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August 15, 2006
SouthAmerica: Based on the discussions of this thread plus most of the political talking shows on American television â it seems to me that not only this group have not grasped as yet, but also the American mainstream media in general including the political pundits, the talking heads, the reporters, the spin doctors and so onâ¦.
The Katrina season has just started and people have not seen a repeat of last years show as yet. But the Katrinas are under way, and the American people will have the change to see a number of Katrinas before the 2008 election.
In the meantime, most people can't connect the dots even to save their lives regarding what is happening around the world. Something very strange is happening with major consequences to everyone.
Let me spell out here because most people or they are blind to what is going on or they must be just plain stupid.
We have major droughts happening around the world. Last year we had a major drought in the entire Amazon region with severe consequences for the local population.
Nobody ever saw such an extensive and catastrophic drought in the Amazon region as the one that we had last year.
I just spoke with my uncle in Brazil the other day and he told me that for all practical purposes they had no winter in 2006 â In his entire life he canât remember having a winter as warm as the winter of 2006 in Brazil â basically, people will be to go the beach all year around in 2006.
I heard first from friends, and then I confirmed with other relatives in Brazil â Everybody is telling me that Iguassu Foz is almost completely dry right now. Igussu Foz is the largest water falls in the Americas and one of the major water falls in the world.
I mentioned to an American friend of mine what is happening to the Iguassu Foz, and he told me that he canât believe that the Igussu Foz is almost dry, since he visited that water falls a few years back, and he said that the falls is so massive and gigantic that he has a hard time picturing that falls without water.
No one can remember seeing the Iguassu Falls so dry and most people has realized that what is happening right now has something to do with our crazy weather.
In the last few years, we have seen major hot weather in Europe and in other parts of our planet as never seen before.
Just last week China had the largest and most severe hurricane at least in the last 50 years of recorded history.
The United States had a bad hurricane season last year, and it is too early to know if we will have another bad year in 2006.
The weather is creating havoc around the world and never mind what is happening to the ice caps and so onâ¦.
I have no doubt that after most people start using their common sense they are going to realize that there is only one American candidate that makes sense to become president in 2008 â and that is Al Gore.
And if people had a further understanding of what is happening it would be smart to add Ralph Nader as the vice presidential candidate in the same ticket with Al Gore.
That is the smartest choice that Americans can make for the November of 2008 presidential election - a presidential ticket of Gore/Nader.
And the major point of their platform should be the environment that is going to hell in a hand basket very quickly, a lot faster than most people realized. (Just look at what is going on around the world.)
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The Iguazu Falls (Brazil, Argentina)
The Iguazu Falls is located right on the border of Brazil, Argentina, part of the falls are in the Brazilian side, others (including the "Garganta do Diabo", the tallest of the falls, 97 meters high or about 318 feet) are in the Argentinian side.
The waterfall system consists of about 270 falls, along 2.7 kilometres of the Iguazu River. The Garganta del Diablo ("Devil's Throat"), a U shaped 150 metres wide and 700 metres long cliff, is the most impressive of all, and marks the border between Argentina and Brazil. Most of the falls are within Argentine territory, but from the Brazilian side (600 metres) a more panoramic view of the Garganta del Diablo is obtained.
Niagara Falls (USA, Canada)
Niagara Falls is a set of massive waterfalls located on the Niagara River in eastern North America, on the border between the United States and Canada.
While not exceptionally high, Niagara Falls is very wide. With more than 6 million cubic feet (168,000 m³) of water falling over the crestline every minute it is the most powerful waterfall in North America and possibly the best-known in the world.
The Falls drop about 170 feet (52 m), although the American Falls have a clear drop of only 70 feet (21 m) before reaching a jumble of fallen rocks which were deposited by a massive rock slide in 1954. The larger Canadian Falls are about 2,600 feet (792 m) wide, while the American Falls are 1,060 feet (323 m) wide. The volume of water approaching the falls during peak flow season is 202,000 cubic feet per second (5,720 m³/s).
Comparisons to other Famous Falls
Upon seeing Iguazu, first Lady Eleanor Roosevelt reportedly exclaimed "Poor Niagara!" Vastly larger than North America's Niagara Falls, Iguazu is only rivalled by Southern Africa's Victoria Falls (this is excluding extremely large rapid-like falls such as Livingston de Chutes and Boyoma falls). Whilst Iguazu is wider because it is split into about 270 discreet falls and large islands - Victoria is the largest curtain of water in the world, at over a mile wide and over 300 feet in height (in low flow it is split into five by islands. In high flow it can be uninterupted).
The water falling from Iguazu in peak flow has a surface area of about 1.3 million square feet whilst Victoria in peak flow has a surface area of over 1.8 million Square Feet (Niagara has a surface area of under 600 000 square feet). Victoria's annual peak flow is also greater than Iguazu's annual peak (9.1 million litres per second versus 6.5 million. Niagara's annual peak flow is about 2.8 million), though in times of extreme flood the two have recorded very similar maximum water discharge (well in excess of 12 Million litres per second. Niagara's all-time peak was about 6.8 million).
Iguazu, however, affords better views and walkways and its shape allows for spectacular views. At one point a person can stand and be surrounded by 260 degrees of waterfalls. The Garganta del Diablo has water pouring into it from three sides, which makes for an exceptional sight.
As of July 24, 2006 a severe drought in South America has caused the river feeding the falls to become parched, reducing the amount of water flowing over the falls to be educed to 80,000 gallons per second, down from the normal 350,000-400,000 gallons.
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Is the Amazon running dry?
Fears grow as drought continues to ravage the world's greatest rainforest
Greenpeace - UK
Home to the greatest variety of life on Earth, the Amazon is both the largest rainforest and the largest river basin in the world, covering over 6,000 square kilometres. In a normal year the region receives over two metres (seven feet) of rainfall. Yet since January 2005 this fabled 'land of waters' has been affected by an increasingly catastrophic drought, estimated to be the worst for 40 years.
From Peru to Eastern Brazil the effects of the drought are dramatic - several major tributaries as well as parts of the main river itself contain only a fraction of their normal volumes of water, and lakes are drying up. The consequences for local people, animals and the forest itself are impossible to estimate now, but they are likely to be serious.
In an area with few roads, no river transport means no incoming supplies, and also leaves local farmers unable to sell their crops. River floodplains have dried up - people can now walk and cycle in places where previously canoes and riverboats were the only means of transport. Inevitably, fish are dying in their millions - their bodies clog the rivers, poisoning the water and making it impossible for local people to drink.
"This drought and its effects are really shocking," says Carlos Rittl, Greenpeace Brazil's climate campaigner. "Towns are lacking food, medicines and fuel because boats cannot get through." To make matters worse, as the rainforest becomes increasingly dry, damaging wildfires are regularly breaking out across the region, destroying thousands of hectares of trees.
The Amazon is now facing the worst drought for 40 years
So how has this happened? Whilst identifying the causes of the drought is a complex business, two driving forces are certainly playing a large part - deforestation and climate change. According to Rittl, "The Amazon is caught between these two destructive forces, and their combined effects threaten to flip its ecosystems from forest to savannah."
Despite warnings from environmentalists, the Brazillian government was caught unawares by the scale of the emergency. Only since mid-October has the region been declared a disaster area, and, although there is now a co-ordinated plan for the air force to deliver tons of food and medicines to over 100,000 families in more than 30 cities, many people will have to wait weeks before they receive any aid.
You can see a picture of canoes stranded on the Lago do Cristo Reis during one of the worst droughts ever recorded in the Amazon region this drought happened during 2005.
Source:
http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/forests/forests.cfm?ucidparam=20051024155347
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