No, he didn’t know a thing!
Annan ‘Disappointed’ in Son’s Lack of Disclosure (washingtonpost.com)UNITED NATIONS - U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said on Monday he was “disappointed” his son did not tell him the full story of his ties to a firm involved in the U.N. oil-for-food program, now under investigation.
I am sure Kofi Annan was shocked, shocked at the developments, I say! I bet his non-knowledge had absolutely nothing to do with the UN’s efforts to stonewall investigations of the oil-for-food scam that stole billions of dollars fromt he starving Iraqi people!
Another Blog in the Wall hosts this week’s Mela. I wasn’t able to post the link earlier owing to Thanksgiving vacation. Sorry, Anil!
Here is the upcoming schedule -
December:
3rd December: hosted by MD
10th December: hosted by Debashish
17th December: Yazad
24th December: MadMan
January:
31st December/Jan 1st: Nilesh
7th January: Prasenjeet
14th January: Ravages (drafted)
21st January: Ravikiran (drafted)
28th January: Shanti (thanks for pointing that out, Yaz - you wouldn’t let us get too lazy now, would you!)
February:
3rd February: Fadereu
10th February: Patrix
Anyone else interested in hosting the Mela? Let me know and I will update the schedule with your place in it! Thanks to those volunteered already!
but this was the reason I was in a pissy mood the whole of yesterday. This was the first thing I heard on the radio as soon as I got into the car to leave to work. My heart broke for the little girl!
MSNBC - Mother confesses to severingbaby’s armsPLANO, Texas - With a calm and dispassionate voice and a hymn playing in the background, Dena Schlosser confessed to the unthinkable, telling a 911 operator she’d cut off the arms of her baby girl. The woman was sitting in her living room covered with blood when police arrived Monday. Her nearly 11-month-old daughter lay fatally injured in a crib in a bedroom of the family’s apartment in Plano. The child died shortly afterward at a nearby hospital.
Prasenjeet Dutta has some interesting observations in a slightly older post about the Bin Laden tape - The Chaoszone Weblog » Superpower Baiting
Do opportunities for strategic gain exist in Iraq given the US’ heavy-handed application of military force? Yes - if it is able to deliver on its promise to plant democracy in the middle-east. A thriving democracy in Iraq will show the Arab street that a third option exists, away from their rigid mullahcracies and away from the promised glories of martyrdom. It is a admittedly a huge gamble to take, because it questions the conventional wisdom that the Muslim world would never accept “Western” traditions like liberal democracy and the separation of church and state (incidentally, conventional wisdom in 1947 was that India wasn’t ready for democracy either). If it succeeds, it will resoundingly show once and for all that like all men Muslims too desire happiness in this world as opposed to the next.
The quoted text above caught my eye in particular - not for the obvious reasons but because I didn’t know there were naysayers then who thought India wasn’t ready to be a democracy. We sure proved them wrong, didn’t we! Thanks for that little bit of info, Prasenjeet!
here…Nerve Endings Firing Away: Bharteeya Blog Mela
If you want to be featured in it, send in your nominations to Maverick Anil.
Neel is sitting by Sammy (my black Great Dane). This was the first time he could sit unassisted.
I woke up and went to brush my teeth. I come back to this little scene of Neel and Raju (my fawn Great Dane) snuggling by each other and fast asleep.
Neel in his Froggy Halloween costume :)
While we are talking family, Happy Birthday, Geetha my little sister
…for the murderers of Ms. Hassan who she thinks we should join… Someone gave this bitch a “Peace Prize”? Bah! I swear I will delete and ban every commenter who tells me how these scum passing for humans are really brave “feedom fighters” fighting the “occupation”. They have no regard for humanity - how do they care if their country is occupied or free? It is BS, I say!
The Australian: Tests to confirm corpse is Hassan [November 19, 2004]THE mutilated corpse of a Western woman found by US marines in Fallujah is being DNA tested to see if it is the remains of murdered aid worker Margaret Hassan. The disembowelled body, with hands and lower legs cut off, was found near the bridge over the Euphrates in west Fallujah on Monday, wrapped in a white, brown and red-striped blanket and blue robe. The marines who found it said it was a Western woman.
