suchandra

Right now China, India and Russia barely have any gold reserves. You will soon be seeing Gold buying by these countries as a shore to their currency. If rupee would be in the same position as dollar, there was no need for India in 1990 to send all its gold reserve to London to guarantee payments for India's imports and surrender India to the IMF and World Bank, the two agents of the US to implement highly unpopular anti-people 'Economic Reforms'. It would have been sufficient for Narasimha Rao to print more rupees. If all developing countries would have the same facility, they would be able to develop very quickly.

Could be that others follow his example and in this way things will change in that sense, that ISKCON has to learn to deal with it properly and not cover up/push things aside. ISKCON's "public affairs spokesman" Anuttama dasa says that this abuse of position phenomena within ISKCON is -- just like the abuse of position problem of the Catholic Church. No! Every devout Catholic can assure you the Catholic Church never said that Lord Jesus is a conditioned soul neophyte. No, they do not say that and have never said that. This is illegal slander of both Jesus and the entire Catholic Church and all of its members.

In the nineties the Indian government shipped all of India's gold reserves to London in order to get out of debt. The Bank of England, determined to restore London as the main gold market, reached an agreement also with the seven South African mining houses to ship their gold to London for refining. Most Australian gold also came to London, transforming the market. Gold rush in Brazil led to opening of mint in Rio de Janeiro making 'moedas de ouro', but also this gold ended up in London.

When reading your points Prabhupada's example came to mind, he must have felt the same when seeing the condition of the GM. The idea of trying to correct the GM and only focus on this goal and nothing else must have been an option for Prabhupada to fight for. But there is not much activity recorded in this direction. Instead Prabhupada quickly decided to start a new movement. The difference is that presently people believe by starting a new movement, they would agree with what is happening within ISKCON. To become guilty of letting it all happen in the name of Prabhupada. There is no other way than to rescue ISKCON for many devotees. On the other hand, nobody seems to become a Vaishnava by watching this scenario.

Yes this is correct. Krishnakirti prabhu only went public at this point because he knows what his next steps will be and that he feels on the safe side. If he would have an unsolved inner conflict like his life being spoiled, he surely would not have written such a post. Although there were quite lots of people traumatized and it took years till they finally realized all the consequences from what had happened. <embed src=" " type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344">

A 'fraud' bigger than Madoff Patrick Cockburn – The Independent February 16, 2009 In what could turn out to be the greatest fraud in US history, American authorities have started to investigate the alleged role of senior military officers in the misuse of $125bn (£88bn) in a US -directed effort to reconstruct Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein. The exact sum missing may never be clear, but a report by the US Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR) suggests it may exceed $50bn, making it an even bigger theft than Bernard Madoff's notorious Ponzi scheme. "I believe the real looting of Iraq after the invasion was by US officials and contractors, and not by people from the slums of Baghdad," said one US businessman active in Iraq since 2003. In one case, auditors working for SIGIR discovered that $57.8m was sent in "pallet upon pallet of hundred-dollar bills" to the US comptroller for south-central Iraq, Robert J Stein Jr, who had himself photographed standing with the mound of money. He is among the few US officials who were in Iraq to be convicted of fraud and money-laundering. Despite the vast sums expended on rebuilding by the US since 2003, there have been no cranes visible on the Baghdad skyline except those at work building a new US embassy and others rusting beside a half-built giant mosque that Saddam was constructing when he was overthrown. One of the few visible signs of government work on Baghdad's infrastructure is a tireless attention to planting palm trees and flowers in the centre strip between main roads. Those are then dug up and replanted a few months later. Iraqi leaders are convinced that the theft or waste of huge sums of US and Iraqi government money could have happened only if senior US officials were themselves involved in the corruption. In 2004-05, the entire Iraq military procurement budget of $1.3bn was siphoned off from the Iraqi Defence Ministry in return for 28-year-old Soviet helicopters too obsolete to fly and armoured cars easily penetrated by rifle bullets. Iraqi officials were blamed for the theft, but US military officials were largely in control of the Defence Ministry at the time and must have been either highly negligent or participants in the fraud. American federal investigators are now starting an inquiry into the actions of senior US officers involved in the programme to rebuild Iraq, according to The New York Times, which cites interviews with senior government officials and court documents. Court records reveal that, in January, investigators subpoenaed the bank records of Colonel Anthony B Bell, now retired from the US Army, but who was previously responsible for contracting for the reconstruction effort in 2003 and 2004. Two federal officials are cited by the paper as saying that investigators are also looking at the activities of Lieutenant-Colonel Ronald W Hirtle of the US Air Force, who was senior contracting officer in Baghdad in 2004. It is not clear what specific evidence exists against the two men, who have both said they have nothing to hide. The end of the Bush administration which launched the war may give fresh impetus to investigations into frauds in which tens of billions of dollars were spent on reconstruction with little being built that could be used. In the early days of the occupation, well-connected Republicans were awarded jobs in Iraq, regardless of experience. A 24-year-old from a Republican family was put in charge of the Baghdad stock exchange which had to close down because he allegedly forgot to renew the lease on its building. In the expanded inquiry by federal agencies, the evidence of a small-time US businessman called Dale C Stoffel who was murdered after leaving the US base at Taiji north of Baghdad in 2004 is being re-examined. Before he was killed, Mr Stoffel, an arms dealer and contractor, was granted limited immunity from prosecution after he had provided information that a network of bribery – linking companies and US officials awarding contracts – existed within the US-run Green Zone in Baghdad. He said bribes of tens of thousands of dollars were regularly delivered in pizza boxes sent to US contracting officers. So far, US officers who have been successfully prosecuted or unmasked have mostly been involved in small-scale corruption. Often sums paid out in cash were never recorded. In one case, an American soldier put in charge of reviving Iraqi boxing gambled away all the money but he could not be prosecuted because, although the money was certainly gone, nobody had recorded if it was $20,000 or $60,000. Iraqi ministers admit the wholesale corruption of their government. Ali Allawi, the former finance minister, said Iraq was "becoming like Nigeria in the past when all the oil revenues were stolen". But there has also been a strong suspicion among senior Iraqis that US officials must have been complicit or using Iraqi appointees as front-men in corrupt deals. Several Iraqi officials given important jobs at the urging of the US administration in Baghdad were inexperienced. For instance, the arms procurement chief at the centre of the Defence Ministry scandal, was a Polish-Iraqi, 27 years out of Iraq, who had run a pizza restaurant on the outskirts of Bonn in the 1990s. In many cases, contractors never started or finished facilities they were supposedly building. As security deteriorated in Iraq from the summer of 2003 it was difficult to check if a contract had been completed. But the failure to provide electricity, water and sewage disposal during the US occupation was crucial in alienating Iraqis from the post-Saddam regime. www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/a-fraud-bigger-than-madoff-1622987.html

