Those who report on their government’s human rights abuses should care about the murder of Anna Politkovskaya

As a journalist, Anna Politkovskaya’s fearless coverage of the conflict and human rights situation in Chechnya earned her international recognition. It also brought harassment and intimidation from authorities. She was detained, threatened and poisoned because of her work. In October 2006, she was shot dead at her home in Moscow.

via Anna Politkovskaya | Amnesty International USA.

“The people on trial are connected to the murder, but it’s not clear how connected they are, or what their role is,” one source said. “It’s a very difficult, complicated case.” Staff at the paper were “pessimistic” that the mastermind would be caught, he said, adding that the defendants could be acquitted on appeal.

“The idea is to show that the guilty have been punished. In reality those behind the murder haven’t been apprehended,” says Natalia Estemirova, from the human rights organisation Memorial in Grozny, Chechnya’s capital. “The trial has been a farce. There has been no serious attempt to properly investigate.” …

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/feb/19/politkovskaya-trial-background-kremlin

“It is generally accepted that we Russians do not like ourselves much.” So wrote the late Politkovskaya (1958–2006) (Putin’s Russia, 2006, etc.), who paid with her life for her daring critiques of post-Soviet society.

This spirited collection, originally published by the journal Novaya Gazeta in 2007, opens with a self-interview taken from the journalist’s laptop after her death. In it, she accuses most of her journalistic colleagues in Russia with being koverny, or clowns, “whose job it is to keep the public entertained and, if they do have to write about anything serious, then merely to tell everyone how wonderful the Pyramid of Power is in all its manifestations.” The big-shoe phenomenon spreads far beyond Russia, of course, and Politkovskaya is not alone when she asks what the fate of those who refuse to play in the Big Top is—“They become pariahs,” she answers, though in her case it was worse still. Much of the collection concerns Russia’s war in Chechnya, which has quieted down since, but, only a few years ago, was raging—no thanks to orchestrated atrocities on the part of the Russian Army that Politkovskaya covered and uncovered. One was the so-called Shatoy Tragedy, in which Russian soldiers under the command of the Central Intelligence Directorate killed six Chechen civilians and burned their bodies.

https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/anna-politkovskaya/journalism-worth-dying/

It is the time for journalists to seriously consider if fighting for human rights is worth one’s life. Included in this are bloggers like myself who range from amateur to professional journalists. Based on my belief that I have the right and duty as an American citizen to monitor and complain about my government, I have not been shy about speaking my mind. My posts over the years have been skeptical and critical of my government, and at times paranoid. I have done, I estimate, more than my fair share of my civic duty for my couch surfing now Facebooking American country-folk.

Do I now retire from defending human rights? Would I really die to save others, people I don’t know, from abuses such as torture and false imprisonment if it put people I do know and love in danger? If it was just myself, my own life on the line, that’s a different question, but there are no guarantees.  The world is changing. It is a time for soul-searching.

And you, readers of this blog, I don’t know the vast majority of you. Perhaps the weird crime news, funny animals and biology/technology stories are enough to keep this site interesting without using the soapbox to defend democracy and the US Constitution. When I hear a lie, why not, like everyone else, just complain to a few close friends and let it go at that? What drives me to publish and help the more easily fooled see possible deceptions? A sense of duty, compassion and fear of rising tyranny, I suppose. I could blame my 7th grade Civics teacher who said the country will fail if we don’t each do our part. If not me, who? Thus I have researched and written.

But how far will I take it?

I’m not saying this influences my decision, but I do have a question for you:

If this blog had no political/conspiracy information, would you be more or less likely to read it?

Generic Comments will be Deleted

Due to abuse from automated blog spam scripts, if you leave a comment that is irrelevant to the content, or is obviously a computer generated word salad, I will delete your comment.

Here are a few examples of the comments I delete and report as spam daily. Left out are the accompanying links to web sites:

“I read this piece of writing fully on the topic of the resemblance of most recent and earlier technologies,
it’s remarkable article.”

