Thursday, July 16, 2015

It is an enormous storm. No rain. It is a lot of water vapor. Higher latitudes.

Mount Horeb, WI
July 13, 2015

The photographer is below. He had to take five separate pictures to piece together this one photo of the system.

Interesting. I am glad to see military is talking directly to the manufacturer. It is the way it should be.

The US military is using this up, huh?

By John Keller
REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala., 1 July 2015. (click here)  

U.S. Army missile experts are asking Lockheed Martin Corp to ramp-up production of the AGM-114R Hellfire missile, which can be launched from manned and unmanned aircraft, surface ships, and military ground vehicles.
 
Officials of the Army Contracting Command at Redstone Arsenal, Ala., awarded a contract modification last week to the Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control segment in Orlando, Fla., to increase Hellfire II missile production from 500 all-up rounds per month to 550 and 650 per month.

The contract covers non-recurring engineering tooling, test equipment, and labor necessary to ramp-up production of variants of the Hellfire II air-to-ground missile....

The less people between the US military and the manufacturers of their equipment the more efficient the outcomes. It is important the military has the expertise to speak to manufacturing. It is important manufacturers listen and if necessary as the US military for schematics and/or specifications. The military should understand their equipment and verbalize complaints for any poor or unexpected performance. No middle merchant or engineer. It is more cost effective as well.

And, yes, these are dangerous weapons mounted on unmanned drones. 

...Hellfires also are the missile of choice for several kinds of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) such as the MQ-1B Predator, MQ-9 Reaper, and MQ-1C Grey Eagle. Eventually these missiles may arm U.S. military unmanned helicopters.

The AGM-114R Hellfire II Romeo RX missile will use a semi-active laser guidance system and an integrated blast fragmentation sleeve warhead to engage targets that previously needed several Hellfire variants to destroy.

These missiles can seek out their targets autonomously or with designation from remote laser designators. The missile has a three–axis inertial measurement unit to enable it to attack targets from the side and behind.

The AGM-114R can be launched from higher altitudes than previous variants because of its enhanced guidance and navigation capabilities. With its multi–purpose warhead, the missile can destroy hard, soft, and enclosed targets....

A vortex has been displaced off Antarctica over southeast Australia.

July 16, 2015
1632z
MTSAT Water Vapor Loop (click here for loop)

July 16, 2015

RESIDENTS across Australia’s southeast (click here) have woken to sub-zero temperatures and snow, as the latest icy blast brings new severe weather warnings.
Locals in Orange and other Central Tablelands towns have taken to social media posting photos of the second heavy snowfall in a week.
At 9am the temperature in Orange had yet to reach 1C with a maximum expected of only 4C.
Other towns that have seen, or are expecting snow today, include Bathurst, Lithgow, Blackheath, Armidale, Glen Innes and Guyra.

A skier makes the most of a 70cm snow dump at Thredbo in NSW with the coldest weather for 15 years forecast across much of Australia’s eastern half. Photograph: Ben Hemmings/Thredbo Resort 

12 July 2015
By Oliver Milman

...The alpine regions of Victoria and New South Wales (click here) have experienced significant snowfall at elevations as low as 600m, with blizzard conditions and strong winds forecast for Sunday.
Snow has dusted areas across NSW, such as the city of Orange, in the state’s central west, and is anticipated as far north as the southern reaches of Queensland until Monday. Snow and sleet are expected on Sunday and Monday in areas above 800 metres in the granite belt, a region that includes the Darling Downs.
Chilly conditions have swept across the interior of NSW, with the city of Dubbo experiencing temperatures of 4.9C early on Sunday. Sydney has been a little warmer, at 13C by midday on Sunday, although thunderstorms are gathering off the coast. Brisbane’s temperature is expected to be about 11C on Sunday.
In Victoria, temperatures at Mount Hotham plunged to minus 6C, with blizzard conditions set to hit the area. Further south, Melbourne experienced wind and rain, waking to temperatures of about 7C. Canberra’s temperature on Sunday hovered around 6C....

The northern hemisphere is experiencing a different extreme weather. 

Below is a shelf cloud.

