They still dont have the votes! If they did, theyd be holding the vote right now tonight (Saturday, as I write this). Im going to make this a short article tonight as my editor is in another time zone, well, several time zones away. The wonders of digital communication and one of the reasons the left is having so much trouble getting away with their bovine back-blast. It just plays hell with deadlines.
The rubber is about to hit the road in DC. It is to be noted that the Capitol Police closed the peoples houses to the people presumably at the behest of the cowardly politicians whose courage matched their honesty. Thousands of American citizens poured into the Capital to protest the totalitarian takeover of our way of life that is being orchestrated in Washington.
The Democrat leadership has dropped the deem and pass maneuver, also known as the Slaughter solution. Lets see What do you want to bet that it was not dropped because of an excess of altruism? They got so hammered by the public, you and I, that they didnt dare use it. It shows you that what were doing is working. They can shut us out of the Congressional office buildings but it wont silence our voices, it will only serve to make us louder and more persistent. read more »
Our free pick for our forum audience will come from a second round game of the NCAA Tournament between the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and Ohio St Buckeyes. They tip off this game on Sunday afternoon at 2:20PM Eastern Time from the Bradley Center in Milwaukee Wisconsin with national television coverage provided by CBS. With our free pick we will play on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets +6 ½ points against the Ohio St Buckeyes.
The Yellow Jackets have played better defense down the stretch and that was the key for the team to get to the finals of the ACC tournament. Georgia Tech is the number 5 ranked defense in all of college basketball allowing just 38.2% shooting from the field. Look for Derrick Favors to be a strong force for the Yellow Jackets in this game. Evan Turner was a no show in the Buckeyes non-point spread covering win against UC Santa Barbara on Friday. Take the points.
Today I had to say goodbye to my sweet kitty Sophie. Sophie was an older cat, probably around 20, I’m not sure. She had only been with me for five years, coming to me after her owner passed away. She was such a tough cookie, fighting kidney failure, feline diabetes, and arthritis. She just kept going and going, and I know she would still be going if her little body hadn’t given out.
This is the first cat that I’ve lost as an adult and I’m just heartbroken. Even though I knew she’d be the first to go, you’re never really prepared to loose one. As you probably can tell, my cats mean the world to me and I cherish every moment I have with them. These little creatures are there every day as part of your life. You build a daily routine with them and when one leaves, there’s a hole.
I know this is what everyone says when someone you love passes away, but this experience is just a reminder to appreciate the time you have with your feline companions. These special little souls are each so unique — they are full of personality and can touch our lives in deep and meaningful ways. Everyone, please go give your kitties a kiss and tell them how much you love them.
Palm oil has become the target of criticism from environmentalists and green activists in recent years. In fact, just this year Nestle, Marks & Spencer's and General Mills have reacted to their use of palm oil, either dropping suppliers who are allegedly non-sustainable suppliers, or else reinforcing their stance against the destruction of primary rain forests and biodiversity hubs in South East Asia.
The controversy surrounding palm oil, a source of agricultural revenue for many South East Asian countries, especially Malaysia and Indonesia, arose recently when a video surfaced on Youtube, parodying Nestle's KitKat advertisement. The video, by Greenpeace, has an office-worker opening a KitKat to “take a break”, but biting into what appears to be an orangutan's finger, rather than a chocolate wafer finger. The video, below, is part of the environmental group's campaign against Nestle's use of palm oil from unsustainable operations in Indonesia.
As what can be seen a result of this video, Nestle has now announced that they will cease buying palm oil from, Sinar Mas, an Indonesian supplier of Palm Oil. Team Orangutan reports:
Considering the amount of palm oil Nestle places in their products, it will be tough for them to get that amount from palm oil plantations that use sustainable practices.
Sustainable palm oil just doesn't exist. The land used for sustainable palm oil is limited. There is no way to supply the demand without destroying the rainforest. That is why we need to encourage companies to find alternative oils. The problem won't stop until companies replace or eliminate palm oil from their products.
While Nestle's decision is a temporary victory, we need to take it as encouragement that we can help change the situation and we can make a difference in our world.
