Backtracking from a widely criticized assertion over the weekend, the secretary of homeland security, Janet Napolitano, said in a televised interview on Monday that the thwarted bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas represented a failure of the nation's aviation security system, not a success. Ms. Napolitano said on the "Today" program on NBC that her remark on Sunday that the system worked had been taken out of context. "Our system did not work in this instance," she said on the program. "No one is happy or satisfied with that. An extensive review is under way." As criticism mounted that security lapses had led to a brush with disaster, President Obama on Sunday ordered a review of the two major planks of the aviation security system -- the creation of watch lists and the use of detection equipment at airport checkpoints. Some members of Congress urgently questioned why, eight years after the Sept. 11 attacks, security measures still cannot keep makeshift bombs off airliners.
Ms. Napolitano said on the "Today" program on NBC that her remark on Sunday that the system worked had been taken out of context. "Our system did not work in this instance," she said on the program. "No one is happy or satisfied with that. An extensive review is under way."
As criticism mounted that security lapses had led to a brush with disaster, President Obama on Sunday ordered a review of the two major planks of the aviation security system -- the creation of watch lists and the use of detection equipment at airport checkpoints. Some members of Congress urgently questioned why, eight years after the Sept. 11 attacks, security measures still cannot keep makeshift bombs off airliners.
Following this week's thwarted terror attack on a flight from Amsterdam to Detroit, officials across Europe are debating airport security standards. What, politicians and police are asking, can be done to stop the next Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab from boarding a trans-Atlantic flight? Over the Christmas holiday, Nigerian national Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab attempted to ignite an explosive device onboard a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Detroit. Luckily, a combination of factors -- the explosive device did not light properly, Abdulmutallab was overpowered by passengers and cabin crew -- meant that the would-be terrorist failed. The plane, carrying around 300 passengers, landed safely and police detained the 23-year-old suspect, who will be prosecuted in the US. The aftermath of the incident has seen security services in all the countries the suspect entered asking themselves: How did he get through airport security? "That is clearly an extremely serious incident," European Commission spokesperson Mark English told the German news agency DPA. "As soon as the investigations are complete, we will draw our own conclusions and act accordingly."
Over the Christmas holiday, Nigerian national Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab attempted to ignite an explosive device onboard a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Detroit. Luckily, a combination of factors -- the explosive device did not light properly, Abdulmutallab was overpowered by passengers and cabin crew -- meant that the would-be terrorist failed. The plane, carrying around 300 passengers, landed safely and police detained the 23-year-old suspect, who will be prosecuted in the US. The aftermath of the incident has seen security services in all the countries the suspect entered asking themselves: How did he get through airport security?
"That is clearly an extremely serious incident," European Commission spokesperson Mark English told the German news agency DPA. "As soon as the investigations are complete, we will draw our own conclusions and act accordingly."
Amsterdam airport is not using the 17 special security equiptment it has had since 2007. A millimetre wave scan would have detected the explosive powder Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab set off on board Northwest flight 253 to Detroit on Friday. The radio waves scan people's bodies and reveal anything they wear underneath their clothes. The millimetre wave technology security scans are still in the test phase, Schiphol spokesperson Mirjam Snoerwang told NRC Handelsblad. "European regulations tell us we can only put people through them on a voluntary basis. And objections have been raised with regards to privacy," she said. Citing anonymous FBI sources, American media said Abdulmutallab carried 80 grammes of pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN), possibly inside a condom, in his underwear. PETN was also used by Richard Reid, known as `the shoe bomber', in an unsuccessful attempt to blow up an American Airlines airplane from Paris to Miami in December 2001.
The millimetre wave technology security scans are still in the test phase, Schiphol spokesperson Mirjam Snoerwang told NRC Handelsblad. "European regulations tell us we can only put people through them on a voluntary basis. And objections have been raised with regards to privacy," she said.
Citing anonymous FBI sources, American media said Abdulmutallab carried 80 grammes of pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN), possibly inside a condom, in his underwear. PETN was also used by Richard Reid, known as `the shoe bomber', in an unsuccessful attempt to blow up an American Airlines airplane from Paris to Miami in December 2001.
Europeans flying to US airports in the wake of the failed Christmas Day aeroplane bomb attempt are facing minor disruptions due to extra security measures. Travellers have reported delays of between one and two hours following the introduction of full body searches for all passengers and more stringent checks on hand-luggage, especially liquids, such as baby milk. Some airlines have prevented passengers from carrying any more than one bag on board, including duty-free purchases.
