The Leader of the Lavesta Area Group, Joe Anglin, will be the featured speaker at the Chinook Area Surface Rights Association’s AGM in Tabor, Alberta on Wednesday February 24th at 2 pm. The AGM is located at the Heritage Inn on Highway #3 in Tabor. For more information Contact
Joe Anglin
(403) 843-3279
Leader, Lavesta Area Group
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Pen Meets Paper Feb.22'10
Opinion by Helge Nome
Faced with a stream of water bubbling up in the middle of Main Street in the Village of Caroline, an elderly local resident wryly remarked: “There is a ticking time bomb under that street”. As it turns out, he could hardly have made a more accurate and timely statement with profound significance for most of Alberta’s urban residents.
Over the years, while magnificent public buildings have been constructed right across the province, that which is out of sight has also been out of mind: The underground water and sewer systems, particularly in rural communities, have literally been rotting under our feet. And it will cost a fortune to replace them. Just for the little Village of Caroline, with some 550 residents, the cost is estimated to be around $7 million.
And the main water and sewer lines run underneath Main Street which also happens to be the confluence of Highways 22 and 54 with heavy commercial traffic 24/7.
That means blocking off a major highway every time a leak happens.
Speaking to former Minister for Infrastructure, Ty Lund last week, he confirmed the universality of the problem, and noted that an average of two water main breaks has occurred in Edson every winter, right underneath Highway 16, one of Alberta’s main highways.
The Alberta Government has taken some positive preliminary steps towards dealing with this problem by requiring municipalities to establish an inventory of Tangible Capital Assets in their possession. This includes such things as buildings, roads and sewer and water systems. Values are then assigned to to these on municipal balance sheets and depreciation can be noted from year to year.
So, at last, the out-of-sight stuff is being tracked. But this leads into a very interesting question: Once the unpalatable truth of the state of underground infrastructure is brought home to municipal councils in the form of actual numbers, how are they going to address the problem with very limited resources available and a reluctance to increase municipal taxes to pay for loans to upgrade the system?
This is where things get interesting. It would be very tempting for municipalities to form so called public/private partnerships to do this, or just selling the water and sewer systems to private corporations to upgrade and maintain. That could be quite an attractive proposition for well capitalized companies because they would literally have a “captive” consumer base: Who would choose to haul in their water and put in septic tanks with approved treatment technology attached?
Are we facing another potential case for privatizing profits? And socializing debt, because the consumer will always pay in the end. As a shareholder in one of these companies, I want my piece of the action, in addition to the cost of providing the service.
These issues and others will be aired at the upcoming round table discussion at the Leslieville Elks’ Hall this Thursday, February 25, at 7pm. Everyone is welcome to attend.
Faced with a stream of water bubbling up in the middle of Main Street in the Village of Caroline, an elderly local resident wryly remarked: “There is a ticking time bomb under that street”. As it turns out, he could hardly have made a more accurate and timely statement with profound significance for most of Alberta’s urban residents.
Over the years, while magnificent public buildings have been constructed right across the province, that which is out of sight has also been out of mind: The underground water and sewer systems, particularly in rural communities, have literally been rotting under our feet. And it will cost a fortune to replace them. Just for the little Village of Caroline, with some 550 residents, the cost is estimated to be around $7 million.
And the main water and sewer lines run underneath Main Street which also happens to be the confluence of Highways 22 and 54 with heavy commercial traffic 24/7.
That means blocking off a major highway every time a leak happens.
Speaking to former Minister for Infrastructure, Ty Lund last week, he confirmed the universality of the problem, and noted that an average of two water main breaks has occurred in Edson every winter, right underneath Highway 16, one of Alberta’s main highways.
The Alberta Government has taken some positive preliminary steps towards dealing with this problem by requiring municipalities to establish an inventory of Tangible Capital Assets in their possession. This includes such things as buildings, roads and sewer and water systems. Values are then assigned to to these on municipal balance sheets and depreciation can be noted from year to year.
So, at last, the out-of-sight stuff is being tracked. But this leads into a very interesting question: Once the unpalatable truth of the state of underground infrastructure is brought home to municipal councils in the form of actual numbers, how are they going to address the problem with very limited resources available and a reluctance to increase municipal taxes to pay for loans to upgrade the system?
This is where things get interesting. It would be very tempting for municipalities to form so called public/private partnerships to do this, or just selling the water and sewer systems to private corporations to upgrade and maintain. That could be quite an attractive proposition for well capitalized companies because they would literally have a “captive” consumer base: Who would choose to haul in their water and put in septic tanks with approved treatment technology attached?
Are we facing another potential case for privatizing profits? And socializing debt, because the consumer will always pay in the end. As a shareholder in one of these companies, I want my piece of the action, in addition to the cost of providing the service.
These issues and others will be aired at the upcoming round table discussion at the Leslieville Elks’ Hall this Thursday, February 25, at 7pm. Everyone is welcome to attend.
