Blind Man's Legacy Continues to Teach After Almost 90 Years

After losing his vision at 55, former high school teacher William A. Hadley was faced with the challenges that are realized by all of us who lose our vision or are born blind. One of his greatest sources of frustration was the lack of educational opportunities available for the blind. 

After teaching himself braille, Mr. Hadley decided that he could help other vision impaired individuals learn much needed communication skills. With the help of his neighbor and ophthalmologist Dr. E.V.L. Brown the idea of teaching by mail was conceived. In this manner he could teach those who may otherwise be out of reach of a reasonable education. 

In 1920 Mr. Hadley mailed his first braille course to a Kansas women desperate to be able to read again, he would personally teach this first student. Over the next 21 years until his death in 1941 the school grew to 800 enrolled students. Today the Hadley School for the Blind’s annual enrollment is over ten thousand students from every U.S. state and 100 countries around the world. Mr. Hadley’s legacy has grown from one student in 1920 to become the largest international source of education for the blind and vision impaired. 

High school as well as other educational programs are available to students 14 years old and up and are offered free of charge to those who are vision impaired and there families. The high school program allows students to take course in media suitable for the vision impaired. Class materials are available in large print, braille, cassette, and in many cases online. Enrolling in the high school program at Hadley gives the vision impaired student the added benefit of blindness specific classes that may not be available at there local school, braille, independent living for the blind, and mobility just to name a few. 

Hadley’s Adult Continuing Education program offers a variety of courses for the blind including braille and academic studies to independent living, life adjustment , technology and recreation. These classes are designed to help in adjusting to life after vision loss, employability and independent living for those of us who lose our vision as adults, as well as learning for the simple joy of learning. Hadley also offers the Family Education Program for family members of the blind and vision impaired. This program is available to the parents of blind children as well as family members of blind adults. 

The Hadley School for Professional studies is designed to teach volunteers, teachers and paraprofessionals new to the blindness field the skills to interact and educate the vision impaired. Some of the topics covered are early independence for blind children, understanding common causes of blindness, and independent living and mobility. Tuition for professional studies ranges from $99 to $139 (modest by any standards). The number of students enrolled in these classes has grown from around 300 annually in 1997 to 3000 annually as of January 2008. 

The Hadley School is accredited by The North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement, The Accrediting Commission of the Distance Education and Training Council, and The Commission on International and Trans-Regional Accreditation. 

The Hadley School for the Blind has continued to offer free classes to the blind and vision impaired and there families by relying on gifts and donations from individuals, corporations and community organizations willing to support there efforts. 

I can’t help but wonder if when Mr. Hadley mailed that first lesson to his only student almost 90 years ago if he could have imagined what that would lead to.

Rockets Fired into Israel as They Prepare for President Bush's Visit

Two Katyusha rockets slammed into Israel today as they prepared for U.S. President George W. Bush who is scheduled to arrive tomorrow. According to Haaretz the western Galilee town of Shlomi was struck by two Katyusha rockets fired from Lebanon. one rocket caused light damage to a house while the other landed in the street and damaged only an electricity pole, no injuries have been reported.

Israel has filled a complaint with the United Nations Security Council calling this a severe violation of Security Council Resolution 1701, the resolution that brought to an end the second Lebanon war. They are also reporting that two U.N. peacekeepers were wounded by a roadside bomb in southern Lebanon today. Israel is calling for immediate U.N. and Lebanese government action. Defense Minister Ehud Barak said "We will learn what happened together with the army officers, we'll think and decide how to act," Hezbollah refused to comment but an unidentified Lebanese military officer told said "It's baseless and completely fabricated." UNIFIL said it was investigating but "In the meantime, we can't confirm or deny the Israeli claims,"

This attack comes just one day before President Bush is scheduled to arrive. His visit is being described as the most high profile visit since Pope John Paul. over ten thousand security personnel including body guards and snipers are preparing for the visit. All 237 rooms of the hotel David will be taken up by the presidents entourage, One person described it as a mini White house with a little state department thrown in. The trip is scheduled to last 3 days and is aimed towards urging progress in the middle east peace process.

al-Anfal Dead Returned to Families After 20 years

The words al-Anfal or Operation Anfal as it is also known may have little or no meaning to many of us, perhaps some of us have never heard about it. To the Kurdish people living in Iraq under the rule of Saddam Hussein it has great meaning; Just the mention of the word will evoke gruesome memories of the campaign of terror and genocide that was carried out against them between1987 and 1989 that culminated in 1988.

