Sunday, December 27

Is 'fore play' too tacky ?

In the last couple of weeks, sex ruled not only the sports headlines, but the tabloid ones as well, with the sordid saga of Tiger Woods.

Sex in sports showed its power in a completely different manner’s appeal is driving the continued rise of Patrick. It's powerful enough to do that for someone who looks good but hasn't exactly earned her way. Conversely, sex is powerful enough to turn a Tiger into a cheetah, as the popular joke goes. Woods has played his way to the top of sport, becoming the richest athlete in the world by dominating a finicky game like golf in a way that's never been done before. His 14 major championships at age 33 solidify his greatness. But sex can topple a titan, even one who has earned every step of success.

There is a both outrageous and quality journalism going around. Some talk about sex appeal and some talk about the act itself. thing have been proven again by both cases: Sex does, indeed, sell, whether it's by the marketing machine of NASCAR or to the insatiable appetite of society for the dirty details of celebrities' personal lives.

Before this animalistic analysis shifts into second gear, it must be made perfectly clear that these are two totally different areas of the sex spectrum. lol

Berti Vogts, the German football manager in 1994, banned his players from sex before games. Linford Christie, the British sprinter, agreed with the notion, saying a romp the night before a race made his legs feel like lead.

Athletes have long perpetuated the theory that sex before competition zaps energy. Muhammad Ali, for one, reportedly wouldn't make love for six weeks before a fight.But scientists say there is no physiological evidence to suggest that sex before competition is bad. In fact, some studies suggest that pre-sports sex may actually aid athletes by raising their testosterone levels, for example.It is unclear, however, what psychological effects sex may have on an athlete's performance. Some scientists suggest that abstinence could help some athletes concentrate better.

"There are two possible ways sex before competition could affect performance," said Ian Shrier, a sports medicine specialist at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. "First, it could make you tired and weak the next day," Shrier said. "This has been disproved. "The second way is that it could affect your psychological state of mind. This has not been tested," he said.

The hormone of both sexual desire and aggression are from the body.

Still less is known about the psychological effects of sex on athletic performance.
Some experts say coaches may be favoring the abstinence theory simply because they want to make sure young athletes get enough sleep before a big game. Too much anxiety or too much aggression may result in poor performance. "If athletes are too anxious and restless the night before an event, then sex may be a relaxing distraction," Shrier wrote in his study. "If they are already relaxed or, like some athletes, have little interest in sex the night before a big competition, then a good night's sleep is all they need." The results will depend on individual preferences and routines, Shrier said, adding that consistency is key.

Does Good Sex Make Sports Heroes? Here are the two opposing perspectives from sports greats themselves. Muhammad Ali, believing it sapped an athlete's strength, wouldn't have sex for six weeks before a fight. The ancient Yankee philosopher, Casey Stengel, on the other hand, quotith: "I'm less worried about a player having sex the night before a game than him being out all night looking for it."

It’s an irresistible mix says the researchers. Sex and sports inseparable? The question brings to mind two historic sports heroes. Wilt Chamberlain claims he had sex with 20,000 different females or 1.37 women per day over a period of 40 years, from the age of 15. He further states because of such encounters he slept not a wink the night before he scored an astonishing 100 points in a National Basketball Association game.

"Babe" Ruth was equally notorious for countless liaisons, but sex did not seem to affect his legendary baseball records. However, it was Hank Aaron, a presumably straight-shooting, early-to-bedder, who broke Ruth's record of 714 regular season home runs. Could a well-rested, sexually-restrained Ruth have hit 800 or 1,000?
Must a sexually active athlete sacrifice success in the world of sports? For decades the answer was a definitive "yes." Sex, said many coaches and trainers, stunted athletes' potential and shortened their careers. This nostrum, probably based on an 18th-century notion about preserving vital body fluids, is fast losing support as a result of modern scientific study.

There seems to be no penalty in combining sex and athletics, according to sports medicine director John Troup, M.D. "Unless it becomes distracting, it might even help some people sleep," he says.

Most experts agree no evidence exists to support the old taboos.

"Moderate" sex before competition may indeed be beneficial, according to George Leonard, author of The Physiology of Sex. Leonard lauds the benefits of the "rapturous synergy of exercise and sex" and concludes, "Either sex or athletics is good for you, and in conjunction they're even better."

