Venezuelan Oil Company Helps USA's Poor While USA Oil Companies Give Nothing

According to Joe Kennedy almost half a billion dollars have come from CITGO, a Venezuelan oil company, to help the poor but NOTHING from US oil companies.

The US Federal Government has given money for energy assistance but it was not enough.  CITGO did not cut back its help for the US poor despite political tension with Venezuela this winter as seen in this report from WCVBtv of Boston.



Another TV channel has also reported on this program for the needy:





This leads me to ask simple, straight-forward questions here:

1)     Where is the patriotism of CEOs in charge of US oil companies?  To quote another Kennedy, "my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country".  If they do not help their own compatriots, are they really American?

2)     Why is it possible for a foreign company to be humane towards the needy people of another country?
 
3)     How is it possible a foreign company is more humane to the citizens of a country than the country's own companies?

These are questions you will not find in corporate-owned US media.

US Wildlife Services Killed More Than 4,000,000 Animals in 2009

According to a document from the website of The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) titled "Table G. Animals Taken by Wildlife Services - FY 2009"; more than 4 million animals of different species were killed by Wildlife Services. Animals species with the highest kill counts were:

Species	Intentional / Unintentional	Killed / Euthanized
Beavers	Intentional	27,289
Blackbirds, Red-Winged	Intentional	965,889
Blackbirds, Z-(Mixed Species)	Intentional	22,276
Cormorants, Double-Crested	Intentional	17,394
Cowbirds, Brown-Headed	Intentional	1,046,109
Coyotes	Intentional	81,684
Crows, American	Intentional	10,578
Doves, Mourning	Intentional	16,912
Doves, Spotted	Intentional	15,035
Doves, Zebra	Intentional	19,694
Frogs, Common Coqui	Intentional	11,900
Geese, Canada	Intentional	24,519
Grackles, Common	Intentional	93,210
Grackles, Great-Tailed	Intentional	16,414
Mannikins, Chestnut	Intentional	41,794
Mannikins, Nutmeg	Intentional	25,196
Pigeons, Feral (Rock)	Intentional	96,297
Pikeminnows, Northern	Intentional	57,412
Prairie Dogs, Black-Tailed	Intentional	10,617
Rabbits, Cottontail	Intentional	6,689
Raccoons	Intentional	12,451
Skunks, Striped	Intentional	8,164
Snakes, Brown Tree	Intentional	14,949
Sparrows, House/English	Intentional	6,297
Sparrows, Java	Intentional	17,635
Squirrels, Ground, Other	Intentional	19,354
Starlings, European	Intentional	1,259,714
Swine, Feral	Intentional	33,756
Grand Totals	All Fate Types	4,120,295

Common sense says if these animals were as revered in our culture as the Bald Eagle the results would be different:

Species	Intentional / Unintentional	Killed / Euthanized
Eagles, Bald	UnIntentional	1

Impressive Videos of New Technologies

These technologies are fully working and look amazing in video:

• A hexacopter automated drone:

• A carbon nanotube material that cannot get wet:

• A bionic hand:

• A visual language translator:

• An exoskeleton that gives humans super strength:

• A robotic beast of burden:

• A high-speed robotic hand

• A ferrofluid controlled by magnetic fields

Innovative Concepts in Public Transportation

As the population of Earth continues to grow exponentially, pollution and energy consumption become large issues in cities around the world. New ways of thinking about transportation are needed. Here are some the innovative concepts which will reduce pollution, reduce energy used, and increase the speed of transportation for thousands if successful:

1) The Evacuated Tube Transport concept:



2) The Straddling Bus concept:



3) The Non-Stop Train concept:

A Cheaper and Easier Way to Collect Wind Power

Instead of setting up an expensive wind turbine tower and then setting up expensive transmission lines for the electricity the turbine produces, why not use the high altitude wind turbine. The MARS turbine from Magenn Power is the best solution I've seen for wind power.

• It can be deployed anywhere
• It is cheaper than a wind turbine tower
• It is not intrusive to the landscape and animals

I would say this can even be a do-it-yourself project for anyone that wants to put the time into it for their own home use :-)

It's a Beautiful World After All :-)

Don't be afraid, the world is not as bad as the news make it out to be.