A beautiful gallery of pictures from India - - INDIA 2004 - another try - Photo Gallery by Maciek Da… at pbase.com. Check it out - these are not the usual dirt-grime-and-beggars pictures of India. There are beautiful women, children and life in general. Very moving!
Send yours to Patrix who will be hosting the Mela next week - Nerve Endings Firing Away: Hiatus and a Mela.
Have a happy Diwali!!! I actually wore a saree to work in a crazy effort to be festive :)
Oh, don’t forget to check out the Deepavali version of the Blog Mela over at Sameer’s ever-“optimystic” blog!
Have a great weekend, guys!
I have written about the Adam’s bridge pictures from NASA in a previous entry and posted images of the bridge here. I received by email recently a lot more information on the subject with plenty of research and references involved. It is really interesting especially if you have some knowledge of the Hindu mythology and the Puranas. It is a fairly long paper with a lot of footnotes and backup documentation so I have posted it in the extended entry section. Let me know if you want to contact the author and I will pass the information on to him - read on!
(Click for larger image)
Correlations between Hindu Cosmology, Sea Level Curves and African -Asian Hominid Dating
By Malcolm P.R. Light
A sea level variation curve from about 8 million years ago to the present day (Late Miocene to Recent - Eberli, 2000) is compared in Figure 1 to the time of construction of Adam’s Bridge between southern India and Sri Lanka, Hindu cosmological dates and African Asian chronological data. There are a number of clear correlations between the Hindu cosmology, the sea level curve and the geochronological data.
Each of the Yuga cycles (Das 2004) appears to correspond to a major cycle in sea level change. The Satya/Kriti Yuga is preceded by a long period of rising sea level in the Late Miocene but sea level began to fall sharply during this Yuga reaching a minimum of -80 metres below mean sea level around 2.7 million years ago (Figure 1 Eberli, 2000). During the Late Miocene, early arboreal apemen, Sahelanthropus tchadensis (Toumai), Orrorin tugenesis and Ardipithecus ramidus kadabba lived in the extensive thick forests in Africa (Brunet et al. 2002; Wood, 2002; Pickford 2001; Aiello and Collard, 2001; Haile Selassie 2001; Senut et al 2001; White et al. 1994; Wood; 1994). The following Treta Yuga represents a period of rising sea levels during which Hindu cosmology said there was increased rainfall and the formation of new rivers (Das 2004). The Dvapura Yuga is a period of falling sea level, followed by a rise at the beginning of the Kali Yuga (Das 2004, Eberli 2000). At the start of the Satya/Kriti Yuga, 4.3 million years ago (Das 2004) there was a general period of falling sea level (Eberli 2000) and major climate change in Africa during which the vegetation began to alter from thick forest inhabited by 4.4 million year old arboreal Ardipithecus ramidus ramidus to dry woodland and gallery forest inhabited by the 4.2 million year old Austrolopithecus anamensis (Leakey et al. 1995; White et al, 1994). By the end of the Satya/Kriti Yuga some 2.7 million years ago (Das 2004), sea level had reached its lowest level some 80 metres below the present sea level and the woodlands were still in habited by Austrolpithecines (Figure 1 Eberli 2000; Leakey and Lewin 1979; Gowlett 1984). The start of the Treta Yuga (2.6 million years ago) when man began to pursue knowledge (Das 2004) corresponds exactly with the time the first tools appeared in Africa. These tools were made by the newly evolved upright hominids, Homo habilis and later Homo erectus (Foley 2003; Leakey and Lewin, 1979) who now inhabited the harsher savanna consistent with the description of the conditions in the Treta Yuga (Das 2004). Homo erectus began to migrate out of Africa because of increasing aridity in the rift savanna between 2 and 1.8 million years ago into Asia (Leakey, 1994; Leakey and Lewin 1979; Templeton, 2002) and India (Joseph 2004). Hanuman, the monkey God in the Ramanyana (Joseph 2004), must have been Homo erectus and this hominid species would certainly have seemed ape-like to modern day man. They were the ancestors of Pekin man in China (Wolpoff and Caspari 1977), the 1.6 million year old Homo erectus in Java and probably the 18 thousand year old hobbits recently found on Flores