The loss of even one night's sleep is likely to result in fatigue, irritability and mood shifts. "At a certain level, the physical differences a competitor can feel are small, but there are no bounds to what can be done mentally," says Sue Hollaway, the first woman to compete in two Olympics during the same year (skiing and kayaking, 1976).

Research indicates sleep loss undermines creative thinking (spontaneity, flexibility and originality) and the ability to deal with unfamiliar situations.Physiology professor Bruce Martin agrees. "Humans can respond remarkably well when aroused," he says. "Sleep doesn't matter when athletes are fired up for competition."
Author Charles Garfield dissents. "No one lives in a constant state of arousal. More important is maintaining the energy to do good work consistently."
Time of day is a performance factor. The consensus? Consistency is the key..

Come to think of it, I’d like to do that research. Anyway, until some research is conducted, your guess is as good as mine as to whether sexual relations will hinder athletic performance. So until then …trial and error. Look at the bright side though, the trial and the error is going to hurt so g-o-o-d.

“Picasso had his Blue Period… and I am in my Blonde Period”. Since its inception in November 1953 (Miller, 41), Playboy has been a hit with men of all ages. He changed perception through business, including the use of sports. He turned the infamous Bunny logo into a cultural icon. Men and women recognize it throughout the world. It is this adorable symbol that gives him his place in history.

Thursday, December 24

A lion would not cheat on his wife but a Tiger Wood.

Would it be fair of Tiger Woods's wife Elin Nordegren to demand half of his $600 million fortune as a divorce settlement?

Tiger Woods might have announced his intentions to quit golf to repair the damages in his personal life. But.. MEDIA continues claiming his affair with Rachel Uchitel. After experiencing intense humiliation for quite some time now, Tiger Woods finally has a professional who understands.. It is Boris Becker and many others.

The skeletons tumbled out of the Wood’s closet at alarming speed. Golf genius Tiger Woods, winner of 14 major championships and 71 USPGA Tour titles.

On has heard the saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words,” but did you know that a photo of Tiger Woods is going for $300,000? After a former New York Police Detective spoke on a televised interview regarding Tiger Wood’s security and the fact that no one has managed to catch a glimpse of him or take a photo of the golfer in nearly a month. “There was a lot of broken glass. It’s conceivable that he was hit in the face with the club or that some glass shattered from the windshield into his face. It’s possible that he hurt himself when he was on the ground outside of the car.”

Than there are jokes on internet..
What: Tiger Woods wins the US Open in an 18-hole play-off with Rocco Mediate
When: June 16, 2008
Where: Torrey Pines, San Diego, California.
Watch: You Tube

Do we need to know that the man is a genius on one leg or two? What he did over the course of five days at Torrey Pines seems already to have blurred into myth. Woods may not be the man of grace he was 12 months ago, but that does not lessen his godly achievements.

With a wrecked knee cartilage and two stress fractures of the leg he won 4 majors. He a tremendous gift to takes it to the ultimate high. The putt that Woods holed to stay alive on the 72nd green teetered on the edge of possibility. Very few would know his knee injury case. He made a birdie three on his opening hole in the WGC-Accenture Match Play in Tucson Arizona.it took eight months to reveal that he had torn the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) of his left knee and had sustained a double stress fracture in his left tibia.

He was rusty, he was crocked, but still he came out on top. Despite having trailed 45-year-old Rocco Mediate after 17 holes in the 18-hole play-off. Tiger Woods will remain an asset for golf. The decade for him will not go low. It began with Californian coast in June 2000. Later that year Woods won his third major in a row at the USPGA .Any other human being would have been beaten in the May's afternoon but Woods found one more putt on the 72nd green. It was the day when he perfected the Woods fist pump; it was the day when Tiger seemed able to fly close to the sun without falling. The world's media turned up at the Masters of 2001 to witness what couldn't be done. No man had ever won four majors in a row.

He waited to come back on the major stage. He returned at the Masters In 2005. Who can forget that chip on the 16th green when he ran his ball up to the top of the shelf? It was the Nike moment. The ball seemed to have stopped rolling then, as if moved by an act of will, quiver and fell into the hole.

