil-pasada, aakalain ng administrasyong Arroyo na okey lang tayo sa pagtaas ng presyo ng langis. Sa pamamagitan ng jeepney strike, naipahatid ang pag-resist, pagtuligsa…

As a commuter, it was really a hassle. It is really inconvenient that we get late going to our destinations… Work, school, gimmicks, etc. But think about it: This is just a one-time hassle. What the drivers are fighting for, the members of PISTON, what they are shouting, are the reasons why there's a big strike… there's a bigger reason why they launched a strike, many of times worse than you're being late in your work. If there were no strike, the government will think that we don't care about oil price increases. Through the jeepney strike, we were able to send the message that we resist and we condemn…]

Well said!

Met Police Staff Reject Below Inflation Pay Offer

CS members working for the Met Police, including Police Community Support Officers, Traffic Wardens, 999 Operators and admin support staff, have overwhelmingly rejected a below inflation pay offer in a pay ballot.

Over 95% of members voting in the ballot rejected the below inflation offer of 2.25%. With the retail price index measure of inflation at 4.2% the pay deal represents a pay cut in real terms. Staff are angry over the insistence of Met Police management to remain within the government's public sector pay limit, even though for the fifth year running there has been a massive underspend on the police staff budget.

With members of other unions in the Met Police also rejecting the pay offer, this is the first time in nearly three decades that the Met Police unions have been in dispute over pay in the Met Police.

Commenting, Mark Serwotka, PCS general secretary, said: "This massive vote to reject this pay offer illustrates the strength of feeling amongst hardworking staff, who aren't prepared to accept a pay cut in real terms. With the Met Police spending £15 million on consultants, £17 million on agency workers and £22 million on an unwanted and unnecessary reorganisation of HR, staff are angry that they can only find a paltry 2.25% pay increase this year for its staff. Coming at a time when everyone is working extra hard to counter the continuing security threat in the capital, Met Police management need to recognise the important role that staff play by paying a fair wage or there is a very real possibility of a ballot for industrial action."

UN: Atrocities Fuel Worsening Crisis in Horn of Africa

UN Security Council Should Press Ethiopia and Somalia to Put an End to Abuses


(New York, December 3, 2007) – The United Nations Security Council should urgently press the Ethiopian and Somali governments to end the grave human rights abuses that are fueling the worsening humanitarian crisis in Somalia and eastern Ethiopia’s Ogaden region, Human Rights Watch said today.
" The humanitarian suffering we see in Somalia and Ethiopia’s Somali region is the direct result of serious international crimes. "
Steve Crawshaw, UN advocacy director at Human Rights Watch



On December 3, the UN under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, John Holmes, concludes a one-week visit to the Horn of Africa. Last month, UN officials described the situation in Somalia as the worst humanitarian crisis in Africa.

“The humanitarian suffering we see in Somalia and Ethiopia’s Somali region is the direct result of serious international crimes,” said Steve Crawshaw, UN advocacy director at Human Rights Watch. “Concerned governments and the UN Security Council need to press Ethiopia and Somalia to end these abuses and ensure accountability for their armed forces.”

The conflict in Somalia has steadily intensified since last December, when Ethiopian forces supporting the Somali Transitional Federal Government ousted the Islamic Courts Union from Mogadishu. Ethiopian forces quickly came under attack from a growing coalition of insurgent groups, and fighting in March and April 2007 forced as many as 400,000 residents of the city to flee their homes.

Both sides were responsible for war crimes during the fighting, including deliberate and indiscriminate attacks on civilians.

Clashes intensified again in November, driving tens of thousands of people from Mogadishu yet again. The November clashes have been marked by increasing brutality toward civilians, including summary executions and enforced disappearances of individuals by Ethiopian forces.

Aid workers and the media have also been targeted by the warring parties. Eight journalists have been killed this year. The transitional Somali government has repeatedly shut down media outlets. Three of Mogadishu’s independent radio stations and a human rights organization remain closed.

The Somali government has repeatedly harassed and obstructed humanitarian organizations trying to assist the displaced population. The mayor of Mogadishu, former warlord Mohamed Dheere, detained the head of the UN’s World Food Program (WFP) for five days in October, causing WFP to temporarily suspend food distributions to at least 75,000 people.

“Key governments are ignoring the rampant human rights abuses in Somalia at their own peril,” said Crawshaw. “Their action is a catastrophe for victims today, and it’s also likely to radicalize younger Somalis and create tomorrow’s fighters.”

The conflict in Somalia is also affecting the region. Since early this year, part of eastern Ethiopia’s Somali Regional State known as the Ogaden, which borders Somalia, has experienced a sharp escalation in a longstanding conflict between the Ethiopian government and the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), a rebel movement that claims it is fighting for self-determination for the region.

The ONLF attacked a Chinese oil installation in April, and Ethiopian military forces launched a brutal crackdown in June, targeting civilians perceived to be supporting the ONLF in five key zones of Somali Region. ONLF forces have also been responsible for abuses, particularly killings of suspected collaborators and the use of anti-vehicle mines in indiscriminate attacks on civilians.

Human Rights Watch has found that Ethiopian troops have used scorched-earth tactics to depopulate the rural areas and terrorize rural communities in the Somali Region. Their crimes include the burning of villages, public summary executions, sexual violence against women and girls, and confiscation of livestock – the main asset of the predominantly pastoralist population.

The Ethiopian government imposed a trade and commercial blockade on much of the affected region and expelled the International Committee of the Red Cross from Ethiopia’s Somali Region in July.

Although Ethiopia and the UN recently signed an agreement to increase humanitarian assistance to civilians in the country’s Somali Region, there are credible reports of ongoing abuses.

Human Rights Watch welcomed UN Under-Secretary-General John Holmes’s visit to the region and his call for further investigation of abuses in the Ogaden.

“Improving civilian access to humanitarian assistance in the Ogaden is a positive step,” said Crawshaw. “But unless the Ethiopian government lifts the trade blockade, ends these appalling crimes, and ensures accountability, it will be too little, too late.”



WHY THIS HAS HAPPENED:

A blind alley

So why didn't Ethiopia's allies - the European Union, Britain and the United States, who provide Ethiopia with millions of dollars' worth of development assistance each year and who are also providing substantial support to the TFG - do more to stop these violations?

The answer is as depressing as it is obvious. Ethiopia and its Somali proxies, including a large number of warlords with notorious records of abuse from earlier conflicts, are perceived by the EU and US government as key allies in the "war on terror" and are doing the west's dirty work against Somalia's Islamists. Behind the scenes the US has been helping the Ethiopian military effort and interrogating suspects in Ethiopian detention.

The "realistic" rationale of western policymakers goes like this: some of the Islamists, whose power the Ethiopians say they are seeking to destroy in Somalia, are aligned with al-Qaida; unless they are defeated the country will be "Talibanised". The apparent conclusion of such reasoning is that rights abuses and violations of the laws of war are regrettable but unavoidable.

