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Archive for August, 2011

‘Massive Quantities of Dead Fish’ Found in Former Soviet Republic of Georgia

08/03/2011 Leave a comment

Georgia, Tbilisi, August 3 / Trend N. Kirtskhalia – “Massive quantities of dead fish have been resolved in Adjara, where several hundred kilograms of dead fish were found in lakes near Batumi during the last two days.

The local authorities have begun studying this issue.

The cause was asphyxia, the decrease of oxygen concentration in the water due to intense heat, the Ministry of the Environment told media.

Damage caused by the dead fish has not been accounted for.” Source.

Categories: Mass Animal Deaths

Powerful Solar Twister That Looks Like an Angel Leaps to a Dizzying 93,000 Miles Above Sun’s Surface

08/03/2011 Leave a comment

“An enormous plasma twister rising from the sun’s surface has been caught on video by a Nasa satellite.

And the twirling eruption, which swirled up to 93,206 miles above the solar surface, has a remarkable resemblance to an angel.

The tornado-like solar twister lasted just a few hours, when an eruption of magnetic plasma, called a prominence, whirled up from the sun before splitting into four different strands and fading away.

Solar astrophysicist, C. Alex Young of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, told Space.com: ‘Its height is roughly between 10 to 12 Earths’.

The magnificent display happened on July 12 and Mr Young said that the angel-like formation was down to a matter of perspective.” Read more.

Categories: Cosmic Craziness

Satellite Image Shows Ash Plume Drifting From Krakatoa

08/03/2011 Leave a comment

By Mark Dunphy – “A newly released NASA satellite image shows an ash plume drifting from a volcano that produced one of the largest eruptions in modern history.

Anak Krakatau (also known as Krakatoa), a volcanic island in the Sunda Strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra in Indonesia, has been intermittently active for the past several decades.

The island exploded in 1883, killing approximately 40,000 people, although some estimates put the death toll much higher. The explosion is considered to be the loudest sound ever heard in modern history, with reports of it being heard nearly 3,000 miles (4,800 km) from its point of origin. The shock wave from the explosion was recorded on barographs around the globe.

On July 31, 2011, a wispy ash plume rose above the volcano and drifted west… The natural-colour satellite image was acquired by the Advanced Land Imager (ALI) aboard Earth Observing-1 (EO-1). Dark gray areas of Anak Krakatau are composed principally of lava flows deposited in the 1970s, ’80s, and ’90s. These flows are topped by a young cinder cone near the center of the island. Green vegetation covers older lavas along the eastern coastline.” Read more.

Categories: Natural Disasters

Italy: Mount Etna Wakes Up Again with One of the Most Intense Eruptions of the Year

08/03/2011 Leave a comment

“Mount Etna on Sicily, Italy’s one of the most famous volcanoes, started erupting once again this weekend. Flames and sparks have been shooting into the air, reaching a height of about 250 meters, according to witnesses.

Whenever Etna comes alive, local authorities always fear that the ash clouds and heavy smoke could cut off the island from the continent by block flights out of Catania airport. However, strong winds helped this time. The ash has been blown away towards the Ionian Sea, with no flights cancelled or delayed.

Mount Etna, which remained inactive for six months, started erupting on Saturday morning and continued through Saturday and Sunday. With the latest activity, the grand total of Etna eruptions for this year stands at eight, which makes the year 2011 quite an active year for the Sicilian volcano.

Etna’s eighth paroxysmal eruptive episode of the year 2011 lasted less than one day, with a phase of lava fountaining activity lasting about 2-3 hours.

This was the most intense eruption since the first one in the night of 12-13 January this year. Unlike the earlier eruptions, except for the first one, the lava flow emitted during the 30 July paroxysm was longer. It immediately reached the sloping terrain to the north and northeast of Monte Centenari.” Read more.

