Sunday, May 31, 2015

India heat wave kills more than 2,100


Asia May 30, 2015 - Updated 16:44 UTC-4

A heat wave in India has killed more than 2,100 people. Weather officials are warning the intense heat will continue in wide areas of the country until Monday.

Daytime temperatures have topped 40 degrees Celsius for more than a week.

Officials in the southern states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, as well as the eastern state of Odisha, say heat stroke and dehydration have killed more than 2,100 people.

Many of the victims were poor laborers working outdoors in the scorching heat.

Some experts say people may have had difficulty adapting to the unusually sharp rise in temperature this year.

Saturday, May 30, 2015

Magnitude 7.8 Earthquake Chichi-shima, Japan

M7.8 - BONIN ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION

Preliminary Earthquake Report
Magnitude7.8
Date-Time
  • 30 May 2015 11:23:02 UTC
  • 30 May 2015 20:23:03 near epicenter
  • 30 May 2015 06:23:02 standard time in your timezone
Location27.831N 140.493E
Depth677 km
Distances
  • 189 km (117 mi) WNW of Chichi-shima, Japan
  • 771 km (478 mi) SSE of Shimoda, Japan
  • 781 km (484 mi) SSE of Oyama, Japan
  • 783 km (485 mi) SE of Shingu, Japan
  • 874 km (542 mi) S of Tokyo, Japan
Location UncertaintyHorizontal: 9.4 km; Vertical 9.3 km
ParametersNph = 111; Dmin = 186.2 km; Rmss = 0.67 seconds; Gp = 28°
Version =
Event IDus 20002ki3
For updates, maps, and technical information, see: Event Page or USGS Earthquake Hazards Program

M3.4 - ILLINOIS Magnitude 3.4 Earthquake

M3.4 - ILLINOIS Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 3.4

Date-Time 30 May 2015 00:41:1429 May 2015 19:41:15 near epicenter29 May 2015 19:41:14 standard time in your timezone

Location 38.461N 88.355W Depth 26 km Distances 9 km (6 mi) N of Fairfield, Illinois75 km (47 mi) WSW of Vincennes, Indiana185 km (115 mi) SE of Springfield, Illinois

Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 0.6 km; Vertical 0.6 km Parameters Nph = 26; Dmin = 9.7 km; Rmss = 0.30 seconds; Gp = 63°
Version = 5 Event ID nm 60008708***This event supersedes event US20002kg7.

For updates, maps, and technical information, see: Event Page or USGS Earthquake Hazards Program

Friday, May 29, 2015

Magnitude 7.0 Earthquake - ALASKA PENINSULA

M7.0 - ALASKA PENINSULA

Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 7.0 Date-Time 29 May 2015 07:00:0828 May 2015 21:00:08 near epicenter

29 May 2015 02:00:08 standard time in your timezone Location 56.689N 156.578W Depth 51 km Distances 113 km (70 mi) NNW of Chirikof Island, Alaska1318 km (817 mi) W of Whitehorse, Canada

Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 0.3 km; Vertical 0.2 km Parameters Nph = 227; Dmin = ; Rmss = 0.99 seconds; Gp =
Version = 1 Event ID ak 11610140***This event supersedes event US20002k91.

For updates, maps, and technical information, see: Event Page or USGS Earthquake Hazards Program
Alaska Earthquake Information Center
Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska Fairbanks

Thursday, May 28, 2015

Mexico: 20,000 have disappeared in eight years.

The Devil Targets Mexico: Mass Catholic Graves Found

Pope Francis was right about a diabolical presence to our south

By Jaime Septién

When Pope Francis, in an interview with Televisa last March, spoke about the devil attacking Mexico in a special way due to the presence of Our Lady of Guadalupe in the land of the Aztecs, he knew what he was talking about. The evil that has taken control of the country is inconceivable — or it is only conceivable if the devil is present in many Mexican hearts and minds.

In fact, a recent report from the office of the Attorney General of the Republic (PGR) of Mexico revealed that, of the 601 bodies found between December 1, 2006, and February 28, 2015, in 174 secret mass graves spread across the length and breadth of the country, 80 percent have not yet been identified.

The PGR's report indicated that the sex of 342 of the 601 bodies found has been determined: 302 were men and 40 were women. The status of the rest is "not able to be determined, in process and/or undetermined." That is to say, the bodies have been so badly damaged that it is impossible even to determine to what sex they belonged in life.

The report was obtained by the newspaper El Universal by means of the new Transparency Law, which obliges Mexican authorities to give information to organizations or individuals who request it. In the report, the AGR indicated that not all the cases are documented "because some states do not work in coordination" with the Attorney General's office.