What can we do? It is a tragedy. They seem to have only got the "living" idea organized, but they seem to have forgot all about the "guru" part of their equation. Hopefully Krishna kirti Prabhu stays on the path of bhakti.

This is hard to believe that there was not something else, something more striking. After all, HDG signaled lately willingness to negotiate and readiness to give-and-take. To relieve this of Krishna Kirti that the communication with his guru got so much bogged down due this issue, isn't plausible. Any suggestions?

Good point, these folks say the same about Lord Jesus' associates and even Krsna Himself, oh, why He went to a place where there are so many demons? Is this actually God? Aren't we always surrounded by so many questionable characters? <embed src=" " type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344">

Present policy of the European Union is cover-up and to minimize the actual facts. In the past twenty years approx. 1,000,000 Europeans felt impelled to commit suicide. In other words, right - there're no more concentration camps were people are being killed, but the politicians created a misrule, adhere to a policy of such kind, that people kill themselves. As Prabhupada highlighted repeatedly, modern advancement of civilization is nothing but a killing policy. Not only that they pass laws which make the live of Vaishnavas almost impossible, they enforce their suicidal policy upon their own people. This is less than animal - living peacefully together with those who feel forced into total hopelessness and who actually commit suicide. And the Vaishnava institutions telling, we never heard of this. The Vaishnava institutions want to save humanity and don't even know how much people are suffering? This explains why many complain how the Vaishnava institutions degraded into fund raising orgs, who lost overview to spread actual knowledge. With the high levels of unemployment that have now become the standard state of affairs in Europe, the social costs of these penalties are indeed heavy. These costs diminish the lives of all, but are particularly harsh on the minority – a large minority – of families severely afflicted by persistent unemployment and its far-reaching damages. Unemployment can play havoc with the lives of the jobless, and cause intense suffering and mental agony. Empirical studies of unemployment, for example by Jahoda, Lazarsfeld and Zeisel (1933), Eisenberg and Lazarsfeld (1938), Bakke (1940a, 1940b), and Hill (1977), have brought out how serious this effect can be. Indeed, high unemployment is often associated even with elevated rates of suicide, which is an indicator of the perception of unbearability that the victims experience (see, for example, Boor, 1980 and Platt, 1984).

Good point, as soon you conclude that Prabhupada would have actually appointed TKG into the position of being the next acarya you end up there what you said, Prabhupada must have been of questionable character. However, people who can think clearly, come to the conclusion just by examining what happened so far in ISKCON, that Prabhupada never appointed anyone to be the next acarya. Everyone was kept in the position as officiating neophyte and as soon there was a deviation these functions would have been newly filled with somebody else. And all these managerial positions worked perfectly so long the officiating priest was following all the regs. In sum, Prabhupada expected that in future people would fall down or leave the movement and that a temple community would immediately do the needful to replace/vote new officiating leaders every third year or as soon a leader fell down. With this system any temple community would have easily survived till the end of kali-yuga.

