Fusion is better than fission
Radium
I was watching 60 Minutes on CBS today. One of their topics was a
clean source power. They were talking about how great "nuclear" power
is. I found out they were talking about nuclear fission, not fusion. I
was disappointed.
Fission is not clean at all. True, it does not increase the
concentration of greenhouse gases on earth [an advantage the host of
the topic was exaggerating about]. However, fission fills the planet
with the stench of radioactive toxins. Also, the plutonium resulting
from fission could be used -- by fundamentalists -- as a horrifying
weapon; a situation that would put the entire globe at risk.
So, follow my advice and use fusion.
Laser fusion is the best way to acheive nuclear fusion.
Hail to fusion; death to fission.
Regards,
Radium
GeekBoy
"Radium" <gluc...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1176092970....@d57g2000hsg.googlegroups.com...
Well at this time, since it takes more power to produce fusion than it puts
out, fusion is not a good idea right now.
>
> Regards,
>
> Radium
>
Arnold Walker
"GeekBoy" <n...@nerdy.com> wrote in message
news:4619d080$0$24738$4c36...@roadrunner.com...
Now ask yourself which is heavier h or he....
So ,are we talking fission or fusion in the decay of trituim.
Like is used in beta voltiacs......
>
>
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GeekBoy
"Arnold Walker" <arnold...@consolidated.net> wrote in message
news:1176102...@sp6iad.superfeed.net...
Tritium is an important fuel for controlled nuclear fusion in both magnetic
confinement and inertial confinement fusion reactor designs. The
experimental fusion reactor ITER and the National Ignition Facility (NIF)
will use Deuterium-Tritium (D-T) fuel. The D-T reaction is favored since it
has the largest fusion cross-section (~ 5 barns peak) and reaches this
maximum cross-section at the lowest energy (~65 keV center-of-mass) of any
potential fusion fuel.
Snap Whipcrack..............
--
Snap
Hey, I eat my vegetables. Potatoes are vegetables arent' they?
So I eat my French Fries and I get my vegetables.
Bob Eld
There is only one slight problem.....There is no such thing as a fusion
reactor that produces net power at the present time. Furthermore, there are
no reactors planned that will produce commercial power. ITER is an
experimental system to study tokamak reaction parameters and is not a
commercial power producing design. It may lead to a power design if the
tests are successful but that is unknown today. There are other avenues to
fusion but all are pipe dreams at the present time. Much work remains to be
done. There is no fusion system that can replace a fission reactor today,
period. So, the only choice for commercial nuclear power is fission if you
plan a plant today.
Joe Strout
"Radium" <gluc...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Fission is not clean at all. True, it does not increase the
> concentration of greenhouse gases on earth [an advantage the host of
> the topic was exaggerating about]. However, fission fills the planet
> with the stench of radioactive toxins.
Which radioactive toxins are these, and why haven't I smelled them if
they're filling the planet?
> Also, the plutonium resulting
> from fission could be used -- by fundamentalists -- as a horrifying
> weapon; a situation that would put the entire globe at risk.
Nuclear proliferation and terrorism is indeed a drawback to most fusion
reactors. I think you're grossly overstating and oversimplifying the
case, though.
> Laser fusion is the best way to acheive nuclear fusion.
Are you referring to the fast-ignitor fusion concept? I find this
approach pretty hard to believe. It's a Rube Goldberg approach that
seems highly unlikely to produce a sustained, energy-producing reaction.
The same is true of most approaches to fusion, in my opinion -- there
are enormous hurdles between the current state of the art and what would
be required for economical energy production. The one possible
exception to this is Robert Bussard's "Polywell" approach (see
http://www.strout.net/info/science/polywell/). There may be devils
lurking in the details, but both theory and preliminary results look
very promising.
Best,
- Joe
bill
> In article <1176092970.186328.90...@d57g2000hsg.googlegroups.com>,
>
> "Radium" <gluceg...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > Fission is not clean at all. True, it does not increase the
> > concentration of greenhouse gases on earth [an advantage the host of
> > the topic was exaggerating about]. However, fission fills the planet
> > with the stench of radioactive toxins.
>
> Which radioactive toxins are these, and why haven't I smelled them if
> they're filling the planet?
>
> > Also, the plutonium resulting
> > from fission could be used -- by fundamentalists -- as a horrifying
> > weapon; a situation that would put the entire globe at risk.
>
> Nuclear proliferation and terrorism is indeed a drawback to most fusion
> reactors. I think you're grossly overstating and oversimplifying the
> case, though.
>
> > Laser fusion is the best way to acheive nuclear fusion.
>
> Are you referring to the fast-ignitor fusion concept? I find this
> approach pretty hard to believe. It's a Rube Goldberg approach that
> seems highly unlikely to produce a sustained, energy-producing reaction.
>
> The same is true of most approaches to fusion, in my opinion -- there
> are enormous hurdles between the current state of the art and what would
> be required for economical energy production. The one possible
> lurking in the details, but both theory and preliminary results look
> very promising.
>
> Best,
> - Joe
Looks to me like what stands between us and fusion is not a
matter of daily grind research, but instead 1 genius breakthrough.
unfortunately, genius breakthroughs happen on their own time, not any
schedule, einsteins cannot be ordered, they show up when they show
up.
So, while we're waiting for that 1 genius, which do you all
prefer, fission or coal?
Radium
> So, while we're waiting for that 1 genius, which do you all
> prefer, fission or coal?
Natural gas or hydrogen for power -- such as production of electricity
or to get my car moving.
For electricity and cars, a mixture of natural gases, hydrogen fuel,
wind power, solar photovoltiac energy and a battery backup.
Bituminous coal for my BBQ, stove, and oven.
no spam
> clean source power. They were talking about how great "nuclear" power
> is. I found out they were talking about nuclear fission, not fusion. I
> was disappointed.
>
> Fission is not clean at all. True, it does not increase the
> concentration of greenhouse gases on earth [an advantage the host of
> the topic was exaggerating about]. However, fission fills the planet
> with the stench of radioactive toxins. Also, the plutonium resulting
> from fission could be used -- by fundamentalists -- as a horrifying
> weapon; a situation that would put the entire globe at risk.
Not if it is used as fuel as well.
bill
> > prefer, fission or coal?
>
> Natural gas or hydrogen for power -- such as production of electricity
> or to get my car moving.
> For electricity and cars, a mixture of natural gases, hydrogen fuel,
> wind power, solar photovoltiac energy and a battery backup.
> Bituminous coal for my BBQ, stove, and oven.
BWAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!
That's FUNNY! hydrogen is NOT a source of energy, it's a store
of energy, PV is WAY too expensive to even consider as a primary
source of energy, ad nat. gas is maxed out. Wind can provide a
maximum of 20% of primary energy without something fairly
revolutionary in the way of energy storage technology (ditto PV).
So, I will repeat myself, which do you prefer the plant to be
that produces the power for when you turn on your lights tonight, coal
or fission?
GeekBoy
"bill" <ford_pr...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:1176149080.7...@d57g2000hsg.googlegroups.com...
>> > So, while we're waiting for that 1 genius, which do you all
>> > prefer, fission or coal?
>>
>> Natural gas or hydrogen for power -- such as production of electricity
>> or to get my car moving.
>> For electricity and cars, a mixture of natural gases, hydrogen fuel,
>> wind power, solar photovoltiac energy and a battery backup.
>> Bituminous coal for my BBQ, stove, and oven.
>
>
> BWAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!
> That's FUNNY! hydrogen is NOT a source of energy, it's a store
> of energy, PV is WAY too expensive to even consider as a primary
Not anymore. Recovery of costs used to be in excess of 30 years.
Now that is no longer true and recovery is down to less than 18 years. I
think within the next 5 it will be down to less than 10
And I bet if a major storm came throughand the only one with power after it
hit was your neighbor with all those PVpanels, I bet it would not be
expensive then.
The FedEx hub in San Jose covered its roof with PV last year and it now
provides 80% of the power during peak usage times.
Joe Strout
"Radium" <gluc...@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Apr 9, 12:02 pm, "bill" <ford_prefec...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> > So, while we're waiting for that 1 genius, which do you all
> > prefer, fission or coal?
>
> Natural gas or hydrogen for power -- such as production of electricity
> or to get my car moving.
Where are you going to get the hydrogen that produces this power?
bill
> "bill" <ford_prefec...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
>
> news:1176149080.7...@d57g2000hsg.googlegroups.com...
>
> >> > So, while we're waiting for that 1 genius, which do you all
> >> > prefer, fission or coal?
>
> >> Natural gas or hydrogen for power -- such as production of electricity
> >> or to get my car moving.
> >> For electricity and cars, a mixture of natural gases, hydrogen fuel,
> >> wind power, solar photovoltiac energy and a battery backup.
> >> Bituminous coal for my BBQ, stove, and oven.
>
> > BWAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!
> > That's FUNNY! hydrogen is NOT a source of energy, it's a store
> > of energy, PV is WAY too expensive to even consider as a primary
>
> Not anymore. Recovery of costs used to be in excess of 30 years.
> Now that is no longer true and recovery is down to less than 18 years. I
> think within the next 5 it will be down to less than 10
> And I bet if a major storm came throughand the only one with power after it
> hit was your neighbor with all those PVpanels, I bet it would not be
> expensive then.
>
> The FedEx hub in San Jose covered its roof with PV last year and it now
> provides 80% of the power during peak usage times.
I specified "primary" power. That means base load wholesale
which is a wildly different thing than peak retail. 18 year paybacks
when compared to *retail electric* is a different thing than
economical viability for *wholesale applications* if your utility were
generating power with PV, they'd need to be charging $.35/kwh just to
break even.
Arnold Walker
"Joe Strout" <j...@strout.net> wrote in message
news:joe-2DA6F7.1...@comcast.dca.giganews.com...
aloha.kakuikanu
> Hi:
>
> I was watching 60 Minutes on CBS today. One of their topics was a
> clean source power. They were talking about how great "nuclear" power
> is. I found out they were talking about nuclear fission, not fusion. I
> was disappointed.
Oh, dear. I was randomly browsing news today. One of their topics was
Iran nuclear program. I found out they (iranians) were working towards
nuclear fission, not fusion. I was disappointed.
> Fission is not clean at all. True, it does not increase the
> concentration of greenhouse gases on earth [an advantage the host of
> the topic was exaggerating about]. However, fission fills the planet
> with the stench of radioactive toxins. Also, the plutonium resulting
> from fission could be used -- by fundamentalists -- as a horrifying
> weapon; a situation that would put the entire globe at risk.
Oh dear. The waste is supposed to be stored in Yukka mountain
underground repository which is considered safe for 1 Million years.
Yes, I know, those green plague folks are uneasy about any time
interval, being it 100 or 1 Million years in the future. Apparently
they are unaware of the fact that predicting anything even in
comparatively short interval of 100 years is a highly risky business.
And 1 Million years is practically infinite.
Radium
> So, I will repeat myself, which do you prefer the plant to be
> that produces the power for when you turn on your lights tonight, coal
> or fission?
AFAIK, neither seems to have any advantage over the other. So, if coal
or fission are my only two options, I'd say "leave it to the experts".
I don't prefer one over the other, unless of course, I am cooking --
then its definitely bituminous coal.
I just love the aroma of hot bituminous coals in my clay oven. My
mouth waters just thinking about it.
Mauried
<aloha.k...@yahoo.com> wrote:
Well, as long as you can find an insurance company happy to provide
a 1 million year policy to cover the waste dump if anything bad
happens.
no spam
> underground repository which is considered safe for 1 Million years.
> Yes, I know, those green plague folks are uneasy about any time
> interval, being it 100 or 1 Million years in the future. Apparently
> they are unaware of the fact that predicting anything even in
> comparatively short interval of 100 years is a highly risky business.
> And 1 Million years is practically infinite.
This is like storing or throwing away the waste from gasoline production. A
lot of this nuke 'waste' is still useful if you recycle it and use it in a
different 'engine'. The amount of true waste is fairly small and can be
fairly easily contained.
>
Radium
> This is like storing or throwing away the waste from gasoline production. A
> lot of this nuke 'waste' is still useful if you recycle it and use it in a
> different 'engine'. The amount of true waste is fairly small and can be
> fairly easily contained.
Fusion is still far safer than fission.
Fission is also very boring. Death to fission.
Fusion is the best source of energy; if only one can get it running :-)
Anthony Matonak
>
> Fusion is the best source of energy; if only one can get it running :-)
As long as we're talking about fictional energy sources then
I'll put my vote in for antimatter. It's a little hard to
handle but it's got the best energy yield per weight.
Anthony
Fran
Actually, the period of time when the actinides are seriously harmful
to humans is much shorter -- in the hundreds of years. Indeed, if one
goes to fast breeders, both the volume of waste is smaller and the
period of time when the resultant materials could cause serious harm
shorter still.
You're probably going to want to keep them utterly isolated from the
biosphere for a few hundred years -- mainly to be on the safe side,
but the reality is that radioactive emissions from fly ash and coal
slag are far more likely to harm people than anything associated with
the operation of a contemporary nuclear plant -- especially in the
first world.
The main problems center around criminal use of waste materials and
the need for a heightened surveillance and policing regime, precisely
to ensure the safety of materials when they are still highly hazardous
and capable of being made use of for criminal activity.
I also doubt that this is the kind of technology that lends itself
well to the much more fragile administrative and political settings
applying in much of Africa, Asia, Russia, Latin America and the Middle
East. The Russians run, by all accounts, one of the most corrupt
refimes on the planet, and in this the Chinese are very strong rivals.
Equally, even passing over this, it's clear that the capital cost of
nuclear technology would be an extraordinary burden on the developing
world, and leave them even more in debt to the west than they are now,
and so on equity grounds, one must doubt the aptness of such
technology in those settings. In a more ideal world, we'd share the
wealth about, but I won't hold my breath for that to happen.
What the developing world needs are cheap scaleable technologies that
are ready to work now, don't exacerbate intra-communal hostilities,
can be largely self-sustaining with minimal western support or
indebtedness and which don't imply some sort of close and forceful
western supervision or compliance regime. Nukes don't fit that bill at
all -- not yet anyway.
Strategies based on true renewables look much more promising --
biomass, geothermal, wave, wind, solar and so forth.
Fran
dez...@usa.net
> On Apr 10, 5:30 am, "no spam" <n...@spam.net> wrote:
>
> > This is like storing or throwing away the waste from gasoline production. A
> > lot of this nuke 'waste' is still useful if you recycle it and use it in a
> > different 'engine'. The amount of true waste is fairly small and can be
> > fairly easily contained.
>
> Fusion is still far safer than fission.
Say what? You have almost all of your energy being released as very
high energy neutrons that causes radioactivation in nearly any
structural material. You're back to the same safety potential as
passive reactivity fission reactors at best.
> Fission is also very boring. Death to fission.
Steel production is also rather boring, but guess what...
> Fusion is the best source of energy; if only one can get it running :-)
And jet packs are better than cars, but guess which one you're more
likely to use.
But go ahead and block fission reactors in your neighborhood. The coal
companies will be very appreciative.
steve
> > Fusion is still far safer than fission.
>
> Say what? You have almost all of your energy being released as very
> high energy neutrons that causes radioactivation in nearly any
> structural material. You're back to the same safety potential as
> passive reactivity fission reactors at best.
A possible fusion reactror could use hydrogen protons and boron with
very few high energy neutrons produced. Alpha particles are the main
danger and these can easily be stopped by a very thin shield.
This reaction requires higher tempertures for fusion to take place but
by using electrostatic inertial fusion this is quite easy to achieve
(so far on a small scale only, and still no where near break even , on
power produced).
Joe Strout
dez...@usa.net wrote:
> > Fusion is still far safer than fission.
>
> Say what? You have almost all of your energy being released as very
> high energy neutrons that causes radioactivation in nearly any
> structural material. You're back to the same safety potential as
> passive reactivity fission reactors at best.
That depends on what fusion fuel you're using. A polywell reactor ought
to be able to use p-B11, which produces no neutron radiation. Not that
such has been built yet... but it seems more likely to work (and be
practical) than tokamaks, IMHO.
Best,
- Joe
Joe Strout
"steve" <stephen....@comsuper.gov.au> wrote:
> This reaction requires higher tempertures for fusion to take place but
> by using electrostatic inertial fusion this is quite easy to achieve
> (so far on a small scale only, and still no where near break even , on
> power produced).