That's not all. The number of people found in hidden mass graves is one thing; the number of people – men, women and children – who have disappeared in Mexico in the last eight years is something very different.

According to official numbers, 20 thousand people have disappeared in eight years.

Nearly 50 percent of those people, that is to say, slightly less than thousand human beings, "vanished" from the map between 2012 and 2014 – the first two years of the current government headed up by the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), that based a large part of its campaign propaganda for the presidential elections of 2012 precisely on the subject of security.

In 2011, during the presidency of Felipe Calderón of the National Action Party (PAN), 207 bodies were found. The graves were found in 16 of the 32 Mexican states, and 93 of them were discovered in 2013 and 2014. Of the total found between 2007 and 2015, Guerrero, in the Mexican south east, was at the top of the list of states with the greatest number of hidden mass graves: 79 graves and 199 bodies.

It should be noted that it was in Guerrero, specifically in the town of Iguala, that the crisis exploded (September 26, 2014) with the disappearance of 43 college students studying to be teachers at the Isidro Burgos School of Teaching of Ayotzinapa. This crisis has catapulted Mexico into the headlines of the world press, in the area of forced disappearances and the impunity with which the guilty parties participate in public life.

After Guerrero, the State of Jalisco (east) took second place; there, during the period from November, 2013, to January, 2014, 37 graves and 75 bodies were found. In Tamaulipas, in the northeastern part of the country, authorities have found 15 burial locations and 125 bodies since 2007, of which 120 were found in the municipality of San Fernando in 2011. Practically all of them were killed by the criminal organization "Los Zetas" and all of them were of Central American origin.

Truly, the country with the second greatest number of Catholics in the world has been attacked by the devil. Pope Francis was right.

Child Murders in Mexico Linked to Satanic Cult

A little boy named Christopher's killing was not a "random idea" of his torturers

By Miguel Pastorino

The recent news regarding the torture and murder of Christopher Márquez, a six-year-old Mexican boy, has not only upset Mexico and of all those who have heard the news; it continues to reveal darker aspects that relate it to the veneration of Santa Muerte ("Saint Death") and, consequently, to the phenomenon of cults. 

This subject should be a wake-up call for those who do not see the danger of certain religious beliefs, and particularly of religious cults, in relation to the origin of horrible crimes, perpetrated by people who are submerged in a complex world of beliefs that prepare them to commit atrocities. This case is more scandalous because those who kidnapped, tortured and killed Christopher are children and preadolescents.

While it's true that the children involved live in an environment of poverty and extreme violence, and claimed that they were "pretending to be kidnappers," the causes seem to be deeper than a lack of values and constant exposure to organized crime.

Chihuahua is one of the states with the highest rates of child homicide in Mexico: 38 children per 100,000 inhabitants. From 2005 to the present, 10,876 children have been killed in Mexico.

Ritual murder?

There is a piece of information that not all the media have taken into account when analyzing the story: the accused children venerated Santa Muerte. The neighbors mentioned to Net Noticias that the children in question belong to a criminal gang, so the murder would not have been a case of "let's pretend to be bad guys." People living in the area declared to various local media outlets that the children venerate Santa Muerte and were indoctrinated by criminals who made them part of a sectarian cult.

The Herald of Chihuahua reported that the coordinator of the Historical and Social Studies Department of the Autonomous University of Ciudad Juárez, Dizán Vázquez Loya, holds that it should be determined if the child murderers were isolated devotees of Santa Muerte or if they are part of a formal cult. For Fr. Dizán Vázquez, a Catholic priest and an expert on cults, there are indications of a ritual: symbols, sadism, animal sacrifice, child sacrifice, ritual burial, etc. Everything indicates that the children learned from others. However, he recognizes that it is necessary to make a more thorough field investigation in order to know if an organized cult is involved.

Santa Muerte and the crime

Mexican investigators affirm that where criminal organizations grow, the veneration of Santa Muerte grows. The criminals sport tattoos and amulets with the image of Santa Muerte. The relationship between crime and this devotion in Mexico is abundantly clear. The veneration of this image is even prohibited in prisons. One of the "Tex-Mex" leaders of a cult venerating Santa Muerte is in prison, and his followers are considered satanists.

Several Mexican priests recount how churchgoers turn to the saints of the Catholic Church when they need help, but when they want supernatural help to harm someone, take revenge or feel protected from crime, they turn to the veneration of Santa Muerte.

