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North Dakota police first with armed drones

31/8/2015

Who's next?

N. Dakota has employed unmanned aerial vehicles or drones to help patrol the sparsely populated border between the USA and Canada. Their job was surveillance. Now word is leaking out to the world that the state legislature has authorized the use of drones to carry weapons.

In a classic case of unintended consequences, Bill HB1328 permits the use of “less than lethal” weapons to be carried and used by police. The section titled Prohibited Use: “A law enforcement agency may not authorize the use of, including granting a permit to use, an unmanned aerial vehicle armed with any lethal weapons.” By inference, it allows the use of what are considered to be non-lethal weapons.

The bill also provides for the careful documentation of the use of drones, how, when, where and why the drones were used. Records were to be kept for at least five years. But already discrepancies are beginning to show up. The FAA requires that they be notified when a police surveillance drone be deployed. The FAA records for Grand Forks show 401 deployments between 2012 and 2014 yet the sheriff has reported only 21 missions during the same time period.

Non-lethal weapons such as bean-bag guns, rubber bullets and tear gas canisters can all kill if they hit a vulnerable person. Tasers are considered non-lethal but many cases of death by taser have been documented. Many people have been killed by military and CIA drones, some on purpose and many by mistake and as ‘collateral damage’. The infamous video of people being murdered in Collateral Murder shows how easily and quickly leading edge technology can be misused.

The Daily Beast raises the question as to whether the proliferation of drones in N. Dakota is to ensure better citizen safety. They point out the increasing importance of the research and manufacture of unmanned aerial vehicles in the state.

Millions are being poured into the state in the building of Grand Sky an industrial/research park near the Grand Forks Air Force Base. The US pilots many of its overseas drone flights from the air force base. Reading the narrative on Grand Sky’s home pages indicates a particular interest in attracting the best to work on cutting edge development of UAVs.

In a state where the oil bust has gutted the economy, it can make those who would defend civil liberties suspect that the present enthusiasm for law enforcement drones may well be based on the influx of money expected by welcoming sky spies with open arms.

Sources:
Discovery News
Legislative Assembly of North Dakota
The Daily Beast
Grand Sky

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Beverly Hills pet shops can only sell from shelters

30/8/2015

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Don't support puppy mills

In an effort to curb the profits of puppy mills, the city council of Beverly Hills has just joined 70 cities in the US and Canada that have enacted laws to restrict the sale by pet stores of cats and dogs to those obtained from shelters.

Albuquerque, New Mexico tops that list of enlightened councils with extensive guidelines enacted in 2010.

The puppy and kitten mill operators can still sell their victims at garage sales, flea markets and over the internet. Ignorant and uncaring people are vital to these purveyors of pain. Without the people who support this cruel industry with their money, there would be no puppy or kitten mills.

Unfortunately the combination of ignorant buyers and weak laws serve to perpetuate the suffering. Last May a Quebec barn was raided which housed 220 dogs, many pregnant. The dogs were seized and cared for. The fine was $1200. The owners were also restricted in the number of animals they could keep at any one time. They served no jail time. This June in another well publicized raid on a puppy mill in Quebec where found and seized dozens of small dogs. No criminal charges were laid.

To the heartless people running this place, the animals are a source of ready cash. At $ 1 500 and more for trendy puppies, the profit motive is very strong.

Buying a cute puppy or kitten at a retail shop is no guarantee that the mother is being cared for properly. They may be underfed, dirty and cramped, bred again and again until they die. A local pet shop in my town advertises on the net. The following was copied from an online ad for that store.

New pets on premises including: Puppies,Bunnies,Ferrets,Reptiles,Birds,Insects,Fresh and Saltwater Fish.

The Humane Society of the United States has excellent information for prospective pet owners.

Of course N. America is not alone in the breed for profit dogs and cats. Hong Kong is experiencing a growing industry breeding dogs as pets now that it is legal to own pets in China. There are currently no laws in HK that regulate animal traders.

The acquisition of a pet is a long term responsibility. Think carefully before you bring one home.

Sources:
CBC News
South China Morning News
Humane Society

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Bot flies can kill your cat

25/8/2015

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Bots(warbles) removed from animal.

Bot flies can kill your cat or dog or pet rabbit.

There’s a little horror that can kill your pet cat or dog. Animals that live in rural or semi-rural areas and are allowed to roam, exploring rabbit dens or rodent holes may pick up the parasite that may remind you of the original Alien movie.

Bot flies resemble bumble bees on steroids. They lay eggs on the vegetation near rabbit warrens. If your cat, like mine, craves bunnies and will sit motionless outside the runs, they will be vulnerable to infestation. Eggs laid in the grasses will hatch when the warmth from a mammal is detected and tiny larvae escape and burrow their way into the skin of their new host.

Once inside your pet, they go through three or four molts, growing larger each time. They survive by irritating the flesh and absorbing the blood and plasma that results. These creatures have rings of spines that surround their bodies. These cause your pet pain as the maggot moves and grows. In addition, the little monster makes a hole through the skin of its victim so that it can breathe.