Valentine's Day Pie Social at the Seniors' Drop In Center
The seniors in the Caroline community are a rather close knit group of people and the Seniors' Drop In Center is the main venue for their activities. Everybody looks forwards to Valentine's Day and the annual Pie Social where home made pies and liquid refreshments are made available for $1. Predictably, the traffic was considerable on Friday, February 12, in anticipation of Valentine's Day. Whole pies were also sold to patrons for $5 each.These kitchen volunteers made sure that everybody was well served: Maria Vogels, Ruth Barrer, Beth Jorgensen, Margaret Rimmer.
A pot-luck supper and meeting is held every 3rd. Monday of the month at 6pm at the Drop In Center.
Bus trips are also arranged to various venues in Alberta. For details, contact Jeanne at 403 722-3870.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Cool Movie: SDO Destroys a Sundog 02.18.2010
February 18, 2010: Last week, on Feb. 11th, the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) lifted off from Cape Canaveral on a five-year mission to study the sun. Researchers have called the advanced spacecraft the "crown jewel" of NASA's heliophysics fleet. SDO will beam back IMAX-quality images of solar explosions and peer beneath the stellar surface to see the sun's magnetic dynamo in action. SDO is designed to amaze—and it got off to a good start.
"The observatory did something amazing before it even left the atmosphere," says SDO project scientist Dean Pesnell of the Goddard Space Flight Center. Moments after launch, SDO's Atlas V rocket flew past a sundog hanging suspended in the blue Florida sky and, with a rippling flurry of shock waves, destroyed it. Click on the image below to launch a video recorded by 13-year-old Anna Herbst at NASA's Banana River viewing site—and don't forget to turn up the volume to hear the reaction of the crowd.
"I couldn't believe my eyes," says Anna. "The shock waves were so cool." Anna traveled with classmate Amelia Phillips three thousand miles from Bishop, California, to witness the launch. "I'm so glad we came," says Amelia. "I've never seen anything like it!"
Sundogs are formed by plate-shaped ice crystals in high, cold cirrus clouds. As the crystals drift down from the sky like leaves fluttering from trees, aerodynamic forces tend to align their broad faces parallel to the ground. When sunlight hits a patch of well-aligned crystals at just the right distance from the sun, voila!--a sundog.
"When the Atlas V rocket penetrated the cirrus, shock waves rippled through the cloud and destroyed the alignment of the crystals," explains atmospheric optics expert Les Cowley. "This extinguished the sundog."
In the past, says Cowley, there have been anecdotal reports of atmospheric disturbances destroying sundogs—for instance, "gunfire and meteor shock waves have been invoked to explain their disruption. But this is the first video I know of that shows the effect in action." The effect on the crowd was electric.
"When the sundog disappeared, we started screaming and jumping up and down," says Pesnell. "SDO hit a home run: Perfect launch, rippling waves, and a disappearing sundog. You couldn't ask for a better start for a mission."
SDO is now in orbit. "The observatory is doing great as the post-launch checkout continues," he reports. "We'll spend much of the first month moving into our final orbit and then we'll turn on the instruments. The first jaw-dropping images should be available sometime in April." Believe it or not, Pesnell says, the best is yet to come.
Watch movie here
Author: Dr. Tony Phillips | Credit: Science@NASA
"The observatory did something amazing before it even left the atmosphere," says SDO project scientist Dean Pesnell of the Goddard Space Flight Center. Moments after launch, SDO's Atlas V rocket flew past a sundog hanging suspended in the blue Florida sky and, with a rippling flurry of shock waves, destroyed it. Click on the image below to launch a video recorded by 13-year-old Anna Herbst at NASA's Banana River viewing site—and don't forget to turn up the volume to hear the reaction of the crowd.
"I couldn't believe my eyes," says Anna. "The shock waves were so cool." Anna traveled with classmate Amelia Phillips three thousand miles from Bishop, California, to witness the launch. "I'm so glad we came," says Amelia. "I've never seen anything like it!"
Sundogs are formed by plate-shaped ice crystals in high, cold cirrus clouds. As the crystals drift down from the sky like leaves fluttering from trees, aerodynamic forces tend to align their broad faces parallel to the ground. When sunlight hits a patch of well-aligned crystals at just the right distance from the sun, voila!--a sundog.
"When the Atlas V rocket penetrated the cirrus, shock waves rippled through the cloud and destroyed the alignment of the crystals," explains atmospheric optics expert Les Cowley. "This extinguished the sundog."
In the past, says Cowley, there have been anecdotal reports of atmospheric disturbances destroying sundogs—for instance, "gunfire and meteor shock waves have been invoked to explain their disruption. But this is the first video I know of that shows the effect in action." The effect on the crowd was electric.
"When the sundog disappeared, we started screaming and jumping up and down," says Pesnell. "SDO hit a home run: Perfect launch, rippling waves, and a disappearing sundog. You couldn't ask for a better start for a mission."
SDO is now in orbit. "The observatory is doing great as the post-launch checkout continues," he reports. "We'll spend much of the first month moving into our final orbit and then we'll turn on the instruments. The first jaw-dropping images should be available sometime in April." Believe it or not, Pesnell says, the best is yet to come.