Fr. Jorge Luiz Zarazúa, a Mexican specialist in cults, explains that the devotion to Santa Muerte is not Catholic in origin, although people often mistakenly believe it to be a popular Catholic devotion because of its incorporation of devotional elements such as the use of altars, flowers, images, and processions.

However, it is clearly a devotion tied to magic and the occult whose syncretistic origin is far from the faith of the Church. It is a devotion more closely related to witchcraft and satanism than to popular Catholic piety. According to the latest news regarding the devotion to Santa Muerte, everything indicates that it is a breeding pool of sectarian cults along satanic lines, in which the power of evil gives meaning to their lifestyle and goes hand in hand with crime and the most aberrant practices.

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

'Charlie Charlie Challenge' is 'demonic activity'

Father McCarthy said in a letter: 'I want to remind you all there is no such thing as 'innocently playing with demons''

By LOUIS DORÉ
Tuesday 26 May 2015

A priest has called the 'Charlie Charlie Challenge' "demonic activity", in an open letter warning his students against taking it.

In an open letter to pupils at the Saints John Neumann and Mario Goretti Catholic High School in Philadelphia, America, Father Stephen McCarthy said there was no way of knowing what could happen if they took the challenge.

The letter said: "There is a dangerous game going around on social media which openly encourages impressionable young people to summon demons.

"I want to remind you all there is no such thing as 'innocently playing with demons'.

"Please be sure to NOT participate and and encourage others to avoid participation as well.

"The problem with opening yourself up to demonic activity is that it opens a window of possibilities which is not easily closed."
The 'Charlie Charlie Challenge' trended on Twitter yesterday, as videos were posted of users taking the challenge, which involves balancing pencils in a cross, surrounded by the words 'yes' and 'no', in a rudimentary form of a Ouija board.

The challenge is supposed to have been an "ancient Mexican tradition", which supposedly summons a visit from a demon, which is indicated to be present by the movement of the pencils towards the word 'yes'.

Sunday, May 24, 2015

'Climate change' worries Obama, pope more than ISIS

'Climate change' worries Obama, pope more than ISIS

Unable 'to distinguish real threats from politically contrived nonsense'
JEROME R. CORSI

NEW YORK – President Obama and the Vatican under the leadership of Pope Francis are equally committed to elevating climate change to a top public policy priority, ahead of issues such as the continued surge of ISIS in Iraq and Syria, and its massacre of Christians.

But they are ignoring a growing body of scientific evidence challenging the assumptions on which the theory of human-caused “climate change” is based, critics contend.

Marc Morano, editor of the website ClimateDepot.com, called President Obama’s speech on the subject Wednesday at the Coast Guard Academy commencement “politically contrived nonsense,” arguing “scientific studies, data and history refute Obama’s climate/national security claims.”
“The president’s speech was so farcical in its claims that it hardly merits a response,” Morano said in a statement posted on ClimateDepot.com. “Contrary to the president’s claims, it seems ISIS may in fact trump ICE as a bigger concern.”

Morano said that “believing Obama’s climate claims undermines our nation’s ability to distinguish real threats from politically contrived nonsense.”

“U.N. climate treaties and EPA climate regulations will not prevent wars, conflicts or impact the creation of terrorist groups,” he said.

Morano cited evidence to support the conclusion that the presumed scientific link between anthropogenic climate change and extreme weather events is “weak (or worse) on scientific ground.” He noted it has been nine years since a Category 3 or grater hurricane has struck the United States, with the last being Hurricane Wilma in October 2005. Also, the U.S. tornado count has plummeted to record lows in three consecutive years, 2012 through 2014.

Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., the author of the 2012 WND book, “The Greatest Hoax: How the Global Warming Conspiracy Threatens Your Future,” observed that Obama’s speech Wednesday shows the White House is getting “more desperate.”

“The president’s speech at the Coast Guard Academy stating his belief that climate change poses the greatest threat to future generations is a severe disconnect from reality,” Inhofe said in a statement posted on his Senate website.

In “The Greatest Hoax,” Sen. James Inhofe reveals the reasons behind those perpetuating the climate-change hoax, who is benefiting from the general acceptance of the hoax and why the premise statements are blatantly and categorically false.

“The president’s repeated failure to understand the real threat to our national security and inability to develop a coherent national security strategy has put this nation at an unknown level of risk with consequences that will span over decades,” the senator said.

“While the president has spent at least $120 billion on climate change initiatives since first taking office, he has also set into motion more than $1 trillion in budget cuts to our national defense,” Inhofe stressed.