July 11, 2015
Jacksonville, Illinois

Timing. (click here) Intense heat (and humidity) will be the big story into the mid and lafe afternoon hours, with a heat index in the Twin Cities approaching 100F by 4 PM. I expect a high near 90, maybe low 90s, but the high dew points (mid to upper 70s?) is what will crank up the heat index to obnoxious levels. A few isolated supercells out ahead of the main squall line may spin up tornadoes around the dinner hour, especially north/west of MSP. Most of us will see a line of severe storms after 7 or 8 PM capable of hail and straight-line winds, along with frequent lightning. I envision a few power outages early tonight, along with serious hail-dings and some wind-related damage. Source: Twin Cities National Weather Service.

July 13, 2015
Indianapolis, Indiana

BRAINERD, Minn. - Forecasters (click here) say at least four unconfirmed tornadoes may have touched down in western Minnesota when strong storms moved through the state.Sunday's hot, sticky weather gave way to storms that toppled trees and power lines. National Weather Service meteorologist Jennifer Ritterling said Monday the four unconfirmed tornadoes were in Grant, Wilkin and Otter Tail counties....

There was primarily heat on July 12 reported though the region. Thunderstorms and not tornadoes although there were tornadoes warnings. Tornadoes occurred in clusters on July 13, no reports of fatalities. They don't appear to be high velocity tornadoes.

July 13, 2015
Grand Ridge, Illinois

This supercell formed just to the west of Ottawa, IL and moved ESE/SE past Kankakee into Indiana before dissipating. While this storm had great structure and a rotating wall cloud, it just wasn't able to tighten up enough in the low-levels for a tornado to form. It still was a good chase and then I got treated to a nice sunset on the way home.

Opps, that is not an EF1. No precipitation system was stationary. The skies are clear other than the system.

July 13, 2015
Hutchinson, Kansas

There was one (click here) tornado in the United States on Monday, July 13.  It was located in Nickerson, Kan., about 12 miles northwest of Hutchinson, Kan. 

This twister is what is called an LP supercell thunderstorm. The LP stands for “low precipitation.” 
There was hardly any rain, so it was visible from great distances over the flat plains of Kansas. It barely moved and it was over open fields, the best case scenario for a tornado--no damage and no injuries.

There was a rain shadow behind the tornado. Now, this is interesting. 



When were those dual tornadoes last year? 

June 16, 2014. We're past that. That was just about the height of the summer sun traverse.
 
Do Not Turn Shopping Malls into War Zones.

End of Discussion!

It is domestic terrorism. Foreign inspired is nonsense. The person carrying out the act was here legally. Gee whiz where did I hear that before? Oh, yeah, I know where. September 12, 2001, all 20 terrorists were known to the USA intelligence and were here legally. That's is where I heard that before. Yes, 20, one of them is in prison IN THE USA.

Why do Americans want the government to function? I don't have a clue.

Those marines were sitting ducks.

Pew Research Study. Pew is preferred by Republicans, so this should be easy to digest. Pew states there are upto 310 million guns on the streets of the USA and Marines, US Marines are sitting in a shopping mall with absolutely no way to defend themselves.

Does anyone think being a Marine is carrying a gun? 

June 4, 2013

There are by various estimates (click here) anywhere from 270 million to 310 million guns in the United States — close to one firearm for every man, woman and child. But in point of fact, only a minority of Americans own guns.

Gun ownership is one of the hardest things for researchers to pin down (as the Pew Research Center’s Michael Dimock, among others, discusses here). A Pew Research Center survey conducted in February found that 37% of households had an adult who owned a gun — 24% said they owned a gun, and 13% said someone else in their household did....

Does anyone think a Marine knows how to handle a gun and discern an enemy? Am I alone in thinking maybe, just maybe those Marines would know they shouldn't shot through the walls, but, instead at the man shooting at them?

Anyone who believes those Marines should not be wearing body armor is completely in a world the rest of us don't live in. 

HERE IS A CLUE.

The shooter of former US Representative Giffords bought his munitions at Walmart. Any guess how many Walmarts are in the USA? 

1.3 million U.S. associates at more than 5,000 stores and clubs nationwide.

Shopping malls. In case this analogy is too much for those important in giving orders to Marines, that means there are about 100 Walmart stores that sell bullets and all sorts of gun paraphernalia in every state of the union including Hawaii and Alaska. How many shopping malls in the USA DON'T carry weapons? NONE. It is a safe guess the Marine recruiting stations should not be in shopping malls. 

