In large part, the defense of the second amendment seems to lean towards personal defense, hunting and sport shooting. Although all of those ideas are indeed inherently protected under the "right to bear arms," the bigger point is overlooked.
Our Founding Fathers penned the Bill Of Rights under a singular notion: these Constitutional Amendments are to protect the citizens from a power hungry government. And the Second Amendment makes legal for the American Citizens to keep and bear arms as a specific deterrent against a tyrannical government. Where you have a government who fears its citizens, you have liberty. When you have the exact opposite, you have tyranny.
I encourage you to read the following essay by Lawrence Hunter (yes, his name is "Hunter") from Forbes magazine. Its the most concise and insightful essay on this topic I've read during my research. Some excerpts:
"It is time the critics of the Second Amendment put up and repeal it, or shut up about violating it. Their efforts to disarm and short-arm Americans violate the U.S. Constitution in Merriam Webster’s first sense of the term—to “disregard” it.
Hard cases make bad law, which is why they are reserved for the Constitution, not left to the caprice of legislatures, the sophistry and casuistry of judges or the despotic rule making of the chief executive and his bureaucracy. And make no mistake, guns pose one of the hardest cases a free people confronts in the 21st century, a test of whether that people cherishes liberty above tyranny, values individual sovereignty above dependency on the state, and whether they dare any longer to live free.
A people cannot simultaneously live free and be bound to any human master or man-made institution, especially to politicians, judges, bureaucrats and faceless government agencies. The Second Amendment along with the other nine amendments of the Bill of Rights was designed to prevent individuals’ enslavement to government, not just to guarantee people the right to hunt squirrels or sport shoot at targets, nor was it included in the Bill of Rights just to guarantee individuals the right to defend themselves against robbers, rapers and lunatics, or to make sure the states could raise a militia quick, on the cheap to defend against a foreign invader or domestic unrest.
The Second Amendment was designed to ensure that individuals retained the right and means to defend themselves against any illegitimate attempt to do them harm, be it an attempt by a private outlaw or government agents violating their trust under the color of law. The Second Amendment was meant to guarantee individuals the right to protect themselves against government as much as against private bad guys and gangs.
That is why the gun grabbers’ assault on firearms is not only, not even primarily an attack merely on the means of self-defense but more fundamentally, the gun grabbers are engaged in a blatant attack on the very legitimacy of self-defense itself. It’s not really about the guns; it is about the government’s ability to demand submission of the people. Gun control is part and parcel of the ongoing collectivist effort to eviscerate individual sovereignty and replace it with dependence upon and allegiance to the state. "
What many fail to Recognize is that homicide cases that were carried out by a gun-wielding perpetrator are actually far less common than other types of death:
Are we to take away knives because people stab each other? or how about cars because we run into each other and kill someone in the process? Or doctors because they made a mistake while operating on us? the answer is simply no. All of these things do more countless times more good than they do harm. The problem is that you don't hear about when someone successfully defends his/her spouse, children and property from a break-in because they had a firearm.
I believe that the right to bear arms is one of the most prolific amendments of the constitution, and also one that makes our country what it is today.
A powerful earthquake off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, in 2004 sets off a tsunami that wreaks death and devastation across the Indian Ocean coastline. The quake was the second strongest ever recorded and the estimated 230,000 dead made this disaster one of the 10 worst of all time.
It was 7:58 a.m. when the tremendous quake struck beneath the Indian Ocean 160 miles west of Sumatra. Not only did it register at approximately a 9.3 magnitude (only the 1960 Chile earthquake measured higher at 9.5, though there may have been stronger tremors prior to the invention of seismographic equipment) and last nearly 10 minutes, the quake moved a full 750 miles of underwater fault line earth up to 40 feet. The movement of the earth--there is evidence that huge boulders weighing thousands of tons were pushed several miles along the ocean floor--caused a massive displacement of water. It is estimated that the resulting tsunami had two times the energy of all the bombs used during II.