Watch movie here
Author: Dr. Tony Phillips | Credit: Science@NASA
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
WestJet profit Q4 profit falls to $20.2 million, down 51.9 per cent from a year before
From The Canadian Press, February 17, 2010 - 10:41 a.m.
CALGARY - The chief executive of WestJet Airlines Ltd. (TSX:WJA) says he remains wary of reports of an economic recovery.
WestJet CEO Sean Durfy says he expects the Calgary-based airline to face continued pressure on fares in the first quarter of 2010. His comments came as WestJet reported a 51.9 per cent drop in fourth-quarter net profit and reduced revenues compared with the same period of 2008.
WestJet's net income in the fourth quarter fell to $20.2 million or 14 cents per share, down from $42.0 million or 33 cents per share a year earlier. Revenue was down 7.4 per cent to $570 million from $615.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2008.
WestJet did better than analyst estimates compiled by Thomson Reuters, which called for five cents per share in earnings and $562 million of revenue.
CALGARY - The chief executive of WestJet Airlines Ltd. (TSX:WJA) says he remains wary of reports of an economic recovery.
WestJet CEO Sean Durfy says he expects the Calgary-based airline to face continued pressure on fares in the first quarter of 2010. His comments came as WestJet reported a 51.9 per cent drop in fourth-quarter net profit and reduced revenues compared with the same period of 2008.
WestJet's net income in the fourth quarter fell to $20.2 million or 14 cents per share, down from $42.0 million or 33 cents per share a year earlier. Revenue was down 7.4 per cent to $570 million from $615.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2008.
WestJet did better than analyst estimates compiled by Thomson Reuters, which called for five cents per share in earnings and $562 million of revenue.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Pen Meets Paper Feb.15'10
Opinion by Helge Nome
The saga of Bill 50 continues. This bill, which has now become a law created by our elected representatives in the Alberta Legislature, including MLA Ty Lund in the Rocky constituency, effectively bypasses the technical skills of the Alberta Utilities Commission, and puts a $15 billion government spending decision in the hands of politicians with direct links to Alberta’s energy industry.....Read more here
The saga of Bill 50 continues. This bill, which has now become a law created by our elected representatives in the Alberta Legislature, including MLA Ty Lund in the Rocky constituency, effectively bypasses the technical skills of the Alberta Utilities Commission, and puts a $15 billion government spending decision in the hands of politicians with direct links to Alberta’s energy industry.....Read more here
Transmission Line Information Meeting
(Rimbey, AB) Tuesday February 16th Bluffton AB; the Lavesta Area Group will hold a Transmission Line Information meeting in the Bluffton Hall this evening. The meeting is scheduled to begin at 7pm; we expect a large public turnout.
The town of Bluffton is 10 km north of Rimbey on hwy #20.
AltaLink representatives have indicated they will be attending the meeting. AESO and Alberta Energy representatives have been invited to attend. The meeting will begin with a presentation of previously unpublished facts about Alberta’s $16.6 billion proposed transmission line projects. A question and answer session will follow the presentation. The press is welcome to attend. We expect a lively debate of the future of electricity and electricity transmission in the province of Alberta.
For more information Contact
Joe Anglin
(403) 843-3279
(403) 963-0521 cell
Leader, Lavesta Area Group
The town of Bluffton is 10 km north of Rimbey on hwy #20.
AltaLink representatives have indicated they will be attending the meeting. AESO and Alberta Energy representatives have been invited to attend. The meeting will begin with a presentation of previously unpublished facts about Alberta’s $16.6 billion proposed transmission line projects. A question and answer session will follow the presentation. The press is welcome to attend. We expect a lively debate of the future of electricity and electricity transmission in the province of Alberta.
For more information Contact
Joe Anglin
(403) 843-3279
(403) 963-0521 cell
Leader, Lavesta Area Group
Sam Baker and Gurf Morlix at the Matchbox
Veteran Texan entertainers Gurf Morlix and Sam Baker brought an appreciative audience into their world during their performance at the Matchbox Theatre in Red Deer on Sunday, February 14. Playing their guitars, they presented a wealth of personal experiences presented in song in a bluesey kind of way. Both entertainers are singer/songwriters and their performance styles were well matched to create a contemplative mood in the theater.
Caroline School Outstanding Elementary Students for January
Blaine Pengally, Aydan Waters, Abigail Ophus, Rachel Masse, Peyton Schmalzbauer, Zachary Oliver, Ryan Bergevin, Jordan Maxwell, Cody Rowell, Mikayla Todd. Certificates presented at the Elementary Awards ceremony on January 28
Literacy presentation
Terri Peters from Literacy Alberta did a presentation on literacy issues at the Elks' Youth Center in Caroline on January 28. 40% of Albertans do not have the literacy skills they need to reach their own potential in our increasingly knowledge based economy. There are waiting lists that can help people improve their skills.