Travellers have reported delays of between one and two hours following the introduction of full body searches for all passengers and more stringent checks on hand-luggage, especially liquids, such as baby milk.
Some airlines have prevented passengers from carrying any more than one bag on board, including duty-free purchases.
Terrorism is rare, far rarer than many people think. It's rare because very few people want to commit acts of terrorism, and executing a terrorist plot is much harder than television makes it appear. The best defenses against terrorism are largely invisible: investigation, intelligence, and emergency response. But even these are less effective at keeping us safe than our social and political policies, both at home and abroad. However, our elected leaders don't think this way: they are far more likely to implement security theater against movie-plot threats. A movie-plot threat is an overly specific attack scenario. Whether it's terrorists with crop dusters, terrorists contaminating the milk supply, or terrorists attacking the Olympics, specific stories affect our emotions more intensely than mere data does. Stories are what we fear. It's not just hypothetical stories: terrorists flying planes into buildings, terrorists with bombs in their shoes or in their water bottles, and terrorists with guns and bombs waging a co-ordinated attack against a city are even scarier movie-plot threats because they actually happened. Security theater refers to security measures that make people feel more secure without doing anything to actually improve their security. An example: the photo ID checks that have sprung up in office buildings. No-one has ever explained why verifying that someone has a photo ID provides any actual security, but it looks like security to have a uniformed guard-for-hire looking at ID cards. Airport-security examples include the National Guard troops stationed at US airports in the months after 9/11 -- their guns had no bullets. The US colour-coded system of threat levels, the pervasive harassment of photographers, and the metal detectors that are increasingly common in hotels and office buildings since the Mumbai terrorist attacks, are additional examples.
A movie-plot threat is an overly specific attack scenario. Whether it's terrorists with crop dusters, terrorists contaminating the milk supply, or terrorists attacking the Olympics, specific stories affect our emotions more intensely than mere data does. Stories are what we fear. It's not just hypothetical stories: terrorists flying planes into buildings, terrorists with bombs in their shoes or in their water bottles, and terrorists with guns and bombs waging a co-ordinated attack against a city are even scarier movie-plot threats because they actually happened.
Security theater refers to security measures that make people feel more secure without doing anything to actually improve their security. An example: the photo ID checks that have sprung up in office buildings. No-one has ever explained why verifying that someone has a photo ID provides any actual security, but it looks like security to have a uniformed guard-for-hire looking at ID cards. Airport-security examples include the National Guard troops stationed at US airports in the months after 9/11 -- their guns had no bullets. The US colour-coded system of threat levels, the pervasive harassment of photographers, and the metal detectors that are increasingly common in hotels and office buildings since the Mumbai terrorist attacks, are additional examples.
A number of opposition figures were arrested Monday in the wake of violent nationwide protests a day earlier, Web sites reported, including three top aides to the opposition leader Mir Hussein Moussavi and the leader of a banned political group, Ibrahim Yazdi. Mr. Moussavi's 43-year-old nephew, Ali Moussavi, was among 10 people reported killed during the protests, which came on religious holiday during which violence of any kind is normally forbidden, worsening the tensions in the conflict. If the 10 deaths are confirmed, it would be the highest toll since the summer, when huge crowds took to the streets to protest what they said was rampant fraud in the presidential election won by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Protests and clashes were reported not only in Tehran, but in the cities of Isfahan, Mashhad, Shiraz, Arak, Tabriz, Najafabad, Babol, Ardebil and Orumieh. Foreign journalists have been banned from covering the protests, and the reports could not be independently verified.
Mr. Moussavi's 43-year-old nephew, Ali Moussavi, was among 10 people reported killed during the protests, which came on religious holiday during which violence of any kind is normally forbidden, worsening the tensions in the conflict.
If the 10 deaths are confirmed, it would be the highest toll since the summer, when huge crowds took to the streets to protest what they said was rampant fraud in the presidential election won by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Protests and clashes were reported not only in Tehran, but in the cities of Isfahan, Mashhad, Shiraz, Arak, Tabriz, Najafabad, Babol, Ardebil and Orumieh. Foreign journalists have been banned from covering the protests, and the reports could not be independently verified.
