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Many States of Mind » Politics

Dubai, where even the carbon footprint is immense

Never wanting to miss out in this world’s never ending pissing contest which has gone on for so long Dubai unveiled its newest and tallest $1.5 billion building this past weekend, the Burj Dubai. Considering the excesses that have come from this country in the past this monstrous tribute to overkill and squandering should come as a surprise to no one. Let’s face it, in the dictionary next to the word ‘waste’ should be a small depiction of this country’s map.

Can they possibly outdo themselves any further? Hmmm, give them time since I’m sure they’ll come up with something.

Let’s see, their past, present and future construction projects include the Burj Al Arab, a hotel which at one point was the second tallest structure, or first since heck, who can even keep track?; the Dubai Sunny Mountain Ski dome which is just as you imagined, an indoor ski resort in the desert; Palm Islands, yup, artificial islands and coming right up? Brace yourselves now…that’s right! Air-conditioned beaches.

Now hey! Who am I to be complaining about or criticizing an economically crippled nation just because they, against better judgment, are hedging their bets on the luring of rich tourists? The last time I checked you’d definitely have to be rich to vacation there and why else would you have such luxurious undertakings as they have? Mind you I say ‘economically crippled’ since it’s no secret that Dubai is hanging by a thread these days.

If you’re still wondering what’s got me all riled up then hold tight since there really is a method to my madness. Any of you who’ve read my previous rants would know of where I stand when it comes to the Copenhagen talks and the United States’ pledge of tens of billions of dollars to developing nations in the name of ‘global warming’…errrr, I’m sorry. They’re calling it climate change now. The correlation I wish to make here is that as incredulous as it may sound, some Arab nations if not all will most likely be amongst the so-called developing nations seeking handouts.

I had to look up any references since I vaguely recalled reading about the notion.
As it turns out there’s a concern for “Reinforcement measures around Dubai’s coastline to be taken to avoid any damage from rising sea levels caused by climate change.”
It also would not take a rocket scientist to foresee the effects that a world turning away from fossil fuels would have on nations which have sustained themselves on their sales of oil.

Of course it would not matter to the UN’s ipcc (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) or other involved clowns whether or not there was the slightest bit of truth to today’s climate change arguments since in the end, saving the earth is the least of their sought out goals. Have myself already gone down that road of World Governance and such but I’ll be sure to revisit the subject again very soon.

What gets me as what should be getting at you is the irony. Dubai, a nation baring one of the greatest carbon footprints should ultimately be receiving reparations in the name of that which they supposedly contributed to: Climate Change.

Filed under: Climate Change, Copenhagen Treaty, Global Warming

Photography in NYC & Terrorism – Part II

Public vs. Private
Some years ago I had been approached by security while trying to photograph the Christmas tree outside the Bloomberg Tower on 58th Street. The guard’s argument was that no professional photography was allowed at that location. I clumsily argued that I wasn’t a pro yet the fellow made references to my professional looking equipment and asked me if I thought him stupid. Well, I did but of course diplomatic me [cough, cough] didn’t argue and instead asked him what was an acceptable location for my snapping of photos. He pointed to the street as well as the sidewalk across the street. Apparently in his mind, simply being on the sidewalk outside the building with my gear was enough to warrant suspicion.

Let’s forget about the harebrained notion that I was going to obtain top secret information through the overhead windows with my wide angle lens. Hmmm, have I mentioned they were tinted glass? All I can say is that I’ve no idea what all the concern was about and since then I never gave it another thought. I merely chalked it up to a fanatical concern for building security. As if my snapping photos with a point and shoot camera would’ve made a huge difference.

You see, there appears to be a big difference between photographing within public property and photographing within and around private property, and well, in NYC there’s a heck of a lot of private property out there. Certain museums will outright ban photography whereas others will allow you to snap shots during particular hours. Stand outside any one of a number of Manhattan skyscrapers with your camera pointing straight up the side and you’re likely to be shooed away even though according to some sources sidewalks are public property. Plus it’s anybody’s guess why one office building will take the subject more seriously than another.

Let’s face it. When it comes to private property, a theater, restaurant, mall, sports facility, arena or even your place of work have and should have within their authority the right to deny anyone the ability to carry out photography. Of course deciding how such actions would affect their place of business is totally up to them to judge. Their concerns about protecting copyright issues, the privacy of others, their private corporate information or whatever else are surely justified in my opinion.

