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Is TEPCO, the hapless operator of the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, even remotely interested in trying to repair its shattered reputation? After another cover-up was revealed at the plant this week, we doubt it.
This is the story. Reactor #4 at Fukushima was out of operation, and the fuel assemblies were out of the reactor, when the 2011 earthquake and tsunami hit the plant and triggered the failures that led to the catastrophic meltdowns of reactors #1, #2, and #3. The building of reactor #4 was subsequently damaged by hydrogen explosions and fire from the disaster at its sibling reactors.
Inside the reactor #4 building, 100 feet above ground level, is a storage pool containing the reactor's over 1,500 nuclear fuel assemblies, 1,300 or so used ones that are still very hot, and another 200 or so that are unused. The hot assemblies need continuous cooling. Each assembly of spent fuel contains radiation equivalent to 10 Hiroshima atomic bombs.
The building is vulnerable to further earthquakes. If any of the fuel assemblies were to be exposed to the atmosphere through a mishap during the operation, dangerously high levels of radiation could be released into the environment. So TEPCO has decided to remove the fuel assemblies and transfer them one at a time to a less vulnerable storage pool.
They've come up with a complicated system of cranes and mobile storage casks for the task. It is a system that worries the head of Japan's Nuclear Regulatory Authority.
The work is expected to begin Monday and take over a year to complete.
Three of the fuel assemblies inside the reactor #4 storage pool are damaged and cannot be removed using the system TEPCO has come up with. At this stage TEPCO do not know how they will remove the damaged assemblies. Two are cracked and leaking radioactive gases.
Well, you're probably thinking, some damage is only to be expected with the plant having been hammered with such force by earthquake and tsunami. This is where the cover-up comes in.
The fuel assemblies weren't damaged by the 2011 disaster. It happened earlier. One of them was damaged in 1982 after being mishandled - nearly 30 years ago - and they have lain forgotten or ignored ever since.
A massively complicated operation just got more complicated. If TEPCO had addressed the problem at the time instead of ignoring it, their job now would be a little bit more straightforward.
But that's TEPCO. They have a nasty habit of covering up problems only for those problems to come back to bite them (and the people of Japan).
You may remember, in the aftermath of the 2011 disaster, TEPCO saying there was nothing it could have done to prevent the Fukushima plant being inundated by a tsunami of that size. Except it had been warned in 2008 that a tsunami of that size could occur and that the plant's defences weren't up to the job. TEPCO decided to ignore the warnings.
And it goes on. In July 2012, it emerged that workers at Fukushima were "urged to disguise their exposure to radiation." In July 2013, the company was forced to admit what it had been denying - that contaminated water had been leaking from the Fukushima plant and into the ocean since 2011. How about its heavily redacted accident response manual? What about TEPCO investigating itself and finding it had made no errors in its response to the disaster?
The cover-ups and scandals go back further than 2011. In 2002, it was found that TEPCO covered up its failure to conduct safety tests on its reactors during the 1980s and 90s. The company had also falsified test results.
Now we hear that TEPCO has asked Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority to conduct safety tests at its troubled Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant with a view to restarting two reactors there. Are they serious? After all TEPCO has got up to in the last few years - the lies, cover-ups and incompetence – we don't trust them to run a bath let alone a nuclear power plant.
(Image: Satellite image showing damage at Fukushima 1 Dai-Ichi nuclear power plant after an earthquake and Tsunami in Japan. Source: DigitalGlobe)
Justin McKeating has been blogging the meltdown of the nuclear industry for Greenpeace International since 2008. He is based in Brighton, UK.
(Unregistered) PCAH
Thank you Greenpeace. Much the same cover ups and risk taking have been common practice at UK nuclear sites since 1965. Published scientific and epide...
Thank you Greenpeace. Much the same cover ups and risk taking have been common practice at UK nuclear sites since 1965. Published scientific and epidemiological studies detailing public health damage are ignored by UK regulators to the extent that politicians are now complicit in EDF's attempts to build two more lethal nuclear reactors on the Hinkley C site.
16 November, 2013 at 14:06
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(Unregistered) Lemurian
Letter to Bono (sent last week)
Dear Bono,
I am writing you from San Francisco Bay Area. Apart from being a U2 fan, you seem...
Letter to Bono (sent last week)
Dear Bono,
I am writing you from San Francisco Bay Area. Apart from being a U2 fan, you seem to be one of my last hope to save the mother Earth from ongoing onslaught in Fukushima, Japan. I am sure you are well aware what is going on in Fukushima, then again you may be too busy to pay closer attention. So let me draw you a closer picture. We are loosing mother Earth on a thousands of times faster pace than ever before. If nothing is done we will lose mother Earth within our lifetime.
300 tons of radioactive water mixing in to Pacific Ocean everyday for the last 32 months. At the moment radiation has already reached down to New Zealand and it is spreading faster than any other contamination world has ever seen before. Whole Pacific Ocean is contaminated with radiation and it is increasing everyday. Sailors who sailed from Japan to Hawaii stated that they did not see a single living creature in the Ocean for 3000 n. miles off the coast of Japan. Most of the fish probably have swam away, but everything else which could not get away are dying. Starfish and jelly fish are slowly melting, and the Polar Bears are loosing their fur. Tons of dead sardines washed on to Oregon coast last week. As we all know that high radiation kills all life forms, and it spreads in all directions inside water. If the Oceans die, Earth will surely die as well. It may already be too late to save the Oceans, but we should still try and hope for the best.
After the last earthquake near Fukushima on Oct 25, reactor 4 with it's containment of 1500 radioactive rods (300 pound each) has begun tilting on it's side. If those rods become exposed to air, or begin to touch one another it will cause a fire and we are talking about an immediate global disaster. Tokyo Electric company TEPCO is about to attempt to remove the rods. However since their machine is broken they are planning to do this removal manually. They are also asking for another 2 years to stop the radioactive leak in to the Ocean. Total madness. Japanese premier Shinzo Abe asked for an international help last month, but U.N. still has not gotten involved. It is mind boggling, but they do not seem to understand the urgency of this situation. This is the biggest threat to our planet since Hiroshima and Nagazaki! Scopes of this disaster will be hundreds of times greater than that, and the Chernobile disaster combined. U.N. must take over the operation in Fukushima a.s.a.p. and gather the best of the best crew and necessary equipment to do this job safely and swiftly. World can not afford to leave such an important and lethal operation in the hands of corrupt and incompetent company. We can not allow one bad company to poison our mother earth to death. And in the meantime
there is a media black out on this issue (except Tom Hartman in RT) Media is not talking about it, politicians aren't talking about it, and the people are totally unaware. And I believe there will be no health hazard warnings coming from any government until they can not hide it anymore. They would not want to sacrifice fishing and tourism industries. They rather go down in flames while making money. I have seen this happening during the Chernobil disaster and I am still suffering from the effects of eating radioactively contaminated food.
So please, please, please. I am begging you to do something, and pull some strings. You know many powerful and influential people. Pres. Bill Clinton is one of them. Please help us to increase the awareness on this issue. Unless we manage to build up a huge pressure on Japanese government or U.N. to solve this problem, believe me they do not care. After all, illuminati (or one percent) want billions dead. But this time they do not realize that they will loose this most beautiful planet as well.
I would like to thank you for being who you are. Thank you for all those beautiful songs and standing up for humanity.
May God's love be with you always.
Zia Okay
19 November, 2013 at 2:54
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(Unregistered) Beppe
The coverups are of course bad but, on top of them, what worries me is that Tepco *gave up* extracting those 3 fuel assemblies. Will they be able to e...
The coverups are of course bad but, on top of them, what worries me is that Tepco *gave up* extracting those 3 fuel assemblies. Will they be able to extract the assemblies damaged in the 2011 disaster? or will they fail like they are failing with water?
19 November, 2013 at 2:58
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(Unregistered) Luma Chichiwa
This situation is getting critical. The pacific ocean cannot recover from the tonnes of radioactive water spilling every day. The Japanese cannot cope...
This situation is getting critical. The pacific ocean cannot recover from the tonnes of radioactive water spilling every day. The Japanese cannot cope with this disaster alone. This is beyond blame right now.
Greenpeace, i urge you to become more vocal on this to the UN right NOW. I urge all Greenpeace members to ask Greenpeace to become vocal. Loudly vocal, daily, hourly. Every second of every hour of every day there is radioactive material seeping into the ocean.
Unless we make the international community act to provide technological and financial assistance, there is going to be precious little life left to fight for. The pacific ocean will be dead in 5-6 years and much of the pacific coast sick and dying.
This cannot wait anymore.
19 November, 2013 at 5:35
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Jan Haverkamp - Greenpeace
@Luma and @Lemurian - Thanks a lot for your engagement. It is very important that people talk about these issues and point out the dangers attached to...
@Luma and @Lemurian - Thanks a lot for your engagement. It is very important that people talk about these issues and point out the dangers attached to nuclear power, because many seem to forget or rather be in denial.
Having said that, a bit of larger overview. As Justin McKeating pointed out in his blog, the removal of fuel from unit 4 is a very complex operation with quite a bit of risk attached to it - and we are right not to trust TEPCO as organisation too much with large risks. However, not doing it would probably be more risky - a large earthquake could further damage the pool or even let it collapse. We have called from the start for international involvement. However, not only from the UN's IAEA (you remember probably that the IAEA's mandate on nuclear power is its promotion, not it's critical overview), but most importantly involvement of nuclear industry independent experts.
Apart from that, the operation has been prepared in very much detail. We call on the international community to follow this with the highest scrutiny. But remember that in the mean time, radioactive water is continuing to leak into the ocean. The fuel ponds of the other three reactors are also a concern - especially from the units 1 and 3, where nobody will be able to enter for a long time to come.
And over a hundred thousands people are still evacuated from which many will not be able to ever return to their homes, while others are sent back to areas that will expose them to more than the 1 mSv/yr limit set by the ICRP. And most are not properly compensated, while in the same time TEPCO seeks to recover its balance sheet by preparing the restart of 2 Kashiwazaki Kariwa reactors...