As the Obama administration and its allies prepare new economic sanctions for Iran, the Iranian dissidents of the Green Movement and their supporters abroad are expressing concern over what the sanctions will mean for a nascent political force that has the potential to transform the Islamic Republic. But some are beginning to think that sanctions specifically targeting the most hardline elements of the Iranian regime might be acceptable. Ever since the fraud-filled June 12 presidential election yielded the largest protests in 30 years from Iranians demanding widespread political reform, the Iranian regime has embarked on a campaign to discredit the Greens by portraying them as tools of nefarious western interests. The attack on the Greens' nationalist credentials has come alongside mass detentions and brutality directed at them by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the ideological vanguard of the Iranian military, and the pro-regime militia known as the Basij. Under those pressures, Green leaders like Mir-Hossein Moussavi and Mehdi Kerroubi have staked out an even more nationalistic stance than President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, urging him to reject a deal offered by the Obama administration that would tamp down international tensions over Iran's nuclear program. Similarly, both Moussavi and Kerroubi have denounced the prospect of new international sanctions. "I do not agree with any pressure on any government because, at the end of the day, the ordinary people will suffer," Kerroubi said in October. Moussavi has circulated a statement portraying sanctions as ultimately benefiting a regime prone to demagoguery and hurting "the people who have already been agonized by this government."
Ever since the fraud-filled June 12 presidential election yielded the largest protests in 30 years from Iranians demanding widespread political reform, the Iranian regime has embarked on a campaign to discredit the Greens by portraying them as tools of nefarious western interests. The attack on the Greens' nationalist credentials has come alongside mass detentions and brutality directed at them by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the ideological vanguard of the Iranian military, and the pro-regime militia known as the Basij. Under those pressures, Green leaders like Mir-Hossein Moussavi and Mehdi Kerroubi have staked out an even more nationalistic stance than President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, urging him to reject a deal offered by the Obama administration that would tamp down international tensions over Iran's nuclear program.
Similarly, both Moussavi and Kerroubi have denounced the prospect of new international sanctions. "I do not agree with any pressure on any government because, at the end of the day, the ordinary people will suffer," Kerroubi said in October. Moussavi has circulated a statement portraying sanctions as ultimately benefiting a regime prone to demagoguery and hurting "the people who have already been agonized by this government."
At least 20 people have been killed and 60 injured, many critically, in a suicide bomb attack on a religious procession of Shia Muslims in Karachi, Pakistan's largest city. Furious participants in the ceremony turned on police, soldiers and media after the blast which sent smoke billowing over the centre. Film footage showed police and ambulances with broken windows, as Karachi's mayor, Mustafa Kamal, appealed for calm. The suicide bomber evaded heightened security during the traditionally tense month of Muharram when Shias mourn the death in a 7th-century battle of Mohammed's grandson Ali which led to their split with mainstream Islam. Warnings of possible attacks had increased overnight after a suicide bombing yesterday killed eight and wounded 80 in Muzaffarabad, the capital of the Pakistan-controlled part of Kashmir. Scores of lesser incidents of violence between Shias and Sunni Muslims have been reported in the run-up to Ashura, the holiest day of Muharram, which the Karachi march was marking.
Furious participants in the ceremony turned on police, soldiers and media after the blast which sent smoke billowing over the centre.
Film footage showed police and ambulances with broken windows, as Karachi's mayor, Mustafa Kamal, appealed for calm. The suicide bomber evaded heightened security during the traditionally tense month of Muharram when Shias mourn the death in a 7th-century battle of Mohammed's grandson Ali which led to their split with mainstream Islam.
Warnings of possible attacks had increased overnight after a suicide bombing yesterday killed eight and wounded 80 in Muzaffarabad, the capital of the Pakistan-controlled part of Kashmir. Scores of lesser incidents of violence between Shias and Sunni Muslims have been reported in the run-up to Ashura, the holiest day of Muharram, which the Karachi march was marking.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday raised publicly for the first time the prospect of maintaining Israeli forces along the eastern border of a future Palestinian state to prevent arms smuggling. "The problem of demilitarization must be resolved effectively and this entails effectively blocking unauthorized entry, first and foremost from the east, wherever the border is defined," Netanyahu said in a speech to Israeli ambassadors. "I doubt whether anything except a real presence of the State of Israel, of Israeli forces, can accomplish that," he said, expanding on his vision of a nation with only limited sovereignty.
"The problem of demilitarization must be resolved effectively and this entails effectively blocking unauthorized entry, first and foremost from the east, wherever the border is defined," Netanyahu said in a speech to Israeli ambassadors.
"I doubt whether anything except a real presence of the State of Israel, of Israeli forces, can accomplish that," he said, expanding on his vision of a nation with only limited sovereignty.
