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    • 12 FEB 14

    Should People Be Allowed to Drive Cars?

    Posted on February 11, 2014 by SkyVision Solutions

    Excerpt

    As a follow-up to a blog posting entitled, U.S. Proceeding with Mandatory Wireless ‘Vehicle to Vehicle’ Communications, additional information has been uncovered that would support the assertion that the ultimate goal of government technocrats would be to build an infrastructure to support “smart” self-driving vehicles. For their own safety, people would not be allowed to drive cars since they are too easily distracted and error-prone. In addition, self-driving vehicles could be programmed for maximum fuel efficiency.

    According a Preliminary Statement of Policy Concerning Automated Vehicles released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA):

    “NHTSA finds that it is helpful to think of these emerging technologies [such as vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications] as part of a continuum of vehicle control automation. The continuum, discussed below, runs from vehicles with no active control systems all the way to full automation and self-driving. While the agency is conducting research along the entire automation continuum, our emphasis initially is on determining whether those crash avoidance and mitigation technologies that are currently available (or soon to be available) are not only safe, but effective. However, because these same technologies are the building blocks for what may one day lead to a driverless vehicle, we have also begun research focused on safety principles that may apply to even higher levels of automation, such as driver behavior in the context of highly automated vehicle safety systems. [emphasis added]

    SNIP

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    • 11 FEB 14

    U.S. Proceeding with Mandatory Wireless ‘Vehicle to Vehicle’ Communications

    Don’s comment: And there are plans underway to one day have driver-less smart cars. While all this looks like being an emerging public health nightmare it may well turn out to be a Hacker’s wet dream. Imagine hacking in and controlling city traffic. Even more fun than Grand Theft Auto and the blood will be real….

    From: SkyVision Solutions … Raising Public Awareness and Finding Solutions to Smart Grid, Smart Meter, and Radiofrequency (RF) Radiation Concerns

    Excerpt

    “The vision of ‘talking’ cars that avoid crashes is well on the way to becoming a reality. And we’re not just talking about cars talking to cars, but about cars talking to bikes, trucks talking to motorcycles, and even buses talking to pedestrians. This promises to significantly reduce the number of deaths and injuries on our nation’s roads while unleashing a new wave of innovation from advanced traffic management systems and smart mobility apps to real-time traffic, transit and parking information.” – Scott Belcher, President and CEO of the Intelligent Transportation Society of America

    The geniuses at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) are so concerned about your “safety,” they have decided to take it into their own hands and make it mandatory that your car wirelessly communicate with other vehicles on the road.

    As with so many other aspects of life, there is a top down push to remove control from the individual and transfer it to the “collective,” typically justified within the context of the “war on terror” or “it’s for your own good.”

    SNIP

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    • 11 FEB 14

    Conference: A Matter of Design. Making Society through Science and Technology

    A very interesting conference on the societal impacts of new technologies. Note mention of the Internet of Things which encompasses smart grids and smart meters. The huge controversy over heath impacts of wireless technology should be an essential topic for discussion at this meeting but deadline for submissions is 15 Feb. I see in the link provided mention is made of the need “for the identification of potential consequences of future developments.”
    Well worth keeping track of this conference, especially Sheila Jasanoff’s presentation…..

    Emerging ICT and Citizens’ Values: Anticipating and Responding to Challenges

    In this session, we consider the relationship between citizens’ values and emerging information and communication technologies (ICT). In particular, we consider how we can anticipate problems and proactively design social, technical and regulatory responses to them. Technologies such as wearable sensors, internet of things, social media, bio-banking and autonomous systems present several moments of design. The values that are intentionally and unintentionally ‘designed in’ to technologies achieve greater longevity and reach. As our lives are increasingly mediated by digital artefacts – to the extent that we live in a digital society and experience a digital culture – certain values, such as openness, can be amplified at the expense of others, such as privacy. Those technologies that achieve massive proliferation and normalisation profoundly affect the experience of contemporary life, for example by exaggerating our capacity to measure and remember events and adjusting the norms of our relationships with others over time and space. This capacity to transform the way we live, often in unpredictable ways, has been met with both delight and caution.
    SNIP

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    • 09 FEB 14

    Harvard Medical Doctor Warns Against Smart Meters

    Dr. David Carpenter MD, a graduate of Harvard Medical School and a physician who has worked in the area of electromagnetic fields (EMFs) and public health for over 18 years, has a few choice words for power companies that are forcing smart meters down the throats of their customers all over the United States.

