Tag Archives: russia

International, Technology, U.S.

Pacific Ring of Fire Seismic Events: 2012 already shaping up to be big?

In past postings I reported on what appears to be the average number of magnitude 6.5 or greater earthquakes that hit the Pacific Ring of Fire.

In going through the USGS’s Significant Earthquakes of the World, all the way back to 1999, it seems the Pacific Ring of Fire has about 50 per year.

The Pacific Ring of Fire involves not only the Pacific Plate, but the Nazca Plate, the Antarctic Plate, Cocos Plate, Juan de Fuca Plate, North American Plate, South American Plate, Scotia Plate, Filipino Plate, Eurasian Plate and Australian Plate, whew!

Well, from January 1 to February 12, 2012, there have already been seven “significant” earthquakes involving the plates of the Pacific Ring of Fire.  In fact, so far, the only significant quakes for 2012 have been the seven around the Pacific Ring of Fire!

What about earthquakes in general?  If you look at the USGS’s list of quakes from January 13 to February 4, 2012, the overwhelming majority are around the Pacific Ring of Fire.  I counted at least 453 reported earthquakes around the Pacific Ring.

Most of the quakes are hitting Japan (with the most), California, Alaska, Mexico, Chile, countries on the Filipino Plate (like Indonesian islands getting hit almost as much as Japan), New Zealand and Vanuatu.

Vanuatu is a Southwestern Pacific Island north of New Zealand.  Since the beginning of February it’s getting hit almost daily with quakes ranging from magnitude 4 to 5.

Business/Economics, International, Technology, U.S.

World War 3: Iran builds two more attack submarines, will target U.S. aircraft carriers

“…if an ordinary submarine can sit in the Persian Gulf’s bed it would be the worst threat to the enemy. That is one of the U.S. concerns since Iranian submarines are noiseless and can easily evade detection as they are equipped with the sonar evading technology…When the submarine sits on the seabed it can easily target and hit an aircraft carrier traversing in the nearby region.”-Rear Admiral Farhad Amiri

February 9, 2012, Iran announced it has completed two more high tech attack mini submarines, designed to patrol the Persian Gulf.  They claim the submarines are 100% built in Iran.

The Ghadir class mini submarines are small (some say they look like a submarine made by North Korea), and can fire Hoot supercavitating rocket powered torpedoes, which are far too fast for a ship to avoid.  Those torpedoes could be based on the Soviet rocket torpedoes developed during the Cold War.

The latest subs will join at least three other subs that were completed in 2009.  Here’s pics of them.  Iran has not revealed how many of the mini subs they have, but USAToday estimates they have 12 mini subs (and three big Russian designed submarines).

 

Business/Economics, International, U.S.

Red & White Horse: Iran says Western sources behind lies about Iran sending troops to Syria. Russia says Syrian people caught in the middle of game of conquest by the West. Gingrich behind the curve, Western forces already in Syria!

Russian media claim a Chinese newspaper has published an article that says Iran is sending 15,000 troops to Syria.

The Russians asked several Iranian university and media officials about this: “As far as I know there is not and will not be any program to dispatch Iranian military troops to Syria.”- Reza Moghadasi, Mehr News

“Iran has no troops in the country. Iran has never had troops involved in the problems within Syria. Someone in the Chinese media has been receiving information that is completely false.”-Seyed Mohammad Marandi, University of Tehran

But, so far, there has been no comment from Iranian government leaders.

Despite some U.S. Republican pining over covert military action in Syria, an Israeli military intelligence source (called DEBKAfile) a has already confirmed that indeed, Western and Qatari military forces are already in Syria, helping the Free Syrian Army.

Russian government leaders are accusing the U.S. and Europe of using the Syrian people as pawns in their game of world conquest: “This is a global game; this is about geo-political and geo-economic interests and unfortunately countries like Syria are being held hostage for the geo-political and geo-economic interests of Western countries.”-Konstantin Kosachev, State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee

Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other.

I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.

Business/Economics, International, Technology, U.S.

