WASHINGTON - President Obama's doctors hinted Sunday that he still might be sneaking smokes when Michelle and the kids aren't around to yell at him.
Obama's routine physical at the Bethesda Naval Medical Center found him in "excellent health" and "fit for duty" but the docs also included a cryptic recommendation that he "continue smoking cessation efforts."
Obama should continue his "nicotine replacement therapy - self-use (gum or the patch)," the doctor said.
~ WELL,IT'S BEEN TWO PLUS YEARS NOW - IF HE WON'T DO IT FOR HIS WIFE, IF HE WON'T DO IT FOR HIS TWO BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTERS WHO ARE SAID TO BE ON HIM CONSTANTLY BECAUSE OF IT, IF HE WON'T DO IT FOR EITHER HIS DOCTOR OR ANY OF THE 300 MILLION U.S. CITIZENS WHO CALL HIM COMMANDER IN CHIEF - AND FINALLY, IF HE WILL NOT DO IT FOR HIMSELF - THEN OBVIOUSLY THIS MAN HAS SOME SERIOUSLY SCARY, DEEP AND TRULY DISTURBING ISSUES GOING ON INSIDE HIMSELF. I IMAGINE IT MAY COME, IN PART, FROM KNOWING THAT HE HAS NO REAL POWER HIMSELF TO CHANGE OR REALLY AFFECT THE DESTINY OF THIS COUNTRY OTHER THAN TO HELP FERRY IT ON TOWARD THE IMPENDING DISASTER AND DOOM THAT IT CURRENTLY FACES, BY DUTIFULLY CARRYING OUT HIS MASTERS PLANS TO THE LETTER, AND SECURING HIS POSITION IN HISTORY AS 'THE PRESIDENT THAT WAS ACTUALLY WORSE THAN BUSH' . . . I'M WORRIED TO DISCOVER WHAT HE MUST ALREADY BE AWARE OF . . 2012 IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER, FOLKS . . . . ~
OBAMA OWNED UP during the 2008 presidential campaign to falling off the wagon occassionally in his effort to quit with the help of nicotine gum.
Obama has also said that First Lady Michelle Obama, and kids Malia and Sasha, have been all over him to break the habit.
The initial report on the physical from Dr. Jeff Kuhlman, director of the White House Medical Unit, also suggested that Obama may have lost some of the jump on his jump shot.
The report said his knees sometimes ache and the docs recommended a "lower extemity muscle strengthening program."
28 February 2010
26 February 2010
FLASHBACK: DEFENSE SECRETARY WILLIAM COHEN WARNED IN 1997 OF MAN-MADE EARTHQUAKES AND VOLCANOES, RACE-SPECIFIC ENGINEERED BIOATTACKS AND INSECT SWARMS
* COOL, HUH? . . THE INTERNET IS A BEAUTIFUL THING. THANKS TO WONDERFUL SITES SUCH AS WWW.DEFENSE.GOV, WE ARE ABLE TO UNCOVER TONS OF HELPFUL INFORMATION THAT WOULD BE OTHERWISE VIRTUALLY IMPOSSIBLE . . THANKS, GUYS! . . . *
~ Just more fuel on the fire of whether man has the ability to create certain events that seem like naturally occurring events (i.e., man-made earthquakes like some are speculating occurred in Haiti). Way back in 1997, Secretary William Cohen was certainly preparing like mankind had the ability to create "natural" events. In fact, Secretary Cohen discussed this topic at a 1997 keynote address at the Conference on Terrorism, Weapons of Mass Destruction, and U.S. Strategy at the Georgia Center, Mahler Auditorium, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia (the transcript can be found here: http://www.defense.gov/transcripts/transcript.aspx?transcriptid=674 ).
Q: Let me ask you specifically about last week's scare here in Washington, and what we might have learned from how prepared we are to deal with that (inaudible), at B'nai Brith.
A: Well, it points out the nature of the threat. It turned out to be a false threat under the circumstances. But as we've learned in the intelligence community, we had something called -- and we have James Woolsey here to perhaps even address this question about phantom moles. The mere fear that there is a mole within an agency can set off a chain reaction and a hunt for that particular mole which can paralyze the agency for weeks and months and years even, in a search. The same thing is true about just the false scare of a threat of using some kind of a chemical weapon or a biological one. There are some reports, for example, that some countries have been trying to construct something like an Ebola Virus, and that would be a very dangerous phenomenon, to say the least. Alvin Toeffler has written about this in terms of some scientists in their laboratories trying to devise certain types of pathogens that would be ethnic specific so that they could just eliminate certain ethnic groups and races; and others are designing some sort of engineering, some sort of insects that can destroy specific crops. Others are engaging even in an eco- type of terrorism whereby they can alter the climate, set off earthquakes, volcanoes remotely through the use of electromagnetic waves.
Source: Defense.gov
~ Just more fuel on the fire of whether man has the ability to create certain events that seem like naturally occurring events (i.e., man-made earthquakes like some are speculating occurred in Haiti). Way back in 1997, Secretary William Cohen was certainly preparing like mankind had the ability to create "natural" events. In fact, Secretary Cohen discussed this topic at a 1997 keynote address at the Conference on Terrorism, Weapons of Mass Destruction, and U.S. Strategy at the Georgia Center, Mahler Auditorium, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia (the transcript can be found here: http://www.defense.gov/transcripts/transcript.aspx?transcriptid=674 ).
