THE NORTHSTAR JOURNAL
an international weekly ezine of news, commentary and general interest
Sunday, June 29, 2014
No. 390
Merritt Scott “Rusty” Miller – Editor
Dennis W. Steussy – Associate Editor
A GLOBAL LEGACY WRAPPED IN A BOOM
Hi again from the shores of the Salish Sea. Happy summer to those of you on top of the world and to our friends on the bottom of it, I hear Adelaide is awesome in autumn. It’s been raining some here and we’ve been busy preparing Northstar H2O CARE packages for friends and family in drought-stricken California. We’ve also got a rain barrel marked for Oceana and the fun fire season they face every summer.
The headline that caught my attention this week is a legacy of war in Europe that goes back almost a century now and it was a cause for which one of the role models in my life, Britain’s Princess Diana, devoted so much of her time and attention. Here it is. Video: World War I’s Iron Harvest
There are unexploded land mines, bombs and artillery shells on every global battlefield since they were sown in such prolific numbers in Europe. Each year, they continue to maim and kill hundreds of thousands. Children are particularly vulnerable because a lot of them like to play in the dirt and that’s where this lethal legacy lives.
I suppose that if we must have war, we must have instruments of limited destruction as well as those that could make vast regions of the planet unfit for organic habitation after they are used. So that’s probably not going to change.
But you’d think that with the green technology movement growing exponentially, there ought to be a way to make at least land mines biodegradable. And maybe fill them not with explosives that shred a human being but with stuff like super chamomile tea, warm milk and television test patterns from the last century. to supremely and most excellently pacify him. That way, when some seven-year-old Laotian kid prods one with a bamboo stick, it doesn’t wipe him and half his village out.
It probably won’t bring “peace in our time,” but it just might point us in the right direction.
Thanks for the ear, gang. Have a great week, eh?
THE NEWS
Under “Better Late Than Never,” this is nice to hear. U.S. mayors call for emergency action on climate change
For as long as I can remember, I’ve been fascinated by a creature once known as a killer whale. I’ve never met an orca “up close and personal” as they say in some parts of the States. But I figure that’s in the near future as well. Therefore, this new study out on them is a Northstar Journal Five Star Read.
Check out these 41 powerhouse fruits and vegetables published in a study by William Paterson University in Wayne, New Jersey.
WORLD
AFGHANISTAN
Taliban Mount Major Assault In Afghanistan
AFRICA
60 More Girls And Women, 31 Boys Abducted By Nigerian Extremists
Extremists Abduct 91 Women, Girls, Boys From Villages In Nigeria
Nigeria Police Bust Suspected Kidnapping Ring, Arresting 37
Kenya’s Future Clouds As Tensions Rise And Tourists Flee
ASIA
Poll On Democracy Draws Big Turnout In Hong Kong
Don’t Use ‘Allah’ Unless You’re Muslim, Malaysian Top Court Rules
Students Who Survived South Korea Ferry Sinking Return To School
AUSTRALIA & OCEANA
Concern Over Banned Antibiotic Superbug Found In Chicken Meat
Fitzgerald Attacks Qld Govt’s ‘Disdain For Democracy’
2GB Dumps Shock Jock Over Mohammed Comments
Forum Targets Domestic Abuse In Migrant Population
Christmas Island Staff ‘On Standby’ For Arrival Of Asylum Seekers
CHINA
China Manufacturing Hits 7-Month High
EGYPT
Kerry Says U.S. Is Ready To Renew Ties With Egypt
Egypt Court Sentences Al Jazeera Journalists For 7 To 10 Years
Egyptian Leader Refuses To Intervene In Al Jazeera Case
EUROPE
Amazon Accused By Booksellers Of Antitrust Violation In Germany
Beating Of Roma Boy Exposes Tensions In France’s Underclass
Ukraine, European Union Ink Historic Trade Pact
INDIA
Tiger Leaps Onto Fishing Boat, Snatches Man In Eastern India
LATIN AMERICA
Coca Growing In Latin America ‘Down’
Venezuela Cities Including Capital Hit By Blackout – Witnesses
MIDDLE EAST
Israeli Youth Dies In Attack Near Syrian Border
Fate Of 3 Kidnapped Israelis Raises Tensions On Many Fronts
UNITED KINGDOM
Rebekah Brooks Found Not Guilty In Phone Hacking Case
UK Population Grows By 400,000
UNITED STATES
Mayors Put Focus On How To Raise Wages For Lowest-Paid Workers In Cities
Supreme Court Backs EPA Jurisdiction Of Power Plant Emissions
Questions And Answers On Lost Emails In I.R.S. Scandal
Top Investigator Has Blistering Criticism For V.A. Response To Whistle-Blowers
Senior Veterans Affairs Officials To Step Down
Major Ruling Shields Privacy Of Cellphones
In A U.S. Court, Iraqis Accuse Blackwater Of Killings In 2007
Court Rejects Zone To Buffer Abortion Clinic
Creeping Up On Unsuspecting Shores: The Great Lakes, In A Welcome Turnaround
THE VATICAN
Vatican Defrocks Ambassador In Abuse Inquiry
TOPICAL
