From Burma To A Country Called Myanmar

Burma was at a crossroads in the early 1990's. In retrospect, it was a point in time when its future might have dramatically changed.

A popular leader, Aung San Suu Kyi had been elected in a landslide and Burma should have experienced decades of progress and real change.

However, after voiding the landslide election of the opposition party nearly two decades ago, the military junta of Burma decided to change the name of the country as well.

So, what was once known as Burma would be called Myanmar. For the country, the name change just meant more of the same. For more than two decades, economic mis-management, government corruption and a disregard of basic human rights by the brutal military junta in Myanmar would leave the country far behind the rest of the world in economic development.

As a result, over the years, hundreds of thousands of people would flee the country because of the intolerable conditions. The fury of Hurricane Nargis would only add to the general misery while the United Nations would pass meaningless Resolutions that would be ignored by the ruling military junta.

The result of the military government's failure in Myanmar can be seen in the dire economic condition in that country today. Myanmar is one of the most undeveloped countries in the civilized world and its future prospects (Economic Monetary Fund report) are considered bleak.

There was a time back in the early 1990's when the country was at a crossroads and its sad future could have been changed. However, a legitimate democratic election was invalidated and all those subsequent United Nations Resolutions would be in vain.

From Burma to a country called Myanmar. It was far more than just a change of name.

For more about the problems in Myanmar, please read:
In Myanmar, “Its Not Power That Corrupts, But Fear”
The United Nation's Historic Failure In Myanmar
The Lady Of Myanmar Deserves More International Fame

Barack Obama's First One Hundred Days in Office

Most public opinion polls show that his support continues to be strong with the American public after his first one hundred days in office.

However, tea party protests have begun to challenge government spending which continues to go unrestrained.

In the first hundred days the Obama administration has outlined policies that are clearly to the left of the center of the political spectrum. Taxes on the highest levels of income will eventually be raised. Capital gains tax cuts will not be continued and Cap and Trade if passed will be an energy tax on every American.

Meanwhile, a deep recession continues in America but economic stimulus saw more pork than stimulus and many think all that spending was really just for political gain. Government intervention into banks and the automotive industry have given Obama a socialist label but he says the need to solve the current economic crisis is to blame.

There has been a European trip and the President has engaged and reached out to former adversaries. However, NATO commitments for new troops in Afghanistan have not materialized and North Korea has test launched another missle. Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan continue to pose major foreign policy challenges.

So, where are we headed and what will be the result of the President's first one hundred days in office?

For more on Barack Obama's first one hundred days read: A Slogan For Barack Obama's Hallmark Holiday and The Media In Obama's First One Hundred Days on eworldvu.com

Homeland Security And The Crime Of Illegal Immigration

For many people, its hard to understand how Janet Napolitano was ever approved as the Secretary of Homeland Security.

The fact is that it is now obvious that she knows little about the criminal aspects of illegal immigration, can't adequately assess terrorist risk to the country or has even a basic understanding of the problems along the countries borders.

In the last few weeks, the Secretary of Homeland Security has stated that the illegal crossing of the U.S. border is not a crime. She thinks that the the border between Canada and the United States is more problematic than the U.S. border with Mexico.

Meanwhile, her Department of Homeland Security - thinks the highest future terrorist risk comes from returning members of the United States military that listen to right wing extremists.

The fact is the more she speaks, the more national insecurity the entire country feels. So, by now everyone should realize that Janet Napolitano was not appointed to her job because of her understanding of law enforcement, crime, borders or any other aspect of homeland security.

No, she was a pure political appointment chosen to insure that the laws against illegal immigration will not be fully enforced because illegal immigrants are important in the census headcount next year. The prospect of real law enforcement would scare illegal immigrants out of the country or drive them underground. Certainly, it will not make them eager to be visable and counted in the 2010 census.

That's right, people that have illegally entered the country will again be counted in the once in a decade census in 2010. Indeed, the result of the census may have far reaching political consequences for both political parties. Congressional seats, Presidential electoral votes, and federal funding allocation between the states are all subject to a decade of change.

So, Homeland Security and the crime of illegal immigration are once again reduced to a political pandering census game. This has been going on now for two decades and its a national shame.

Read: Illegal Immigration: The Crime That Is Not A Crime

Read: Illegal Immigration Is An Un-American Political Crime on eworldvu

Thirty Five Days In A Row Without A Sunspot

The blank sun continues in 2009. It marks the third year in a row that solar activity has been at a minimum.

In fact, today marks the absence of a observed sunspot for the thirty fifth consecutive day in 2009.

The current decrease in sunspot activity is beginning to look like the long solar minimum that occurred from 1795 to 1830, known as the Dalton Minimum. During this period of time global temperatures dramatically decreased and volcanic eruptions increased. In the northeast United States, 1816 became known as the year without a summer with snow in the month of June.