It is good to ask attention for the risks around the fuel removal, but we should prevent it loosing sight on the other issues that play. Panic and hype stories are in my eyes less helpful here. The Pacific can not be killed completely by humankind, but locally parts of it can be made to suffer - and many people with it.
Also we should not in panic relate everything we see in the ocean to Fukushima. There is over-fishing, oil and chemical pollution, climate change (incl. CO2 uptake and acidification) that lead to threats of ocean eco-systems. And sometimes plainly natural causes for local mass-dying.
Keeping our cool and taking the measures that need to be taken can help us re-establish the precious balances on this planet in a way that people can remain part of it. And that involves an energy [r]evolution away from nuclear and fossil, a stop of large scale industrial fisheries and full protection of key parts of oceans and land, and development of really sustainable agricultural practices, to name a few.
19 November, 2013 at 12:30
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(Unregistered) Joris van Dorp
Jan Haverkamp,
I read now that Greenpeace has walked out of the COP19. And I also read that Japan has stopped its co2 reduction policies ...
Jan Haverkamp,
I read now that Greenpeace has walked out of the COP19. And I also read that Japan has stopped its co2 reduction policies as a result of shutting down its nuclear power plants.
Will Greenpeace urge the Japanese to restart their nuclear reactors? Or does Greenpeace not care about reducing co2 emissions?
Another question: Despite all the negative news about Fukushima, the World Health Organisation has clearly explained that radiation from Fukushima will have little or effects on human health or the environment. Why does Greenpeace not explain this to its members? On this page, we can read some comments from people who are *panicking* about Fukushima. Is Greenpeace not interested in the mental health of these people? Why does Greenpeace not explain that Fukushima could never have been a threat to the ocean or to Japan, and that it is no threat? I would really like it if Greenpeace explained more to its member in order to prevent unnecessary mental breakdown, rather than feeding the irrational, extraordinary fear about fukushima.
22 November, 2013 at 11:08
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Hello Joris, welcome back. Still no new arguments, I see.
Greenpeace has presented the Japanese government already in 2011 a version of the Ener...
Hello Joris, welcome back. Still no new arguments, I see.
Greenpeace has presented the Japanese government already in 2011 a version of the Energy [R]evolution Scenario with policy measure proposals that could keep Japan within its climate commitments (and better) while not restarting a single NPP.
If you want to address this problem, write to the Japanese government that it should change its policy focus from nuclear and fossil to renewables and efficiency. It can be done and many in Japan are already doing it.
Concerning your remarks about the effects of Fukushima, please, read the UNSCEAR and WHO reports and not only their press releases. They do not say that there are no effects - in contrary. And take the people seriously. Greenpeace has done itself measurements regularly around the Fukushima Daiichi NPP and helps people on the ground with the interpretation of data. That should have been the task from the government and TEPCO, but they have utterly failed in doing so in a credible way.
If you denounce the real and scientifically well argued risks and attached fears of people like "irrational", you do not take either science, nor the UNSCEAR and WHO reports, nor the people seriously.
23 November, 2013 at 19:17
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(Unregistered) Vladimir
Vision of Japan without fossil or nuclear production of electricity is completely unrealistic (we are talking about visible future of about next three...
Vision of Japan without fossil or nuclear production of electricity is completely unrealistic (we are talking about visible future of about next three decades). Situation of Japan is much worse than situation of Germany. Possible usage of hydro and biomass at Japan is very limited. By the way, failure of dam killed more people than Fukushima accident during 2011 Tohoku earthquake. It is also not possible to import and export electricity for Japan. Germany imports hydro electricity from North Europe and nuclear a fossil electricity from France, Czech Republic and Poland in the time without wind and sun. Development of Germany electricity production shows real results of Greenpeace antinuclear ideology. The Germany fossil electricity production increases and also CO2 production from electricity production. Czech Republic has smaller share of coal electricity production than Germany.
I think, that Joris read WHO and UNSCEAR reports. And he also understood these reports. But I have experience, that Greenpeace peoples do not understand such reports. One example for Mr Haverkamp (he uderstand Czech): http://www.osel.cz/index.php?clanek=6983 . Results of both mentioned reports are that influence of radiation will be negligible in the case of Fukushima accident. This is not true in the case of psychology and social effects. It is necessary to measure and follow radiation and its effects. And decrease radiation dose. But the dominant field where is possible really help are somewhere else. Lemurian is product of "Greenpeace help of interpretation of data and campaign".
24 November, 2013 at 17:32
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Dear Mr. Wagner - For other readers, Vladimir is Vladimir Wagner, a researcher at the nuclear research centre in Řež in the Czech Republic and the vic...
Dear Mr. Wagner - For other readers, Vladimir is Vladimir Wagner, a researcher at the nuclear research centre in Řež in the Czech Republic and the vice-chair of a commission that proposed the current Czech energy policy that tries to crash renewables and goes fully on more coal and nuclear. Dear Mr. Wagner, welcome back. Fact check: One dam broke in the Fukushima region with - at the time I have been able to find out, according to Kyodo 8 people missing and 2 people found dead. Five houses were destroyed. The dam was for irrigation and did not produce electricity. For your memory: Fukushima prefecture has certified around 1600 people dying because of the nuclear evacuations, slightly more than the total amount of tsunami victims in the prefecture. We do not know whether on top of that there might still people die because of radiation effects, but it is likely. Potential numbers are difficult to assess and estimates are varying widely.
It is clear you have not taken a look at the Japanese energy [r]evolution scenario, but Japan has not only the drawbacks you sketch, but also a few advantages compared with Germany: it's island position, creating a much more positive profile for wind energy, a better solar position and better chances for geothermal energy. Main hindrance is its regional monopoly grid division. International grid-connections would theoretically be possible with Korea and China, but the energy [r]evolution scenario does not count with that.
About the German coal myth that seems to be so popular among pro-nuclear advocates we have discussed many times in this blog comments before. I am not going to repeat that here. Fact is that Germany is on track towards overshooting its 2020 emission targets widely, whereas the Czech Republic is struggling to meet them - and will miss them on the basis of your proposed energy policy.
The results of the WHO and UNSCEAR reports is that in the group of victims outside of the 20 km zone (outside!) no radiation health effects have been found yet and that it is deemed difficult if not impossible to be able to trace them down in future. Not because there will not be effects, but because it will be difficult to align single cases with the cause Fukushima.
Your article in Osel (= donkey - a popular Czech blog site) is not very convincing. You attack someone who wanted to make clear that health effects of radiation do exist - something that in the Czech Republic needs to be said every now and then, because people like you create the impression that one can stand in the midst of a nuclear bomb explosion and come out healthier... OK - now I exaggerate, but you do not exactly follow the general scientific consensus (with debate to both sides) of the linear no-threshold model of the ICRP. You juggle the numbers to prove she is wrong to suggest that radiation has health effects. That is manipulation. The fact that you consider *your* estimate of several tens of extra cancer related deaths as negligible, I leave to you. I think with good reason that your estimate is somewhat on the low side, but it will be difficult to prove that. I think that no extra death is negligible.
Basically what you are pleading for is to expand nuclear power, have every decade or so a large accident, don't evacuate people (it might be good for their health to get some radiation) and accept the bit of costs that are connected to clean-up.
Against that stands Greenpeace's well calculated plead for a nuclear phase-out towards a climate saving, renewable and sustainable energy system, so that we do not need to live through another Chernobyl or Fukushima again and prevent the amount of large scale destructive weather patterns increasing. Reader, make your choice.
25 November, 2013 at 21:00
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Only shortly:
1) Comparison and comparison of the same type of numbers are necessary. Evacuation is necessary also during dam fails, tsunami an...
Only shortly:
1) Comparison and comparison of the same type of numbers are necessary. Evacuation is necessary also during dam fails, tsunami and ... But indirect victims are mostly not counted in these cases. Only two nuclear power station accidents (Chernobyl and Fukushima) had influence on population. Every decade are many dam fails and several had much worse impact than Chernobyl (direct and also indirect victims - it is necessary to compare same type of numbers) during last fifty years (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dam_failure ). Many Fukushima people should be evacuated also without nuclear accident (consequence of tsunami).
2) It is necessary to compare reality and not papers and words. The fossil and coal usage for electricity production increases in Germany and strongly decreases in Czech Republic. The decrease of Czech coal usage is mainly done by increasing usage of nuclear but also by renewable (last years mainly by new biogas stations). Czech energy policy stopped noneffective large photovoltaic power stations but it supports effective decentralized usage of renewable. Share of fossil electricity increases in Germany during 13 years of "Energiewende". Share of fossil electricity decreased by more than 20 percentage points during same time in Czech Republic.
3) The best is to read WHO and UNSCEAR reports (I propose this). But it is necessary to know statistic methods and understand numbers. This is exactly necessary knowledge which I explained in my article on server Osel. Many not only Greenpeace people have problem with understanding of scientific methods. Estimations of WHO and USNCEAR were done by very conservative way and I used them. My estimates are not on the low side, on the contrary on high side, from this reason. Few cancers during whole live do not mean few cancer deaths (specially for thyroid cancer). Resulting WHO estimation was zero cancer deaths for case discussed in my Osel article. Comparison with other influences is the most important also in this case (influence of radiation is negligible against influence of diet, social conditions ...)
26 November, 2013 at 10:37
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Dear Mr. Wagner,
Ad 1. This issue was discussed earlier on this platform and we don't disagree on the negative sides of big dam proje...
Dear Mr. Wagner,
Ad 1. This issue was discussed earlier on this platform and we don't disagree on the negative sides of big dam projects. For that reason, the Greenpeace energy [r]evolution scenario does not include big dam projects. Whether the amount of victims from Chernobyl is larger or smaller than the largest dam catastrophes is still an open question. Our estimates are that they are in the same order of magnitude. Closing the eyes for the victims of the evacuations because of the nuclear catastrophe in Fukushima (called "indirect victims" by you) is a cheap trick to keep up the image from nuclear. I hope you at least agree with me that Fukushima is a catastrophe.
