IDENTITY CORRECTION [and] GETTING BOULDERISED

IDENTITY CORRECTION

Your lead editor first became of the Yes Men a few years ago, after reading of some of their interesting, and important performances.

What are the Yes Men? A band of merry hipsters, hundreds in number, of indeterminate gender, who go around posing as different important figures in large corporations or supporting government agencies. They do some of these performances at large conferences, and present factual, yet completely contrary and/or outrageously outspoken information to what the real figures would present. Highlighting corporate excesses, hypocrisy, and the destructiveness of our unregulated capitalist system, which if left unchecked, will poison the planet and bring catastrophic environmental changes.
http://theyesmen.org/

In their words, they perform:

Identity Correction

Impersonating big-time criminals in order to publicly humiliate them. Targets are leaders and big corporations who put profits ahead of everything else.

and:

The Yes Men agree their way into the fortified compounds of commerce, ask questions, and then smuggle out the stories of their hijinks to provide a public glimpse at the behind-the-scenes world of business. In other words, the Yes Men are team players... but they play for the opposing team.


http://akprogressive.blogspot.com/2009/09/entering-circle-shamanic-thoughts-and.html

We first alerted you to one of their hijinks in our 9/20/09 article, "Shamanic Thoughts [and] We're Screwed!" Whereby they and a group of collaborating activists created a fictional New York Post, describing a real official N.Y. City report on the effects global warming would have upon it. They then printed HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of copies, and distributed them in NYC! It caused quite a stir, since most people initially thought they were the real New York Post's for that day. Quite a service, of time and money, to put information out that our corporate media suppresses. A.P.R. applauds their devotion to performing this important public service. And we'd like to describe a few of their other performances, which can be found here:
http://theyesmen.org/hijinks

This one is, we think, the most outrageous, funny, but also, downright creepy, from 2007:
http://theyesmen.org/hijinks/vivoleum

Here is what went down:

Exxon's Climate-Victim Candles
Overview
Impostors posing as ExxonMobil and National Petroleum Council (NPC) representatives delivered an outrageous keynote speech to 300 oilmen at GO-EXPO, Canada's largest oil conference, held at Stampede Park in Calgary, Alberta, today.

The speech was billed beforehand by the GO-EXPO organizers as the major highlight of this year's conference, which had 20,000 attendees. In it, the "NPC rep" was expected to deliver the long-awaited conclusions of a study commissioned by US Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman. The NPC is headed by former ExxonMobil CEO Lee Raymond, who is also the chair of the study.

In the actual speech, the "NPC rep" announced that current U.S. and Canadian energy policies (notably the massive, carbon-intensive exploitation of Alberta's oil sands, and the development of liquid coal) are increasing the chances of huge global calamities. But he reassured the audience that in the worst case scenario, the oil industry could "keep fuel flowing" by transforming the billions of people who die into oil.

"We need something like whales, but infinitely more abundant," said "NPC rep" "Shepard Wolff" (actually Andy Bichlbaum of the Yes Men), before describing the technology used to render human flesh into a new Exxon oil product called Vivoleum. 3-D animations of the process brought it to life.

"Vivoleum works in perfect synergy with the continued expansion of fossil fuel production," noted "Exxon rep" "Florian Osenberg" (Yes Man Mike Bonanno). "With more fossil fuels comes a greater chance of disaster, but that means more feedstock for Vivoleum. Fuel will continue to flow for those of us left."

The oilmen listened to the lecture with attention, and then lit "commemorative candles" supposedly made of Vivoleum obtained from the flesh of an "Exxon janitor" who died as a result of cleaning up a toxic spill. The audience only reacted when the janitor, in a video tribute, announced that he wished to be transformed into candles after his death, and all became crystal-clear.

At that point, Simon Mellor, Commercial & Business Development Director for the company putting on the event, strode up and physically forced the Yes Men from the stage. As Mellor escorted Bonanno out the door, a dozen journalists surrounded Bichlbaum, who, still in character as "Shepard Wolff," explained to them the rationale for Vivoleum.

"We've got to get ready. After all, fossil fuel development like that of my company is increasing the chances of catastrophic climate change, which could lead to massive calamities, causing migration and conflicts that would likely disable the pipelines and oil wells. Without oil we could no longer produce or transport food, and most of humanity would starve. That would be a tragedy, but at least all those bodies could be turned into fuel for the rest of us."

"We're not talking about killing anyone," added the "NPC rep." "We're talking about using them after nature has done the hard work. After all, 150,000 people already die from climate-change related effects every year. That's only going to go up - maybe way, way up. Will it all go to waste? That would be cruel."

Security guards then dragged Bichlbaum away from the reporters, and he and Bonanno were detained until Calgary Police Service officers could arrive. The policemen, determining that no major infractions had been committed, permitted the Yes Men to leave.

Canada's oil sands, along with "liquid coal," are keystones of Bush's Energy Security plan. Mining the oil sands is one of the dirtiest forms of oil production and has turned Canada into one of the world's worst carbon emitters. The production of "liquid coal" has twice the carbon footprint as that of ordinary gasoline. Such technologies increase the likelihood of massive climate catastrophes that will condemn to death untold millions of people, mainly poor.

"If our idea of energy security is to increase the chances of climate calamity, we have a very funny sense of what security really is," Bonanno said. "While ExxonMobil continues to post record profits, they use their money to persuade governments to do nothing about climate change. This is a crime against humanity."

"Putting the former Exxon CEO in charge of the NPC, and soliciting his advice on our energy future, is like putting the wolf in charge of the flock," said "Shepard Wolff" (Bichlbaum). "Exxon has done more damage to the environment and to our chances of survival than any other company on earth. Why should we let them determine our future?"

Amazing, and inspiring! Then there was this one, where they posed as Halliburton officials at a "Catastrophic Loss" conference in Florida, in 2006 :

Halliburton solves global warming!
Overview

SurvivaBalls save managers from abrupt climate change
An advanced new technology will keep corporate managers safe even when climate change makes life as we know it impossible.

"The SurvivaBall is designed to protect the corporate manager no matter what Mother Nature throws his or her way," said Fred Wolf, a Halliburton representative who spoke today at the Catastrophic Loss conference held at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Amelia Island, Florida. "This technology is the only rational response to abrupt climate change," he said to an attentive and appreciative audience.

Most scientists believe global warming is certain to cause an accelerating onslaught of hurricanes, floods, droughts, tornadoes, etc. and that a world-destroying disaster is increasingly possible. For example, Arctic melt has slowed the Gulf Stream by 30% in just the last decade; if the Gulf Stream stops, Europe will suddenly become just as cold as Alaska. Global heat and flooding events are also increasingly possible.

In order to head off such catastrophic scenarios, scientists agree we must reduce our carbon emissions by 70% within the next few years. Doing that would seriously undermine corporate profits, however, and so a more forward-thinking solution is needed.

At today's conference, Wolf and a colleague demonstrated three SurvivaBall mockups, and described how the units will sustainably protect managers from natural or cultural disturbances of any intensity or duration. The devices - looking like huge inflatable orbs - will include sophisticated communications systems, nutrient gathering capacities, on-board medical facilities, and a daunting defense infrastructure to ensure that the corporate mission will not go unfulfilled even when most human life is rendered impossible by catastrophes or the consequent epidemics and armed conflicts.

"It's essentially a gated community for one," said Wolf.

Dr. Northrop Goody, the head of Halliburton's Emergency Products Development Unit, showed diagrams and videos describing the SurvivaBall's many features. "Much as amoebas link up into slime molds when threatened, SurvivaBalls also fulfill a community function. After all, people need people," noted Goody as he showed an artist's rendition of numerous SurvivaBalls linking up to form a managerial aggregate with functional differentiation, metaphorically dancing through the streets of Houston, Texas.

The conference attendees peppered the duo with questions. One asked how the device would fare against terrorism, another whether the array of embedded technologies might make the unit too cumbersome; a third brought up the issue of the unit's cost feasibility. Wolf and Goody assured the audience that these problems and others were being addressed.

"The SurvivaBall builds on Halliburton's reputation as a disaster and conflict industry innovator," said Wolf. "Just as the Black Plague led to the Renaissance and the Great Deluge gave Noah a monopoly of the animals, so tomorrow's catastrophes could well lead to good - and industry must be ready to seize that good."

