Lance Morcan's Blog, page 77
September 7, 2014
Operation Enduring Freedom…aka Operation Opium
Just as mineral wealth – oil in particular – is a major reason for wars (look no further than Iraq), many would argue so, too, is heroin. Afghanistan being a case in point.
Afghan farmers collected raw opium in a poppy field.
Operation Enduring Freedom, the on going conflict in Afghanistan that was sparked by 9/11, has rather uncharitably been called Operation Opium by those who subscribe to the theory that heroin is behind that conflict.
One who subscribes to that theory is Canadian economist Dr. Michel Chossudovsky, author of The New World Order and perhaps the foremost authority on drug wars. We quote the good doctor extensively in a chapter titled ‘Drug Wars’ in our book THE ORPHAN CONSPIRACIES: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy.
Here’s an excerpt from The Orphan Conspiracies:
Dr. Chossudovsky also believes heroin is a primary motivating factor in the war in Afghanistan…In an article published in RonPaulForums.com and dated June 25, 2013, he says, “Since the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in October 2001, the Golden Crescent opium trade has soared.”
The documented Northern Route for drug trafficking out of Afghanistan.
In the same article, Dr. Chossudovsky says in the previous four years there was a surge in Afghan opium production. He quotes UNODC (the UN Office on Drugs and Crime) figures which reveal that poppy cultivation in Afghanistan in 2012 covered an area of more than 154,000 hectares; he also quotes a UNODC spokesperson as confirming in 2013 that opium production is heading toward record levels.
Dr. Chossudovsky is also extensively quoted in the GlobalResearch.com site, which provides some of the most credible, in depth research and reporting on the Afghan drug trade.
On alert in a poppy field in Afghanistan.
Under the tell-all heading “The Spoils of War: Afghanistan’s Multibillion Dollar Heroin Trade”, Global Research carries yet another article by Dr. Chossudovsky. It was first published in May 2005. In it he states:
“Heroin is a multi-billion dollar business supported by powerful interests…One of the ‘hidden’ objectives of the war (in Afghanistan) was precisely to restore the CIA-sponsored drug trade to its historical levels and exert direct control over the drug routes.
“Immediately following the October 2001 invasion, Opium markets were restored. By early 2002, the opium price…was almost 10 times higher than in 2000.”
Readers are reminded that “prior to the Soviet-Afghan War (1979-1989) opium production in Afghanistan and Pakistan was directed to small regional markets” and “there was no local production of heroin.”
Dr. Chossudovsky claims “the Afghan narcotics economy was a carefully designed project of the CIA, supported by US foreign policy”.
History lends some weight to the doctor’s claims. Out of the chaos that followed the Soviet-Afghan War, the ruling Taliban decreed that opium production be significantly curbed. That ruling was followed by another ordering that opium cultivation cease totally.
A solitary US Marine patrols a poppy field in Afghanistan.
There has been considerable speculation that America’s invasion of Afghanistan was prompted by this development. Whether true or not, one result of that military action is not in doubt: the opium ban was quickly lifted and Afghan opium production rapidly rose to record levels.
Of course, this could be passed off as coincidental. An innocent result of an invasion that saw Afghanistan’s war lords back in control and opium growth thriving once again. Indeed, that’s the official line and that’s how many perceive it.
However, if commentators and researchers are united about any one thing it’s that the CIA is inexorably linked to Afghanistan’s illicit drug trade and has been, in the words of one commentator, “since the agency funded Taliban fighters to oppose the Soviets”.
Read more in The Orphan Conspiracies: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy http://www.amazon.com/The-Orphan-Conspiracies-Conspiracy-Theories-ebook/dp/B00J4MPFT6/
A book that’s for the common people…the 99%.
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September 6, 2014
Must-read books for avid readers courtesy of Listopia
Here’s a list of Listopia-sponsored must-read books sourced on Goodreads.com – the world’s biggest online forum for authors and readers. The lists (based on reader popularity) include Favorite World Fiction & Literature, Top Books for Kindle Unlimited, Historical Romance from Around the World, Best Trilogies/Book Series Ever… and many, many more!
Favorite World Fiction & Literature
Top Books for Kindle Unlimited
Amazon Kindle Unlimited Must Reads
Best Books About the South Pacific
Multi Country Setting
Books By New Zealand Authors
Author Collaborations (Dynamic Duos)
Books by Authors Who Work in Multiple Genres
Best violent action novels
Books You’ve Burned
Best Trilogies/Book Series EVER!
