WELLINGTON VISITED BY STRONG EARTHQUAKE

An earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale had shake Wellington area and the top of the South Island. 

The quake was recorded at 7.19pm this evening and struck 30km east of Picton at a depth of 60km.

GeoNet duty officer
Dr Tony Hurst says:

this shake is the biggest they have
recorded in the area for around 20 years.

The fire service in Wellington says it has had no reports of damage yet, 

and Dr Hurst is not expecting any big damage, mainly just a normal earthquake.

Some of Christchurch resident who is visiting Wellington for a wedding 

had just finished telling other guests about the aftershocks in Christchurch when the earthquake hit.

They said All Glasses and wine bottles were shaking.

Their initial reaction was that if the earthquake was this strong in Wellington it must have been large in Christchurch but was relieved to hear it was localised to the 

Wellington and Marlborough regions

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7:14 AM | 0 comments | Read More

CARRIER IQ SECRETLY SPYING ON YOUR BLACKBERRY.

Recently big news broke out regarding Android phones as they were discovered to be secretly tracking
literally everything you would do on them. The culprit was a spying software called Carrier IQ, which is installed by the manufacturers on the phone’s deepest level. The Carrier IQ spyware sits between the user and the applications in the phone. No matter how secure and private your apps are, the spyware intercepts anything you do.



The spying software by Carrier IQ is also on your BlackBerry phone. It likely functions in the same way it does on Android.

Carrier IQ denies some of the allegations and states their spyware is

the only embedded analytics company to support millions of devices simultaneously, we give Wireless Carriers and Handset Manufacturers unprecedented insight into their customers’ mobile experience.

The only real problem with Carrier IQ’s spyware is it does not just collect anonymous data, it collectseverything. It can track the addresses you visited through the browser, the content of text messages, and much, much more. Unfortunately, there is no way to get this spyware off of your BlackBerry. It doesn’t matter how secure of a connection you can put your BlackBerry through, the data is still collected by the spyware and sent to RIM and/or carrier. Carrier IQ’s spyware on your BlackBerry certainly raises privacy concerns since you’re never notified of its existence or given the option to consent on its use.

3:21 AM | 0 comments | Read More

CHINA'S ELDERLY FACES HIV/AIDS

When an old widower from the central Chinese city of Wuhan went into hospital last summer because of a persistent high fever, he was diagnosed with the AIDS virus -- and made national news.

The man, in his late 70s, had frequently hired prostitutes after his wife died, and doctors believe he contracted the HIV virus -- which can eventually develop into full-blown AIDS -- through unprotected sex, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

But now the threat of HIV/AIDS looms large over a segment of Chinese society not previously known for a high prevalence of cases: senior citizens.

With the population rapidly aging, more than 10% of China's 1.3 billion people are now over the age of 60, census figures show. Improving living standards mean many Chinese are living and remaining sexually active for longer.

1:05 AM | 0 comments | Read More

JACKSON DOCTOR CONRAD MURRAY JAILED FOR FOUR YEARS

Michael Jackson's physician, Conrad Murray, has been sentenced to 4 years in prison for involuntary manslaughter over the singer's 2009 death.

In sentencing Murray today, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor called his actions:

money for medicine madness that is simply not acceptable to me.

Conrad Murray sat in his chair, dressed in a gray suit and purple paisley tie, and did not express any emotion.

The judge denied any probation for Conrad Murray.

Prosecutors had depicted Murray (58) as remorseless for the superstar’s death had urged the judge to sentence him to four years in prison, while a defence lawyer said Conrad Murray was in a prison of self-punishment and should receive probation.

Conrad Murray has been in jail since he was convicted on November 7th of involuntary manslaughter for Jackson’s fatal overdose of the anaesthetic propofol.

Michael Jackson died of a drug overdose in June 2009, principally from the use of the surgical anesthetic propofol as a sleep aid. That drug had been obtained and administered to Jackson by Murray at the singer's rented home.

Earlier this month, a jury convicted Conrad Murray of involuntary manslaughter, or gross negligence, in his treatment of Jackson after witnesses testified propofol should not be administered at home and, even if it is, it must be given only with the proper life-monitoring equipment on hand. It was not.

Conrad Murray had agreed to care for Michael Jackson ahead of the singer's planned comeback concerts in London, and had negotiated a salary of $150,000 per month to care for the singer.

Prosecutors said Murray has shown no remorse for Jackson’s death and has placed blame on others, including Jackson himself.

They submitted a series of post-trial media interviews with Murray on a DVD. In one excerpt, Conrad Murray says: 

I don’t feel guilty because I did not do anything wrong.

6:25 PM | 0 comments | Read More

HORSE SLAUTHER FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION LEGALIZES BY OBAMA

Horse slaughter plants are legal again in the United States. Restrictions on horse meat processing for human consumption have been lifted.

In a bipartisan effort, the House of Representatives and the United States Senate approved the Conference Committee report on spending bill H.R. 2012, which among other things, funds the United States Department of Agriculture. On November 18th, as the country was celebrating Thanksgiving, President Obama signed a law, allowing Americans to kill and eat horses. Essentially, one turkey was pardoned in the presence of worldwide media while in the shadows, buried under pages of fiscal regulation, millions of horses were sentenced to death.

Horse slaughter has been prohibited in the United States as funding for inspections of horses in transit and at slaughter houses was non-existent. This worked because the horse meat cannot be sold for human consumption without such inspections. The House version of the bill retained the de-funding language and the Senate version did not. The conference committee charged with reconciling the two opted to not include it. The result is that it is now legal to slaughter horses for humans to eat.

Notwithstanding that 70% of Americans oppose horse slaughter, that President Obama made a campaign promise to permanently ban horse slaughter and exports of horses for human consumption (horses can be sent to Mexico and Canada), that documentation of animal cruelty, slaughterhouse stench, fluid runoff and negative community impact exists, it is taxpayers that will bear the costs!

Wyoming state representative Sue Wallis and her pro-slaughter group estimate that between 120,000 and 200,000 horses will be killed for human consumption per year and that Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Georgia and Missouri, are considering opening slaughter plants.

During these trying times, is the only thing that Democrats and Republicans can agree on is that Americans need to eat horses?

6:06 PM | 0 comments | Read More