In a development that conjures up images of comic book superheroes, Israeli technology firm Camero has successfully created a portable radar system that allows its users to literally see through walls, reported Israeli business newspaper The Marker.
The radar uses a new technology known as Ultra Wide Band (UWB) to detect and create a relatively accurate image of people or objects on the far side of walls and other solid masses.
Camero officials expect their new device to be a major asset in the hands of Israeli military special forces and search and rescue crews.
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The Asia Times Online reports: “This week, Iran's new speaker of its parliament, or Majlis, Ali Larijani, proposed forming two joint committees of the legislative and judiciary branches in an effort to reconcile new legislation with the Islamic penal code.
The step is viewed as part of Larinaji's enthusiasm to build strategic alliances within Iran's political establishment to enhance the stature of parliament, which been criticized for a lack of independence and efficiency in the past four years.
Larijani is expected to be a serious critic of President Mahmud Ahmadinejad in the coming years. He has close ties to new technocrat leaders, such as the former head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps, Mohsen Rezaii, and the popular mayor of Tehran, Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf - considered the leading potential rival of Ahmadinejad in the 2009 presidential elections.
Larijani is also one of the closest and most loyal politicians to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei - who has reportedly called him ‘my son’ in private gatherings - and the traditional fundamentalist clergy. Over the past two decades, Larijani has held some of the highest appointed positions in the country, such as the supreme leader's representative on the National Security Council and ...   more »

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran has launched construction of seven oil refineries in an effort to boost its crude and gas refining capacity and achieve energy self-sufficiency.
A senior Iranian official said the refineries would increase capacity by more than 1.5 million barrels per day and end gasoline imports.
The official said all seven refineries would begin operations by 2012.
"The construction of seven refineries has started with the investment of 15 billion euro," National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company director Aminollah Eskandari said.
"About 1.56 million barrels will be added to the country's capacity to refine crude oil and gas derivatives," he added.
Iran is the world's fourth-largest oil producer but lacks sufficient refining capacity and imports large amounts of gasoline which it then sells at a heavily subsidized price.
Tehran, in 2006 started on a multi-billion dollar, five-year program to expand and upgrade its domestic refining capacity to 3.3 million bpd from the current 1.65 million bpd.
According to statistical figures, gasoline imports have declined sharply since rationing was launched last year. Importing gasoline has imposed a heavy financial burden on the state.
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Elitists want to microchip Americans in name of fighting terrorism, Europeans universally opposed to attack on Iran, Globalists fear oil prices rising too quickly
Paul Joseph Watson
Prison Planet
Sources from inside the 2008 Bilderberg meeting have leaked the details of what elitists were discussing in Chantilly Virginia last week and the talking points were ominous - a plan to microchip Americans under the pretext of fighting terrorist groups which will be identified as blonde haired, blue eyed westerners.
Veteran Bilderberg sleuth Jim Tucker relies on sources who regularly attend Bilderberg as aides and assistants but who are not Bilderberg members themselves. The information they provided this year is bone-chilling for those who have tracked the development of the plan to make the general public consider implanted microchips as a convenience as routine as credit cards.
"Under the heading of resisting terrorism there were points made about how the terrorist organizations are recruiting people who do not look like terrorists - blonde, blue eyed boys - they're searching hard for those types to become the new mad bombers," said Tucker.
As we have documented, the blue eyed blonde haired Al-Qaeda line is a familiar talking point that has been pushed ...   more »

