In this photographic guide, you’ll find out more about the ecology, diversity, and unique animals of the Great Barrier Reef.
The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest tropical reef system, covering an area of 348,000 km2 and stretching along 2300km of the eastern Australian coastline. animals.about.com
An ostrich with his head in the quicksand
Hamilton Spectator File Photo
The main conclusions of a U.S. national intelligence estimate, compiled by 16 U.S. agencies last April, suggest President George Bush is deluded.
Hamilton Spectator – News
The release of parts of a weighty assessment of global terrorism this week confirms a depressing truth: George Bush is not, as he often claims, winning the war on terrorism. He is losing it.
Further, the main conclusions of the national intelligence estimate, which was completed by the 16 American intelligence agencies last April, suggest Bush is worryingly deluded.
Fair and just, no more
A wretched session of Congress slithered to a disgraceful end this week, as lawmakers did the one thing government should never do — bring disrepute to the United States.
By passing a bill that gave President Bush almost all the authority he sought to establish new rules for interrogating terror suspects and trying them before military tribunals, Congress implicitly sanctioned torture and kangaroo courts. courier-journal.com
Abortion, race, environment on Supreme Court’s agenda
WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court returns Monday to a docket that includes important cases on abortion, race and the environment, and by next spring, when the court adjourns, it should be much clearer how new Justices John G. Roberts and Samuel Alito have changed things.
The key cases in particular will test the principles the new justices swore allegiance to during their confirmation hearings: precedent, restraint and judicial modesty. Depending on how they and the other justices rule, the laws in those areas could be altered dramatically.
In the abortion case, the court could make it much more difficult to challenge restrictions on women’s ability to terminate pregnancies.
The race cases, which involve whether school districts – like colleges and universities – should be able to consider ethnicity in their quest to foster diversity, could affect the reach of the landmark affirmative action cases from 2003.
The environmental case, which questions whether the Environmental Protection Agency may regulate so-called greenhouse gases, presents issues involving how to interpret congressional intent and the ability of individuals to sue in federal court over environmental issues. mercurynews.com
Alternative to tolerance is religious hatred, violence
“Saturday Night Live” through the years has had many memorable programs. It is comedy at its best and worst, depending on how it affects your senses.
Actor Dana Carvey had a long run as the “Church Lady.” I believe that role was truly meant to bring some humor to religious life as some people know it. However, I am sure it offended some people who found no humor in the Church Lady’s antics.
Discussion of religious beliefs can be very beneficial to those who have differing views on the subject. It also can be the most delicate of topics to discuss, to the point of possible vengeful action against each party involved. dailysouthtown.com
Business Ethics — the perfect oxymoron?
So you think the average corporate chief is a lying cheat. Well, you haven’t seen anything yet.
If you view the current crop of Wall Street heavy hitters as a pack of shysters, wait until the next generation replaces them.
According to a new survey, students increasingly are cheating in their courses. And which class is most likely to be trying to fiddle the system? You guessed it: the business-studies mob.
That raises some questions that aren’t often discussed: Why is business so rife with dishonesty? Why is it getting worse? And, finally, what can be done to prevent the erosion of business ethics? stltoday.com
Dalai Lama blesses Stupa in Red Feather Lakes
Heralded by an ethereal droning of conch shells and Tibetan horns and incense-laden smoke, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama arrived along with welcome sunshine on the large terrace surrounding the Great Stupa of the Dharmakaya before a hushed and awed crowd of 2,200 people.
Most had been waiting since dawn in breezy bone-chilling temperatures hovering just above freezing and fairly unusual for mid-September, even at 8,000 feet.
Applause thundered when the Dalai Lama’s helicopter came into view just after 9 a.m., along with another carrying Queen Noor of Jordan. northfortynews.com
Religions unlike in view of the world
What causes people to believe in God? How should faith be spread? Who will receive eternal life, and why?
Strange questions for a secular newspaper. But entirely appropriate, given recent events. You may not care about religion. But religion, clearly, cares very much about you. fortwayne.com
Tibetan documentary tackles a fascinating subject but lacks depth
With “Vajra Sky Over Tibet,” director John Bush completes the trilogy he undertook in 2001. The first two films explored the lost Buddhist traditions of Southeast Asia. This final installment covers Tibetan history since the Chinese communist takeover in 1959.