Some Economic Recovery? Toyota will fight rising Yen, by moving Highlander production to the United States

After announcing a 75% drop in profits, due to the rising value of the Japanese Yen, Toyota announced it will move all Highlander production to the United States!

This is because the value of the dollar is so low that it’s now cheaper to make their SUV in the U.S., than in Japan.  Those U.S. made Highlanders will then be sold in the growing Russian and Australian car markets.

Toyota hopes production will begin in their Indiana factory by the middle of 2013.  It will include gasoline engined, and hybrid powered Highlanders.

 

 

International, U.S.

White Horse, Red Horse & World War 3: U.S. shuts down embassy in Syria, U.K. withdraws ambassador, Russia sends their own observers

I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.

Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other.

Russia is sending their own observer team to Syria, after joining China in blocking the U.S. backed UNSC resolution.  Russian officials say they tried to get the U.S. to wait for a report from Russian observers, before voting on the resolution: “Certain Western states are trying to obscure the developments with hysterical statements on Russia’s veto of the Syria resolution. To put the Syria resolution to a vote despite our request to wait for Russia’s report after its visit to Damascus is disrespectful.”-Sergei Lavrov, Foreign Minister of Russia  

Russia also insists the so called democracy movement is an insurrection by the U.S., and Arab countries not friendly with Syria: “The Russian establishment and public opinion don’t buy the picture of a peaceful pro-democracy movement suppressed by dictatorship. Well trained and heavily armed rebel groups have support from the outside, primarily from Saudi Arabia and Qatar.”-Fyodor Lukyanov, Russian foreign policy analyst

Also today, the Nobel Peace prize winning U.S. President Barack Obama ordered the closing of the U.S. embassy in Syria.  Even though Obama makes statements saying foreign military intervention should not occur, closing your embassy is usually associated with an expected increase in warlike violence.

The United Kingdom has recalled its ambassador to Syria. Again, another move usually associated with war.  U.K. Foreign Secretary, William Hague, has also made a formal complaint with the Syrian ambassador in London.

Hague has also accused Russia and China of “betraying the Syrian people”.

International, U.S.

What Global Warming? Europe & Asia suffer freezing WX, at least 420 Europeans freeze to death, even North Africa affected

“It’s awful. I had to walk two hours through freezing temperatures just to get to the metro. The area is full of trees that have fallen on cars but no one’s come to help us.”-Federico Maneski, Rome, Italy

While North America is experiencing a warmer than normal winter, Europe and Asia are breaking records.  From record snowfall in Japan and Korea, to record low temps in Europe.

Japan and South Korea had reported record snowfall, and record freezing temps, but not as freezing as the temps in Europe.

As of February 6, at least 420 Europeans, mostly homeless people, have frozen to death!  Finland has hit -40 Celsius (-104 Fahrenheit)!   The deaths of people who do not have access to heat sources range from France, Italy, Poland, Romania to Ukraine.

In Serbia, an area of 70,000 people has been cut off by record snowfall.  Police and military units have to use helicopters to fly in supplies.  In Croatia, a woman gave birth to a daughter with the help of her neighbors in her village, because the road to the hospital was blocked by snow. She named her daughter Snjezana, which means Snow White in Croatian.

The freezing temps have even hit the North African country of Algeria.  16 people were killed when their cars slid off ice covered roads.

 

 

 

 

 

International, U.S.

White Horse & World War 3: Russia & China Veto UNSC Resolution against Syria, U.S. & Europe might now go to war with Syria without UN support

I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.

Just reported out of Moscow, Russia and China has officially vetoed the latest United Nations Security Council resolution against Syria.

Russia says one reason they vetoed the U.S. backed resolution was because it sanctioned only Syrian government forces, not rebel groups such as the U.S./Israeli supported Free Syrian Army (which is responsible for most of the violence in Syria).

Analysts say the United States, and European countries who want war with Syria, must now prove their claims in order to push for another try at a UNSC resolution.  It is highly likely that the U.S. and EU will act against Syria without UN support.

Business/Economics, International, Technology, U.S.