A correlation of a lack of sunspot activity and frigid global temperatures also occurred in a period lasting from 1645-1715 when sunspots were 1/1000th of normal. This period was called the Maunder Minimum. It heralded the arrival of the Little Ice Age, a period when glaciers advanced and bitterly cold winters occurred in many regions of the Northern Hemisphere.

The lack of sunspots in this solar cycle (cycle 24) may well mean much colder times are ahead. Sunspot activity during recent decades has been the highest seen in the past 8,000 years and is probably the reason that the global climate has warmed during the 20th century.

The lack of current solar activity has ramifications for the global climate of the next few decades. Its now been more than a month since the last observed sunspot. The longer the sun remains blank and solar activity remains weak, the more interesting this solar cycle minimum will become.

For more read: The Third Year Of A Blank Sun and The Quiet Sun May Mean Another Dalton Minimum on eworldvu.com.

The Boys Of Summer And The Baseball Phenom

Baseball season is about to begin once again. The Boys of Summer have returned to play our national pastime for the next six months. Of course, scandal continues to plague the game with steroid abuse once again in the news during the off season.

Since baseball is a game of records and stars, all those discredited home run statistics by star players are an incredible shame.

However, there is another story that has begun to gain national attention. Its a story of talent and a growing legend of a pitcher that can throw a baseball harder than anyone ever has. Even faster than Nolan Ryan or Randy Johnson in their prime.

The baseball phenom of this spring has not even been in any major league camp yet. He pitches in college for San Diego State. His fastball is consistently clocked at 101 miles per hour and has hit 103 on the radar gun. Despite his velocity he has amazing control. In 210 innings of college and international competition since 2006, he’s walked only 45 batters while striking out 316.

Indeed, Steven Strasburg is dominating college like no pitcher ever has. He has 74 strikeouts in 34 1/3 innings, meaning only 29 outs have come via batted ball. He fanned 23 batters in one game last year, and in seven outings with Team USA last summer, culminating with the Beijing Olympics, he struck out 62 in 41 innings.

Baseball executives believe the asking price for the Washington Nationals who hold the first overall pick, will start at $15 million. So, its batter up for the new season but watch for this kid in the future. For now he is just a college phenom but he may well become the best pitcher major league baseball has ever seen.

Articles on eWorldvu Last Week: Read about the continued lack of sunspot activity in 2009 in

The Third Year Of A Blank Sun .

Also read about the cost of green jobs in

The Real Cost Of Five Million Green Jobs.

Space Is Still An Unknown And Dangerous Place

We take the exploration of space for granted but the fact remains that our lack of understanding of the final frontier means that our place in the universe does not lack for mystery.

Here are some recent news items that indicate that space is still an unknown and dangerous place.

The 213th meeting of the American Astronomical Society featured a report on an interesting discovery. The discovery of a newly detected signal far louder than any Astronomy expected.

A team led by Alan Kogut of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center detected a signal from a balloon-borne instrument named ARCADE (Absolute Radiometer for Cosmology, Astrophysics, and Diffuse Emission). In July 2006, the instrument was launched from NASA's Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility in Palestine, Texas, and reached an altitude of about 120,000 feet (36,500 meters), where the atmosphere thins into the vacuum of space.

It not unusual for many objects in the universe, including stars and quasars, to emit radio waves. Some galaxies even send out a background radio hiss. However this new signal is measured to be six times brighter than the combined emission of all known radio sources in the universe. The origin of the signal is unknown and remains a total mystery.

Meanwhile, the potential danger to this planet from a solar storm was outlined in a report that was funded by NASA and released in January 2009. All sorts of dire problems would occur on earth if a solar storm were to hit the earth's magnetic field. It happened before in 1859 and it could happen again but this time the ramifications would be much more severe.

For More Read: A Global Disaster From The Perfect Solar Storm on the Daily Vu.

Finally, a lack of sunspot activity continues in 2009 and the earth continues to cool despite the the hype of the proponents of global warming. An astronomer by the name of Theodor Landscheidt predicted the current activity of the sun and this unexpected global cooling trend prior to his death in 2002.

Read about his predictions for the future in : Follow The Sun To The Landscheidt Minimum on the Daily Vu.

Hope And Change And Space Debris

The prototype campaign of hope and change was run in Massachusetts by David Axlerod eighteen months ago. The campaign elected the states first black Governor, Duval Patrick. The campaign was the predecessor to the successful national Presidential campaign that elected Barack Obama to the White House.

So how is the Governor of Massacusetts currently doing and does his performance provide a warning for the current President of the United States?

Read: The First Campaign Of Hope And Change

The International Space Station had to be evacuated. The problem of Space Debris orbiting the earth continues to be a major safety problem for space travel. What can be done?

Read: Man-Made Debris Makes Space A Dangerous Place