Within 15 minutes, tsunami waves were crashing the coast of Sumatra. At the north end of the island was a heavily populated region known as Aceh. There, waves reached 80 feet high over large stretches of the coast and up to 100 feet in some places. Entire communities were simply swept away by the water in a matter of minutes. The death toll in Indonesia is estimated at between 130,000 and 160,000 people, with an additional 500,000 people left homeless. About a third of the victims were children.
The huge waves missed the coast of Indonesia on the north side and went on to Thailand, where between 5,000 and 8,000 people died. The tsunami also moved east across the Indian Ocean. In Sri Lanka, the tsunami came ashore about 90 minutes after the earthquake. Although the waves were not as high as in Aceh, they still brought disaster. Approximately 35,000 people lost their lives and half a million others lost their homes. In addition, about 15,000 people died in India. The killer waves even reached 5,000 miles away in South Africa, where two people perished.
In total, about 190,000 people are confirmed dead with another 40,000 to 45,000 missing and presumed dead. Although billions of dollars of humanitarian aid poured in to the affected region in the aftermath of the disaster--an estimated $7 billion within the first 18 months—some areas are still suffering from the massive devastation.
This year is the tenth anniversary of the event and it is still impacting the region; programs and studies continue, both to support recovery efforts and to understand the science behind this devastating natural disaster. Now that the world is more sensitive to the danger posed by tsunamis, awareness has improved early alerts and warning systems, as well as prepared disaster-relief agencies with real data.
The earthquake has been titled the Sumatra-Andaman Islands Earthquake and is the highest magnitude earthquake in the region in over 40 years. Over 227,898 people have been confirmed dead making this the fourth largest death toll from an earthquake in recorded history. Several years after the quake and tsunami events, the entire region is still trying to recover and to rebuild. Some areas will never recover.
The amount of preparedness for the tsunami varied greatly, as some countries in the Phillipines and the surrounding Countries with Indian Ocean coastline were better off financially. However, it is very hard to be prepared for a wave measuring 80-100 feet with 15 minutes between the displacement of the water and the impact of the wave on the coastline. While the levels of preparedness varied, none were at an optimum level to prevent mass death and destruction. That being said, if the West Coast of the United States were to be hit by a tsunami, the economic loss in that region would be unthinkable. There were early detection devices placed in the Indian Ocean at the time, but they were closer to the middle of the ocean. by the time the waves hit the early detection devices, they had already slammed in to Indonesia.
The Total amount of relief efforts were around 7.5 Billion dollars in worth. An additional 20 million dollars were spent in tsunami early-warning systems. Months after the tsunami hit, outbreaks in disease caused an additional 150,000 deaths.
Sunday, November 16, 2014
The future of Energy: Biofuels
The Basics
Unlike other renewable energy sources, biomass can be converted directly into liquid fuels, called"biofuels," to help meet transportation fuel needs. The two most common types of biofuels in use today are ethanol and biodiesel. Ethanol is an alcohol, the same as in beer and wine (although ethanol used as a fuel is modified to make it undrinkable). It is most commonly made by fermenting any biomass high in carbohydrates through a process similar to beer brewing. Today, ethanol is made from starches and sugars, but NREL scientists are developing technology to allow it to be made from cellulose and hemicellulose, the fibrous material that makes up the bulk of most plant matter.
Ethanol can also be produced by a process called gasification. Gasification systems use high temperatures and a low-oxygen environment to convert biomass into synthesis gas, a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide. The synthesis gas, or "syngas," can then be chemically converted into ethanol and other fuels.
Ethanol is mostly used as blending agent with gasoline to increase octane and cut down carbon monoxide and other smog-causing emissions. Some vehicles, called Flexible Fuel Vehicles, are designed to run on E85, an alternative fuel with much higher ethanol content than regular gasoline.