Q: Let me ask you specifically about last week's scare here in Washington, and what we might have learned from how prepared we are to deal with that (inaudible), at B'nai Brith.
A: Well, it points out the nature of the threat. It turned out to be a false threat under the circumstances. But as we've learned in the intelligence community, we had something called -- and we have James Woolsey here to perhaps even address this question about phantom moles. The mere fear that there is a mole within an agency can set off a chain reaction and a hunt for that particular mole which can paralyze the agency for weeks and months and years even, in a search. The same thing is true about just the false scare of a threat of using some kind of a chemical weapon or a biological one. There are some reports, for example, that some countries have been trying to construct something like an Ebola Virus, and that would be a very dangerous phenomenon, to say the least. Alvin Toeffler has written about this in terms of some scientists in their laboratories trying to devise certain types of pathogens that would be ethnic specific so that they could just eliminate certain ethnic groups and races; and others are designing some sort of engineering, some sort of insects that can destroy specific crops. Others are engaging even in an eco- type of terrorism whereby they can alter the climate, set off earthquakes, volcanoes remotely through the use of electromagnetic waves.
Source: Defense.gov
FLASHBACK: ISRAEL ATTEMPTED TO SIMULATE A MAN-MADE EARTHQUAKE IN NEGEV WITH EIGHTY (80) TON CONTROLLED EXPLOSION ON AUGUST 27TH, 2009 . . .
* DUH, PEOPLE . . WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO FINALLY ACCEPT THE TRUTH ~ THAT SUCH THINGS ARE NOT FANTASY OR FICTION, BUT VERY REAL? THE U.S. GOVERNMENT AND IT'S 'ALLIES' TOGETHER HAVE LONG BEEN INVOLVED IN TECHNOLOGICAL EXPERIMENTS OF A NATURE THAT ARE FAR BEYOND ANYTHING THAT ANYONE WITH A NORMAL IMAGINATION COULD DREAM UP - EVEN WITH ALL THAT WE SEE IN TELEVISION AND MOVIES TODAY . . *
~ Here is another article that supports the position that man can induce earthquakes. Some people say that it is impossible for man to cause an earthquake and that all quakes are natural. This information is supporting evidence to disprove those people. Israel attempted to induce an earthquake using a huge explosion as the catalyst back on August 27, 2009.
The Seismologic Division of the Ministry of National Infrastructure's Geophysical Institute will attempt to simulate an earthquake in the southern Negev on Thursday [August 27, 2009]. The experiment, financed by the U.S. Defense Department, is a joint project with the University of Hawaii and is part of a scientific project intended to improve seismological and acoustic readings in Israel and its environs, up to a 1,000 km/621 mile radius.
The experiment intends to improve the understanding of sound waves in the atmosphere. Scientists will then be able to fine-tune Israel’s seismological equipment to give advance warning of earthquakes. Measurements will also be taken in other countries, including Cyprus, Greece, France, and Germany.
Israel will create a controlled explosion of 80 tons of explosive material, which will simulate the intensity of a tremor after an earthquake of Magnitude 3. Natural earthquakes of a similar intensity occur in the Middle East region about once a week, without the public feeling them.
Source: IsraelNationalNews.com
~ Here is another article that supports the position that man can induce earthquakes. Some people say that it is impossible for man to cause an earthquake and that all quakes are natural. This information is supporting evidence to disprove those people. Israel attempted to induce an earthquake using a huge explosion as the catalyst back on August 27, 2009.
The Seismologic Division of the Ministry of National Infrastructure's Geophysical Institute will attempt to simulate an earthquake in the southern Negev on Thursday [August 27, 2009]. The experiment, financed by the U.S. Defense Department, is a joint project with the University of Hawaii and is part of a scientific project intended to improve seismological and acoustic readings in Israel and its environs, up to a 1,000 km/621 mile radius.
The experiment intends to improve the understanding of sound waves in the atmosphere. Scientists will then be able to fine-tune Israel’s seismological equipment to give advance warning of earthquakes. Measurements will also be taken in other countries, including Cyprus, Greece, France, and Germany.
Israel will create a controlled explosion of 80 tons of explosive material, which will simulate the intensity of a tremor after an earthquake of Magnitude 3. Natural earthquakes of a similar intensity occur in the Middle East region about once a week, without the public feeling them.
Source: IsraelNationalNews.com
U.S. SOUTHCOM Ran Complex Haiti Command and Control Emergency Relief Drills on January 11, 2010 (Day Before 7.0 Earthquake)
* THE RABBIT HOLE ONLY GETS DEEPER, FOLKS...I CLEARLY RECALL A 'DRILL' INVOLVING AIRPLANES, CRASHING INTO TALL BUILDINGS, BEING CONDUCTED IN NEW YORK, AT THE UH, EXACT SAME TIME THAT THE UH, 9-11 WAS HAPPENING. I ALSO RECALL A 'DRILL' INVOLVING SHOOTING MISSILES AT COMMERCIAL AIRCRAFT, DURING, UH, THE EXACT SAME TIME THAT EGYPTAIR FLIGHT 900 'WENT DOWN' (WAS WITNESSED TO BE WAS SHOT DOWN). IT'S FUNNY, NO ? - A REAL BIG COINCIDENCE, EVEN, THAT THESE 'DRILLS' WOULD HAPPEN ON SUCH DAYS - DON'T YOU THINK? . . . . *
I don't know if I should read more into the fact that there was an emergency command and control operation drill for Haiti happening the day before the earthquake happened. Basically, US SOUTHCOM was running a drill for a hurricane emergency. The earthquake hit. SOUTHCOM decided to take the drill live and go into operation. Now, the military has complete command and control of Haiti in light of this disaster just like the parameters likely defined in the drill.
