Famous "successful" Conspiracies - Gulf of Tonkin

In 1964 the President of the United States was given authorization by Congress to declare war on North Vietnam, without the Congress actually declaring war (as it authorized to do).  This led to the escalation of a long conflict until more than 500,000 American troops were in Vietnam at one time; over 200,000 American causalities, including more than 50,000 deaths.

The justification for the war and the virtual bestowing unlimited war powers on the President came about because of a purported attack on two US Destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin by North Vietnam gunboats.  Years after LBJ's death it became known that the story was a FABRICATION on the part of the President and the Secretary of Defense, in order to justify all-out war.  Sound Familiar?

It should be mentioned that there was an incident the day before the "attack on Americans".  It involved two destroyers that were test firing big guns.  There were NV gunboats in the area and they were firing some bravado guns as well.  But neither ever fired at each other.  The best lies have a kernel of believeability.

It should also be mentioned that none of the members of Congress, very bright and involved insiders to the running of the Country, had a clue that they were being fed bullhits.

Update on Ibragim Todashev incident.

The following is from a May 30 Atlantic Monthly account of reported events and statements regarding the case of the young man being shot and killed during FBI questioning.  Title of article: 

Why Did the FBI Kill an Unarmed Man and Clam Up?
"... It is difficult to understand how, having shot the man dead, the multiple law enforcement personnel on scene could've gotten the details wrong. Discrepancies can creep into an account of a stressful situation. But how can there possibly be confusion about whether the suspect was a) wielding a knife, per the original story; b) unarmed, per subsequent versions; c) or lunging with or toward a samurai sword? We're supposed to believe that multiple law enforcement personnel went to a man's apartment, confirmed via his own confession that he participated in a triple murder with an alleged terrorist, and still left him within reach of a samurai sword? And that, after he lunged toward one agent with the sword, or else lunged toward the sword, or an officer's gun, or something, there was so much confusion that it was reported for days that the suspect attacked with a knife? Come on. Law enforcement couldn't get its story straight.  "   
There are also reports that he was shot either 6 or 7 times and maybe once to the back of  the head.

springs of appalachia

jpr: Good place to wait for a bear to show!

????

"An Orlando, Fla., associate of one of the Boston bombers, Ibragim Todashev, was not armed when he was involved in an alleged violent confrontation with an FBI agent that resulted in Todashev being shot to death in his apartment, law enforcement sources told ABC News."

Graham Fuller —

Sometimes spies have to wear disguises.

a "former" top CIA strategist promoted the idea of co-opting Islamic extremists (providing training and money, including aid to O bin Laden) to wage mujhadeen against the Soviets in Afghanistan; persuaded the Reagan Administration to provide weapons to Iran during Iran's war with Iraq—not only knew Uncle Ruslan Tarsi, but shared his home with him for a couple years when Ruslan was married to Graham's daughter.  Ruslan is of course, the uncle of the Tsarenev brothers blamed for the Boston bombings.  

montana state flower

                               Bitterroot

wishing well

Ancient Celts worshiped Coventina, and threw coins to the goddess in a pool in Northumberland, England. Over 16,000 coins have been found in this well, ranging from the 1st-5th Century. Coventina is a Celtic river goddess known for healing. She is also associated with renewal, abundance, new beginnings, life cycles, inspiration, childbirth, wishes and prophecy.

coventina's well

The Purpose of Colleges...He said it, not me.

As you can see, a re-post from did-you-kno.tumbler.com

He forgot to add "to have someplace to go to kill time till the Pub opens".

2013's UEFA Champions League Final

Borussia Dortmund 1-2 FC Bayern München

jpr: One of the greatest soccer matches ever from start to finish. The game was won in the last minute!

Tactically, and  technically a superior effort. The men on the field played to beat their opponent the entire match. Thank you Germany.

How paranoid do you have to be to NOT believe this story?

(CBS News) Boston bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev left a note claiming responsibility for the April 15 attack on the Boston Marathon, reports CBS News senior correspondent John Miller.

