[Note: The author of the essay below, Thompson Buchanan, is a retired Foreign Service Officer who has been sickened by the sight of America squandering the great asset of global sympathy and cooperation following 9/11, and the lives and treasure of America through an unjustified “war of choice.” He served eight years in the Soviet […]

Let’s do the math on the corn ethanol hoax.

For every unit of energy I put into making grass biofuel pellets, I get 14 out = 14:1 net energy.

With corn ethanol the net energy is just 1.67:1

14/1.67 = 8.383 better return on the investment made in grass pellets.

Now consider how the two fuels will be used.

Pellets will be burned at 80% efficiency. Lets say 70%.

Ethanol will be burned in an internal combustion engine at just 30% efficiency.

.7/.3 = 2.333

So the systems advantage of grass pelllets over ethanol is: 8.383 X 2.333 = 19.56X

Solid biofuel in the form of grass pellets, gives us 19X more return on our investments, 19X more energy independence. And 19X more national security than corn ethanol.

So why is it that all of the subsidies etc go the the biofuel with 1/19 the benefit?

Isn’t it amazing, the out right stupidity of corn ethanol? It is just a mechanism to transfer and redistribute wealth to ADM and Cargill. It just another example of corporate looting of the public treasury. It also depends utterly on fertilizers made from fossil fuels. Not to mention the virgin water degraded by the corn ethanol process: gallons of water degraded for each gallon of corn ethanol made.

Can we say that there is a pathological condition in this market and its supporting politics?

Your thoughts?

By: DR FAROOQ HASSAN

The recent news about the criminal activities of an agent of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) about planting a bomb next to the residential compound of the Chief Minister of the Frontier Province sends ominous signals to the country and indeed the world about the mindset and scope of operations of such super-national level spy agencies that work with the tax payers money in Pakistan under the directions of the Federal government.

According to the latest press reports the said would-be saboteur has been “eventually” handed over to the local police. This occurrence came about after the alleged culprit had been forcibly whisked away by his own superiors from the grasp of the local police after he had been apprehended on the spot in broad daylight. It does not need much emphasis that police comes under the constitutional domain of the provincial government where as the Intelligence Bureau is a Central department under the scheme contained in the 1973 Constitution.

So the ultimate legal question is that does this act, if true, constitute treason? Treason means to undertake any act to undermine the state apparatus, in this by violence, and thereby, to “subvert” the Constitution of the country. The relevant proviso of which says:

Article 6: (1) Any person who abrogates or attempts to conspire to abrogate, subverts or attempts to subvert the Constitution by use of force or show of force or by other unconstitutional means shall be guilty of high treason.

Read the whole essay here.

I wonder if this is could be “the plan” that has Rove so confident? Let us all hope not.

Here is a scenario that spells disaster. It is also a bit too possible for any comfort.

2006-11-01 Iran Lures US Into Invading Iraq and Attacking Iran “Pre-Emptively”–Nuclear Riposte Anticipated

It is our best judgement, drawing exclusively on open sources of information, an understanding of history, an understanding of the intent of the Bush-Cheney Administration, and an understanding of the reluctance of the US military flag officers to “stand down” and refuse to obey illegal and stupid orders, that the U.S. is about to launch a “pre-emptive” strike into Iran, and that this will result in a Sunburn missile with a Pakistani nuclear warhead taking out whatever is in the Red Sea (six times Hiroshima), or the nearest carrier battle group, whichever is closer.

Read the full post and supporting material on the source site.

By: Michael D. McDonald, Dr.P.H.

In reading Dr. Farooq Hassan’s Presidential Address on “Islam: Environmental Protection,” I am inspired to suggest an ambitious project to change the course of human history toward environmental sustainability.  We have before us a unique opportunity to embrace our larger humanity and its movement toward a more sustainable future.  It is very encouraging to have such an eminent scholar discussing the truths of the Qur’an as they apply to humanity living in harmony with our environment. 

Within the traditions of Islam, Aikido, and the way of the western pilgrim are the seeds for developing a common understanding of a positive, peaceful, and sustainable future.  Aikido teaches that maintaining one’s own balance in the world, whether in self-defense or in life, is the key to harmony. Western philosophy, going back to ancient Greece, teaches that balance and moderation are key to living in harmony with the world. Although oft honored in the breech, biblical teachings in both Judaism and Christianity speak of living in harmony with nature, and of humankind’s responsibilities as steward of the environment.

Aikido teaches that in order to maintain balance, one must first have a strong base by finding one’s own sustainable center before addressing threats and the complexities of the world at large. In Judaism, the Kabbalah teaches that one must have a solid foundation before venturing into the unknown. Similar concepts in Sufism, Christianity, shamanism, and other religious and cultural traditions prepare the individual to live in balance with nature.

I strongly recommend that you establish a custom “Global Warming” section on your Google news page.