"I Love Rocky"
That was the message from incumbent, outgoing and incoming Rocky Credit Union board members at the Annual General Meeting on February 1 at the Lou Soppit Center in Rocky Mountain House. Retiring board members Donna Beagle and Sandra Hermann were presented with gifts for their long service on the Credit Union board. Seen here with President Carson Stewart. Newly elected board members on the right are Andy Smith and Dean Schweder. Incumbents Don Forsyth and Ralph Otto on the left. Not present, Fred Purdy and Jo Wuth.
CEO Daniel Johnson presented the following message to the large audience assembled to celebrate the Rocky Credit Union's 65th Birthday: "Rocky Credit Union had another challenging and successful year - prudent balance sheet management and careful cost management allowed us to pay our members half a million dollars in profit sharing. That's over four million dollars paid to our member/owners in the last five years! The ability to pay dividends in this economic climate is a significant testament to how robust and sophisticated Rocky Credit Union has evolved. The increasingly complex dynamics of the financial services industry has become even more evident as global economic uncertainty continues to play out. Our commitment to meet these challenges head-on in an innovative approach ensures we remain focused on providing competitive rates and relevant products and services."
Following the meeting, Guest Speaker, economist Helmut Pasterick, gave a very cautious economic forecast with lots of uncertainties built in. The much publicized growth of 5% in the US economy last year, was only "technically correct" based on the figures used, he said. Real growth was more like 2%.
Friday, February 12, 2010
NASA Successfully Launches a New Eye on the Sun (February 12, 2010)
The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) lifted off Thursday, Feb. 11, 2009, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on a first-of-a-kind mission to reveal the sun's inner workings in unprecedented detail, comparable to super HD or IMAX quality. The launch aboard an Atlas V rocket occurred at 10:23 a.m. EST. The most technologically advanced of NASA's heliophysics spacecraft, SDO will take images of the sun every 0.75 seconds and daily send back about 1.5 terabytes of data to Earth -- the equivalent of streaming 380 full-length movies. The SDO project is managed at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD.
The SDO spacecraft is in good shape midway through the launch phase that will eventually place it in an elongated orbit reaching more than 21,000 miles high. Eventually, SDO's orbit will be circularized and will reach about 22,300 miles in what is called geosynchronous orbit. From that altitude, the spacecraft will point its instruments at the sun and relay the readings instantly to a ground station in New Mexico.
The SDO spacecraft is in good shape midway through the launch phase that will eventually place it in an elongated orbit reaching more than 21,000 miles high. Eventually, SDO's orbit will be circularized and will reach about 22,300 miles in what is called geosynchronous orbit. From that altitude, the spacecraft will point its instruments at the sun and relay the readings instantly to a ground station in New Mexico.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Deficit Deception equals Debt by any Calculation
By Joe Anglin
As the Alberta government dances around its record spending 2010 budget, the public is left to debate the merits of the spending cuts in a futile justification of a $4.7 billion deficit. In the mean time and almost completely unnoticed, the Alberta Electric System Operator’s (AESO) is threatening our very economic future with runaway spending proposals that is piling on more public debt.
In its ten-year plan the AESO has identified $12.1 billion worth of critical transmission projects. Five projects worth approximately $5 billion were approved in December, without any cost-benefit analysis or critical examination by a regulatory board. This is because transmission line projects that are deemed critical are no longer subject to regulatory approval that requires proof of need. Now, in a disgraceful display of hypocrisy, the AESO has now delayed some of the critically approved projects, or as they have announced -- staged them, because the projects are not as critical as once presented.
Since 2007, AESO failed to properly address its self-proclaimed critical projects in a timely manner. In fact during this time period, AESO failed to comply with its regulatory mandate, which was to file proof that the transmission lines were indeed critically needed. Instead AESO chose to wait two-years for new legislation, Bill 50, which eliminated any requirement to justify the expenditures (debt). Now it appears that the AESO is prepared to repeat the same strategy to get approval, and avoid any public or regulatory oversight, for the remaining $7.1 billion of proposed expenditures.
When questioned about this an AESO representative said “The use of the word critical doesn’t mean a project is required immediately!”
This is morally reprehensible. It appears AESO is applying the word “critical” to circumvent the regulatory process and any public scrutiny of its proposed expenditures. The AESO is in effect, utilizing the recently passed Bill 50, to freely spend the public’s money absent of any supervision.
So as the public debates the $4.7 billion budget deficit introduced in the legislature, I hope someone will take notice of the elephant in the room. Every last dollar that AESO proposes to spend on its projects will be loaded onto the taxpayers as debt! AESO has already saddled Albertans with more debt in the last two months, than the government’s proposed annual deficit. Now it appears AESO is prepared to double that amount. This is fiscally irresponsible – where is our regulatory oversight?
Joe Anglin
Rimbey, Alberta
(403) 843-3279
As the Alberta government dances around its record spending 2010 budget, the public is left to debate the merits of the spending cuts in a futile justification of a $4.7 billion deficit. In the mean time and almost completely unnoticed, the Alberta Electric System Operator’s (AESO) is threatening our very economic future with runaway spending proposals that is piling on more public debt.