What goes on in the minds of those that make decisions about the life and death of Marines? They need to rethink the fact the lives of CURRENT marines are more important than the people they'll recruit. 

There is no one in the shopping malls for the US military to recruit.

A new "buy button" is coming to search results (click here)

Google is finally rolling out a ‘Buy’ button in its search results. The new feature, first reported back in May, is an effort to get users comfortable thinking of Google as a shopping destination, not just a conduit to other sites.
At a press event on Wednesday, the company announced “Purchase with Google,” which will turn the ads that appear at the top of search results into cards that let users buy products from directly within Google’s interface. After clicking an ad marked with “Buy on Google,” a user will be taken to a special, Google-built page that shows information about the product and a checkout button to pay for the item using the credit card stored in a Google account....

And the opposition to the Japan military begins.

July 15, 2015
By Rappler

A left-leaning group of teachers (click here) has asked the Philippine Supreme Court to order the stop of training exercises between the Philippine and Japan militaries, saying the agreements on which these are based are unconstitutional. It argued that the joint exercises cannot be allowed without a treaty ratified by the Senate because it involves bringing in foreign troops into the country. This is an issue that Rappler raised in June as the Philippine and Japanese navies held historic drills off Palawan, near the area disputed by the Philippines and China. The Philippines currently has two treaty allies – United States and Australia – whose militaries conduct regular military exercises with their Filipino counterparts....

January 15, 2015
By Justin McCurry 

Japan has announced (click here) its biggest ever defence budget in response to China’s increasing military influence in the region and Beijing’s claims to a group of disputed islands administered by Tokyo.
The 4.98 trillion yen (US$ 42bn) budget approved by the cabinet on Wednesday is up 2% from last year and marks the third straight increase after more than a decade of cuts.
The rise is in line with Japan’s more assertive defence policy under the conservative prime minister, Shinzo Abe, as he seeks to counter Chinese influence and remove the postwar legal shackles from his country’s military.
This year Abe is expected to push for legislation to reinterpret Japan’s constitution to allow Japanese troops to fight alongside allies on foreign soil for the first time since the end of the second world war. The move has been welcomed in Washington, which wants Japan to play a bigger role in the bilateral security alliance....
A hair salon is not a high value target.

Speaking of Comey. This is the same community involved with the cartoon carnival and this can still happen. Really? 

I want to know why Clapper never found any information to stop this, too. What's his buddy's name? ???? Yeah, Haden. I suppose he should make the rounds on the talk shows to carry out a little war mongering, yet he doesn't have a clue how to stop idiots that kill marines on USA soil. Oh, yeah, he's exactly the guy we need to hear from now. Come on, let's hear the clown show. Let's hear the rhetoric to whip a little sentiment for the good 'ole days of "W."

Look Jacobs, if they can't protect themselves, then stop putting them in shopping malls !!!!!!!!!!! 

Honestly, these guys are about as helpless to prove problem solving. How did they get where they are? 

Take order, take orders, every soldier should take orders and die for their country, how about some orders there they defend and love their country and don't die !!!!!!!!! 

Shopping malls are a little too desperate. The US military runs those fancy commercials, then give everyone an 800 number to call or a website to visit and put the recruiters on the nearest military base. 

Women should run the world. 

Give the recruits a real tour of their patriotism. Why wait sign up now. Maybe the military is afraid being REAL. The word is out REAL ROCKS.

Shopping malls. I never go to shopping malls, I go to Main Street. You know, a place where you are not. 

I am kinda likin' this recruitment on military base thing. Sign them up and give them a bed and a meal at the same time. You know, it feels like mom.

The recruits get sign on bonuses. Give them a ride to the car showroom of their choice.

Recruitment only takes great marketing after all. Right? That is why the recruiters are in shopping malls, right? 

That's another thing, there is a dead police officer. They don't carry weapons. The recruiters are professional soldiers. Their skills are better than police officers. 

Guilty of pre-meditated murder.

July 8, 2015
By Tribune wire reports

Prosecutors (click here) continued a blistering attack Wednesday on the accuracy and thoroughness of a second defense expert who concluded James Holmes was so mentally ill he couldn't tell right from wrong when he carried out a deadly attack at a Colorado movie theater. 