“Hi there to all, as I am really eager of reading this weblog’s post to be updated regularly. It consists of fastidious information.”

“Hello! I’ve been following your web site for some time now and finally got the bravery to go ahead and give you a shout out from New Caney Tx! Just wanted to say keep up the fantastic work!”

“No matter if some one searches for his required thing, therefore he/she
needs to be available that in detail, therefore that thing is maintained over here.”

“I know this web page offers quality depending articles or reviews and other stuff, is there any other website which presents these kinds of stuff in quality?”

“Thanks for sharing your thoughts about mix canine information. Regards”

“Hello would you mind letting me know which hosting company you’re using? I’ve loaded your blog in 3 completely
different web browsers and I must say this blog loads a lot faster then most. Can you recommend a good web hosting provider at a fair price?
Many thanks, I appreciate it!”

“Hello there, simply became aware of your weblog through Google, and located that it’s truly informative.
I’m gonna be careful for brussels. I’ll be grateful if you happen to proceed this in future. A lot of folks will likely be benefited from your writing. Cheers!”

“Many thanks for sharing this blog loaded with so many information.
Stopping by your website assisted me to obtain what I was on the lookout for.”

“If you would like to take much from this paragraph then you have to apply
these strategies to your won website.”

“Thank you for the good writeup. It in fact was a amusement account it. Look advanced to far added agreeable from you! However, how can we communicate?”

“I am genuinely delighted to read this website posts which includes tons of helpful facts, thanks for providing such statistics.”

“If some one wishes expert view concerning running a blog then i suggest him/her to pay a visit this website, Keep up the pleasant job”

“My brother suggested I might like this web site. He was totally right. This post truly made my day. You can not imagine just how much time I had spent for this information! Thanks!”

“My brother recommended I might like this web site. He was totally right.
This put up truly made my day. You cann’t consider just how a lot time I had spent for this information! Thanks!”

“…These websites will give you many
details in sexual intercourse cash help service through which citizenry can avail total ranges …”

“…these coffee makers, however, make below-extracted and weak coffee when brewing little levels because they can not extend to a maximum enough
heat to completely pull almost all flavors as part of the duration it takes which will make some cups. …”

“Is saying you need to take it with you or cough up cam sex another $100 for a second. That said, we did find the accelerometer to be slower to adjust than other Atom-powered tablets like the …”

“It’s very easy to find out any matter on web as compared to books, as I found this paragraph at this website.”

“Aw, this was an incredibly good post. Finding the time and actual effort to produce a superb article… but what can I say… I put things off a whole lot
and don’t seem to get nearly anything done.”

“A motivating discussion is definitely worth comment. There’s no doubt that that you need to write more on this topic, it may not be a taboo subject but typically people don’t discuss these issues. To the next! Kind regards!!”

“always i used to read smaller content that also clear their motive, and that is also happening with this paragraph which I am reading at this time.”

“We would suggest stopping by the beneficial web site for far more data.”

“Hello! I could have sworn I’ve been to this site before but after looking at a few of the posts I realized it’s new
to me. Anyways, I’m certainly happy I stumbled upon it and I’ll be bookmarking it and checking back
frequently!”

“This article will assist the internet visitors for building up new web site or even a weblog from start to end.”

“Very good information. Lucky me I ran across your website by accident (stumbleupon). I have saved it for later!”

“Now i’m commenting tell you exactly what a wonderful breakthrough discovery my own pal’s princess created studying the webblog. Your woman came to understand plenty of problems, including what it is prefer to have an ideal aiding coronary heart to have most of the people efficiently thoroughly grasp several difficult material. You truly overtaken the estimated benefits…”

“I think this is among the most essential info for me. And I am glad reading your article.Nevertheless desire to remark on some general things, The site style is great, the articles are really great…”

“Hurrah! In the end I got a weblog from where I be able to in fact obtain valuable data concerning my study and knowledge.”

“This post gives clear idea for the new visitors of blogging, that in fact how to do blogging”

“Very good post! We will be linking to this particularly great content on our site. Keep up the great writing.”

