Hey, did you hear the "After Dark" commercials that ran on Coast to Coast on Friday ? Who is this "Tim Binnall" character they sent to X-Conference ? He sounds pretty cool.
We return once again this week with News Watch and this edition may go in the history books as one of the most haphazard editions of the vaunted weekly in quite some time. With the release of the 1st ever BoA : Audio this past weekend and the culmination of my favorite television show Survivor last night, I've precious little time to do much other than scratch my butt and pontificate on the news. Luckily we have a place for just that ...
Hot 5 Stories of the Week
1>Judge tosses all but 4 counts against ex-NASA inspector (AP via CNN)
http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/05/13/nasa.inspector.ap/index.html
It's official. I hate NASA. I always have and that's not news, but what is news is that is it not difficult to find a story a week that shows something wrong with the agency. This week, we turn our evil glare towards this story of a former NASA safety inspector who was charged with 166 different counts for falsifying reports. Note that he is a "safety" inspector !
Sure they threw out the charges and maybe they were part of a large BS firing, but when you have an agency where 166 accusations of malpractice are lobbied against one man, who happens to be the inspector of one of only 2 remaining Space Shuttles, having already destroyed the other 2, you have a systemic problem.
Why can't we send John Bolton to NASA and have him whip them into shape ? We'd be mining Neptune by Christmas.
A judge has thrown out all but four of 166 charges against a former NASA employee accused of falsifying inspections on the space shuttle Discovery.
Billy Thomas Thornton, 54, was accused of failing to make 83 safety inspections over nine days from October 2002 to May 2003. NASA fired the 15-year employee in September 2003.
2>Police arrest two suspected human skinners (Reuters via myway.com)
http://reuters.myway.com/article/20050513/2005-05-13T151017Z_01_L13637417_RTRIDST_0_ODD-SKINNINGS-DC.html
Who knew human skinning was still going on ? And here I was throwing out all my dead skin. The great part of this story is how one skinner was arguing with another, who turned him in after being suspicious that he will be next to be skinned.
"Human skins are used by witch doctors to make charms or potions designed to make their users rich, especially in southern Tanzania, renowned as a center for traditional sorcery.
Police say the once rampant practice has decreased significantly in recent years due to tougher action by the authorities, describing this as the first suspected skinning case in southern Tanzania since April 2004.
Kova said there were three reported cases of skinning in 2003 and 14 suspects have been arrested since April last year in relation to various skinning cases, although providing evidence of skin removal is often difficult.
3>Wheelchair-bound man shot by police (UPI via infowars.com)
http://www.infowars.com/articles/ps/wheelchair_bound_man_shot_by_police.htm
Yikes, those trigger happy cops. You gotta love the doctor who calls to ask how his patient is doing, sends the cops over to check and they shoot him. Coupled with the news footage of the shoot out in LA last week, it's become painfully obvious that the cops are on edge about something. Perhaps it is the war on terror or that some of them are returning from the war in Iraq.
One questions their intelligence when a man with no legs is waving a gun in his own home and they decide to send a SWAT team in and wipe him out. Who approves of these decisions ? I'm sure a hefty slap on the wrist for the boys in blue will have them back on the street shooting handicapped folks any day now.
The confrontation began when a doctor called police and asked them to check on Alexander Ehrenburg, a Russian immigrant whose wife was in Poland on a visit, the Charlotte Observer reported. When no one answered at Ehrenburg's home, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officers and firefighters went there Tuesday night and broke down the door, retreating when he waved a gun.
A SWAT team was summoned and police attempted to negotiate with Ehrenburg, but he kept hanging up on them. Early Wednesday morning, police opened the door to throw a portable telephone in, and Ehrenburg threatened them with his gun. An officer opened fire, killing him.
4>New species of rodent found in Laos (AP via CNN)
http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/science/05/12/new.species.ap/index.html
It's "Yardsale Season" and it turns out that just might be the best time of year to catch a Bigfoot. In some parts of the world, they are hawking ultra rare species alongside Pokemon games and ALF pogs.
I toss this story onto the huge pile of evidence that Sasquatch is out there. New species turn up every day and this is yet another one we can point to when some yokel claims there is no Bigfoot.
The long-whiskered rodent with stubby legs and a tail covered with dense hair resembles them all but has turned out be a previously unknown species that actually represents an entire new family of wildlife, the Wildlife Conservation Society said.
