STOP CASSINI Newsletter #244 -- December 20th, 1999
Copyright (c) 1999
STOP CASSINI Newsletters Index
To: Subscribers, government officials, members of the press
From: Russell David Hoffman, hoping for a miracle
Re: WASH CONFERENCE TO BE BROADCAST LIVE: STOP CASSINI #244
Date: December 20th, 1999
This issue's subjects:
*** (1) WASH and other Y2K items coming up on CSPAN, CSPAN2
*** (2) Space Shuttle Discovery lifts off -- Godspeed
*** (3) Russian threats mean there are no safe bets
*** (4) A wolf in sheep's clothing?
*** (5) Tell Clinton how you feel -- Official government contact points
*** (6) Newsletter subscription information
*** (7) Newsletter Authorship notes and additional URLs
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*** (1) WASH and other Y2K items coming up on CSPAN, CSPAN2:
***********************************************************************
Note: Sorry this is going out after the Monday events. Perhaps they'll be replayed during the night. -- rdh
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Subject: [y2k-nuclear] press conference today!
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Lots of excellent programming on C-SPAN & C-SPAN2 tonight and tomorrow
**Times given are EST... [except where noted]
=============================================
C-SPAN ALERT! Schedule Information for the C-SPAN Networks
=============================================
TUESDAY --- DECEMBER 21, 1999
THE Y2K WORLD ATOMIC SAFETY HOLIDAY
LIVE on C-SPAN2 at 9am ET (6 a.m PST)
Press Briefing by nuclear experts on meltdown risks
(includes Jim Riccio, Critical Mass Energy Project,
Mary Beth Brangan, Y2K WASH, Paul Gunter (Nuclear
Information and Resource Service) and a resident
of Tokaimura, Japan, who will bring some of the
80,000 signatures gathered in Japan calling for a
temporary shutdown of nuclear plants prior to 1/1/2000.
========================================================================
Tonight on C-SPAN2: (MONDAY, DECEMBER 20, 1999)
8:00 -- News Conference from U.S. Customs Service on the arrest of
suspected terrorists
5 p.m. PST
10:30 -- State Department briefing on Y2K - 7:30 p.m PST
11:15 -- Canadian Embassy Briefing on US/Canada Y2K
Coordination 8:15 p.m. PST
11:35 -- News Conference from U.S. Customs Service
on the arrest of suspected terrorists 8:35 p.m. PST
================================================================
TUESDAY ---
THE Y2K WORLD ATOMIC SAFETY HOLIDAY
LIVE on C-SPAN2 at 9am ET (6 a.m PST)
Press Briefing by nuclear experts on meltdown risks
THE STATE OF FREEDOM AT THE MILLENNIUM'S CLOSE
LIVE on C-SPAN Extra at 9:30 ET (6:30 am PT)
Results of an annual survey of political rights
and civil liberties published by Freedom House
FBI ON Y2K PLANS
LIVE on C-SPAN2 at 1pm ET 10 a.m. PST
FBI Heads of Counterterrorism, Domestic Terrorism,
International Terrorism and National Infrastructure Protections
Y2K UPDATE ON SOCIAL SECURITY
LIVE on C-SPAN Extra at 1pm ET - 10 a.m. PST
John Koskinen, President's Council on Y2K Conversion
Kenneth Apfel, Social Security Commissioner
*****************************************************************
For more information, check our web site at http://www.c-span.org
This schedule is subject to change at any time.
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Twenty Years of Public Affairs Programming. Created by America's Cable
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...
----- END OF INCOMING EMAIL TO THE STOP CASSINI EDITOR -----
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*** (2) Space Shuttle Discovery lifts off -- Godspeed:
************************************************************
After 10 different delays (including, in the end, two for bad weather) NASA launched the Space Shuttle Discovery yesterday. All went well. The mission is to repair the Hubble space telescope, and will (because of the delays) include the first-ever Christmas manned space flight. It is scheduled to be on the ground before Y2K. Not that there's anything to worry about regarding Y2K of course, but, that's the plan.
