MikeLigalig.com

ABS-CBNnews.com
Posted at 11/11/2013 7:45 PM | Updated as of 11/11/2013 7:46 PM


MANILA â€" University of the Philippines scientist and professor Dr. Mahar Lagmay on Monday belied a viral video claiming that super typhoon “Yolanda” (international name Haiyan) was a man-made disaster.

Lagmay, who is also the executive director of Project Noah, stressed that the man behind the video, who only identified himself as Dutchsinse, failed to prove his hypothesis that “Yolanda” was caused by a technology that emits microwave pulses.

“I see no relation as of the moment… There’s no very solid demonstration of its (microwave pulse) relation with how it generates cyclones, how this makes the water evaporate and accumulate in a particular area. It’s simply not well-documented,” he said.

“You don’t prove something through your golden voice or the way you speak it out… What he was doing is that he was trying to name-drop Stanford University to boost his argument,” he added. “Let’s just put it this way. In science, you have to demonstrate it. It must be repeatable and it must be testable. He was not able to do that and, therefore, it’s not proven.”

Lagmay, who has watched the video, observed that Dutchsinse made other questionable claims.

“From the images he was showing, it would appear that the typhoon was already developed when he was showing the microwave pulses that were being transmitted. And the second thing that I noticed was that he was also relating the microwave pulses with the occurrence of earthquakes, and what we know about earthquakes is that they form because of the accumulation of energy due to earth movements," Lagmay pointed out.

"Lihok. tawo..." 

Stuffed toy man ni...

Hence, a lion's share of renewable energy is coming from bioenergy -- converting more land, growing more crops and tree plantations, even cutting remaining diverse forests to burn for electricity.  The climate, biodiversity and human rights consequences are clearly not good, and no "solution" to global warming.  Besides, renewables currently supply only a tiny faction of global primary energy, according to the International Energy Agency -- about 13 percent in total. But that is largely from bioenergy (10 percent), which includes traditional uses of wood (for cooking, etc.) which comprise about 7 percent. Wind and solar meanwhile contribute a mere 1 percent to total primary energy supply. It would seem dangerously unrealistic to pretend we will replace the remaining 87 percent of global energy supply with wind and solar, or some other renewable, in short enough order to effectively protect our climate. In the end there is no "magic" energy source that will enable us to carry on as we are with business as usual.  We will at some point have to recognize that the laws of nature are uncompromising an there is no alternative other than to focus hard on dramatically reducing human consumption of finite planetary resources. Doing so while simultaneously addressing the needs of millions living in extreme poverty without even their most basic needs met will be a massive challenge. But there really appears to be no other path to success.   

That is, except perhaps in the minds of those who arrogantly believe they are in control of nature. Circling at the edges of the Typhoon Haiyan carnage are the climate geoengineers, eager for an opportunity to peddle their wares: Desperate measures are needed for desperate times, eh? If all else fails, we can just inject sulphate particles into the stratosphere. It might even be less expensive, some argue. Or if we are worried about the weather, we can just engineer the clouds to shine a bit brighter and prevent the next Haiyan from happening. Not only do those approaches seem guaranteed to make things worse, not better, but also we have to ask WHO will be in control.

What would we actually want from a UN agreement?  Binding targets, severe enough to actually make a difference would be great, if terribly and perhaps irretrievably late, but the problem as always is in the details of how to achieve those targets. The UN, like most governments, is falling deeper into the pockets of corporations who remain obsessed with markets as the tool of choice. Not surprising given that carbon markets have allowed polluting corporations to get off the hook and even to profit from trade in thin air. Following quite a few years of time wasted experimenting with those markets, it should be crystal clear by now that they will not deliver on reducing emissions. Perhaps some good old-fashioned regulation, with teeth? That seems almost a laughable suggestion in the U.S. where, unbelievably, there is a Supreme Court challenge, backed by the coal industry, aimed to block the EPA from regulating emissions from smokestacks.

Besides carbon markets, the other rallying call is for more renewable energy. That too has great appeal to corporations, who envision carrying on business as usual while perhaps plugging in a few windmills. Even the environmental groups like to call for renewable energy ad nauseam. It sounds nice, but nobody has bothered to seriously debate what IS renewable.

And still, the United States meanwhile remains shamefully mired in Tea Party muck, barely able to even utter the words "climate change" in government circles much less do anything whatsoever about it.  Endless time and energy is dithered away debating whether or not climate change even exists! Obama made noises in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, newly empowered by his reelection.  But adding insult to injury, the solutions he offered up were largely a laundry list of false solutions: In line with his "all of the above" energy strategy he called for more offshore oil drilling and more hydrofracking. Not a word was spoken about halting the massive subsidies going into fossil fuels. With a nod to the coal industry, he advocated for "clean coal" based on carbon capture and storage mythology, and praised efforts to expand bioenergy in spite of ever mounting evidence of the harms. While environmentalists took some solace in the fact that he at least called for caps on some coal plant emissions, his goals were so weak as to be considered a token gesture. And even those pathetic limits are being challenged by Tea Party extremists and the coal industry. 

The same kinds of false solutions are vying for attention under the UN negotiations, where corporations have been handed the reins. They do what corporations do, namely seek profits.  So the solutions on offer are largely centered on enhancing business opportunities (and avoiding real regulations that could hamper profit making).

Anyone with a modicum of empathy for other living beings must feel deeply troubled.