Technically, what you have in an IEF reactor isn't high temperatures,
but high-energy (non-thermalized) ions in the focus area. That's why
it's so much easier to achieve. Trying to run p-B11 with thermalized
ions really would require ridiculous temperatures.
digitalmaster
"Anthony Matonak" <antho...@nothing.like.socal.rr.com> wrote in message
news:461f0286$0$1422$4c36...@roadrunner.com...
bill
wrote:
> "Anthony Matonak" <anthony...@nothing.like.socal.rr.com> wrote in message
How about a dyson sphere?
dez...@usa.net
> In article <1176447450.025958.299...@d57g2000hsg.googlegroups.com>,
>
> deza...@usa.net wrote:
> > > Fusion is still far safer than fission.
>
> > Say what? You have almost all of your energy being released as very
> > high energy neutrons that causes radioactivation in nearly any
> > structural material. You're back to the same safety potential as
> > passive reactivity fission reactors at best.
>
> That depends on what fusion fuel you're using. A polywell reactor ought
> to be able to use p-B11, which produces no neutron radiation. Not that
> such has been built yet... but it seems more likely to work (and be
> practical) than tokamaks, IMHO.
Bremsstrahlung losses make such devices essentially impossible. You
gotta run them at thermal equalibrium. Polywell is all hype unless
Bussard made several simultaneous revolutionary breakthroughs at once.
Not bloody likely.
The only demonstrable way of harvesting fusion energy is inertial
confinement with a fission trigger. Of course you have to have put put
engines that are likely in the terawatt power ratings.
Radium
Extremely high-power UV lasers could be used to ignite D-T fusion.
Right?
Souls Black as Coal
For U-S, biggest global warming problem is water, too much and too
little
April 16, 2007 20:40 EDT
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Scientists and military experts say water will
become a major problem for the U-S as the planet continues to warm.
They say there won't be enough fresh water.
Scientists say states will clash over control of rivers as water
supplies decrease. And they say some regions, especially the
Southwest, will need to find new sources of drinking water.
But the challenge will be different on the East Coast. Scientists say
rising sea levels will make storm surge "the number one vulnerability"
for metropolitan areas, and could become dangerous during hurricanes.
In a separate report, retired military leaders say a lack of food and
water in places that are already unstable around the world will only
"foster conditions" for conflict and terrorism, posing a security
threat to the States.
Big Glob
>
>Extremely high-power UV lasers could be used to ignite D-T fusion.
>Right?
http://blogs.nature.com/news/blog/2007/03/acs_2007_chicago_ghost_town.html
Souls Black as Coal
More proof of global warming?
Last Updated: 12:01am BST 17/04/2007
Amateurs who began collecting data on fungi in the 1950s started a
process that is helping us to understand climate change, reports Roger
Highfield
The St George's mushroom, found everywhere from "fairy rings" to
grassland, woodland, old cemeteries and roadside verges, was so named
because it very occasionally popped up on the saint's day (April 23),
although according to one mycologist's bible it was more usually found
a week or two later.
St George Mushroom
Rich pickings: the St George's mushroom
However, a study published in the journal British Wildlife now reveals
that its appearance is a movable feast.
If you had looked for these creamy white Calocybe gambosa half a
century ago, you would have spotted them around mid-May, or even as
late as the autumn. Now their first appearance has shifted to April
22, in time for the big day. At long last, the species lives up to its
name - all thanks to rising temperatures.
The pioneering study provides hard evidence of how Britain's growing
season is extending, marking the first comprehensive evidence of how
climate change affects autumn. All previous research in phenology (the
study of the seasonal timing of life-cycle events) has focused on
spring. The study also suggests that changes are afoot that could
actually turn out to be a boon for British ecosystems.
The research dates back to the 1950s when Ted Gange, a stonemason,
began taking an interest in mushrooms. Frustrated by the lack of
information on the many different species, notably which ones were
safe to eat, he decided to record them with a schoolmaster, Jim
Hindley. Both men were members of the Salisbury and District Natural
History Society.
Fungi consist of vast underground networks of threads and tendrils - a
so-called mycelium - that provide nutrients, helping them to grow.
However, like most people, Gange and Hindley were most interested in
mushrooms and toadstools - the "fruiting bodies" that spread spores.
As they strolled around south Wiltshire and the New Forest within a
radius of 20 miles they documented the first and last fruiting dates
of 2,000 different species.
In fungal forays between 1950 and 2005 they took 55,000 records from
nearly 1,400 locations. Ted, now 77, spent a decade transferring his
hand-written records from cards, stashed in tin boxes, into a
computer, providing a trove of data for his 48-year-old son Alan, a
professor of microbial ecology at Royal Holloway, University of
London.
Prof Gange recalls how he "spent most Saturday and Sunday afternoons
as a child being dragged around the New Forest", but his father's
enthusiasm clearly inspired him. With Tim Sparks from the Centre for
Ecology and Hydrology and Lynne Boddy of Cardiff University, he
analysed all the data kept over 55 years and compared it with
variations of local temperatures and rainfall. "I spent six months
doing the statistical analysis," said Prof Gange, who has published
the findings in Science.
The records reveal that the nation's fungi are discombobulated by
climate change. Some species that previously fruited only in October
now fruit in April too because of warmer spring temperatures (February
has warmed more than any other month, from an average of 3.5 deg C in
1950 to 5.2 deg C now). This has provided enough nutrients early in
the year for the fungi to fruit. It is "unheard of for an organism to
start reproducing twice a year in two opposite seasons", said Prof
Gange.
The fruiting period itself has also extended. In the past decade alone
it has more than doubled, a response to climate change not yet seen in
other organisms. Species that used to first fruit in September now do
so as early as July. The end of the fruiting season was October; now
it is December.
"These events have been caused by elevated temperature in July and in
October - there are no frosts any more, so autumn stays warmer for
longer," said Prof Gange. "It is extraordinary how the warmer climate
we are experiencing is confusing many species of fungi." Fly Agaric,
the stereotypical hallucinogenic toadstool with a red cap and white
dots, is a classic example. "The Fly Agaric fruiting season used to
end in October, but in recent years we have found them almost up to
Christmas."
Overall, the team concludes that for every decade since the 1950s the
first fungal fruiting date has advanced by 8.5 days and the last
extended by 7.5 days. The length of the autumnal fruiting season has
changed from an average of 33 days in the 1950s to 75 days today.
Further research reveals that many species of wood-decaying fungi now
fruit twice a year. Leaf litter is disappearing from forests at twice
the rate it did 50 years ago. "Your compost heap rots at twice the
speed it did in the 1950s," said Prof Gange. "Enhanced speed of
decomposition means enhanced availability of nutrients to plants, so
this means that trees will get twice the amount of nutrients they used
to, and their growth rates will speed up."
However, it may not all be good news. "If a fungus fruits two months
earlier than it used to, then insects that eat the fungi will have to
track this change by changing their phenology. Their only alternatives
will be to find other hosts or die. Ecologists are only beginning to
show that climate change does not affect species in isolation, but can
alter the structure of ecosystems too."
Today, Gange Sr stays at home to document fungi. "I have got to the
point where I can scarcely walk, unfortunately," Ted says. His
colleague, Jim Hindley, died in 1996 but, as president of the
Salisbury and District Natural History Society, Ted's enthusiasm is
undiminished. He has been studying the first morel mushrooms of the
season, which pop up 40 days earlier than when he started his study.
Now Ted is looking forward to the appearance of Amanita, Russula and
Boletus, traditionally thought to be summer-autumn fungi. They should
be appearing any day now.
Joe Strout
dez...@usa.net wrote:
> > That depends on what fusion fuel you're using. A polywell reactor ought
> > to be able to use p-B11, which produces no neutron radiation. Not that
> > such has been built yet... but it seems more likely to work (and be
> > practical) than tokamaks, IMHO.
>
> Bremsstrahlung losses make such devices essentially impossible.
You don't know that. Bussard studied that issue in section IV.C of his
1991 paper [1] and concluded that it was not a major obstacle for these
machines. Where exactly do you find his analysis faulty?
[1] http://www.strout.net/info/science/polywell/bussard-1991.html
> You gotta run them at thermal equalibrium.
No, the whole point is that they DON'T run at thermal equilibrium.
> Polywell is all hype unless
> Bussard made several simultaneous revolutionary breakthroughs at once.
Not at once, but over fifteen years of work, he's made several
breakthroughs -- none of which seem particularly astounding in
retrospect:
1. Found a way to confine electrons for an IEC reactor without a grid --
important because previous IEC machines always failed due to grid
overheating.
2. Found a way to increase lifetime of the electrons in such a machine,
by making sure none of the magnetic field lines intersect metal. (This
is a key point that was not yet public when Rider wrote his 1995 thesis.)
3. Er... there really isn't a breakthrough 3; the rest is just natural
consequences of using a potential well to accelerate your ions (plus
engineering details like keeping your magnets from flying apart or
overheating). This removes a lot of hard problems caused by other
approaches:
a. The magnetic fields are MHD stable, unlike those in (say) a tokamak.
b. The ions are not thermalized; you don't need to achieve ridiculous
temperatures to get (say) p-B11 fusion, because the ions all cross the
core with the same energy, and with a much higher probability of head-on
collisions.
c. Fusion products have much higher energy and easily leave the core,
eliminating the "ash" problem.
d. Fusion products are charged particles, and so could be converted
directly to electricity by an external grid -- no need for wrapping a
steam engine around your fusion plant.
In addition, it seems highly unlikely to me that Bussard would
intentionally hype his machine. He is old, and in ill health, but has
had a long and distinguished career. If he's facing forced retirement
(or worse), he'd be thinking about his legacy. To push a scam would be
ridiculous; any such scam would be exposed, and he would go down in
history as a desperate con artist. And for what? Do you he'd really
take the millions and run off to buy a yacht or some such?
But, suppose he's been working for 15 years on a radically different
approach to fusion and really HAS seen results that fit with theory and
indicate that this device will work when scaled up. He'd be highly
motivated to keep that research going, in order to go down in history as
the man who brought boundless clean energy to humanity, just when we
needed it most. But this makes sense only if he really is on to
something -- or at least believes that he is.
So, it's possible that he's wrong (though unlikely, given his background
and the results seen so far). But I can't believe he's lying.
> The only demonstrable way of harvesting fusion energy is inertial
> confinement with a fission trigger. Of course you have to have put put
> engines that are likely in the terawatt power ratings.
"Demonstrable" in what sense? That's a lot further from being
demonstrated than a polywell machine, as far as I can tell.
Best,
- Joe
Gonna Bust Up Exxon's Crime Ring
CLIMATE CHANGE: A THREAT TO GLOBAL SECURITY.
Massive migrations. Increased border tensions. Greater demands for
rescue and evacuation efforts. Conflicts over essential resources -
including food and water.
Those are only a few of the concerns raised in a new report on the
threats posed by climate change compiled under the direction of eleven
retired four-star and three-star admirals and generals.
Immigration from Africa and the Middle East may cause European nations
to close and protect their borders.
Shortages of food, drinking water and farmland in Africa will strain a
continent that's already the source of 30-percent of the world's
refugees.
Tension over water resources in the Middle East will increase
volatility in a region now in conflict.
Rising sea levels, increased hurricane activity, the loss of glaciers
as a source of water supply will increase immigration in Latin
America.
Of the almost 4 billion people in Asia, nearly 40 percent - those
living within 45 miles of the oceans - could be impacted by rising sea
levels. Shortages of farmland and drinking water will cause additional
stress as will the threat of infectious diseases.
According to the report, the US military will encounter its own set of
challenges as well
An ice-free Arctic could require new ships and a new set of naval
operations in the region.
Rising sea levels could threaten coastal bases at home and abroad.
Increasing storm activity could hamper the military's ability to
perform routine maintenance or carry out regular exercises.
Changing ocean salinity could require technical changes in sonar and
submarine systems.
Drought conditions could require new logistical plans and equipment
for moving water to US troops in war zones.
The need for new kinds of humanitarian operations could necessitate
new training to address these different missions.
The report compiled and researched by the CNA Corporation, under the
direction of the Military Advisory Board (those retired generals and
admirals) was not to discuss the science of climate change, but to say
that evidence suggests that growing carbon emissions are becoming a
problem: a threat to international security.
The report includes some recommendations. Climate change should be
included in national security and defense policy. The US should commit
to a stronger international role to stabilize climate change. The US
should commit to global partnerships that help less developed nations
better manage climate impacts, The US military should accelerate the
adoption of business practices and technologies that improve US combat
power through energy efficiency. The military should review the
potential impact of climate change over the next 30-40 years related
to its own facilities worldwide.
CNA Corporation is a nonprofit research and analysis organization.
The full report, "National Security and the Threat of Climate Change,"
will be available on the CNA website on Monday, April 16, 2007 at
http://www.cna.org/
Radium
> On 16 Apr 2007 17:19:25 -0700, "Radium" <gluceg...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
> >Extremely high-power UV lasers could be used to ignite D-T fusion.
> >Right?
>
You are talking about cold fusion. Thats different.
Gonna Bust Up Exxon's Crime Ring
Global warming could spur 21st century conflicts
OSLO, April 16 (Reuters) - Droughts, floods and rising seas linked to
global warming could spur conflicts in coming decades, experts said on
Monday, the eve of a first U.N. Security Council debate on climate
change.
The poor in tropical regions of Africa and Asia are likely to suffer
most, perhaps creating tensions with rich nations in the temperate
north which are likely to escape the worst effects of warming widely
blamed on use of fossil fuels.
"Global warming increases the potential for conflict," Janos Bogardi,
head of the U.N. University's Institute for Environment and Human
Security in Bonn, told Reuters.
"The most imminent effect is probably desertification and land
degradation," he said. His group says climate change may force
hundreds of millions from their homes in the long term.
Bogardi said violence in the Darfur region of Sudan, where 200,000
people have died, was "probably the most prominent example" of a
conflict partly caused by land degradation.
In the longer term, rising seas caused by melting icecaps and glaciers
could swamp large tracts of countries such as Bangladesh, forcing
millions to migrate and raising the chances of conflicts over
shrinking land.
"Climate change has the potential to be a huge security issue," said
Paul Rogers, professor of peace studies at Bradford University in
England. Still, he said disputes over oil were now more likely to
cause war than climate change.
The U.N. Security Council will discuss climate change on Tuesday for a
first time. Britain, which holds the rotating presidency, is
spearheading the debate but has not won strong backing from nations,
including its ally the United States.
U.S. SECURITY
"It is our view that there are many factors other than climate change
that have an impact indirectly on security," said Gerald Anderson,
deputy assistant secretary at the U.S. Bureau of International
Organizations Affairs.
"There are already a number of international fora for dealing with the
issue, and we don't really see the Security Council as the optimal
place to deal with it," he told Reuters at a U.N. meeting in Nairobi.
A report to be released on Monday by a group of 11 retired U.S.
generals and admirals will look at how "changing global climate may
present serious threats to U.S. national security."
A study by the world's top climate scientists on April 6 warned
climate change could cause water shortages and hunger for millions,
which could bring migration and spread disease.
Bogardi said global warming could worsen the divide between rich and
poor. The April 6 U.N. report said nations such as Canada, Russia and
many in Europe might get some benefits from moderate climate change,
such as higher crop yields.
"Countries such as India and China, and Africa are likely to be the
losers. This creates a further imbalance of resources and standards of
living that could trigger conflict," he said.
Unlike political refugees who can still hope of returning home,
"climate refugees" -- like those affected by expanding deserts in sub-
Sarahan Africa or islanders whose low-lying homes disappear beneath
rising waves -- will be permanently displaced.
Environmental damage could also be a source of terrorism. Al Qaeda
leader Osama bin Laden accused the United States in 2002 of destroying
"nature with your industrial waste and gases more than any other
nation in history." (Additional reporting by Daniel Wallis in Nairobi)
dez...@usa.net
> In article <1176768891.432556.319...@o5g2000hsb.googlegroups.com>,
>
> deza...@usa.net wrote:
> > > That depends on what fusion fuel you're using. A polywell reactor ought
> > > to be able to use p-B11, which produces no neutron radiation. Not that
> > > such has been built yet... but it seems more likely to work (and be
> > > practical) than tokamaks, IMHO.
