Have you ever heard of Los Zetas?

 Maybe you are asking, “Should I have heard of Los Zetas?” And the answer is a resounding, “YES!”

 But perhaps the real question is, “Why haven’t I heard of Los Zetas?”  And while that’s a dangerous question to ask a cynic, its a valid one that demands an answer.

 First, you need to know what Los Zetas is. Los Zetas is potentially the most powerful gang in all of. . .nope, not just central Mexico, not just all of Mexico, but all of North America.

 Los Zetas is thought to head the Gulf Cartel, which also controls the distribution of cocaine and other drugs and black market items through much of the region.

But these are not just a bunch organized crooks - they are scarily much more than that. “The Zetas were originally members of the Mexican Army’s elite Airborne Special Forces Group (GAFE), trained in locating and apprehending drug cartel members. It is believed that they were originally trained at the military School of the Americas in the United States. Also, they were trained by foreign specialists, including Americans, French, and Israelis, in rapid deployment, aerial assaults, marksmanship, ambushes, small-group tactics, intelligence collection, counter-surveillance techniques, prisoner rescues and sophisticated communications.“

But it gets worse, much worse.

“Los Zetas have set up camps in which to train recruits as well as ex-federal, state, and local police officers. In addition, they have invited into their ranks ex-troops from Guatemala known as Kaibiles.

 The group is extremely well armed, they wear body armor and some wear Kevlar ballistic helmets; their arsenal includes AR-15 and AK-47 assault rifles, MP5 submachine guns, 50 cal. machine guns, grenade launchers, ground-to-air missiles, dynamite and helicopters. They are known to operate with modern wiretapping equipment and purchase the cellular phone codes of their intended targets directly from the phone companies and providers. 

Los Zetas is known to operate with a higher tactical degree than the local authorities. During one shootout against law enforcement the group employed grenade launchers and 50 cal. machine guns.” And in case you didn’t know, 50 cal. machine guns load bullets that are nearly 6 inches long prior to firing!  It makes complete sense that with these tactics and weapons they are also one of the most brutal killing organizations around, known for gruesomely torturing their victims.

(If you want to see the rest, here is Part 2, Part 3, Part 4 , and Part 5.  The entire documentary is 45 minutes long.)

 Whether you watched the opening segment or not, this disturbing phrase from one of the speakers should sound some serious “alarmage”: “The Zetas have more capability than Al Qaeda does today to operate inside the United States.”

More capability than Al Qaeda. . .and so the question should come back to the forefront of your mind: Why haven’t I heard of Los Zetas?  After all, for all the talk of Middle Eastern and Islamic terrorism, the United States has been virtually mum on this entire issue or at least in comparison to all the coverage of the Middle East. And yet, the documentary will later state that Los Zetas has the ability to carry out contract killings in nearly any major city within the United States in less than 72 hours.

Al Qaeda? Shouldn’t Los Zetas be top priority?

This article from June 2005 discusses how Los Zetas were already starting to become a serious threat in the Southwestern United States.  Ironic how four years after 9/11 and just two years after the start of the Iraq War we were still fighting a virtually unknown enemy thousands of miles away, when we had a known one inside our own borders.  Now their network has run full-course having penetrated well within the continental U.S having been paid far less attention during these last several years, even though some officials thought they wouldn’t be a factor in the U.S.  Guess again. . .

So the next time someone talks about terrorism in the Middle East, ask them about terrorism in Texas, and when they raise their eyebrows with a puzzled look, don’t be surprised. . .

- IgniteTheMind

(Tomb of the Unknown Soldier - Arlington National Cemetery)

No matter what nation you come from, nearly all of us are proud of our soldiers.  Granted, there are those out there who abuse or neglect and are thus not deserving of the honor that comes with serving one’s country.  For the most though, we may not support the war/conflict, we may not support the reasoning behind it, we may not support the moral ramifications, but most of us still support and respect the actual soldiers themselves.

They are putting their lives on the line and sometimes for a purpose which they may not even agree with.  Yet out of dedication and protection for their country and its people they put themselves in harm’s way.

But as has been discussed before , war is not for humankind.  Sure, war exists and obviously humankind is the one that initiates it, but its one of those things that is truly beyond control.  A war may end, but the scars never heal. . .

And so it is still today, as the U.S. Army recently acknowledge that suicide rates among its soldiers were as high as they were three decades ago (And guess what was happening then? . . .Vietnam).