He noted that when he talks to military personnel, whether in Oklahoma or overseas, their greatest concern is not climate change.

“Instead, what I hear is their concern for global instability, the disarming of America and the lack of vision from their commander-in-chief,” he said.


Saturday, May 23, 2015

Two Magnitude 6.8 Earthquakes - SOLOMON ISLANDS

M6.8 - SOLOMON ISLANDS

Preliminary Earthquake Report
Magnitude6.8
Date-Time
  • 22 May 2015 23:59:33 UTC
  • 23 May 2015 10:59:34 near epicenter
  • 22 May 2015 18:59:33 standard time in your timezone
Location11.157S 163.194E
Depth10 km
Distances
  • 159 km (99 mi) ESE of Kirakira, Solomon Islands
  • 403 km (250 mi) ESE of Honiara, Solomon Islands
  • 647 km (401 mi) NW of Luganville, Vanuatu
  • 913 km (566 mi) NW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu
  • 1004 km (622 mi) ESE of Arawa, Papua New Guinea
Location UncertaintyHorizontal: 8.2 km; Vertical 1.8 km
ParametersNph = 140; Dmin = 1148.4 km; Rmss = 0.98 seconds; Gp = 40°
Version =
Event IDus 10002bpw

Friday, May 22, 2015

M2.1 - MAINE Earthquake Magnitude 2.1

M2.1 - MAINE Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 2.1

Date-Time 22 May 2015 04:45:0222 May 2015 00:45:03 near epicenter

21 May 2015 23:45:02 standard time in your timezone Location 44.500N 70.253W Depth 0 km Distances 2 km (1 mi) W of Jay, Maine44 km (27 mi) N of Auburn, Maine Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 0.8 km; Vertical 2.9 km Parameters Nph = 60; Dmin = 25.3 km; Rmss = 1.07 seconds; Gp = 59°
Version = 2 Event ID ld 60092756***This event supersedes event US10002bb3.

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Magnitude 6.9 Earthquake - SANTA CRUZ ISLANDS REGION

M6.9 - SANTA CRUZ ISLANDS REGION Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 6.9

Date-Time 20 May 2015 22:48:5421 May 2015 09:48:54 near epicenter20 May 2015 17:48:54 standard time in your timezone

Location 10.877S 164.154E Depth 19 km Distances 184 km (114 mi) W of Lata, Solomon Islands487 km (302 mi) ESE of Honiara, Solomon Islands881 km (546 mi) NNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu1079 km (669 mi) ESE of Arawa, Papua New Guinea Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 7.4 km; Vertical 4.3 km Parameters Nph = 99; Dmin = 487.5 km; Rmss = 1.02 seconds; Gp = 22°
Version = Event ID us 10002b03

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

M6.0 - TONGA Preliminary Earthquake Report

M6.0 - TONGA Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 6.0 Date-Time 20 May 2015 00:30:5119 May 2015 12:30:52 near epicenter19 May 2015 19:30:51 standard time in your timezone Location 19.303S 175.461W Depth 180 km Distances 128 km (79 mi) WNW of Pangai, Tonga632 km (392 mi) ESE of Lambasa, Fiji722 km (448 mi) SSW of Apia, Samoa Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 7.8 km; Vertical 6.0 km Parameters Nph = 125; Dmin = 582.4 km; Rmss = 1.29 seconds; Gp = 29°
Version = Event ID us 10002anx

M6.5 - PACIFIC-ANTARCTIC RIDGE

Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 6.5 Date-Time 19 May 2015 15:25:2119 May 2015 06:25:22 near epicenter19 May 2015 10:25:21 standard time in your timezone

Location 54.301S 132.110W Depth 12 km Distances 2151 km (1334 mi) N of Siple, Mount, Antarctica3891 km (2412 mi) WSW of Puerto Natales, Chile3912 km (2425 mi) WSW of Punta Arenas, Chile3250 km (2015 mi) S of Adamstown, Pitcairn

Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 10.8 km; Vertical 3.3 km Parameters Nph = 102; Dmin = 3513.7 km; Rmss = 1.25 seconds; Gp = 26°
Version = Event ID us 10002aj3

Sunday, May 17, 2015

Pope Francis calls Terrorist-Honoring Abbas ‘angel of peace’


via Pope Francis calls Palestinians’ Abbas ‘angel of peace’ – BBC News.