"It was for sale on a table next to some vegetables. I knew immediately it was something I had never seen before," Robert Timmins, a WCS researcher, was quoted as saying of his find.
5>Artists concerned tattoos losing nonconformist lure (Reuters via myway.com)
http://reuters.myway.com/article/20050516/2005-05-16T143732Z_01_N14392114_RTRIDST_0_ODD-LIFE-TATTOO-DC.html
I guess that old axiom of artists being ahead of the curve is a fallacy. I knew tattoos weren't "underground" a long time ago and the point was driven home last summer when I spotted a "tribal symbol" on the lower back of a sexy young lass who worked with me. When half soused college co-eds are getting "ink" then it's not just for bikers and parolees anymore.
You knew tattoos were mainstream when "tongue splitting" became hip a few years back. Soon it will be something even more bizarre like grafting an ear above the navel or some other nutty movement. Such as ... the microchip ? Nah.
Long-time tattoo photographer Charles Gatewood of San Francisco said: "It (tattooing) is so popular that it has lost some of its magic. It was like a club, a secret society and family. Now it's gotten commercialized, co-opted and watered down ... in the opinion of some people."
Future News Now
Westminster snoops install microphones on lampposts (London Inquirer via Infowars.com)
http://www.infowars.com/articles/bb/microphones_on_lampposts_westminster.htm
Big Brother is listening to you. Oh geez, I hope they didn't hear me call them "lame". I've heard Alex Jones ranting about this for a while now and I guess, once again, he was telling the truth.
While I fear the implications of such insanity, I can't help but laugh at the foolishness of the whole concept. What kind of stumbling moron will be listening to these tapes to determine, I have no idea. No, this is not as worrisome as cameras everywhere you go and what have you, although more personal information is probably passed via sound than sight, so be forewarned when planning that midnight tryst with the high priced "escort".
A council spokesman said that the mikes will cover the whole of Westminster and be used by noise abatement officers.
The move will mean that council officers can monitor noisy neighbours from the comfort of their tearooms and mean they can pre-empt anyone ever having to call the council to complain about noisy parties ever again.
...
It will mean that the traditional method of inviting your neighbours to your noisy party to prevent them complaining will not work, as the council will now confiscate your stereo without anyone in the region complaining.
The Noory Story Showdown
This Week's Point Getters : I may have finally figured out a way to correctly tally the Noory Stories. It just means I have to endure a week's worth of Noory reading the news in one sitting on Monday afternoons. We have 7 weeks left and many posters scored some big points this week.
Streamlinkers : mirage scores with "US pays for care of illegal aliens". mirage scores again with "Finger Traced to Woman who blamed Wendy's" mirage scores yet again with "Iris Scanning to begin at Orlando International Airport".
theUSofE.com : Oscar scores with "Police : Wendy's Chili Finger Identified" Oscar scores again with "Battle lines drawn over base closure plans". Degataga scores with "Iris scanning to Begin at Orlando International Airport". Degataga scores twice with first "Bodies of two girls found in Illinois" and then "Father charged in death of two girls". Jerikai also scored with "Finger Custard"
Notes : Contact me if you think I missed your story.
Current Standings as of 5.16.5 : Templar (9), Oscar (7), mirage (7), Dennis (6), Degataga (5), Jerikai (4), FAZER (3), Baemark (3), Valkryie (2), SimpleComplexities (2), TxStarGazer (2), Raven (2), shanesq1 (1), jerseyred (1), Dustminer (1), afeent1 (1), crimsonadam (1), sideshow (1), outuvbody (1), and SomeAverageJoe (1)
The Rules : Score 1 point for posting a news story that gets read by Noory or Art Bell on the show. If you are not credited by me in News Watch, YOU are responsible for letting me know that I missed it. You can ONLY post your news stories in either the Streamlink message board "Current Events" folder or the U.S. of E. message board "Current Events" folder (News Stories posted in individual episode folders or "Anything Goes" do not count) The WINNER is the person with the most Noory Story points (cumulative) in the July 4th Edition of News Watch. Subsequently, there will be a 2nd competition for the 2nd half of 2005, culminating on 1.2.2006. The 1st PRIZE is a $40 dollar shopping spree @ the official binnallofamerica.com store. Any questions / comments can be sent to tbinnall@hotmail.com This contest is REAL. No wagering, please.
