Coronary microcirculation in patients with angina and risk factors yet with a coronary bed free from atherosclerotic stenosis can be puzzling; explore the causes of microvascular dysfunction, the means to detect and assess it, its relation to cardiac risk factors and determine clinical scenarios, prognosis and treatment.
Data show the clinical relevance of a condition that Harvey Kemp in 1973 labeled Cardiac Syndrome X (CSX) - angina, myocardial ischemic signs and normal or nearly normal coronaries on angiogram characterised this condition (1). Its pathological mechanisms are epicardial coronary spasm, coronary bridging, coronary slow-flow, Tako-tsubo and coronary microvascular dysfunction (2). Research of cardiac syndrome X has focused on microvascular dysfunction (CMVD), a common pathophysiological dysfunction of this condition together with an altered perception of pain, and especially on its role in the genesis of ischemia.
New methods for assessing microcirculation are also being explored. Indeed, microvascular dysfunction causes microvascular angina; it requires the absence of demonstrable obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) and an altered microvascular response to functional testing. It is primary, if microvascular angina is the unique cause of symptoms, and secondary, if it occurs in the setting of a specific disease (3). Stable microvascular angina (MVA) has recurrent effort angina, while instable or acute MVA presents as acute coronary syndrome, rest pain and in some cases an increase in mild myocardionecrosis markers (4).
The 2013 ESC Guidelines on management of stable coronary arteries disease (SCAD) (5) dedicate specific consideration to angina with normal coronary arteries, and identify two clinical patterns as part of stable coronary disease: microvascular angina and vasospastic angina - which may involve in some cases only the microvascular district.
Cardiovascular risk factors (CVRF) are identified in several studies - particularly hypertension and diabetes as important because they interfere with the normal functioning of microcirculation as well as the epicardial coronary arteries.
Impaired vasodilatation capacity accompanied in some subjects with enhanced vasoconstrictor tone increase CBF resistance, reduce coronary flow reserve (CFR) and may cause myocardial ischemia (8).
Endothelium-dependent mechanisms, revealed by failure of CBF to increase in response to acetylcholina or cold stressor test physiologically act by endothelium nitric oxide release (9); Endothelium-independent mechanisms, highlighted by the reduced CBF response to adenosine or dypiridamole, determine smooth muscle cell relaxation (10).
Administration of vasoconstrictor stimuli, such as acetylcholine or ergonovine (2) caused altered vasoconstrictor response and is related to enhanced vasoconstriction induced by endothelina-1 release.
Microvascular spasm and ST-segment depression was associated with severe chest pain in the absence of epicardial spasm (11). In these patients, even physical exercise seems to induce vasoconstriction, rather than vasodilatation (12).
Rest slow coronary flow, suggestive of basal microvascular constriction, is also described (13).
Reduced vasodilators' response to effort may explain positive effort angina and positive stress tests by causing ischemia in distal areas and a blood steal phenomenon by normal microvessels.
Metabolic evidence of myocardial ischemia during stress tests has also been reported (4).
On examination, myocardial ischemia is detected by stress ECG or Holter's dynamic monitoring, which show ST-segment depression and chest pain, but not by stress-echography, because the patchy distribution of perfusion abnormalities makes the abnormalities macroscopically undetectable. Ischemic areas may be pointed out by stress scintigraphy, which show stress induced perfusion defects, by magnetic resonance (MR) or positron emission tomography (PET).
Common cardiovascular risk factors (CVRF) - e.g., hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes mellitus, smoking - may lead to CMVD (3). The risk profile of a subject with MVA is similar to the one of a subject with obstructive CAD (14), but the reason why some subjects develop epicardial artery disease whereas others develop microcirculation disease is unclear.
Disautonomic imbalance can also explain the altered vasomotor control in microcirculation: increased cardiac adrenergic activity, resulting in an enhanced adrenergic drive (15) or reduced parasympathetic tone (16), has been detected in 75% of patients with CSX, and it seems confirmed by enhanced arterial pressure and heart rate response to effort and low variability of heart rate in these subjects.
Abnormal pain perception is also investigated: the abnormal pre-arterioles constriction might cause the release of so much adenosine to provoke angina despite poor metabolic or functional signs of myocardial ischemia (17).
Increased insulin resistance, estrogen deficiency (in women), enhanced activity of the membrane sodium-hydrogen exchanger, and subclinical inflammation Other suggested causes are (4).
The presence of cardiovascular risk factors cannot reliably predict neither endothelium-dependent nor endothelium-independent microvascular disfunction: Indeed, cardiac syndrome X patients have a lower occurrence of all conventional CVRF compared to patients with obstructive CAD (18) - while others have a similar risk profile.
Atherosclerosis risk factors poorly predict abnormal coronary microvascular reactivity to adenosine, suggesting that other as yet unidentified factors must primarily account for CMVD (19).
Another study confirms these findings in women and identifies epicardial fat thickness as the only independent predictor of microvascular dysfunction (20).
Nevertheless, mounting data show that CVRF can affect microcirculation and are associated with CMVD, suggesting that they do so in at least a proportion of patients.
In diabetic and hypertensive subjects without epicardial coronary stenosis, CFR impairment is demonstrable.
Another study doesn't point out any significant difference between hypertrophic and non hypertrophic hypertensive hearts in terms of microvascular functionality (22).
If compared to non diabetic patients with other similar cardiovascular risk factors, diabetic patients without significant CAD most often show impairment of coronary microvascular function, associated with normal myocardial perfusion (23). They have greater involvement of microcirculation than hypertensive population (24).
A positive nuclear imaging, show a partially reversible hypoperfused area, as severe as worse angiographic indices are relieved (22).
Impaired coronary reserve correlates with evidence of transient ischemic episodes in the Holter's dynamic monitoring, whereas neither left ventricular hypertrophy nor arterial pressure are determinants for ST-segment depressions (25).
CFR is lower than in lean subjects, and IL-6 and TNF-α are the only determinants of CFR (26).
Compared with asymptomatic obese subjects with comparable cardiovascular risk factor profile, obese subject with CSX, have impaired brachial artery flow-mediated dilatation, that is significantly associated with elevated high sensitivity-CRP concentrations and BMI, supporting the concept that obesity and low-grade inflammation mediated by adipocytokines may promote vascular dysfunction in these patients (27).
The role of inflammation is also demonstrated in CSX patients without traditional cardiovascular risk factors: subjects with elevated CRP levels have significantly reduced CFR, compared to those with low PCR levels (28).
Microcirculation can't be investigated by angiogram, thus, several techniques for functional assessment, of coronary flow reserve,both invasive and non-invasive, have been proposed (29, 30) (Table 1). Microvascular function is evaluated by testing vascular flow responses to vasodilators stimuli using various techniques, and calculating Coronary Flow Reserve (CFR) as the ratio between hyperemic and basal coronary flow. The most widely used substances are adenosine and dipyridamole, to test endothelium-independent vasodilatation, acetylcholine (ACH) and cold pressure to the endothelium-dependent one. A CFR below 2.5 (although a threshold of 2.0 might be more specific and diagnostic) is usually considered as diagnostic of CMVD impairment. However, non-invasive techniques may lack sensitivity and specificity for diagnosis and are unable to differentiate between epicardial and microvascular abnormalities. A complete characterisation of coronary microvascular (CMV) function would also require, especially when vasodilator tests are normal or inconclusive, the assessment of response to vasoconstrictor stimuli (ACH, ergonovine), performable only during an invasive study, with the aim of exclusion of significant vasoconstriction of epicardial vessels and detection of microvessel spasm (4).
Non invasive methods - Transthoracic Doppler echocardiography (TTDE) is the first screening test to identify significant impairment of CMV function. It allows the measurement of CBF velocity in the left anterior descending artery. CFR is defined as the ratio of hyperemic diastolic peak flow velocity during maximal vasodilatation to basal flow velocity. Results are comparable with those obtained by intracoronary Doppler flow wire (ICDW) recording and PET. Myocardial perfusion and CFR are also assessable through cardiac MR, myocardial contrast, echocardiography and PET. These tests each have their own limitations in terms of ability in perfusion quantification, required expertise, availability, costs and potential risks; thus, they are second line methods in patients in whom TTDE is inconclusive or in whom assessment for specific aims is required (29).