PAGES FROM HISTORY : GARUDA, THE DIVINE BIRD Prof. A.V. Narasimha Murthy, http://www.starofmysore.com/main.asp?type=specialnews&item=3679 Just an ordinary bird of the vulture group to an Ornithologist, Garuda has attained a divine status from his unique personality to the Indian mind. It is also known as Brahmani Kite. It is not confined to India alone; it is found in Burma, Ceylon, Malaya, Indo-China, Philip-pines, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan etc. The uniqueness of this bird is his white beak which has distinguished him from others of his category. But in our tradition, he is not just a bird but a divine being worthy of worship in temples. There is a vast mythological literature which describes his origin, personality, character and divinity. Basically, he is the king of birds with unlimited strength and energy and his power of seeing is proverbial. He can penetrate to long distances and understand the nature of things. Actually 'garutman' was originally Sun god conceived as a bird in Rigveda. Mythology has many stories with regard to him. He is the son of seer Kashyapa and Vinate. Aruna is his brother. There is also an upanishad called garu-doupanishat attached to Atharvaveda. In ancient warfare, garudavyuha was quite popular — it was a geometric formation of soldiers and to come out of it was difficult for the enemy. Garuda Purana There is a Purana named after him called Garuda Purana. Actually, it was composed by Vedavyasa as one of the eighteen puranas and it is said Vishnu himself revealed it to Garuda. It contains two parts; the second part which is more popular deals with knowledge regarding the dead persons' journey towards heaven or hell and the rituals that have to be performed by sons to help the dead persons to have a smooth journey. Hence, in traditional homes, even today a priest is invited to recite garuda purana after the death of a person so that the sons are given the required knowledge to perform sraddha and other rituals towards the dead. It is very interesting to note that this book is a taboo and nobody would like to keep a copy of garuda pu-rana in their homes. Further nobody would read this book on ordinary days except during the ten days of the death of a person. Garuda is said to have gone to heaven, fought against the gandharvas and brought amrita and gave it to his step-mother. Vishnu was greatly impressed by his strength and made him his vahana (vehicle). Garuda is inva-riably carved on the doorjambs of sanctums of Vishnu temples. Another important aspect is the garuda pillar (garuda-gamba) established in front of Vishnu temples. Vishnu also permitted him to be used as insignia in his flag and hence garuda-dhwaja became famous. The concept of a bird and snake was prevalent in Mesopotamia more than 5,000 years ago. Garuda became such a popular deity that even Buddhists adopted him in their pantheon. The eastern gateway of Sanchi stupa contains a garuda. Sculptures In Hindu sculptural art, garuda has a special place. He was elevated to the level of a human being in form with divine status. According to texts on sculpture, garuda should have a round face, wide eyes, prominent nose, human legs, four hands, wings and carrying a pot of amrita. When carrying Vishnu on his back, he should have two hands which should support the feet of Vishnu. But other varieties are also known where he is shown as kneeling on his knees and his crown should be adorned with snakes. He should be shown as strong bodied and in a posture of devotion to Vishnu — sometime as dvarapala he holds shankha, chakra and gada. Perhaps the earliest garuda sculpture was the one created by a Greek Vishnu devotee by name Heliodorus. He created a pillar at Besnagar with a garuda capital on it. As Guptas were great patrons of Vaishnavism, garuda-dhwaja became quite popular. With the development of Srivaishnavism in Karnataka, his sculptures in human form became quite popular in South India as wall sculptures. Shrines within the temple came to be included for this deity. Most of the Vaishnava Hoysala temples contain scul-ptures of garuda. The one at the Channakeshava temple at Belur is specially noteworthy. Garudotsava, carrying the deity in procession on an image of garuda became a po-pular ritual and endowments were given for this service. The Vijayanagara rulers continued this tradition in sculpture. The wheeled stone ratha in the Vitthala temple at Hampi has an image of garuda. Vija-yanagara kings also minted Garuda type coins. Such coins of Harihara I and Krishna-devaraya are highly elegant. Garuda became a symbol of protection of his master as his Vahana. Hence during the Hoysala period, there arose a group of commandoes who took oath of saving their masters or kings and did not hesitate to sacrifice their lives for their masters. They were called 'garudas' and hundreds of such brave soldiers are mentioned in the Hoysala inscriptions eight hundreds years ago. Thus Garuda became an icon of protection and devotion. Though place names after garuda did not become popular, personal names like Garudachar, Garuda-iyengar etc. became popular among Srivaishnavas. Outside India The concept of garuda crossed Indian borders and went to South-East Asian countries. The image of Vishnu (King Airlanga) sitting on a garuda at Belhan (Java) is a masterpiece. Angkor Vat and Thom have a large number of garuda images. This bird had become a symbol of Romans more than 2000 years ago. A similar bird became quite popular in modern Europe also. Even today one of the Airlines (Indonesian) is known as Garuda Airlines. Thus our garuda has spread his wings far and wide in most parts of the world. But to us he is a devotee par excellence of great Vishnu and his Vahana.