Yet despite all that’s been mentioned one can’t ignore the world which exists post 911. At what point does Paranoia become more a heightened state of fear instead of a heightened state of awareness? I’m referring not merely to those folks who in response to this city’s “If You See Something, Say Something” campaign might report me for taking photos of something which your average citizen may never consider capturing. I am also referring to when I myself feel reluctant to visit certain locations with my gear simply due to the anticipation of what such actions might result in. Have already been down that road quite a number of times myself in the months following September 11, 2001.

Even today, years beyond that fateful day folks are still very shook up and on edge. It may not be quickly evident on our faces but send a low flying 747 over Lower Manhattan and watch how panicked the folks become. Watch as they run for their lives. Watch me as I sit before my television later in the day dumbfounded beyond compare as I watch and hear about the photo-op which had been pre-planned without the slightest intention of public announcement. Watch me as I sit there both furious yet in tears since my own wounds are still fresh. Such was the case on April 27, 2009.

I mention all this since this was not the world I remember prior to 911. The world back then wasn’t filled with propaganda trying to protect us from terrorism or as some might say, trying to keep our hearts filled with fear. It’s such sorts of campaigns which are dangerous ones.

Someone once said that ‘The road to hell is paved with good intentions’.

Well, there certainly seems to be a lot of paving going on these days.

The next part in this series will be about Tripods – Part III.

Again, thank you for reading this far.

Filed under: Photography, Terrorism

Photography in NYC & Terrorism? – Part I

Photography in NYC & Terrorism? – Part I

A recent posting in Telegraph.co.uk struck a chord in this author’s mind. Actually it’s a complaint in the form of a letter from 365 of Britain’s most distinguished photographers asking for the modification of that country’s anti-terrorist legislation. Apparently they’re finding themselves harassed by authorities on the other side of the pond.The above mentioned notion of photography being likened to terrorism has been on the mind of yours truly and many other NYC photographers for some time. Yet perhaps not on the same level or is it? You see, walking around with a camera in hand isn’t the problem. The trouble lies with the use of tripods in public and private spots, and the lines drawn between the two are quite thin. But I’ll get back to that soon. I would like to approach this from various angles through this multi-part posting on the subject.

– Photography en mass –

As one might expect this city attracts quite the mass of tourists each day. Heck, the NYC Office of Tourism states that 47 million foreign and domestic visitors came to the ‘big apple’ in 2008 with tens of billions of tourist dollars being spent here. Consider the proliferation of cameras of all sorts in this world and you’ve got virtually every inch of this city being photographed at some point of every day. Quite the amazing concept if you ask me.  So the thinking of some amateur and professional photographers (including yours truly) that they would be harassed for their use of a camera might seem a bit unjustifiable. Or is it? On one side of the argument would be the huge loss in revenue from such action. Let’s also consider the ridiculousness of an idea from which no good would come. Although following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 overzealous safety precautions were at their highest levels. For awhile thereafter you’d find signs on some of our bridges stating how photography of any kind was not allowed. Actually to this day, photography of, near and within Federal buildings is not allowed either. Try pulling your camera out in Lower Manhattan’s Federal Plaza and you’re liable to be approached by security of some sort or another. Perhaps I’m now convinced that those darkly clad security officers gently cuddling automatic weapons in the streets and subways of NYC aren’t the only reason why some refer to this city as ‘Fortress New York’.

Imagine my surprise when touring through Niagara Falls earlier this year I found out that not only was I allowed to use my tripod wherever I wished, within reason, but I was welcomed to do so. Imagine the surprise of the third officer I asked. Well, surprised until I told him I was from NYC. We’ve reached a point in time when there’s a fine line between protecting our civil liberties and protecting us from terrorism. A time where living in a heightened state of paranoia is the norm. When it’s not the police stopping us (since in all my years of photographing the streets I’ve yet to be approached by a police officer) but rather every day citizens simply trying to follow the rules of their jobs, be they parks rangers, building security or others.

New York City through having experienced the greatest terrorist attack on domestic soil since Pearl Harbor and having the largest and most efficient police force in all of America is now the most secure city there is. Unfortunately that security comes at a price. All I ask is that a bit more rational thinking be employed when trying to protect us all.