Courtesy of Scott Parker
On a larger scale, Team Orangutan alarmingly states:
Indonesian officials have said they aim to more than double the country's crude palm oil output to 40 million tonnes by 2020 through increased yields and more plantations.
Rainforest destruction in Indonesia make it one of the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases in the world. It also kills hundreds of orangutans every day.
Palm oil is an unnecessary oil. We need to keep educating, and keep making an effort.
We can do this together. Together, we can protect the orangutans from genocide.
Just a year ago, palm oil was on Cloud Nine. It was the toast of the country’s economy. The price of crude palm oil (CPO) breached the RM4,000 mark to touch RM4,312 a tone on March 3, last year. Price stayed above RM3,000 for about seven months, an all-time record.
Palm oil companies were dishing out big fat bonuses for their employees. Many were declaring handsome dividends for their investors. Oil palm smallholders were enjoying lucrative returns. Nobody then thought that palm oil prices would ever drop to unprofitable levels. Most in the industry were convinced that the palm oil price would never again dip below RM2,000 a tone.
That just demonstrated the overwhelming confidence many had in the palm oil industry.
Events of recent weeks have shattered that confidence. On Oct 24, last year, palm oil prices slumped to a low of RM1,390 per tonne, a massive drop from RM4,000.
Perhaps part of this slowdown in the palm oil industry is evidenced by an investigative piece of journalism, by Martin Hickman, entitled ‘The guilty secrets of palm oil: Are you unwittingly contributing to the devastation of the rain forests?’, on how palm oil is destroying virgin rainforest and threatening the survival of the endangered orangutans, among others, in Malaysia and Indonesia being awarded the ‘Environment Story of the Year’ by Foreign Press Association’s Media Awards.
The piece stated:
In its own way, palm oil is a wonder plant. Astonishingly productive, its annual yield is 3.6 tonnes a hectare compared with half a tonne for soy or rapeseed. Originally found in West Africa, palm oil is uniquely “fractionable” when cooked, meaning its properties can be easily separated for different products. Although high in artery-clogging saturated fat, it is healthier than hydrogenated fats. For manufacturers, there is another significant benefit. At £400 a tonne, it is cheaper than soy, rapeseed or sunflower.
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Indonesia is trying to crack down on illegal foresting, but corruption is rife hundreds of miles from Jakarta. Satellite pictures show logging has encroached on 90 per cent of Borneo's national parks – and according to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP): “New estimates suggest 98 per cent of [Indonesia's] forest may be destroyed by 2022, the lowland forest much sooner.”
Considering the multi-use of the plant, palm oil has been a major agricultural focus in the region. Interestingly, Palmoiltruthfoundation provides a counter argument to the above, at least in the context of Malaysia:
Almost all oil palm expansion in Malaysia is pursued through the conversion of existing rubber, cocoa and coconut plantations or from logged over forest areas which have been earmarked for agriculture. Moreover, out of the total land area of 30.2 million hectares, only 6 million hectares have been designated for agriculture under the Third Malaysia Agricultural Plan. Oil palm cultivation falls well within the area zoned for agriculture. Ironically, the area still under forest cover remains at well over 60 %, certainly much higher than that of the developed nations from which all this brouhaha over Orang Utan habitats are originating.
It is about time that the world wakes up to such insidious and deceptive campaigns and that can only be achieved when the world develops the discernment to see through the veil and stop being lembus [cows]. That may be counter-intuitive but the herd instinct can only be overcome through education and clear branding and communication programs. Programs that will, ultimately, expose the lies and half-truths that appear to be the penchant and almost exclusive purview of CSPI and others of their ilk.
In addition, Tan Sri Yusof Basiron Malaysian Palm Oil Council CEO answered several questions on sustainable and green palm oil practices in the Malaysian Star newspaper, responding to a question on forest conservation:
There is legitimate concern over the protection of biodiversity of the jungles and natural forests. This is achieved by setting aside properly designed areas for conservation. It is not necessary to conserve all jungle. Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity decided many years ago that 10% of the world’s forests needed to be reserved to preserve forest biodiversity. In Malaysia, more than 50% of the country has been set aside for that purpose – the average in Europe is 25% – in a commitment we made at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit.