Yet another example how the Vedas describe things gluelessly sometimes as real and sometimes as metaphorical. If there would be a real Lotus stem how Lord Varahadeva could have jumped from the higher planets into the Garbhodaka Ocean? So, such things have to be understood as metaphorical embellishment. "Before entering the water to rescue the earth, Lord Boar flew in the sky, slashing His tail, His hard hairs quivering. His very glance was luminous, and He scattered the clouds in the sky with His hooves and His glittering white tusks." SB 3.13.27

Kazakhstan backs off on religion limits Action follows global pressure Julia Duin (Contact) Friday, February 13, 2009 http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/feb/13/kazakhstan-reverses-law-to-restrict-minority-relig/ Kazakhstan, a key U.S. economic partner in Central Asia, has dramatically reversed legislation curtailing religious freedoms after the measure and the jailings and expulsions of two religious activists caused an international outcry. With little explanation, the country's constitutional council announced Wednesday that amendments to a religion law were "inconsistent" with Kazakhstan's constitution. A spokesman for the Kazakh Embassy said Thursday that the amendments did not dovetail with international human rights law and were sent back to committee. On Feb. 4, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) assessed the law as not complying with human rights standards. The amendments bolstered the main religions in the country - Islam and the Russian Orthodox Church - whose leaders have been asking the government to crack down on religious minorities. Human rights groups around the globe had complained about the amendments, which ratcheted up penalties for unregistered religious groups such as Baptists and Jehovah's Witnesses, and increased from 10 to 50 the minimum number of members a religious organization must have in order for it to register. Any community smaller than that could not teach, profess their religion, own property or rent public space for religious activities. Contributions from foreigners and anonymous donors were prohibited.

Residents say Krishna temple plan is too big Group seeks to build religious center on Rt. 34 BY TOYNETT HALL Staff Writer <!-- Page Number: 1--> The Hare Krishna movement is proposing a $7 million temple and cultural center on Route 34 between Highview Terrace and Sheila Court in Old Bridge, but it faces staunch opposition from some area residents. Known as ISKCON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness), the religious group has applied to the Planning Board to construct a 38,000-square-foot domed religious center on a vacant 6.3- acre tract. The property, on Route 34 south opposite Canyon Woods Drive, is in the township's R-30 single-family residential zone, where houses of worship are conditionally permitted. The applicant also seeks to build eight dormitory units within the proposed temple, and 154 parking stalls, according to information provided in a township report. Religious dormitories are not permitted in the R-30 zone, and a variance is required. Madhupati Dasa, president of the ISKCON of Central Jersey, said this temple would be the first in this part of the state. "We are trying to provide a place for Hindus living in central New Jersey to come and participate and learn about their culture," Dasa said. Hare Krishna is a major monotheistic tradition, known academically as vaishnavism or sanatana dharma, "the eternal religion." The core practice is bhakti (devotion) to Krishna. Although seen as a major strand of Hinduism, it is a transcendental and nonsectarian process of devotional yoga that can be harmonized with any theistic religious practice, according to the Web site iskcon.org.uk. Jonathan Heilbrunn, an attorney representing the group in its application to the Planning Board, said the ISKCON of Central New Jersey currently rents space in the Italian American Club on Route 35 in Old Bridge's Laurence Harbor section. It presently has 150 worshippers, but the applicant hopes to increase the congregation to 420. Residents of the Woods and Highview developments are raising concerns about the proposal. Teal Vaughan, a Sheila Court resident, is concerned that the project would adversely affect quality of life in the area. Vaughan said the applicant's proposal is misleading, and the project is too big for the area. The size of the proposal, she said, is "shocking." "This is in my backyard. The size and what they are putting there is very questionable," Vaughan said. "This is much more than a temple and that's the issue." "It's monstrous in size. There will be very early morning services. There are guest rooms … This is almost like a compound," Vaughan said. Vaughan said she read on the group's Web site that they want to attract thousands of worshipers, and she fears the traffic impact of that. She said the applicant needs to be forthcoming about how many people will be worshipping there. "You don't spend $7 million to have a few people come there. It's going to cause a lot of havoc," she said. She acknowledged that the group has a right to build on the site, but said residents also "have the right to live in peace." Melissa Woung, another resident, feels the same way. "The grave concerns I have are noise, the value of my property decreasing, and the fact that my quality of life will never be the same," Woung said. "My property backs up to this project. What is going to happen to me and my family?" she asked. Woung questioned whether the religious group is being truthful about its intentions. She would like the applicant to scale back and be considerate of the neighboring community. "I am not opposed to the temple being built. We all want to live in harmony with one another, and they need to consider the row of homes directly behind the temple and propose a better plan to us. Everyone has rights, including us, to continue enjoying our quality of life," Woung said. Resident Sal D'Angelo shared those concerns. D'Angelo said he would like to see a more inclusive discussion. "I would like it to be an open discussion. If they want to build a temple, that is fine, but not a 75-foot dome," D'Angelo said. "… I don't like the idea of a gigantic cultural center being built, no matter which religion. I would like to see the plan scaled back." ISKCON of New Jersey's Web site provides a wealth of information regarding what will be provided once the temple is completed. Some of the residents are up in arms about the temple's schedule of operation. According to information provided on the Web site, weekday worship begins at 4:30 a.m. and continues throughout the day until 8 p.m. In addition, the center plans to provide catering, festivals, a yoga center, library, gardens, and recreational grounds. The applicant began testimony before the board last week, and Heilbrunn said his client's professionals have already addressed some of the concerns such as traffic. "There was a traffic study prepared and received by the Old Bridge Police Department and the Old Bridge traffic engineer. The results showed there to be no adverse traffic impact," Heilbrunn said. In regards to buffers for neighboring and adjacent residents, Heilbrunn said the society members are "aware of the concerns, and they plan to provided the required amount of buffering." He said noise concern is a non- issue. "Hindus are not great makers of noise," he said. Testimony is scheduled to resume on April 7.

