Quotes from another Enviro-nutcase in the article, Sara Irving:

In Venezuela, a group of students who oppose Mr Chavez's government have also been downloading the ringtone, a US newspaper reported.

Workers spray concrete on the walls of the Svalbard Global Seed
Vault in Longyearbyen, Norway, during the construction phase in August.

In announcing it would create a global seed bank on the Svalbard Islands,
Norway did not say exactly where but the archipelago includes a few
existing settlements like this one at Alesund

Have you ever wondered what would happen to the world's supply of seeds in case
of a global catastrophe? 

Something such as plant epidemics, natural disasters like flooding, the dreaded climate change, or war?

Are you aware of the  Svalbard Global Seed Vault  in Oslo, Norway? 

It is called the "Doomday Vault."

The vault is blasted into the permafrost of the Arctic, 300 miles from the mainland.  The temperature of the vault will be kept at zero degrees Fahrenheit.  It's like a safe-deposit box.  Each country owns what they deposit in the vault and can take it out at their own will 

The vault is due to open February 26, 2008.

"It's very satisfying to see the vault evolve from a bold concept to an impressive facility that has everything we need to protect crop biodiversity," said Norway's Agriculture Minister Terje Riis-Johansen.

Norway first proposed building what it called a "Noah's Ark" for the world's seeds in June 2005, and started construction a year later, blasting a nearly 400-foot (120-meter) tunnel into a frozen mountain and placing the vault for foil-wrapped seeds deep inside. Each sample holds about 500 seeds."


There already are about 14,000 seed banks in the world run by individual countries.  But some of these have already been wiped out, such as in the Philippines, destroyed by a typhoon, South Asia, destroyed by tsunami, or in Iraq (looters) and Afghanistan (by Taliban), destroyed by war.  The Svalbard vault is intended as a final backup for all other seed banks.  

"The vast collection is intended as a hedge against disaster so that food production can be restarted anywhere on the planet should it be threatened by a regional or global catastrophe."

Click on the icon below for information about the complete history of the Doomsday Vault, including frequently asked questions:

Were you aware we even had "seed banks" around the world? 

Do you think this is a cool idea?

Are you "unglued" when you realize the seed banks of some countries have already been destroyed and it took until 2008 to get a "Doomsday Vault?"  I mean, come on .... 

IBERO AMERICAN SUMMIT

King to Chavez: "Why don't you shut up!"

11/10/2007

Spanish King Juan Carlos on Saturday angrily told President Hugo Chavez to shut up as the Venezuelan leader was involved in a heated verbal exchange with the head of the Spanish government, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero.

The unusual incident during the final plenary session of the Ibero American summit here was triggered by strong criticism by Chavez of former Spanish president Jose Maria Aznar, whom he repeatedly called a fascist.

Zapatero addressed the session to tell Chavez he should respect, even in spite of political differences with Aznar, a conservative who was a close allied of U.S. President George Bush and strongly supported the war in Iraq.

Aznar “is a fascist,” said Chavez. “Fascists are not human. A snake is more human than a fascist.”

”There is a basic principle in diplomacy, and that is respect,” Zapatero said. “If one wants to be respected, one has to respect.”

As Zapatero calmly spoke, Chavez repeatedly tried to interrupt him but his microphone was off. At one point, as the Venezuelan leftist leader continued, the King, sitting next to Zapatero, turned to Chavez, and angrily told him: “Why don't you shut up!”.

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Maybe someone can tell that to 
Cindy Sheehan, too ...