On Monday, Jean Demay, DISA's technical manager for the agency's Transnational Information Sharing Cooperation project, happened to be at the headquarters of the U.S. Southern Command in Miami preparing for a test of the system in a scenario that involved providing relief to Haiti in the wake of a hurricane. After the earthquake hit on Tuesday, Demay said SOUTHCOM decided to go live with the system. On Wednesday, DISA opened up its All Partners Access Network, supported by the Transnational Information Sharing Cooperation project, to any organization supporting Haiti relief efforts.
If you are interested, the rest of the article discusses how Defense Information Systems Agency has set up a web portal to assist in the emergency communications in Haiti. The note about the drill was hidden in the middle. I must thank Anti Illuminati from the Prison Planet boards for pointing out this drill.
If Acme earthquake machines existed, then we would likely have a bona fide conspiracy on our hands involving out of control scalar weapons.
I don't know if I should read more into the fact that there was an emergency command and control operation drill for Haiti happening the day before the earthquake happened. Basically, US SOUTHCOM was running a drill for a hurricane emergency. The earthquake hit. SOUTHCOM decided to take the drill live and go into operation. Now, the military has complete command and control of Haiti in light of this disaster just like the parameters likely defined in the drill.
On Monday, Jean Demay, DISA's technical manager for the agency's Transnational Information Sharing Cooperation project, happened to be at the headquarters of the U.S. Southern Command in Miami preparing for a test of the system in a scenario that involved providing relief to Haiti in the wake of a hurricane. After the earthquake hit on Tuesday, Demay said SOUTHCOM decided to go live with the system. On Wednesday, DISA opened up its All Partners Access Network, supported by the Transnational Information Sharing Cooperation project, to any organization supporting Haiti relief efforts.
If you are interested, the rest of the article discusses how Defense Information Systems Agency has set up a web portal to assist in the emergency communications in Haiti. The note about the drill was hidden in the middle. I must thank Anti Illuminati from the Prison Planet boards for pointing out this drill.
If Acme earthquake machines existed, then we would likely have a bona fide conspiracy on our hands involving out of control scalar weapons.
* REPLY TO 'CANADIAN WOMENS HOCKEY TEAM DRINKING AND SMOKING ON THE ICE' . . .
~ MEMBERS OF THE CANADIAN WOMEN'S HOCKEY TEAM WERE SEEN AND PHOTOGRAPHED DRINKING ALCOHOL AND SMOKING CIGARS - WHICH LOOKED A LOT LIKE MARIJUANA 'BLUNTS' - RIGHT ON THE ICE, SHORTLY AFTER WINNING TO THE AMERICANS, ON THURSDAY FEB. 25TH. MANY OF THESE YOUNG GIRLS, WHO WERE PHOTOGRAPHED DRINKING, ARE UNDERAGE, AND THEREFORE WERE COMMITTING AN ILLEGAL ACT UNDER THE LAWS OF THEIR HOME COUNTRY. NOW I HATE TO BE REAL PICKY FOLKS, BUT THIS STUFF KINDA MAKES ME UPSET . . .