island (Stringer, 2004; Dalton, 2004). Adam’s bridge appears to have been constructed between southern India and Sri Lanka 1.8 and 1.6 million years ago in the Treta Yuga during a period of sharp sea level fall to some 60 metres below the present sea level (Figure 2; Eberli 2000). A strip of land must have been exposed between India and Sri Lanka as the sea level approached its lowest level, between 1.8 and 1.6 million years ago. Because Homo erectus had already reached southern India before that time he must have tried to get across to Sri Lanka when the land began to be exposed at low tide during this period of sea level fall, around 1.75 million years ago (Joseph 2004). The driving force for his migration was probably population pressure within the southern Indian forest which caused food shortage. The exposed region between southern India and Sri Lanka must have been a treacherous path with many quicksands and shallow lakes. It seems logical that after several of his company were lost during periods of rising tide, Homo erectus could have started to construct a causeway by throwing trees and other vegetation onto the loose sand and and covering them with rocks. Homo erectus must have built the floating bridge on the quicksands that is so elegantly described in Sage Valkimi’s account of the “Ramanyana “(Joseph 2004). Nala son of Vishvakarma (architect of the demigods) constructed a causeway - magnificent with its wonderful paved floor - like unto a line traced on the waves”(Joseph 2004). The Adam’s Bridge causeway must have been a major engineering feat for its thin trace is still so clearly visible on the present day satellite images (Joseph 2004). It has resisted the relentless erosion of the sea for almost 2 million years and it attests to the great engineering skills of the ancient Indian people. It is the earliest and largest carbon-fibre reinforced civil engineering structure known to man and should be protected as a world heritage site. A shallow seismic survey could be used to detect the strong reflection acoustic signal of lignite formed from decayed wood in the framework of the causeway and this will guide later drilling programs where the actual structure of the causeway could be investigated. In addition to the above correlations, one Brahma day (4.32 billion years)(Das 2004) is close to the value for the age of the Earth (4.6 billion years)(Lide 1994). One cycle of our Universe from Big Bang to Big Crunch assuming a Universe age around 15 billion years is 30 billion years almost identical to 1/100 of a Brahma year (31.1 billion years)(Das 2004). One Brahma year is 3.11 trillion years (Das 2004). Note the length of a Yuga cycle (and the start of the Satya/Kriti Yuga) at 4.3 million years is 1/1000 of a Brahma day (Das 2004).References
Aiello L., and Collard M. 2001. Our newest oldest ancestor? Nature, 410: 526-7
Brunet M., Guy F., Pilbeam D., Mackay H.T., Likius A., Djimboumalbaye A. 2002. A new hominid from the upper Miocene of Chad, central Africa. Nature, 418; 145-51.
Dalton R. 2004. A little lady of Flores forces rethink of human evolution. News@nature.com
Das. S. 2004. The cycle of the ages - The cyclic time concept of the Vedas by Raja Vidya das. 3pp.
http://www.salagram.net/cyclesOages.html
Eberli G. 2000. The record of Neogene sea-level changes in prograding carbonates along the Bahamas Transect-Leg 166 Synthesis. In Swart P.K., Eberli G.P., Malone M.J. and Sarg J. F. (Eds). Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program. Scientific Results, Vol. 166, Chapter 16, 167-177
Foley J. 2003. Hominid species
http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/species.html
Prominent Hominid Fossils
http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.html
Gowlett J.A.J. 1984. Ascent to civilisation. The archaeology of early man. Knopf. New York. 208pp.
Haile-Selassie Y. 2001, Late Miocene hominids from the Middle Awash, Ethiopia. Nature, 412, 178-81
Joseph H., 2004. Nasa images find 1,750,000 year old man - made bridge between India and Sri-Lanka. 4pp. http://www.lankalibrary.com/geo/ancient/nasa.htm
Lide D. R., 1994. Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. 75th Edition. CRC Press. Boca Raton, 1-1 - I-33.
Leakey M.G., Feibel C.S., McDougall I. and Walker A.C., 1995. New four-million year old hominid species from Kanapoi and Allia bay, Kenya, Nature, 376:565-571.
