Photographed by Daniele Sartori

A group of swans on the Lake of Geneva and behind them the "Jet d’eau", Geneva (Switzerland)

– License

Getting ready to travel to Geneva to attend the Regional Implementation Meeting (RIM) for Europe and North America as preparation for next year’s Commission on Sustainable Development session. Am expecting 3 long, long days (UN is good at those), but hope to get back into the habit of daily blogging, as I did in May, while at the UN.

It’ll be different this time though, since I’m representing the Baha’i International Community as one of three  Organising Partners of the Women Major Group. And that’ll also mean meeting the EU Presidency (as rep. of the Women Major Group) on Monday evening. Am looking forward to meeting my fellow organising partners Alexandra from ‘Women in Europe for a Common Future’ and Nana from ‘Voices of African Mothers’.

All I can say is: stay tuned…..

I always wonder if this Tweet has a thick accent. Sometimes even English speaking countries are difficult to understand when speaking, but not when Tweeting!

It’s time to see Iran’s nuclear plan for what it is

Saudi Arabia urged to quash witchcraft death sentence

Iranian Militiamen Try to Cow Opposition Figure

Ali Kordan, Iranian Official Fired Over Fake Degree, Dies at 51

The Benefits of Pissing People Off

Signatures needed to stop execution of Nemat Safavi.

Stop Execution of Nemat Safavi in Iran

We endorse the Stop Execution of Nemat Safavi in Iran Petition to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran Head of Judiciary Sadegh Larijani, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navanethem Pillay, Amnesty, Human Rights Watch, LGBT, International Gay and Lesbian Human Ri.

Read the Stop Execution of Nemat Safavi in Iran Petition

You’ve signed, now let your friends know on Twitter.

127 Signatures Total

View Current Signatures

BTW: I received a confirmation e-mail, and it allowed me to donate 1$.  I think that is nothing to ask for in exchange for the work being completed. Let’s save a life and quit worrying about $$$$$

Did you know that I am unemployed? If you read my blog you would have figured out that I was hacked right out of the most prestigious job in America. I was in charge of the asset sales of the banks and the bank that is going to court. I was also in charge of the Army bases that were being closed and re-located. I paid a high price to be here, and I still donate….because MONEY IS ONLY WHAT YOU THINK IT IS. Do not give your energy to protect paper and metal. Please, isn’t your soul worth more than that? You give energy to the wrong things if you protect your pennies. The dollar is deflated in America, and soon worth nothing…..what will be left is your word. What is your word worth? Mine, I know is worth the truth.

The verdict does not affect the Swiss Justice Ministry’s ongoing assessment of whether Polanski should be extradited to the United States for having sex in 1977 with a 13-year-old girl.

GENEVA – A Swiss court granted Roman Polanski bail on Wednesday, accepting $4.5 million to allow him to remain under house arrest at his chalet.

Woo hoo! Now, we’re all going to be swallowed into a Black Hole! Scientists at the Cern research center near Geneva got the Hadron Super Conducting Super Collider working again and have started slinging protons at each other to research the processes at the creation of the universe.  Doomsday scenarios have suggested that the machine could create a black hole which will eat the world – or at least large parts of Switzerland and France. We’ll hold our breath. Meanwhile you can visit CERN yourself. Visiting CERN Hadron Super Collider Center Geneva

We are so proud to have our boutique in the great city of Geneva, IL. Geneva has the most beautiful architecture and historic charm, independently owned specialty shops and outstanding restaurants creating a memorable visit for all those who come. With the Christmas season fast approaching Geneva is the perfect place to find unique gifts for those close to you. Tenacity is the perfect place to start for the fashionable lady. We are well stocked with sparkling jewelry from Tarina Tarantino, great dresses from Susana Monaco, tops and sweaters from L.A.M.B. and a variety of other clothing and accessories. Be certain that you are buying a fine quality unique item when you shop at Tenacity. A fashion and style expert is always at the shop to provide advice. Come to Geneva and support family owned business this holiday season!

Geneva, IL Christmas Walk 2009 December 4th and 5th

And so, dear friends, it begins.  The End of Days?  The destruction of space-time as we know it?  None call tell.  At least not so far.  What we do know is this: today the European Organization for Nuclear Research, AKA CERN, AKA Bad News for the Human Race, finally launched its $9 gazillion-dollar Large Hadron Collider, the most powerful atom-smasher on earth. 

