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December 23 Visit AlbertaMy parents are visiting for Christmas, from Ontario. Yesterday we headed out to Lake Louise for their first ski day of the season. Now, my parents said they wanted to take it easy, at least for the first part of the first day, especially since they are both well over 40. Apparently this is "taking it easy":  Here's my mother, Marilyn, "taking it easy":   Big Bumps!And here's my father, Martin, "warming up":  Pretty steep too! After a few runs, we had to go in for hot chocolate. Although I personally am of the "lunch can wait till the lifts close" school of thought, some people were cold, others needed a rest and still others were hungry. I had a burger; Kirstin had a bacon cheese veggieburger, and the cook didn't even flinch when she ordered it.  November 22 Stupid Is as Stupid DoesDo you drink bottled water or go out for sushi? Then these are for you!
http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=-4971426701921585512&q=truth%5C - Sushi is the best proof we have that people will eat anything if we tell them it is classy, exotic or elite. Once, on a fishing trip when I was a kid, some men convinced me it was possible to eat raw bass. Fool me once, shame on you....fool me twice, shame on me.
http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=-2862517610301228131&q=expose - Studies have shown that most bottled water is untreated tap water. Who would deliberately pay for something that is free? Evian written backwards spells naive, and I, for one, do not think it is a coincidence.
Bad news folks - Feng Shui is a marketting gimmic too! Ever heard the expression "more money than brains"? That's what the entire world thinks about English countries. The Best Day EverMonday (Nov 20) was the best ski day ever!
*for some reason, images are refusing to display today, so here are the links to the images. You can memorize the captions and then recite them to yourself as you look at the photos.
The day started with snow dumping from the sky so hard that on the first run down, I have no idea where I went. Kendra reckons it was not a run, but a rocky chute beside Whitehorn, which, if visible, probably would look deadly. Luckily I couldn't see where I was.
The snow kept falling from big purple clouds until early afternoon, at which point the sky opened up and the sun came out, making the untracked snow sparkle. Yes, untracked snow, because in spite of the deep powder and perfect temperature, nobody was on the hill that day.
 Kendra sets out from summit to make some first tracks...at 3 in the afternoon!
I set a personal best by skiing over a clump of five trees at once, which nicely filled my clothes up with snow, and also enjoyed my biggest crash in a few years on the last run of the day when I inexplicably lost my footing and bounced and tumbled about 25 metres, giving myself mild whiplash (or something that involves a sore neck) and once again filling myself with snow.
 The site of the crash. Observe the scarcity of tracks in the snow below! November 03 On this day in history....Obviously, we all know one very important event which took place on November 2, in 1979. November 2 is also part of the "Day of the Dead" (celebrated Nov 1 and 2, "All Saints" and "All Souls" days for Catholics) in the USA and Mexico, which is connected to the history of Halloween.
Elsewhere, Nov 2 is celebrated as a major figure's coronation by Rastafarians, and is known to geologists as the day the Ice Age ended. (not really)
Also on November 2..... (although not as significant as my birthday!) US presidents James K. Polk and Warren Harding share my birthday. For those of us who saw the Boondocks the other night, Polk is the obscure president whose face one of the masked shooters was wearing. Marie Antoinette was born in 1755. Contrary to popular belief, she never proclaimed "Let them eat cake" but rather made considerable efforts to reduce waste, heeding advice contained in a letter from her mother that "a lady can only defame herself by excess". Antoinette was a bit of a political scapegoat, and this is the likely source of the infamous non-existent remark. Pakistan's President (1998-2001) Muhammad Rafiq Tarar was born, 1929. He was ousted by General Pervez Musharraf who seized power in 1999 but allowed the President to retain his office until 2001 Pat Buchanan was born, 1938. And the white supremists rejoiced! George Bernard Shaw died Nov 2 1950. Russia declared war on the Ottomans in 1914 (WWI) CBC was established (1936) and BBC initiated BBC Television, the world's first HD TV service. (in those days HD had lower standards)
Howard Hughes tests the Spruce Goose, the largest airplane ever built (1947)
The Spruce Goose: Built by Hughes Aircraft Comapny (out of birch, not spruce), which misused government money for its construction, and today and is the company that holds the patent on the "chemtrails" atmospheric spray.