Last year, the lead negotiator from the Philippines, Yeb Sano broke into tears at the negotiations in Doha describing the damage inflicted by typhoon Bhopa, and today in Warsaw, as the death toll from Haiyan continues to mount, he announced that he would commence a voluntary fast "until a meaningful outcome is in sight." A few weeks ago, the chair of the UNFCCC, Christina Figueres broke into tears bemoaning the failure to take steps to ensure future generations a livable planet.

So far, tears and emotional pleas appear incapable of breaking the gridlock that epitomizes the UN climate negotiations. That gridlock is to a large extent courtesy of the United States obstructionist strategies. In the early days of the negotiations our representatives demanded that market based approaches be made front and center, threatening to refuse participation otherwise. Then the U.S. refused to ratify the protocol in any case. Then our representatives insisted that we would do nothing whatsoever that could "harm the American way of life" (aka interfere with ruthless profit making economic growth). The subtext of that statement being "no matter what the consequences for other people's lives elsewhere"). Then our president waltzed into Copenhagen and arrogantly undermined the hard work of an international consensus, ignoring protocol to ram through an American version of an "agreement." The purpose apparently was to remove the fangs from any serious commitments and stir the smoldering embers of discontent and disunity that were already in place as nations around the world faced compromises they were already reluctant to accept.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
Rachel Smolker
Co-director, Biofuelwatch
Posted: 11/11/2013 4:39 pm


The latest round of climate negotiations are opening just as we are hearing the stories and viewing images on the news coverage of the devastation wrought on the Philippines by Typhoon Haiyan (aka Yolanda).  Coincidentally, the last round of climate negotiations, COP 18 in Doha were similarly punctuated by a devastating typhoon, Bhopa (aka Pablo) that also struck the Philippines. 

Climate scientists long warned we would experience more and more extreme weather events. Well, here it is, just as predicted. In the Philippines, thousands of lives have been lost. Bodies are floating in the streets -- mothers, fathers, babies, children. Not just meaningless statistics from some far away unreal place, but real people: loved ones and friends whose lives have been smashed and obliterated, while the world around them -- trees, land, coastlines, and the creatures that inhabit that part of the world -- have been flattened, blown away and drowned.

Residents cover their nose from the smell of dead bodies
Bullit Marquez/AP

Overturned vehicles are seen at a rice field after super Typhoon Haiyan battered Tacloban city, central Philippines, November 9, 2013. http://ph.news.yahoo.com/

In coordination with the US Agency for International Development and the US ambassador in Manila, the Department of Defense will continue to monitor the effects of Typhoon Haiyan and stands ready to help our ally recover from the storm, the Pentagon said.

The International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde in a statement expressed sadness at the extensive damage and devastating loss of life from Typhoon Haiyan in the central Philippines.

"On behalf of myself and my colleagues at the IMF, I would like to offer our sympathy to those affected by this natural disaster. Our thoughts are with those who have lost loved ones, crews undertaking the rescue operation, and with the people of the Philippines as they work to recover from this terrible tragedy," she said in a statement.

Senator Robert Menendez, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the images of devastation caused by Typhoon Haiyan coming out of the Philippines are truly heartbreaking.

"The Filipino people have my sympathy and support as they deal with the effects of a storm. The United States can and must do everything in our power to assist our friend and ally in dealing with the devastating consequences of this storm, and to help meet the needs of the Filipino people in addressing this disaster," he said. -- http://www.business-standard.com/

US marines in typhoon-hit Philippines for disaster relief


The United States has dispatched a team of about 80 marines to carry out humanitarian relief operations in the Philippines in the wake of the devastating Typhoon Haiyan that has killed more than 10,000 people.

The United States stands ready to provide more assistance, President Barack Obama said in a statement.

"Michelle (Obama) and I are deeply saddened by the loss of life and extensive damage done by Super Typhoon Yolanda. But I know the incredible resiliency of the Philippine people, and I am confident that the spirit of Bayanihan will see you through this tragedy," Obama said.

"The United States is already providing significant humanitarian assistance, and we stand ready to further assist the government's relief and recovery efforts. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the millions of people affected by this devastating storm," he said.

The Pentagon said Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has directed the US Pacific Command to support US government humanitarian relief operations in the Philippines in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan.

"The initial focus includes surface maritime search and rescue (SAR), medium-heavy helicopter lift support, airborne maritime SAR, fixed-wing lift support and logistics enablers," it said.

Lieutenant Colonel Fermin Carangan of the Philippine Air Force recalls how he and 41 officers struggled to survive huddled in their airport office as winds approached 195 miles per hour (313 km per hour) with gusts of up to 235 mph.

"Suddenly the sea water and the waves destroyed the walls and I saw my men being swept by waters one by one." Two drowned and five are missing.

He was swept away from the building and clung to a coconut tree with a seven-year-old boy.

"In the next five hours we were in the sea buffeted by wind and strong rain. It was so dark you couldn't see anything. I kept on talking to the boy and giving him a pep talk because the boy was telling me he was tired and he wanted to sleep."

He finally saw land and swam with the boy to a beach strewn with dead bodies. "I think the boy saved my life because I found strength so that he can survive."

Full article at: http://news.yahoo.com/toppled-philippine-church-cross-overlooks-typhoons-destruction-123534137.html

Hala! Grabeha...

Quote from: islander on November 11, 2013, 10:08:38 AM
your own fashion statement?  how nice to see your image here at tb then...

Actually, you were my trope's source of inspiration...

