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EU voted down body scanners in 2008: "degrading measure". Concerns: Effective? Health? Dignity? Privacy? Heavy cost?
Craziness is not rare, neither is Crime. Else, there would be no need for law, law enforcement, etc. etc.. Does Fear lead to solutions, or to panic, shutting out common sense and wisdom? EU Justice Chief has the answer: "We have to have a very clear line on this. We must never be driven by fear but by our values."
MEPs not yet convinced about body scanners, await impact analysis: "legitimate questions"... "Technology has become the new religion in counter-terrorism"... "Violation of dignity"... "no matter how much technology you have, terrorists will manage to circumvent it"... "great cost implications" of using body scanners, and advised against "putting burdens on airport companies" (also tax payers?) without the certainty that such scanners would be useful.
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Arctic: pollution on its way. Oil drilling in Chukchi Sea threatens clean air, water, ocean resources & sea life
Shall we protect Nature as it is,
reserve some land, ocean, resources
for coming generations, for our children’s children?
Shall we, or shall we not? In words, or in action?
(quote) Approval of oil drilling in Chukchi Sea fails to include recent science and violates laws that protect clean air, water, and ocean resources. Oceana, together with Arctic communities and other conservation groups filed a legal challenge in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to the Minerals Management Service’s (MMS) approval of Shell Offshore Inc.’s proposed exploration drilling in the Chukchi Sea. The groups argue that MMS and Shell have not complied with federal laws that require thorough analysis of potential impacts and protections for clean air, water, and marine life. read more »
Full-body scanner cannot replace diplomacy but imposes indecency on billions. Law says indecent exposure is crime, doesn't it?
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infowars.com: Friday, January 8, 2010 - The full body scanners that President Obama last night authorized to be rolled out in airports across the country at a cost of over $1 billion dollars not only produce detailed pictures of your genitals, but once inverted some of those images also display your naked body in full living color. Airport screeners will have access to huge high definition images that, once inverted, will allow them to see every minute detail of your body. TV viewers have been misled by blurring of faces and genitals of people in the images. When it comes to the real thing, your sexual organs and those of your children will be on full display to officials sat alone in back rooms, and with a simple inversion trick, your daughter’s naked body in full living high definition color will be there to be enjoyed by screeners. read more »
"Whale Wars 2". To defend ocean life, they stand between 750-ton whale-killing machine with military-class LRADs & its prey
"Whale Wars: Season 2" is coming soon, in the week of Dec. 29. 2009 - "This time they've gone too far".
Don't you think that there must be someone with great courage to stand between 750-ton whale-killing machines & their prey to end Japanese whaling once & for all? Ocean depletion is faster & faster...
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Holidays may well cherish modern Robin Hood, German banker who helped poor from losing homes at cost of her own
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A German bank manager who secretly transferred millions of pounds from rich clients to debt-ridden customers has been spared jail.
The 62-year-old, dubbed the "Robin Hood banker", was found guilty of moving a total of 7.6 million euros (£6.85m) between 2003 and 2005. The bank's rich clients reportedly hadn't touched their accounts in years. She carried out 117 separate transfers to try and stop people's accounts closing due to lack of funds.
As a rule, the banker - whose name was not reported under German media conventions - moved the money back when the indebted clients were solvent again. But 1.1 million euros (£991,000) was lost when certain customers were unable to pay their debts. The banker has begun reimbursing the bank through her pension. read more »
Ocean guardians - Earthrace joins Sea Shepherd to stop whale slaughter. Global community's tried but so far failed
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Ady Gil, formerly Earthrace, joins Sea Shepherd fleet
Thanks to a $1 million donation from its namesake, US multi-millionaire Ady Gil, formerly known as Earthrace, the Ady Gil has become the latest addition to the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society's protest fleet. The Ady Gil will bear down on whalers at 40 knots, blaring Maori-inspired war cries through a 9000W speaker system. "They're going to think 'what the f..k have we got here?' " laughed Ady Gil's skipper Pete Bethune.
"It deflects radar signals, so it's very hard for radar systems to pick us up. It's effectively a stealth boat. Made of carbon, with carbon flecks in the paint you can have a big boat with a 20kW radar 400m away and they won't see you. In the past, the Steve Irwin has only been fast enough to keep up with the processing ship, the Nissan Maru, but not the harpooners. We can keep up with the harpoon vessels.” "The point of conflict will shift to include the harpoon vessels now, so it gives us a chance to stop the whales being harpooned." The boat holds the world record for the fastest circumnavigation of the globe. read more »
On 7 Dec 1787, Delaware became the first of the original 13 US states
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First State
Delaware, constituent state of the United States of America. The first of the original 13 states to ratify the federal Constitution, it occupies a small niche in the Boston–Washington, D.C., urban corridor along the Middle Atlantic seaboard. It ranks 49th among the 50 U.S. states in terms of total area and is one of the most densely populated.
Motto: "Liberty and Independence"
Anthem: "Our Delaware" (words by George B. Hynson and Donn Devine, music by Will M. S. Brown, based on original poem by Hynson)
Verse 4
"From New Castle's rolling meadows,
Through the fair rich fields of Kent,
To the Sussex shores hear echoes,
Of the pledge we now present:
'Liberty and Independence',
We will guard with loyal care,
And hold fast to freedom's presence,
In our home state Delaware."
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Image courtesy Encyclopedia Britannica