<cite class="vcard"> By MARI YAMAGUCHI, Associated Press Writer Mari Yamaguchi, Associated Press Writer </cite> – <abbr title="2009-02-01T08:32:43-0800" class="timedate">Sun Feb 1, 11:32 am ET</abbr> <!-- end .byline --> <!-- end: .hd --> <!-- end .related-media --> TOKYO – In Japan, "What's your type?" is much more than small talk; it can be a paramount question in everything from matchmaking to getting a job. By type, the Japanese mean blood type, and no amount of scientific debunking can kill a widely held notion that blood tells all. In the year just ended, four of Japan's top 10 best-sellers were about how blood type determines personality, according to Japan's largest book distributor, Tohan Co. The books' publisher, Bungeisha, says the series — one each for types B, O, A, and AB — has combined sales of well over 5 million copies. Taku Kabeya, chief editor at Bungeisha, thinks the appeal comes from having one's self-image confirmed; readers discover the definition of their blood type and "It's like 'Yes, that's me!'" As defined by the books, type As are sensitive perfectionists but overanxious; Type Bs are cheerful but eccentric and selfish; Os are curious, generous but stubborn; and ABs are arty but mysterious and unpredictable. All that may sound like a horoscope, but the public doesn't seem to care. Even Prime Minister Taro Aso seems to consider it important enough to reveal in his official profile on the Web. He's an A. His rival, opposition leader Ichiro Ozawa, is a B. Nowadays blood type features in a Nintendo DS game and on "lucky bags" of women's accessories tailored to blood type and sold at Tokyo's Printemps department store. A TV network is set to broadcast a comedy about women seeking husbands according to blood type. It doesn't stop there. Matchmaking agencies provide blood-type compatibility tests, and some companies make decisions about assignments based on employees' blood types. Children at some kindergartens are divided up by blood type, and the women's softball team that won gold at the Beijing Olympics used the theory to customize each player's training. Not all see the craze as harmless fun, and the Japanese now have a term, "bura-hara," meaning blood-type harassment. And, despite repeated warnings, many employers continue to ask blood types at job interviews, said Junichi Wadayama, an official at the Health, Welfare and Labor Ministry. "It's so widespread that most people, even company officials, are not aware that asking blood types could lead to discrimination," Wadayama said. Blood types, determined by the proteins in the blood, have nothing to do with personality, said Satoru Kikuchi, associate professor of psychology at Shinshu University. "It's simply sham science," he said. "The idea encourages people to judge others by the blood types, without trying to understand them as human beings. It's like racism." This use of blood-typing has unsavory roots. The theory was imported from Nazi race ideologues and adopted by Japan's militarist government in the 1930s to breed better soldiers. The idea was scrapped years later and the craze faded. It resurfaced in the 1970s, however, as Masahiko Nomi, an advocate with no medical background, gave the theory mass appeal. His son, Toshitaka, now promotes it through a private group, the Human Science ABO Center, saying it's not intended to rank or judge people but to smooth relationships and help make the best of one's talents. The books tend to stop short of blood-type determinism, suggesting instead that while blood type creates personality tendencies, it's hardly definitive. "Good job, you're done. So how do you feel about the results?" one blood type manual asks on its closing page. "Your type, after all, is what you decide you are."