Sayang way picture. Seguradong mahimong meme generator...

The immensely powerful Super Typhoon Haiyan struck Friday and was the worst natural disaster ever to hit the Philippines. Stunned authorities there say the death toll could be well over 10,000.

The country's officials seemed overwhelmed by the scale of the death and destruction. Looters were reportedly turning violent, security was lacking, drinking water and food were scarce, the stench of corpses was heavy, and shelter was needed.

Other aid mobilised included:

Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) said it was sending 200 tonnes of aid -- medicine, tents, hygiene kits -- to arrive mid-week, with a first cargo plane leaving from Dubai on Monday and another from Belgium on Tuesday.

Up to $5 million promised by Canada to humanitarian organisations trying to help survivors in the Philippines.

New Zealand and Australia donating an immediate $490,000, with further support when the devastation is better assessed.

Oxfam, the British-based relief group, said it has sent an assessment team ahead of aid operations.

The UN children's fund UNICEF said a cargo plane carrying 60 tonnes of aid including shelters and medicine would arrive in the Philippines Tuesday, to be followed by deliveries of water purification and sanitation equipment.

The European Commission said it would give $4 million (three million euros) to help in relief efforts.

Britain offered another emergency support package worth $9.6 million. Germany's embassy in Manila said an initial shipment of 23 tonnes of aid was being flown in and German rescue teams were already at work.

Pope Francis, "deeply saddened" by the disaster, on Sunday urged Catholics to provide "concrete help" and led 60,000 people in prayers for the Philippines.

"Sadly, there are many, many victims and the damage is huge," he said. On Saturday, he had tweeted his sympathy to the Asian nation.

World sends emergency aid to battered Philippines
By: Agence France-Presse
November 11, 2013 3:10 AM


PARIS, November 10, 2013 (AFP) - Countries and organizations around the world, including the US, the UN and the EU, on Sunday scrambled aid to the Philippines as the devastation wreaked by Super Typhoon Haiyan became clearer.

US military help was on its way, after the Pentagon said Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel was responding to a request from Manila for assistance. It included search-and-rescue ships and transport aircraft deployed from the United States' Pacific deployments.

UN leader Ban Ki-moon promised UN humanitarian agencies would "respond rapidly to help people in need".

"New Zealand will consider further support as the full extent of the damage becomes clear," he said, following one of the most powerful typhoons in history, believed to have killed 1,200 people in the Philippines, according to the Red Cross.

McCully's Australian counterpart Julie Bishop said she was saddened by the loss of life and damage to homes and property.

"We're immediately providing pre-positioned emergency supplies, including sleeping mats, blankets, mosquito nets, water containers and health and hygiene kits for families devastated by the typhoon," she said.

"Two Australian disaster experts are already on the ground assisting the Philippine government and the United Nations to conduct a rapid needs assessment in those areas worst affected."

She added that "we stand ready to provide further assistance if required."

“My thoughts are with the people of the Philippines, in particular those who have lost loved ones. UK support is now underway. Many thousands of people in remote, hard to reach communities have lost their homes and everything they own. They are living in the open and completely exposed to the elements,” Greening said.

“The absolute priority must be to reach them with shelter and protection as soon as possible,” he added.

New Zealand and Australia on Sunday donated an immediate $490,000 toward relief efforts in the typhoon-ravaged Philippines and said additional support could follow.

Wellington chipped in $124,000 and Canberra gave $366,000.

New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully said their aid had gone to the Red Cross to help the organization maintain emergency supplies and carry out impact assessments following the devastation of super typhoon Yolanda.

The Ambassador of the European Union Guy Ledoux said EU will stand by the Philippines and provide humanitarian aid to families affected by the super typhoon.

"An EU humanitarian aid team is already in the Philippines to assess the impact of the typhoon and find out how the EU can be most helpful to those most urgent need," he said.

UK International Development Secretary Justine Greening made a similar announcement after activating its Rapid Response Facility, which provides emergency support via pre-approved organizations in the event of a humanitarian disaster overseas.

The UK Rapid Response Facility support of £5 million to partners on the ground can provide crucial humanitarian aid for up to 500,000 people, including temporary shelter and access to clean water. Urgently-needed shelter items such as plastic sheeting and household items like kitchen sets and blankets will be provided from the UK’s stockpile of humanitarian items.

An additional team of four humanitarian experts are also set to join the three advisers already in country helping to coordinate the international response, plus equipment to support them.

By: InterAksyon.com | Agence France-Presse
November 10, 2013 10:24 AM



Yolanda caused collapse of many buildings in central Tacloban, 10 November 2013. ERIK DE CASTRO/REUTERS


MANILA â€" International aid continued to pour in for the more than 4 million people affected by super typhoon Yolanda.

Aside from expressing their sympathies, the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand are sending money and relief supplies to the Philippines.

The US Pentagon has announced that its air and naval assets are on their way to the Philippines after US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel directed the US Pacific Command to immediately support humanitarian and disaster relief operations in areas devastated by the world’s strongest typhoon of the year.

Tacloban

Pagamay-gamay lang...

Walk On the Wet Side

TACLOBAN. Residents walk past the devastation, including bodies of victims (foreground), brought about by powerful Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013, in Tacloban City, Leyte. (AP)

Madridejos in ruins

Darchinyan came back up thereafter and tried to stand his ground, but Donaire launched a relentless attack en route to scoring a technical-knockout victory going into the dying 55 seconds of the match.