In its ten-year plan the AESO has identified $12.1 billion worth of critical transmission projects. Five projects worth approximately $5 billion were approved in December, without any cost-benefit analysis or critical examination by a regulatory board. This is because transmission line projects that are deemed critical are no longer subject to regulatory approval that requires proof of need. Now, in a disgraceful display of hypocrisy, the AESO has now delayed some of the critically approved projects, or as they have announced -- staged them, because the projects are not as critical as once presented.
Since 2007, AESO failed to properly address its self-proclaimed critical projects in a timely manner. In fact during this time period, AESO failed to comply with its regulatory mandate, which was to file proof that the transmission lines were indeed critically needed. Instead AESO chose to wait two-years for new legislation, Bill 50, which eliminated any requirement to justify the expenditures (debt). Now it appears that the AESO is prepared to repeat the same strategy to get approval, and avoid any public or regulatory oversight, for the remaining $7.1 billion of proposed expenditures.
When questioned about this an AESO representative said “The use of the word critical doesn’t mean a project is required immediately!”
This is morally reprehensible. It appears AESO is applying the word “critical” to circumvent the regulatory process and any public scrutiny of its proposed expenditures. The AESO is in effect, utilizing the recently passed Bill 50, to freely spend the public’s money absent of any supervision.
So as the public debates the $4.7 billion budget deficit introduced in the legislature, I hope someone will take notice of the elephant in the room. Every last dollar that AESO proposes to spend on its projects will be loaded onto the taxpayers as debt! AESO has already saddled Albertans with more debt in the last two months, than the government’s proposed annual deficit. Now it appears AESO is prepared to double that amount. This is fiscally irresponsible – where is our regulatory oversight?
Joe Anglin
Rimbey, Alberta
(403) 843-3279
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Pen Meets Paper Feb.8'10
Opinion by Helge Nome
Let us suppose that, shortly after coming into this world, you or I were equipped with pink colored contact lenses that became a more or less permanent fixture in front of our retinas as we grew up.
As adults we get together with someone else who is asked to put on a regular pair of pink colored glasses and then we proceed to compare notes. For us, nothing has changed, the world just looks normal. For the person with the newly acquired glasses
the world looks distinctly pink.
Let us now suppose that we substitute “cultural conditioning” for “pink colored contact lenses” and proceed from there by taking a look at the sun (be careful!): An object in the sky that provides us with heat and light during the day. It has always been there and always will, for all practical purposes. Like the moon and the stars, it moves across the heavens in a monotonous kind of way. We look at the world around us and see all kinds of objects in the surrounding landscape, and we proceed to classify them to create some order in our minds.
Enter an individual from a very long time ago and we get to talking about the heavens,
and the sun in particular.
What is “the sun”? the individual asks (who at this stage has managed to acquire a
usable knowledge of the English language). We point, and he looks at us in amazement. “That’s Aten!”, he says. “The most powerful being there is”.
As our conversation proceeds about this a realization begins to dawn upon us: This individual has a different set of glasses on, compared to ours.
For us, the world is composed of objects of many descriptions, of various magnitudes and with numerous attributes. But in the final analysis, they are objects, at the whim of forces of all kinds that are ultimately impersonal and mechanical in nature.
Our visitor, on the other hand, sees life everywhere, animated by that Great Being in the sky, Aten.
The latest observations by scientists involved in keeping an eye on Aten by way of multiple telescopes mounted on satellites in his vicinity, are beginning to realize the fundamental truth of the ancient perception of that awesome individual, upon whom our collective fate rests. There’s nothing “objective” about that fellah. He is the most temperamental, self motivated and “alive” individual that could ever be imagined.
Our science is now proving to us that we have a long way to go before getting back to where we used to be. Our glasses, that turn the world into an arrangement of impersonal “objects” and “forces” have to be removed.
There is nothing wrong with postulating these as hypothetical entities to be manipulated in equations. The problem arises when we impose these “thought forms” on the world around us: They then become the lenses of our perception.
Let us suppose that, shortly after coming into this world, you or I were equipped with pink colored contact lenses that became a more or less permanent fixture in front of our retinas as we grew up.
As adults we get together with someone else who is asked to put on a regular pair of pink colored glasses and then we proceed to compare notes. For us, nothing has changed, the world just looks normal. For the person with the newly acquired glasses
the world looks distinctly pink.
Let us now suppose that we substitute “cultural conditioning” for “pink colored contact lenses” and proceed from there by taking a look at the sun (be careful!): An object in the sky that provides us with heat and light during the day. It has always been there and always will, for all practical purposes. Like the moon and the stars, it moves across the heavens in a monotonous kind of way. We look at the world around us and see all kinds of objects in the surrounding landscape, and we proceed to classify them to create some order in our minds.
Enter an individual from a very long time ago and we get to talking about the heavens,
and the sun in particular.
What is “the sun”? the individual asks (who at this stage has managed to acquire a
usable knowledge of the English language). We point, and he looks at us in amazement. “That’s Aten!”, he says. “The most powerful being there is”.
As our conversation proceeds about this a realization begins to dawn upon us: This individual has a different set of glasses on, compared to ours.