Goody also noted that Jean-Michel Cousteau's Ocean Futures Society was set to employ the SurvivaBall as part of its Corporate Sustenance (R) program. Another of Cousteau's CSR programs involves accepting a generous sponsorship from the Dow Chemical Corporation.

Their latest escapade is getting them in some hot water, specifically, a lawsuit against them filed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, because of:
http://www.commondreams.org/video/2009/10/20-0

The Yes Men Pull Off Prank Claiming US Chamber of Commerce Had Changed Its Stance on Climate Change

The business community got a shock on Monday when its leading advocacy group appeared to make a startling announcement. A statement purporting to come from the Chamber of Commerce said the group had dropped its opposition to congressional climate change legislation and would now even support taxing carbon emissions. The news wires quickly picked up the story, and within minutes it was being reported on the websites of outlets including the New York Times and Washington Post. It also made its way onto cable news, including the Fox Business Network. It was all a prank pulled off by the Yes Men.

We here at A.P.R. are inspired and captivated by these activists, using creativity, and real, factual information, to shine a light on hypocrisy and publicise important issues. They have a movie out, which we have not seen yet (it probably won't show in Fairbanks...), but will at our first opportunity. http://theyesmenfixtheworld.com/

Visit their web-site, http://theyesmen.org/, see the movie if you can, and join us in encouraging and supporting their highly important activities!

GETTING BOULDERISED

A few months ago, I was asked if I wanted to attend a winter weather forecasting workshop in Boulder, Colorado, put on by the Meteorological Services, Canada, in conjunction with our NOAA/National Weather Service. I was initially not enthusiastic, as it meant I would only have five days back at the Chena Ridge Research Centre with Mattie and Homer, after returning from my California/Florida trip.

However, once I got there, I was in for a treat. Boulder is probably the original "latte town", home to the large, University of Colorado, main campus. This is a disparaging term some conservatives use for progressive, public-university dominated cities like Boulder, CO, Missoula, MT, Berkeley, CA, Eugene, OR, Athens, GA, Burlington VT, and many others. Because they try and polarise the more blue-collar types outside of them in their states, to make them think the people of these college-towns are selfish and elitist. When it is just the opposite.

"Latte Towns" all share these characteristics: A large public university is located immediately in or closely adjacent to a small city. The large body of educated people associated with it who live, study, and continue living in it after graduating (if they can find jobs!) shifts the prevailing culture so that they become more progressive, sustainable communities. Focusing local activism on environmental, and socio-economic/political issues. This also leads to large diversity in cultural activities, concerts, art galleries, funky, interesting multi-ethnic restaurants, and a stronger sense of community. Unfortunately, Fairbanks doesn't qualify as one, because our University of Alaska campus is on it's outskirts, and so it's influence is limited on the prevailing military/oil industry/tourism culture here. North Dallas we like to call it sometimes, alas.

It's always refreshing then to take a break from taking a stand for peace/justice in Fairbanks, and spend time in a place were we feel culturally at ease and supported. I still feel that Missoula, MT is the place I felt culturally most at home with. As it is a hotbed of environmental and political activism, with enough wilderness and outdoor activities available close at hand, for quick refuge from the stresses of modern living. My years there in 1990-98 are what really helped expand my social conscience, meeting so many concerned, and active people engaged in meaningful activities to promote peace and justice.

The biggest drawback to living in, or wanting to live in a "latte town" is this: Because they are special, sustainable, and progressive, with a strong sense of community, more and more people want to live there. This drives up prices, leads to rapid growth, and a very tight job market. Which is why I had to leave Missoula, in 1998. While living in Missoula, around 1992-93, it became apparent that this was happening there. I used to tell people then, "Oh God, Missoula is going to become Boulderised!".

And it did, by 1996, the large beautiful Victorian houses on the sugar-maple lined streets near the Univ. of Montana were selling for 600K. In 1990, when I first arrived, one could be had for 80K! And the population had almost doubled there between 1990 and 2000.

I remembered this when I arrived in Boulder, thinking it would be just a massively crowded and incredibly expensive place. I was pleasantly surprised. It still is three times larger than Missoula, almost as large as Anchorage, with a population close to 200,000. And it has heavy traffic, and numerous noisy freeway-like expressways. However, it became expensive in those idyllic Mork and Mindy days of the late 1970s-early 1980s, so much of the development was done with some forethought. Instead of single-family homes on large lots, much of it was in the form of condos and townhomes, linked by bike trails. So I could run to different areas of the city, even up to the foothills, without having to be on the busy streets for very long. And, needless to say, there were multitudes of good restaurants, brew-pubs, and interesting ethnic stores in the downtown area.


There is a beautiful park on the southwest portion of town, up against the base of the Rocky Mountains, called Chautaqua Park. Containing many KM of trails which can take you from the base at 1900 metres, all the way up to 3000 metres or so, into the forested mountains. Anomalously warm weather greeted us all on our first day there (imagine that!), sunday 10/18, with temperatures near 30C, about 8C above average.

It gradually cooled off after that, and after the first week our our workshop, I had to get on those trails! On that sat., the 24th, I did a nice 30 KM semi-fast pack where I had this picture taken. Running about 12-14 KM on the flats and downhills, and walking the steeper uphills, due to the altitude. It was fairly warm still though, 18-20C, except at the very end of the day, when an upper-trough came through, and westerly winds of 120-140 KPH came roaring through, and I thought I'd meet my end from flying tree limbs.

Sunday the 25th though dawned calmer, but cooler. I decided I had to see Rocky Mountain NP. http://www.nps.gov/romo/index.htm

From lush valleys to craggy peaks

This living showcase of the grandeur of the Rocky Mountains, with elevations ranging from 8,000 feet in the wet, grassy valleys to 14,259 feet at the weather-ravaged top of Longs Peak, provides visitors with opportunities for countless breathtaking experiences and adventures.

I had to go through Estes Park first, to get there, a large town at it's base, with apparently very rapid growth, judging by all the newer condos/townhouses I saw there. I drove in to the Storm Pass Trailhead on the Bear Lake Road (trailhead elevation 3000 metres!), and hiked about 8 km in to Emerald Lake, here to the left, at 3500 metres! An amazingly beautiful spot, the equal of anything we have here in Alaska! It was cold and windy here, about -5C with a stiff 40 kph west wind. The sun would come out between snow showers and light up the crags briefly. Had to be fast with the camera!


Leaving the park late in the afternoon, I drove south on beautiful CO Highways 7 and 72 through Meeker Park, Nederland, and Coal Creek Canyon, at elevations of 2500-3000 metres, returning to Boulder at 5 pm in the evening. There had been a little bit of snow that day, and I had to get in some more trail time there at Chatauqua Park. This is looking back north over Boulder, with the front range of the Rockies to the West. Man, it would sure be something to live in one of those nice old houses, a few blocks from this park!


One of the main draws to the trails around Chautaqua is that they provide access to the Flatirons, these large, imposing rocks rising 100-200 metres vertically. Rock-climbing and hiking around them are highly sought-after. They were always beautiful in the different lighting, at different times of the day. I just spent another 90 min. or so racing around those trails that sunday, getting in some last-minute pictures, before darkness set in.





The highlight of my time there, beside learning very useful and important information about winter weather forecasting, and meeting and interacting with the Canadians, was our big snow storm from 10/27 to 10/29. We all saw it coming in the numerical forecast models for several days before-hand, in class, and it was the topic of much debate. We had a snow-forecast contest. Of all the students, my forecast of 51 cm for the event was closest. But we received 60 cm! Here is right outside our building that the conference is in, thu. morning 10/29 as the snow was starting to wind down. Beautiful, and refreshing. Temperatures started out near freezing intitially on the evening of 10/27, and the snow was heavy and slushy. But by mid-day of wed. 10/28, it was -2 to -3C, and the snow was a nice light powder, with a 14:1 snow to liquid ratio.

My classmate Charles Creese, from Trenton, Ontario, and I knew we had to make the most of this. We rented nordic waxless classic skis that wed., and after class that day had a beautiful night ski around the trails in Chautaqua Park in 45 cm of powder. The next day, thu., after class, there was 15 cm more, and we hit the trail a little earlier, around 1730, when there was more daylight, and got some great pictures in:














All that heavy wet snow, followed by the powder, was caked on to those huge Flatiron rocks, and was draped over the Ponderosa Pines and Douglas Fir. Some of them had torn limbs from the heavy weight of all that snow.