The victory regained for Donaire his stature as one of the world's best pound-for-pound fighter after losing to Guillermo Rigondeaux in their junior-featherweight unification bout last April.

Darchinyan, who was seeking to revive his ailing and ageing career, dominated the early rounds with some strong shots and counterpunches, but failed to avenge his loss to the Filipino Flash in their first encounter in 2007.

While Donaire scored his 32nd victory in 34 fights, 21 of those via knockout, the Raging Bull Darchinyan dropped his win-loss-draw record to 40-5-1.

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/
By Luel Galarpe
Sunday, November 10, 2013



Nonito Donaire (right) lands a punch on Vic Darchinyan during round 6 of their featherweight rematch, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013, in Corpus Christi, Texas. (AP)


CEBU CITY (2nd Update) -- Nonito Donaire, 2012 "Fighter of the Decade," bounced back from an unimpressive performance in the early rounds to score a ninth-round stoppage over former four-time champion Vic Darchinyan in their grudge rematch Saturday night (Sunday morning RP time) at the American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, Texas.

Donaire, who was not doing near well as expected of him in the first seven rounds, stung Darchinyan with a strong straight to the face and followed it with another blow to the head before sending the Armenian-Australian to the canvas with his signature left hook with still 1:45 left in the ninth round.

Typhoon belt worn as a fashion accessory? Cool. Pwede pud fashion accessory ang ring of fire, anha gitaod sa ilong...

Cute Botoy asleep after obtaining relief...

Tim Ticar, a local tourism officer, said 6,000 foreign and local tourists were stranded on the popular resort island of Boracay, one of the tourist spots in the typhoon's path.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon offered his condolences and said U.N. humanitarian agencies were working closely with the Philippine government to respond rapidly with emergency assistance, according to a statement released by the U.N. spokesperson's office.

UNICEF estimated that about 1.7 million children are living in areas impacted by the typhoon, according to the agency's representative in the Philippines Tomoo Hozumi. UNICEF's supply division in Copenhagen was loading 60 metric tons of relief supplies for an emergency airlift expected to arrive in the Philippines on Tuesday.

Haiyan was forecast to lash central Vietnam's coast on Sunday afternoon, making its way to the northern part of the country before likely weakening to a tropical storm.

Vietnamese authorities in four central provinces were evacuating more than 500,000 people from high-risk areas to government buildings, schools and other concrete homes able to withstand strong winds.

"The evacuation is being conducted with urgency," disaster official Nguyen Thi Yen Linh said from central Danang City, where some 76,000 were being moved to safety.

Hundreds of thousands of others were being taken to shelters in the provinces of Quang Ngai, Quang Nam and Thua Thien Hue. Schools were closed and two deputy prime ministers were sent to the region to direct the preparations.

In Torotoro's village, bodies could be seen lying along the muddy main road, as residents who had lost their homes huddled, holding on to the few things they had managed to save. The road was lined with trees that had fallen to the ground.

Vice Mayor Jim Pe of Coron town on Busuanga, the last island battered by the typhoon before it blew away to the South China Sea, said most of the houses and buildings there had been destroyed or damaged. Five people drowned in the storm surge and three others were missing, he said by phone.

"It was like a 747 flying just above my roof," he said, describing the sound of the winds. He said his family and some of his neighbors whose houses were destroyed took shelter in his basement.

Philippine broadcaster ABS-CBN showed fierce winds whipping buildings and vehicles as storm surges swamped Tacloban with debris-laden floodwaters.

In the aftermath of the typhoon, people were seen weeping while retrieving bodies of loved ones inside buildings and on a street that was littered with fallen trees, roofing material and other building parts torn off in the storm's fury. All that was left of one large building whose walls were smashed in were the skeletal remains of its rafters.

ABS-CBN television anchor Ted Failon, who was able to report only briefly Friday from Tacloban, said the storm surge was "like the tsunami in Japan."

"The sea engulfed Tacloban," he said, explaining that a major part of the city is surrounded on three sides by the waters between Leyte and Samar islands.

Tacloban is near the Red Beach on Leyte Island where US Gen. Douglas MacArthur waded ashore on October 20, 1944, fulfilling his famous pledge, "I shall return," made in March 1942 after President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered him to relocate to Australia as Japanese forces pushed back US and Filipino defenders.

Tacloban was the first city to be liberated by US and Filipino forces and served as the Philippines' temporary capital for several months. It is also the home town of former Filipino first lady Imelda Marcos, whose nephew, Alfred Romualdez, is the city's mayor.

The president of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, said in a message to Aquino that the EC had sent a team to assist the Philippine authorities and that "we stand ready to contribute with urgent relief and assistance if so required in this hour of need."

One Tacloban resident said he and others took refuge inside a parked Jeep to protect themselves from the storm, but the vehicle was swept away by a surging wall of water.

"The water was as high as a coconut tree," said 44-year-old Sandy Torotoro, a bicycle taxi driver who lives near the airport with his wife and 8-year-old daughter. "I got out of the Jeep and I was swept away by the rampaging water with logs, trees and our house, which was ripped off from its mooring."

"When we were being swept by the water, many people were floating and raising their hands and yelling for help. But what can we do? We also needed to be helped," Torotoro said.

The city's two largest malls and groceries were looted and the gasoline stations destroyed by the typhoon. Police were deployed to guard a fuel depot to prevent looting of fuel.

On Sunday, the city's overwhelmed services were reinforced by 100 special police force units sent in from elsewhere to help restore peace and order.