IOC PROTOCOLS, EH?!!? UH, HOW ABOUT CANADIAN LAWS?!!? THESE ATHLETES, MANY OF WHOM ARE CLEARLY DEMONSTRATING, AS OF LATE, THE IGNORANCE AND GREAT LACK OF INTELLIGENCE - THAT COMES MAINLY WITH YOUTH - REALLY DO NEED TO GET IT THROUGH THEIR HEADS~ WHAT THE OLYMPICS REPRESENTS TO THE REST OF THE WORLD, AND WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT, SUCH AS SETTING CERTAIN CORRECT STANDARDS - ALONG WITH A FINE EXAMPLE OF POSITIVITY, LEADERSHIP, AND INSPIRATION - AND PERFECTION - THAT SO MANY OTHERS, INCLUDING MILLIONS AND MILLIONS OF YOUNG CHILDREN, FUTURE ATHLETES AND (HOPEFULLY) FUTURE OLYMPIC STARS THE WHOLE WORLD OVER CAN ADMIRE, HONOR, CHERISH, AND HOLD DEAR, AS SOME OF THE BEST EFFORTS AND HIGHEST IDEALS EVER SET ANYWHERE, AT ANY TIME, AND IN ANY PLACE - BY ANYONE, NO MATTER WHAT THE SETTING OR CONTEXT MAY BE. DRUG USE AND ILLEGAL ACTIVITY (YES, ALCOHOL IS A DRUG, AND IS ILLEGAL WHEN YOU ARE UNDERAGE) IN FRONT OF REPORTERS AND CAMERAS, RIGHT WHERE YOU WERE JUST COMPETING, IS A SLAP IN THE FACE TO PRETTY MUCH THE WHOLE WORLD, AND A BLATANT ACT AND SIGN OF GROSS DISRESPECT FOR SPORT AND GAME OF HOCKEY, AND SPORTS IN GENERAL, TO THE FANS, THE PARENTS, AND THE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE. WHOEVER WAS WITNESSED AND PHOTOGRAPHED DRINKING UNDERAGE SHOULD BE KICKED OFF THE TEAM AND PERMANENTLY BANNED FROM EVER COMPETING IN THE OLYMPICS EVER AGAIN. THEN, MAYBE - JUST MAYBE - THIS SORT OF THING WILL BEGIN TO RESONATE AMONG ALL YOUNG ATHLETES; THAT THE OLYMPICS IS NOT A JOKE, IS NOT SOMETHING TO BE TAKEN LIGHTLY, AND IS A VENUE AND FORUM FOR SOLELY THOSE ATHLETES WHO HOLD DEAR ONLY THE HIGHEST LEVELS OF SPORTSMANSHIP, INTEGRITY, AND HONOR FROM AMONG THE BEST OF THE WORLD'S BEST. THE IOC IS, I FEEL, PARTLY TO BLAME FOR MANY OF THESE ISSUES, AND THERE NEEDS TO BE BETTER COMMUNICATION, BETWEEN IOC OFFICIALS AND THE HEAD COACHES FROM EACH COUNTRY, TO INSTILL IN THEIR ATHLETES, ALONG WITH ATHLETIC SKILL, THE PARTICULAR SET OF VALUES THAT THE IOC WISHES TO UPHOLD WORLDWIDE. IN THIS NEW AGE OF CERTAIN EVENTS THAT CAN ALMOST NOT EVEN BE CALLED A 'SPORT' - CURLING, FOR INSTANCE...MANY 'X-GAMES'-LIKE EVENTS, SUCH AS 'FREESTYLE AERIAL' OR 'SNOWBOARD HALFPIPE', OR SOME GRAVITY SPORTS, LIKE SKELETON, ETC., - HAVE BROUGHT WITH THEM A LARGE DEMOGRAPHIC OF NEW AND YOUNG FANS AND ATHLETES ALIKE THAT TO ME DO NOT ANY LONGER REALLY REPRESENT WHAT THE OLYMPICS TRULY MEANS - CROSS COUNTRY SKIING/NORDIC COMBINED, NOW THAT IS A SPORT. HOCKEY - NOW THAT IS A SPORT; DECATHLON - NOW THAT'S A SPORT; 10K METER TRACK - THAT IS CERTAINLY A SPORT, AND SIMILAR TO ONE THAT THE ORIGINAL OLYMPICS WAS FOUNDED ON. ICE DANCING? UH...NOT SO SURE...
ANYWHO, CERTAIN 'REAL SPORTS' SEEM TO TRULY REQUIRE NOTHING LESS THAN 110% OF AN ATHLETE'S LONG TERM DEVOTION, COMMITMENT, FOCUS, PERSISTENCE, AND DETERMINATION, AND IT IS WITHIN THESE SPORTS WHERE YOU WILL USUALLY FIND ATHLETES OF THE HIGHEST CALIBER, WHO DO NOT ENTANGLE THEMSELVES AROUND ACTS OF FOOLISHNESS OR IGNORANCE. THAT MAKES IT ALL THE MORE WORRISOME, ESPECIALLY, TO SEE YOUNG - CANADIAN - FEMALE - HOCKEY - PLAYERS, ENGAGING IN BEHAVIOR THAT IS TRULY SO UNBECOMING AND UNDESIRABLE. I COULD GO ON AT LENGTH ABOUT THIS SUBJECT, AS EVERY FOUR YEARS, THE OLYMPICS ALWAYS TENDS TO SET SOME FIRES IN MY BELLY, EITHER INSPIRATIONAL OR POLITICAL, BUT I'LL WAIT UNTIL THE NEXT DRAMATIC PIECE OF NEWS EMERGES FROM THE GAMES TO GET SOME MORE OF MY CENTS IN . . .