Invasive methods - during angiography it is possible to assess CMV function through several techniques: thermodilution or gas washout method and intracoronary Doppler (ICD) flow wire allow CBF and CFR quantification; intravascular Doppler ultrasonography (IVDUS) permits the direct visualisation of arterial walls and detection of atherosclerotic plaques that foregoes to the angiography. is the most used is the intracoronary recording of CBF by Doppler and pressure wires.Intracoronary Doppler is the most used techniques as it allows direct measurement of CBF velocity in single epicardial arteries. The product of CBF velocity and the cross-sectional arterial area gives a measure of CBF. Evaluations prior and post vasodilators infusion allows the CFR measurement. Through intracoronary Doppler and pressure sensor incorporated, it is possible to calculate the Index of Microvascular Resistance (IMR), defined as the distal coronary pressure multiplied by the hyperaemic mTT.
Angiogram allows microvascular function evaluation indirectly through some angiographic indexes.
Myocardial blush is the myocardial opacification resulting by injection of dye into the coronary. Counting the number of heart cycles required for it to fade out, we achieve the Myocardial Blush Grade (MBG), which depends on the microcirculation resistance to the dye passage and the efficiency of venous drainage (32). Total Myocardial Blush Score is the sum of the MBG of each coronary territory and defines the overall microvascular functionality (33).
The Timi Frame Count (TFC) is calculated on the basis of the number of frames required for dye to reach a standardized distal landmark of the considered coronary vessel and a correction factor depending on vessel length; it is related to the velocity wherewith dye fulfill epicardial vessels and index of microvascular district resistance (34). Similarly to the Total Myocardial Blush score, Total Timi Frame Count, is the sum of the three major coronary vessel scores, useful for a comprehensive view of the coronary microcirculation function (35).
Table 1. Comparative summary of methods to investigate coronary microvascular function (29).
CBF, coronary blood flow; CMV, coronary microvascular; CMR, cardiac magnetic resonance; ICD, intracoronary Doppler; MCE, myocardial contrast echocardiography; TTDE, transthoracic Doppler echocardiography. - Poor for the item; + sufficient for the item; ++ good for the item; +++ very good for the item.
A finding of angina with a normal arteriogram may occur in the setting of a chronic (stable) or an acute (unstable) angina syndrome (4). In both cases, the first step in diagnosis is to differentiate from non-cardiac chest pain.
Chronic microvascular angina - About 50% of coronary angiograms in patients with stable angina show normal or non-obstructed (<50% stenotic) coronary arteries. This condition is much more common in women than in men, and may be due to vasospastic angina (Prinzmetal's variant angina and microvascular spasm) (36), or to chronic microvessels disease, either isolated or associated with systemic (amyloidosis, Fabry) or cardiac disease other than CAD.
Chronic MVA is characterised by association with classical atherosclerotic risk factors, history of recurrent angina, often typical and mainly effort induced that require repeated diagnostic evaluation with non-invasive stress tests (frequently with abnormal results) and even coronary angiography.
Differential diagnosis on clinical features is impossible, but some clues suggest MVA: chest pain persists for several minutes after effort interruption and/or shows poor or slow response to nitroglycerin, stress tests induce angina and ST-segment depression but no left ventricular contractile abnormalities at echocardiography, and sublingual nitrate administration prior exercise test execution determines earlier appearance of ECG abnormalities and/or angina.
CMVD should be identified through non-invasive tests capable of highlighting absence of contractile abnormalities and exploring the vasodilator activity of coronary microcirculation: TTDE is the first choice technique.
When vasodilators tests are normal or inconclusive, the response to vasoconstrictor stimuli should be assessed invasively; coronary angiogram is also necessary to obtain definite diagnosis of primary MVA, since rules out epicardial abnormalities (4). In Fig.1 ESC recommendations for diagnostic evaluation in angina without obstructive CAD are showed.
It should be remembered that a normal or near-normal angiogram does not necessarily rule out the presence of a large 'hidden' atherosclerotic burden, or future development of atherosclerosis stenosis. The IVDUS shows that non obstructed coronary arteries have often diffuse CAD with wall positive remodeling (wall thickens outwards without notching the lumen) (42). In patients with diffuse epicardial disease but no relevant proximal stenosis, the Fractional Flow Reserve (FFR, the ratio between distal coronary pressure and aortic pressure during maximal coronary vasodilation; a value ≤0.8 is indicative of downstream perfusion as limited to become inadequate if oxygen demand increases) (31) may be helpful to identify hemodynamic relevant coronary plaques, although no yet obstructive, and to avoid ascribing patient's symptoms to microvascular disease (37).
Instable microvascular angina - CMVD may presents also as acute coronary syndrome, with de novo or worsening angina pattern or recurrent rest induced or mild effort induced chest pain. Microvascular angina is responsible of 10% of male and 25% of female of acute coronary syndrome and 'normal' coronary angiograms. Differential diagnosis should rule out transient thrombosis, coronary embolism, epicardial spasm, and two specific clinical syndromes: microvascular spasm angina and stress-related cardiomyopathy. The diagnosis requires the evidence of a cardiac ischemic origin of symptoms, suggested by new abnormalities on standard ECG which gradually reverse to normal, and sometimes by mild elevation of serum myocardionecrosis markers, the evidence of CMVD, obtained by the assessment of response to vasoconstrictor and vasodilator stimuli, and the exclusion of epicardial coronary spasm or transient coronary thrombosis. The former is achievable with provocative tests; the latter is only assumable by exclusion (4). Coronary embolism, due to atrial fibrillation or flutter, is rare, but as atrial fibrillation is often clinically unrecognized, the frequency of this mechanism of may be underestimated (38). Microvascular spasm angina (vasospastic angina) is diagnosed by intracoronary acetylcholine infusion, that reproduces angina and ST-segment changes but not epicardial spasm, and Takotsubo disease is recognizable for peculiar clinical and morphologic features. However, both these conditions are related to microvascular dysfunction, the former to diffuse coronary microvascular spasm (11), the latter to acute severe coronary microvascular constriction (39).
Specific timelines regarding prognosis are controversial because of the heterogeneity of population included in different studies, in which presence and extent of CAD, left ventricular function impairment, and/or pathogenetic mechanism underlying angina are not taken into consideration.
Small studies carried out in patients with stable microvascular angina found rates of major cardiovascular events comparable to those of the general population (4), with the exception of re-admissions for angina (40); A more recent study records higher rate of adverse cardiovascular events in patients with SCAD and normal coronary arteries or diffuse non-obstructive stenosis compared with that in subject without CAD (41).
Approximately 20% to 30% of patients with stable MVA experience progressive worsening of symptoms (4), leading to meaningful impairment of life quality. Among subjects with angina and a normal angiogram, subgroups at high risk seem to be those with documented ischemia, mild CAD, and microvascular dysfunction. The risk of epicardial events appears during the long term (>2 years) follow-up (36).
Regarding unstable MVA, prognosis is not well known. A prospective study comparing patients with unstable and stable MVA found no major cardiac events in either group at a mean follow-up of 36 months, a similar proportion of rehospitalisation for chest pain, although 71% of patients with stable MVA complain of persistence or recurrence of angina, versus only 32% of patients with unstable MVA (4).
All patients with microvascular angina should achieve optimal coronary risk factor control. Symptomatic treatment is empirical because of the limited knowledge of its causes and the lack of conclusive therapeutic trials. Moreover, the susceptibility of symptoms to medical treatment is variable and it is necessary to experiment with different drug combinations before achieving control.
Traditional anti-ischemic drugs are the first step in medical treatment (4).
Short-acting nitrates can be used to treat angina attacks, although they are only partially effective.
Β-Blockers should constitute the first choice of therapy, particularly in patients with evidence of increased adrenergic activity (e.g. high heart rate at rest or during low-workload exercise), whereas they should be avoided, in vasospastic angina, as they might favour spasm by leaving α-mediated vasoconstriction unopposed by β -mediated vasodilatation.
Calcium antagonists and long-acting nitrates are helpful in addition to β-blockers in the case of insufficient control of symptoms and can be first-line therapy in patients with a significant variable threshold of effort angina, in whom a vasospastic component is conceivable, or in definite vasospastic angina.
