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| Saw this cool movie review on the Net somewhere and can't recall where;; |
| December 27, 2009 / Internet;; |
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| Thinner is better to curb global warming, study says |
| The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight |
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| Thom Hartmann's "The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight" is extremely important and cogent, and needs to be read and absorbed by many to ensure the possibility of a future for the human race and all other life on Earth. Divided into three main parts, this book explains in detail where we are, how and why we got here, and what we can do for a brighter future. Very practical, well-researched, comprehensive. I am not aware of a better book on the issues, especially since it not only sets out the realities of our situation (dependence on dwindling oil and clean-water supplies, destruction of forests and plant/animal species, unsustainable population growth, frequent wars, third-world and first-world impoverishment, etc.), but also explains why, fundamentally, human civilization has gotten us into this mess (tracing the causes back thousands of years to the basis of civilization and comparing the recent city-state or nation-state lifestyle to that of the much older tribe), and what we can possibly do to change our course and save our children and their children and the planet they will inherit. I would give a more detailed or articulate description, but I lent my copy out the day I finished reading it, and several people are already waiting in line to borrow it. If there is a book to buy multiple copies of and give away, this is the best one I have found. Do not let it sit on the bookshelf indefinitely - after you read it, pass it around, from one person to another, making sure it never stays the same place, unread, for long. If you must keep a copy for your own reference, at least buy a second one to pass around to your friends. |
| Model's death highlights plastic surgery risks |
| So...what IS Public Health? / Youtube July 29, 2008 |
| Morgellons Destroys Relationships,
Families & Happiness |
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| Human Writes (cont.) > > > > |
| Osama bin Laden: The Newest Fake |
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| Wanted: Diplomats in Baghdad > > > > |
| Baker: Stay Half the Course |
| HIV/AIDS in China 'jumps 30 pc' |
| The Choices in Iraq (more on that)... |
| N. Korea planning 2nd nuclear test |
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| email@mikeblackwood.net |
| The Aspartame Nightmare Dr. Betty Martini, D.Hum, Founder Mission Possible International 2-19-6, as seen on Rense.com |
| 10 Reasons Why the U.S. Must Leave Iraq afsc / january 26, 2006 |
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| "Only the educated are free." -Epictetus (a 2nd century Roman) |
| email@mikeblackwood.net |
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| Bread & Roses |
| Blackwood Review |
| Blackwood Review |
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| Human Writes > > > > |
| The Gift that Keeps on Giving |
| When Americans No Longer Own America by Thom Hartmann February 27, 2006 / CommonDreams.org |
| War of the Unknowns Posted by Kevin Sites on Thu, Mar 2 2006, 8:52 PM ET |
| Humans spur worst extinctions since dinosaurs |
| "Power to the People" The Lost John Lennon Interview By TARIQ ALI and ROBIN BLACKBURN March 29, 2006 BR from December 8, 2005 Counterpunch |
| Expert has fighting words for Bush dailynews.com / April 2, 2006 as seen thru batcop.com By David Kronke, TV Critic |
| Normal day on the way to school April 3, 2006 / truthout.org |
| The Last Days of the Ocean |
| S.Korea fails to get North back to nuclear talks |
| Adolescents miss the looting, the fighting |
| A glimpse of our global future |
| Judge Rules Teachers Have No Free Speech Rights in Class By Matthew Rothschild March 24, 2006 / Progressive |
| ARMED MADHOUSE Thursday Apr 27, 2006 / Greg Palast |
| POLITICS: What Is a Neo-Con Anyway? May 4, 2006 / ipsnews.net |
| Climate change may kill millions in Africa: report |
| Poor nations to tell rich to do more on climate |
| Charlie Sheen Says 9/11 Movement "Juggernaut Of Truth" |
| The Goddess of Democracy: A Sacred Archetype to Heal the World By Thom Hartmann From: From The Ashes - A Spiritual Response |
| Alabama college hosts n-word conference |
| Korean pulls ahead to succeed Annan |
Global Links |
| Defiant British foxhunters turn out for Boxing Day |
| America’s Armageddonites |
| 30 Vermont towns seek to impeach Bush (as seen on Bartcop.com, March 9, 2007) |
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| Hay-seus says, "Git yer eyes open!" |
| Hinckley, Chapman and CIA Mind Control |
| From Cliff Mickelson 5-19-8 / thru Rense.com |
| Wanted: Diplomats in Baghdad / CNN July 9, 2008 The US is finding it difficult to fill diplomatic positions in Baghdad. |
| Japan: One man dead, six hurt after stabbing spree |
| Sleep Paralysis Documentary |
| I've saved the text to the ol' hard-drive; if anyone wants 'er, just send me an email^^ |
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| Virtually addicted: Weaning Koreans off their wired world |
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| Seoul, South Korea (CNN) -- While in high school, Cheong Beom-seok often slept through his classes and played online games seven or eight hours at night, sneaking in front of the computer while his parents were in bed.