Hockey goaltender Jacques Plante (for whom a street is named in Ottawa) sets a new standard when he returns from an injury as the first player to wear a protective face mask. (1959) This same year, a game show contestant admits to a congressional hearing that he has been given questions and answers in advance. So THAT's the function of the US Congress. In that case I think we should stick Ken Jennings in front of a committee.
In 1965 on this day, Norman Morrison, a 31-year-old Quaker with three children, set himself on fire in front of the Pentagon and burned himself to death to protest the Vietnam war. Robert McNamara, whose name you will find on my list of Top Ten US War Criminals, was Secretary of Defense at the time; Morrison deliberately immolated himself in front of McNamara's office.
October 26 Press FreedomI'm breaking my rule of avoiding news, politics or relevancy to humankind, for just a moment, to bring you the results of a contest.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has released their annual worldwide Press Freedom Index, which ranks 168 Earthly nations by in which country a journalist can expect the best freedom, and a second ranking that rates their treatment of journalists outside their borders. (eg in a war zone like Iraq)
This report does not rate the quality of reporting. Only the circumstances endured by journalists. Regulations which prevent journalists from lying or committing slander are considered negative; for example, in a previous report the organization condemned France for passing a law making it illegal to deny the Armenian Genocide. (like denying the holocaust, except the Turkish government has not yet admitted it happened-in Turkey it is illegal to mention that it happened, which is hailed as a step forward, a de facto admission that it did take place)
It also does not consider the corruptability of the media. In rich countries, hinting that a journalist may be fired is enough to stop a story from coming out. In Colombia, threatening a reporter with death might not silence him.
In other words, the organization rates the freedom and safety of journalists, and that includes their freedom to safely lie on behalf of allies and take bribes. Rank in the index has no bearing on the degree of truth or accuracy of the media in any country, or whether it serves the populace or a few powerful people.
So, where do you think Canada stands, out of 168 nations? Pick a number and we'll see if you were right...got it? OK continue.
Canada
Canada ranked 16th. We tied Bolivia and Austria.
Who beat us? Finland, Iceland, Ireland, and the Netherlands all tied for first place. All of the top 15 countries were members of the EU except Norway(6th) and Switzerland(8th).
What black marks acted against Canada? The main issue the past 2 years running is that the Government and police in Canada seem to think the press belongs to them and serves, their interests. That's not very serious, considering that in Turkmenistan (ranked 2nd last) a journalist was tortured to death for criticizing their leader.
This journalist is still in jail in Turkmenistan, awaiting a fearsome unknown fate
Canada rarely arrests journalists for doing their work and makes no violent attempts to control information.
Where did America and its other allies rank? (you may be suprised by the countries considered "important allies" by the US government; it's because of their strategic location)
USA was 53rd, down from 17th four years ago, having arbitrarily and illegally imprisoned journalists domestically; America's rating outside its borders was especially dismal at 119th, for deliberately killing or detaining reporters and generally controlling information flow.
Japan was 51st
Israel was 50th (extra-territorial it rated 136th)
Australia was 35th, tied with France, Bulgaria and Mali, coming in right after Ghana
UK was 19th
Pakistan was 157th
Saudi Arabia 161th
Uzbekistan was 158th Turkey was 98th
(kinda discredits the notion that the US intervenes in countries to 'spread democracy' when their most important allies are some of the worst oppressors on the planet)
Where the American Hand is Directly Present:
Afghanistan 130th Iraq 154th
Lebanon - The Lebanese media was among the most free in the Arab world, but thanks to conflict with Israel* Lebanon has dropped from 56th to 107th.