'We skied in just about 8 km on the Mesa Trail, then took off our skis and walked a little further up a steep rocky section, where we found some great evening photo-ops, around 1815. It was getting dark then by 1830, so we had to act fast.

The dim lighting and heavy snow was really interesting on those rocks, as well as the heavily-loaded trees.


Almost surreal-looking, to be sure. Those rocks are 200 metres high. A northerly light breeze at times caused a few avalanches off the trees, one of these was really powerful. The wind gust coming from it (it was about 20 metres away from us, thank god!) was quite strong. Good thing it didn't come down on us, it would have been painful.

While we were there, a manic-looking lad of about 20 or so came down the trail. He had seen a mountain lion a kilometre back, and they stared each other down, about 15 metres apart! Fortunately, the lion retreated, they rarely attack adults. If one appears imminent, the suggestion is to make yourself look as large as possible by extending your arms and jumping up and down. But our Univ. of Colorado student didn't have to do that.

All in all, visiting Boulder, CO and all it's "Latte Town" amenities was highly refreshing, and that area of Colorado, which I had never before seen, is now one that I look forward to returning to. As well, our friends Matt Klick and Lalida Crawford had just moved to Denver last summer, and I got to visit them in their beautiful, interesting, funky, Berkely neighborhood on the northwest side of the city. It's mix of nice older homes and good restaurants in close proximity reminded me favourably of West Seattle, or parts of Southeast Portland. Good stuff!

CAPITALISM'S DIRTY WARS/(SECRETS)

It has been many years since your lead editor has come across information, which is so shattering, and important, as to fully capture my attention for many days. And which requires sharing, to as wide an audience as possible. Not just through this article, but in my day to day life, interacting with friends, and other interested people.

What is this information? It is a book, published in 2007, The Shock Doctrine-The Rise of Disaster Capitalism, written by a Canadian, London-trained economist, Naomi Klein.

http://www.amazon.com/Shock-Doctrine-Rise-Disaster-Capitalism/dp/0312427999/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256613012&sr=8-1

Here are what a few leading progressive voices have to say about it:

"Naomi Klein is an investigative reporter like no other. She roams the continents with eyes wide open and her brain operating at full speed, finding connections we never thought of, and patterns which eluded us. This is a brilliant book, one of the most important I have read in a long time." HOWARD ZINN

"Naomi Klein is one of the most important new voices in American journalism today. She has turned globalism inside out, and given us all a new way of looking at our seemingly unending disaster in Iraq, and a new way of understanding why we got there." SEYMOUR M. HERSH

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x369448

Here is the book description, from the publisher:

"At the most chaotic juncture in Iraq's civil war, a new law is unveiled that will allow Shell and BP to claim the country's vast oil reserves. Immediately following September 11, the Bush administration quietly outsources the running of "The War on Terror" to Halliburton and Blackwater. After a powerful tsunami devastates the coasts of Southeast Asia, the pristine beaches are auctioned off to tourist resorts. New Orlean's residents, still scattered from Hurricane Katrina, discover that their public housing, hospitals, and schools, will never be reopened.

These events are examples of what Naomi Klein calls "the shock doctrine": the use of public disorientation following massive collective shocks-wars, terrorist attacks, natural disasters-to push through highly unpopular economic shock therapy. Sometimes, when the first two shocks don't succeed in wiping out all resistance, a third is employed: that of the electrode in the prison cell or of the Taser gun.

Based on breakthrough historical research and four years of on-the-ground reporting in disaster zones, The Shock Doctrine explodes the myth that the global free market triumphed democratically. Disaster capitalism-the rapid-fire corporate reengineering of societies that are reeling from shock-did not begin with September 11, 2001. In this courageous new book, Klein traces the intellectual origins of disaster capitalism back to the University of Chicago's economics department under Milton Friedman, whose influence is still felt around the World. The Shock Doctrine draws new and surprising connections among economic policy, "shock and awe" warfare and the covert CIA-funded experiments in electroshock and sensory deprivation [begun in the 1950's, eds.] that shaped the torture manuals used today in Guantanamo Bay.

As Klein shows how the deliberate use of the shock doctrine produced World-changing events, from Pinochet's coup in Chile in 1973 to the Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989 and the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, she tells a story radically different from the one we usually hear. Once again, Naomi Klein has written a book that will reframe the debate."

When I was in Mr. Wilson's fourth grade class, at Euclid Elementary, in San Diego, in September, 1973, we had a "current events" period every friday, for an hour. Each student was required to bring a newspaper or magazine article, read parts of it aloud, and moderate a discussion with the rest of the students about it. I always liked that part of our school day. On 12 September, 1973, I brought in a very small, one-column article, of about three paragraphs, from the San Diego Union, our main newspaper. It was entitled "Coup in Chile", and briefly described the chaotic and terrifying events of the previous day, which occurred, in that poor country (and which Naomi Klein documents in great detail, in The Shock Doctrine).

I was too young to really understand then what had happened there, and why, and my mother, who for many years was an anti-war/peace activist, tried to explain to me. Over the course of the years to come, as I grew into adulthood, my mother kept me abreast of what was happening in South and Central America. How vicious, fascist, right-wing governments took and maintained power, with aid and support from the U.S., in the 1970s and 1980s. These governments tortured and murdered hundreds of thousands of suspected "leftists" in their respective countries, people whose only "crimes" were that of supporting trade unions, worker's rights, ending torture, and working for basic human rights (or even just being indigenous). She used to give me copies of Amnesty International reports from people who had survived imprisonment and unspeakable torture, in these countries.

Particularly vicious were the governments of the "Southern Cone" of Latin America, in the 1970s and '80s, Chile, Uruguay, and Argentina. Many movies and books have appeared since then, documenting the tragedies that occurred in those countries, and throughout this hemisphere. I had always assumed, from the articles/reports I had read, that pressure from U.S.-based multi-national corporations was the reason our government supported these murderous governments (who can forget the murders of Catholic priests, archbishops, and nuns, in El Salvador in the late 1970s/early 1980s, because they spoke out). But Naomi Klein's research documents that this was not the full story. That not only were these governments aided by ours to keep and maintain power so that corporate-friendly policies would be maintained, this was done with the expectation that these countries would be re-made, with completely unregulated, free-market-based economies. By any means necessary, including torture, and murder, to intimidate the peoples of these countries to accept policies that would never have been allowed under a democracy.

What kind of policies were these? Complete de-regulation of all sectors of the economy, complete privatisation of all formerly-government-controlled sectors such as power generation, water purification/distribution, mining, social services, and transportation. Which when undertaken by these countries, led to massive unemployment, inflation and extreme hardship. Poverty rates increased greatly in all these countries when their repressive governments forced these policies upon their terrorised populations. The repression was not just confined to their respective countries either. A vicious terrorist attack occurred on the streets of Washington D.C. in 1976. Orlando Letelier had been Chile's ambassador to the U.S., under Salvador Allende's administration, from 1970-73. When Gen. Augusto Pinochet led the right-wing coup there, and took power, after 11 September, 1973 (the first 9/11!), he fled the country, and eventually wound up in Washington D.C., working for a human-rights organisation, and began writing articles and giving speeches to expose the repression under Pinochet's regime.

On 21 September, 1976, as he was driving through the heart of the embassy district of Washington D.C., a bomb planted under his car seat exploded, severing his legs, and killing instantly his 25 year old passenger, Ronni Moffit, a colleague of his. Orlando died before reaching the hospital. The FBI investigated and traced the bomb to a member of the Chilean secret police, who was convicted and imprisoned for the attack. The assasination team had been admitted to the U.S. on false passports, with the knowledge of the CIA.

The Shock Doctrine, besides describing the sad and terrifying repression that occurred in Chile and Argentina, during the "Dirty Wars" of the 1970s/80s, then also describes how governments in other countries were forced to enact massively unpopular deregulation and privitisation policies, which impoverished their populations.

