Tag Archives: economy

Iran declares “Year of Economic Jihad”

“I call this year the ‘Year of Economic Jihad’ and I expect the officials of the country and also our dear nation to work in a jihadi way in the economic areas.” -Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei

The Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khamenei, announced on March 21 (the beginning of the new year in the Iranian calendar) a year of Economic Jihad.  This is the year 1390 under the Iranian calendar system.

His reasoning for declaring an Economic Jihad is the continued efforts by the “West” to place more economic sanctions against Iran.  

Local governments in Japan lost all documentation in Tsunami, computers no help

The coastal towns along the north east coast of Honshu, lost all official documentation regarding their cities, and residents.

Not only “hard copies”, but everything stored on computers. All computers were destroyed by Mother Earth. Basically you would’ve had to store everything of importance inside a old fashioned bank safe.

So much for high tech.

Retail stores cutting back on power, shoppers in the dark

In Japan, in order to cut back on the usage of electricity, many retail stores are cutting back on operating hours, and on lighting.

Japanese consumers have less time to shop, and in some stores, are shopping in the dark.  Stores are keeping most of their lights turned off.

Consumers say they don’t mind, especially because they know it’s due to the triple whammy of disasters that have struck their country.

Bill Nye the Science Guy slams Experts who say this is not another Chernobyl, Bill Nye says yes it is another Chernobyl!!!

Interviewed by CNN Bill Nye the Science Guy was asked if he was calling Fukushima Daiichi another Chernobyl. His answer: “I am, yeah!”

Nye explained that the only way the reactors can be emitting such high levels of radiation is that deadly plutonium is getting out.  Plutonium is created when the uranium fuel is “jolted” during the production of electrical power.

His answer to the problem? Dump concrete on the reactors,  just like the Soviets did with Chernobyl.  Nye explained there is no way to “repair” damaged reactor cores.  This is the main problem with nuclear reactors!

I’m saying this is worse than Chernobyl, because Chernobyl involved ONE reactor.  Fukushima Daiichi has THREE reactors showing signs of damaged cores!  From the beginning of this nuclear disaster, the Russians and Ukrainians (who have first hand experience with Chernobyl) have been saying Fukushima Daiichi will be worse than Chernobyl!

No longer trying to get water in, now trying to get water out of Reactors

For weeks nuclear officials wanted to get water into the reactors, of the Fukushima Daiichi plant. Now they’re trying to get it out.

It looks like the problem is that they used salty sea water to cool the reactors. It helped to keep the reactors cool enough, but it created pressure inside the reactor chambers. Now it looks like the three reactor cores have sprung leaks, flooding the basements of the reactors with highly radioactive water. Already 3 people went to the hospital, at least two of them had Beta Burns.

The radioactive water is flooding into the Pacific Ocean.  Any further work on the reactors is held up because of the high levels of radiation.

Europeans surround EU Parliament, demanding to know where their taxes went to

Recently in Brussels, Belgium, the EU parliament was surrounded by about 20,000 protesters. They wanted to know where the taxes they paid went to.

“This money was made to be used for social security. It was meant to be used for social health, not to help the banks.”-Serge Monsieur, protester

Governments across Europe are dealing with what they claim is no money for their budgets. Europeans pay outrageously high taxes. Just look at their sales tax, in some countries it’s more than 20%! And now more war, this time against Libya.

Protesters say in the past few years they’ve seen the social programs, that they thought their taxes were going to, being slashed and burned.  Jobs keep disappearing. Yet, there seems to be plenty of money for bank bailouts, government bailouts and war.

Isn’t that happening here in the United States? Wake up people!

No more Daylight savings for Russia

the need to adapt [to the time change] is connected with stress and illnesses.”-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev

This spring is the last time Russia will change its clocks. Come October they’ll be no daylight savings to deal with. In 1981 the Soviet Union started a daylight savings program. Russia continued the program, but more and more health studies, in Russia, are pointing to daylight savings as a cause of stress. Other scientists question those studies.

That fact is that, even here in the United States, a lot of people hate daylight savings.

In the U.S. the idea of daylight savings has been around since Benjamin Franklin. Since 1916 many countries have been experimenting with it.  And many of them think it’s time to get rid of it.

Britain facing larger and more violent protests, thanks to budget cuts and war with Libya

Thousands of people took to the streets in London, on March 26. Police were attacked with paint bombs and ammonia bombs.  Businesses were attacked, even delivery trucks.  The Cause? Huge budget cuts for schools and health care, and War.

“It’s been ten years now that we’ve been intervening in wars. We had the war in Afghanistan, then we had Iraq, now suddenly is a third theater of war. At the same time [the British government] says it hasn’t got enough money for the welfare that people in this country need. And they say everybody has to make sacrifices. Well may be we should not be spending 800,000 pounds per missile. How many libraries, how many nurseries, how many young people sent to school we could fund?”-Lindsey German, protester

CNN has incorrectly reported that the protests were organized by trade unions. The truth is that Saturday’s protests had been planned for a while. The trade unions decided to join in after the U.K. government decided to attack Libya. Saturday’s protest was made up of people from college students to health care providers to skilled laborers. What all the protesters want to know is; if the government doesn’t have the money for schools and hospitals, or to promote job growth, where is the money coming from for the war against Libya?

Police say they arrested 157 people. 35 people, including 5 police officers, were injured.

Diesel powered Locomotives brought back to life after Japan Disaster, Low Tech saving High Tech!

The recent catastrophic disaster in Japan, which tore up many rail lines in northern Honshu, has brought back to life retired diesel powered locomotives.

That’s because, even on the rail lines that have been fixed, there is no electric power to run Japan’s modern electric trains. Electric power is going to be an issue for long time, because of the failed Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

Rail officials must be glad they didn’t get rid of their old diesel powered locomotives.  About a dozen 40 plus year old engines have been brought out of retirement.

A relatively short rail line, from the west coast of Honshu, to the eastern prefectures, has been restored. The diesel engines have started running, bringing diesel fuel, and other supplies, to help people in those areas.

One of the engineers was around when they retired the diesel locomotives, and he’s glad they’re back.  Low tech to the rescue of a high tech society.