Foresight of Hindsight

NASA Has Built A Flying Saucer

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Fri, 16 May 2014 00:40:00 +0000

"NASA workers at the agency's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, wearing clean room 'bunny suits,' prepare the Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD) test article for shipment later this month to Hawaii. LDSD will help land bigger space payloads on Mars or return them back to Earth."
Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltec
.... click photo for a larger image

Click _here_ for the JPL website page.

"NASA's LDSD test is designed to investigate breakthrough technologies that will benefit landing future human and robotic Mars missions, as well as aid in safely returning large payloads to Earth. The NASA LDSD test over the Pacific Ocean will simulate the entry, descent and landing speeds a spacecraft would be exposed to when flying through the Martian atmosphere. During the test, a large saucer-shaped disk carrying an inflatable inner-tube-shaped decelerator and parachute system will be carried to an altitude of 120,000 feet (37 kilometers) by a giant balloon. After release from the balloon, rockets will lift the disk to 180,000 feet (55 kilometers) while reaching supersonic speeds. Traveling at 3.5 times the speed of sound, the saucer's decelerator will inflate, slowing the vehicle, and then a parachute will deploy to carry it to the ocean's surface."

"A mission overview briefing about [the] upcoming flight test of the Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD) experiment will be provided to reporters attending a media day on Monday, June 2, at the U.S. Navy's Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF) on Kauai, Hawaii. The public can watch the briefing via live streaming, at 11 a.m. PDT (2 p.m. EDT/8 a.m. HST)."

"The briefing will be streamed live on the agency's website at:
http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv
It will also be carried live on:
http://www.ustream.tv/nasajpl2"

More information is _here_
.

Apocalyptic Alarmism in the Year 2012

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Tue, 04 Mar 2014 00:47:00 +0000

In the three or four years before 2012, apocalyptic dogma emerged from various religious groups and began to infiltrate the mainstream, with a lot of help from Internet sites like YouTube and Facebook. … Do you remember? ... A lot of people were worried about a certain date in December 2012 when doom was supposed to happen. After a year or two it became "apocalyptic alarmism" on a grand scale! It even spawned a Hollywood blockbuster!

The spike in 2009 would be because the movie '2012' was released in the United States on November 13, 2009, and in the rest of the world shortly after that date.

By the way, perhaps the most widespread myth during those times was that the ancient Mayan race predicted the end-of-the-world on December 21, 2012. Anthropologists said that the Mayan culture does not include end-of-world beliefs. It just happened to be the date when the ancient Long Count calendar was due to end one cycle and start another. It was the gringos ('white' people) that latched onto the date and invented various world-wide disasters that had zero evidence to back them up. Most of them were not in the least bit plausible.
(Interesting videos on this page :- Mayans Never Predicted an Apocalypse)

What follows is *part of a blog post I wrote during that year. .. I hoped that the worried people would not be obsessed by one or more natural events that they thought would be “signs” of an apocalypse that would surely happen in December. (The post was also on the 'www.2012hoax.org' site. … That site now redirects to 'www.cosmophobia.org')

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Natural Earth Processes

Statistics [and history] tell us that on *any day during the year there is a good chance that somewhere on Earth there will be *one or more* of these events :-

~ algal bloom or major pollution,

~ avalanche or land slide,

~ deaths of varying numbers of animals,

~ earthquakes of varying magnitude,

~ flood or storm surge or whirlpool,

~ freezing or very hot temperatures,

~ hurricane or cyclone or typhoon,

~ major storm with snow or hail,

~ sand storm or dust storm,

~ sink hole or mine collapse,

~ tornado or water spout,

~ tsunami or tidal wave,

~ volcanic eruption.

We cannot predict or forecast most of those things, but we do know there is a good chance that *one or more* might happen somewhere on Earth on any given day. So we shouldn't be surprised if one or more of those things happen on any particular day(s) in December. It will just be the Earth doing its thing. It will always do its own thing no matter what its human inhabitants think. Also, we have no reason to expect that any particular day in December will have *zero natural disasters. If a natural disaster does happen it will be a "sign" of absolutely nothing, other than the Earth continuing as normal.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Apocalyptic alarmism about various natural events is an old problem. ... Alarmism can also involve events that *might originate from outside of the Earth's atmosphere. Astronomer David Morrison, senior scientist with the NASA Lunar Science Institute, coined the term 'cosmophobia' after answering questions at the NASA "Ask an Astrobiologist" page. He defined it as "An unreasoning fear of the cosmos".
Further information is at the 'www.cosmophobia.org' site; and at the NASA JPL site about asteroids and comets. "No one should be overly concerned about an Earth impact of an asteroid or comet. The threat to any one person from auto accidents, disease, other natural disasters and a variety of other problems is much higher than the threat from Near Earth Objects."
Also, see my last post: What If Saturn "Explodes or Something".

What if Saturn "Explodes or Something"?

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Wed, 29 Jan 2014 09:29:00 +0000

[ This post has been saved here: http://archive.is/HkJJ0 ]

This was a question on the 'Yahoo! Answers' website recently :-
"If something happens to Saturn like it explodes or something, will it affect Earth?"
Link to Yahoo! page

It reminded me of the type of question we used to get on the '2012hoax.org' forum leading up to the infamous date in December 2012 when doom was supposed to happen. Many of the questions were asked by young people who had been reading websites and Facebook pages, and watching videos, made by the trolls and doom merchants. Those people still occasionally make idiotic claims that have zero evidence to back them up, and are not in the least bit plausible, and are not based in any sort of scientific fact.

There are many young people in the world who tend to believe those silly claims without stopping to think if there is any proof or evidence, or checking to see if there is a track record of similar false claims made by those writers, speakers, and video makers.

In September 2012, I wrote this paragraph in case it helped with the problem :-
"Would you believe me if I made a wild claim that a huge, very deep hole five miles across is going to appear in the South Island of New Zealand on May 30 next year? Would it make any difference to you if I said that the May 30 date is when the ancient Martian calendar ends one cycle and starts another? …. Since I haven't said how or why that is possible I hope you won't just assume that I am correct. Most people need some proof, or evidence, that backs up these wild claims. Otherwise, I could say something like: "I've found a new species of apple tree that has the apples falling upwards!" and everybody would believe me without question."

I also wrote this at the end of a blog post called: Just Another Day in December :-
"Because we know all of these things, we have no reason to believe what any trolls or doom-merchants try to suggest. We can definitely reject their crazy claims with science, statistics, and common sense. In fact, we know there is absolutely zero scientific evidence to backup any of their idiotic, worthless claims. So it isn't surprising that in four or more years they haven't changed that fact. The take-home-lesson is: 'Just saying it doesn't make it true', especially if the doomsayer is likely to make a profit out of the doom saying.
Pick *any day in December. It will be Just Another Day."

In case you were wondering, this was my response on the 'Yahoo! Answers' website :-
(Note that the phrase 'extremely unlikely' really means 'it isn't going to happen'. Planets don't just explode without any external influences like collisions with other planets. At least not in our very stable solar system that is several *billions of years old, in a safe area of the Galaxy.)

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Let's say that something does happen to Saturn. Maybe it does 'explode or something' (though we realize that is extremely unlikely). First we would need to say just how far away from the Earth it is.