Designed to blast beams of subatomic protons through miles of tunnel underneath Switzerland and France, the collider will reputedly emulate conditions in the immediate aftermath of the Big Bang.  After months of delays and technical glitches, it’s finally up and running, raising heck and smashing protons.  But this is just warmup.  Come early December, CERN will really show us the business when they kick off the main event: some boffo proton collisions. 

And that, of course, is when physicists and experts fear the LHC might potentially unleash heretofore unknown havoc on our plane of existence.  Here’s a primer of what to expect in the coming months:

• The opening of a gargantuan black hole which will swallow the earth and all of its inhabitants.  This is the most popular and/or likely outcome.
•   A tear in the fabric of space-time, resulting in the unleashing of strange, macabre nether-creatures from one or more alternate dimensions.  Monsters will likely include, but are not limited to: A) giant primeval insects, B) dinosaurs and other ancient beasts, C) molemen and squid-people, D) vast and omnipotent Lovecraftian Elder Gods, who may or may not smite our fragile civilization and enslave the human race. 
• In a probable worst-case scenario, the LHC might collapse together two or more parallel dimensions within the “multiverse” predicted by quantum physics and string theory, likely introducing into our world alternate “shadow-self” versions of every man, woman and child on earth, resulting in either: A) mass confusion as regards who is who (how do we know WE’RE not really the shadow-selves in THEIR dimension???); B) a bizarro civil war, pitting regular-verse people against our mirror-image shadow-selves; C) large-scale identity crisis between you and your extra-dimensional doppelgänger, leading to widespread moral digression and existential paralysis (i.e. if you mess around with the other-dimensional version of your girlfriend, does that still count as cheating?)
• Did I mention dinosaurs?  What about squid-people?  In all probability, there will also be squid-people who’ve evolved to ride on dinosaurs.  But you think those dinosaurs are going to let YOU ride on their back?  Think again, fella!

In the interest of good science, we should reassure you that these outcomes, though likely, remain “theoretical.”  At least that’s what our legal department makes us say.  Personally, we think this shit’s a lock.

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Bahan katun satin jepang (A class), lembut, dingin, tidak berbulu, tidak luntur.

Bedcover set Ukuran 180×200x30 : Rp. 425.000,-/Pcs

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Travertine (Produk Terbaru)

Happy Mickey (Produk Terbaru)

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„Nici o iarnă
fără Taize…”

Raluca, buna mea prietenă, îmi povestea despre întâlnirile Taize din iernile trecute, la care ea participase,
şi îmi plăcea cum sună… încercam să îmi imaginez un amalgam de pelerinaj, aventură, necunoscut, prieteni noi, familii călduroase.
Astfel, nu am pierdut ocazia ca în 2007 să mă înscriu şi eu pe lista grupului de la Braşov  (căci grup din Sibiu nu s-a mai format de ani buni), iar destinaţia noastră era Geneva. Am trăit o experienţă incredibilă, despre care o să scriu într-o altă postare, pentru a relata mai în detaliu şi a face înţeles de ce afirm „numai de bine”.
Era clar că nici următoarea întâlnire de iarnă, respectiv cea de la Bruxelles, nu aveam cum să o ratez; dimpotrivă, prietenii din grupul cu care am mers la Geneva m-au „votat” să organizez eu un autocar, pentru a ne face traseul urmat cât mai convenabil nouă şi cât mai accesibil ca preţ; ceea ce am şi făcut. A fost la fel de interesant, dar şi stresant: de data aceasta am avut mai multe responsabilităţi şi nu mi-am mai permis să stau pe ultima banchetă a autocarului, bând vin cu prietenii. Detalii într-o postare viitoare, bineînţeles.
Şi cum din lucrurile plăcute se nasc obiceiuri bune, sau, pe româneşte, „nici o iarnă fără Taize”, iată-mă pregătindu-mă pentru întâlnirea de la Poznan, Polonia. Sunt sigură că va ieşi şi mai frumos, cu toate că am auzit şi păreri sceptice în privinţa organizării într-o ţară fost-comunistă. Să vă dau câteva argumente: tinerii polonezi vin în număr mare la Taize (aproximativ o treime din participanţi), deci ştiu foarte bine „cu ce se mănâncă”, în sensul că au experienţa anilor precedenţi şi pot îmbunătăţi. Apoi, polonezii, catolici majoritatea, sunt buni creştini şi ne vor primi cu multă căldură, având şanse mari să fim cazaţi chiar la familiile organizatorilor. Am înţeles că de trei ani îl roagă pe fratele Alois să aleagă Polonia ca loc de desfăşurare a întâlnirii şi, după cum vedem, au reuşit să îl înduplece. Experienţa mea de viaţa (nu multă, dar atât cât este) îmi dă certitudinea că atunci când cineva insistă să fii oaspetele lui, te va primi cum nu se poate mai bine.
Să dea Domnul să ne vedem cu bine la Poznan şi să ne întoarcem acasă plini de amintiri plăcute.
Dacă aveţi întrebări, nelămuriri sau sunteţi pur şi simplu curioşi, aştept „provocările” voastre şi vă voi răspunde negreşit.
Cu drag,