    Dr. Carpenter adamantly insists that there is no evidence whatsoever that smart meters are in any way safe for human beings. He goes on to say that there is, in fact, ample evidence that demonstrates “convincingly and consistently” that exposure to radiofrequency radiation (RFR) at elevated levels for long periods of time increases the risk of cancer, damages the nervous system, and adversely affects the reproductive organs. Dr. Carpenter says that an informed person should demand that they be allowed to keep their analog meter. The two minute video interview with Dr. Carpenter below is well worth watching.
    SNIP

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    • 08 FEB 14

    Powerwatch Press release: British Journal Cancer PR spin is misleading

    PRESS RELEASE
    Powerlines and risk of childhood leukaemia: British Journal Cancer PR spin is misleading

    In an embargoed Press release (to Fri.7th Feb 00:01 hrs) the BJC have a headline claiming “OVERHEAD POWERLINES DON’T RAISE LEUKAEMIA RISK IN CHILDREN”.
    Their important new paper by Bunch, et al 1, does not show this. The authors have analysed a great deal of data for all high-voltage powerlines of 132,000 volts (132 kV) and above. The main association of electrical power and incidence of child leukaemia (CL) has been the magnetic fields (EMFs) from all sources that are associated with our use of electricity. A recent large meta-analysis by Zhao, et al, 2 has confirmed an approximate doubling at 0.4 microteslas, as does the new EC SCENIHR draft report 3.

    An earlier paper by the same research centre (CCRG) by Draper, et al 4, showed an association of childhood leukaemia CL with proximity to 275 kV and 400 kV lines. The CCRG later reported that the EMFs had fallen off within 100 metres from the powerlines to levels below those produced by other electrical causes (including underground cables running under our pavements and house wiring)
    SNIP

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    • 07 FEB 14

    Video on cell phone radiation and institutional corruption

    Harvard Law School: At Center for Ethics event, cell phone radiation and
    institutional corruption addressed (video)

    Note that this news item and video may be available for a limited time.

    On Nov. 3, Dr. Franz Adlkofer, former executive director of the VERUM Foundation for Behavior and Environment, spoke to a Harvard Law School audience as part of the lectures and events series hosted by the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics. In his lecture, “Protection Against Radiation is in Conflict with Science,” Adlkofer discussed the difficulties he and other scientists face when presenting research on the carcinogenic effects of electromagnetic fields emanating from cell phones. He also discussed the institutional corruption which he says obstructs their research.
    SNIP

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    • 06 FEB 14

    Greens leader Christine Milne a Keynote speaker at Smart Grid Australia conference

    From Smart Grid Australia

    SGA Conference, Parliament House, Canberra, 5th March 2014

    SGA’s first conference for 2014 will concentrate on our smart grid future and what is needed to make it happen. We have an opportunity to discuss this with key politicians, both within the conference setting as well as in an informal way, during cocktails and the diner.

    We have keynote speaker confirmations from:

    Hon Ian Macfarlane, Minister for Industry
    Hon Gary Gray, Shadow Minister for Resources and Energy
    Hon Senator Christine Milne, Leader of the Australian Greens

    SNIP

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    • 06 FEB 14

    Towards the Smart Survellance State.