"On the way to the airport we saw many bodies along the street," said Philippine-born Australian Mila Ward, 53, who was waiting at the airport to catch a military flight back to Manila.

"They were covered with just anything â€" tarpaulin, roofing sheets, cardboards," she said. Asked how many, she said, "Well over 100 where we passed."

US Marine Col. Mike Wylie surveyed the damage in Tacloban prior to possible American assistance. "The storm surge came in fairly high and there is significant structural damage and trees blown over," said Wylie, who is a member of the US-Philippines Military Assistance Group based in Manila.

At the request of the Philippine government, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel directed US Pacific Command to deploy ships and aircraft to support search-and-rescue operations and airlift emergency supplies, according to a statement released by the Defense Department press office.

Even by the standards of the Philippines, which is buffeted by many natural calamities â€" about 20 typhoons a year, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions â€" the latest disaster shocked the impoverished nation of 96 million people.

The airport in Tacloban, about 580 kilometers southeast of Manila, looked like a muddy wasteland of debris, with crumpled tin roofs and upturned cars. The airport tower's glass windows were shattered, and air force helicopters were busy flying in and out at the start of relief operations. Residential homes that had lined up a 7-kilometer (4-mile) stretch of road leading to Tacloban city were all blown or washed away.

The winds were so strong that Tacloban residents who sought shelter at a local school tied down the roof of the building but it was still ripped off and the school collapsed, Lim said. It wasn't clear how many died there.

"The devastation is, I don't have the words for it," Roxas said. "It's really horrific. It's a great human tragedy."

Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin said Aquino was "speechless" when he told him of the devastation the typhoon had wrought in Tacloban.

"I told him all systems are down," Gazmin said. "There is no power, no water, nothing. People are desperate. They're looting."

The typhoon barreled through six central Philippine islands on Friday, wiping away buildings and leveling seaside homes with ferocious winds of 235 kilometers per hour and gusts of 275 kph. By those measurements, Haiyan would be comparable to a strong Category 4 hurricane in the US, and nearly in the top category, a 5.

It weakened Sunday to 163 kph with stronger gusts as it approached central and northern Vietnam where authorities evacuated more than 500,000 people. It was forecast to make landfall Monday morning.

"The rescue operation is ongoing. We expect a very high number of fatalities as well as injured," Interior Secretary Mar Roxas said after visiting Tacloban on Saturday. "All systems, all vestiges of modern living â€" communications, power, water â€" all are down. Media is down, so there is no way to communicate with the people in a mass sort of way."

President Benigno Aquino III said the casualties "will be substantially more" than the official count of 151 â€" but gave no figure or estimate. He said the government's priority was to restore power and communications in isolated areas to allow for the delivery of relief and medical assistance to victims.

The US and other governments and agencies were mounting a major relief effort "because of the magnitude of the disaster," said Philippine Red Cross chairman Richard Gordon.

By Jim Gomez (Associated Press) | Updated November 10, 2013 - 11:00am



A Philippine flag flutters amidst the devastation brought about by powerful Typhoon Yolanda at Tacloban City. AP


TACLOBAN, Philippines â€" The death toll from one of the strongest storms on record that ravaged the central Philippine city of Tacloban could reach 10,000 people, officials said Sunday after the extent of massive devastation became apparent and horrified survivors spoke of storm surges as high as trees and winds sounding like the roar of a jumbo jet.

Regional police chief Elmer Soria said he was briefed by Leyte provincial Gov. Dominic Petilla late Saturday and told there were about 10,000 deaths in the province, mostly by drowning and from collapsed buildings. The governor's figure was based on reports from village officials in areas where Typhoon Haiyan slammed Friday.

Tacloban city administrator Tecson Lim said that the death toll in the city alone "could go up to 10,000." Tacloban is the Leyte provincial capital of 200,000 people and the biggest city on Leyte Island.

About 300-400 bodies have already been recovered and "still a lot under the debris," Lim said. A mass burial was planned Sunday in Palo town near Tacloban.

“On the contrary, key witnesses in P10-billion pork barrel scam led by Benhur Luy have directly pinpointed some key political figures belonging to the opposition as among those who misused their PDAF through bogus foundations allegedly set up by Janet Lim-Napoles,” he said.         

Luy and other witnesses and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) have filed plunder cases against Napoles and Senators Jinggoy Estrada, Juan Ponce Enrile and Ramon Revilla Jr.         

Estrada and Enrile are leaders of UNA, while Revilla chairs Lakas, the ruling party during the Arroyo administration.         

Napoles and the three senators have denied any wrongdoing.

Another LP leader, Rep. Jerry Treñas of Iloilo City, said some opposition personalities “are already too pre-occupied in political mudslinging just to advance their political agenda in 2016 without realizing that their actions have been stalling government efforts to spread the benefits of the country’s unprecedented economic growth.”

At the same time, by attacking the administration, these critics “are providing a smokescreen for their peers who are now in deep trouble for misusing their Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) allocations,” he said.         

“It is too obvious. The people who are behind this smear campaign are hell-bent on destroying the gains of the Aquino administration so that they can have the upper hand in 2016. Crab mentality has to stop because this is the very reason why we cannot move forward as a nation,” Sarmiento said.         

“The opposition has been desperately trying to twist the facts to make it appear that their peers are victims in the PDAF scam. It’s just too bad that some people are too gullible to fall for their lies,” he added.         