In the upper right hand corner of the Google News screen you can click on the Personalize / Edit and create a custom section. Just enter the two words: global warming — in the search box. That’s how easy it is to do. I set mine to five stories. I may set up a whole page dedicated to global warming stories.

Sadly, Reality is badly under reported by the main stream media in the US. All of the key information, all of the emerging stories, on Global Warming have to be found in foreign sources.

Now here is the real challenge: How do we get the students in our trend setting universities and especially those universities in the early primary states, to light the fuse on this issue? It is the monster in the living room nobody is talking about.

The fact of the matter is that the baby boom generation has blown it Big Time. We had the Club of Rome “Limits to Growth” book back in 1972. We ignored it, or attacked it, as we did not want to believe it. Shame on us. Our children have every right to be mad as hell at us for our willful blindness to this issue.

This is a perfect issue for women, who are much more likely to take a long term view of things — especially the well being of their children. Given that we have perhaps only ten years to get this under control, even some men might get passionate about their futures, not just the next bit of sex, or drugs or gambling.

Time to get mad as hell.

By: Dr. Farooq Hassan

Harvard University

International events of a momentous nature in the past few years have proved that military solutions do not auger well for its users in this millennium. Since 9/11, despite overwhelming superiority of technology and armaments, it is beyond question that military over-kills have achieved little except physical demolition of structures, landscapes and of thousands of civilians. Indeed, there is incontrovertible evidence that it has generated a wave of nationalism seldom seen on the international scene since the beginning of the last century.

Wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and now in Lebanon have effectively demolished the notion of invincibility of supposedly super trained armies against rag tag militias who are determined to undertake “liberation” of their locales - at least as they see it in non conventional warfare. History seems forgotten by those who are supposed to know it. Those wishing to learn may read the accounts of the British Afghan Wars of 1842 and 1843 to comprehend that the greatest Empire of that time at Westminster was ruthlessness brushed aside by a handful of Pathans.

Informed, Engaged, Democracy
Collective Public Intelligence

Introduction

If we want an extraordinary future for all of our children, America and Americans must embrace reality. While, as a society, we may have recently found it comfortable to ignore reality, reality is most assuredly going forward, with or without us. What we have allowed to happen from 2000 to date can only be described as a national break-down. We the People failed to do our duty, to pay attention, to stay informed, to remain actively engaged and to keep our government honest.

Today, both the Republican and the Democratic Parties are “running on empty”. They cannot be trusted to represent the Republic within the current “winner take all” system. In addition, their exhausted 20th century solutions that got us to where we are today cannot be expected to get us to where we need to be tomorrow.

After a great deal of reflection, I have come to the conclusion that we need a Citizens Party, not to compete with the Democratic or Republican, or the other 60 plus parties, but to bring all of us together on the one big issue that really matters: Electoral Reform. If we are successful, a Democratic or Republican Presidential candidate willing to field a Vice President from the counterpart party, and a Coalition Cabinet, could win in 2008.

Citizens Party

I have three “big ideas” that I want to present for a “collective public intelligence” process.

Robert David Steele
04.18.06, 6:00 PM ET

Why Secret Intelligence is Bad

Director of National Intelligence [DNI] Covers 17.5%

In the Age of Information, when secret sources are less valuable and open sources are more essential in understanding reality and crafting responsible public policy, what are the ten greatest threats to the United States of America? What ten questions should the reformed and revitalized Director of National Intelligence (DNI) be able to answer for Congress and the public? This challenge has been answered generally by the Report of the High-level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change, A more secure world, Our shared responsibility (United Nations, 2004), but nothing the DNI is doing today is helpful in actually addressing, in a substantive sustained way, each of these threats.

On his excellent site, Robert Steele has a PORTAL: Collective Intelligence

Here is his COMMENT of 3 Nov 05.

Two forces have come together in our mind in the past week, and today we acknowledge both. On the one hand, as we further our strategy of Googlizing intelligence (Google still cannot data mine, visualize, game, translate, or connect people quickly with one another and with relevant information, but that is coming), we have realized this week that the pathologies of the secret intelligence community are what enabled the pathologies of the neo-conservatives, aided by the dishonest vapidity of most Members of the Senate and the House–the Republicans cravenly took orders from the White House (Dick Cheney specifically, as President Pro Tem of the Senate), and the Democrats cravenly let themselves get steam-rolled and sold out their constituencies as the extremeist Republicans sold out their country.

Secret intelligence is for all practical purposes dead as a force for good. At this time, with the $9 billiion satellite as the poster child of classified idiocy, the US Intelligence Community is a sucking chest wound in the Executive Branch, and unlikely to be operated on in a meanigful way anytime soon. However, and we are moved with admiration for Ambassador Joseph Wilson, this week we also saw the power of truth and openness.