The note -- scrawled with a marker on the interior wall of the cabin -- said the bombings were retribution for U.S. military action in Afghanistan and Iraq, and called the Boston victims "collateral damage" in the same way Muslims have been in the American-led wars. "When you attack one Muslim, you attack all Muslims," Tsarnaev wrote.

the above is from the ever reliable CBS news may 16 report.  So we've got a kid, shot, bleeding, under siege, and in a boat made of fiberglas, who locates the only kind of implement able to write on the wall, who provides motivation for the bombings.  I believe it.

Agents Rappelling from a helicopter at great height over water, died when they hit the water.

Two FBI agents died in a “fall” from a helicopter in Virginia this week.  Days later it has emerged that these agents were (coincidentally) involved in the arrest of  Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, a suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings.  No doubt a coincidence, but who's counting. 

from article on RT Question More about 3D printed guns.

"Police in the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) created and tested two 3D-printed guns made with blueprints produced by US firm Defense Distributed and an AUD$1,700 3D printer. Tests conducted with the guns produced both a “catastrophic failure” that could be deadly for the individual wielding the firearm, as well as a shot capable of killing a target."

sanitation in ancient Rome

Water from the baths, latrines, palaces, fountains, etc., as well as other urban runoff was discharged into Rome's drainage and wastewater collection system. Several centuries before the birth of Christ, Etruscan engineers built the initial drainage system (Cloaca Maxima) whose main outlet into the Tiber River still exists 28 centuries later.

Public latrines were operated on pay for use. More commonly garbage and chamber pots were emptied into the streets or underground cesspits.

jpr: If you didn't live on a hill top the fumes could overpower..

79 AD cesspit beneath the ancient town of Herculaneum

Ibragim Todashe -Dumb kid or conspirator or none of the above?

Three armed and trained FBI agents question him; he lunged at them with a Knife so he was shot and killed before he could sign his confession.  Let me get this straight.  Three trained and armed professionals, questioning someone they suspect of nefarious behavior, unable to do anything other than shoot the poor bastard when he becomes troublesome.  My "coincidence-meter" is off the scale.

“Before this trouble I thought America was a free democratic country, where unlike in Russia, laws worked.” - Abdul-Baki Todashev, Ibragim's papa. 

Vicar of Dibley remarries

Dawn French has been keeping a low profile since she wed for the second time. Cornish born and bred, Ms French owns a home in Fowey.

jpr: I never laughed so hard as when on one episode an actor did an imitation of  Stephen Hawking speaking.
 

Corny, But Still Funny

Q:Why did the blonde visit the post office 50 times in one day?
A:Her computer kept saying she has mail.

Q: Why did the blonde stare at the orange juice container for 15 minutes?
A: It said "concentrate".

Q: How do you keep a blonde busy?
A: Write "Please turn over" on both sides of a piece of paper.

Q: Why can't blondes put in light bulbs?
A: They keep breakin em' with hammers.

Q: What goes VROOM, SCREECH, VROOM, SCREECH, VROOM, SCREECH?
A: A blonde driving through a flashing red light.

Q: How do you make a blonde go crazy?
A: Tell her to sit in the corner of a circular room!

Q: What do UFO's and smart blondes have in common? 
A: You keep hearing about them, but never see any.

Q:What do you call two blondes in a freezer?
A: Frosted flakes.

Q: Why did the blonde put her money in the freezer?
A: She wanted cold hard cash!

Q: What do you call a blonde skeleton in the closet? 
A: Last year's hide and seek champion.

Q: Did you hear about the blonde who attempted to drive to Disney World?
A: She saw a sign saying: "Disney World Left" so she went home.

Q: Why can't blondes make ice cubes?
A: Because they can't remember the recipe.

The Atheist and the Bear: Another Life's Lesson

An atheist walked through the woods, admiring all that evolution had created.  "What majestic trees! What powerful rivers! What beautiful animals!" As he was walking along, he heard a rustling in the bushes, he turned and saw a 7-foot grizzly charging him. He ran as fast as he could and but the bear was closing. He ran even faster, crying in fear but the bear was even closer. He tripped and fell to the ground. He tried to pick himself up, but the bear was right on top of him, reaching for him with his left paw and raising his right paw to strike him.  At that moment, the Atheist cried out "Oh my God!...." Time stopped. The bear froze. The forest was silent. The river stopped moving. A  bright light shone upon the man, a voice came out of the sky, "You deny my existence for all of these years; teach others I don''t exist; and even credit creation to a cosmic accident. Do you expect me to help you out of this predicament? Am I to count you as a believer?" The atheist looked directly into the light "It would be hypocritical of me to suddenly ask You to treat me as Christian now, but perhaps could you make the bear a Christian?" "Very well," said the voice. 