Foreign Lands
Books at Making Connections Group
Best Action-Adventure Novels
Best Location-Based and History-Based Books to Read While Traveling
Great Coming-Of-Age Books
Cannibal Books
Historical Romance From Around The World
Great Romance Novels
For the full Listopia list go to: https://www.goodreads.com/list/book/20410937
Happy reading! Lance & James
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September 5, 2014
An invitation to all interested in how the world (really) works
In just three weeks our new Goodreads group “The Orphan Conspiracies” has topped 100 members, confirming our belief there’s a lot of authors, readers and others interested in how the world (really) works, politics and social sciences, global change, international peace, media studies and 21st Century history.
The group has been established to provide a public forum for interested parties to discuss any of the controversial topics explored in our non-fiction book THE ORPHAN CONSPIRACIES: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy.
Issues covered to date in the group’s discussion thread include false flag operations and the US military’s (true) proposal to kill Americans, MK-Ultra and Project Monarch mind control, Bilderberg and puppet masters pulling strings, the Federal Reserve and international banksters, polyglotting and genius techniques of the elite, Yamashita’s Gold and the multi-trillion dollar WW2 cover-up, Nikola Tesla and suppressed science, Royal welfare benefits and the Queen’s invisible riches, Big Pharma and the medical mafia, Jonestown, Ormus, the science of racism, the Fourth Reich, the price of a “free” media and more.
As we explain in the introduction to the group, our book was borne out of reader curiosity for it was not something we ever intended to write. However, when The Ninth Orphan, the first book in our international thriller series The Orphan Trilogy was published readers began commenting on or asking about the truth behind the real-life mysteries highlighted throughout. Since then, readers’ emails and social media posts have escalated with the publication of The Orphan Factory and The Orphan Uprising, books two and three in the trilogy.
Our book bridges the gap between fiction and fact. It fully explores the real-world suppositions, assumptions and theories we included in our fictional universe and provides answers to the questions our readers have been asking.
As we’ve said before, our mission in writing The Orphan Conspiracies was twofold: to expose the global agenda designed to keep the power in the hands of a select few (the top 1%) and to empower the masses with essential knowledge that’s been withheld from them until now.
Goodreads members appear to have welcomed our new group going by the comments received to date. Here’s what one new member has to say: “I’ve always had an affinity for alternate history books and especially conspiracy theories, so I’m excited to connect with like-minded people. I do subscribe to a policy of radical honesty, so if you ask for my opinion you will get it. Look forward to some lively debate!”
To join “The Orphan Conspiracies” group, or to check out what Goodreads members are saying about it, go to: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/142309-the-orphan-conspiracies-discussion-group
Everyone’s welcome! – Lance & James
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U.S. fusion centers likened to Nazi concentration camps
Many Americans will be familiar with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) conspiracy theory that insists the agency has set up hundreds of secret prisons – referred to by some as concentration camps – throughout the US to detain anyone deemed to present a threat to national security.
This theory may seem extreme to the common individual, but conspiracy theorists assure anyone who will listen that they have uncovered enough evidence to prove concentration camps are being built on American soil and are being managed by the military.
Locations of alleged FEMA camps in North America.
Apparently, these clandestine facilities will be used to detain dissenting American citizens once the one world government officially swings into action. But not everyone agrees – as we discovered when researching our book THE ORPHAN CONSPIRACIES: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy.
Even so, we uncovered sufficient speculation to warrant further investigation. If even one tenth of the speculation around FEMA camps is true, it’s cause for concern…
Here’s an excerpt from our book:
According to RationalWiki.org, “FEMA concentration camps exist in the mind of a particularly loopy bunch of conspiracy theorists who believe that mass internment facilities have been built across the continental United States by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, in preparation for a future declaration of martial law.”
RationalWiki goes on to say: “There are several videos purporting to show footage of the camps, as well as shots of ominous-looking fences and webpages listing locations of over 800 camps, allegedly all fully guarded and staffed full-time despite being completely empty.”
One of the videos RationalWiki undoubtedly refers to is an episode Governor Jesse Ventura made for his Conspiracy Theory television series. Shot in 2010 and titled Police State FEMA Camps,it was unaccountably pulled off air, but (at the time of writing) it can still be viewed on YouTube. It highlights so-called fusion centers and FEMA camps which, according to the program, have been set up “to imprison innocent Americans” who have been spied on and rounded up by “the secret government”.