Ileana.

Acceleratorul de particule Large Hadron Collider (LHC) va fi restartat sambata dimineata, in cadrul unui nou experiment

Inginerii pregatesc masinaria pentru a emite o raza de particule sub-atomice care v-a strabate intregul tunel circular de 27 de km care formeaza LHC-ul. Constructia uriasului device aflat sub pamant, la granita dintre Franta si Elvetia, si experimentele care s-au realizat pana in prezent, a costat pana acum suma colosala de 6 miliarde de lire sterline. Scopul acceleratorului este acela de a oferi oamenilor de stiinta informatii pretioase despre primele momente de dupa Big Bang, de ce si in cum s-a produs formarea si expansiunea Universului. Cu toate acestea, pana in prezent, acceleratorul nu s-a achitat de aceasta sarcina, in timpul primelor teste, LHC defectandu-se de cateva ori, accidente care au costat milioane de euro.

Acceleratorul LHC a fost inchis pentru reparatii in septembrie 2008. Operat de Organizatia Europeana pentru Cercetari Nucleare (Cern), LHC are menirea de a crea conditii similare cu acelea existente in primele momente dupa Big Bang – un mister neelucidat nici pana astazi de oamenii de stiinta.

sursa: Descopera.ro

_ _

ça va péter ça va péter?

1. Start simple. First think about yourself. You are a human being. What is your age, religion, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic background, family history, in other words, what is it about you that you feel passionate about? Now, find YOU. Find the human beings that are suffering that you relate most to. Do not doubt that there is a need for someone just like you. Even if you are a rich beautiful princess where everyone worships the ground you walk on, look at what happened to Princess Diana! You could join the movie stars in a movement to create laws on the books to restrict the actions of paparazzi. What if you are in an abusive relationship with a toxic person, and you just love that person so much that you will never leave? Then help others that can.

2. Just because you are reading this, doesn’t mean that everyone has access to a computer. Print this out and give it to your friends, family, and keep copies handy for those random encounters. What we do not credit ourselves with often enough is that our chance encounters with others creates movements, trends, and change. This is what is known as the Tipping Point!

The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference is a book by Malcolm Gladwell, first published by Little Brown in 2000.  Tipping points are “the levels at which the momentum for change becomes unstoppable.” Gladwell defines a tipping point as a sociological term: “the moment of critical mass, the threshold, the boiling point.” The book seeks to explain and describe the “mysterious” sociological changes that mark everyday life. As Gladwell states, “Ideas and products and messages and behaviors spread like viruses do.” 