“What a material of un-ambiguity and preserveness of precious familiarity about unexpected emotions.”

“There is a common question that many golf players often asked which is about golf balls for beginners and the question is always the same in each level of the play. Well, there are several aspects that you should look after while choosing the golf balls for beginners’ level….”

“At this time it seems like Drupal is the best blogging platform available right now.(from what I’ve read) Is that what you are using on your blog? It’s So much appreciated!”

“There is certainly a great deal to find out about this topic. I really like all the points you made. Highly recommended Site”

“tszyurcdmdly”

“The body makes this into cysteine and then into glutathione, a powerful antioxidant…Up to date content on our very own blog site…”

“…Dietary requirements remain increased in lactation due to the concentration of iodine in breast milk.’ Most recently released content provided by our personal blog site …”

“…The plaque deposits are hard on the outside and soft and mushy on the inside., View the helpful short article on our own web blog…”

“…cell phones provide an incredible array of functions, and new ones are being added at a breakneck pace. Depending on the cell-phone model, ; Please do check out our own web-site…”

New web site test

Hello,
Hey, I’m curious what you think about this potential new web site design:

http://xenophilia.com

Does it work for you? What’s missing that you would miss compared to this current blog?

Thanks,

Xeno

Sites that link to Xenophilius.wordpress.com

I’ve been checking out Google Webmaster Tools this evening and I found that there are over 3 million links to my blog. I’ve been enjoying taking a look around the sites that link to this one. Here are the top 25 linkers to this site at this time according to Google. Thanks for the linka, add me to your blog roll if you are a blogger and you visit regularly.

wordpress.com	1
blogspot.com	2
dogsounds.com	3
crackerboy.us	4
conman.org	5
lsdimension.com	6
wopular.com	7
scoop.it	8
dooberville.com	9
alpipkin.com	10
theswash.com	11
journalisted.com	12
pinterest.com	13
soup.io	14
paranormalmagazine.co.uk	15
askives.com	16
carboncapturereport.org	17
technorati.com	18
allvoices.com	19
davidicke.com	20
tumblr.com	21
heraldtribune.com	22
psu.edu	23
planetseeder.com	24
123people.com

Also interesting were to top Google Searches that landed on my blog.  Of 1,400 + key word searches that resulted in visits, these are the current top 25 searches. What searches would I actually want google to send my way? Useful software tools, home remedy reviews, tooth health, government accountability?

limewire pirate edition

itchy feet

limewire pirate

xenophilia

novamin

cannot get mail the connection to the server failed

perfect pitch test

woman with 3 breast

three breast

remove bing from firefox

burundanga wiki

government conspiracies

shaved sloth

how long is a day on the moon

ben rich

cannot get mail connection to the server failed

shaved sloths

us government conspiracies

straighten teeth at home

grid analysis

three breasted woman

baigong pipes

lizard man of scape ore swamp

iphone cannot get mail the connection to the server failed

novamin toothpaste

Happy 2013!

Happy New Year. Have you made your resolutions? What will you do or do differently in 2013?

My short list of goals:

1. Finish CD
2. Maximize health
3. Reduce stress
4. Plan wedding
5. Keep up with friends
6. Update website and blog
7. Write an iPhone App

Bye

Okay, I’m off to my undisclosed prepper location. It’s been fun! See you on the other side.

Have a great holiday or apocalypse, whichever comes first.

Xeno

My Summer Vacation – Backpack Camping in Yosemite

Photos by Xeno, September 2012

I took a break from posting for a week or so while backpack camping in Yosemite.

We went on an REI sponsored backpack adventure which began with one night at Tuolomne Meadows Backpackers camp to acclimatize to the altitude. We carried roughly 40 lb packs for several days at nearly 10,000 ft above sea level. We left from Cathedral Lakes Trailhead (around 8,560 ft) and hiked 3.5 miles on the John Muir Trail to Cathedral Lake at about 9,500 ft where we camped the second night. The next morning, six miles up and over the Cathedral Pass (9,800 ft) to camp at Upper Sunrise Lake. Then the hike down to Tenaya Lake (about 4 miles) to catch the shuttle back to Lambert Dome picnic area.