We had speculated (see newsletter #239) that a bent pipe might have been dented on purpose, in order to delay the mission until it could not be flown before Y2K. The fact that the mission flew does not invalidate our theories. However, Kai Petzke did add some useful comments:
----- INCOMING EMAIL FROM KAI PETZKE: -----
Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 11:19:44 +0100 (CET)
From: Kai Petzke <wpp@physik.tu-berlin.de>
To: "Russell D. Hoffman" <rhoffman@animatedsoftware.com>
Subject: fuel lines
In-Reply-To: <4.2.0.58.19991218025315.009f3480@mail.adnc.com>
Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.3.96.991220111733.514J-100000@safran.teltarif.de>
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Hello Russell,
those fuel lines are cooled down to minus 200 degrees celsius upon
takeoff. That puts a LOT of stress on them. Basically, because of the low
temperatures, materials shrink. But at the same time, they become
inelastic. So it can happen, that they are actually destroyed just by
being used after a couple of flights...
----- END OF INCOMING EMAIL FROM KAI PETZKE -----
My response is included in Kai's second email:
----- SECOND INCOMING EMAIL FROM KAI PETZKE: -----
Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 22:17:25 +0100 (CET)
From: Kai Petzke <wpp@physik.tu-berlin.de>
To: "Russell D. Hoffman" <rhoffman@animatedsoftware.com>
Subject: Re: fuel lines
In-Reply-To: <4.2.0.58.19991220101907.009b8cb0@mail.adnc.com>
Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.3.96.991220221152.1394B-100000@safran.teltarif.de>
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On Mon, 20 Dec 1999, Russell D. Hoffman wrote:
> Many thanks for this comment, Kai. It makes a lot of sense. (Although in
> this case, the pipe apparently hadn't been inspected in more than a decade
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
That's indeed the problem.
[clip]
----- END OF KAI PETZKE'S SECOND EMAIL REGARDING THE FUEL LINE -----
Marvin Lewis also commented on the James Oberg / Russell Hoffman exchange presented in newsletter #239:
----- INCOMING EMAIL FROM MARVIN LEWIS: -----
To: rhoffman@animatedsoftware.com
Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 09:37:58 -0500
Subject: Re: [y2k-nuclear] NASA is full of losers, either way: STOP
CASSINI #239, December 17th,1999
Message-ID: <19991218.095023.6878.5.marvlewis@juno.com>
References: <4.2.0.58.19991218025315.009f3480@mail.adnc.com>
From: "Marvin I. Lewis" <marvlewis@juno.com>
X-UIDL: 6e67e8b26cd27a2c191660b643fd8377
Dear Mssrs Oberg and Hoffman;
Your touchiness gives me positive vibes. This is a subject that
needs touchiness and enthusiasm. I would rather we get annoyed at each
other than take it all matter of factly.
I would like to add one small suggestion. When a nuke was being
built on Long Island, that nuke wound up costing over 11 Billion. the
workers knew that they were facing layoff when it was completed and did
some less than workmanlike things to extend the completion (like hoisting
cement mixers over fences to delay things and cracking gage glass covers
after installing new ones.) I wonder what I would do to protect a good
paying job that I needed.
marvlewis@juno.com
Marvin Lewis
PS On most high risk welding , welders must sign out and use welding rods
within a specified timeframe. On some rods it is as little as 20 minutes
and then must be returned to drying oven and signed in. I do not
understand how NASA cannot know if there was a switch. there is often
better control with welding rod than money in a bank.
Yes I am a metallurgical engineer.
___________________________________
Why pay more to get Web access?
Try Juno for FREE -- then it's just $9.95/month if you act NOW!
Get your free software today: http://dl.www.juno.com/dynoget/tagj.