3. Make a conscious effort to change your information gathering. If you watch television 4 hours a day, which consists of sitcoms, movies, and gossip channels then introduce yourself to news oriented programming. Now you can take this slow. You can start with something funny, like the Colbert Report, John Stewart, or Red Eye. You should alternate news reports. Watch the nightly news on each channel and discuss the difference of the topics that are headlining that week. You could choose one news program, like 60 minutes, which will give you 3 different topics and Andy Rooney. You have to watch till the end for Andy Rooney. He’s always interesting. You do not have to politically agree. How do you know what you really feel politically if you are not up on the current world events? Put that aside. If you are a Republican, then watch MSNBC, and if you are a Democrat, then watch Glenn Beck or Billy O’Reilly. Alternate your news sources even a little. Most people who work in New York tell me that they like the BBC or CNN World News because it reports with a world view. If you are really daring….watch Al Jazeera. You are not a terrorists for learning how the world reports issues. Be a well rounded person. You don’t have to agree with anyone. If you are a creative family. You could make a list. The top 10 things I liked about what I watched tonight. The point of views I agreed with and didn’t agree with. The commercials that were running. Everything is connected. Pay attention to the details. The difference I heard in the story from when I heard it reported from the night or week before on another station. Then break down the commercials. What were they trying to sell to me? Who is the audience that this commercial is targeting, and why are they spending $50,000 (or whatever) to run it now! What is it about us, this demographic that makes this commercial invest in my eyeballs, ears and brain? Make sure to include talk radio, newspapers, and the websites affiliated with the channels. You don’t have to do this all at once. Pick one station for one week and fit in their news program, that talents radio show, the websites, and the commercials. Why the commercials? Go to # 4.

4. All corporations have a charity division. This fosters good will in the communities in which they do business in. Many corporations can not legally do business in some countries, therefore, if you are inclined you could write them letters about your passion to help. You could ask them for assistance. You could explain to them that if this works then they will have a whole new market to sell their product in! You could get beer donated to throw a fund raiser, or soda … if you are a church organization. Do you get my drift! Most people are always afraid to ask for something. If you are trying to help, then you should not be ashamed to try! They may give you products or money. The worst thing in the whole wide world that this company is going to do is send you a rejection letter. You can handle that! 16 years ago I called Budweiser and asked for them to donate to an independent feature film “The Brit Pack”. They actually sent 50 cases of beer! The director, Kevin Ula-Christie used the beer in trade at a local bar so we could film after closing! My support of them has probably returned those 50 cases by now and here is the link to their Charity site: Anheuser Busch Gives Back!

5. Go to your favorite FAMOUS PERSON! Who is your favorite singers? Go on line and find out what causes they support! Who is your favorite actor/actress? Go on line and find out what causes they support! Maybe nobody in your iPod will be supporting your desire to save the “aliens in outer-space who will die from us sending our garbage into space”. I’m kidding. So go find out about other famous people and see which one does! If you really think that we are killing aliens in outer-space with our pollution….go find out what the actors of Scientology are up to. I’m being a little far fetched here obviously, but I’m trying to prove a point….where there is a will…..there is a way. Don’t think you are the only one in the whole world that carries this burden on your shoulders. You have people who care about the same things you do out there, just waiting for a little support. Here is my favorite example of the efforts of the band U2’s project: ONE.

6. Time to throw a party! Do you know that I have been invited to parties that only had 10 people and a representative of the Dalai Lama showed up and had video of all the atrocities that were happening. I got so sick I was throwing up in the bathroom. I think it was the wine though. So don’t let everyone drink too much. But, be sure to have alcohol, because if you are raising money, people all of a sudden are more open to sharing what they truly can. Is that mean? No…..it’s human nature. Sometimes, we all worry about our money and things more than we do other people. Sometimes we just need those barriers broken down a little. Unless the only guests you invited were some AA group….then that would be highly inappropriate and I would suggest you not do that! The good thing about them though, is they will tend to be more giving after everything they went through. So they don’t need to be convinced it is their duty to help. It’s probably mandated by one of the steps. Here are some rules though when throwing a party. Make sure to get checks. Do not accept cash. If you have to…take the cash to the bank and put it in the person’s name so that you can give them an official receipt. Money has a way of bringing accusations of fraudulent behavior and you must keep your books open to everyone. Never assume people do things out of the goodness of their heart. I have learned that the hard way.

7. Sell T-Shirts! Come up with your own creative slogan and picture. If you are not creative you have someone you know that is. You can go to a business already established and they will keep the costs of the production, a profit, and give you what is left over for your cause. I would suggest my trusted friend John of 20+ years if you want to go that route. Do not be disturbed by the name. Trusted T-Shirt Company!You can buy t-shirts in bulk, an iron, a kit, sew, get the Bedazzler, let your kids put paint on their hands and stamp it, whatever you want! Just make the message clear and sell them. Give away a couple to those who are really cool and when everyone asks where they got it they could say, “Well….I don’t give away my fashion secrets, but since I like you …. here’s the phone number”. Even if you break even on the t-shirts, you have just advertised to the world.

