Fertilizer Lobby Attempts to Bully First Lady - Triangle Shaped UFO - Las Vegas, NV

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Phantoms and Monsters Fertilizer Lobby Attempts to Bully First Lady Posted: 24 Apr 2009 12:49 PM PDTMrs Obama started work on the kitchen garden with a gang of schoolchildren last month. Media coverage of the first White House food plot since Eleanor Roosevelt "dug for victory" in the Second World War garnered media coverage across the world.But to the consternation of Big Ag, Mrs Obama has said the project will not use chemical products to tackle pests or give her plants a boost, the Times reports.Shortly after the digging began, Mrs Obama received a letter from the Mid-America CropLife Association (MACA), which represents the companies producing the pesticides and fertilisers underpinning "conventional" American agriculture, the paper said.Addressed to "Mrs Barack Obama", the letter congratulated the First Lady on "recognising the importance of agriculture in America". Farming is America's largest industry, generating 20 per cent of GDP and directly or indirectly employing 22 million people.The letter avoiding the term "organic", highlights the role of technological advances - technologies that can see a single acre produce almost 20 tonnes of strawberries of 110,000 heads of lettuce in a season - in modern agriculture."Today, an average farmer produces enough food to feed 144 Americans who are living longer lives than many of their ancestors. Technology in agriculture has allowed for the development of much of what we know and use in our lives today," MACA wrote."If Americans were still required to farm to support their family's basic food and fibre needs, would the US have been leaders in the advancement of science, communication, education, medicine, transportation and the arts?"We live in a very different world than that of our grandparents. Americans are juggling jobs with the needs of children and ageing parents. The time needed to tend a garden is not there for the majority of our citizens, certainly not a garden of sufficient productivity to supply much of a family's year-round food needs."The carefully-worded letter also "respectfully" encourages Mrs Obama to recognise the role played by conventional agriculture in feeding America's growing population.__________________________"Even at Monsanto, many in-the-know employees won't consume the company's own GM creations."By Jeffrey Smith > April 1, 2009NewsWithViews.comIf President Obama's new Food Safety Working Group dedicates all their time and credentials to prevent future food recalls, they will have saved thousands of people--but forsaken millions.Over the last decade, our radically changing diet has ushered in the explosive growth of food-related ailments, such as allergies, asthma, obesity, diabetes, autism, infertility, gastro-intestinal disorders, and learning disabilities. Of all the changes in our food, the most dangerous transformation was the introduction of genetically modified (GM) crops.When these gene-spliced concoctions, such as GM soy, corn, canola, and cottonseed, came on the scene in 1996, the proportion of Americans suffering from three or more chronic ailments. After just 9 years, that nearly doubled to 13%. GM foods are the prime suspect. > > Government policy at odds with scienceUntil now, the government has sidestepped the controversy by hiding behind FDA policy, which asserts that genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are "substantially equivalent" to natural foods and therefore don't require any safety studies. But as Obama acknowledged, "many of the laws and regulations governing food safety in America" are outdated.In truth, the FDA's GMO policy was not even up-to-date when it was implemented in May 1992. FDA documents made public from a lawsuit revealed that virtually all the agency scientists asked to comment voiced strong warnings that GMOs may cause serious health problems. But the FDA was under orders from the White House to fast track GM foods, and the person in charge of FDA policy was the former attorney of biotech giant Monsanto--and later become their vice president. The scientists and the science were ignored.Now that animals fed GMOs--in labs and farms around the world--have exhibited symptoms related to the growing list of diseases in the US population, the President's Food Safety team, including Dr. Margaret Hamburg as FDA Commissioner, must update GMO regulation. A scientifically sound regulation would translate into an immediate ban of current GM crops, and the implementation of rigorous safety testing requirements before any GMO was put back into the food supply. And certainly mandatory labeling, as promised by President Obama during his campaign, must accompany any GM food approval.Presidents and industry insiders avoid GMOs . The Obama family has wisely opted out of exposing themselves to GM foods by requiring organic--and therefore non-GMO--foods served at the White House. They are even planting an organic garden on the south lawn of the White House, to feature 55 types of vegetables. > > The Bush family also had an organic kitchen policy. Laura Bush was "adamant" about it, but kept it all quiet. > > Even at Monsanto, many in-the-know employees won't consume the company's own GM creations.Back in 1999, the management of the cafeteria at Monsanto's UK headquarters in High Wycombe, England wrote: > > "In response to concern raised by our customers . . . we have decided to remove, as far as possible, genetically modified soy and maize (corn) from all food products served in our restaurant. . . . We have taken the above steps to ensure that you, the customer, can feel confident in the food we serve." And one former Monsanto scientist told me that his colleagues, who were safety testing milk from cows injected with the company's genetically engineered bovine growth hormone, decided to stop drinking milk--unless it was organic.It's now time to let us all opt out of this dangerous and failed GM experiment. If Obama's team is serious about food safety and public health, they must take GMOs off our plates and put them back into the laboratory.NOTE: I realize this is a bit on the political side of the ledger but the fact that we are being fed so many chemicals through our foods is