Cap Phantom

Smoking bans are the most preferred and implemented measures taken up in order to combat the epidemic of smoking addiction. The smoking bans found easy implementation following the fact that smoking is an evil that also has characteristics like passive smoking and contaminating the environment at large. In most of the developed countries smoking has been banned indoors. Even in the places like pubs and restaurants where smoking was a common sight and a trend the ban has been implemented. In many of the countries the concerned authorities have also gone a step further and passed smoking bans in the outdoors like the parking lots, roads, schools vicinity etc. People are also found to be warmly welcoming the acts for the greater good of the society and the smokers have no other choice but to accept the rules. They can definitely go against the laws but at the risk of paying huge penalties. So it is natural that people decide otherwise.

However, banning of smoking is not all that easy as it seems to be. The governments or the concerned authorities have to take many related issues into account. Various financial, political, and social issues have to be addressed in order to take steps like banning of one of the most pervasive and revenue generating addictions.

US have one of the largest smoking addicted populations. It is nothing short of an epidemic in this country, in fact in US huge expenses are incurred in treating the smoking related illnesses. The human resource that it was losing was another matter of grave concern and hence the need of smoking bans. There was however, a very major hurdle towards achieving this goal. The US constitution prevents the implementation of any form of smoking ban in the country by the United States Congress under the federal law. This rule is laid down in Article One of the constitution. But as they say, where there is a will there is a way. Different states of USA came up with smoking bans in their respective states as according to the Tenth Amendment of the Constitution the power to enact smoking bans were vested with the states. Thus, the purpose was solved without making the extreme move of violating the Constitution of the country.

This is a lesson to learn from for India which is also a country where smoking is extremely widespread. India also has a large number of people addicted to chewing tobacco. Still India has not experienced any effective smoking bans as of now. In India the Amendment of the Constitution also becomes a very thorny subject primarily because of the innumerable number of parties existing in this country. But where the matter of public welfare comes in, all the other differences should be kept aside and a way out should be sought amicably. It is indeed sad when the Constitution which is for the welfare of the people, comes in the way of its very purpose.

Today, giving up the addiction of smoking has become easier with the help of the quit smoking drugs. Pfizer chantix is a popular quit smoking pill. The drug is easily available in the online pharmacies from where you can buy chantix online. The chantix side effects can be dangerous at times hence the prescription is mandatory. The good news is that the drug is marketed online and no constitution objects to buying or selling of quit smoking drugs.

Crude oil prices have reached $140. The US dollar has lost hugely against the Euro and the Canadian dollar. Petroleum prices will continue their unstoppable surge, which is driven by steadily increasing demand, Wall Street speculation, and OPEC refusal to meet demand.

Present and previous US administrations have made no serious efforts to develop effective countermeasures. The attempt of the Bush administration to gain control of oil in the Middle East has failed. Highly subsidized US ethanol production from corn has not made a dent in petroleum demand, but has led to a huge rise in worldwide grain and food prices.

Instead, the administration and many politicians are demanding energy conservation and a failing “Cap and Trade” permit system. Drilling for oil in Alaska and offshore is another request by oil lobbyists.

Countermeasures have not contributed anything to produce supplies. However, ill conceived solutions have made many politically connected people very rich. Greed has trumped patriotism!

For more than twenty years, politicians, industry, media, and citizens are discussing the issue of oil imports and their pernicious effects on the US economy. In May 2008 the US imported 14.2 million barrels of crude oil per day. At $140 per barrel the USA gives away roughly $2 billion every single day to foreign nations! In addition, a substantial amount of refined fuels is imported. This means that the US is approaching a shameful threshold, when it pays $1 trillion dollars for foreign fuel imports annually. These huge funds could do wonders for the US economy, if they would be spent on energy supplies produced by our own industry, inside the US.

The US has a severe energy problem. It possesses huge reserves of coal and oil shale. However, coal, oil, and natural gas emit large amounts of greenhouse gases when burned. Fossil fuel combustion is the cause of global warming. We cannot dare to continue the continuing the use of fossil fuels for more than a couple of decades. Otherwise, too much carbon dioxide will accumulate in the Earth’s atmosphere and will lead to an acceleration of global warming. Global warming is responsible for climate change and for mounting damages to nature, worldwide assets, and people. Melting of glaciers and ice in the Polar Regions is already a growing and unstoppable threat.

Electricity and liquid transportation fuels are the lifeblood of our economies. Economic growth is not possible without plentiful, affordable, and secure energy supplies. Economies will fail when supplies of petroleum become scarce, when global warming keeps inflicting damages, and when petroleum prices keep continuing their skyward move.

Are there any solutions that can be developed and implemented before petroleum is depleted and before global warming exceeds the 3 to 4 degree Celsius global warming threshold?