I had never fully understood what had happened after the Soviet Union collapsed, in 1990-91, and how they made the transition to a capitalist economy in the years following. Klein describes in detail how Mikhail Gorbhachev, while he was still in power in 1989-90, actually had wanted to have his country transition to a benevolent social democracy, in the model of Norway, Sweden, or Finland. But, because of great economic difficulties, and the need for emergency loans from the World Bank, and International Monetary Fund (IMF), he was forced to rapidly enact shock doctrine policies in his country. The results are plaguing Russia to this day, the highest death-rate from alcoholism in the World, massive unemployment, and a decreased life-span, especially for men. This was very sad to read, as Russia is a country rich in history and natural resources, and if it had been allowed and encouraged to develop a Social Democratic government, it could have become an inspiration to the World, and it's 200 million people would have had much better living conditions.

Klein also describes what happened in South Africa after Nelson Mandela was freed from prison in 1990, to lead the African National Congress in it's peaceful transition to majority rule, ending the apartheid minority white-ruled regime. Mandela and the ANC had wanted to enact massive public-works programs to build housing for the millions of impoverished blacks living in shanty-towns outside the major cities, as well as to increase government spending on other employment-creating programs. But, because their economy was facing collapse at that critical time, they were forced by the IMF and World Bank in the early 1990s to enact massively unpopular and destructive economic policies, aka, the shock doctrine. The results continue to this day. There are actually fewer households with electricity now, in South Africa, than in 1994, and none of the promised millions of new, modern, housing units with basic sanitation, have been built for the millions of shanty-town residents.

The Shock Doctrine spends the greatest amount of time documenting the immoral and illegal attack on Iraq by this country, expanding upon the ideas presented by Greg Palast, in his ground-breaking expose, Armed Madhouse.
http://www.amazon.com/Armed-Madhouse-Baghdad-Orleans-Sordid-Secrets/dp/0452288312/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256873012&sr=8-1

In this book, Palast, after posing as an oil industry spokesman, and interviewing numerous people in the US government and in powerful positions in major oil companies, lays out the reasons for the Iraq invasion. Namely, that it was undertaken, not for the direct acquisition and control of Iraq's oil, but to remove Sadaam Hussein's control over it, with Saudi Arabia's blessing. Because Sadaam Hussein had been manipulating Iraq's oil production and exports against the wishes of OPEC, and was causing turbulence in the oil market price.

Klein goes further though, documenting that another important goal was to create a "free-market" paradise in the Middle East, where unregulated capitalism would allow foreign corporations to get in on re-developing Iraq's infrastructure, and aiding in restoring and maintaining it's oil industry and production (which under Hussein's government had been nationalised).

So, the illegal, and immoral invasion and occupation of that sovereign nation, which posed no threat to this one, or it's neighbours, and led to the deaths of at least a million innocent civilians, and caused 3-4 million more to flee to neighbouring countries, was also undertaken to enforce a "shock doctrine" upon it. Klein describes in great detail the policies of deregulation and privitisation which were rapidly enacted in 2003-04, after the US began ruling the country. Hundreds of thousands of government employees in Iraq were fired, local corporations and construction companies were shut out from providing supplies and labour for the country's reconstruction, and attempts (ultimately unsuccesful) were made to privatise it's national oil company.

These were the policies that led to the resistance movements there, and which continue to this day, and are why there is still unemployment of 50 percent or more there, along with only sporadic access to power and clean water in most of it's cities. It's heartbreaking reading, because the suffering in Iraq is so palpable, and un-necessary. And the criminals that caused it are walking around free and prosperous, in this country, because our corporate-controlled media will not allow information like this to appear.

So, we at A.P.R. urge you all to get a copy of The Shock Doctrine, read it, and spread the word (and the book).
http://www.amazon.com/Shock-Doctrine-Rise-Disaster-Capitalism/dp/0676978010/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256873896&sr=1-1

Your understanding of our capitalist system, and how it is maintained and spread will be greatly enhanced. Only by opening our eyes to the causes of the massive social, economic, and political injustice that are present in this world, can we begin the process of changing it. Cheers.

ALASKA SLED DOGS - The Edge of the Wild?

For as long as your lead author can remember, I have always been captivated by Husky and Malemute dogs, even though I grew up in the sunny southlands of San Diego.

Maybe it was because I read the "Call of the Wild" at least ten times by the time I was 12. I got to know many great ones living in Montana in the 1990s, though I had an amazing feral chow/german shepherd canine companion, Coyote, then (we found each other at the Missoula pound in 1991). Who would routinely hunt and eat whole, rabbits, marmots, and squirrels, on all our wilderness jaunts in Montana, and here in Alaska, before he passed away late in 2003, at the age of 13.

Alaska "sled dogs" are a mix of breeds, husky (Alaskan and Siberian), malemute, and various domestics (lab, shepherd, etc...). http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/sleddogs.htm

They are bred by dog mushers for speed, endurance, and docility, so that they will be able to relate to people and generally not be too quarrelsome amongst themselves.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaskan_Husky

Many of them also come from the hundreds of Alaska Native villages, where they live outdoors all year, and even around Fairbanks and other major road-based settlements they also live outdoors, since most serious mushers will have 25-50 dogs, or more. On the edge of the wilderness. This also means that traveling wolf packs, if a female sled dog is in heat, will breed with them, if no precautions are taken. Hence, many sled dogs have a detectable wolf influence, both in their physical characteristics, and in their demeanor.

Since they are born and bred for speed and endurance and to live and thrive in our harsh sub-arctic environment, they make excellent companions for anyone with an active, outdoor-based lifestyle, here in Alaska, or anywhere where colder winter temperatures occur. A typical active sled dog is easily capable of running up to 160 km (or more!) a day, at average speeds of 20 kilometres per hour! And most effectively/efficiently when temperatures are -15 to -40C!

Unfortunately, with so many dog mushers in Alaska, with so many dogs, the many that "don't work out" as racers, or effective members of a team, have to find other homes, or face euthanasia or dumping at the nearest animal shelter. This link shows the dogs available at our Fairbanks North Star Borough animal shelter. Note that most of them are husky's or mixed husky breeds (sled dogs). It is estimated that just here in Fairbanks, 300 or more of these beautiful, hardy beings are turned in to the animal shelter every year. Most of them never get adopted...

http://www.petfinder.com/shelterSearch/shelterSearch.cgi?&shelterid=AK12&Animal=Dog&sort=Identifier&preview=1

Therefore, here at the A.P.R., we feel it is our duty to always have two of these wonderful companions, so at least they will have a new lease on life, and return to us manyfold, the love, care, and protection that we give to them.

All that said, I'd like to introduce to you to the previous sled dogs I've been fortunate enough to have lived with, since moving to Fairbanks in 2001. This was Stikine, a beautiful fluffy little girl, of mixed husky and wolf origins. She came from the kennels of my friend Rebecca Chandler's then-husband, Eric Nicolier. Who was a musher training for the Yukon Quest, in the early 2000s. After losing Coyote in 12/03, I decided I should have two sled dogs for companionship. Stikine was born in Jan. 2004, and she came to live with me that summer.

She grew quickly, surpassing 20 kg by the time she as 4 or 5 months old. Homer, our research assistant, here at A.P.R., is Stikine's uncle. Her mother Elizabeth, is Homer's sister. Stikine had the same blue eyes and fur thickness/colours as Homer, and would probably reached his large size, had she been able.

I also adopted another beautiful sled dog at this time, Frost, a nine year old classic Alaskan Husky. More about her later.

Frost and Stikine grew to be great companions, in all our outdoor adventures, and during our routine neighbourhood runs.

She loved to sit on my lap while I drove, between my arms, looking out over the steering wheel. I tried to discourage this, as she grew, but she really loved being there.

Unfortunately, like many sled dogs, she had a penchant for running off, if allowed, returning a half hour to hours later. I tried limiting this possibility. But one evening in November, 2004, I opened the door of our little house we were living in, which is just off the busy Goldstream Road, in the Goldstream Valley, north of Fairbanks. She rushed out the door, and wouldn't come back. After calling out, I decided to wait, figuring she'd be back, like the many times before. But it was not to be. About an hour later, I saw cars stopped on the road, and flashing state trooper lights. Not knowing what was up, I went back to my evening. But a little while later, someone called from Ivory Jacks, the nearby bar/restaurant. Stikine had been struck and killed by a hit/run driver. My phone number was on her collar.