CLIMATE CHANGE
Five Main Problems That Are Pushing The World’s Fragile Oceans To The Point Of Collapse
What Climate Change Looks Like From Your Front Porch
Now Climate Hawks Have Their Own Super PAC
Thanks To Shrinking Sea Ice, National Geographic Puts Global Warming On The Map
How To Not Lose Your Shirt When The Climate Goes Bust
We Just Had The Hottest May On Record
I Got 99 Climate Change Problems — Don’t Make Sexual Harassment One
To Motivate Climate Activists, Use Optimism
IRAQ
Sunni Militants Capture Major Iraqi Post At Syrian Border
Iraq’s Military Seen As Unlikely To Turn The Tide
Relief Over U.S. Exit From Iraq Fades As Reality Overtakes Hope
U.S. Forces Face Complex Task In Iraq
Sunni Woman Killed Taking Fight To ISIL
Kerry Implores Kurdish Leader To Join A Government And Not Break Away
Iran Secretly Sending Drones And Supplies Into Iraq, U.S. Officials Say
Questions Rebels Use To Tell Sunni From Shiite
Questions And Answers About The Crisis In Iraq
America And Iran Can Save Iraq
A Reignited War Drives Iraqis Out In Huge Numbers
SERGEANT BERGDAHL
Bergdahl Begins Outpatient Treatment
SPYING
MI6 Chief Sawers To Step Down
SYRIA
Last Of Syria’s Known Chemical Arms Are Shipped Abroad For Destruction
After Opening Way To Rebels, Turkey Is Paying Heavy Price
Obama Seeks $500 Million To Train And Equip Syrian Opposition
THE UKRAINE
Putin Backs Ukraine Cease-Fire, Warns It Will Fail Without Peace Talks
Canada Imposes New Sanctions Against Russia Over Ukraine Issue
Pro-Russian Rebels In Ukraine Agree To Cease-Fire
Russian Lawmakers Rescind Resolution Allowing Troops In Ukraine
Putin Presses Extension Of Cease-Fire In Ukraine
Ukraine, European Union Ink Historic Trade Pact
Defying Russia, Ukraine Signs E.U. Trade Pact
WAR ON TERROR
Use Of Drones For Killings Risks A War Without End, Panel Concludes In Report
U.S. Phasing Out Its Counterterrorism Unit In Philippines
OH CANADA
Something needs to be done about this. Pipes with asbestos still used in new Canadian buildings
This is impressive. 5 made-in-Canada medical discoveries
With all due respect to the Crown, this is long overdue. Supreme Court Offers Needed Clarity On Native Land Claims
SHORTS
Canadian Sentenced To 7 Years In Egyptian Prison
Story Of Alberta Journalist Held Hostage In Somalia Optioned By Hollywood Company
What Boat Sales Tell Us About Canada’s Economy
Felina: Samuel, could you join Arnold and I in the den for brunch, please, love of my three life times.
Sam: Best invitation I’ve had since breakfast.
Felina: Excellent, my darling. The pizza delivery goose should be here very soon.
Sam: The Canadian bacon pizza delivery goose that takes off from LakeOkanogan, soars up over the Rockies and makes a perfect landing on our Canadian bacon pizza goose landing pad. That Canadian bacon pizza goose?
Felina: You make me smile, my love and that was delightful. Yes, Samuel, that Canadian bacon pizza delivery goose.
Sam: Sometimes I wish they used drones for that. It would be nice if one of those pizzas showed up without half the anchovies missing.
Felina: Perhaps they could deliver by large bat. As I understand it, they are not so much into seafood.
Sam: A Canadian bacon pizza delivery bat that doesn’t like anchovies and delivers in the day time.
Felina: A Canadian bacon pizza delivery bat working its way through college and who needs to work the bat “night shift,” yes, my love. Quite so.
Sam: But until then?
Felina: I have spoken with the Canadian bacon pizza delivery goose’s supervisor. It seems that Flora has a chemical imbalance which only anchovies can restore.
Sam: No other fish on planet will do, I take it?
Felina: According to this study just published by the Canadian Medical Association, apparently not. However, we have arrived at an amicable solution.
Sam: They’re feeding her a big bowl of swimming anchovies before she takes off into the wild blue yonder with our pizza.
Felina: Your powers of deductive reasoning put you right up there with Sherlock House and Agatha Corpus Christi, my love. That is exactly what they are doing.
Sam: And here all this while, I thought I was in a league of my own.
Felina: Oh Samuel, my love of three life times, you so very much are. But would you prefer to be the only bird in outer space or would you settle for soaring with other eagles?
Sam: You sort of like jerking my chain like this, don’t you, Felina?
Felina: After two other things we do together, of course. Speaking of the second, Flora is on the approach. After brunch, I will show you what my favourite thing to do with you is.
Sam: This day just keeps getting better and better all the time. And on that note, then, Felina?
Felina: On that note, Gentle Readers, Happy Canadian bacon pizza from Flora, the Canadian bacon (and anchovies) pizza delivery goose. Until next week, then, may the wind be always at your back and may the Creator keep you forever safe in the palm of Her paw.