This "realistic" approach is dangerously simplistic and shortsighted. There may well be some Al-Qaeda element active in Somalia: that needs to be dealt with. But Somalia is essentially a country of clan politics and the war that Ethiopia and its backers have now precipitated is rapidly evolving into a clan war - broadly pitting the Darod clan which dominates the TFG, against the Hawiye clan which supported the Islamic Courts Union.

There is now a lull in the conflict and Ethiopia claims that its opponents have been defeated. But the armed opposition to Ethiopia and the TFG gains greater support from Somali nationalists and Islamists alike with every day the Ethiopian troops remain on Somali soil. Branding them all as terrorists is inaccurate and misleading. Before they were dislodged by Ethiopia, the Islamists were widely seen by Somalis as having brought more peace and stability to Mogadishu than it had seen for over fifteen years.

The current western-backed Ethiopian approach to Somalia will lead to a mountain of civilian deaths and a litany of abuses. The policy risks precipitating exactly the sort of human-rights disaster in Somalia as the one the west rightly condemns in Darfur. This approach will only strengthen the hand of the extremist minority in Somalia, handing al-Qaida another potential theatre of militant action, and another opportunity to present themselves internationally as defenders of Islam against western aggression.

Washington, London and Brussels are in a blind alley in Somalia. They should rethink a policy which is encouraging serious abuses, and come up with one which prioritizes the protection of civilians. They should start by issuing a clear call to all sides in this conflict to observe and uphold the rules of war and human-rights standards.


TAKEN FROM : Human Rights Watch

Bush made me lie over CIA scandal, says ex-aide

Daily Mail Thursday 22nd November 2007


PRESIDENT BUSH was yesterday accused of making his press secretary lie to cover up a dirty tricks scandal.

The allegation about Mr Bush's role in illegally "outing" an undercover CIA agent is made by former White House press secretary Scott McClellan in his forthcoming book.

At a press conference in 2003 Mr McClellan denied top aides Karl Rove & Lewis Libby were involved in leaking the identity of CIA agent Valerie Plame.

"There was one problem> It was not true," he writes."I had unknowingly passed along false information."

He says five officials in the White House were involved in his doing so, including the vice-president and Mr Bush.

Valerie Plame has always claimed the White House leaked her name in revenge for her husband, former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, having undermined one of the president's key pieces of "Evidence" for going to war in Iraq.

A spokesman for Mr Bush said the President "had not and would not " ask a spokesman to pass on false information.

HARRODS.CON - yes thats right not .com - .con

Thinking , with Christmas coming up I thought I would do some early shopping on the Harrod's website - WRONG IDEA!
But with my sister having her baby just around the corner I thought I would buy a Harrod's bear for her newborn. The website (which immediately you have logged in is no longer a secure site - the padlock disappears on my browser) gave me the option of ordering all three items now or all three items just before Christmas. Seeing two of the items were perishable food items I had no choice but to press the "before Christmas " button. BIG MISTAKE!!!!

I then phoned up Harrods.com customer services and they told me that the only choice I would have was to cancel the order, which I then did - I then asked them (looking at my internet banking website ) when I would receive my refund as £45.35 had just been taken out of my bank account.

She seemed shocked that the money had been taken so quickly and when I told her that my card was a Visa Electron she told me that Visa Electron cards weren't accepted.

Fours weeks later - guess what ? Yes NO REFUND.

After several phone calls I eventually got through to a supervisor called Nick , who said he would look into it and that he would send The Accounts Department AN EMAIL!! as every one reads emails these days!!!

So I then took the next step and phoned up Harrods in London (Harrods.com is based in Nottingham!!!) and after making an official complaint, received a phone call from Nick saying that The Head of Customer Services had been on the phone to him and that I would receive my refund within 5 - 7 working days.

YES YOU GUESSED IT - 5 and a half weeks later - NO REFUND!!!!!

BE WARNED - GIVE HARRODS.CON some money and then ask for it back - especially when they havent sent you anything is like trying to get blood from a stone!!!

Cameron did meet Bush but the media kept it quiet

Could you trust this man to lead your country when he blatantly goes and pals it up with George Bush when he thinks Labour has lost (Just to remind you Labour lost because of Tony Blair's relationship to this very man!!?) !!!

Conservative leader David Cameron said he had a "very positive" half-hour meeting with US President George W Bush during his current trip to Washington.

They discussed areas including Iran, Afghanistan, free trade and climate change and "got on very well", he said.

"We had a good conversation about some issues that Britain and America really need to work together on," he added.

USA Patriot Act

Taken from Dude , Where's My Country? by Michael Moore

USA PATRIOT ACT is really a gross misnomer. This law is anything but patriotic. the "Patriot" Act is as Un-American as Mein Kampf (see blog re Prescott Bush and his Nazi connections). The name is part of a masterful plan meant to camouflage a stench thicker than Florida swamp water.

You can always read the law yourself if you have several days and a gaggle of lawyers at your disposal. You see, this law is not like other laws that read in clear language, "you can do this" or "you cant do that". The Patriot Act is mostly about amending existing laws. There are 342 pages where it really never says what it is doing but rather refers you to hundreds of other passages in other laws written over the past hundred years. So, in order to read the Patriot Act, you need to have all the laws written in the past century in order to see what sentence or phrase the Patriot Act is changing.

Thats why , when anyone has challenged them, the Justice department folks throw up their hands and urge "the public to read the actual language of the act for clarification. t5here is no way to humanly do this.

On October 11th , just a month after September 11th 2001 the Senate passed a version of the bill thats was less tolerable to civil - rights advocates than the House version, to be voted on the next day.

The Bush administration didnt like the protection contained in the House Bill and, with the speaker of the house, worked through the night to strip it of all the civil rights protections The House had voted for. It was finally submitted at 3:45 am. when Congress showed up a few hours later to vote on it, they thought they were voting on the language agreed to the previous day. Instead they voted on the bill whose few protections were gutted by Attorney General John Ashcroft the night before. According to the American Civil Liberties Union few members of Congress read the final version of the act. It was perhaps the most reckless and irresponsbile action our Congress has ever taken.

Here's what the law does: Your government may now "trap and trace" all those countless emails you thought were private. Also up for inspection : banking records, school records, the list of library books you or your nine year old checked out this year (or even how often you logged on to the internet at the library), and your consumer purchases.
Think I'm exaggerating? Next time you are sitting in your doctor's waiting room or waiting in line at the bank, read their new privacy statements. Buried in the legalese you will find new warnings that your pivacy protections do not cover The Big Brother provisions of our New Patriot Act.

There's more. Under the special "SNEAK AND PEEK" provision ,agents may now come into your home and search through your stuff and - get this- never tell you've been there.



