2009 will go down as the beginning of the end of the United States drug war. I have worked at the Drug Policy Alliance promoting alternatives to the war on drugs for 10 years, and I can say without a doubt that there was more debate and movement toward sensible drug policies this year than in the last 9 years combined! Here are 10 stories that contributed to the unprecedented momentum to end America’s longest running war.

1) Three Former Latin American Presidents Call Drug War a Failure (February) Read the full story

State regulators shutter Commerce Bank of Southwest Florida. Closure will cost the FDIC $23.6 million.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — State regulators shuttered Commerce Bank of Southwest Florida in Fort Myers, Fla., Friday night, bringing the 2009 national tally to 124.

Customers of Commerce Bank of Southwest Florida bank are protected, however. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., which has insured bank deposits since the Great Depression, currently covers customer accounts up to $250,000. Read the full story

OTTAWA — Despite the recent surge in H1N1 deaths, the nation’s chief public health officer says the pandemic virus appears no deadlier than regular seasonal influenza and that there could actually be substantially fewer flu deaths than normal this season.

Although H1N1 is disproportionately infecting more children and otherwise healthy young adults, “the mortality rate from this (H1N1) is no worse than seasonal flu,” Dr. David Butler-Jones said in an interview with Canwest News Service.

“The individual risk of severe disease or dying if you happen to get the flu is very similar today as it was back in June. It’s just that we’re starting to see a lot more people affected,” he said. Read the full story

When mainstream media began reporting on the shooting at Fort Hood, numerous reports surfaced stating multiple shooters were involved. Why haven’t we heard more information about these other shooters? Instead, allegations regarding Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan’s involvement have garnered the most attention from the mainstream media.

This video shows CNN interviewing Sgt. Maj. Jamie Poston. During this interview, Sgt. Maj. Jamie Poston confirms multiple times that more than one shooter was involved: Read the full story

The Ukrainian President Victor Yushchenko has issued a statement strongly suggesting that the government is preparing to carry out mass forced vaccinations with the untested swine flu jab.

In a statement posted on the government website, Yushchenko announced a crack down on political protests and orders for the arrest of public health officials who have opposed mass “swine flu“ vaccinations and quarantines.

http://www.president.gov.ua/en/news/15609.html

“I instruct the Government and the Ministry of Health to immediately start preventive and promotional work in areas where there is no epidemic, targeting primarily the special risk groups,“ he said.

“This means that medical aid must be urgently reinforced by emergency, critical care treatment. It is generally known that the only way to prevent any infection is vaccination,“ he said. Read the full story

In an era of basketball where individualism is king and the King is its scene, the 2009-2010 Houston Rockets, through the first five games of this season at least, are a throwback to yesterday.

Only, if yesterday was three decades ago, when teamwork, ball movement and passing graced the NBA during the days of Bird and Magic.

Yesterday, as in back to the days when the give-and-go was as sexy as the alley-oop.

The Rockets are 3-2 so far, with two of the three wins coming against Portland and Utah, two projected Western Conference powerhouses.

One of the defeats was in overtime to the defending champ Lakers.

These Rockets – without their top three scorers from last season – are currently playing .600 ball, when many thought they’d be fortunate to sniff .500 at any point of the season.

Whowouldathunkit.

For old-school basketball enthusiasts, this year’s team is a joy to watch, and further proof that sharp passing, ball movement, and hard screening and cutting are not completely lost arts.

There is no lead star. There is no assured go-to talent. There is no legitimate interior threat, superstar wing and/or blazing-quick point guard … err, scratch that, the “blazing-quick point guard” still does apply.

No, this is a collection of superior basketball energy and unselfishness; a collection that refuses to let up and understands the sum is greater than its parts.

Need proof?

Five Rockets are scoring in double figures. Eight average at least 8.2 points per game.

This is a team that assists on 60 percent of its field goals, and shoots 46 percent from the field and 41.4 percent from 3.

In today’s game, numbers such as those are unheard of.

This is a team whose heart and soul is an undrafted, 6-foot-6 power forward out of Kentucky; an undersized post player who serves as the team’s starting center and, entering this season, had averaged no more than 5.6 points per game – and that was two years ago – and 6.7 rebounds per game.
If you need one player who embodies the heart and soul of these Rockets, it’s Chuck Hayes, human proof that if you pursue the ball, defend and play for your teammates, everything will fall into place.

“We can score,” Hayes said following Wednesday’s heartbreaking OT loss to the Lakers. “As you can see from these last three games (of which the Rockets scored 102, 111 and 113 points, respectively), we can put the ball in the basket. We don’t have one guy who’s going to go for 30 or 40 except maybe every now and then, but everybody can put the ball in the basket when we play well together.”