Ad 2. Falling industrial energy use (because of a fall in productivity of the heavy industry and because of efficiency gains) played the major role in Czech emission reductions. The Czech nuclear programme has never been driven by concern for climate change, nor has your Paces II energy strategy. I would be happy to hear some recent numbers from you about an increase of biogas. If there is a hopeful development there, I would be happy. I am only aware of an increase of co-firing of biomass in coal power stations (a criminal waste of our Czech forests! Far too inefficient to be able to call that sustainable biomass use!) and I am aware of the rather unsustainable trend of waste incineration and use of that heat for electricity generation. The use of fossil fuels in Germany's electricity mix has decreased, not increased, and we see a similar trend in heating And both see continuing decreasing trends. I agree with you that we should stop the remaining new coal plans in Germany - and I hope you want to support us in stopping the break of the coal mining limits in the Czech Republic as well as the refurbishment of Pocerady and other coal projects.
Ad 3. We have analysed the UNSCEAR and WHO work intensively and have pointed out in earlier blogs the weaknesses. This was done with people who have more than sufficient background to understand the statistic methodologies used. The comparison with other factors is disingenuous. First of all, the effects of other influences are different, secondly, when one is forced to live near to a nuclear power station that comes into a meltdown, one does not change one's diet, smoking habits, flying habits or medical research habits in order to lower one's exposure to radiation or other unhealthy effects. The biggest scandal I find is that even experts like you do not flag the fact that these reports are based on data of people outside the 20 km zone.
27 November, 2013 at 15:56
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1) The dominant part of renewable electricity is produced by hydro. If you say that your energy conception is based only on renewable you say yeas fo...
1) The dominant part of renewable electricity is produced by hydro. If you say that your energy conception is based only on renewable you say yeas for big dam (see Austria, ...). I am not against counting of indirect victims but it is necessary count them in all cases (dam failure, victims of another energy sources ...).What I said is, that it is necessary to compare same type of numbers.
2) Your statement is not true. The electricity production increased in Czech Republic during last thirteen years. Your statements are not true. The nuclear program was started and is driven by necessity to replace coal and it really works. Thirteen years ago share of fossil electricity in Czech Republic was much higher than in Germany. Situation is opposite now. Germany has higher share of fossil electricity than Czech Republic. This is real result of difference of two energy policy.
3) As I proposed, the best is to read reports and understand numbers. Comparison is necessary to do every time. Without comparison you will go to nonsense.
29 November, 2013 at 0:02
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Dear Jan,
I don't think I am hyping up anything. The truth is, we all fell a sleep at the wheel. TEPCO covered it up untill la...
Dear Jan,
I don't think I am hyping up anything. The truth is, we all fell a sleep at the wheel. TEPCO covered it up untill last month and confessed it finally. And most of us trusted government of Japan to take care of this situation. After all Japanese people have always been very together and appear to know what they were doing. We just did not know how corrupt and incompetent TEPCO was.
I think this is globaly most urgent issue to be taken care of. World can not afford to give one more year to TEPCO. U.N. must take over the operation for removal of the rods.
Please take a look at these satellite images. I am not sure if the second one is authentic, but the first one is. It is from March 2012. You can do the math to guess how far the radiation must have spread by now. I do not enjoy giving bad news to people but this is far more important than how it makes us feel. Our planet is in a huge danger.
We must do everything to stop this leak now! and we must abolish nuclear power for good, if we ever survive this one.
Thank you for your attention.
20 November, 2013 at 7:45
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There are complete nonsense here. Images shown by Lemurian are not explained. NOAA data (shown on first image) show really different results: http://a...
There are complete nonsense here. Images shown by Lemurian are not explained. NOAA data (shown on first image) show really different results: http://arstechnica.com/science/2012/04/lots-of-radioactivity-but-little-risk-in-oceans-seafood-near-fukushima/ . Even near Fukushima activity of Fukushima radioactivity is lower than natural background (given for example by 40K). There are not sign of Fukushima radioactivity in seawater near Hawaii a relatively early from Fukushima starts to be many orders lower than natural background radioactivity of seawater. Real measurements see: http://www.biogeosciences-discuss.net/10/5223/2013/bgd-10-5223-2013-print.pdf Greenpeace rejects science long time ago and it is based only on ideology now.
For Jan Haverkamp: Czech republic has smaller share of fossil and also coal electricity than Germany. It is result of Green Germany revolution based on Greenpeace ideology :-)): http://technet.idnes.cz/obnovitelne-zdroje-cesko-nemecko-dq4-/veda.aspx?c=A131103_182539_veda_mla
21 November, 2013 at 9:52
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Dear Vladimir,
The analyze of sea water results you presented are from last year. In fact they are 18 months old. I admit that the maps I...
Dear Vladimir,
The analyze of sea water results you presented are from last year. In fact they are 18 months old. I admit that the maps I presented may not be authentic either, but you can not find any recent maps in the internet, for some reason!
We are talking about at least 300 tons (TEPCO confessed it last month) of radioacive water mixing in to Pacific Ocean everyday for the last 32 months. In other words nearly 300.000 ton of radioactive water has gone in to Pacific Ocean. I think this is a lethal dose and I do not think that is an ideology! It is both science and a common sense!
Best independent site for finding out radiation levels is at www.radiationnetwork.com Levels in San Francisco was at 25 before the rain, and I watched it going up to 53 during downpour yesterday, which confirmed that rain (coming from Pacific) is radioactive. And we all know the consequences of having a radioactive rain! We have to learn to live with this on the Pacific coast by taking precautions and hope for the best.
We are not here to argue who is right and who is wrong. We just have to do everything to get this deadly leak stopped a.s.a.p. I hope we agree on that.
22 November, 2013 at 7:45
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(Unregistered) Vladimír
Dear Lemurian, it is understandable from your response that you know nothing about radiation. You wrote: "Levels in San Francisco was at 25 befor...
Dear Lemurian, it is understandable from your response that you know nothing about radiation. You wrote: "Levels in San Francisco was at 25 before the rain, and I watched it going up to 53 during downpour yesterday, which confirmed that rain (coming from Pacific) is radioactive. And we all know the consequences of having a radioactive rain! We have to learn to live with this on the Pacific coast by taking precautions and hope for the best."
But it is not possible to measure radiation from Fukushima by Geiger counters (used by www.radiationnetwork.com) at USA or Europe. Level of Fukushima radioactivity was even during time of maximum many orders lower than natural background. It was possible to measure it only by filtering of many cubic meters of air and by identification of special isotopes by means of gamma spectroscopy.
Changes described by you are probably produced by tritium and other radionuclides produced by cosmic rays at atmosphere and transported by rain downwards.
Also your text: "We are talking about at least 300 tons (TEPCO confessed it last month) of radioactive water mixing in to Pacific Ocean everyday for the last 32 months. In other words nearly 300.000 ton of radioactive water has gone in to Pacific Ocean. I think this is a lethal dose and I do not think that is an ideology!" is nonsense. Lethal dose is done by radioactive nuclei concentration. If you have even 300 000 ton radioactive water (how radioactive?) in many billions cubic m of sea water, the change of its radioactivity will be smaller than value of natural radioactivity. And this was confirmed by measurements. It is clearly not not possible to produce lethal dose.
It is important to stop any leakage of radioactivity from Fukushima. But your and Greenpeace texts are completely nonscientific and nonsense, pure ideology.
23 November, 2013 at 1:10
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@Vladimir - Thanks for explaining a bit about the hoaxed maps and radioactivity. Saves me a lot of writing.
@Lemurian - this exactly illu...
@Vladimir - Thanks for explaining a bit about the hoaxed maps and radioactivity. Saves me a lot of writing.
@Lemurian - this exactly illustrates why I am scared for these hypes. You will not find maps of radiation spreading in the oceans, because it is very difficult to measure such low concentrations of radionuclides. The early maps of spreading of radioactivity in air as published, among others, by the French IRSN, were based on calculations and then verified with I-131 measurements, which was in the early days possible. With the sea-spread of Cs that is a lot more difficult and unreliable.
The US hypes divert the attention from what the real issues are and they give gunpowder to the nuclear lobby. The real issues now are the continuing leakage of radioactive water *in* Fukushima, the risks attached to the stability of the reactors when earthquakes hit and then to the fuel removal operations, the lives of the people in the surroundings (incl. that of all those evacuees that have not been properly compensated yet) and Japan's unwillingness to steer its energy policy in a sensible direction.
@Vladimir II - Your remark about Greenpeace texts being "non-scientific and nonsense, pure ideology" is nonsense. No, they are not scientific texts. We leave that bit of the science to academics and institutes who work out, for instance, the energy [r]evolution scenarios. We do also measurements ourselves and follow all the proper rules of science when doing so, but we do not public scientific articles about that - I wish we had time for that... We are not ideological, but independent. We don't have to be ideological. Facts speak louder than opinions. But we are not afraid to enter the debate about the facts, to be in the public discourse. We are also not afraid to make scientific facts understandable for a larger public.
So, if you want to make accusations, then, please, also come with some solid proof.
23 November, 2013 at 19:35
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(Unregistered) Oer
5 January, 2014 at 13:00
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16 January, 2014 at 13:18
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Colour is very important in attracting customers' attention. In branding, particularly, it plays a very crucial role. The image below is the branding mockup of an app we made known as Pocket Thesis. It's a good example to show how we can use graphic matching -- when colours and shapes match in composition -- to make the app seamlessly adapt to the environment. This gives the viewer a sense of ease, allowing them to relate the scene to their actual life.
Here are some quick tips on colour:
1. Consistency is the most important factor when it comes to colour in branding. You need to make sure that icons, logos, webpages, and other company material all follow one consistent colour palette. A good example would be Apple products -- they follow same seamless flush design concept through their entire product line.