    The recent launch of the EU Metis Project, which stands for Mobile and wireless communications Enablers for the Twenty-twenty Information Society, will be part of a new communication and surveillance system, i.a. enabling the police to ‘remote stopping’ your car, as well as constantly tracing it’s whereabouts. This capability is to be built in as ‘standard’ for all new cars in the region…. Introducing SmartBand – keep track of everything in your daily life, from how well you slept to how many calories you’ve burned. This innovative wristband from Sony comes with the Lifelog Android app to record how you interact with your world every day – all your calls, special moments, pictures, social activities, workouts, entertainment, and more, remembered forever. Stylish, discreet, and waterproof, SmartBand lets you see your life as you live it. Watch how the Lifelog app helps you log your day, every day….. (and makes life easier for the NSA)

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    • 06 FEB 14

    ‘Take Back Your Power’ Wins Transformational Film of the Year Award

    Press Release

    Excerpt

    5 February 2014

    ‘Take Back Your Power’ Wins Transformational Film of the Year Award

    SEATTLE, Washington (February 5, 2014) – The hard-hitting documentary ‘Take Back Your Power’ has been named winner of the AwareGuide Transformational Film of the Year. The crowdfunded film exposes in-home surveillance issues, customer billing corruption, potential health risks and other problems associated with utilites’ plans for upgrading to a centralized “smart” energy grid. It finished atop the list of 33 worldwide finalists along with ‘The Ghosts In Our Machine’, co-winner of the award. “This is a victory for a growing majority who want to restore sanity to the roles played by technology and government,” said Josh del Sol, producer and director of Take Back Your Power. “The issues unveiled in our film leave viewers rocked and inspired to see solutions. Winning this award means people are ready for a positive transformation. ” “A Transformational film,” according to AwareGuide founder and CEO Gary Tomchuk, “seeks to inspire the movement of society towards ideals, values and practices that create a better world for everyone. They focus on solutions for subjects such as consciousness, environment, health, and social issues.”

    SNIP

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    • 05 FEB 14

    Public consultation on the Preliminary Opinion on Potential health effects of exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF)

    Today, the European Commission and its Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks, SCENIHR, launch a public consultation on the preliminary opinion “Potential health effects of exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF)”. The consultation will run until 16 April 2014. Interested parties are invited to provide comments on the scientific evidence of this preliminary opinion online. In addition to the online consultation, the draft opinion will be subject to a public hearing in Athens, Greece, on 27 March 2014, followed by a Workshop on EMF the next day. The preliminary opinion addresses issues of public concern, such as potential health effects from radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF EMF) emitted by mobile phones and broadcast transmitters, as well as from extremely low frequency (ELF) magnetic fields originating from power lines and any electrical household appliance at home or in the office.
    SNIP

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    • 05 FEB 14

    Mission Statement for ‘Radiation and health in Frontiers in Public Health

    From Dariusz Leszczynski

    Posted on February 2, 2014 on Between a Rock and a Hard Place

    The Mission statement for the new specialty of ‘Radiation and health is now available on-line in the Frontiers in Public Health website.

    More information about the ‘Radiation and health (link here) will be posted as soon as it will become available (specialty was just established and is under development). Also my personal profile in the Frontiers is under development and will be updated shortly.

    Dariusz Leszczynski

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    • 02 FEB 14

    Half of users abandon Australian smart meter trial

    Half of users abandon smart meter trial
    By Andrew Colley on Jan 30, 2014 6:14 AM (2 days ago)

    Audit questions price tag for under-subscribed retail program.

    The Australian Government’s $100 million intelligent energy grid trial has blown its budget and failed to meet key objectives, the national auditor has found. The Smart Grid, Smart City Program, which has been shuffled among no less than four administrative departments since its establishment in 2009, is due to publish its findings within months. The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) has discovered that the program did not attract and retain enough household participants to its retail trial – the largest in the program – to produce “statistically useful” results. Furthermore, while the retail trial attracted less than half the optimal number of participants proposed by the consortium that won the grant for the program, AusGrid, it nonetheless cost the full $20 million budgeted for the program due to “increased implementation costs”.
    SNIP