This was a big blow, she had been such a beautiful and loving companion, to Frost and I, and had a very strong, dominant personality. Frost was just as grief-stricken as I, but we helped each other through that winter, along with our other friends.

The next summer, 2005, I wanted another companion for Frost and I. While running on the Denali Highway near Maclaren Summit, I ran into Zoya Denure, a musher, who is married to John Shandlemeier, one of Alaska's mushing stars. He and his teams had won the grueling 1000+ km Yukon Quest race a few times in the 1990s. http://www.yukonquest.com/

They have a large summer-time sled dog kennel operation near Maclaren River Lodge, where they give tours to groups on tour buses. They also take in "rescue dogs", ones that have been taken from abusive and neglectful mushers or homes. They introduced me to Nahanni, the little black beauty here, at their lodge.

She was only six months old, and had been rescued from a very abusive situation. She was very skittish and afraid when I brought her home in July, 2005. It took me weeks of gentle conversation and treat-handing, to re-domesticate and bond with her. She took to running though with Frost and I immediately, greatly enjoying it. She never ran off while we ran together, or were in the wilderness.

She grew to be about Frost's size, 25 kg or so, while she was with us. But she was very independent, always wanting to run off, if we were just around town. In Nov. 2005, whilst the Chena Ridge Research Centre was under construction, she wouldn't return to our van, as we were leaving the job-site. So, Frost and I just took off slowly in the van. She followed us on the back dirt roads of Chena Ridge. I'd stop every now and then, she'd edge up close, but then back away, when I tried to grab her. Finally, I decided to try something different. We sped at a higher speed of 50 kph for several km. She ran at full speed after us. After about 15 minutes of this, I stopped, opened the sliding door, and she popped right in!

She also had a very strong, independent, domineering personality, a true "alpha". For those not in the know, wolf and dog packs are led by a dominant pair, an "alpha male and female". They call the shots and maintain discipline in the pack.

Of course, Nahanni loved running in the cold with Frost and I, the colder the better. Always amazing to me was that we could rush out our cozy 19C house, into the -40C winter air, and run for 1-2 hours. Me in my four layers, but them with nothing! And they couldn't be happier.

Unfortunately for Nahanni, her independence also proved to be her undoing. In February, 2006, after a beautiful snowfall of 15 cm or so of fresh powder, I wanted to snowshoe around the neighbourhood with Frost and her. I only had her out of my sight 30 seconds while adjusting a strap on my snowshoes, and she ran off. Frost and I combed the neighbourhood for half an hour with no success. Then we saw a truck stop on Goldstream Road, 150 metres from the house. We knew. We raced up there. She was lying in the ditch, severely injured. She had been lying there for some time, while we were searching. I rushed her as fast as possible to the animal hospital.

The vets there did their best. But her thorax was crushed and she had uncontrollable internal bleeding. She screamed and cried out in her terror and pain, for 20 minutes or more, before she departed. When the vets could do no more, they came out, in tears to tell me the news. But they didn't have to. I came home from the hospital to Frost without Nahanni. She ran out to Nahanni's little house and let out mournful howls. Frost was already 11 years old at this point, and Nahanni's loss hit her very hard. She lost some of her energy and drive after this.

Of all my canid companions to date, Frost was my favourite, and most loyal and loving. She came from my friends Doug and Lea Hutchinson, who were recreational mushers, with sixteen dogs. They were going to be leaving Alaska in 2005, so were trying to find homes for their sled dogs. Frost was the cream of their crop. She had been the lead dog on their team for many years. Her parents were both veterans of the Iditarod and Yukon Quest, from prestigious musher Rick Swenson's kennel. When I took her in with Stikine, in summer 2004, at the age of nine, she was in her last heat! I regret not having her bred, she would have produced beautiful, strong puppies, and been a loving mother to them. But I was not ready to sacrifice the time and energy to deal with 3-9 puppies, so had her neutered.

Frost was extremely loyal, but also very timid. She rarely ever ran off, and was always by my side, wherever we were. In her prime, as lead dog on the Hutchinson's team, she would run 150 km or more a day at times, at speeds of 20 kph. On all of our long runs and skis, at least before mid 2006, when she startedto slow down, I was incapable of tiring her out.

Her timidity though, required vigilance on my part. Sled dogs, more than domestic breeds, often have extreme jealousy issues. This may be a combination of their wolfiness, and lack of adequate human interaction when living in a large dog-yard.. On several occasions, I would gave attention to a different dog, then leave off, and turn to Frost. The other dogs attacked Frost, sometimes savagely. The worst was in April 2006, while we were running around Chena Ridge. A larger sled dog, outweighing her 5-8 kg, after I petted him, and we ran past, set upon her brutally. She was in a ball, while the other dog went for her throat. I didn't have time to think, I beat and kicked him off her with all my strength. He ran off, leaving Frost screaming and quivering on the road. I had to gently talk to her for a few minutes before she got up, and were able to resume our run. Fortunately she wasn't seriously injured.

A few weeks later, she returned the favour. My friend Jeff Gordon and I decided to just do a short day-ski/snowshoe on the frozen Delta River, through the Alaska Range, on a bright sunny, Easter sunday, 2006.

Here she is, midway through, helping us break trail through 30 cm or so of heavy packed powder.

The Delta River flows through a 1500-2000 metre deep canyon of the Alaska Range, funneling north or south winds through it. On this day, we began our outing with light south chinook winds.

But, three or four hours later, after lunch, we decided to head back, as the winds were increasing. By the time we got back near the river, after going up a side canyon, we could see we were in for a rough go.

You can see the blowing snow on the river there, with 3000 metre Mt. Silvertip looming above.

Jeff was ahead of me on snowshoes, retracing our route, while I followed behind, after stopping for a late lunch. When we caught back up to each other on the river, the winds were easily 80-100 kph sustained, and all the snow was being scoured off the river, creating a ground-blizzard, with near-zero visibility at times. It was difficult getting back across the river, because the snow was completely scoured away in spots, and edging across the sheer river ice on skis in that wind was a chore. There were also some open-water leads to skirt. Jeff and I got separated a few times, but Frost kept us together, by going back and forth between us. Thus, making our return trip much easier and safer! I had to stop and get her the biggest steak I could find, on the way home, for that.

She was starting to slow down though that year, and she even had some breast tumours removed in fall 2006. By April 2007, she was very slow and frail, in part due to another grief incident (more on that later) several months previous. Finally in May, 2007, she became very ill, and I rushed her to our vet. She was shaking and quivering, trying to run off into the woods and die. Her abdomen was filled with inoperable cancer, and she expired that month. Never to be forgotten, for her loyalty, affection, strength, and endurance.

After Nahanni's passing, in February, 2006, I wanted another companion for Frost and I.

That May we went to the Fairbanks animal shelter, and were captivated by this large, beautiful, gentle being.

His name was Nimbus, and he was just two or three years old. All that was known about him, was that he had been dumped after-hours at the pound with a note, saying he "didn't work out" as a sled dog. He was large, about 37 kg, and thought to be McKenzie River Husky/Wolf hybrid.

He came home with Frost and I in mid-May, 2006, and we had quite a challenge. He obviously had suffered hard times at the hands of other men, as he would shrink away from my approaching hand. And, not even take an offered treat, but would only eat it if I threw it to him, then looked away, while he ate it. He was also not housebroken. So it took weeks of gentle persuasion and encouragement to domesticate and bond with him. While keeping him roped to me at all times, out of doors. It took him a few months, before he would not run off for hours, if he accidentally got away.

He took to running with Frost and I immediately though, and was a majestic sight, with his wolfy appearance and plume of a tail. On our longer runs, up to 32 km or so, he wouldn't even drink water (at temps. of 15-25C!), though I tried to encourage him to do so.

He loved all our wilderness outings, as well our regular in-town runs and hikes. His large size and wolf background belied an amazingly gentle and timid demeanor. He always backed away from other dogs, if challenged (requiring my intervention at times). And never barked, just let out squeeks, if he needed something. He really took to women as well, perhaps because of his earlier experiences.