If anti-ischaemic drug therapy doesn't permit symptoms control, ACE inhibitors (and possibly ARBs), α-adrenergic antagonists, nicorandil, statins and estrogen replacement treatment, according to a patient risk profile, have been proposed. When these treatments are also ineffective, xanthine derivatives (aminophylline, bamiphylline) or new anti-ischaemic drugs such as ranolazine or ivabradine can be proposed (5).
Coronary microvascular dysfunction is a pathological mechanism of cardiac syndrome X, which causes various types of cardiac flow impairments which account for the various presentations. Microvascular dysfunction is a heterogeneous group of disorders related to several mechanisms – still largely speculative, operating alone or in combination, in the different cases. Of note, it's unknown why exposition to CVRF determines in some subject epicardial coronary arteries disease (CAD) and in others microvascular disease, or whether CMVD is the early step of CAD that progresses invariably or whether it is a distinct pathology. How to distinguish CMVD from SCAD to avoid unnecessary angiograms has also yet to be determined. Prospective studies are needed to characterise very specifically the different patients and identify subgroups at increased risk and their own prognosis.
Fig 1. Investigations recommended by ESC in patients with suspected coronary microcircular disease (A) and vasospastic angina (B) (5).
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18. Comparison of cardiovascular risk factors and biochemical profile in patients with cardiac syndrome X and obstructive coronary artery disease: A propensity score-matched study. Vasheghani-Farahani A, Nouri N, Seifirad S, Sheikh Fathollahi M, Hakki E, Alidoosti M, et al. ARYA Atheroscler. 2013; 9: 269-73.
19. Coronary microvascular reactivity is only partially predicted by atherosclerosis risk factors or coronary artery disease in women evaluated for suspected ischemia: results from the NHLBI Women's Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation (WISE). Wessel TR, Arant CB, McGorray SP, Sharaf BL, Reis SE, Kerensky RA, et al.; NHLBI Women's Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation (WISE). Clin Cardiol. 2007; 30:69-74.
20. Relation between epicardial fat thickness and coronary flow reserve in women with chest pain and angiographically normal coronary arteries. Sade LE, Eroglu S, Bozbaş H, Ozbiçer S, Hayran M, Haberal A, et al. Atherosclerosis. 2009; 204: 580-5.
21. Determinants of reduction of coronary flow reserve in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus or arterial hypertension without angiographically determined epicardial coronary stenosis. Galderisi M, Capaldo B, Sidiropulos M, D'Errico A, Ferrara L, Turco A, et al. Am J Hypertens. 2007;2012:1283-90.
22. Effects of Essential Hypertension on coronary Microcirculation: Focus on a Population of Hypertensives Affected by Microvascular Angina. Quagliana A, Evol S, Triolo OF, Piraino D, Pace G, Tona GR et al. J Clinic Experiment Cardiol 2012;3:176.
23. Effects of type 2 diabetes mellitus on coronary microvascular function and myocardial perfusion in patients without obstructive coronary artery disease. Marciano C, Galderisi M, Gargiulo P, Acampa W, D'Amore C, Esposito R, et al. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2012;39:1199-206.
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31. Guidelines on myocardial revascularization. Task Force on Myocardial Revascularization of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS); European Association for Percutaneous Cardiovascular Interventions (EAPCI), Wijns W, Kolh P, Danchin N, Di Mario C, Falk V, Folliguet T, et al. Eur Heart J. 2010; 31:2501-55.
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33. Total blush score: a new index for the assessment of microvascular perfusion in idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy. Atmaca Y, Duzen V, Ozdol C, Altin T, Tulunay C, Ertas F, et al. Coron Artery Dis. 2008; 19:181-5.
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37. Importance of diffuse atherosclerosis in the functional evaluation of coronary stenosis in the proximal-mid segment of a coronary artery by myocardial fractional flow reserve measurements. Rodés-Cabau J, Gutiérrez M, Courtis J, Larose E, Déry JP, Côté M, et al. Am J Cardiol. 2011; 108:483-90.
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Like many modern parents, it wasn't until I had children that I realised how insane old nursery rhymes are. Sure you get the odd Mary with her woolly pal, but for every cute lamb song, there are five other horror stories you're singing away to your bewildered child on a daily basis.
As a parent, it's natural to trot out the songs and rhymes you were exposed to as a child. They're deeply embedded in your subconscious and it feels normal to repeat them to your own children – that is, until, you realise how scary the words are. In fact, I find some of them so disturbing that we started to add extra lines after the song's traditionally finished.
In our house, the old man can't get up in the morning but he's fine by lunchtime. Everybody's happy. I know there's a time and place for children to understand death, but a so-called cheery throwaway ditty is not the way to go about it. Do we really want our kids terrified to go to sleep when it rains or when grandpa takes a nap?
Of course, all of these old nursery rhymes have historic meanings, usually stemming from something political or religious hundreds of years ago. And some are actually nowhere near as frightening as they sound in this modern age, such as Humpty Dumpty. This was apparently a cannon during the English Civil War in the 1600s, which couldn't be put back together when it fell because it was simply too heavy. So not an egg man after all (if you're looking for one try The Beatles).
The problem is, though, it doesn't really matter what the origins of these nursery rhymes are, most of them either sound downright horrible, completely bonkers or contain subject matter you wouldn't consciously dream of singing to your child. Even the "innocent" Goosey, Goosey Gander throws a man down the stairs by his leg because he won't say his prayers. Heavy!
So do you stop singing the rhymes or not? You can certainly try but it's so hard not to! The words fly out of your mouth before you even realise what's going on. So maybe the answer, for me, is to just keep adding my own lines. I sing lots of my own made-up stuff to the kids anyway ("Come and get your dinnnnner, before I throw it awaaaay!", but let's face it sometimes it just doesn't captivate the audience as much as an egg man does.
Which nursery rhymes do you find super creepy or odd? Tell us on our Facebook page.


Dave Sclair's editorial concerning the Cessna 150 violation of the DC ADIZ (Lost pilots hurt us all, June 3 issue) implies that the pilot is a real criminal and should be punished to the maximum. AOPA claims that this thinking has been the popular response they have received also.
Well, I have a different view. I believe that the real criminals are those who imposed the ADIZ in the first place and those who support that act like Mr. Sclair seems to. Is our government so centralized that a single strike by a Cessna 150 would decapitate it? If so, I would suggest that we decentralize the government, making it a harder target, rather than create some silly "security" departments and a silly ADIZ. Is this a nation of scared rabbits? Watching them run out of the buildings in D.C., one might get that impression.
I don't know the pilot of that aircraft, but I would be willing to bet that in his 69 years, he held a job, maybe raised a family, paid taxes and in general made a small but useful contribution to society. I would propose that he has a right to fly over the nation's capitol and even sightsee if he wants. He helped pay for it, after all.


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Hidilyn bags 3 golds in World Championships
(UPDATE) HIDILYN Diaz-Naranjo won three gold medals to rule the 55-kilogram category of the World Championships of the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) in Bogota, Colombia on Wednesday (Thursday in Manila).
The 31-year-old Zamboanga City native had a total lift of 207 kilograms.
ANOTHER RECORD Hidilyn Diaz shows grace as she lifts for gold and possibly a ticket to the next Olympics in this screen grab from the International Weightlifting Federation.
The Athlete of the Year of the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) also lifted 93 kilos in the snatch and 114 kilos in the clean and jerk for her two other golds.
Rosalba Morales of Colombia won the silver and Ana Gabriela Lopez of Mexico the bronze.
The Tokyo Olympics champion tried for 117 and 121 kg but registered no lift in both attempts.
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The golds were the first for Diaz-Naranjo at the World Championships, and came a year after she handed the Philippines its first Olympic gold medal.
She previously won golds in the Southeast Asian Games, the Asian Games, Asian Championship, the Asian Indoor and Mixed Martial Arts Games, and the World Cup.
The World Championships also served as a qualifying event for Diaz-Naranjo who hopes to compete in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Morales had a total lift of 199 kg and took silver in clean and jerk, while Lopez had a total lift of 198 kg and bagged silver in snatch.
Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) Chairman Jose Emmanuel "Noli" Eala congratulated Diaz.
"Hidilyn has proven once again that the fire in her heart to be second to none in her field continues to burn and remains the benchmark by which every weightlifter and Filipino athlete must measure themselves against," Eala said in a statement.