>
> > Bremsstrahlung losses make such devices essentially impossible.
>
> You don't know that. Bussard studied that issue in section IV.C of his
> 1991 paper [1] and concluded that it was not a major obstacle for these
> machines. Where exactly do you find his analysis faulty?
>
> [1]http://www.strout.net/info/science/polywell/bussard-1991.html
>
> > You gotta run them at thermal equalibrium.
>
> No, the whole point is that they DON'T run at thermal equilibrium.
See, this is where all the other plasma physics guys disagree. Unless
you're getting nearly all your collisions dead on, you just have an
expensive plasma heater. Look, you've been making these arguments all
along and handwave away Ridders thesis on nonequalibrium fusors, but
that doesn't make those problems go away.
> > Polywell is all hype unless
> > Bussard made several simultaneous revolutionary breakthroughs at once.
>
> Not at once, but over fifteen years of work, he's made several
> breakthroughs -- none of which seem particularly astounding in
> retrospect:
>
> 1. Found a way to confine electrons for an IEC reactor without a grid --
> important because previous IEC machines always failed due to grid
> overheating.
>
> 2. Found a way to increase lifetime of the electrons in such a machine,
> by making sure none of the magnetic field lines intersect metal. (This
> is a key point that was not yet public when Rider wrote his 1995 thesis.)
>
> 3. Er... there really isn't a breakthrough 3; the rest is just natural
> consequences of using a potential well to accelerate your ions (plus
> engineering details like keeping your magnets from flying apart or
> overheating). This removes a lot of hard problems caused by other
> approaches:
>
> a. The magnetic fields are MHD stable, unlike those in (say) a tokamak.
>
> b. The ions are not thermalized; you don't need to achieve ridiculous
> temperatures to get (say) p-B11 fusion, because the ions all cross the
> core with the same energy, and with a much higher probability of head-on
> collisions.
And this is the problem: The probability just isn't likely to be high
enough or even close.
> c. Fusion products have much higher energy and easily leave the core,
> eliminating the "ash" problem.
>
> d. Fusion products are charged particles, and so could be converted
> directly to electricity by an external grid -- no need for wrapping a
> steam engine around your fusion plant.
>
> In addition, it seems highly unlikely to me that Bussard would
> intentionally hype his machine. He is old, and in ill health, but has
> had a long and distinguished career. If he's facing forced retirement
> (or worse), he'd be thinking about his legacy. To push a scam would be
> ridiculous; any such scam would be exposed, and he would go down in
> history as a desperate con artist. And for what? Do you he'd really
> take the millions and run off to buy a yacht or some such?
No. I think he's blinded by the hope of it.
> But, suppose he's been working for 15 years on a radically different
> approach to fusion and really HAS seen results that fit with theory and
> indicate that this device will work when scaled up. He'd be highly
> motivated to keep that research going, in order to go down in history as
> the man who brought boundless clean energy to humanity, just when we
> needed it most. But this makes sense only if he really is on to
> something -- or at least believes that he is.
>
> So, it's possible that he's wrong (though unlikely, given his background
> and the results seen so far). But I can't believe he's lying.
I think he's just plain wrong.
> > The only demonstrable way of harvesting fusion energy is inertial
> > confinement with a fission trigger. Of course you have to have put put
> > engines that are likely in the terawatt power ratings.
>
> "Demonstrable" in what sense? That's a lot further from being
> demonstrated than a polywell machine, as far as I can tell.
You've never seen the ivy mike photo? Inertial confinement works in
the megaton range.
Flush the Exxon Turds
Global Warming Skeptics Cite Alarmism as Detractor From Science
Apr 17, 2007
Kenny Goldberg
(Photo: Walt Crampton is an engineer with San Diego's TerraCosta
Consulting Group, who's worked on evaluating and mitigating erosion on
California's coast for more than 30 years. Kenny Goldberg/KPBS.)
There's broad agreement among scientists that man's activities are
causing global warming. Some scientists believe we have about a ten-
year window to do something about it. But whether any broad steps are
taken will depend on whether people at large believe in the
phenomenon. And at this point, not everyone is convinced. KPBS
reporter Kenny Goldberg has the story.
The Crusin' Grand car show is a Friday night tradition in Escondido.
In downtown Escondido, classic American cars are lined up on both
sides of Grand Avenue. And each one of them has been beautifully
restored.
There's a 1947 Ford Deluxe. How about a cherried-out 1953 Buick? And
then there's a gleaming black 1972 Chevy Chevelle.
Dennis Trujillo: It's got a 427 four-speed posi veran, it's about
500 horsepower, and it's a driver, an everyday driver, disc breaks all
the way around. It's a fun car.
It's a gas-guzzler, too. But Dennis Trujillo doesn't worry about that.
He loves his car, and he's not going to let something like global
warming stop him from driving it.
Trujillo: I'm enjoying this thing right now. And I'll tell you
what, I'm gonna enjoy life as much as I can to its fullest, and when
I'm gone the next guy can worry about global warming or whatever, you
know.
Just down the street, Roger Monrail stands next to his '57 Chevy
Belair. He doesn't think cars contribute to global warming, either.
Roger Monrail: Ah, I don't buy into that, no. I really don't think
it's a problem these days. Why not? Well, because newer cars emit a
lot less emissions, and the older cars that are still around are well-
tuned, and well taken care of.
Car enthusiasts aren't the only ones who doubt that human activity is
causing global warming.
Walt Crampton is an engineer with San Diego's TerraCosta Consulting
Group. For more than 30 years, he's worked on evaluating and
mitigating erosion on California's coast.
Crampton has studied the landmark report by the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change.
He concedes we're seeing a rise in global temperatures, increased
levels of carbon dioxide, and that sea level is changing, too. But he
comes to a completely different conclusion than the IPCC.
Walt Crampton: The principal forcing functions are not man-made.
Now man may be contributing to this. But the real issues are outside
of man's control. It's really driven more by solar radiation.
Crampton says global climate change is a natural phenomenon.
Crampton: We have a 22,000 year orbital cycle that goes around the
sun, that drives 22,000 year cycles for heating and cooling. And we
see typical ice ages and interglacial periods on about a 22,000 year
cycle.
Fred Schnaubelt is not an engineer, or a scientist.
But the former San Diego City Councilman considers himself to be well-
read on the subject of global warming.
Schnaubelt thinks the idea that man is causing it is a ruse, and a
ripoff.
Fred Schnaubelt: There are gobs of money, rivers of money, oceans
of money being spent on global warming studies. Now just imagine. What
do you think would happen if six-and-a-half billion dollars, which is
what the federal government is spending this year, were spent on
global cooling. We'd have global cooling, wouldn't we? Ha, ha, ha.
And then there's Mark Thornhill. He's an editorial cartoonist with the
North County Times. Thornhill makes it his business to skewer
politicians and other blowhards. He's been having a field day with the
global warming issue.
Thornhill describes one of his cartoons that ran on Groundhog Day.
Mark Thornhill: One groundhog pops his head up, and he says, I
predict slightly warmer temperatures due to global warming. And the
second groundhog is alarmed. He says, 'How are you going to get
government grants with that? You've got to predict catastrophic
storms, oceans swallowing up cities, the end of mankind, c'mon.'
Thornhill says his political leanings have nothing to do with his
skepticism about global warming.
Thornhill: Whether it's a Republican or Democratic issue is minor
in this case. It's the topic itself that I wish to address. And the
politics are secondary.
But maybe they're not.
The National Journal recently polled members of Congress, asking
whether they believed human activity has caused global warming beyond
a reasonable doubt. 95 percent of Democrats said yes. Only 13 percent
of Republicans agreed.
Joe Strout
dez...@usa.net wrote:
> > No, the whole point is that they DON'T run at thermal equilibrium.
>
> See, this is where all the other plasma physics guys disagree.
Not all of them, including Bussard, who's probably been doing plasma
physics since before the other guys you're thinking of were born. No,
I'm not a plasma physicist yourself -- but if Bussard claims the plasma
is non-Maxwellian, and the experimental results he's obtained fit with
that theory, then I need a stronger reason to doubt him than "the other
plasma physics guys disagree."
> Unless you're getting nearly all your collisions dead on, you just have an
> expensive plasma heater.
Nearly all the collisions will be dead on -- unlike in a tokamak, or any
thermal approach, where you're simply heating the plasma to such high
temperatures that they sometimes happen to collide with the desired
energy and sometimes (though rarely) at the right angle. These ions are
not moving around with random velocities and directions; they're being
accelerated directly towards the center of the device.
> Look, you've been making these arguments all
> along and handwave away Ridders thesis on nonequalibrium fusors, but
> that doesn't make those problems go away.
What does? Experimental results? Supporting theory? Bussard has both.
You may object that the experimental results are rather sparse (WB-6
only ran a handful of times). I agree, and I look forward to WB-7,
which I would expect to run more times for longer durations. You may
also object that the experimental results for the last decade are not
published. I agree with that too, and look forward to the paper where
the methods and results will be detailed.
But neither of these objections indicates that Bussard is wrong; just
that there's still work to be done.
> > b. The ions are not thermalized; you don't need to achieve ridiculous
> > temperatures to get (say) p-B11 fusion, because the ions all cross the
> > core with the same energy, and with a much higher probability of head-on
> > collisions.
>
> And this is the problem: The probability just isn't likely to be high
> enough or even close.
OK, let's explore that. On what do you base this assertion?
> > So, it's possible that he's wrong (though unlikely, given his background
> > and the results seen so far). But I can't believe he's lying.
>
> I think he's just plain wrong.
Well, that is a possibility. But even if there is a flaw in his theory,
there are still very encouraging results (fusion rates 100,000 times
higher than any other IEC reactor run under similar conditions, though
admittedly with large error bars). That clearly merits further
exploration in my view. We need to either show that it works, or
reproduce and explain away those phenomenal results.
> You've never seen the ivy mike photo? Inertial confinement works in
> the megaton range.
Oh yes, sorry, I didn't follow you before because I was still thinking
of power plants rather than bombs. I agree, bombs are so far the only
way we've gotten net power out of fusion -- but that doesn't mean it
will always be so. There are a lot of hard problems involved in making
a fusion power plant, which make me very skeptical of approaches like
ITER -- but the polywell approach seems to sidestep most of them.
Best,
- Joe
Mass Killer COALition
Huge sandstorm sparks 17-car pileup
By Stacia Glenn and Melissa Pinion-Whitt, Staff Writers
Article Launched: 04/13/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
LUDLOW - A massive sandstorm triggered a 17-car pileup Thursday,
killing two men and prompting the closure of several desert highways.
About eight vehicles, six tractor-trailers and a few motorhomes
received major damage in the pileup, which occurred at 10:22 a.m. on
eastbound Interstate 40 about 50 miles east of Barstow.
Watch Video: Sandstorm
Photo Gallery: Sandstorm Havoc
A 67-year-old Palmdale man driving a Mitsubishi pickup truck was
killed. Another man later died of his injuries at a hospital. Their
identities had not been released late Thursday.
Helicopters were unable to transport victims to hospitals because of
low visibility, police said.
Johnny Mars was headed to West Virginia with his 39-year-old daughter
and his Boston terrier when he was assaulted by strong winds and
blinded by blowing sand.
"I just couldn't see anything," said the Hawaiian Gardens man.
Mars' black Dodge pickup was hit by another truck, which was slammed
into by a larger truck. Cars rammed into each other like dominoes,
witnesses said.
When Mars finally squirmed out of his truck to check out the damage,
all he could see was wrecked vehicles littering the freeway.
Numerous people, including those in motor homes, remained trapped in
their vehicles for several hours until authorities could sift through
the wreckage.
At least six people were transported to hospitals. Nearly a dozen tow
trucks were called to cart off damaged vehicles.
A white GMC truck pulling a trailer smashed into the back of a fully
loaded FedEx truck, spilling cargo all over the roadway. The driver's
wife was trapped inside the truck.
Motorists heading into the area found themselves in a traffic
nightmare.
Officers closed I-40 between Newberry Springs and Highway 95. Part of
Highway 58 was also closed because of the cloud of sand. Traffic
backed up for miles before the roadways reopened around 4:40 p.m.
Dust and wind was definitely a factor in the collision, said Lt. Todd
Sturges of the California Highway Patrol.
"There's always wind in the desert and there's a lot of dirt and sand
here, and when those two mix it becomes completely airborne," Sturges
said. "But it is rare to have it spread over this big of an area."
Winds gusted over 60 mph and visibility dropped to zero for a stretch
of time, according to the National Weather Service.
And it isn't over yet.
A high-wind advisory remained until 8 p.m. Thursday. Meteorologists
expect similar conditions to roll into San Bernardino County late
Saturday night and extend through Sunday.
"Winds will come up again on Sunday, similar to (Thursday)," said
meteorologist Dan Atkin. "That's going to kick the winds up again in
the mountains and deserts, kicking up the sand."
dez...@usa.net
> In article <1176831849.284798.175...@n76g2000hsh.googlegroups.com>,
>
> deza...@usa.net wrote:
> > > No, the whole point is that they DON'T run at thermal equilibrium.
>
> > See, this is where all the other plasma physics guys disagree.
>
> Not all of them, including Bussard, who's probably been doing plasma
> physics since before the other guys you're thinking of were born. No,
> I'm not a plasma physicist yourself -- but if Bussard claims the plasma
> is non-Maxwellian, and the experimental results he's obtained fit with
> that theory, then I need a stronger reason to doubt him than "the other
> plasma physics guys disagree."
Right now its just Bussard against the rest of the established view on
how plasma physics work. If he can back it up, great. I'm just not
optimistic.
> > Unless you're getting nearly all your collisions dead on, you just have an
> > expensive plasma heater.
>
> Nearly all the collisions will be dead on -- unlike in a tokamak, or any
> thermal approach, where you're simply heating the plasma to such high
> temperatures that they sometimes happen to collide with the desired
> energy and sometimes (though rarely) at the right angle. These ions are
> not moving around with random velocities and directions; they're being
> accelerated directly towards the center of the device.
Sure, but I still doubt it will be enough within several orders of
magnitude.
> > Look, you've been making these arguments all
> > along and handwave away Ridders thesis on nonequalibrium fusors, but
> > that doesn't make those problems go away.
>
> What does? Experimental results? Supporting theory? Bussard has both.
>
> You may object that the experimental results are rather sparse (WB-6
> only ran a handful of times). I agree, and I look forward to WB-7,
> which I would expect to run more times for longer durations. You may
> also object that the experimental results for the last decade are not
> published. I agree with that too, and look forward to the paper where
> the methods and results will be detailed.
>
> But neither of these objections indicates that Bussard is wrong; just
> that there's still work to be done.
My objections are that the thermalization and bremsstrahlung losses
that are ever present in any electrostatic fusor are a bigger hurdle
than Bussards gridless device can overcome.
> > > b. The ions are not thermalized; you don't need to achieve ridiculous
> > > temperatures to get (say) p-B11 fusion, because the ions all cross the
> > > core with the same energy, and with a much higher probability of head-on
> > > collisions.
>
> > And this is the problem: The probability just isn't likely to be high
> > enough or even close.
>
> OK, let's explore that. On what do you base this assertion?
Mine? Intuition mostly; It all smells a bit funny.
> > > So, it's possible that he's wrong (though unlikely, given his background
> > > and the results seen so far). But I can't believe he's lying.
>
> > I think he's just plain wrong.
>
> Well, that is a possibility. But even if there is a flaw in his theory,
> there are still very encouraging results (fusion rates 100,000 times
> higher than any other IEC reactor run under similar conditions, though
> admittedly with large error bars). That clearly merits further
> exploration in my view. We need to either show that it works, or
> reproduce and explain away those phenomenal results.
Oh sure, it might very well lead to more efficient neutron sources.
> > You've never seen the ivy mike photo? Inertial confinement works in
> > the megaton range.
>
> Oh yes, sorry, I didn't follow you before because I was still thinking
> of power plants rather than bombs. I agree, bombs are so far the only
> way we've gotten net power out of fusion -- but that doesn't mean it
> will always be so. There are a lot of hard problems involved in making
> a fusion power plant, which make me very skeptical of approaches like
> ITER -- but the polywell approach seems to sidestep most of them.
