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News Briefs 18-01-2008

Woof!

Thanks Kat and Baldrick.

Quote of the Day:

Lisa: What’s Santa’s Little Helper doin’ to that dog?

Bart: Looks like he’s trying to jump over her, but he can’t quite make it. (shouting) Go on, boy! You can do it!

The Simpsons (‘Two Dozen and One Greyhounds’)

Editor
  1. Moby Dick Cheney
    Unbelievable. A Federal Judge orders the US Navy to cease using sonar in Californian waters to protect whales and other marine life…

    And along comes Dubya with his Executive Power. This truly puts Bush Co above the law (just like Japanese whalers).

    1. no
      Rick MG, you are wrong about this Japanese whale thing.

      If someone enters my ship, without permission, without any authorization, I have the right to throw him back into the water. And yes I would.

      Pirates are not just pretty hairy boys in the movies. They are real criminals, even today.

      Entering a ship without permission is the same as entering a house without permission. Breaking and entering. You can’t just do that, because your feel moral superiority.

      No.

      —-
      If we don’t succeed, we run the risk of failure.

      (Bill Clinton, and perhaps others)

      1. I was being ironic,
        I was being ironic, Earthling. 😉

        The two Sea Shepherd crew members wanted to inform the Japanese they were breaking Australian law (they had a letter detailing the Australian court’s decision made that day to outlaw whaling in Australian-Antarctic waters). The irony is, they informed the Japanese whaling ship by breaking the law themselves. Yes, boarding another ship mid-ocean without permission is considered an act of piracy and is illegal.

        The Sea Shepherd has a reputation for being aggressive and controversial. The Greenpeace ship takes a more Gandhi approach — direct non-violent intervention. I admire the crew of the Sea Shepherd’s passion, but the Greenpeace crew’s methods are more my style.

        I hope your boat isn’t equipped with a harpoon though, Earthling. 😉

        1. my bad
          Ok, I understand now that you were not supporting these guys. I misunderstood your original post, I’m sorry.

          I think these type of people are the second generation “environmentalists”. They don’t want to get media attention to save the whales. What they want is try to save the whales to get on TV. “Reality TV”, so they can show their faces to the public. Maybe make a career out of it.

          It is useful to call public attention to a problem, I agree with that. But these guys are in it for their own glorification, as far as I can tell.

          But that is just my observation, your mileage may vary.

          —-
          If we don’t succeed, we run the risk of failure.

          (Bill Clinton, and perhaps others)

    2. Loons and Lefties
      This isn’t about “saving the whales”. It’s all about anti-military, leftist, politcal activists trying to put roadblocks in front of the military at every opportunity. They use similair methods in the Idaho desert, the SouthEastern swampland, the Northwest forests.

      Much to the disappointment of many on the extreme Left, the adults will put national security ahead of transparent, political games. Especially those that use bogus, or at least not proven, scientific theories. Last time I checked, the Chinese hadn’t agreed to keep their subs away from North America in order to protect our local marine life.

      The Eco-Nuts have been trying to shut down the Navy using this tactic for years now (at least as far back as 2002). In Aug of 2007 the ninth circuit (the most liberal Federal Appeals court) ruled in favor of the Navy. But the Eco-Nuts use their usual tactic of filing injunction after injunction until they find a sympathetic judge to issue a stay. Hours after the stay was issued, a U.S. District Judge removed many of it’s provisions. So it’s a back and forth game.

      How is it that we are told how smart whales are on the one hand, yet apparently not smart enough to swim away from noisy subs? Weird.

      This is all you need to know about the Eco-Nuts who are pushing this:

      “We seek to break down the pattern of disproportionate environmental burdens borne by people of color and others who face social or economic inequities.”

      It’s about socialism and anti-westernism, not the environment. And the NRDC has been one of the largest political propoganda machines for years. It’s association with the Tides Foundation and the Ford Foundation are major tipoffs. Whether it’s global warming, global cooling, global changes, the evils of household air fresheners, bogus scaremongering over chemicals on apples (now proven to be harmless), misrepresented photos of polar bears on icebergs, or a whole hosts of issues, the NRDC is on a “any means justifies the ends” crusade against modern, western society. Not including themselves of course. They need those limos and private jets.

      “A $400,000 Ford Foundation seed grant in 1970 also established the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a radical leftist group that serves as one of the environmentalist movement’s legal arms. The NRDC has filed dozens of lawsuits to block the construction of highways, hydroelectric dams, and nuclear power plants, but is perhaps best known for being the source of an enormous and costly apple industry hoax about Alar in 1989. Another NRDC signature issue is its fight to shut down the timber industry. Depicting itself as a nonprofit entity dedicated to fighting the capitalistic greed that purportedly ravages the environment, the tax-exempt NRDC holds assets exceeding $71 million.”