Categories: Natural Disasters

Volcano in Canary Islands May Be Getting Ready for Eruption

08/03/2011 Leave a comment

By Tammy Lee Morris – “The Hierro — or El Hierro — volcano located in the Canary Islands may be getting ready for eruption, according to information on the website Earthquake-report.com. An earthquake swarm that has numbered 700 or more small quakes under the volcano has occurred recently, raising concern that the volcano may be working up to an eruption.

What is an earthquake swarm? It is a series of small magnitude earthquakes that strike in the same location over a (usually) short time period. Earthquake swarms are common precursors and warnings to volcanic activity.

The Canary Islands are located off the northwestern coast of Africa, near the border between Morocco and Western Sahara. They are a chain of islands known as an archipelago and are legally a nationality of Spain. There are 13 islands in the archipelago and the Canaries are a popular tourist destination…

It is uncertain when El Hierro last erupted, but it is believed there may have been an eruption in 1793. The location of the current earthquake swarm is at the northwest part of the island near the El Golfo cone, which, according to Volcano Live, was the site of a landslide that was responsible for a tsunami 50,000 years ago that measured just over 300 feet in height.” Read more.

720 Earthquakes Recorded On El Hierro In The Canary Islands – “An unprecedented 720 earthquakes have been recorded on El Hierro, the smallest of the Canary Islands, during the past week. The earthquake swarm has even prompted the Canary Islands Government to convene the first ever meeting of the Steering Committee and Volcanic Monitoring, reflected in the Specific Plan Protection Civil and Emergency for Volcanic Risk, given what it described ‘the significant increase in seismic activity’.” Read more.

Categories: Natural Disasters

Guggenheim CIO: Europe on Brink of ‘Major Financial Collapse’

08/03/2011 Leave a comment

By Gennine Kelly – “Europe is a ‘train wreck’ and on the ‘brink of a major financial crisis,’ Scott Minerd, CIO of the fixed-income firm Guggenheim Partners, told CNBC Tuesday.

‘The way Europe is operating right now, it’s what I called recently ‘cognitive dissonance,” Minerd said, or ‘basically doing the same thing thinking they’re going to get a different outcome.’

‘They keep throwing more and more liquidity at it thinking it’s going to get better and it’s not,’ he added. Europe fails to recognize that it has a ‘structural problem, not a liquidity problem.’

People will ‘flee the euro’ unless they find a way to bifurcate the euro in some way where strong countries are in the euro only and the weak countries are out, Minerd explained, adding, ‘To be honest with you, I don’t see the mechanism to do that.’

‘As the capital is flooding out of Europe, which we’re starting to see now, the first place it’s going to go is to the safe havens—[U.S.] Treasurys, which [the market] perceives to be safe, and it’ll chase gold,’ he added.” Read more.

Greece in panic as it faces change of Homeric proportions – “In one of the biggest banks in the centre of Athens a clerk is explaining how his savers have been thronging to pull out their cash. Wary of giving his name, he glances around the marble-floored, wood-panelled foyer before pulling out a slim A4-sized folder. It is about the size of a small safety-deposit box – and those, ever since the financial crisis hit Greece 18 months ago, have become the most sought-after financial products in the country. Worried about whether the banks will stay in business, Greeks have been taking their life savings out of accounts and sticking them in metal slits in basement vaults.” Read more.

Eurozone panic as Spain and Italy edge closer to economic collapse – “The eurozone faced fresh financial fears today as Spain and Italy edged closer to the spiralling abyss of debt engulfing the region. The two countries have both been crippled by painfully slow economic growth but so far managed to avoid the kind of handouts given to Ireland and Greece. But the stock indexes in the two countries plummeted today while the yields on their bonds soared to record highs, sparking a risk of them defaulting.” Read more.

Categories: Man-Made Disasters, Wars and Rumors of War

Norwegian Killer Anders Breivik’s True Source of Inspiration

08/02/2011 Leave a comment

Danish psychologist Nicolai Sennels sums it up nicely by stating that the mass murder committed by Breiviks was not inspired by so-called ‘right-wing’ blogs critical of Islamism and Sharia.  Rather, this mad man’s blood lust was inspired by the numerous acts of Jihadi violence that preceded him …

By Nicolai Sennels – “Anders Breivik, the accused Norwegian mass murderer, claims that he found inspiration for his massacre in blogs focusing on Islam and Muslim immigration.