Great trip! We went off the trail on purpose a few times to get the feel of navigating in pure wilderness. We practiced essential backpacking survival skills, tested our gear, learned how to filter water from a lake, how to use a map and compass, and learned what we really need and what to leave behind. Training for a few months paid off since we didn’t suffer any serious injuries. It wasn’t an easy trip. If we had not trained, I doubt I would have made it, considering my lingering injuries from being rear-ended in a car accident in January. We still had plenty of aches and pains, some brief stomach problems and some knarly muscle cramps, but nothing that kept us from continuing on.

There were, in 2011, over 4,098,000 visitors to the 747,956 acre national park. Of those 4+ million, over 53,000 were hikers. There were also at least 18 people who died in the park in 2011 according to the New York Times.

As far as the six cases of Hantavirus, five were staying in the new Signature Tent Cabins in Curry Village. The new tents have a double wall and we heard that this allowed the deer mice to accumulate droppings there. With the cause of the problem identified, I expect they will make it safe again quickly.

After our trip, we healed most of our aches at the Yosemite Lodge. Due to a problem with our room, however, we were given a free upgrade to a cabin at the Ahwahnee on the second night. Apparently, Queen Elizabeth II stayed at the Ahwahnee in 1983. Our room wasn’t the Queen’s room, but it had some nice touches like an extra large bath tub for soaking sore muscles and some live deer to greet us on the path.

The blogging of strange news from around the world will continue in a day or two after I catch up with my urban responsibilities.

Welcome to 2012. What will you leave behind?

The first day of 2012 was beautiful. We sat on the beach watching the birds and a fantastic sunset and meditated on old things to let go of and new things we hope will manifest in 2012. Here are a few pics I took in case you missed the sunset today.

As far as letting things go, Rev. James Martin has a nice article up on HuffPost:

Last year I listed 12 things I knew at age 50 that I wish I had known at 25. Now I’m a year older. And if I’m not wiser, at least I’m a bit more experienced. So here are 12 really stupid things I’ve done that I never want to do again. Maybe you’ve done some of them, too. But I’ll bet we’d both be happier if we didn’t…

1. Compare. Ever heard the saying “Compare and despair”? Comparing yourself to someone else usually means that you imagine the other person is better off, more satisfied — in a word, happier. But here’s the problem: We end up comparing what we know about our life, which is a mixed bag of good and bad, with a fantasy of someone else’s supposedly “perfect” life. … That leads to despair. …

2. “Should” on Yourself. It’s devilishly easy to imagine yourself making a choice that would have taken you to a different place in your life. I should have married this person; I should have taken that job; I should have moved; ,… This is called “shoulding all over yourself.”… Reflecting on our choices is an important way to grow, but you can’t live your real life if you’re busy living in your “should have” life. …

3. Get People to Like You. I spent all of my teens, most of my 20s, a great deal of my 30s and too much of my 40s trying to get people to like me. But forcing people’s affection rarely works. … St. Francis de Sales, a lighthearted 17th-century saint, once said: “Be who you are and be that perfectly well.”

4. Interrupt. We all think we’re good listeners. We’re not. Many of us are absolutely terrible listeners, impatiently waiting for our turn to speak, confident that our next utterance is the solution to everyone’s problems or the most interesting of all the commentary yet offered. But you can’t contribute intelligently to any conversation if you’re not listening what the other person is saying. Interrupting someone says, “I have no interest in even letting you finish your thought.” As my sister tells her children, you have two ears and one mouth for a reason.

5. Worry About How You Look. I cut myself shaving: Is the blood still showing? I have a zit: Is it getting bigger or going away? … Sure, you need to look presentable for your job and a decent appearance is a sign of respect to those around you. But … spend less time thinking about your outside and more about your inside.