For convenience, the distance from the Sun to the Earth is called: one Astronomical Unit (AU). Saturn is a further 9 AU away, or a total of about 10 AU from the Sun. If you consider that the Earth is at 93 million miles or 150 million kilometers from the Sun, Saturn is an *enormous distance away! Between the Earth and Saturn there is lots of space for Mars, the asteroid belt, and the biggest planet Jupiter.

So what is Saturn made of? Saturn is called a gas giant, but it is not entirely gaseous. It is thought that the interior of Saturn is similar to that of Jupiter, having a small rocky core surrounded by hydrogen and helium. If we pretend that it has disintegrated there would be *lots of gas and a small amount of rock (and some dirty ice from the rings). The total mass would be the same as an intact planet, so it is logical to assume that most of the disintegrated materials would continue to orbit the Sun in roughly the same orbit as the intact planet. If the disintegration was violent enough some of the rock might be ejected away from the other material. However, that wouldn't concern us because of the enormous distance from Earth, the small amount of rock, the dispersal being a possible 360 degrees in every direction, and the presence of Jupiter between us and Saturn.

It is fortunate for us that there is a planet in the Solar System the size of Jupiter. (It is 318 times bigger than Earth!) There is evidence that Jupiter has enough gravity to attract many of the space rocks and comets that get close to it. It has been called the Solar System's vacuum cleaner.

So we don't need to worry that the Earth might be affected in any way by anything that might happen to Saturn.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Update:
I just found this article, dated July 19, 2012, in the 'Weekly World News' :-
Saturn Ready To Explode
Weekly World News is a humorous publication that uses parody and spoof articles, as you can see in this short list :-
~ Putin Will Run For President of U.S. in 2016!
~ President Obama Gets a Tattoo (a picture of his own face!)
~ Watching Super Bowl Causes Impotence
~ 'Toy Story 4' Will Be Rated R

There is also an older article in 'The Spoof', dated March 19, 2010 :-
Saturn Will Explode Tomorrow
It is obvious what kind of publication it is. Apart from its name, there is also this sentence: "Always there with the funniest spoof headlines."
...

Is This How Egyptian Pyramid Blocks Were Constructed?

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Fri, 06 Sep 2013 00:19:00 +0000

YouTube page :- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znQk_yBHre4

Further information is _here_ and _here_

This is an one hour radio interview recorded in April 2011 :-

YouTube page :- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nifbaRv7RVw
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Just Another Day in December

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 06:03:00 +0000

~~ There has been nothing unusual about this year. ~~
There will also be nothing unusual about *all of the remaining days.
Pick *any day in December. It will be Just Another Day.

Below is what we know about the Earth and the Solar System. It explains how we can definitely reject all the false claims of the trolls and doom-merchants.
- -

The Earth and the Solar System

~ The Solar System is in a relatively safe area of the galaxy, about 26,000 light years from the center.
~ The planets happily cruise around the Sun in almost circular orbits.
~ Space agencies know exactly where the planets will be many years into the future due to the very stable orbits.
~ The Sun is the type that will remain relatively benign for about the next 1.1 billion years.
~ The Earth is 93 million miles from the Sun, somewhere in its 360 degree orbit.
~ The Earth is very stable. It only wobbles slightly over thousands of years.
~ The Earth has extensive magnetic fields that direct most solar energy around it.
~ A thick atmosphere reflects up to 95% of any solar energy that gets past the magnetic fields.
~ The upper atmosphere incinerates the vast majority of small and medium sized space rocks that enter it.
~ Any remaining pieces would likely fall onto the oceans (71% of the Earth's surface), or onto the deserts and arctic areas.
~ Whole sky surveys assure us that there *aren't any large asteroids in our neighborhood that we need to be concerned about.
~ Even if there is a large asteroid sometime in the distant future, mankind now has the ability to nudge it into a safer trajectory.
~ There is zero telescopic evidence from the Earth, and satellites, of any other large objects in the inner solar system.
~ There are many thousands of mostly amateur astronomers around the World who would advise us of any other objects.
~ If there really was a new object we would be able to see it now in the night sky. It would be brighter than Venus!
~ If there really was a new object it would surely be the greatest 'breaking news' story in the history of 'breaking news'!

The Earth and the Solar System continue as normal. Just like they have done for billions and billions of years.
- -

Natural Earth Processes

Statistics tell us that on *any day during the year there is a good chance that somewhere on Earth there will be *one or more* of these events :-
~ algal bloom or major pollution,
~ avalanche or land slide,
~ deaths of varying numbers of animals,
~ earthquakes of varying magnitude,
~ flood or storm surge or whirlpool,
~ freezing or very hot temperatures,
~ hurricane or cyclone or typhoon,
~ major storm with snow or hail,
~ sand storm or dust storm,
~ sink hole or mine collapse,
~ tornado or water spout,
~ tsunami or tidal wave,
~ volcanic eruption.

We cannot predict or forecast most of those things, but we do know there is a good chance that *one or more* might happen somewhere on Earth on any given day. So we shouldn't be surprised if one or more of those things happen on any particular day(s) in December. It will just be the Earth doing its thing. It will always do its own thing no matter what its human inhabitants think. Also, we have no reason to expect that any particular day in December will have *zero natural disasters. If a natural disaster does happen it will be a "sign" of absolutely nothing, other than the Earth continuing as normal.
- -

Because we know all of these things, we have no reason to believe what any trolls or doom-merchants try to suggest. We can definitely reject their crazy claims with science, statistics, and common sense. In fact, we know there is absolutely zero scientific evidence to backup any of their idiotic, worthless claims. So it isn't surprising that in four or more years they haven't changed that fact. The take-home-lesson is: 'Just saying it doesn't make it true', especially if the doomsayer is likely to make a profit out of the doom saying.
~~ Pick *any day in December. It will be Just Another Day. ~~
- -

If you wish to copy all, or parts, of this post please credit:
foresight-of-hindsight.blogspot.com
and:
www.2012hoax.org
Thank you.
.

The Second Ron Weinland Fail Day

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Sat, 26 May 2012 06:20:00 +0000

Ronald Weinland is the pastor of the 'Church of God - Preparing for the Kingdom of God' (COG-PKG). His first 'Fail Day' was on April 17, 2008. He had predicted that the 'Sounding of the First Trumpet' would start the 'Great Tribulation', and would also be the beginning of his job as the 'Spokesman of the Two Witnesses'. (The Two Witnesses are mentioned in Revelation - the last book of the Christian Bible.) He said that the effects of the First Trumpet (death of one third of the plants in the United States) would increase in destructive power over a seven week period.

I like to call April 17, 2008 his first Fail Day because nothing unusually destructive happened on that day, or on any days during the following seven week period. Certainly nothing that he had predicted. His excuse was that the effects were "spiritual".

Comments made during the April 17 non-event on the 'ironwolf.dangerousgames' forum can be seen here :-
http://ironwolf.dangerousgames.com/forum/index.php/topic,4.msg231.html#msg231

Ronald Weinland's second Fail Day is destined to be this Sunday, May 27 (on our calendar). Since the Church of God religious sect uses the Jewish calendar for their festival dates, Ron's Fail Day is actually from sunset on Saturday night to sunset on Sunday night. (Sunset to sunset is the Jewish day.) Ron's predictions for this Fail Day are economic collapse, WW3, and other general apocalyptic events - or at least the start of them.