That, in a nutshell, is the Houston Rockets, and the game is better off for it.

In a league that grossly sensationalizes its superstars and enforces the individual over team, the Rockets are spitting at that message and paving a new path back to the glory days of hoops.

Back to the days of physical screens, hard cuts, quick ball reversal and finding the open man.

Many figured the Rockets to be left for dead this season. Charles Barkley, I’m looking at you.

And, who knows, that may still be the case.

The Western Conference is no cupcake, and you can thank the Los Angeles Lakers, San Antonio Spurs, Portland Trail Blazers, Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets for that.

But if the Rockets are headed toward a subpar this season, and if this early start is nothing but another cruel arrow into the hearts of Rockets fans, know this much: The Rockets will keep fighting, playing the way basketball is supposed to be played.

Somewhere, the NBA gods are smiling.

“When you lose your star players, people don’t expect very much from you but we’ve had the attitude that we’re going to play hard, compete and we’re going to see what we can do with this group,” Rockets coach Rick Adelman told Rockets.com following the team’s 113-96 win over Utah on Monday. “That’s how these guys have approached every day and that’s what makes them fun to coach because they do compete.”

- Dennis Silva II/The Katy Capsule

Fort Hood shooter killed; 12 dead, 31 wounded

FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) — The Army says 12 people were killed and 31 wounded in a pair of shootings at the Fort Hood Army base in Texas. The shooter was shot dead. Read the full story

By Dan Eden for viewzone.

They have always been there. People noticed them before. But no one could remember who made them — or why? Until just recently, no one even knew how many there were. Now they are everywhere — thousands — no, hundreds of thousands of them! And the story they tell is the most important story of humanity. But it’s one we might not be prepared to hear.

Something amazing has been discovered in an area of South Africa, about 150 miles inland, west of the port of Maputo. It is the remains of a huge metropolis that measures, in conservative estimates, about 1500 square miles. It’s part of an even larger community that is about 10,000 square miles and appears to have been constructed — are you ready — from 160,000 to 200,000 BCE!

The image [top of page] is a close-up view of just a few hundred meters of the landscape taken from google-earth. The region is somewhat remote and the “circles” have often been encountered by local farmers who assumed they were made by some indigenous people in the past. But, oddly, no one ever bothered to inquire about who could have made them or how old they were.

This changed when researcher and author, Michael Tellinger, teamed up with Johan Heine, a local fireman and pilot who had been looking at these ruins from his years flying over the region. Heine had the unique advantage to see the number and extent of these strange stone foundations and knew that their significance was not being appreciated.

“When Johan first introduced me to the ancient stone ruins of southern Africa, I had no idea of the incredible discoveries we would make in the year or two that followed. The photographs, artifacts and evidence we have accumulated points unquestionably to a lost and never-before-seen civilization that predates all others — not by just a few hundred years, or a few thousand years… but many thousands of years. These discoveries are so staggering that they will not be easily digested by the mainstream historical and archaeological fraternity, as we have already experienced. It will require a complete paradigm shift in how we view our human history. “ — Tellinger

Where it was found:

The area is significant for one striking thing — gold. “The thousands of ancient gold mines discovered over the past 500 years, points to a vanished civilization that lived and dug for gold in this part of the world for thousands of years,” says Tellinger. “And if this is in fact the cradle of humankind, we may be looking at the activities of the oldest civilization on Earth.”

Did gold play some role in the dense population that once lived here? The site is just about 150 miles from an excellent port where maritime trade could have helped to support such a large population. But remember — we’re talking almost 200,000 years ago!

The individual ruins [see below] mostly consist of stone circles. Most have been buried in the sand and are only observable by satellite or aircraft. Some have been exposed when the changing climate has blown the sand away, revealing the walls and foundations.

“I see myself as a fairly open-minded chap but I will admit that it took me well over a year for the penny to drop, and for me to realise that we are actually dealing with the oldest structures ever built by humans on Earth. The main reason for this is that we have been taught that nothing of significance has ever come from southern Africa. That the powerful civilizations all emerged in Sumeria and Egypt and other places. We are told that until the settlement of the BANTU people from the north, which was supposed to have started sometime in the 12th century AD, this part of the world was filled by hunter gatherers and so-called Bushmen, who did not make any major contributions in technology or civilization.” — Tellinger

A Rich and Diverse History

When explorers first encountered these ruins, they assumed that they were cattle corals made by nomadic tribes, like the Bantu people, as they moved south and settled the land from around the 13th century. There was no previous historical record of any older civilization capable of building such a densly populated community. Little effort was made to investigate the site because the scope of the ruins was not fully known.