Polywell trades one set of problems for another; I sure would like an
electrostatic fusor, but I'm not gonna hold my breath over it.
Flush the Exxon Turds
Lives cut short, cities wrecked by Texas storms
By Kathy A. Goolsby, Jay Parsons and Jenni Beauchamp
The Dallas Morning News
(MCT)
HALTOM CITY, Texas - Residents, homeowners and government officials
took to the streets here and in Fort Worth Saturday to assess damage,
make repairs and, in some cases, breathe a sigh of relief after a
deadly tornado ripped through the area Friday evening.
"I was surprised after I surveyed the damage that we didn't have more
injuries than we did," said Haltom City Fire Department Capt. Joel
Thompson. He said that 100 to 150 homes were damaged - 30 to 40 of
those heavily so - and 12 to 15 businesses were also hard hit.
Mayor Bill Lanford declared a state of disaster and volunteers from
the city's Community Emergency Response Team, or CERT, spent much of
Saturday walking through neighborhoods to survey damage, most of which
occurred in a three to four-mile long area along and near Highway 121.
Meteorologists with the National Weather Service in Fort Worth
estimated tornadic winds in the area reached 100 to 110 miles per
hour.
At a lumberyard north of Highway 121, 40-year-old Marc Patterson died
from a heart attack after a stack of lumber fell on him as he unloaded
a truck. Another man at the same lumberyard had his ear lacerated by
debris.
In Irving, Texas, police officer Andrew Esparza, 26, died about 8:45
p.m. when his cruiser hit a slick spot and crashed into a concrete
pole as Officer Esparza went to help another officer.
At Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, 39 flights were canceled
Saturday morning based on planes being out of place Friday night, but
operations are running normally otherwise, a spokesman said. On Friday
night, 126 flights were canceled.
There were also reports of damage in East Dallas. But Tarrant County -
particularly along the Haltom City-Fort Worth border - clearly took
the brunt of the storm's fury.
A few hundred homes and businesses are still without power in Fort
Worth and Haltom City, said Gailee Cardwell with TXU.
"All of the outages in Dallas and metro cities have been restored.
Crews are still working and things are mostly back to normal."
But it will be a while before others affected by the storm are back to
normal.
The steeple that beckoned sinners and believers to Valley Missionary
Baptist Church since 1951 now rests in a nearby lake, stripped of its
cross but still pointed heavenward.
Between the church and the water, saffron and burgundy colored choir
robes are strewn across a grassy embankment and a chandelier that once
lit the sanctuary, hangs from the broken branches of a once-stately
tree. Despite the loss of his church Pastor James Redd, who gathered
with a handful of the church's 100 members Saturday, called the
tornado "a blessing."
"The chief carpenter has spoken," he said. "We've been talking about
remodeling and this is remodeling time."
His wife, Guenda, said although church members had wanted to refurbish
the sanctuary, they had not been able to decide just where to start.
Friday's tornado renders such a decision moot.
Pastor Redd said that he was thankful because the storm could have
caught members inside. Friday nights are usually reserved for choir
practice and computer training, but the church hasn't held them in a
while, he said, because most of the youngsters who attend are busy
with school activities.
"We're rejoicing because nobody in the neighborhood or church was
harmed," he said.
At the United RV Center, it appeared that about 50 RVs were damaged,
primarily in the storage area. A wall in the building was also
damaged. Power remained out throughout the area. Officials said
Saturday that the center would remain closed for a few days.
"It's scary because it's a family-owned business and we work hard and
it's devastating to see it crumpled up," said United RV co-owner
Debbie Fletcher, who saw the destruction of her business on television
Friday after she got off work and quickly returned.
She and the other owners spent Saturday meeting with insurance
officials, preparing paperwork while others tried to repair a wall and
cleared away debris.
The Red Cross opened a shelter for displaced families but it sat empty
on Saturday. Things were busier, however, at two mobile kitchens
operated by the Salvation Army. Carl and Calvenia Ungurait began
manning one of the kitchens about 30 minutes after the storm rolled
through Friday night. They served about 500 meals on Friday night and
another 800 to 900 more by 1 p.m. Saturday. They served hot stew and
chili dogs to residents, cleanup volunteers, emergency personnel and
anyone else who needed a warm meal.
Onlookers passed by the area throughout Saturday, creating more havoc
than closed off streets, Haltom City officials said.
"The biggest problem is that people are coming around to see the
damage," she said. "We have a traffic light out at Beach and Belknap,
a five-way stop, and that is causing a backup. Its pretty confusing so
I would recommend that people stay away for a while to avoid the
traffic."
The rain and severe weather has moved out of North Texas, but heavy
winds will continue throughout the day, said Jennifer Dunn with the
National Weather Service in Fort Worth.
"Now that the storm has passed people should be cautious of loose tree
limbs and debris. We are under a wind advisory until 6 p.m. and may
feel gusts up to 35 miles per hour until the sun goes down. Residents
should secure any loose items outside of their home. Essentially,
people should watch out for loose and lightweight objects that could
easily get tossed up and thrown around," said Dunn.
Overnight lows will dip into the 40s with temperatures staying in the
70s for the remainder of the week. Another chance of rain for north
Texas comes Monday with a 20 percent chance and a 40 percent chance
for Tuesday, Dunn said.
Vendicar Decarian
"Arnold Walker" <arnold...@consolidated.net> wrote
> You ever looked at tritium....what does it decay into...... he3.
Tritium is an isotope of hydrogen consisting of one proton, two neutrons
and one electron.
Helium III is an isotope of helium consisting of two protons, three
neutrons and two electrons.
Hydrogen can not decay into a heavier element.
"Arnold Walker" <arnold...@consolidated.net> wrote
> Now ask yourself which is heavier h or he....
> So ,are we talking fission or fusion in the decay of trituim.
You seem quite confused. Go read an elementary text on atomic structure.
"Arnold Walker" <arnold...@consolidated.net> wrote
> Like is used in beta voltiacs......
Worse than useless.
Vendicar Decarian
"Snap Whipcrack.............." <sn...@aol.com> wrote
> Fission works now. Fusion will work in the future.
There is a perfectly usable fusion reactor more powerful than anything
that could possibly be built on earth, sitting just 93,000,000 miles away.
It powers the entire surface of the earth - including man - directly....
I suggest we use it.
Vendicar Decarian
"Bob Eld" <nsmon...@yahoo.com> wrote
> There is only one slight problem.....There is no such thing as a fusion
> reactor that produces net power at the present time.
You might try looking to the east during the morning hours. If so, you
will find one.
Vendicar Decarian
"bill" <ford_pr...@hotmail.com> wrote
> Looks to me like what stands between us and fusion is not a
> matter of daily grind research, but instead 1 genius breakthrough.
> unfortunately, genius breakthroughs happen on their own time, not any
> schedule, einsteins cannot be ordered, they show up when they show
> up.
> So, while we're waiting for that 1 genius, which do you all
> prefer, fission or coal?
I prefer we use the fusion reactor we are orbiting. It's emitting 10E33
ergs of energy per second.
Vendicar Decarian
"Radium" <gluc...@gmail.com> wrote in message
> Bituminous coal for my BBQ, stove, and oven.
And cave men....
Mass Murderers COALition
Staff Outraged Over Wolfowitz' Girlfriend's Raises
Monday, 16 April 2007, 3:07 pm
Press Release: Government Accountability Project
GAP Documents Show World Bank Staff "Outraged" Over Wolfowitz'
Girlfriend's Raises
(Washington, D.C.) - A news story broken using documents obtained by
the Government Accountability Project (GAP) showing that World Bank
President Paul Wolfowitz' girlfriend, also a Bank staffer, received
salary raises far in excess of what Bank rules and protocol stipulate
has caused an uproar among Bank staff employees, as evidenced by an
internal Bank email from the World Bank Staff Association.
The email, sent from the Staff Association to all employees on
Tuesday, states that "the Staff Association has been inundated with
messages from staff expressing concern, dismay and outrage."
Continuing, the email reads "At the same time, we call on Senior
Management and the Board to clarify what appear to be violations of
Staff Rules in favor of a staff member closely associated with the
President."
A copy of the email can be found on GAP's Web site here:
http://www.whistleblower.org/doc/2007/World%20Bank%20Staff%20Association%20Email.pdf
Payroll data obtained from the World Bank show that Shaha Riza, a
Communications Officer who has been seconded to the U.S. State
Department, received a $47,300 (35.5%) raise (to $180,000) after
Wolfowitz arrived, followed by a $13,590 (7.5%) raise (to $193,590) in
2006. If World Bank staff rules had been respected, she was not to
receive percentage increases greater than 12% and 3.7%, respectively.
Her current salary of $193,590 is about seven thousand dollars more
than what Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice earns.
A copy of the payroll data from the World Bank showing Riza's raises
is available on GAP's Web site here: http://www.whistleblower.org/doc/2007/Riza%20Pay%20History.pdf
"It's ironic that Mr. Wolfowitz lectures developing countries about
good governance and fighting corruption, while winking at an irregular
promotion and overly generous pay increases to a partner," said Bea
Edwards, GAP International Director.
ADVERTISEMENT
When asked about Riza's raises, a spokesman for Wolfowitz stated that
that action was taken by the World Bank Board of Directors. Inside
sources from the Bank have stated unequivocally that this was not the
case, that Board members only learned of the raise from news reports,
and that the members are furious. Specifically, members of the Ethics
Committee of the Board, the relevant committee on this issue, have
reported to GAP that they knew nothing of these decisions. As the
story has developed, questions of fact regarding the authorization of
the raises have emerged. The Bank is unable to clarify who proposed
and approved the irregular promotion and subsequent raises for Riza.
The Bank's Department of Institutional Integrity (INT), which
investigates fraud and corruption at the Bank, under routine
circumstances, would examine personnel actions that improperly benefit
a close friend of a senior manager. According to the INT Web site, the
department investigates "... [A]llegations of fraud and corruption in
Bank Group operations as well as allegations of staff misconduct." The
site goes on to state, however, "The Integrity Department reports its
findings to senior management, who in turn decide what measures should
be taken." This means that INT must report any uncovered wrongdoing to
Wolfowitz and his direct aides. Because of this, extraordinary ad hoc
measures must be taken.
"GAP has worked hard to establish a whistleblower protection policy
and an impartial justice system at the World Bank, and this situation
illustrates clearly how crucial these structures are," said Edwards.
"If whistleblower protections had been in place, the Riza affair could
have been addressed internally, but as it is, our sources had no
choice but to leak the information. An employee cannot report
potential wrongdoing to an investigations unit whose only authority is
to recommend corrective measures to senior management. In effect,
there is no impartial Inspector General in place, and no one is
authorized to address allegations of misconduct involving senior
management."
Government Accountability Project
The Government Accountability Project is the nation's leading
whistleblower protection organization. Through litigating
whistleblower cases, publicizing concerns and developing legal
reforms, GAP's mission is to protect the public interest by promoting
government and corporate accountability. Founded in 1977, GAP is a non-
profit, non-partisan advocacy organization with offices in Washington,
D.C. and Seattle, WA. Visit http://www.whistleblower.org/
***************************
Vendicar Decarian
"digitalmaster" <digita...@bellsouth.net> wrote
> lets just use zero point energy.
much more plausable.
It is after all, where all matter in the universe has come from.
Vendicar Decarian
<dez...@usa.net> wrote in message
> Say what? You have almost all of your energy being released as very
> high energy neutrons that causes radioactivation in nearly any
> structural material. You're back to the same safety potential as
> passive reactivity fission reactors at best.
Don't be stupid. Neutron capture isn't going to build up heavy elements
with long half lives that are also highly radioactive.
As to safety, once the power goes off the reaction which is being confined
by magnets turns off as well. - the plasma cools instantly burning a hole in
the reactor chamber skin and then you send in the clean up team with their
radiation suits.
Much easier of course to just use the fusion reactor that nature has
provided for us.
I draw your attention to the orange or yellow ball that rises in the east
each morning.
Vendicar Decarian
"Joe Strout" <j...@strout.net> wrote in message news:joe-
> That depends on what fusion fuel you're using. A polywell reactor ought
> to be able to use p-B11, which produces no neutron radiation. Not that
> such has been built yet... but it seems more likely to work (and be
> practical) than tokamaks, IMHO.
Gravitationally cinfined plasma fusion seems the most practical.
Vendicar Decarian
<dez...@usa.net> wrote
> The only demonstrable way of harvesting fusion energy is inertial
> confinement with a fission trigger.
Or a piece of black cloth held up to the sunlight.
Mass Murderers COALition
Making Love, Money and War -- Wolfowitz's Real Crimes
April 14, 2007
The flak that the World Bank's President Paul Wolfowtiz is getting
currently really misses his main crimes: The invasion and occupation
of Iraq and for waging the endless war of state terror. As Rumsfeld's
second-in-command Mr. Wolfowitz bears direct personal and official
responsibility for the illegal war of aggression on Iraq and for
posing threats to international peace.
The crime of war of aggression is the one of the most serious
violation of international law.
Compared to this very serious and now fully documented crimes of war
of aggression against another state, that has requested in killing of
thousands of innocent civilians, and illegal occupying another
country, nepotism and favoritism are small potatoes. It may well be
that Mr. Wolfowitz bestowed considerable financial benefits to his
mistress Shaha Ali Riza, herself another neo-con clown with quasi-
feminist disguise, but such malfeasance cannot be compared to
punishment that he, his boss, and their associated has inflicted on
the Iraqi and the Afghan people.
Mr. Wolfowitz has a long and chequred history of serving power
interest in various capacity. As the U.S. ambassador to Indonesia, he
was cosy with the Suharto regime right until its fall. The regime
received crucial assistance in rounding up communists and in invading
East Timor, prior to Wolfowitz's tenure, but he continued U.S. support
for the regime. Wolfowitz was U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for
East Asia when President Bush the first was praising and supporting
dictator Marcos. During the second Iraq war, Mr. Wolfowitz berated
Turkish military generals for not being able to check the Turkish
parliament,s firm rejection of endorsing U.S. invasion of the Iraq war
and thus denying U.S. military access to invading Iraq from the north.
Mr. Wolfowitz is at least indirectly responsible for the use of
torture on prisoners of war, political prisoners, and setting up
concentration camps in the name of war against terror. Wolfowitiz and
Co., are self-confessed architects of wars of aggression.
Paul Wolfowitz is not the first war criminal to have served as the
president of the World Bank. That distinction belongs to one of his
predecessor, Robert McNamara, former U.S. Defense Secretary during the
Vietnam War. After his job in Pentagon, he too headed the World Bank,
without feeling too much remorse for the slaughter of Vietnamese
peasants, women and children, napalming that country, as well as
bringing the world to brink of nuclear war during the Cuban crisis.
Years later, McNamara offered something apologized"but never to the
Vietnamese, only to the Americans for causing them so much pain and
suffering.
Woflowitz may or may not have to offer resignation for his personal
corruption and nepotism to advance the salary of his mistress, but
should not progressive activists world-wide seek to punish him for
first-order crimes of war of aggression rather than his fourth-order
crimes? It has been said that perhaps outside of Pentagon, he is less
dangerous to the world and to humanity. But it is a bad morals and
practical politics to have a war criminal directly responsible for
planning and directing a major war of aggression head an international
financial institution. Moreover, while the Bank does not command
nuclear weapons and tanks, it yield enormous political and economic
influence in developing countries. Hence, it is essential that war
criminals should not be allowed to head global public financial
institutions.
Vendicar Decarian
"Radium" <gluc...@gmail.com> wrote
> Extremely high-power UV lasers could be used to ignite D-T fusion.
> Right?
Nope.
UV is way too long a wavelength to affect the nucleus at all.. It just
goes around as if the nucleus wasn't there.
You might be able to cause some acceleration by cracking some crystal
bonds or something.
Mass Murderers COALition
Will White House sacrifice Gonzales to save Rove?
by wsws (reposted)
Tuesday Apr 17th, 2007 7:15 AM
As the political controversy over Attorney General Alberto
Gonzales continues to escalate in advance of his appearance before the
Senate Judiciary Committee, there are mounting signs that the Bush
administration is preparing to sacrifice Gonzales in order to protect
aides even closer to President Bush, including chief White House
political operative Karl Rove.