It is generally thought that Jerusalem will be the city that first sees the effects of any [imaginary or spiritual] apocalyptic events. Sunset in Jerusalem is on Saturday, May 26, at about 7:36 pm. (Israel Daylight Time, IDT).
In case anybody is wondering, some of the equivalent times around the world are :-
USA Pacific - Sat. 9:36 am. (PDT)
USA Eastern - Sat. 12:36 pm. (EDT)
(GMT/UTC is Sat. 16:36.)
United Kingdom - Sat. 5:36 pm. (BST)
Sydney, Australia - Sun. 2:36 am. (EST)
New Zealand - Sun. 4:36 am. (NZST)

I intend to monitor the news services (for fun!) from the time shown above, much like I did on April 17, 2008, and record any unusual events below. I fully expect that there will be none! Earth will continue as usual. I will also change the time entries below from grey to black once they have passed. (Sorry I won't be near any computers between 3pm and 7pm on Sunday, NZ time.)

A fellow blogger called 'Jack635' (http://jack635.blogspot.com/) has reminded me that my country, New Zealand, is one of the first countries to see the new day - because it is close to the [imaginary] International Date Line that goes down the center of the Pacific Ocean. So if there is anything unusual to see or hear or feel, New Zealanders will be among the first people to see or hear or feel it. (Thanks a lot Jack!) In case you're wondering, I'm *not* expecting to see or hear or feel anything unusual.

USA _____ USA _____ UK ______ Israel ___ Australia ___ New Zealand

(PDT)     (EDT)     (BST)     (IDT)      (EST)         (NZST)

SAT.      SAT.      SAT.      SAT.       SUN.          SUN.

9:36am __ 12:36pm _ 5:36pm __ 7:36pm ___ 2:36am ______ 4:36am 

10am ____ 1pm _____ 6pm _____ 8pm ______ 3am _________ 5am

11am ____ 2pm _____ 7pm _____ 9pm ______ 4am _________ 6am

12pm ____ 3pm _____ 8pm _____ 10pm _____ 5am _________ 7am

1pm _____ 4pm _____ 9pm _____ 11pm _____ 6am _________ 8am

2pm _____ 5pm _____ 10pm ____ 12am _____ 7am _________ 9am

                              SUN.

3pm _____ 6pm _____ 11pm ____ 1am ______ 8am _________ 10am

4pm _____ 7pm _____ 12am ____ 2am ______ 9am _________ 11am

                    SUN.

5pm _____ 8pm _____ 1am _____ 3am ______ 10am ________ 12pm

6pm _____ 9pm _____ 2am _____ 4am ______ 11am ________ 1pm

7pm _____ 10pm ____ 3am _____ 5am ______ 12pm ________ 2pm

8pm _____ 11pm ____ 4am _____ 6am ______ 1pm _________ 3pm

9pm _____ 12am ____ 5am _____ 7am ______ 2pm _________ 4pm

          SUN.

10pm ____ 1am _____ 6am _____ 8am ______ 3pm _________ 5pm

11pm ____ 2am _____ 7am _____ 9am ______ 4pm _________ 6pm

12am ____ 3am _____ 8am _____ 10am _____ 5pm _________ 7pm

SUN.

1am _____ 4am _____ 9am _____ 11am _____ 6pm _________ 8pm

2am _____ 5am _____ 10am ____ 12pm _____ 7pm _________ 9pm

3am _____ 6am _____ 11am ____ 1pm ______ 8pm _________ 10pm

4am _____ 7am _____ 12pm ____ 2pm ______ 9pm _________ 11pm

5am _____ 8am _____ 1pm _____ 3pm ______ 10pm ________ 12am

                                                       MON.

6am _____ 9am _____ 2pm _____ 4pm ______ 11pm ________ 1am

7am _____ 10am ____ 3pm _____ 5pm ______ 12am ________ 2am

                                         MON.

8am _____ 11am ____ 4pm _____ 6pm ______ 1am _________ 3am

9am _____ 12pm ____ 5pm _____ 7pm ______ 2am _________ 4am

9:37am __ 12:37pm _ 5:37pm __ 7:37pm ___ 2:37am ______ 4:37am

_____________________________ SUNSET in Jerusalem

UPDATE
As expected nothing unusual (such as the start of a world war, or general apocalyptic events) happened during the sunset-to-sunset period. You might find it hard to believe but Ronald Weinland hasn't missed a beat! His destructive cult ministry continues, and he still expects to receive tithes from his sad 'sheep'. Within the next day or two (after his May 27 failure) he wrote a new blog entry on his website and produced a sermon. He announced that the new predicted date is the next Pentecost which is on May 19, 2013. Apparently a special appearance by Jesus is deferred until then. If I were you I wouldn't bet on it. It will be 'The Third Ron Weinland Fail Day'.

UPDATE #2
June 13, 2012 - Ronald Weinland was convicted for five counts of income tax evasion.
http://ronaldweinland.info/falseprophet/2012/06/13/yet-another-new-title-for-ronald-weinland/ .

Evidence Shows No Global Warming For Last 10 Years

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 11:19:00 +0000

Satellite temperature measurements show that there hasn't been any atmospheric global warming for the last ten years, despite steadily rising levels of atmospheric CO2. Further, as shown in the graph below, the trend curve has stabilized, and appears to be ready to start trending slightly downwards. (However, please be advised that the authors of the graph say the trend curve should not be construed as having any predictive value whatsoever.)

Graph by Dr Roy Spencer and Dr John Christy, University of Alabama, Huntsville.
http://www.drroyspencer.com/wp-content/uploads/UAH_LT_1979_thru_December_2011.png
NOTE: Click to enlarge, or see the full size graph at the bottom of the blog page.

It seems that global atmospheric temperatures are not the only way that global warming can be measured, as explained in this extract :-
"As a recent 'Skeptical Science' post by Dana Nuccitelli has pointed out global warming hasn't stopped, despite a recent lull in global surface temperatures. The oceans, which are the main heat sink for global warming, have scarcely skipped a beat in soaking up heat. The hiatus in global surface temperatures appears to simply be a reflection of natural variability, principally the exchange of heat between the ocean surface and the atmosphere. But we shouldn't expect this to last much longer. Eventually that ocean heat buried in deeper layers will come back to the surface, and we'll experience the warm phase of this natural cool/warm (La Niña/El Niño-based) cycle."
... "They conclude that the lull is an illusion, and that rapid warming of global surface temperatures is likely to resume in the next few years."
http://www.skepticalscience.com/NASA-scientists-expect-more-rapid-global-warming-in-the-very-near-future-part-1.html

Of course, we have yet to see how much heat will be released by future El Nino events. If the 1998 year is anything to go by they could be only relatively brief events that don't much affect the overall trend - about every five years. Another unknown factor is just how long can the oceans continue to absorb heat from the atmosphere. According to this graph the oceans have been absorbing a lot of heat since about 1975, with no indication of when any of it will be released, other than during brief El Nino's. ... The extract above quotes NASA scientists saying: "rapid warming ... is likely to resume in the next few years." What evidence is there that the warming will be rapid? Also, what evidence is there that it will resume in the next few years?