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    • 01 FEB 14

    The Baffling Brain Disorder That Now Plagues 1 in 10

    From Dr. Mercola’s website

    The Autistic Brain: Thinking Across the Spectrum

    Excerpt

    When I was in medical school, more than 30 years ago, the incidence of autism was one in 100,000. Today, the incidence has climbed to 1 in 50, according to CDC statistics. This is a startling increase from 2008 data,2 which showed one in 88 children had the condition. Some experts believe that if you consider the full range of neurological disorders that could fall under the wider umbrella of “Autism Spectrum Disorder,” the incidence may be as high as one in 10! The video above features Dr. Temple Grandin, author of The Autistic Brain: Thinking Across the Spectrum. In it, she discusses the transformation that has occurred since autism first became recognized. Originally, the study of autism was primarily confined to the fields of psychology, and then genetics. Today, much of the research has moved into neurology, and Dr. Grandin shares some of the more exciting discoveries, including the use of neuroimaging. This echoes the comments of Dr. Daniel Amen, a psychiatrist specializing in the use of SPECT imaging, which can be of profound use when trying to diagnose a wide variety of neurological disorders, whom I previously interviewed. For example, Dr. Amen’s work shows that most cases of depression and anxiety are really symptoms of underlying brain dysfunction, commonly caused by toxic exposures, and/or a combination of poor lifestyle habits such as a poor diet and lack of exercise.

    SNIP

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    • 31 JAN 14

    Censorship of science at STUK/Finland – Ministry does not care…

    From the blog of Dariusz Leszczynski:

    Excerpt

    The last day of 2013 was my last day of work at STUK – Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority in Helsinki, Finland. I came to STUK nearly 22 years ago, in February 1992 to work on a research grant. Soon, I was transferred to be employee of STUK and I climbed ladder of scientific career starting with scientist, then senior scientist, then project leader and finally in 2000 I become Research Professor. I was in top salary group of STUK employees that was established few years ago to prevent drainage of experts from STUK to industry. The group was set for persons without whom STUK would be unable to perform it duties. I was one of them…

    Effects of cell phone radiation on health is a very controversial topic, both scientifically and “politically”. I got involved in it in 1997 not from my own free will but because the job was given to me by my bosses. Starting from scratch, with no experience in EMF area, thanks to hard work of my research group we brought STUK cell phone research to international prominence.

    However, there were “political” problems. First and foremost there was problem with ICNIRP.

    SNIP

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    • 31 JAN 14

    Will corporations gain the right to control what we all see on the Internet?

    From AVAAZ on Internet freedom . Get it back or lose it!

    The US and the EU are on the verge of giving rich corporations the right to control what we all see on the Internet. But free speech advocates and web companies are fighting back. The richest 1% could now control what we all see on the Internet forever. It’s the apocalypse of the Internet as we know it, and will erase the democratic promise of an information highway for everyone the founders of the world wide web imagined.
    SNIP

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    • 30 JAN 14

    Politically Correct Science for the Masses

    ISIS Report 27/01/14
    Science for Democracy
    #####################
    Politically Correct Science for the Masses (Excerpts)

    Real democracy does not just mean the right to vote. People must also have
    access to the information they need to make an informed choice; that’s why
    scientists must be free to tell the truth and express their views
    accordingly on scientific issues. … Prof Peter Saunders

    If a policy can be claimed to be based on science, it acquires a privileged
    status. Anyone who disagrees is treated like the crank who claims to have
    designed a perpetual motion machine.

    Hence, to accept that there are legitimate doubts about the science is much
    harder than to acknowledge that some reputable economists disagree with the
    direction of government policy.
    SNIP

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    • 29 JAN 14

    Vital research that needs to be done… but not by the Victorian government’s spin doctors.

    See my latest submission that mentions the type of research that needs to be done in order to determine the extent of health hazards that may exist with smart meters. Unfortunately we will not see this with the Victorian Energy Minister’s proposal (last message) which I will be following with extreme interest.

    An incomplete Benefit-Cost analysis and the urgent need for research
    Comments on the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ document no. D.P.U. 12-76-A.
    Investigation by the Department of Public Utilities on its own Motion into
    Modernization of the Electric Grid, December 23, 2013

    Download the report here

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    • 29 JAN 14

    Victorian Energy Minister to commission a “safety audit” to “show once and for all that smart meters are safe”

    Watch the almighty spin on this one! Note that the supposed safety audit is being done “to and show once and for all that smart meters are safe”. So, the ‘brief’ given to the supposed independent third party is set. Show that they are safe. FULL STOP. This is how science works in Victoria nowadays. Who can safely be relied upon to do this objective research for the government? Why not ACEBR or the Bioelectromagnetics group at Swinbourne University, both with a proven track record, assisted by Telstra of course.