For us, the world is composed of objects of many descriptions, of various magnitudes and with numerous attributes. But in the final analysis, they are objects, at the whim of forces of all kinds that are ultimately impersonal and mechanical in nature.
Our visitor, on the other hand, sees life everywhere, animated by that Great Being in the sky, Aten.
The latest observations by scientists involved in keeping an eye on Aten by way of multiple telescopes mounted on satellites in his vicinity, are beginning to realize the fundamental truth of the ancient perception of that awesome individual, upon whom our collective fate rests. There’s nothing “objective” about that fellah. He is the most temperamental, self motivated and “alive” individual that could ever be imagined.
Our science is now proving to us that we have a long way to go before getting back to where we used to be. Our glasses, that turn the world into an arrangement of impersonal “objects” and “forces” have to be removed.
There is nothing wrong with postulating these as hypothetical entities to be manipulated in equations. The problem arises when we impose these “thought forms” on the world around us: They then become the lenses of our perception.
Aten temper tantrum: Sliding Plasma and a CME (February 5, 2010)
The STEREO (Behind) spacecraft could see streams of plasma sliding along magnetic field lines above a sputtering active region (Jan. 26-29, 2010). The dynamic streams were just over the Sun's edge and readily spotted as the Sun rotated them more into view. Then it gets more interesting. About mid-way through the clip, a small coronal mass ejection (CME) shoots out and into space at about a million miles per hour, carrying some magnetic field with it. Most CMEs are more bulbous and wide: this one is quite narrow and contained. Nonetheless, our solar scientists agree that its speed and characteristics suggest that it was indeed a non-typical CME. Source: NASA website.
Check out the movie here
It is spectacular
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Royalties, where are you?
By Joe Anglin
Next Tuesday the Alberta government will release its budget. The big news on that day will be how this government plans to deal with a projected $4.3 billion deficit. Absent on this day will be the release of the long-awaited oil and gas competitiveness review (royalties).
Stelmach first promised to release the review by last fall, then by the end of 2009, and then by late January. Now we are told the review will be released only after the provincial budget is released next Tuesday.
Now I may be overly analytical, but royalties, particularly royalties on natural gas, are the foundation of Alberta’s income. No household can prepare a proper budget without first knowing the source and/or accuracy of its income. Governments, no matter what they say, are no different. Hence, next Tuesday’s budget will be meaningless without knowing whether or not the royalty structure will change, and how it will change!
This brings us to a very legitimate question. Is the government actually unaware, and preparing a budget without having a clue what it plans to do with royalties, or are they being deceitful and deliberately withholding the information in order to prevent intelligent questions?
Joe Anglin
Rimbey, AB
(403) 843-3279
Next Tuesday the Alberta government will release its budget. The big news on that day will be how this government plans to deal with a projected $4.3 billion deficit. Absent on this day will be the release of the long-awaited oil and gas competitiveness review (royalties).
Stelmach first promised to release the review by last fall, then by the end of 2009, and then by late January. Now we are told the review will be released only after the provincial budget is released next Tuesday.
Now I may be overly analytical, but royalties, particularly royalties on natural gas, are the foundation of Alberta’s income. No household can prepare a proper budget without first knowing the source and/or accuracy of its income. Governments, no matter what they say, are no different. Hence, next Tuesday’s budget will be meaningless without knowing whether or not the royalty structure will change, and how it will change!
This brings us to a very legitimate question. Is the government actually unaware, and preparing a budget without having a clue what it plans to do with royalties, or are they being deceitful and deliberately withholding the information in order to prevent intelligent questions?
Joe Anglin
Rimbey, AB
(403) 843-3279
Caroline Community "Meet & Greet"
RCMP Staff Sgt. Laidlaw from the Rocky Detachment presented himself at the Caroline Complex function put on by the Caroline & District Chamber of Commerce on January 25. A merry moment is shared with Caroline Mayor Laura Cudmore and Village Councillor Bob Pryor. Representatives from Wild Rose Public Schools, Caroline School, Clearwater County and the Federal Government were also in attendance. The relatively small number of community people in attendance did not detract from the social interaction that followed formal introductions.Please note that MP Blake Richards is looking for Federal Budget ideas from the community.
Business Award
Dennis Hindbo accepted the 2009 Business Award from Dan Burger, representing the Caroline & District Chamber of Commerce. Susan and Dennis Hindbo have been operating their "Raven Wear of Canada" business since 1988, providing high quality clothing for outdoor enthusiasts. Most of their sales go to US customers.
Caroline Rec.&Ag. Society Bursary
Cora Lynn Wolf received this $500 bursary from John Follis, on behalf of the society. She is currently enrolled in an Early Learning and Child Care course at Red Deer College. Cora Lynn was an active volunteer during her time at Caroline School.
Youth Development Award
Haley Malt received this $500 award to go towards participation fees in Caroline Dance West. Haley and her family recently moved to Caroline from Didsbury.
Outstanding Achievement Award
Shyla has danced with Caroline Dance West for 7 years, since she was 4 years old, and received $500 towards ongoing participation fees. She has a demonstrated strong interest in dance.