2. Avoid using bright, painful-to-see colours.
3. Choose a set of neutral colours first, and from there you can start planning your designs.
4. Finally double-check how your coloured branding material looks on the Web and on print. Sometimes colours that you see on the Web or in Photoshop may not necessarily look same on print.
Below is another example of an app with neutral color branding:
Happy designing!


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Used Truck - 2006 BMW X3 3.0i in Miami, Fl
Please Call For Price
About This 2006 BMW X3 3.0i
Vehicle Location:
Miami, Fl
Call For Price
Exterior Color:
Stock Number:
Fuel Economy Estimates
City MPG
Highway MPG
Combined MPG: 21
Estimated Monthly Fuel Cost: $105.95*
*Based on $1.78 per gallon and 15k miles per year.
Actual costs may vary.
Actual costs may vary.
Send This Vehicle To Your Smartphone
Seller's Description and Comments:
Located at First Leasing Corp in Miami, Fl. Call First Leasing Corp today at 305-260-5552 for more information about this vehicle.
Vehicle Options:
- 4wd/awd
- Abs Brakes
- Air Conditioning
- Alloy Wheels
- Am/fm Radio
- Automatic Headlights
- Cargo Area Cover
- Cargo Area Tiedowns
- Cd Player
- Child Safety Door Locks
- Cruise Control
- Daytime Running Lights
- Driver Airbag
- Driver Multi-adjustable Power Seat
- Electronic Brake Assistance
- Fog Lights
- Front Air Dam
- Front Power Memory Seat
- Front Side Airbag
- Genuine Wood Trim
- Heated Exterior Mirror
- Interval Wipers
- Keyless Entry
- Leather Steering Wheel
- Manual Sunroof
- Passenger Airbag
- Passenger Multi-adjustable Power Seat
- Power Adjustable Exterior Mirror
- Power Door Locks
- Power Sunroof
- Power Windows
- Rain Sensing Wipers
- Rear Spoiler
- Rear Window Defogger
- Rear Wiper
- Second Row Folding Seat
- Side Head Curtain Airbag
- Skid Plate
- Steering Wheel Mounted Controls
- Subwoofer
- Tachometer
- Telescopic Steering Column
- Tilt Steering
- Tilt Steering Column
- Tire Pressure Monitor
- Traction Control
- Trip Computer
- Vehicle Anti-theft
- Vehicle Stability Control System
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2006 BMW X3 ReviewThis car review is specific to this model, not the actual vehicle for sale.
Upscale compact SUV.
The BMW X3 enters its third year of production flush with success. In its first year, the X3 sold almost as well as the larger X5, doubling BMW's impact on the SUV market, and there's little sign of the trend toward smaller, more fuel-efficient SUVs cooling off any time soon.
The 2006 BMW X3 is available only with the 3.0-liter six-cylinder engine.
The X3's drivetrain is equipped with BMW's xDrive all-wheel-drive system, Dynamic Stability Control and Hill Descent Control, all designed to give it tenacious grip and secure control in less than favorable conditions.
The X3 is quick and fast, considering its heft. The xDrive puts it at the head of the class when weather or road goes north. It's roomy, both for passengers and cargo. And just as important, it's replete with safety features, both active and passive.
For 2006, the BMW X3 comes in one model, the 3.0i. (The 2.5-liter model was discontinued.) The X3 3.0i sports a 225-horsepower 3.0-liter inline-6 hooked to BMW's xDrive all-wheel drive.
A six-speed manual transmission is standard, while a five-speed automatic Steptronic is a no-charge option.
The 2006 X3 3.0i ($36,800) is stuffed with standard equipment. Cockpit amenities include automatic climate control with micro-filter and air recirculation; Sensatec upholstery; eight-way power adjustable front seats with two-way manual headrests with driver seat and mirror memory; four-spoke leather-wrapped multifunction steering wheel with fingertip cruise control; front center console armrest; storage nets on front seatbacks, in front passenger footwell and cargo compartment; two aluminum fastening rails and slip-proof reversible flooring in cargo compartment; split 60/40 fold-down rear seats; vehicle and key memory; remote entry, including two-step unlocking and remote tailgate release; Panorama glass moonroof with fully automatic, two-piece glass panels, power slide and lift control, wind deflector and power interior sunshade; tilt/telescopic steering wheel column; rain-sensing windshield wipers with automatic headlight control; automatic-dimming rearview mirror; power front windows with one-touch up/down and power rear windows with one-touch down; front-rear map-reading, footwell and visor-mirror lights; locking glovebox with rechargeable take-out flashlight; dual cupholders in front and rear; AM/FM/CD audio with eight speakers, wired for portable music players; Service Interval Indicator with miles-to-service readout; flat tire warning system; a four-function on-board computer; pre-wiring for cellular phone, garage-door opener, 6CD changer and auxiliary input.
The 3.0 Premium package ($1,800) adds Montana leather upholstery, four-way power lumbar support for both front seats, automatic dimming inside rearview mirror, and BMW Assist integrated wireless communication system.
Also available: a DVD rear-seat entertainment system ($1,995) and Sirius Satellite Radio ($325).
For 2006, the Sport Package ($1,800) now includes a new 8x18-inch wheel upgrade; a full body-color aerodynamic kit including body-color side skirts as well as bumpers; and a newly designed three-spoke leather-wrapped steering wheel. The Sport Package includes a sports suspension with stiffer springs and anti-roll bars; 235/50R-18 all-season tires; Shadowline exterior trim; and eight-way power adjustable front sport seats with two-way manual thigh support.
The Cold Weather Package ($750) includes a headlight washer system; heated front seats; and a ski bag. Other options include Servotronic steering ($250), Xenon adaptive headlights with auto-leveling ($800), front and rear Park Distance Control ($700), 18-inch double-spoke alloy wheels ($300); 18-inch Star Spoke alloys ($500); heated front seats ($500); heated steering wheel ($150); cargo net ($150), Navigation system ($1,800); BMW Assist with Bluetooth technology ($675); satellite radio prep ($74); and privacy glass ($350). Dealer-installed accessories include two choices of aerodynamic kit; a car cover ($210); a roof box ($520); a hitch bike carrier ($425); a hitch ski/snowboard carrier ($169); cargo area bicycle rack ($275); rubber floor mats; all-weather cargo liner ($70); auxiliary input adapter cable ($40).
Safety features include ABS, two-stage frontal airbags, front door-mounted side-impact airbags and curtain airbags for front and rear seat head protection, front safety belts with automatic tensioners and force limiters, all standard. Adaptive brake lights signal the urgency with which the driver has pressed the brake pedal. Optional: side-impact airbags for the rear-seat passengers ($385). The X3 comes with good seat belts. Wear them. They're your first line of defense in an accident.
The BMW X3 looks a lot like the bigger X5. Only when parked side by side are the differences noticeable, and then only to the extent of inches or less.
The 2006 BMW X3 gets a few new exterior touches. Most noticeable are the body-color front and rear bumpers. There's the traditional twin-kidney grille, of course, its chrome vertical slats complemented by a chrome strip along the base of the side windows.
From the front, the stance looks much the same as the X5, with fenders tautly blistered over wide and widely spaced tires, giving the X3 a BMW-like, road-grabbing face. This is no real surprise, as the X3 is but 0.7 inches narrower than the X5; its track is within 1.5 inches of the X5's track, which is the distance between the left and right wheels.
The X3 looks like the X5 in side view as well, though the cut line from the front wheel wells to the front doors was eliminated for a cleaner look. A mild character crease bridges the space between the fender blisters, and a relatively low beltline adds openness to the side windows. The trademark dogleg in the rear quarter window has been stretched a bit, however.
Physical measurements support the visual similarities. The X3's 110-inch wheelbase is less than 1 inch shy of the X5's. (The wheelbase is the distance between front and rear wheels. Overall length comes up short of the X5's 183.7 inches by only 4 inches. The X5 is just 1.5 inches taller than the X3.
From the rear, the only marked difference between the two is the single, double-tipped exhaust exiting on the left side where the X5 sports dual exhausts exiting at the corners.
People familiar with BMW interiors will immediately feel at home in the X3. Controls are where they should be and feel the way they should, with the proper directional movement, resistance and detents. Instruments are easy to read at a glance and communicate the proper and necessary information.
The display for the optional navigation system is one of the most thoughtfully positioned of the lot, rotating up out of the top center of the dash, gray instead of black, so it's visible to driver and navigator but nestled unobtrusively halfway down in the recess where it stows when not in use.
Passengers will climb in over aluminum doorsill trim with the BMW logo and will find refined interior trim and materials. We like the Maple Sycamore dark wood trim.
The front seats are supportive and comfortably bolstered. The standard seats are more comfortable than the Sport seats and quite adequately restrain the occupants' posteriors when the road turns winding. Seatbelts feel right, properly tensioned. Ranges of seat adjustment are extensive, to the point a six-footer can enjoy major amounts of headroom and actually put the steering wheel and forward footwell well out of reach; at these extremes, however, rear-seat legroom is seriously diminished.
In terms of roominess, the X3's interior compares favorably with its most likely direct competition, the Lexus RX 330 and Infiniti FX35, giving up an inch or so here and gaining the same there. In many measures it bests the more expensive X5. There's almost an inch more legroom in front and about half an inch more in the rear, for instance. Front-seat headroom is about a half inch less than in the X5, but rear-seat headroom is nearly an inch greater. On the downside, the X3's rear seat is quite firm and virtually flat, like a church pew, where the X5 and the others offer more form fit and comfort. The X3's rear center head restraint is fixed, offering no vertical adjustment.
Cargo area, at 71 cubic feet, is impressive, exceeding the X5's by 2 cubic feet with the rear seats folded, and slotting in between the RX 330's 84.7 cubic feet and the FX35's 64.5. Caesar the 170-pound mastiff was happy here, with the second row of seats flipped down.
