Red Cross Spends Over $1B

The Red Cross announced it surpassed 1 billion dollars of spending in 2008. There is some debate as to why expenditures hit a record high. Is it because of the increased need for relief or because of the increased ability to reach relief victims?

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is based in Geneva and was founded in 1863. “We had a record expenditure last year,” Jakob Kellenberger, the president of the ICRC said.

“Afghanistan, Somalia and Pakistan are three examples of countries where natural disasters and high food prices have made life even harder for poor people already struggling to cope with the effects of war.”

“Much of this suffering could have been avoided if conflict parties had improved their compliance with international humanitarian law.”

A Look Back … The Office of Strategic Services: Training in the Forest

Imagine:

As a recruit for a new intelligence organization, you train by creeping along trails laced with booby traps. You learn how to use weapons, radios and codes. Where might such secretive training take place? In the midst of our national forests and parks, of course!

Such tales of intrigue and heroism attracted the interest of Rutgers University history professor John W. Chambers. He was especially interested in the Office of Strategic Services (OSS)—the forerunner of the CIA. When the National Park Service asked him to write a report about the OSS training in their parks during World War II, he was only too happy to oblige.

Chambers believes that teaching the public about the OSS is important.

“Until the declassification of the OSS records during the past three decades, the public did not really know very much about this secret organization,” he said. “Some said the initials OSS really stood for ‘Oh, So, Secret.’ The public should know about what was historically America’s first centralized intelligence and special operations agency.”

The Birth of the OSS

With the United States mobilizing for war, President Franklin Roosevelt recognized the need for an organization to collect and analyze strategic information. On July 11, 1941, he created the Office of the Coordinator of Information (COI) and named war hero William Donovan to head it.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt ended the COI and established the OSS with Donovan as its leader. The men and women of the OSS engaged in intelligence and special operations throughout the war.

With the pressing need for intelligence during World War II, the OSS grew very quickly. In part, because of its rapid growth, the OSS had little time to find a place to train its new recruits.

Training in the Forest

The ideal setting for OSS training was a place with a lot of land, isolated from roads and the general public.1 Donovan had a few places in mind—Catoctin Mountain Park in Maryland and Prince William Forest Park in Virginia.

These two parks had everything needed to train OSS recruits:

* Heavily wooded terrain,
* Camp houses where the recruits could sleep and
* Buildings for dining and training.

And the parks were already government property.2

Training typically lasted between two and four weeks, depending on the course.

Although the Special Operations, Operational Groups, and Communications branches did much of their training at these two national parks, the OSS also leased other sites in Maryland for use by other OSS branches. They included:

* Frontage on the Potomac,
* Country estates for use by the intelligence branches, and
* The Congressional Country Club for preliminary training particularly for the Operational Groups.

Catoctin Mountain Park

Catoctin Mountain Park was the first operative training camp for the OSS in the United States. It was the site for basic paramilitary training for the OSS’ Special Operations recruits and some Secret Intelligence personnel.3 Later, it would also serve for advanced training for OSS Operational Groups. Catoctin Mountain Park was also known as Training Area B.

While training at Area B, recruits learned knife-fighting and close-combat techniques. They also were introduced to the “house of horrors,” which imitated the stress of an actual urban combat situation.4 Recruits were awakened in the middle of the night and given a gun with ammunition and sent into the house, where they were told they would find Nazi guards.5

Prince William Forest Park

From 1942 to 1945, at least two branches of the OSS trained on the grounds of Prince William Forest Park—Special Operations (Training Area A) and Communications (Training Area C).