He lamented that opposition figures have been trying to equate the administration’s use of government savings under the Disbursement Acceleration Program with the PDAF scam without providing any proof that DAP funds were misused.

By Jess Diaz (The Philippine Star) | Updated November 9, 2013 - 12:00am





MANILA, Philippines - Allies of Vice President Jejomar Binay are out to cripple President Aquino politically so his endorsement of his successor in the 2016 elections would not carry much weight, leaders of the ruling Liberal Party (LP) claimed yesterday.         

Western Samar Rep. Mel Senen Sarmiento, who is LP secretary-general, said administration critics identified with Binay’s United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) are working to “discredit the administration of President Aquino and diminish the power of his endorsement in the 2016 national elections.”

"Drug tolerance is an important subject, especially in the case of caffeine since most of us overuse this drug," Miller says on his blog.

"If you drink caffeine at a time when your cortisol concentration in the blood is at its peak, you probably should not be drinking it."

This is because cortisol production is strongly related to your level of alertness and it just so happens that cortisol peaks for your 24-hour rhythm between 8am and 9am on average.

"Therefore, you are drinking caffeine at a time when you are already approaching your maximal level of alertness naturally. One of the key principles of pharmacology is use a drug when it is needed. Otherwise, we can develop tolerance to a drug administered at the same dose."

Miller says the optimal time for caffeine is between 9.30am and 11.30am.

On average, he says, blood levels peak again between 12pm and 1pm, and between 5.30pm and 6.30pm.

Your coffee will therefore be the most effective if you enjoy it when your cortisol levels are dropping, but before the next spike.

If you just can't wait for your morning caffeine hit, Miller suggests a tip learned from a professor: providing the sun isn't blindingly bright, drive or walk to work without sunglasses.

This will help increase morning cortisol production at a faster rate and make you feel more alert.

Wake up and postpone the coffee
THE AUSTRALIAN
NOVEMBER 07, 2013 10:52AM





Neuroscientist Steven Miller says it's best to wait a few hours after waking before imbibing your first coffee.
HERE'S a word you shouldn't try to get your head around if you haven't had your morning coffee yet: chronopharmacology.

It is the "the study of the interaction of biological rhythms and drug action", says Steven Miller, a neuroscience PhD student of Washington DC, and it applies significantly to the flat white or latte most Australians will consume sometime during the morning.

It also explains why you shouldn’t have consumed one at 8am.

By OLIVER TEVES and TERESA CEROJANO, Associated Press
November 8, 2013


MANILA, Philippines (AP) â€" One of the strongest storms on record slammed into the central Philippines, killing more than 100 people whose bodies lay in the streets of one of the hardest-hit cities, an official said Saturday.

Capt. John Andrews, deputy director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, said more than 100 others were injured in the city of Tacloban on Leyte Island, where Typhoon Haiyan hit Friday.

With power and most communications knocked out a day after the typhoon ravaged the central region, Andrew told The Associated Press that the information about the deaths was relayed to him by his staff in Tacloban.

"The information is reliable," he said.

Nearly 750,000 people were forced to flee their homes and damage was believed to be extensive.

Weather officials said Haiyan had sustained winds of 235 kph (147 mph) with gusts of 275 kph (170 mph) when it made landfall. By those measurements, Haiyan would be comparable to a strong Category 4 hurricane in the U.S., nearly in the top category, a 5.

Hurricanes, cyclones and typhoons are the same thing. They are just called different names in different parts of the world.

Because of cut-off communications in the Philippines, it was impossible to know the full extent of casualties and damage. Officially, four people were listed as dead as of Saturday morning, before the latest information from Tacloban came in.

I have two eggs: chicken and elephant bird.

http://www.thespec.com/
By Simeon Bennett


GENEVA Polio, the crippling virus driven to the brink of extinction, could return to Europe as regional conflicts undermine a $10-billion eradication campaign.

The United Nations says a massive campaign to vaccinate children in the Middle East has begun after the first cases in 14 years were confirmed in northeastern Syria last week. Red Crescent and government health workers in Syria and neighbouring countries aim to immunize 20 million children.

Polio's reappearance raises the risk that the virus will hitch a ride on unsuspecting refugees fleeing the country and return to areas, including Europe, that have been polio-free for decades, according to a letter published in the The Lancet medical journal Friday.

"Polio is making a comeback," said Martin Eichner, a professor at the University of Tuebingen who co-authored the letter to The Lancet. Eichner and a German colleague warned that the vaccine used in the United States and Europe offers only partial protection against infection and called for heightened screening of sewage systems near refugee settlements in Turkey and Jordan. Syrian war refugees, moreover, have begun arriving in Western Europe, including Sweden and Germany.

UNICEF says 10 children have so far been paralyzed by the virus and it poses a risk to hundreds of thousands of children across the region.

It says preliminary evidence indicates that the strain in Syria is of Pakistani origin and is similar to one found in sewage samples in Egypt, Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Polio has been eradicated in most countries but remains endemic in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria.

It is the latest in a parade of spacecraft falling from the sky in what are worryingly called “uncontrolled entries.” About 100 tons of debris will fall from the sky this year alone. There are, however, no known instances in which anyone has been injured by space debris.

“It’s rather hard to predict where the spacecraft will re-enter and impact,” said Rune Floberghagen, the mission manager for the European Space Agency’s Gravity Field and Steady-State Ocean Circulation Explorer, or GOCE. “Concretely our best engineering prediction is now for a re-entry on Sunday, with a possibility for it slipping into early Monday.”

