Over 140 years ago, the US government overcame its miserly tendencies and purchased Alaska from Russia for $7.2 million in gold. It brought us Sarah Palin, which some would say was a good deal and others would say was not. But looked at from the perspective of dollars and cents, rather than politics and personalities, a new analysis by an economist suggests the investment hasn’t been worth it for taxpayers in the other 49 states.
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Not many people realize that the Vatican has an expensive state-of-the-art observatory in Arizona that they are using to search for extraterrestrial life (and they hope to have results soon!) The facility is run by Jesuit Jose Gabriel Funes, who is also an astronomer. Did they pick Arizona not only for its clear skies, but also because of the Phoenix Lights?
In the Huffington Post, Ariel David quotes Funes as saying, “The questions of life’s origins and of whether life exists elsewhere in the universe are very suitable and deserve serious consideration.” Funes adds that the possibility of alien life raises “many philosophical and theological implications.”
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2nd large meteor in 6 weeks. – As if the world wasn’t already dangerous enough: A small asteroid or meteor entered earth’s atmosphere overthe western US Wednesday night, traveling at a surprisinglyhigh speed of about a hundred thousand miles an hour.Theobject exploded with the force of 0.5 to 1 kiloton of TNT.It was so bright that it turned the sky blue. Shock wavesshook the ground from Colorado to Utah when it exploded. Theexplosion took place just after midnight in the area.Although the Leonid meteor shower is underway, the objectwas not part of it.
Six hours after the fireball, noctilucent clouds appeared inthe dawn sky. There had been no reported rocket launches,which may mean that the clouds were connected with the meteor.
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Mitch Horowitz is one of the leading publishers of spiritual and metaphysical books, and here William Henry interviews him about his deep knowledge of American occultism. Find out more about the occults among the founding fathers–the ones like Ben Franklin whom you know?and the ones you DON’T know.
Esoteric and radical religion has been a feature of American life since the beginning, but how has it affected our lives and our politics? What, for example, was the “burned over” district of New York State in the 19th Century, and what does it have to do with the belief that very ancient and powerful lost civilizations once thrived in places like New York state?
Don’t miss this enlightening journey into America’s hidden past.
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