This graph shows the steadily rising levels of atmospheric CO2 :-

http://hypsithermal.files.wordpress.com/2007/12/joedaleotempco2.jpg
(click on the graph for a larger image)

This graph goes back to 1880 when ground-based temperature recordings started, and shows the difference between the slight overall temperature increase and the large increase in CO2 levels :-

http://c3headlines.typepad.com/.a/6a010536b58035970c012876ffd0b9970c-pi
During the 130 years average global temperatures increased by 0.72 deg.C., and atmospheric CO2 increased by 96.7 parts per million. The arrowed lines show the overall trends. The overall trend for temperature is an increase of 0.57 deg.C. per century, and the overall trend for CO2 is an increase of 63.7 ppm per century.
(click on the graph for a larger image)

In this video (Jan 27, 2012 by The Wall Street Journal) some scientists say that there is no compelling argument for drastic action, and they say that there is no evidence of global warming for the past ten years. (The year 1998 had a particularly large El Nino effect, which can be ignored when looking for overall trends.) :-

The 'op-ed' article mentioned in the video is here :-
No Need To Panic About Global Warming

The graphs above show a very small geological time period. When you expand the time period (into tens of thousands of years) you can see that the present climate fluctuations appear to be very natural. In fact global temperatures have been much warmer than today for almost all of the past 10,000 years. The graph below was created by Cuffy and Clow in 1997, and is based on Greenland ice core records :-

http://iceagenow.info/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Easterbrook-Natural_global_warming.jpg
NOTE: A full size graph is at the bottom of the blog page.

When you expand the time period even further into millions of years you can see that there is little correlation between CO2 levels and global temperatures :-

http://www.geocraft.com/WVFossils/PageMill_Images/image277.gif
(click on the graph for a larger image)
The text explaining the graph is on this page :-
http://www.geocraft.com/WVFossils/Carboniferous_climate.html

.

Mayans Never Predicted An Apocalypse

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 10:03:00 +0000

YouTube page :- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kcc_KAhwpa0

The NASA 2012 page is here :- Why The World Won't End

Also: .. 2012 - A Scientific Realty Check (text) ... YouTube video .. by NASA JPL

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"World At 2012"
Arizona Public Media interviews University of Arizona Anthropology Professor Daniela Triadan :-

See this page :- http://www.azpm.org/science/story/2012/1/5/1830-will-the-world-end-in-2012
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The Truth About Nibiru

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 07:53:00 +0000

YouTube page :- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TIy-t48uU0
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New Prediction For 2012 ! [repost]

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 10:34:00 +0000

[extract]
"Infamous futurist Alexander Grant has recently unveiled his latest prediction for the year 2012, posting on his blog his belief that early in that year there is a 99.9 percent chance that millions of people will still believe in hokey, simple-minded [rubbish] like the world ending with the Mayan calendar or the writings of Nostradamus."
"He also prophesied that many people are likely to continue believing in similar pseudo-scientific garbage in 2013, 2014 and forever onward until they realize that just because some guy with a beard on the History Channel sounds like he knows what he is talking about doesn’t mean that he does."
" 'I see a future where people read and watch things that are presented as though they’re proven fact and then accept and regurgitate this trash as truth - without bothering to even Google, much less research, the contrary viewpoint,' Grant wrote."
[extract ends]

by High Plains Reader, Fargo, North Dakota, USA. (Sept. 2009.)
[As at Dec. 4, 2011, this article has been deleted from the 'High Plains Reader' website.]
http://hpr1.com/
.

The Truth About Comet Elenin

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 06:09:00 +0000

YouTube page :- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwZb-ERpY-U

Also, please see this page of information by NASA JPL :-
Comet Elenin Poses No Threat To Earth

"Comet Elenin ... will pass about 22 million miles (35 million kilometers) from Earth during its closest approach on Oct. 16, 2011." ... "That's more than 90 times the distance to the moon." (NASA / JPL)
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Interpretation of Ancient Scriptures

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 11:40:00 +0000

This was a post on a forum called the 'Ironwolf Forum' on 24-08-2008 :-
--------------------------------------------------------------------
"Events of the weekend now passing have done nothing but absolutely convince me that romanized Christians (and before you start with me, ALL Christians have been "romanized", since the whole of modern Christianity has descended from the Councils of Nicea beginning in the 4th century --- no matter how much they protest that they aren't) are in thrall to a man-made god of a very different sort than they would have us believe. A god of a very different sort indeed. Most especially the self-appointed leaders of same."
"It's true, it's true, men make their own gods! But why do they make them so evil?"
--------------------------------------------------------------------
http://ironwolf.dangerousgames.com/forum/index.php/topic,438.msg5008.html#msg5008

Maybe it's just the interpretation of the ancient scriptures.
For example, the knights and 'soldiers' during the Crusades thought they had found justification for their violent actions in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible.
A candidate for interpretation and justification: "Do not be discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God's." .. 2 Chronicles 20:15.

Maybe we can go further back than Nicea, and further back than even the first Christians and Gnostics, -- to a time when a group of disciples were called 'The Way' (or Urxa in Aramaic). They had gathered around a prophet called Yeshua. The Greek speaking people decided to call him Jesus. The original teachings of Yeshua that can be filtered out of the Gospels (both kinds) have been found to be different to the teachings that came after Yeshua. (Eg. Saul of Tarsus/St. Paul.) If my interpretation is correct, the original teachings were far from being evil. Check the Sermon found in Matt. 5,6,7.

Maybe even more adventurous souls can go back over 600 years before Yeshua to the first prophet called Zarathustra (or Zoroaster in Greek). His followers worshiped a god called Ahura Mazda. The exiled Jews in Babylon/Ancient Persia would have been exposed to his religion. Long before Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, it was Zarathustra who first saw a single supreme being, a struggle between good and evil, a saviour, and a last judgment. Zoroastrianism still has followers today in parts of Iran and India, and small pockets in other parts of the world.

Anyway, to cut a long story short, like the forum poster (above) hints at, who needs romanized Christianity, man-made evil gods, and self-appointed leaders? -- especially when it is possible to find a different kind of god if you go further back in time.

This was the reply from the forum poster :-
----------------------------------------------
"Even if you do "find a different kind of god if you go further back in time" --- it's still a 'god'."
"Men make their own gods. That is a truism I always believed, intellectually, but events in my life are cohering in a manner that is beginning to convince me of the notion that it is absolutely, inherently, 100% true, beyond all doubt."
----------------------------------------------
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Legal Challenges to Religious Cults

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 10:51:00 +0000

It appears to be possible to sue religious cults. There was a case in the United States about 23 years ago (below). However the cult looks to be more extreme than most religious cults, with evidence of cruel and degrading treatment. Maybe the 1988 case could be regarded as being "case law" that can be quoted by lawyers in new cases...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aggressive Christianity - Mother of 3 sues cult- tells of life in shed
The Sacramento Union, USA, March 16, 1988
by Trinda Pasquet

A former member of an unorthodox Christian sect in Sacramento filed a $20 million lawsuit Tuesday, alleging the group forced her to live in a shed with no toilet and little food for 10 weeks.