No, not that heavy, but as the saying goes, there’re no atheists in a foxhole, in trenches, on a battlefield. Just what we see right now, the material energy is somewhat roughing up the situation. This makes people think of praying or chanting. Not something like WW3 scenario.

No this is right, materially things won't improve, but go straight downwards. Why - the whole world heard the Holy Name. In order to increase material detachment humanity must be tortured now. Otherwise, if there's material opulence, "the worm wants to go back into the stool". "Even if one tries to separate a worm from stool, the worm will be unwilling to leave. It will return to the stool. Similarly, a hog generally lives in a very filthy state, eating stool, but if one tries to separate it from its condition and give it a nice place, the hog will be unwilling. In this way if we study each and every living entity, we will find that he will defy offers of a more comfortable position. ” SB 4.28.11

At least you will admit that the demoniac forces on this planet are of that kind that as soon the devotees of Lord Krishna are disunited and weak things not only get a bit uncomfortable like a cold breeze were you put on a pullover. But rather the demons of this age are so efficient to completely wipe out anything Vaishnava and create a perfect hell on Earth. One who hasn't meanwhile this realization and moves along easygoing must be thickly in tamas, mudha, and should be removed from all responsible Vaishnava functions.

A Urine Test for Prostate Cancer? By Jennifer Couzin ScienceNOW Daily News 11 February 2009 Oncologists who treat prostate cancer have long been frustrated by a quagmire: They know they treat many men whose disease won't harm them, but at the same time they fail to catch aggressive cases that kill. There's no good way to separate the two right now, but in tomorrow's issue of Nature, a team at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, suggests a new strategy: Look for specific chemicals in urine that could distinguish among patients with no sign of disease, disease that isn't critical to treat, and disease that's most dangerous. Researchers have poured tremendous energy into early cancer detection and forecasting a cancer's path. Hundreds of studies have been published on the use of gene expression or protein analysis, but few tests have reached the clinic. Even those that have, such as an early-detection test for ovarian cancer called OvaSure, which picks up protein patterns, have been criticized for not being adequately tested. In prostate cancer, which kills nearly 30,000 men in the United States each year, "there's been a lot of screening, and people still die," says Ian Thompson, a urologic oncologist at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. The community is "desperate," he says, for ways to identify life-threatening tumors. The Michigan team turned to an approach called metabolomics, a mouthful that refers to the study of small molecules known as metabolites, chemical products present throughout the body. The group screened 100 samples each of men's urine and blood, stored from patients at the cancer center, that were matched with tissue samples that had been removed from patients. Sixteen had no disease, 12 had localized prostate cancer, and 14 had metastatic cancer. The scientists identified 1126 metabolites, then winnowed the list down to six whose levels were higher in samples linked to localized prostate cancer and higher still in metastatic disease. "We were literally going in and measuring everything we could see," says Christopher Beecher, a chemist at the University of Michigan and a co-author of the study. The group focused on one metabolite in particular, called sarcosine, which may influence cell mobility and which, when added to cells in the lab, transformed normal prostate cells into invasive ones. Seventy-nine percent of metastatic samples contained sarcosine, compared with 42% in localized disease and none in healthy tissue. The researchers hope to devise a simple urine test to pick up the worst prostate cancers at an early stage. Some of the authors have a stake in a company, Metabolon, which is working to commercialize the findings. It will be years before that can happen, however. The metabolites need to be studied in many men who are followed long-term to see how they measure in those who develop different forms of prostate cancer. Sarcosine in this case was also "not much better" at picking up aggressive disease than prostate-specific antigen, the protein now widely used in screening, says Cory Abate-Shen, a cancer biologist at Columbia University. Still, says Abate-Shen, the strategy is promising: "This hasn't been done before for any cancer."