IOC PROTOCOLS, EH?!!? UH, HOW ABOUT CANADIAN LAWS?!!? THESE ATHLETES, MANY OF WHOM ARE CLEARLY DEMONSTRATING, AS OF LATE, THE IGNORANCE AND GREAT LACK OF INTELLIGENCE - THAT COMES MAINLY WITH YOUTH - REALLY DO NEED TO GET IT THROUGH THEIR HEADS~ WHAT THE OLYMPICS REPRESENTS TO THE REST OF THE WORLD, AND WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT, SUCH AS SETTING CERTAIN CORRECT STANDARDS - ALONG WITH A FINE EXAMPLE OF POSITIVITY, LEADERSHIP, AND INSPIRATION - AND PERFECTION - THAT SO MANY OTHERS, INCLUDING MILLIONS AND MILLIONS OF YOUNG CHILDREN, FUTURE ATHLETES AND (HOPEFULLY) FUTURE OLYMPIC STARS THE WHOLE WORLD OVER CAN ADMIRE, HONOR, CHERISH, AND HOLD DEAR, AS SOME OF THE BEST EFFORTS AND HIGHEST IDEALS EVER SET ANYWHERE, AT ANY TIME, AND IN ANY PLACE - BY ANYONE, NO MATTER WHAT THE SETTING OR CONTEXT MAY BE. DRUG USE AND ILLEGAL ACTIVITY (YES, ALCOHOL IS A DRUG, AND IS ILLEGAL WHEN YOU ARE UNDERAGE) IN FRONT OF REPORTERS AND CAMERAS, RIGHT WHERE YOU WERE JUST COMPETING, IS A SLAP IN THE FACE TO PRETTY MUCH THE WHOLE WORLD, AND A BLATANT ACT AND SIGN OF GROSS DISRESPECT FOR SPORT AND GAME OF HOCKEY, AND SPORTS IN GENERAL, TO THE FANS, THE PARENTS, AND THE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE. WHOEVER WAS WITNESSED AND PHOTOGRAPHED DRINKING UNDERAGE SHOULD BE KICKED OFF THE TEAM AND PERMANENTLY BANNED FROM EVER COMPETING IN THE OLYMPICS EVER AGAIN. THEN, MAYBE - JUST MAYBE - THIS SORT OF THING WILL BEGIN TO RESONATE AMONG ALL YOUNG ATHLETES; THAT THE OLYMPICS IS NOT A JOKE, IS NOT SOMETHING TO BE TAKEN LIGHTLY, AND IS A VENUE AND FORUM FOR SOLELY THOSE ATHLETES WHO HOLD DEAR ONLY THE HIGHEST LEVELS OF SPORTSMANSHIP, INTEGRITY, AND HONOR FROM AMONG THE BEST OF THE WORLD'S BEST. THE IOC IS, I FEEL, PARTLY TO BLAME FOR MANY OF THESE ISSUES, AND THERE NEEDS TO BE BETTER COMMUNICATION, BETWEEN IOC OFFICIALS AND THE HEAD COACHES FROM EACH COUNTRY, TO INSTILL IN THEIR ATHLETES, ALONG WITH ATHLETIC SKILL, THE PARTICULAR SET OF VALUES THAT THE IOC WISHES TO UPHOLD WORLDWIDE. IN THIS NEW AGE OF CERTAIN EVENTS THAT CAN ALMOST NOT EVEN BE CALLED A 'SPORT' - CURLING, FOR INSTANCE...MANY 'X-GAMES'-LIKE EVENTS, SUCH AS 'FREESTYLE AERIAL' OR 'SNOWBOARD HALFPIPE', OR SOME GRAVITY SPORTS, LIKE SKELETON, ETC., - HAVE BROUGHT WITH THEM A LARGE DEMOGRAPHIC OF NEW AND YOUNG FANS AND ATHLETES ALIKE THAT TO ME DO NOT ANY LONGER REALLY REPRESENT WHAT THE OLYMPICS TRULY MEANS - CROSS COUNTRY SKIING/NORDIC COMBINED, NOW THAT IS A SPORT. HOCKEY - NOW THAT IS A SPORT; DECATHLON - NOW THAT'S A SPORT; 10K METER TRACK - THAT IS CERTAINLY A SPORT, AND SIMILAR TO ONE THAT THE ORIGINAL OLYMPICS WAS FOUNDED ON. ICE DANCING? UH...NOT SO SURE...
ANYWHO, CERTAIN 'REAL SPORTS' SEEM TO TRULY REQUIRE NOTHING LESS THAN 110% OF AN ATHLETE'S LONG TERM DEVOTION, COMMITMENT, FOCUS, PERSISTENCE, AND DETERMINATION, AND IT IS WITHIN THESE SPORTS WHERE YOU WILL USUALLY FIND ATHLETES OF THE HIGHEST CALIBER, WHO DO NOT ENTANGLE THEMSELVES AROUND ACTS OF FOOLISHNESS OR IGNORANCE. THAT MAKES IT ALL THE MORE WORRISOME, ESPECIALLY, TO SEE YOUNG - CANADIAN - FEMALE - HOCKEY - PLAYERS, ENGAGING IN BEHAVIOR THAT IS TRULY SO UNBECOMING AND UNDESIRABLE. I COULD GO ON AT LENGTH ABOUT THIS SUBJECT, AS EVERY FOUR YEARS, THE OLYMPICS ALWAYS TENDS TO SET SOME FIRES IN MY BELLY, EITHER INSPIRATIONAL OR POLITICAL, BUT I'LL WAIT UNTIL THE NEXT DRAMATIC PIECE OF NEWS EMERGES FROM THE GAMES TO GET SOME MORE OF MY CENTS IN . . .
19 February 2010
WHO, REALLY, ARE THE OLYMPIC JUDGES . . ???
* WHO, REALLY, ARE THE OLYMPIC JUDGES . . ??? *
I WONDER . . WHO, EXACTLY, ARE THE people sitting in those judges seats, behind the monitors, with those pens and pads in front of them, doing all that judging - of the world's greatest athletic performers and performances . . ?