The light went out. The river ran again. And the sounds of the forest resumed. And then the bear dropped his right paw ..... brought both paws together...bowed his head and spoke: "Lord, for this food which I am about to receive, I am truly thankful."

FBI agent kills man after questioning him about Boston Marathon bombing

?

Flores De Mayo (Flowers of May) in the Philippines

THERE'S BEER, THEN THERE'S BEER

A Real Beer
After the Great Britain Beer Festival, in London, all the brewery presidents decided to go out for a beer. The guy from Corona sits down and says "Hey Senor, I would like the world's best beer, a Corona." The bartender dusts off a bottle from the shelf and gives it to him.
The guy from Budweiser says "I'd like the best beer in the world, give me 'The King Of Beers', a Budweiser." The bartender gives him one.
The guy from Coors says "I'd like the only beer made with Rocky Mountain spring water, give me a Coors." He gets it.
The guy from Guinness sits down and says "Give me a Coke." The bartender is a little taken aback, but gives him what he ordered.
The other brewery presidents look over at him and ask "Why aren't you drinking a Guinness?" and the Guinness president replies
"Well, if you guys aren't drinking beer, neither will I."

The Pope's Exorcism?

 

During Sunday Mass, shown on TV, the Pope apparently and unintentionally performed an

exorcism, according to some experts.  The footage shows a young man, who is in a wheelchair, opening his mouth and either screaming or breathing deeply as the Pope puts his hands on his head and prays for him during the Mass in St Peter's Square. The man then convulses and slumps in his chair.  The Pope frequently reaches out to the sick during Sunday services.
While the Church makes no claim of an 'exorcism,' religious figures in Rome, including Gabriele Amorth, the Vatican’s former chief exorcists, insisted the act had been an exorcism.  Exorcism remains one of the more controversial elements of Christianity.

Misogyny is a contact sport!

how twisters really work

jpr: My father drove us through the mid west to a college for my freshman year. A tornado had recently (the week prior) passed along the interstate somewhere in farm lands of Indiana. The "scrape" left by the tornado was 50 ft? wide. It left it's mark for several miles in our view. Just vast farm lands with an occasional building.The twister swayed from home to home as it past. Not one structure in its front escaped!

Human Oddity? Jason Statham

Super Actor!  I love his movies.  But have you ever seen a beard line like this that wasn't on a gorilla?

If Geo Political History is of Interest to You...If not then this will be a very boring post.

I used to go to the library at noon every day.  1972 - 73.  I liked to read Saturday Review (defunct), Smithsonian, Natural History, and a publication of speeches, essays, and commentary on socio-political events around the world.  I can't remember the name of the publication and haven't been able to track it down and really wish I could.  It published a lot of "think-tank" work, making me wish I could work for a think-tank.  I was able to tank my thinking but that's another story.

One article I cannot forget related to a geo-political analysis of the USSR, which at that time was our major superpower foe spelled FOE!  This was a '72 article that Predicted that the Soviet Union would soon become Unstable, very unstable.  The article did not specifically predict its downfall but it posited the notion that it would be unlikely that the Russians could sustain the Soviet Union.  Here's the reasoning it gave:  literally hundreds of ethnic groups that were populating faster than Russia;  many of the ethnic groups in conflict that only a major commitment of money and resources could contain;  hundreds of different languages, customs, etc.  The article predicted major outbreaks of intra-Soviet chaos, rebellion, conflict, and deterioration of civil and political order.  This was 1972.  The cost in terms of money, military resources (which was already putting a strain on the Soviet Economy), and reasonable solutions  far exceeded what could be done. They could not maintain a costly Cold War and maintain order within their own borders.  The Soviet Union folded not because of Ronald McDonald Reagan but because they had become a leviathan that could not hold up its own weight.  Gorbachev was only too happy to "tear down that wall", which parenthetically it should be noted, placed a major economic strain on Germany, for one.  Then consider the inter ethnic wars that occurred throughout the next 20 years.  The cost of containing those were placed on the US, UN, Nato, and others but NOT Russia.

