Iban Guy

Observations from my daily life in Labuan. Use Mozilla Firefox Browser for best viewing experience. (http://www.mozilla.com). NOTE: Press F5 to refresh your browser if you do not see any update on this blog.

Thursday, September 28, 2006

1969 Moon Landing



(Photo copyright is owned by the owner, not me)

1969 Moon Landing Hoax

I learnt from my history lessons that 3 men went and landed on the moon.I saw the film footage and the photos.My school teachers at that time praised these brave men for their heroism.As time went by, their were more and more opinion that this fact of these 3 men landed on the moon, is not true.

Did these 3 astronauts land on the moon? "One small step for men, one giant leap for mankind." That was what Armstrong said when he stepped on the surface of the 'moon'.So the story went that on 16 July 1969, Apollo 11 went and landed on the moon.Most of Americans people think so.

However, there are opinions that say no one ever landed on the moon and what the world saw back then in 1969 was a hoax by NASA.

These opinions were highlighted in FOX's documentary "Conspiracy Theory: Did We Land on the Moon?" In his book 'A Man on the Moon', Andrew Chaikin mentions that, at the time of Apollo 8's lunar-orbit mission, in December 1968, such conspiratorial stories were already in circulation.

Why was it believe to be a hoax?

1. The Rocket technology at the time was not good enough to reach the moon.According to Bill Kaysing of Rocketdyne, the company that designed the Apollo rockets, it was technically impossible to do it.

2. Official News Footage
- there were no stars in the clear 'moon' sky
- the American flag were waving on the 'moon' surface that has no air or wind.
- there was no blast crater under the landing module.

3. No noise from the rocket engines of EAGLE (the landing module) when it landed on the 'moon'.The voice of the astronaut (Buzz Aldrin) was clear.

4. The landing module crashed during testing on earth but landed flawlessly on the 'moon'.Armstrong was almost killed in the test flight.

5. NASA had USD40 Million budget to ensure the lunar landings were told to the world.

6. The video images were black & white, grainy & blurr. The film technology at that time were already in colour.When the videos were fast forward 2x, the astronauts that look floated when they walk on the 'moon' surface were actually walking or running.So, the offical video could have been slow-motioned to make it look like they moon-walked on the 'moon'.

7. The still photos were perfect when all astronaut's still-cameras were chest mounted.There is no way the astronaut could take such perfect pictures.The shadows of the still photos is non sensical in a photography sense.Backlit pictures were clear.The background of the photos are the same in all photos.Maybe they use the same stage bakdrop.Too many anomalies.

8. One astronaut, Gus Grissom was killed on 27 Jan 1967 in a capsule that failed at launch. The Capsule burst in flames and killed Gus & 2 other guys.He was an NASA critic.His family thinks that Gus was killed because he knew too much of NASA's incapabilities to fly men to the moon.

9.Tom Baron, a safety officer that investigated Gus's fire,told US Congress Investigation that NASA program was in disarray.He was killed in an accident.His report mysteriously disappeared.

10. More than 10 astronauts were killed between 1964-67.Maybe they knew about the hoax in 1969 and were 'silenced' so that NASA could proceed with its plan.

11. Radiation in the Van Halen Belt around the earth, would have killed the astronauts that went to the moon.The lunar capsule has only a thin film of aluminium to protect it.The sun-storm would have killed the astronauts too.

12. Missing data
Blueprints and design and development drawings of the machines involved, telemetry tapes, the original high quality video of the Apollo 11 moonwalk, original tapes containing telemetry and video from the other five missions and other key documents that would help to validate the missions are missing.

13. Technological capability of USA compared to the USSR
At the time of Apollo, the Soviet Union had five times more manned hours in space than the US.

Political climate
Bear in mind that the North America's political climate at that time was tense with the Russians.On Oct 4 1957, USSR sent Sputnik Satelite to space and North American government feared that there were nuclear bombs that could killed its people with it.

Where was the footage made?
Maybe Area 51.It is a secret area in the Nevada desert.The landscape in Area 51 is very similar to the photos or videos taken for thre 'moon' landing.This reason alone is enough on why Area 51 is still guarded tightly until today.

No one doubts that on Amstrong, Collin & Aldrian launched into space with Saturn 5 and orbited the earth 8 days. But they never landed on the moon.It is a half truth so we cannot say they lied.