Not convinced? Just watch this! :-)

The Tell-Tale Box

Call for Government Reform in The United States of America

Dear fellow citizen,

Please help pass government reform in order to make Congress & the President of the U.S. more responsive to the people. The 26th amendment (granting the right to vote for 18 year-olds) took only 3 months & 8 days to be ratified. Why? Simple! The people demanded it. That was in 1971...before computers, before e-mail, before cell phones, etc. Out of the 27 amendments to the Constitution, seven took one year or less to become the law of the land...all because of public pressure.

Pass this idea to anyone who is tired of the U.S. Government's business-as-usual attitude. The Government Reform Act will include the following:

1. TWO-TERM LIMIT: ALL GOVERNMENT MEMBERS (Congress & President included) can only be elected for two terms.  This is to avoid having to sacrifice our interests when dealing with career politicians.  Career politicians become disconnected from everyone else's reality because they develop their own private interests over time.  This has already been implemented for the Presidency for a good reason.

2. NO TENURE NO PENSION: ALL GOVERNMENT MEMBERS (Congress & President included) will collect a salary while in office and will receive no pay when they are out of office, period.  It should be treated like any other job in the U.S.  It should not be a position which gives special treatment to some human beings over others.  Especially in a democracy where everyone is supposed to be equal under the law.

3. ALL GOVERNMENT MEMBERS (Congress & President included) move into Social Security: For example, all funds in the Congressional retirement fund will move to the Social Security system. All future funds will flow into the Social Security system and Congress & the President participate with the American people. Again, Congress members & the President should not be put in a position of privilege over others citizens.  Especially in a democracy where everyone is supposed to be equal under the law.

4. ALL GOVERNMENT MEMBERS (Congress & President included) can purchase their own retirement plan: This will be just like what all Americans do already.  EVERYONE IS EQUAL.

5. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise: The salary for ALL GOVERNMENT MEMBERS (Congress & President included) will be tied to the average US income.  If the average American is doing well then so will a government member's pay.  If the country is doing worse so will a government member's pay.  This will force them to do a better and more efficient job like it is already done in the private sector.   EVERYONE IS EQUAL.

6. ALL GOVERNMENT MEMBERS (Congress & President included) will participate in the same health care system as the rest of the American people: They will no longer have their own special health care system which isolates them from the reality of the American people.  EVERYONE IS EQUAL.

7. ALL GOVERNMENT MEMBERS (Congress & President included) must equally abide by all the laws they impose on the American people.  No diplomatic immunity or exceptions of any kind.  EVERYONE IS EQUAL.

8. Void all contracts with past and present GOVERNMENT MEMBERS (Congress & President included). The American people did not make these contracts. Congressmen made all these contracts for themselves.  Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators that could serve their term(s) then go home and back to work, back to reality.  EVERYONE IS EQUAL.

If each person contacts a minimum of twenty people then it will only take three days for most people in the U.S. to receive the message. It is time to fix our government. If you agree with the above, pass it on!

Sincerely,

Your fellow citizen

Chatroulette: Classic case of a business turn around

"The main reason for the loss of interest in the site seems to be the naked man issue. More and more men were removing their clothes before loading up the site, and while at first that formed free publicity that attracted users to see what the fuss was about, eventually other users just didn’t appreciate it. It is thought that around 60% of the traffic Chatroulette saw at the height of its popularity has now gone, while the naked men have remained.

While most people would think Ternovskiy crazy for not taking the money and running, he looks to have turned the site around. Those naked men, of which there are thought to be around 50,000 per day, are now earning Chatroulette $100,000 per month."

--Chatroulette figures out how to make money from naked men | Geek.com

Hahaha talk about a classic case of a business turning around.  It saved itself from joining the multiple businesses disappearing into the black hole of oblivion :-)

Street Voodoo

--Notice

Why is violent speech and behavior not ok in a democracy regardless of political affiliation

A democracy cannot survive if there is constant talk of violence towards others who disagree with our own ideas. That will eventually lead to the breakdown of society. It will only take a small event to trigger the violence that all the violent speech has been building up to within society. History has too many examples of what happens when bullets and carnage replace words and debate.

Learn from history people. Palin and any other backward, violent politician, left or right, needs to go be ostracized by those who hold democracy and the union sacred.

Man shot in head sneezes out bullet and lives

"Mr Sangermano had spent New Year's Eve with his girlfriend in Naples.
As the city sky exploded in a traditional celebration of fireworks, firecrackers - and the occasional high-spirited blast of firearms - he was wandering the streets when a stray .22 calibre bullet struck him on the side of the head, behind his right eye.
Bleeding heavily, he was rushed to hospital.
But while he was waiting for doctors he sneezed - and the bullet popped out of his right nostril. "

--BBC News - Italian man shot in head sneezes out bullet and lives

Aside from this being a miracle, I think ignorance is horribly at fault here.  People keep shooting guns into the air around the world without realizing those bullets eventually come back down to earth with the same deadly speed that made them go up.  It's a special thing called GRAVITY!