Storage areas are numerous and flexible, many fitted with netting that stretches to accommodate odd shapes and medium-sized water bottles. Rear-door map pockets forfeit several square inches to the Europeans' unabated addiction to ash trays, however.
So much for the tape measure. Where the X3 disappoints is in the intangible and tactile, how the interior looks and feels. Textures and materials have been improved, but there's still no mistaking the X3 for one of BMW's luxury sedans. There are two front cup holders, but the one mounted on the center console is sized more for soda pop cans than coffee cups or water bottles and looks like an afterthought, something cobbled together and glued in place forward of the armrest/storage bin. The passenger cup holder pops out of the end of the dash by the door, where it gets bumped by knees when the passenger is climbing in or out of the car. Door closings are followed by a hint of a hollow echo, instead of the solid 'thunk' we expect of BMWs.
Driving Impression
Driving the BMW X3 is not like driving other SUVs. While the Lexus RX 330 tends toward the luxury end of the scale, the X3 leans more to turning two-lanes and the occasional twisty dirt track into a fun drive. Our first impression driving an X3 3.0i around the neighborhood was one of smoothness and precision engineering.
The X3 readily swallows mile after mile of high-speed highway. It feels confident in the wet, and really shines on dusty, gravel-strewn back roads and slushy boulevards. With the X3, a driver can accomplish feats that normally require the talents and reflexes of an accomplished rally driver, a benefit of the xDrive all-wheel-drive system working with BMW's multifaceted Dynamic Stability Control. Unerringly, just about the time the driver senses the X3 begin to slide and intuitively readies a saving countersteer, the xDrive calmly tucks the rear end back in line. It's a superb system.
The five-speed automatic is smooth and precise in normal, everyday driving. Just put in Drive and go. When pushing it in the slippery stuff, the automatic frees the driver to focus on braking, accelerating and steering. This can be a lot of fun. When so inclined, the driver can use the Steptronic feature to hold the transmission in a specific gear, manually shifting up or down as the incline or traction dictates or invites.
The six-speed manual transmission, on the other hand, is everything people who know and like BMWs have come to expect and appreciate. Shifts are smooth and precise, clutch engagement predictable and gears properly spaced to keep the engine in the sweet spot of its power band, although it is geared a bit high for relaxed long distance cruising. In short, we prefer the automatic.
Acceleration is silky and linear, thanks in part to an advanced intake design that leaves the manifold free of buffeting butterfly valves. The 3.0i records 0-60 mph times of 7.6 seconds for the manual and 7.9 seconds for the automatic. While not blistering performance figures, considering the X3's weight, neither are they shameful.
The optional Servotronic steering is flat-out wonderful. It's speed-sensitive, adding more assist at low speeds, and invisibly altering the steering ratio, so the car turns more with less steering input. Parallel-parking is a breeze, as are quick, mid-block U-turns. As speed increases, assistance diminishes and the ratio slows, making for good on-center feel and sure lane changes. Perhaps most telling about the Servotronic steering is its transparency; unless a driver moves directly from the X3 to another vehicle without the feature and suddenly has to crank in more steering at slow speeds, it'll likely not be noticed at all.
Braking is smooth and sure, with solid pedal feel allowing linear, smooth, gradual stops when desired, unlike many over-assisted systems increasingly popular on high-end cars and SUVs.
This BMW doesn't offer the quietude of a Lexus, however. The exhaust note that initially sounds pleasingly sporty can become an irritating drone after awhile at constant speeds. Wind noise reaches levels surprising for a BMW, and this is without any crosswise racks on the standard roof rails. Enough tire rumble penetrates the cabin to suggest the desirability of some additional sound-deadening materials.
Safety features are impressive and add to driver confidence and enjoyment. The xDrive system uses an electronically controlled array of clutches to disperse the engine's torque among the four wheels the instant it's needed, even to the point of sending 100 percent of the traction to any single wheel. Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) works to rein in the car when it's over-extended in cornering or emergency maneuvers; electronic throttle control reduces engine power when necessary to regain traction. The antilock brake system (ABS), allows the driver to maintain steering control in a panic braking situation. Electronic brake-force distribution (EBD).
The BMW X3 is hard to beat for people who want BMW's heritage look, powertrain and packaging, but desire the flexibility a sport-utility vehicle offers, or vice versa. The xDrive, Dynamic Stability Control and Hill Descent Control combine to offer excellent handling, grip, traction, stability on gravel roads, muddy two-tracks and snow-covered backroads. Overall fit is to the marque's standards, but the interior finish is disappointing. Leaving the options boxes unchecked yields an affordable and capable SUV that requires no apology, and judicious checking lets even a cost-conscious shopper have the desired luxuries.
NewCarTestDrive.com correspondent Tom Lankard is based in Northern California. Greg Brown contributed to this report.
Model Lineup
BMW X3 3.0i ($36,800).
Assembled In
Graz, Austria.
Options As Tested
Premium Package ($1,800) includes leather upholstery, auto-dimming rearview mirror, 4-way power lumbar, and BMW Assist; Servotronic steering ($250); Xenon headlights with auto-leveling ($800); rear door-mounted, side-impact airbags ($385); on-board navigation system ($1,800); Park Distance Control, front and rear ($700).
Model Tested
BMW X3 3.0i ($36,800).The BMW X3 is hard to beat for people who want BMW's heritage look, powertrain and packaging, but desire the flexibility a sport-utility vehicle offers. The X3 comes in one model, the 3.0i. The X3 3.0i sports a 225-horsepower 3.0-liter inline-6 hooked to BMW's xDrive all-wheel drive. A six-speed manual transmission is standard, while a five-speed automatic Steptronic is a no-charge option. Safety features include ABS, two-stage frontal airbags, front door-mounted side-impact airbags and curtain airbags for front and rear seat head protection, front safety belts with automatic tensioners and force limiters, all standard. Adaptive brake lights also signal the urgency with which the driver has pressed the brake pedal. For 2006, the BMW X3's engine options get smaller and there are minor design changes.
7339 Sw 45St Street
Miami, Fl. 33155
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904 Cladding Wash
Manufacturer: Rawlins Paints
A bio-degradable, concentrate solution that removes oil, grease and dirt which after application can be washed away through domestic drainage with sufficient clean water.
Availability date:
Product Description
A bio-degradable, concentrate solution that removes oil, grease and dirt which after application can be washed away through domestic drainage with sufficient clean water. Can be diluted up to 20:1 with water for the effective cleaning of aged coatings, bare substrates or Plastisol sheeting prior to recoating with 901 Cladding Paint, 902 HD Cladding Paint or 903 Cladding Primer.
It is your responsibility to read the Product Data Sheets (available below) before you place an order and prior to application of the product. The content of this website is our best recommendation and is not advice. Coverage rates quoted are approximate, you agree that coverage depends on the condition of the substrate, surface absorption, texture and application method. We ALWAYS recommend a trial area is coated to ensure the product meets your requirements before use.
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This is one part of the Forum I never had time to read. Since I stopped traveling so much and I'm home more, I'm catching up on my reading.
This post caught my eye because it's a "thorn in my be-hindâ€.( (People to respect other's rights)
I guess this post made me feel better because now I know other people have the same problem's I do.
The area were I grew up the neighbors needed each other. Anytime anyone would go hunting, fishing ECT. on someone's property they would ask permission first and always respect the land owner's property when on it. Even when my Dad retired and moved to a new location (Missouri, Ozarks) he got the same respect.
In the area were I live it's a different story. I have had issues as described in every post above. I tried to be nice and "turn the other cheek†to talk and reason but, everyone took it as a weakness'.
I even had a neighbor tell me I should turn my back when someone drives their truck /ATV through my field because they're "sowing a few wild oats†"you know how it was when you were youngâ€. They also gave me a warning if I tried to punish them for the damage they inflicted on my property, they have friends and family that could make it very hard on me. After complete dismay about what I just heard, my reply was "A few years ago when in the Army, being Platoon Sargeant in a so called war zone I faced much more conflicting issues than this and made it through it. If anyone wants to threaten me or my family for any reason they will have to deal with my actionsâ€
A few weeks later 2:00 AM on a Saturday morning, some drunken High School people decided to try their luck in front of my house, which is on a private road. They started blowing their horn, revving their engine up and so on. I was awakened by all the noise and was furious. I jumped out of bed, dressed in dark clothing (I did this all in the dark) and slipped out of the house via a back door. I walked the tree line (so no one could see me) for about a quarter of a mile. I had about 100 feet of open before I could get to the drunken High School people and decided to take a chance. They were so drunk they had no idea what was going on. I tapped on their window and told them to leave or I would call the Sheriff and someone on the passenger side decided to get out at which time I opened the drivers door and pointed a 30 / 30 at the driver and said tell your friend to get back in and leave now. I got an apology from the driver and they left. When I got back in the house I got it "with both barrels†from my wife for the stupid act I just performed.
This next day about (6:00 AM) which was a Sunday, I got a phone call from one of the drunken "punks†father saying "he called the Sheriff and was pressing charges for me pointing a weapon at his sonâ€. My reply was "callâ€, the Sheriff and I was pressing charges for trespassing and misconduct on my property.
To make a long story short,by the time this was over I came out the loser. I know I should have called the Sheriff on the drunken "punks†but I let my temper get the best of me. A couple good things came out of this which was; word got around I was one of those "deranged ex Vietnam Veterans†and no one bothered me anymore.
About a year later, the neighbors teenage daughter (at home by herself) came running to my house and said "someone was breaking in the basementâ€. I told her to stay and call the Sheriff. I grabbed my weapon and was going to stand in front of the house (at a distance) until the Sheriff got there. I heard a crash in the house so I decided to go around the back to see who and what was going on. While going to back of the house I noticed the door from the garage to the kitchen of the house open so I stood on the driveway in front of the garage with my weapon pointed at the door. The Sheriff's department arrived and went into the house and found an opossum got into the basement somehow. By this time a few neighbors were gathered at a distance away and thought the "deranged ex Vietnam Veteran†went off his rocker again. It was found out later the teenage daughter left the garage door open when she ran to my house.