He did not. Breivik found inspiration in his own wretched interpretation of these blogs’ messages. Contrary to the Quran, for example, these blogs promote democracy and human rights, not murder and violent world revolution.

Breivik’s true inspiration is clear to everyone: The Lashkar-e-Taiba attack in Mumbai and Al-Qaeda’s massacres around the world. No wonder that so many newspapers initially stated that Norway had been hit by Islamists. And no wonder that Islamists were the only ones to call the tragedy ‘good news’.

Breivik’s interpretation of the Islam-critical blogs that he mentions in his manifesto is just as subjective and just as much a misunderstanding as the democratic and peaceful Muslims’ interpretation of their own religion.” Source.

Violence Is Not The Answer

Categories: Anything Else, Wars and Rumors of War

Pray for Christians’ Safety During Ramadan, Open Doors Urges

08/02/2011 2 comments

By Anugrah Kumar – July 31 – “Ramadan, the 30-day annual Islamic fast which begins next week, may expose Christians to an increased risk of persecution in Muslim-majority countries and believers in the West should pray for them, Open Doors USA said as it launched a Ramadan Prayer Calendar.

‘Ramadan is a time when Christians are especially isolated in some Muslim-dominated countries,’ said Open Doors USA President Dr. Carl Moeller in a statement. ‘This is why it is so important for us to unite in prayer for persecuted Christians throughout the world.’

To help Christians pray for the persecuted, Open Doors has prepared a Ramadan Prayer Calendar having multiple prayer points and designed to help believers pray for vulnerable Christians around the world during the 30 days.

The group, which has served the persecuted church worldwide since 1955 when its founder Brother Andrew smuggled Bibles into Eastern Europe for the first time, will also send out daily emails with a story from a Muslim-dominated country, prayer requests, and a call to action. Open Doors has provided a link on its website for believers to register.

Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar which begins August 1 this year, is the time when most Muslims fast from dawn until dusk, seeking to shed their sins through acts of restraint as they believe this is a time of purification accomplished through good deeds and self-control.

However, ‘the observance of Ramadan could increase pressure on believers,’ Moeller said.” Read more.

Categories: Radical Islam, Wars and Rumors of War Tags:

UK: Muslim Gang ‘Planning Massive Attack’ at Belmarsh Prison in Revenge For Osama bin Laden Killing

08/02/2011 Leave a comment

By Greig Box-Turnbull – “GOVERNORS at Britain’s top terror jail believe al-Qaeda extremists are planning a major attack as payback for Osama bin Laden’s death.

Security has been stepped up to ‘unprecedented’ levels at Belmarsh prison after warnings that the Muslim Boys gang is plotting a revenge mission. A 15-strong riot squad in stab-proof vests has hidden around the jail’s chapel during Muslim prayers on Fridays in case of an attack.

Another team of officers has been on standby ready to assist.

Prisoners on House Block One, which includes 39 terror suspects, added to the tension by staging a mass show of defiance on Friday.

Inmates refused to return to their cells and a source says ‘staff very nearly lost control of the jail’.

The standoff was only ended when officers brandished batons and demanded a retreat as they marched towards the prisoners.

The source said: ‘It’s a powder keg waiting to go off.

‘There are concerns it will take an officer’s death before the Muslim Boys are tackled seriously.

‘The levels of security being employed are unprecedented.Management are worried the Muslim Boys are planning an incident in Bin Laden’s honour on a scale never seen before.'” Read more.

Categories: Radical Islam, Wars and Rumors of War

Tanzania: Muslim Extremists Torch Churches in Zanzibar

08/02/2011 Leave a comment

“NAIROBI, Kenya, August 1 (CDN) — Muslim extremists on Saturday (July 30) burned down a church building on Zanzibar island off the coast of Tanzania, church leaders said, just three days after another congregation’s facility on the island was reduced to ashes.