Vice President Dick Cheney made only a perfunctory defense of Gonzales
during an appearance Sunday on the CBS program Face the Nation. While
declaring that he and Bush still had confidence in the attorney
general, despite widespread criticism of the politically-motivated
firing of eight US attorneys, Cheney sought to distance the White
House from the issue.
"This took place inside the Justice Department," he said. "The one who
needs to answer to that and lay out on the record the specifics of
what transpired is the attorney general, and he'll do so."
The senior Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, Arlen Specter
of Pennsylvania, joined with Democrats in suggesting that Gonzales had
only an outside chance of retaining his post. Senate Republicans who
are closer to the White House, such as Jon Kyl of Arizona, were also
noncommittal on the prospect for Gonzales surviving.
A group of conservative lawyers and former Bush and Reagan
administration office-holders urged Gonzales to step down, in a
statement released Monday. The statement went well beyond the
criticisms voiced in the Senate, attacking a range of anti-democratic
policies with which Gonzales is identified, declaring that he "has
presided over an unprecedented crippling of the Constitution's time-
honored checks and balances."
Vendicar Decarian
"Joe Strout" <j...@strout.net> wrote
> Nearly all the collisions will be dead on -- unlike in a tokamak, or any
> thermal approach, where you're simply heating the plasma to such high
> temperatures that they sometimes happen to collide with the desired
> energy and sometimes (though rarely) at the right angle. These ions are
> not moving around with random velocities and directions; they're being
> accelerated directly towards the center of the device.
The device is made from what? Neutronium? Neutron crystal? A single
nucleus that consists of 10E23 protons?
No, it's going to be made from atoms with fleetingly small nuclei, which
the radiation will just flit past, and being charged these flying ions are
going to emit breaking radiation if they are have any reasonable energy at
all.
dez...@usa.net
wrote:
> <deza...@usa.net> wrote in message
> > Say what? You have almost all of your energy being released as very
> > high energy neutrons that causes radioactivation in nearly any
> > structural material. You're back to the same safety potential as
> > passive reactivity fission reactors at best.
>
> Don't be stupid. Neutron capture isn't going to build up heavy elements
> with long half lives that are also highly radioactive.
No it leads to neutron embrittlement and build up of activation
products of whatever you use for the structural material (probably
C-14 given the desirability of graphite at the very least)
> As to safety, once the power goes off the reaction which is being confined
> by magnets turns off as well. - the plasma cools instantly burning a hole in
> the reactor chamber skin and then you send in the clean up team with their
> radiation suits.
The same can be said of passive safety fission reactors.
> Much easier of course to just use the fusion reactor that nature has
> provided for us.
Sure, but how much electricity do we generate from that compared to
fission? It will have its day but not just yet.
Flush the Exxon Turds
Should America impeach President Bush?
Impeachement should only be the beginning
Rachel Matecki
If you support this country and its troops, you would also most likely
support the formulation of a plan to bring our men and women home from
Iraq. And though the election for president is over a year away, some
believe it is not soon enough.
A poll located on the Web site Commondreams.org reported that 52
percent of American adults believe President George W. Bush should be
impeached. Twenty-three percent are Republicans.
And why not? If we can impeach Clinton for lying to the public about a
personal matter, we can certainly kick Bush to the curb for retreating
to a hunting trip every time something goes wrong. Claims dealing with
Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, America's falling short in aiding
Hurricane Katrina victims and news of domestic spying without warrants
are just a few from a very a long list of reasons he should be
impeached. But we all know these things. I am not here to state the
obvious.
Bush, along with his administration, has deceived us all. Not only is
his impeachment necessary, but the removal of his entire
administration wouldn't be a bad idea either. According to The
American Conservative magazine, even officials in the British
government find the administration's take on Iraq to be removed from
reality. British Foreign Minister Jack Straw said, "The lid on the
pressure cooker has come off. There is no doubt that the current
situation is very serious and it is the most serious we have faced. It
plainly is the fact today that there are larger numbers of people, and
they are people on the ground, Iraqis, not foreign fighters, who are
engaged in this insurgency."
Bush owes our nation, among many others, an apology. He has ruined our
reputation as well as our credibility, which wasn't very respectable
in the first place. When dealing with Iraq, the president pursued a
very narrow ideology. He has bullied foreign policy to the point where
it has alienated enough people to make other nations too suspicious of
his true motives. He has cast us out of favor with two-thirds of the
planet, most recently Iran. The Bush Administration continues in a
downward spiral toward a conflict with these nations. We are no safer
than we were previous to Sept. 11, and what's worse is that we are
most likely less safe due to the constant prodding of other nations,
their opinions about democracy and laws concerning weapons of mass
destruction.
Continued...
Page 1 of 2 next >
Vendicar Decarian
Vendicar Decarian" <BushIsATrai...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>> Don't be stupid. Neutron capture isn't going to build up heavy elements
>> with long half lives that are also highly radioactive.
<dez...@usa.net> wrote in message
> No it leads to neutron embrittlement and build up of activation
> products of whatever you use for the structural material (probably
> C-14 given the desirability of graphite at the very least)
There is some radioactivity generated yes, and some materials will he
radioactively activated, yes, but this is no where near the safety problem
you have with the radioactive byproducts of a fission reactor.
Embrittlement is also an issue but when there is a mechanical failure, the
reaction shuts down immediately. You get a little boom, the plasma diverts
to the chamber wall, cools instantly and that's it. Game over.
>> As to safety, once the power goes off the reaction which is being
>> confined
>> by magnets turns off as well. - the plasma cools instantly burning a hole
>> in
>> the reactor chamber skin and then you send in the clean up team with
>> their
>> radiation suits.
<dez...@usa.net> wrote in message
> The same can be said of passive safety fission reactors.
Yup. They are the only type that should be constructed until the apes
manage to evolve away from the need to kill each other.
>> Much easier of course to just use the fusion reactor that nature has
>> provided for us.
> Sure, but how much electricity do we generate from that compared to
> fission? It will have its day but not just yet.
Potentially 100 Quadrillion GigaWatts.
Vendicar Decarian
Our president is on a high horse, and he needs to be knocked from it. What
happened to the war against terror? It seems that our leader has completely
lost sight of the real reason our men and women are fighting for our country
overseas. We are basically going to war alone. You can wish and hope that
things could be different, but they aren't. We need a leader that is true to
his or herself and true to our nation. Our leader needs to listen to the
rest of the world's wants and needs while also informing others about what
our nation calls for.
Thirty-five years ago, according to BBC, Israel won a war in six days. How
many of you are aware that the war in Iraq has actually surpassed the amount
of time needed to work things out in WWII? We need someone to patch things
up with the rest of the world, not treat it as inferior. If Bush had started
this process earlier, we may have had more allied support, but he has turned
some of our traditional friends against us, making it harder for our nation
to manage concerns such as Iraq and Iran, not to mention threats that will
undoubtedly surface years down the road.
We need to clean up the mess we have left throughout the world, and what
better way to do so than appoint someone who actually knows what he or she
is doing? It doesn't matter if the presidential election is next year. We
need all the help we can get. Electing someone new as soon as possible would
give us more time to allow ourselves to wipe the slate clean of this snobby,
deceitful attitude and repair the collection of broken promises our current
president has presented to the rest of the world.
Karl Johanson
>
> "Arnold Walker" <arnold...@consolidated.net> wrote
>> You ever looked at tritium....what does it decay into...... he3.
>
> Tritium is an isotope of hydrogen consisting of one proton, two
> neutrons and one electron.
>
> Helium III is an isotope of helium consisting of two protons, three
> neutrons and two electrons.
>
> Hydrogen can not decay into a heavier element.
One of the neutrons in Hydrogen3 undergoes beta decay, converting it
from a neutron to a proton. This leaves 2 protons & one neutron.
Helium3.
http://www.webelements.com/webelements/elements/text/H/radio.html
Looks like you're still pretty much 0 for 0 on matters nuclear.
Karl Johanson
no spam
> violation of international law.
I suggest you study the Laws of Land Warfare before you post such tripe.
Here's a place to start:
http://www.combatindex.com/law_of_land_warfare.html
After a little studying you'll see just why all attempts to bring anyone
before a 'war crime' court has failed.
I also suggest you try a little googling and study on the "Hague Convention"
and the "Geneva Convention"
no spam
> Impeachement should only be the beginning
On what charges? Lying to a federal judge under oath? No wait that was the
guy in office before him. . .Billy something wasn't it?
Joe Strout
"Vendicar Decarian" <BushIsA...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> "Joe Strout" <j...@strout.net> wrote
> > Nearly all the collisions will be dead on -- unlike in a tokamak, or any
> > thermal approach, where you're simply heating the plasma to such high
> > temperatures that they sometimes happen to collide with the desired
> > energy and sometimes (though rarely) at the right angle. These ions are
> > not moving around with random velocities and directions; they're being
> > accelerated directly towards the center of the device.
>
> The device is made from what? Neutronium? Neutron crystal? A single
> nucleus that consists of 10E23 protons?
>
> No, it's going to be made from atoms with fleetingly small nuclei, which
> the radiation will just flit past
Which radiation are you talking about?
> and being charged these flying ions are going to emit breaking radiation
> if they are have any reasonable energy at all.
Nobody said a fusion reactor wouldn't emit radiation. But, with the
p-B11 reaction, it doesn't result in any radioactivity.
Best,
- Joe
dez...@usa.net
wrote:
> Vendicar Decarian" <BushIsATrai...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> >> Don't be stupid. Neutron capture isn't going to build up heavy elements
> >> with long half lives that are also highly radioactive.
> > No it leads to neutron embrittlement and build up of activation
> > products of whatever you use for the structural material (probably
> > C-14 given the desirability of graphite at the very least)
>
> There is some radioactivity generated yes, and some materials will he
> radioactively activated, yes, but this is no where near the safety problem
> you have with the radioactive byproducts of a fission reactor.
>
> Embrittlement is also an issue but when there is a mechanical failure, the
> reaction shuts down immediately. You get a little boom, the plasma diverts
> to the chamber wall, cools instantly and that's it. Game over.
In a fluid fuel fission reactor its the same.You get a melted freeze
plug and the fuel drains into dump tanks. You can have bad engineering
that can lead to catastrophic consequences in either technology, such
as having a steam explosion in a section of a fusion reactor that had
cobalt in the activation products. Fission reactors happen to have the
competitive edge of actually producing energy.
> >> Much easier of course to just use the fusion reactor that nature has
> >> provided for us.
> > Sure, but how much electricity do we generate from that compared to
> > fission? It will have its day but not just yet.
>
> Potentially 100 Quadrillion GigaWatts.
Not on earth. Solar insolation is roughly 10^16 watts. We could
potentially drop mass down an accretion disk for an order of magnitude
more energy, but today fission reactors are the best bet. Whenever
fission reactors are blocked because of some technology that isn't
quite ready yet, more coal is used to fill the void.
CJT
--
The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to
minimize spam. Our true address is of the form che...@prodigy.net.
Arnold Walker
"CJT" <abuj...@prodigy.net> wrote in message
news:46268D7E...@prodigy.net...
> no spam wrote:
>>>Should America impeach President Bush?
>>>Impeachement should only be the beginning
>>
>>
>> On what charges? Lying to a federal judge under oath? No wait that was
>> the guy in office before him. . .Billy something wasn't it?
> Perhaps abuse of office. Or obstruction of justice.
caught in his
and Hilary's games........You keep thinking of the wrong president for some
reason.
>
> --
> The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to
> minimize spam. Our true address is of the form che...@prodigy.net.
----== Posted via Newsfeeds.Com - Unlimited-Unrestricted-Secure Usenet News==----
http://www.newsfeeds.com The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! 120,000+ Newsgroups
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Vendicar Decarian
> "Vendicar Decarian" <BushIsA...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>> The device is made from what? Neutronium? Neutron crystal? A single
>> nucleus that consists of 10E23 protons?
>>
>> No, it's going to be made from atoms with fleetingly small nuclei,
>> which
>> the radiation will just flit past
"Joe Strout" <j...@strout.net> wrote
> Which radiation are you talking about?
The Ions you are talking about accelerating.and using as bullets.
>> and being charged these flying ions are going to emit breaking radiation
>> if they are have any reasonable energy at all.
"Joe Strout" <j...@strout.net> wrote
> Nobody said a fusion reactor wouldn't emit radiation. But, with the
> p-B11 reaction, it doesn't result in any radioactivity.
The emission of breaking radiation slows the ion, and will do so before
there is any substantive collision rate.
Vendicar Decarian
>> The crime of war of aggression is the one of the most serious
>> violation of international law.
"no spam" <n...@spam.net> wrote
> I suggest you study the Laws of Land Warfare before you post such tripe.
> Here's a place to start:
>
> http://www.combatindex.com/law_of_land_warfare.html
Read the U.N. charter that the U.S. has adopted as U.S. law.
Vendicar Decarian
"CJT" <abuj...@prodigy.net> wrote
> Perhaps abuse of office. Or obstruction of justice.
Treason, Desecration of the office, mass murder, starting a war of
agression, and corruption, corruption, corruption.
bill
wrote:
> "CJT" <abujl...@prodigy.net> wrote
>
> > Perhaps abuse of office. Or obstruction of justice.
>
> Treason, Desecration of the office, mass murder, starting a war of
> agression, and corruption, corruption, corruption.
like selling our best nuclear weapons tech to the chinese for a
campaign contribution, getting blowjobs in the office, killing
everyone who had dirt on him, invading somalia for strategic gain,
taking bribes, and feathering his own nest? Oh, wait, clinton
again. When are you going to list something against Bush?
nicks...@ece.villanova.edu
>
>... Desecration of the office
You mean Laura's redecoration?
Nick
no spam
>
> Treason, Desecration of the office, mass murder, starting a war of
> agression, and corruption, corruption, corruption.
You delusional view of things do not reach the level of impeachment.
no spam
Read the UN resolutions on Iraq. Read the Congressional record where the
President was given 'permission' to use any force he felt necessary ((twice
IIRC). Read the Presidents own words where he warns Iraq of the impending
use of force if they fail to follow the UN resolutions. (Neither of us have
access to the diplomatic correspondence between the US, UN and Iraq)
After reading all of that you will see why each and every 'case' brought to
any court, US or international, has been tossed out. Its because all the
rules/laws have been followed.
Internationally, which seems to be the way you want to go, the 'war' is
legal because Iraq was in violation of the cease fire agreement it signed.
From what I understand about the UN resolutions on the use of force in Iraq
(from the 90's), the cease fire agreement suspending the hostilities, the UN
resolutions on Iraq issued after the cease fire, the UN's rules on the use
of force, the Hague convention and the rulings issued from the 'world court'
the US's use of force in Iraq is perfectly legal.
BTW, it would be a violation of international law if the US withdrew from
Iraq before it was stable enough to provide for its own protection or
another entity took charge.
In respect to US law, the US Congress voted to give the President
'permission' to use any force necessary, at least twice, to deal with
terrorism therefore giving him 'legal cover'. Goes to show just how
"stupid" Bush is. He stupidly gave in when his opponents in Congress
demanded to be allowed to go on record with their votes. He gave them so
much rope they hung (hanged?)themselves TWICE. If he had not waited for
them to vote for the use of force you MIGHT have a legal leg to stand on.
But once the Congress gave him the green light it was and is up to him as
commander in chief where, when, how and how much force to use. FYI, many
constitutional scholars say the use of force votes can easily be called a
declaration of war as required in the US Constitution.
no spam
>>>Should America impeach President Bush?
>>>Impeachement should only be the beginning
>>
>>
>> On what charges? Lying to a federal judge under oath? No wait that was
>> the guy in office before him. . .Billy something wasn't it?
> Perhaps abuse of office. Or obstruction of justice.
Examples of either that would reach the threshold of impeachment, please.
So far he has done nothing which other Presidents have done and have been
ruled legal by the courts and ignored by the U.S. Congress. Specifically
the U.S. House of Representatives which has the power to impeach. Just ask
a supporter of that Billy guy who was impeached.
Joe Strout
"Vendicar Decarian" <BushIsA...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> "Joe Strout" <j...@strout.net> wrote
> > Nobody said a fusion reactor wouldn't emit radiation. But, with the
> > p-B11 reaction, it doesn't result in any radioactivity.