disturbing. Personally, I consider this nothing less than a conspiracy and criminal.Photo: Triangle Shaped UFO - Las Vegas, NV - 4/21/09 Posted: 24 Apr 2009 07:00 AM PDTStatement: Tuesday Night, April 21, 2009My wife and I were standing outside of the Treasure Island Resort in Las Vegas, NV. We planned to view and record the 10pm Siren's of Treasure Island show and had been one of the first people to arrive (sometime around 9:15pm) and we moved to a position directly in front of the hotel.There is not much to do during the 45 minutes leading up to the show, so my wife began talking to people next to us and I was observing the low-flying commercial and private aircraft that were departing McCarran Int. Airport and flying almost directly overhead from east-to-west.As more people gathered, sometime between 9:45pm and 9:55pm I noticed a group of people a short distance away from us (maybe 30ft to 40ft) looking up toward the sky and pointing. My immediate thought was that they were looking at another aircraft as it flew overhead. I glanced up and could not see anything out of the ordinary...I looked twice, trying to guess the general direction based on where the people were pointing but there was nothing obvious to be seen -- no aircraft or helicopters of any kind.While I was distracted by looking for whatever the distraction was in the air, the crew for the Sirens show had raised a sheet or screen on the deck of the Sirens' ship. I asked my wife when they put that up and she said they had just raised it. I glanced at my watch and it was almost 10pm.I started my video camera and aimed it at the screen aboard the Sirens' ship while I continued to observe the people nearby looking up and pointing into the sky. Obviously, more people were looking up and pointing than before and I would guess at least 20 to 30 people were looking up at the sky instead of being ready to watch the Treasure Island show.Once again, I looked up and took a couple of moments to allow my eyes to adjust. There were no aircraft overhead, so I assumed it must be something much more faint and harder to see than a Boeing 737 at 1,200ft.That's when I saw the object. It was almost directly overhead, but I would guess that I was looking northward and upwards at an angle of at least 80 degrees.What I saw was a triangular formation of lights...an open V-shape, perhaps 3-times wider than it was tall. The leading point of the V was directed several degrees west of due north...assuming the Las Vegas strip runs directly north-and-south, I would say that the formation was pointed and moving on an approximate 340-to-345 degree heading. In the one-to-two seconds that I first observed the object, I concluded that it was not a commercial airliner, nor was it a formation of individual aircraft. It appeared to me to be a single object, flying at an altitude much greater than that of the departing aircraft from nearby McCarran.I made a comment out loud to my wife, which you can hear on the video, and I attempted to frame the object with my video camera. I had the camera lens zoomed in for preparation for the show, and was unable to obviously capture the object on video. I tried to use the nearby lighting post (one of the many theater lights used for the Treasure Island show) as a reference guide to frame the object, but either the lens was zoomed in too tightly or the camera's iris could not adjust quickly enough to the change of lighting conditions.In the background, I heard emergency sirens from somewhere nearby on the strip but I could not say if they were police, fire, or ambulance sirens since I did not turn to look behind us.I directed my attention back to the Treasure Island show as it began moments later, and was unable to continue to observe the object.The total event lasted at least 8-12 minutes based on the actions of the crowd and the people who saw the object before I did. And I have no idea how long the object was in view after I stopped observing it.I am a licensed private pilot, an amateur videographer, and professional graphic artist. I have uploaded the video from the event and a Photoshop image depicting what I saw.********************Have you had a close encounter or witnessed something unusual?Send us an emailAbducted By Witches, Woman Recalls Her Shocking Life in the Coven Posted: 24 Apr 2009 06:41 AM PDTAt the age of 15, Nikki Russo checked into a California hospital for treatment of an eating disorder. It was in this hospital that she was eventually abducted by a nurse, initiated into a coven of witches and thrown into a dark world filled with drugs, alcohol, abuse and intimidation.Today, Russo’s story and struggle to recovery is chronicled in the new book The Pomegranate Seed — Nikki Russo’s Sojourn Through Institutional Failure and the World of the Occult.The book, published by iUniverse, is written by veteran Gulf Coast Newspaper staff writer Bob Morgan, who first interviewed Russo in October 2007 and wrote an article regarding her story.Why come forward with such a painful book now?“Timing is everything,” Russo, now 37, said this week. “It’s a means of survival. You can only keep the memories down to a certain point. It gets to the point that more or less you have to deal with it.“I hope that people walk away with the knowledge of what is out there and what can happen,” Russo said. “I hope this book can open people’s eyes.”Morgan, who has won 20 Alabama and Mississippi press awards, said Russo’s story is the most compelling he has personally encountered during his years in journalism.“Two things I would say about Nikki’s story. First, anybody who has a loved one needs to hear Nikki’s story and confront the reality of what can potentially happen when people turn to societal institutions that should be trustworthy. And second, the amount of courage it took for Nikki to come forward and tell this story is beyond question. The book is not only shocking, but intensely personal.”According to Morgan, the tone of The Pomegranate Seed was set by two considerations. The 2007 newspaper article, once it hit the Internet, was scrutinized by many Wiccans or witchcraft practitioners, some of whom dismissed Russo’s story as so-called “Satanic panic.” Thus, Morgan said the book was written with an eye to dates, court documents and depositions that leave no doubt that Russo’s story happened in the real world.The other consideration was Russo herself and the personal pain and trauma she continues to go through after nearly 20 years. Going over the events that occurred from 1988-90 during interviews for the book often pushed Russo to her limits, Morgan said. He adds that on some occasions Russo had to take a week off before delving into the material again.