 That new vinyl shower curtain with the fun rubber ducks sure has a powerful smell -- but could it be toxic?
Yes, according to a national environment group.
Spark Safety Concerns1 of 5     That "new shower curtain smell" might be giving off toxic chemicals linked to serious health problems, according to a new study. A national environmental group tested vinyl shower curtains sold at major retailers nationwide and found they contained high concentrations of phthalates.
The Center for Health, Environment and Justice, based in Washington, tested five brand curtains and liners sold at major retailers nationwide, including Bed Bath & Beyond, Kmart, Sears, Target and Wal-Mart, the New York Daily News reported.
Researchers said all of the curtains contained phthalates, chemical substances used to make plastics soft and flexible, and varying amounts of organotins, which are compounds based on tin and hydrocarbons. Studies have linked such chemicals to damage to the liver and the central nervous, respiratory and reproductive systems.
"The familiar 'new curtain smell' may be toxic to your health," said Mike Schade, the center's PVC campaign coordinator. "It's really surprising that retailers are manufacturing products that contain and release harmful chemicals in our homes."
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Constitutional rights for Islamic enemies?
In what is being described only as a "major blow to the Bush administration," the United States Supreme Court ruled yesterday that the terrorists detained at the American detention center at Guantanamo Bay are protected under the rights and guarantees of the U.S. Constitution.
It is still impossible for me to fathom how something can be a "major blow the U.S. administration's war effort" without somehow also being a blow to the rest of us Americans.
Osama bin Laden declared war on all of America, not just the Bush administration. Bush wasn't even in office when this occurred. This ruling doesn't just hamstring the Bush administration's efforts to protect us from unrelenting terrorists – it hamstrings every administration to follow.
Now, before I go on, I am not for a moment advocating in favor of watering down the Constitution. I am just unable to find where the Constitution covers foreign combatants making war against the United States.
If they are covered under the Fifth Amendment guarantees of due process as U.S. citizens, one would think they would also be guilty of treason under Article 3, Section 3 of the Constitution, which defines treason against the ...   more »

Penalties created for those who criticize homosexuality outside church walls
By Bob Unruh
A new Colorado law is helping homosexual activists achieve their goal of forcing Christians to teach biblical condemnation of homosexuality only behind the closed doors of their sanctuaries.
The as-yet untested state law promotes sexual identity "perception" to the level of skin color under state discrimination laws.
Some opponents are calling it a "bona fide censorship law," and top analysts for Focus on the Family, the Christian publishing and broadcast powerhouse, are expressing concern over the "mischief" they expect to follow the signing by Gov. Bill Ritter.Bill Ritter
As WND reported, Ritter, a Democrat, struck gender-specific restrooms and locker rooms statewide when he signed the plan into law in May.
The law makes it illegal to deny a person access to public accommodations, including restrooms and locker rooms, based on gender identity or the "perception" of gender identity.
"Who would have believed that the Colorado state legislature and its governor would have made it fully legal for men to enter and use women's restrooms and locker-room facilities without notice or explanation?" said James Dobson, founder of Focus.
"Henceforth, every woman and little girl will have to fear ...   more »

Join the Debate: We Want Your Thoughts, Videos on the Earth's Future
By SARAH NAMIAS
Are we living in the last century of our civilization? Is it possible that all of our technology, knowledge and wealth cannot save us from ourselves? Could our society actually be heading towards collapse?
According to many of the world's top scientists, the answer is yes, unless we take action now.
This September, in Earth 2100, a dramatic ABC News 2-hour broadcast, the greatest minds across the globe will join together in a countdown to the year 2100 to tell us what we must do to survive the next century & And what may happen if we don't.
The time to act is now, says Peter Gleick, president of the Pacific Institute.
"The 21st century is going to be the century which determine[s] whether we live or die as a sustainable species," Gleick said. "As populations grow, as our use of resources grows, I think we get closer and closer to that edge."
Experts say that extreme changes in climate, combined with dwindling resources, famine, war and disease have the potential to create a post-apocalyptic world in less than a hundred years. Harvard University and ...   more »

By JOHN PORRETTO
HOUSTON -- Exxon Mobil Corp. said Thursday it's getting out of the retail gasoline business, following other major oil companies who've been selling their low-margin stations to gasoline distributors.
Motorists, however, will continue to see Exxon's Tiger-themed stations and Mobil outlets in their neighborhoods. Already, about 75 percent of Exxon Mobil's roughly 12,000 stations in the U.S. are owned by branded distributors, who buy Exxon Mobil products and pay to use the name.
Irving-based Exxon, the world's biggest publicly traded oil company, said it now plans to sell to distributors its remaining 820 company-owned stations and another 1,400 outlets operated by dealers. Exxon Mobil didn't disclose financial details but said the sales will take place over a "multiyear period."
Texas has the most company-owned retail locations with about 190. Florida is next with 170.
"As the highly competitive fuels marketing business in the U.S. continues to evolve, we believe this transition is the best way for Exxon Mobil to compete and grow in the future," said Ben Soraci, the director of Exxon Mobil's U.S. retail sales.
Exxon Mobil is not alone among Big Oil exiting the retail gas business, a market where profits have gotten tougher as ...   more »