"The PSC will forever be proud of Hidilyn as the epitome of a great champion and will always provide support in her continuing quest to bring honor to our country. Mabuhay!" he said.
Filipino weightlifters Elreen Ando, Vanessa Sarno, Kristel Macrohon and Dave Lloyd Pacaldo are also expected to vie for medals at the World Championships and slots for the 2024 Olympics.
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Other Systems / Random musings / RPG / Storyteller
White Wolf: The Edginess
by Stargazer July 11, 2018
Currently an article is discussed all over social media which claims that White Wolf Publishing is actively marketing towards a new audience: Nazis and the alt-right. On first glance some of the points brought up in the post seem to make sense. But some of the claims made are obviously pure conjecture or obvious lies. After talking with a few friends and following several threads by people who have actually worked with White Wolf in the past, I decided that the article itself is not worth anyone's time. It's mostly bullshit. But there are some issues with that company.
If you haven't been following the development you might probably not know that the current White Wolf is not the same company that was formed in the early '90s. Back in 2006 it was bought by CCP Games, which is mainly known for EVE Online. There were plans to create a Vampire MMO, but this game was eventually cancelled. So in 2015 Paradox Interactive bought White Wolf from CCP Games. In 2012 Onyx Path Publishing entered the picture. Since at that time CCP Games was not interested in pen & paper roleplaying games they licensed WW's properties to Onyx Path (aside from Scion and the Trinity universe which they fully own) which has been developing the various game lines at least until Paradox took over. To sum it up in a few words: it's complicated and it's a mess.
Since there are so many players involved and since White Wolf changed hands several times, it sometimes becomes unclear who did what and who really is responsible for questionable decisions and content when it comes to games like Vampire. For the most part I would say that the old White Wolf was trying to be "edgy" but still managed to be highly inclusive for the time. Remember that the 1990s were a much different time compared to 2018. They had a few missteps like their treatment of minorities like the Roma people, but overall I don't remember any huge scandals. Please correct me, if I got that wrong.
Onyx Path did in my humble opinion a great job with the various game lines when they were in charge. Sure, CCP always had the last word, since Onyx Path had only licensed the IPs, but I didn't notice any meddling on their part during that time. WW switched to POD during that time, which means that even products which have been out-of-print for a long time became available again. In my opinion they also handled the various 20th Anniversary Editions very well. I definitely didn't regret getting the anniversary editions for Vampire, Werewolf and Mage.
But when Paradox entered the picture things changed. I mostly know Paradox Interactive as a Swedish publisher of computer games. A game by their subsidiary Paradox Development Studio, Stellaris, is one of my all-time favorites. From what I've gathered during the last few days, Paradox might not be actively catering to certain right-wing groups, but they might have subscribed to the thought that "edgy is the new black".
One freelancer talked on Twitter about how texts he wrote have been changed by people from White Wolf, to make the Garou (Werewolves) transphobic, and pretty much anti-vaxxers. As far as I understood, this was done above the heads of the people at Onyx Path who he was working for at the moment. He was also blocked from the Onyx Path forums preemptively. There are also quite a few changes in the vampire lore in the upcoming Vampire 5th Edition, which are highly controversial among fans. Perhaps you remember the scandal around the V5 playtest which included a pre-gen character who was a pedophile.
Things also got quite heated in parts of the White Wolf fandom when Zak Smith was hired to write for a mobile game by White Wolf. He's highly controversial in the RPG community because he's known to be highly aggressive in discussions which sometimes crosses into harassment. There were also claims that he asked his fans to harass his critics on social media. When they were criticized for hiring Zak, they said that they looked into the allegations and didn't find anything, which again angered a lot of people.
At this point I am not sure what to make of all this. I don't think they are marketing to the alt-right (or other fringe groups) on purpose. But they are trying to be soooooo edgy. The changes to the lore are obviously meant to make the game more dark, more avant-garde, more shocking, more offensive. That they are driving away a lot of their loyal customers, is seemingly of no concern. Their treatment of the one freelancer mentioned before also shows, that they might be aware that this shines a bad light on them. In other cases – when confronted – they immediately offered to make things right.
This whole affair is a damn shame, if you ask me. I actually had some high hopes for Vampire 5th Edition after reading that Kenneth Hite was lead developer, Fria Ligan was doing the layout, and Modiphius is acting as publisher. I am still willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. In the best case they are just a bit tone-deaf and extremely clumsy when it comes to PR. We'll see when Vampire 5th Edition is actually out. Perhaps things are not as bad as they seem. If they are, we can just keep playing the older editions untouched by White Wolf's new masters, and avoid WW products in the future.
What's your take on the whole kerfuffle? Might the new V5 be too edgy for its own good? Did I get something wrong in my research? Is my reasoning flawed? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below!
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Sunglar says:
Great post by friend, excellent analysis of the issue. The old game sought to explore playing monsters, and touched on "edgy" topics in the 90s. Now showing real monsters means touching on subjects that may be too raw, and make me wonder if I would be interested in a game that appeals to such groups. While I enjoy the work of Hite, I'm not such a huge Vampire fan that the preorder tempted me, I was not an uber fan of the WoD back then. I have no trouble waiting and seeing how this pans out .


Dr. Burkholder has been with Moore Veterinary Hospital for more than half of her 25 year veterinary career. She has a passion for helping people keep their pets healthy and considers it a privilege to assist people with high quality health care for their pets. Dr. Burkholder is an excellent, compassionate guide for pet owners making difficult and complicated medical decisions. When she's not at work, she loves gardening, singing in the church choir, and spending time with her family and dog, Skye.


A special project for a 4mm scale scratchbuilt O2/2 which uses the etched chassis design shown in processes.
This 4mm scale LNER O2/2 is one of a pair constructed subsequent to the model of 63940 featured elsewhere on my pages.
It is constructed from my own design of etch for the loco chassis, and a proportion of the bodywork as required. With the exception of the tender axleboxes, all the castings are from my own patterns whilst many of the boiler fittings are turned and built up for a better finished appearance.
The wheels are by Exactoscale (available from C&L Finescale) and power comes from a customised High Level gear train with a Faulhaber motor. All finishing of the model - paint, transfers and weathering was undertaken by myself.


Hotel Lussemburgo v Řím, Itálie: Zarezervujte nyní!
Hotel Lussemburgo has been family owned and managed for over 30 years and do their very best to ensure efficiency and kindness to all their guests. Our courteous and professional manner will make your holiday in the Eternal City a pleasant one.
Hotel Lussemburgo is located in the same neighborhood as the central train station, the underground stop, Manzoni (line A) and the historical center of Rome.
All the rooms have private baths, direct dial telephone, television and, on request, air conditioning.


School will close at 11am today for the Christmas Holidays. Breakfast Club will be available from 7.30am however there will be no Afterschools provision today. On behalf of the Board of Governors, the staff and myself may I take this opportunity to wish you and your families a very Holy and Peaceful Christmas. School will re-open as normal on Monday 7th January for all pupils. Mr Boyd.


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russell.thompson@henry.k12.ga.us
0-5: The Developmental Years of a Band Director
The first 5 years of a teaching career are critical to the development of an individual as an educator and crucial to the longevity of his/her career. This clinic will explore the critical areas young directors can focus on in order to be successful in beginning their careers.
Russ Thompson - Biographical Information
Mr. Russ Thompson is in his fourth year as Director of Bands at Woodland High School – Henry County, GA. He oversees a 130 member program consisting of two concert ensembles, three percussion ensembles, the 100-member extracurricular Wolfpack Marching Band, two winter guard ensembles, and teaches AP Music Theory. The Wolfpack Marching Band was invited to and performed in the 2016 ABC/Dukin' Donuts Philadelphia Thanksgiving Day Parade and the 2016 Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Christmas Parade. Under his direction, the Wolfpack Marching Band is a two-time BOA Regional Participant and competed at the 2016 U.S. Bands Southern States Championship in Chattanooga, TN. From 2012-2014 he served as Assistant Director of Bands/Instructor of Music at Campbellsville University, in Campbellsville, KY. In 2012, he completed the Masters of Music in Wind Band Conducting at Georgia State University, where he conducted the Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Wind Orchestra, University Band and assisted with the Panther Marching Band. From 2008-2010, he served as the Director of Bands at Duluth High School in Duluth, Georgia. From 2005-2007, Mr. Thompson served as band director at Lauderdale County High School in Florence, Alabama where he served as the primary music teacher for grades K-12, teaching elementary general music, beginning band, and 7-12th-grade band. Russ holds a Master's in Education degree from Auburn University where he also served as a Graduate Assistant with the Auburn University Bands and a Bachelor's of Music in Music Education degree from the University of North Alabama. He is a member of Georgia Music Educators Association, NAfME, American Band Director's Association, and National Band Association. Russ currently serves as GMEA District VI Treasurer and has presented at the 2017 GMEA and 2017 AMEA In-Service Conferences.