As an end to this entry but not an end to this entire subject I’d like to mention the following which was reported in the Guardian.co.uk

Guardian.co.uk

Scotland Yard warns police officers over photography concerns

by Paul Lewis, Tuesday 15 December 2009

“”Scotland Yard has told police officers there is “an enormous amount of concern” about the use of anti-terror laws against people taking photographs in the street.
In a circular to all Metropolitan borough commanders, John Yates, the assistant commissioner for specialist operations, advocated a “commonsense” approach and reminded officers there were no laws to stop people photographing buildings.”"

Coming up next will be Part II – Public vs. Private

Thank you for reading this far.

Filed under: Photography, Terrorism

Woman with the World’s Biggest Pair of Boobs!

The biggest pair I’ve seen in the entire world!

Filed under: Funny Stuff - Political & Not!

‘that Climate Change Scam continues

A recent article on FoxNews.com titled ‘Obama’s Push for Copenhagen Deal Could Violate Constitution, Critics Say’ deals with the very prospect of Barack Obama’s signing of any binding treaty in Copenhagen and the Constitutional violations thereof. A subject brushed upon not so long ago by Lord Christopher Monckton when he addressed the Minnesota Free Market Institute and talked about the ceding of America’s Sovereignty.

Here’s this excerpted paragraph from the article stating the following:

""Who will President Obama heed?" Vince Haley, vice president of policy at American Solutions for Winning the Future, wrote in an opinion article published in FoxNews.com. "The American people and our constitutional system of checks and balances, or the collection of dictators, tyrants, and most undemocratic heads of government convened by the United Nations in Copenhagen this week?"

Mind you, some other recent news items of related interest are as follow:

Cavuto: There’s a New World Order
Fox Business, December 10, 2009
by Neil Cavuto

Senators rally across party lines to fight climate change
USA Today, December 15, 2009 by Kathy Kiely

Al Gore shoots self, climate summit in foot
TG Daily, December 15, 2009 By Andrew Thomas

——————————————-

VIDEOS:

Since we’ve brought up Lord Moncton we thought it fitting to share this video of him asking someone on the streets about Climate Change and such. Supposedly this person was there to attend something hosted by GreenPeace.

Lord Monckton Vs. Greenpeace: On The Streets – Dropping InfoBombs
- ClimateGate Global Warming Hoax

Below is a portion of the speech given by Lord Monckton at the Minnesota Free Market Institute on October 19, 2009.

Filed under: Climate Change, Copenhagen Treaty, Global Warming, News Links, Socialism

Recession, Depression, Recovery

Speaks for itself…doesn’t it?

Filed under: Funny Stuff - Political & Not!, Uncategorized

American Capitalism Gone With a Whimper

Posted with permission from Mat Rodina Blog.

…Please look below in the comments for an additional statement from yours truly.
=================================
American Capitalism Gone With a Whimper

It must be said, that like the breaking of a great dam, the American decent into Marxism is happening with breath taking speed, against the back drop of a passive, hapless sheeple, excuse me dear reader, I meant people.

True, the situation has been well prepared on and off for the past century, especially the past twenty years. The initial testing grounds was conducted upon our Holy Russia and a bloody test it was. But we Russians would not just roll over and give up our freedoms and our souls, no matter how much money Wall Street poured into the fists of the Marxists.

Those lessons were taken and used to properly prepare the American populace for the surrender of their freedoms and souls, to the whims of their elites and betters.

First, the population was dumbed down through a politicized and substandard education system based on pop culture, rather then the classics. Americans know more about their favorite tv dramas then the drama in DC that directly affects their lives. They care more for their “right” to choke down a McDonalds burger or a BurgerKing burger than for their constitutional rights. Then they turn around and lecture us about our rights and about our “democracy”. Pride blindth the foolish.

Then their faith in God was destroyed, until their churches, all tens of thousands of different “branches and denominations” were for the most part little more then Sunday circuses and their televangelists and top protestant mega preachers were more then happy to sell out their souls and flocks to be on the “winning” side of one pseudo Marxist politician or another. Their flocks may complain, but when explained that they would be on the “winning” side, their flocks were ever so quick to reject Christ in hopes for earthly power. Even our Holy Orthodox churches are scandalously liberalized in America.

The final collapse has come with the election of Barrack Obama/ His speed in the past three months has been truly impressive. His spending and money printing has been a record setting, not just in America’s short history but in the world. If this keeps up for more then another year, and there is no sign that it will not, America at best will resemble the Wiemar Republic and at worst Zimbabwe.