(*Any Israeli military action is actually America, as everything Israel does is cleared first with the US authorities - before the so-called "suprise" Lebanon war the US implemented aid programs that sold Israel the bombs they used)
War
In general, war destroys press freedom, although poverty does not necessarily impact it (unless it contributes to conflict). Several regimes collapsed, resulting in leaps forward in the ranking. Specifically, these regimes which fell include Haiti's President Jean-Bertrand Aristide who was re-installed by US military intervention in 1994. Another huge improvement was felt in Togo since the dictator (supported by France) died in 2005 and his son assumed power. All this further destroys the notion that the US is 'spreading democracy' through military action, a concept decried by Maximiliem Robespierre (aka "Mad Max" or "The Incorruptible", a French revolutionary) who wrote, "One can only encourage freedom, never create it with an invading force." (Or, "You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink.")
Some of My Favourite Countries (and places friends & family have visited):
Germany tied Jamaica for 23rd
Denmark dropped from 1st last year to 19th this year, thanks to the Mohammed Cartoons fiasco
Czech Republic 5th
Slovenia 11th
Venezuela 115
Peru 112
Italy 40
Spain 41
Miscellaneous from RSF:
Last year...
...61 reporters were killed. (plus 28 media workers)
...130 reporters were jailed. (plus 3 media workers)
...61 "cyberdissidents" (like me!) were jailed - One of them, Josh Wolfe, remains imprisoned in the USA.
Dreaming of a White Nov 2!!Snow has been spotted in Calgary, Alberta!
The ski season is rolling in fast with Weather Network bookies giving high odds of snow Sunday and a prophesized low of -16 C on Wednesday! (I say "prophesized" because more than a couple hours in advance there is no chance of predicting Calgary's weather...12 hours agao when I last checked the forecats it predicted -25 on Tuesday, which has now been pushed back to Wednesday and 10 degrees warmer - somebody should do a study to determine the standard adjustments that seem to always happen to our forecats)
Back to the snow, last year I was walking through snow on my birthday (Nov 2), and the weather is looking promising again this year. Last week I woke up to see this out the back window!
In observance of tradition, the first day of snowfall meant that I had to build a fire, and even though there was already wood split I decided I had best chop a couple more blocks.
This bodes well for those of us (so far just me) who want to make it to Lake Louise on opening day, November 10. With a little more weather like this and maybe I won't be the only crazy guy on the hill. And this Monday, Marvin starts his job doing avalanche control and "schnee machen" so we have an insider who may be contacted for snow reports.
Once again, that's up-to-the-minute, interactive snow reports at Marvin's cell #. Take advantage before he loses the phone again!! October 16 Water of the SpiritsSecond Annual Thanksgiving Hike
Present: Keith, Curtis, Rene, Kirstin, Hugh, Lindy
We decided that this year we would choose a hike without too much rise in elevation, after last year's Thanksgiving Burstall Pass hike was mostly through deep snow. The high point of this year's hike was unanimously (I assume) the rock-skipping session. Lake Minnewanka offers an exciting selection of skipping stones of all sizes. The lake was perfectly calm, just right for skipping. The only one who disagreed was a duck swimming nearby.
After lunch at the rocky beach, Rene and Curtis decided to separate from the group and take a "potentially more direct" route back, by following the shoreline. This might have been a much shorter trip, even in spite of the hazardous loose rocks, had the bridge over Stewart Canyon been built about one kilometer further downriver, close to the lake. We followed the river up through trees that would make for great paintball and got to the bridge just as the rest of the group finished crossing.
Although we were certainly in bear country, and constantly stepping in fresh bear droppings, the only wildlife we saw was under 10 kg in mass. Still the day was a spectacular, sunny autum Sunday, and we all got to wear our el paca hats, which are over 9 billion times wamer than wool! Kirstin only pretended to be a monkey twice, and I only wandered off once. Another successful Thanksgiving hike.
On the way home (well actually, in the opposite direction) we stopped in Banff, where I ordered one heck of a good chocolate milk shake. It's possible that some other food was eaten too, but all I remember is that milk shake.
History of the Lake
Lake Minnewanka ("Water of the Spirits") is the longest and second deepest lake in the Rockies. The water used to be much lower on the lake and Stewart Canyon used to be much deeper, but hydroelectric dams now control the level. The most recent dam was built in 1941 and flooded the previous dams, which were built in 1912 and 1922. A small resort village built in 1888 was also submerged and is popular among divers and trout.