In 2006 after the death of his father he won amid tearful scenes at Hoylake. It was called a championship for the connoisseurs.

Then the historic win at Torrey Pines. In 2008 Woods won the US Open with two stress fractures of his leg and a ruined knee. The name itself stirs the imagination of golf enthusiasts all over the world. Is truly a "golfer's paradise”.

Tiger Woods ' car accident has opened a big, fat can of worms. Woods was considered one of the worlds most private and image-conscious sports stars. In the last week, he has faced exposure and personal scrutiny like never before, both through the legal process and its open-record requirements and the relentless pursuit of the tabloid media, which have sought explanations for the accident that he has declined to provide. I think Tiger's brand value is assured.

Tiger Woods won 12 major titles, he dominated the World Championship events with 14 victories, he won more than 50 times on the PGA Tour and he is now within touching distance of Jack Nicklaus's record of 18 majors and Sam Snead's record of 82 PGA tour victories. Yet he is still only 33.

Tiger Woods became sport's first billionaire. He spoke at Barack Obama's inauguration.
As rightly put “The Greek gods and Shakespeare's tragic heroes looked on in approval”
Wood’s lust, his fatal flaw, had sent him crashing. Once we wondered at man's divinity. The will to win four in a row defies human frailty. AG Heuer confirms today that it will continue its relationship with Golf n°1 Tiger Woods but will respect his desire of privacy by modifying his role in the coming months’ marketing programs. The assessed the decision for a week.

The global consulting firm Accenture PLC became the first major sponsor to cut ties with Tiger Woods, saying the golfer is "no longer the right representative" for the company. The firm had earlier credited its "Go on, be a Tiger" campaign with raising its profile.
Sports card maker Upper Deck Co. continues its relationship with Woods.
Woods is voted Athlete of the Decade by members of The Associated Press, despite the fallout from his admission of infidelity. Voters say Woods' accomplishments during the last 10 years outweighed the revelations that forced him to take a break from the sport he dominates.

The company building "The Tiger Woods Dubai" golf course and housing development says it remains committed to finishing the first course designed by Woods despite the emirate's cash problems and the scandal involving Woods.

The Golf Writers Association of America votes Woods the male player of the year by an overwhelming margin over Steve Stricker, with most of the ballots returned after he became embroiled in a sex scandal. It was the 10th time Woods has won the award in his 13 years as a pro.

The Wall Street Journal reports that one of Woods' alleged mistresses, Mindy Lawton, has been under contract to the London tabloid News of the World and that her agreement with the paper prohibits her from discussing Woods with other media until after this Sunday. Both the Journal and the News of the World are owned by News Corp.
Under the severest pressure Woods achieved the impossible without breaking stride. He might aim the Century Club of San Diego Invitational at Torrey Pines in late January for his 2010 debut. Interest will be passionate when Woods comes back to competition, as inevitably, will be the media reception.

appy Xmas. to all.Pope calls for peace amid concern over his security just hours after a woman jumped a barrier and dragged him down during Christmas Eve Mass.

Sunday, December 20

Politics of narrow self interest to prevent a policy for human survival."Copenhagen Accord ".

At first it was difficult to know who had come off the worst: the scientists whose emails were published, or the bloggers who disgraced the academics, describing “climategate” as “the greatest scandal in modern science” and branding the research unit “disgraced”.

And now the Deal. A Copenhagen Accord = politics and economical interests minus solidarity, collaboration and science.

Finally the ongoing circus in Copenhagen venerating the global warming religion offers a front row seat to human folly at its finest. A naked, world class shakedown of the naïve political class retreating in their imagined fears of climate doom, by the dependency class of third world countries, the Copenhagen carnival collapses under the unbearable weight of fraud, folly and foolishness

We have been made to understand that the Earth’s average temperature changes frequently though time as does the atmospheric CO2 content. The sages of the research unit stood up with their theories and claimed that recent observations regarding climate change are still geologically well within the bounds of very normal for our planet. Few shielded themselves from the hail of blows for allegedly using methods which are questionable for their theories as advocates continue to use ice core data suggesting CO2 is causing temperature rises when this was long ago shown to be false.