“You and I might take a day for granted but Nikki does not,” Morgan said.According to Morgan, he got the idea for the book title from a poem of Homer, the ancient Greek writer. The “Hymn to Demeter” tells the story of a maiden who was forced to live her life partially in the light and partially in the dark because she ate pomegranate seed in the Underworld.It was through this process and release of the book that Russo hoped she would find the closure she has so desperately sought. For Russo, unfortunately, the release of the book has not brought that closure.“When stuff like this happens, you can’t walk away from it, it stays with you.” she said. “I’ll never get back what was taken. I’ll never be able to get away from the memories.”Some of the frustrations that Russo encountered almost 20 years ago in dealing with the State of California, she continues to experience today in connection with what she calls the “victim-witness” program.In the same way that Russo had to change her name years ago to escape threats from coven members, she knows today that the person they abducted no longer exists. At the same time however, she is comfortable with the person she is today.After she left the “Brotherhood,” the coven of witches in which she was initiated, a deprogrammer told Russo she had two choices: She could either go into a padded room or try and function and contribute to society.“The padded room was really not that appealing,” Russo said.Bulgarian Man Claims He Captured Photo Of Alien Being Posted: 24 Apr 2009 06:30 AM PDTA man is claiming to have accidently photographed a possible extraterrestrial in Bulgaria. The story has made headlines in the Eastern European nation. The man took a photo of a group of friends who were out for the night and it was only when he developed the picture that he noticed the rather scary looking creature hanging in a nearby tree.Interestingly, local villagers are claiming that they have actually spotted the possible extraterrestrial lurking around the village and seen the odd UFO hovering in the skies above the area.We expect many readers will take this report with a grain of salt. ‘Not convinced’ noted one Russian ufologist: ‘Would creatures capable of traversing through the vast distances of space come all the way to hang off a tree in some remote Bulgarian village looking like an abandoned party costume’.NOTE: Yeah, I know.... Anyway, there has been an increase of credible UFO sightings in eastern Europe the past few years. Granted, this one is far-fetched but I'm just reporting it.********************Anomalist Books - works on maverick science, unexplained mysteries, unorthodox theories, strange talents, and unexpected discoveries. Please check out their excellent and diverse catalogTracking Down Spirits at a Former Indiana Train Station Posted: 24 Apr 2009 06:25 AM PDTLooking for things that go bump in the night is a serious, fact-finding endeavor for Mike McDowell, president of the Indiana Ghost Trackers.Stories of possible haunting at the near-century-old former Pennsy Station, now used as Chamber of Commerce offices, bring the Highland resident to Hobart on a gloomy, rainy Monday afternoon.“We’re here hoping to find proof,” McDowell said at the start of his investigation.The tools of his trade include a recorder used to tape a series of questions asked of the possible spirit or spirits, a compass to determine if there is a shift in the magnetic field and other machines used to measure ion counts and even cold zones.“Why are you here?” is just one of the questions McDowell asks on a recording he’ll later play back in amplified form on his home computer.“Nothing jumps back at me yet,” he said of his initial investigation that includes the main level of the brick building and the cellar.Mike Adams, the chamber’s executive director, said he’d like to have an explanation for some 50 unexplainable experiences he and his administrative assistant, Lisa Cavazos, have witnessed while working in the building off Lillian Street for close to two years.“There might be some logical explanations,” Adams said. “Either way it adds character to Hobart. It’s fun.”He and Lisa have heard their names being called when no one else is around. They’ve seen lights and a ceiling fan go off and on unexpectedly, and they’ve both had that eerie feeling that someone is watching them.“There’s a general feeling of anxiety, especially if you go downstairs in the cellar,” Adams said.People who used to work at the building when it was a gift shop have their own ghost stories to tell.One woman, whose name The Times agreed not to use, said she was working in the building about 10 years ago and had already locked up when she saw something she can’t explain.She said she saw a man dressed in old, worn-out boots, denim jeans and a duster coat standing inside the store.“As I slowly lifted my head he kind of went away. I immediately knew what I’d seen, and I couldn’t get out of there fast enough. It was the most vivid thing, and I’ve never forgotten it even 10 years later,” she said.Adams, a former U.S. Marine, said he’s not the type of person who could be called a believer in the supernatural.“I’m generally an explainer and there’s some things I can’t explain,” he said.Still, knowing the history of the former train station, a place where people said goodbye to loved ones who went off to war and never returned, it seems possible to him that spirits could remain.“This is the logical place, in a railroad station with all that emotion,” Adams said.And although McDowell said he won’t know if the old train station is haunted until he goes over his findings, Adams isn’t exactly comforted.Adams said he wouldn’t agree to spend a night alone in the old train station for all the money in the world.“I would choose not to,” he said.********************Are you interested in the paranormal, cryptozoology, UFOs and conspiracies? 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