An offical US prison supposedly converted to a FEMA center.
Comparisons with Nazi death camps
One of several informants Ventura’s team interviews describes fusion centers as “command centers for a network of concentration camps – similar to the Nazi concentration camps – for US citizens who don’t toe the line”. This is supported by footage of several modern establishments that do look suspiciously like concentration camps, complete with tight security and razor wire fences.
As the program’s voice-over would have us believe, “Jesse Ventura uncovers a plot to force martial law on law abiding citizens, replace 50 states with 10 giant prison sectors, fill up hundreds of concentration camps with people like you and me, and pull the trigger with a disease pandemic.”
In support of these assertions, Ventura and his TV crew visit one establishment where, from the cover of trees, hundreds of new plastic coffins can be seen stockpiled row upon row inside the perimeter fence, ostensibly in preparation for one of the pandemics referred to above. Soon after the arrival of Ventura’s team, trucks arrive and start transporting the coffins away, leaving viewers to draw their own conclusion.
The coffins, incidentally, are referred to by officialdom as “plastic grave-liners”.
Plastic coffins or grave-liners…stockpiled for what?
The fact that this particular episode of Conspiracy Theory was pulled off air, allegedly in response to Government pressure, would seem to lend some weight to the message Ventura was trying to get across. Certainly, it does give pause for thought.
Interestingly, the name Halliburton keeps cropping up in the video in relation to the coffins and the fusion centers that feature in it. Halliburton Company, of course, is the multinational corporation that George H.W. Bush, Dick Cheney and George W. Bush are connected with. Yes the same corporation involved in controversies dating back to the Iraq War. Anyway, Halliburton is named as the designer of the fusion centers, and one of its (unnamed) associate companies is said to have supplied the coffins.
Ventura interviews retired FBI agent Mike German who is especially critical of the fusion centers and their management. A 16-year veteran of the FBI, where he served as a Special Agent in domestic terrorism, bank fraud and public corruption investigations, German says the centers have no oversight or guidelines, and he agrees with Ventura that their management and purpose are undemocratic.
The episode of Jesse Ventura’s Conspiracy Theory series that was pulled off air.
It should be noted that not all conspiracy theorists have bought in to Governor Ventura’s assertions regarding the FEMA camps and fusion centers.
TopSecretWriters.com’s Ryan Dube calls Ventura’s assertions fear-mongering. Dube says, “True researchers not only track down leads in…documents and by conducting interviews, but more importantly they do not jump to conclusions based on shabby evidence. True conspiracy researchers remain honest with readers and viewers regarding what is actually known, and what remains unknown. Unfortunately, these are lessons that Jesse Ventura…never learned.”
Dube describes as “all lies” claims that the centers are spying on every American who speaks out against the government and that huge piles of “coffins” are being stored for future mass genocides. “It does legitimate conspiracy researchers…a great disservice to spread fear-mongering and disinformation in an effort to increase ratings and create misdirected fear among the American population,” he says.
Using documentation TopSecretWriters obtained, apparently on request, from the Department of Homeland Security Office of Intelligence and Analysis, Dube attempts to debunk core theories that Ventura highlights in the program.
“In fact, the effort by the DHS in creating these centers,” according to Dube, “was to allow local law enforcement to respond more quickly whenever someone is spotted casing out a bridge, a bank, or a high rise building as part of planning for another terrorist attack.”
Given Homeland Security would be first in the firing line if Governor Ventura’s allegations about the real purpose of the centers and camps were ever proven correct, we are not sure if the department is the most reliable source of information in this debate. Nevertheless, we accede that many Americans – possibly most – will accept Homeland Security’s word as gospel on this issue.
Regardless, images of prison-like camps and stockpiled items that look suspiciously like plastic coffins would appear to undermine the official explanation.
Read more in The Orphan Conspiracies: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy: http://www.amazon.com/The-Orphan-Conspiracies-Conspiracy-Theories-ebook/dp/B00J4MPFT6/
A book that’s for the common people…the 99%.
Not all is what it seems!
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September 4, 2014
Events around death of Osama Bin Laden raise more questions
Officially, Osama Bin Laden died in 2011 in Pakistan, but was that really him? To this day conspiracy theorists argue that Bin Laden was just a fabricated and much-needed bad guy manufactured by the Military Industrial Complex to enable it to legitimately wage the so-called War on Terror?