These past two weeks have been the most breath taking of all. First came the announcement of a planned redesign of the American Byzantine tax system, by the very thieves who used it to bankroll their thefts, loses and swindles of hundreds of billions of dollars. These make our Russian oligarchs look little more then ordinary street thugs, in comparison. Yes, the Americans have beat our own thieves in the shear volumes. Should we congratulate them?

These men, of course, are not an elected panel but made up of appointees picked from the very financial oligarchs and their henchmen who are now gorging themselves on trillions of American dollars, in one bailout after another. They are also usurping the rights, duties and powers of the American congress (parliament). Again, congress has put up little more then a whimper to their masters.

Then came Barrack Obama’s command that GM’s (General Motor) president step down from leadership of his company. That is correct, dear reader, in the land of “pure” free markets, the American president now has the power, the self given power, to fire CEOs and we can assume other employees of private companies, at will. Come hither, go dither, the centurion commands his minions.

So it should be no surprise, that the American president has followed this up with a “bold” move of declaring that he and another group of unelected, chosen stooges will now redesign the entire automotive industry and will even be the guarantee of automobile policies. I am sure that if given the chance, they would happily try and redesign it for the whole of the world, too. Prime Minister Putin, less then two months ago, warned Obama and UK’s Blair, not to follow the path to Marxism, it only leads to disaster. Apparently, even though we suffered 70 years of this Western sponsored horror show, we know nothing, as foolish, drunken Russians, so let our “wise” Anglo-Saxon fools find out the folly of their own pride.

Again, the American public has taken this with barely a whimper…but a “freeman” whimper.

So, should it be any surprise to discover that the Democratically controlled Congress of America is working on passing a new regulation that would give the American Treasury department the power to set “fair” maximum salaries, evaluate performance and control how private companies give out pay raises and bonuses? Senator Barney Franks, a social pervert basking in his homosexuality (of course, amongst the modern, enlightened American societal norm, as well as that of the general West, homosexuality is not only not a looked down upon life choice, but is often praised as a virtue) and his Marxist enlightenment, has led this effort. He stresses that this only affects companies that receive government monies, but it is retroactive and taken to a logical extreme, this would include any company or industry that has ever received a tax break or incentive.

The Russian owners of American companies and industries should look thoughtfully at this and the option of closing their facilities down and fleeing the land of the Red as fast as possible. In other words, divest while there is still value left.

The proud American will go down into his slavery with out a fight, beating his chest and proclaiming to the world, how free he really is. The world will only snicker.

Filed under: Socialism

Allen West – Congressional Candidate – Florida Dist. 22

Lieutenant Colonel Allen West (US Army, Retired) was born and raised in Atlanta Georgia and is third of four generations of military servicemen in his family. His parents instilled in him a very basic principle, love of God and Country. In 2004, when it was time to retire from more than twenty years of service in the US Army, he brought his wife and two young daughters to Broward County, Florida, where he taught high school for one year. He then returned to Afghanistan as an advisor to the Afghan army, an assignment he finished in November 2007.

Allen West received his Bachelors degree from University of Tennessee and Masters degree from Kansas State University, both in political science. He also holds a Master of Military Arts and Sciences from the US Army Command and General Staff Officer College in political theory and military operations.

“Education is the great equalizer,” he says. “With a good education, any child in America can live his dream.”

Read more at the official Allen West for Congress Website: http://allenwestforcongress.com

and more regarding Mr. West:

Filed under: Candidates, Patriotism

Handling the CCCs: Climatic Convenient Coincidences

Whilst a certain robotic ex politician considers Inconvenient Truths of an inane nature…we’ll be considering coincidental conveniences of a most questionable nature. ‘and what might those be? Well, the Environment Protection Agency’s ruling that greenhouse gases are a threat to public welfare….right on the heels of the beginning of the Copenhagen International Climate Conference in Denmark. Let’s face it, someone had to come to the plate to help the administration in showing those in Copenhagen we mean business, right? I mean, we wouldn’t want to give you know who another reason to start bowing before heads of state again, would we?

Meanwhile back at the ranch Congress is readying to spend loads more cash on……to fund that which has gotten us into the huge mess we’ve found ourselves in. What might that be? Yup, you guessed it! To fund Government! That grand dysfunctional alliance of thieves, liars and incompetent buffoons.