----- END OF INCOMING EMAIL FROM MARVIN LEWIS -----
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*** (3) Russian threats mean there are no safe bets:
************************************************************
What's really going on? Maybe nothing. Who knows? When a military force tells all the civilians in a city to get out or expect to be slaughtered, then cuts off the last remaining connection between the city and the outside world so that the combatants in the city are cut off and cannot be resupplied and cannot escape, one never knows exactly what is planned, but it's never pleasant. That is the situation in Grozny today.
----- INCOMING EMAIL FROM CAROL MOORE: -----
Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 11:48:58 -0500
From: Carol Moore <CarolMoore@kreative.net>
X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.04 [en] (Win95; U)
:
To: abolition-caucus <abolition-caucus@egroups.com>,
WTR List <wtr-s@igc.apc.org>,
"y2k-nuclear@egroups.com" <y2k-nuclear@egroups.com>,
Y2K-Nukes List <Y2K-NUKES@envirolink.org>
Subject: Russia to Nuke Grozny??
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::
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Sender: owner-Y2K-nukes@envirolink.org
::
I searched all over Yahoo, etc and couldn't find this article
though only a day old, so don't have URL. Found on
a news group, with this introduction by poster,
with something I've been worried about myself lately:
"This is depressing news . Rather than lose the lives of
10,000 elite Russian soldiers it may have decided to nuke
Grozny . If they suddenly start withdrawing then the
Chechens should be wary.. "
===========
Russia says threshold lower for nuclear weapons
By Martin Nesirky
MOSCOW, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Russia marked the 40th anniversary of its
nuclear forces on Friday with lavish praise and a stark warning that
Moscow had been forced to lower the threshold for using atomic weapons.
Russia is no longer a superpower but still has the world's second-
largest nuclear arsenal of hundreds of missiles based on land, in
prowling submarines and aboard long-range aircraft.
``Today, many thousands of missile troops are successfully carrying out
a task of state importance,'' President Boris Yeltsin said in a message.
In interviews in Krasnaya Zvezda and the weekly Nezavisimoye Voyennoye
Obozreniye, missile chief Vladimir Yakovlev made clear Russia's
economic crisis and new security threats had prompted a dramatic
rethink about the nuclear deterrent.
``Russia, for objective reasons, is forced to lower the threshold for
using nuclear weapons, extend the nuclear deterrent to smaller-scale
conflicts and openly warn potential opponents about this,'' he said in
Krasnaya Zvezda.
The colonel-general said the reasons behind the shift were Russia's
financial crisis -- which has meant rocket forces receive about half
the funds they need -- and the emergence of regional powers armed with
missiles and nuclear technology.
Officials have long said Russia is using its nuclear umbrella to let
military reforms proceed beneath. But Yakovlev's comments were
unusually blunt in setting out that Moscow is prepared to use its
nuclear arms if attacked with chemical or biological weapons or
outnumbered by conventional forces.
He told Nezavisimoye Voyennoye Obozreniye Russia would continue to
replace old arms with new Topol-M intercontinental ballistic missiles.
Last week, Russia deployed a second batch of 10 and test-fired a silo-
based Topol-M.
Defence experts say Russia may test-launch a mobile Topol-M early next
year. Yakovlev said further down the line, an aircraft-based cruise
version could be developed and more emphasis put on using space
technology.
Defence Minister Igor Sergeyev and Russian Orthodox Patriarch Alexiy II
joined Yakovlev and Yeltsin in congratulating the Strategic Rocket
Forces, which have an unusually high number of servicewomen -- some
20,000, a seventh of the total in the entire armed forces.
``Not everyone can carry the heavy load of true service in the missile
forces,'' the patriarch said in Krasnaya Zvezda, which was devoted to
the anniversary and even printed half a page of poetry about nuclear
weapons.
In the Soviet era, nuclear forces were a bastion of Communist
orthodoxy. Now, Christian icons dedicated to the forces' patron saint,
St Barbara, hang in the command centre.
``With our shield ready for a fight, we have warded off a war,'' read a
line of the poetry in Krasnaya Zvezda. ``We have our hopes and love but
Russia's interests go before.''