Speaking on Fox News Sunday, Senator Joseph Lieberman (I-CT), who leads the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, has a vision of "tomorrow's war." ... Senator Arlen Specter (D-PA), also appearing on the program, seemed to agree, calling an attack against Yemen "something we should consider." "Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan -- the Army officer who killed 13 people in a shooting rampage at Fort Hood in November -- was linked to Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical Muslim cleric now based in Yemen," The Hill noted.
...
Senator Arlen Specter (D-PA), also appearing on the program, seemed to agree, calling an attack against Yemen "something we should consider."
"Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan -- the Army officer who killed 13 people in a shooting rampage at Fort Hood in November -- was linked to Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical Muslim cleric now based in Yemen," The Hill noted.
A new report on the community group Acorn by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service has found no evidence of fraudulent voting or of violations of federal financing rules by the group in the past five years. Representative John Conyers Jr., Democrat of Michigan and chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, requested the report along with Representative Barney Frank, Democrat of Massachusetts. Mr. Conyers released the report on Tuesday.Acorn, which stands for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, has drawn fire from conservative activists who have accused it of conducting fraudulent voter registration drives in poor neighborhoods, adding imaginary voters like Mickey Mouse to the rolls. The report by the research service, an arm of the Library of Congress, said, however, that a search using the Nexis news database "did not identify any reported instances of such individuals attempting to vote at the polls."
A new report on the community group Acorn by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service has found no evidence of fraudulent voting or of violations of federal financing rules by the group in the past five years.
Representative John Conyers Jr., Democrat of Michigan and chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, requested the report along with Representative Barney Frank, Democrat of Massachusetts. Mr. Conyers released the report on Tuesday.
Acorn, which stands for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, has drawn fire from conservative activists who have accused it of conducting fraudulent voter registration drives in poor neighborhoods, adding imaginary voters like Mickey Mouse to the rolls. The report by the research service, an arm of the Library of Congress, said, however, that a search using the Nexis news database "did not identify any reported instances of such individuals attempting to vote at the polls."
A group calling itself Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has said it was behind the failed attempt to bomb a US aircraft on Christmas day. The group said on its website on Monday that the attempt had been carried out to avenge US operations in Yemen. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a Nigerian, attempted to light an explosive device on a flight from Amsterdam to Detroit with nearly 300 people onboard.
A group calling itself Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has said it was behind the failed attempt to bomb a US aircraft on Christmas day.
The group said on its website on Monday that the attempt had been carried out to avenge US operations in Yemen.
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a Nigerian, attempted to light an explosive device on a flight from Amsterdam to Detroit with nearly 300 people onboard.
"Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula" "Al-Qaeda in the Magreb" "Al-Qaeda in Somalia" "Al-Qaeda in Pakistan" "Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan" "Al-Qaeda in Indonesia" "Al-Qaeda in Iraq"
Did I miss any? Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.
KABUL -- As the U.S. and its allies try to overcome logistical hurdles and rush some 40,000 more troops to Afghanistan in 2010, intelligence officials are warning that the Taliban-led insurgency is expanding and that "time is running out" for the U.S.-led coalition to prove that its strategy can succeed. The Taliban have created a shadow "government-in-waiting," complete with Cabinet ministers, that could assume power if the U.S.-backed government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai fails, a senior International Security Assistance Force intelligence official said in Kabul, speaking only on the condition of anonymity as a matter of ISAF policy. As the Obama administration and its European allies face dwindling public and political support for the eight-year-old Afghan war, the Taliban now have what the official called "a full-fledged insurgency" and shadow governors in 33 of Afghanistan's 34 provinces, including those in the north, where U.S. and other officials had thought the Islamic extremists posed less of a threat. The Taliban's return to the northern provinces, including Baghlan, Kunduz and Taqhar -- which McClatchy reported Aug. 28 -- poses serious security, logistical and political problems for the U.S.-led ISAF and Karzai's government. The northern region is under the command of German forces, but they and other European contingents operate under restrictions imposed by their governments that limit offensive operations against the Taliban.
The Taliban have created a shadow "government-in-waiting," complete with Cabinet ministers, that could assume power if the U.S.-backed government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai fails, a senior International Security Assistance Force intelligence official said in Kabul, speaking only on the condition of anonymity as a matter of ISAF policy.