8. Next parent/teacher conference you have with the school. Please discuss the curriculum and ask what projects, groups, or activities your child can get involved with that would promote community services. Then pick on and get them involved. This can apply to schools of any type, home schooling too, churches, groups, etc.

9. So there is nothing around. You don’t like the groups, you don’t like the churches, you don’t like what they are doing or how they are running it. Well, I guess it all depends on you then doesn’t it! You make your own group! You put up flyers. Talk to the local businesses. Tell your kids (ooh they won’t spread the word if they are teenagers) tell the parents, and the lady while you are checking out at the grocery store. Yep, it’s just like that. You can run free ads on Craigslist. You can call your local newspaper and have them give you an interview. You can create your own newsletter and send out e mails. Heck, you can just send out e mails. You can make your own blog for free. You can do anything you want, because we have all of the tools. If you don’t have a computer, have someone who is computer savvy to help you buy a used one on Craigslist. You can even ask for one to be donated. There are so many geeks out there that get rid of their computers regularly. It’s not a big deal to ask.

10. Contact your government!

Contact the White House!

Write Your Representative

Senators of the 111th Congress

Foreign Government Information

Leadership Directories and Foreign Government Resources (free trial)

Bucknell University Information On Foreign Governments

GCIS Foreign Government Directory

Information Resource Center – Embassies and Consulates

#11. Volunteer overseas. Many organizations are dedicated to helping people volunteer in developing countries. These organizations are unlikely to send people to any conflict countries, but more likely to send people to developing countries, and countries suffering from famine or HIV/AIDS. Peace Corps asks for two years commitment but gives volunteers the amazing opportunity of being fully immersed in the culture of their assigned country, world class training including language training, full medical care and pays for everything. If you cannot commit for two years, you can pay some organizations (such as Cross Cultural Solutions, Globe Aware, Habitat For Humanity) to set up a short term volunteer program that will be tax deductible as well- get creative, set up some fundraising programs to get a paid trip!!! (AW)

#12. Knowledge is Power. Take classes at your local community college or University about the plights of people in other countries as well as our own. Political Science, diversity, women’s studies, human rights, world history are a few classes to get you started.  Experiencing the world around you is about education, and education is about experiencing the world around you. Down the road, apply for scholarships to study overseas!! (AW)

#13. Help people here at home. America hasn’t had the best rap in recent years as a haven for persecuted people, but one could easily argue (and I will argue) that this decline is a declination based only on the current state of America compared to the state of America 10 years ago—and NOT, as some would have you believe, the current state of America compared to the current state of other nations. America is still a haven for persecuted people on a global scale, though our record of this has been better in the past. People from all over the world still come to America to seek refuge and by being willing and able to support their transition into American society you make a better America and a better world. Volunteer to teach English, Adult education classes, and other support centers in your community. (AW)

#14. Support the Arts. Most awareness of the plight of oppressed peoples does not come from first hand knowledge, it comes from the media. People find something that moves them, and they get on the bandwagon to help support the cause. This often comes through music, visual art, or cinema. There is not a more powerful way to get people to listen. Donate to local artists, increase viewer numbers by being one, talk about it what you’ve seen. (AW)

#15. Support good business, boycott bad. This isn’t always the easiest to figure out, but research and getting aware helps. When you spend money that goes back to the bad guys, you are helping the bad guys. Try your best not to do this. (AW)

#16. Find an activist with whom you agree, and help get their name out there! Self-explanatory but realize this, you support them and that’s great. If you can get 3 or 4 more people to do this even better, but if people keep paying this forward it can be revolutionary. (AW)

#17. Letter to the editor. Reading about what people think, as opposed to just the unbiased journalistic view, is how you get a discussion started. Once the discussion is started, the global consciousness is involved. (AW)

#18. I threw a bar-b-q Saturday and was discussing Human Rights with my friend Nick. He said, “I’ve always held the opinion that to tackle human rights, you must tackle literacy first. If the people in the area that is being oppressed are able to read about other countries and how they fought for their Human Rights, it will inspire them, and teach them how to fight for their own. Donate your time to read to children and teach them to read. There is excellent reading programs, including for profit, such as Kumon. Contact for profit reading programs and find out how their program could be brought into other areas of the world.