Dolours Price

On Thursday 24 January 2013 it is reported that Dolours Price has been found dead at her home in north Dublin.
In 1973, she and her sister were sentenced to life imprisonment in England for their IRA activities. They immediately embarked on a 200-day hunger strike seeking their repatriation to a prison in Ireland. During the hunger strike the sisters were force fed.
 Her sister Marian Price was interned in 2011 by an order of the then British Direct Ruler. Marian continues to suffer serious ill health as a result of her hunger strike and remains the subject of a worldwide campaign for her release.

jpr: Irish babes are to be taken seriuosly!

rugby or house keeping?

Angelina Jolie - Maroon Alert!!!

She did not have a "mastectomy" nor a "partial mastectomy"  as the media portrays and she seems not to dispel those misstatements. She did have a screening for genetic predilections for disease.  She then had "reconstruction" surgery. This according to her doctor.  The medical term for this is "BOOB JOB". No doubt her public candor and ultra-good (enhanced) looks will tempt many to follow suit.

This leads to the wonder, since genome screening for disease will be part of what's covered in the universal health care act., if this will lead to wide spread abuse and over-expense and unneeded procedures to treat all sorts of "pre-" conditions.  Remember that we all register positive for "pre-dead".  

irish joke

Three friends married women from different parts of the world....

The first man married a Greek girl. He told her that she was to do the dishes and house cleaning. It took a couple of days, but on the third day he came home to see a clean house and dishes washed and put away.

The second man married a Thai girl. He gave his wife orders that she was to do all the cleaning. It took a couple of days, but on the third day he came home to see a clean house and dishes washed and put away.

The third man married a girl from Ireland. He ordered her to keep the house cleaned, dishes washed, lawn mowed, laundry washed and hot meals on the table for every meal. The first day he didn't see anything, the second day he didn't see anything either but by the third day, some of the swelling had gone down, and he could see out of his left eye and his arm was healed enough that he could fix himself a sandwich and load the dishwasher. He still has some difficulty when he urinates.

plumbing problems

 I have ten (10 )  plumbing issues that are being dealt with presently. This is a cool $1500 cost by professional plumbers. So far I have repaired five (5) with the aide of you-tube at an over all cost of ~$240.  Theses would be the simplest not necessarily the easiest done first. I now embark on the more trying tasks. However I shall need ultimately $200-300 worth at least from the pros.

An Editorial (want a little whine with that?)

I don't think a guy should be arrested for having a pressure cooker.  Racist event?

I don't believe that Global Warming is either man-made nor on a course of disaster.  I believe that we will see a cooling, globally, in the next few years.  In case you didn't know, which I think you're smart enough to know, a "Consensus of Climatologists" is not Science.  I have read studies where, for example, tides are at lower levels.  And more.  I support curtailing pollution however, which I think is a good idea for the health and well-being of our communities.  BTW - Cap and Trade?  If there's a real problem why not CAP only?.

If you haven't seen em, I think you should watch the Girl With the Dragoon Tatoo Triology (Dutch).

So far my online dating has resulted in numerous scams, unwanted attention, me being dumped, me being yelled at, and not a single date.    One of the interesting scams is when I get a message from a young woman, like 33, whose picture is gorgeous, and she wants to call me if I'll give her my number. I can think of all kinds of nefarious motivations from her (and me too for that matter).  t tell em to give me a number to call and I never hear from them again.

Here's a prejudice of mine and I know its cause I'm a somewhat chitty person, but even though I'm old, I don't want to date an old woman.  Help me get that right please. 

Sign - "God Answers Knee Mail"

I find most marquee sign sayings in front of Churches to be insipid, asinine, or stupid.  There is one Church that I pass by often and I love the clever quotes the pastor posts.  I'm tempted to attend services just because the sign contains such great wisdom most times, some practical, some spiritual.  Today's sign is neither profound nor all that wise but its cleverer than hell.