Osama Bin Laden…a manufactured bad guy?
We investigate events surrounding the death of Bin Laden and those surrounding the deaths of many other people, too, in our book THE ORPHAN CONSPIRACIES: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy. Those other people, incidentally, include the likes of Princess Diana, JFK, RFK, Martin Luther King, Pope John Paul I, Marilyn Monroe, John Lennon etc.
Our findings make for some interesting reading and serve as a reminder that not all is what it seems.
Getting back to Bin Laden, here’s an excerpt from the book:
In the FBI’s Vault records, the following appears on the Muslim leader’s file: “Usama (or Osama) Bin Laden, founder of the al Qaeda terrorist organization, was born in Saudi Arabia in 1957. On March 10, 1984, Bin Laden and others killed two German nationals. On March 16, 1998, authorities in Tripoli issued an arrest warrant for him for murder and illegal possession of firearms. Bin Laden was also wanted for the August 1998 bombing of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. He was killed by U.S. forces in May 2011.”
Furthermore, FBI records clearly label Bin Laden as the mastermind of 9/11, and as a result he inherited the mantel of Most Wanted during the War on Terror.
To most in the West – mainstream media included – the US Navy Seals’ termination of Bin Laden in Pakistan is where the terrorist leader’s story ends, but not for any conspiracy theorist worth his or her salt. They would argue there are too many unanswered questions and cute coincidences surrounding the man’s death – and surrounding his life, too, for that matter.
And conspiracy theorists aren’t the only ones raising questions. Media reports throughout the Middle East, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan have been awash with quotes from locals purporting to know the truth about Bin Laden. These reports speculate everything from his dying years earlier, even before 9/11, to still being alive and free today.
The Express Tribune, of Pakistan, reported that polls showed two-thirds of Pakistanis did not believe US reports stating Navy Seals had assassinated Bin Laden, and less than a quarter believed he was responsible for the 2001 terrorist acts on American soil.
More recently, Western media has joined in the speculation. For example, leading UK newspaper The Daily Mail ran an article on February 12, 2014 headed, U.S. special forces ordered the destruction of Osama bin Laden’s death photos two weeks after top secret seek and destroy mission to kill him. And The Wall Street Journal reported that an Egyptian bank manager formerly associated with the Muslim extremist claimed to be certain Bin Laden had died many years before the US announced they’d killed him.
Several prominent American celebrities have also publicly voiced their skepticism surrounding US claims regarding Bin Laden’s demise.
Bin Laden watches TV in his Pakistani safehouse.
Shortly after Bin Laden’s death was announced, former US Navy Seal Jesse Ventura made an interesting observation in a television interview that aired on CNN in June 2011. He reminded viewers of earlier reports stating “Bin Laden was on a dialysis machine 10 years ago.” Ventura added, “Experts have said the disease he suffered from is generally fatal within two years. How did he manage to survive 10?”
And back in 2007, American hip-hop artist and film star Mos Def appeared on Real Time with Bill Maher where he called Bin Laden a “boogeyman” and implied his whole existence was nothing more than a fabrication by the US Government to blame 9/11 on.
But let’s return to the crux of the story…After more than a decade of failing to find Bin Laden, suddenly he’s tracked, located and then killed? All in one evening? And on top of that, there’s not one shred of evidence to prove any of this occurred?
An aerial view of Bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan (above) and the compound up close (below).
As President Obama and his team of intelligence advisors watched real-time footage of Bin Laden’s termination in the comfort of the White House’s situation room, it was reported the then-director of the US National Counterterrorism Center, Michael Leiter, was first to speak. Apparently, Leiter said, “Holy shit!”
That’s not all he said, but bear with us. We just want to draw out the suspense a little.
“I don’t need facial recognition,” Leiter reportedly added. “We just killed Bin Laden!”
So clearly, nobody on American soil knew for a fact it was Bin Laden.
What about in Pakistan then? Surely, someone confirmed they’d just taken out the most wanted man on the planet?
Well, you’d think so, wouldn’t you? But this is where it gets a little murky.
After what seemed a surprisingly short period of time, a White House spokesman informed the world’s media that Bin Laden’s body had been flown to the USS Carl Vinson aircraft-carrier in the Arabian Sea where it (the body) was cast overboard in a weighted bag. The spokesman said this was all done “in conformance with Islamic precepts and practices”.
