Brazil Battles Protestors

June 10, 2014June 25, 2014 / tellmemoreblogger / 2 Comments

Confronted with mounting protests and civil unrest, Brazil’s police force resorts to tear gas, flash-bang grenades and rubber bullets to ward off potentially violent crowds. With the FIFA World Cup just days away, authorities will do whatever they can to keep control and order in the streets. Angry protestors in São Paulo and Rio de Janiero say that they are not happy with the government’s allocation of funds. Spending billions of dollars on constructing the necessary infrastructure to support the World Cup is not seen as a priority by many Brazilians who have difficulty putting food on the table and finding jobs. Furthermore, the lack of completion of several stadiums has yet further infuriated the public as they watch their tax dollars being spent carelessly.

Subway workers at São Paulo went on strike Monday which added fuel to the fire. Construction workers desperately work as fast as possible to assure that all of the necessary infrastructure is complete before game one. After being battered by tear gas and other riot resistance weapons, the subway workers decided to call off the strike for two more days or so. They know that if they want to make their voices heard then that will be the time to do it. Authorities fear that the protests could incapacitate the city and create delays for the games.

Social media networks are buzzing with anti-FIFA sentiment. Workers Unions are taking to the streets as well as this is likely their best opportunity to take a blow at Brazil’s politicians. In Rio de Janiero, the former residents of near-by favelas are also making their voices heard. Months before the World Cup, authorities displaced thousands from their homes to make the necessary infrastructure changes to host the game. The result is hundreds of homeless Brazilians that are eager to make a statement to their government.

Each day that we get closer to game one in Brazil, everyone is wondering what will happen next. Will Brazil’s police department be able to tame the protests and assure safety for the Countries citizens and tourists? Or will Brazil’s angry citizens organize a protest so large that it could threaten the safety of the players, tourists and citizens alike?

Are you from Brazil or are you traveling there for the games? I want to hear what you have to say about these protests. Have they reached you? Do you see chaos in the streets or do you see more press then protestors? Please leave me a comment or send me a message. Thanks for stopping by.

World map of Brazil

NASA’s IRIS Captures Solar Eruption!

June 4, 2014June 17, 2014 / tellmemoreblogger / 10 Comments

Check out this really interesting video. NASA’s Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) was able to capture video footage of a solar eruption from our sun. According to the data that was received by IRIS, the eruption was about eight times taller and five times wider than the Earth while traveling at about one and a half million miles per hour! What’s more amazing is how the footage was captured. According to NASA, IRIS must focus on different areas of activity on the sun an entire day in advance in order to capture an event like this one. Needless to say this was not a simple task. The official term for the eruption is a coronal mass ejection (CME). Thanks to some sound scientific predictions, IRIS was able to capture its first ever footage of a CME in action. Enjoy the clip!

Bowe Bergdahl, The Big Trade-Off

June 4, 2014June 25, 2014 / tellmemoreblogger / Leave a comment

Taliban leaders that we released to get Bowe Bergdahl back.

Abdul Haq Wasiq

Mullah Mohammad Fazl

Khirullah Said Wali Khairkhwa

Mullah Norullah Noori

Mohammad Nabi Omari

If you have been watching the news lately then you must have heard about the release of Bowe Bergdahl, the American soldier who was held captive for 5 years in Afghanistan. The United States negotiated with Taliban forces for the release of Bowe Bergdahl in exchange for five high ranking Taliban leaders. The Taliban leaders were being held in Guantanamo Bay before their release to Qatar. Their release was contingent upon the constant supervision of their activities and a one-year restriction to remain in Qatar. Despite the relief felt by so many for Bergdahl’s release, there are now rumors that Bowe abandoned his squad. These new reports are challenging the legality and morality of the decision that was made with the Taliban in exchange for Bergdahl’s release.

After hearing all of the buzz I had to look more into the situation to understand what exactly was going on here. According to Bowe Berdahl’s old squad members, he abandoned his post and left a note saying that he did not agree with the war and because of that reason he was leaving the military. Another report said that a soldier was killed while on a mission to rescue Bergdahl. If both are true, then I could only wonder why a squad would pursue a “deserter”, as Bergdahl has been called, in the first place. Secondly, why would the U.S. negotiate with the Taliban, which they have never done before, in exchange for a soldier who is so controversial? Furthermore, we gave the Taliban five detainees and they only gave us one, a trade that seems awfully one sided to me.