    Don

    ***************************************************************************************************************************************
    From Stop Smart Meters Australia:

    3AW News Talk radio

    Minister signals energy overhaul
    Posted by: 3AW Radio | 29 January, 2014 – 12:24 PM

    Nick Kotsiras, Victoria’s Energy Minister, is making sweeping changes to the billing system that will likely spark some tension with the power industry. He also told Neil Mitchell that he plans to commission a top-to-bottom, independent safety audit to determine whether smart meters pose any health risks to the public. …. “I think the best way forward is to get a third party to do the audit and show once and for all that smart meters are safe.”
    SNIP

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    • 22 JAN 14

    CES LIVE: Cisco’s Chambers Says Internet of Everything, $19 Trillion Opportunity, Is Next Big Thing

    Cisco CEO John Chambers is counting on the software, services and hardware needed to enable the Internet of Everything to help turn the world’s largest maker of networking gear into the leading supplier of information technology. “This will be bigger than anything done in high tech in a decade,” Chambers said in a keynote presentation at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas today. Businesses, governments and consumers will generate or realize savings to the tune of $19 trillion by allowing devices and applications to work together and create new services built off the Internet.

    Here’s a play-by-play of what Chambers said:

    4:35: Gary Shapiro, CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association, takes the stage to introduce Chambers. “John has built his entire career seeing around the corner.”
    Chambers on stage. Says a year ago, he would have to explain what the Internet of things. But all of a sudden, business and government leaders are realizing what the Internet of Everything means in terms of job creation, growth. Four years ago, we talked about what it meant in terms of putting this over a smart grid and moving electricity around. Two and half years ago, it was about connected industries. Bet on the Internet of things is paying off. His prediction: 2014 will be the transformational, pivot point for Internet of everything. It is not just connecting a car, a refrigerator or health device – it’s the combination of all of this. It will be five to 10 times more impactful than the whole Internet revolution has been….Connected garbage cans can help save $10 billion as you transform waste management, he says. You can change traffic patterns of trucks, put sensors in cans to notify you if the cans are full or empty and need to be picked up…. “Not only is $19 trillion doable. It will require changes by all of us.”

    SNIP

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    • 22 JAN 14

    Are you opposed to fracking? Then you might just be a terrorist

    From North America to Europe, the ‘national security’ apparatus is being bought off by Big Oil to rout peaceful activism

    Excerpt

    Over the last year, a mass of shocking evidence has emerged on the close ties between Western government spy agencies and giant energy companies, and their mutual interests in criminalising anti-fracking activists.
    Activists tarred with the same brush

    In late 2013, official documents obtained under freedom of information showed that Canada’s domestic spy agency, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), had ramped up its surveillance of activists opposed to the Northern Gateway pipeline project on ‘national security’ grounds. The CSIS also routinely passed information about such groups to the project’s corporate architect, Calgary-based energy company, Enbridge.

    The Northern Gateway is an $8 billion project to transport oil from the Alberta tar sands to the British Columbia coast, where it can be shipped to global markets. According to the documents a Canadian federal agency, the National Energy Board, worked with CSIS and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to coordinate with Enbridge, TransCanada, and other energy corporations in gathering intelligence on anti-fracking activists – despite senior police privately admitting they “could not detect a direct or specific criminal threat.”

    Now it has emerged that former cabinet minister Chuck Strahl – the man appointed by Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper to head up the CSIS’ civilian oversight panel, the Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC) – has been lobbying for Enbridge since 2011.

    But that’s not all. According to CBC News, only one member of Strahl’s spy watchdog committee “has no ties to either the current government or the oil industry.” For instance, SIRC member Denis Losier sits on the board of directors of Enbridge-subsidiary, Enbridge NB, while Yves Fortier, is a former board member of TransCanada, the company behind the proposed Keystone XL pipeline.

    SNIP

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