Christianity Missions Training Corps - also known as Free Love Ministries -- is also accused in the suit of turning Maura A. Schmierer's family against her and forcing her to sign over all her worldly possessions to them, including her share of a home in French Gulch. In an interview Tuesday, Schmierer said she and her now ex-husband, Steven, were the first to join the organization, founded by Jim and Lila Green, in 1982.

The sect of about 15 members patterns itself after the military and operates out of four communal houses or "barracks" in the 2200 block of X Street. Members wear militaristic uniforms and are given rank in the "army of God," Schmierer said. Their warfare is against the devil and other "evils," such as homosexuality and Rock 'N 'Roll music.
Schmierer said she was afraid to leave the religious group after the Greens, her husband and two other members decided on Jan. 10, 1987, that she had "fallen under God's judgment" and had been "forsaken."

Schmierer's alleged sin was "spiritual adultery," which she interprets as meaning that she put her family before God.

The mother of three said she was removed from her family and forced to live in "intolerable conditions" for the following six months.
According to the lawsuit, which seeks $20 million in punitive damages and unspecified compensatory damages, the organization changed Schmierer's name to "forsaken" and moved her into a workshop. She was dressed in a black scarf and a sack dress and ordered to perform menial tasks, the suit said. Her children - ages 12, 6 and 5 - allegedly complied with orders to call their mother "forsaken" and avert their eyes from her when they saw her in the compound, the suit said.

In late January 1987, Schmierer said she was moved into a 5-by-12-foot wooden shed, in which she could not stand upright. The woman said she and another banished member shared the damp shed without toilet facilities or windows. During the 10 weeks she spent there, she was fed an average of six small, stale peanut butter sandwiches every day, the suit said.

When she was served with divorce papers Feb. 9, 1987, Schmierer said she signed them thinking they were a test of her loyalty to the group and that if she objected she would not be reunited with her family.

In March 1987, the suit said Schmierer and two other female members were advised at a meeting that their husbands were divorcing them for "spiritual adultery." The three women were then allegedly ordered back to the shed, where they remained for about five days.

One of three women reportedly left the compound and Sacramento police were phoned, the suit said. Police searched the compound and shortly thereafter the shed was destroyed by the defendants. Schmierer said she spent the next three weeks in a basement and was then moved into a bedroom for six weeks.

At one point, Schmierer's 5-year-old son was allegedly accused of being "possessed" because of misbehavior. The defendants - which include the Greens and Schmierer's ex-husband - allegedly changed the boy's name to "demon," moved him into Schmierer's bedroom.

Jim Green, the organization's brigadier general, finally ordered Schmierer to leave the compound in July 1987, refusing to let her take her children, the suit said.
For the next three months, Schmierer was away from her children until a court awarded her custody.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[emphasis by me]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"In 1989, the court ordered ACMTC to pay Schmierer $1.2 million; they had lost the lawsuit by default. Not too surprisingly they didn't come up with the money, so Blasier had their compound seized by the court. When an attempt was made to assess its value, however, Free Love Ministries had vacated the premises, which was found to be in ruins. They had apparently demolished the Sacramento compound shortly before fleeing to one of their missions in Mozambique, though the Greens deny this. Neighbors, however had observed them tearing down parts of the buildings, and loading them into vans."
http://www.pacifier.com/~dkossy/ACMTC.html
(Also: http://www.apologeticsindex.org/a14.html )

So it is possible to sue religious cults, but getting the cult to "come up with the money" looks to be a lot harder...
With regard to churches like the 'Church of God - Preparing for the Kingdom of God', it is thought that most of their money isn't even in the USA! --- Switzerland was mentioned not so long ago as a location for their 'secret' bank accounts.
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Self-Appointed 'Prophets' are Mistaken

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 10:33:00 +0000

Self-appointed 'Prophets' are mistaken about which people are included in the 144,000 mentioned in Revelation!!
The Book of Revelation #14 describes the 144,000 as: "These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins" ... "And in their mouths was found no deceit, for they are without fault before the throne of God."
Without getting into too much sordid detail, they are unlikely to pass any of those conditions.
(The translation from the Peshitta Aramaic is very similar, except that it uses the word 'pure' instead of 'virgins'.)

If there are any more doubts about the 'Prophets' or the 'Witnesses', Revelation #11 further specifies that 'The Witnesses' (clothed in sackcloth) are able to spit "fire from their mouths and devour their enemies ... And if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this manner. These have power to shut heaven, so that no rain falls in the days of their prophecy; and they have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to strike the earth with all plagues as often as they desire."
Likewise, I would be extremely surprised if the 'Prophets' or the 'Witnesses' can pass any of the conditions listed.
Obviously, it is the old story about picking what you want to believe, ignoring the rest, and even inventing new doctrine, in spite of the dire warnings in Rev. 22 : 18, 19.

For further information, please see this blog post :-
The Two Witnesses of Revelation by Dennis Diehl
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The Lessons of War From History

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 10:23:00 +0000

I think it is great that people remember the lessons of history. They remember the bad times when despots and dictators became too bold and invaded bordering countries in order to conquer their part of the world. An example within memory of most people today is when Saddam and his 'generals' invaded Kuwait, and later launched many missiles into Israel and Saudi Arabia. (Invasion started: 2 August 1990. ... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_War )
(See also: "Iraqi Missile Strikes" into Israel for six weeks: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_War#Iraqi_missile_strikes_on_Israel_and_Saudi_Arabia )

Older people will remember the appeasement folly at the start of the Second World War.
The "flawed" (Munich Agreement) treaty signed by Neville Chamberlain in 1938 was called 'appeasement' -- meaning, the policy of acceding to the demands of a potentially hostile nation in the hope of maintaining peace. The golden rule is probably never trust the word of a despot or a dictator (or a common criminal for that matter). A dictator, in particular, doesn't usually care what other people say. In the end, dictators do exactly what they want to do (and they make their people do it) -- that's the definition of a dictator.

If the leaders of Great Britain, France and Poland had been blessed with enough foresight in 1938 they could have lined up their combined forces along the Polish border and rejected the advancing Nazi forces.
In the modern world it isn't hard to know when a hostile nation is moving their armed forces into battle-ready positions. There are lots of satellites that can help with that sort of intelligence. So having enough foresight, or making educated predictions isn't quite so important. The leaders can make decisions based on solid facts.