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In pictures: The secrets of Greenland's ice sheet
Diana Ibáñez López takes a look at Greenland's ice sheets, the secrets they hold and how scientists have unlocked them over decades of research.
This article was originally published on Timeline. To download the Timeline app click here.
Scientists were aghast when in 2006 a lake with 4,000 Olympic swimming pools' worth of water disappeared into Greenland's ice sheet in just two hours. In June 2015, after nearly a decade of research, they worked out why it happened: When the lake's drainage system backs up, the ice sheet cracks all over briefly, evacuating the water to the sea.
A preacher realized 250 years ago that Greenland's ice was full of secrets — including the key to understanding Earth's climate history. Ever since, researchers have been fascinated by how the ice sheet shifts, changes and melts.
Three times the size of Texas and over 3 kilometers thick in places, the ice sheet contains enough water to raise the oceans by 6 meters. And as the world warms it is melting faster than ever before. How have researchers explored this Arctic expanse, and what have they discovered there?
1761—1762 – Missionary studies ice, inspires climatology
Old Nuuk, Greenland
Protestant missionary David Cranz became fascinated with ice when he spent a year preaching to Eskimo tribes. It's not surprising: Greenland, the biggest island in the world, is almost entirely "glazed," as Cranz put it.
Map of Greenland © US Geological Survey, 1976
Cranz wanted to know how the ice was formed and why it "dissolved" again. His observations of glaciers laid the groundwork for future surveys and early climatologists, who realized that this ancient ice was a logbook for Earth's climate.
Twelve summers logged in a 19-centimeter section of ice.
1848—1852 – Scientist maps Greenland, discovers Inland Ice
Disko Bugt, Greenland
Disko Bugt, GreenlandDanish geologist Hinrich Rink tried to map all Greenland's glaciers. He created the first record of the ice margin and gave the vast, unexplored interior a name: Indlandsisen — "Inland Ice."
Lithograph of the ice margin © Hinrich Rink, 1850
Rink's work caused a splash, giving credence to the theory of Ice Ages at a time when most people attributed changes in the climate to the stars. He sparked a trend in glacier research, and even has one named after him.
The Rink glacier flows from the Inland Ice into Baffin Bay. © NASA
July 1875 – Timing the world's fastest glacier
Ilulissat Icefjord, Greenland
Glaciers are known to move, a bit. Norwegian geologist Amund Helland wanted to know how fast, so he measured the glacier front near the west coast trading town Ilulissat. As it happens, this glacier drains into the world's fastest ice stream, currently moving 19 meters a day.
Movement of the Sermeq Kujalleg glacier front
In 2004 the Ilulissat Icefjord was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site, but this doesn't mean it won't change. The glacier retreats in summer and grows in winter, but since it was first mapped in 1850, it has shrunk by about 40 kilometers.
Glacier front © Greenland Travel. CC
May 1888—May 1889 – Zoologist crosses ice sheet on skis, proves its existence
Puissortoq, Greenland
Fridtjof Nansen needed a break after handing in his Ph.D. on the nervous system of the hagfish, so he set off to ski across Greenland. Nansen's trip was the first to cross the Inland Ice, proving that it extended from coast to coast without interruption.
Fridtjof Nansen in Arctic gear © Henry van der Weyde: National Library
After the crossing, the team, which included local Greenlanders, wintered at a coastal camp. There Nansen studied Inuit culture, inspiring later explorer-ethnographers such as Knud Rasmussen.
Nansen's team
1935—1936 – Brits travel to Greenland to watch the weather
Kangerdlugssuak, Greenland
A yearlong expedition led by explorer Augustine Courtauld and geologist Lawrence Wager set out to take meteorological readings three times a day and keep track of rainfall. They found plenty to do besides: The team studied the ozone layer, the aurora, the earth's magnetism…and went on long, rugged walks.
Crossing a ravine in the ice sheet © General Photographic Agency: Getty
The readings were transmitted back to the UK and included in the weather forecasts. This was also the period ofthe first aerial photography, which opened up the Inland Ice to detailed surveying.
Inland Ice photographed from a plane © Børge Fristrup
1948—1953 – French explorer ushers in modern glaciology
Eqip Sermia glacier, Greenland
French explorer Paul-Émile Victor also set out to take measurements. The task he set his team was huge: recording the profile of the underside of the Inland Ice, to work out just how massive the ice covering Greenland was.
Paul-Émile had crossed the Inland Ice in 1934.
Like Nansen's, this expedition revolutionized Arctic travel, introducing parachutes and motorized convoys with tracks — equipment probably left over from World War II.
1964—1966 – First ice cores give a glimpse of the past
Inland Ice, Greenland
Ice cores are samples of exceptionally well-preserved sections of the ice sheet that have suffered no melt. The oldest, drilled out of Greenland ice, goes back 123,000 years.
Borehole © Joe Raedle: Getty
These giant ice-lollies capture Earth's climate history, showing details such as snowfalls and temperatures in year-by-year layers.
Freshly harvested ice core © Jay Kyne, IDDO
1968—1976 – Ice-penetrating radar reveals another landscape
The task the French expedition took on with tanks, parachutes and sketches was completed by the US army using radar that could look through 3 kilometers of ice.
© Gordon Hamilton, via polarfield.com
This led to the creation of the first accurate topography beneath the Inland Ice. Radar scans have continued for decades, and in 2013 they revealed the world's longest canyon hidden beneath the ice.
The 750-km long canyon serves as drainage for the ice sheet. © J. Bamber, University of Bristol
1993—2013 – Soil tests show when Greenland was last green
An ice core from deep in the Inland Ice showed that the last time Greenland was completely ice-free was over 2.5 million years ago. This means that the heart of the world's second-largest ice sheet has been in place since then, despite large variations in climate. It also gives us a better idea of how much warming Greenland can endure before its ice melts completely.
Ice core with soil sediment © Paul Bierman, University of Vermont
March 2002 – Satellite takes over from aerial photography, shows growth
800 kilometers above Earth
Envisat was launched to monitor the Earth's atmosphere and measure changes in the oceans, land surface and ice. The data refined the map of Greenland's ice sheet, showing 6 centimeters of growth per year on the Inland Ice. The coastal regions of the ice, however, continue to melt ever faster.
Envisat image of the coast of Greenland © ESA:AFP-Getty
July 8—12, 2012 – 'Extreme surface melt'
Pasadena, CA, US
A NASA scientist saw, in satellite images, that about 40% of Greenland's ice sheet thawed at the surface. He thought it must be data error, but two other observatories confirmed the melt. Four days later, the Inland Ice was 97% thawed.
July 8 (left) and July 12 (right). The melt zone is shown in red. © NASA
On average, half the surface ice melts in a summer. But this speed melt wasn't entirely unnatural: ice core analysis shows melt events happen in Greenland every 150 years or so. The last one was in 1889, so this one was roughly on schedule.
Meltpond © NASA
March 2009—2016 – Operation IceBridge maps the ice sheet in 3D
This ongoing NASA mission aims to survey all of the Earth's polar ice from the air, then create a 3D model of both the Arctic and Antarctic ice sheets, including all of their interior layers.
A 3D animation of the operation shows radar penetrating the ice. © NASA
NASA wants to know how the hidden landscape affects ice movement, in order to better understand the interplay between climate and melting.
Radar image of ice layers and bedrock © Theresa Stumpf, CReSIS
May 6—July 8, 2013 – Solar rover tests the ice
Summit Station, Greenland
Equipped with ice-penetrating radar, NASA's GROVER rover has a mission similar to the 18th-century missionary who became fascinated with ice: to find out how the ice sheet was formed and predict when it might melt.