When it has gotten big enough, around 5mm in diameter and twice that in length, it is ready to emerge.

A nasty looking brown pupa emerges and leaves a hole in your pet’s skin.

How is it that I’ve all of a sudden become so knowledgeable about these parasites? My kitty has just returned from the veterinarian’s to have one of these parasites removed. Mr. Kitty had two other holes on his belly as well. No wonder he was sick and cranky.

Horse owners are well acquainted with the horse bot fly. Owners protect their chargers by administering various chemicals that make the horse flesh hostile to the maggots. Eggs laid on the horse’s legs can be removed carefully.

On doing a little research, I have found that there are many different varieties of this parasite. Some also victimize humans. There are several rather gory and disconcerting YouTube videos on the net.

Not for the squeamish.

Squirrel infected with bot larvae

Bot flies can be found anywhere in N. America. In warm states like Florida breeding and infestation is a danger year round. In more northerly areas fall and early winter are the seasons to be especially vigilant for their presence. Many places around the world have bot flies present.

My veterinarian recommended using a systemic flea repellent/killer on Mr. Kitty to protect him from these horrible parasites.

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Washington State coping with massive wild fires

24/8/2015

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The hot, dry summer that western N. America has been coping with has sparked hundreds of forest and grassland fires. From California to Alaska, unusually dry conditions have turned forests and grasslands into tinder waiting for a spark.

Washington State has been hit hard with large fires. There is no relief in sight. In remote areas, summer storms often bring lightning strikes which ignite yet another blaze. There are so many fires currently burning in that state that they have been lumped into broader groupings or complexes. The situation changes quickly. For instance the group of fires dubbed the Kettle Complex was originally made up of three fires but by Saturday a fourth was added. As of Saturday over 54 873 acres(22 206 h) have been burned over. The largest fire in the group is only 15% contained. The Renner Road fire is burning 7000 acres and is zero percent contained.

800 people are currently working to contain this complex of fires. The workers have been bolstered by the call for volunteers and National Guard people. Canadian firefighters have offered assistance in trying to contain the largest one, just south of the border. Currently Washington State is fighting over 200 hotspots.

Smoke from the fires has affected the air quality in many areas of southern BC.

Winds which help fuel the flames have pushed smoke north and then east with smoke settling into the bottoms of the mountain valleys. Smoke affects the ability of aerial crews to assist with dumping fire retardants and water on the conflagration. Smoke also affects any with breathing problems or other chronic conditions. The very young and very old are at higher risk. People are advised to remain indoors.

The fires are killers as well. Three young firefighters were killed while trying to outrun a firestorm. Their vehicle crashed and they were overtaken. More than 100 structures have been destroyed. President Obama has declared a state of emergency in Washington State.

Sources:
KHQ
CBC News

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Whale die off worries biologists

22/8/2015

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A whale die off that started last May in Alaska has spread to BC’s Pacific Coast. Biologists are working to solve why so many of the giants have died this spring and summer. They have some theories but nothing definite yet.

Scientists in BC are conducting necropsies on two humpback whales that were beached. Scientists from NOAA are conducting investigations into what they have termed “an unusual mortality event”. About 10 deaths a year are normal. This event marks triple the usual number.

Dead whales started washing up in the islands of the western part of the Gulf of Alaska. More washed up on the panhandle part of the coast. In total 30 carcasses were discovered. Some were humpbacks, one a grey whale, 11 were fin whales which are classified as endangered. Some of the carcasses were too rotted to identify.

Five dead whales have been counted in BC. Only two have been beached. Both the American and Canadian biologists are asking the public to let authorities know as soon as they sight a dead cetacean.

The cause of the deaths is not known yet.

Whales sometimes become entangled in fishing nets and the modern nets are especially dangerous because they do not rot and weaken after a time but can snare marine life again and again. One of the whales being necropsied in BC had scars from a fishing net. Shipping lanes can be deadly to whales. Stranding sometimes happens when the animals become disoriented. This time the prime suspect may be a single celled organism – a plankton bloom in the Gulf of Alaska.

The waters in the Gulf of Alaska have been unusually warm for that region and a burst of growth(bloom) of plankton has resulted. While it is suspected that one of the organisms is one that causes paralytic shellfish poisoning, it has not been proved. It is known that shellfish gatherers on the gulf have become ill. If the fish eating whales ate fish tainted with the plankton they could have become paralyzed. Dead sea lions, puffins and fish have been washing ashore as well.

The warm water in the Gulf has been referred to as “the blob”.

“We’re kind primed to answer this complex question as it plays out,” said Kris Holderied, NOAA’s science lead at its Kasitsna Bay laboratory. “This warm blob is a big thing that might be giving us a foretaste of what’s happening in the future.” Alaska Journal of Commerce

The warming trend is expected to continue with a strong El Nino condition extending into 2016.

Sources:
CBC News
Alaska Journal
Alaska Journal of Commerce

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<<Previous

North Dakota police first with armed drones

Beverly Hills pet shops can only sell from shelters

Bot flies can kill your cat

Washington State coping with massive wild fires

Whale die off worries biologists

Barbara McPherson

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