Dr. Raquel Gur will return to the stand Thursday to face more questions from District Attorney George Brauchler, who has challenged her credibility and accused her of taking incomplete notes on her interviews with Holmes....

He can't deny his apartment was well planned and assembled to kill emergency responders. That is not a deranged person. Some of my friends have orange hair. 

July 14, 2015
By Jason Sickles

CENTENNIAL, Colo. — Lonnie and Sandy Phillips (click here) left nearly everything behind when they moved here three months ago to be a voice for their slain daughter during the capital murder trial of Colorado movie theater gunman James Holmes.

In the process, the Texas couple has discovered a bit of peace for themselves — in a 393-square-foot travel trailer.

“When you lose a child to murder, you learn that nothing else matters — just the time we have together and what we do with it,” said Sandy, 65....

Put the pieces of the puzzle together.

Naval Recruitment Center 

EGYPT


Retaliation and/or for warning if the USA military interfers in the Mediterranean Sea. 

How special, American military is quaking with fear. 

Bulletin: We are not Iraqis.
One other thing that can be done immediately is an order from the US Military to all those in recruitment, WEAR BODY ARMOR. I know the US military has plenty of those.

Every recruitment officer should be carrying AND should have better weapons than a side arm in a locked case within easy reach. 

Enough of this.

I am sure the motivation will be forthcoming.

This was a recruiting station for the military. This has before and the most recent I think was New York City.

June 24, 2011
By Terry Frieden

Washington (CNN) -- Two U.S. citizens from Seattle and Los Angeles -- described as "would-be terrorists" by the FBI -- have been arrested and charged with plotting to kill Americans enlisting in the armed forces in Seattle, federal officials announced Thursday.
The men were identified as Abu Khalid Abdul-Latif, (also known as Joseph Anthony Davis), 33, of Seattle; and Walli Mujahidh, (also known as Frederick Domingue Jr.) 32, of Los Angeles.
"Driven by a violent extreme ideology, these two young Americans are charged with plotting to murder men and women who were enlisting in the armed forces to serve and protect our country," said a top counter-terrorism official at the Justice Department.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Todd Hinnen said the threat was averted and the public was not endangered because of the intervention of the Joint Terrorism Task Force....

Anyone know what this is besides a jewelry store?

No? The US military doesn't seem to know either.

This is bulletproof glass. It really works, honest Injun. 

I realize there are many stations for recruitment in the USA. At the very least can a military soldier stationed in recruitment be ISSUED a bulletproof
panel to travel with him or her? Okay? The US military needs to issue glass panels as soon as possible. 

This is not a one time use thing, like a bullet, so it can be REISSUED to a new soldier stationed within recruitment. This has to stop. Bullets are different than bombs, but, this is not necessary. 

Recruitment is suppose to be a walk in the park. MAKE IT SO!!!! NOW !!!!

Remember this?

July 7, 2015

...For about an hour, (click here) the American and two Russians had to hunker down in their Soyuz spacecraft, which is docked to the International Space Station, in case they had to make a quick getaway.

The fragment from an old Russian weather satellite ended up passing harmlessly, about one-and-a-half miles away.

It is only the fourth time in the 16-year history of the space station that a crew has had to rush into a Soyuz for protection from potentially dangerous debris....

The Great Lakes have a federal and international jurisdiction, not simply a state authority.

Shut down the pipeline, Snyder has played 'let pretend nothing will happen' long enough.

The pipeline is caked with zebra mussels. The mussels are so thick they are probably the only thing preventing a leak right now. 

July 15, 2015
By Detroit News Editorial Staff

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette (click here) took a prudent step to protect the Great Lakes from an environmental disaster stemming from a break in the underwater pipelines carrying petroleum across the Straits of Mackinac.
The task force the attorney general heads recommends keeping the most dangerous crude oil out of the twin pipelines while allowing them to stay open for other products.
The Enbridge Energy Line 5 pipeline will not be permitted to move the heavy Alberta Tar Sands crude from Canada into the United States because that oil is so heavy it sinks in open water, making it very difficult to clean up.
None of the tar sands oil currently is in the pipelines, Schuette said, but inquiries have been made about using the conduit for that purpose.
Line 5 will continue to deliver other petroleum products crucial to the nation's economy, including light oils and liquified natural gas....