Wall Street Journal - US Ranked No. 9 on Economic Freedom Index

"That’s because Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, and New Zealand rule the top of the economic freedom ratings. Economic growth rates in those countries averaged 6.8 percent in 2010."
“They've been more efficient at protecting the environment, better at improving health, and better even, as a new Index study demonstrates, in enhancing life satisfaction and overall happiness. That's a slam dunk for economic freedom.”

--Wall Street Journal - US Ranked No. 9 on Economic Freedom Index

Apparently other emerging countries do not see healthcare, enhancing life satisfaction and the overall happiness of their people as a "hurdle" to their economies.

Mobile technology becoming more sophisticated in 2011

"1. Continued Android Adoption

...

8. Greater Awareness of Privacy Issues"

"Several popular mobile apps, including Pandora, MySpace and Paper Toss, were caught secretly passing personal information including age, gender and location"

--MediaShift . 10 Mobile Trends in 2011: Android Boom, Tablets Multiply | PBS

Having such a strong proprietary-driven mentality is playing against Apple.  People like open standards and ease of access.  With the increased use of mobile phones privacy becomes a serious business now. The cell phone is a very private thing.  It has your friends, family, personal information, and your current location.  It does not get any more intimate than that for technology.  If it gets hacked it can really affect your life.

A great technology innovation is coming from Disney.  Never knew they had a technology research division like this:

"An innovative tactile feedback technology, TeslaTouch now enables you to feel what you are touching on touch screen"

WOW! Cool :-)

DIY Project: 20 Ways To Save Energy At Home

"20 Ways to Use Energy Smartly
The energy experts at National Grid suggest the following ways to help you save on energy costs

1. Replace old major appliances, especially your refrigerator and air conditioner. The latest models are much more energy efficient.

2. Caulk or weatherstrip doors and windows to seal out heat-stealing drafts. Don't forget about air leaking through switch plates and electrical outlets.

3. Insulate your attic or roof space. Doing so can cut heating costs by up to 30%. Plus, it will keep your home warmer in the winter.

4. Have an insulation contractor inspect your home. If it needs more insulation, cellulose can be blown into the walls to cut down substantially on heating costs.

5. Wrap insulation around pipes in your basement and crawl space to avoid heat loss.

6. Move chairs and beds away from exterior walls. These are usually the coldest walls in the house.

7. Keep your windows clean. Dirty windows don't allow full sunlight in to warm your house.

8. Use ceiling fans. They force warm air down, so you can set your thermostat at a lower temperature.

9. Keep the damper closed when your fireplace is not in use. Hot air escapes quickly through the chimney.

10. Tape a sheet of aluminum foil (shiny side out) to the wall behind radiators. This will help to make them more efficient.

11. Keep radiators (and registers in a warm air system) clean and dust-free so heat flows freely.

12. Turn your radiator valves either completely on or off. Opening them partially does not regulate a radiator's heat output.

13. Don't put anything on top of a radiator to block its heat output except a ventilated cover. Never block radiators with drapes.

14. Turn down the temperature on your hot water heater to the warm setting (120°). You'll save energy and avoid scalding your hands.

15. Wrap your hot water heater with an insulating blanket to prevent heat loss.

16. Switch your appliances (refrigerator, dishwasher, washing machine and clothes dryer) to the energy-saving setting.

17. Install a clock thermostat, and set it to automatically drop to a lower temperature at night.

18. Install storm windows and doors to keep out drafts and help you save on heating costs.

19. Replace your 60-100 watt incandescent light bulbs (those you keep on the most) with compact fluorescent bulbs which use three-quarters less electricity.

20. Clean or replace filters in furnaces, air conditioners and heat pumps at the beginning of the summer and winter. This will permit a better air- flow throughout the house."

--National Grid | Energy Info & Tips

This will come in handy for people living in areas where the cold is driving utility bills up.

US wants Twitter details of Wikileaks activists

Mr Assange condemned the court order on Saturday, saying it amounted to harassment.
"If the Iranian government was to attempt to coercively obtain this information from journalists and activists of foreign nations, human rights groups around the world would speak out," he said in a statement.
The order was unsealed "thanks to legal action by Twitter", he added.
And Mr Assange's lawyer, Mark Stephens, said the US government was attempting to intimidate people.