During Operation Anfal as many as 182,000 Kurds died and 5000 villages were destroyed. Civilians who were captured were taken to camps that in many ways were similar to Hitler's concentration camps; the most notorious of these was Topzawa. Men and teenage boys (any one believed to be capable of holding a weapon) were separated from there families. After a few days of living in severely overcrowded conditions and being subjected to random beatings they would be taken away for mass execution. Many women and children died as a result of starvation, exposure and willful neglect. 

In the village of Halabja alone around 5000 Kurds died as the result of a chemical attack carried out by Saddam's forces. The effects of the chemicals ware first felt by the animals and birds, then by the Kurds, stabbing pain in the eyes, uncontrollable vomiting, tremors, confusion soon followed by death. 

Four years ago 371 bodies were found in four mass graves near the cities of Mosul, Dohuk,Sulaimaniyah and Samawa. The bodies have since been positively identified and on January 14 a ceremony was held at the Sami al-Rahman park in Arbil, capital of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region to commemorate there return. In a procession of coffins draped in the Kurdish flag, the remains were carried in and placed in rows. They were to be properly re-buried on Wednesday at a cemetery in Sulaimaniyah 

Kurdish president Massud Barzani spoke at the event saying: "This ceremony makes us feel pain but at the same time happiness because they are back in their fatherland," he went on to say "We want guarantees that these kinds of crimes will not target our people ever again." Iraq's Kurdish Deputy Prime Minister said "This is an important occasion because it confirms the legitimacy of Iraq's liberation, There may be some who doubt that but the bodies of these victims remind us that Iraq's liberation was legal." 

Ali Hassan al-Majid , Sultan Hashim al-Tai , Hussein Rashid al- Tikriti were all convicted and sentenced to death for there role in the attacks. They are currently awaiting an agreement between the various Iraqi politicians who have been unable to decide who should carry out the executions. 

Operation Anfal was only one of many mass casualty attacks carried out by Saddam Hussein's forces throughout the years he was in power. These attacks were part of Saddam's "ethnic cleansing" of Iraq. 

1980, Fayli villages 

Saddam's forces moved against the Fayli Kurds near the Iraq-Iran border. Security forces invaded there villages and took the Faylis from there homes. They were loaded into trucks and taken to detention centers were they separated the men and boys from the rest. The males were taken away and have not been seen since. The rest were held in detention centers. 

1982, Dujail (Shiite) 

Approximately 160 men and boys are killed and as many as 1500 people were taken away to detention centers following a failed assassination attempt carried out against Saddam. The attempt was made by a small group of villagers who were outraged over state–ordered assassinations of Shiite religious leaders. The retaliation was indiscriminate and targeted the entire village. 

1983, Arbil province. 

Saddam's troops surrounded villages occupied by the Barzanis (A Kurdish clan led by Masoud Barzani) They went house to house taking every male older than 10. As many as 8000 were taken and have never been seen since. Only 512 bodies have been recovered. Many more BArzanis along with other Kurds were sent to Nugra Salman, a prison located in the southern deserts where, many more would die of starvation, dehydration and torture. 

1991 Uprising in Iraq. 

Shortly after the U.S. entered into the first Gulf War President George H.W. Bush urged the people of Iraq to rise up against Saddam and overthrow him. Believing they had the support of the U.S. the Kurds in the North and the Shiites in the south staged an uprising in an effort to rid themselves of Saddam. The uprising gained momentum but the U.S. troops had been ordered to stop at the Kuwait-Iraq border and no support was given by the U.S. or allied forces. As a result, Saddam’s forces regrouped and began a ruthless campaign to put down the uprisings. Between 20,000 to 100,000 Kurds and 60,000 to 130,000 Shiites died as a result. 