And yet Defense Officials are so smart.  Their reasoning of cause was said to be that “. . . troops are under tremendous and unprecedented stress because of repeated and long tours of duty in the simultaneous wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.”  Wow, that’s a brilliant observation - you mean the cause of higher suicides might be the fact that the soldiers are at war?

And you mean to tell us that “. . .the most common factors for suicides were soldiers suffering problems with their personal relationships, legal or financial issues and problems on the job.”  Wonder why that might be?  Oh wait, its the fact that these men and women are diligently carrying out your agenda while their entire life collapses back home?

But wait, you mean to say that military physicians may have found the root cause as well? Boy, its a good thing we had more people on this thing. . .Apparently, physicians don’t think that the chronic health problems that veterans suffer from when they return home are necessarily mild brain trauma/concussions caused by explosions or the extreme physical demands of war that sometimes result in collisions.  No, it seems that the chronic conditions might be caused by post-traumatic stress disorder!

Go figure!  So it seems when you have to spend every waking minute watching your back and your buddies’, sleeping “with one eye open,” living in a foreign country with no connections to home, patrolling the area on either foot or vehicle with threats possible by any moving object, all while removed from your family and friends for months at end you might be stressed?  Now only if those same Defense Officials had spent a few months out in the sandbox then they would really know. . .

At least if nothing else, they are planning on spending some $300 million now to better understand post-traumatic brain disorder and traumatic brain injury. . .Sympathy certainly goes out to all soldiers, especially those in countries who do not receive any sort of treatment.

And while it is beyond easy to sit back and be cynical, which this particular post is guilty of, its not easy to sit back, however, and watch others take their lives because of circumstances plagued upon them by corrupt motivations of those in power (though it is realized not all in power are corrupt).

In the end, we should never stop trying to bandage the effects of war, but even more so, may we never stop trying to prevent war.

. . .In honor of all those who have served their country with integrity, honor, and valor, we salute you.

- IgniteTheMind

(In case you missed Part 1 , no worries - the introduction is the same, but you’ll want to take a peek at the previous photos.)

The Green Revolution is here. . .Well, its starting to get here in America anyways, but its certainly been going on in other countries that have been more concerned with energy efficiency longer than the U.S.  Regardless, conservation is a good thing.  We can all use to do a little better, and we can all certainly learn from each other.

But going green doesn’t need to be “dorky” as is the developing stereotype. . .To dispel that notion, check out these these top 10 green architectures as rated by Inhabitat .  In this article we’ll finish counting down with the top 5 of the top 10 (Only one picture from each architecture will be shown, but you really ought to check them all out in the Inhabitat link).

Turning green never looked so good. . .

5. Spiraling Skyscraper - Shanghai, China

This one is an artist’s rendition because they only recently broke ground on the building, but it will be tallest building in all of China!  It will be complete with “no fewer than nine sky gardens, a rainwater recycling system, and a series of wind turbines perched beneath its parapet.”  Within its spiraling walls will be everything from house-businesses, and restaurants, to cafés, coffee shops and convenience stores.

4. Old Subway Cars Now Studio Workspaces - London, UK

From beneath the earth to a bird’s eye view, these old subway cars have been retrofitted to be a chic workspace in crowded London.  Mounted on top of a building, a total of six cars were purchased for just 200 pounds each (that’s only $285 U.S.)!  There are now plans to expand similar projects to Lisbon (Portugal), Berlin (Germany, and Toronto (Canada).

3. Carbon-Neutral Pyramid (Ziggurat) - Dubai

Due to begin construction in October 2009, this structure is planned to be able to support a community of nearly 1 million with the energy it will generate!  It will utilize wind, steam, solar and other natural resources to sustain its energy-efficiency.  A highly-efficient public transportation system will be planned as well as other urban planning to make the city tightly knit and smartly functional.  Agricultural opportunities are also in the works.

2.  Eco-Sphere - Pacific Northwest USA

Available for rent or purchase, these tree-top huts are simply amazing.  Able to accommodate 4 people (more for “camping” or “vacations” than long-term living), these spheres are handcrafted with fiberglass and locally-sourced wood.  They can have electricity serviced to them or you can enjoy the simplicity of “roughing it.”  Playing Tarzan and Jane will never have felt so natural. . .