Who is paying them, who are they REALLY working for, and from whom do they take their orders? I am left wondering this, after some of the truly bizarre 'judgements' that have been handed out over the course of the past several days. In our Olympics, some - many, actually - of the competitions do not actually require 'judgements', but merely rely on such simple things as accurate timekeeping, in order to determine who has won an event. Some require only that, while others fall within an area where, along with time, several other factors much be judged, giving certain additions and/or deductions along the way. Then there are the events where time is really not at great issue and instead, a battery of judges must each weigh dozens of factors about a given athlete's performance, in order to tally some 'total', a final number, corresponding to exactly how well or how poorly they performed at said event . . .
Now I am left to wonder - does this 'number' represent how well they really did, or instead, does it represent how well the judges FEEL they did at that particular time and place? Because in my humble and honest opinion, and from what I have seen recently, many of our hard working young champions have been, and are are continuing to be, ROBBED of the good scores they clearly deserve . . .
Let's take the men's figure skating, for example. Last night Johnny Weir was robbed of the true recognition and accurate 'judgement' he deserved, after putting up an extremely clean and very well skated performance from among his competitors. In my opinion absolutely NO ONE put up an amazingly stellar and perfect performance; everyone who skated last night was certainly very capable of doing, and should've done, either a little or A LOT better than they did when it finally came down to crunch time . . .
So we must ask ourselves . . out of all the less-than-perfect performances, who had the least amount of gross, quantifiable errors? Well, one of them was definitely Weir. He had virtually no real mistakes whatsoever. Does this not count for anything these days, when almost every other athlete at these Games has choked somewhere under one of the many understandable pressures they all are under, whether it be the small fact that this is the most important competition in the world, or the fact that millions and millions of people are watching you, along with having to perform in front of all your friends and family, and their friends, for your country, everyone who is expecting and depending on you to be Superman or Superwoman on that particular day, etc., etc. . . . whew.
Elvis Stojko, the Canadian ex-champ silver medalist, who at one time just happened to be a pretty good quad jumper, is these days a Yahoo Sports Olympics commentator, and he has lashed out at the judges for their decision to elevate Evan Lysacek's final score to one just past - and beating - that of the Russian champ, Evgeny Plushenko, giving Evan the gold. This, I think, is because Plushenko also does a quad, like Elvis used to do. Or is it because Stojko is vehemently anti-American when it comes to men's skating? I am confused . . .
There are great expectations on these skaters to perform their jumping spins flawlessly - those very difficult maneuvers that require speed, lots of air, perfect timing, precision, and a perfectly executed landing - those triples, those axles, those combinations. Then there is the other half of the event, where 'art' is involved, and where beautiful music and great choreography come into play. Then there is this weird/gray area. Where it's like 'you have to do a quad' to be considered the best. And if you don't, then how good the rest of your performance was really doesn't matter much of the time. Well, I have seen great, wonderful, more artistic and more intuitive performances from skaters who didn't do a quad, performances where clearly, greatness was exhibited and where, in that respect, a quad shouldn't have to count for anything.
Such was the lackluster quad put up by Plushenko last night. Yeah, it may be a quad, but it clearly wasn't done without difficulty and it certainly wasn't executed without flaws. Personally, I would rather see a perfect triple than a sloppy quad any day. Is it just me? I enjoyed watching Lysacek's full, clean triples, and honestly was not particularly blown over by Plushenko's barely-made-it-through, weak quad. Though again, neither skater was at their very best; their airs could've and should've been higher, the pressure of the moment was clear on both of them, they could've done this, they should've done that, etc., etc., . . .
So - where does technical stop and art start, or vice-versa? What percentage of points is granted to each area of an event? Because there clearly seems to be a serious problem here. Weir, receiving LESS points than a skater who actually FELL during his routine - such as was the case with Simon Cho from Canada - what the hell is that?
There is a conspiracy going on here . . .
Lol. Seriously, though . . more on this soon . . .
I WONDER . . WHO, EXACTLY, ARE THE people sitting in those judges seats, behind the monitors, with those pens and pads in front of them, doing all that judging - of the world's greatest athletic performers and performances . . ?
Who is paying them, who are they REALLY working for, and from whom do they take their orders? I am left wondering this, after some of the truly bizarre 'judgements' that have been handed out over the course of the past several days. In our Olympics, some - many, actually - of the competitions do not actually require 'judgements', but merely rely on such simple things as accurate timekeeping, in order to determine who has won an event. Some require only that, while others fall within an area where, along with time, several other factors much be judged, giving certain additions and/or deductions along the way. Then there are the events where time is really not at great issue and instead, a battery of judges must each weigh dozens of factors about a given athlete's performance, in order to tally some 'total', a final number, corresponding to exactly how well or how poorly they performed at said event . . .
Now I am left to wonder - does this 'number' represent how well they really did, or instead, does it represent how well the judges FEEL they did at that particular time and place? Because in my humble and honest opinion, and from what I have seen recently, many of our hard working young champions have been, and are are continuing to be, ROBBED of the good scores they clearly deserve . . .
Let's take the men's figure skating, for example. Last night Johnny Weir was robbed of the true recognition and accurate 'judgement' he deserved, after putting up an extremely clean and very well skated performance from among his competitors. In my opinion absolutely NO ONE put up an amazingly stellar and perfect performance; everyone who skated last night was certainly very capable of doing, and should've done, either a little or A LOT better than they did when it finally came down to crunch time . . .