Needless to say "the luck of the Irish†My wife, the neighbor (who's house was supposedly being burglarized) all came home to see me standing there with my "pea shooter†by the Sheriff.
Nothing came of it, except maybe one good thing to my benefit. My name has changed from "deranged ex Vietnam Veteran†to a "bomb about to explodeâ€.
Now a few years later, a couple of times a four wheeler and a truck ran off the road and came close to my corn field. I think it's the new "punk†down the road which "mommy and daddy†bought him a new four wheel drive truck and an ATV to go with it. I tried to stop him and give him a warning, but he won't stop and talk to me.
I have other stories about hunters, right-of-ways and so on. Some I have solved with "talking it out†and some with plan hard negotiations. All I can say is if you're in the right "keep fighting†you have your rights also.
An old Ozark farmer told me once "it's a great life if you don't weakenâ€
I will guarantee one thing to my last breath, my son's will show respect to other people and especially to their elders.
Jack Fowler
Farming and rural life discussion forum. Cooking, hunting, gardening, fishing, critters, etc.
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I simply cannot understand the lack of respect that kids and ESPECIALLY thier parents have for other peoples' land. last week i went over to a house that had a bunch of kids with 4 wheelers and told thier parents if their kids didnt quit going into my property, i was going to call not only the police but also children services. I asked them how they minded if i took my 4x4 atv (ford explorer) through thier little garden or yard whenever i wanted. That got thier attention. Jack it doesnt matter too much what those jackasses think of you, I am glad there are peolple out there that will stand up for themselves.
ps i love to vent on this topic !
I simply cannot understand the lack of respect that kids and ESPECIALLY thier parents have for other peoples' land. last week i went over to a house that had a bunch of kids with 4 wheelers and told thier parents if their kids didnt quit going into my property, i was going to call not only the police but also children services. I asked them how they minded if i took my 4x4 atv (ford explorer) through thier little garden or yard whenever i wanted. That got thier attention. Jack it doesnt matter too much what those jackasses think of you, I am glad there are peolple out there that will stand up for themselves.
ps i love to vent on this topic !
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text:
On a Rebel just just cannot bend over the wingtip...many types of kites are way too stiff at wingtipsWilliam Munney wrote:You put the sandbag on a bent over wing tip and let it roll off?SupaEZ wrote:Right to the point MR."been there done that"bnthere wrote:an 'object assisted' self land is not a cool trick. it is stupid and unneccessary. land your kite like a man by disabling it onto the leash line. (or dropping it onto its LE with tension on the high inside line, while being prepared to disable it onto the leash when you screw that up.)
I believe also it is more realistic to depend on a stake to launch...but landing no
Hey i am an sandbag man to launch (i bring an empty one to beach)
I launch on a dime with zero wear on my kite...no sliding around..just pops right up every time
Those who depend on stakes here are some questions
What if the wind shifts drastically direction and you can no longer find a safe spot for kite to land it
What if you end up downwind or away from stake and must land at once
What if the beach becomes crowded with kites on it and "your" exact spot is taken to land
Too much precision and time is required to detach yourself and attach all to the stake
............................ ........................................................................
Actually the empty sandbag that i buy for 0.79 cents at Ace Hardware (hurricane sandbag)....
...is draped 1/4 to 1/3 (of its total weight:20-30 lbs) over LE about 18 inches from very tip of wingtip
That distance is from center of bag
3/4 to 2/3 of the bag is off the kite...nothing actually goes the inside of the kite...just on the LE tip
The only time that the filled bag is in the kite is while i set up...(P.S. "flatten" the bag when draping)
You see i always launch with the kite laying on its back exactly parallel to the wind flow
The trailing edge in line with the wind flow....just toss some sand in the air before you launch....
....to double check that the wind has not shifted while setting up.
I position myself at a 45 degree angle from the kite to launch it...pull more on the leeward backline...
....when walking backward to launch...the kite's LE just peels right off EZ from under the bag....
...the moment that the Leeward wingtip rises up and catches the wind
To all the other readers... i am sorry that this is "off the topic about self-landing"
Thank you! Hope this helps you a bit William !
.......................... ..........................................


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Tanaka deal to set starting-pitcher market in motion
The wait is over.
Masahiro Tanaka has signed with the New York Yankees.
The wait is over.
Masahiro Tanaka has signed with the New York Yankees.
Now the rest of the free-agent pitching pool can start to find a place to call home.
The free-agent pitching market was in limbo until Tanaka decided on the team with which he would sign. There are at least six interesting starting pitchers on the free-agent market, and the agents for the likes of Matt Garza, Ervin Santana, Ubaldo Jimenez, Bronson Arroyo, Jason Hammel and Paul Maholm were waiting for Tanaka so they could make sure the teams that came up short in bidding for the Japanese right-hander would have a chance to fill their rotation appetite with a free agent.
That meant a Seattle or Texas or Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, among others, weren't involved in the Tanaka sweepstakes but couldn't get anything done with one of the other free-agent pitchers until now.
And they will get competition from the five teams that lost out to the Yankees in the Tanaka sweepstakes -- the Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston Astros, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox and Arizona Diamondbacks.
Jimenez and Santana rejected one-year qualifying offers from their former clubs -- Cleveland for Jimenez and Kansas City for Santana -- which means a team other than their former club signing either pitcher would lose a top Draft choice.
Santana doesn't figure to be affected by that after working 211 innings and compiling a 3.24 ERA in Kansas City. Toronto and Arizona are both believed to have interest in the right-hander.
Jimenez, who struggled for nearly two years in Cleveland before a strong finish to 2013, has found teams reluctant to meet his four-year demand, largely due to the lack of consistency in his career. He could well return for one more year in Cleveland, but it likely won't be for the $14.1 million qualifying offer he declined.
Texas has a definite need for help in its rotation. Yu Darvish and Martin Perez are the only candidates who were in the rotation at the end of last season, and the Rangers' plans were thrown a curve with Derek Holland's offseason injury that led to left knee surgery. They have in-house candidates who have big questions themselves.
Matt Harrison worked 10 innings last year and underwent two back surgeries. Michael Kirkman worked 22 innings in 2013, all in relief. Nick Tepesch made 17 starts as a rookie and earned four victories.
That's why it wouldn't be a shock if the Rangers tried to re-sign Garza or made a run at Jimenez, who came up through the farm system in Colorado, where Rangers general manager Jon Daniels and top aide Thad Levine worked before joining Texas.
Seattle would like a veteran to help carry the load for the returning 1-2 punch of Felix Hernandez and Hisashi Iwakuma, and to lessen the expectation of top prospects Taijuan Walker and James Paxton. Garza and Arroyo could both spark interest, along with Pacific Northwest native Hammel.
The Dodgers also could turn to Arroyo to add depth to their rotation.
And now that the question of where Tanaka will sign has been answered, the free-agent pitchers will get a chance to find some answers of their own.
Tracy Ringolsby is a columnist for MLB.com.


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Nickbarendt necesitaba un nuevo diseño de logotipo y lanzó un concurso de diseño en 99designs.
Un ganador ha sido elegido entre 187 diseños de 68 diseñadores freelance.
Bootstrapped startup to create a Software as a Service company catering to the needs of Electrical Engineers. Specifically, offloading computationally intensive operations from their local computers to the cloud, allowing them to get answers faster and rapidly iterate on their designs.
Electrical Engineers, particularly designers of Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs). College educated. Work for a wide range of businesses and variety of industries. The ones we're targeting are seeking a better, faster way to use their existing Electronic Design Automation (EDA) tools.
Looking for a balance between fun and professional for the logo - to capture the idea of "there are better tools available to do your job than you've had access to in the past" and the relatively staid/boring, low-quality tools that they're used to.
Need a logo for use on website and promotional materials. Lots of room for creativity. Working the cloud angle would okay, but that seems to be everywhere these days (maybe means we should pick a different name for the company :-). Electronics components or schematic symbols might be interesting visual elements for the target market, but just a thought.
please do not include the ", Inc." in the logo lettering; just too distracting
the logo should be capable of being reproduced in monochrome (e.g., B&W) without a complete loss; e.g., careful with those gradients
Descubre cómo funciona un concurso de diseño u obtén más información sobre nuestros servicios de diseño de logo.


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A Christian apologetics ministry dedicated to demonstrating the historical reliability of the Bible through archaeological and biblical research.
Besides the stories of the Creation and Flood in the Bible there ought to be similar stories on clay tablets found in the cultures near and around the true believers. These tablets may have a reaction, or twisted version, in their accounts of the Creation and Flood. In the post-Flood geneaological records of Genesis 10...
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text: British politician Herbert Henry (also known as H.H.) Asquith (1852-1928), a reform-minded member of the Liberal Party, served in the British House of Commons for three decades and was prime minister from 1908 to 1916, leading Britain during the first years of World War I (1914-18). As prime minister he introduced significant reforms including pensions and social insurance, which were financed by the so-called People's Budget of 1909. Asquith also successfully reduced the power of the Conservative-controlled House of Lords, whose members traditionally inherited their seats, through the Parliament Act of 1911, leading to the growing democratization of the British system. Although not remembered as a great statesman or war leader, Asquith's contribution to the democratization of the British system was a notable achievement.


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Traditionally, European cars and parts represent but a small part of the annual Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) trade show, but the 2012 event had a better showing than usual. And we played our part, with no less than three project cars on display including our eBay Porsche 911 "Rally" as well as a VW Beetle and Ford Focus ST we'd been asked to build for the event.