Over the past 20 years, people like Cyril Hromnik, Richard Wade, Johan Heine and a handful of others have discovered that these stone structures are not what the seem to be. In fact these are now believed to be the remains of ancient temples and astronomical observatories of lost ancient civilizations that stretch back for many thousands of years.

These circular ruins are spread over a huge area. They can only truly be appreciated from the air or through modern sattelite images. Many of them have almost completely eroded or have been covered by the movement of soil from farming and the weather. Some have survived well enough to reveal their great size [see above] with some original walls standing almost 5 feet high and over a meter wide in places.

Looking at the entire metropolis, it becomes obvious that this was a well planned community, developed by a highly evolved civilization. The number of ancient gold mines suggests the reason for the community being in this location. We find roads — some extending a hundred miles — that connected the community and terraced agriculture, closely resembling those found in the Inca settlements in Peru.

But one question begs for an answer — how could this be achieved by humans 200,000 years ago?

How the Site was dated

Once the ruins were examined, the researchers were anxious to place the lost civilization in a historical perspective. The rocks were covered with a patina that looked very old but there were no items sufficient for carbon-14 dating. It was then that a chance discovery revealed the age of the site, and sent a chill down the spine of archaeologists and historians!

Dating the site:

Finding the remains of a large community, with as many as 200,000 people living and working together, was a major discovery in itself. But dating the site was a problem. The heavy patina on the rock walls suggested the structures were extremely old, but the science of dating patina is just being developed and is still controversial. Carbon-14 dating of such things as burnt wood introduces the possibility that the specimens could be from recent grass fires which are common in the area. The breakthrough came quite unexpectedly. As Tellinger describes it:

“Johan Heine discovered Adam’s Calendar in 2003, quite by accident. He was on route to find one of his pilots who crashed his plane on the edge of the cliff. Next to the crash site Johan noticed a very strange arrangement of large stones sticking out of the ground. While rescuing the injured pilot from about 20 metres down the side of the cliff, Johan walked over to the monoliths and immediately realised that they were aligned to the cardinal points of Earth — north, south, east and west. There were at least 3 monoliths aligned towards the sunrise, but on the west side of the aligned monoliths there was a mysterious hole in the ground — something was missing.After weeks and months of measuring and observations, Johan concluded that it was perfectly aligned with the rise and fall of the Sun. He determined the solstices and the equinoxes. But the mysterious hole in the ground remained a big puzzle. One day, while contemplating the reason for the hole, the local horse trail expert, Christo, came riding by. He quickly explained to Johan that there was a strange shaped stone which had been removed from the spot some time ago. Apparently it stood somewhere near the entrance to the nature reserve.

After an extensive search, Johan found the anthropomorphic (humanoid shape) stone. It was intact and proudly placed with a plaque stuck to it. It had been used by the Blue Swallow foundation to commemorate the opening of the Blue Swallow reserve in 1994. The irony is that it was removed from the most important ancient site found to date and mysteriously returned to the reserve — for slightly different reasons.

The exact location of the calendar is listed on www.makomati.com. The first calculations of the age of the calendar were made based on the rise of Orion, a constellation known for its three bright stars forming the “belt” of the mythical hunter.

The Earth wobbles on its axis and so the stars and constellations change their angle of presentation in the night sky on a cyclical basis. This rotation, called the precession completes a cycle about every 26,000 years. By determining when the three stars of Orion’s belt were positioned flat (horizontal) against the horizon, we can estimate the time when the three stones in the calendar were in alignment with these conspicuous stars.

The first rough calculation was at least 25,000 years ago. But new and more precise measurements kept increasing the age. The next calculation was presented by a master archaeoastronomer who wishes to remain anonymous for fear of ridicule by the academic fraternity. His calculation was also based on the rise of Orion and suggested an age of at least 75,000 years. The most recent and most acurate calculation, done in June 2009, suggests an age of at least 160,000 years, based on the rise of Orion — flat on the horizon — but also on the erosion of dolerite stones found at the site.

Some pieces of the marker stones had been broken off and sat on the ground, exposed to natural erosion. When the pieces were put back together about 3 cm of stone had already been worn away. These calculation helped assess the age of the site by calculating the erosion rate of the dolerite.

Who made the metropolis? Why?

It would seem that humans have always valued gold. It is even mentioned in the Bible, describing the Garden of Eden’s rivers:Genesis 2:11 — The name of the first [river] is Pishon; it flows around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold.