>
> The emission of breaking radiation slows the ion, and will do so before
> there is any substantive collision rate.
No. These losses have been calculated in detail, and are something that
must be taken into account, but are not a major problem. In addition,
actual (D-D) fusion has been measured experimentally at a rate 100,000
times higher than any other IEC reactor under similar conditions. These
results agree with theory and indicate that scaling up to a size capable
of fusing p-B11 should work.
Dan Bloomquist
>>>>The crime of war of aggression is the one of the most serious
>>>>violation of international law.
>>
>>
>>"no spam" <n...@spam.net> wrote
>>
>>>I suggest you study the Laws of Land Warfare before you post such tripe.
>>>Here's a place to start:
>>>
>>>http://www.combatindex.com/law_of_land_warfare.html
>>
>> Read the U.N. charter that the U.S. has adopted as U.S. law.
>
>
Good grief, here it goes again.
Google groups: "no spam" "UN resolutions"
H2-PV
> On Apr 19, 3:22 am, "Vendicar Decarian" <BushIsATrai...@hotmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> > "CJT" <abujl...@prodigy.net> wrote
>
> > > Perhaps abuse of office. Or obstruction of justice.
>
> > Treason, Desecration of the office, mass murder, starting a war of
> > agression, and corruption, corruption, corruption.
>
> like selling our best nuclear weapons tech to the chinese for a
> campaign contribution,
Washington Times owner Sun Myung Moon, reichturd.
Ohh look... It's a feces-covered Republican Troll crawling out of the
Organized Crime cesspool they live in.
Whenever I am perturbed by one of them I am reminded how they made the
whole US government into a toilet.
The Story of Jeff Gannon, White House Credentialed Press Corps:
http://americablog.blogspot.com/2005/02/man-called-jeff.html
Notice YOU MUST BE OVER 21 and REPUBLICAN to view this dirty picture
of a Whitehouse "Excort" in the nude.
XXX over 21! http://americablog.blogspot.com/bdnud.jpg
UNDERNEWS: ALL JEFF GANNON ALL THE TIME
One White House reporter expressed revulsion over the fact that it was
[Ari] ... AND GEORGE ARCHIBALD WASHINGTON TIMES, 1989: A
homosexual prostitution ring ...
http://prorev.com/2005/02/all-jeff-gannon-all-time.htm
The Washington Note: Comment on The White House's "Don't Ask, Don ...
Does anything happen in this White House without Rove's approval? ...
Let's see, a male prostitute gained access to the WH under an assumed
name. ...
www.thewashingtonnote.com/mt/mt-comments.cgi?entry_id=319
The Washington Note Archives
If he was already a prostitute, why not be one in the White House
... hope that a tawdry tale involving homosexual prostitution will
shock the
nation into ...
http://www.thewashingtonnote.com/archives/000319.html
http://tinyurl.com/dwh6a
Results about 47,900 for Whitehouse homosexual prostitutes "Washington
Times".
The Child Prostitution Sex Ring Involving the Bush Whitehouse
HOMOSEXUAL CHILD PROSTITUTION RING INVOLVING GEORGE BUSH SR. ...
We now turn to some news stories that appeared in the Washington Times
more
than a decade ...
www.voxfux.com/features/bush_child_sex_coverup/article_archive.htm -
The Child Prostitution Ring that Reached Bush Whitehouse
BUSH CHILD PROSTITUTION COVER-UP - - - VOXFUX. ... The Washington
Times, Pg. A3 July 26, 1989 Headline: Secret Service furloughs
third White
House guard ...
http://www.voxfux.com/features/bush_child_sex_coverup/franklin.htm
The Franklin Coverup Scandal The Child sex ring that reached Bush ...
Boy prostitutes 15 years old (and younger) were taking midnight tours
of the ... Photographer for White House child sex ring arrested after
Thompson suicide ...
http://www.thelawparty.com/FranklinCoverup/franklin.htm
Homosexual Prostitution Inquiry Ensnares VIPs With Reagan, Bush Sr.
1989 Washington Times: Homosexual Prostitution Inquiry Ensnares VIPs
With Reagan, ... The byline reads, Call Boys Took Midnight Tour Of The
White House.
...
http://www.freepressinternational.com/franklin_121304_decamp_9h182g209k.html
Whiskey Bar: Pieces of the Puzzle
... credit card clients of a homosexual prostitution ring now under
investigation ... The focus on private White House tours came after
he Washington Times ...
http://billmon.org/archives/001692.html - 15k - Cached - Similar pages
:: Libertythink :: Encouraging Cognitive Liberty in an Age of ...
1989: Bush matriarch says White House manwhores no big deal ... That
investigation centered on a homosexual call-boy service that operated
out of a house on ...
http://www.libertythink.com/2005/02/1989-bush-matriarch-says-white-house_17
''Call Boys Took Midnight Tour of White House."
he Times reported, ``A homosexual prostitution ring is under ... The
Washington Times reported in an article titled ``White House Mute on
Call Boy
Scandal ...
http://www.apfn.net/messageboard/03-09-05/discussion.cgi.82.html
The Child sex ring that reached Bush/Reagan Whitehouse
the Whitehouse. There are 19 more Washington Times articles in
full
text ... prostitute to the present White House since George W. Bush
permitted ...
http://www.apfn.net/Messageboard/04-10-05/discussion.cgi.58.html -
Rigorous Intuition: Stirring the White House honey pot
In The Washington Times of August 9, 1989, Spence "hinted the tours
were ... Running a male prostitute ring, possibly in conjunction with
blackmail
ops to ...
http://rigorousintuition.blogspot.com/2005/02/stirring-white-house-honey-pot.html
Rigorous Intuition: America's Condition Greene
They all accused King of running a child prostitution ring for the
political and ... On July 29, 1989, the Washington Times published
the banner front page ...
http://rigorousintuition.blogspot.com/2005/02/americas-condition-greene.html
Paul M. Rodriguez and George Archibald The Washington Times; Final
Section: ... 28 raid on a house on 34th Place NW used by a homosexual
prostitution ring, ...
http://www.newsmakingnews.com/sexandcapitol7,18,01.htm
SEX , CRIME & THE CAPITAL: Sex , crime and politics in Washington...
... AND GEORGE ARCHIBALD WASHINGTON TIMES, 1989: A homosexual
prostitution ... DC cops are under orders from the White House and
Capitol Hill to
keep up ...
http://prorev.com/sexindc.htm
Killtown: "George Bush: The Unauthorized Biography" Chp 21 - Omaha
"Homosexual Prostitution Probe Ensnares Official of Bush, ... The
Washington Times reported in an article titled "White House Mute on
Call Boy
Scandal,'' ...
http://killtown.911review.org/bushbio/chapter21.html
Franklin Credit Union Child-Sex Scandal
Take Your Victim To The White House As A Guest of the GOP ... Bonacci,
who had been one of the child prostitutes, is identified by leading
child-abuse
...
http://www.francesfarmersrevenge.com/stuff/archive/oldnews2/boystown/
Photographer tied to WH child sex-ring arrested after Thompson suicide
... 1989 Washington Times front page story, "Homosexual prostitution
inquiry ... The extent to which White House Senior Domestic Policy
Advisor Karl
Rove ...
http://www.tomflocco.com/fs/PhotographerTied.htm
Witness says 20-30 pedophile legislators abused abducted children
Ensnared as a fall-guy for what the Washington Times called a
White
House ... "according to documents obtained, the homosexual
prostitution ring
includes ...
http:// www.tomflocco.com/fs/Witness2030Pedophile.htm
Hey! Leave Those Kids Alone
... 1989 edition of the Washington Times salacious headline read,
"Homosexual Prostitution ... ``Homosexual Prostitution Probe Ensnares
Official of
Bush, ...
http://www.rense.com/general63/hey.htm
Bless the Beasts and the Children
Photographer for White House child sex ring arrested after Thompson
suicide ... 1989 Washington Times front page story, "Homosexual
prostitution
inquiry ...
http://www.infowars.com/articles/world/tom_flocco_arrested_tied_to_wh_child_...
Homosexual prostitution, Reagan, Bush, Call Boys, and the WH ...
Homosexual prostitution, Reagan, Bush, Call Boys, and the WH ... The
Washington Times, Pg. A3 July 26, 1989 Headline: Secret Service
furloughs third
White ...
http://www.democrats.com/node/475 - 19k - Cached - Similar pages
Homosexual prostitution, Reagan, Bush, Call Boys, and the WH
Homosexual prostitution, Reagan, Bush, Call Boys, and the WH ...
There are 19 more Washington Times articles in full text about this
case
available here at ...
http://www.democrats.com/node/475/print
Wheel of Fortune - All Hat No Cattle
1989 story about Bush Sr. White House Call Boy Sex Ring. The
Washington
Times, June 29, 1989 A homosexual prostitution ring is under
investigation by
http://www.allhatnocattle.net/2-15-05_fortune.htm
> getting blowjobs in the office,
Midnight male prostitute tours of Bush Whitehouse posted on front page
of Moon's Washington Times.
Jeff Gannon.
> killing
> everyone who had dirt on him,
No indictments so far.
> invading somalia for strategic gain,
Bush sent in the troops as revenge after he lost the election in 1992.
> taking bribes, and feathering his own nest?
> When are you going to list something against Bush?
Why bother, you did it for us.
CJT
>>>>Should America impeach President Bush?
>>>>Impeachement should only be the beginning
>>>
>>>
>>>On what charges? Lying to a federal judge under oath? No wait that was
>>>the guy in office before him. . .Billy something wasn't it?
>>
>>Perhaps abuse of office. Or obstruction of justice.
>
>
> Examples of either that would reach the threshold of impeachment, please.
If the Attorney General's memory weren't so bad, we'd probably have
plenty of things to list today. As it is, the investigation continues.
Arnold Walker
> no spam wrote:
>>>>>Should America impeach President Bush?
>>>>>Impeachement should only be the beginning
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>On what charges? Lying to a federal judge under oath? No wait that was
>>>>the guy in office before him. . .Billy something wasn't it?
>>>
>>>Perhaps abuse of office. Or obstruction of justice.
>>
>>
>> Examples of either that would reach the threshold of impeachment, please.
>
> If the Attorney General's memory weren't so bad, we'd probably have
> plenty of things to list today. As it is, the investigation continues.
>
all
93 US attorneies for purely political reasons.
CJT
> "CJT" <abuj...@prodigy.net> wrote in message
> news:462981E1...@prodigy.net...
>
>>no spam wrote:
>>
>>>>>>Should America impeach President Bush?
>>>>>>Impeachement should only be the beginning
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>On what charges? Lying to a federal judge under oath? No wait that was
>>>>>the guy in office before him. . .Billy something wasn't it?
>>>>
>>>>Perhaps abuse of office. Or obstruction of justice.
>>>
>>>
>>>Examples of either that would reach the threshold of impeachment, please.
>>
>>If the Attorney General's memory weren't so bad, we'd probably have
>>plenty of things to list today. As it is, the investigation continues.
>>
>
> Actually witchhunt is more accurate....given that previous president fired
> all
> 93 US attorneies for purely political reasons.
>
How many of his own appointees did he fire?
>
>
> ----== Posted via Newsfeeds.Com - Unlimited-Unrestricted-Secure Usenet News==----
> http://www.newsfeeds.com The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! 120,000+ Newsgroups
> ----= East and West-Coast Server Farms - Total Privacy via Encryption =----
Arnold Walker
> Arnold Walker wrote:
>> "CJT" <abuj...@prodigy.net> wrote in message
>> news:462981E1...@prodigy.net...
>>
>>>no spam wrote:
>>>
>>>>>>>Should America impeach President Bush?
>>>>>>>Impeachement should only be the beginning
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>On what charges? Lying to a federal judge under oath? No wait that
>>>>>>was the guy in office before him. . .Billy something wasn't it?
>>>>>
>>>>>Perhaps abuse of office. Or obstruction of justice.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>Examples of either that would reach the threshold of impeachment,
>>>>please.
>>>
>>>If the Attorney General's memory weren't so bad, we'd probably have
>>>plenty of things to list today. As it is, the investigation continues.
>>>
>>
>> Actually witchhunt is more accurate....given that previous president
>> fired all
>> 93 US attorneies for purely political reasons.
>>
>
> How many of his own appointees did he fire?
Bush Lost Iraq War
Chief Architect of Iraq War Wolfowitz now entangled in World Bank's
worst shameful scandal - employment contracts of his top advisers
Balaji Reddy
Apr. 21, 2007
President Paul Wolfowitz's decision to give his female companion a
raise was not enough. Now World Bank's board broadened its
investigation to include the employment contracts of his top advisers.
It is a shameful disaster for the World Bank, United States and the
entire Western World that literally controls the World Bank.
Shamelessly, Canada, South Africa and Japan is showing support for the
Chief Architect of Iraq War Wolfowitz in the world Bank.
World Bank is perhaps not Iraq! The weapons of mass deceptions are
finally caught red handed. It started with Riza, a U.K. citizen who
was born in Libya who received a 7.5 percent raise, bringing her
salary to $193,590 in world Bank. The female friend of the architect
of the Iraq war has now brought shameful disaster to World Bank too.
The Whitehouse is still supportive of Mr. Wolfowitz. But his days may
be numbered as European nations including the Netherlands, Luxembourg
and France stepped up criticism of Wolfowitz, leaving him more
dependent on the support of the U.S., the agency's largest donor.
Some new interesting things are coming out from World Bank. World Bank
recent acquisition of Information Technologies including personnel,
hardware and software are questionable. It seems World Bank bought
Enterprise level software without a lot of justification to do that.
According to many think tanks, the investigations have just started.
Longer Mr. Wolfowitz stays in World Bank, the investigations into bad
governance and management of the bank will go deeper. Like in Iraq,
Mr. Wolfowitz may have wrecked world Bank too. World Bank's internal
management and practices may turn out to be more embarrassing for
United States than the Iraq war.
nada
David
Vendicar Decarian
"Arnold Walker" <arnold...@consolidated.net> wrote
> Actually witchhunt is more accurate....
Bush's Attorney General doesn't even have the support of members of his own
Party.
They see what a piece of filth the man is.
The piece of filth is a Bush Protege we are told.
CJT
> "CJT" <abuj...@prodigy.net> wrote in message
> news:462A46C9...@prodigy.net...
>
>>Arnold Walker wrote:
>>
>>>"CJT" <abuj...@prodigy.net> wrote in message
>>>news:462981E1...@prodigy.net...
>>>
>>>
>>>>no spam wrote:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>>>>>Should America impeach President Bush?
>>>>>>>>Impeachement should only be the beginning
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>On what charges? Lying to a federal judge under oath? No wait that
>>>>>>>was the guy in office before him. . .Billy something wasn't it?
>>>>>>
>>>>>>Perhaps abuse of office. Or obstruction of justice.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>Examples of either that would reach the threshold of impeachment,
>>>>>please.
>>>>
>>>>If the Attorney General's memory weren't so bad, we'd probably have
>>>>plenty of things to list today. As it is, the investigation continues.
>>>>
>>>
>>>Actually witchhunt is more accurate....given that previous president
>>>fired all
>>>93 US attorneies for purely political reasons.
>>>
>>
>>How many of his own appointees did he fire?
Bush, you mean ...
Bush Lost Iraq War
Dave Walters is Choosing You to be a victim of Mass Murder.
Like Cho Seung-Hui, Dave Walters is a sociopath utterly without pity
for his randomly chosen victims -- it's just a violent video game for
him, where he tries for the "most points" using weather of mass
destruction. 20,000 dead in France from Heat Wave, 3,000 wacked in New
Orleans, just points to keep score.
The longer you stay unaware that your death is his goal, the more his
words can infect you like poison to delay your self-defense plan.
Global Warming briefings were being given to tobacco company
executives two decades ago, while they were in the midst of carrying
out serial murders of 400,000 Americans per year with delay tactics of
hired science-falsifiers. They loaned part of their propaganda
apparatus to the OILY INC liars to delay actions on Global Warming, as
the court records show as early as 1988.
It wasn't until 1998 that the evidence came to light in courts of law,
but nine years later the same people are still doing the same frauds.
Since 1988 to 1998, 4 million Americans were killed by frauds that
said that the science on tobacco was unsettled. These are willful
deliberate premeditated murders, using people like Dave Walters to
spread their message.