Biodiesel is made by combining alcohol (usually methanol) with vegetable oil, animal fat, or recycled cooking grease. It can be used as an additive (typically 20%) to reduce vehicle emissions or in its pure form as a renewable alternative fuel for diesel engines. Research into the production of liquid transportation fuels from microscopic algae, or microalgae, is reemerging at NREL. These microorganisms use the sun's energy to combine carbon dioxide with water to create biomass more efficiently and rapidly than terrestrial plants. Oil-rich microalgae strains are capable of producing the feedstock for a number of transportation fuels—biodiesel, "green" diesel and gasoline, and jet fuel—while mitigating the effects of carbon dioxide released from sources such as power plants. The second department of biofuels is called "Biopower". This is when organic matter is chemically converted to materials that are burned, powering steam turbines.Most of the biopower plants in the world use direct-fired systems. They burn bioenergy feedstocks directly to produce steam. This steam is usually captured by a turbine, and a generator then converts it into electricity. In some industries, the steam from the power plant is also used for manufacturing processes or to heat buildings. These are known as combined heat and power facilities. For instance, wood waste is often used to produce both electricity and steam at paper mills. Many coal-fired power plants can use cofiring systems to significantly reduce emissions, especially sulfur dioxide emissions. Cofiring involves using bioenergy feedstocks as a supplementary energy source in high efficiency boilers.
Gasification systems use high temperatures and an oxygen-starved environment to convert biomass into a gas (a mixture of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, and methane). The gas fuels what's called a gas turbine, which is very much like a jet engine, only it turns an electric generator instead of propelling a jet.
The decay of biomass produces a gas - methane - that can be used as an energy source. In landfills, wells can be drilled to release the methane from the decaying organic matter. Then pipes from each well carry the gas to a central point where it is filtered and cleaned before burning. Methane also can be produced from biomass through a process called anaerobic digestion. Anaerobic digestion involves using bacteria to decompose organic matter in the absence of oxygen.
Methane can be used as an energy source in many ways. Most facilities burn it in a boiler to produce steam for electricity generation or for industrial processes. Two new ways include the use of microturbines and fuel cells. Microturbines have outputs of 25 to 500 kilowatts. About the size of a refrigerator, they can be used where there are space limitations for power production. Methane can also be used as the "fuel" in a fuel cell. Fuel cells work much like batteries but never need recharging, producing electricity as long as there's fuel.
In addition to gas, liquid fuels can be produced from biomass through a process called pyrolysis. Pyrolysis occurs when biomass is heated in the absence of oxygen. The biomass then turns into a liquid called pyrolysis oil, which can be burned like petroleum to generate electricity.
Part II: Transmission
Biofuels, because they are a solid, need to be transported by vehicles which employ gasoline and other petroleum products. However, because the raw materials are organic, they help take carbon out of the atmosphere at the same time. That being said, processing plants are completely different from standard petroleum-electricity plants. The biofuels produced in these processing facilities can be used in a system integrated into a standard petroleum-electricity plant. That means that a standard combustion engine powering a steam turbine can be duplicated and changed to run off of biofuels, feeding the same steam turbine.
There are already many different types of engines that run off of ethanol and other types of biofuel, so it could play a heavy part in the future of transportation.
Processing of biomass is decentralized, and can be used off grid through an ethanol generator.
Part III: Consumption
There are many obstacles to adoption. The first is that it produces the same amount of carbon that fossil fuels upon use in a combustion engine. However this problem solves itself in that biomass absorbs carbon while its alive, and it is readily available because there is such an abundance of leftover biomass after farmers harvest their crops.
I believe that the government can create incentives by offering tax breaks to farmers who sell their stripped stalks of corn to biofuel production plants. They can also offer tax breaks to those who drive ethanol or biomass fueled vehicles or power their house's electrical system through biofuel.
Friday, October 17, 2014
There is not one single person in the supply chain of the coffee industry that is not affected by the globalization of cofee. Having originated from a region near Ethiopia, Coffee has grown to become one of America's favorite drinks, and a Multi-billion dollar industry.