While the exact details of the story will likely remain a secret, there are some facts that we could observe like the identity of the five terrorists who were released to Qatari officials. Listed above, these five terrorists were all high ranking officers in the Taliban. People are saying that it is likely that these men will return to their terrorist activities as soon as their one year probation is over. However, I wonder if the real problem is that they return or that their release was the direct result of negotiation with a well-known terrorist cell in Afghanistan.

I wonder what all of the people calling Bowe Bergdahl a “deserter” would do if they were dropped into a war that they knew was wrong. Would they continue to kill people for reasons that they themselves cannot explain? I ask this question because I hear so many people saying that Bowe Bergdahl should have been left to die in captivity instead of released. The courts are pondering whether or not to put him on trial for those crimes. However, I doubt that half of the people saying these things have been put in a situation like his. Maybe the real question that should be asked is why are U.S. soldiers doubting their responsibilities in Afghanistan in the first place? Maybe, just maybe, these soldiers don’t want to kill the Afghans anymore. Maybe they know that we never should have invaded and occupied a country for the reasons that we did.

I’m not defending either side but I do like questioning everything. If you heard about this story and have your own opinion on what happened then leave a comment. I would love to hear back from you guys and know what you think should be done.

Bowe Bergdahl

The Machine Gun Preacher

May 27, 2014June 17, 2014 / tellmemoreblogger / Leave a comment

Sam Childers helping children in his orphanage

sam childers with southern sudanese militia

Sam Childers with his anti-LRA militia

Have you ever heard of the man that the Southern Sudanese call the “Machine Gun Preacher”? If you haven’t, then let me tell you a little bit about the man who has risked everything to save the children of Southern Sudan and Northern Uganda in Africa. The name Machine Gun Preacher was bestowed upon Sam Childers by the Southern Sudanese locals after witnessing several of his missions. Sam decided to build an orphanage in one of the most militarily active villages in Southern Sudan named Nimule, which borders Uganda. In addition to operating the orphanage, Sam Childers actively hunts down the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) to rescue children from the brutal rebel forces. All the while, Sam Childers sold his business in the U.S. and anything else that he could to help fund his own efforts.

As a child and young adult, Sam Childers was a trouble maker. While consuming and selling hard drugs, Sam eventually took up arms and engaged in extreme violence. He learned how to use a shotgun so that he could protect his partners and intimidate his competitors. However after many years of drug fueled violence, Sam began to fear for his life. His wife Lynn began going back to church and with time she was able to convince Sam to come with her. Gradually, Sam began to leave the hard drugs and start working a legitimate job as a construction worker. A few years later he became drug free entirely and opened his own construction business.

Sam Childers was now an avid church goer, a faithful husband and a Father. One day after listening to a pastor from Africa, Sam joined the man on a mission to South Sudan. The trip changed Sam Childers forever. He saw terrible things when he went to South Sudan. Children missing limbs, mothers being hospitalized after being brutally raped and many more horrifying injuries. The experience led Sam to venture on his own until finally stumbling upon the border village of Nimule, where God inspired him to build an orphanage. From that point on, Sam Childers has been fighting the LRA and operating his orphanage.

In 2011, a movie titled “Machine Gun Preacher” chronicled the story of Sam Childers. Today Sam Childers continues to fight the LRA and help the orphaned children of Southern Sudan. After watching the film and researching his story, I found that some people find his mission to be controversial. They claim that his use of weapons and violence reduces the effectiveness of his mission. However, I do not share the same opinion. While I may not agree with everything the man does, I recognize that sometimes, drastic problems require drastic solutions. Today, Sam’s orphanage has helped over 1,000 children and it is the largest orphanage in Southern Sudan. This story has inspired me and shown that one man really can make a difference in the world.

Visit http://www.machinegunpreacher.org to learn more about Sam Childers mission. There is a link on the page where you can donate money to his cause. If you were inspired by Sam and his mission, then please help him maintain his operation by giving a donation. If you decide to give money to his mission, leave me a comment and let me know that you did. I would love to hear back from you guys and know what you think about his mission.

South Sudan in Africa

Children in Turalei

The fight for Ukraine

May 20, 2014June 17, 2014 / tellmemoreblogger / Leave a comment

Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovych

Russian President Vladimir Putin

If you have been watching the news lately then you’ve likely heard about the dispute between Ukraine and Russia. The Crimean peninsula is at the epicenter of the dispute. Russia proclaimed that the people of Crimea were free to defect from Ukraine and rejoin Russia as a new territory. Ukraine, along with several other nations, was once part of the Soviet Union. With Russia as its governing power, the Soviet Union united parts of Eastern Europe. However, after the fall of the Soviet Union, countries like Ukraine reclaimed their independence. The problem is that during the fall of the Soviet Union, many Russian citizens who migrated to Ukraine were now stuck living in a non-Russian country.