So we must ask ourselves . . out of all the less-than-perfect performances, who had the least amount of gross, quantifiable errors? Well, one of them was definitely Weir. He had virtually no real mistakes whatsoever. Does this not count for anything these days, when almost every other athlete at these Games has choked somewhere under one of the many understandable pressures they all are under, whether it be the small fact that this is the most important competition in the world, or the fact that millions and millions of people are watching you, along with having to perform in front of all your friends and family, and their friends, for your country, everyone who is expecting and depending on you to be Superman or Superwoman on that particular day, etc., etc. . . . whew.
Elvis Stojko, the Canadian ex-champ silver medalist, who at one time just happened to be a pretty good quad jumper, is these days a Yahoo Sports Olympics commentator, and he has lashed out at the judges for their decision to elevate Evan Lysacek's final score to one just past - and beating - that of the Russian champ, Evgeny Plushenko, giving Evan the gold. This, I think, is because Plushenko also does a quad, like Elvis used to do. Or is it because Stojko is vehemently anti-American when it comes to men's skating? I am confused . . .
There are great expectations on these skaters to perform their jumping spins flawlessly - those very difficult maneuvers that require speed, lots of air, perfect timing, precision, and a perfectly executed landing - those triples, those axles, those combinations. Then there is the other half of the event, where 'art' is involved, and where beautiful music and great choreography come into play. Then there is this weird/gray area. Where it's like 'you have to do a quad' to be considered the best. And if you don't, then how good the rest of your performance was really doesn't matter much of the time. Well, I have seen great, wonderful, more artistic and more intuitive performances from skaters who didn't do a quad, performances where clearly, greatness was exhibited and where, in that respect, a quad shouldn't have to count for anything.
Such was the lackluster quad put up by Plushenko last night. Yeah, it may be a quad, but it clearly wasn't done without difficulty and it certainly wasn't executed without flaws. Personally, I would rather see a perfect triple than a sloppy quad any day. Is it just me? I enjoyed watching Lysacek's full, clean triples, and honestly was not particularly blown over by Plushenko's barely-made-it-through, weak quad. Though again, neither skater was at their very best; their airs could've and should've been higher, the pressure of the moment was clear on both of them, they could've done this, they should've done that, etc., etc., . . .
So - where does technical stop and art start, or vice-versa? What percentage of points is granted to each area of an event? Because there clearly seems to be a serious problem here. Weir, receiving LESS points than a skater who actually FELL during his routine - such as was the case with Simon Cho from Canada - what the hell is that?
There is a conspiracy going on here . . .
Lol. Seriously, though . . more on this soon . . .
01 February 2010
HAITI - & ITS VAST OIL AND GOLD RESERVES . . .
The great tragedy of the 7.0 earthquake that essentially destroyed the nation of Haiti has many wondering if that nation can ever recover. In fact, as you read this Haiti continues to be a disaster zone of unprecedented magnitude. Lots of money has been raised by celebrities, but victims of the earthquake in Haiti are still absolutely desperate for food and water.
But even as Haiti struggles to recover from the greatest disaster in that nation's history, information is coming to light that the key to a brighter future for the Haitians may have been lying under their feet all this time. It turns out that there are massive reserves of gold and oil in Haiti. These abundant natural resources could be used to rebuild Haiti and give those people an incredibly bright future - if someone else does not sweep in and steal those resources first.
I'll have to admit when I first heard about oil in Haiti I was quite skeptical.
After all, why wouldn't we have heard about it by now if they had it?
Well, the reality is that there are vast untapped oil reserves in many areas of the globe, and Haiti's have not been developed due to the violence and political instability that have ravaged that nation for decades. Not to mention the fact that Haiti does not possess the technical expertise to exploit those resources.
But apparently they do exist.
According to a report in the French newspaper Le Post, scientists Daniel and Ginette Mathurin say that Haiti's oil reserves are larger than those of Venezuela.
In fact, Daniel Mathurin says that Haiti's oil reserves are so much larger that they are not even worth comparing....
"An Olympic pool compared to a glass of water that is the comparison to show the importance of oil Haitian compared to those of Venezuela."
That is an amazing statement considering the fact that Venezuela is one of the world's major oil producers.
But Daniel and Ginette Mathurin are not the only ones making these claims about oil in Haiti.
In a paper dated March 27, 2004, Dr. Georges Michel detailed the history of oil discoveries in Haiti and explained why they have not been exploited yet.
According to Michel, the big oil companies know about the massive reserves of oil in Haiti but in the 50s and 60s there was almost too much oil to go around so they decided that those reserves were not needed at the time and that they would be kept in reserve until later....
[The attitude of these big multinational oil companies was] "We shall keep the Haitian deposits and other such layers of deposits in reserve for the 21st century when the Middle Eastern jackpot are depleted."
In fact, it was apparently known as far back as 1908 that Haiti has substantial reserves of oil.
But those poor people have been kept in abject poverty all this time when they could have been benefiting from all of this oil.
Not only that, but Haiti also apparently possesses a great deal of gold as well.
A United Nations study in the 70s indicated Haiti could be littered with gold and copper deposits. However, the same political violence and recurring coups that have kept the oil in Haiti from being exploited have also kept the gold from being mined.