--BBC News - US wants Twitter details of Wikileaks activists

So who is the next?? The evil people in facebook who support truth and human rights?? That is insane.
How do you go from Wikileaks being a place for truth and human rights to becoming a "terrorist organization". That is more insane.
Apparently freedom of speech applies only when others do horrible things, not when the US does them. That is the most insane AND dangerous to ourselves and the rest of the world.

Not to mention we are losing credibility worldwide with this double-standard :-(

A dark, raw, bluntly honest suicide note from a man who seemed successful

"I feel an evil inside me. An evil that makes me want to end life. I need to stop this. I need to make sure I don't kill someone, which is not something that can be easily undone. I don't know if this is related to what happened to me or something different. I recognize the irony of killing myself to prevent myself from killing someone else, but this decision should indicate what I'm capable of.

So I've realized I will never escape the darkness or misery associated with it and I have a responsibility to stop myself from physically harming others.

I'm just a broken, miserable shell of a human being. Being molested has defined me as a person and shaped me as a human being and it has made me the monster I am and there's nothing I can do to escape it. I don't know any other existence. I don't know what life feels like where I'm apart from any of this. I actively despise the person I am. I just feel fundamentally broken, almost non-human. I feel like an animal that woke up one day in a human body, trying to make sense of a foreign world, living among creatures it doesn't understand and can't connect with."

--Bill Zeller

WOW....INTENSE!!! and incredibly sad :-(

How has the recession changed the United States

How the Recession Changed Us - Magazine - The Atlantic
By Timothy Lavin



Graphic by: Amanda Buck

"Millions of Americans have lost their jobs, nearly every state faces a budget shortfall, and hundreds of banks have shut their doors. The young are unemployed, living at home, and playing video games. The ranks of third-party candidates have swollen, militias have proliferated, and national leaders of both parties have seen their support decline."

--Timothy Lavin

One thing is for sure when history repeats itself: Bad economic times = Political unrest

--Me

The Model S: Tesla's First Electric Sedan

"Tesla's Model S sedan, set to be released next year, is the long-awaited follow-up to the perennial electric vehicle startup's slick Roadster sportscar."

Worldwide population expected to exceed seven billion in 2011

National Geographic also lists the challenges we currently face as a species in this great video:

2011 starting like the movie "The Seventh Sign"

I remember this movie.  Do you? Here is the transcript.

I've noticed this pattern while watching the news:

1) The dying birds and fish right around the world

2) The sun became black as sackcloth

3) The blood moon

4) The death of the last martyr.  The only person known worldwide, who is said to be innocent and threatened for speaking the truth, is Julian Assange.

5) The child about to be born without a soul and the mother having to choose between her baby and herself in Chile is big news around the world.

I find it to be an interesting coincidence in front of my TV.

Homeless man w/golden radio voice in Columbus, OH

Great feel good story. This guy became famous thanks to the internet :-)

VNV Nation - ILLUSION: A song for those thinking of suicide

80 Percent of Americans Resolve To Be Greener... -- ELMWOOD PARK, N.J. and NEW YORK, Jan. 3, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

80 Percent of Americans Resolve To Be Greener... -- ELMWOOD PARK, N.J. and NEW YORK, Jan. 3, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

That's great news! Our environmental conscience is bigger than ever :-)

Dead Fish And Birds Mystery: Thousands Of Fish And Blackbirds Die In Arkansas | World News | Sky News

Dead Fish And Birds Mystery: Thousands Of Fish And Blackbirds Die In Arkansas | World News | Sky News

I wonder if this is another case of an unsafe industrial chemical being used like in the bees' case :-(

Mainstream Media is Mind Control for the Masses

     In general I suggest we don't pay much attention to mass media.  Their purpose is to create insecurity and doubt through subconscious imagery.  This artificially induced insecurity and doubt is then provided a "material solution" by this same media to motivate mass consumerism.  Mass media subconsciously bombards us through the use of imagery the idea that material things will somehow help us achieve their definition of "perfection".  When we fall for this deception we enter into a dysfunctional view of society and ourselves.  This is especially true in the U.S. because marketing has become so sophisticated in its manipulation of mass media.

Trippiest Animation Ever

This video could be interpreted as a visual representation of the melding of nature & technology inside the human mind: