Philosophers stone » Philosophers stone

Eternal, “Cyclical Universe” – Evidence Of Activity Before Big Bang

Carolyn — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:50:59 +0000

WMAP data of the Cosmic Microwave Background. Credit: NASA

Have scientists seen evidence of time before the Big Bang, and perhaps a verification of the idea of the cyclical universe? One of the great physicists of our time, Roger Penrose from the University of Oxford, has published a new paper saying that the circular patterns seen in the WMAP mission data on the Cosmic Microwave Background suggest that space and time perhaps did not originate at the Big Bang but that our universe continually cycles through a series of “aeons,” and we have an eternal, cyclical cosmos. His paper also refutes the idea of inflation, a widely accepted theory of a period of very rapid expansion immediately following the Big Bang.

Penrose says that inflation cannot account for the very low entropy state in which the universe was thought to have been created. He and his co-author do not believe that space and time came into existence at the moment of the Big Bang, but instead, that event was just one in a series of many. Each “Big Bang” marked the start of a new aeon, and our universe is just one of many in a cyclical Universe, starting a new universe in place of the one before.

Penrose’s co-author, Vahe Gurzadyan of the Yerevan Physics Institute in Armenia, analyzed seven years’ worth of microwave data from WMAP, as well as data from the BOOMERanG balloon experiment in Antarctica. Penrose and Gurzadyan say they have identified regions in the microwave sky where there are concentric circles showing the radiation’s temperature is markedly smaller than elsewhere.

Gaia Hypothesis Research May Answer Question: Is Earth A Giant Living Sentient Organism

Carolyn — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:47:01 +0000

Is Earth really a sort of giant living organism as the Gaia hypothesis predicts? A new discovery made at the University of Maryland may provide a key to answering this question. This key of sulfur could allow scientists to unlock heretofore hidden interactions between ocean organisms, atmosphere, and land — interactions that might provide evidence supporting this famous theory. Discovery ultimately could lead to better climate understanding and prediction.

The Gaia hypothesis — first articulated by James Lovelock and Lynn Margulis in the 1970s — holds that Earth’s physical and biological processes are inextricably connected to form a self-regulating, essentially sentient, system.

One of the early predictions of this hypothesis was that there should be a sulfur compound made by organisms in the oceans that was stable enough against oxidation in water to allow its transfer to the air. Either the sulfur compound itself, or its atmospheric oxidation product, would have to return sulfur from the sea to the land surfaces. The most likely candidate for this role was deemed to be dimethylsulfide.

Donna Summer Dead at 63

Carolyn — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:39:22 +0000

9:27 AM PST- TMZ has learned … Donna died from lung cancer. Several sources are telling us Donna believed she contracted it by inhaling toxic particles after the 9/11 attack in New York City.

9:35 AM PST- Donna’s family just released a statement, claiming, they “are at peace celebrating her extraordinary life and her continued legacy.”

Donna Summer — the Queen of Disco — died this morning after a battle with cancer … TMZ has learned.

We’re told Summer was in Florida at the time of her death. She was 63 years old.

Sources close to Summer tell us … the singer was trying to keep the extent of her illness under wraps. We spoke to someone who was with Summer a couple of weeks ago … who says she didn’t seem too bad.

In fact, we’re told she was focused on trying to finish up an album she had been working on.

Summer was a 5-time Grammy winner who shot to superstardom in the ’70s with iconic hits like “Last Dance,” “Hot Stuff” and “Bad Girls.”

More + video

New York judge admits to medical marijuana use and endorses legalization

Carolyn — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:33:24 +0000

In a press conference and op-ed published by The New York Times on Wednesday, Kings County Supreme Court Justice Gustin L. Reichbach revealed that he regularly smokes marijuana to cope with the side effects of his ongoing cancer treatment, and pleaded with New York lawmakers to legalize medical use of the drug this year.

“Given my position as a sitting judge still hearing cases, well-meaning friends question the wisdom of my coming out on this issue,” he wrote. “But I recognize that fellow cancer sufferers may be unable, for a host of reasons, to give voice to our plight. It is another heartbreaking aporia in the world of cancer that the one drug that gives relief without deleterious side effects remains classified as a narcotic with no medicinal value.”

Justice Reichbach explained that smoking marijuana effectively treats his pain and nausea and helps him sleep, adding that the synthetic alternative, a prescription drug known as Marinol, “was useless.” For those reasons, he implored lawmakers to legalize medical marijuana in New York as soon as possible.

“This is not a law-and-order issue; it is a medical and a human rights issue,” he wrote.

Lawmakers in New York are currently debating medical marijuana legalization, and a recent poll found that 57 percent of New Yorkers are in favor of the proposal.

Order from Chaos – The Geometry of Implosion

Steve — Thu, 17 May 2012 15:48:37 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

Published on May 2, 2012 by TheRealVerbz2

Here is a pdf version of the presentation so others can follow along:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/92170878/The-Geometry-of-Implosion

Homeland Battlefield Act Portion Found Unconstitutional By New York Judge

joe — Thu, 17 May 2012 15:20:11 +0000

WASHINGTON — A day before Congress weighs an amendment to end indefinite military detentions in the U.S., a federal judge Wednesday ruled the law that allows the practice unconstitutional.

Saying the measure has “chilling impact on First Amendment rights,” U.S. District Judge Katherine Forrest, of New York’s Eastern District, found that a group of reporters and activists who brought the lawsuit had no way of knowing whether they could be subjected to it. That makes it an unconstitutional infringement on the First Amendment’s free speech right and the Fifth Amendment’s right to due process, Forrest said in a written opinion.

The lead plaintiffs — Pulitzer Prize winner Chris Hedges of the Nation Institute and Tangerine Bolen, who runs the website RevolutionTruth — argued that they conceivably could be grabbed under the law because they deal with sources that U.S. authorities may deem to fall under the law, Section 1021 of the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act.

The law defines the suspects who can be detained as a “person who was a part of or substantially supported al-Qaeda, the Taliban, or associated forces.”

Forrest found the language too vague, and repeatedly tried to get government attorneys to say that the reporters’ fears were unfounded. The lawyers declined.

“At the hearing on this motion, the government was unwilling or unable to state that these plaintiffs would not be subject to indefinite detention under [section] 1021,” Forrest wrote. “Plaintiffs are therefore at risk of detention, of losing their liberty, potentially for many years.

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Get Ready: We Are About To Have Another 2008-Style Crisis

bill bard — Thu, 17 May 2012 14:27:55 +0000

by cmartenson

Well, my hat is off to the global central planners for averting the next stage of the unfolding financial crisis for as long as they have. I guess there’s some solace in having had a nice break between the events of 2008/09 and today, which afforded us all the opportunity to attend to our various preparations and enjoy our lives.

Alas, all good things come to an end, and a crisis rooted in ‘too much debt’ with a nice undercurrent of ‘persistently high and rising energy costs’ was never going to be solved by providing cheap liquidity to the largest and most reckless financial institutions. And it has not.

Forestalled is Not Foregone

The same sorts of signals that we had in 2008 are once again traipsing across my market monitors. Not precisely the same, of course, but with enough similarities that they rhyme loudly. Whereas in 2008 we saw breakdowns in the credit spreads of major financial institutions, this time we are seeing the same dynamic in the sovereign debt of the weaker European nation states.

Greece, as expected and predicted here, is a right proper mess and will have to leave the euro monetary system if it is to have any chance at recovery going forward. Yes, all those endless meetings and rumors and final agreements painfully hammered out by eurocrats over the past year are almost certainly going to be tossed, and additional losses are going to be foisted upon the hapless holders of Greek debt. My prediction is that within a year Greece will be back on the drachma, perhaps by the end of this year (2012).

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Judge Napolitano : First American to shoot down a Drone will be an American Hero

bill bard — Thu, 17 May 2012 14:18:51 +0000

[Source]

What I wanna’ be when I grow up

bill bard — Thu, 17 May 2012 14:14:54 +0000

I’m an American kid. My Mom and Dad work for the US Federal Government. When I grow up I wanna’ be a torturer – just like my Mom and Dad. Why?

The people I look up to think torture is OK. So it must be OK. Right?

If torture was wrong – wouldn’t my Mom and Dad say something about it?

Take a look at this nice lady who explained to one of my friends in fourth grade that they had to torture people to keep me and my family safe from torturers like my Dad is in the US military: LINK HERE

“Then Misha Lerner, a student from Bethesda, asked: What did Rice think about the things President Obama’s administration was saying about the methods the Bush administration had used to get information from detainees?

Rice took the question in stride. saying that she was reluctant to criticize Obama, then getting to the heart of the matter.