The lake also achieved fame in the film Son of Lassie, which was the first full colour film shot in the Rockies, and featured nearly every photo-worthy viewpoint in the tourbook. In the film's most dramatic scence, Lassie and the main character leap from the Stewart Canyon bridge amid a hail of Nazi bullets, proving that it is safe to jump into the canyon.
Lake Minnewanka existed 100,000 years ago but not as it appears today. It was part of a chain of lakes fed by the Bow River, rather than the glacial Cascade River which feeds it today. About 25,000 years ago the whole valley would have been under hundreds of metres of glacier, and stayed that way until about 10,000 years ago when the Ice Age ended. The glaciers that feed it now are remnants from the receding Ice Age, as are almost all glaciers in North America.
 1902, before any dams raised the water level.
 Sept, 2005 - The water level had dropped so that we could walk to that island this year. October 03 OktoberfestI never met a sausage I didn't like...
$35 for 4 steins of beer (Big Rock brand), a plastic hat, and as much sausage and spatzle as you can eat!
Not to mention German music, including Kraftwerk, courtesy of the Transylvanian DJ!
Obviously, nobody could resist Oktoberfest, even though it took place on September 30th. Kirstin (on call) even snuck in and enjoyed several plates of food which we smuggled up to her on the patio. It's a good thing she did come, too, otherwise we would have never witnessed Rene's spectacular tumble in the gravel parking lot as we walked Kirstin to her car. Apparently he was trying to kick a Kokanee box.
As the celebration drew to a close (meaning the free food and Jagermeister dried up) Curtis and Rene wandered off haphazardly to meet Marvin and Loisl at another bar, spelled Ceili's and pronounced "Kaylee's", where Curtis ate somebody's hot chicken wings. We'll never know who was the victim of this random act of mastication.
After swiping a glass from Ceili's in order to further compensate for the high cost of entry, Curtis, Marvin and Rene wandered off once again - this time to undertake the somewhat tricky task of finding where Curtis had parked his car. None of us so much as hinted at the possibility of hiring a taxi...it was somehow understood that we would sleep in the car.
We woke up a little stiff but early enough to return Marvin to Okotoks for work the next day, and at exactly the right time to arrive back in Calgary just as Ikea's $1.00 breakfast was beginning. Rene had two. September 26 Debbie's birthdayThe night started with a spectacular Aurora Borealis display which drew everybody outside into the dark to watch. When nature's beauty got boring we all went back in to feast on appetizers (someone even made wings!!) and discuss metric time. I think people were generally in favour of the concept.
Shortly after the opening of the first beer somebody switched on the karaoke machine and it soon became the focus of the party. Many people were so enthusiastic that they sang songs they had never heard before. Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" played a half dozen times, as did other popular songs.
Later we got a treat when Mez gave us a tour of his punk rock collection, all on vinyl, which is the way they used to record music last century. They're basically like giant CD's.
Marvin dropped 4 drinks and fell over a tree, bruising his leg. He did burn the tree, though.
Aurora Borealis
Aurora Borealis means "northern light" or "northern dawn" in Latin. They are glowing green, yellow, red and sometimes blue.
Aurora are caused by solar wind, which is a continuous stream released by the sun, mostly composed of charged subatomic particles like protons and electrons. As the solar wind nears Earth the particles are drawn in by the planet's magnetic field, where they collide with molecules of oxygen (red, yellow aurora) and nitrogen (blue) in the upper atmosphere and produce coloured light, much like the process that makes a neon light glow.
  Aurora form between 95 km in elevation and 1000 km, because no particles can penetrate deeper into the atmosphere than 95 km from the surface, and above 1000 km the air is too thin to produce enough collisions for any visible glow. They take the form of ovals around the poles, where the magnetic field drawns the solar wind into denser distribution. These ovals can be from 10 to 3000 km from the poles.
  Left: Earth's magnetic field; field lines are more densely spaced near poles, hence more solar particles are drawn closer together in this regions, resulting in stronger glows. Right: Solar wind actually distorts the magnetic field.