What the…?
Did we hear that right? Instead of keeping evidence in conformance with Western precepts and practices, the United States of America vetoed its own laws and diligently adhered to the customs and religious rituals of the world’s most wanted terrorist and those of the country that harbored him?
Again: What the…?
Remember, the bodies of Saddam Hussein’s sons, Uday and Qusay, were kept for 11 days before finally being buried. America didn’t go out of its way to follow Islamic protocols on that occasion, and nobody in the West complained about that.
But wait, it gets stranger still…
The Obama Administration released an image (above) to the media showing President Obama, Hillary Clinton and other members of the National Security team watching the raid live. According to the Administration, the footage came from a camera attached to a Navy Seal’s helmet. However, this was contradicted when CIA director Leon Panetta emphatically stated the feed had gone dead “for around 20 to 25 minutes” during the raid.
If the CIA director is correct, does that mean the photo of Obama, Clinton and others was staged in order to sell a story? What other conclusion could be drawn?
American anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan, whose son was killed on duty in Iraq, also questioned how the US had matched Bin Laden’s DNA with a member of the terrorist’s family in less than 24 hours. “The only proof of Osama being dead again that we were offered,” Sheehan wrote on her Facebook page as CNN reported on May 5, 2011, “was Obama telling us that there was a DNA match between the man killed by the Navy SEALs and OBL. Even if it is possible to get DNA done so quickly, and the regime did have bin Laden DNA lying around a lab somewhere — where is the empirical proof?”
Cindy Sheehan in front of the White House.
Sheehan concluded her Facebook post, “I am sorry, but if you believe the newest death of OBL, you’re stupid.”
Wikipedia accurately summarizes the persistent conspiracy theory surrounding the terrorist leader as follows: “Doubts about bin Laden’s death were fueled by the U.S. military’s disposal of his body at sea,the decision to not release any photographic or DNA evidence of bin Laden’s death to the public,the contradicting accounts of the incident (with the official story on the raid appearing to change or directly contradict previous assertions),and the 25-minute blackout during the raid on bin Laden’s compound during which a live feed from cameras mounted on the helmets of the U.S. special forces was cut off”.
Maybe all this smoke around Bin Laden’s demise doesn’t indicate a fire. And maybe all the perceived plot holes were caused by an unfortunate series of coincidences and misunderstandings – the type that lead to conspiracy theories blossoming out of nothing.
Hmmm…Those are big maybes.
Read more in The Orphan Conspiracies: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy – available now via Amazon at: http://www.amazon.com/The-Orphan-Conspiracies-Conspiracy-Theories-ebook/dp/B00J4MPFT6/
A book that’s for the common people…the 99%.
Not all is what it seems!
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September 3, 2014
Duology combines ‘World Odyssey’ and ‘Fiji: A Novel’ in an epic tale
The World Duology combines the historical adventure yarns World Odyssey and Fiji: A Novel in a gripping, epic tale that takes readers on a 19th Century journey of discovery – from England and America to Fiji and many places in between.
In book one, World Odyssey, ambitious American adventurer Nathan Johnson, sheltered English missionary Susannah Drake and irrepressible Cockney Jack Halliday each follow very different paths as they undertake journeys that span 16 years.
Nathan’s journey begins when runs away to sea and finds himself the slave of a Northwest American Indian tribe after his ship founders on a rocky shoreline; Susannah’s journey begins after she agrees to accompany her clergyman father to Fiji to help him run a mission station there, and they must endure a nightmare voyage they’re lucky to survive; Jack’s journey begins when he’s sentenced to seven years’ hard labor in the British penal colony of New South Wales after stealing hemp from an unscrupulous employer.
After traveling thousands of miles and experiencing the best and worst that life can offer, these three disparate individuals eventually end up in the remote archipelago of Fiji, in the South Pacific, where their lives intersect.
In book two, Fiji: A Novel, Jack sets himself up to trade Fijian kauri to European traders while Nathan trades muskets to the same natives Susannah and her father are trying to convert to Christianity. Conflict’s inevitable.
Susannah despises Nathan, but is also attracted to him. She soon finds she’s torn between her spiritual and sexual selves.
When their lives are suddenly endangered by marauding cannibals, all three are forced to rely on each other for their very survival.