6. Work Constantly. … Look, everyone’s got to work. But if value is gauged by wealth, then when we make less, we feel less valuable as human beings, which is tragic. … Stop driving yourself nuts with the trap of constant work.

7. Fail to Give People a Break. Hey, surly person behind the drugstore counter: Why didn’t you say thanks when you handed me my change? … Give them their dignity by giving them a break.

8. Complain About Minor Illnesses. If you’ve got a serious or chronic illness, you need to share your struggles and frustrations with your physician, with friends and family, or even a therapist. You need support. But do you have a cold that has hung on for days and makes you phlegmy? When you bend over like this does your back ache because you pulled a muscle in the gym? No one really wants to hear about minor illnesses. Everyone gets sick, for Pete’s sake. In the words of the great prophets, suck it up.

9. Be a Jerk. You’re tired. You’re rushed. You’ve got a cold. You’re late. You’re angry about something your boss said. Yes, you’re miserable. That doesn’t mean you have to be a jerk to everyone else. …

10. Avoid Doing the Right Thing. It’s no fun to call a friend who is in a bad mood because she’s lost her job. It’s no fun to take responsibility for making a mistake. It’s no fun to speak out against racism, sexism or homophobia and stand up for those being mocked. It’s not fun, it takes effort; but you know it’s the right thing to do. Do it anyway. …

11. Make Fun of People. … If you feel like you’re powerless against badmouthing someone, ask yourself three questions when it comes to commenting on another: Is it kind? Is it necessary? Is it true?

12. Be Hard on Yourself. … If you ever get discouraged about your rate of change, just think about trees — yes, trees. In the summer they’re green. In the fall they’re red. And no one sees them change.

James Martin, SJ is a Jesuit priest, culture editor of America and author of “Between Heaven and Mirth: Why Joy, Humor and Laughter are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life.”

Karma Experiment Results: Good deeds are punished

I thought donating my vacation time to helping feed people and helping friends instead of squandering my money on an island paradise might improve my Karma, but after returning to work from my vacation, I’ve experienced, instead, an obvious run of bad luck. Some people count their blessings, but I’ve started counting my curses:

• I injured my back at work yesterday and woke up this morning with the kind of back pain where you aren’t sure if you can get out of bed. (I did, but now wish I didn’t. )
• I got braces yesterday, my first day back from vacation, and my mouth is in pain.
• My braces keep breaking: Four different brackets broke off seven different times on the first day.
• First meal with braces: three brackets broke off and I had to buy toenail clippers at the store with an inch and a half of sharp wire sticking out of my mouth and food in my teeth when my attempt to trim my braces as recommended failed.
• For the last two days I can only eat food from a blender since I have no chewing surfaces due to bite bumps glued onto my back teeth.
• My blog has been suspended, and I have been unable to post, twice in the past two days due to an artist not wanting me to use certain illustrations.
• My electric bill from when I was gone is twice the size of the previous month when I was here using electricity.
• Yesterday, while parking so as to try not to hurt my back moving equipment, I got a $45 parking ticket.
• I thought I had found a roommate, but it didn’t work out.
• In the mail today, my eye insurance will only pay $40 of my $95 claim for new eye glasses, my first claim in 3 years.
• Today, with the pain of the braces distracting me, I hit a pole in a parking lot, doing $1600 damage to my Prius.

Based on the worsening trend, I’m dreading tomorrow, which starts with my third visit to the orthodontist in as many days. FML.

I know, I know, many people have it MUCH worse. I am damn lucky to have a car to damage, and a blog to get suspended, and teeth to cause me pain, and eyes to put glasses in front of, and so on.

Broken braces mouth disaster. Photo Credit: Xeno, Aug 23, 2011

Long term complications after adult braces

I’m about to get braces, but two people have told me they had cracked teeth, lost teeth and more periodontal disease after getting braces. I’m interested in the best long term tooth health, even into my 90s. My orthodontist does not think a person who takes care of himself will have these problems after treatment.

