The Hellenic Navy (HN) (Greek: Πολεμικό Ναυτικό, Polemikó Naftikó, abbreviated ΠΝ) is the naval force of Greece, part of the Greek Armed Forces. The modern Greek navy has its roots in the naval forces of various Aegean Islands, which fought in the Greek War of Independence. During the periods of monarchy (1833–1924 and 1936–1973) it was known as the Royal Navy (Βασιλικόν Ναυτικόν, Vasilikón Naftikón, abbreviated ΒΝ).The total displacement of all the navy's vessels is approximately 150,000 tons.The motto of the Hellenic Navy is "Μέγα το της Θαλάσσης Κράτος" from Thucydides' account of Pericles' oration on the eve of the Peloponnesian War. This has been roughly translated as "Great is the country that controls the sea". The Hellenic Navy's emblem consists of an anchor in front of a crossed Christian cross and trident, with the cross symbolizing Greek Orthodoxy, and the trident symbolizing Poseidon, the god of the sea in Greek mythology. Pericles' words are written across the top of the emblem. "The navy, as it represents a necessary weapon for Greece, should only be created for war and aim to victory."...............The Hellenic Merchant Marine refers to the Merchant Marine of Greece, engaged in commerce and transportation of goods and services universally. It consists of the merchant vessels owned by Greek civilians, flying either the Greek flag or a flag of convenience. Greece is a maritime nation by tradition, as shipping is arguably the oldest form of occupation of the Greeks and a key element of Greek economic activity since the ancient times. Nowadays, Greece has the largest merchant fleet in the world, which is the second largest contributor to the national economy after tourism and forms the backbone of world shipping. The Greek fleet flies a variety of flags, however some Greek shipowners gradually return to Greece following the changes to the legislative framework governing their operations and the improvement of infrastructure.Blogger Tips and Tricks
This is a bilingual blog in English and / or Greek and you can translate any post to any language by pressing on the appropriate flag....Note that there is provided below a scrolling text with the 30 recent posts...Αυτό είναι ένα δίγλωσσο blog στα Αγγλικά η/και στα Ελληνικά και μπορείτε να μεταφράσετε οποιοδήποτε ποστ σε οποιαδήποτε γλώσσα κάνοντας κλικ στη σχετική σημαία. Σημειωτέον ότι παρακάτω παρέχεται και ένα κινούμενο κείμενο με τα 30 πρόσφατα ποστς....This is a bilingual blog in English and / or Greek and you can translate any post to any language by pressing on the appropriate flag....Note that there is provided below a scrolling text with the 30 recent posts...Αυτό είναι ένα δίγλωσσο blog στα Αγγλικά η/και στα Ελληνικά και μπορείτε να μεταφράσετε οποιοδήποτε ποστ σε οποιαδήποτε γλώσσα κάνοντας κλικ στη σχετική σημαία. Σημειωτέον ότι παρακάτω παρέχεται και ένα κινούμενο κείμενο με τα 30 πρόσφατα ποστς.........

Saturday, September 4, 2010

Disgrace of Mexican eagle..[ 1742 ]



Cartoon of Mexican flag draws criticism

By Rafael Romo, CNN
September 4, 2010 -- Updated 0645 GMT (1445 HKT)


Click to play
Mexican flag cartoon controversy


    Mexico City, Mexico (CNN) -- An American's cartoon showing the eagle in the Mexican flag dead in a pool of blood is drawing criticism.
    The sketch created by political cartoonist Daryl Cagle depicts the green, white, and red Mexican flag with a bullet-riddled eagle sprawled in the center of the emblem. Mexico's coat of arms includes the eagle perched on a prickly pear cactus, devouring a snake.

    Cagle says he created the cartoon to depict the violence rampant in parts of Mexico.
    "Editorial cartoonists look for readily recognizable metaphors and that's an obvious one for Mexico," says Cagle.
    More than 28,000 people have died in Mexico since President Felipe Calderón declared war on drug cartels after taking office in December 2006.

    But the cartoon has offended many Mexicans who feel their national symbol is off limits, especially to foreign cartoonists.
    Many readers reacted angrily when the cartoon was displayed on the front page of newspapers.
    "It is a shame that a patriotic symbol like our flag, which is so beautiful to me, can be mocked by a stupid cartoonist," wrote a reader to the Mexico City newspaper El Universal. "I think there are many other ways to graphically protest what's happening in our country."

    Ricardo Alday, a spokesman for the Mexican Embassy in Washington, said that "as any democratic society, Mexico respects and defends freedom of speech and freedom of expression, in any way it's manifested. Regarding the case of Mr. Cagle's cartoon, we differ on the use he makes of the Mexican flag and the message it conveys."