Although an informative look at government destruction of a country’s religion, the film is less than the “thunderbolt of awakening” implied by the title. seattlepi.nwsource.com
BBC NEWS | Americas | US mid-terms: Crazy like a fox?
Like the kind of scuffle between players on a sports field that turns into a free-for-all between two teams, Mr Clinton’s response to what he called a “conservative hit job” cleared the benches.
Hillary, who has her own campaigns to think about, came to her husband’s defence
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and White House spokesman Tony Snow intervened on behalf of Mr Bush the following day, while Hillary Clinton and former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani defended Mr Clinton later in the week.
That bench-clearing may have been exactly what Mr Clinton wanted.
He is no longer president, and cannot set the terms of debate the way Mr Bush can.
But as he implied later in his Fox interview, Democrats could respond better than they do to attacks on their patriotism and machismo.
His closing words to Fox were about the Republicans and the Democrats: “Their job is to beat us. But our job is not to let them get away with it. And if they don’t, then we’ll do fine.”
His angry finger-wagging may have been genuine. He is known to have a hot temper.
But it may also have been tactical – attack is as they say the best form of defence.
He credited the Republicans with running the same successful political play over and over again. With his outburst on Sunday, he may well have been dusting off an old tactic of his own. news.bbc.co.uk
CALIFORNIA ENACTS HISTORIC GLOBAL WARMING LAW
SAN FRANCISCO, California, September 28, 2006 (ENS) – California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a landmark law on Wednesday aimed at reducing the state’s greenhouse gas emissions 25 percent by 2020. The new law establishes the first U.S. cap on greenhouse gas emissions and stands in stark contrast to the federal government’s failure to impose mandatory reductions of emissions linked to global warming.
Congressman quits after lewd e-mail revelations
MARK FOLEY, a Republican congressman, resigned last night after reports that he sent sexually inappropriate emails to underage interns.
This is truly upsetting. I’ve known Mark for over thirty years; My wife went to high school with him. I would never have imagined it. Like most obsessions, you just…can’t…tell.
‘Gross generalizations’ are no substitute for studying Islam
SIOUX CITY — When did religious intolerance again become so fashionable in America? Why do gross generalizations about Islam, one of the world’s fastest growing and complex faiths, substitute for actual knowledge?
Navy announces meetings on sonar range environment studies
RALEIGH, NC The Navy has announced plans to develop studies looking at how to minimize the environmental impact of its active sonar training ranges.
Bringing heart to the practice of law
By JOHN DELLACONTRADA. What began with meditations on the value of compassion in our daily lives concluded with a practical discussion of how Buddhism can help make better law—and better lawyers.
Sunday marks the end of Religious Diversity Week.
Do your part. Start early, and attend several different churches. Don’t be stingy when they pass the basket.
President Bush Signs Into Law the Dalai Lama Congressional Gold Medal Act
International Campaign for Tibet
September 28th, 2006
His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama
On September 27, 2006, President George Bush signed into law the “Fourteenth Dalai Lama Congressional Gold Medal Act,” which authorizes Congress to award the Dalai Lama the Congressional Gold Medal of Honor.
Under this legislation, the United States Congress awards this honor “in recognition of his many enduring and outstanding contributions to peace, non-violence, human rights, and religious understanding.” The Congressional Gold Medal is the highest civilian honor bestowed by the United States.
Courtesy of the Cool Tricks and Trinkets Newsletter
Ocean Explorer
Students, teachers, and anyone else who is interested in the vast beauty and mystery of the ocean will want to bookmark this website, which was created by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA).
Ocean Explorer is an online educational resource that gives the public inside access to current NOAA scientific marine explorations taking place in our oceans all around the world.
Browse the current Explorations, experience their progress in near “real time”, and learn about the specific goals of each underwater expedition. Highlights include “Alaska’s Submerged Heritage”, “Submarine Ring of Fire”, and “Davidson Seamount: Exploring Ancient Coral Gardens”. Don’t forget to check out the site’s Gallery, which is filled with breathtaking underwater images, recordings of the sea, historical pictures, photographs of shipwrecks, and other amazing visuals from past NOAA explorations. http://www.oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/
FAIRBANKS, Alaska, September 27, 2006 (ENS) – Surges of warm water from the North Atlantic Ocean are flowing into the Arctic Ocean and could accelerate the melting of Arctic sea ice, according to scientists at the International Arctic Research Center. The influx of warmer water is increasing, the researchers said Tuesday, and is moving toward Alaska and the Canadian Basin.