In Fuoni on the south coast of Zanzibar (known locally as Unguja), Islamic extremists torched the building of the Evangelical Assemblies of God-Tanzania (EAGT) at around 2 p.m., said Pastor Leonard Massasa, who oversees Zanzibar’s EAGT churches. The assailants were shouting, ‘Away with the church – we do not want infidels to spoil our community, especially our children,’ Pastor Massasa said.

The EAGT church is about 60 kilometers (37 miles) from Zanzibar town.

‘Tomorrow is Sunday, and my members numbering 40 will not have any place to worship,’ Pastor Paulo Magungu of the Fuoni EAGT church said. With fear in his voice, the pastor added, ‘We have reported the case to the police station. I hope justice will be done.’

He reported the case at Fuoni police station immediately after it happened, he said.

In Kianga, about 10 kilometers (six miles) from Zanzibar town, another church building was burned down on Wednesday (July 27) at about 2 a.m., said Pastor George Frank Dunia of Free Evangelical Pentecostal Church in Africa. The fire destroyed 45 chairs.

‘I have 36 members, and it will be very difficult for them to congregate tomorrow,’ the pastor said on Saturday (July 30). ‘The members are afraid, not knowing what other plans the Muslims are out to do. We request prayers at this trying moment.'” Read more.

Categories: Radical Islam, Wars and Rumors of War Tags:

Iraq: 23+ Wounded After Church Bombing in Central Kirkuk, Two Other Car Bombs Defused Outside Separate Churches

08/02/2011 Leave a comment

“In a coordinated effort to generate fear among Iraqi Christians, the ethnically and religiously diverse city of Kirkuk witnessed another attack outside a Syrian Catholic Church on Tuesday around 6 a.m.

At least 23 people were wounded in the attack, mostly from surrounding homes. The church’s parish leader, Imad Yalda, was inside the church during the bombing and was also among the wounded.

Following the attack, two other car bombs were also found outside Kirkuk’s Christian Anglican Church and the Mar Gourgis church.

The bombs were defused by security forces prior to their explosion.

Kirkuk’s Deputy Police Chief, Torhan Abdulrahman said of the attack, ‘It was a coordinated attack to target churches at the same time.’

The Rev. Haithem Akram, of one of the targeted churches in today’s attacks said, ‘The terrorists want to make us flee Iraq, but they will fail. We are staying in our country.’

Iraqi’s Christian minority, formally standing at around 1.4 million, has been significantly downsizing its presence in the country since the ousting of Saddam Hussein in 2003, with close to 1 million having fled to other regions in Iraq or leaving the country to seek refuge.

Christians in Iraq are targeted predominately by Sunni extremists that find Christians in the country to be ‘non-believers.'” Read more.

Categories: Radical Islam, Wars and Rumors of War Tags:

New York: ‘Horrifying’ Spiked Hail the Size of Baseballs Shatters Windows, Rattles Nerves In Queens Neighborhoods

08/02/2011 Leave a comment

“NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — The weather on Monday afternoon was unlike anything seen so far during this summer of severe weather.

Parts of the Tri-State area were pounded from the sky — with wind, lightning and ice.

Residents in Little Neck, Queens picked up the hail and put them in their freezers just to have evidence.

‘I’ve never seen anything, it was horrifying,’ Gail Kolidas told CBS 2′s Lou Young.

As intense as the damage was, it was also concentrated along the Queens-Nassau line.

The hail stones shattered car windows, punctured plastic lawn furniture and vinyl siding. It also did a good job of rattling nerves.

‘Unbelievable,’ remarked Sherly Mesten.

Hours after the storm ended, the hail was still melting where it pooled down into the lawn.

‘It looks like eggs,’ said Young Kim, ‘I see this, this is ice. Unbelievable.'” Read more.

Categories: Natural Disasters