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.........

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Nicolae Ceausescu: remains 'exhumed for DNA tests'..[1497 ]

Nicolae Ceausescu: former Romanian dictator's remains 'exhumed for DNA tests'

The remains of the former Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife Elena are being exhumed for DNA testing to prove they were buried in a Bucharest graveyard, officials said on Wednesday.

 
1 of 4 Images
Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife Elena's remains 
were being exhumed: Nicolae Ceausescu:  former Romanian dictator's 
remains 'exhumed for DNA tests'
Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu Photo: REX FEATURES
 
The former communist dictator ruled the country with an iron hand from 1965 until 1989 before he and his wife were executed by firing squad after a revolt by Romanians.
But the couple's three children have constantly expressed doubts their parents were actually buried in the graveyard in Ghencea, western Bucharest.

They have fought a long running battle for the remains to be exhumed, claiming there was no paperwork to prove they were in fact buried there.

On Wednesday, their son-in-law, Mircea Opran, who was married to the couple’s late daughter, Zoe, confirmed their remains were being dug up in order for DNA tests that could finally prove their identity.
"Today, the corpses will be exhumed in order to get samples for DNA testing. We have to know if it is really them who are buried here,” he told local television.

A cemetery official later confirmed that the exhumation had already begun and was due to be completed on Wednesday. It remains unclear what prompted the exhumation.
After street protests against his communist regime, Ceausescu and his wife fled Bucharest in December 1989.

They were arrested a few hours later before being summarily tried and executed on Christmas Day that year.
Their remains were buried in Ghencea military graveyard, authorities said.

But such was the hatred towards the couple that they were buried secretly at night with false names on the crosses amid fears their graves would be vandalised.

The couple's three children had previously asked the courts to allow the bodies to be exhumed so DNA tests could be carried out, a request that was erjected twice.
But in June 2008 the Romanian Court of Appeal ordered the country’s defence ministry to prove to the couple's only surviving son, Valentin, that the couple were buried there.

Today the graves, marked with marble crosses by people nostalgic for the days of communism, have become a place of pilgrimage.
Zoe Ceausescu, or Zoia, a mathematician, was arrested in December 1989 alongside her husband Mircea Oprean and her brother Valentin and charged with undermining the national economy. They were released eight months later.

Her youngest brother, Nicu, a Communist Party official, was charged with genocide in the deaths of 89 people in the central city of Sibiu.
He served three years of a 20-year prison sentence before he was released in November 1993 on health grounds.
Nicu died in 1996.

Is blasphemy to call this funny carnival as "Olympiad"...[ 1496 ]

The 6th Annual Chap Olympiad 2010 in pictures



The aim of the event is for a team of chaps to mix the perfect dry
 martini
The aim of the event is for a team of chaps to mix the perfect dry martini
Picture: EDDIE MULHOLLAND

...and throws her cucumber sandwich discus
...and throws her cucumber sandwich discus Picture: EDDIE MULHOLLAND
One chap tries to launch his discus using his braces...
One chap tries to launch his discus using his braces...Picture: EDDIE MULHOLLAND
 For God's shake....
It is a blasphemy to call this funny and miserable carnival as "Olympiad"....Oh!! what else ?
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The Gulf of Mexico from the satellite..[ 1495 ]

Oil Slick in the Gulf of Mexico

Earth Observatory....Posted July 21, 2010
Oil Slick in the Gulf of Mexico
download large image (11 MB, JPEG) acquired July 20, 2010
download Google Earth file (13 KB, KMZ) acquired July 20, 2010


The Gulf of Mexico was speckled and streaked with small clouds on July 20, 2010, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this image. 

Between the clouds, however, a silvery-gray streak of oil remained visible offshore of the Mississippi River Delta. The tan-colored waters around the river delta are full of sediment.

In photo-like images such as this one, oil is most visible when it is located in the sunglint part of the scene—the place where the mirror-like reflection of the Sun off the water gets blurred into a wide bright strip by small waves and ripples.

Our recently published Gulf Oil Slick Images: Frequently Asked Questions explains why oil is most visible in the sunglint part of satellite image and why the Earth Observatory doesn’t post new images of the slick every day.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

NASA image of the Day, July 20th .. [ 1494 ]

The latest NASA "Image of the Day" image.

NASA and Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC) officials joined with flight controllers to celebrate the successful conclusion of the Apollo 11 lunar landing mission in the Mission Control Center. 
 
From left foreground Dr. Maxime A. Faget, MSC Director of Engineering and Development; George S. Trimble, MSC Deputy Director; Dr. Christopher C. Kraft Jr., MSC Director fo Flight Operations; Julian Scheer (in back), Assistant Adminstrator, Office of Public Affairs, NASA HQ.; George M. Low, Manager, Apollo Spacecraft Program, MSC; Dr. Robert R. Gilruth, MSC Director; and Charles W. Mathews, Deputy Associate Administrator, Office of Manned Space Flight, NASA HQ. 
 
Image Credit: NASA
Τρίτη, 20 Ιούλιος 2010 7:00:00 πμ
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Lockerbie bomber "should have died in jail",..[ 1493 ]

David Cameron: 'Lockerbie bomber should have died in jail'

Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi "should have died in jail", David Cameron said today as he sought to calm renewed criticism in the United States of his release amid fresh questions over the role played by BP.

David Cameron attacks Gordon Brown as 'sick' and 'macho' over 
family welfare
Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi "should have died in jail", David Cameron said today. Photo: PA
 
The Prime Minister, making his first official visit to Washington since taking office, said the decision to free al-Megrahi had been "profoundly misguided" but denied that the beleaguered oil giant had been in any way involved.

Earlier, No 10 said that Mr Cameron had now agreed to meet a group of US senators who are pressing for a new investigation into the case.
Previously officials had said that Mr Cameron was unable to find time for talks with the senators in his "very full schedule" and had instead offered them a meeting with the British ambassador Sir Nigel Sheinwald.

With the political firestorm over BP in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico threatening to dominate his visit, the Prime Minister again sought to distance himself from the decision last year of the Scottish Government to allow al-Megrahi to return to Libya.

"I will say to them (the senators) that I agree that the decision to release al-Megrahi was wrong. I said it was wrong at the time," he told National Public Radio in Washington.

"It was the Scottish Government that took that decision. They took it after proper process and what they saw as the right, compassionate reasons. I just happen to think it was profoundly misguided.

"He was convicted of the biggest mass murder and in my view he should have died in jail. I said that very, very clearly at the time; that is my view today.

"Of course BP has got to do everything necessary to cap the oil well, to clean up the spill, to pay compensation. I have met with BP and I know they want to do that and will do that.

"But let's be clear about who released al-Megrahi... it was a Government decision in the UK. It was the wrong decision. It was not the decision of BP - it was the decision of Scottish ministers."