There are two main species of coffee: Arabica and Robusta. Arabica coffee is mainly grown in Africa and Latin America, while Robusta is main grown in Asia. North America has the world’s most coffee consumers.
This analysis will examine the regulation of the coffee industry; the global consequences of the recent Coffee Crisis; the globalization of the coffee supply chain; the role of the coffee industry in Africa, Asia, and the Americas; the impact of the sustainable development and climate change on the coffee industry; and, the role of corporations in shaping the coffee industry and global coffee culture.
Regulating Coffee: International Treaties
The International Coffee Organization (ICO) is the main world institution used for regulating coffee through the use of quota systems to help keep the price of coffee stable. There have been seven agreements since the ICO was founded. Each agreement offers increasing oversight over the coffee industry, such as quotas (and suspension of quotas when the supplies are too low or prices too high) and increased market transparency measures. The ICO agreements provide a forum to publish and discuss issues, such as sustainability and private sector concerns. The ICO funds research, such as pest control studies, and promotes consumption.
Coffee Crisis From 2000 to 2005, there was a global coffee crisis in which coffee prices reached historic lows, impacting farmers from around the world. The crisis stemmed from a flood of low-quality, Vietnamese coffee (robusta) onto world markets, upsetting the balance of supply and demand. Vietnam aggressively promoted its coffee industry; it even expropriated land from the indigenous “Montagnard” people to build coffee plantations. The large quantities of low quality Robusta coffee beans on the world market forced Arabica coffee producers to lower their prices and also lowered customer expectations and interest, due to the increased number of defective coffee beans.
The coffee crisis led to a loss of jobs, lands, and livelihood in all coffee-exporting countries, including Vietnam. Social upheaval and unrest and migration followed. For example, in Colombia, there was a surge of kidnappings, violence and farming of drug crops. Since a coffee tree takes five years to cultivate, before it becomes fully productive, the low prices had a long-term effect, as crops were neglected and farmers shifted products.
Coffee prices rose again by 2005, partially due to increased consumption of coffee in China and Russia, as well as lower harvest yields around the world. While coffee prices have been higher since this crisis period, within the last few years, farmers have had to contend with rising fertilizer costs. Latin American countries, such as Colombia started subsidizing fertilizers, to offset the increased prices.
Coffee Supply Chain
Coffee cherries are picked by hand. In the dry season, there can be multiple flowerings and thus multiple times when the coffee is picked. To ensure quality, many countries, including the United States and EU-countries employ mandatory grading and standards. Other countries, such as Ethiopia, use grading systems as well. Middlemen (often referred to as coyotes) buy the coffee from the small farmers; larger plantations usually do not use middlemen, but sell directly to the international coffee processing or distribution company. The middlemen tend to pay less than the market rate and then sell the coffee at the higher market rate (keeping the difference).
During processing, ripe coffee cherries are separated from the under- and over-ripe berries and then are dried or sent to pulping machines. After being pulped, the beans can be dried or fermented. Once all the beans are dried, they are ground into a powder and shipped worldwide, or boiled (a traditional Arab way of preparing coffee). At this point, some beans are placed into machines for special processing used to make espresso and cappuccino.
The larger producers are able to sell coffee, by prices set by the the New York Coffee Exchange. Similar to other commodities, futures contracts for coffee are bought and sold on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Coffee and Economic DevelopmentAfrica
Legends site that coffee was originally discovered in Ethiopia in 850 and cultivated on the Arabian Peninsula in 1100. For top African producers of coffee, Ethiopia (#1) and Uganda (#2), coffee is the one of the main sources of income for the country.