1.  Green Roof Art School - Singapore

This is Nanyang Technological University, a five-story art school.  “The glass façade provides a high performance building envelope that reduces solar gain and heat load while allowing the benefits of natural views and daylight into creative spaces. The roofs create open space, insulate the building, cool the surrounding air and harvest rainwater for landscaping irrigation.”  The school is made not only to be astetic but to also inspire its students with its “non-traditional, non-linear” construction.

Well, there you have it! Ten mighty and magnificent ways to go green. . .This is the only earth we have, so we better take care of it.  And while we’re at it, let’s beautify it too!  Going green can be just as functional as it can be fashionable.  Here’s to next years top 10 best green architectures and another year’s worth of conscientious conservation.

- IgniteTheMind

(donations welcomed)

The Green Revolution is here. . .Well, its starting to get here in America anyways, but its certainly been going on in other countries that have been more concerned with energy efficiency longer than the U.S.  Regardless, conservation is a good thing.  We can all use to do a little better, and we can all certainly learn from each other.

But going green doesn’t need to be “dorky” as is the developing stereotype. . .To dispel that notion, check out these these top 10 green architectures as rated by Inhabitat .  In this article we’ll count down 5 of the top 10 and finish up the other half tomorrow (Only one picture from each architecture will be shown, but you really ought to check them all out in the Inhabitat link).

Turning green never looked so good. . .

10.  GREENPIX Zero Energy Media Wall - Beijing

This 20,000 square foot wall can be seen up to a kilometer away on one of Beijing’s busiest road’s, and it is the world’s largest LED display. Collecting sunlight during the day, this wall uses the stored solar energy to put on a show at night.

9.  Cathedral of Christ the Light in Oakland, CA

Composed of glass, fly-ash and fsc-certified wood, this structure maximizes the use of natural sunlight and has been built to last over 300 years, even structured to withstand considerable earthquake activity.

8. California Academy of Sciences - California

This one is an artist’s rendering but it provides the best angle of the outside.  The California Academy of Sciences is an absolutely incredible structure, complete with indoor rainforest and the largest indoor coral reef aquarium in the world.  In total, this building “is currently the only institution in the world to feature an aquarium, a natural history museum, a living rainforest, a planetarium, and world-class research and education programs.”

7.  World’s First Energy-Generating Revolving Door - Netherlands-based Natuurcafe La Port

This revolving door may not look so fancy, but it actually generate a small amount of electricity every time someone goes through it!  It doesn’t necessarily generate a great deal of electricity (4600 kwh of energy each year), but each watt helps!  Even more so, we may very well be witnessing some of the first green technology that will be utilized in our not-so-distant every day lives!

6. Temple Built of One Million Recycled Bottles - Thailand

An estimated 1.5 million recycled bottles were used to build the Wat Pa Maha Chedio Kaew temple in Thailand.  Bottle collecting started in 1984.  Bottle caps have also been used to make mosaics.  The bottles are surprisingly durable, require little maintenance, and let beautiful rays of light cascade through, which also distributes warmth.

Well, those are the first five of these magnificent green architecture specimens.  Come back tomorrow and see the other five!

- IgniteTheMind

(donations welcomed)

Move over Hulk, Ben Grimm, and even Arnold. . .

There’s a new muscle-bound beast roaming the hillsides - Belgium Blue Cattle to be exact. . .

Genetically bred to have double the amount of normal muscle a cow has these bovine beasts are absolutely massive.  You simply have to see them to understand. Take a peak. . .

(Just in case you can’t view the video - here’s a picture of a Belgium Blue)

Traditionally, controlled breeding has been a very useful thing.  As a result humankind has been able to aid the process of creating healthier animals, better quality animals for consumption, limit diseases and/or other ailments, and even develop breeds for uniqueness.

Bred to produce more poundage of meat, the Belgium Blue Cow breeding process (and others) starts to raise some serious questions- questions that have only been wrestled with for a few decades - when humans began to directly manipulate the DNA of animal, as opposed to just cross-breeding.  This human intervention in DNA science is most commonly called “genetic engineering.”

 The issue with genetic engineering is that in order to better something, we have the equal opportunity to create something much worse than we ever expected.  On a more common level, when engineering DNA sometimes mutations occur ; these mutations can result in increase vulnerability to diseases, and those diseases can then be spread to other organisms.  Livestock is an easy example to think of because they are grown in mass and often genetically engineered for “optimal” and fast growth.  Think of all the times companies have had to re-call chicken, pork or beef products!