Since the luminescence is caused by activity on the sun, the best time to view the aurora is the next time the part of te sun that is experiencing a storm or ejection or flare faces back towards the Earth. The sun rotates every 27 days, so October 20 could be another good viewing night, if it is clear. September 16 Stem Cells at AEHEven if it ain't "broke" they'll "fix" it! Kirstin's (I mean, "Dr. Sprissler's") veterinary clinic, the Alberta Equine Hospital, made news recently as the owner, Dr. Andy Guccione, became the first doctor in Canada to use stem cells in a treatment.
The hospital has only two vets - Andy and Kirstin. Sorry, Dr. Guccione and Dr. Sprissler. Kirstin aided in the procedure but apparently did not think it newsworthy enough to mention to her family, who were suprised to discover a story about the clinic in the Globe and Mail.
Andy Guccione has been breaking new ground in medicine for decades, beginning with his pioneering work on laser surgical techniques which initally resulted in the spectacular incineration of a chicken in front of a class of vet students. You can't make an omlet without breaking some eggs, and you can't develope a new medical tool without frying some chickens.
 Vet first out of gate in Canada to use stem cells in treating horsesDAVE EBNER From Monday's Globe and Mail CALGARY — An Alberta veterinarian is pushing the boundaries of medicine, becoming the first doctor in Canada to use emerging stem-cell technology to treat five injured horses. The technique, used successfully in the United States, could be groundbreaking for the equine and human world. Andy Guccione, who runs the Alberta Equine Hospital in Stavely an hour south of Calgary, conducted the treatments last Thursday, the culmination of about four months of work. "It's new and it's effective, something where we're not patching, we're actually fixing things," Dr. Guccione said. "It's just good medicine."
August 16 To Forget is DivineI've noticed Lebanon has dropped out of the papers. Accordingly, people, having read a few headlines mentioning peace, have stopped worrying about it.
Perfect.
Now that nobody's paying attention, Israel can really get some work done.
And we won't notice, because we assume the trouble is over and have put it out of our minds, already worrying about the next distracting headline.
   Bill Clinton is trying to align himself with good causes; Justice Minister says even younger kids should go to court, and Jonbenet Ramsey's death - which was never even news in the first place - is back on page one. It's all very distracting and in some cases important, but don't take your eye off the ball - Oil wars are only beginning.
The war drums are still beating in the Middle East! The UN won't disarm Hezbollah - that would ruin Israel's excuse for warfaring! The Israeli people, who hesitantly supported the war in the first place, are furious that Hezbollah was not harmed and is in fact boasting a victory. And the Israeli government is somehow suprised that when Israel bombed Lebanon, the Lebanese people blamed Israel rather than rallying against Hezbollah. Duh.
Canada has been asked to help patrol Mediterranean coast - This is the key region with respect to planned energy/water pipelines.
Nuremberg Trial Proceedings - See article 6a, which would see Israel sanctioned for war crimes and all its partners punished as well. (This includes members of Canadian legislature that did not move to deter Israel's actions) August 15 Slanted Semantics
Okay, I just wanted to ask: Why is it that, whenever I look at newspapers and see someone giving what I thought was the Peace sign, the caption always says it is the Victory sign? Did I miss something?
For that matter, why is it an "arrest and detention" when Israel seizes foreign civilians and a "kidnapping" when their neighbours capture Israeli soldiers during military operations?
By the way, what has happened here with the ceasefire is not what is being reported in the mainstream.
In an article in the National Post, Peter Goodspeed reported:
Goodspeed also reports: "Israel, for its part, has vowed to interpret the ceasefire -- which prohibits only Israeli "offensive" operations -- as broadly as possible in order to continue what it characterizes as defensive operations in south Lebanon until the international community moves in and disarms Hezbollah."
Remember, defensive operations are whatever Israel wants them to be. They've already shown that they will contrive an excuse to attack. Hell, the country's army is called the Israeli Defense Force. There's a word game for you. I would not be suprised if the story Goodspeed wanted to tell would be remarkable different from the one his editors allowed to hit the front page, as in between blatant untruths he inserted much valuable information about what is really going on.