In the security that the forest offered, the Special Operations Branch trained its advanced recruits how to operate behind enemy lines in sabotage, guerilla leadership and other forms of subversion.6 New recruits were tasked with concealing their own identity while trying to learn as much information as possible from fellow trainees. Recruits also were:

* Taught how to use weapons, radios and codes;
* Make and disarm booby traps; and
* Make low-level parachute jumps from aircraft.7

The OSS Communications Branch also trained its recruits in Prince William Forest Park. Recruits in this division learned Morse code and ciphers, covert radio practices and maintenance, as well as the use of weapons and martial arts.8

Famous Trainees

A few famous faces are among the graduates of these training courses:

* Actor Sterling Hayden (also known as Capt. John Hamilton) trained at Area B.
* Major league baseball catcher Moe Berg also trained in one of the camps held in the national parks.
* Directors of Central Intelligence (DCI) William Colby and William Casey, who trained at Area B.

In particular, Casey is remembered for an incident during his time at Area B. He was training on a “demolition trail”— an obstacle course along a path in the woods that was laced with booby traps. Trainees were ordered to make their way along the trail as quickly and quietly as possible, while looking out for booby traps.9 Casey stumbled off the trail and caught a trip wire, which set off a charge of TNT. The blast sent a tree limb flying through the air. It hit Casey in the face and broke his jaw.

Sharing the Stories

The national parks were instrumental in the success of World War II because they provided the perfect place for OSS recruits to train.

“The OSS was a very important organization in American history,” said Chambers. “It played an important part in the American victory in World War II, and its institutional legacies include the Central Intelligence Agency and the Army’s Special Forces.”

CIA Museum Director Toni Hiley also thinks it is important to share the OSS’ robust history with Agency employees and the public.

“The OSS was the grandfather of today’s unconventional warfare,” she said. “The more things change, the more they stay the same. Lessons from 60 years ago are still valid today.”

Outer Space — Astronauts completed one of NASA’s top six longest spacewalks over the weekend. The Atlantis’ Mission to Hubble was not suppose to have a spacewalk of this length; however, a problem arose while working on a bolt interface. Astronaut, Mike Massimino, had to remove over 100 screws by hand.

NASA reported:
In the sixth longest spacewalk in history, Astronauts Mike Massimino and Michael Good tackled the intricate task of removing and capturing 111 screws to be able to revive the Hubble Space Telescope’s two-dimensional spectroscopy capability.

In the 8 hour, 2 minute spacewalk, Massimino and Good repaired the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) by replacing a power supply board. STIS, installed on the Hubble Space Telescope in 1997, stopped working in August 2004 due to a power supply failure and was in a “safe mode.”

Though the removal of the many screws was expected to be difficult, a handrail gave Good and Massimino trouble. The handrail was obstructing the path of a fastener capture plate and one stripped bolt prevented it from coming free. Massimino followed steps developed quickly at the Goddard Spaceflight Center to carefully bend and break the handrail free so that the fastener capture plate could be installed. At about three hours into the spacewalk, Massimino broke the handrail free allowing the spacewalkers to proceed with the day’s tasks.

The initial aliveness test reported the STIS as working properly. The initial functional test was ended when the telescope put itself into “safe mode,” having reached a low thermal limit. The STIS is believed to be in good shape. Ground controllers will start the functional tests over again, once the telescope reaches a good temperature.

The STIS separates light into its component colors to reveal information about the chemical content, temperature and motion of planets, comets, stars, interstellar gas and galaxies. The information it can provide will help scientists better understand the physical properties of the material universe – putting the physics in astrophysics.

Massimino and Good were unable to get to the installation of the New Outer Blanket Layer (NOBL) on the outside of the telescope’s bay 8. Mission managers have asked Mission Specialists John Grunsfeld and Andrew Fuestel to add the installation of a partial set of blankets on bay 8 during Monday’s spacewalk. If time permits, the two may get to install the full set.

The crew’s sleep period will begin at 8:31 p.m. CDT, and the crew is due to wake up tomorrow at 4:31 a.m. to conduct the fifth and final spacewalk of the mission. The next status report will be issued at the beginning of the crew’s day or earlier if events warrant.