----- END OF EMAIL FROM CAROL MOORE -----
*************************************************************************
*** (4) A wolf in sheep's clothing?:
*************************************************************************
Methinks there's something "fishy" about this letter. Because the writer requests that we pardon his spelling (in nearly the only sentence without any misspellings), I've left the letter in its original form with all the original "quaint" phraseology. I've deleted the full name because I suspect it's an alias anyway. Perhaps for Dr. Planarian again. -- rdh
----- INCOMING EMAIL ABOUT CASSINI: -----
From: "wolf"
To: rhoffman@animatedsoftware.com
Subject: cassini
Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 04:51:11 PST
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i just read your homepage, and was wondering...
first--since it didnt hit earth on the flyby, what is the problem?
second--if there is a problem, how would you suggest it be fixed?
third--how is a peaceful exploration craft part of the "militarization of space" (pardon my spelling)?
and lastly, what sort of powerplant would you recomend for deep space missions that would be so far from the sun that solar power isnt feasable?
i really would like to ill admit im skeptical for the moment, but ill keep an open mind for your response.
convince me
wolf
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
----- END OF INCOMING EMAIL -----
----- MY RESPONSE: -----
Hi!
Thanks for your email. I do believe I've answered all these questions in depth many times in the newsletter, but I've interspersed some quick answers here:
At 04:51 AM 12/20/99 -0800, "wolf" wrote:
>i just read your homepage, and was wondering...
>first--since it didnt hit earth on the flyby, what is the problem?
Besides that even NASA's own documents make clear that the probe could still return to Earth? Besides that the fancy containment system NASA is so proud of could become brittle and useless with age prior to the probe's return (Pu 239 has a half-life of about 24,000 years; Pu 238, 87 years)? Besides that additional missions are planned? Besides that the NASA dishonesty which allowed Cassini to be launched and then do the flyby despite serious, honest and scientific opposition means any science return from this mission will be utterly tainted?
>second--if there is a problem, how would you suggest it be fixed?
Honest government, for starters. NASA's Environmental Impact Statement for the Cassini mission should have been thrown out and rewritten.
>third--how is a peaceful exploration craft part of the "militarization of space" (pardon my spelling)?
That's pretty simple, namely that the whole purpose of the Pu powerpack infrastructure is for military needs. The military uses Pu powerpacks not just in space but in the oceans, the Arctic and Antarctic, and anywhere else they please. We got the idea from the Russians in the 1950's, by the way, and the public has been lied to ever since.
>and lastly, what sort of powerplant would you recomend for deep space missions that would be so far from the sun that solar power isnt feasable?
If you have a chance to read my comments to David Grinspoon of Astronomy magazine, you'll see that most of these missions did NOT need Pu powerpacks, but could actually have been accomplished with solar! Of course, NASA can always design a mission just outside the bounds of what solar can accomplish, although the truth is there is a limited amount of funding and there are plenty of missions to do that are within the current limits of solar technology. Also fuel cells and other techniques become more capable all the time. And furthermore, solar and fuel cell technologies would progress a lot faster if NASA put a reasonable amount of money in them.
It should not go unnoted that NASA will not be responsible financially for any nuclear accident they cause, because of their utterly inappropriate use of the utterly despicable Price Anderson Act to insure the nuclear launches.
>i really would like to ill admit im skeptical for the moment, but ill keep an open mind for your response.
I've learned a lot of stuff watching NASA for three years now. It's pretty depressing to think that our flagship technological agency is so corrupt, but this letter unfortunately only scratches the surface.
>convince me
I hope I've started to!