"God Answers Knee Mail".  I love a good pun.

mother's day irish saying

                                   "God could not be everywhere so he invented mother".

May Flower by Emily Dickenson

Pink, small, and punctual,
Aromatic, low,
Covert in April,
Candid in May,

Dear to the moss,
Known by the knoll,
Next to the robin
In every human soul.

Bold little beauty,
Bedecked with thee.
Nature forswears
Antiquity.

Francis of Assisi quote

  "...we can take nothing from this world that we have received....
      .we take with us only that which we have given...."

optical illusions...only the shadows know

Speaks for itself

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=TzBInt4zljQ#!

Autredamus (the Other Seer) looks at the Universe

Something I seered years ago but never told anyone is that mathematical relationships govern various organic matter's growth and development.   Living things, such as leaves and trees in certain ways match mathematical formulas precisely. We're speaking primarily of Fractals. Not being a mathematician but a Seer, I have no idea what that means.  Amazingly though there are other mathematical expressions, other than fractals, that seem to be related to the development of organic stuff and even certain people things, such as the patterns of communities of people in villages but also more advanced developments.  Makes you wonder what formula my nose followed?

My question is when will I be able to seer these patterns in the development of Sentient beings themselves, no offence to cabbage?

I went ahead and got a shorter hair style.  I don't know why I didn't do that years ago.

An Editorial

have 45 active years in criminal justice, 20 as a police office and 25 as an academic .  I personally investigated 250 murders, hundreds of gun cases and am a qualified expert witness who owns handguns..  I hold a bachelors, two masters, and a doctorate in the field, graduated from the FBI Academy, Secret Service Academy, and the senior command course, Bramshill, Police Staff College of England and Wales.  

Time for a reality check.  Illegal handguns are the problem. They come from 2 primary sources.  

1. Guns  bought legally by people who were not legally qualified to do so, mostly in states that require little or no background check and allow the purchaser to take immediate possession of the gun;  false identification, gun show and internet purchases, straw purchases.

2.  Gun purchased by ‘resellers,’ who, using false identification, travel to states that allow gun purchases as in  item 1.  These people move from gun store to gun store buying 10-20 handguns at a time, maybe a hundred in a few days.  They return to urban areas and resell them on the black market for 2 or 3 times original value.   This is the single largest source of illegal handguns in New York City and most cities.

Universal background checks will nearly eliminate problems 1  and 2, and immediately impact gun violence, without infringing on 2nd amendment rights.  Want to do more,  add a waiting period rule (gun comes a day or two after purchase) and/or a one gun per sale rule (you can buy only one gun a week or a month)  and you save lives. (limiting magazine capacity or assault weapons is useless lipservice).  

If you think universal background checks threaten democracy, consider the NRA’s thwarting the political will of 90% of the American people by defeating the meaningful gun legislation they wanted.  Now there is your threat to democracy.

Looking for a good government conspiracy?

one word


BENGAZI 

Really? Can't help myself cause my crapometer is off the scale.

The brothers spoke to each other in Russian during the carjacking, according to Danny.  He does not speak or understand Russian but was able to understand when they said "Manhattan".  Pretty good acumen there. While certainly possible it seems fishy in the sense that two native speakers rattling off a conversation in a language I don't understand makes it difficult to make sense of any word and be sure that's what you heard.  Is that salmon I smell cooking?

The biggest swimming pool in the world

San Alfonso del Mar, resort of in Chile has an amazing swimming pool. This artificial lagoon occupies eight hectares and is filled with 250,000 cubic meters  of water. It’s length is more than 1 km , the maximum depth of it is 114ft.

The Real Unemployment Rate

The real unemployment rate for December 2012 is closer to 23 percent, not the 7.8 percent reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, according to economist John Williams.
Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2013/01/heres-the-real-unemployment-rate/#EkfMIUhp0YS62waB.99

Official Unemployment rate does not include those who have dropped out of the labor force  - i.e. their unemployment has run out and they no longer show up on the Gov't Jobless Radar.

what to do with all those plastic duckies