Here’s what Amazon reviewers are saying about The World Duology:
★★★★★ “I was immediately drawn into the story, and the fast-paced action kept me turning the pages until the end. The historical and cultural details made it a highly interesting book offering an insight into the anthropological issues at a time when conflicts between different ethnic groups were solved by brutal violence. Between romance, action and historical accuracy, this story has all the elements of great entertainment. I would highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy historical fiction or epic adventures.” -Karine Brégeon (author of ‘Francette and the Mystery of the Deaf Soldier’)
★★★★★ “A truly gripping epic James Michener style!” -Historical Novel Review
★★★★★ “Great adventure.” -Lynelle Clark (author of ‘A Pirate’s Wife’)
★★★★★ “Historic fiction at its best.” -J.B. DiNizo (author of ‘Comings and Goings’)
★★★★★ “Read this and you will NOT be sorry!” -A Bit Of Everything Reviews
★★★★★ “Exciting adventure, exotic ports of call, and terrific characters.” -Lee Jordan (author of ‘A Whisper from Eden’)
★★★★★ “A spectacular journey by sea and through land you don’t want to miss!” -Remy Benoit (historian and author of ‘Peace, Now’)
THE WORLD DUOLOGY (World Odyssey / Fiji: A Novel) is available via Amazon at: http://www.amazon.com/World-Duology-Odyssey-Fiji-Novel-ebook/dp/B00HMQRMFG/
Happy Reading! Lance & James
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September 2, 2014
Q: Is there blood on your cell phone? A: Probably.
As most mobile phones contain coltan, it’s not too dramatic to say there’s blood on your cell phone – the blood of Congolese workers who are dying in their hundreds of thousands in a conflict that continues to claim many lives. There’s no doubt the demand for coltan is financing the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and helping to promote the evil that is child/slave labor.
Cell phones in all their innocence.
Many tens of thousands of children in the DRC are employed as miners – oftentimes in coltan mines. The work is primitive, dirty and dangerous.
In a chapter headed Blood Minerals, we address this pressing issue in our book THE ORPHAN CONSPIRACIES: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy. Here’s an excerpt:
Workers dig large craters in riverbeds to access the coltan. They then mix water and mud in big tubs to encourage the heavy coltan to settle on the bottom – much like gold miners did panning and sluicing for gold in years gone by. The mines management calls it child labor and officially employs children as young as 12 for this work; the outside world views it as slave labor, which is exactly what it is of course.
Child labor = slave labor in the DRC.
In an October 31, 2010 article by the leading Pakistani media outlet The Express Tribune, columnist Fatima Najm asks if “Pakistan’s 100 million cell phone users know their devices may be soaked in Congolese blood”.
Najm says within each of those phones are small amounts of coltan that add up to a lucrative illegal trade. “The explosive growth in the wireless industry means that demand for these tin ores collectively results in the rape and torture of hundreds of thousands of innocent Congolese people a year”.
The columnist points out that Congo is resource-rich, and its mighty river system has the potential to power all of Africa’s electricity needs. “Experts say stability in Congo could translate into peace and progress for all of Africa, but at least five neighboring countries have proxy militias battling each other in Congo for control of valuable tin ores”.
Najm makes an interesting comparison between Congolese coltan and diamonds, advising it’s logical to assume that “given the widespread violence attributed to coltan…one would imagine it would be destined for the same sort of notoriety as blood diamonds”.
Alas, not so, it would seem. ‘Blood diamonds’ obviously sounds a whole lot sexier than ‘blood coltan’ to Western media, moviegoers and the general public.
Blood Diamond the movie and star Leonardo DiCaprio made blood diamonds “sexy”.
Predictably, smart phone manufacturers and the like have been quick to distance themselves from the whole murky business. Some publish disclaimers, denying that they source coltan from militia’s operating in the DRC; many claim the supply chain for coltan mined in the DRC is so complex it’s impossible to ascertain whether it has been legally or illegally mined and supplied.
To be fair, several high profile manufacturers in the US and elsewhere are sourcing their coltan from outside the DRC and, indeed, outside central Africa until such time as the legitimacy of mining operations there can be more clearly established. However, they’re in the minority.
Cell phone consumers and others have long been questioning the legitimacy of products. For the most part, it appears their questions are falling on deaf ears. Perhaps it’s time to ask more questions – and ask them louder.