Share Literacy Program

#19. Use Youtube educational videos to inform on literacy, news events, and anything that supports human rights!

Hadrawi’s Peace & Literacy Caravan – Ugaasa Abukar Boocow

#20. Volunteer with organizations that assist with traveling to foreign countries. Your contribution is to pay your own expenses and volunteer your time. There is an organization I have witnessed in action and support, because 100% of the expenses donated do go to help the children! Contact World Change For Children for more information!

Leaving the hotel on Friday was not as easy as just checking out as one would think. I will have to interview my friend D who was there. The interesting thing is the diversion tactic we used. We went to a party! I met a really cool Iranian woman who just e mailed me this information!

Iran Human Rights Documentation Center

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 16, 2009

NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT – The Iran Human Rights Documentation Center (IHRDC) today released a report comprised of witness statements of five female prisoners who describe their experiences during the Islamic Republic of Iran’s summary execution of thousands of political prisoners during the summer of 1988.  The statements in the report, Speaking for the Dead: Survivor Accounts of Iran’s 1988 Massacre, are the results of interviews conducted by IHRDC with survivors and family members of victims.

Along with its companion report, Deadly Fatwa: Iran’s 1988 Prison Massacre, this report contributes to documenting a national tragedy that has inexplicably received little international attention.  The culture of impunity that pervades the political environment in the Islamic Republic is perhaps nowhere more apparent than in the continued involvement in the Iranian government of high-ranking officials responsible for the planning and implementation of the 1988 massacre.  During the past twenty-one years, many of these officials have been appointed to significant executive and judicial posts, and several currently occupy important positions in President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s administration.

In June 2009, Ebrahim Raissi, who is pictured on the front cover the report and was a member of Tehran’s Death Commission responsible for deciding which prisoners were to be executed in 1988, said the following in connection with the recent election unrest: “Those arrested in recent events will be dealt with in a way that will teach them a lesson … The rioters should be dealt with in an exemplary way, and the judiciary will do that.” Raissi made these statements in his officially capacity as the First Deputy to the Head of the Judiciary, Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani.

In vivid detail, the witnesses in this report recount the climate of fear, chaos and utter confusion that took hold of the prisons immediately before the executions began in July 1988.  One witness describes her efforts to obtain information about her imprisoned husband, while the others provide harrowing accounts of events inside the prisons.  A few describe their experiences before the Death Commissions that were charged with interrogating prisoners about their political and religious beliefs in order to establish whether they were murtads, or apostates. Depending on their answers, the Commissions decided whether prisoners were worthy of being reformed through forced repentance and prayer, or simply deserved to be executed. The price of mercy was high: repeated lashings until the prisoner agreed to pray, or died under torture.

Speaking for the Dead: Survivor Accounts of Iran’s 1988 Massacre can be found in English on IHRDC’s website at www.iranhrdc.org.  A Persian translation of the report will be available in the coming months.                                        

IHRDC is a nonprofit organization based in New Haven, Connecticut that was founded in 2004 by a group of human rights scholars, activists, and historians.  Its staff of human rights lawyers and researchers produce comprehensive and detailed reports on the human rights situation in Iran since the 1979 revolution.  The Center’s goal is to encourage an informed dialogue among scholars and the general public in both Iran and abroad.  The human rights reports and a database of documents relating to human rights in Iran are available to the public for research and educational purposes on the Center’s website.

For further information, please contact:

Renee C. Redman, IHRDC Executive Director, (203) 772-2218 Ext. 215

rredman@iranhrdc.org

I just arrived in Geneva after the red eye flight from New York. The passenger next to me, bespectacled, with a laptop and a serious attitude, started talking to me. Where are you from? Where do you live? How long were you in New York? Then he told me what he did, and my curiosity peaked. Ah, so you are one of the people who will suck us out in a black hole? I asked jokingly. He replied somberly that it was not a joke and people were suing them because of the black hole rumor. Allow me to explain, despite being so jet-lagged. The man in question works as a nuclear physicist in CERN (the European Center for Nuclear Research) where the infamous CERN accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) lies in a 27 km tunnel underground. The LHC sort of got off to a bad start for when it was attempting to re-create the big bang, it sort of blew up. My neighbor on the plane explained that outside companies had connected the magnets without soldering them properly, which is why the experiment failed. The papers carried stories at the time of the risk that the accelerator might cause a black hole to suck in, well, Geneva. I asked our physicist friend about that, and he said, yes, while there was a theory that this experiment they are working on would create a black hole, it will be short-lived. Hmmm, I am thinking we should not be anywhere near Geneva at the time of the experiment that may create a black hole, the sound of it is not too reassuring. Well, then, the best is to get inside information on when the test will happen. Friday, he said. Which Friday? I asked, with a worried look. This coming one. Oh, great. That is the Friday that we are organizing a huge event at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, so we are definitely going to be there. Now, what is left to do is pray and hope that the physicists know what they’re doing, sort of like you hope the pilot and Co-pilot of a plane during a harrowing flight know what they’re doing, and are not on a suicide mission of some sort.
Life is complicated, especially when billions are spent to experiment with something a few excited physicists think is terribly important- to simplify theories of energy, as my fellow passenger said. Not my first priority, had I been in charge of spending many billions.
Let’s hope our black hole is short-lived then, so we can enjoy the upcoming skiing season. No, wait, there might not be one as we are in the middle of an unnatural heat wave in the middle of November. Ahh, this is what I would have spent money on, correcting the global warming and climate change problem, rather than proving a theory. But what do I know. I’m not a nuclear physicist.

As visitors to ‘At the BookShelf’ would know, I have been reading ‘Reformers and Their Stepchildren,’ by Leonard Verduin. I have now started chapter four and progress through the book may appear slow and you may think this is a reflection on the quality of the book. That would be a mistaken assumption however.

In reality I am finding the book a brilliant treatment of the differences between the ‘partial reformers’ (such as Luther, Calvin, Zwingli, etc) and the more ‘radical reformer’ who sought a complete transformation of the church to that which more accurately reflected the New Testament model.

The ‘slowness’ of my reading is more a reflection of my reading half a dozen or so books at the same time. Reading so many books at any given time is fairly normal for me – in fact, I would call normal (for me) reading far more books at any given time, but I am trying to reign myself in a little here. I just love reading – I am a bibliophile and bookworm remember

The third chapter of Verduin’s work has to do with the lack of true church discipline in the churches of the Reformers and their indifference (generally speaking) to ungodliness in the church (remembering that their churches basically included all in a given location or region).

The third chapter presents a very clear case of the real time contradiction of the Reformers and the reform they were bringing to bear on such places as Geneva, Zurich, etc. To a large extent their work of reform didn’t go anywhere near far enough to satisfy their ‘stepchildren,’ who when they tried to go further were branded as heretics, with their efforts at a more thorough reform being identified by the reformers as evidence of their heresy.

It is a very engaging chapter I believe and one that is helpful for shedding light on Christianity even to this day.

Large Hadron Collider in process of restarting

Scientists are in the process of restarting a giant particle collider built to reproduce the conditions of the big bang, Europe’s CERN physics research center said Friday.

After a year’s delay, the scientists hope to have beams of protons circulating all the way through the Large Hadron Collider’s 17-mile-wide (27-kilometer-wide) underground ring in both directions by early Saturday, and then accelerate them this weekend, CERN spokesman James Gillies said.

“At the moment they’re putting beams down in the Large Hadron Collider, and as the night goes on they’ll take the beams through and start circulating them,” he told Reuters. CERN reported that beams were fully circulating in the clockwise direction, and that preparations were being made to send beams counterclockwise as well.

The experiment will not be properly under way until January when the LHC is operating at a higher level, Gillies said.

Technical problems forced CERN to shut down the $10 billion collider just nine days after it was started for the first time in September 2008.

The problem was a faulty splice in the super-conducting cable connecting two cooling magnets in the underground ring, which smashes particles at a temperature of just above absolute zero to re-create conditions believed to exist at the start of the universe 13.7 billion years ago.

As the particles smash into each other at nearly the speed of light — once the collider is operating at full throttle, which will take several weeks — they will explode in a burst of energy which scientists will monitor for new or previously unseen particles which they predict could help explain the nature of mass and the origins of the universe.