By the way, most people want a peaceful world, but realistic people know that occasionally the human race produces despots or tyrants, and countries must maintain credible *defense* forces, so that the potential invaders won't be quite so bold. ... Also, in the nuclear age (since the Second World War) there has been a concept known as "Mutually Assured Destruction" -- it would be M.A.D. for one nuclear capable country to attack another. The concept is responsible for maintaining relatively sane relations between the nuclear capable countries.
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Feather and Hammer Dropped on the Moon

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 10:08:00 +0000

"At the end of the last Apollo 15 moon walk, Commander David Scott performed a live demonstration for the television cameras. He held out a geologic hammer and a feather and dropped them at the same time. Because they were essentially in a vacuum, there was no air resistance and the feather fell at the same rate as the hammer, as Galileo had concluded hundreds of years before - all objects released together fall at the same rate regardless of mass."
"During the final minutes of the third extravehicular activity, a short demonstration experiment was conducted. A heavy object (a 1.32-kg aluminum geological hammer) and a light object (a 0.03-kg falcon feather) were released simultaneously from approximately the same height (approximately 1.6 m) and were allowed to fall to the surface. Within the accuracy of the simultaneous release, the objects were observed to undergo the same acceleration and strike the lunar surface simultaneously, which was a result predicted by well-established theory, but a result nonetheless reassuring considering both the number of viewers that witnessed the experiment..."
http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/lunar/apollo_15_feather_drop.html

Click on the links in the article to see 'Quicktime' videos of the demonstration.
Note that you may need Apple's Quicktime player installed on your PC.

In case you're wondering - yes, it is essentially a vacuum on the Moon because it doesn't have enough gravity to attract and retain an atmosphere. Moons and smaller objects in Space are not big enough to have a strong gravity.
The Earth captured the Moon because it is so much more massive than the Moon. The planets in the Solar System are a very long way from each other, and therefore they don't attract each other. The Sun retains its planets because it is so much more massive than the planets.

By the way, if the planets ever form a rough lineup on one side of the Sun *nothing* is going to happen!! -- and if some people tell you that the Earth and the Sun are going to lineup with some part of the Milky Way you can tell them that *absolutely**nothing* is going to happen!! The distance between our Solar System (on one of the outer rings) and the center of the Milky Way is about 30,000 light years. A light year is the distance that light travels, in Space, in one year. (wow!) So it is very safe to assume that those people don't know what they are talking about, and they are just trying to scare you, and make money from books, videos, and even survival kits!!
See the graphics of the Solar System and the Milky Way on this page :-
http://foresight-of-hindsight.blogspot.com/2008/08/our-solar-system-appears-to-be-unique.html
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First Amendment May Not Protect Church's Protest

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 11:11:00 +0000

[Note. (Jan. 12, 2011) - please page down to the end of the post for the latest news.]

by Mara Gray, AoL News, Dec. 10, 2010.
[extracts]
"The Westboro Baptist Church can say what it likes on its website, but that doesn't mean the group has a right to picket Elizabeth Edwards' funeral with its hate-filled message."

"That's according to legal experts, who say it's likely that the Kansas-based church won't be covered under the First Amendment on Saturday when it protests the funeral of John Edwards' estranged wife, who died Tuesday at the age of 61 after a six-year battle with breast cancer."

" 'First Amendment law makes it clear that the Westboro Church can indulge in vicious lunacy on its website. But the First Amendment does not confer the right to speak anywhere at any time,' Steven Shiffrin, a law professor at Cornell University and a First Amendment scholar, said in a statement to AOL News today."
_more here_

See also :-

Westboro Baptist Church Outnumbered At Elizabeth Edwards' Funeral
by Caitlin Tadlock, AllVoices, Dec. 13, 2010.
"It seems the attention grabbing religious group from Topeka, Kansas failed to cause a major stir at their latest protest, thankfully." ...
... "Former Senator John Edwards, her estranged husband, and their three children joined friends and family at the service."
_more here_ (includes 34 photographs).

Legal arguments :-
Snyder v. Phelps, First Amendment - Freedom of Speech. Oct. 6, 2010.
_click here_

"The Westboro Baptist Church is a fundamentalist Christian church that contends that God kills soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan as punishment for America's tolerance of homosexuality and for the presence of gays in the U.S. military. The church operates a number of websites, including www.godhatesfags.com, on which it disseminates its rabidly anti-homosexual views. The church has gained notoriety for staging protests at the funerals of U.S. soldiers in order to draw attention to its message."
Source: _Citizen Media Law Project_

Video: "Westboro Baptist Church Protests" -- debate on Fox News :-

YouTube page :- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UMP3AK5jwo

NB. The Westboro 'Baptist' Church isn't associated with any mainstream Baptist organization.
-------------------------------------------------------

Arizona Legislature To Announce Anti-Westboro Law To Protect Shooting Victims
by Nick Wing, The Huffington Post, January 11, 2011.
[extract]
"Arizona's state legislature has announced a legislative effort to combat the infamous Westboro Baptist Church's plans to picket the funerals of the shooting victims in Tucson over the weekend."
" 'We're going to try to protect the families from undue harassment,' State Rep. Daniel Patterson (D), one of the leaders of a bipartisan group of legislators, told Talking Points Memo Monday."
_more here_
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The Language of Abusive Churches - Part 1 [repost]

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 04:32:00 +0000

Does your church (or did your old church) use these words and phrases to manipulate and control the members of the group?
(Compiled by Bill Newcomer and other contributors for the Battered Sheep Ministry.)
Please go here to see the explanations :- http://www.batteredsheep.com/church-speak.html

1 - A bitter spirit* - - - - - - - - Y / N
2 - A family matter - - - - - - -- Y / N
3 - A jezebel spirit - - - - - - - - Y / N
4 - A rebellious heart - - - - - -- Y / N
5 - A rebellious spirit - - - - - -- Y / N
6 - Accountable - - - - - - - - - Y / N
7 - Angry - - - - - - - - - - - - - Y / N
8 - Apostate - - - - - - - - - - - Y / N
9 - Backslider - - - - - - - - - - - Y / N
10 - Bad attitude - - - - - - - - -- Y / N
11 - Because I'm the pastor, that's why!** - Y / N
12 - Black sheep - - - - - - - - - - Y / N
13 - Congregationalism - - - - - -- Y / N
14 - Critical spirit - - - - - - - - -- Y / N
15 - Disfellowshipping - - - - - - -- Y / N
16 - Dissident - - - - - - - - - - -- Y / N
17 - Divisive - - - - - - - - - - - -- Y / N
18 - Don't be bitter* - - - - - - - - Y / N
19 - Don't be petty - - - - - - - - - Y / N
20 - Free will - - - - - - - - - - - -- Y / N
21 - Love gifts - - - - - - - - - - -- Y / N
22 - May I remind you I am the pastor!** - Y / N
23 - Oh, they just use the doctrine of men - Y / N
24 - Oversight - - - - - - - - - - --- Y / N
25 - Prodigal son/daughter - - - - -- Y / N
26 - Singleness - - - - - - - - - - -- Y / N
27 - Slander - - - - - - - - - - - --- Y / N
28 - Teachable - - - - - - - - - - -- Y / N
29 - The truth is here - - - - - - --- Y / N
30 - The "Work" - - - - - - - - - - -- Y / N
31 - The "World" - - - - - - - - - --- Y / N
32 - This is a safe church - - - - --- Y / N
33 - Troublemaker - - - - - - - - - -- Y / N
34 - Unsubmissive - - - - - - - - - -- Y / N
35 - Unteachable - - - - - - - - - --- Y / N
36 - Unwilling to reconcile - - - - - -- Y / N
37 - We are a "nondenominational" church - Y / N
38 - We don't do things that way - -- Y / N
39 - We don't want to overreact - --- Y / N
40 - We don't want to take sides - --- Y / N
41 - We don't want to throw the baby out with the bath water - Y / N
42 - You need to be open and transparent - Y / N

[This article was originally posted in this blog on December 5, 2008. You can see it, and some comments _here_ ]

See Part Two _here_
.