Alas one item to receive a big boost from this spending will be foreign aid. Ummm, Errrrr, correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t one of the ideas behind the Copenhagen Treaty, aside from creating that one world socialist regime…I mean ‘t New World Order…I mean one world government…errrrr, you know what I mean!!!!…but isn’t one of the aims to provide reparations to underdeveloped and developing countries who supposedly need these monies to combat so called climate change? Soooo, why are we giving away even more money?



Speaking of reparations…Within a column at the ‘American Thinker’ is this:

""The costs of the treaty, however, are far clearer. The largest share of the burden would be borne by the United States. Students of history may remember that the reparations forced upon Germany by the victors of World War I resulted in hyperinflation, destroyed the German middle class, and eventually brought Adolf Hitler to power, causing World War II. Economist John Maynard Keynes predicted this disaster at the time.""

On yet a more important note and something which nobody’s bringing up is the fact that the United States is the biggest Foreign Aid contributor in all the world. Considering this and how those at Copenhagen would like for the United States to up their ante and hand out even more…has anyone considered how many nations never use the money we give them for the initial reasons that they received such monies? Between corruption and outright greed, who’s willing to wager that most of the money we hand out in the name of Climate Change will end up in somebody’s pocket(s)?

Whilst all of this is going on, certain scientists, environmentalists, and others continue to stand in denial that the Hacked Emails from CRU (Climate Research Unit) at East Anglia University really mean anything. Gee, perhaps we should give them additional time to beat up on some more fellow scientists….or maybe, just maybe they’ll manage to get their heads out of the sand so’s to better grasp what’s really going on in the world?



Or better yet, maybe if we give them a few more months then they’ll be able to figure out how to lie about the Warming trends of the Dark Ages followed by the Little Ice Age. Examples of how climate change is in fact cyclical or more than likely?

Here is this from Mail Online:

""So climate change evangelists who insist that carbon dioxide drives climate change have turned the truth on its head – the rise in atmospheric carbon-dioxide content followed rather than heralded temperature increases.

Climate is cyclical. The current cycles follow a pattern of about 90,000 years of highly variable glacial conditions followed by around 10,000 years of benign interglacial conditions. The current interglacial period started more than 12,000 years ago. We are due another glaciation.""

‘and this video discussing the Vikings and their demise in the wake of that aforementioned Little Ice Age. Gosh…where was all the CO2 polluting industry back then?



Since we’ve brought up the subject of hacked emails, denial-bound scientists and outright fibbers…have I mentioned how Christopher Horner, a fellow with the Competitive Enterprise Institute is threatening to sue NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies?

""Chris Horner, a noted climate change skeptic, suspects that the same kind of data suppression and fraud that took place at the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit may be taking place at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS). So far NASA has not been responsive to Chris Horner’s request for raw data behind the GISS estimate of the Earth’s temperature. A NASA spokesman claims that Horner’s request is being worked on, but provided no explanation as to the delay.""

Gotta tell ya’ folks, we’re living in the most interesting, exciting and darned scariest of times. Between possible totalitarian regimes, conniving scientists, supposed threats from mother nature and global economic doom I’m going out for a long walk to clear my head and maybe try and come up with some global warming jokes….or some Stupid Global Warming Tricks…no wait…that’s Al Gore’s Shtick! Until my next posting my friends. Take good care and please spread the word through sharing some of the links on this page with friends and family.

 

 

Filed under: Cap & Trade, Climate Change, Copenhagen Treaty, Global Warming, Socialism, Uncategorized

Terror Trial Rally Photos in Foley Square – December 5, 2009

Below are photos from the December 5 Rally in Protest of the proposed Terror Trials in NYC.
Mind you the weather was horrible with chilly temperatures, strong enough winds and plenty of rain…yet the crowd was as one in spirit.
All participants proud to be standing up for our God Given Rights to Freedom of Speech. Standing up for what is right, Standing up for the fallen, Standing up for those who simply couldn’t be there. A truly proud moment in American and New York City History to be repeated again and again in the coming days, weeks and months.

A shot looking east upon my arrival at the Rally.

Folks congregating in the area for the rally as yours truly faces east towards the court houses.

Below image shows a sign held by a fellow Patriot. It speaks for us all! Doesn’t it?

An NYPD sign which says it all.

So much rain, So many umbrellas, So much Spirit!

Umbrellas were abundant in this horrible weather.

Our guest of honor, the genius of Attorney General Eric Holder as he stumbles over his own words in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Attorney General stumbles over his own words.

Filed under: Political Correctness, Terrorism