 Yet if we follow this path, it ultimately leads us to such possibilities as human genetic engineering and human cloning (which has already been done to animals).

Are we ready for the repercussions of genetic engineering gone wrong on humans?  Are humans meddling in something that in the end is too complex for us too handle? Are the benefits greater than the pitfalls, because as we know, advancement does come with them?

The answers are not easy and the lines are gray. . .In the end, whatever our choices are, may we not be prideful in remembering our own limitations.

- IgniteTheMind

(donations welcomed)

Would you pay $5,000 for a cardboard box?

If you answered, “No way!” you’ve spoken too soon because this is no ordinary cardboard box.  This cardboard box is Swiss-made, resin-soaked cellulose (recycled paper), fitted with plumbing, and big enough to bed 8 people in it! Its called the “Universal World House.”

Yes, for the price of a decent used car, you could own your own corrugated crib. . .

And the real treat is that “it has been designed so that a family can slaughter an animal on the veranda, wash it in the shower and hang it, along with fish, on an integrated washing line.”  After all, isn’t that what we always visualized using a veranda for? And you can’t tell me you haven’t wished to shower with the very same slaughtered animal you were going to eat that evening?

So just kick back, relax, and enjoy the view of the sunset from your veranda. . .even if you have to push the hanging carcass out of the way.

All joking aside, while the structure looks a little lacking for cold weather climates (its walls are suppose to be intelligently crafted with an insulating technology), the functionality of a home like this would serve a tremendous upgrade for refugees, lower financial classes, those in hot to mild weather climates, and other situations in which cheap housing could be utilized.

Yes, this house could truly bring much needed comfort to millions of families around the world.  For all its misused blunders, technology offers amazing opportunities for humankind to help each other, and this is just one awesome instance of that. . .

In the end, however, let us not stop at this. . .No, let us not stop until we have faught poverty to its own death, and if that takes forever, may we then be up to the task of never stopping and always fighting. . .forever.

- IgniteTheMind

(donations welcomed)

These poor fellas look like somebody stole their lunch money. . .and basically, that’s exactly what’s been happening to L.A. gangs.

   Recently, the city of Los Angeles, California sued a local gang for the numerous damages it has caused while running its heroin trade.  The verdict? For the plaintiff (that’s the city of L.A. if your judicially illiterate) in the amount of $5 million dollars.

 Yes, that’s right. New measurements are being taken against L.A. gangs, some of the most notorious throughout the world, in an attempt to cripple them where it will hurt the most: their pockets.

 The theory seems to make sense.  It takes money to fund any kind of organization, even a criminal one.  Take away the money, and you cripple the organization.  While some pundits are still skeptical that this tactic will have any long term effects on actually reducing gang activity, one thing is for sure, the gangs are losing money, and they don’t like it.

 Its true, they’ll find their money some other way, but for now, its sending a message that gangs have more to lose than just their freedom.  If they fall, all their possessions will be taken away, including anything else related to their criminal activity.  That could mean homes, cars, clothing, etc. that have also been given to family members.  The cut will run deeper this time around.

 Additionally, the city of L.A. will be using the income to invest it back into broken neighborhoods.  Hopefully some innocent folks will get some relief.

 So L.A. gangs beware. . .because as you know, it don’t mean a thing if you ain’t got that bling.

(or if you want to get really deep - you ain’t got no cred’ if you ain’t got that bread)

 - IgniteTheMind

(donations welcomed)

  + =

You could easily substitute these pictures with any others from any other war or violent conflict. . .These are perhaps the “easiest” to use because they remain on the political minds of many, including of course the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  Of course, these conflicts/wars are no more “important” than others that have, are, and will go on around the world.

See it doesn’t matter who is fighting or the reason, war is too much for humankind.  Its effects are devastating in eons of ways, and recovery is painfully slow.  No one ever fully heals.

The problem with war is that both sides think their right.  And to some extent, they may very well be.  And yet at the same time, if they are both engaged in killing, they are still both wrong.  Unfortunately life circumstances create a situation that is between a rock and hard place.

The Holocaust, for example, was a horrific affair.  The Jewish people suffered terribly.  The Axis forces had no right to kill anyone, let alone on the basis of religious faith, and hair and eye color.  But to sit back and not stop the problem would be equally wrong. To let genocide run lose would be shameful.  Yet the conundrum in engaging in war is that even more people have to die.  War is so paradoxical; sometimes you engage in it to stop killing, and yet to do so, more must die.