There has been a campaign in recent years to try to force the big multinational companies to disclose whether or not they use Congolese conflict minerals. However, it’s often impossible to prove where such minerals come from.
Just as crafty banksters frequently transfer vast sums of money between various offshore tax havens to conceal their money trail, corporations that profit from ultra-cheap Congolese conflict minerals have middle men – usually warlords – who smuggle minerals from country to country so it’s extremely difficult to trace their origins.
Convoluted smuggling routes make source of conflict minerals hard to trace.
Of course, the problem of conflict minerals isn’t limited to the Democratic Republic of the Congo; it exists throughout much of the African continent. Equally, the problem isn’t limited to Africa.
Read more in The Orphan Conspiracies: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy: http://www.amazon.com/The-Orphan-Conspiracies-Conspiracy-Theories-ebook/dp/B00J4MPFT6/
A book that’s for the common people…the 99%.
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September 1, 2014
‘Fiji’ a historical adventure that’s true to the era
By the mid-1800’s, Fiji has become a melting pot of cannibals, warring native tribes, sailors, traders, prostitutes, escaped convicts and all manner of foreign undesirables. It’s in this hostile environment an innocent young Englishwoman and a worldly American adventurer find themselves in the historical adventure, Fiji: A Novel.
Fiji: A Novel is book two in the historical adventure series The World Duology; it continues where book one, World Odyssey, left off…
In Fiji, Susannah Drake, a missionary, questions her calling to spread God’s Word as she’s torn between her spiritual and sexual selves. As her forbidden desires intensify, she turns to the scriptures and prayer to quash the sinful thoughts – without success.
Meanwhile, Nathan Johnson arrives to trade muskets to the Fijians and immediately finds himself at odds with Susannah. She despises him for introducing the white man’s weapons to the very people she is trying to convert and he pities her for her naivety. Despite their differences, there’s an undeniable chemistry between them.
When their lives are suddenly endangered by marauding cannibals, Susannah and Nathan are forced to rely on each other for their very survival.
*** WARNING: Fiji: A Novel is not for the squeamish. It’s gritty and lusty, and true to the era. ***
Here’s what Amazon reviewers are saying about Fiji: A Novel:
★★★★★ “A fabulous novel, beautiful for its blunt rawness, exotic scenery, and fascinating storyline.” -Historical Novel Review
★★★★★ “A well-written, totally absorbing novel.” -J.B. DiNizo (author of Comings and Goings)
★★★★ “A fantastic combination of romance and action.” -The Kindle Book Review UK
★★★★★ “A perfect plot, flawless writing and a consistent storyline with no kinks or glitches throughout.” -Review Buzz
★★★★★ “The richly woven world of Fiji sometimes comes across as a human Jurassic Park.” -Greg Kuhn (author & quantum physicist)
★★★★★ “A journey not only of adventure, but of heart, and most definitely of soul.” -Remy Benoit (historian and author of ‘Peace, Now’)
★★★★ “Reminiscent of the great South Pacific tales of Jack London and James Michener.” -John R. Lindermuth (historical novelist) Rambles Reviews
Fiji: A Novel is available via Amazon as a trade paperback and Kindle ebook at: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0057YCZM0/
Happy reading! -Lance & James
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August 31, 2014
Kindle Unlimited soon to launch internationally?
There’s a rumor that Amazon will soon be launching its controversial Kindle Unlimited ebook subscription reading service internationally.
Kindle Unlimited subscribers can download as many ebooks as they like.
The-digital-reader.com (quoting BuchReport.de as its source) reports that that Amazon will launch Kindle Unlimited at the Frankfurt Book Fair in October.
The writer admits he/she doesn’t know who BuchReport’s source is, but says, “I tend to believe this rumor.”
If true, the expansion of Kindle Unlimited has major ramifications for readers, authors and publishers worldwide. As we reported in our blog of August 10, “Almost overnight, Kindle Unlimited is changing the entire environment of not only the way people read, but also the way the world’s major publishers continue to sell books – or try to.”
Here’s an excerpt from the-digital-reader.com article:
As I reported when Kindle Unlimited launched in July, there was a report coming from a French publisher via the French media blog Actualitte that Kindle Unlimited would launch in France in September or October.
The Frankfurt Book Fair runs from 8 to 12 October this year, so it fits with the time frame, and since it is a major international book fair this would be an ideal time and place for Amazon to launch Kindle Unlimited. We still don’t know for sure whether Amazon will launch in select countries or every where at once, but I would bet on a global launch.