This resulted in "operation safe haven", An operation designed to protect northern Iraq from persecution and provide humanitarian aid, eleven countries, including the United States participated in the operation

Bilawal Bhutto, "We Have Lost Our Best Hope But not Our Only Hope"

Bilawal Bhutto, son of Benazir Bhutto, in a press conference today expressed his regret that he could not accommodate all of the request for exclusive interviews. Bilawal said that he was overwhelmed with request for one on one interviews .He later stated that his mother was always open with the press and he would like to continue the good relationship but in moderation He went on to thank the press for the international coverage his mother's assassination had received calling her "A world figure and has received world coverage worthy of her status"

Preemptively answering some common questions Bilawal said that he became chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party because the party needed to maintain a close association with Benazir and also to give hope to the new generation of Pakistani people who are not only looking at this election but also to the future. He clearly stated that despite a lack of political experience, he intends to learn and politics is in his blood.

Bilawal's top priority at this time is to return to Oxford to continue his education saying "Unless I can finish my education and develop enough maturity I recognize that I will never be in a position to have sufficient wisdom to enter the political arena." he also said that with four years at Harvard and four years at oxford, education was Benazir's greatest strengths.

As his father runs the party Bilawal plans to step in "gradually and carefully". for those who do not approve of a 19 year old college student becoming chairman of the PPP he said that the decision was based on the collective will of the party unanimously endorsed by the central executive committee as well as the federal council of the PPP and urged every one to accept that the continued involvement of his family was considered the best thing for the party.

Bilawal thanked Scotland yard for there assistance in the investigation into the death of his mother but added that the party and the family want a U.N. investigation due to the belief that an investigation being controlled by the government does not have enough transparency. He also said that although his mother new the risks she had requested security and if adequate security had been provided she may still be alive. He said he would not comment further on who he believes is responsible due to the ongoing investigation.

During the open questions portion of the press conference one reporter asked if a Bhutto would always lead the PPP to which Bilawal replied "There is a Pakistani saying, how many Bhutto's can you kill, from every house will come a Bhutto." When asked about the future of demacracy in Pakistan he replied "We Have Lost Our Best Hope But not Our Only Hope." One reporter appeared to be challenging the younger Bhutto's authority with such questions as "As a 19 year old who has hardly lived in the country what do you propose you can offer Pakistan, a country of one hundred and seventy million people how can you claim to have any aspiration to lead it" Bilawal replied "I do not claim to have any aspirations, I was called and I stepped up and did what I was asked to do." The reporter continued with such statements as what does it say for a party that it can be handed on like some piece of family furniture and wouldn't it be smarter to wait until you know a little more. At this point someone spoke up and said can we just move on. Despite the challenging nature of these questions the young Bhutto answered strongly while yet maintaining complete self control.

After saying that he understood there are risk but this must be done another reporter asked Bilawal if he feared for his life, he replied “I fear even more for my privacy.” Earlier during the session he had asked reporters to respect the privacy of his sisters and his privacy while he is at Oxford.

January 4, Burma's Independence Day?

January 4 marked 60 years of Independence for Burma (Myanmar) but many citizens of Burma did not feel Very much like celebrating there freedom. Despite gaining there Independence 60 years ago most people do not feel they are free, many say they feel more like prisoners or slaves of the Junta government who seized power in 1962. National League for Democracy spokesman,Nyan Win, said: “From my 20s until now—my 60s—I feel there is no independence in Burma, because people feel they are not free.” On a more optimistic note he added “We believe that democracy and human rights will prevail in the country one day.” Outside of NLD headquarters about 12 members held a short vigil dressed in convicts uniforms to call for the release of the over 1000 political prisoners being held by the government including Aung San Suu Kyi, the NLD leader.

Near Shwedagon pagoda the Junta held a small low-key celebration with a flag raising and a speech given by Senior General Than Shwe calling on the people to cooperate in the building of a modern, disciplined and flourishing democratic nation. Speaking on condition of anonymity one government employee told The Irrawaddy News by telephone: “As a government employee, Independence Day is an official holiday. However, there is nothing to celebrate. My daily survival is more important than Independence Day.” A computer shop owner said “I’m not interested in Independence Day! If possible, I want to kill the generals. What I see and what I hear is such a contrast—injustice is everywhere in Burma!” There was a heavy police presence primarily around Shwedagon and Sule pagodas in Yangon, the sites of some of the largest protests in September. Riot police were also positioned around Yangon city hall. Every precaution was taken to ensure against any pro-democracy protest that may have occurred on independence day including the preemptive arrest of NLD members and suspected pro-democracy activist. On January 2 six members of the National League for Democracy were arrested to prevent them from attending an Independence day celebration in Yay Nan Chaung township. According to family members about 20 police officers arrested the six at a house in Nyaungbin Sat village around midnight on January 2. When family members questioned the officers about why the NLD members were being arrested they were told that the government was concerned about them attending the celebration. Authorities have said they will only hold the six for a short period of time. It is also reported that an additional 10 pro-democracy activist were arrested in Yangon.