Pope Francis has met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the Vatican, calling him “an angel of peace”.
The Pope made the remark as he presented the Palestinian leader with a medallion.
President Abbas is visiting the Vatican for the canonisation of two 19th-Century Palestinian nuns on Sunday.
His visit came days after the Vatican said it would formally recognise Palestinian statehood in a treaty.
The treaty states that the Holy See favours a two-state solution to the conflict with Israel and allows the Vatican to oversee aspects of Roman Catholic life in the areas President Abbas controls.
Israel expressed disappointment with the treaty, which uses the term “Palestinian state”.
The BBC’s David Willey in Rome says that after 20 minutes of private talks, Pope Francis gave Mr Abbas the medallion depicting an angel of peace adding: “It is appropriate because you are an angel of peace.”
It’s been documented time and again that Abbas Honors Terror Leaders.
Topping off a great week for the caliphate, the Vatican recognizes state of Palestine in new treaty.

Wednesday, May 13, 2015

Vatican Recognition of ‘State of Palestine’ Riles Jewish Organizations

As officials in Israel declared disappointment at the Vatican’s official recognition of the state of Palestine on Wednesday, the move also drew the ire of many in the diaspora Jewish community.

The American Jewish Committee said it “regrets the announcement” of the treaty, in which the Vatican refers to the “state of Palestine” rather than the Palestinian Liberation Organization, as it had in previous documents.

AJC Executive Director David Harris said the move was “counterproductive to all who seek true peace between Israel and the Palestinians.”

He said “peaceful coexistence … is best served, we believe, by encouraging a resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, rather than unilateral gestures outside the framework of the negotiating table.”

Additionally, the Anti-Defamation League “expressed disappointment” at the Vatican’s decision to recognize a Palestinian state, calling the step “premature.”

ADL National Director Abraham H. Foxman said the move would “bolster the Palestinian strategy of seeking statehood through international fora and not through recognition, reconciliation and negotiation with Israel.”

The heads of the Conference of Presidents of the Major Jewish Organizations, Chairman Robert G. Sugarman and Executive Director Malcom Hoenlein, expressed “regret at the recognition of a Palestinian state by the Vatican” and called for direct Israeli-Palestinian negotiations as the means for creating peace.

The International Jewish Committee on Interreligious Consultations “expressed concern” at the Vatican’s announcement, and said it was “unhelpful to the cause of a genuine and durable peace” between Israel and the Palestinians.

Betty Ehrenberg, chair of the IJCIC, said the “unilateral move is not in keeping with UN resolutions that mandate that a peace agreement be achieved by direct negotiations between the parties.”

The statements from the Jewish community echoed those of the Israeli Foreign Ministry in that the recognition undermines the peace process and allows Palestinians to avoid coming to bilateral agreements with Israel.

The Holy See’s recognition, made just a few days before Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was scheduled to visit the Vatican, follows Sweden, which officially recognized the state of Palestine last October.

According to the Associated Press, the Vatican has actually been referring to the state of Palestine for more than a year, including during Pope Francis’ visit to the Holy Land last year, as well as in reference to the Palestinian ambassador.

ALERT: Geomagnetic K-index of 6

Space Weather Message Code: ALTK06 Serial Number: 340 Issue Time: 2015 May 13 0903 UTC

ALERT: Geomagnetic K-index of 6 Threshold Reached: 2015 May 13 0859 UTC Synoptic Period UTC

Active Warning: Yes NOAA Scale: G2 - Moderate

NOAA Space Weather Scale descriptions can be found at www.swpc.noaa.gov/noaa-scales-explanation Potential Impacts: Area of impact primarily poleward of 55 degrees Geomagnetic Latitude. Induced Currents - Power grid fluctuations can occur. High-latitude power systems may experience voltage alarms. Spacecraft - Satellite orientation irregularities may occur; increased drag on low Earth-orbit satellites is possible. Radio - HF (high frequency) radio propagation can fade at higher latitudes. Aurora - Aurora may be seen as low as New York to Wisconsin to Washington state.

Editor's note:  Brace for significant weather and geological events for the next 7-10 days.

Tuesday, May 12, 2015

UK to confront "head-on the poisonous Islamist extremist ideology".

"Whether they are violent in their means or not, we must make it impossible for the extremists to succeed," Cameron will tell a meeting of his National Security Council, according to extracts released by his office.

The legislation will also include tougher immigration rules, powers to close down premises used by extremists and "extremism disruption orders".

Cameron will say a "poisonous" extremist ideology must be confronted and that Britain  has been a "passively tolerant society" for too long.

"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens: as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone. It's often meant we have stood neutral between different values. And that's helped foster a narrative of extremism and grievance," he will say. "This government will conclusively turn the page on this failed approach.