“Let me just say that President Bush was very clear that he wanted to do everything he could to protect the country. After September 11, we wanted to protect the country,” she said. “But he was also very clear that we would do nothing, nothing, that was against the law or against our obligations internationally. So the president was only willing to authorize policies that were legal in order to protect the country.”"

What I don’t understand is how revolting torture is to me – but my Mom and Dad – working for the CIA – torture people at work because somebody told them to. I think it was some guy named John Yoo, who’s a lawyer. I heard my uncle say that you can always tell when a lawyer is lying – it’s when her/his lips are moving.

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Bill Bard says:

SICK FUCKING BASTARDS.

Wall Street Banks Secretly Build The World’s Largest Private Army

bill bard — Thu, 17 May 2012 14:06:51 +0000

by Alexander Higgins

Wall Street banks have secretly taken over US firearms and ammunition manufacturers and the world’s largest mercenary firms in a stealth build up private military force.

A Daily KOs article reveals that Wall Street banks have used private equity firms to acquire and launch a massive stealth takeover of private security firms, US ammo and gun manufacturers, uniforms, silencers and an army of mercenaries to build what amounts to the world’s largest private army.

At the same time the private mercenary companies they now control, which include the likes of Dynacorp and the notorious name changing Blackwater/Xe Services/Academi, have been authorized under Department of Defense DIRECTIVE NUMBER 3025.18 to actually conduct policing operations inside the United States.

The article reveals Citi Bank, Bank of America, Barclays, and Deutsche Bank have provide huge amounts of funding to two private Wall Street equity firms, Cerebus and Veritas Equity, which in turn have used umbrella companies such as Freedom Corp., to engage in stealth takeovers and weapons stockpiling which has consumed the likes of several gun manufacturers and ammunition manufacturers including Remington, Cobbs, H&R, Marlin, Dakota, and Bushmaker.

Furthermore, the same private equity firms have taken over companies involved in the “crowd control industry”.

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‘Vulture funds’ circle as Greece fears grow

bill bard — Thu, 17 May 2012 14:04:40 +0000

As Greeks rush to withdraw savings, bailout fund pays US tax exile €400m

By Stephen Foley, Nathalie Savaricas

An American tax exile living in the Cayman Islands has emerged as a winner from the chaos engulfing Greece, even as the political and economic turmoil in the beleaguered nation deepened yesterday, with Athens putting a senior judge in charge of an emergency government to lead it to fresh elections.

Kenneth Dart, the Michigan-born heir to a disposable cups fortune, was handed an estimated €400m (£320m) cheque from Greece this week, after successfully calling the country’s bluff and refusing to take part in the restructuring of government debt that saved Greece from default in the spring.

Amid alarming reports of depositors withdrawing their cash from Greek banks, the government decided it could ill afford a showdown with Mr Dart’s hedge fund, Dart Management, and similar “vulture funds” who have purchased Greek debt and are threatening to sue if the interest payments are not made. Concerns over the state of the nation’s banks have mounted as the odds of a disorderly Greek exit from the eurozone have shortened in recent days, and keeping the financial system sound will be the No 1 priority of Panagiotis Pikramenos, named caretaker Prime Minister after the collapse of coalition talks on Tuesday.

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Nationalized Spanish Bank Plummets On News Of Bank Run

bill bard — Thu, 17 May 2012 13:59:54 +0000

The problem with bank runs is that once they start, they don’t stop. And while the world was conveniently distracted by events in Greece, debating whether or not people were withdrawing money in droves (they were), the real bank run happened elsewhere, namely in Spain, where just nationalized bank Bankia moments ago plunged 30% and was halted following an El Mundo report that “customers had withdrawn €1 billion over the past week.” In other words - a bank run (but whatever you do, don’t call it that – it’s not the politically correct and accepted nomenclature) which has sent shockwaves through Europe, pushed the EURUSD under 1.27, and bond yields in their traditional “Europe is open” direction – wider.

From FT:

Shares in Bankia, the Spanish bank which was part-nationalised last week, plunged by over a quarter on Thursday morning, after a report that customers had withdrawn €1bn from the bank over the past week.

Shares fell 27 per cent to €1.21 after El Mundo, a national Spanish newspaper, reported customers had withdrawn €1bn from the bank over the past week, citing information from a recent board meeting.

