• Latest spate of wildfires blamed on cloud seeders
By Victor Thorn
As 14 major wildfires rage across eight Western states, over 1,000 firefighters are battling destructive blazes near Fort Collins, Colorado that have destroyed 181 homes and charred 87 square miles of mountainous timberland. AMERICAN FREE PRESS highlighted this phenomenon in 2011 with an exclusive article that chronicled the practice of cloud seeding and the unintended effect it has on neighboring regions.
In this featured report, researcher and activist Diane MacMillan recounts how generators have been used to shoot silver iodide into the bottom of clouds so that snowfall would land west of the Rocky Mountains in order to keep lucrative ski resorts operational. Runoff from this precipitation was then fed to reservoirs, which in turn supplied cities and major housing developments. Lastly, water was also piped into the Colorado River, ultimately making its way to California.
On June 13, this writer spoke with Ms. MacMillan, about the effect cloud seeding has been having on the Southwest.
“Today there are fires in Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, California, Utah and Nevada, all of which are located east of ski areas,” she said. “In Fort Collins, we’ve lost over 50,000 acres since last week. Ten tankers that are attempting to extinguish the fires are refilling every 10 minutes. Some 40,000 gallons of fire retardant were dumped in one day alone, while one-third of the entire nation’s forest service equipment is being used to fight the fires in Colorado.”
The tales Ms. MacMillan tells are harrowing.
“Near Fort Collins, I heard radio dispatches where firefighters in their truck couldn’t see where they were going due to the intense smoke and flames,” she said. “Trapped, they were instructed to roll up their windows and let a wall of fire sweep over them. Here were these men surrounded by 80 mph winds and fire that turns concrete to ashes. From the sound of their voices on the radio, they were clearly horrified. Although the firefighters thought being immersed by flames inside their truck was the kiss of death, they miraculously survived.”
Ms. MacMillan related one event that did end tragically: “In the North Fork Fire a couple of months ago, the grandson of Herbert Hoover lost his home to fire, destroying some of the former president’s memoirs, gifts and personal writings. Fire moved up the mountain so quickly that people couldn’t flee their homes. President Hoover’s grandson used a fire suppressant design of concrete roof and walls when building his home, yet it still ended up in ashes.”
Local radio talk show hosts, congressmen and climatologists have attempted to explain these fires as a natural phenomenon, but Ms. MacMillan disagrees.
“During the 1960s, Colorado averaged 500 fires per year,” she said. “Now, we’re averaging 2,500 fires per year. It’s not a natural phenomenon, as all the fires from Mexico to Colorado are occurring on the east side of the Continental Divide. Texas lost 4 million acres to fire last year. Due to a lack of snow cover east of the Rockies, the trees keep getting drier and exceedingly brittle.”
Ms. MacMillan said the cloud seeding process has become more technologically advanced with time, and this accounts for much of the trouble people are facing now.
“There are over 100 cloud seeding generators sitting on the ground that are strategically placed along the west side of the Continental Divide in Colorado,” she said. “The city of Denver has paid as much as $500,000 a season for cloud seeding. Controlled by cell-phone technology, the generators are sent instructions, and when conditions are right, they’re triggered to push silver iodide into the clouds.”
Ms.MacMillan said, “Clouds that would have otherwise spread farther over the mountain peaks, to the current wildfire areas, instead dump their snow on ski areas.”
Not only has the lack of moisture east of the Rockies caused a mountain pine beetle infestation of trees, minimal snow cover isn’t able to kill diseases in the soil either. As a consequence, she said, cantaloupes contaminated with listeria have made people sick.
Ms. MacMillan outlined another problem.
“Colorado is known as cow country, but there is no longer enough water to produce the hay needed to feed cattle,” she said. “Jerry Nine of the High Plains/Midwest Ag Journal reported that our current drought has culled half the cows from some ranchers’ herds. Supermarkets in Colorado are now being forced to import beef from Venezuela.”
What most troubles Ms. MacMillan is the lack of concern regarding this situation. She pointed to some obvious vested interests.
“Ski resorts need snow, municipalities need water, and climatologists are paid by the state of Colorado,” she said. “On top of that, the city of Denver owns Winter Park ski area, while farmers in drought areas receive water from reservoirs pumped in via pipelines. They stay silent because they’re afraid of being cut off if they speak out.”
When asked why she became so involved, MacMillan cited her activist grandfather. “In the 1950s we had a cabin on Lake Superior, which was then the world’s purest body of water. But Sen. Hubert Humphrey wanted to allow Hibbing iron ore mines to dump their taconite tailings into the lake. My grandfather lost the battle, and not long afterward the city of Duluth discovered asbestos fibers in their drinking water.” She also referred to the 2002 Hayman, Colorado fires. “A decade ago, 137,000 acres were burned. Today, only 17,000 acres have been restored.”
These blatant acts of contamination and widespread destruction taught MacMillan a valuable lesson. “Don’t turn your government officials loose and allow them to make decisions that will impact your country forever. I’m taking on something that I don’t even know where it’s going, but sometimes one person can make a difference.”
China Willing to Move Rivers for Water
By Victor Thorn
Water wars within the domestic U.S. are by no means the only ones taking place. A recently released U.S. intelligence report warned that America is making preparations for a global water war that will occur in as little as a decade.
Popular blogger Alexander Higgins, in a March 22 article published on his website, wrote about the State Department’s concerns:
“Information released to the public revealed that intel officials expect water shortages [could] lead to terrorism, political unrest and wars after approximately 10 years.”
Russian news agency RT confirmed this notion on the same day.
“Nations will cut off rivers to prevent their enemies access to water downstream, terrorists will blow up dams and states that cannot provide water for their citizens will collapse,” reported RT.
One of the biggest culprits has been China, which is remapping river flows and damming major waterways. Brahma Chellaney, author of the book Water: Asia’s New Battleground, stated that Chinese bankers and construction companies are building more dams than anyone else in the world. Their neighbors in India, Vietnam, Bangladesh and Pakistan are concerned that if rivers leading to their countries are dammed, China could turn off the tap anytime it desires. With at least 20 major dams being planned, China is acquiring a great deal of strategic leverage.
With China holding over $1 trillion in U.S. debt, could communist leaders also be eyeing American water resources? Skeptics may balk, but China has purchased an American movie theater chain, a U.S.-owned bank, land in Michigan and the rights to domestic gas and oil deposits. Why would water resources be any different?
Today, China has 20% of the world’s population, but only 7% of the world’s water. Average Americans use 150 gallons of water a day compared to only 22 gallons a day by the Chinese. As America’s largest foreign debtor, could China demand that U.S. debts be paid in water rather than worthless dollars?
This scenario is certainly plausible. By some accounts, as early as 2030, China will suffer a water deficit equivalent to the total amount that Lake Mead feeds into the Hoover Dam. Some 11 Chinese provinces, including Beijing, are experiencing water shortages. An estimated 190 million citizens regularly drink polluted water. With a higher than average mortality rate, China’s water is killing its people.
Chellaney summed up the situation: “National reliance on oil can be reduced through other sources of energy. There is no such hope with water. Water has no substitute.”
Victor Thorn is a hard-hitting researcher, journalist and author of over 50 books.