Perhaps one of the biggest concerns about palm oil is the paradox of the destruction of forests by businesses in the palm oil supply chain, on the one hand, and their ‘corporate social responsibility' initiatives, on the other. For example, according to the Rainforest Action Network blog:
General Mills, a company recognized for its CSR [corporate social responsibility] record the very same month that its head of sustainable development refuses to even have a conversation with RAN [Rainforest Action Network] about their palm oil policy, is clearly not that committed to “sustainability.”
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In the world of Corporate Social Responsibility, the past two weeks have been an exciting time for companies like General Mills, receiving awards such as ‘Top Corporate Citizen,’ ranking 47th in the world’s 50 ‘Most Admired Companies’ and 29th on the ‘Diversity List.’ These awards recognize the company’s strong global reputation – at least according to Fortune Magazine and global business leaders.
But what this small group of decision makers doesn’t know is that millions of Indigenous peoples, endangered species and forests are at risk from palm oil expansion in Indonesia – thanks to General Mills.
It doesn't help that certain initiatives to assist in cleaning up the industry are now being accused of a form of ‘greenwashing'. According to the Canadians For Climate Change Action blog:
Environmentalists argue that what began as an initiative to clean up dirty palm oil production practices, the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil has become little more than an NGO-endorsed greenwashing tool. Rebecca Zhou, of Reportage/enviro reports.
The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) was set up by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to involve companies in creating more sustainable ways of producing palm oil. However environmental experts believe that not only is the RSPO ineffective, it has become a way to green wash poor practices.
“The RSPO gives the companies a green front and encourages more consumption, which is precisely the cause of the problem,” said Valerie Phillips, forest campaigner of the Greenpeace branch in Papua New Guinea, one of the three countries most adversely affected by the palm oil industry.
In fact, the Rainforest Portal reports that an open Letter, signed by more than 80 organizations from 31 countries, was delivered in November 2009 to the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), one of the founders of the RSPO. The letter urged the parties to stop ‘greenwashing' and to stop certification of palm oil plantations as being 'sustainable' if they weren't. The portal states:
According to the Open Letter, palm oil companies certified by the RSPO are directly responsible for much social and environmental damage: dislocation of local populations’ livelihoods, destruction of rainforests and peat lands, pollution of soils and water, and contribution to global warming. These are the reasons why “palm oil monoculture[s] are not and can never be sustainable and ‘certification’ serves as a means of perpetuating and expanding this destructive industry”
Aside from these negative developments, more efforts are being made to achieve ‘responsible palm oil'. For example, the Forest Trust (TFT), an international nonprofit body, is defining a responsible palm oil purchasing policy for European retailers. TFT's website states that it is aware of criticisms of the RPSO scheme, and as such it is working to set up a group of food manufacturers with the aim of: establishing monitoring and traceability systems to ensure plantations are complying with strict RSPO requirements; and, providing technical assistance to growers, particularly smallholders achieving RSPO certification.
At the end of the day, however, Peak Oil neatly sums up:
Palm oil plantations play a major role in the growing problems of deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions in Indonesia and tropical woodlands around the world. Last week's gathering of the International Conference on Oil Palm and Environment (ICOPE) is one move toward making the industry part of the solution.
Whether the palm oil industry can, in fact, be part of the solution to deforestation is a proposition that divides palm oil producers, manufacturers, retailers, and, naturally, environmental groups. At one extreme, sustainable palm oil production is considered an oxymoron. The opposite fringe sees critics of palm oil as dupes of a developed-world plot against poor farmers, built on myths of species extinction and climate change, funded by palm's rival oil and fat producers.
Big fan of homebrew emulators? Well here’s the initial version of FluBBa’s PC-Engine TurboGrafx16 emulator for the DS, NitroGrafx. More after the jump.
GM is in favor of legislation from Rep. Gene Green, D-Texas, that would mandate event data recording devices in vehicles, and additional ‘reasonable’ legislation. Though not currently required by law, the devices are standard for certain automakers, including Toyota. Not all Toyota devices record pre- and post-crash data, but by the end of 2010 all ToMoCo vehicles will be equipped with devices that record both.