Leakey R. E., and Lewin R. 1979. Origins. E.P. Dutton, New York, 264 pp.
Leakey R., 1994. The origin of Humankind. Science Masters, Basic Books. Harper Collins, New York, 171 pp.
Pickford M. 2001.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/low/english/sci/Tech/newsid_1055000/1055105.stm
Senut B., Pickford M., Gommery D., Mein P., Cheboi C., and Coppens Y. 2001. First hominid from the Miocene (Lukeino Formation, Kenya. Comptes Rendus des Seances de l’Academie des Sciences, 332. 137-144.
Stringer C. 2004. A stranger from Flores. News@nature.com
Templeton, A.R. 2002. Out of Africa again and again. Nature, 416, 45-51.
White T.D., Suwa G., and Asfaw B. 1994. Austalopithecus ramidus, a new species of early hominid from Aramis, Ethiopia. Nature, 371: 306-312.
Wolpoff M. and Caspari R. 1977. Race and Human Evolution. Simon and Schuster, New York, 462 pp.
Wood B. 2002. Hominid revelations from Chad, Nature, 418, 133-135.
Wood B.A. 1994. The oldest hominid yet. Nature, 371, 280-281.
So, return of the Bushitler coincided with the invasion of the evangelicals….right? Not so fast, says this analysis -
andrewcoyne.com: Invasion of the theo-consThis, after Kerry campaigned from the pulpit in black churches on five straight Sundays.All well in keeping with the prevailing Democratic/media view that only morons and blinkered zealots would vote for Bush. But not at all in keeping with the actual data on who voted and why, as revealed in the massive (13,660 respondents), comprehensive CNN exit poll.
True, it found the largest single block of voters identified “moral values” as the “most important election issue” — a much cited factoid — and that 80% of these respondents voted for Bush. But that hardly makes this election a triumph of theocracy. In the first place, “largest single block” turns out to mean 22%, meaning 78% of voters — including two-thirds of Bush voters — named some other issue. Second, the pollsters only managed to elevated “moral values” to number one by dividing up the other issues into subcategories. Thus “Iraq” and “Terrorism” are treated as separate issues, though grouped together as, say, “national security” they would have claimed the top spot, with 34% of the total. Likewise “taxes” and “economy” were named by a combined 25% of voters. Had “moral values” been split into “abortion” and “gay marriage,” the spin would have been rather different.
Those were a few interesting snippets - I say, read the whole thing.
Similar analysis and more number-crunching here.
The election is over for now, I guess - AP: Kerry Calls Bush to Concede Election. It was a nasty campaign and downright dirty in a lot of ways. Hopefully, now that it is over the healing process will begin. Remember, just because someone voted the other way than you doesn’t make them racist or idiotic - just different. Sane people can look at the same situation and arrive at different conclusions.
Congratulations, President Bush! Good job in conceding the election and not dragging it out to a bitter end, John Kerry!
Boy, was that a good game by the Mavs last night or what! I am loving the new look Mavs. Dirk looked like a monster and really aggressive last night. Dampier looked like a real center and will do great if he can not attract so many fouls. Josh howard and Marquis Daniels rocked as usual. Devon Harris was so good I was thinking “Steve Who?”. The kid can pass - it will be nice once he learns how to score consistently. It was just amazing to see him matched up with Mike Bibby and Bobby Jackson and see him rip them to shreds.
Go Mavs!
I am getting my election coverage here - The Command Post.
Coming tomorrow…review of “Vaastu Shaastra”
Seriously, could some of you be any more self-absorbed? I was listening to radio on my way to work this morning and this undecided voter called in. For one, I cannot understand how someone can be undecided today when it is time to vote after being harangued to death by both parties and more. Anyways, the host asks this guy why he is still undecided - he says it is because he called both campaigns and left a message and no one bothered to personally call him back! Come again? His next issue was the makeup of the candidates’ cabinets - he either wanted to be on it or have someone on there who agrees with him on all issues. Gimme a frgging break! There are bigger issues in the election than your personal happiness and you are a moron if you don’t realize that!
Vote today, people! Don’t sit on your pampered asses and then bitch and moan about someone screwing up your country if you cannot be bothered to get up and do what it takes.