    Mexican cartoonist Paco Calderón reprinted Cagle's cartoon on the Reforma newspaper, adding his own comment.
    "I'm not offended by the cartoon. I'm offended by reality and the huarache-wearing Taliban members," he said. Huarache is a type of a Mexican sandal and Calderón was using the reference to talk about members of the seven drug cartels terrorizing Mexico.

    Even President Felipe Calderón admits the situation in his country is dire.
    "As we all know, we face unscrupulous criminals with enormous economic capacity and great firepower," said the president in his fourth state-of-the-nation speech Thursday. "I am fully aware that in the past year the problem of violence has risen."

    Cagle admits he's somewhat surprised by the reaction to his cartoon. "This one has been a little unusual in that it has been splashed all over the press in Mexico and I've been hearing quite a lot about it," he says.
    Cagle, who is the editorial cartoonist for msnbc.com, says his work appears in 850 subscribing newspapers around the world.

    "All I was looking to here is make a statement that the violent in Mexico is terrible and make it visually compelling."
    In 2008, Mexican pop sensation Paulina Rubio was fined more than $4,000 after posing nude wrapped in the flag for Cosmpolitan, a Spanish magazine.

    Friday, September 3, 2010

    Earthquake 7.0 hits New Zealand...[ 1741 ]

    Quake of 7.0 hits New Zealand near Christchurch





    WELLINGTON | Fri Sep 3, 2010 2:29pm EDT
     
    Christchurch,New Zealand

    WELLINGTON (Reuters) - A major earthquake of 7.0 magnitude hit New Zealand, 30 km (20 miles) west of Christchurch early Saturday morning, causing no immediate reports of casualties but widespread damage, authorities said.


    The quake, which had a depth of 33 kms (20.5 miles), was felt throughout much of the South Island and southern parts of the North Island, but did not trigger a tsunami.


    Police in Christchurch, New Zealand's second-largest city with a population of about 342,000 people, said there were many reports of broken windows, items thrown off shelves, toppled chimneys, with power and water services disrupted.


    Radio New Zealand reported that the quake was felt as a long rolling motion lasting up to 40 seconds. The area was continuing to feel aftershocks.

    "No destructive widespread tsunami threat exists based on historical earthquake and tsunami data," the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.

    New Zealand scientists record around 14,000 earthquakes a year, of which around 20 top magnitude 5.0.


    The last fatal earthquake in the geologically active country, caught between the Pacific and Indo-Australian tectonic plates, was in 1968 when an earthquake measuring 7.1 killed three people on the South Island's West Coast.

    (Reporting by Gyles Beckford; Editing by Peter Graff/David Stamp)

    NASA Image of the Day, Sep 3rd..[ 1740 ]

    The latest NASA "Image of the Day" image.

    The sands of time are running out for the central star of this the Hourglass Nebula. With its nuclear fuel exhausted, this brief, spectacular, closing phase of a sun-like star's life occurs as its outer layers are ejected and its core becomes a cooling, fading white dwarf. In 1995, astronomers used the Hubble Space Telescope to make a series of images of planetary nebulae, including the one above. 
     
    Here, delicate rings of colorful glowing gas (nitrogen-red, hydrogen-green, and oxygen-blue) outline the tenuous walls of the 'hourglass.' 
     
    The unprecedented sharpness of Hubble's images revealed surprising details of the nebula ejection process and may resolve the outstanding mystery of the variety of complex shapes and symmetries of planetary nebulae. 
     
    Image Credit: NASA, WFPC2, HST, R. Sahai and J. Trauger (JPL)
    Παρασκευή, 3 Σεπτέμβριος 2010 7:00:00 πμ

    Military cooperation between Russia and EU ..[ 1739 ]

    Russia, EU to discuss military cooperation
     
    TREND /// - 03.09.2010 07:52
     
    Russia, EU to discuss military cooperation

    Chief-of-Staff of the Russian armed forces Nikolai Makarov will meet on Friday Chairman of the EU Military Committee and Swedish General Hakan Syren to "discuss vital problems of military cooperation between Russia and European Union countries in maintaining peace and security on the European continent," the Russian defense ministry said, ITAR-TASS reported.

    Syren will visit a motorized infantry division of the Moscow military district.


    The visit will last up to September 4, the ministry said.

    Russian-Mongolian antiterrorism exercises..[ 1738 ]

    Russian-Mongolian military exercises begin in South Siberia

    TREND ///  03.09.2010 09:28



    Russian-Mongolian military exercises begin in South Siberia

    Joint Russian-Mongolian antiterrorism exercises have begun in the southern Siberian Republic of Buryatia, the Siberian Military District's press service said on Friday, RIA Novosti reported.


    "About 200 Mongolian servicemen arrived to the camp. Slightly more than 60 people, mostly drivers, are still on their way," the press service said in a statement.


    The drills, called Darkhan-3, will involve up to 1,000 Russian and Mongolian servicemen and 200 items of hardware. They will be held in three stages, with the active stage to begin on Sunday.