In an apparent attempt to limit or remove outside sources of news and information being received by citizens of Burma the government increased the annual license fee for access to satellite television from 6000 Kyat ($5.00 U.S.) to one million Kyat ($780 U.S.) With the average annual income in Burma being around $300 U.S. dollars this puts outside news out of reach for most citizens of Burma. This was an apparent attempt to avoid a repeat of the September protest during which local media did not report on the situation. Those who had access to satellite TV reportedly made copies of outside news and took it to those who did not have access.

Members of The National League of Democracy held a silent gathering outside of the home of Aung San Suu Kyi, the party leader who has been under house arrest for over 12 years. Her party won democratic elections in 1990 with a landslide majority however the Junta refused to relinquish power and she has been in prison or under house arrest for the majority of her life since the victory. Aung San Suu Kyi is the daughter of General Aung San who is commonly known as the father of Burmese independence.

New Years Day is "Good Riddance Day" for Many in Time Square

New years means a new beginning for most of us. Yes, the infamous news years resolution, we make them on the first day of January and usually break them by the second day. This year as many braved the crowds of Times Square to ring in the new year in traditional manner by watching the ball drop others braved the crowds at the industrial shredder brought in by the The Times Square Alliance to join in the first "Good Riddance Day" celebration. This is a new twist on an old Latin American tradition of taking artifacts from the previous year, making them into a giant doll, and saying goodbye to them by setting the doll on fire.

At Seventh Ave. and W. 46th St people lined up to take advantage of the somewhat more permanent "Good Riddance" celebration. Some shredded pictures of ex-wives or old boy friends while others shredded there mortgage that they had paid off in 2007. One man shredded pictures of his bloodied appendix taken after his surgery saying: "It's now been purged from my body," while another shredded a list of bad habits that included shoplifting.

Eileen Lawrence, a former school teacher from Manhattan, won the $250 grand prize for the "Most creative momento" by shredding a photo collage she had made of a Manhattan middle school principal who according to Lawrence had had made her life hell. She said "I'm currently an unemployed math teacher and am very, very happy."

This year marked the 100th anniversary of of ringing in the new year in Times square. At the stroke of midnight Mayor Michael Bloomberg released the ball with it's new environmentally friendly lights as the giant numerals 2008 are illuminated overhead and fireworks lit up the night sky. The times Square celebration was started in 1904 when Alfred Ochs, owner of the New York Times, decided to put on a fireworks display to mark the new year. Fireworks were later banned by New York city over security concerns, The ball was introduced and has rang in every new year since except for 1942 and 1943 when war time regulation did not permit it.

Happy New Year and "Good Riddance Day" to all.

Saddam's Death, One Year Later

Iraqi security forces were on high alert today, the one year anniversary of the death of Saddam Hussein. Brig. General Qassim Al-Moussawi said they were "prepared for any emergencies that might happen." According to Al Jazeera, security forces guarded government buildings, set up additional check points,and curfews were in effect in Tikrit and Baiji. Although prepared, it is believed that the potential for violence was reduced because many pro-Saddam fighters have joined forces with the U.S. troops to help fight Al Qaida. Rear Admiral Greg Smith, the US military spokesman, said: "We have not seen any increased violence associated with his death". According to the U.S. military violence in Iraq has dropped by about 60 percent over the past few months. As Iraqis remembered Saddam they also remember that safety is never guaranteed in Iraq.

Followers of Saddam Hussein, former dictator of Iraq, visited his grave today to to remember there former leader who was tried and executed for "crimes against humanity". The grave is housed in a huge mausoleum in his home town of Tikrit and was surrounded by picture of him when he was still in power. His followers brought there children, many of whom are not old enough to remember Saddam, and recited poetry in his honor. His followers were mostly Sunnis, many Shia say they just want to forget about Saddam. Najim Jamal said, "It was a black page and was turned over." He went on to say that after Saddam's death the violence got a lot worse before things improved.