Ethiopia uses four coffee productions systems: forest coffee (10 percent), semi-forest coffee (35 percent), garden coffee (35 percent) and plantation coffee (15 percent); 95 percent Ethiopia’s coffee is organic. Fifteen million Ethiopians are involved in the coffee industry; the coffee is harvested using both wet and dry methods. Since consumers seem to prefer wet coffee, Ethiopia plans to increase the use of wet harvesting methods.11
Asia The world’s first coffee shop opened in Istanbul in 1475. In 1690, The Dutch were the first to transport and cultivate coffee commercially, smuggling it from the Arab world to the East Indies. The Dutch also brought coffee to Java, Indonesia (which is now the 4th largest supplier of coffee worldwide).
Over the last decade or so, Asia has begun to play an increasingly important role in exporting coffee, with India, Vietnam, and Indonesia as its top exporters. Vietnam, the world’s second largest coffee producer, mainly produces robusta coffee. Recent drops in the price of coffee, due to the global economic downturn and to decreased speculation, have led Vietnam to consider stock-piling coffee to protect its growers from the low international prices of coffee.
Nestle has recently entered into a partnership with Vietnam to help train the country’s farmers to improve the sustainability and quality of their coffee crops. Nestle plans to introduce water optimization techniques as well as post-harvest procedures. The coffee though will still be used for low priced blends.
Americas
Coffee is grown across the Americas. There are differing accounts of its origin in the Americas. Some say John Smith first brought coffee to Virginia in 1607 , while others claims early settlers first brought the crop to Canada. Coffee was brought to Brazil in the 1700s. While Brazil is still the world’s top producer, Colombia, Mexico, Honduras, Nicaragua, Peru, are also big producers/exporters as well. For many of these (and other countries in the region), coffee is the primary export product.
Coffee exports provide about $700 million in national income for Mexico. About 200,000 of the 283,000 coffee farmers in Mexico are indigenous campesinos, who own less than five acres of land. Some of these farmers are part of cooperatives, such as Union of Indigenous Communities of the Isthmus Region (in Oaxaca), which provide most of the social services needed by these communities. Similar cooperatives can be found all across Latin America.
While these cooperatives are successful, there is still unequal land tenure in much of the region, in which a small number of land-owners control most of the land. This problem is particularly bad in Guatemala where two percent of landowners own 65 percent of the farmland. Much of the population is land-less and work as part-time, wage laborers.
Colombia is the only country in the world to have a National Coffee Federation, which subsidizes farmers when international prices are too low. The Federation taxes the coffee when it is high to provide social services and infrastructure improvements in coffee-growing regions. There are about 560,000 coffee farms in Colombia, many of which are organized into cooperatives.
Environment and Sustainable Development
There are different ways for growing coffee; one of the most sustainable methods is forest grown or shade-grown method. The coffee cherries are infused with the flavor of plants growing in the vicinity, such as cardamom, citrus, and vanilla. Forrest- grown coffee allows for natural soil replenishment, reducing the need for the use of pesticides and other chemicals.
Climate change is expected to greatly impact many coffee-exporting countries. Coffee-growing regions will shift as increases/decreases in temperatures will affect disease and pestilence problems. Too little rainfall causes coffee cherry to shrivel. Another environmental problem associated with coffee bean farming is soil degradation from the use of too much fertilizer as well as exposure to the elements, which occurs when forests are cleared for coffee farming.
One issue that is often associated with coffee is the use of the fair trade system. Fairtrade coffee guarantees $1.26/pound (which is considered to provide a living wage to the farmers.) The fair trade movement also guarantees access to credit at fair prices. Often the extra funds associated with fair-trade are reinvested in the local communities for schools, health care facilities, and better housing.
To be certified as fair trade, cooperatives must prove to be democratically operated and must implement sustainable-growing practices (which are often expensive). There are approximately 300 fair trade cooperatives worldwide, which represent more than half a million growers or 12 percent of the international coffee growing community.