By 2005, 64% of vehicles came with the devices, including all FoMoCo cars. Chrysler started using the devices in 2005, but GM had been using a predecessor to today’s device in their light-duty trucks since 1995.
“There can be a discrepancy in what a driver claims happened and what (the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) concludes happened. This would mandate equipment that would remove any human emotion or bias to provide much more precise data,” Robert Ferguson, GM’s new VP for government affairs said.
The 661 dealers that GM is extending reinstatement offers to have received letters this week outlining terms of their deals. The dealers will be able to get their franchises back without going through the debocle of an expensive and drawn out battle.
In the letter, GM outlined some basic elements to any franchise agreement, such as lot appearance, advertising spending, and capital requirements. Generally, dealers did not find the letter and requirements unreasonable, but more are expected to come. Dealerships will also have to comply with GM’s Essential Brand Elements (EBE) program, which is a guideline program for showrooms.
There still a vast number of dealers who were not granted reinstatement as pproximately 1,100 dealers slated for closing have filed for arbitration. “We felt like we would be spending a hundred thousand dollars,” one dealer mentioned. “It was a relief because arbitration would take not only a lot of money but a lot of our time, and take the time away from selling cars.”
The #90 BMW M3 GT2 – Click above to watch video after the jump
The last 24 hours have been tough for Dirk Mϋller, one of the drivers of the BMWM3 GT2 in the American Le Mans Series. After setting the fastest GT2 time in qualifying on Friday for today’s 12 Hours of Sebring, his time was disallowed because of an issue with his car during tech inspection. That meant the #90 car was pushed down to the 13th spot on the GT2 grid. To make matters worse, the #90 M3 smacked a wall during the morning warmup and missed the recon laps before the race.
As a result, Mϋller had to start the race from the pits after all the other cars pulled away. He spent the opening laps making his way through the crowd of GT Challenge Porsches before tackling the GT2 field. By the time hour one was over and he came in for the first pit stop, Mϋller was running fourth in GT2. Check out the video after the jump.
“Bring a magnet close to a steel spoon. The magnet pulls the spoon. This pull is called magnetic force.”
Magnets, written by Peter Riley and illustrated by Franklin Watts, is a practical, hands-on book that can teach students the basics about magnets. The images depict young students experimenting with magnets and the text explains exactly what is pictured. A first or second grade student might read this book on his own. All lower elementary students would benefit from the way this book explains magnets. Terms are explained plainly within the text and a glossary is also located in the back.
The book is written with questions for students to ponder throughout the text. The answers are listed in the back of the book. There is a teacher suggestion page in the front and resources listed in the back for continued learning about magnets. Concepts covered include magnetic force, magnetic and non-magnetic materials, and the magnetic poles.
Curriculum Connections
This book introduces students to experiments with magnets. Students can see that magnets have a pull on some objects and not on others (K.3). It briefly mentions some practical uses of magnets. I would use this book as an introduction to magnets and then give the students an opportunity to experiment with magnets.
Harmonix and MTV Games has announced that a four pack of songs from American punk rockers X will headline next weeks Rock Band music Store update. It will also include three singles from British garage rockers Little
2010 is big for Lotus, as the new Evora has it its first full year of production and the legendary marque returns to both Formula One and Indianapolis. On the road car front, the first customer Evora in the United States was delivered to its new owner this week. Bruce Rice of Austin, TX got the keys to his bright red Evora at John Eagle European (also in Austin).
Lotus calls the Evora the world’s only four-seat mid-engined sports car, but those rear seats are really only theoretical. Nonetheless, being fans of the Lotus design philosophy of adding “lightness” we can’t wait for our own stint behind the wheel of Hethel’s first new product in over a decade – especially in a car that’s not as snug as the Exige.
from denverabc, updated 23 March 2010: “Havoc broke out within minutes of Montreal’s 14th annual anti-police brutality march on Monday 15 March, resulting in about one hundred arrests. Arresting large groups, riot police gathered people and cornered them against a wall. The two sides remained in a standoff for over an hour before the protesters were loaded into city buses and carted to a police station in the city’s east end…” more
from meltdown, 20 March 2010: “The politicians for sale at Westminster have no plans for our future. We need to take it into our hands. We don’t see any choice on offer except between bankers, bankers and more bankers, between capitalism, capitalism and more capitalism. We demand an equal and accountable voice for all, but we don’t see any prospect of democratic representation by politicians who are in the pockets of corporate vested interests.