GOCE (pronounced GO-chay) ran out of propellant last month and has been dropping about 2.5 miles a day. As of Wednesday, it was still 113 miles up as it circled the Earth once every 88 minutes. Its orbit goes almost directly over the poles, and as the planet rotates, almost all places on Earth pass beneath it at some point.

Two years ago, NASA’s decommissioned Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, tumbling out of control, worried people around the world until it splashed harmlessly in the Pacific. Later that year, the Russian spacecraft Phobos-Grunt launched into orbit, but then malfunctioned. Instead of heading toward Mars, it crashed back to Earth a couple of months later, again falling in the Pacific without incident.

The chances that a chunk of GOCE or any other space debris will injure anyone are tiny, but not zero. Dr. Floberghagen said the debris will endanger about 15 to 20 square yards of the Earth’s surface. “If you compare that to the surface of the planet, it’s a very small number,” he said.

http://www.nytimes.com/
By KENNETH CHANG
Published: November 6, 2013



An artist's depiction of the European Space Agency’s Gravity Field and Steady-State Ocean Circulation Explorer satellite in orbit.


A European satellite that mapped Earth’s gravitational field in exquisite detail will be pulled down by gravity to its fiery destruction sometime in the next few days.

Where and when it will crash no one knows. It could be almost anywhere on the globe. About 25 to 45 fragments of the one-ton spacecraft are expected to survive all the way to the surface, with the largest perhaps weighing 200 pounds.

Aepyornis maximus

From Wikipedia

Elephant birds were a family of large to enormous, flightless birds that once lived on the island of Madagascar, which lies about 320 km (200 mi) off the southeast coast of Africa. They became extinct, probably in the 17th or 18th century, for reasons that are unclear, although human activity is the suspected cause. Elephant birds comprised the genera Mullerornis and Aepyornis. Aepyornis was among the heaviest of birds (the extinct Dromornis stirtoni of Australia reached a similar weight).



Size of Aepyornis maximus (centre, in purple) compared to a human, an ostrich (second from right, in maroon), and some non-avian theropod dinosaurs. Each gridline is one meter in height.

CEBU. A team from the Cebu City Traffic Operations and Management starts to remove a tree that toppled in Fuente Osmeña when typhoon Yolanda passed by Cebu and made landfall in the north twice yesterday morning.  (Allan Defensor)

Bhola cyclone's path

From Wikipedia

The 1970 Bhola cyclone was a devastating tropical cyclone that struck East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and India's West Bengal on November 11, 1970. It remains the deadliest tropical cyclone ever recorded, and one of the deadliest natural disasters in modern times. Up to 500,000 people lost their lives in the storm, primarily as a result of the storm surge that flooded much of the low-lying islands of the Ganges Delta. This cyclone was the sixth cyclonic storm of the 1970 North Indian Ocean cyclone season, and also the season's strongest, reaching a strength equivalent to a strong Category 3 hurricane.

The cyclone formed over the central Bay of Bengal on November 8 and travelled north, intensifying as it did so. It reached its peak with winds of 185 km/h (115 mph) on November 11, and made landfall on the coast of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) that night. The storm surge devastated many of the offshore islands, wiping out villages and destroying crops throughout the region. In the most severely affected upazila, Tazumuddin, over 45% of the population of 167,000 was killed by the storm.

LIGHT SHOPPING. Grid-rechargeable lights and battery-powered flashlights sold like hotcakes as the public prepares for super-typhoon Yolanda, which the weather bureau says will hit the Visayas regions hard. (Sun.Star Cebu Photo/Allan Cuizon)

CALBAYOG CITY. Workers offload sacks of rice to be repacked as relief goods at the Calbayog City Hall compound in preparation for Typhoon Yolanda on November 7, 2013. (Gerwin Babon)

Why everyone is talking about the super typhoon
Doyle Rice and Alia E. Dastagir, USA TODAY 7:16 p.m. EST November 7, 2013


Super Typhoon Haiyan, which slammed into the Philippines early Friday morning, is one of the strongest storms ever recorded on the planet. Here are some fast facts about the storm:

• Super Typhoon Haiyan had winds of 195 mph and gusts of 235 mph. This is one of the highest wind speeds ever recorded in a storm in world history.

• It made landfall as the most powerful typhoon or hurricane in recorded history, as based on wind speed measurements from satellites.

• The strength of Haiyan is equal to that of an extremely powerful Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic. (Typhoons are the same type of storms as hurricanes).

• No hurricane in the Atlantic has ever been this strong; Hurricane Camille hit the U.S. Gulf Coast with an estimated wind speed of 190 mph.

• The storm is over 300 miles wide: The width is about equal to the distance between Boston and Philadelphia.

• Haiyan is the fourth typhoon to hit the Philippines in 2013.

• The Philippines typically gets hit by more typhoons than any country on Earth, usually about six or seven each year.

• About 10 million people live on the central Philippine islands and are most at risk of a direct strike from Haiyan.

• A storm surge as high as 15 feet is possible in some parts of the Philippines.

• A 50-mile wide swath of 8+ inches of rain is predicted to cross the central Philippines, which will lead to dangerous flash floods and mudslides.

• Sea level rise from global warming is escalating the risk posed by storm surges across the globe, including in low-lying areas of the Philippines.

• Haiyan is the Chinese word for petrel, a type of bird that lives over the open sea and returns to land only for breeding.