On the other hand the basis for COP15 and other past climate agreements is based on the proof that CO2 in the atmosphere causes warming and that we are at, or already have, passed the point of no return such that atmospheric levels of CO2 will cause considerable warming with all the attendant problems—sea level rise, weather changes etc.

Where do greenhouse gas emissions come from?

Which countries are most responsible for causing human-induced climate change?

What have governments done so far to keep the global average temperature rise within "safe limits"?

The science of climate change became a lot more polarized over the past five years and last 20 day’s it got decidedly worse. As the UN summit in Copenhagen approached things went not as expected. We witnessed the turmoil inside and outside, the two-week summit which limped to a conclusion despite some hailing the Copenhagen Accord as “historic”.

We witnessed politics of narrow self interest to prevent a policy for human survival. Struggle with the developed and emerging countries at a log jam…. The COP15 meeting in Copenhagen lacked the care and pure approach of science but beleaguered and compromised by politics and money.

The nonaligned and unbiased approach necessary in science has is replaced with almost a religious fervor that seeks a particular finding at almost any cost including carefully choosing exactly what facts are used.The scientists of various countries of the world involved appeared gritty to use their status. Those with a different opinion could not untie and are subject to having their reputations questioned.

Ghossssssh.. One only has to look around at this Summit—full of lobbyists with check books. The original hypothesis that carbon and other “green house gas” emissions is causing the Earth to warm began as a scientific endeavor, but now appears to have evolved into a political matter where the science is playing second fiddle to other motives. And the reason why it is political and a mess, frankly, may be found in the root of modern politics—money.

The public ….. understandably confused. A recent poll showed that 41% accept as scientific fact that global warming is taking place and is largely man-made, while 32% believe the link is unproven and 15% said the world is not warming.At the moment it’s just frustration and stonewalling all round. If you ask anyone associated with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ,they tell you to wait for their next five-yearly assessment report.

No wonder the public is confused, Working scientists grumpy about the unfairness, journalists with a choice between waiting for the occasional tablet of stone from the keepers of the global warming flame….This polarisation means that a considered view on global warming is much harder to achieve, so in the end people simply go for the belief that feels right for them.

If the high priests of global warming want to convince us that we could face a man-made rise of 4C in the global temperature this century, then they have to engage with their critics instead of hiding away in their ivory towers. It may be that discussing the science is irrelevant now so far as COP15 is concerned What is required and long overdue is a full and independent audit of climate science and the models used so that the scientists can once again be confident they are operating with accurate information.

Full and independent audit and debate around the science is needed.We have come a long way, but we have much further to go.. master scheme to monopolize and limit production around the world and charge people for the right to do so.

Thursday, December 3

The Bhopal Gas tragedy continues unabated. The heart bleeds.

My heart bleeds …Every daily has pictures which raise thousands of questions and tell sad, unexpected, shocking and tragic tales even after 25 years of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy.

Twenty-five years after the world’s worst industrial disaster shook Bhopal (My City ) on December 2, 1984. my hear aches as i see the pictures, read stories and watch television showing victims and the pathetic state of the area till date.

25 years ago shortly after midnight on December 3rd, 1984 in the city of Bhopal, India, tons of lethal gases leaked from a pesticide factory run by the US company. A negligence which caused the lives of the innocent and the future who did not see tomorrow.40 tons of toxic gas spilled into the city, killing tens of thousands of people. Methyl isocyanate caused the mass death. It prevents oxygen from entering the blood when inhaled. In just one night, thousands were killed. Chaos and panic broke out in the city and surrounding areas as tens of thousands of people attempted to escape.

We witnessed the twice as heavy as air, the poisonous cloud which blanketed the ground, seeping into homes, schools, places of worship , everywhere. It did not even spare the animals. Thousands ran through the streets trying to escape the burning, suffocating chemicals and died on spot. Ripping their clothing off their burning skin, many dropped dead, and others lay dying in pools of their own vomit in the roads and alleyways. The gas was so deadly, that after inhaling the air from the child’s lungs few doctors/inhalers died. There was no Hindu no Muslim no Sikh no isaee.. The last ritual could not be performed properly as lacked identification. Some were buried some were lit fire. The cloth ran out of stock from the market. The numbers were innumerable for the innocent who died. Even the mortuary till date thousands are missing as have no clue about them. Mothers didn’t know their children had died, children didn’t know their mothers had died and men didn’t know their whole families had died. Thousands of dead cats, dogs, cows and birds littered the streets and the city’s mortuaries are filling up fast.