The Party of One Nation

"As the party of one nation, we will govern as one nation and bring our country together. That means actively promoting certain values. Freedom of speech. Freedom of worship. Democracy. The rule of law. Equal rights regardless of race, gender or sexuality.

"We must say to our citizens: this is what defines us as a society."

Home Secretary Theresa May will also address the meeting, and will tell the council: "The twisted narrative of extremism cannot be ignored or wished away. This government will challenge those who seek to spread hatred and intolerance . . . We will introduce legislation to combat groups and individuals who reject our values and promote messages of hate."

The need to tackle radicalism in Britain has been underlined by the flow of hundreds of Britons to join Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria - most notably Kuwaiti-born Londoner Mohammed Emwazi (the so-called Jihadi John), who has appeared in videos showing the beheading of Western hostages.

M3.5 - NORTHERN ITALY Earthquake Magnitude 3.5

M3.5 - NORTHERN ITALY Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 3.5

Date-Time 12 May 2015 02:02:5012 May 2015 04:02:50 near epicenter11 May 2015 21:02:50 standard time in your timezone Location 45.870N 12.060E Depth 2 km Distances 1 km (1 mi) ENE of Vidor, Italy6 km (4 mi) ESE of Valdobbiadene, Italy9 km (6 mi) WSW of Pieve di Soligo, Italy10 km (6 mi) N of Montebelluna, Italy190 km (118 mi) W of Ljubljana, Slovenia Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 3.2 km; Vertical 7.9 km Parameters Nph = 0; Dmin = ; Rmss = 0.90 seconds; Gp =
Version = Event ID us 20002eij

M6.8 - NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN

M6.8 - NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN

Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 6.8 Date-Time 12 May 2015 21:12:5813 May 2015 06:12:59 near epicenter 12 May 2015 16:12:58 standard time in your timezone

Location 38.902N 142.032E Depth 38 km Distances 33 km (20 mi) SE of Ofunato, Japan42 km (26 mi) SSE of Kamaishi, Japan52 km (32 mi) SSE of Otsuchi, Japan63 km (39 mi) SE of Tono, Japan412 km (255 mi) NNE of Tokyo, Japan Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 6.1 km; Vertical 5.5 km Parameters Nph = 128; Dmin = 158.3 km; Rmss = 1.01 seconds; Gp = 38°
Version = Event ID us 20002et4

Nepal hit by 7.3 magnitude earthquake

BBC

Nepal earthquake: Dozens die in new tremor near Everest

A major earthquake has struck eastern Nepal, near Mount Everest, two weeks after more than 8,000 people died in a devastating quake.

At least 37 people have been killed and more than 1,000 injured, officials say. At least 17 have also died in India.

The latest earthquake hit near the town of Namche Bazaar and sent thousands of panicked residents on to the streets of Nepal's capital, Kathmandu.

It had a magnitude of 7.3, compared with the 7.8 of the 25 April quake.

The latest quake struck at 12:35 Nepali time (06:50 GMT) and was centred about 76km (47 miles) east of Kathmandu, in a rural area close to the Chinese border.

Phoenix: Mosque Attended by Garland Jihadis Spawned Two Other Terrorists

By Patrick Poole

Yesterday at PJ Media, I reported on conflicting stories offered by the Islamic Community Center of Phoenix (ICCP) regarding former mosque attendees Elton Simpson and Nadir Soofi, who were killed this past Sunday in a gunfight outside a Dallas-area center where a “Draw Muhammad” cartoon contest was being held.

I noted the attempts by the mosque president, Usama Shami, to downplay the ties of the two would-be terrorists. This included Shami’s claim to the press that neither was a regular member. In fact, Elton “Ibrahim” Simpson had been featured in a mosque fundraising video posted on ICCP’s YouTube channel in 2012 identifying him as a member:
In fact, Simpson and Soofi were not the only two terrorists spawned from ICCP.

Two other previous ICCP mosque attendees — Hassan Abu-Jihaad and Derrick Shareef — are currently in federal prison on terrorism-related charges.
There are remarkable parallels with Simpson and Soofi, including that Abu-Jihaad and Shareef were also roommates.

Further, Usama Shami attempted to downplay their association with ICCP as well. He told the Arizona Republic he never saw the pair – despite court records in both their cases stating they had attended the mosque.

Abu-Jihaad is currently serving a 10-year federal prison sentence for passing classified information to a UK-based al-Qaeda webmaster.