The Mackinew Straits is directly in the center of three major lakes, Superior, Michigan and Huron. A rupture in that pipeline will set back conservation and restoration efforts by decades. 

There is also a Canadian Lake, Georgian Bay, that has direct exposure to the pipeline and a break or leak would be devastating. 

The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (click here) has made great progress in reversing the damage to the Great Lakes over decades. It would be completely wrong if the pipeline in the Mackinac Straits undid all the hard work since 2009. It is time the federal and international agencies and legal interests take over the debate and shut the pipeline down. 

There are a few small conservation groups that differ with Michigan Sierra Club because it basically serves their best interest to continue the studies and monitoring. Enough. Shut down the pipeline and build a new one somewhere else. Just that simple.

This a good map, but, basically there are few political interests that treat the Great Lakes with respect. This proposed nuclear waste dump was from 2013. There are all kinds of dumping sites along the lakes including coal ash. Nobody respect the lakes and we are looking at fresh water at a time when this country's drought threat is considerable. 


July 5, 2013
By Michael Leonardi

...The Bruce Nuclear Generating Station (click here) with its eight currently operating reactors is now the largest operating nuclear power plant in the world and 5th largest operating power producer of any kind.  When all reactors are operating it produces 7,276 megawatts a year.  It sits directly on the shores of the lake on a sprawling 2300 acre complex that is also home to the Western Waste Management Facility (WWMF), an above ground interim waste storage area for the low level and intermediate level radioactive waste for all 20 of the nuclear reactors operated by Ontario Power Generation....

I am sure those that don't care about the lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway probably figure the leaking nuclear waste will kill the carp. Yeah, that and everything else.

It is estimated sports fishing alone contributes at least $4 billion per year in tourism. Commercial fisheries yield at least 65 million pounds of fish per year are harvested from the lakes, contributing more than $1 billion to the Great Lakes economy.

All this is going to be sacrificed for an old, decrepit pipeline? That's nuts.

Planned Parenthood, is the U.S. affiliate of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) and one of its larger members. PPFA is a non-profit organization providing reproductive health and maternal and child health services.

Planned Parenthood is a non-profit organization. How stupid do Republicans get before the American people realize they are at risk with this leaders?

The Republicans AGAIN are wasting tax payers money! 

July 15, 2015
By Jackie Calmes and Nicholas St. Fleur
 
WASHINGTON — House Republican leaders (click here) on Wednesday announced a congressional investigation of Planned Parenthood, a day after anti-abortion activists released a video of an unsuspecting official from the organization explaining how it provides fetal tissue to researchers.
Echoing the activists’ allegation, Speaker John A. Boehner and other top Republicans suggested that Planned Parenthood was selling fetal parts, which is illegal if done for profit. But Planned Parenthood said that while it charges for expenses such as processing and transporting, it makes no money from the fetal tissue donated by women who get abortions. The official shown in the video repeatedly says something similar to two activists posing as biotechnology representatives.
The California-based group responsible for the video, the Center for Medical Progress, appears to have been started relatively recently. Its creator, David Daleiden, once worked with another anti-abortion group, Live Action, and he and Live Action’s leader, Lila Rose, who also promoted the video, are familiar to Planned Parenthood affiliates from previous undercover videos. Mr. Daleiden and Ms. Rose did not return calls and emails on Wednesday....

Japan will have a significant military, but, it will open the country up to added risk as well.

July 16, 2015
By David McNeill

Thousands of demonstrators (click here) have surrounded Japan’s parliament after the Lower House passed controversial security bills that critics say will dramatically change the country’s defence posture and hollow out its pacifist constitution.


Most members of Japan’s opposition parties walked out of the chamber in protest before the vote Thursday afternoon. But the coalition government’s two-thirds majority meant they were easily approved. 


Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wants Japan’s armed forces to join in military activities abroad and defend allies under attack - principally the United States - a policy he has dubbed “proactive pacifism.”...

It is a complicated discourse because it will be the first time Japan would actually have sustaining military footprint. There are a couple of good reasons including the real threat of domestic terrorism and the nuclear ambitions on the Korean Peninsula. China is also building artificial islands in the Pacific. It is getting a little tricky to say the least. I hope Japan is using diplomacy along with it's new change of military readiness.