      Flame away.

      1. Its about selflessness, and something besides aggression.
        The only peace war brings, is to the dead.

        “How is it that we are told how smart whales are on one hand, yet apparently not smart enough to swim away from noisy subs?”

        Subs run super quite, so the “enemy” will not hear them, or know there where abouts. Whales are migratory animals, getting out of the way of something that fast and quite is not something they are built for. Kinda like you or me getting out of the way of a nuclear bomb. If your in the area too bad!

        As for the King signing an order overruling a court. Just another day in the empire. The King doesn’t need a court system, being that’s the way he was “elected”.

        1. sounds
          I’m not an expert on the sounds in the ocean, but I’m not totally ignorant of it either.

          I believe that the whales can hear the subs just fine. Even very quiet subs. Much better than other subs.

          The issue really is the very loud sounds that the US Navy uses in these experiments. The concern is that these very loud noises may confuse, or even deafen, the whales.

          As far as I know, what the Navy tries to do sometimes is to make loud bangs on the Pacific coast of the US, to listen to the echoes all the way from Japan. Or something ambitious like that. That seems to be the issue in the courts, although that issue may have gotten confused in the last 10 years or so.

          I think the reason (someone correct me if I’m wrong, really) the courts on the US west coast rule like this, is because they only have jurisdiction close to the coast. What anyone does in the open ocean, they can’t say yes or no.

          I’m pretty sure the whales know where the subs are. The subs know where the whales are, because the whales sing, or chat, or whatever their vocabulary means.

          The problem is with the loud noises.

          —-
          If we don’t succeed, we run the risk of failure.

          (Bill Clinton, and perhaps others)

          1. Yep
            [quote]
            I believe that the whales can hear the subs just fine. Even very quiet subs. Much better than other subs.[/quote]

            Exactly! Which is why these highly intelligent animals can so easily avoid them before they get close enough to purposely damage their own hearing.

            Intelligent Whales: “Hey Bob, you hear that noise?” “Yeah, Sid, I do.” “I think it’s those whacky metal whales and their irratating mating calls.” “Must be. They’re a long way off. Heading Northwest I think.” “I think you’re right. Let’s go SouthWest for a while to avoid all that caterwauling.” “I’m cool with that.”

            Liberal Whales: “Hey Chad, you hear that noise?” “Yeah, Brad, I do. Sounds loud.” “What say we go in for a closer listen?” “Sure. Maybe we can score some weed!” “Word.”

        2. Dead whales
          [quote=bladerunner]The only peace war brings, is to the dead. [/quote]

          Really? How about the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the American Civil War? Review the defeat of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan and the peace that followed. Many problems are solved by war, and wars are usually followed by peace.

          [quote=bladerunner]
          Subs run super quite, so the “enemy” will not hear them, or know there where abouts. Whales are migratory animals, getting out of the way of something that fast and quite is not something they are built for. Kinda like you or me getting out of the way of a nuclear bomb. If your in the area too bad![/quote]

          Yes, submarines are very quiet. So were Clipper ships. We’ve been running over whales for a couple of hundred years now. See COLLISIONS BETWEEN SHIPS AND WHALES. But the issue here is noise from sonar and how it affects whales. The sonar is necessary because the threat has submarines that are very quiet, not because of collisions. It’s the noise that confuses the whales causing them to beach themselves.

          [/quote]

          Bill

          ************

          Popular opinion is the greatest lie in the world.
          Thomas Carlyle

          1. Shiny Happy Bombs
            Quote Bill. “Many problems are solved by war, and wars are usually followed by peace.”

            Yeah, cause both sides need time to rest up and start killing and fighting again. Just look at the history of Europe. If wars solved problems, there wouldn’t be any more problems or any more wars.

          2. Wars
            Good morning everyone,
            Bill’s not too far wrong about wars sorting out problems – or at least, they should. But the process of war isn’t properly understood.
            First of all, wars begin because politicians fail. Wars end, but immediately politicians begin their fanaticisms again. But the major point is that major wars are about more than politics.
            They are mainly about philosophy – an idea. Consider the American Civil War. In popular terminology it was about slavery. But above this was the idea of America itself. Should it be an agrarian economy or industrial. The agrarian south lost, and the industrial north went ahead.
            The two world wars and Cold War was about similar philosophy. Europe had devised two strands – empiricism and continental rationalism. The former was specialised, pragmatic; the latter holistic, breeding collectivism. This broke into fascism and communism, whilst empiricism led to capitalism. The wars were the political repercussions of these systems.
            It seemed that capitalism won in the end, but don’t you believe it. The fanaticsm isn’t stilled by war, and the more fundamental our present form of super-capitalism becomes, the more we run the risk of further war.
            When we understand that it is a conflict of ‘ideas’ that causes war, we may eventually find peace. Because we will moderate our ideas.