Since 1998 another 3.6 million have been murdered by falsified science
"debate" keeping the settled science from being taken seriously by
thew victims of opportunity whom have been knowingly addicted by
corporate serial murderers, and their henchmen like Dave Walters.
The A.S.S. Coalition (TASSC) & Global Warming
http://TobaccoDocuments.org Court Records
http://tobaccodocuments.org/landman/158433.html
Abstract
To circumvent its lack of credibility with the public, policy makers
and the media, Philip Morris (PM) uses the strategy of creating front
groups. Forming an artificial third party and then assigning it an
"umbrella cause" (one which happens to mesh perfectly with the tobacco
industry's) gives PM and the industry the opportunity to create a
wholly separate, and far more credible, mouthpiece advance its
policies and political desires. In PM's front group "Associates for
Research in Substance Enjoyment," (ARISE) "scientists" lumped tobacco
use together with innocuous substances like tea and chocolate, put out
worldwide press releases saying substance use was good for you and
declared public health advocates to be puritanical, neo-prohibitionist
party poopers. After the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
declared secondhand smoke as a Class A Human Carcinogen, PM needed a
powerful group to rise up help discredit EPA's findings. Thus PM
formed "The Advancement of Sound Science Coalition," or TASSC.
Recognizing that the chemical, paper, metal, petroleum and other
environmentally-dubious industries would also be thrilled to have a
group of "committed experts" who would publicly say that scientific
warnings against their activities were not credible, PM invited these
industries to join TASSC. With the needs clear and a host of willing
help-mates waiting in the wings, PM created TASSC through a public
relations firm called APCO Associates, which helped PM distance itself
from the group. After a 2-month, $50,000 feasibility study done hand
in hand with PM's law firm of Covington and Burling, APCO began
forming TASSC. APCO did an admirable job of recruiting members for
TASSC, too. The "supporters list" (found in another document) includes
businesses from the "Family Loompya Seafood Market" and "Pinckneyville
Lighting" to sawmills, mining and chemical companies, including W.R.
Grace, Co., Amoco, and Dow Chemical. Today's document reveals the
goals of TASSC, and also APCO's enthusiasm for creating a similar
group in Europe based on its success in America and elsewhere. Title:
Thoughts on TASSC Europe Type of Document: Memo From: Tom Hockaday of
APCO Associates To: Matt Winokur, Director, Worldwide Regulatory
Affairs for Philip Morris Date: 19940324 Site: Philip Morris Tobacco
Company http://www.pmdocs.com/ Bates No. 2025492898/2905 Page Count: 8
URL: http://www.pmdocs.com/getallimg.asp?DOCID=2025492898/2905
03/28/94 15:25 '8`202 466 6004 APCO ASSOCIATES 0004 -3 - As a starting
point, we can identify key issues requiring sound scientific research
and scientists that may have an interest in them. Some issues our
European colleagues suggest include: . Global warming · Nuclear waste
disposal · Diseases and pests in agricultural products for
transborder trade · Biotechnology . Eco-labeling for EC products
===============
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2024233595-3602.html
Thoughts on Tassc Europe
Date: 25 Mar 1994
-3- As a starting point, we can identify key issues requiring sound
scientific research and scientists that may have an interest in them.
Some issues our European colleagues suggest include: . Global
warming . Nuclear waste disposal . Diseases and pests in agricultural
products for transborder trade . Biotechnology . Eco-labeling for EC
products . Food processing and packaging
-5- decisions. The supporters of the Appeal are a loose-knit group.
The effort to expand the support of the Appeal is handled through Dr.
M. Saloman of the International Center for Scientific Ecology (Paris).
In discussions with a number of our scientific supporters and with Dr.
Fred Singer (a member of the Board of the International Center for
Scientific Ecology), there is belief that this initial support could
be organized into a more "formal movement" internationally. The
benefits of attempting to use this group as a basis of extending TASSC
include: Several of TASSC's scientists have signed the Appeal,
providing the opportunity to approach the supporters with a "peer to
peer" approach, i.e. , a "Dear Colleague" letter.
===============
http://tobaccodocuments.org/nysa_ti_m2/TI15842109.html
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 1993 THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER A truth squad
for monitoring shaky science
Date: 28 Dec 1993
TASSC should work to make fiascos like the Alar scare as familiar to
students as rain forests or global warming.
===============
http://tobaccodocuments.org/mayo_clinic/82000099.html
TASSC The Advancement of Sound Science Coalition
"It is neither reasonable nor prudent for major political decisions to
be based on presumptions which, in the current state of knowledge, are
still only hypotheses, although they must certainly be examined and
even taken into account. The more or less apocalyptic scenarios evoked
in the preparatory, work for the Rio conference are not the kind of
certitudes which can be used as a basis for political decisions likely
to entail major upheavals and heavy expenditure on a global scale."
~Michael Salomon, Editorial Director, Projections Quarterly, Autumn-
Winter 1992
===============
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2028363773-3791.html
Scientists for Sound Public Policy Assessment Project and Symposium
Date: 1994 (est.)
Length: 19 pages
EXPLANATIONS · The political decision-makers are vulnerable to
activists' emotional appeals and press campaigns · The opinion climate
tends to favour overly simplified solutions The precautionary
principle is now the accepted guideline. Even if a hypothesis is not
100 per cent scientifically proven, action should be taken, e.g.
global warming Europe's industry is often on the defensive. Action is
typically taken when it is too late. And industrial resistence is
perceived as protection of commercial self-interests.
Burson-Marsteller
===============
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2025493202-3207.html
Date: 26 Apr 1994 (est.)
Length: 6 pages
Many industries trying to establish groups to "communicate science"
and "to lobby" EUFIC (food industry) SAGB (biotechnology) Heidelberg
Appeal (global warming)
===============
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2024102283-2287.html
Date: 1992 (est.)
Length: 5 pages
SEITZ SYMPOSIUM
*Late lst quarter/early 2nd quarter
*Procedural Options for Addressing the Scientific Issue Highlighted in
Global Warming and Ozone Hole Controversies, Dr. Frederick Seitz of
the George C. Marshall Institute
*40-60 regulators--Ensure credible science
*TASSC
===============
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2046451070-1139.html
Science, Economics, and Environmental Policy: A Critical Examination
Date: 11 Aug 1994
Length: 70 pages
===============
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2025802450-2451.html
Scientific Integrity in the Public Policy Process Semi-Final Program
930524 - 930525 the Madison Hotel 15th and M Streets, Nw Washington,
D.C.
Date: 19930525/D
Length: 2 pages
CONFERENCE OVERVIEW: From global warming and ozone depletion to
biotechnology and food additives
Dr.. S. Fred Singer (Moderator) University of Virginia; president, The
Science & Environmental Policy Project
Dr. S. Fred Singer, president The Science & Environmental Policy
Project. 9:15
===============
Environmental Tobacco Smoke
Date: 09 Dec 1996
Length: 13 pages
http://tobaccodocuments.org/batco/800298146-8158.html
Press Release of The Science & Environmental Policy Project "TOP FIVE
ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY 'MYTHS' OF 1995 TO BE RELEASED BY SCIENCE AND
ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY PROJECT: List Challenges Costly Policies Not
Supported By Sound Scientific Data," January 10, 1996
===============
Philip Morris
Date: 31 Mar 1993
Length: 1 page
2025802449
Jump To Images
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2025802449.html
===============
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2021178213-8216.html
Philip Morris
Possible Individuals to Be Approached for Opinion Editorials
Date: 02 Mar 1993
Length: 4 pages
Candace Crandall -- Executive Vice President of the Science and
Environmental Policy Project (SEPP).
She has published extensively on junk science issues in the past.
Crandall' was the Director of Communications for the Center for
Strategic and International' Studies before joining, SEPP. The primary
focus of SEPP is too document the use of scientific data in the
development of federal environmental policy. SEPP is an independent,
non-profi research group that relies on private funding.
It will co-sponsor a conference with George Mason University in May on
scientific integrity in the political process, Crandall has arranged
for a number of prominent scientists to be participants, including Dr.
Bernard Davis of Harvard University and1 Sir William Mitchell of'
Oxford University.
Crandall is Dr: Fred Singer's wife.
===============
Issue Report Alexis Whither Environmental Regulation
Date: 01 Jul 1993
Length: 6 pages
http://tobaccodocuments.org/nysa_ti_s2/TI31741185.html
Dr. S. Fred Singer is Professor of Environmental Sciences at the
University of Virginia and directs the Washington- based Science &
Environmental Policy Project. He is currently working on a study on
environmental regulation for the Alexis de Tocqueville Institution.
===============
Philip Morris
Anthology of 950000's Environmental Myths
Date: 11 Feb 1996
Length: 3 pages
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2048280356-0358.html
Copyright 1996 News World Communications, Inc. The Washington Times
February 11, 1996, Sunday, Final Edition SECTION: Part B; COMMENTARY;
Pg. B3 LENGTH: 1377 words HEADLINE: Anthology of 1995's environmental
myths BYLINE: S. Fred Singer
BODY: The primary mission of the Science & Environmental Policy
Project has been to study and analyze how science is used - or
missused - in the setting of federal environmental policies, and then
expose the most egregious examples of environmental malfeasance. There
are so many: Superfund, asbestos, Alar, acid rain, to mention just a
few - all of them costing mega-billions and backed by insubstantial
science. When we decided to list the greatest environmental myths of
1995, our board _ of experts finally settled on the following five
topics that demonstrate distortion or misuse of science in shaping
policies. We present them here to educate policy-makers and the public
in the hope that the publicity will lead to more cost-effective
policies and a healthier environment. (1) Global warming and the
Climate Treaty: During 1995, scare stories about a future catastrophic
greenhouse warming gained much momentum, while at the same time the
evidence for such warming became weaker and weaker. At the first
"Conference of the Parties" to the Global Climate Treaty in Berlin in
April, the science was ignored while the assembled "statesmen" went
ahead to establish a permanent secretariat and plan further mega-
meetings. In September, at the initiative of Al Gore, a Washington
conference promoted a new fear tied to global warming: a spread of
tropical diseases putting 3 billion people at risk. Finally, in
November (in Madrid) and December (in Rome), the U.N.-sponsored
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the scientific arm
of the Treaty, managed to approve two pre-drafted summary reports.
These can charitably be described as being "economical with the
truth."...
===============
Philip Morris
Is the Concept of Linear Relationship Between Dose and Effect Still A
Valid Model for Assessing Risk Related to Low Doses of Carcinogens? A
Restricted International Scientific Seminar 930510 - Paris (France)
Date: 10 May 1993
Length: 5 pages
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2028385383-5387.html
International Center for a Scientific Ecology Is the concept of linear
relationship between dose and effoct still a valid model for assessing
risk related to low doses of ets? A restricted international
scienfific Seminar May 10, 1993 - Paris (France)
The seminar is organised by the International Centre for a Scientific
Ecology (see Introduction to the Centre in the appendix). The
scientific work is organised by Dr Michel Salomon, the coordinator of
the Heidelberg Appeal.
Prof. S. Fred Singer, Doctor of Physical Science; President of the
Science & Environmental Policy Project; former Director, US Weather
Satellite Program; Dean of the School of Environmental Sciences,
University of Miami; Deputy Assistant Administrator of US
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); American. nationality;
Dr. Michel Salomon, coordinator of the Heidelberg Appeal; former
science journalist; magazine editor; French nationality.
===============
Philip Morris
Dr. S. Fred Singer, Director the Science and Environmental Policy
Project
Date: 08 Mar 1993 (est.)
Length: 1 page
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2021178209.html
===============
Brown & Williamson
Public Affairs Strategies.
Date: 1900
Length: 4 pages
http://tobaccodocuments.org/bw/1059809.html
(#8) SCIENCE & ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY PROJECT From a strategic
standpoint, we believed the most effective way to publicize the report
would be through a credibl]e highly respected "third party".
So we brought the report to the attention of the 'Science &
Environmental Policy Project", SEPP, as it is known, is a Fairfax,
Va., think-tank that studies and analyzes how science is used in
federal policy-making and encourages the use of sound science. After
reading the CRS report, SEPP was equally concerned the EPA's
conclusions and agreed more visibility was in or@er.
{#9) SEPP NEWS RELEASE With B&W's assistance, SEEP launched a media
relations campaign in January calling attention to the "Top Five
Environmental Myths of 1995." While such issues as "global warming"
and radon were on the list, the focus was on ETS.
(#10) WASHINGTON TIMES "OP ED" In addition to news releases, SEPP
wrote "Op ed" pieces and conducted interviews on radio and television.
SEPP is continuing the "environmental myths" campaign, extending
discussion of the subject to speeches by Dr. Fred Singer, SEPP's
executive director. It's one strategy to help balance the debate.
===============
Mayo Clinic
Length: 37 pages
http://tobaccodocuments.org/mayo_clinic/85002238.html
THE INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR A SCIENTIFIC ECOLOGY The Center has been
created at the beginning of 1993 under the French law for nomprolit
organizations.
The Board of the Center includes in particular:
- Mr Pierre Joly. President of the Association Francaise pour la
Recherche Therapeutique : former President of the International
Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association ;
- Mr Constant Burg. honorary member of the State Council ; honorary
managing director of INSERM : President of the lnstitut Curie:
- Mr Gilbert Rutman. chief mining engineer: President of the Conseil
Natioflal des Ingenieurs et des Scientifiques de France:
- Prof. S. Fred Singer. Doctor of Physical Science : President of the
Science & Environmental Policy Project : former Director US Weather
Satellite Program : Dean of the School of Environmental Sciences.
University of Miami : Deputy Assistant Administrator of US
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) :
- Mr Gary Nash. Secretary General of the International Council on
Metals and the Environment (ICME) : former Director General in the
Canada Department of Energy. Mines und Resources :
- Dr. Michel Salomon, coordinator of the Heidelberg Appeal ; former
science journalist : magazine editor.
===============
Philip Morris
Top Five Environmental Policy "Myths" of 950000 to Be Released by
Science and Environmental Policy Project
Date: 1995 (est.)
Length: 1 page
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2065122118.html
===============
Philip Morris
the Delaney Clause - Linchpin of the Environmental Policy Edifice
Date: 10 May 1993
Length: 4 pages
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2501171259-1262.html
The Delaney Clause-Linchpin of the Environmental Policy Edifice Prof.
S. Fred Singer
S. Fred Singer Director, Science & Environmental Policy Project
Arlington, Virginia
===============
Philip Morris
Junk Science at the Epa
Date: 08 Mar 1993 (est.)
Length: 3 pages
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2021178206-8208.html
S. Fred Singer Visiting fellovv at the Hoover Institution at Stanford
University and President of the Washington. D C.-baed Science &
Environrnental Policy Project
===============
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2065122122.html
Philip Morris
Sepp - Environmental Myths of 950000 - Smt Participant Broadcast
Details
Date: 1995 (est.)
Length: 1 page
===============
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2065122119-2121.html
Philip Morris
Top Five Environmental Policy "Myths" of 950000 to Be Released by
Science and Environmental Policy Project
Date: 10 Jan 1996
Length: 3 pages
===============
Philip Morris
Seminar of 930510 on the Linear Relationship
Date: 31 Mar 1993
Length: 3 pages
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2028443741-3743.html
Opening speech by Chairman of the Seminar, Prof. Bruce N. Ames
(Biologist'4 Dir., Nat. Inst. of EnvironmentallHealth Sciences Center,
Berkeley, U.S.A.). 9/9.20 a.m. · How biofogically based modeis may
help extrapolating cancer risk to low doses.
· The Delaney amendment and its consequences on the American
regufation. Prof. S. Fred Singer (Physicist, former Dir., US Weather
Satellite Program; President, Science & Environmental Policy Project,
U'.S.A.). 10.20/10.30 a.m.
Noon · Case studies: Predictions and reality. - The Arsenic case.
Prof. Gerhard Stohrer (former chief, Dept!. of chemical risk, Research
Inst. Sloan-Kettering~ U.S.A.).
The DDT case. Dr. William Hazeltine (Ph.D., entomo!bgist, former
Manager of mosquito abatement in California, U.S:A.).