Unfortunately, his previous abuse at the hands of other men, proved to be his undoing. On 04 November, 2006, I rushed home to the Chena Ridge Research Centre, from work and bounded up the stairs, to change, so we could go for a run. But Nimbus always was perched at the top of there, that was his lair. Not knowing who I was, he panicked and bolted down the stairs. He tripped and broke a leg, and plummeted past me, too fast for me to grab. When his head reached the tile floor at the bottom of the stairs, it folded under his body, breaking his neck. I got to him and held his head in my hand, as he left this world, for the next. It took only a few seconds. Frost was there at our side, and she knew what happened. I rushed him to our local vet, just down the road, hoping for some miracle, but when I got there, we all knew it wasover. But Dr. Jean Battig worked on him just the same, more for my benefit than Nimbus'.

He was only three. But he had six good months at least, before his untimely end. I have to tell you what happened next, even though it is very graphic and sad. Dr. Battig said I could take Nimbus body to the pound for cremation. So in my shocked state I did, and asked the staff there what to do. When I came back with Nimbus' loose 37 kg body in my arms, they opened a door and had me put him in there. There were 20-30 other dead dogs on the floor in there. I almost dropped straight-away. It was the bi-weekly quota of dogs that didn't make it, that couldn't find homes. At least half of them were sled dogs. If this is happening here in Fairbanks, think what it is like in Anchorage, or other large cities in the lower 48. I stumbled and lurched out of there to my car, and collapsed for a few minutes in the driver's seat, before I could get it together for the drive home.

Frost was never the same after that, she became withdrawn and much less energetic that winter, and her end to cancer then came in May, 2007. I found myself dogless that summer, of 2007. Which did not feel right, and I knew that would change. My friend Jeff Gordon was thinking about adopting one, so after we got back from running the Whitehorse marathon in early August, we went to the animal shelter. He didn't find a dog there that really grabbed him, but my attention was quickly caught by this little beauty.

She was named Jinga at the time, by the shelter staff, and was thought to be two. She had been dumped at the shelter, limping on her back legs, and starving. I immediately was attracted to her beauty and sweet smile. I had her checked out by Dr. Battig, who said she would recover from her injuries.

So, a week later, she came home to the Chena Ridge Research Centre, with a new name of Kiana. After a village in northwest Alaska, known to be a very friendly place. What I didn't know, was anything about her past (which was surely very abusive). My room-mate at the time, Sabine, a very sweet German graduate student, had a timid little blue-eyed Siberian Husky named Ophie, a girl of eight. As soon as I brought Kiana in the door, and she saw Ophie, she charged! Straight for her neck! I grabbed Kiana in mid-air and threw her out the door.

It took weeks of attention, discipline, and treats, to get her to accept other dogs, and bond with her. But, as with all the others, she took to running with me right away, and greatly enjoyed it.

Here she is in her prime, September, 2007, after we bonded and she became accepting of other dogs.

In late September, 2007, we, along with my friend Janice, went for a hike up to the Gulkana glacier, in the Alaska Range. Just a half-hour after Janice took this picture, I slipped on some snow-covered ice, with boulders studded all round. I fell full-force, jamming my left knee onto a knobby rock. The pain was incredible, I fell to my back, writhing and gasping, trying to get my pack off, because I thought I was going to vomit. After about 5-10 minutes of pain and gasping, I was able to collect myself, and Janice (a radiologist!) and I assessed the damage. There was a hole in the kneecap down to the fascia, and it was rapidly swelling. I was able to get up, and with the aid of my trekking poles, was able to stumble the ten kilometres back to our car, with Janice and Kiana helping me as needed. Kiana was always by my side, whimpering and concerned.

With a broken and bandaged knee, I was unable to run or hike much for several weeks. So, two weeks after the injury, we drove up the Dalton Highway, to Atigun Pass and back, 13 1/2 hours in one day. We had never been there. I was able to stumble around in the tundra for about an hour near Atigun Pass, and Kiana had a great time. When I got back and looked at my pictures though, this one set me on edge. She looks like a spirit, flitting over the tundra, and with the past history of my otherdogs...

Jeff Gordon moved back in as my room-mate that fall, and brought Mattie with him, our now assistant-editor. He had gotten her from the pound on the Emerald Isle of Kodiak, when he lived there for a year. Mattie and Kiana had a great time that fall and winter together, and grew to be great companions.

On a mid-January evening of 2008, when this picture was taken, Mattie, Kiana, and I went for our usual 90 min. neighbourhood run. A few kilometres of which is on Chena Ridge Road, which has a 90 km speed limit, meaning most people are doing 110 or better.

When we were on a straight stretch of that road, Mattie pulled me hard, and I let go of Kiana. She got out into the traffic lane. I immediately went after her, but it was too late. A large 4WD truck was bearing down at us, easily going 120 kph. I got out of the way just in time, and felt it brush my shoulder. It went right through Kiana, and her remains ended up on the other side of the road. The tan/white mid 1990s Ford 4WD extra-cab never slowed or stopped. I was dressed in bright reflective red, and Kiana had alot of white on her, so the driver had to have seen us. I ran over and just lay with her in the road, not caring what happened, at that point. A nice older man in another truck stopped, came out, and helped us all into the bed of it. He took us the two km home. I called my friend Rebecca, and she came over to help me deal with the situation, and took Kiana's remains for me to the pound. Mattie of course was traumatized as well, but her recovery was much faster than mine.

It took me a few months before I could look again at large trucks without great fear and anger, and drive or run past that spot on the road without re-living the experience.

Jeff decided he couldn't take very good care of Mattie, and asked me if I would adopt her. I was happy to, she was and is a very sweet, loyal, and extremely brave and tough companion.

When she was just 15 months old, and weighed 25 kg, we went for a short pack trip in the Alaska Range in August, 2008. At our campsite, by this pond, just after I took this picture, around 2000 in the evening, I heard a snorting and pawing sound, while in my tent. I rushed out, hoping it was not a bear. A large bull caribou, easily more than 2 metres tall, and weighing 180-200 kg, was displaying displeasure that we were in his area (I had seen large amounts of caribou scat there when we were setting up camp earlier).

Before I could stop her, she charged after him, barking and running circles around him. I couldn't believe it, and the moreso, because he ran off! He could have easily dispatched her with one kick. After that surge of bravery and protection on her part, she could do no wrong in my eyes!
She has incredible endurance, even though she is half-lab. When our friend Erik Hursh and I skied in to the Chris McCandless bus on the Stampede Trail last March (about 68 km round trip), Mattie ran along. Going back and forth, constantly. So, we figure she must have easily ran about 140 km that day. She was a little tired at the end, but the next day, was not sore at all!

We were thinking another canine companion would be a good idea, over the past year. Then our friend Rebecca notified me that her 12 year old boy, Homer, needed a new home. Rebecca had moved to Oregon last year, leaving Homer with another family. Who couldn't give him the care and attention he needed. So he came to us this past June. After just a few weeks of running with us, he had shed at least 3-4 kg, and was looking, acting, and feeling much better.

Since Homer had lived with Rebecca and her ten year old daughter Isabell his whole life, he was fully trained and domesticated, in spite of his wolfiness. Which is quite apparent in his long legs and method of running; he lopes along much like a wolf.

He and Mattie quickly bonded, and are now inseparable, as we work and play in and around the Chena Ridge Research Centre, or go on outings in
more wild settings.

Such as this beautiful area, on the Mt. Healy trail, in the Alaska Range, near Denali N.P. This was late last July, when he surprised a young hiker, who thought he was a wild wolf, before he saw me and Mattie.

In spite of his relatively advanced age, for a canine, of 12 or 13, Homer is in very good shape, physically and mentally. He participates actively in all our activities, and has run as far as 30 km with us. We think we'll have the pleasure of at least a few more

good years with his strong, yet gentle presence.

Which brings us to the end of this narrative. In spite of all the misfortune of losing Stikine, Nahanni, Nimbus, and Kiana, so quickly, and at such young ages, I don't regret having taken them in at all. For they all at least had several good months to ayear, before they were taken from us.

And their love and affection was real and strong, greatly enriching us. They always reinforced strong ideas for me too, interacting with them. For they never worried about past or future events overmuch, living much more in the moment. And when tragedy has struck, while grief-stricken for a short while, they have always recovered much more quickly than I.