So AMERICA WHEN DECIDING WHO TO VOTE FOR (DEMOCRATS OR REPUBLICANS) JUST REMEMBER THEY BOTH VOTED FOR THIS ACT
UNITED KINGDOM - JUST REMEMBER SINCE TONY BLAIR TOOK OVER WE HAVE BEEN JUST ANOTHER STATE IN THE US - ALSO REMEMBER THAT "OUR FRIEND" DAVID CAMERON HAS JUST RECENTLY GONE TO THE US TO MEET GEORGE BUSH - he is not to be trusted

Dead Peasants Insurance

Taken from: Dude, Where's My Country by Michael Moore


Are you aware that your company may have taken a life insurance policy out on you? Oh how nice of them, you say? yeah, here's how nice it is:

During the past twenty years, companies including, Disney, Nestle, Procter & Gamble, Dow Chemical, JP Morgan Chase, and Wal Mart have been secretly taking out life insurance policies on their low- and mid-level employees and then naming themselves - the Corporation - as the benificiary!!! Thats right ; When you die, the company -not your survivors- get to cash in. If you die on the job, all the better, as most life insurance policies are geared to pay out more when someone dies young. And if you live to a ripe old age, even long after you've left the company, the company still gets to collect on your death. The money does not goto your grieving relatives through hard times or to pay for the funeral or burial; it goes to the corporate executives. and regardless of when you croak, the company is able to borrow against the policy and deduct the interest from its corporate taxes.
Many of these companies have set up a system for the money to go pay for executive bonuses, cars , homes , trips to the Caribbean. your death goes to helping make your boss a very happy man sitting in his jacuzzi on St Barts.
And what do the Corporations call this special form of life insurance?

Dead Peasants Insurance

That's right. "Dead Peasants." Because thats what you are to them - peasants. And you are sometimes worth more to them dead than alive. (It's also sometimes referred to as "Dead Janitors" insurance.)

When I read about this in The Wall Street Journal last year (2002), I thought I had picked up one of those parody versions of that newspaper. But, no, this was the real deal , and the writers , Ellen Shultz and Theo Francis, told some heartbreaking stories of employees who died and whose families could have used the money.

They wrote of a man who died at twenty-nine of complications of AIDS, who had no life insurance of his own. His family received no death benefits , but CM Holdings, the parent company of the music store where he worked, collected $339,302 at his death.

Another CM Holdings policy was taken out on an administrative assistant who earned $21,000 a year, who died from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease). According to the Journal Story, the company turned down a request by her grown children, who cared for her during her illness, to help buy her a $5000 wheelchair so they could take their mother to church. When the woman died in 1998 the company recieved a payout of $180,000.

Some of the companies - Wal Mart among them- have stopped the practice, but for now the policies continue at many companies. Is your company one of them? You might want to find out. It's good to know that , after you die, your corpse could in fact mean a new Porche for the chairman.

Philippines: Military Coup averted as Rebels surrender to troops

Rebel officers standing trial for a failed 2003 Coup and a few dozen loyal soldiers to their cause against the present Philippine Government were arrested after taking over a Manila Hotel. The Coup leaders comprised of an ex army colonel, a priest and an ex bishop amongst others. One would think a hotel is a pretty bad place to stage a coup, for one hotels are not normally fortified and service is terrible .

Rebels surrender after troops storm Manila hotel

Last Updated: Thursday, November 29, 2007 | 7:41 AM ET

CBC News

Renegade Philippine soldiers who occupied a luxury hotel in Manila Thursday surrendered and were arrested shortly after heavily armed troops wearing gas masks stormed the lobby.

Government soldiers prepare for an assault at the Peninsula hotel in Manila on Thursday after several military officers stormed out of their coup trial and took over the facility.Government soldiers prepare for an assault at the Peninsula hotel in Manila on Thursday after several military officers stormed out of their coup trial and took over the facility.

The rebel soldiers, who stand accused of a failed mutiny in 2003, occupied the Peninsula hotel earlier in the day after breaking out of court where they were on trial.

"We are going off for the sake of the safety of everybody," Senator Antonio Trillanes said during a chaotic news conference from within the hotel shortly before he and about three dozen of his comrades were brought out in small groups with their hands bound.

"We cannot live with our conscience if some of you got hurt or killed in the crossfire," he said.

"Like soldiers we are going to face this."

Less than an hour earlier, live television footage showed dozens of troops following an armoured vehicle into the lobby of the hotel amid the sound of automatic gunfire and sight of tear gas.

The soldiers occupying the hotel had called on their fellow troops to withdraw their support for Filipino President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who has been mired in corruption scandals in recent months.

"It's tantamount to treason if we don't do something," Trillanes said. "It's a moral obligation.

The BBC reported all guests from the hotel were removed before the raid, but many journalists blatantly defied a government order to leave the facility.

There is no word yet on any casualties. A Catholic priest inside the hotel with the rebels said they did not fire their weapons.

The bizarre incident is not the first crisis involving Arroyo and dissident military forces

In 2006, Arroyo declared a state of national emergency, saying the country faced a "clear threat" from treasonous forces.

In 2003, Arroyo ordered the military to arrest nearly 300 soldiers suspected of planning a coup against the government. The soldiers, which included 70 army and navy officers, surrendered after taking over a shopping complex and rigging it with explosives.

Forecaster Predicts "Mother of All Storms in The UK week before Christmas"

TAKEN FROM THE DAILY STAR Nov 20th 2007

BRITAIN is braced for the "mother of all storms" this Christmas.
the extreme weather is set to cause travel chaos, disrupting the festive seasion.

The Christmas Catastrophe will see powerful gales and driving rain cause havoc over the holiday period.

Forecaster Piers Corbyn said : "There will be a major week-long damaging stormy spell affecting all parts of the country in the lead up to Christmas".

The Weather Action expert said it was set to be " A MOTHER OF STORMS, WHICH COVERS ALL PARTS OF THE COUNTRY"


NB - I have now looked in to Piers Corbyn and you'll be pleased to know that he isnt a mainstream weather forecaster - he also predicted that we'd all be dead 10 years ago , but according to Wikipedia he is known to be up to 70 % accurate - So who Knows?

What I do know is that if a hurricane hits The East Coast of England the storm surge could flood central London so if you're in London when they evacuate Great Yarmouth again be warned it could be coming straight for us!

To see what the damage to the Uk would be if a storm surge of 7m - 14m would do click on this link Flood Maps - if a hurricane hit as in the film "Flood" the storm sturge could be up to 40m high





MOTHER OF STORMS BY JOHN BARNES


Just in time for hurricane season, John Barnes brings us science fiction for meteorologists. Mother of Storms will probably be labelled as "a chilling ecological thriller!" but it's much more than that. A military--excuse me, peacekeeping--strike by the UN causes sudden, rapid global warming, which results in the birth of a superhurricane of unprecedented size, strength, and longevity. This storm spawns a number of daughter storms, which proceed to rampage around the planet, doing a pretty good job of bringing civilization to its knees. This book has flood, pestilence, and war; there's famine too, but it's mostly offstage. There's death and destruction of incomprehensible magnitude. Nations and coastlines crumble.