According to the Justice Department:
In 2001, Abu-Jihaad was serving as a U.S. Navy signalman aboard the U.S.S. Benfold and had access to the future movements of his group of ships, led by the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Constellation. Six months after the attack on the U.S.S. Cole, and before leaving home port in San Diego for a deployment in the Persian Gulf, Abu-Jihaad transmitted then-classified information about his battle group’s itinerary, listing dates for anticipated port calls in Hawaii and Australia, and for the battle group’s transit through the Strait of Hormuz. Abu-Jihaad’s disclosure discussed the battle group’s perceived vulnerability to terrorist attack.

The leak did not come to light until well after Abu-Jihaad left the Navy, when an investigation into Azzam Publications led to the search of a London apartment associated with one of the website’s organizers, and authorities found a floppy disk containing the U.S. Navy information. Subsequent investigation uncovered several email exchanges from late 2000 to late 2001 between members of Azzam Publications and Abu-Jihaad, including discussions regarding videos Abu-Jihaad ordered from Azzam Publications that promoted violent jihad and extolled the virtues of martyrdom; a donation of money Abu-Jihaad made to Azzam Publications; and whether it was “safe” to send materials to Abu-Jihaad at his military address onboard the U.S.S. Benfold.

The FBI established a direct tie between Abu-Jihaad and Simpson according to court documents in the latter’s 2010 trial, as Simpson was first questioned by the FBI in 2006 when authorities believed he might be part of a terror cell:

In 2006, agents opened a criminal investigation of him based on his ties with an individual “whom the FBI believed was attempting to set up a terrorist cell in Arizona,” according to court documents.
Agents say Simpson knew Hassan Abu-Jihaad, an enlistee in the U.S. Navy later convicted of leaking classified information about upcoming movements of his battle group to an alleged terror cell in London. Simpson told agents he knew Abu-Jihaad, who was arrested in Phoenix in 2007, but did not tell them anything else about him.

Undoubtedly, what launched that 2006 investigation was the activity of Abu-Jihaad’s former roommate, Derrick Shareef.

Shareef was arrested in 2006 for his role in a plot to set off hand grenades at a Rockford, Illinois shopping mall during the holiday season. He later pled guilty on a charge of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction, and was sentenced to 35 years in prison.

During his trial, the FBI provided video tapes of Shareef threatening Americans:
“You are the enemies of Islam, for the sake of Allah we are coming for you,” Shareef says in a tape that looks like it could have been shot somewhere in the Middle East. In fact, the camera was 90 miles from Chicago in a Rockford home where the 22-year-old and a friend each made several videos declaring their desire for destruction.

“We will target you in your homes. We will target you in your businesses. We will target you in your synagogues and your churches. We do not fear you Kafirs. I swear by Allah I am ready to give my life right now for the cause,” the tape says.
The mosque also came under scrutiny in March 2008, when a large group of men from ICCP began firing semi-automatic weapons in an open area frequented by runners and bikers near a residential area, as the Arizona Republic reported at the time:

Shortly before noon on a sunny Sunday in March, two Toyota SUVs rolled to a stop along a dirt road in north Phoenix.
About 20 young Muslim males climbed out, armed with assault rifles, a shotgun, a sniper rifle and handguns. The location near Happy Valley Road and 51st Avenue is a desert recreation site for off-road motorists, hikers and bikers, dozens of whom were enjoying the spring-like weather.

For more than an hour, the shooters blasted away at a granite rock and empty cans in front of a hill.

Officials estimate the fusillade totaled 500 to 1,000 rounds. Some shooters left before police arrived and detained 10 adults and five boys, including an 11-year-old.

The young men and boys told officers the weapons belonged to their parents. They said they were not aware it was illegal to use firearms in the residential area.

Six were arrested and charged with felony weapons violations in Maricopa County Superior Court. Among them were the 20- and 21-year-old sons of two imams at Phoenix-area mosques, as well as the 20-year-old son of Abdallah.

Needless to say, the usual suspects claimed the men were being targeted because of their Islamic faith, rather than their firing rifles in a prohibited area that endangered others.

ICCP officials would most likely claim that the case of the “Draw Muhammad” terrorists coming out of their mosque, as had a traitor betraying classified military secrets to al-Qaeda, and a man planning a terror attack on a shopping mall during the holidays, is a matter of bad luck.
But one of the main tools used by terror recruiters is the Islamic grievance narrative that Muslims are under attack from the West.