Fortunately, there are many alternate approaches for generating electricity that will not emit greenhouse gases.

Surprisingly, there seems to be only one single concept, which has the potential to produce sufficient substitute supplies of liquid transportation fuels. This concept is the conversion of biomass into liquid petroleum substitutes. Unfortunately, early in 2008, this concept has been discredited by the ill conceived production of fuel ethanol from food crops.

Conversion of biomass into fuel is the one and only option, which we may be able to develop to maturity in the next thirty years. We must learn how to use sunlight, water, carbon dioxide, and fertilizer and convert them into biomass. Categorically, food crops are not suited for conversion into fuels. Food crops have been selected, domesticated, and bred to provide storable, tasty, and nutritious foods. Energy crops must be selected based on entirely different properties. Energy crops must have very high energy content, must provide very high crop yields, and must grow very fast. This means that we must find and further breed plants with very high energy yields; i.e. plants with the highest production of energy per acre per year.

Nature has been converting sunlight into biomass for millions of years. In fact, the Earth’s generous fossil fuel reserves are nothing else but biomass converted into coal, petroleum, and natural gas. All we have to do is to imitate nature’s example. Obviously, there must be a major obstacle. We do not know exactly which processes nature used to make petroleum. And we have a major handicap to overcome. We are allowed only hours for conversion. Nature may have taken her time and may have used thousands or even millions of years for the same conversion.

We have learned the hard way that the conversion of food crops into liquid fuels creates market forces, which cannot be controlled unless the world installs huge regulatory bureaucracies. Instead, we must use a concept for producing petroleum substitutes that cannot be manipulated.

Most sunshine reaches Earth near the equator in tropical and sub-tropical regions. Numerous arid regions, without sufficient precipitation, are located in these lands, too. By placing large, industrial scale biomass plantations into these areas, we prevent the abuse of fertile lands for food production. We can also prevent the further deforestation of rain forests and the abuse of other, primeval lands.

Water is the commodity that is missing in these areas. Lack of water is the reason these lands are arid. Therefore, we must use seawater and use heat from the sun to produce desalinated freshwater.

Finally, the US must establish an autonomous agency with the mission, program, and budget to make the US independent of foreign oil imports! The energy industry does not have the means and incentives.

The Cuba Tobbaco Trading, Thompson Cigar Company, Edwards Pipe & Tobacco, The Ybor City, and Casa Fuente Cigar Bar are among the well-known cigar shops in the USA found in three cigar cities -Tampa, Miami and Las Vegas.

If you are a cigar aficionado searching for some affable city where you can lap up a smoke, you sure can find them. Miami, Florida provides a profuse Cuban cigar ethnicity. Tampa, Florida is celebrated for a vivid history of cigar. Las Vegas offers you recreational galore and smoking delight.

Miami, Florida is one place where the finest cigars are sold. Little Havana is an area of the city that is greatly entrenched in Cuban cigar customs. May Cuban settlers own cigar specialty shops there. The Cuba Tobacco Trading by Pedro and Peter Bello is one of the most sought after shops in Miami.

Tampa is prominent for some its cigar retailers such as Thompson Cigar Company and Edwards Pipe & Tobacco. The Ybor City, on the other hand, was the late 18th century’s Cigar Capital of the World. It is now evolved into a favorite entertainment quarter.

The Edward’s Pipe & Tobacco has also stores in Colorado, and North Dallas. The store has been offering eclectic pipes, cigars and a wide collection of accessories like lighters. It’s been in the business since 1964.

Thompson Cigar Company was established in Key West, Florida in 1915. Thompson is USA’s oldest mail order cigar business, which still carries the Postal Permit number 1 for Tampa, Florida. The company’s commitment to supply an extensive choice of products at sensible prices continues. Thompson Cigar Company also owns and runs the country’s biggest supply storage humidor, which was specially developed to ensure the freshness and quality of each tobacco sold.

The company’s call center that’s consists of 200 customer-oriented, courteous staff provides answers to your concerns regarding cigar. You can place your order online or you can visit Thomson Cigar store in Tampa, Monday through Saturdays.

The Ybor City adjacent to downtown Tampa has a tradition of cigar production. Tired of constant political strife of his country, Don Vicente Martinez Ybor, owner of a cigar factory in Cuba, escaped to Tampa, Florida and set up his cigar territory there. With the flourishing of Ybor’s factories, Jewish, Cuban, and Italian settlers were drawn to either establish their own trades or work in the factories. Renowned as the Ybor City, the locality contained 200 cigar factories and 12,000 cigar makers or tabaqueros generating an approximated 700 million cigars annually. However, the Ybor City went to seed when the ban and depression plagued the region. The Ybor City developed into a National Historical Landmark over the passing of so many years. Nowadays, tourists are fascinated with the vivaciousness of its ambiance, distinctiveness of its history, and idiosyncrasies of its architecture. This bubbly Latin district even takes pride in its own fermented beer referred to as the Ybor Gold.