As the Obama administration and its European allies face dwindling public and political support for the eight-year-old Afghan war, the Taliban now have what the official called "a full-fledged insurgency" and shadow governors in 33 of Afghanistan's 34 provinces, including those in the north, where U.S. and other officials had thought the Islamic extremists posed less of a threat.
The Taliban's return to the northern provinces, including Baghlan, Kunduz and Taqhar -- which McClatchy reported Aug. 28 -- poses serious security, logistical and political problems for the U.S.-led ISAF and Karzai's government.
The northern region is under the command of German forces, but they and other European contingents operate under restrictions imposed by their governments that limit offensive operations against the Taliban.
"We should get comprehensive information about people with high potential danger and keep a close eye on them to maintain social stability," Yang Huanning, vice-minister of Public Security, said recently, according to a transcript posted on Xinhua.net yesterday. <...> Zhang Wuli, 38, killed his wife and son on the morning of Dec 27 in a residential community in Daxing district, Beijing. Zhang was allegedly suffering from mental health problems. On the night of Nov 23, Li Lei, 29, killed his wife, parents and two sons, a 7-year-old primary school student and a 1-year-old baby, also in Daxing. Currently, around 170 million people in China suffer from mental health problems and nearly 16 million of them need medical treatment, statistics show. <...> Pu Zhiqiang, a Beijing-based lawyer said the remarks showed that police would pay more attention to opinions expressed online.
<...>
Zhang Wuli, 38, killed his wife and son on the morning of Dec 27 in a residential community in Daxing district, Beijing. Zhang was allegedly suffering from mental health problems.
On the night of Nov 23, Li Lei, 29, killed his wife, parents and two sons, a 7-year-old primary school student and a 1-year-old baby, also in Daxing.
Currently, around 170 million people in China suffer from mental health problems and nearly 16 million of them need medical treatment, statistics show.
Pu Zhiqiang, a Beijing-based lawyer said the remarks showed that police would pay more attention to opinions expressed online.
China's Supreme People's Court (SPC) said Tuesday that it had reviewed and approved the death sentence against Akmal Shaikh, a British man who was convicted of smuggling drugs into China. <...> Officials from the British embassy in China and a British organization had proposed a mental disease examination on Akmal Shaikh, but the documents they provided could not prove he had mental disorder nor did members of his family have history of mental disease, the SPC said. Akmal Shaikh himself did not provide relevant materials regarding him having a mental disease, according to the SPC. "There is no reason to cast doubt on Akmal Shaikh's mental status," the SPC said.
Officials from the British embassy in China and a British organization had proposed a mental disease examination on Akmal Shaikh, but the documents they provided could not prove he had mental disorder nor did members of his family have history of mental disease, the SPC said. Akmal Shaikh himself did not provide relevant materials regarding him having a mental disease, according to the SPC. "There is no reason to cast doubt on Akmal Shaikh's mental status," the SPC said.
A British man convicted of drug smuggling in China has been executed, the Foreign Office has confirmed.Akmal Shaikh, 53, a father-of-three, of London, had denied any wrongdoing and his family said he was mentally ill. The execution took place despite repeated calls from his family and the British government for clemency. Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he was "appalled and disappointed". But the Chinese Embassy said Mr Shaikh had no previous record of mental illness.
A British man convicted of drug smuggling in China has been executed, the Foreign Office has confirmed.
Akmal Shaikh, 53, a father-of-three, of London, had denied any wrongdoing and his family said he was mentally ill.
The execution took place despite repeated calls from his family and the British government for clemency.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he was "appalled and disappointed". But the Chinese Embassy said Mr Shaikh had no previous record of mental illness.