===============
Philip Morris
Update 930419
Date: 19 Apr 1993
Length: 7 pages
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2025475593-5599.html
CONFERENCE/MEETING: Scientific Integrity in the Public Process
SPONSOR: International Institute of George Mason University and the
Science and Environmental Policy Project DATE: May 24-25, 1993
LOCATION: The Madison Hotel, Washington, DC TELEPHONE NUMBER:
703-993-8200
===============
BATCo
[Note from Heather Cooke to Tom Fitzgerald regarding report issued by
The Science & Environmental Policy Project SEPP]
Date: 27 Feb 1996
Length: 1 page
http://tobaccodocuments.org/batco/700520244.html
BRITISH-AMERICAN TOBACCO COMPANY LIMITED To: FACSIMILE MR TOM
FITZGERALD I From: HEATHER COOKE Company: Brown & Williamson Phone
01784 448045 'Tobacco Corp Number: Fax No: Fax No: 0"784 448654 Date:
27/02/96 Pages To Follow: 3 Comments: I am trying to get hold of a
report issued by The Science & Environmental Policy Project (SEPP)
which relates to the attached press release. Do you have a copy that
you can fax to me or know where I might be able to get hold of a copy?
Many thanks Heather Cooke Administrator, Smoking Issues
===============
Philip Morris
Toxic Policy at Dead End: the Case of Arsenic
Date: 10 May 1993 (est.)
Length: 6 pages
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2502146148-6153.html
International Center for a Scientific Ecology Seminar on linear risk
assessment May 10, 1993 Toxic Policy at Dead End: The Case of Arsenic
Gerhard Strohrer Science and Environmental Policy Project 2101 Wilson
Boulevard, Suite 1003 Arlington, Virginia 22201
===============
Philip Morris
Give Industry A Bigger Science Rol
Date: 19921229/P
Length: 1 page
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2074144040.html
Patrick J. Michaels is associate professor of environmental sciences
at the University Virginia and is affiliated with the Washington-based
Science & Environment Policy Project. The Science & Environmental
Policy Project, 2101 Wilson Blvd., #1003, Arlington, VA 22201 .(703)
527-0130
===============
CJT
Which is better:
a) he lied to Congress
b) his poor memory is indicative of dementia
???
Peter B. P.
> Hi:
>
> I was watching 60 Minutes on CBS today. One of their topics was a
> clean source power. They were talking about how great "nuclear" power
> is. I found out they were talking about nuclear fission, not fusion. I
> was disappointed.
>
> Fission is not clean at all. True, it does not increase the
> concentration of greenhouse gases on earth [an advantage the host of
> the topic was exaggerating about]. However, fission fills the planet
> with the stench of radioactive toxins.
Only if handled improperly.
> Also, the plutonium resulting
> from fission could be used -- by fundamentalists -- as a horrifying
> weapon; a situation that would put the entire globe at risk.
Plutonium is only a result of breeder-reactors, and that is re-used
after decaying into Uranium.
> So, follow my advice and use fusion.
>
Yes, but not for the reasons you cite.
> Laser fusion is the best way to acheive nuclear fusion.
>
> Hail to fusion; death to fission.
Eventually.
--
regards , Peter B. P.
http://titancity.com/blog , http://macplanet.dk
Vendicar Decarian
"CJT" <abuj...@prodigy.net> wrote
> Which is better:
>
> a) he lied to Congress
>
> b) his poor memory is indicative of dementia
Both are an admission that he is unfit for service.
Retief
<BushIsA...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>"Arnold Walker" <arnold...@consolidated.net> wrote
>> You ever looked at tritium....what does it decay into...... he3.
>
> Tritium is an isotope of hydrogen consisting of one proton, two neutrons
>and one electron.
>
> Helium III is an isotope of helium consisting of two protons, three
>neutrons and two electrons.
No it isn't, you moron... It is 2 protons and 1 neutron (and thus
consists of _3_ nuclei, as opposed to the more common _4_ nuclei
isotope of helium).
> Hydrogen can not decay into a heavier element.
What a moron Scott Nudds (aka Vendicar) is. He now demonstrates that
he knows nothing of nuclear physics, either...
http://www.physics.isu.edu/radinf/tritium.htm
"The tritium atom (3H) is unstable because it has two extra neutrons
in its nucleus. These neutrons give tritium an excess amount of
energy. Because of this, the atom will undergo a nuclear
transformation or radioactive decay. In this, the atom emits two
radiations: a beta particle (ß -), which is similar to an electron,
and an anti-neutrino.
3H --> 3He + ß- + anti-neutrino
This reduces the energy in the nucleus and the atom, now a helium atom
(3He), is left more stable. The anti-neutrino is of no biological
significance because it does not interact with matter."
>"Arnold Walker" <arnold...@consolidated.net> wrote
>> Now ask yourself which is heavier h or he....
>> So ,are we talking fission or fusion in the decay of trituim.
Neither, we're talking beta decay...
> You seem quite confused. Go read an elementary text on atomic structure.
Bwahahaha... This insult...coming from Nudds, who has just
demonstrated his incompetance.
Retief
no spam
>>>>>Impeachement should only be the beginning
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>On what charges? Lying to a federal judge under oath? No wait that was
>>>>the guy in office before him. . .Billy something wasn't it?
>>>
>>>Perhaps abuse of office. Or obstruction of justice.
>>
>>
>> Examples of either that would reach the threshold of impeachment, please.
>
> If the Attorney General's memory weren't so bad, we'd probably have
> plenty of things to list today. As it is, the investigation continues.
I think it was Billy boy's wife who forgot where she had put the billing
records as well as spent most of her time infront of Congress saying "I
can't remember." or "I don't recall."
The point still stands every attempt to bring any thing the current
administration has done before a court has failed. Either they are a lot
smarter than Billy Boy (DISBARRED and IMPEACHED Billy Boy) and his lot or
they are playing by the rules.
no spam
>>>>>>>Impeachement should only be the beginning
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>On what charges? Lying to a federal judge under oath? No wait that
>>>>>>was the guy in office before him. . .Billy something wasn't it?
>>>>>
>>>>>Perhaps abuse of office. Or obstruction of justice.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>Examples of either that would reach the threshold of impeachment,
>>>>please.
>>>
>>>If the Attorney General's memory weren't so bad, we'd probably have
>>>plenty of things to list today. As it is, the investigation continues.
>>>
>>
>> Actually witchhunt is more accurate....given that previous president
>> fired all
>> 93 US attorneies for purely political reasons.
>>
>
> How many of his own appointees did he fire?
Better question yet: How many people from the opposition party did he leave
in office?
no spam
>> Actually witchhunt is more accurate....
>
> Bush's Attorney General doesn't even have the support of members of his
> own Party.
>
> They see what a piece of filth the man is.
>
> The piece of filth is a Bush Protege we are told.
No it shows you why they are losing support, they have no guts.
no spam
>>>Actually witchhunt is more accurate....
>>
>>
>> Bush's Attorney General doesn't even have the support of members of his
>> own Party.
>>
>> They see what a piece of filth the man is.
>>
>> The piece of filth is a Bush Protege we are told.
>>
>>
>>
> Which is better:
>
> a) he lied to Congress
>
> b) his poor memory is indicative of dementia
Or is he just using the Hillary defense, "Ah. . .I'm sorry. . .I don't
recall."
Mele Melo
> The point still stands every attempt to bring any thing the current
> administration has done before a court has failed. Either they are a lot
> smarter than Billy Boy (DISBARRED and IMPEACHED Billy Boy) and his lot or
> they are playing by the rules.
>
is loved by millions. If you don't love Bush, you hate America. Lefties
refuse to accept the fact that Bush is infallible, the greatest leader the
world has ever seen. 5 million times better than Reagan. Bush flew jets
during VietNam and saved us all. If it wasn't for him, we'd all be speaking
Vietnamese and later Saddam talk. If Bush shut down the universities and
colleges he would be even more popular then he is now because higher education
makes you into a lefty.
CJT
You _wish_ he was more like Hillary. Dubya, too.
Wolfowitz Mass Murder for OIL
Wolfowitz Scandal Takes Bank Hypocrisy to New Heights
Wolfowitz wants to stay put but it's hard to believe he can weather
this storm of his own making, says Sameer Dossani of the 50 Years Is
Enough Network.
[The original article can be found on the Foreign Policy in Focus
site.]
Over the years, the World Bank's hypocrisy has been so extreme as to
be taken for granted. The ironies of talking about ending global
poverty, interest rates and export policies while staying at five-star
hotels and attending lavishly catered meetings do get a bit tiresome
for Bank-watchers like me to keep pointing out. But the latest
developments involving World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz and his
former partner, Shaha Riza, take this everyday hypocrisy to new
heights.
When Paul Wolfowitz was appointed to head the World Bank group in
2005, he faced a problem. No, his problem was not that he would be
facing the repercussions of his disingenuous arguments in favor of the
illegal invasion of Iraq when he was in the State Department. Nor was
his problem that other countries were opposing the appointment of a
leading U.S. neoconservative close the Bush administration with no
development experience to what is arguably the most important position
in development financing. Rather, Wolfowitz's problem was that others
knew about his relationship with Shaha Riza, a World Bank employee.
According to World Bank policies, your boss cannot be your lover.
Seconded
When the World Bank board ethics committee met to discuss the issue,
they recommended that Riza be "seconded" to somewhere else. In other
words the World Bank would continue to pay her tax-exempt salary but
she would work for another organization. Within a few months, she was
working at the U.S. State Department.
All of this has been public information for years. What has not been
public is the fact that just prior to Riza's departure to the State
Department, Wolfowitz himself authorized a significant pay raise -
roughly $40,000 - for her. Combined with another raise, Riza now
receives a salary of $193,000 per year. That's more than the $186,600.
her current boss, Condoleezza Rice earns before taxes. And, it's the
equivalent of about $270,000 if she were not to enjoy the ludicrous
World Bank privilege of tax-free status.
Leaving aside the question of whether or not World Bank employees
should continue to receive outrageous perks including tax-free income,
subsidized education for children and so on, the conflict of interest
and nepotism are so glaring in this case, that even restrained foreign
government officials who and media are demanding that something be
done.
Nepotism, Corruption, or Ignorance?
No matter how you classify these actions, things do not look good for
Paul Wolfowitz. Another World Bank president may have been able to
tough out such a scandal, but Wolfowitz has a number of problems,
primarily of his own making, that make it exceedingly unlikely that he
will be able to remain president of the World Bank much longer, and,
if he does, that he will have any credibility to do anything with the
beleaguered institution.
While many, myself included, are quietly hoping that Wolfowitz finds
away to stay on, thereby dampening the institution's ability to engage
in harmful lending practices until the end of his five-year term in
2010, this is also an opportunity to push the agenda of governance
reform within the institution. If Wolfowitz does leave, it will be
very hard for the United States to maintain such tight control over an
institution that has essentially served as an arm of U.S. foreign
policy.
The biggest irony is that Wolfowitz's primary (some would say his
only) agenda inside the World Bank has been to call for its
transformation into an organization that battles corruption.
Wolfowitz, who has banded around phrases such as "0% tolerance for
corruption" and talked about the need to move "decisively and
energetically" on an anti-corruption agenda, probably regrets his
choice of words at the moment. It is all too easy for Wolfowitz's
enemies, which include an estimated 90% of World Bank staff who
opposed his appointment, to throw those words back in his face.
The World Bank Staff Association itself, which represents more than
half of the Bank's employees, called for Wolfowitz's resignation last
week. In an unprecedented move, Alison Cave, the Chair of the Staff
Association said that Wolfowitz "must acknowledge that his conduct has
compromised the integrity and effectiveness of the World Bank Group
and has destroyed the staff's trust in his leadership. He must act
honorably and resign."
Resign!
The anger that the Staff Association expressed last week at a meeting
where Wolfowitz was shouted down with chants of "Resign!" must be
understood in a larger context. Upon his arrival, Wolfowitz brought in
two special advisors (paid astronomical salaries) from the Bush
administration. Together with these advisors, Wolfowitz seems to be
pulling the institution's strings in ways that his predecessors never
attempted, including ensuring that three out of five top-level
management posts went to officials of governments who supported the
Iraq War.
Since Wolfowitz's appointment, about half of the Bank's senior
managers, either unhappy with Wolfowitz's style or under pressure,
have left. These and other developments leave Wolfowitz open to the
claim that he is "neo-conning the Bank".
Another reason that the situation is especially serious for Wolfowitz
is that his allies in the Bush administration are either completely
discredited themselves (think former Defense Secretary Donald
Rumsfeld) or they are under fire from so many other quarters that they
are unlikely to spend precious political capital to defend the
indefensible. Bush himself is likely to prioritize defending his
embattled Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and his own failing
"surge" policy in Iraq over standing up for Wolfowitz.
Bigger Issues
Wolfowitz giving his girlfriend a more exorbitant salary than she had
previously enjoyed is only the tip of the iceberg as far as World Bank
governance is concerned. By convention, World Bank presidents are
selected by the U.S. administration of the day. They are always U.S.
citizens and are always sympathetic to U.S. interests. Among
Wolfowitz's predecessors is Robert McNamara, another architect of
another failed U.S. war, namely that of Vietnam. The convention of
giving the World Bank presidency to a man (they are always men) chosen
by the president of the United States is one indication of a stark
reality: when it comes the World Bank and its sister institution, the
International Monetary Fund, the U.S. vote is the only one that really
counts. When questioned on issues of accountability in a panel
discussion, one senior IMF staff member reportedly answered "Of course
I consult. I consult with U.S. Treasury all the time."
And herein lies the real problem. These institutions, whether they are
pushing governance reforms or economic reforms, insist that borrowing
countries, and especially those countries that are the most dependent
on aid flows, follow rules that no one in the U.S. or other developed
countries follows or would be willing to follow. The Bush
administration could do with a serious dose of the World Bank's anti-
corruption medicine, but even those who would support such reforms do
not suggest using Bank-style strong-arm tactics to implement them.
In the short term, here are some proposed solutions that would at
least begin to address the hypocrisy that this situation highlights:
1) Get rid of Wolfowitz. Compared with allegations of war crimes, the
sweetheart deal corruption charges seem petty, or would if he had not
made a war on corruption his raison d'etre for the last two years. But
there's no reason that he should not be held accountable. (Better yet,
get rid of him and put him and the rest of the neoconservatives on
trial for their war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan.)
2) Implement meaningful governance reform. No this does not mean
giving India and China a few more percentage points in token
shareholder voting rights. Instead it means taking measures to ensure
that the institution is democratized. Considering a more United
Nations, one-nation-one-vote governance structure could be a first
step in this direction.
3) Transparency is a prerequisite for accountability. We would not
know about the current situation if some World Bank employee had not
cleverly leaked the information to the press the week before their
Spring Meetings. Why should we be discussing crimes that happened
almost two years ago? We need real transparency (think C-SPAN at World
Bank and International Monetary Fund board meetings) and real
accountability for the mistakes of the past.
Wolfowitz hasn't left yet but it's unlikely he will last more than a
few weeks longer. Whoever takes the job next will inherit an
institution that has failed basic standards of accountability and
transparency, and has not made a dent in its supposed mission of
poverty reduction. The new president will certainly have work to do.
Some good house cleaning, including implementing real accountability
and transparency measures-for the bank and not just the countries that
borrow from it-would be a good start. One more step may be to start
talking about how the Bank can make reparations for its past sins,
especially those of pushing a failed economic paradigm onto developing
countries.
Sameer Dossani is the Director of 50 Years Is Enough: U.S. Network for
Global Economic Justice and a frequent contributor to Foreign Policy
In Focus.
no spam
>> The point still stands every attempt to bring any thing the current
>> administration has done before a court has failed. Either they are a lot
>> smarter than Billy Boy (DISBARRED and IMPEACHED Billy Boy) and his lot or
>> they are playing by the rules.
>>
> And clinton was found guilty and sent to prison because he's the Devil and
> Bush
Actually billy boy wasn't found guilty (unless you count the disbarrment)
because none of the republicans had (have) any guts
> world has ever seen. 5 million times better than Reagan. Bush flew jets
He maybe good enough to be allowed to open a door for Reagan but that's
about as close to RR as he'll ever get.
> colleges he would be even more popular then he is now because higher
> education
> makes you into a lefty.
I thought wiping with only one square of toilet paper made you a lefty.