This is the kind of ignroance-based story that drives me nuts:

Via The Associated Press:

3 arrested in Moldova in uranium smuggling plot
CHISINAU, Moldova — Two former policemen and another person were arrested in Moldova on suspicion of trying to sell four pounds (nearly two kilograms) of uranium on the black market, authorities said Wednesday, although the amount was too small to be used in a nuclear warhead or a “dirty bomb.”

Officials identified the material as uranium-238 and said it had a value of euro9 million ($11.35 million).

Uranium-238 can be enriched into the fissile material of nuclear warheads or converted into plutonium, also used to arm nuclear missiles. Both processes are complex and need much more of the material than the amount reported seized, which also was much too little to be used for a “dirty bomb.”

Interior Ministry officials said the traffickers were trying to sell the uranium, which was kept in the garage of a former policeman, to people from unspecified countries.

U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner congratulated Moldova’s government for the break up of what he called a uranium smuggling ring and said an FBI team had assisted Moldovan authorities with “technical analysis.”

Moldovan authorities have sent the uranium to a German atomic center to establish the percentage of enrichment and country of origin.

The International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna declined immediate comment on the case.

“We congratulate the Moldovan Ministry of Interior for its work in thwarting what was a serious smuggling attempt,” Toner told reporters in Washington. “Preventing nuclear smuggling is a priority for this administration, and the U.S. government continues to work with partners worldwide to thwart nuclear smuggling cases.”

I’m really stunned to see such fear and ignorance-based responses at the highest levels of the government. “serious smuggling attempt”???   Where the hell does this come from?

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Saunas are very hot rooms where people go to induce sweating and relaxation.  They have a long tradition of use in Nordic countries, especially Finland.  It has been claimed that sauna use helps to rid the body of toxins.  While this claim is fairly dubious, there’s no disputing that saunas can be relaxing and do seem to help relax tense muscles and may offer some relief to the symptoms of certain conditions, such as reducing nasal congestion.

However, under no circumstances should a person attempt to stay in a sauna for an extended period of time.  If the heat reaches the point of discomfort, one should leave the sauna immediately.  Spending more than about fifteen minutes (depending on the temperature) should be avoided.   The temperatures reached by saunas (as much as 170  F or 80 C) can easily cause hyperthermia, dehydration and possibly fatal conditions.  Also, under no circumstances should a sauna be modified to operate at extremely high temperatures.   Operating  sauna at an ambient temperature above the boiling point of water is insanity, as it can cause immediate scalding of the body to anyone who enters.

And trying to stay in a sauna as long as you can stand it?   That’s just idiotic!

Well, that message was apparently lost on some in Finland, who decided to hold a “world sauna championship.”  Now one competitor is dead and another is being treated for full body scalding. (OUCH)

Via NPR:

Russian Man Dies In Searing Heat At Sauna Contest
A Russian man trying to win the Sauna World Championships died after collapsing with severe burns in the final stage of an event that required contestants to sit in a 230-degree (110 Celsius) room as water was tossed onto a searing stove, officials and witnesses said.

Vladimir Ladyzhenskiy, an amateur wrestler who was in his 60s, was pronounced dead late Saturday after he collapsed alongside reigning champion Timo Kaukonen of Finland roughly six minutes into the final round.

Nearly 1,000 spectators had gathered in the southern Finnish town of Heinola to watch 130 competitors from 15 countries, waving flags and cheering on the contestants before medical workers pulled the shaking and bleeding men out of the sauna.

Video footage shows workers pouring cold water over the two men and administering first aid as organizers tried to cover up the scene and calm spectators.

The men were bleeding from what appeared to be severe burns, said Hakon Eikesdal, a photographer with the Norwegian daily Dagbladet.

Ladyzhenskiy headed a charity fund in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk. The fund’s spokesman Konstantin Kruglyansky told the LifeNews daily that his family has demanded an investigation into his death.

Kaukonen, about 40, was hospitalized in stable condition Sunday, contest spokesman Ossi Arvela said.

The annual contest had been held since 1999. It will never be held again, Arvela said.

Half a liter (a pint) of water is added to the stove every 30 seconds and the last person to remain in the sauna is the winner.

There was no prize other than “some small things” Arvela said. He declined to provide details.

Eikesdal said Kaukonen — the defending world champion — had refused to leave the sauna despite getting sick and that organizers had to force the men out.

Sauna bathing is a popular pastime in the Nordic countries and Russia, but especially in Finland, which has an estimated 1.6 million saunas for a population of 5 million people. Temperatures are normally kept around 158 to 176 degrees (70-80 degrees Celsius).

What are these people thinking?!?!!
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When someone says “Kennedy Assassination” you probably think of US President John F. Kennedy.   If someone says “The Other Kennedy Assassination”, you might think of his brother Robert F. Kennedy.   But what about the other other Kennedy Assassination?

Well, if you’re nutty enough, you might think there is one, his son John F. Kennedy Junior, the playboy and publisher of a failing magazine apparently was important enough to murder.    At least that’s what some think.