NASA Spacewalk

Two orginizations are seeking the disbarment of Bush-era lawyers. Voters For Peace asks you to sign their petition:

I am writing you to urge you to hold torturers, their enablers and those who formulated the policy accountable to the rule of law. Three steps are needed:

1. Lawyers who used their license to practice law to facilitate torture should be disbarred. This includes 12 Bush-Cheney lawyers: John Yoo, Judge Jay Bybee, and Stephen Bradbury who authored the torture memoranda. As well as attorneys who advised, counseled, consulted and supported those memoranda including Alberto Gonzales, John Ashcroft, Michael Chertoff, Alice Fisher, William Haynes II, Douglas Feith, Michael Mukasey, Timothy Flanigan, and David Addington.

2. The Congress should hold hearings that publicly investigate torture. This should include much more detail about what the torture was used for. Recent reports indicate that torture was used to gather information, false information, to justify the invasion and occupation of Iraq. Hearings should also discover who formulated the torture policy and how lawyers manipulated the law to provide false legal cover for torture.

3. Appoint a special prosecutor. The issue of torture needs to be removed from partisan politics and the rule of law needs to be applied. The only way to do this is with an independent prosecutor who will gather the facts and apply the law to torture.

Application of the rule of law, beginning with disbarment and followed by appointment of a special prosecutor, along with public airing of all aspects of the torture policy are all necessary parts of the process of healing the nation and putting these war crimes behind us.

Hold Lawyers Accountable

As of 06:00 GMT, 17 May 2009, 39 countries have officially reported 8480 cases of influenza A(H1N1) infection.

Mexico has reported 2895 laboratory confirmed human cases of infection, including 66 deaths. The United States has reported 4714 laboratory confirmed human cases, including four deaths. Canada has reported 496 laboratory confirmed human cases, including one death. Costa Rica has reported nine laboratory confirmed human cases, including one death.

The following countries have reported laboratory confirmed cases with no deaths - Argentina (1), Australia (1), Austria (1), Belgium (4), Brazil (8), China (5), Colombia (11), Cuba (3), Denmark (1), Ecuador (1), El Salvador (4), Finland (2), France (14), Germany (14), Guatemala (3), India (1), Ireland (1), Israel (7), Italy (9), Japan (7), Malaysia (2), Netherlands (3), New Zealand (9), Norway (2), Panama (54), Peru (1), Poland (1), Portugal (1), Republic of Korea (3), Spain (103), Sweden (3), Switzerland (1), Thailand (2), Turkey (1), and the United Kingdom (82).

WHO is not recommending travel restrictions related to the outbreak of the influenza A(H1N1) virus.

Individuals who are ill should delay travel plans and returning travelers who fall ill should seek appropriate medical care. These recommendations are prudent measures which can limit the spread of many communicable diseases, including influenza.

Further information on the situation will be available on the WHO web site on a regular basis.

The worldwide community of gamers is like a nebula. Unlike the physical world, the gamers world is not well defined. Following are some examples of gamer communities.

From Wikipedia
A multiplayer game is a game which is played by several players. The players might be independent opponents, formed into teams or be just a single team pitted against the game. Games with many independent players are difficult to analyse formally in a game-theoretical way as the players may form coalitions.

World Of Warcraft
World of Warcraft, often referred to as WoW, is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) by Blizzard Entertainment. It is the fourth released game set in the fantasy Warcraft universe, which was first introduced by Warcraft: Orcs & Humans in 1994. World of Warcraft takes place within the Warcraft world of Azeroth, two years after the events at the conclusion of Blizzard’s previous Warcraft release, Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne. Blizzard Entertainment announced World of Warcraft on September 2, 2001. The game was released on November 23, 2004, celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Warcraft franchise.

The first expansion set of the game, The Burning Crusade, was released on January 16, 2007. The second expansion set, Wrath of the Lich King, was released on November 13, 2008.

With more than 11.5 million monthly subscribers, World of Warcraft is currently the world’s largest MMORPG in those terms, and holds the Guinness World Record for the most popular MMORPG. In April 2008, World of Warcraft was estimated to hold 62% of the massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) market.