Jackson Schmackson
The Jackson defense put on another whirlwind week as they set about trying to prove MJ is no kid toucher. They started with a former security guard at Neverland Ranch who said she saw no improprieties. She hurt the defense on cross-examination with this memorable quip : "Some of the activity was beyond my comfort level," she said. Then began the first of what will probably a parade of celebrities to defend the King of Pop. Starting with former child star turned has-been Macauley Culkin. He, of course, said Jackson never molested him and that the allegations against Jackson were "absolutely ridiculous". Okay, thanks. Glad we got that out of the way. No doubt, Culkin will say that. He wants to work regularly in Hollywood without having the tag of being molested by Michael Jackson floating around him like it already does. Culkin Credibility : zero.
And then in another strange twist, the Jackson defense team called Mark Garagos, the former lead attorney of the Defense team. I heard Jackson flip flopped over waiving his Attorney-Client priviledges throughout this saga and it may come back to haunt him. Geragos essentially said that Jackson was probably being set up by the family and when he represented him, he ordered surveillance to check them out. That seems to help against the conspiracy charges.
The Jackson Scale : 75 (Last Week : 70)
Comment : The Jackson Defense Team has yet to yield any big mo heading into this coming week. Lousy witnesses and lame gimmicks aren't working.
A scale of 1 to 100, with 100 being nearly certain, I will deduce the odds of Jackson being found guilty and going to jail. This is not an opinion of his guilt, just a barometer of the potential outcome of the trial.
Editorial
Iranian War ... Just a Matter of Time ?
I'm listening to Alex Jones as I write this, so one can imagine the horrific apocalyptic images in my mind. Suffice it to say, I've now become totally sure that a war in Iran is just around the corner. It's not just Mr. Jones who has helped me see the way, it is the entire geopolitical climate.
Begin, of course, with longtime Iraq war haters France and Germany joining England to say that they want to take the Iran Nuke issue to the UN Security Council. That essentially says that we will probably not have to deal with another protracted UN debate over intervention and will instead just roll into Iran. Unless ...
Our arch-nemesis Russia and it's dangerous Asian ally China join in this debate. I expect, nay know, that they support Iran's attempts to be the antithesis of New Iraq, so I can't imagine that they want to see New Iraq annex Iran as well.
I expect the most resistance to another war to come from right here in America, where we've gotten pretty sick of the Iraqi War. I don't see how the present administration will get the support for another war, with a much more able opponent in Iran. Therefore, expect another terror attack to drive Americans into going to war. That or a "pre-emptive" strike at Iraq by Iran, whether it is manufactured by the US or not. There will be a reason to go to war and if there is not, they will provide it for the yokels who love to wave flags and watch other people's friends and family go off to die.
What to expect from the Iranian War ? More theatrics. I expect that the Iranians will put up a halfway decent fight and then slide into the shadows to have another guerrilla war going on in a much larger country. The Iranians are not stupid, they saw how the Iraqi war played out and will follow suit.
It goes without saying that this entire Iranian War drumbeat must also be applied to thoughts of the oil crisis. Is this yet another attempt by the oil mongers to drive the cost of oil up by implying inevitable instability in Iran ? Yes, of course. Whether it turns into a war or not, the oil companies will profit by driving up the prices as it looks like oil may get scare resulting from a war. So add that amongst the pile of stuff to think of in the Iranian situation.
It is much better off for us to fund some radicals in Iran to help overthrow the government there. Unfortunately, it may be too late as Iran may be getting nuclear and, after that, only an installed "US-friendly", read: CIA employed, Iranian government will do. But, don't be surprised if there is a coup of some sort in Iran and we can manage to avoid a war by an in-house Iranian regime change.
Either way, this Iranian War is probably going to happen. It's not going to be good. The road to getting there will be even worse.
End Notes
If you haven't been to binnallofamerica.com since Friday night then you have not gotten your hands on the EXCLUSIVE debut of binnall of america : audio. binnall ... Stanton Friedman ... 27 minutes plus ... in MP3 format ... for your listening pleasure. Go there and enjoy. Coming this weekend : binnall and Dr. Michael Salla discuss exopolitics. Full preview in this week's "binnall report".
Tuesday : Grey Matters discusses the Indian UFO stories. Wednesday : Will ghost files emerge like its shadowy namesake ? Thursday : Richard Hoagland gets a sitcom for Hot Newz. And much much more. binnallofamerica.com ... check it out.
Until next week, folks, be safe, be prepared, and be real.