These are not only the Hare Krsnas, "So long as the love, even the smallest, of man toward woman is not destroyed, so long is his mind in bondage as the calf that drinks milk is to his mother." - Lord Buddha

Winter birds shift north New Audubon report suggests climate change is the culprit By Susan Milius Web edition : <ACRONYM class="anonymous print" title="5:22 pm">Tuesday, February 10th, 2009</ACRONYM> Enlarge GOING NORTHOverall the winter ranges of 305 common North American birds have shifted north, according to data from Christmas Bird Counts analyzed by the National Audubon Society.Credits, clockwise from top left: Glenn Tepke; Tim Bowman, USFWS; Steve Maslowski, USFWS; Ryan Hagerty, USFWS. North could be the new south for wintering birds. More than half of 305 widespread bird species across North America are spending their winters farther north than they did 40 years ago, says a report released February 10 by the National Audubon Society. Those shifts dovetail with warming trends in winter temperatures recorded by state during that time, says Audubon scientist Greg Butcher, coauthor of the report. Overall the wintering grounds of the birds have shifted an average of 56 kilometers (35 miles) north in cold months during the past four decades. Some have moved much more, including red-breasted mergansers (510 kilometers or 317 miles) and purple finches (504 kilometers or 313 miles). Enlarge Overall the winter ranges of 305 common North American birds have shifted north. Data from Christmas Bird Counts allowed National Audubon Society researchers to calculate changes in the center of abundance for a species.D. Niven et al./Audubon Society Details of the movement pattern, such as greater shifts in places having more marked temperature changes, suggest climate change is driving the shifts, Butcher says. “We’re showing that global warming isn’t something that’s going to happen far away, say in the Arctic and Antarctic, and it’s not something that might happen in the future,” he says. “It’s something that’s already happened and has been occurring over the last 40 years.” Woodland birds in the study moved the most, averaging more than a 113-kilometer (70-mile) northward shift in range, more than twice the average change in any other bird group in the study. Not all the species went north. For example, nine of the grassland species moved south, a change that may be attributed to factors beyond temperature. Butcher and his colleagues drew on data from the Christmas Bird Counts, a 109-year-old tradition in which birders brave whatever winter throws at them to visit predetermined sites where they record all the species they can find during a 24-hour period. In recent years, more than 50,000 volunteers have turned out for the count at some 2,000 locations across the continent. Such citizen science efforts offer a way to grasp broad trends, says conservation biologist Stuart Butchart of BirdLife International, headquartered in Cambridge, England. “The strength of this study is that it’s looking at a broad range of species across a large geographic area,” he says. “It’s the overall pattern that’s important and should be raising alarm bells.” Species that have large ranges may be a good indicator but may not be the birds most at risk from climate change, Butcher says. Species with small, specialized ranges may not have anywhere safe to go. “We’re terribly worried about Hawaiian forest birds,” he says. Warming temperatures allow mosquitoes to rise higher up mountain slopes, carrying avian malaria that has devastated lowland populations. And even though birds offer a good source of data, other kinds of creatures with even less mobility may be more affected. “Start with trees,” Butcher says. “Trees are big sedentary organisms.” There could be plenty more impacts that don’t get counted every Christmas.

Since present Vaishnava institutions are controlled by the global banking cartel you won't read much more about this topic.