What Economic Recovery? Expect oil prices to shoot up. Don’t blame Iran! Pro-U.S. South Sudan has stopped all oil exports. Russians being attacked

It’s not even a year old, and already it’s affecting the global oil market.  South Sudan says it is halting all oil exports, because of disputes with Sudan.

Recently South Sudan officials accused Sudan of stealing its oil.  In the latest case they say Sudan stole 650,000 barrels of oil, which was loaded onto a Sudan ship.  Sudan replied by saying South Sudan failed to pay import duties on the oil.  Currently South Sudan must ship its oil through Sudan to ports on the Red Sea.

On January 29, 2012, South Sudan stopped all oil exports in retaliation.

Currently the United Nations has Peacekeepers in South Sudan, they include military and police units from several dozens of countries, including the United States.  Japan is also sending military units in February.

On January 24, Russia announced it was withdrawing the majority of its  helicopter forces from South Sudan, by April 1.   The UN claims the Russian  Peacekeeping forces have been specifically targeted for attacks: “It is clear that the reason why Russia has (grounded) the helicopters is based on the threat and the risk the troops have faced.”-Susana Malcorra, UN Department of Field Support

International

Red Horse & False War on Drugs in Mexico: 13,000 people killed in the first 9 months of 2011. Prepare for U.S. invasion

Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other.

The Mexican attorney general released an official death toll for the first nine months of 2011. It’s 11% higher than the same time in 2010.  2010’s death toll was 70% higher than 2009!  So far the official death toll in the so called Mexican war on drugs is 45,515! That’s not a war on drugs, that’s an all out civil war!

In May, 2011, I wrote that what was going on in Mexico was actually a civil war between the pro-U.S. government, and ultra right wing nationalist.  One reason is that the majority of people getting killed are not drug dealers or police, but migrant workers from Central American countries, as well as a few tourists from the United States!

In a 1998 book (called The Next War), co-authored by former U.S. Secretary of Defense under Ronald Reagan, Caspar Weinberger listed which countries the United States was going to go to war with (so far he’s been right, one being Iraq, the other [most likely] being Iran), and that includes Mexico!

“…an American expeditionary force invades Mexico to topple a corrupt and recalcitrant drug-running regime…”-Amazon book review

Weinberger’s scenarios are based on actual Department of Defense war scenarios.  In the case of Mexico, the scenario says that nationalist drug lords take over Mexico and begin nationalizing the oil industry (which the U.S. oil companies had worked so hard to take over).  Under the pretext of stopping masses of refugees flowing into the U.S., and to restore democracy, the United States invades Mexico.  The invasion is launched from Texas.

By the way, Weinberger also says we are going to attack Russia, Korea and Japan.  The 1998 book also talks about cyber warfare and Arab uprisings (what is now called The Arab Spring in the West).  Mmmm, are our leaders using this book as a guide?

International, U.S.

White Horse & World War 3: Russian navy protects Syria, Turkey seizes ship and trucks with ‘banned’ weapons

I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.

After a 48 hour stop over in a Syrian port, the Russian navy is now conducting maneuvers in the Mediterranean Sea. The Russian fleet is led by the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, which carries Su-33 fighter jets and Ka-27 anti-submarine helicopters.

The five ship fleet traveled 6,000 nautical miles (6,904 miles) to protect Syria. It also took part in war games with the Greek navy.

Also being reported is that a Russian cargo ship might have delivered military equipment to the Syrian government.  Turkish officials seized the Russian ship after it left Syria.  Turkish port authorities have only stated that they found “dangerous cargo” on the ship, which violated current European Union arms sanctions against Syria.  Because the Russian ship tried to dock in Turkey, Turkish officials say that gives them the right to seize the ship under EU arms sanctions (Turkey is not a full member of the EU, it is an “associate member”).

This action comes after Turkish Customs officials seized four trucks heading to Syria from Iran.  They claim the trucks were carrying weapons.  This is confusing info because the Iranian media continue to issue reports that Turkey supports Iran and Syria!