After years of living under Ukrainian governance, the most pro-Russian region of Ukraine (the Crimean peninsula) decided that it no longer wanted to be part of Ukraine. However it was not until Ukrainian citizens began to protest against their corrupt government that the pro-Russian Crimean citizens decided to remove themselves entirely from Ukraine. With Russian support, the Crimean peninsula was quickly overrun by its citizens and Russian troops in disguise. Now Ukraine faces two issues at the same time. First, its citizens took to the streets in violent protests, fighting for new leadership. Second, the people of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula sided with Russia and aligned themselves with Russian president Vladimir Putin. Ukraine is facing a serious economic crisis now that its resources have been spread out and its government is in a state of uncertainty, unable to do business.

Now, after a few months of conflict, Vladimir Putin has claimed that he is pulling his troops back to the Russian border. While he never formally claimed that he sent troops into Ukraine to take Crimea, everyone watching knew that his forces were present. Now it’s estimated that about 40,000 Russian troops are to retreat to their border bases, a move that was likely caused by economic sanctions placed on Vladimir Putin’s wealthiest supporters. However despite Putin’s statements, NATO forces have yet to see any retreat from the Russian forces. As Ukraine’s future hangs in the balance, the world is watching the conflict closely. Should Vladimir Putin choose to intervene any further into the conflict, it is likely that other nations will respond with economic sanctions and as a last resort, military intervention.

As the conflict continues, I wonder what the people of Ukraine think about what has been happening in their country. If you are from Ukraine or you have family that lives there, please leave a comment on this post. I would love to know what it is like to live through this conflict and to know what you think should be done. Do you feel safe or is the conflict reaching your neighborhood and threatening your way of life? Please let me know what you think.

World map of Ukraine

Ukraine, Russian speaking population map

Cyber-Crimes, China vs U.S.

May 19, 2014June 17, 2014 / tellmemoreblogger / 2 Comments

FBI’s Most Wanted

Sun Kailiang

Huang Zhenyu

Wen Xinyu

Wang dong

Gu Chunhui

Hacking. This may be the most misunderstood and complicated term that makes the news on a daily basis. Whenever I hear the word “hacker” I immediately imagine some petty thief sitting on his computer buying things online with my stolen credit card information. Surely I’m not the only person who has received a phone call from their bank asking them if they are aware of fraudulent charges on their account. I imagine that if this happened to you, that you were sent a new card in the mail a few days later and that the money was safely transferred back into your account later that day. But what happens when someone is able to hack more than just your money? What if they are able to hack into your life’s work and then use that information for their own benefit? Well, that actually wasn’t a question, it’s a fact. As of May 1st, 2014, five members of China’s military were indicted for corporate cyber-attacks.

This is the first time that individuals from a foreign government are being charged with cyber-crimes against major U.S. corporations. Sun Kailiang, Huang Zhenyu, Wen Xinyu, Wang Dong and Gu Chunhui are the five members from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of the Republic of China who were indicted for their cyber-crimes. The victims of their cyber-crimes include U.S. companies such as Westinghouse Electric Co, SolarWorld AG, United States Steal Corporation, Alcoa Inc., Allegheny Technologies Inc. and a workers union. The hackers not only stole valuable information about trade practices and procedures, but they also stole vital energy information. While conducting their cyber-attack, the criminals did everything from send false emails requesting secret information to downloading schematics for power-plant production. These expert hackers were able to gain access to nearly all aspects of these major U.S. companies.

After looking into the investigation, I discovered that each of these corporations were in some way involved in more than just business with China. As stated by the FBI, “… those companies were engaged in negotiations or joint ventures or were pursuing legal action with, or against, state-owned enterprises in China”. These hackers were able to access vital information about U.S. competitors and their negotiation strategies with these Chinese enterprises. Of course the Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson denied any government or military responsibility for the crimes stating that, “The U.S. accusation against Chinese personnel is purely ungrounded and absurd”. This latest case of suspected cyber-attacks from China is the first to actually move forward with official criminal charges and is likely to strain the U.S.–Chinese relationship even further.

I would love to hear from someone living in China about these accusations. Though I’m fully aware of the U.S.’s capacity to lie about such accusations, I want to know what you think about this. Do you think that these charges were fabricated by the U.S. or do you believe that the crimes committed are legitimate? Does this case latest case of cyber-attacks strain the relationship between the U.S. and China as much as the news says it does? Whether from China or not, please leave me a post and let me know what your thoughts are on this case.