This is a test video

New year Fireworks London 2005 - A Good Xmas Present

See more and buy at:

First Pictures of Phillipines

The Slums In Manila (Taken from the train)

The Bhutto Assasination & The Pakistani Secret Services

Scores dead in Bhutto assassination attempt

Posted Fri Oct 19, 2007 5:44am AEST
Updated Fri Oct 19, 2007 11:24am AEST

A suspected suicide bomber has killed 115 people in an attack targeting former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto as she was driven through Karachi on her return from eight years in exile.

Officials said Ms Bhutto was unhurt after one of the deadliest attacks in her country's history, having left the truck that had been transporting her through streets crowded with hundreds of thousands of wellwishers.

"Ms Bhutto is safe and she has been taken to her residence," said Azhar Farooqui, a senior police officer in Karachi, after two explosions in quick succession rocked Bhutto's motorcade.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. Militants linked to Al Qaeda, angered by Ms Bhutto's support for the United States war on terrorism, had earlier this week threatened to assassinate her.

Dr Ejaz Ahmed, a police surgeon, told Reuters that 80 dead had been brought to three hospitals of the city. A Reuters reporter counted 35 bodies in another hospital.

Hospital officials said more than 200 people were wounded.

Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao said many of the casualties were police officers travelling in two of the vans that formed part of Bhutto's security detail.

Reuters photographer Athar Hussain was slightly wounded.

He described "a ball of fire" bursting into the air and disappearing after the first blast. Mr Hussain and another photographer on a truck following Ms Bhutto's vehicle then rushed towards the site of the first blast.

"There was another blast and it was more powerful, then I knew it was a bomb attack."

He saw a television cameraman running in front of him killed.

"Bodies were scattered all over and wounded were crying for help. No one went near the bodies out of fear that there could be another blast," Mr Hussain said.

Rescuers scrambled to drag bodies from the twisted wreckage of blazing vehicles as flames lit up the night sky after two apparent explosions in Pakistan's most violent city.

"The blasts hit two police vehicles which were escorting the truck carrying Ms Bhutto. The target was the truck," Mr Farooqui told Reuters.

Rehman Malik, an aide to Ms Bhutto who was travelling with her on the truck, said the blasts went off while she was resting inside the vehicle.

Ms Bhutto herself seemed to expect some kind of attempt on her life as she set off on the last leg of her journey back to Pakistan on Thursday.

"They might try to assassinate me. I have prepared my family and my loved ones for any possibility," she told the pan-Arab Asharq al-Awsat newspaper.

Attack condemned

President Pervez Musharraf, in a statement issued by the state run news agency, said the attack represented "a conspiracy against democracy".

In Washington, the White House condemned the attack.

"The United States condemns the violent attack in Pakistan and mourns the loss of innocent life there," Gordon Johndroe, White House National Security Council spokesman said.

"Extremists will not be allowed to stop Pakistanis from selecting their representatives through an open and democratic process."

French President Nicolas Sarkozy urged Pakistani authorities to guarantee the security of politicians in the run up to elections.

Speaking from Dubai, Ms Bhutto's husband Asif Ali Zardari told ARYONE World Television: "I blame government for these blasts. It is the work of the intelligence agencies."

Intelligence reports suggested at least three jihadi groups linked to Al Qaeda and the Taliban were plotting suicide attacks, according to a provincial official.

Some 20,000 security personnel had been deployed to provide protection for the returning Ms Bhutto.

"She has an agreement with America. We will carry out attacks on Benazir Bhutto as we did on General Pervez Musharraf," Haji Omar, a Taliban commander in the Waziristan tribal region on the Afghan border, told Reuters by satellite telephone as Ms Bhutto headed for Pakistan.

Ms Bhutto, 54, had returned from self-imposed exile to lead her Pakistan People's Party into national elections meant to return the country to civilian rule.

For years Ms Bhutto had vowed to return to Pakistan to end military dictatorship, yet she came back as a potential ally for General Musharraf, the army chief who took power in a 1999 coup.

The United States is believed to have quietly encouraged their alliance to keep nuclear-armed Pakistan pro-Western and committed to fighting Al Qaeda and supporting NATO's efforts to stabilise Afghanistan.

Dressed in a green kameez, a loose tunic, her head covered by a white scarf, Ms Bhutto had earlier stood in plain view on top of her truck, ignoring police advice to stay behind its bullet proof glass, as it edged through crowds waving the red, black and green tricolour of her Pakistan People's Party (PPP).

Even before Friday's attack, Ms Bhutto's family history has been steeped in violence.

Her father, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Pakistan's first popularly elected prime minister, was overthrown and hanged, while her two brothers were killed in mysterious circumstances, one gunned down in Karachi, the other found dead in a French Riviera hotel.







Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence [ISI]

The Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence [ISI] was founded in 1948 by a British army officer, Maj Gen R Cawthome, then Deputy Chief of Staff in Pakistan Army. Field Marshal Ayub Khan, the president of Pakistan in the 1950s, expanded the role of ISI in safeguarding Pakistan's interests, monitoring opposition politicians, and sustaining military rule in Pakistan.

The ISI is tasked with collection of foreign and domestic intelligence; co-ordination of intelligence functions of the three military services; surveillance over its cadre, foreigners, the media, politically active segments of Pakistani society, diplomats of other countries accredited to Pakistan and Pakistani diplomats serving outside the country; the interception and monitoring of communications; and the conduct of covert offensive operations.

CDirectorate for Inter-Services Intelligence [ISI]

The Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence [ISI] was founded in 1948 by a British army officer, Maj Gen R Cawthome, then Deputy Chief of Staff in Pakistan Army. Field Marshal Ayub Khan, the president of Pakistan in the 1950s, expanded the role of ISI in safeguarding Pakistan's interests, monitoring opposition politicians, and sustaining military rule in Pakistan.

The ISI is tasked with collection of foreign and domestic intelligence; co-ordination of intelligence functions of the three military services; surveillance over its cadre, foreigners, the media, politically active segments of Pakistani society, diplomats of other countries accredited to Pakistan and Pakistani diplomats serving outside the country; the interception and monitoring of communications; and the conduct of covert offensive operations.

Critics of the ISI say that it has become a state within a state, answerable neither to the leadership of the army, nor to the President or the Prime Minister. The result is there has been no real supervision of the ISI, and corruption, narcotics, and big money have all come into play, further complicating the political scenario. Drug money was used by ISI to finance not only the Afghanistan war, but also the ongoing proxy war against India in Kashmir and Northeast India.

Pakistan's military leader, General Pervez Musharraf, has attempted to rein in the ISI. Since September 11th, Islamic fundamentalists have been purged from leadership positions. This includes then-ISI head Lieutenant General Mahmood Ahmed, who was replaced in October 2001 by Lieutenant General Ehsanul Haq.

Additional reforms of the ISI have been made. Most notable was the decision to disband the Kashmir and Afghanistan units. Both these groups have promoted Islamic fundamentalist militancy throughout South Asia. Some officials have been forced to retire and others have been transferred back to the military. Intelligence experts have estimated that these moves would slash the size of the ISI by close to 40%.