On Saturday, Osama Bin laden released a new audio tape accusing the U.S. of trying to build a regional base in Iraq. He urged Iraqis to oppose the U.S. forces. He also denounced those in Iraq who ally themselves with the U.S.. He urged Iraq not to participate in the national unity government witch will include Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds. Bin Laden promised to expand Al-Qaida's Jihad to Israel. Mark Regev, spokesman for Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, said that Israel takes the threats seriously. He said they have seen Al-Qaida activity in Lenonon, Jordon and Sinai. He also said there is evidence of Al-Qaida activity in the Palestinian territories. He also said it would be irresponsible not to take Al Qaida seriously.

Benazir Bhutto, Laid to rest Amid Chaos and Controversy

The Funeral
Friday, tens of thousands gathered in the streets of Larkana district in the province of Sindh to say there final goodbye to Benazir Bhutto who was killed by a suicide bomber on Thursday.

Bhutto was carried to her family’s mausoleum at Garhi Khuda Bakhsh in a plain wooden coffin covered in the flag of the Pakistan Peoples Party as supporters wept and reached out to touch her one last time.

Some in the crowd chanted "No matter how many Bhuttos you will kill, a Bhutto will emerge from each house." Her husband, Asif Ali Zardari, had to ask the crowd to make room for the family to pass. The crowd fell silent, as Asif and there three children, son Bilawal, 19, and daughters Bakhtawar, 17 and Aseefa, 14 , prayed at the tomb and she was laid to rest beside her father, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was the first democratically elected prime minister of Pakistan and founder of The Pakistan Peoples Party. The PPP has called for a 40 day period of mourning for there fallen leader.

The Chaos

The violence that erupted fallowing her death continued Saturday despite calls for calm. According to Al Jazeera at least 38 people including 3 police officers have been killed in protest that spread across Pakistan. In Islamabad about one hundred protesters burned tires in the streets while in Sindh ten train stations and several trains were set on fire as well as an estimated 847 vehicles, 131 banks and 31 gas stations. Government offices have also been looted. About 1500 protesters stormed a police station and set it on fire, one police officer was killed in this incident. In Rawalpindi around 3000 protesters attempted to storm the home of a former minister after leaving a prayer service for Bhutto, police fired tear gas into the crowd.

In Peshawar, more than 3000 protesters took to the streets chanting anti Musharraf slogans. In Karachi, protesters burned cars, Factories, stores, and restaurants. The cost of the damages is believed to be tens of millions of dollars. Most of the deaths have accrued in Sindh. The government has issued "Shoot on site" orders for any one involved in disturbances in Karachi. Major Athar Ali said: "Paramilitary rangers have been given orders to shoot on sight if they see miscreants indulging in anti-state activities." In several cities in southern Pakistan the army has been called in to help restore order. Pakistan is a country in chaos.

The Controversy

It seems that even the cause of Bhutto's death is in dispute. The official statement says neither the gun nor the bomb caused her death. According to Pakistan’s Interior Ministry she hit her head on the latch to the sun roof and that injury resulted in her death. They released the security video in an attempt to support there claims. Farooq Naik, top aid to Bhutto and a senior official in the PPP, said: “It is baseless. It is a pack of lies; two bullets hit her, one in the abdomen and one in the head.” Naik went on to say “It was a serious security lapse.”

The government of Pakistanis attempting to shift the blame by saying that it was Bhutto's own defiance, her refusal to listen to government warnings, and her decision to expose herself to danger that led to her death. In an interview with CBS News Husain Haqqani, a former adviser to Bhutto says he spoke to her two days earlier and she was very concerned about the security that was being provided by the government.

According to Haqqani, she said her security teams would simply take off without notifying her, vehicles would leave, if there was supposed to be eight security officers there would be four. He says she emailed several people in the United States saying someone needed to talk to Musharraf about improving the security. Haqqani says she wanted to have her own security teams and equipment brought in and he personally spoke to several U.S. officials who said they could not micromanage the situation and the Pakistani government said they could not allow her to bring in her own security.

Musharraf claims of pro-Taliban militants inside Pakistan are responsible for the attack that claimed the life of Benazir Bhutto. The militant group denies any involvement. Bhutto's aids also doubt the accusations and say it is part of a government cover up.
There may be no end to the controversy surrounding his assassination, no answer to the questions, and possibly no justice for Benazir Bhutto but she will always be remembered as the First Lady of Democracy in Pakistan.