The '84 911 appeared on the cover of EC 12/12 and was part of an eBay promotion in collaboration with GSR Autosport. We created a rally-inspired racer that was auctioned on eBay for $33700, with all proceeds going to charity. During the week-long SEMA show, we were involved in a live webcast to present the car to attendees
Elsewhere in this issue you'll find full details of the VW Beetle we built with Revo and FMS Automotive. It was originally intended for a Volkswagen booth but after they backed out it was displayed by FMS - a company we've worked with extensively in the past: they fit and create several dealer-fit styling options for manufacturers including VW/Audi. The Beetle had a retro surfing theme complete with a shower system, Katzkin interior, 19" Fuchs Performance wheels and a full 400hp big-turbo conversion from Revo complete with a front-mount intercooler, intake, exhaust and software. It also boasted Revo big brakes and remote-reservoir dampers, making this one of the most potent Bugs in the show.
The Ford Focus ST is left-field for us but we'd proposed a strong Euro theme in conjunction with Focus specialists FSWerks, who provided the H&R coilovers, stress bars, turbo-back exhaust, intake system and software. The 18" Privat wheels were painted and fitted under pulled fenders by BMW specialists LTMotorwerks, who painted the car GT3 RS grey and provided the custom carbon front spoiler, rear wing, side skirst and diffuser. Along with a number of other parts provided by Ford specialists in Europe, we'll review the finished car next month.
With our project cars parked in different corners of the show, our pedometer app showed we walked almost 12 miles each day, winding between the hundreds of exhibitors. So if ever you visit, remember to bring comfy shoes!
Our exercise was rewarded with a higher number of European cars than normal, with everything from Ferraris, Lambos, Porsches, Jaguars, BMWs and Mercedes to VWs, Audis and Fiats. Each was equipped with the latest wheels, suspension and electronics, from iPhone-controlled suspension and high-tech boost controllers to carbon body kits and everything in between.
The show is almost too big to condense into a few pages here, but we've distilled it down to a select group of cars and parts to bring you our highlights, with other selections online at europeancarweb.com and eurotuner.com
Built for us by GSR Autosport for an eBay promotion, this '84 911 Carrera "Rally" appeared in EC 12/12. It features a retro paint scheme, rally lights, RS spoilers, OZ wheels, Pirelli rally tires plus fabricated GSR exhaust and full rollcage (gsrautosport.com)
The Bisimoto 930 Porsche 911 Speedster boasted its signature exposed twin-turbo rear-end. Departing from his traditional baby blue paint, Bisi opted for green paint with a distressed red leather interior. Along with its Speedster tonneau cover, the whaletail wing and GT2 fenders made it a big hit (bisimoto.com)
This 1200hp twin-turbo Lambo Aventador from Underground Racing showed up in the HRE booth sporting a set of its new S1 wheels (undergroundracing.com)
Rotiform was part of the same Beetle program as us, choosing to shave its engine bay, fit a new rear subframe and wrap the body in Wraptivo matte aluminum vinyl. Dropped on air suspension it had a set of 19" Rotiform NUE reverse wheels in matte metallic red (rotiform.com)
Featured in this issue, IND Distribution displayed its F10 M5 GTS for the first time, complete with carbon roof, spoilers, diffuser, etc as well as a painted roll-bar, Recaros, KW coilovers, BBS FI wheels and new Falken FK453 rubber (ind-distribution.com, falkentire.com)
Supreme Power Parts built this 991 Porsche 911 Carrera S using the new Vorsteiner body kit that includes V-GT front spoiler, carbon splitter, side sills, carbon diffuser and carbon rear wing. It usually wears the new SPP wheels but was in the Pirelli booth on stock wheels to promote the award-winning Cinturato C7 tires (pirelli.com, supremepowerparts.com, vorsteiner.com)
CEC Wheels displayed this 991 Porsche 911 in a new Caractere body kit with aggressive bumpers, vented side panels, stacked rear wing and its 21" forged CW1 wheels (cewheels.com)
Our own 400hp VW Beetle 2.0T "Surf Bug" featured a Revo big-turbo conversion, big brakes under Fuchs Performance wheels and remote reservoir coilovers. The body kit, paint and shower system were executed by FMS Automotive. Full feature in this issue (revotechnik.com, foammolders.com)
Our Euro-themed Focus ST had all mechanical work by FSWerks and bodywork by LTMotorwerks, including pulled fenders, Porsche paint and carbon spoilers. The interior had black leather/alcantara Recaro seats with matching rears. Full feature next month (fswerks.com, ltmotorwerks.com)
Underground Racing also has a 1000hp twin-turbo Audi R8 GT on display with sick matte red paint and a wrinkle-finished black intercooler treatment to offset the carbon detailing (undergroundracing.com)
034Motorsport brought its Audi TT-RS racecar to SEMA. Built by the factory for German endurance racing and costing almost $250k, this 380hp FWD chariot will be seen first at the 25 hours of Thunderhill (034motorsport.com)
H&R Springs had an otherwise stock 2013 Audi S7 that sported a set of H&R Street Performance coilovers and H&R spacers for the 21" Audi wheels but everybody commented on how sharp it looked (hrsprings.com)
One of the most talked about cars at SEMA was AccuAir's all-metal widebody Audi A4 2.0T Avant. Sporting its smartphone app e-level remote-controlled height adjustment system, the wagon looked amazing and the matte red leather interior maintained the quality. Full feature soon (accuairsuspension.com)
The fifteen52 Beetle won FelgenOutlet's "Best Wheels" award with its new 20x8.5" f, 20x9.5" r Tarmac TR wheels. It also had Newing-Alpil bumpers from Japan, Air Lift V2 suspension with notched frame and King Ranch baseball stitch leather interior (fifteen52.us)
We gave the 2012 Gran Turismo Award for the Best European Import to the "Super Beetle" from VWVortex, for which APR sacrificed a Golf R to make it AWD in order to handle the 500hp stage 4 conversion. It wore a staggered set of 19" fifteen52 Formula TR wheels over big brakes, with H&R coilovers and sway bars completing the chassis mods (goapr.com)
Previously featured in EC 10/12, Stance Lab went to town on its Mercedes-Benz E350, retaining the same Carlsson body styling but wrapping the car in3M 1080 Hot Rod Red vinyl and contrasting it with white 19x9.5/10.5" Work CR Ultimate wheels and AirRex air suspension (stancelab.com)
Italian tuning house Romeo Ferraris tackled a US-spec Fiat 500 Abarth, adding its own body kit. This Cinquone Stradale "USA Tribute" put out 235hp thanks to a FMIC, downpipe, 2.5" exhaust, new pistons, cams and software. The fenders allow 18x8" wheels and a Brembo BBK (romeoferraris.com)
Mopar brought several Fiats to SEMA, including this Beach Cruiser with widebody fenders over red wheels, matte paint and a louvered hood. It also had a wood interior and matching roof rack with surfboard
Rally-inspired, matte white Ford Fiesta 3-door on Motegi Racing wheels in the Cooper Tires booth (motegiracing.com)
GMG displayed this Audi R8 LMS GT3 with carbon parts and a carbon-look wrap. We're expecting to test drive this racer for a future issue (gmgracing.com)
Ferrari FF with 21" Giovanna wheels and carbon accents, wrapped in matte red by Elevated Auto Concepts (wtwcorp.com)
Bobby Duarte from Rotiform displayed his own impeccable Mk3 GTI VR6 with color-matched block and transmission in a shaved and smoothed engine bay with polished engine parts, an ITB setup and KP-Tuned MS V3 management. It also had a custom firewall, raised shock towers and hidden air lines for the Air Lift V2 system
SPC has a solution for VW/Audi caster and camber problems: adjustable upper control arms. They allow +/- 1.5? of adjustment and have forged 6061-T6 aluminum ends with threaded links and ball-joints at either end (spcperformance.com)
StopTech unveiled a number of new parts such as Street Performance pads with para-aramid composite construction for more bite and less dust, as well as new Racing STR 600 and 660 fluid with high boiling points (stoptech.com)
Named after the Tunisian street circuit, the seven-spoke TSW Bardo is available in 17-20" diameter in a chrome, matte black or Hyper Silver finish (tsw.com)
AEM Electronics showed a new wideband air/fuel ratio and boost gauge with a failsafe feature that can be programmed to dump timing, boost or any preset parameter in a lean condition. It also has three hours of datalogging (aemelectronics.com)
The new Öhlins Road & Track coilover for Porsche applications offer uncompromised performance from rebuildable units with Dual Flow Valves, a two year warranty and ride height adjustment (ohlinsusa.com)
The Vossen forged Precision Series wheels were so new only prototypes were on display. The finished products may differ slightly but the designs looks stylish and sharp (vossenwheels.com)
The Garrett GT1749V replacement turbocharger and manifold for the VW 1.9L TDI BEV motor has a smart actuator and position sensor to communicate with the ECU (turbobygarrett.com)
Remus displayed a new Type R cat-back exhaust for the Golf R with a vacuum-operated valve that's quiet when you need it to be but loud when you want it (remususa.com)
Falken Tire released the Azenis FK453 ultra-high-performance tire at SEMA. It's available in 17-22" diameter with a variety of widths. The new silica compound is reportedly long lasting and should grip like glue in both the wet and the dry thanks to its asymmetric tread design (falkentire.com)
Scosche released a proprietary head unit with CD, XM, Bluetooth, SD card and USB along with an iPhone App to control the deck from your phone ( scosche.com)
Katzkin is bringing aftermarket leather interiors up a gear with close-fitting covers for seats, door cards, center consoles, roof pillars, steering wheels and headliners. There are an array of leathers and synthetic material in different colors. But don't confuse these with DIY covers; these are meant to be dealer installed by technicians to transform your interior (katzkin.com)
Pioneer had its $360 AVH-X1500DVD head unit with a 6.1" WVGA touchscreen, iPhone App Modes, 3 RCA pre-outs and Pandora streaming radio (pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA)
The Zeon RS3-S is the latest ultra-high-performance tire from Cooper. It comes with a free 45-day road test and 20,000-mile treadwear protection (coopertire.com)
Mackin Xtreme Product (MXP) dropped a new line of stainless steel exhausts for popular Euro models such as the E92 BMW M3 with 2.5" tubing (mxp-performance.com)
These High-Carbon rotors are the latest high-performance stoppers from EBC. They feature a new V-groove design that helps dissipate heat, while the high-carbon construction is resilient under extreme temperatures. (ebcbrakes.com)
Swiss Trax garage floor systems had neat in-floor LED lighting that would illuminate a dark garage or an under-car work area (swisstrax.com)
Mahle provides OEM parts for cars like the E9X M3 and Shelby GT500, but also has many aftermarket applications such as its high- or low-compression pistons for VW, BMW, Merc, Porsche, Lambo, etc. The company is also able to cast low-volume items such as these works of art (us.mahle.com)
Brembo introduced its Club Racing kits designed for racing only and aimed at BMW, Porsche owners, etc. The cast caliper and floating rotors comply with sanctioning bodies and should provide good feel, long life and plenty of power (brembo.com)


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And here's how I turned out. The first picture was from this summer on vacation and the second was from last week on Thanksgiving. Straight teeth and hair make a big difference. I still have the chubby sausage fingers though. Oh well. I'll take sausage fingers over snaggly teeth.