Right now we live under a dictatorship of the rich, a tiny minority hogging the world’s resources, who make all the decisions about the planet and our future to satisfy their greed. It’s time for democracy to dictate back to the rich! So all of us who are fed up and disgusted, cry DEATH TO THE ELECTION! Vote for a hung parliament!” more
from brh, 19 March 2010: “The Bristol Radical History Group Election Special 2010 – Date: Monday 12th April 2010, Venue: The Stag & Hounds, 74 Old Market Street, BS2 0EJ, Time: 7:30pm. Ian Bone relates his experiences of contemporary interventions into the electoral process including ‘The Alarm’, the Swansea based forerunner of ‘The Bristolian’, the legendary anarchist tabloid ‘Class War’ and the ‘Vote Nobody’ campaign of 2001.
Millsy will briefly analyse democracy, is this country for the working classes, and describe what it means for us now. How democratic are society, our political parties, and our organisations?” more
Below is a very breif video of Omnis’s James Rickards talking about Chinese real estate, a subject of endless fascination for those of us who a) just witnessed a horrific real estate crash and b) are trying to get a better grasp on things halfway around the earth.
What makes his comments notable is that they represent what we think is the new conventional wisom: Chinese banks are healthy enough (for now) what you have to fear is the regional governments (which love the bubble because they collect so much revenue form it) and the shadow, unregulated banking system. Sound familiar?
Virtually every driver will, at some point, get that sinking feeling that comes when your car doesn’t start. Digging out a set of jumper cables to boost a battery is a rite of passage. Jump-starting a car can be a slightly tricky process, though. The positive and negative terminals of the booster and “boostee” need to be connected properly or the battery can be blown up. Which is, you know, sub-optimal. Over the past decade, a number of devices have come out to help ease the battery-jumping process, including portable booster batteries and even jumper cables that plug into a 12V outlet inside the car. Those plug-in cables will never be connected with reverse polarity, but they might not be able to carry enough current to actually crank your engine.
Enter the Michelin Smart Jumper Cable. Instead of the usual color-coded clamps for your battery’s positive and negative terminals, the cables are all Michelin blue. Halfway down the cable is a box of electronic smarts. Just put one clamp on the positive terminal of the battery and the other on any piece of bare metal and the electronics will detect whether you’ve made a complete circuit and illuminate an LED on the central box. When the second battery is connected, the electronics automatically determine the polarity and switch it as needed. A set of these smart jumper cables runs about $30 to $40.
Sibal has now rendered a next-generation M5 Touring.
So far we’ve heard that the current V10 in the M5 will be dropped in favor of a direct-injected twin-turbo 4.4L V8 making 570-hp. Mated to a dual-clutch 7-speed transmission, the sixth-generation M5 should go from 0-60 mph in less than 4.5 seconds.
Sketches of three never-before-seen MG vehicles have hit the internet. The sketches show three vehicles that were being developed in 2005 and show a new coupe, redesigned Midget and a new TF Roadster.
Automotive designer Lee Mitchell, who created the three vehicles, said that all models were meant to use the next-generation TF architecture and an updated engine making between 120-180-hp.
Mitchell said that the biggest problem with the cars were the same driving position in the TF would have to be used on the two other vehicles along with financing. He said all three vehicles were to be conceived on the idea of an aluminum-tub.
“For relatively little investment, we would have had an amazing mid-engined platform that cured the packaging problems,” Mitchell said. “There was every intention to take the brand back to the US as MG Rover really needed to find new markets for its products. If new investment comes through, there is no guarantee MG would return to North America.”
Mitchell said he felt that MG was on the way to make history and its “a pity it never came to fruition.”