Hawaii H1N1 Resolution Advances Vaccination Exemptions Favoring Americans' Growing Demand for Health Freedoms Hilo, HI--Department of Health officials in Hawaii were overruled by County of Hawaii directors supporting a resolution favoring First Amendment constitutional rights and vaccination exemptions for everyone demanding them. The nearly unanimous 7-1 Big Island of Hawaii Council vote sent a strong message to State and Federal policy makers to consider a majority of people who solidly distrust risky vaccines in general, and health officials' claims of safety regarding H1N1 vaccines in particular. The vote demonstrated the power of local community activists to rebuke "top down" policies advancing "mandatory" vaccinations during declared emergencies. The Council's decision backed the majority of people unwilling to lose health freedoms to Federal governors directing State health officials on behalf of BigPharma special interests. The Resolution (237-09) urges State and Federal legislators in Hawaii "to amend vaccine laws to include medical, religious, and philosophical exemptions from any vaccine program," including those declared urgent by health officials. Proponents declared this a victory for health freedom--a warning to health officials seeking mandatory vaccination authorizations under Federal "national emergency" codes that expand State health official powers under the Model State Emergency Health Powers Act. The vote reflects a nationwide trend of increasing public distrust of official proclamations of vaccination safety and efficacy. A solid majority of medical doctors, and nearly 70% of parents polled by Consumer Reports, feared the new vaccines and were determined not to recommend them. After exhaustive research conducted by Council researchers and attorneys, and many drafts, the Resolution stated, "there is insufficient scientific evidence proving that vaccines are safe or effective, therefore it is not in the best interest of public health to recommend vaccinations without exemptions." "WHEREAS, in the wake of potential harm to the individual and the public from vaccinations, and the vacillating interpretation of 'vaccine science,'" the Resolution declares, "it is in the public's best interest to amend the vaccine laws to include the right of medical, religious, and philosophical exemptions from any vaccination program." The Resolution was advanced by native Hawaiian County Councilwoman, Emily Naeole-Beason, who heard from several constituents concerned about vaccine-injuries. Many complaints received by the Council cited the toxic ingredient mercury linked to neurodevelopmental and behavioral disorders in children denied by public health officials. "This is a victory for health freedom, common sense, and U.S. Constitutional entitlements," Council Vice Chair Naeole-Beason said. "I am very proud of our Council who put public safety ahead of special interests." "We are compelled by science and history to not repeat deadly mistakes," said Rev. RJ Hampton, Legislative Aide to Naeole-Beason. "Our office studied vaccine science, and edited the Resolution to read, 'that any vaccine known to contain harmful viruses or any materials known to prompt autoimmune diseases or cancer risks shall provide cause for exemption for any person in the State of Hawai'i who so desires such exemption.'" "This is a win for 'We the People,'" said Dr. Leonard Horowitz, a Harvard-trained authority in vaccinations and emerging diseases who advised the research committee that considered opinions of several leading U.S. Constitutional attorneys. Opposition came from the Department of Health Director, Chiyome L Fukino, along with Sarah Y. Park, Chief of the State's Disease Outbreak Control Division. The two medical doctors, heavily supported by the Honolulu Star Bulletin, wrote that "a number of inaccuracies pertaining to immunization were cited in the Resolution . . . ," but failed to show any or send anyone to the County meeting to defend their views. Dr. Horowitz responded to the Park-Fukino indictment by encouraging Council members to resist health officials' gross conflicting interests and perverse pseudoscientific, and otherwise baseless, testimony. In an Affidavit to be mailed to Hawaii's State and Federal lawmakers who will vote on the Resolution next, Dr. Horowitz revealed a "conspiracy to cover-up media relations between FUKINO's press officers and agents for the Honolulu Star Bulletin . . ." The Bulletin feeds and publishes Associated Press (AP) propaganda advancing vaccination agendas on behalf of AP director, Rupert Murdoch, and his politically-powerful partners in the Partnership for New York City (PFNYC), the world's wealthiest biotechnology investment group. Besides this conflicting interest, Murdoch's son James directs GlaxoSmithKlein that markets one of the best selling H1N1 vaccines, and Tamiflu, also purchased by the Fukino's department. Plus, Rupert Murdoch's Co-Chairman of PFNYC, Lloyd Blankfein, owns a majority share of MedImmune that produces the H1N1 FLUMIST vaccine that Dr. Fukino additionally stockpiled for Hawaiian distribution.
The nearly unanimous 7-1 Big Island of Hawaii Council vote sent a strong message to State and Federal policy makers to consider a majority of people who solidly distrust risky vaccines in general, and health officials' claims of safety regarding H1N1 vaccines in particular.
The vote demonstrated the power of local community activists to rebuke "top down" policies advancing "mandatory" vaccinations during declared emergencies. The Council's decision backed the majority of people unwilling to lose health freedoms to Federal governors directing State health officials on behalf of BigPharma special interests.
The Resolution (237-09) urges State and Federal legislators in Hawaii "to amend vaccine laws to include medical, religious, and philosophical exemptions from any vaccine program," including those declared urgent by health officials.
Proponents declared this a victory for health freedom--a warning to health officials seeking mandatory vaccination authorizations under Federal "national emergency" codes that expand State health official powers under the Model State Emergency Health Powers Act.
