Vultures feeding, amazing birds :



They look pretty excited, whatever they're tearing to pieces must be mighty tasty.



Gee, that kind of looks like....



Oh.



The above photos are from this incredible series detailing, and I mean detailing, a Tibetan burial ritual. The basic belief is that you become a part of the bird that eats your corpse, and you can fly away.

I don't know about you, but I find the Google's logo for Earth Day just a bit creepy :

A "HOW TO BE COOL" LIST FOR STUPID AMERICANS.

BATMAN GOES UNDER COVER TO TRY AND CATCH THE PENGUIN.

The War On You....Or Dave

By Darryl Mason

Since the 9/11 attacks, Al Qaeda as a legitimate threat to Americans, and the American way of life, and even American values, has proven to be something of a washout.

Yes, terrorists supposedly inspired or influenced by Al Qaeda have tried to attack Americans inside the US, and depending on how you view events like the Fort Hood shootings, dozens have been killed. But as a real actual day-to-day threat to the American way of life....well, Al Qaeda have done a pretty shit job of it.

The FBI, like the CIA, like the Pentagon, has to justify their massive budgets. They have to be able to prove, year in, year out, that they are spending taxpayers money on important work, vital work, life-saving work. That they are, in fact, Keeping Americans Safe. If they don't, budgets get slashed, people lose their jobs.

So if Al Qaeda don't measure up anymore as a viable threat to Americans, then who does?

How about You?

Or your neighbour?

Or that guy down the street? Whatshisname?

Dave? Yeah, Dave.

Fuckit. Why not just declare The War On Dave?

Who's Dave? Doesnt' matter. But he wants to kill you and threaten your way of life. Or something.

This is how The War On Dave is being sold in the UK, by the Rupert Murdoch media :

Fifteen years after the Oklahoma City bombing, the spectre of domestic terrorism has returned to haunt the Obama Administration, with a warning from the FBI that “home-grown and lone-wolf extremists” now represent as serious a threat as al-Qaeda and its affiliates.

The warning, from the FBI Director, Robert Mueller, came as the former President Clinton drew parallels between the Oklahoma City tragedy and a recent upsurge in anti-government rhetoric, while American television audiences heard Timothy McVeigh, the Oklahoma City bomber, describe the “absolute rage” that drove him to plan an attack that killed 168 men, women and children.

An FBI spokesman told The Times yesterday that Mr Mueller was referring to right-wing extremist groups and anti-government militias, as well as American Islamists, in his testimony to the Senate committee that must approve the FBI’s $8.3 billion (£5.4 billion) budget.

The White House was careful to emphasise that the threat of external terrorism remained acute but senior officials are privately confident that military operations in Afghanistan are going well and putting al-Qaeda on the back foot. Few people in Washington are as confident about the domestic threat.

Timothy McVeigh, and all those people killed in the Oklahoma bombings, are now a marketing opportunity for the FBI.

The average American is more likely to be killed, or wounded, by a KFC Double Down burger than by 'home grown terrorists'.
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Obama Promises "No More Taxpayer Bailouts" For Banks & Financial Institutions That Claim To Be "Too Big To Fail"

"We Will Hold Wall Street Accountable"

President Obama promised he would reform Wall Street, and now he's set to move in hard, and fast. His plans are upsetting both Democrats and Republicans. It will be fascinating to see how this unfolds, and just how much of what he is promising, he can actually deliver. Luckily for him, Obama doesn't get around in light aircraft.



The reaction of Fox News will be predictable enough. But take the time to check out how the rest of the mainstream corporate media deals with this. He's about to make himself a whole tidal wave of new enemies.

Transcript :

There were many causes of the turmoil that ripped through our economy over the past two years. But above all, this crisis was caused by failures in the financial industry. What is clear is that this crisis could have been avoided if Wall Street firms were more accountable, if financial dealings were more transparent, and if consumers and shareholders were given more information and authority to make decisions.

But that did not happen. And that's because special interests have waged a relentless campaign to thwart even basic, common-sense rules - rules to prevent abuse and protect consumers. In fact, the financial industry and its powerful lobby have opposed modest safeguards against the kinds of reckless risks and bad practices that led to this very crisis.

The consequences of this failure of responsibility - from Wall Street to Washington - are all around us: 8 million jobs lost, trillions in savings erased, countless dreams diminished or denied. I believe we have to do everything we can to ensure that no crisis like this ever happens again. That's why I'm fighting so hard to pass a set of Wall Street reforms and consumer protections. A plan for reform is currently moving through Congress.

Here's what this plan would do. First, it would enact the strongest consumer financial protections ever. It would put consumers back in the driver's seat by forcing big banks and credit card companies to provide clear, understandable information so that Americans can make financial decisions that work best for them.

Next, these reforms would bring new transparency to financial dealings. Part of what led to this crisis was firms like AIG and others making huge and risky bets - using things like derivatives - without accountability. Warren Buffett himself once described derivatives bought and sold with little oversight as "financial weapons of mass destruction." That's why through reform we'd help ensure that these kinds of complicated financial transactions take place on an open market. Because, ultimately, it is a marketplace that is open, free, and fair that will allow our economy to flourish.

We would also close loopholes to stop the kind of recklessness and irresponsibility we've seen. It's these loopholes that allowed executives to take risks that not only endangered their companies, but also our entire economy. And we're going to put in place new rules so that big banks and financial institutions will pay for the bad decisions they make - not taxpayers. Simply put, this means no more taxpayer bailouts. Never again will taxpayers be on the hook because a financial company is deemed "too big to fail."

Finally, these reforms hold Wall Street accountable by giving shareholders new power in the financial system. They'll get a say on pay: a vote on the salaries and bonuses awarded to top executives. And the SEC will ensure that shareholders have more power in corporate elections, so that investors and pension holders have a stronger voice in determining what happens with their life savings.

Now, unsurprisingly, these reforms have not exactly been welcomed by the people who profit from the status quo - as well their allies in Washington. This is probably why the special interests have spent a lot of time and money lobbying to kill or weaken the bill. Just the other day, in fact, the Leader of the Senate Republicans and the Chair of the Republican Senate campaign committee met with two dozen top Wall Street executives to talk about how to block progress on this issue.

Lo and behold, when he returned to Washington, the Senate Republican Leader came out against the common-sense reforms we've proposed. In doing so, he made the cynical and deceptive assertion that reform would somehow enable future bailouts - when he knows that it would do just the opposite. Every day we don't act, the same system that led to bailouts remains in place - with the exact same loopholes and the exact same liabilities. And if we don't change what led to the crisis, we'll doom ourselves to repeat it. That's the truth. Opposing reform will leave taxpayers on the hook if a crisis like this ever happens again.

So my hope is that we can put this kind of politics aside. My hope is that Democrats and Republicans can find common ground and move forward together. But this is certain: one way or another, we will move forward. This issue is too important. The costs of inaction are too great. We will hold Wall Street accountable. We will protect and empower consumers in our financial system. That's what reform is all about. That's what we're fighting for. And that's exactly what we're going to achieve.

You thought Obama's health reforms were a down and dirty shitfight?

You ain't seen nothing yet.

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