This posting is not to make any type of political statement about the Iraqi-American war , the Israeli-Palestinian conflict , the tribal wars of Africa, Hindu-Muslim tensions of India and Pakistan or any other specific war.  Rather, it must be simply said that war is never the solution, and yet sometimes, circumstances seem to twist our arm to the point that there seems no other.

Sometimes we can justify war, self-defense, and the like but we can never justify the act of killing. . .Perhaps William Tecumseh Sherman captured it best, when he simply said- “War is Hell.”

- IgniteTheMind

. . .or at least make you cross it out.

That’s what recently happened to Raed Jarrar , a Middle Eastern man who wore a shirt that had Arabic script written on it.

Yes, that’s all folks. . .he simply had Arabic writing on his shirt and he was simply a Middle Eastern man. . .heaven forbid.

(T-shirt says in English beneath: We will not be silent)

And what was the superior, logical reasoning behind JetBlue’s, the airline company, request of Jarrar?  Because according to several passengers, because an Arabic-inscribed T-shirt in an airport was like “wearing a T-shirt at a bank stating, I am a robber.” 

Really? Its like that? Then it seems we need to start telling people who resemble Adolf Hitler, Fidel Castro or Mao Ze-Dong to cut off their mustaches/beards or change out of their drab green shirts.

Fact of the matter is, it wasn’t the T-shirt people were scared about. . .its the fact that a Middle Eastern man was wearing that shirt.  If a blonde-haired, blue-eyed man walked on that plane with the same shirt no one would have said a peep. No one probably would have even noticed.

Let it be said, there is understanding as to why passengers would be a bit cautious.  9/11 was a dreadful and completely, 100% morally wrong event, and the memory remains.   Because regardless of one’s personal disdain for another people group, there is no good reason to kill another person out of personal biases.

Its sad to think that an event like the Holocaust has not sent a permanent message that genocide/terrorism is ugly. . .And, no one, Arab, Black, White, Asian, Latino, et. al. deserve to live their lives in fear. The fight against terrorism, hatred, racism, and discrimination will be a long one, but a valiant one, an obligatory one.  Perhaps this incident was an ignorantly genuine one, and for that we have all done such at one point or another with one thing or another.Yet even in the quasi-justified cautiousness, the fact remains Jarrar, who was also escorted to the back of the plane afterwards, was wrongly accused.   And this is not just the first (or last) time either.  It happened similarly with AirTran just 4 days ago:

As was said earlier , racist roots in the American culture still run deep, no matter which way you slice it.

And to add to the racial profiling miscues - Fact: Only 20% of the world’s Muslims are Arab. Or in other words, 80% of the world’s Muslims are non-Arab. That means instead of just worrying about the guy who you think looks like he would be named Ahmed, there are many more who could be far more dangerous and not even be Arab/Middle Eastern. And that is of course if one naively believes that all Muslims are Jihadist.

Again, “We will not be silent” would raise some eyebrows. Certainly. . .but again, common sense, supposedly the same stuff that JetBlue used, has to ask: Would a Jihadist Muslim who wants to attack a plan wear a shirt that would purposely get him profiled and make him stand out “more than what he already does”?  Sometimes people believe what they want to believe. . .

For all of the raucous the Bush administration has caused, credit needs to be given for this: We have not had another attack on American soil since 9/11, and hundreds of plots have been disrupted. Thank you President Bush; your fight to protect this country is appreciated, and surely the work of President Bush, the U.S. government and its military forces have disrupted evil plots worldwide, while engaging the fight many others have already been engaging in.

In the same light though, in the spirit of preventing further unnecessary hatred and killing we all need to look out for each other.  But let us do a better job of not creating another evil in an attempt to prevent a different one.

- IgniteTheMind

(News referred to covering dates primarily 12/08-1/09)

As the  prepares for new -elect , the  continues to  fluctuating  and a global   crisis.  It seems that no knows what is around the . It is a  time for everyone. . .

The is in turmoil as  continues to  the region.  And we’re still not ed with the .

The attacks are still  in the s of many.  And  can only wonder if will ever come to an .

Then there are the ies that touch people’s s.  From to to to , these are just a few of the many that  has , and surely there are many more around the .

But there is  in the .  For some will keep their  through  or  and for some even, it will come through /.  In the end, let’s hope it comes through so that we may all experienceing and .