South Africa is known as the largest gold producing country of the world. The largest gold producing area of the world is Witwatersrand, the same region where the ancient metropolis is found. In fact nearby Johannesburg, one of the best known cities of South Africa, is also named “Egoli” which means the city of gold.

It seems highly probable that the ancient metropolis was established because of its proximity to the largest supply of gold on the planet. But why would ancient people work so hard to mine gold? You can’t eat it. It’s too soft to use for tool making. It isn’t really useful for anything except ornaments and its physical beauty is on a par with other metals like copper or silver. Exactly why was gold so important to early homo sapiens?

To explore the answer we need to look at the period of history in question — 160,000 to 200,000 years BCE — and learn what was happening on planet Earth.

What were humans like 160,000 years ago?Modern humans, homo sapiens, can trace our ancestry back through time to a point where our species evolved from other, more primitive, hominids. Scientists do not understand why this new type of human suddenly appeared, or how the change happened, but we can trace our genes back to a single female that is known as “Mitochondrial Eve”.

Mitochondrial Eve (mt-mrca) [Right: An artist's rendition] is the name given by researchers to the woman who is defined as the matrilineal most recent common ancestor (MRCA) for all currently living humans. Passed down from mother to offspring, all mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in every living person is derived from this one female individual. Mitochondrial Eve is the female counterpart of Y-chromosomal Adam, the patrilineal most recent common ancestor, although they lived at different times.

Mitochondrial Eve is believed to have lived between 150,000 to 250,000 years BP, probably in East Africa, in the region of Tanzania and areas to the immediate south and west. Scientists speculate that she lived in a population of between perhaps 4000 to 5000 females capable of producing offspring at any given time. If other females had offspring with the evolutionary changes to their DNA we have no record of their survival. It appears that we are all descendants of this one human female.

Mitochondrial Eve would have been roughly contemporary with humans whose fossils have been found in Ethiopia near the Omo River and at Hertho. Mitochondrial Eve lived significantly earlier than the out of Africa migration which might have occurred some 60,000 to 95,000 years ago.

[right] The region in Africa where one can find the greatest level of mitochondrial diversity (green) and the region anthropologists postulated the most ancient division in the human population began to occur (light brown). The ancient metropolis in located in this latter (brown) region which also corresponds to the estimated age when the genetic changes suddenly happened.

Could this be a coincidence?

Ancient Sumerian history describes the ancient metropolis and its inhabitants!I’ll be honest with you. This next part of the story is difficult to write. It’s so shocking that the average person will not want to believe it. If you are like me, you’ll want to do the research yourself, then allow some time for the facts to settle in your mind.

We are often made to believe that the Egyptians — the Pharoahs and pyramids — are where our known history begins. The oldest dynasties go back some 3200 years BP. That’s a long time ago. But the Sumerian civilization, in what is now Iraq, is much older. What’s more, we have translated many of their history tablets, written in cuneiform and earlier scripts so we know a lot about their history and legends.

The seal image [above] depicts the legend of the “Great Flood” which consumed mankind. Many Sumerian legends are strikingly similar to Genesis. Like Genesis, the Sumerian legend, Atrahasis, tells the story of the creation of modern humans — not by a loving God — but by beings from another planet who needed “slave workers” to help them mine gold on their extra-planetary expedition!

Read More:

http://www.viewzone.com/adamscalendar33.html

K.C. Nlemchi (Katy, Texas/Cinco Ranch) is another in a terrific junior class of running backs in Texas. The ESPNU 150 Watch List member has been on the radar of college programs, since the spring of his freshman year and is closing in on his first offer.

“I’m pretty sure Texas A&M will offer me and maybe Texas Tech too. UCLA is recruiting me hard,” said Nlemchi.

Like all talented juniors, the 6-foot-0, 210-pound back is being bombarded with mail on a daily basis. Programs from the Big 12, Pac-10 and Notre Dame keep the mail box full.

http://insider.espn.go.com/

Within the Greater Houston boundaries, there are not many teams that can claim the undefeated title after eight weeks of play. But out West, the Katy Cinco Ranch team holds steady at 7-0 and has had several decisive victories over opponents during the 2009 campaign.

Though solid play is going on across the board, one could make the argument that the hardcore groundwork of running back K.C. Nlemchi plays a major factor in the Cougars’ success.

But let the 6-foot-1, 206-pound junior tell it, he is just doing what needs to be done.

“Pretty much I go and do what I have to do. I don’t want to let anyone down because there is a lot expected of me and I take that to heart because it’s a blessing to play on this team and be a part of this community,” Nlemchi said. “I know my role and I know my part and a lot of teams key on me. But we are all a team. As long as I have everyone blocking for me, then I am going to just grab the ball and run with it.”