Death of Benazir Bhutto Sparks Outrage

On October 18 hundreds of thousands gathered in the streets of Karachi to greet Benazir Bhutto as she returned home fallowing 8 years of self imposed exile. Karachi is described as the stronghold of Pakistan's People's Party. The celebration was soon be brought to an abrupt end by a bomb attack targeting Bhutto's convoy. Although unharmed herself the blast resulted in the death of 139 bystanders. she had returned home to attempt to win a third terms as Pakistan's prime minister. She aligned herself with long time political adversary, Nawaz Sharif, also a former prime minister after vowing not to make any deals with President Musharraf.

Benazir Bhutto had served twice as Pakistani prime minister between 1988 and 1996, was killed in shooting/suicide bombing while leaving a political rally in the city of Rawalpindi. According to AljazeeraNews the attacker first fired gunshots at Bhutto's vehicle as she left the rally, she ducked for cover and he detonated the bomb. Bhutto was later pronounced dead at Rawalpindi General Hospital. Rivals and supporters alike have condemned the attack that resulted in her death. At least 16-20 bystanders were also killed in the blast. Fallowing the blast reports say body parts were scattered across Liaqat Bagh park where Bhutto had just spoken. Police quickly cordoned off the area as rescue workers rushed to the aid of the injured.

As news of Bhutto's death reached her supporters at the hospital they began smashing glass doors and throwing rocks at cars. In Rawalpindi, Her supporters burned election posters and attacked police who were then forced to flee the area. In Peshawar outraged supporters raised anti-Musharraf banners while in Karachi thousands gathered in the streets.

Outside of the hospotal Nawaz Sharif, also a former prime minister, told supporters "I assure you that I will fight your war from now on." and "Benazir Bhutto was also my sister, and I will be with you to take the revenge for her death," He went on to say he shared the grief of the entire nation. "We are shocked. We are stunned. Every single one of us is mourning the loss of our leader." said Javaid Manzoor, President of the PPP party.

The attack has sparked international outrage as well. U.S. President George Bush said "The US strongly condemns this cowardly act by murderous extremists who are are trying to undermine Pakistan's democracy. We stand with the people of Pakistan in that struggle against the forces of terror and extremism. We urge them to honour Benazir Bhutto's memory by continuing with a democratic process." The UN Secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, said "I strongly condemn this heinous crime and call for the perpetrators to be brought to justice as soon as possible." Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai who had met with Bhutto earlier on Thursday said "She sacrificed her life for the sake of Pakistan and for the sake of this region". Further condemnation came from a host of other countries including China. The Vatican has also condemned the attack.

Pervez Musharraf reportedly called an emergency meeting after the bombing and later asked all Pakistanis to remain calm "so that the evil designs of terrorists can be defeated," according to state TV.

Bhutto and other Musharraf opponents had recently accused him of planing to rig the upcoming elections as radicals had said they would disrupt the voting. the voting scheduled for January 8 will now most likely be cancelled. The death of Bhutto will most certainly deepen the political divide in Pakistan.

Climate Change, The Warning Signs

It seems that over the past two hundred years in our rush to the modern age we contributed greatly to global warming while doing little to protect our environment. We most now begin to take the necessary steps to slow the process or risk doing irreparable harm to not only ourselves but every living thing on this planet.

In November 2007 the U.N. panel on climate change issued a warning calling on all nations to take immediate action on global warming calling the situation "frightening" "urgent" and "dire'. With carbon dioxide levels at the highest they have been in millions of years one of the greatest concerns is that human activities are accelerating the melting of the arctic ice sheets. The arctic ice melt is the most dramatic evidence of global warming and could result in rising sea levels and the flooding of millions of communities along coast lines. This year the arctic sea ice melt rate was greatly accelerated, the melt off this summer not only broke the old record, it smashed it. The remaining ice is 23 percent less then the old record. Satellite photographs show that the remaining sea ice is also much thinner than normal; this could result in rapid melting and the loss of even more sea ice. 550 billion tons of ice melted this summer alone leading scientist to wonder if we have reached the point of no return.