What Is XBox Live?
Xbox LIVE is the premier online gaming and entertainment service. It’s a worldwide community of gamers connected through Xbox 360 and a high-speed Internet connection. And it’s a way to experience all kinds of new gaming and entertainment content without ever leaving the comfort of your couch.

Xbox LIVE lets you play games against other online players, as well as download free demos, trailers, and more in Xbox LIVE Marketplace. You can use Microsoft Points to download full games from Xbox LIVE Arcade, or extras for your favorite games, such as new levels, vehicles, weapons, and lots more. You’ll also find movies, TV shows, and original content created just for Xbox LIVE members.

Xbox LIVE members can use friends lists to keep in touch with real-life friends or new people you meet online, create online parties and join games with friends, and create an online persona with a unique Avatar.

There are two levels of service for Xbox LIVE. The Silver level is free and lets you download content from Xbox LIVE Marketplace, chat with friends, and share your gamer profile and achievements with other users. The Gold Level is a paid service with all of the Silver level benefits, plus with the ability to play multiplayer games online against other members of the Xbox LIVE community, create parties and join games with friends, and, if you’re a Netflix member, even watch streaming movies right on your Xbox 360. Join Xbox LIVE now!

Sony Playstation Network
* Go multiplayer with free online gaming
* Keep track of what games your friends are playing with Friend’s List
* Show off your Portable ID on your favorite social networks

Wii Online
Wii doesn’t only play games, it also connects wirelessly to the Internet to bring you the latest news, weather reports and game downloads; plus you can send text messages and swap data with other Wii owners online.
*Even when Wii is off, it’s on. Wii can remain connected to the Internet in a low power state, to download new content for your games while you sleep.
*Check the latest headlines and local weather reports, organise your digital photos, and even surf the Web - all from the comfort of your sofa.
*With Nintendo’s free and fun online service, you can directly play games with other Wii owners – even if they are miles away!

President Obama Signs Mississippi Disaster Declaration

The President today declared a major disaster exists in the State of Mississippi and ordered Federal aid to supplement State and local recovery efforts in the area struck by severe storms, flooding, and tornadoes during the period of March 25-28, 2009.

Federal funding is available to State and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the severe storms, flooding, and tornadoes in the counties of Amite, Greene, Jackson, Lawrence, Lincoln, Simpson, Stone, Walthall, Wilkinson, and Wayne.

Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide.

Donald L. Keldsen has been named as the Federal Coordinating Officer for Federal recovery operations in the affected area.

FEMA said additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the State and warranted by the results of further damage assessments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: FEMA (202) 646-4600.

Texas Straight Talk - A weekly column
Rep. Ron Paul (R) - TX 14

While much of the country’s attention is on other issues, a serious situation is developing in Pakistan that threatens to plunge us into another fruitless and bloody war. It is very frustrating to see that many who were so vehemently against the wars of the last administration have suddenly lost interest in foreign policy simply because we were promised change.

Those still paying attention know that nothing could be further from the truth. Very little has changed, except perhaps rhetoric, but what does that matter when the bombing missions are only getting deadlier? Rather than drawing down violent military interventions into the affairs of other countries, the new administration is escalating the foreign policy of the previous administration.

In Pakistan that entails the continuation and even escalation of military interventionism just across the border with Afghanistan. The targets are believed to be enclaves of Taliban militants, however, many innocent civilians have been caught in the deadly crossfire, severely damaging our image in the region. Many ordinary Afghanis and Pakistanis that never had cause to take up arms against us are being provided with motivation as family and friends are killed and maimed by our clumsy and indiscriminate bombs. Is it worth it for us to be involved in this way at such a high cost of blood, treasure and goodwill? Is there anything to be gained by this policy?

We are helping the Taliban and other enemies to actually gain numbers and strength, while driving them down from the mountains in the border regions deeper into Pakistan, where they have been making a menace of themselves. As our bombings follow them, beleaguered villagers have little choice but to leave their homes and join the swelling numbers of refugees or take up arms and join the fight against us.