Japan’s post-Second World War constitution (click here) was born when Japan was occupied by Allied forces.  During the first stage of the occupation, the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces and legislators of the constitution thought Japan would not have a military force again.  Article 9 of the Constitution renounces war and prohibits Japan from maintaining the war potential.  However, as the United States changed its policy of demilitarizing Japan, the United States asked her to share the burden of maintaining the security of Japan and, for the sake of international peacekeeping, Japan gradually increased its defense capability and developed a somewhat more technical interpretation of article 9.  Article 9 does not prohibit Japan from maintaining her defense capability.  Article 9 had been popular in Japan for a long time; but as the Japanese started to take their security more seriously, more people have begun to accept the idea of amending article 9 of the Constitution.  The ruling party, the Liberal Democratic Party, will bring the Constitutional amendment proposal to the Diet within the next few years.

The Demonstration below occurred on June 22, 2015.

Where is the Sixth Fleet? It looks like there are weapons left over from Libya.

ISIS attacks Egyptian naval vessel off of Mediterranean . (photo credit:EGYPTIAN SOCIAL MEDIA) 

July 16, 2015
By Reuters

Egypt's Islamic State (click here) affiliate said on Thursday it fired a rocket at an Egyptian naval vessel in the Mediterranean Sea near the coast of Israel and the Gaza Strip.

The militant group Sinai Province has focused mainly on attacking Egyptian soldiers and police in the Sinai peninsula, killing hundreds since the army toppled Islamist President Mohamed Mursi in 2013 after mass protests against his rule.

Photographs distributed online by the group appeared to show a rocket heading towards a ship and setting it ablaze on impact. Reuters could not verify the militants' version of events.
 

The Egyptian military said in a statement that a coastguard launch had exchanged shots with "terrorist elements," causing the vessel to catch fire. It said there was no loss of life....

Mullah Omar is still around. He wants peace.

It is quite a statement by Mullah Omar. It's long enough to begin to speak the truth about the faith and not a distorted call for violence.

It would be best if there was peace in Afghanistan and the country finally was able to establish a sound economy that is not insulted by war. It is the only path that makes the future promising for Afghan children. Any Muslim would state children are important and should be regarded highly as a peaceful future unwinds. 

Sweet foods being prepared ahead of Eid in Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan. Photograph: Anil Usyan/Reuters 

15 July 2015
By Agence France - Press

Taliban leader Mullah Omar (click here) has hailed as “legitimate” peace talks aimed at ending Afghanistan’s 13-year war, in his first comments on the nascent dialogue.

“If we look into our religious regulations, we can find that meetings and even peaceful interactions with the enemies is not prohibited,” the reclusive figure said on Wednesday in his annual message on the eve of Eid, the festival marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.

“Concurrently with armed jihad, political endeavours and peaceful pathways for achieving these sacred goals is a legitimate Islamic principle,” he said in a statement posted on the Taliban’s official website.

Members of the Afghan high peace council sat down with Taliban cadres last week in Murree, a tourist town in the hills north of Islamabad, for their first official talks to try to end the militants’ bloody fight, now in its 14th year....

Interesting. Mullah Omar doesn't recognize the hate spewed by Daesh as important. Daesh's illegitimate leader/holy man is challenged. It appears an elder holy men doesn't like the promise of more death and war.

...Divides within the Taliban between those for and against talks have been made worse by the emergence of a local branch of the Islamic State (Isis)....

Karzai is still at the center of power in Afghanistan. What is that all about? Wealth maybe. Afghanistan has a lot of natural resources. 

...US drone strikes over the past week have killed dozens of suspected Isis-linked cadres in Afghanistan, including the group’s Afghanistan-Pakistan regional chief, Hafiz Saeed.

The notoriously uncompromising Isis has shown no desire to negotiate, and if the Taliban faultlines widen there is a danger the talks process could drive more of its hardline fighters into its arms.

There is increased strikes, instability and death with Daesh's promises to kill, kill and kill some more. 

July 15, 2015
By Samimullah Arif

After being formed (click here) by a supra-constitutional political deal, the National Unity Government (NUG) is now navigating a sea of power players who, for all intents and purposes, are attempting a comeback. And Former President Hamid Karzai seems to be in the lead.