So how much gold does Haiti have? Well, the former president of Dominican Petroleum Refinery recently said that Haiti has vast untapped reserves of gold and iridium (a little known and rare mineral that is vital for the construction of spacecraft) and that these resources should be used to pay off the Haitian foreign debt.
And he is not alone in his assessment.
Back in 2007 a geologist with 27 years of experience hunting for gold was asked what he thought the chances of discovering huge amounts of gold in Haiti were. This is how he responded....
"I don't think there's a question of whether there's a good deposit here. It's a question of whether we can develop it here in Haiti."
In fact, analysts are predicting "a stampede into Haiti" if the existence of large gold deposits there can be confirmed.
So one of poorest nations in the world turns out to be just brimming with oil and gold....
Do you think that those resources will be used to rebuild Haiti and to give those people a truly bright future?
Don't count on it.
In fact, now that Haiti has essentially been destroyed, troops are pouring in and politicians are already talking about starting business ventures in the country. To many in Washington, Haiti's natural resources are considered "strategic reserves" of the United States.
You see, for decades Haiti has been viewed by many as being essentially "owned" by the United States. The U.S. government has done little to actually help the nation of Haiti get on the right path, but they maintain a huge presence there. In fact, the U.S. constructed its fifth largest embassy in the world in the nation of Haiti.
But perhaps that is just a coincidence.
The key will be to watch what happens to Haiti's natural resources as the rebuilding of that nation proceeds.
Will all of the gold and oil be used to help the people of Haiti, or will the gold and oil be exploited by ruthless foreigners?
The world will be watching.
But even as Haiti struggles to recover from the greatest disaster in that nation's history, information is coming to light that the key to a brighter future for the Haitians may have been lying under their feet all this time. It turns out that there are massive reserves of gold and oil in Haiti. These abundant natural resources could be used to rebuild Haiti and give those people an incredibly bright future - if someone else does not sweep in and steal those resources first.
I'll have to admit when I first heard about oil in Haiti I was quite skeptical.
After all, why wouldn't we have heard about it by now if they had it?
Well, the reality is that there are vast untapped oil reserves in many areas of the globe, and Haiti's have not been developed due to the violence and political instability that have ravaged that nation for decades. Not to mention the fact that Haiti does not possess the technical expertise to exploit those resources.
But apparently they do exist.
According to a report in the French newspaper Le Post, scientists Daniel and Ginette Mathurin say that Haiti's oil reserves are larger than those of Venezuela.
In fact, Daniel Mathurin says that Haiti's oil reserves are so much larger that they are not even worth comparing....
"An Olympic pool compared to a glass of water that is the comparison to show the importance of oil Haitian compared to those of Venezuela."
That is an amazing statement considering the fact that Venezuela is one of the world's major oil producers.
But Daniel and Ginette Mathurin are not the only ones making these claims about oil in Haiti.
In a paper dated March 27, 2004, Dr. Georges Michel detailed the history of oil discoveries in Haiti and explained why they have not been exploited yet.
According to Michel, the big oil companies know about the massive reserves of oil in Haiti but in the 50s and 60s there was almost too much oil to go around so they decided that those reserves were not needed at the time and that they would be kept in reserve until later....
[The attitude of these big multinational oil companies was] "We shall keep the Haitian deposits and other such layers of deposits in reserve for the 21st century when the Middle Eastern jackpot are depleted."
In fact, it was apparently known as far back as 1908 that Haiti has substantial reserves of oil.
But those poor people have been kept in abject poverty all this time when they could have been benefiting from all of this oil.
Not only that, but Haiti also apparently possesses a great deal of gold as well.
A United Nations study in the 70s indicated Haiti could be littered with gold and copper deposits. However, the same political violence and recurring coups that have kept the oil in Haiti from being exploited have also kept the gold from being mined.
So how much gold does Haiti have? Well, the former president of Dominican Petroleum Refinery recently said that Haiti has vast untapped reserves of gold and iridium (a little known and rare mineral that is vital for the construction of spacecraft) and that these resources should be used to pay off the Haitian foreign debt.
And he is not alone in his assessment.
Back in 2007 a geologist with 27 years of experience hunting for gold was asked what he thought the chances of discovering huge amounts of gold in Haiti were. This is how he responded....
"I don't think there's a question of whether there's a good deposit here. It's a question of whether we can develop it here in Haiti."
In fact, analysts are predicting "a stampede into Haiti" if the existence of large gold deposits there can be confirmed.
So one of poorest nations in the world turns out to be just brimming with oil and gold....
Do you think that those resources will be used to rebuild Haiti and to give those people a truly bright future?
Don't count on it.
In fact, now that Haiti has essentially been destroyed, troops are pouring in and politicians are already talking about starting business ventures in the country. To many in Washington, Haiti's natural resources are considered "strategic reserves" of the United States.
You see, for decades Haiti has been viewed by many as being essentially "owned" by the United States. The U.S. government has done little to actually help the nation of Haiti get on the right path, but they maintain a huge presence there. In fact, the U.S. constructed its fifth largest embassy in the world in the nation of Haiti.
But perhaps that is just a coincidence.
The key will be to watch what happens to Haiti's natural resources as the rebuilding of that nation proceeds.
Will all of the gold and oil be used to help the people of Haiti, or will the gold and oil be exploited by ruthless foreigners?
The world will be watching.
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