Hezbollah, incidentally, is claiming a victory. That waits to be seen. If Israel really stays out, it is certainly the "victory over American influence" in the area that Nasrallah is claiming. The worldwide public is certainly turning on the leaders that brought us this bloodbath or supported it.
This article from August 7 explained what would happen before it took place: One-sided UN Security Council resolution drafted "with close Israeli involvment"
No one thinks peace will last - the difference is who blames whom.
August 07 ...And France..And ChinaChina is also embroiled in the energy struggle. Besides economic might, they are also a nuclear power. This is relatively old news, but it's impossible to analyse the present conflict without China.
The situation is rapidly escalating....Everybody pick sides!! ...And RussiaRussia arming Venezuela in anticipation of US attack - I think it may be in anticipation of a proxy war on Columbia. (Columbia has oil, gold and drugs)
Russia Builds Up Military Presence in Middle East - Protecting Syria - translated from Russian paper Kommerzant
How many countries need to get invovled before we call this World War Three? Enter IndiaAfter the Mumbai bombing led directly to Pakistani intelligence - the ISI, also implicated in 9-11 - India and Pakistan were on the brink of war. Now India's getting involved in a big way. One country after another is stepping up their military involvement, blowing ever-shortening resources on war instead of preparing for looming energy crisis.
India's nuclear arsenal is second only to Israel's.
USA Tests ICBMThe US department of state says, "The United States believes that the question of peace and security on the Korean Peninsula is, first and foremost, a matter for the Korean people to decide." This is a grand case of saying one thing while doing another.
A lot of well-informed people think the USA has stopped building nukes. This is utterly false. The USA continues to develope its nuclear arsenal, branching out into all kinds of sci-fi seeming weapons. (see below) Long before North Korea was added to the "Axis of Evil" the USA very nearly bombed it - unilaterally, of course. (1994 to be exact) They didn't, because it was predicted that military action would cause a disastrous bloodbath. Now that the USA has enacted new rules of engagement that allow America to use preventative nuclear strikes (US Removes Nuclear Brakes) it is vitally important for countries who wish to remain free of US rule to possess atomic weapons - The only way to avoid American bullying is to guarantee a mess that would be a PR disaster.
To that end, Iran's defensive plan actually involves drawing the war out as long as possible, and provoking pandemonium in Iraq (Iran Prepares for Asymmetrical Warfare), until the American people get fed up and turn on it. These countries know it takes years for even partial truths to seep into the public domain in the USA.
USA's Nuclear Proliferation and High-Tech Weapons - A lot of this sounds like paranoid science fiction, but before you decide not to believe it, ask the government. It's mostly not secret.
Mini-Nukes on US Agenda
August 06 The Puppet MastersReports that France and the USA have drafted a resolution to stop the bombing of Lebanon are extremely misleading.
For one, the resolution (which I have not yet read entirely) apparently formalizes - that is, make it appear legal - any further attacks on Lebanon by Israel. To that end, the fighting is expected to continue much as it has been, leaving me suspicious that this may be a mere PR move to buy time with the public while Israel completes its conquest. In fact this article, while hinting at imminent peace, also admits the resolution won't stop the killing and quotes Israel's Defense Minister as saying "We plan to carry out the whole mission."
Second, the resolution calls for an arrangement of circumstances which requires that Lebanon essentially be under foreign control: Step one towards installing a puppet government. In case the term isn't self-explanatory, a puppet regime is a government which is controlled by another government. This method is preferred over open military occupation mainly because it is more cost-effective, especially in terms of public opinion.
This method, favoured by conquerors for ages, is precisely what the USA has achieved in Afghanistan and Iraq (to the sound of Americans' cheers over "democratic elections"), and is also the likely motive behind Plan Columbia. It's standard operating procedure. In the 1970's the list also includes Chile...I mention this because there is a chance the issue will burst into the public spotlight in the next few years, as Chile's former dictator (Pinochet) has been arrested and many secret documents detailing American support were released.
