As a Canadian I of course have no influence on the upcoming American election, but I can say this. Anyone who votes for Santorum is a fool if what I have read is at all true. This article “Rick Santorum’s Top 10 Most Outrageous Campaign Statements” pretty much says it all for me – stay away from this guy.

Be sure to check out Santorum – I guess this is what he gets for. With the internet the way it is, you definitely dont want to get on the bad side of certain people.

 

Some reasons why I don’t like Rick Santorum:

• - Anti Abortion (Even in cases of Rape etc)
• - Anti Birth Control! (Wants to allow states to make birth control illegal!)
• - Anti Gay Marriage (says he will anul ALL same sex marriage if elected)
• - Anti Food Stamps (Says high obesity rates in the US make food stamps unnecessary)

Here is Barack Obama roasting Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents Dinner.

I have to say that when the next presidential election comes up, I hope Obama gets re-elected – nice to see someone in power who not only has a good sense of humor, but also can string a proper sentence together…

Okay, so it is no mystery that the Radiation from Japan has reached North America. The real question is, just how much has reached us?

I have seen several reports that say how much is here, and these reports compare it to xrays, and travel, etc. But I think that is an unfair comparison.

BC Local News states that measured levels of radiation reaching us are at 0.0000005 millisieverts.

They say a dental x-ray is about 0.015 millisieverts, or 30,000 times as much.

So on the surface it sounds like what we are getting is trivial, barely measurable… except for one thing. The radiation from Japan is constant, the radiation from a dental x-ray lasts no more than a second.

Lets assume that a dental x-ray lasts one second (I have no idea how long it really is, it could be a fraction of a second).

With that in mind, it would take 30,000 seconds for the exposure to radiation from Japan to equal that of a dental x-ray.

There are 86,400 seconds in a day (24hrs x 60 min x 60 seconds). That is nearly the equivalent of 3 dental x-rays. Would getting 3 dental x-rays a day be safe? Lets say the radiation exposure lasts 2 weeks. (I have no idea how long this exposure would actually last), but at 2 weeks, that is equivalent to getting about 42 dental x-rays. That cant be good can it?

I accidentally found this article: “Ten Dental X-rays ‘raise caner risk’.” If this study was true, and 10 dental x-rays can increase the cancer risk, then wouldn’t 42 of them in a 2 week period be 4 times as much of a risk?

Someone please tell me I am NOT onto something here… Have I made a big error in my calculations or understanding of something here? Drop a comment and let me know.

Note: Lets assume for a second, that a dental x-ray takes 1/10th of a second. That would still make the radiation from japan equivalent to roughly 4 x-rays over a 2 week period. Much less than my guesses above, but still more than they are comparing it too.

IMPORTANT UPDATE!!! – (March 28, 2011)

I received an email from an individual who manages a Nuclear Medicine Department. (I will source who he is if he replies to my email with permission). Essentially the radiation from Japan is on a “per-day” basis. So with that in mind, (assuming that my source is both legit, and correct) The actual excess radiation we are experiencing would be equal to one dental X-Ray approximately every 82 Years, not every 8 hours.

Assuming that this is all true, then I for one am convinced (that at the current levels) we are under no danger what so ever.

(Lets just hope the levels of radiation that find their way over here don’t increase at an significant level).

I don’t know. I think a big earthquake here in North America is Imminent… not so sure about in the next few weeks. But Jim Berkland, who successfully predicted the 1989 California quake days before it happened, says its going to happen again, and before the end of the month.

What he says sounds credible, but who knows. Make your own judgment about this. Here is the video from *cough* Fox News.

The Pacific North West is long over due for a large earth quake. Over the past year the world has seen 4 very large and devastating earthquakes around the Ring of Fire.

• Chile: Saturday Feb 27, 2010 – 8.8
• Chile: Thursday March 11, 2010 – 7.2
• New Zealand: Tuesday Feb 22, 2011 – 6.3
• Japan: Friday March 11, 2011 – 9.0

If you plot out where each of these earthquakes are along the ring of fire, you will see that they fall in three of the 4 corners of the pacific. The missing Corner – North America.

These earthquakes also flow clockwise around the ring of fire starting in Chili, then New Zealand, then Japan, and next… well, it could be the Pacific North West…

So is California, or anyone along the West Coast of North America due for an earthquake? Well, I don’t really know. Earthquakes are very unpredictable, BUT if they did follow a pattern, it would seem that we are next, and fairly soon.

If we look at the history of the past 50 years, the Juan de Fuca Subduction zone is the only fault line on the Ring of Fire that has not had a major earthquake. Its not a matter of if, but a matter of when.

So, while I am not a scientist, nor do I have an online PhD, and have NO relevant education to back up my prediction, I am going to go out on a limb and make a prediction. I hope I am wrong, I probably am wrong, but here it is:

I predict a quake greater than 8.5 to hit somewhere between California and the west coast of Vancouver Island, most likely on the Juan de Fuca Subduction zone, in February of 2012.

Now we wait and see…

If you had planned on purchasing some Potassium Iodide as a precautionary measure in case radiation reaches us from Japan, think again.

According to the article “U.S. Government Blocking Americans From Obtaining Potassium Iodide” getting your hands on these pills could be extremely difficult.

I can’t say I blame the government for blocking the sale of Potassium Iodide. This panic purchasing behaviour is going to quickly destroy the supply, and in the event that those in some areas really need it, they won’t be able to get it, while others who have no real threat hoard all the pills.

Since pharmacies are apparently not allowed to sell potassium iodide now, the only place to turn may be online at places like eBay.

If you are thinking of just grabbing some online, make sure your credit card has some room on it. Fourteen tablet packages that typically sell for $10 to $15 are going for prices upwards of $500. As of the time of this writing there was one ebay listing with 38 bids and a little over an hour to go – bidding had reached $520.

There are also plenty of pills available with “Buy it Now” prices at well over $1000. Most online retailers are reporting that their supply is running out, or has run out.

So while it may be difficult to get your hands on some Potassium Iodide, if you trust what the experts are saying, we may not need it here in Canada and the US…. Lets hope so anyways.

As someone who had numerous hip surgeries as a child, if it weren’t for the health care system here in Canada my parents would have been bankrupt, I would have ended up in a wheelchair, or both. BUT Because of our health care, I walk round just like everyone else with a small limp – people I have known for years sometimes notice it and say “Oh, did you hurt your foot?”

I believe the United States is the only developed nation in the world that has seen medical bankruptcies. Lives destroyed, and people die because they can’t afford to seek medical treatment.

Here in Canada I can walk into any emergency room knowing that no matter how bit or small my problem, I will be treated fairly, properly, and for free!

Sure I pay for this indirectly with my tax dollars, but its the best tax dollars I’ve ever spent.

This is largely why I am so extremely confused why so many American’s are against Health Care. I can see politicians being against it as it costs money, and I can see private hospitals against it as it would put an end to the $100 cotton swab, but for those working class citizens, why on earth would you not want this?

Please, if you are an American and you are reading this, leave me a comment and help me understand why you would not want health care. Honestly, in the end it doesn’t impact me. I’m covered, but I still don’t understand.