In fact, ICCP regularly hosts speakers pushing that Islamic grievance narrative, such as the February 2013 appearance of Lauren Booth:

As I reported here at PJ Media in 2012, Booth had been interviewed in a California mosque spouting Jew-hatred, making anti-American statements, and calling President Obama a murderer:

Interestingly, the man interviewing Booth in that video, my friend Tom Trento of the United West, was broadcasting live inside the “Draw Muhammad” event on Sunday when it came under attack by Simpson and Soofi, and he continued giving live video updates as the situation unfolded.
So while ICCP officials may call the four terrorists that have come from their mosque a tragic coincidence, others may call it a pattern. Or as my law enforcement colleagues would describe it, an “investigative clue.”

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

PAPUA NEW GUINEA Earthquake Magnitude 7.4

M7.4 - NEW BRITAIN REGION, PAPUA NEW GUINEA Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 7.4 Date-Time 5 May 2015 01:44:07 5 May 2015 11:44:08 near epicenter 4 May 2015 20:44:07 standard time in your timezone Location 5.503S 151.915E Depth 63 km Distances 133 km (82 mi) SSW of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea196 km (122 mi) E of Kimbe, Papua New Guinea346 km (215 mi) SSE of Kavieng, Papua New Guinea408 km (253 mi) W of Arawa, Papua New Guinea680 km (422 mi) NE of Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 7.1 km; Vertical 6.6 km Parameters Nph = 68; Dmin = 633.4 km; Rmss = 1.30 seconds; Gp = 68°
Version = Event ID us 20002bnf

Sunday, May 3, 2015

Magnitude 4.0 Earthquake - SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA, CALIFORNIA

M4.0 - SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA, CALIFORNIA

Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 4.0

Date-Time3 May 2015 22:13:19 UTC3 May 2015 15:13:19 near epicenter3 May 2015 17:13:19 standard time in your timezoneLocation37.968N 122.030WDepth14 kmDistances1 km (1 mi) S of Concord, California3 km (2 mi) NE of Pleasant Hill, CaliforniaLocation UncertaintyHorizontal: 0.2 km; Vertical 0.3 kmParametersNph = 80; Dmin = 7.0 km; Rmss = 0.13 seconds; Gp = 47°
Version = 3Event IDnc 72439615

For updates, maps, and technical information, see: Event Page or USGS Earthquake Hazards Program
CISN Northern California Management Center
U.S. Geological Survey
Berkeley Seismological Laboratory

Saturday, May 2, 2015

M4.0 - MICHIGAN Preliminary Earthquake Magnitude 4.0

M4.0 - MICHIGAN Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 4.0 Date-Time 2 May 2015 16:23:07 2 May 2015 12:23:08 near epicenter 2 May 2015 11:23:07 standard time in your timezone Location 42.212N 85.429W Depth 5 km Distances 8 km (5 mi) S of Galesburg, Michigan12 km (7 mi) E of Portage, Michigan23 km (14 mi) WSW of Battle Creek, Michigan Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 2.2 km; Vertical 6.8 km Parameters Nph = 13; Dmin = 75.3 km; Rmss = 0.62 seconds; Gp = 73°
Version = Event ID us 20002avh

TENNESSEE Earthquake Magnitude 2.9

M2.9 - TENNESSEE Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 2.9

Date-Time 1 May 2015 23:41:31 1 May 2015 18:41:31 near epicenter 1 May 2015 18:41:31 standard time in your timezone Location 36.225N 89.415W Depth 6 km Distances 7 km (4 mi) ESE of Ridgely, Tennessee21 km (13 mi) N of Dyersburg, Tennessee Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 0.3 km; Vertical 1.1 km Parameters Nph = 30; Dmin = 12.8 km; Rmss = 0.20 seconds; Gp = 45°
Version = 1 Event ID nm 60099616

Friday, May 1, 2015

PAPUA NEW GUINEA Earthquake Magnitude 7.1

.1 - NEW BRITAIN REGION, PAPUA NEW GUINEA Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 7.1 Date-Time 1 May 2015 08:06:05 1 May 2015 18:06:05 near epicenter 1 May 2015 03:06:05 standard time in your timezone Location 5.217S 151.774E Depth 53 km Distances 110 km (68 mi) SSW of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea184 km (114 mi) ENE of Kimbe, Papua New Guinea311 km (193 mi) SSE of Kavieng, Papua New Guinea431 km (267 mi) WNW of Arawa, Papua New Guinea689 km (427 mi) NE of Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 6.7 km; Vertical 5.8 km Parameters Nph = 116; Dmin = 121.7 km; Rmss = 1.36 seconds; Gp = 24°
Version = Event ID us 20002am6

For updates, maps, and technical i