Installation of a puppet government which will cede on issues of energy and water is almost definitely Israel's "Mission" to which the Defense Minister referred. Dr. Tanya Reinhart and Dr. Michel Chossudovsky each do an excellent job of clarifying the situation.
Update, August 7
Israeli officials' comments recently confirmed Reinhart's prediction that Israel's intent is to re-draw the border along the Litani River.
Israel reportedly likes the new UN Resolution because it allows their troops to stay in Lebanon until the international community takes over - exactly as predicted above. Lebanon opposes this takeover.
August 01 Fuel DuelWars, historically, are fought for one reason, although the aggressor states in recent years typically have been very imaginative in convincing the public that deplorable violence is good for humanity.
That one reason is resources.
Adopting a "resource war" perspective, many events fall into place that otherwise seem like pointless carnage. Not suprisingly, this is the case with Israel's present use of uneccessary force against Lebanon and Gaza.
The Baku-Ceyhan Pipeline
The Azeri oil fields, off the coast of Azerbaijan, is the source of 20% of Israel's oil. This pipline will bring oil directly to the Mediterranean coast to be transported by underwater pipeline to the Israeli port of Ashkelon - greatly improving Israeli imports of Caspian Basin oil.
  Left - Baku-Ceyhan Pipline; Right - Ashkelon is the oldest and largest port in Israel; Below - Entire area
The pipeline's inauguration was July 13, the same day Israel - war-ready for some months by this point - began blockades and attacks on Lebanon. This pipeline respresents and enormous investment by western oil companies, in particular British Petroleum.
Remember this next time you hear a "Beyond Petroleum" ad.
Another pipeline linking the Baku-Ceyhan line to the Eilat-Ashkelon line is planned. The envisioned system will also transport a million barrels per day to western markets.
For interactive version of above map, click and then chose Pipeline Map.
Why War?
Make no mistake - Oil shapes our world, and those that control it are among the most influential people on Earth. Energy politics are deeply intertwined with the Middle Eastern wars. The agriculture industry that feeds us and millions more relies heavily on petroleum for fertilizers and farm equipment. Without oil, millions, might starve. Would we kill for oil? Of course we would. It sure beats changing the status-quo, which might usurp the luddites who have enjoyed a secure position at the top of the food chain for 150 years.
The above-mentioned underwater pipeline requires control over the Mediterranean coast. Three more pipelines are also planned, one each to transport water, natural gas and electricity. Enter the Lebanon and Gaza assaults. Capturing these large swaths of coast leaves only one more obstacle: Syria.
"Everybody" Wins
The water pipelines, incidentally, will take water from the upper Tigris and Euphrates, and away from Iraq and Syria. How much longer can Iraq fight without water? So in addition to providing the gluttonous west with oil, cementing control over energy resources and putting billions of dollars into Big Oil's pockets, this will also help win more the Iraq war through strangulation. It may be good news for American soldiers that innocent Lebanese are dying so that they might have an easier fight. Furthermore, the re-configuration of oil networks is intended to isolate Iran - depriving it of markets which it needs to maintain a healthy military and general populace. Ever since Iran rebelled against US dominance by pricing oil in Euros we've been dying to counter their potentially devestating economic attack.
Who Are You Calling "Civilized"?
Complicated, isn't it? And this is the tip of the iceberg. It becomes hard to decide what side you're really on when the present scenario is framed so that in any situation people die unfairly. And humanity has been carrying on this way for its entire existence.
I promise, our way of life is at stake. If you want peace, you must be prepared to give up everything, or at least trade it in for a completely different existance. Every time you turn on the A/C, every time you buy something, every time you drive somewhere, you are complicit in these murders. If we won't change, we can't stop.
Never Trust a Junkie Unmentionable as it sounds, it is possible that we lose these wars. We've been addicted to oil for a long time, and an addict will do anything for one more fix. We've betrayed and sold out a number of allies, and since our government believes us children that need to be sheltered from the truth, it is impossible to know whether they have looked at all to the future.
And what happens if we lose? I'm guessing nobody will throw us a life preserver. |
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