For those of you living in Fairbanks, if you don't already have a canid companion or two, please think of adopting one of these hardy, strong, loyal and affectionate beings.

http://www.petfinder.com/shelterSearch/shelterSearch.cgi?&shelterid=AK12&Animal=Dog&sort=Identifier&preview=1

Even though some of them may require focused work and attention, to bond with and re-domesticate them, it will be well worth it. They may even save your life, if a bear or other large animal becomes aggresive. You can count on that! And for routine companionship, especially if you like to run or hike alot, they can't be beat, the colder the better!

If you don't live here, but are just visiting, consider visiting our animal shelter, and taking one or two home with you. You won't regret it! We never have. Cheers.

THE OCEAN BLUE / NOBEL THOUGHTS

THE OCEAN BLUE

Your lead editor just returned from two weeks of beach activity, visiting my siblings in San Diego, and father and stepmom in Florida. Surfing lessons, scuba diving, packrafting, running, and general beachcombing. I love being by and in the ocean almost as much (sometimes more) than being in inland, mountainous terrain, with all that has to offer.

Unfortunately, while returning from a shore dive off La Jolla Shores, 15-25 metres down in the La Jolla Canyon, I had to walk back out with my 28+ kg of dive gear through just .8 metre surf, while trying to get my fins off. The waves were breaking every few seconds, and while I was struggling with my fins, the A.P.R. Dive Cam came off my arm, and floated away. I didn''t realize this until I was well onshore, heading toward the OEX Dive Shop, where I'd rented my gear.

I ran back and looked for over an hour, but it is lost to posterity. As are all my San Diego surfing and diving pictures. So, we'll just have to make do with some generic ones from the area(s).

My brother Greg is amazing as a surfer, since he's been at it since 1976. We took a couple sessions at La Jolla Shores, on the southern end of that beach is where the smallest break is, ideal for learning. The last day we were at it, I borrowed his friend Mike's longboard, which was over two metres long. Making it more stable for a beginner. But it was very windy, onshore west winds 25-35 kilometres per hour, so the .5 to 1 metre waves were blown out and breaking every two seconds. Tough conditions for learning with that fast wave period and strong current, so all I was able to do in our hour of struggling was to get on my knees for a few rides. Greg was still able to get a few decent rides though, it's neat seeing how all those years of experience enables him to use that board as an extension of himself and just flow through the surf. Reminding me alot of really good alpine skiers, when they can just shoot through heavy powder, down through trees and steep, rocky chutes.

My shore dives in the La Jolla canyon, were very beautiful. I had a guide both times from OEX, a dive shop right in La Jolla Shores, two blocks from the beach. My guide on both was a cool 30 yr. old Cypriot (from Cypress) and UCSD physics student, Alexis. One of his two jobs was as a divemaster there at OEX. Our last dive was the best. We paddled out 100 metres from La Jolla Shores near the Beach/Tennis Club, dropped down to 8 metres or so, then underwater headed east another 50 metres or so, to 10 metres depth. At this point, the La Jolla Canyon is reached. Here it was only 30-40 metres deep, but it quickly drops to depths ten and more times that as it cuts through the continental shelf, to the abyssal plain below. The visibility was an amazing 10 metres at 20 metres depth, often it's only 2-4 metres there. We saw plenty of lobsters and crabs in the rocks of the canyon wall at 20 metres (this area is a protected marine reserve, no harvesting of any fauna allowed), and smelt swimming around. The water was about 20C on top, but only 13C below the thermocline at 10 metres, requiring a 7mm wetsuit, hood, gloves, and booties.

My two dives from Jupiter, Florida were even more spectacular, the reefs 4-8 km offshore (accessible by boat only) have stunning corals and tropical fauna at depths of 20-30 metres, in warm 28-30C water (even in a 3mm suit, with no gloves and hood, I was too warm!). With visibilities of 15-25 metres.

This picture, from a different area in Florida, was very similar to what the ten of us on the dive charter saw. Three big loggerhead turtles were nestled in the rocks of Area 51 reef, and we also saw a few small reef sharks, large groupers, and many multi-coloured tropical fish species. In fact, I have to rate this area as almost as spectacular as the Great Barrier Reef in diversity and colour of fauna, combined with usually excellent visibilities in very warm water. Almost like a secret, as there have never been that many boats out on these reefs in my four charters I've done there.

So it was, that when I came across this article during my time in San Diego, I found it very distressing. We here at A.P.R. don't always want to be bearers of bad news. But things like this will directly and adversely affect all of us in the coming decades, if no actions are taken to limit CO2 and methane emissions.

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2009/10/04

Published on Sunday, October 4, 2009 by The Guardian/UK

Arctic Seas Turn to Acid, Putting Vital Food Chain at Risk

With the world's oceans absorbing six million tonnes of carbon a day, a leading oceanographer warns of eco disaster
by Robin McKie

"Carbon-dioxide emissions are turning the waters of the Arctic Ocean into acid at an unprecedented rate, scientists have discovered. Research carried out in the archipelago of Svalbard has shown in many regions around the north pole seawater is likely to reach corrosive levels within 10 years. The water will then start to dissolve the shells of mussels and other shellfish and cause major disruption to the food chain. By the end of the century, the entire Arctic Ocean will be corrosively acidic.

(Juniors Bildarchiv/Alamy)"This is extremely worrying," Professor Jean-Pierre Gattuso, of France's Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, told an international oceanography conference last week. "We knew that the seas were getting more acidic and this would disrupt the ability of shellfish – like mussels – to grow their shells. But now we realise the situation is much worse. The water will become so acidic it will actually dissolve the shells of living shellfish."
Just as an acid descaler breaks apart limescale inside a kettle, so the shells that protect molluscs and other creatures will be dissolved. "This will affect the whole food chain, including the North Atlantic salmon, which feeds on molluscs," said Gattuso, speaking at a European commission conference, Oceans of Tomorrow, in Barcelona last week. The oceanographer told delegates that the problem of ocean acidification was worse in high latitudes, in the Arctic and around Antarctica, than it was nearer the equator.

"More carbon dioxide can dissolve in cold water than warm," he said. "Hence the problem of acidification is worse in the Arctic than in the tropics, though we have only recently got round to studying the problem in detail."

About a quarter of the carbon dioxide pumped into the atmosphere by factories, power stations and cars now ends up being absorbed by the oceans. That represents more than six million tonnes of carbon a day.

This carbon dioxide dissolves and is turned into carbonic acid, causing the oceans to become more acidic. "We knew the Arctic would be particularly badly affected when we started our studies but I did not anticipate the extent of the problem," said Gattuso.

His research suggests that 10% of the Arctic Ocean will be corrosively acidic by 2018; 50% by 2050; and 100% ocean by 2100. "Over the whole planet, there will be a threefold increase in the average acidity of the oceans, which is unprecedented during the past 20 million years. That level of acidification will cause immense damage to the ecosystem and the food chain, particularly in the Arctic," he added.

The tiny mollusc Limacina helicina, which is found in Arctic waters, will be particularly vulnerable, he said. The little shellfish is eaten by baleen whales, salmon, herring and various seabirds. Its disappearance would therefore have a major impact on the entire marine food chain. The deep-water coral Lophelia pertusa would also be extremely vulnerable to rising acidity. Reefs in high latitudes are constructed by only one or two types of coral – unlike tropical coral reefs which are built by a large variety of species. The loss of Lophelia pertusa would therefore devastate reefs off Norway and the coast of Scotland, removing underwater shelters that are exploited by dozens of species of fish and other creatures.

"Scientists have proposed all sorts of geo-engineering solutions to global warming," said Gattuso. "For instance, they have proposed spraying the upper atmosphere with aerosol particles that would reduce sunlight reaching the Earth, mitigating the warming caused by rising levels of carbon dioxide.

"But these ideas miss the point. They will still allow carbon dioxide emissions to continue to increase – and thus the oceans to become more and more acidic. There is only one way to stop the devastation the oceans are now facing and that is to limit carbon-dioxide emissions as a matter of urgency."

This was backed by other speakers at the conference. Daniel Conley, of Lund University, Sweden, said that increasing acidity levels, sea-level rises and temperature changes now threatened to bring about irreversible loss of biodiversity in the sea. Christoph Heinze, of Bergen University, Norway, said his studies, part of the EU CarboOcean project, had found that carbon from the atmosphere was being transported into the oceans' deeper waters far more rapidly than expected and was already having a corrosive effect on life forms there.