GOOD EXAMPLES
To me, this is a good example of the Supreme Court’s role in the 21st Century. Justices Uphold Emission Limits On Big Industry
We applaud this with both hands and both feet. Regulators In Europe Seek Tighter Flight Data Recorder Rules
This is good news, if not long overdue. Utah Gay Marriage Ban Struck Down by Federal Appeals Court
BAD EXAMPLES
G.M. Prepares To Count Cost Of Suffering I hate to beat the drum slowly on this one but I don’t hear collateral damage being addressed. If you guys didn’t know these ignition switches were defective, what else has slipped past you? How safe ~ really ~ are any your products? Are you going to pay for the cost of customer anxiety around that? Just how much responsibility do you intend to take, General Motors?
Sometime I think these people really don’t know when to quit winners. North Korea fires three short-range projectiles
As long as one child in the world goes to bed hungry, there is absolutely no excuse for this. Discarded fish cost about $2 billion
SHORTS
Playing God From A Prison Cell: How Polygamist Leader Warren Jeffs Is More Powerful Than Ever
Argentina’s Vice President Charged In Corruption Case
EXPLORATION, HISTORY, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Smile! A Drone Is About To Take Your Picture Sure it is. Pull! Swing. Blam!
Hi, I’m A Tablet. I’ll Be Your Waiter Tonight. Uh huh. They have those at Chez McDonald’s now, do they?
First we hear about Google’s robotic personal motorized conveyance (pmc). Now this comes to our attention. This Floating Magnetic Pod Is The Public Transit Of The Future (We Hope) I can remember when the saying “leave the driving to us,” was an invitation to take the bus.
INNER SPACE
Video: The Neanderthal Inside Us
A map of tribes you’ve never seen before
Androids Work Alongside Humans
OUTER SPACE
Tough Test For US Orion Spaceship
NASA’s Bold Shuttle Rescue Plan
NASA ‘Flying Saucer’ Tests Mars Tech
TECHNOLOGY
Workplace Surveillance And The ‘Transparency Paradox’
Regulators In Europe Seek Tighter Flight Data Recorder Rules
Eerily Human Japanese Robots Read The News, Recite Tongue Twisters
This Pop-Up Solar Station Looks Like Optimus Prime, Goes Anywhere, And Has Wifi
The Earth Observatory’s mission is to share with the public the images, stories, and discoveries about climate and the environment that emerge from NASA research, including its satellite missions, in-the-field research, and climate models.
THE GREEN AGENDA
Nebraska Utility Is Phasing Out Some Coal Units, And It Won’t Cost That Much
Justices Uphold Emission Limits On Big Industry
Five Main Problems That Are Pushing The World’s Fragile Oceans To The Point Of Collapse
This Pop-Up Solar Station Looks Like Optimus Prime, Goes Anywhere, And Has Wifi
HEALTH
The pendulum appears to be swinging back on this one. Please consult your physician for her opinion. Mammogram may cut breast cancer deaths by 28%
To beat it is to understand it. ‘What Pollen Vortex?’ Gearing Up For Allergy Season
This is an example worth emulating. Ottawa To Help Working Caregivers Balance Responsibilities
SHORTS
3-D Mammography Test Appears To Improve Breast Cancer Detection Rate
Nova Scotia Fungus Breathes New Life Into Battle Against Superbugs
LIFESTYLE
| Obama Quietly Extends Administration’s Advocacy To Transgender Rights |
‘Shower Bus’ Gives San Francisco Homeless A Place To Clean Up
Women Quit Jobs In Peak Years, Setback For Them And Economy
Pediatrics Group To Recommend Reading Aloud To Children From Birth
Methodists Reinstate Pastor, Deepening Church’s Rift Over Gays
Goodbye, for Now, San Francisco
BEST OF THE NET
Watching Polar Bears Swim For Ice Will Make You Want To Hug Them (But Maybe Don’t)
FROM NORTHSTAR
WRATH OF THE TESTAMENT
It is an America gone mad from the addiction to war and desperate for resources beyond her own borders. A military dictatorship controls the country and life is grim. The Republic is fighting for its very survival and for decades, especially with Latin America.
This is the world of the United States Coast Guard cutter Testament, a cybernetic patrol boat, and her six-person crew. Her mission, and those of her sister craft, is simple.
Quench the rebellion and stop the flow of Americans seeking refuge in Canada. Kill when expedient. Deliver the survivors to the BellinghamRe-EducationCenter.
A simple operational order and one which has served America well. Until Testament
For the kindle book: ($3.99) at amazon.com
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ALL CREATURES, GREAT AND SMALL
Jack London and I have known this for a long time Study: Wolves have a secret way of ‘talking’
I can definitely relate to this. Except I go skinny dipping in Lake Washington. Bear takes a dip in swimming pool
I Wonder What It Was About This Father That Made Him So Delicious. Man Says Tiger Snatched Dad From A Boat
RELATED LINKS:
National Geographic Daily News – Animals
YOU GUYS THINK I MAKE THIS STUFF UP
Video: The Man Who Took His Cabbage For A Walk
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Thank you very much. Until next week, then, take care, stay well and Godspeed. Rusty
The Northstar Journal 