Click on the button below to head over the the linky and see some more pictures (so you can get my snaggly toothed, fat fingered, nine year old self out of your brain already...)


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Pre-Kiddie Parade Posing
When we moved to Fairway (the first time, 5 years ago before our adventures in New England), I loved watching the 4th of July Bike & Trike Parade from our back yard. I thought it was so quintessential "charming town" - one of the reasons I love this area. When it was time to move back from Concord, Ma. I knew I wanted to buy another house in Fairway - I couldn't wait for Emma to grow up on these old tree lined streets of charming cottage-type homes.
One of our couple friends from college (who also did a stint in New England - Maine, to be exact) also picked Fairway as their new home just this year... and they have a daughter one month older than Emma. They joined us as wagon buddies for the parade and for a donut decorating breakfast before.
Fluffy Fresh Donuts - best in KC so far... We've been doing a Saturday morning donut tour the last couple of weeks.
Wagon decorating supplies = festive brunch decor
Patriotic themed fruit, of course.
A little flag twirling fun. And now you know how our family room looks most of the time! The kitchen runeth over.
Handmade star wands for the girls made by our wagon buddies.
The chariot awaits.
So much fun!
Heading down to the parade route.
I love how festively dressed everyone is!
The girls didn't last long in the wagon... In fact, we brought up the tail of the parade with some running.
Perfect form.
And a good old fashioned Daddy shoulder ride.
After the parade, we hopped in the car to head across the state to visit my sister for the rest of the weekend. We made a stop half way at our alma mater...
It was Emma's first of many visits and the perfect spot to let her run after 2 hours in the car.
We plan to share these photos with her in 17 years... when she is a freshman!
Stay tuned - tomorrow I'll post photos the 4th of July shrimp boil we attended at Jill's house!


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The targets of this project are Chinese dissidents, and in particular, practitioners of Falun Gong. As one expert put it, when presented with Internet censorship technology, the "first question from the Chinese buyers was not 'Will it make my workers more productive?' but, invariably, 'Can it stop Falun Gong?'"[8]
Read more here
Globe and Mail: Xining, China —East Riverside Road – better known to locals as Tibetan Street – is in fact a dusty and narrow alleyway across from the main bus station in this ethnically mixed city on China's Tibetan plateau. Lined with Tibetan shops and teahouses, as well as Muslim bakeries and a row of stalls selling fireworks, it's crowded and chaotic enough that few cars bother trying to enter.
But anxious local authorities watch the fray from above. Hanging at even intervals over the twisting 300-metre length of the road are seven domes containing closed-circuit television cameras – nicknamed "Global Eyes" by the Chinese company that makes them – recording nearly everything that goes on in the bustling alley below.
The use of such surveillance technology has skyrocketed in China in recent years – just as it has in many Western countries – with millions of cameras trained on cities around the country to watch traffic, prevent crime and to keep an eye on dissidents and politically sensitive spots such as Beijing's Tiananmen Square. But the blanket coverage given to a narrow alley in the remote city of Xining highlights how cameras are also being used to closely monitor China's restive ethnic minorities, especially since the 2008 riots on the Tibetan plateau and last year's deadly ethnic violence in the predominantly Muslim Uighur region of Xinjiang.
The cameras along East Riverside Road were installed last year after a pair of murders on the street, which in addition to monks and traders also attracts gangs of beggars and, according to local shopkeepers, thieves. But while some say they're glad for the added security that the cameras provide, many allege that the authorities have other goals in mind.
"We don't like it because we know they're only watching Tibetans. It's political," said Danjiang, the 36-year-old owner of a Tibetan restaurant on East Riverside Road.
Danjiang, who gave only his first name, said police had stepped up surveillance of Xining's Tibetan population ever since the monk-led riots of March, 2008. Those were concentrated in the city of Lhasa and other parts of the Tibetan Autonomous Region, but spread to parts of neighbouring provinces, such as Qinghai, that have large Tibetan populations. At the time, Tibetan university students in Xining, the capital of Qinghai, demonstrated in support of the monks.
The use of video surveillance is common across China, though not excessive compared to some Western countries. (There are an estimated seven million cameras watching 1.3 billion people in China, compared to 4.2 million cameras watching 61 million Britons.) What's troubling for human-rights activists is the overt focus on cities and neighbourhoods that are ethnically Tibetan or Uighur, as well as the specific targeting of political dissidents.
Following the March, 2008, riots in Lhasa, authorities awarded China Telecom – the maker of the "Global Eye" cameras – a $6.5-million contract to install cameras at 624 locations, including the train and bus stations, and all hotels in the city. Similarly, a cluster of cameras has monitored the Tibetan neighbourhood around Beijing's Yonghegong Temple since before the 2008 Olympics there.
The program in the Tibetan capital was named "Peace in Lhasa." A press release distributed by China Telecom after winning the contract boasted that "the police only need to lightly click their mouse to direct the 'electronic policeman' around. Such a 'Security Skynet' will leaves no place for criminals to hide, and ensures the citizens' peaceful life and work, as well as the stability and harmony of society."
In Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang and the site of deadly ethnic rioting last year between Uighurs and Han Chinese that left 197 people dead, there are already 47,000 cameras in place, with plans to install another 13,000 by the end of the year. Residents say a disproportionate number are trained on mosques and Uighur neighbourhoods of the city.
It's not just minorities, but anyone that gives the government trouble who gets the extra scrutiny. Human Rights Watch, the New York-based advocacy group, said that at least half a dozen prominent political dissidents have cameras trained on their residences. Amid growing expression of dissent online, video cameras have also been recently made mandatory in the country's Internet cafés, with direct feeds to the local police stations, making it easier for the government to trace those making anonymous comments on websites.
"Our concern is not surveillance cameras per se [but] the use of such surveillance to further enforce the ban on peaceful assembly and demonstration; the overt ambition by the Chinese government to marry video-surveillance data with a wide range of other government databases [and] the lack of any meaningful regulations to prevent uses that infringe on the right to privacy," said Nicholas Bequelin, a Hong-Kong based researcher for Human Rights Watch.
"The government is entirely free to do whatever it pleases for as long as it chooses with the data gathered through video surveillance, including mobilizing this technology to repressive political or religious ends. Such technology is already highly problematic in democratic countries with an independent judiciary – in China the counterweights are simply non-existent."
According to the official China Daily newspaper, the southeastern factory hub of Guangzhou – which is getting set this year to host the Asian Games – now has 2.6 million surveillance cameras in place around the city, likely making it the most-watched city on Earth. Beijing is believed to have the next highest number of any Chinese city with an estimated 470,000, followed by the heaving southwestern megalopolis of Chongqing with 310,000. (According to official figures, Xining will by the end of this year have a relatively modest 5,000 surveillance cameras watching its two million residents.) Those most closely watched by the cameras say it's a cheap and efficient way for the government to insert itself into their lives. "They use [cameras] to observe human-rights defenders and activists more and more often, rather than arresting us directly. It costs less than using human beings to watch us," said Zeng Jinyan, an outspoken blogger and the wife of jailed AIDS activist Hu Jia.
Ms. Zeng and her young daughter have lived with a camera trained on their Beijing apartment building for almost four years, since shortly before her husband was arrested. She said the biggest inconvenience has been that friends and family have become nervous about visiting her apartment since the cameras were installed.
"My apartment is like an isolated island in our compound. It's very strange, but I try my best to carry on living a normal life."


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Jake Blauvelt is one of the best snowboarders on the planet, and has done it all. From contests to TV shows, and a spree of epic video parts, it's now time for something a little different.
Welcome to "Jake Blauvelt Naturally", a new monthly webisode series of all that Jake's been up to, on and off the snow. The show chronicles the previous month he spends filming for his upcoming full video part, which will be releasing exclusively online at TWSNOW.com this coming Sept 5th.
It takes a lot to get the TransWorld staff stoked out so much for a web series these days, but it's safe to say that the kids here are hyped to see what JB puts out. But don't just take out word for it… Says Jake:
"I really wanted to switch up my game plan for a year and do something out of the ordinary. To me, snowboarding isn't about following any set guidelines or structure, but just doing whatever feels natural. This year, I decided to take on a web based project to keep viewers in the loop a little better than going off the radar for 11 months and coming out with a 3 minute video part. I felt like I could get more out of my winter. Don't get me wrong, video's are still crucial to keeping the core and love for shredding alive, but with the way the web is developing, I decided to embrace it rather than fight it and dive in head first. I hope everyone enjoys seeing all the behind the scenes shots as much as the grade A bangers. Enjoy!"
Stay tuned for monthly video updates from Jake and his "Full Part" coming out Sept 5th. Exclusively online, right here at TWSNOW.com
Last, here's a grip of pics from Jake's recent travels. As Blauvelt says, "Enjoy!"