The self-styled “the leader of the new banks” was formed from seven cajas last year and has now shed nearly 70 per cent of its market capitalisation since its shares were listed in July of last year.

The fall helped to drive the broader IBEX 35 index down 2 per cent to 6,480.7.

The news has started to spill over to other PIIGS banks, and very soon all Italian banks will resume being suspended limit down on fear that the bank run contagion, pardon, the withdrawal meme (h/t William Banzai), because in this fake, artificially supported world, one is never allowed to call a spade a spade, has commenced.

In th meantime don’t panic: after all, just recall the Bank of Spain statement which promised that despite the Bankia nationalization, that “BFA-Bankia is a solvent entity that continues to function quite normally and customers and depositors should have no concern.”

Turns out depositors had a few concerns…

[Source: zerohedge.com]

Soap maker David Bronner: Hemp ban highlights absurdity of drug war

bill bard — Thu, 17 May 2012 13:57:31 +0000

By Eric W. Dolan

David Bronner, the maker of organic “Magic Soap,” on Tuesday blasted the ban on industrial hemp in the United States.

“In our soap, hemp oil is a super fatty ingredient,” he explained to Democracy Now’s Amy Goodman. “It contains an unparalleled content of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, which are—omega-3 is really good to eat internally. The American diet is chronically deficient in. Doctors recommend fish, certain kinds of fish; however, there’s also mercury concerns. So hemp oil is a really good source of omega-3. And then, in a soap product, it makes the lather smoother and less drying.”

Industrial hemp is a commonly used fiber that’s in tens of thousands of products currently sold inside the U.S., and has a long history of use by the U.S. government. During World War II, for instance, the government urged farmers to grow hemp for military use. The fibers were used for dozens of practical solutions, including uniforms, paper, parachutes, rope and more.

However, because it shares significant portions of its genetics with marijuana, American farmers are forbidden to produce industrial hemp, essentially banning them from joining an industry that’s enjoyed direct access to American consumers for decades.

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Bilderberg Tax Return Uncovered by Activist Exposing Select Contributors

bill bard — Thu, 17 May 2012 13:54:45 +0000

By J.G. Vibes / theintelhub.com

Many of the recent accusations against Bilderberg regarding their connections to wall street and the aristocracy have now been reconfirmed by tax form evidence that has recently been gathered and published by activist Mark Dice.

According to the tax forms which are available for download at this link and at Public Intelligence, people like Henry Kissinger and David Rockefeller are some of the primary contributors to this organization.

Multinational corporations like Goldman Sachs and Microsoft were also listed on these documents, as well as media sources like the Washington post.

Again just reconfirming what many researchers have been saying all along, that politicians and elite corporations are colluding in private at annual meetings that up until recently were said to not exist.

The tax form even lists the official reasons for the conference as being a forum to discuss problems facing “the western alliance” which is obviously a euphemism for the political hegemony that is being created through NATO, the UN, the European Union and the many financial institutions which are deeply interwoven with the governments of the UK and the US.

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New report: San Onofre nuclear plant failures could have been prevented, larger disasters could still occur

bill bard — Thu, 17 May 2012 13:50:25 +0000

By Madison Ruppert / Editor of End the Lie

A new report from Fairewinds Associates, commissioned by the Friends of the Earth (FOE) and written by Arnie Gundersen, MSNE, reveals that the problems at the San Onofre nuclear power plant – the same facility which had an Augmented Inspection Team assigned to it by the Nuclear Regulatory Commissionafter failing a test – could have been prevented and the current “solutions” are, in fact, non-solutions.According to the report, Southern California Edison made an end run around federal regulatory guidelines when they replaced the defective steam generators at the San Onofre nuclear power plant.

This move is referred to as a “costly mistake that can’t be fixed by plugging the tubes that carry radioactive steam or by operating the plant at reduced power.”

Unfortunately, that’s exactly the solution that they think will work, as Southern California Edison is expected to propose the non-solution of running the reactors at 50% and 80% power.

Nuclear engineer Arnie Gundersen – who has been quite vocal on the issue of Fukushima – reveals in the report that there were major design changes at the plan which should have resulted in a license review.

This review would have revealed the problems which led to considerable damage at the facility and the subsequent release of radiation thanks to the defective equipment at San Onofre earlier this year.