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Sorry if “douchebag” is an offensive term to anyone.   This level of idiocy and blatant disregard for law and order and the rights and lives of others is simply too disgusting to not use such a word.

Via MSNBC:

Greenpeace Closes Down BP Petrol Stations in Central London Energy Protest

LONDON – As BP CEO Tony Hayward resigned under a cloud Tuesday, thousands of British motorists got an unexpected reminder of the oil spill that’s wreaked havoc in the Gulf of Mexico.

Protesters with the environmental group Greenpeace said they shut off fuel supplies at 46 BP gas stations across London just in time for the morning rush-hour. Small teams of activists used a standard shut-off switch to stop the flow of fuel oil at the targeted stations. The switches were then removed to prevent most BP outlets in the capital from opening.

And to ensure there was no chance of drivers buying gas, demonstrators in fluorescent vests and helmets locked green metal fences around some sites.

“What BP needs to do is not just change CEOs it needs to actually come up with a new strategy,” Greenpeace U.K.’s chief executive John Sauven said at one of the shuttered stations in Camden, north London.

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Lets face it, the world of conspiracy theories is pretty male dominated.   Perhaps it’s time that some hip young ladies get out there and show they can be every bit as crazy as men.

Well that’s what truthergirls is all about!   You might think from the look of this young lady that she’s a smart, well connected, cultured and educated woman.   After all, she lives in the hip and happening city of Montreal, she speaks at least two languages fluently, drinks boutique-quality coffee, posts on youtube and she’s fairly attractive.   These would all seem to indicate a hip young woman of the world.

However, looks can be deceiving and stereotypes are often wrong.   It turns out, she’s a complete nutball and has about as much going on upstairs as any overweight 40 year old guy who lives in his mother’s basement and wears an aluminum foil hat.

I really wish I could encounter someone like this on the street.  My god, it’s just so lame! Sure, I’ve seen my share of “end is near” guys and religious fanatics handing out signs in Times Square, but never someone quite like this…

EVP or “electronic voice phenomena” is what people like to call it when they take a cheap tape recorder or a computer with a sound card and crank the volume way up until they start to hear a lot of noise.  This noise is a combination of internally generated noise, RF interference, cross talk from various sources and other various random sounds.   However, if you listen closely, the human brain can do an amazing job of convincing itself that it hears a voice in the noise.   This is even easier if you know what you’re expected to hear.

Apparently this is not lame enough for some, who find that the sounds just don’t sound enough like ghost voices no matter how high they crank the volume or how cheap their microphones are.   Thus a new device has recently been making the rounds in the “paranormal research” community.  It’s called the “Frank’s Box” and it promises to revolutionize EVP’s by making them even more dramatic and easy to hear.

Wowa, that sounds like there are definitely some human voices there, right? Well, actually, yes. That’s because a Franks Box is indeed picking up human voices, just not the ones of the dead. More likely, it’s picking up the voices of someone giving a traffic report or complaining about politics, because a Franks Box is actually the equivalent of randomly turning the knobs on an AM Radio:

From “Ghost tech:”

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I’m not sure exactly where the following video comes from.   The narration implies it’s Canadian.  The narration implies it’s Canadian, but wherever this guy is from, he’s a complete and utter idiot who has no idea how vaccines are manufactured or the amount of science and testing that goes into formulating them.   They are most certainly not thrown together nor is the virus obtained by having some random guy cough on it.

Although the virus may be obtained from cultures from infected humans, it’s cultured and analyzed before the vaccine is prepared.  Indeed, a major challenge for flu vaccine development is that the predominant strain changes each year and researchers must look at thousands of cultures from around the world to determine the best candidate for that year’s vaccine.  The formulation of the vaccine must be developed, tested and sent off to full scale production with very tight time constraints.

In addition to being insulting to the entire science of microbiology and all those who spent years in higher education and research to get into it, the video isn’t even funny.  Nobody is laughing.  That’s just a canned laugh track, and a very poor use of one at that.   (You’re supposed to fade it in and out with audience noise more subtly to make it seem like it might really be people.)

It is absolutely no secret EXACTLY what is in the influenza vaccine.   All substances, including those found in only trace amounts and even those which may or may not be present (such as those which are filtered out but may sometimes still have trace levels remaining) are listed on the package insert that is shipped with each dose of the vaccine.  Whether you receive your vaccine from a doctor or a public vaccine clinic, you can always ask to see the insert.

This information is also available online. The CDC maintains extensive information on all the ingredients approved for use in vaccines and which have been used in vaccines in the United States.   If you do not live in the United States, this information is still valid as these ingredients are fairly standard for all vaccines and are common to formulas found both in the US and most other countries.  You can also visit sites such as the websites of the companies that manufacture the vaccines or the respective health agencies the country you live in.