Caroline & District Chamber of Commerce has new manager
Shannon Fagnan was present at the Chamber sponsored Meet and Greet on Monday, January 25 at the complex. Here she is introduced by Chamber President Reg Dean. Upcoming chamber sponsored events are: AGM, Legion Hall, February 23, 7pm.Bighorn Rodeo Parade, May 22. Business Mixer, complex, October 31, 5:30pm. Christmas Lightup, complex, December 3, 5pm. The chamber also traditionally sponsors pre-election political debates between candidates.
Winners and Runners Up of the Legion Remembrance Day Poster & Literary Contest.
Awards were presented at the Elementary "Pajama Day" assembly at Caroline School on Thursday, January 28by Helen Willigar and Charlette Harris from the Legion. Recognized were- Poetry: Mallory Westergaard, Jonathen Carr, Dallas Johnson. Color Poster: Abigail Ophus, Dominik Hanson, Jasmin Mercier, Erin Rutschke, Mallory Westergaard, Hayley Mault, Candice Moss, Dianna Follis, Katelyn Godwin. Black and White Poster: Walker Guthrie, Logan Neal, Cody Graham, Teale Spooner, Kiara Price, Jenny Cooke.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Where is the Proof?
by Joe Anglin
In the 2009 Alberta Electric System Operator’s (AESO) 10-year plan, the AESO determined that $16.6 billion dollars of transmission upgrades are required over the next ten years: $12.1 billion of the $16.6 billion is identified as being critically needed. This is a staggering number considering the current net worth of Alberta’s electricity transmission system is approximately $2.1 billion.
Less than half of the $12.1 billion has already been approved for construction without the aid of any cost benefit analysis or any public scrutiny. This is because a new law passed last December eliminate the public’s right to question the need for these transmission lines or question the expenditures required to build the lines.
Alberta’s electricity system is currently worth $2.1 billion and AESO is recommending an 800% increase. Where is the proof that upgrades of this magnitude are needed? AESO has determined that a 600% increase is critically needed. This is not logical! No one is predicting that Alberta’s economy is going to grow 800% or 600% over the next decade. So how is AESO justifying their claim that the electricity system needs to be upgraded by 800%, or that a 600% increase should be exempt from public scrutiny?
The public is paying for these transmission lines, and when the lines are built private companies will own the transmission lines. As long as the transmission lines are determined critical, the public will not be allowed to question the need for the projects. The public needs to wake up before it is too late. Albertans are about to be told that budget cuts to public services are unavoidable, while at the same time the public won’t be given any proof why it must pay billions for transmission lines that only benefits a few large electricity generators.
There is something inherently wrong with this picture!
We do need to build and maintain a reliable transmission system for Alberta’s economy. I have not met a person who disputes this. However, outrageous irresponsible spending is not justifiable under any circumstances. The public requires proof that these expenditures are necessary. It is only fair, the public is paying for this, where is the proof – where is the transparency? Why did this government remove the requirement that the lines had to be for the public’s present and future convenience and need? If the lines are no longer required to be for the public's need, who or what requires the lines? What is this government hiding? Why can’t we see the proof? It is our money!
Joe Anglin
(403) 843-3279
In the 2009 Alberta Electric System Operator’s (AESO) 10-year plan, the AESO determined that $16.6 billion dollars of transmission upgrades are required over the next ten years: $12.1 billion of the $16.6 billion is identified as being critically needed. This is a staggering number considering the current net worth of Alberta’s electricity transmission system is approximately $2.1 billion.
Less than half of the $12.1 billion has already been approved for construction without the aid of any cost benefit analysis or any public scrutiny. This is because a new law passed last December eliminate the public’s right to question the need for these transmission lines or question the expenditures required to build the lines.
Alberta’s electricity system is currently worth $2.1 billion and AESO is recommending an 800% increase. Where is the proof that upgrades of this magnitude are needed? AESO has determined that a 600% increase is critically needed. This is not logical! No one is predicting that Alberta’s economy is going to grow 800% or 600% over the next decade. So how is AESO justifying their claim that the electricity system needs to be upgraded by 800%, or that a 600% increase should be exempt from public scrutiny?
The public is paying for these transmission lines, and when the lines are built private companies will own the transmission lines. As long as the transmission lines are determined critical, the public will not be allowed to question the need for the projects. The public needs to wake up before it is too late. Albertans are about to be told that budget cuts to public services are unavoidable, while at the same time the public won’t be given any proof why it must pay billions for transmission lines that only benefits a few large electricity generators.
There is something inherently wrong with this picture!
We do need to build and maintain a reliable transmission system for Alberta’s economy. I have not met a person who disputes this. However, outrageous irresponsible spending is not justifiable under any circumstances. The public requires proof that these expenditures are necessary. It is only fair, the public is paying for this, where is the proof – where is the transparency? Why did this government remove the requirement that the lines had to be for the public’s present and future convenience and need? If the lines are no longer required to be for the public's need, who or what requires the lines? What is this government hiding? Why can’t we see the proof? It is our money!