How The Maya Calendar Works

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 05:38:00 +0000

Extracts from this website :-
http://www.chaacreek.com/how-the-maya-calendar-works/

"The Maya were remarkable mathematicians and astrologers, and certainly some of history's most proficient, accurate keepers of time. To appreciate the Maya concept of time, it is important to understand the different [ie. more than one] calendar systems they developed and how they were used." ...

"The 'Tzolk'in' or 'Sacred Round' calendar consists of a 260 day cycle." ...
"It is useful to think of the Tzolk’in as two intermeshing gears, one inside the other, with the 13 numerals marked at intervals around the smaller gear set inside a larger one that is marked with day names denoted by glyphs." ...

"The 'Haab' calendar is based on the cycle of the sun and was used for civil, agricultural, accounting and administrative purposes." ...

"To measure, record and predict events over longer periods of time, the Mesoamericans developed the 'Long Count'. Long Count dates are the ones usually recorded on monuments and stellae." ...

"It is widely accepted that the Long Count's "zero”, or creation date was August 11 3114BC, and that this marked the end of a previous world and the beginning of the current one, and it is further conjectured that the end of this current thirteenth b'ak'tun will fall on the Maya date 13.0.0.0.0, or December 21 2012." ...
"This event has been given much attention in recent times and unfortunately has been subject to gross misinterpretations of Maya history and cosmology. Sensational films, television shows, internet exposure and other media present the end of the 13th b'ak'tun as “proof” of an impending apocalypse and global destruction. In fact, most serious Maya scholars and contemporary Maya daykeepers and other accepted spiritual and village leaders consider it to be simply the end of one cycle of time and the beginning of another."
.

Online Safety For Kids -- Info For Parents

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 06:36:00 +0000

YouTube page :- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2TqQSiWSes
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Global Temperature Anomaly

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 08:11:00 +0000

This experimental widget uses the UAH lower troposphere temperature data as well as the Mauna Loa CO2 data combined with NOAA SWPC solar information.

The largest temperature spike in the middle of the graph is for 1998.
Please note that the abbreviation 'ppm' is parts per million. So 390.58 is the equivalent of 0.039 percent of the atmosphere.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Click on this image to get your own widget for your blog's sidebar.

... or just copy all of this html code :-

[a href="http://wattsupwiththat.com/widget/"][img alt="Click to get your own widget" src="http://cache4.intelliweather.net/wcw/world_climate_widget_sidebar.gif" title="Click to get your own widget" width="166" height="223" /]

(Change all of the bold brackets to angled brackets.)

You could increase the width to 332 and height to 446 to get an image that is twice as big -- but the resulting image is a bit fuzzy. As can be seen further down this page, in the right-hand sidebar.
-----------------------------------------------------------------

The GW theory primarily says that when you get increased levels of the minor atmospheric gas CO2 you should also get an increased average global temperature.
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Belize Maya Prepare For 2012 Celebrations

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 11:49:00 +0000

by Travel Video News, September, 2010.
[extracts]
"...Dr Awe, one of Belize’s foremost archaeologists, was speaking at a preliminary launch of a new Belizean website dedicated to the 2012 celebrations planned for this tiny Central American nation. Dr Awe also laughed off suggestions that the Maya feared 2012 would herald in the Apocalypse, as suggested by the popular film 2012 and numerous internet sites."

" 'Hollywood drama has very little to do with the reality of what the Maya Calendar and Long Count calculations are all about. This represents the ending of one cosmological cycle, and the beginning of another. It’s very much the way most people would look at the end of a millennia and the beginning of another, but over a very, very long period of time. It is an event that will mark the completion of a great cycle and a time for reflection, and for considering future direction,' he said."
_more here_
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Expert Rubbishes Solar Storm Claims

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 08:45:00 +0000

by Stuart Gary, ABC Science Online, August 27, 2010.
[extracts]

"Australia's leading body responsible for monitoring space weather has dismissed claims that a massive solar storm could wipe out the Earth's entire power grid.

"One report quotes an Australian astronomer as saying 'the storm is likely to come sooner rather than later'.

"But Dr Phil Wilkinson, the assistant director of the Bureau of Meteorology's Ionospheric Prediction Service, says claims that this coming solar maximum will be the most violent in 100 years are not factual.

" 'All this talk about gloom and doom has selling power, but I'm certain it's overstated,' he said."
_more here_
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Armstrongism / Church of God / Ronald Weinland [repost]

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 11:32:00 +0000

Are you easily influenced? Do you have lots of heroes? Do you admire many charismatic people? Do you find it hard to criticize popular people, and is it easy for you to believe everything they say? Are you depressed because this is a low point in your life, and does it seem that everything is going wrong?

If so, it would not be a good idea to allow yourself to be *recruited* by any of the following churches. They are the main “splinter” groups formed at various times after certain doctrines were rejected by the Worldwide Church of God. The splinter groups have kept the doctrines of the original pastor-general, Herbert W. Armstrong. (The list below was compiled with assistance from an article about Armstrongism at the 4truth.net website.)

Church of God, International. (abbrev. CGI or COGI.)
-- Based in Tyler, Texas.
-- Armor of God television program and periodical.
-- Infuse magazine, and The International News.

Church of God, Pasadena. (abbrev. CGP or COGP)
-- Based in Pasadena, California.
-- Pastor is David Hulme.
-- Vision magazine and website

Church of God - Preparing for the Kingdom of God. (abbrev. COG-PKG)
-- Based in Cincinnati, Ohio.
-- Pastor is Ronald Weinland.
-- The Prophesied End-Time book.
-- 2008 - God's Final Witness book.
-- The-End website.
-- History of church and pastor - 'false prophet Ronald Weinland'
-- A critical book review - Christian Media Research
-- June 13, 2012 - Ronald Weinland convicted for income tax evasion.

Grace Communion International (abbrev. GCI)
Name changed in April 2009.
ex. Worldwide Church of God (abbrev. WCG or WCOG)
-- Based in Glendora, California.
-- Original pastor-general was Herbert W. Armstrong (1892-1986)
-- Second pastor-general was Joseph W. Tkach, Sr. (1927-1995).
-- Third pastor is Joseph W. Tkach, Jr.
-- The Plain Truth magazine, plus various booklets.
-- Christian Odyssey magazine, website, and Together (WCOG News).
-- In the 1990s several of the Armstrong doctrines were rejected.
-- In 1997 it was accepted into the National Association of Evangelicals.
-- This church now appears to be less extreme than the others listed here.

Intercontinental Church of God. (abbrev. ICG or ICOG)
-- Based in Tyler, Texas.
-- Original pastor was Garner Ted Armstrong (1930-2003).
-- Current pastor is Mark Armstrong.
-- Associated Ministry :- Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.
-- 21st Century Watch magazine.

Living Church of God. (abbrev. LCG or LCOG)
-- Based in Charlotte, North Carolina.
-- Pastor is Roderick C. Meredith.
-- Tomorrow's World television program.
-- Tomorrow's World magazine, booklets, and bible study course.