GROVER is solar-powered, a good pollution-free option in the Arctic summer, where the sun never sets. The rover was based at Summit Station, a popular year-round research camp.
Camp at Summit Station © Joe Raedle:Getty
June 2015 – Disappearing lakes reveal ice sheet plumbing system
North Lake, Greenland
Lakes on the ice sheet have been draining mysteriously fast. First spotted in July 2006, when a 5-square-kilometer lake vanished in two hours, the science behind the phenomenon remained an enigma for years. Scientists feared the water could lubricate the ice sheet: If the whole thing slid into the ocean, it would raise the global sea level by 6 meters and cause catastrophic flooding.
© Joe Raedle:Getty
To se what was going on, researchers rigged the ice with GPS. As the lake filled up (and disappeared) again, they discovered a rapid draining system: When the ice sheet's natural plumbing is at full capacity, water beneath the ice pushes a huge block up. It floats out of place, creating a hydrofracture — multiple cracks under the lake — through which the lake drains at speed.
North Lake regularly drains the equivalent of 4,000 Olympic swimming pools © Peter Prokosch, GRID-Arendal
The cracks close when the block settles back into place, and the lake returns to a normal plumbing rhythm through a single vertical river.
Photo: Neil and Kathy Carey via Flickr
Will carbon trading save the world?
Vast ice structures discovered beneath Greenland ice sheet
Huge canyon discovered under Greenland ice
Carbon prices should increase up to 200% to avoid tipping point, says study
Greenland ice melt and sea level rise 'greatly underestimated'
Related Topics:Amund HellandArcticAugustine CourtauldauroraClimate ChangeDavid CranzEarthFridtjof NansenglacierGreenlandiceIlulissat IcefjordinlandLawrence WagermanetismNASAozone layerPaul-Émile VictorsheetUNESCOWorld Heritage


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The Temperature at Which Global Warming Freezes
Daniel Greenfield January 27, 2015
The sky over New York City was a falling sheet of white. Trails of footprints, work boots, paw prints, sneakers and bird claws, told their own story of how the residents of city were getting through the blizzard to their daily errands. Shoppers lugged home milk as if cows were going extinct. Miniature snowmen decorated mailboxes and garbage trucks towing orange plows clattered down empty streets.
Nowhere in the city was the blizzard more pronounced than in Central Park, designed a century ago to create a miniature forest in the heart of Manhattan. Even the tallest trees, taller than any others in the city, were layered with coats of snow and visibility had vanished into a cloud of whiteness.
And walking along a path in the Ramble, I heard a woman lecturing her children on the dangers of what else, but Global Warming.
There is a madness to walking through a blizzard and discussing Global Warming. A theory according to which we should be sliding toward the tropics, awash in fleeing polar bears and Florida style temperatures, instead of frantically shoveling our driveways.
To believe in Global Warming while stamping the snow off your boots is not a matter of science. It is a matter of faith. The scientist sees what is, while the believer has faith in what he cannot see. The scientist does not see Global Warming in a blizzard.
The Warmist does. To see Global Warming while walking through a blizzard, is itself an act of faith.
Every winter, Global Warming advocates stake their bets on a mild winter. And every winter the snow and ice break their cars and shoes, but never their faith.
Last year the New York Times was predicting the end of snow. This year the New York Times building is snowlogged, but still keeping the faith.
No matter how much slush trails through its lobby, its writers must continue to show people the pernicious effects of people driving to work and using extra shopping bags. Digging out of a snowstorm and their own lies, Global Warming advocates claim that colder winters are actually another effect of global warming. Which may be renamed to Global Temperatures We Don't Like.
Walking through Central Park, it's easy to see how perverse the modern day environmentalist has become in his view of the relationship between man and nature.
Central Park was inspired by one of the co-founders of the Republican party, New York Post editor, William Cullen Bryant, and co-created by Republican architect and landscape designer Frederick Olmsted, to harmonize the natural world and the urban one through human industry.
The New York Republicans of the 19th century viewed public parks as part of their civilizing mission.
Central Park was created as part of an ongoing battle with the corrupt Democratic Tammany Hall machine, which wanted segregated slums and downtrodden workers who would rush to them as saviors and vote how they were told.
Bryant and Olmsted saw parks as a way to improve human health, inspire public citizenship and build a strong republic.
Central Park's beauty is both natural and artificial. Modern environmentalists often mistake it for a preserved space, but its natural beauty was the work of human craftsmanship. The original site was a mess of swamps. The sort of place that the EPA fights tooth and nail to protect for the environment. Had Central Park remained a mass of swamps, the city and the country would have been worse for it.
Instead of preserving the wetlands, Central Park's planners dredged them. They created a place of great natural beauty by taking what was best in the natural world and matching it to human use, instead of blindly worshiping at the pagan altar of "Mother Nature". They built a lake so that visitors could row boats. They set up rambling paths between woodlands of trees that they planted. A meadow rose along with sheep and a shepherd. Everything was natural and artificial.
While today's environmentalists are fixated on holding back human development in order to maintain wetlands, banning DDT to save the mosquito and campaigning against agriculture to reduce population growth-- the visionaries behind Central Park did not restrict human development for the sake of nature, instead they used human industry and the state of the art technology of the time to turn a decrepit site used for slaughterhouse refuse, swamps and shantytowns into a magnificent park that seems effortlessly natural.
They did not do it to glorify nature, but to improve man.
Environmentalists demonize human industry and accomplishment as evil because they worship nature. Humanity spoils the unspoiled natural environment. It kills the mosquitoes, destroys malaria and turns lovely swamps into ugly parks full of hideous children enjoying themselves.
In their worldview, for the environment to prosper, humanity must go into decline. And when humanity prospers, they insist that the environment is in decline.
Conservationists, who included the likes of President Theodore Roosevelt, valued the natural world for what human beings can learn about themselves from engaging with it. That was the philosophy behind Central Park, which to this day remains an elegant demonstration of human accomplishment as applied to the natural world.
Global Warming is an ideological weapon by the environmentalists against human civilization. It is part of a broader anti-civilization agenda by the left, which values the natural world only because it sees it as a "primitive" antidote to the complexities of civilization. That romanticism is the borrowed hostility of the nomad to the farmer (and it is very telling to look at Europe and see its intellectuals championing the virtues of Bedouin nomads over London and Paris) taken up by bored intellectuals, arguing against the complexity of civilization and for the noble barbarism of the savage.
Where the conservationist values the natural world because of its beneficial impact on the human spirit through cultivation and achievement, the Environmentalist does not truly value the natural world, he does not love nature, he only hates civilization. Where the conservationist sought out the natural world for its civilizing effects, the environmentalist seeks it out for its decivilizing effects. He does not want to be a better human man, but less of a man. He wants to be a noble savage.
The conservationist sought to integrate the natural world into our lives in order to build a better civilization. The environmentalist is not interested in building a better human civilization. His objective can only succeed if every human being, every building, factory, car and artifact vanished off the face of the earth tomorrow. His environmentalism is a mask for his hostility to human civilization.
Central Park does not duplicate Manhattan before the arrival of the settlers, a trendy bit of landscaping that environmentalists are rather fond of. But then who besides environmentalists would fancy the idea of reverting Manhattan to a swamp bordered island with poor water sources and high rates of disease? Instead it creates something better, improving on the natural world, cultivating land into a transcendent statement that is more about man than nature.
Where Global Warming insists that everything humans do just makes the world worse, Central Park is a shining statement that says we make it better.
Every Warmunist ad is a parable about the evil of humans who chop down forests, pour oil into the oceans and refuse to put things into clearly marked recycling containers. Central Park opens up the natural world to human activities. The ideas of Olmsted about good citizenship and the natural world did not involve teaching people to leave the natural world alone, but to make it a part of our cities.
Environmentalists today sneer at this attitude. They clamor against hunting and fishing. They agitate to restrict human access to national parks. They push Zero Population Growth and mandatory birth control. Their "Green", like that of the Islamic Green, burns with hate for the Red, White and Blue. For human civilization.