CERN said last year’s accident never posed any danger. The Geneva-based institution has had to rebuff suggestions that the experiment would create millions of black holes that would suck in the Earth.

See also:
Large Hadron Collider fully armed and operational
Large Hadron Collider fires up after $40M repairs
Proton Beams Are on Track at Collider
Large Hadron Collider restarts after 14 months of repairs
Beam sent around Large Hadron Collider
In pictures: Cern Large Hadron Collider restarts
Large Hadron Collider ready to restart
Science: Large Hadron Collider ready to restart
The Large Hadron Collider
Large Hadron Collider
Higgs boson
Saw This In a Movie Once, Pretty Sure It’ll Work

Okay, so the object of this exercise is to produce a particle collision with enough energy to produce previously theoretical sub-particles, most notably the infamous Higgs boson. Now, my question is, if these sub-particles are, by definition, smaller than anything currently known to man, capable of moving through mass unimpeded, what’s going to contain them as they fly off at the speed of light?

/pardon me if I don’t volunteer to stand next to this thing while it’s operating

Geneva consistently rates as one of the best cities to live in the world, but it tends to fare a bit worse on travel destination lists.  After spending a few days here, I would have to agree with those who say it’s a great place to breeze through, but there is no need to stay very long.  Sure, it’s clean and has some natural beauty with its city centre lake and the mountains surrounding it.  But, on the whole, most of the places I’ve been– other than Calvin’s church– have been rather disappointing.

I took a tram over to the UN headquarters and waited for a tour after going through a rather rigorous security check.  The tour began, and a snooty English-speaking man led us from room to room, walking briskly and getting upset with people translating for the other persons in their group.  ”You signed up for the English language tour,” he said, “so, you’ll just have to listen as best you can as translate after the tour.”  I couldn’t help but find the irony in being shown around this building by a man who seemingly had disdain for the sort of inter-cultural dialogue that the UN was designed to foster.

Ultimately, the visit amounted to little more than a stroll through a large office building, so I decided to skip the opportunity to visit other such offices.  Lord knows I’ve seen enough of them in the States.

Geneva is also very proud of its “fountain,” the Jet d’Eau, which is a large stream of water that shoots 140m into the air from the middle of the lake.  And, sure, it made for some interesting photos, but that’s about it– it’s just a large spout!

What I think will really remain in my mind as quality experiences in Geneva all have to do with food, and as I continue my mission of eating my way around the world, perhaps Geneva has been a worthwhile stop after all.  I’m sure it might be a different story had I been the one footing the bill for these meals, but dinners of fondue and raclette and crepes and dessert– not to mention the hilariously fun dinner at Hotel Edelweiss– have been experiences I will surely not forget any time soon…

Switzerland!  Whatta place!  I can feel the neutrality seeping into my bones, and the clock-shops and Swiss banks serve as an ever-present reminder that this is a place protective of its time and money.  No wonder they stay out of the warpath.

Rick Steves says that Geneva is worth skipping on a trip through Switzerland, and I’m trying to figure out why.  Rick probably doesn’t have the interest in Reformation history that a group like ours does, but he does tend to have his finger on the pulse of what makes a European excursion worthwhile.  Still, it’s 2009, and this year marks the 500th anniversary of the birth of John Calvin (Jean, as he would have preferred).  We celebrated with a trip to his church in the center of the old town.

It was eerie, walking around a place that was so central not only to history, but also to an entire way of thinking and of believing that has trickled down through the centuries and landed itself in my own mind and heart.  I’m no expert, but I would guess that Calvin is an incredibly misunderstood figure in history.  What passes for “Calvinism” might not actually be reflective of his own theology.  My favorite story we learned about him was that this very church used to have an exquisite pipe organ, but during Calvin’s time, as people were fleeing persecution because of the violence brought about by the Reformation and were flocking to Geneva, Pastor John Calvin made the decision to melt down the pipes of the organ in order to use the metal for bowls and utensils so that the people might be suitably fed.  This certainly presents a different picture of the man so often associated with systems of severe doctrines.

When I think of the connection that Switzerland has had with so many influential thinkers in the Christian tradition– Calvin, Brother Roger, Karl Barth– I can’t help but wonder if there is something in the alpine air here that inspires people to think beyond themselves.

Whatever it is, I hope I get a whiff of it…