Greenhouse gases are necessary because they keep the planet's surface warm enough to sustain life. But, as the concentrations of these gases continue to rise the Earth's temperature is climbing to historic highs. For The past 200 years, our use of fossil fuels, such as coal and oil, combined with deforestation has caused the concentrations of heat-trapping gases to increase significantly. These gases prevent heat from escaping, like the glass panels of a greenhouse

The effects of global warming are already being felt around the world say many experts. Birds are laying eggs earlier, plants are blooming earlier, migratory patterns are changing and animals that hibernate are waking earlier in the spring. Many animals are moving to higher elevations than they have in the past as well as moving closer to the north and south poles than before indicating warmer temperatures. One resent study shows that over 150 species have already been affected and this could easily disrupt the natural connective balance between species and also lead to extinction of many.Shorter winters, earlier spring snow melts and longer hotter summershave scientist believing the effects of global warming are being felt in Montana . Long term studies have also shown changes in certain plants in Wisconsin and animal hibernation patterns in Colorado. In Alaska the growth of White Spruce trees have been significantly stunted by warming temperatures and in the Arctic the Reduced snow fall, less sea ice and freezing rain in winter have led to the appearance of mosquitoes and robins, never before seen in the region.

Nearly half of the total carbon on the earth’s surface is contained in the boreal forests located in Canada, Alaska, Scandinavia and Russia. Scientists now fear that increasing temperatures and human activities could be releasing this carbon. As carbon is released back into the atmosphere it adds to the greenhouse gases thus increasing the warming effect. The release of carbon has many causes including warmer temperatures leading to permafrost melting, wild fires, rotting trees and pine needles, also construction and deforestation are a big factor. The release of this carbon combined with other pollution results in higher ozone levels witch in turn results additional damage to plants affecting there ability to absorb carbon dioxide, in other words, a cycle of increasing climate change.

At the Bali summit on climate change the representative for the U.S. was initially opposed to giving technology to underdeveloped countries to help them fight global warming. The representative of Papua New Guinea said to the U.S. You have been ask to take the lead, if you are unwilling then leave it to the rest of us, please get out of the way. The U.S., facing opposition from almost 200 countries represented at the summit, was forced to back down and agreed to join the consensus.

Although an agreement was reached at the Bali summit there is no guarentee that this will result in action, this is basically an agreement to hold more talks and what to talk about. I believe it is obvious to most of us that action is needed to avoid doing further damage to our environment, hopefully the talks will result in this action.

Holloway Investigation Ends in Disappointment

After two and a half years of investigations, arrest, and re-arrest the case of missing Alabama high school senior Natalee Holloway came to an abrupt end today. Aruba's prosecutor came to the conclusion that "We did not succeed in solving the case rite now." This statement comes on the day that a new deep water search was scheduled to begin and only three weeks after the three main suspects were re-arrested after police said they had new evidence.

Fallowing the arrest three weeks ago Holloway's father said "This just brings that since of nervousness and maybe were finally going to get some answers" but today Beth Twittey (Holloway's mother) told CBS news "I'm mad as hell, terribly disappointed and perplexed that the case was closed"

Natalee Holloway was last seen by friends as she left a local bar with three men, Joran Van Der Sloot and the two Kalpoe brothers, Deepak and Satish. The three men have remained the prime suspects throughout the investigation and have been arrested and questioned multiple times all the while admitting they took her to a local beach but saying they have no idea how Holloway disappeared. With no body, no confessions, and not enough evidence to prosecute anyone it appears that any hope of solving this case has faded.

In an interview with CBS the families attorney, John Q. Kelly, said The" family is frustrated, they pushed so hard, they know the answers are down there but they just can't get those answers". When asked if this is really the end of this investigation Kelly said "No it's not the end, its not an active investigation anymore but its still an investigation if new evidence comes up, if there are new leads they can re-arrest these suspects and they can still be prosecuted" Kelly went on to say that he didn't know what they were thinking in Aruba and compared recent events in this case to a dog and pony show and a public spectacle. When asked if he believed the police or the prosecution was at fault for the failed investigation he said "It's the police, they sat there knowing the boys had fabricated a story, she was last seen with them and they didn't move, it was pushing after days before they even took attention."

Rosemarie Arnold, the defense attorney for Van Der Sloot, said he is relieved that the investigation has ended because his life has been in turmoil for two and a half years. She went on to say that there is not enough evidence to charge her client because there was no evidence that implicated him.

The water search continued as scheduled however the end of the active investigation marks the end of a two and a half year roller coaster ride between hope and frustration with the final stop being disappointment for the family.