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Ben Gilroy Halts Receivers

Steve — Thu, 17 May 2012 10:27:58 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

Published on May 17, 2012 by freedomfromalldebt

@BenGilroy – http://bit.ly/I4SWeP
http://www.PeopleForEconomicJustice.com/

Ben Gilroy of People for Economic Justice stays that “You cannot have a receiver forced upon you that does not provide and act on a duty of care to you!”

This video is released under the
I hereby release this video under the Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Please do not edited the content but feel free to Redistribute.
Download, Show at public meetings etc. (You get the idea)

Rocks From Beach Catch Fire in Woman’s Pocket – San Clemente, CA

Allison — Thu, 17 May 2012 10:00:49 +0000

A woman literally burned a hole in her pocket from rocks collected on a family beach trip to San Clemente. In an Eyewitness News exclusive, authorities say the woman suffered serious burns.

Click here to view the embedded video.

NATO protesters march in Chicago ahead of summit

Allison — Thu, 17 May 2012 09:41:05 +0000

By Agence France-Presse

CHICAGO — Protesters chanting “Fight! Fight! Fight! Housing is a human right!” marched in Chicago Wednesday using the upcoming NATO summit as an opportunity to draw attention to the US foreclosure crisis.

Thousands of protesters are expected to descend upon Chicago as the leaders of 50 countries gather for a NATO summit on Sunday and Monday.

“Why can’t I live at Citibank, huh?” Loren Taylor said as he sat on an armchair and rug laid out in front of a Citibank branch in the heart of Chicago’s financial district.

“They’re kicking me out of my home, why can’t I just move in here?”

Police wearing bicycle helmets and bright yellow jackets used their bicycles as subtle barricades to keep the protesters on the sidewalk as they marched to the courthouse where foreclosures are processed.

Fears that the protests could turn violent have put the city on edge, with some downtown businesses even telling office workers to ditch their suits and ties and dress down to avoid being hassled or targeted on the streets.

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Welcome to Life After The Singularity … Ruined by Legislation

Allison — Thu, 17 May 2012 09:36:45 +0000

Activist Post

What will “life” be like after The Singularity is reached and the human mind can be uploaded to the Internet within a framework dominated by new copyright laws and cybersecurity measures? This video presents a humorous look at the consequences. Although, as we face legislation like CISPA, which effectively will merge all of the draconian elements of the War on Piracy seen in SOPA and PIPA with the power of the Pentagon and NSA to conduct surveillance and wage the War on Terror over the Internet, any laughter is likely to take on a nervous tone.

Click here to view the embedded video.

H/T – Singularity Hub

[Source]

19 Things That All High School Students Should Be Told Before They Go To College

Allison — Thu, 17 May 2012 09:31:43 +0000

Don’t you wish that someone had told you the truth before you went to college? Don’t you wish that someone had told you that college has become a giant money making scam that is designed to drain as much money out of students and parents as possible? Yes, college can be a profitable endeavor if you pick your field of study wisely, if you can get someone else to pay for at least some of it and if you can actually get a good job in that field when you graduate. But most high school students are never told to weigh the pros and the cons before they run off to college. The typical high school student is simply told to get into the “best school” that he or she can and to take out whatever loans are “necessary” to pay for that education. Our high school students are assured that those student loans will be paid back easily once they get “good jobs” following graduation. But the truth is that there are some other things that high school students should be told before they go off to college as well. They should be told that student loan debt can cripple them financially for decades. They should be told that the quality of education at most U.S. colleges and universities is a total joke. They should be told that most college graduates do not get a “good job” once they graduate these days. They should be told that after they receive their diplomas they are likely to end up flat broke, waiting tables and living with their parents.

If we would just be honest with our high school students ahead of time, it would save many of them a whole lot of pain later.

Higher education is not necessarily a bad thing. But these days when it comes to higher education the goal should be to get as much for your money as you possibly can. You don’t want to end up spending four years of your life and paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for a degree in “art history” or “political science”.

If you are going to get a college degree, choose a field that will actually advance your career and try to spend as little as you can. Unless you have wealthy parents who can pay for it all, the goal should be to make as big of a profit on your education as possible.

Unfortunately, most young Americans are not told the truth and they end up falling for the scam and many of them end up as debt slaves for decades.

The following are 19 things that all high school students should be told before they go to college….

#1 A college education has become insanely expensive. Over the past 30 years, the cost of college tuition in the United States has tripled. One father down in Texas says that he will spend a total of about 1.5 million dollars on college expenses for his five daughters before it is all said and done.

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