"I then started to like playing soccer, going drinking with friends and talking," Cheong told CNN in a smoky basement Internet cafe, or "PC bang," in Seoul. Now 23 years old and at the prestigious Korea University, Cheong is down to playing two or three hours on "Starcraft" and "World of Warcraft" three times a week, and believes he's kicked his virtual addiction. Cheong, however, may be in a minority of recovering Internet addicts. The South Korean government estimates that the country has 2 million citizens addicted to the Internet -- the darker side of being one of the world's most "wired" -- and is launching a fresh attempt to address the country's online addiction. Internet addiction has been a South Korean headache for almost a decade where more than 90 percent of households are connected to high-speed broadband and some 25,000 PC bangs supplying extra gaming space. "The situation is serious," says Lee Dong-hun, an assistant professor of Counseling Psychology in the education department at Pusan National University. "Internet addiction problems are not only seen in school age children, but also college students and adults with jobs. It's a complicated psychological and social environmental problem and it's not easy to help." Some recent extreme cases of Internet addiction have made for some shocking headlines: Earlier this month a three-month-old baby girl succumbed to malnutrition while her parents spent 12-hour stretches in an Internet café playing the role-playing game Prius Online, police said. In another tragedy last month, officials said a 22-year-old man returned to an Internet cafe to continue playing immediately after he murdered his mother, who had complained about his gaming habits. Physical exhaustion after long computer sessions has also caused deaths. While other psychological problems may well have contributed to these sad cases, symptoms and causes of Internet addiction are difficult to tell apart, experts say. South Korea's approach has veered from drug abuse-style treatments and private-run boot camps to measures against behaviorally based addiction such as gambling. South Korea's new initiative is called "i-ACTION 2012," an umbrella acronym for a spread of approaches labeled "Attention, Counseling, Training, Institution, Outcome and Networks." It aims to make thousands more advisers available for its treatment centers and counseling hotlines and to launch an educational warning campaign. Internet addicts will also be offered free software with a timer that shuts down their computers or a "fatigue system" that bores players by making games slower and more difficult. Still under consideration and more contentious is banning long business hours for Internet cafes. They currently operate 24/7 and typically offer the latest popular massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) for about $1.10 an hour. That won't work, said Simon Lim, CEO of ThisIsGame.com, South Korea's leading gaming Webzine. "You don't only play one game in a PC bang. Every house has broadband so you can continue playing at home," Lim told CNN, adding that South Korean teens typically switch between three games at a time. "The government can't be overly rigid and take a forcible approach -- it will have a bad effect," said Cheong. Owners of Internet cafes point to the larger pressure of South Korea's non-stop, hyper-competitive society. It starts at school with pressure to pass exams and gain sought-after university places. South Koreans work 2,256 hours per year, among the longest in the world, according the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD). "South Korea is very dynamic but it's a very stressful society that demands long working hours and tough competition. Most South Koreans survive in that society but those who can't, turn to the Internet," Lee told CNN. Some of the suggested new measures to curb Internet addiction could collide with a gaming market that is expected to be worth $5.5 billion this year with a 17 percent growth rate, according to the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA). There are now just under 30,000 game developers in Korea that generally provide major games for free. The companies make their money selling add-ons such as weapons, outfits and special abilities for the online characters. South Korea's Internet cafes also reaped the benefits, taking in $600 million last year, according to government figures. Another novel idea to curb addiction is to punish excessive playing by confiscating gamers' virtual wealth. South Korea's Supreme Court ruled in January that assets earned in gaming -- in that particular case, virtual money from the online game Aden -- could be bought and sold for real-life cash. That trade can now potentially emerge from the shadows of so-called black market "workshops," where it is estimated at $240 million annually. Game makers are cautiously waiting to see what exactly the government is planning and have so far said they support playing with moderation. Some also fund treatment and counseling programs. "Games can be an energizing element for modern people, but it's only meaningful when it's in harmony with life and family," said Taek Jin Kim, CEO of leading game developer NCsoft, in comments provided to CNN. "We are examining various technological directions to prevent excessively continuous game play even for adults, and we are also discussing a special system that will allow children and teenagers to learn a healthy gaming habit," added Jaesung Lee, NCsoft's Vice-President of External Relations and PR. The solution must be "holistic," says Lee, who urges more programs to help children deal with their stress and more awareness of the problem among school teachers. "The approach should be like oriental medicine," said Lim, "where you don't just attack the sickness but you work to make the healthy sectors stronger and weak organs healthier, to better defend against the bad." |
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| StarCraft II shakes up S. Korea's `national sport' |
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| PLUGGED IN, TUNED OUT > > > > |
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| (CNN) -- In South Korea, the launch of "StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty" is more than just a follow-up to one of the PC industry's top-selling games -- it could shake up what many see as the North Asian country's national sport.
In high-tech South Korea -- which has one of the highest broadband penetration rates in the world -- the StarCraft video game series has spawned devotion more akin to professional sports teams. Indeed, video game players there can get lucractive contracts from professional teams with corporate sponsorships. Games of large tournaments are broadcast live on television in South Korea. "In Korea, a lot of factors came together to make it a big thing," professional gamer Greg Fields told CNN's Kristie Lu Stout. The first StarCraft game, produced by Blizzard Entertainment in Irvine, California, came out in 1998 when the South Korean economy was melting down during the Asian Financial Crisis. "It was in the middle of an economic recession and (StarCraft) was easy, cheap entertainment. It really took over and just captivated a nation," said Fields, a 20-year-old New Jersey native recruited two years ago to play StarCraft for the South Korean team CJ Entus. In a nod to the game's popularity in South Korea, Blizzard first announced plans for StarCraft II at the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational in Seoul in May 2007. About 90 percent of South Korean households are connected to high-speed broadband and the nation has some 25,000 internet cafes, which took in $600 million last year, according to government figures. The gaming market is expected to be worth $5.5 billion this year with a 17 percent growth rate, according to the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA). StarCraft II was first released Tuesday in South Korea and other Asian nations. The original game sold about 11 million copies worldwide . While gamers in South Korea are lining up to get copies of the new title, StarCraft II could be a game changer in the country's professional circuit, Fields said. "In StarCraft II, the leagues aren't established yet, they're all building up -- it's going to be huge, but we don't know how long it will take, how huge it will be, whether (existing teams) will be good at the game or not," Fields said. |
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