Cigars are manually rolled even now by expert tabaqueros, and Roberto Ramirez is one of the most illustrious. Born in Cuba, and ranked among the world’s top ten greatest cigar rollers, Roberto is one of the White House’s guests tasked to exhibit his expertise. Ybor City guests can pay a visit to Gonzalez Martinez Cigar Factory found on 21st Street and 7th Avenue and see the handiwork of pro tabaqueros who flaunt their skill everyday.

Casa Fuente Cigar Bar is a smoker’s haven in Las Vegas. When you’re in the city, be sure to stop at Casa Fuente that’s located at the Caesar’s Palace. Casa Fuente is more than just a family store selling Arturo Fuente cigars; it is a bar that offers a choice of beverages like wines and cocktails, too. The Fuente cigars are trendy, exclusive products that come from Dominican Republic.

The Cuban-themed establishment of Casa Fuente is welcoming, with mosaic-designed floors and Fuente family’s portraits adorns the interior.

The power of black community is rising constantly with black leaders proving their leadership qualities and mettle. The success of black community is entirely based on the positive efforts of black entrepreneurs, black CEO’s, black executives and black business leaders around the world. Their success and vision have inspired the growth of blacks not only in USA but also in the rest parts of the world as well. Here, we’ll highlight the achievements of Barack Obama, who has dominated the political scenario in the US.

The rising success of Mr. Obama has proved that sky is unlimited for those who know how to make a world of their own. Democrat Barack Obama of Illinois has been running the country’s presidential elections, soon to be held this year in US.

For reaching on the top of this electoral battle, he has to beat arch rival Hillary Clinton in the Democratic nomination and Republican John McCain in the general election. Obama would be the country’s first black president if he wins the election.

In 2004 Democratic National Convention, Obama first shot to fame with his roaring speech in which he talked about his personal story in concern with the traditional American ideologies of independence and desires.

Obama, the son of a Kenyan father and a White mother, won with a huge margin a few months later. After his election, Obama became a major attraction of the media industry. In 2007, he declared his candidature for the US presidential election in a rally held in South Carolina. A senator for Illinois, Obama worked on several issues such as AIDS education and prevention with the Republican colleagues.

Early Life

Named after his father, Obama was only six when his parents got divorced. Later his mother married an Indonesian and he moved to Jakarta. In his four years of life in Jakarta, Obama practiced Christianity and attended secular Catholic schools, though his father and step-father were Muslims.

Later, he moved to New York to study political science at Columbia University. In 1988, he joined Harvard Law School and became a famous lawyer. He practiced civil rights laws. There, he met his future wife, Michelle, with whom he has two daughters.

Barack Obama is not a political candidate but he is the hope of many people who know how to fight destiny to make the right path of success.

Sometimes I just don’t get Jimmy Carter. But then I guess a lot of Americans never did. He made it to the top office in the land, but he landed not very well in the position as it turns out. Once again, Carter is seemingly doing the unpopular thing. Maybe that’s just his calling- who he is. Who knows?

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter met an ex-minister in Hamas’ government on Tuesday, defying Israeli leaders who shunned the Nobel Peace Prize laureate over his contacts with the Islamist group. Naser al-Shaer, who served as deputy prime minister in the Hamas-led government that the United States and other Western powers boycotted, was greeted by Carter with a hug and kisses to both cheeks, a member of Carter’s delegation said.

Carter has angered the Israeli government over plans to meet Hamas’ top leader, Khaled Meshaal, in Syria, and for describing Israeli policy in the occupied Palestinian territories as “a system of apartheid” in a 2006 book.

Carter, who brokered Israel’s first peace treaty with an Arab neighbor, Egypt, signed in 1979, met Israel’s ceremonial president Shimon Peres on Sunday but was shunned by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and other policymakers.

Hamas seized the coastal territory by force in June after routing Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ more secular Fatah faction. Abbas then sacked a Hamas-led unity government and appointed a Western-backed administration in the West Bank. Abbas’s authority has been limited to the occupied West Bank.

Carter told reporters earlier he had wanted to visit Gaza, but his request was rejected. Carter did not say who turned down his request, but a member of his delegation said it was Israel. “I haven’t been able to get permission to go into Gaza. I would like to. I asked for permission. But I was turned down. But maybe we can find a way to circumvent that,” Carter said.

Well, I wonder who denied the request? Duh!

All of the border crossings between Israel and Gaza are controlled by the Jewish state. Egyptian forces are stationed at Gaza’s southern border, which is largely closed.

I am sure that once this mess is oiver, Jimmy-boy will find a new controversy! Meanwhile back in the state Pope Benedict XVI is getting most of the news.