NEW DELHI, India, September 27, 2006 (ENS) – The illegal trade in tiger skins is rapidly driving the species toward extinction, environmentalists warned on Wednesday. A new report by two environmental groups blames the governments of India and China for doing virtually nothing to halt the alarming decline, despite frequent promises of action and ample evidence the illegal trade has increased dramatically in recent years.
Ivory-billed Woodpeckers Spotted in Florida Swamp
Hill said the first spotting was a fluke – he and two of his research assistants were on kayak expedition in swamp forest on the Choctawhatchee River in the Florida panhandle.
“It was just to be a weekend outing looking for potential habitat,” said Hill. “We really never dreamed we’d actually find an ivorybill.”
Hill and his assistants returned the following weekend and got a clear view of a female ivorybill, which has distinct plumage, including a white trailing edge on the upper wing, white stripes down the back and an all black crest.
The Auburn University ornithologist then organized a research team, including acoustic experts from the University of Windsor in Canada, to search for the bird and to set up seven listening stations.
The researchers spent 16 months collecting data in swamp forest and recorded 14 sightings of the large woodpecker between May 2005 and May 2006. On two occasions, two birds were seen together.
After exhaustive analysis of 11,400 hours of remotely recorded swamp sounds, researchers confirmed more than 300 sounds matching historical recordings and descriptions of the bird.
Issue #183
September 28, 2006
Computer Models Threaten Earth
Ginny Cramer, RAW Contributor 
If I were a cartoonist I would draw Senator Inhofe standing on a street corner wearing a little cardboard sign, ranting to anyone who walked by. His global warming speech on the Floor of the U.S. Senate on Monday, in which he went on a tangent randomly quoting newspaper headlines from the 1930′s, only served to reinforce this image. It seems he is working up a conspiracy theory, where the media, scientists and computer models have all teamed up to convince the world that global warming is real. To spare you the full insanity of his speech, the highlights are below.
“I believe that the greatest climate threat we face may be coming from alarmist computer models” — Ah yes, those devious computer models. The same ones the Pentagon uses to plot military strategy and assess risk.
“A new study in Geophysical Research Letters found that the sun was responsible for 50% of20th century warming” — What was responsible for the other 50%?
“I am reminded of a question the media often asks me about how much I have received in campaign contributions from the fossil fuel industry. My unapologetic answer is ‘Not Enough’ — especially when you consider the millions partisan environmental groups pour into political campaigns.” — It’s hard to fathom that anyone who sees Big Oil’s billions in excess profits actually thinks green groups can outspend them.
“If your goal is to limit CO2 emissions, the only effective way to go about it is the use of cleaner, more efficient technologies that will meet the energy demands of this century and beyond.” — Right on, the only problem being that his definition of cleaner, more efficient technology is nuclear technology, which he plans to share “among member nations, including three of the world’s top 10 emitters — China, India and North Korea.”
“Another example of this relentless hype is the reporting on the seemingly endless number of global warming impact studies which do not even address whether global warming is going to happen.” — And we’ve come full circle, back to the existence of global warming and the efforts of computers to ruin our world.
This is the same Senator Inhofe who held a hearing about global warming with Michael Crichton as his lead witness. Since he has such disdain for science, maybe he should stick to science fiction.
How the brain resolves emotional conflict
Researchers have now discovered that the brain is able to prevent emotions from interfering with mental functioning by having a specific “executive processing” area of the cortex inhibit activity of the emotion-processing region. news-medical.net
High School Football Heroism Is Painful Pursuit
COLUMBUS, Ohio, Sept. 28 — Twelve of every 1,000 high school football players who played last year were injured during a game. medpagetoday.com
1.2 percent? Even I can’t get very upset about that, and I think it’s a dumb game that should be banned.
“The image of Congress rushing to strip jurisdiction from the courts in response to a politically created emergency is really quite shocking, and it’s not clear that most of the members understand what they’ve done.”
Yale Law School Dean Harold Koh – washingtonpost.com
Q U O T E D
“This was a plumbers’ operation that would make Richard Nixon blush.”
– Rep. John Dingel’s entry in the Great Hewlett-Packard Scandal Overstatement Contest