This was not enough the bodied were tortured before dying it affected the eyes- “inflamed eyes about to burst. ., foul breath from the mouths oozing blood streaked froth.. Bodies were tortured even after death due to the pressure from the gases produced by the chemical decomposition of MIC.

By December 1984 the Union Carbide plant in Bhopal India had been cited for safety violations, failure of monitoring systems, leaks of MIC into the community, and an explosion and fatality. Union Carbide was a U.S. owned chemical giant based in Institute, West Virginia. Decisions that allowed the Bhopal plant to fall into disrepair were made in the U. S.Two years prior to the disaster, journalist Rajkumar Keswani published warnings about the MIC storage, that the Union Carbide plant was a sitting on top of a “volcano.” Eager to profit from the Bhopal plant, Institute ignored the warnings, resulting in the worst industrial tragedy in history.

The toxic gas leak had caused a human tragedy of unprecedented proportions: In the following years the death toll from long-term exposure have crossed lakhs and children are born with birth defects, and many millions would fall gravely ill from drinking water contaminated by the massive amounts of chemical waste which is dumped in and around the Carbide factory grounds. The toxic gas altered the immune system of those who were still in their mothers’ wombs.

The waste left behind at the Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) factory that was closed 25 years ago after a fatal gas leak continues to poison people around that area and Politics is being played at the expense of the victims.\ Real justice has been elusive despite substantial evidence of political corporate cover-ups and criminal negligence.

Safety measures are still not in place in industrial units across the nation. Verbal commitments by the authorities and politicians for lessening the sufferings of Bhopal gas victims still continue. None have learnt lessons from the past. Bhopal gas tragedy is a prime example of how the rich and influential can easily get away despite such gross negligence which not only killed people 25 years ago but has also affected the future generations.

The culprit Warren sits in New York State private estate living a “life of luxury”. He is untraceable, and had been so since 1992 when “Indian court”, exasperated by his refusal to heed multiple summon for trial, declared him a fugitive from justice. Anderson was chairman and chief executive officer of the United States-headquartered Union Carbide Corporation (UCC) at the time of the lethal December 2-3 methyl iso cyanate leaked from Carbide’s pesticide plant in Bhopal and faced charges on many counts, including culpable homicide.

Accused in a December 1, 1987 charge sheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation against him and 11 others, including UCC, USA; Union Carbide (Eastern), Hong Kong; and Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL), had been placed under house arrest soon after the disaster but won his release on a promise to return to India to stand trial.

Neither Mr. Anderson nor Carbide turned up in the court for obvious reason. The dubious role played by the world’s most powerful democracy in protecting the key perpetrator of the world’s worst industrial disaster can be seen today the government of the state and the central has shown little interest in getting justice for the people of Bhopal.. Seventeen years after he was proclaimed an “absconder”, Mr. Anderson, now 88, continues to elude the long reach of the law. Bhopal tragedy is a reminder of the unconscionable way justice plays out for the poor in this country. The governments came and left but none was bothered to even forming a commission. The whole world criticized but the administration could not take a decision.

For the $3 billion amount asked the compensation was settled for 15 per cent of the amount which reached in 1989 that too out of the court. The survivors were awarded a lifetime average compensation of Rs.25, 000, far below international compensation standards in 2005; six years later the amount reached the government. The records were distorted by the administration and not taken seriously. The correct compensation as criminal liability was not accepted rather affected due to ineffective role of the administration. No proper case was presented in consideration with eh MP Govt. Medical council report was ignored. It leads to suspicion. The compensation for 1.5 lakh people was distributed to the six lakh. The compensation paid by Union Carbide to the Indian government was laughably low: nowhere near enough to pay for the actual numbers of people affected by the gas spill.

This was not enough; this meager amount reached the awardees after long delays, protracted red tape and bribes paid to lawyers, middlemen and touts. Till date no compensation has been awarded to those born with disabilities and those drinking contaminated water. For those who did manage to obtain compensation, the measly amount quickly ran out in the wake of new or persistent medical complications, hospital bills, and economic problems compounded by disabilities.The biggest failure, according to medical experts, is that the line of treatment given to patients exposed to MIC has remained essentially unchanged since the morning of the disaster, when nothing was known about the poisonous gas.