And in the latest 40-0 win over rival Morton Ranch, Nlemchi handled up. He had 10 carries for 122 yards and two touchdowns. Though the numbers seem solid, Nlemchi, and even the Cougar offense, wanted to bring a little more to the table.

But, judging by the numbers, it was a slow start and strong finish.

“I mean when the defense is doing their part, the offense needs to come out and do our part too,” Nlemchi said. “They (Morton Ranch) expected a lot and was ready for me. You could tell by the way they played. They hit hard and I came off the ball twice. I haven’t fumbled much in my life. I never do that so I give them much respect for that.”

So far for the season, Nlemchi has been updating his resume weekly. In 2009, he is averaging 8.75 yards per carry and is well past the 1,000-yard mark with 1,146 yards with 15 touchdowns. Nlemchi is active in the passing game as well with nine catches for 151 yards and two scores.

This level of play has brought some awareness to Cinco Ranch back and is hearing from quite a few schools, mainly in the Big 12 Conference.

“I don’t have any offers yet, but I am hearing from a lot of schools,” Nlemchi said. “I getting a lot of letters from Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Notre Dame and Texas Tech.”

In speaking with Cinco Ranch coach Don Clayton, the Aggies have shown quite a bit of interest in his running back. Also, in recent talks with Nlemchi himself, the idea of keeping his talent within the borders of the state would be nice.

But a few exceptions could be made.

“It would be a blessing to be able to stay in the state, and I really like Texas, but that is not like I am claiming a favorite or saying much about that,” Nlemchi said. “But if I were to go out of the state to like a Florida or USC, you know somewhere big like Oklahoma.”

With Oklahoma, Nlemchi said that there have not been a heavy dose of communications, but the ones that have come were good.

“I have been invited to a few games, but haven’t made any yet,” Nlemchi said of his Sooner interest. “I would love to know more about Oklahoma. They are talented, aggressive and disciplined. And they execute well as a team.”

Nlemchi and the Cougar team get ready for another district match up this Friday against Mayde Creek.

http://oklahoma.scout.com

Fuel-efficient cars not as ‘green’ as you might think

By David Balinsky
Published: Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Updated: Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Nowadays it is very chic to run out and buy a nice new “green” hybrid.

However, many people only look at the fuel that the consumer saves and some educated buyers will occasionally glance at the emissions rating.

Read the full story

Read the full story

The existence of a previously secret injunction against the media by oil traders Trafigura can now be revealed.

Within the past hour Trafigura’s legal firm, Carter-Ruck, has withdrawn its opposition to the Guardian reporting proceedings in parliament that revealed its existence. Read the full story

Fuel-efficient cars not as ‘green’ as you might think
By David Balinsky

Forum Columnist

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Published: Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Updated: Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Nowadays it is very chic to run out and buy a nice new “green” hybrid.

However, many people only look at the fuel that the consumer saves and some educated buyers will occasionally glance at the emissions rating.

Read the full story

Top Censored Stories of 2009/2010

• 1. US Congress Sells Out to Wall Street
• 2. US Schools are More Segregated Today than in the 1950s
• 3. Toxic Waste Behind Somali Pirates
• 4. Nuclear Waste Pools in North Carolina
• 5. Europe Blocks US Toxic Products Read the full story

Medical pot may make ballot
By Austin Counts

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Published: Thursday, October 1, 2009
Updated: Thursday, October 1, 2009

Amir Adib/ Arizona Daily Wildcat
Marijuana reform advocates say patients in need of herbal pain medication are closer to relief, as efforts increase in Arizona to turn out support for a proposition in favor of the legalization of medical marijuana.

Read the full story

Eco-friendly energy source found

By Josh Kneisler
Published: Thursday, September 17, 2009
Updated: Friday, September 25, 2009

OSU-Tulsa researcher Daryoosh Vashaee and his graduate students might have found an eco-friendly energy source.
The seemingly endless, pain-staking hunt for a green eco-friendly energy source might be over. Read the full story

Supermarkets’ Bloody Vaccination Campaign Advances “Health Care Reform” by Lethal Injections

By Dr. Leonard Horowitz and Sherri Kane 09-26-09

Wondering why food stores and pharmacies have replaced doctors offices and clinics as vaccination stations? Ask Steve Burd, the wizard behind Obama’s Health Care Reform plan.

Burd, the Chairman of Safeway Supermarkets (VONS, Pavilions, and more) is also the founder of the Coalition to Advance Healthcare Reform (CAHR) in the US., and Burd has his fingers in more pies than healthcare. Read the full story