• Haiyan is the 28th named storm of the 2013 Western Pacific typhoon season.

• The storm is known as Super Typhoon Yolanda in the Philippines. The World Meteorological Organization officially assigns typhoon names, to have a consistent name for a storm, but other countries are free to create their own names too.

Wa pa man si Bay Tigs. Sub lang una ko...




Yolanda makes landfall for 3rd time in Northern Cebu
November 8, 2013 11:02am


After making landfall twice Friday morning, Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) made landfall for the third time in Northern Cebu province in Central Visayas before noon.

PAGASA said the third landfall was over Daanbantayan at the northern tip of Cebu, radio dzBB's Sam Nielsen reported.

Yolanda had made landfall over Samar and Leyte in Eastern Visayas earlier Friday.

However, PAGASA continues to track Yolanda for more possible landfalls throughout the day, the report said.

The dzBB report said Yolanda may make possible landfall over:

    Estancia, Iloilo between noon and 1 p.m.
    Aklan between 2 and 3 p.m.
    Semirara between 4 and 5 p.m.
    southeast of Occidental Mindoro between 5 and 6 p.m.
    south of San Jose, Occidental Mindoro between 6 and 7 p.m.
    southwest of San Jose, Occidental Mindoro between 7 and 8 p.m.
    Busuanga, Palawan between 8 and 9 p.m.

Yolanda is expected to exit the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Saturday. â€" RSJ, GMA News

Quote from: TUBAGBOHOL.com on September 13, 2013, 05:34:41 PM
“The antidote to our restlessness is not necessarily another adventure or experience of a lifetime, but a deep abiding in where we are now. How does this happen? With waiting.

It was the same for the men who operated in Bulgaria: one of them was Canadian, the other Australian; they had entered the country legally. Nothing in their attitude betrayed the true objective of their stay. Bulgarian investigators describe them as smart-looking youths, dressed head to toe with big-brand clothes. They rented cars and booked hotel rooms with fake U.S. drivers’ licenses. That was their only mistake. “The documents were made by a forger in Lebanon, known by our colleagues from Western intelligence services,” explains Bulgaria’s organized crime czar, Stanimir Florov. Money transfers from Lebanon, as well as a photo on which relatives of one of the terrorists posed with high-ranking Hezbollah militants, convinced Bulgarian officials: All the tracks lead back to Beirut.

Counter-terrorism experts also noted a “professionalization” of Hezbollah agents abroad. “Using fake IDs, speaking foreign languages, conspiracy techniques and coded communications… as well as a secrecy between members, which is the best way to protect other members, ” explains a European police official.

Hossam Taleb Yaacoub has always claimed he had never been face-to-face with his Lebanese handler and that he did not know the real purpose of his mission. This could also be the case for the young man who died in the explosion of the bomb he carried in his backpack, in front of the Israeli tourists’ bus at the Burgas airport. First described as a “suicide bomber,” he was “probably fooled by his the other two team members, who managed to escape the bombing,” says a Bulgarian investigator. Nothing, not even his DNA was able to establish his true identity.

Blacklisting Hezbollah

Bulgaria’s announcement also had important consequences from a European point of view. Some major countries of the EU, including France and Germany, have not designated Hezbollah as a terrorist organization, so as to preserve the fragile political equilibrium in Lebanon. In light of the events in Cyprus and Burgas, some are “reviewing” their stance, while others “are not sufficiently convinced,” according to Bulgarian Prime Minister Marin Raikov.

But in the U.S., there is no doubt. Early 2013, the U.S. Congress invited the EU to blacklist Hezbollah. An invitation reiterated by some of Washington’s top officials, to Israel's utmost satisfaction.

For Matthew Levitt, Hezbollah is a key ally of Iran â€" maybe even its military proxy â€" playing “a central role in Iran’s shadow war with the West.” Taking advantage of the leniency of some European capitals, Hezbollah has strengthened its network in Europe, recruiting and positioning agents all across the continent. Bi-nationals with ties with Lebanon have the ideal profile. Recruited at age 19, Hossam Taleb Yaacoub had a Swedish passport and did not arouse the suspicion of European police. This allowed him to travel frequently from Turkey to the Netherlands, through Lyon, in east-central France, carrying mysterious packages for Hezbollah.

The man â€" a self-confessed member of Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shiite militant group â€" was a scout for the organization, tasked with monitoring the comings and goings of Israeli tourists on the island, in view of organizing a terrorist attack.

In front of the judges, Hossam Taleb Yaacoub denied being a terrorist, saying he had only “gathered information about Jews.” “That's what my organization does around the world,” he added.

According to reports from the Cyprus police, the Hezbollah agent was particularly meticulous. He took notes on everything: flight schedules, bus license plates, the numbers of security guards, hotels, kosher restaurants etc.

Hossam Taleb Yaacoub was arrested on July 7, 2012 by the Cyprus police. But it is only two weeks later that his activities started making sense, says Matthew Levitt, director of the Stein Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

On the other side of the Bosporus, in Burgas, on the Bulgarian coast, a bus transporting Israeli tourists was blown up, killing seven people, including the bomber. “It is clear that Hossam Taleb Yaacoub was preparing another attack that was supposed to take place around the same time,” says Levitt. In Feb. 2013, Bulgarian authorities announced their investigations led them to believe that the Hezbollah was behind the bus bombing. Bulgaria had suddenly become a pawn on the dangerous chessboard that is the Middle-Eastern conflict.