The vote reflects a nationwide trend of increasing public distrust of official proclamations of vaccination safety and efficacy. A solid majority of medical doctors, and nearly 70% of parents polled by Consumer Reports, feared the new vaccines and were determined not to recommend them.
After exhaustive research conducted by Council researchers and attorneys, and many drafts, the Resolution stated, "there is insufficient scientific evidence proving that vaccines are safe or effective, therefore it is not in the best interest of public health to recommend vaccinations without exemptions."
"WHEREAS, in the wake of potential harm to the individual and the public from vaccinations, and the vacillating interpretation of 'vaccine science,'" the Resolution declares, "it is in the public's best interest to amend the vaccine laws to include the right of medical, religious, and philosophical exemptions from any vaccination program."
The Resolution was advanced by native Hawaiian County Councilwoman, Emily Naeole-Beason, who heard from several constituents concerned about vaccine-injuries. Many complaints received by the Council cited the toxic ingredient mercury linked to neurodevelopmental and behavioral disorders in children denied by public health officials.
"This is a victory for health freedom, common sense, and U.S. Constitutional entitlements," Council Vice Chair Naeole-Beason said. "I am very proud of our Council who put public safety ahead of special interests."
"We are compelled by science and history to not repeat deadly mistakes," said Rev. RJ Hampton, Legislative Aide to Naeole-Beason. "Our office studied vaccine science, and edited the Resolution to read, 'that any vaccine known to contain harmful viruses or any materials known to prompt autoimmune diseases or cancer risks shall provide cause for exemption for any person in the State of Hawai'i who so desires such exemption.'"
"This is a win for 'We the People,'" said Dr. Leonard Horowitz, a Harvard-trained authority in vaccinations and emerging diseases who advised the research committee that considered opinions of several leading U.S. Constitutional attorneys.
Opposition came from the Department of Health Director, Chiyome L Fukino, along with Sarah Y. Park, Chief of the State's Disease Outbreak Control Division. The two medical doctors, heavily supported by the Honolulu Star Bulletin, wrote that "a number of inaccuracies pertaining to immunization were cited in the Resolution . . . ," but failed to show any or send anyone to the County meeting to defend their views.
Dr. Horowitz responded to the Park-Fukino indictment by encouraging Council members to resist health officials' gross conflicting interests and perverse pseudoscientific, and otherwise baseless, testimony. In an Affidavit to be mailed to Hawaii's State and Federal lawmakers who will vote on the Resolution next, Dr. Horowitz revealed a "conspiracy to cover-up media relations between FUKINO's press officers and agents for the Honolulu Star Bulletin . . ." The Bulletin feeds and publishes Associated Press (AP) propaganda advancing vaccination agendas on behalf of AP director, Rupert Murdoch, and his politically-powerful partners in the Partnership for New York City (PFNYC), the world's wealthiest biotechnology investment group.
Besides this conflicting interest, Murdoch's son James directs GlaxoSmithKlein that markets one of the best selling H1N1 vaccines, and Tamiflu, also purchased by the Fukino's department.
Plus, Rupert Murdoch's Co-Chairman of PFNYC, Lloyd Blankfein, owns a majority share of MedImmune that produces the H1N1 FLUMIST vaccine that Dr. Fukino additionally stockpiled for Hawaiian distribution.
murdoch AND blankfein
alcoa sombrero in place... ~"When an inner situation is not made conscious, it appears outside as fate." Karl Jung~
Influenza can be a serious problem for people in a variety of life situations, and given that precautions and whatnot make sense. On the other hand, for generations of people who grew up with the idea that the flu is something like a common cold + fever, it's a bit hard to really understand what seems to be the hysteria over the issue that has sprung up over the last ten years or so.
Also, one has to wonder if vaccination is really an effective approach to a disease that mutates into a new version once a year at a minimum, and that attains a pandemic spread once a year, at a minimum.
However, I really just don't understand all the seemingly lunatic hand-wringing over the swine-flu vaccine this year. I really have to wonder if it would be even a fraction as bad with president McCain. Nobody in Japan seems particularly worried about the vaccine at all. Decisions over whether to get it or not seem largely based on time and money, just like any other minor and optional medical procedure.