Trailers From Hell

Trailers From Hell showcases classic Previews of forthcoming films punctuated with humourous commentary by iconic genre filmakers

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Sir Ian Blair facing 'no confidence' vote

Britain's most senior policeman may face a vote of no confidence as calls mounted for him to resign today.

An emergency meeting of the Metropolitan Police Authority, the force's watchdog, has been called and is expected to take place on Monday.

There was anger amongst the committee after the MPA chairman Len Duvall issued a statement last night stating that Sir Ian had the "full support" of the body without consulting members.

At least four members of the group have publicly declared Sir Ian should resign and as many as 10 of the 23 members are said to be lining up to vote against him or abstain.

On Wednesday Sir Ian will face questions from the full London Assembly at City Hall.


The Independent Police Complaints Commission is also expected to publish its much-anticipated report into what happened on July 22, the day Mr de Menezes was shot dead.

It has been withheld pending the outcome of court proceedings. It will be critical of Sir Ian for his attempts to keep independent investigators away from Stockwell tube station in the immediate aftermath of the shooting.

Former senior Met policeman Brian Paddick has said that Sir Ian should await the results of the IPCC report before making a decision.

"There is still a lot of evidence to come out," he said.

Any decision on the Commissioner's future lies with Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, who today publicly defended Sir Ian, along with Prime Minister Gordon Brown.



"I don't think he should resign" she said. "I have confidence in Sir Ian Blair."

Yesterday Sir Ian, who was at the Old Bailey to hear a jury convict his force on health and safety charges, expressed his "deep regret" but said the case showed no evidence of systematic failure by the force.

The Met was fined £175,000 and ordered to pay £385,000 costs after being convicted of exposing the public to risk under health and safety legislation.

After the verdict, the family and friends of Mr de Menezes also called for officers to resign.

His mother Maria said : "Sir Ian should think about what his men have done to my son and consider resigning."





Mr de Menezes, 27, an electrician, was shot by firearms officers at Stockwell Underground station.

The court heard how there were a "catastrophic" series of blunders which led to surveillance and firearms teams believing they were on the trail of a suicide bomber.

The shooting on 22 July 2005 took place a day after four suicide bombers tried to attack London and went on the run when their devices failed.

Ken Livingstone, the mayor of London, has leapt to the defence of Sir Ian, agreeing with the Commissioner's own judgement that there were no grounds for resignation because the judge had accepted the failings were a one off.

The commissioner is an "incredibly talented officer" and has the full support of the force, Mr Livingstone said.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme he criticised as "disastrous" the findings of the court, claiming it could make stopping suicide bombers more difficult.

"At the end of the day, mistakes are always going to happen in wars or situations like this. The best you can do is try and make the potential for risk the minimum possible but there will be mistakes.

"Every time Ian Blair has appeared [he has said] we're absolutely terribly sorry, we apologise for what happened. But in this sort of fast-moving situation someone must make the instantaneous decision: is that a terrorist and are they reaching to trigger the bomb?"




In this morning's version of the Metro Newspaper it stated that the Police Fine would go back into Police coffers which if true seems to make the whole thing a bit of a farce if you ask me!!

Operation FireFox

Win a Mac Book or Nitendo Wiis Goto Operation Firefox for more info!!!

Diana inquest:

A motorcyclist swerved to avoid the car crash which killed Diana, Princess of Wales and quickly left the scene without stopping, the inquest into her death was told on Monday.
# Princess Diana: Full coverage of the inquest into her death

A motorist who was driving in the opposite direction at the time said the motorbike "emerged from the smoke" coming from the crashed Mercedes immediately after the impact.

Diana crash wreckage
The inquest judge has released several photos of the crash scene

The jury has been told it must decide whether there is any truth in conspiracy theories surrounding Diana's death, including the suggestion that the crash was arranged by MI6 officers who used an anti-personnel flash gun to blind Henri Paul, who was driving the car.

The inquest at the Royal Courts of Justice in London was not told whether the unnamed motorcyclist has ever been traced. Other witnesses have told the jury of a "major flash" in the tunnel immediately before the crash and of up to four motorcyclists who appeared to be riding just feet away from the Mercedes.

Grigori Rassinier, whose statement was read to the jury, said that as he entered the Alma tunnel in Paris on August 31, 1997, he saw the Mercedes "juddering" as if still coming to a standstill after smashing into a pillar in the central reservation.

"I heard a hooter followed by the sound of braking and then saw a motorbike emerge from the smoke," he said. "It swerved as if it were avoiding the crashed car. The motorcycle left very quickly after having executed the swerve. It seems improbable that the motorbike stopped before setting off again."

He believed the motorbike, ridden by someone dressed in beige and with no passenger, had been following the Mercedes closely but not so closely as to be involved in the accident.

Mr Rassinier added that he had caught a glimpse of a woman who proved to be Princess Diana as he passed the wrecked car.
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"The interior light of the crashed car was on," he said. "As a result I could see two heads in the back of the car. I noticed that the rear right hand passenger was a woman. She had her hand raised and was crushed against the front seat."

Another witness recalled seeing a man in a suit calmly walking out of the tunnel talking on a mobile phone moments after the crash.

Sarah Culpepper, who was on a weekend trip to Paris, was walking along the banks of the River Seine with a friend when she heard a "massive crash" in the underpass.

She ran to see what had happened, and looked over a wall overlooking the exit to see a dark stationary car and a man in his early 40s, with slightly receding hair and wearing a dark suit with a blue shirt and tie, leaving the tunnel.

"I jumped to the conclusion that someone was trying to get reception to call an ambulance," she said.

Ian Croxford QC, counsel for the Ritz Hotel, which employed Mr Paul, said: "He appeared, as you watched him, did he, to be walking in a perfectly normal confident manner... and in watching his demeanour, the way he carried himself, he appeared to be acting in a perfectly normal or professional way?"

Miss Culpepper said: "Yes... he dealt with it extremely well... I presumed he was calm and confident."

Two investigations into the crash, in which Mr Paul and Diana's boyfriend Dodi Fayed also died, concluded that it was caused by Mr Paul driving excessively fast whilst being more than three times over the French drink-drive limit.

Mohamed Fayed, father of Dodi, believes Diana and his son were assassinated on the orders of Prince Philip to prevent them marrying and having a child together.

The inquest continues.

Key points: Cash-for-honours hearing

Here are the main points as MPs grill the police officer who led the cash-for-honours inquiry and the senior prosecutor who decided not to bring charges:

#
Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner John Yates began by thanking the MPs on the Public Administration Committee for suspending their own inquiry into cash-for-honours in order that the police investigation could be carried out.

#
In opening remarks he said it would be "wholly improper" to level personal accusations against those who do not have right of reply and said it would not be fair to reveal "personal or sensitive" evidence, saying the police have to maintain confidence.

#
He said a full report was being prepared for November for the Metropolitan Police Authority.

#
Carmen Dowd, the head of the CPS's Special Crime Division, also noted in her opening remarks that there were "inevitably limits" to what can be said.