Coffee, Corn and the cost of Globalization clip
Conclusion
Globalization impacts every aspect of the coffee industry. International laws regulate the industry and try to prevent price spikes and dips. Major corporations try to shape the market and influence which beans are grown and how they are processed. Farmers around the world are joining cooperatives, often funded and supported by international NGOs, to obtain better prices for their crops, as well as gain needed social services for their communities. Not all of the impacts are positive though, environmental degradation and greedy commodity traders can certainly hurt the industry and its supply chain.
Nonetheless, socially-conscious coffee drinker can play a role by choosing to support companies that treat their workers fairly and pay them living wages.
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
Under its former name Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isis), it was formed in April 2013, growing out of al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI).It has since been disavowed by al-Qaeda, but has become one of the main jihadist groups fighting government forces in Syria and Iraq.Its precise size is unclear but it is thought to include thousands of fighters, including many foreign Jihadists.The organisation is led by Abu-Bakr Al Baghdadi . Little is known about him, but it is believed he was born in Samarra, north of Baghdad, in 1971 and joined the insurgency that erupted in Iraq soon after the 2003 US-led invasion.
Abu-Bakr Al-Baghdadi, at a younger age
Inter-rebel tension
Baghdadi is regarded as a battlefield commander and tactician, which analysts say makes his group more attractive to young jihadists than al-Qaeda, which is led by Ayman al-Zawahiri, an Islamic theorist. Prof Peter Neumann of King's College London estimates that about 80% of Western fighters in Syria have joined the group.IS claims to have fighters from the UK, France, Germany and other European countries, as well as the US, the Arab world and the Caucasus.Unlike other rebel groups in Syria, IS is seen to be working towards an Islamic emirate that straddles Syria and Iraq.
One of ISIS's executions
The group has seen considerable military success. In March 2013, it took over the Syrian city of Raqqa - the first provincial capital to fall under rebel control.In January 2014, it capitalised on growing tension between Iraq's Sunni minority and Shia-led government by taking control of the predominantly Sunni city of Fallujah, in the western province of Anbar.It also seized large sections of the provincial capital, Ramadi, and has a presence in a number of towns near the Turkish and Syrian borders.The group has gained a reputation for brutality in the areas that it controls.However, it was its conquest of Mogul in June that sent shockwaves around the world.The US said the fall of Iraq's second city posed a threat to the entire region. It may also have made ISIS the most cash-rich militant group in the world.Initially, the group relied on donations from wealthy individuals in Gulf Arab states, particularly Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, who supported its fight against President Bashar al-Assad.
Isis Militants stand in front of a burning truck in Iraq.
Today, ISIS is said to earn significant amounts from the oil fields it controls in eastern Syria, reportedly selling some of the supply back to the Syrian government. It is also believed to have been selling looted antiquities from historical sites. Prof Neumann believes that before the capture of Mosul in June 2014, IS had cash and assets worth about $900m (£500m). Afterwards, this rose to around $2bn (£1.18bn).The group reportedly took hundreds of millions of dollars from Mosul's branch of Iraq's central bank. And its financial windfall looked set to continue if it maintains control of oil fields in northern Iraq.
Isis fightersduring a live video released online
The group has been operating independently of other jihadist groups in Syria such as the al-Nusra Front, the official al-Qaeda affiliate in the country, and has had a tense relationship with other rebels.Baghdadi sought to merge with al-Nusra, which rejected the deal, and the two groups have operated separately since.Zawahiri has urged IS to focus on Iraq and leave Syria to al-Nusra, but Baghdadi and his fighters openly defied the al-Qaeda chief.Hostility to IS grew steadily in Syria as regularly attacked fellow rebels and abused civilian supporters of the Syrian opposition.In January 2014, rebels from both Western-backed and Islamist groups launched an offensive against IS, seeking to drive its predominantly foreign fighters out of Syria.Thousands of people are reported to have been killed in the fighting.
In large part, the defense of the second amendment seems to lean towards personal defense, hunting and sport shooting. Although all of those ideas are indeed inherently protected under the "right to bear arms," the bigger point is overlooked.
