Daily Headlines

Japan Earthquake Was 'In the Air' Days Before, Scientist Claims

On March 11, 2011, at 2:46 p.m. local time (05:46 UTC), a magnitude 8.9 earthquake struck off the east coast of Japan. The epicenter was 80 miles (130 kilometers) east of Sendai, and 231 miles (373 km) northeast of Tokyo. If initial measurements are confirmed, it will be the world’s fifth largest earthquake since 1900 and the worst in Japan's history.

The atmosphere above the epicenter of the March 11 earthquake in Japan underwent unusual changes in the days leading up to the disaster, according to preliminary data.

Looking to the sky in hopes of predicting an earthquake is not a new idea. The theory, which in science circles is called "Lithosphere-Atmosphere-Ionosphere Coupling mechanism," goes like this: Right before an earthquake, the stressed fault releases more gases, especially the colorless, odorless radon gas. Once in the upper-atmosphere ionosphere, the radon gas strips air molecules of their electrons, splitting them into negatively charged particles (the free electrons) and positively charged particles. These charged particles, called ions, attract condensed water in a process that releases heat.

Of course, there will be folks who see this as the fingerprints of HAARP involved, but that's another story for another day.

Are We Facing an Iranian Missile Crisis? The Dereliction of our Media

Those of us who remember the tension in 1962 as President John F. Kennedy decided how to respond to the presence of Soviet missiles in Communist Cuba, with the overwhelming threat of nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union a real possibility, had a sense of déjà vu as we read the story in Die Welt (the German newspaper) yesterday about the new possibility of a Venezuelan missile crisis looming on the horizon.

Writing at the Fox News website, Reza Kahili notes that Die Welt’s report:

Confirms that the bilateral agreement signed in October [between Venezuela and Iran] was for a missile installation to be built inside Venezuela. Quoting diplomatic sources, Die Welt reports that, at present, the area earmarked for the missile base is the Paraguaná Peninsula, located 120 kilometers from the Colombian border.

Even more shocking is the following:

Die Welt writes that the Iranian delegation had been ordered to focus on the plan for building the necessary foundations for air strikes. The planning and building of command stations, control bases, residential buildings, security towers, bunkers and dugouts, warheads, rocket fuel and other cloaking constructs has been assigned to other members of the Revolutionary Guard Corps of Engineers.

And this:

The Iranian-Venezuelan deal evidently also includes housing of Hezbollah cells and Quds forces in the new facilities, ready to expand their activity in Latin American in conjunction with drug cartels in the region, including those causing so much trouble now in Mexico. As Kahili puts it so well:

The radicals ruling Iran are emboldened by the confusion of the Obama administration in confronting Iran’s nuclear program. The Iranian regime feels that America has exhausted all of its options with is negotiation and sanctions approach and therefore no longer poses a serious threat to Iran’s nuclear drive.

Now, not only does this agreement mean that Iran is a threat to our national security, but that its ally in our own hemisphere is as well.

So one must wonder what response the Obama administration is preparing. To date, little coverage of this planned missile placement in Venezuela has appeared in the mainstream press. Is our country going to wait until the missiles are in place and the infrastructure is created in Venezuela for Chavez to provide the place for terrorist cells to lie in waiting until they are called into action?

Clearly, the time for the United States to make known its firm opposition to Iranian missiles in Venezuela is now, not a few years hence when they are already operational. But first, our country must be informed that Iran and Venezuela have such plans in mind. That means all our news outlets must join Die Welt in reports of their own.

Secret Weather Weapons can kill millions, warns top Russian politician

A top Duma political leader caused shock waves in a recent television interview when he warned that Russia could deploy an arsenal of new technology to “destroy any part of the planet” and kill over a hundred million people using secret weather weapons if the United States, the UN or Georgia tried to stop Russia’s entry into the WTO.

Saying that the American government in Washington DC had “no future” and would “collapse,” Zhirinovsky cited Russia’s supremacy in space and stated that the country had, “Lots of money, resources, and new weapons that no one knows about.”
“With them we will destroy any part of the planet within 15 minutes,” he sensationally warned.

“Not an explosion, not a ray burst, not some kind of laser, not lightning, but a quiet and peaceful weapon,” added Zhirinovsky, warning that “whole continents will be put to sleep forever” and that “120 million will die” if anyone interfered with Russia’s claim on the Kuril Islands, which are the subject of a territorial dispute with Japan.

Solar storms will peak in 2013 and wreak havoc on Earth's electrical communications, top scientist warns

Solar storms could have 'devastating effects' on human technology when they hit a peak in two years' time, a leading scientist has warned.

U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration assistant secretary Kathryn Sullivan said the storms pose a growing threat to critical infrastructure such as satellite communications, navigation systems and electrical transmission equipment.

Solar storms release particles that can temporarily disable or permanently destroy fragile computer circuits.

In February, astronomers warned that mankind is now more vulnerable to such an event than at any time in history - and that the planet should prepare for a global Hurricane Katrina-style disaster.

A massive eruption of the sun would save waves of radiation and charged particles to Earth, damaging the satellite systems used for synchronising computers, airline navigation and phone networks.

If the storm is powerful enough it could even crash stock markets and cause power cuts that last weeks or months, experts told the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Anti-Israeli Protestors Disrupt Hagee Sermon

All you have to do is to watch this video - it tells the story:

Several protestors disrupted a sermon pastor John Hagee devoted to Israel Sunday, throwing pamphlets and yelling anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian slogans.

In a video posted on YouTube, Hagee can be heard telling the protestors at his Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas, to sit down. Security quickly escorted them out of the church.

Hagee said that although disruptive, the protesters did more to unite the church in one hour than a dozen preachers have in the past few years.

Strauss-Kahn resignation opens race for IMF post

Dominique Strauss-Kahn has resigned from his top post at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), in order to "protect the institution" after being charged with sexual assault in the US. French finance minister Christine Lagarde is already being tipped as a potential successor.

At the same time, Europeans are keen to keep the post in their hands, following an informal arrangement which says that the IMF is always chaired by a European while the World Bank is led by an American.

French finance minister Christine Lagarde is already emerging as a frontrunner among European candidates. She would be the first woman to chair the institution.

The outgoing director of the European Central Bank, Jean-Claude Trichet, also a Frenchman, is another option. Two Germans are also being talked about - Deutsche Bank chief Josef Ackermann and former finance minister Peer Steinbrueck.

Barak: Israel is strong enough to make Mideast peace concessions

Israel is strong enough and confident enough to make necessary Mideast peace concessions, Defense Minister Ehud Barak told the Los Angeles Times on Thursday, adding that Jerusalem must present a "daring" peace offer to the Palestinians.

I remember how "daring" it was when Israel gave up the Gaza Strip...How did that "daring" move work out for Israel?

The defense minister reiterated Israel's need to take initiative, saying: "We need to put [something] on the table, whether behind closed doors to the president or in public. We need to be ready to move toward a daring proposal that will include the readiness to deliver an answer to all the core issues."