Much of the public thinks environmentalism is a good idea, because they think it's ultimately meant to benefit them. Environmentalism however is an ideology that champions the Supremacy of Nature, better known as the ecosystem covering the surface of the Earth, over man. Where Conservationism believed in the Supremacy of Man, and the utilization of the natural environment for mankind's benefit, the environmentalist doesn't give a damn about mankind's benefit. Less so than he does about an endangered mollusk.
Walking through the blizzard, the trees wreathed in bridal veils of snow, I heard their voices in the distance, a distance that in the whiteness may have been only a dozen feet away. "The scientists say Global Warming is coming", the mother said. "It's too cold out for that," answered the little girl.
Posted by: Daniel Greenfield at January 27, 2015
It is a typical example of 'hybris' to believe that mankind can regulate the global temperature simply by decreasing or increasing the carbon dioxide outlet. In Denmark we call this belief 'AlGorism'.
mindRider 27/1/15
Did the dinosaur not go extinct due to excessive flatulence? May the Warmunists (nice term!) go the same way by through their excessive verbal flatulency, if they do not perish already in the "snowstorm of the century" as the panicky liberal press defined New York present winter storm.
Ignatius Acton Chesterton OCD 27/1/15
Climate Change is the latest Leftist example of "Heads I win, tails you lose." Everything is about the destructive power of Homo sapiens, while in the same breath claiming we are just another creature that belongs to the Earth, Gaea, Mother Nature, and other pagan matriarchal figurine. A voluptuous goddess for people who view human fertility as the core danger, and Americans as gluttonous sociopaths.
Today's trendy secular humanist claims man is the measure of all things, while hating man. We are worried about a growing population in America, so we allow abortion to counter it, amidst swelling tides of illegal immigration in the name of "Justice for those who have no voice." It's bizarre, misanthropic madness.
Every natural weather event (including blizzards) is explained by Climate Change, yet geologic history shows the climate is always changing and was always changing... even before the (gasp!) Industrial Revolution. We're told the diverse, fragile ecosystem is dynamic and teeming with life, yet human activity leads to innumerable extinctions every year... we just can't keep up with cataloging those extinctions. There are just too many!
So we need a mindful global body of experts, activists and world leaders to come up with a way to tax an element in the periodic table we also know is the key to life: Carbon (C). And carbon dioxide is bad, too, even though our science classes growing up told us that plants like it.
We're told that carbon is a pollutant, and human activity a vice worthy of "sin taxes." This is all brought to you by the climatologist clergy and their politicos who burn this same carbon flying all over the globe to climate action conferences so they can meet with people who agree with them. Why go talk about "settled science?" We're not permitted to question the hypothesis. We're too stupid. What will they do with all the carbon tax revenue? This is never discussed. Hipsters fall all over themselves to own electric cars that are fueled by coal-fired plants, and are self-congratulatory about their virtue to anyone who will listen. Look at me... I recycle!
Go back to the core philosophy: human beings are the problem, and this crew knows how to fix it: have fewer of them. Or maybe eliminate them. Isn't this kind of romantic primitivism that gave us "The Killing Fields"? But they and their families are exempt, of course. It's more "Heads I win, tails you lose." Except it's all for the planet. Science says so. Which is supposed to make my death so much more palatable. That's the endgame: death. What's the promise? A pristine Garden of Eden without man, the same Garden of Eden we can't talk about in our schools. Who's imposing their values now?
Daniel your writings are works of art. Thank you very much.
We know that if Central Park didn't exist and someone proposed it today, the uproar from the environmentalists (or domestic terrorists) would ensure it never existed. They cannot allow man to flourish as man is the enemy of everything on and in the earth. Man must be looked upon as a predator, a killer of that which Mother Nature created out of nothing. Man is simply a dangerous animal that must be restricted to wanting and acting in the manner of the Earth First (second, third, and only) haters of man decide because they are only working for what is best. Only they are righteous and right. Their religion demands complete surrender and faith in the scientist whose word is The Word because only the scientist, never influenced by government grants, union controlled universities, and wealthy totalitarian donors, is the true god.
No global warmer has ever explained to me why the glacier that covered my house in the midwest some 15000 years ago receded without the help of modern industry and gas engines. How did that much ice suddenly go away? Could it be that the earth cools and warms itself no matter what we do? Or does it do this so some idiots can make money while using more energy than most cities in their guarded compounds? Global warmers are just plain nuts because anyone with any bit of sense knows that we are not responsible for everything that goes wrong on the planet, and to mother nature we are no more than a knat or an ant hill.
Great. You mean gnat, and you're zackary right - to a mosquito a man is just another meal. Farms in Greenland, algore? - who'd a'thunk it you boring mutt.
Dennis Latham: Excellent point.
Interesting article on the NYC Blizzard Bust...
http://www.myfoxny.com/story/27950449/missed-call
So this meteorologist has the humility to admit he missed the call on the weather predicted the day before.
But the climate clergy and cash-starved political class claim "the science is settled" based on their modeling the coming decades. And we are all to sacrifice by taxing ourselves into oblivion, not by choice (legislative action that favors conservation), but by government diktat based on an ideological narrative (environmentalism). Will any of these actions work, or is it that maybe (just maybe) human beings are not this evil, all-powerful force of nature. Perhaps nature has its own agenda. That might require a much bigger dose of humility.
Well told. Algore is the king of hubris. Thankfully in the real world (not even counting the spiritual), reality prevails, chickens come home to roost, and types like algore get hoist by their own petards (shame about the $ millions wasted on him, more shame the oxygen).
Today's environmentalists worship the creation and denigrate the Creator.
Yes - succinctly put. Like 'Convenience breeds apathy'.
When confronted with the foolishness of the global warming/cooling/whatever alarmism, one should always ask the environmentalist wacko, "Exactly WHAT should the temperature be?"
Wallace Heller 27/1/15
The infatuation, perhaps obsession, with global warming strikes this observer as an end times scenario for a generation that prides itself on being particularly areligious. Perhaps we are witnessing the birth of a new religion or the rebirth of something very old. Genuinely new ideas are few and far between, but there is always another generation to sell the old ideas to. Faith comforts and delights, the "warmists" faith no less than any other. The underlying sentiment escapes articulation. Why do they hate themselves so?
They love themselves quite a bit. It's us they hate.
What price is paid for the wrongs done to everyone else by the enlightened few? Staggering, it is, that there is no penalty for being so very provably wrong. Whatever one's views, humanity must continually adapt to changing conditions, else, die. Oh well. Apparently the Betters know Best and the rest can simply submit. Aha. There is a linkage between fundamentalists and liberal ideology. Sarc Off.
Brilliant question, re what price the enlightened pay. The magnitude of the potential fallout from their decisions should shape the penalties, and in a Biblical sense. That should focus their thinking somewhat. Vain hope.
Environmentalism has become a Cult. No longer is the focus on doing least harm, but rather the focus has shifted to using guilt/political power/ lawfare to aggregate legal authority over others every choice, action, or thought. An insidious form of oppression, but oppression none the less.
Warmist thinking is shallow and devoid of reality. To Wit: https://stevengoddard.wordpress.com/2014/08/31/climate-science-explained-in-one-simple-graph/
You know I enjoy your usual articles on Israel, politics, Islam, etc but when it comes to your writings on scientific issues, I cringe every time I read this. Your article on Cosmos was embarrassing to read, and this one is in the same league.
You dont seem to understand the difference between climate and weather. THe fact that there was a blizzard in NYC in January does not disprove the rising overall global temperatures, due to (shock!) increased pumping of CO2 and other gases by human activity. Why is this so hard to understand? Chinese factories building cheap consumer products for Walmart pump billions of tons of CO2 into the atmosphere. 2014 was the hottest year ever recorded
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/summary-info/global/2014/12
Oceans are warming every year, and this has lead to major destruction of sea life and coral reefs, I know because Ive seen this first hand in Caribbean and Great Barrier Reef.
I dont understand some conservatives' religious attachment to denying that human industrial activity can cause climactic changes. This isnt something hard to imagine, just look at China's polluted skyline.
The hottest year ever recorded thing has already been shot down
dymphna 28/1/15
"I dont understand some conservatives' religious attachment to denying that human industrial activity can cause climactic changes. This isnt something hard to imagine, just look at China's polluted skyline."