Philadelphia Church of God. (abbrev. PCG or PCOG)
-- Based in Edmond, Oklahoma.
-- Pastor is Gerald Flurry.
-- The Key of David television program.
-- The Philadelphia Trumpet magazine.
-- The Wonderful World Tomorrow book.

Restored Church of God. (abbrev. RCG or RCOG)
-- Based in Wadsworth, Ohio.
-- Pastor is David C. Pack.
-- The Real Truth magazine
-- The World To Come videos
-- _A critical article_ on the 'Living Armstrongism' blog.

United Church of God. (abbrev. UCG or UCOG)
-- Based in Milford, Ohio - east of Cincinnati.
-- President is Clyde Kilough.
-- Pastor is Roy Holladay, amongst other elders.
-- The Good News magazine and bible reading program.
-- United News, and Vertical Thought, Virtual Christian magazines.
-- World News & Prophecy website.

(A more complete list is here.)

If I can’t convince you that being *recruited* by any of those churches would be a bad idea, please carefully consider the following questions and information :-

1/ When you first join the group do you get any ‘instant’ friends?
2/ Does everyone dress more or less the same, act the same, and talk the same?
3/ Is questioning the group, or the group leaders, discouraged or frowned upon?
4/ Does everyone in the group believe exactly the same things (i.e. what the leaders tell them to believe)? Is there no room for individual belief or opinion even in minor areas?
5/ Is reading any literature critical of the group discouraged?
6/ Does the group believe that it is an elite and exclusive organisation which alone has ‘the truth’ and answers to life’s questions?
7/ Does the group pour scorn upon, ‘attack,’ and mock other Christian churches and their interpretation of the Bible?
8/ Does the group discourage association with non-members (except, maybe for the possibility of converting them to the group)?
9/ Does the group give you ‘black and white answers’? -- What the group agrees with is right and what the group disagrees with is wrong.
10/ Does the group tend to withhold certain information from you? Are the more unusual doctrines of the group not discussed with you until you are more deeply involved in the movement?

If you answered ‘yes’ to more than (say) two of the above questions you are in danger of being manipulated by con men and women who use powerful mind control techniques which bypass your ability to critically evaluate and question the group.

If you stay with the group for longer than the indoctrination period, these questions will become more relevant :-

1/ Do you feel that no matter how hard you try, the ‘good deeds’ you perform for your group are never quite enough? As a result of this do you often feel plagued with feelings of guilt?
2/ Have you attempted to disable your own critical thinking abilities by ‘shelving’ various doubts about the group or group’s teachings?
3/ Are others in the group, who do not conform to the requirements of the movement’s teachings, treated with suspicion and treated like second class members?
4/ Do you feel fearful of leaving the group? Many ‘cults’ use subtle fear tactics to stop members from leaving. For example, the group may imply that those who leave will be attacked by the Devil, have a nasty accident, or at least not prosper because they have left ‘the truth’.

However, do not become depressed - because all is not lost!
The option to leave the cult will always be available.
The last three paragraphs in this blog page should help you achieve that aim: Mind Control by Cults

Professional help from Christian counselors is available through this site :- http://christiantherapist.com/
(If possible, it would be wise to check if counselors have relevant qualifications. Recommendations from previous patients would also be very valuable.)

(Questions above originally supplied by Spotlight Ministries - page - Used by permission.)
.

Space Exploration by NASA

stones@slingshot.co.nz (Que) — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 08:13:00 +0000

Exploration and Investigation

History recalls that there have always been explorers in the human race -- people who want to expand their horizons, investigate their surroundings, and understand the complex nature of the environment, the Earth, the Solar System, and Space itself. Apart from space exploration, there are countless scientists around the world 'expanding their horizons' in many fields of endeavor. Who decides how much funding those fields of endeavor will receive, and who decides which ones are worthy of receiving funds? In the end it is likely to be a political decision. A wealthy country can probably afford to fund scientific investigations as well as looking after the poorer members of its society.

This is part of a speech given by Michael Griffin (ex NASA Adminstrator) to the 39th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference on March 10, 2008

"To me, the person who best captured NASA’s true mission was Gene Roddenberry, with his immortal line about the mission of the Starship Enterprise, “To explore strange new worlds. To seek out new life and new civilizations. To boldly go where no [one] has gone before.” That’s almost perfect; I think we’re more likely to create new civilizations than to find others, but I love those lines, and if it wasn’t for the royalties we’d have to pay, and of course the split infinitive…

"All joking aside, there are several nuggets of wisdom in these words, nuggets that speak not only to the public’s perception of what we do at NASA, but also serve to provide a deep sense of purpose to the work you all perform as lunar and planetary scientists. You here today are the ones who explore strange new worlds, seek new life, and who go where no one has gone before. Do you ever think about what life might be like for working scientists a few hundred years from now, maybe by comparing the trails we are blazing today with those cleared for us by Galileo, Tycho Brahe, Kepler and many other astronomers and planetary scientists? Could they have ever imagined what we are doing today? Can we possibly foresee anything of the world of, say, the 26th Century? We are living today in exciting times. Planetary science is going through a true Renaissance age; some of the discoveries of this age will be discussed at greater length right here at this conference. For example, it had been 33 years since NASA last flew by the planet Mercury with Mariner 10. But just two months ago, MESSENGER recorded spectra and snapped over 1,200 images of previously unseen features on the planet Mercury’s surface, and we will see even more this October during its next flyby. I can’t wait. Meanwhile, in orbit around the planet Saturn, Cassini will fly within 50 kilometers of Enceladus this Wednesday to sample water-ice samples and other gases. Previously, Cassini revealed that Saturn’s planet-sized, organic-rich moon Titan has hundreds of times more liquid hydrocarbons than all the known oil and natural gas reserves here on Earth. And who among us was not awed last year by the time-lapse images from New Horizons when it observed a spectacular 200-mile-high volcanic eruption from the Jovian moon Io, and spotted the infrared glow from at least six other active volcanoes?

"We are exploring strange new worlds today, and you are the scientists who are making it happen. It may not be as dramatic as portrayed in science fiction – but it’s not fiction. It’s real. NASA’s Science Mission Directorate is currently operating over fifty flight missions in the various Earth and space science disciplines, and Alan Stern’s team has heeded the advice of the science community in formulating a more balanced portfolio of missions – large, medium, and small missions – while addressing the priorities articulated by the Congress, President, and various science communities.

"While we might all wish we had more money to fund each and every space mission ever desired or proposed, it is a fact across, stretching across multiple Presidential Administrations and Congresses, that NASA simply does not have the budget resources to accomplish all of the many and varied space and aeronautics missions that our many constituencies would like us to do. The President’s request for NASA in FY 2009 is $17.6 billion out of $3.1 trillion for all U.S. government spending, less than 6/10ths of a percent of the entire Federal budget. We don’t get anything like the 24% of the budget that the average American thinks we receive, and so we must set priorities, establish a careful balance between them, and ask members of the space community to respect these priorities as well as NASA’s other mission areas, human spaceflight and aeronautics research, as worthy and noble endeavors in their own right."
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[emphasis by me!]
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