The oceans' vulnerability to climate change and rising carbon-dioxide levels has also been a key factor in the launching of the EU's Tara Ocean project at Barcelona. The expedition, on the sailing ship Tara, will take three years to circumnavigate the globe, culminating in a voyage through the icy Northwest Passage in Canada, and will make continual and detailed samplings of seawater to study its life forms.

A litre of seawater contains between 1bn and 10bn single-celled organisms called prokaryotes, between 10bn and 100bn viruses and a vast number of more complex, microscopic creatures known as zooplankton, said Chris Bowler, a marine biologist on Tara.

"People think they are just swimming in water when they go for a dip in the sea," he said. "In fact, they are bathing in a plankton soup."

That plankton soup is of crucial importance to the planet, he added. "As much carbon dioxide is absorbed by plankton as is absorbed by tropical rainforests. Its health is therefore of crucial importance to us all."

However, only 1% of the life forms found in the sea have been properly identified and studied, said Bowler. "The aim of the Tara project is to correct some of that ignorance and identify many more of these organisms while we still have the chance. Issues like ocean acidification, rising sea levels and global warming will not be concerns at the back of our minds. They will be a key focus for the work that we do while we are on our expedition."

The toll by 2100
■ The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change forecast in 2007 that sea levels would rise by 20cm to 60cm by 2100 thanks to global warming caused by man-made carbon-dioxide emissions. This is now thought to be an underestimate, however, with most scientific bodies warning that sea levels could rise by a metre or even higher. Major inundations of vulnerable regions such as Bangladesh would ensue.

■ The planet will be hotter by 3C by 2100, most scientists now expect, though rises of 4.5C to 5C could be experienced. Deserts will spread and heatwaves will become more prevalent. Ice-caps will melt and cyclones are also likely to be triggered.

■ Weather patterns across the globe will become more unstable, numbers of devastating storms will increase dramatically while snow will disappear from all but the highest mountains.
© Guardian News and Media Limited 2009"

This is terrible news, because it is already happening, and it seems unlikely anything will be done by 2020, at the earliest. However, the industrialised countries of the world did come together in the 1980s to limit the use and emissions of chlorofluorocarbons as refrigerants and aerosol-can propellants because they were destroying the high latititude stratospheric ozone layer. Since the Montreal Treaty was signed in 1987, the ozone "hole" over Antarctica has lessened in severity, and should recover completely in a few decades. So, perhaps the industrialised countries can act again for the health of the planet, but it will take strong grass-roots pressure and activism to make this happen within 10-20 years, which is necessary.

NOBEL THOUGHTS

We at A.P.R. were just as shocked as everyone when we heard the news that this year's Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to our President Obama. And it's been somewhat difficult for us to make up our minds about how we feel about this.

On the pessimistic but realistic side of things, Howard Zinn, one of our favourite progressive figures, and author of the seminal, revealing, "Peoples History of the United States"

(http://www.harpercollins.com/book/index.aspx?isbn=9780060528423
Book Description
Since its original landmark publication in 1980, A People's History of the United States has been chronicling American history from the bottom up, throwing out the official version of history taught in schools -- with its emphasis on great men in high places -- to focus on the street, the home, and the, workplace.

Known for its lively, clear prose as well as its scholarly research, A People's History is the only volume to tell America's story from the point of view of -- and in the words of -- America's women, factory workers, African-Americans, Native Americans, the working poor, and immigrant laborers. As historian Howard Zinn shows, many of our country's greatest battles -- the fights for a fair wage, an eight-hour workday, child-labor laws, health and safety standards, universal suffrage, women's rights, racial equality -- were carried out at the grassroots level, against bloody resistance. Covering Christopher Columbus's arrival through President Clinton's first term, A People's History of the United States, which was nominated for the American Book Award in 1981, features insightful analysis of the most important events in our history.

Revised, updated, and featuring a new after, word by the author, this special twentieth anniversary edition continues Zinn's important contribution to a complete and balanced understanding of American history.)

presented this article. http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/10/10-3

War and Peace Prizes
by Howard Zinn

"I was dismayed when I heard Barack Obama was given the Nobel peace prize. A shock, really, to think that a president carrying on two wars would be given a peace prize. Until I recalled that Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Henry Kissinger had all received Nobel peace prizes. The Nobel committee is famous for its superficial estimates, won over by rhetoric and by empty gestures, and ignoring blatant violations of world peace.

Yes, Wilson gets credit for the League of Nations – that ineffectual body which did nothing to prevent war. But he had bombarded the Mexican coast, sent troops to occupy Haiti and the Dominican Republic and brought the US into the slaughterhouse of Europe in the first World War, surely among stupid and deadly wars at the top of the list.

Sure, Theodore Roosevelt brokered a peace between Japan and Russia. But he was a lover of war, who participated in the US conquest of Cuba, pretending to liberate it from Spain while fastening US chains on that tiny island. And as president he presided over the bloody war to subjugate the Filipinos, even congratulating a US general who had just massacred 600 helpless villagers in the Phillipines. The Committee did not give the Nobel prize to Mark Twain, who denounced Roosevelt and criticised the war, nor to William James, leader of the anti-imperialist league.

Oh yes, the committee saw fit to give a peace prize to Henry Kissinger, because he signed the final peace agreement ending the war in Vietnam, of which he had been one of the architects. Kissinger, who obsequiously went along with Nixon's expansion of the war, with the bombing of peasant villages in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. Kissinger, who matches the definition of a war criminal very accurately, is given a peace prize!

People should be given a peace prize not on the basis of promises they have made – as with Obama, an eloquent maker of promises – but on the basis of actual accomplishments towards ending war, and Obama has continued deadly, inhuman military action in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The Nobel peace committee should retire, and turn over its huge funds to some international peace organization which is not awed by stardom and rhetoric, and which has some understanding of history."

© 2009 Guardian News and Media Limited

Howard Zinn is one of our favourite progressive voices here at A.P.R., and we take his views very seriously, and he makes strong arguments here.

However, other progressive voices have written that they hope this award will spur him to be realistic about the wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, to end them quickly. Since nothing but more death and destruction will occur to innocent civilians there, before the U.S. is forced out, as all empires have been in that region since the Greeks of Alexander, 2500 years ago. Fidel Castro even wrote supportively about Obama's award, which was interesting, viewing it as given for his potential, and to spur him on. Since the right-wingnuts like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, and all the rest on Faux News are all spewing forth their usual vitriol condemning it, our instinctive reaction is to support Obama's award.

We here at A.P.R. always try and want to make the best of every situation, and present positive, constructive views. Nevertheless, we are more in agreement with Howard Zinn about Obama's Nobel Peace Prize. Because the U.S. defense budget has increased this year, and no real signs of rethinking the tragedies and crimes that are the wars (and occupations of a sovereign countries that posed/poses no threat to this one) in Afghanistan and Iraq seem to be occurring. The 9/11 attacks were carried out by criminals and murderers, and should have been handled as such. As a police action. International support would have been very strong for that, at that time. Instead, innocent civilians continue to suffer horribly and die in remote-controlled aerial drone bombing attacks, and from manned bombers as well, in both these countries and in Pakistan. That is not making it safer "over here" by "killing terrorists over there". But maybe that's the point?

Sad to think that way, to be sure, but as we have seen from our previous post, "Making Out Like Bandits" http://akprogressive.blogspot.com/2009/08/making-out-like-bandits.html, corporate profits accelerate during wartime. And since the corporate media won't allow the reality of the Iraq/Afghanistan wars/occupations to be exposed, politicians are afraid to go against the status quo, for fear of being destroyed by conservatives calling them weak and unpatriotic, supporting "terrorism". Despite the fact that "War is Terrorism With a Bigger Budget", as one of our favourite bumper stickers reads, since 80 percent or more of the casualties in every modern war are innocent civilians. Families, with children often.

And we also know what happened to several historical figures who were strong forces fighting for peace and economic justice (Malcom X, MLK, RFK, Senator Paul Wellstone). It's going to take many years, we are afraid, for the US to extricate itself and/or be forced out from the Middle Eastern imperial actions. Meaning many more thousands of innocent civilians will suffer and die.