>wolf
Thanks again,
Sincerely,
Russell Hoffman
Carlsbad, CA
----- END OF MY RESPONSE -----
Somehow, I doubt I've convinced him. However, a careful reading of the previous 243 issues of the STOP CASSINI newsletter will hopefully do the trick! -- rdh
(4) Tell Clinton how you feel -- Official government contact points:
To contact the top government officials:
President Bill Clinton
White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20500
Phone -- (202) 456-1111 Fax -- (202) 456-2461
e-mail -- president@whitehouse.gov
Vice President Albert Gore (same address)
Phone -- (202) 456-1414 Fax -- (202) 456-2461
e-mail -- vicepresident@whitehouse.gov
Secretary William Cohen
1000 Defense
The Pentagon
Washington D.C. 20301
Phone -- (703) 695-6352 Fax -- (703) 695-1149
Secretary Bill Richardson
Department of Energy (DoE)
1000 Independence Avenue SW
Washington D.C. 20585
Phone -- (202) 586-6210 Fax -- (202) 586-4403
To learn about the absurd excuses NASA used to launch Cassini and its 72.3 pounds of plutonium in 1997, ask them for the 1995 Environmental Impact Statement for the Cassini mission, and all subsequent documentation. At the same time, be sure to ask them for ANY and ALL documentation available on future uses of plutonium in space, including MILITARY, CIVILIAN, or "OTHER" (just in case they make a new category somehow!). To get this information, contact:
Cassini Public Information
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
4800 Oak Grove Drive
Pasadena CA 91109
(818) 354-5011 or (818) 354-6478
Here's NASA's "comments" email address:
comments@www.hq.nasa.gov
Daniel Goldin is the head of NASA. Here's his email address:
daniel.goldin@hq.nasa.gov
or
dgoldin@mail.hq.nasa.gov
Here's the NASA URL to find additional addresses to submit written questions to:
http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/facts/HTML/FS-002-HQ.html
YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW WHAT NASA IS DOING TO YOUR HEALTH.
NASA should never have been allowed to launch monstrosities like Cassini and Galileo, but the next breed -- such as Europa Orbiter and Pluto-Kuiper Express are not much better and the policy is being set for greatly increased rates of missions! The danger continues! To complain to NASA about their future nuclear space probes, here are two addresses you can use:
For Europa Orbiter:
"Europa Orbiter comments" osseuropa@hq.nasa.gov
For Pluto-Kuiper Express:
"Pluto-Kuiper Express comments" osspluto@hq.nasa.gov
Be sure to "cc" the president and VP and your senators and congresspeople, too.
Always include your full name and postal address in all correspondence to any Government official of any country, because otherwise they will throw it out unread, or hand it directly to their police force to try to identify the author. (Thus, nothing good will come of it.) Also, ALWAYS include a personal message of some sort, indicating YOUR OWN VIEWS, even if you include a lot of material written by other people (me, for instance).
(5) Newsletter subscription information:
Thanks for reading! Welcome new subscribers!
To subscribe, simply email the editor at
rhoffman@animatedsoftware.com
and state:
SUBSCRIBE STOP CASSINI NEWSLETTER
Please include a personal message of any
length and subject matter. Thank you!
To unsubscribe email me and say
UNSUBSCRIBE STOP CASSINI NEWSLETTER
Published by Russell D. Hoffman electronically.
This newsletter is free and is not distributed for profit.
The opinions expressed are those of the individual authors.
Please distribute these newsletters EVERYWHERE!
Written in the United States of America.
(6) Newsletter Authorship notes and additional URLs:
Russell D. Hoffman, Carlsbad, California, Peace Activist, Environmentalist, High Tech Guru:
http://www.animatedsoftware.com/whoisrdh.htm
Hoffman's Y2K Preparedness Information:
http://www.animatedsoftware.com/environm/no_nukes/y2k/index.htm
Learn about The Effects of Nuclear War here:
http://www.animatedsoftware.com/environm/no_nukes/tenw/nuke_war.htm
************************************************************
** THE ANIMATED SOFTWARE COMPANY
** Russell D. Hoffman, Owner and Chief Programmer
** Carlsbad CA
** Visit the world's most eclectic web site:
** http://www.animatedsoftware.com
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First placed online December 29th, 1999.
Last modified December 29th, 1999.
Webwiz: Russell D. Hoffman
Copyright (c) Russell D. Hoffman