What is actually in a flu shot:

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The Austrian motorway authority ASFINAG has been concerned for some time about a stretch of highway that has experienced a disproportionately high number of accidents in recent years.    This is hardly a unique situation, as many highways have areas where the topography or road conditions make for a hazardous area.   There are numerous ways that roadway authorities have addressed these problems:  installing better guardrails, reducing speed limits, altering the path of the road, improving lighting, installing traffic signals and increasing police patrols have all proven effective in many cases, but apparently Austria felt these were just not magical enough.

That’s why they hired a modern day Druid.   Yes, a guy who wears a hood and practices a religion based on old European Neo-Pagan traditions. Although the modern interpretation of what being a “Druid” is may be a little fuzzy, considering that the actual Druids didn’t use metal dowsing rods or concern themselves with phone masts, as the new ones apparently do.

Via the Metro (NOT the Onion):

Druids use rock and magnets to stop road accidents

Austrian authorities say druids have been so successful in dealing with motorway accident blackspots in one area that they plan to extend the project nationwide.

As well as using quartz standing stones to restore the area’s ‘natural energy’, the druids have come up with a cheaper modern-day option – burying plastic slates with magnets in the ground.

Arch druid Ilmar Tessmann was called in as a last resort after a high number of fatal accidents were reported on a straight stretch of motorway near Salzburg.

He said the crashes were caused by radiation from a nearby mobile phone mast disrupting the area’s normal ‘terrestrial’ radiation.

Installing the monoliths has successfully counteracted that, he claimed.

Austrian motorway authority ASFINAG said it was sceptical at first and kept the project a secret. But it went public after the druids’ efforts cut the number of deaths at the notorious crash site from six a year to zero in two years.

Mr Tessmann said: ‘Plastic was not available in ancient times but it seems to work well.’

But he warned: ‘It is a big job. These masts are now spreading negative radiation over 120 to 200 miles.’

Scientists, however, are not convinced.

‘Natural sciences need evidence. ‘Whatever can’t be measured, does not exist,’ Dr Georg Walach from the geophysics department at Leoben University in southern Austria said.

‘These energy lines and their flow cannot be grasped or measured therefore their existence is rejected by scientists.’

But Mr Tessmann claims the proof is in the results. ‘If you ask me to give you a scientific explanation, I can’t, I just know it works, and even critics can’t argue with our success rate,’ he said.

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I’ve mentioned this before. There is a growing community of individuals who consider themselves “SLI’ders” and insist they observe “SLI” or “Street Light Interference.”  They believe that they are the cause of street lights going on and off, as opposed to light sensors or the failure mode of gas discharge lamps.

For some reason I can’t explain, no matter how many times I see believers insist on this phenomena or its relation to their unseen powers, I’m always taken aback by just how lame it is.   It’s so lame, I can’t stop marveling at its breathtaking lameness.   If there is anything unexplained here, it has to be how something could be so lame.

Street lights tend to go on and off a lot, especially when they lamp is at the end of its life. The internal arc goes out and the bulb has to cool down a before it can re-strike. Faulty light sensors can also make such lamps go on and off, especially around dawn or dusk, when they are on the edge of the level set to trigger the light to turn on. Then there’s a little thing called confirmation bias

Earlier this year, something amazing and baffling happened in Fort Worth Texas.   A box containing dozens of generally unknown historical photos was found discarded under a highway underpass. The photos were apparently stolen from the Tarrant County Black Historical and Genealogical Society several years ago by persons who remain unknown.   The collection includes photos from numerous historical events during the 1950’s and 1960’s.   Some were published in news papers but most were not.   Some of the subjects photographed include political campaigns, sports and cultural events.   A few photos show a young George H. W. Bush during his early political career.

One photo, however, has gained a great deal of attention, with much of it being for dubious reasons.

This photograph was taken by an unknown photographer in Dealey Plaza shortly after John F. Kennedy was assassinated.   Some of the spectators in the photo appear to be those from other photos taken that day.   However, most telling is the fact that there are no memorial flowers or wreaths in the area of the shooting.   By November 23 1963 numerous individuals had turned the area into a makeshift shrine.  This and other items in the photo confirm that it was taken the day of the assassination, November 22, 1963.

This photo can be placed very precisely because it contains its own time stamp.   The clock on the Hertz billboard can be seen (although is difficult to make out in this copy.)  It reads 2:09.    It is an unusual stroke of luck that the photo can be so surely dated and timed.

Clearly, the photograph has historic value. It shows how the investigation began and the stunned spectators who continued to mill around the area even an hour and a half after the shooting. It would be a significant find even without the added idiocy of some UFO chasers.

Here is where Richard Hoaglund gets involved and, needless to say, it gets dumb from here on.

You may notice that there’s a defect in the photo. It looks like a small area that may have gotten wet or been smudged. It could be a defect on the film or the print. While it’s hard to tell exactly what it is, even to the untrained eye, it looks more like a photographic defect than an actual object in the image.

But according to Hoaglund and others, this is nothing short of an alien UFO!   In fact, this is nothing short of a misshapen alien craft, apparently blowing out a lot of smoke (UFO’s didn’t have catalytic converters in those days and emissions standards were not what they are today, you see.)

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