If you get braces, the roots of your teeth will shorten. Does this shorten the life of your teeth? Does it increase your risk of cavities? Does it increase the incidence of periodontal disease? So far, the answer to all three questions seems to be no. A New Zealand web site has these before and after images:

left: Pre treatment, right: Post treatment same patient: generalized root resorption

A central tenet of the Hippocratic oath is encapsulated by the phrase, ‘First, do no harm.’ As clinicians we must preserve this goal in all of our treatments, but even in the best of hands, and with every positive intention, this is not always possible. Root resorption is one of the few deleterious consequences of orthodontic treatment and perhaps the most commonly suffered, if not actually seen. The clinician who claims that this never happens to his patients just isn’t taking good enough post-treatment records. Even though there is a paucity of studies examining long-term survivability of root-resorbed teeth (Lee et al, 2003) it would appear unusual for the amount of resorption from orthodontic treatment to produce a reduction in the life of a tooth. Premature tooth loss has not been reported in the literature (Killiany, 1999).

… Orthodontists are principally interested in External Apical Root Resorption (EARR), which is a form of surface resorption. …

The incidence of EARR shows a wide range of reporting, with histological studies showing a higher incidence than clinical studies. Females are more susceptible than males (Linge and Linge 1983). The most readily affected sites are (in order) maxillary laterals, maxillary centrals, mandibular incisors, the distal root of mandibular first molars, mandibular second premolars and maxillary second premolars (Brezniak and Wasserstein, 1993). The risks of resorption do seem to increase after the age of 11 years (Linge and Linge, 1983). …

Unfavorable and detrimental EARR is thought to occur in 3-5% of orthodontic patients with mean losses of between 1 and 2mm (Kennedy et al, 1983). However, because of its unpredictable nature and difficulty in detection if small, the incidence may be much higher. In the majority of patients root loss is limited to 2mm or less (Sameshima and Sinclair, 2001) …

The finding of EARR is a common sequalae to orthodontic treatment. As such it needs to be part of the informed consent process. Fortunately, it is rare that root resorption is ever extensive enough to cause any detrimental effect for the patient. In the vast majority of cases root resorption will continue to be a finding that only the researcher or occasionally the orthodontist will notice on post treatment radiographs. … – link

There is a small negative effect on your gums according to this study:

The Effects of Orthodontic Therapy on Periodontal Health – A Systematic Review of Controlled Evidence

… Weak evidence from one randomized study and 11 nonrandomized studies suggested that orthodontic therapy was associated with 0.03 millimeters of gingival recession (95 percent confidence interval [CI], 0.01–0.04), 0.13 mm of alveolar bone loss (95 percent CI, 0.07–0.20) and 0.23 mm of increased pocket depth (95 percent CI, 0.15–0.30) when compared with no treatment. The effects of orthodontic therapy on gingivitis and attachment loss were inconsistent across studies.

… The existing evidence suggests that orthodontic therapy results in small detrimental effects to the periodontium.   – jada

Here are some additional before and after x-rays:

On 28th SEPTEMBER 2010:

On 24th MAY 2011:

… isn’t it amazing what 8 months of orthodontic treatment can do? – gracemagg

It looks to me like there are now channels leading down the sides of the teeth that were moved the most (since bone does not re-grow). Does this fill in to prevent bacteria from getting down there?

Are teeth moved by braces more likely to end up with an infected root?  If the space at the bottom of the roots becomes infected and fills with pus, this is known as a tooth abscess which can kill you if untreated when the infection attacks your heart through the blood stream.  I’ve had 5 teeth extracted, however, and have have had only minor problems with inflammation of the jaw where I have a complete lack of tooth roots.

Conclusion: There are risks, but I believe that if I maintain good overall health, that I will be fine, and that I will be happier for the remaining years of my life having a nice smile.

If you are in your 60′s, 70′s, 80′s or 90′s and you had braces after you were 35 years old, do you still have all your teeth? Have you had any periodontal disease which only started after you had braces?