#
She said the nature of the evidence and information gathered and details of the decision making process would not be supplied, in order to maintain confidence in the independence and impartiality of the CPS.

#
And she said all individuals connected to the case were entitled to the "presumption of innocence".

#
Committee chairman Tony Wright said the committee had agreed to a "short pause" in its inquiry and said when Mr Yates had met the committee in July last year he thought it would be "wrapped up by October", or as early as mid-September - but it in fact had gone on for a year. He asked Mr Yates why he had been so confident the probe would be finished so quickly.

#
Mr Yates said he had begun the investigation in the "spirit of cooperation" and many people "had cooperated in full".

#
But he said there were instances when they received less than full cooperation. "I think there was a sense that we would ask questions, get some answers and simply go away. That is not how police investigations work".

#
He said if they did not get a proper answer, they would go back and ask again until they got one.

#
He said it was only in January 2007 that they finally discovered how the relevant honours list had been put together. "I do think, on reflection and in hindsight we were treated as a political problem rather than a criminal problem."

# He would not say who had not cooperated, but listed those which had, saying: "The Cabinet Office co-operated in full throughout, some of the parties cooperated in full throughout in my view, some did not. "

#
Asked if anyone had told him Tony Blair might have to resign as prime minister if he had been interviewed under caution, he said: "I would expect anybody looking after the interests of someone at that level, to set out a range of consequences."

#
He said he felt uncomfortable a number of times during the investigation, which had been subject to immense scrutiny, speculation and some "daft comments" from some MPs.

#
"Yes there was pressure. Improper pressure? No I don't think so, would it have made any difference? No, I think not," he said.

#
He said leaks had been taken very very seriously and the security around the operation had been "very tight".

#
He said the police had worked out that most of what had been written was not by crime reporters but by political reporters.

#
Mr Yates strongly denied briefing journalists, saying the investigation was characterised by a lot of speculation. He said stories about Christopher Evans' diaries and Ruth Turner's note were the only significant pieces of evidence leaked in an improper way and he was confident his team had not been responsible.

#
Mr Yates said he had looked back to what he had written on 31 March last year, after receiving a complaint from the SNP MP Angus MacNeil, and said he had considered the dangers of the police being seen as impartial or used as a political tool.

#
He said he took advice from his own director of legal services and from the director of public prosecutions, but the decision had to rest with the police. He said they had considered the allegations to be "extremely serious".

#
He said the whole process of governance had been strictly adhered to to ensure police did not go on a "fishing expedition into areas we should not have gone".

#
He said he had received more than 20 complaints in this case - not just the lesson from Mr MacNeil and said "you never know what you're going to find" in inquiries.

#
He said if this case was seen as an "aborted police investigation", then 80% of police cases could be described as such.

#
Mr Yates was asked if he had a "cavalier" attitude towards the distress felt by those investigated after he described it as "uncomfortable" for them, he said he had taken an oath to be impartial and independent and had stuck by that.

#
"I'm sorry if it was an ordeal, I expect anybody who is under a police investigation finds it an ordeal, but I did my job," he added.

#
Ms Dowd said if a complaint had been made, a police officer was duty bound to investigate all lines of inquiry but was not out to prove someone's guilt.

#
She said there were lots of pieces of evidence that when put together, could look different from when they were considered separately and it was only when the investigation was completed that they could look at all the pieces of evidence together.

#
Mr Yates was questioned about the necessity for dawn raids and "beating down the door" in a case of this type, by Tory MP Charles Walker.

#
Mr Yates said if, generically speaking, someone is investigated with an ongoing conspiracy to pervert the course of justice, "what you don't do" is put the person investigated "on notice" or tell that person to turn up at the police station with the necessary papers.

#
He also said they had not "beaten down the door" during this investigation.

#
Mr Yates said a 6am arrest on a high profile person was the "least intrusive" option, arresting someone somewhere private, away from the full glare of publicity.

#
He said there was no evidence the police had leaked evidence to the press of dawn raids, describing it as "absolute nonsense" - he demanded of Mr Walker: "Have you got evidence of that?"

#
Mr Walker suggested a press officer may have leaked the information - Mr Yates said he worked with people he completely trusted to keep the information confidential.

#
Mr Yates said he had been "in discussion" with the CPS throughout the inquiry to double check they were on the "right lines" and to question whether the investigation should stop.

#
Asked whether it would ever be possible to prosecute a case under the 1925 Act, he said the law was "pretty straightforward" but any corruption case was always challenging as bargains made were never meant to come to light. "What we did was our job, which was a thorough and detailed investigation into the facts"

#
He would not say whether he thought at some stage that the police would be able to press charges, Mr Yates said they had "built the case stage by stage on the evidence" and handed it to the CPS to make the final decision.

#
"I may wish I could be judge and juror but that's not my role," he said.

#
Ms Dowd would not answer questions about whether a diary, described a Sunday Times article as "dynamite", had been ruled inadmissible as evidence.

#
"I think it's an inappropriate question in terms of the evidence and the facts of the case and we're going to have to decline to comment," she said.

#
But Mr Yates did say they had raised suspicions when they came across them in early September.

#
Ms Dowd said the nature of an investigation is not only about finding evidence to convict people, but to find evidence to exonerate people as well.

#
She said work between the police and CPS had been exemplary and they had worked closely together from the outset.

#
Asked whether he had spoken to a software company about getting technology that could "resurrect" e-mails - Mr Yates said he was not sure, but he didn't want to comment as it was straying into "evidential areas" and it was not proper to comment on it.

#
David Perry QC, who advises the CPS, said the case had been presented as a "jigsaw" and it was difficult in the early stages to know "exactly what picture you are going to get at the end". He said it would have been "wholly inappropriate" to look at the material in a "piecemeal fashion".

#
He said they had looked throughout at the difficulties created by the structure of the legislation but it was impossible to pre-empt the outcome without first knowing the "shape of the evidence". He said they were "alert to the difficulty" of prosecuting the case.

#
Mr Yates said the lack of consistency and transparency for nominating working peerages meant it was "very difficult" to find a way through it. He said all three parties seemed to have different processes for nominating people in the first place.

#
"It all felt a bit ad hoc in terms of how it gets to Holac" (The House of Lords appointments committee).

#
Mr Yates said the cost of the investigation was a factor in considering a proportional response - saying it was "around £1m" but said three quarters was salary costs. "This was a criminal allegation of the most serious nature which we were duty bound to investigate," he said.

#
Asked if it was "good value for money" - he said "that's for others to judge". He denied it was a "disaster for the police", saying it would have been a disaster if his operational independence had been compromised.

#
He said it was "absolutely proper" that the police should have investigated the case - rather than leaving it to MPs.

#
Asked whether he was concerned that the attorney general had not ruled himself out, he said it was not a matter for him to comment on and was "one for the DPP and the attorney general".

