Dr. John v. Kampen -

Archive: April 2012

Crazy week in just 2 minutes... See this!

Friday, April 27, 2012 6:28:34 PM

accidents, astronauts, astronomy, April 2012 ...

Link: http://youtu.be/JgnM63Xc-Q0

Enjoy your weekend undisturbed, if you can...

John

4 comments

Ann Pettifor explains what banks, debts and money are, yet could be!

Thursday, April 26, 2012 8:22:44 AM

Anglo-American, corruption, banking, Pettifor ...

When I visited friends in South-Africa, several years ago,
I first noticed her. Although I had heard about Ann Pettifor,
I didn't realize (to my shame) that she was the co-founder of the global campaign "Jubilee 2000" to cancel the debts of poor countries. It became a great success, for the same reason she now thinks people can persuade politicians to finally strictly regulate the banking industry and get rid of most of the debts at the same time. In a fascinating interview with "Renegade Economist" she explains her viewpoint in well-understandable words. Still not fully grasping why "austerity" won't work and where this economic crisis in its essence is all about? Listen to this...

2210 - What went wrong with... us?!

Tuesday, April 24, 2012 6:10:05 PM

people, collapse, sociology, disaster ...

Link: http://youtu.be/jHufiHAbfD4

What on Earth happened to us? How come our civilization collapsed? Will it? Look around you for an answer... Here is what archaeologist may find about 2210.

John

5 comments

Celestial Lights - Ole C. Salomonsen: 'Aurora'

Friday, April 20, 2012 1:02:37 PM

Earth, people, astronomy, aurora ...

Celestial Lights from Ole C. Salomonsen on Vimeo. More about Polar Lights here.

Have a good weekend,

John

2 comments

Devil's Hole as a seismometer?

Tuesday, April 17, 2012 9:14:29 AM

devils hole, predictions, people, earthquake ...

Hadn't there been protected pupfish and no Devil's Hole, a geothermal pool in a cave under Death Valley (US), where they can be watched, we'd rather not be aware how violent an earthquake interacts with the soil we are on. An earthquake many hundreds or thousands of miles away I mean, not the one right around the corner. How can you get aware of them? That is shown by technicians who were calibrating hydrological equipment in Devil's Hole when the so-called P and S waves of the March 20, 2012, Guerrero, Mexico, magnitude 7.4 quake passed by. The fast compression P-waves first, the slower S-waves following somewhat later. This time-difference is used by seismologists to determine distances, depth and energy of a quake. Luckily they were filming their work, so we can witness what happened in detail. Though they didn't feel the shock itself they realized what this could be and climbed up to a safer place to follow what happened. In a way this is a natural Tsunami simulation outside a laboratory. Just watch...

Marinaleda - Spain: a solution for our crisis?

Monday, April 16, 2012 7:21:28 PM

marinaleda, crisis, revolution, utopia ...

Juan Manuel Sánchez Gordillo had a dream.
Some 30 years ago now. Since that day he still is the well-respected Lord Mayor of the Andalucian village of Marinaleda, near Sevilla, and his dream appears to have come true! His 2.700 inhabitants are satisfied with him, accustomed to his way of governance, his method of applied direct democracy on daily basis, their nearly full-employment he created and his continuous battle against "the system" and its elite that -in his eyes- ruined beautiful Spain. No portrait of the Spanish King on the walls of his office, but Ernesto 'Che' Guevara. As a libertarian-socialist he seems the rara avis, a unique personality, of the Spanish political folklore. Proud they are in Marinaleda about their status of "utopia for peace". However, you're not welcome there if you have nothing to contribute to its community. A belgium short movie explains the essence of this village, where you can rent a nice house for only 15 euro and live quite well for 1.200 euro a month. Spoken in Dutch and Spanish. But you can easily grasp the meaning. Houses are (self-)built from architectural plans provided by the townhall. Variations are left to your desires. Employment is in ample supply. The fields also provide for the community. Decisions are taken per direct democratic consultation. Even the New York Times had an article about this place. Mind the women who speak out and decide for their families! It is an inspiring clip, showing that persistence, joined forces and strong leadership can achieve solutions, where others only still dream about...