All medical data has indicated serious genetic mutation but no autopsy studies have been conducted. No government body can explain why the prevalence of cancer among female victims is three time the national average. No research has been done on genetic disorders, low birth weight, congenital malformations, developmental disorders and biological markers of MIC exposure.

In November 1999 protestors , survivor organizations filed a class action suit against UCC and Mr. Anderson in the Southern District Court of New York, charging them with violating international human rights law, environmental law and international criminal law but Federal Judge John F. Keenan was not interested.

In 2001 the UCC was tken in control by The Dow Chemical Company claiming acquiring without LIABILITIES of UCC and refused surrender Carbide for trial. As a result of the sale of its shares in UCIL, Union Carbide retained no interest in - or liability for - the Bhopal site, the firm says in a statement. Its 51% stake in the subsidiary was sold after the accident. Not only this Dow gone on with law suits on protestors who besieged its offices in India, shouting, “Dow, you now have Union Carbide’s blood on your hands”. Dow claimed $10,000 in compensation for alleged loss of work resulting from the demonstrations.

It’s been the CJM’s court in the Bhopal District Court who is the lone flicker of hope for the Bhopal gas survivors. The court has struck blow after blow. From the 1988 letters have been issued to the U.S. administration seeking permission for the CBI to inspect the safety systems at UCC’s West Virginia plan proclaiming Mr. Anderson an absconder in 1992 to persistently seeking information from the CBI on the status of extradition proceedings to quashing the agency’s 2002 attempt to dilute the charge against Mr. Anderson from culpable homicide (punishable with imprisonment up to 10 years) to criminal negligence (punishable with imprisonment up to two years), the District Court is as pro-active as the Indian government was laid back.

The CBI’s 2002 attempt at dilution of charges was of a piece with Mr. Sorabjee’s 2001 advice to the government against seeking Mr. Anderson’s extradition. However, with the Bhopal magistrate standing firm, the CBI was left with no option but to request the Ministry of External Affairs to seek Mr. Anderson’s extradition, which the MEA did, obviously reluctantly, in May 2003.

In July 2004, the U.S. government rejected the Indian request. It stated that the request did not meet the requirements of Article 2(1) and 9 (3) of the extradition treaty between the U.S. and India.

On July 22, 2009, the CJM’s court in Bhopal issued a fresh warrant of arrest against Mr. Anderson, and ordered the CBI to produce him before the court for trial. What do we expect for the 88-year-old “Accused no 1”? to come to India one last time — to stand trial for a crime he committed a quarter of a century ago.

Two generations of victims exposed to MIC have been indiscriminately prescribed antibiotics, steroids and psychotropic drugs to ‘manage’ their ailments instead of finding a cure. till date no research has been done deliberately. The study was terminated in 1994 and its findings were not made public. No research has been conducted since and lakhs of people who continue to suffer from MIC exposure only receive symptomatic treatment. But the ICMR is again planning to conduct a study, and will probably commission it by March 2010.

The need of the hour is taking care of the hazardous waste lying in the acres of land of the closed industry, adequate compensation, hospital care, pension for gas-affected widows and rehabilitation of people with permanent disabilities. Insensitive remarks by politicians, opening the site to create a circus in the contaminated area, holding exhibition and constructing statues will do no good.

I was witness to Mr Jairam ramesh remark in Sept 2009 (minister for Forest and Environment ).Holding up a fistful of mud from the premises, he said, look here, I am not affected. Although later he apologized for this shocking crudity as people like us apposed. None of the reporters reacted as expected although he called and apologized. Today on the 25th anniversary they have been claiming it to be hazardous as Environment organization has proved once gains the poison and toxic element it contains and the world is watching.

And today we stand to witness the criminal not being punished even after 25 years. But for many in Bhopal, for us the disaster isn’t just a moment in history to be remembered on anniversaries. It’s an ever-present part of their daily life. The generations are affected - physically, financially, and emotionally.

The baby’s born on that day were name Zahar lal and Gas Devi who have turned 25 years old.