#
On whether it had helped or hindered his career, being involved in the case, Mr Yates said: "I think that's probably for others to judge".

#
Asked to define a commercial loan, Mr Yates said it was an important point, as lending money to a political party should not be a bar to being nominated for a peerage. "At the moment there is no definition of a commercial loan that I know of.. and I think it is a big gap in the law that it is not there".

#
Ms Dowd said the Electoral Commission had not been in a position to define what a commercial loan looked like.

#
Chairman Tony Wright asked Mr Yates straight whether he had discovered there was a "trade in peerages".

#
Mr Yates replied: "I think chair, I've done my job, I followed the evidence, I provided that evidence to the CPS and they made their decision. I don't think I should comment further than that."

#
Asked whether he had anything else to add he said he supported Sir Hayden Phillips's call for a stronger regulatory role for the Electoral Commission.

Mall Blast In Philippines Kills 8

John Concepcion - AHN News Writer

Makati City, Philippines (AHN) - An explosion rocked a mall located in the heart of the Philippines' financial district Friday, leaving eight people dead and scores injured.

Around 90 people, mostly children, have been taken to two hospitals in Makati City after the afternoon blast at the posh Glorietta 2 shopping Mall located along Ayala Avenue, the heart of Makati City's business district.

According to authorities, the explosion occurred at around 1:30 p.m. Manila time, which was earlier traced to a liquefied petroleum gas tank. However, the police are now considering the angle that what exploded was a bomb.

Initial investigation showed that the explosion occurred in the Luk Yuen Noodle House at the first level of the shopping mall, according to Police Director Geary Barias, chief of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO).

However, other witness accounts say the bridge way which connects the Mall to another shopping mall sustained heavy damage.

Up until press time, search and rescue operations have been launched as some people may still be buried under the rubble where the explosion occurred.

One of the hospitals where the fatalities and the injured were taken is the Makati Medical Center, which now houses some 42 people injured from the blast.

Alfie Reyes, a spokesman of mall owner Ayala Land, said, "We will extend assistance to all of the victims and if any of their families wish to reach out to us we will do so (and help them)."

In a press conference, police chief Avelino Razon said the explosion in the mall was "probably caused by a bomb" and not a gas leak as earlier reported.

He said, "This was a bomb. But beyond that we can't say anything else yet because we are still investigating. What I can say is it was not LPG that caused this."

He also said there is still no proof that the explosion was a terror attack.

The city and the international airport is now under a general alert.

President Gloria Arroyo was reportedly on her way to the hospitals to check on those injured.


Just spoke to my girlfriend in the Phils and shes says there are rumours that the president is behind the bombing as she is trying to bring about martial law

China's Olympic Lie

IT'S a rare Olympics that passes by without a whiff of scandal or corruption, tarnishing the golden image once again.

When it won the Olympic bid, China promised to improve its human rights record. Instead, as reporter Aidan Hartley discovers, things have got worse.

In a radical urban redevelopment scheme, Beijing is being remodelled into a shiny new Olympic city. But as old neighbourhoods are demolished, up to 1.5 million people have been forcibly evicted from their homes.

Those who dare to protest often find themselves locked up without charge or trial in one of Beijing's black jails. The authorities deny these jails exist, but, in a world exclusive, Unreported World films inside one of them

In fact, the documentary-makers see more of the prisons than they intended when a dozen guards attack them, smash their camera and detain them for six hours.

Not there yet but it should soon be on Unreported World soon...

Burma: Thousands dead in massacre of the monks dumped in the jungle

A Swedish diplomat who visited Burma during the protests said last night that in her opinion the revolution has failed.

Liselotte Agerlid, who is now in Thailand, said that the Burmese people now face possibly decades of repression. "The Burma revolt is over," she added.

"The military regime won and a new generation has been violently repressed and violently denied democracy. The people in the street were young people, monks and civilians who were not participating during the 1988 revolt.

"Now the military has cracked down the revolt, and the result may very well be that the regime will enjoy another 20 years of silence, ruling by fear."

Mrs Agerlid said Rangoon is heavily guarded by soldiers.

"There are extremely high numbers of soldiers in Rangoon's streets," she added. "Anyone can see it is absolutely impossible for any demonstration to gather, or for anyone to do anything.

"People are scared and the general assessment is that the fight is over. We were informed from one of the largest embassies in Burma that 40 monks in the Insein prison were beaten to death today and subsequently burned."

The diplomat also said that three monasteries were raided yesterday afternoon and are now totally abandoned.

At his border hideout last night, 42-year-old Mr Win said he hopes to cross into Thailand and seek asylum at the Norwegian Embassy.

The 42-year-old chief of military intelligence in Rangoon's northern region, added: "I decided to desert when I was ordered to raid two monasteries and force several hundred monks onto trucks.

"They were to be killed and their bodies dumped deep inside the jungle. I refused to participate in this."

With his teenage son, he made his escape from Rangoon, leaving behind his wife and two other sons.

He had no fears for their safety because his brother is a powerful general who, he believes, will defend the family.

Mass Demonstration In Burma

The Real Football Factories

GOOD OLD BRITNEY!!!

Asteroid Apophis: Dealing with Earth's Future Troublemaker

BOULDER, Colorado - The potential for a newly discovered asteroid smacking into the Earth in 2036 cannot be discounted. NASA has sketched out a response strategy in the outside possibility that the space rock becomes a true threat.


NASA's action plan was the result of prodding by a group of astronauts, scientists and other technical specialists uneasy about the current lack of action to protect the Earth from the impact of near Earth objects (NEOs).

The object was found last year through the efforts of NASA's Spaceguard Survey. In 1998 NASA formally initiated the Spaceguard Survey by adopting the objective of finding 90 percent of the near Earth asteroids larger than 3,280 feet (one kilometer) diameter within the next decade - before the end of 2008.

Asteroid 99942 Apophis - first labeled as 2004 MN4 -- is estimated to be roughly 1,000 feet (320 meters) in diameter. Were it to strike Earth, it would not set off global havoc but would generate significant local or regional damage, experts say.

Worrisome to asteroid watchers is the exceptionally close flyby of Earth by Apophis on April 13, 2029. So close in fact, the space rock will be naked-eye visible as it darts by. And what can't be ruled out at this time is that Apophis may pass through a gravitational "keyhole" - a spot that alters the asteroid's trajectory as it zips by our planet and might put it on the bee-line lane for banging into Earth seven years later.

Issue of critical importance

Concern over asteroid Apophis and the ability to precisely chart its trajectory -- and take steps if needed to deflect the object -- were fervently voiced by the B612 Foundation, chaired by Russell Schweickart, a former Apollo astronaut.

The group requested that NASA carry out an analysis that included the possibility of placing an active radio transponder on the object. Doing so at a fairly early date would yield the requisite orbital accuracy of the asteroid as it sped through space.

In a June 6 letter to NASA Administrator, Michael Griffin, Schweickart on behalf of the B612 Foundation called for support in "resolving an issue of critical importance" - namely whether a scientific mission should be launched to asteroid Apophis in the near term.