Sources

fbi.gov

latimes.com

Great Wall of China

World Map of China

China and its Neighbors

Cannibal Warlord, General “Butt Naked”

May 16, 2014June 17, 2014 / tellmemoreblogger / 5 Comments

Do you remember the last time that you ate a child’s heart so that you could be invincible in battle? Can’t recall ever doing so? Well take a look at this documentary that I found on youtube.com. The documentary was produced by Vice News, a news agency that does in depth reporting across the globe. In this documentary Shane Smith, Vice News co-founder and field correspondent, travels to the west African nation of Liberia to investigate the so called Cannibal Warlords that live there. Let me warn you that the documentary has some strong content.

After exploring several parts of Liberia, Shane Smith lands a shady interview with former General “Butt Naked.” The general, who gave himself the name “Butt Naked”, explains the origin of his name to Shane. He tells the reporter that he chose this name because of his combat strategy during Liberia’s civil war. A strategy in which he would instruct his rebel soldiers to strip down completely before battle. Once fully nude, he would have his soldiers bring an innocent child to him for ritualistic purposes. He would then cut the child’s heart out of his/her chest, while still alive, and have each of his soldiers consume a piece of it. General “Butt Naked” explained to his soldiers that this sacrifice would bring them magical powers in combat and make them invincible. Only then would the General and his soldiers go into battle, while still completely nude I should add. This ritual of sacrifice was repeated before every single battle, thus causing the needless slaughter of hundreds of innocent children during the war.

Today General “Butt Naked” spends his days preaching to his community. He converted to Christianity after the war and now preaches at churches around Liberia about his struggle with his violent past. Former victims of his cannibal rituals say that he converted to Christianity only to avoid punishment for his war crimes. So the former general’s life is now in constant danger of attack from people affected by his military past. According to him these are false accusations. He says that the reason he converted to Christianity was so that he could be a better person and more importantly a better father to his young daughter. Though he takes the full blame for his actions, he recognizes that if his parents would have raised him instead of abandon him, then he might be a different man today. That thought is what motivates him to be a better father and a better person with the help of Christianity.

I tried to put myself in his shoes and imagine what life must have been like for him in Liberia. I wonder what kind of trauma he experienced before deciding that killing children and eating their hearts was the right thing to do. Maybe he’s just a psychopath with no remorse, incapable of distinguishing right from wrong. However it seems odd to me that a person who is incapable of knowing right from wrong would choose to devote the rest of his life to Christianity seeking forgiveness for his sins. The question of whether or not this man should be executed for his crimes remains a mixed issue. Does punishing a person’s ignorance with death solve the issue of ignorance? Does not punishing this man solve the issue of ignorance? I’m not sure what the solution is, if there even is a solution, but what I do know is that this country and its people are completely foreign to me. I will pray for them and hope that change comes sooner than later…

I would love to hear from someone living in Liberia. If you are from there or have family that lives there, please reply to this blog post. I want to hear your story and know what it is like for you as a citizen of Liberia. I look forward to hearing back from you soon.

Post Sources

cia.gov

youtube.com

Source (Picture 1) Source (Picture 2)

15 Quick Facts about Liberia

Official Language: English (Though only 20% of the population exclusively speaks English)

President: Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, since 2006 (She was reelected in 2011 with 90.7% of the total vote in her favor)

Religion: 85.6% Christian, 12.2% Muslim

Total Population: 4,092,310

Capital: Monrovia

Median Age of Population: 18 years old (U.S. median age: 37 years old)

Sanitation Facility Access: 18.2% of the total population (81.8% with no access to restrooms or sewage infrastructure)

Health Expenditures: 19.5% of GDP

Physician Density: 0.01 Physicians/1000 people (Whatever you do don’t get sick in Liberia)

Education Expenditures: 2.8% of GDP

Total GDP: $2.89 Billion U.S. Dollars (Mark Zuckerberg’s Net Worth: $26.6 Billion U.S. Dollars)

Average Annual Income (Per Person): $700.00 U.S. Dollars (Qatar’s average is the highest at: $102,100 U.S. Dollars)

Privately Owned T.V. Stations: 3

Total Internet Users: 20,000 people (That’s less than 1% of the entire population)

Transnational Issues: Human Trafficking, Drug Trafficking, Civil Unrest, Refugee Disputes with Neighboring Countries

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DISCOVERING THE WORLD ONE POST AT A TIME

international

NASA’s IRIS Captures Solar Eruption!

The Machine Gun Preacher

The fight for Ukraine

Cyber-Crimes, China vs U.S.