Launched in the US just over a month ago, Kindle Unlimited enables Amazon customers to download and read up to ten ebooks at a time. It costs $8.99, and offers access to a catalog of over 600,000 titles.
Amazon hasn’t revealed yet how many subscribers have signed up, but there are signs that KU is already having an effect on the Kindle Store best seller list.
Unlike Amazon’s competitor’s Scribd and Oyster, the Kindle Unlimited catalog draws almost entirely upon indie titles distributed via the KDP Select program with only a smattering of traditionally published books mixed in. Amazon has signed HMH, Scholastic, Wiliey, and a few other major publishers, but they do not yet have a deal with any of the Big 5 US trade publishers.
There’s also no information on major publishers in other countries and who they might have signed a deal with, but I would expect that information to be revealed when Kindle Unlimited launches internationally.
To read the full report go to: http://the-digital-reader.com/2014/08/25/kindle-unlimited-launch-internationally-frankfurt-book-fair/
German speakers can access the original BuchReport here: http://www.buchreport.de/nachrichten/verlage/verlage_nachricht/datum/2014/08/22/kindle-limited.htm
★★★★★ INVITATION: We’d love to hear from our followers, fellow authors, publishers/indie publishers and readers what you think about Kindle Unlimited. Let us know if you feel as positive about Amazon’s latest initiative as we do…and if not why not. Thanks!
Lance & James
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August 30, 2014
‘A totally engaging epic!’ according to the Historical Novel Review
Set in the 19th Century, WORLD ODYSSEY (The World Duology, #1) follows the fortunes of three young travelers as each embarks on an epic journey. Their dramatic adventures span sixteen years and see them engage with Native American Indians, Barbary Coast pirates, Aborigines, Maoris and Pacific Islanders as they travel around the world – from America to Africa, from England to the Canary Islands, to Australia, New Zealand and Samoa.
Ambitious American adventurer Nathan Johnson’s journey begins when he runs away to sea to escape a violent father. After surviving a shipwreck and enslavement by one of the indigenous tribes of America’s northwest, his stocks rise and he becomes a successful trader. When Nathan decides to visit Fiji to trade muskets to the natives, he doesn’t know it but his fortunes are about to change again.
Sheltered English missionary Susannah Drake’s journey begins after she agrees to accompany her clergyman father to Fiji to help him run a mission station there. They endure a nightmare voyage they’re lucky to survive. When Susannah finds herself sexually attracted to a young crewmember, she is forced to choose between her forbidden desires and the life her father has mapped out for her.
Irrepressible Cockney Jack Halliday’s journey begins when he steals hemp from an unscrupulous employer who owes him outstanding wages. For this he’s sentenced to seven years’ hard labor in the British penal colony of New South Wales. Jack escapes to Fiji only to be tracked down by a bounty hunter employed by the British Government to round up escaped convicts.
After traveling thousands of miles and experiencing the best and worst that life can offer, these three disparate individuals eventually end up in the remote archipelago of Fiji, in the South Pacific, where their lives intersect.
★ The adventures of Nathan, Susannah and Jack continue in FIJI: A NOVEL (The World Duology, #2). ★
Here’s what Amazon reviewers are saying about World Odyssey:
★★★★★ “World Odyssey is a sweeping historical saga.” -Karine Brégeon (author of ‘Francette and the Mystery of the Deaf Soldier’)
★★★★★ “A Totally Engaging Epic!” -Historical Novel Review
★★★★★ “Get ready to sail the high seas.” -Remy Benoit (historian and author of ‘Peace, Now’)
★★★★★ “A must read for any and everyone!” -A Bit Of Everything Reviews
★★★★★ “A wonderful read filled with adventure, tragedy, hope, struggles and overcoming the odds.” -Lynelle Clark (author of ‘A Pirate’s Wife’)
★★★★★ “Recommended for globe-trotting adventure fans.” -Jason Letts (author of ‘The Inevitable Trilogy’)
★★★★★ “Highly readable and thoroughly enjoyable.” -J.B. DiNizo (author of Comings and Goings)
★★★★★ “High Seas and Exotic Ports.” -Gary Jordan (author of ‘Leon’s Lair’)
World Odyssey is available via Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/World-Odyssey-Duology-1-ebook/dp/B00HHVOMO0/
Happy reading! -Lance & James
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