Such a probe, if dispatched, Schweickart stated, would provide knowledge of the asteroid's orbit in time to initiate a deflection mission in the unlikely event one should be required. The position of the B612 Foundation was that the mission should be staged, pointing out that NASA's NEO program personnel apparently did not concur with that view. A spacecraft mission to Apophis would augment tracking of the object from the ground, the letter to Griffin explained, and also carry out a number of scientific duties too.

NASA response

NASA provided a formal response to the B612 Foundation's June communique via an October 12 letter from Mary Cleave, Associate Administrator for Science Mission Directorate.

That NASA reply came with an appended detailed analysis by Steven Chesley of NASA'S NEO Program Office at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. The study by Chesley dug into Apophis' orbit, under varying conditions, and contained other items pertaining to the space agency's findings about the Apophis matter.

"The key conclusion to be taken from this analysis," Cleave explained in the letter, "is that aggressive (i.e., more expensive) action can reasonably be delayed until after the 2013 observing opportunity. For Apophis, the 16 years available after 2013 are sufficient to recognize and respond to any hazard that still exists after that time."

Cleave noted in the letter that while Apophis "is an object whose motion we will continue to monitor closely in the coming years, we conclude a space mission to this object based solely on any perceived collision hazard is not warranted at this time."

Not ruled out by Cleave, however, is the prospect of Discovery-class, low-cost missions sent to Apophis, "based on purely scientific arguments," she said.

"Indeed, the asteroid's orbit is particularly attractive for spacecraft rendezvous, and the extraordinary close encounter in April 2029 provides a unique opportunity to investigate a number of scientific NEO issues," Cleave explained in the letter.

Pinpointing the object's whereabouts

While Schweickart said that the NASA response to the B612 Foundation's concern is a step forward, there are other issues still to be resolved.

One matter involves radar tracking of Apophis.

On one hand, radar plays a crucial role in being able to rationally determine the future likelihood of a NEO impact and potentially in planning for a deflection mission when required.

Yet the availability of NEO radar tracking, and the budgets to support this work in the future is highly uncertain, even precarious, Schweickart and the B612 Foundation emphasize. Radar hits of Apophis at each opportunity through 2021 are important to keep watch of the object's whereabouts.

"Tracking these asteroids once you know they exist and pinning down their orbits is really not science," Schweickart told SPACE.com. "This is public safety. It's disaster preparedness."

Begging time and bumming bucks

When Apophis swings by Earth, Schweickart said the asteroid will likely change its orbit. Also, its spin characteristics may be altered. Due to Earth's gravity tugging on the object, "asteroid quakes" could reshape Apophis, he said.

Moreover, still far from resolution is a "who's in charge" proclamation about troublemaking NEOs, Schweickart said.

"It would be great if we had NASA doing this as a regular process. Unfortunately, the mindset that's essentially required by their budget is to think about discovery, not to think about the potential need for deflection," Schweickart added. "Until your mindset is oriented that way, you're going to miss things."

Until an agency is identified that is responsible for all of this, Schweickart cautioned, everybody is "begging time and bumming bucks" from some other program. "This whole thing is sort of in a precarious position until somebody gets around to assigning agency responsibility," he said.

Japan's Hayabusa Asteroid

Regarding the skill required to deposit a transponder on Apophis, Schweickart saluted Japan's Hayabusa asteroid sample-return mission, now in progress.

That craft is scheduled to make two landings on its target asteroid - Itokawa -- later this month. The mission is geared to haul back samples of the object to Earth.

Scientists at Japan's Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS) are working day-by-day issues in readying the probe for contact with the asteroid, including release of a mini-robot onto Itokawa that will move about and survey its rocky surroundings. ISAS is a research arm of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

"It's an impressive mission," Schweickart said, sure to yield operational experience and lessons learned on how best to execute duties on asteroid Apophis.

Global preparedness

The ruin stemming from asteroid Apophis colliding with Earth would potentially be very great.

Indeed, the consequences, Schweickart suggested, would dwarf those seen as a result of the Indian Ocean tsunami in December 2004, hurricanes Katrina and Rita in September of this year, and the Pakistan earthquake last month.

In regards to global preparedness in handling these unusually devastating events of late, "it's basically out of sight...out of mind," Schweickart said. "That's the real challenge for society. The things that you don't know about are one thing. But the things that you do know about, and don't do something about...those are the ones that are really tough."

Refine the impact probability

Fully concurring with NASA's response is Alan Harris, a senior research scientist and asteroid expert for the Space Science Institute headquartered here.

Harris noted, as has been underscored by the B612 Foundation, that if Apophis is indeed on an impact trajectory, then ground-based radar observations will not be able to refine the impact probability to greater than 20 percent. "That is, we would still not know better than one-chance-in-five whether the impact would really occur or not," he told SPACE.com.

"We really would need a transponder to improve tracking enough to firmly establish that an impact would occur," Harris said.

What has been overlooked, or at best under-emphasized, Harris added, is a point raised in the NASA response. Ground-only tracking has a 99.8 percent chance of eliminating any chance at all of an impact. Thus, there is only one-chance-in-500 that ground-based tracking will fail to resolve the issue in favor of no impact. "For this reason I think the NASA conclusion is entirely sensible," he said.

Wait and see strategy

Harris said that there are Apophis observing opportunities every 6-8 years, with each one having about a 90 percent chance of eliminating any possible impact. At each of these "shoulder" times, he said, one can re-evaluate the "wait and see" strategy if the impact possibility does not go away.

"Certainly it seems appropriate to play the 'wait and see' game until after the 2013 observing opportunity," Harris stated. None of this diminishes the opening that Apophis presents for purely scientific investigations, which could incidentally contribute to the NEO hazard issue, he said.

Harris said that he would not recommend a "deep impact" type of scientific mission, "lest we have the misfortune to deflect it into a keyhole, but other than that, Apophis is a very attractive mission target."

A coming of age

Asteroid Apophis, and the discussions it has sparked are welcomed, observed David Morrison, a space scientist and asteroid specialist at NASA's Ames Research Center, situated in Silicon Valley, California.

"I am pleased that this dialog is taking place," Morrison said. "This is the first time that serious possibilities for dealing with a real but low-probability future impact have been discussed in a technically professional way, rather than receiving the 'Hollywood treatment'".

Morrison said that he considers it remarkable that the Spaceguard Survey has reached the
level of maturity where such an asteroid could not only be found, but its orbit understood well enough to deal with "keyholes" and other subtleties. "Apophis represents for me a symbol of the coming of age of Spaceguard and of asteroid impact studies in general," he said.


The possibility of Apophis hitting Earth on April 13, 2036 is real, Morrison said, even if the probabilities now seem to be very small. "These probabilities represent uncertainties in our knowledge of the orbit, not a failure of the science."

But whether the asteroid will strike Earth or not, Morrison concluded, the challenge is to resolve which case is correct. "With more observations over a longer time span, we will be able to tie this down."