Paranoid? For you all people except yourself are paranoid? Who Controls The Federal Reserve System? By Victor Thorn Now that we know the Federal Reserve is a privately owned, for-profit corporation, a natural question would be: who OWNS this company? Peter Kershaw provides the answer in "Economic Solutions" where he lists the ten primary shareholders in the Federal Reserve banking system. 1) The Rothschild Family - London 2) The Rothschild Family - Berlin 3) The Lazard Brothers - Paris 4) Israel Seiff - Italy 5) Kuhn-Loeb Company Germany 6) The Warburgs - Amsterdam 7) The Warburgs - Hamburg 8) Lehman Brothers - New York 9) Goldman & Sachs - New York 10) The Rockefeller Family - New York Now I don't know about you, but something is terribly wrong with this situation. Namely, don't we live in AMERICA? If so, why are seven of the top ten stockholders located in FOREIGN countries? That's 70%! To further convey how screwed-up this system is, Jim Marrs provides the following data in his phenomenal book, "Rule By Secrecy." He says that the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which undeniably controls the other eleven Federal Reserve branches, is essentially controlled by two financial institutions: 1) Chase-Manhattan (controlled by the Rockefellers) - 6,389,445 shares 32.3% 2) Citbank - 4,051,851 shares - 20.5% Thus, these two entities control nearly 53% of the New York Federal Reserve Bank. Doesn't that boggle your mind? Now, considering how many trillions of dollars are involved here, and how the bankers are WAY above our "selected" officials in Washington, D.C., do you think the above-listed banks and families have an inordinate amount of say-so in how our country is being run? The answer is blindingly apparent. Where does the money come from? We all know that the Federal Reserve CORPORATION prints money - then loans it, at interest, to our government. But wait until you see what a total scam this process is. But before we get to the meat of this issue, let's remember one thing about the very essence of banking - primarily that money should have some type of standard upon which its value is based. In the case of America, we operate on what is called a "gold standard" (i.e. our money is backed by gold). So, with that in mind, let's look at how money is actually created, and at what cost. If the Federal Reserve wants to print 1,000 one-hundred ($100) bills, their total cost for ink, paper, plates, labor, etc. would be approximately $23.00 (according to Davvy Kidd in "Why A Bankrupt America"). Now, if you do the math, the total cost of 10,000 bills would be $230.00 ($.023 x 10,000). But, and here's the catch - 10,000 $100 bills equals $1,000,000! So, the Federal Reserve can "create" a million dollars, then LEND it to the U.S. Government (with interest) for a total cost of $230.00! That's not a bad deal, huh! The banking industry calls this process "seignorage." I call it outright THEFT. Why? Well, regardless of the immense profit margin ($1,000,000 for $230), plus the huge interest payments, our government then needs to STEAL the American people's money to payoff their debts via a Mob-like agency called the IRS. So the bankers steal from the government, then the government turns around and steals from the people. I'm no genius, but who do you think is getting screwed in this process? US - the people at the bottom rung of the ladder. What's worse is that - now catch your breath - there's NO MORE gold left in Fort Knox! It's all gone. In other words, the GOLD STANDARD that our financial system was based upon is now an illusion. We can't convert our money into gold --- only other currency. The entire underlying basis for our money is now a lie - a sham. The Federal Reserve has become so arrogant that they've become a literal MONEY MAKING MACHINE, creating currency out of thin air! So that's where the Fed gets their money - they literally make it, then lend it to us so they can make even MORE money off of it. Money As A Religion The above-detailed process has become so ridiculous that William Grieder, former assistant managing editor of the Washington Post, wrote a book in 1987 entitled, "Secrets of the Temple: How the Federal Reserve Runs the Country" that details how the Controllers have conditioned us to accept this absurd situation. "To modern minds," he writes, "it seemed bizarre to think of the Federal Reserve as a religious institution. Yet the conspiracy theorists, in their own demented way, were on to something real and significant. The Fed did also function in the realm of religion. Its mysterious powers of money creation, inherited from priestly forebears, shielded a complex bundle of social and psychological meanings. With its own form of secret incantation, the Federal Reserve presided over awesome social ritual, transactions so powerful and frightening they seemed to lie beyond common understanding." Mr. Grieder continues, "Above all, money was a function of faith. It required implicit and universal social consent that was indeed mysterious. To create money and use it, each one must believe, and everyone must believe. Only then did worthless pieces of paper take on value." Do you get it? MONEY is an ILLUSION! Why? Because the gold standard upon which our money is supposed to be based has been eliminated. There's no more gold in Fort Knox. It's all GONE! Now, money really IS only paper!!! In the past, money was supposed to represent something of tangible value. Now it's simply paper! Taken one step further, many of us don't even use paper money any more! Why? Well, here's a scenario. Many places of employment directly deposit their employee's paychecks into the bank. Once the money is there, when bill time comes around, the person in question can write out a stack of checks to pay them. Plus, when they need gasoline they use a credit card; and groceries a debit card. If this person goes out for dinner on Friday night, they can charge the tab on their diner's card. But what about the tip? They simply scribble in the amount at the bottom of the check. So far, the person hasn't spent a single dollar bill. Plus, if you bring electronic banking into the picture, we've virtually eliminated the use for money. And, God forbid, what happens when encoded microchips are implanted into the backs of our hand? In essence, money has become nothing more than an illusion - an electronic figure or amount on a computer screen. That's it! As time goes on, we have an increasing tendency toward being sucked into this Wizard of Oz vortex of unreality. Think about it. Americans as a whole are carrying more personal debt than in any other time in history. Plus our government keeps going further and further into the hole, with no hope of ever crawling out. But we have less and less actual MONEY! We're being enslaved by the debt of electronic blips on a computer screen! And 70% of the banks that control this debt via the Federal Reserve exist in foreign countries! What in God's name is going on? As author William Bramley says, "The result of this whole system is MASSIVE debt at every level of society." We're getting screwed in a sickening way, folks, and the people doing it are demented magician-priests that use the ILLUSION of money as their control device. And I hate to say it, but if we allow things to keep going as they are, the situation will only get worse. Our only hope ... ONLY HOPE ... is to immediately take drastic action and remedy this crime. (to be continued)

I don't think this was past, the Britishers still are in control through India's monetary system. Right after Gandhi's assassination 1948, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) was installed. Although this is a great secret it should be clear that the RBI belongs the BOE, Bank of England, which is a privately owned Bank. In other words, Bank of England is printing the Indian Rupee and loaning it against interest to the Indian government and 1 billion Indians. The Indian State cannot print its own money, in fact they have to pay interest for every transaction. By controlling the currency of a nation you have full control of the countries whole economy. Even the value of the Rupee against other currencies is determined in London. In that sense India was never freed from the Britishers. Mahatma Gandhi surely would not have accepted such a settlement.