Nonetheless, instead of recognizing the cascading unintended consequences of trying to deal with Pakistan’s problems, all signs in Washington point to further escalation. Both the House and Senate have newly introduced bills to triple foreign aid to Pakistan, from $500 million to $1.5 billion, with every indication that the leadership in Pakistan is taking advantage of the situation with the Taliban to milk more aid from the US taxpayer. We are broke. This is money we don’t have, and it is an insult to the American people to run up the national credit card for this type of military adventurism after many Americans thought they were voting for peace.

The bottom line is our involvement in Pakistan’s internal problems is not making us safer. In fact, we are adding to the numbers of our enemies and increasing the threats to our security here at home. We are inciting the very terrorism and extremism we are trying to stop. Every dollar we send, even if it is for humanitarian purposes, frees up resources to make war and potentially prop up unpopular leaders. The factions and politics of the Middle East are irrational and dangerous. We play with fire when we meddle in their affairs, and we isolate ourselves diplomatically by making more enemies than friends. We need to bring our troops home, end all foreign aid, and maintain a neutral stance on the world stage. It, in fact, is the only foreign policy we can afford right now, and it would gain us more friends and trading partners than our bombs ever could. Besides, that’s what the Constitution permits and our founders strongly advised.

Probably the most played on-line game is Halo 3. It is an FPS (First Person Shooter) game. As you play the game, it is through the eyes of your player. There are a variety of matches to choose from, but the objective is usually the same — kill your oppenent.

Before entering Matchmaking, you choose from a menu as to whether you want ranked or social matches. Next, you choose the type of match, such as, Lone Wolves (6 playes “every man for himself), Slaye (4 against 4), Big Team, etc. Then, you enter Matchmaking where the computer server matches up the teams.

Microsoft describes the game:

A HERO MUST RISE. BELIEVE.
The epic saga continues with Halo® 3, the third chapter in the highly successful and critically acclaimed Halo franchise. Master Chief returns to finish the fight, bringing the epic conflict between the Covenant, the Flood, and the entire human race to a dramatic, pulse-pounding climax.

Halo 3 represents the third chapter in the Halo trilogy—an international award-winning action series that grew into a global entertainment phenomenon, selling more than 14.5 million units worldwide, logging more than 650 million hours of multiplayer action on Xbox LIVE®, and spawning action figures, books, a graphic novel, apparel, an upcoming film adaptation, and more.

Bungie
Halo was developed by Bungie. A website has been devoted to the Halo series at http://www.bungie.net/. Viewers can read forums, make comments or check out real-time statistics.

by mootmute

Fun? What is fun? Perhaps all people do not view fun the same way. But, most people consider games fun. And, most people consider music fun.

I’ve always found playing the music business game to be fun. For much of my life, the industry was untouchable to most people. The “corporate suits” had a monopoly over the supply chain. You had to get signed to a label in order to get distribution. The process of getting signed amounted to enslavement. Cost was another limiting factor for most people. To rent studio time or buy your own equipment was cost prohibitive.

In the 1990’s, things really started to change. I helped write and distribute some of the first albums made for the world wide web. Shortly thereafter, the MP3 became available to the masses for free. It became possible for a poor fool, such as myself, to make high fidelity recordings and distribute them all over the world… for next to nothing.

Now, it is possible to do it on a much higher level of multimedia that includes photos, moving pictures and interactive gaming. For a while, I invented ways to do this using primitive tools that I created. The rest of the world was also doing their fare share of creating.

Low and behold, along come games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band. Though at first I was a skeptical musician, I quickly became a convert. Just when I thought it couldn’t get any sweeter, Guitar Hero incorporates a multi-track recording studio into the game. So, anyone… anywhere… that already plays video games can get a free hi-fi recording set up included with the game. You can write and record original music then publish it as a game song for the rest of the world to play!

Also See: A Mess