Karzai has consistently denied that he opposes the current government. He confirmed this in an interview with the New York Times on June 15 saying he is not taking an active role in politics nor will he try to come back to power in 2019. But his moves imply otherwise.

Karzai has criticized the current government, speaking out against the controversial intelligence–sharing deal between the Afghan spy agency, the National Directorate of Security, and its Pakistani counterpart, Inter-Services Intelligence, and the NUG’s inclusion of Pakistan in the peace talks with the Taliban....

Perhaps former President Karzai should act as an ambassador to Pakistan and extend any talks to the Pakistani President to end any misunderstandings and aggressions. There should be agreements in place with all Afghanistan's neighbors. 

Any agreement would create an enforceable peace and insure a safe economy. Former President Karzai could be instrumental in negotiating peace and economic agreements. It would be a good place for his experience and not just a political power player. It is time former President Karzai take an elder place among the Afghan people and lead into a strong regional peace. 

...Karzai’s actions have not gone unnoticed by commentators and analysts inside and out of Afghanistan....

Having Russia engage Afghanistan should not be viewed as a strange development. Russia has said some time ago it would enter the picture as the USA leaves the country. Russia has an interest by proximity, but, it also has allies in the region. This is not new or surprising in development. It is just the next step for the region to stabilize.

Afghanistan’s presidential election (click here) was resolved in a U.S.-brokered deal that created a national unity government (NUG). New president Ashraf Ghani, by decree, created the post of chief executive officer (CEO), filled by Abdullah Abdullah. This has resulted in a power-sharing arrangement between two teams, the legal parameters of which will not be decided for another two years....

Former President Karzai needs to support the presence, priorities and policies of the power sharing government. The best support he can provide is using his experience to bring the region to a common goal of safety for their citizens and building prospering economies. The USA in turn needs to allow movements toward peace and a stable economy without violence or the goals of more hate and war. It is time for the USA to provide a safe place for the future of the Afghan government on it's own terms. Basically, it is time to leave.

Russia's growing presence in Afghanistan has nothing to do with sanctions against Russia. This has been Russia's position before the sanctions were in place. This has been a long time goal in the Russian government. 

While Daesh works on 'the vapors' of religious wars, there is sincere problems for the region to solve, hence, Russia.

July 15, 2015
By Huseyn Hasanov

Turkmenistan (click here) takes concrete steps to resolve water issues at the national level and contributes to regional and international cooperation in this sphere, “Neutral Turkmenistan” newspaper reported.

The constant growth of water consumption requires coordinated efforts and complex programs, as well as implementation of projects able to bring long-term effect, said the article.

The large-scale project for creating artificial water reservoir – Altyn Asyr (Golden Age) lake - in Karakum desert is one of these projects.

Currently, intensive work is underway as part of the second phase of this project. The collector’s branches are expanded and deepened, hydraulic structures, bridges, roads are constructed....

In 2002, shortly after the US invasion into Afghanistan President Karzai proposed a meeting with Iran and the USA. A summit if you will. Then President "W" refused and further destabilized the region in his "Axis of Evil" speech. Karzai wanted peace regionally since the beginning of his return to Afghan leadership. 

Perhaps now is that time. Afghan can play a vital role in stabilizing the region under it's new power sharing government. Afghanistan should move forward with ever effort for peace and bring a more stable relationship to the region. It desperately needs those sovereign agreements to end any potential growth of Daesh and the war Daesh promises in all it's advances. 

These countries are capable of peace in valuing the future and their children. It all should be a very high priority for all nations in the region. 
Neck fractures in the elderly are not unusual.

Although the elderly population (click here) increased by 6% between 2005 and 2008, the annual incidence of C2 fracture rose by 21%, from 1.58 to 1.91 per 10,000 p-y, trending upward in a straight-line function (r = 0.999, P = 0.0006). The incidence of fracture varied between age groups; however, an increase was observed in all age groups. Persons aged 65 to 74 years (the youngest age group) experienced the lowest incidence (0.63 in 2005 to 0.71 in 2008), and the rate of increase was the smallest among the age groups examined (13%). Persons aged 85 and older demonstrated the highest incidence (4.36–5.67) and the greatest increase (30%).
 
Conclusion. From 2005 to 2008, the overall incidence of C2 fracture rose at a rate that was 3.5 times faster than the elderly population growth.