Tetrahedron is a site promoting many of his books, which include
LOVE the Real DaVinci Code
According to Dr. Horowitz's latest of sixteen books, Da Vinci's most famous drawing, "The Vitruvian Man," is a cryptograph providing "Divine direction" for advancing technologies crucial for civilization's evolution. The actual code that sparked Da Vinci's creative genius, not mentioned in The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown or film by Ron Howard, is a set of mathematical-musical notes, numbers, and symbols that heralds civilization's capacity for Divine-human communion. The real secreted code also directs the development of new technologies that can accomplish most amazing and desirable outcomes in the arts and sciences for humanity's physical salvation and spiritual evolution. LOVE The Real Da Vinci Code provides unprecedented insight into Da Vinci's reversed-writings, notebook encryptions, and famous Vitruvian drawing that has become the icon for natural living and holistic healing movements. The "Christian controversy" raging over The Da Vinci Code is proven by these new findings, according to Dr. Horowitz, to be "a superficial distraction from the emancipating truths Da Vinci encrypted for humanity's protection and spiritual evolution.
The actual code that sparked Da Vinci's creative genius, not mentioned in The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown or film by Ron Howard, is a set of mathematical-musical notes, numbers, and symbols that heralds civilization's capacity for Divine-human communion.
The real secreted code also directs the development of new technologies that can accomplish most amazing and desirable outcomes in the arts and sciences for humanity's physical salvation and spiritual evolution.
LOVE The Real Da Vinci Code provides unprecedented insight into Da Vinci's reversed-writings, notebook encryptions, and famous Vitruvian drawing that has become the icon for natural living and holistic healing movements.
The "Christian controversy" raging over The Da Vinci Code is proven by these new findings, according to Dr. Horowitz, to be "a superficial distraction from the emancipating truths Da Vinci encrypted for humanity's protection and spiritual evolution.
Walk on Water
Dr. Leonard Horowitz provides an unparalleled peek into the Creator's technology. He unearths compelling scientific evidence of your spiritual existence, and gives practical advice for your success as a powerful co-creator. Learn to be open-hearted, optimally blessed, and Divinely directed and protected as dramatic changes are unfolding globally. This spiritually uplifting book will have you celebrating and powerfully contributing to the Spiritual Renaissance as modern life is being transformed worldwide, and people like you are doing their part in preparation for a millennium of world peace.
IATROGENOCIDE - The Biotechnology, Politics, and Economics of Emerging Pandemics
In this riveting presentation, Dr. Leonard Horowitz relays more than a decade of his research evidencing nefarious tinkering with microbial, plant, animal, and human biology befitting a massive conspiracy to place profits before people and population control before compassionate medicine. Dr. Horowitz presents solid proof that the most powerful industry on earth--the petrochemical-pharmaceutical cartel--aided by corruption, greed, and incompetence by officials in government, scientific organizations, and academic institutions, has seriously endangered the life and health of myriad forms on this chemically and pharmaceutically beleaguered planet. As documented in his national bestseller (cited above), and in his scientific text, DNA: Pirates of the Sacred Spiral (Tetrahedron; 1-888-508-4787), Dr. Horowitz documents the man-made sources of the world's most deadly viruses and catastrophic illnesses. SNIP Examples provided by Dr. Horowitz in this historic lecture include: the origin of AIDS from corporate labs to gay Americans and Black Africans through experimental hepatitis B vaccines administered during the early 1970s; exploding cancer rates that were predicted and expedited due to recklessly irresponsible health officials protecting their jobs and grants; heart disease scams perpetrated upon the unsuspecting miseducated masses; unprecedented new flu-like illnesses involving military laboratories developed for profit and population control; new immune suppressive germs and chemical co-factors developed and released to prompt Gulf War-like illnesses long before the first Iraqi invasion; and diabetic pandemics linked to insulin production by genetically modified yeast spread environmentally and through our current food supplies.
SNIP
Examples provided by Dr. Horowitz in this historic lecture include: the origin of AIDS from corporate labs to gay Americans and Black Africans through experimental hepatitis B vaccines administered during the early 1970s; exploding cancer rates that were predicted and expedited due to recklessly irresponsible health officials protecting their jobs and grants; heart disease scams perpetrated upon the unsuspecting miseducated masses; unprecedented new flu-like illnesses involving military laboratories developed for profit and population control; new immune suppressive germs and chemical co-factors developed and released to prompt Gulf War-like illnesses long before the first Iraqi invasion; and diabetic pandemics linked to insulin production by genetically modified yeast spread environmentally and through our current food supplies.
Indiana bill sets the value of pi to 3
The bill House Bill No. 246, Indiana State Legislature, 1897, reportedly set the value of pi to an incorrect rational approximation. The following is the text of the bill:
The following is the text of the bill:
And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was five cubits: and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about.