            I’m fanatical about moderation

            Anthony North

          3. Well…..
            [quote]It’s the noise that confuses the whales causing them to beach themselves.
            [/quote]

            That’s the theory anyway. Disturbances in the Earth’s magnetic field, and/or illness, are far better theories. After all, I think whales have been beaching themselves a tad longer than humans have been building submarines.

          4. natural and man-made causes
            There are of course plenty of natural causes why toothed whales strand on beaches that have nothing to do with Man. There seem to be also some other factors that could be attributed to man (forget about sonar: think of pollution & the depletion of food sources, hungry whales tend to come closer to the beaches looking for nourishment).

            So, if there are also so many natural causes for something, should this mean there shouldn’t be any banning for man-made causes? People die all the time of natural causes, does that mean we should stop condeming murder?

            Please note that I’m not comparing the rights of human beings to the rights of whales. If you like to strip this discussion of any New Age sentimental floklore that whales are beings of high consciousness and our maritime brothers, then we should at least consider that whales form a part of a very delicate balance in the food chain of the seas, and right at the top of that pyramid man stands: if the pyramid crumbles, things like National Security and Naval Defense lose all their meaning, don’t they?

            —–
            It’s not the depth of the rabbit hole that bugs me…
            It’s all the rabbit SH*T you stumble over on your way down!!!

            Red Pill Junkie

        3. Wow
          [quote]getting out of the way of something that fast and quite is not something they are built for. Kinda like you or me getting out of the way of a nuclear bomb[/quote]
          I bow down before your superior scientific mind.

      2. Whale of a comment
        [quote=Anonymous]Much to the disappointment of many on the extreme Left, the adults will put national security ahead of transparent, political games….

        …How is it that we are told how smart whales are on the one hand, yet apparently not smart enough to swim away from noisy subs? Weird.[/quote]

        You’ve obviously done mounds of research on this one. Researchers allege that the problem is exactly that – whales *are* trying to swim away from the subs…or more precisely, their *sonar* – thus beaching themselves or suffering decompression.

        Glad you ‘adults’ know what you’re talking about…

        [quote]Flame away.[/quote]

        Who needs to flame when you make it so easy to dismiss your comments out of hand?
        LOL

        Kind regards,
        Greg
        ——————————————-
        You monkeys only think you’re running things

        1. Good Point
          [quote]Who needs to flame when you make it so easy to dismiss your comments out of hand?[/quote]
          Well, I can’t counter such devastating debate skills. Hats off to you sir!

          BTW, some of the most successful wildlife refuges in the U.S. are on military installations. Not to mention Cape Canaveral. Research that.

          [quote]Researchers allege…[/quote]

          So….that’s the ship you choose to go down with? LOL

          1. Laughing
            [quote=Anonymous][quote]Who needs to flame when you make it so easy to dismiss your comments out of hand?[/quote]
            Well, I can’t counter such devastating debate skills. Hats off to you sir![/quote]

            I did particularly like the way you left off the part where I explained *why* your comments can be dismissed out of hand.

            Sometimes you gotta know when to walk away…

            [quote]So….that’s the ship you choose to go down with? LOL[/quote]

            I’m not on any ship. As a person whose family farms cattle beef, I stand on very shaky ground when it comes to worrying about the welfare of animals. So I have no opinion either way really.

            All I was doing was pointing out what a laughable effort you made in responding to the news item. I mean, really? It would appear you didn’t even read it, you got the facts so badly wrong.

            Kind regards,
            Greg
            ——————————————-
            You monkeys only think you’re running things

      3. Environmental terrorism and such
        No flames here. Good post. My research says the loud sonar may cause the whales to go deaf. The US Navy is taking precautions for all marine mammals and the new silent threats. The US Navy has better things to do than bother whales. They are looking for threats; they are using precautions for all marine mammals.

        BTW, the US is one of three countries developing this type of sonar.

        Bill

        ************

        Popular opinion is the greatest lie in the world.
        Thomas Carlyle

        1. Yep
          My research also tends in indicate that weak powers get attacked by powerful, expansionist communists powers. For me, the scales weighing a few deaf whales versus nukes launched from unchallenged submarines seems to be tipping in favor the humans. But then again, such unreasonable conclusions are to dismissed out of hand.

    3. Trump card
      No Rick, it puts Bush right in line with the Constitution. National Security is the first priority of the Federal government and the President is the Commander and Chief of the military as well as the Chief Executive Officer. He trumps a Federal District Judge in this case. You may not like it but he’s a powerful man.

      Bill

      ************

      Popular opinion is the greatest lie in the world.
      Thomas Carlyle

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