And from China's pollution (or Victorian England's MUCH worse killer smogs) we can extrapolate somehow TEWAWKI (The End of the World As We Know It)?? Warmists are True Believers who run from anecdote to anecdote to build a "science" on the sands of time. Their dogma insists on eternal bad news; eventually people simply quit listening to those crying wolf, even as they thrill one another with their tales of doom.
Go tell it to the Club of Rome, anonymous. Are you among those who experienced the Great Global Famine of the early 21st Century? Your high priests assured us we would starve, so obviously you did so and thus still believe...
Please try to think outside of your established political groupthink.
To compare todays CO2 emission rates to Victorian England is assinine, for one thing the global population in 1800 was less than 1 billion while today its over 7 billion, the amount of factory, vehicle and airline smog has grown exponentially. This in result has caused the quickest rise of surface warming ever observed. Also the polar ice caps have shrunk within the last 15 years to unseen before levels,
http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/thick-melt.html
The hottest year is confirmed by a body of world's climatologists (not political hacks without science degrees)
ITs embarrasing to have to state this, its like arguing with Creationists that Evolution is a fact of biology and life. Im a conservatve, I dont agree that 'carbon tax' is a way to limit the damage we are doing to our planet. But its no use to anyone to pretend that human acttivity of a rapidly rising global population is not causing any change to planetary weather systems when we are dumping 40 billion tons of CO2 into the atmosphere while Brasil is busy destroying the Amazon basin with logging and clear cutting, shutting down the natural ability of the planet to offset the added CO2.
Previous CO2 estimates scale had to be expanded by 20 parts per million to accomodate the increased CO2 emission rates,
http://www.americanscientist.org/issues/pub/2014/2/watching-earth-change
"THe fact that there was a blizzard in NYC in January does not disprove the rising overall global temperatures, due to (shock!) increased pumping of CO2 and other gases by human activity."
It was in response to this:
"And walking along the path in the Ramble, I heard a woman lecturing her children about what else, Global Warming."
Again, the Warmunists play this game of "Heads, I win, tails, you lose." You honestly don't think the Climate Change crowd ramped up the rhetoric during hurricane seasons past, or during hot temps? That's all weather. Hurricanes as much as blizzards. Everything imaginable is blamed on Climate Chage, and the core assumption is that climate does not change. We're told to believe all this evidence that the Earth is this dynamic ecosystem, but somehow can't deal with too much CO2.
The Earth absorbs particulates. Looks at what happens after a volcanic eruption: temporary changes (weather), but long term climate impact is negligible. One serious volcanic eruption negates all the doomsday scenarios, because everything turns out okay.
Being conservative (which is a political bearing, not a religion) is about (a) distrusting fads and sudden swings in popular tastes; (b) affirming human nature and man's capacity for both wisdom and self-delusion; (c) acknowledging the existence of evil, and man's attraction to manifest power and act selfishly; and (d) recognizing the fantasy of an all-powerful, all-knowing government serving the good of the people as a impartial agent for the bubbling abundance of human altruism.
What cannot be denied in the Climate Change debate is that the Warmunists view government bodies as the stewards and chieftains of Earth's great climate challenges. They have identified and prescribed confiscatory remedies, promulgated by those scientists who would explain the complexities of climate in a model that was impossible to generate years ago, and can't accurately predict what's happening tomorrow. Does this seem at all silly? It is. What will they do with all their carbon tax revenue? Go to some altar and sell it back? No, no, no... they'll spend it, funding all their friends' fraudulent green initiatives. Oops, that's already happened, hasn't it?
Who are you going to believe? Hell, we're all supposed to be burning up here in 2015. The "time is fast running out" warnings have come and come for years. In the 1970s, global cooling meant death. Detect a pattern? Yep, no one has any idea what they're talking about. Hypnosis comes in the form of "Studies say..." Catalonia comes in the form of "Science says..."
The whole "weather isn't climate" mantra is rubbish spoken by people who desperately WANT to beliveve human beings ae destroying the Earth. Not because human beings are the collective source of dealing with such problems, but that there must be fewer (much fewer) of other stupid (read: conservative) people who are the problem. Have a PhD? You won't be voted off the island. It's like "Logan's Run" for scientists and bureaucrats. Who must be sacrificed? It's always someone else's children.
The problem is not the problem. The problem is the audacity, preposterousness and self-serving nature of the climatologist's remedies. It all ends up with more government, imposing more scarcity, based in a solution that will never work, because we cannot control the climate. And then civil service laws prevent the dismantling of the apparatus, so "We might as well get something for all the money we're spending." Think I'm off base? Look at the Department of Education, which educates... no one.
Y. Ben-David 29/1/15
I was in High School in California when the first Moon landing took place and we held a discussion about it in class. I will never forget that one of the students, who I later found out had a serious drug problem stated something to the effect that "why should we go to the Moon and ruin it like we have ruined the Earth?". The Moon is a lifeless ball of rock. How can mankind ruin a "dead" plane?. This just proves what I have come to realize that many"progressives" seem to be unhappy people and they resent those of the human race who aren't unhappy like them so they would be just as pleased if we would all disappear, as indeed European "progressives" are putting into effect by not having children. This is why they ally themselves to destructive forces like Communism or Radical Islam. For that matter, many volunteers for the Waffen SS in World War II had anti-Capitalist and what would be considered today "progressive" views on many issues. Albert Speer discussed this in his memoirs. French intellectuals created something called "National Bolshevism" which was a pro-Nazi movement after the defeat of 1940 but it only lasted up until the Hitler decided to go to war with the beloved "progressive" Stalin. So we see there is nothing new here with the self-prorclaimed "lovers of humanity" that hate people.
Y. Ben-David:
It's like they say: "If you're not outraged, you don't know what's going on."
Down here in South Texas, I enjoy burning old tires to release carbon. I practice my little seance with nature whenever I have a chance. Carbon is a common element within our earth, and the ultimate recycling is to release all elements back to their simple beginnings.
As for environmentalists, most if not all need to be taken behind the barn and donate their blood, via slit throat, to nature.
Anonymous 1/2/15
Warmists might be more believable if they weren't lying most of the time. To Wit:
https://stevengoddard.wordpress.com/2015/02/01/a-global-epidemic-of-data-tampering-at-the-us-government/
And in San Francisco, there is a strong Green movement to eradicate all 'non native plants species'....which includes returning Golden Gate Park to its natural state of sand dunes.
The Imaginary Islamic Radical
The Hollywood Jihad Against American Sniper
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President Obie


text:
Paul Simon Quotes
I taught myself to play the guitar by listening to Paul Simon records, working it out note by note. He is an incredibly intelligent musician. He's not someone who has a natural outpouring of melody like McCartney or Dylan, who are just terribly prolific with musical ideas.
Born: March 11, 1952
Find on Amazon: Douglas Adams
D. H. Lawrence, Thomas Paine, John Ruskin, Rudyard Kipling, Gilbert K. Chesterton, Arthur C. Clarke, Ricky Gervais, Alain de Botton
Dylan, Guitar, He, Ideas, Incredibly, Intelligent, Just, Like, Listening, McCartney, Melody, Musical, Musician, Myself, Natural, Note, Out, Paul, Play, Prolific, Records, Simon, Someone, Taught, Terribly, Who, Working
To give real service you must add something which cannot be bought or measured with money, and that is sincerity and integrity.
You Money Integrity Service
I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.
Funny Love Fly Like Sound
A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools.
People Mistake Design Underestimate
There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened.
Universe Will More Something
In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move.
Angry People Beginning Bad
If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, we have at least to consider the possibility that we have a small aquatic bird of the family anatidae on our hands.
Family Bird Hands Small
In order to fly, all one must do is simply miss the ground.
Fly Ground Miss Must
Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so.
Experience Unique Learn Ability
Isn't it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?
Beautiful Gardening Believe Garden
It is a well-known fact that those people who must want to rule people are, ipso facto, those least suited to do it... anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job.
People Job Want Who
The Guide is definitive. Reality is frequently inaccurate.
Reality Guide Frequently Definitive
I think fish is nice, but then I think that rain is wet, so who am I to judge?
Rain Fish Judge Think
For a moment, nothing happened. Then, after a second or so, nothing continued to happen.
Moment Nothing Happen After
Flying is learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.
Learning Yourself Flying Ground Miss