Joe Anglin
(403) 843-3279
Monday, February 1, 2010
Pen Meets Paper Feb.1'10
Opinion by Helge Nome
Adolph Hitler had a grand vision: A once fragmented Germany, united under his leadership, would establish a one thousand year “Reich” (empire) where the members of the German Nation together (“Ein Volk, Ein Land”)(one people, one land), would rule the world. The fertile lands and peoples to the east would be the breadbasket of the new empire so that the German people could focus on imposing Adolph’s will on the rest of us. That was the Big Idea harbored by a relatively small group of people around Adolph Hitler in the 1930ies.
The question that inevitably comes to mind is this: How could a small group of marginal characters manage to get their hands on the levers of power of the German State? Two factors come to mind: The seething anger of the German people over having their post WWI economy torn to shreds by a post war government that literally preyed on their plight and ground them into the dirt. And as we all know, no movement can forge ahead without some solid financial support. Where did that come from? The Bank of England is one reported source, believe it or not. Plenty of American dollars are also reported to have ended up in the hands of Hitler and his cohorts.
In order to understand why this happened, we need to take a quick peek at the geo-political situation in the 1930ies. The once great British Empire, “upon which the sun never sets”, was wobbly and Stalin’s empire to the east appeared menacing to many people. Militaristic governments were in place in Italy and Japan. The time for change was ripe. So a group of people, which can be conveniently referred to as “the Tribe” decided to raise the temperature of the woodpile to ignition point by helping Adolph and his friends install themselves on the bridge of that great battleship, the German State. The idea was simple enough: Let the dogs of Europe tear themselves to pieces using American war supplies and soldiers as needed to ensure the right outcome: Exit British Empire. Enter American Empire. Hitler and his fellow stooges were simply used to facilitate the process.
Now, this is were it gets a little spooky. The Tribe is embedded in North America and has used it as a primary base for operations since WWII. Their dream is the same as that of Adolph and his friends and they are not about to let their nursery bed go to rack and ruin. Instead, the idea is to turn it into a place, not unlike Adolph’s Germany, supplying sophisticated military hardware and a vast pool of not so sophisticated soldiers to man their war machine, because there aren’t too many other jobs available for them. So, Adolph’s dream is in the process of being realized by those that set him up to fail. It even has a name. It is called “Fascism”. And North America is its primary host.
Adolph Hitler had a grand vision: A once fragmented Germany, united under his leadership, would establish a one thousand year “Reich” (empire) where the members of the German Nation together (“Ein Volk, Ein Land”)(one people, one land), would rule the world. The fertile lands and peoples to the east would be the breadbasket of the new empire so that the German people could focus on imposing Adolph’s will on the rest of us. That was the Big Idea harbored by a relatively small group of people around Adolph Hitler in the 1930ies.
The question that inevitably comes to mind is this: How could a small group of marginal characters manage to get their hands on the levers of power of the German State? Two factors come to mind: The seething anger of the German people over having their post WWI economy torn to shreds by a post war government that literally preyed on their plight and ground them into the dirt. And as we all know, no movement can forge ahead without some solid financial support. Where did that come from? The Bank of England is one reported source, believe it or not. Plenty of American dollars are also reported to have ended up in the hands of Hitler and his cohorts.
In order to understand why this happened, we need to take a quick peek at the geo-political situation in the 1930ies. The once great British Empire, “upon which the sun never sets”, was wobbly and Stalin’s empire to the east appeared menacing to many people. Militaristic governments were in place in Italy and Japan. The time for change was ripe. So a group of people, which can be conveniently referred to as “the Tribe” decided to raise the temperature of the woodpile to ignition point by helping Adolph and his friends install themselves on the bridge of that great battleship, the German State. The idea was simple enough: Let the dogs of Europe tear themselves to pieces using American war supplies and soldiers as needed to ensure the right outcome: Exit British Empire. Enter American Empire. Hitler and his fellow stooges were simply used to facilitate the process.
Now, this is were it gets a little spooky. The Tribe is embedded in North America and has used it as a primary base for operations since WWII. Their dream is the same as that of Adolph and his friends and they are not about to let their nursery bed go to rack and ruin. Instead, the idea is to turn it into a place, not unlike Adolph’s Germany, supplying sophisticated military hardware and a vast pool of not so sophisticated soldiers to man their war machine, because there aren’t too many other jobs available for them. So, Adolph’s dream is in the process of being realized by those that set him up to fail. It even has a name. It is called “Fascism”. And North America is its primary host.
Caroline Youth Group in front of the big screen
These young people met on Friday, January 22 to brainstorm ideas for Boys and Girls Club activities during the coming months. The venue was Caroline's new movie theater which is also the club house for the Boys and Girls' club. In order to coordinate activities, an election produced the following executive: Cole Peters (President), Casey Handy (Vice President), Morgan Spooner (Secretary), Abby Mercier (Treasurer).Currently, movies are featured on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays with Boys and Girls Club activities scheduled for the
remaining three days of the week. The youth group gets to pick the movies featured and the income is used to offset facility
and programming costs. The idea is to get the youth involved in the practical financial side of their ventures.
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