The 1978 movie "Capricorn One" was made based on this theory.In the movie, a government entity, fools the world by faking a mission to Mars.Paul Lazarus, the producer of the movie suggests that the plot of the movie could be more fact than fiction about NASA's decision to fake the landing on the moon.

So, do you still believe now that any man has ever landed on the moon?
More detail in here. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_moon_landing_hoax_accusations.)

Friday, September 15, 2006

BEER - Yard Glass Xperience



I have not drank from a tall glass beer and did not what the glass was called. I now know that it is called a 'Yard Beer Glass'.So, one night at Veteran's Cafe I had a few friends who expected a very low profile night out.It turned out that somehow we challenged each other to drink beer from a Yard Glass.The rule was to drink the beer from the glass without spilling it in the fastest time possible.Anyone can choose what type of beer they wanted to fill in the glass.The guys involved were Fin,Jeth,Yii,JF,Hen,Claudius & me.We got Olie (the resident bar girl) to ensure all drinks were equal so she has to sip some from every yard glass.Some of us had one shot but the 'kiasu' one wanted more than a shot.After the rounds were finished, the fastest guy was Jet at 8 seconds.We all went back feeling super high and a horrible hangover the next day.





(Clockwise from top left: Jet down the beer in 8 seconds, Hen down it in 13 seconds, Yii down it in 5 seconds but did not finish it, Finian down it but stop half way & JF down it in 11 seconds, .)

Want to know where beers are made?

Beers are enjoyed all over the world and brewed commercially on every continent except Antarctica. In addition to brewing their own pilsner-style lager beer, most countries brew their own specialty lagers, ales or stouts.

German Beer
Quality standards are very high in the German brewing industry. In 1516, a law called the Reinheitsgebot (meaning ‘purity requirement’) was introduced in Bavaria. It stated that only pure water, barley and hops could be used to make beer. Although current European Union law states otherwise, many German brewers still follow the Reinheitsgebot to this day.

While light-colored Pilsner lagers are the most common German beers, Germany produces many types of beer: wheat beer and dark-colored lagers like bock are a few. Bock is a full-bodied beer brewed in winter and drunk in spring. The major brewing cities are Dortmund in the north and Munich in the south.

Japanese Beer
The Japanese beer market is dominated by four major brewers: Asahi, Kirin, Sapporo and Suntory . They all produce similar types of light lager beers. In 1994, Japanese brewing regulations were eased, resulting in a boom in microbreweries, brewpubs and regional brewery companies.

Like their American counterparts, serious Japanese beer drinkers jumped at the chance to escape from the clutches of the big brewers and benefit from a wider choice of beer styles. German-style lagers, pale, amber and dark ales, as well as wheat beers are now available in Japan, forcing the big brewers to review their product portfolios.

Australian Beer
Probably because of their hot climate, Australians generally like their beer cold and strong. The major Australian beer producers such as Fosters, Tooheys, Castlemaine, and Swan all produce similar bland, slightly sweet lagers. However, the microbrewery phenomenon, particularly in Sydney and Melbourne, has made most types of beer easily accessible.

Mexican Beer
Mexico has a history of brewing that goes back to the time of the Aztecs. However, the Mexican brewing industry, as we know it today, was created by nineteenth century Spanish and German immigrants.

The biggest Mexican beer brand is Corona. This sweet lager beer, which is normally served with a wedge of lime to make it palatable, has become the largest selling imported beer in the United States.

Irish Beer
To most drinkers, Irish beer is synonymous with one beer brand: Guinness. Dublin’s finest stout comes in two main varieties: draught Guinness and bottled Guinness Extra Stout. Although Guinness is the market leader, it faces strong competition from Murphy’s Stout and Beamish Stout, both from Cork.

In addition to stout, Irish beer varieties also include a number of cream ales, which taste like a combination of stout and lager. The best-known brands are Murphy’s Red and Kilkenny Irish Cream Ale. Bitter ales such as Caffrey’s and Guinness Bitter as well as Kinsale and Harp lagers are also brewed in Ireland, but aren't as popular as stout.

British Beer
As in most other countries, multinational brewers have made major inroads into the British beer market. However, British beer drinkers rebelled against tasteless, fizzy beer in their pubs. Largely as a result of demands from the Campaign For Real Ale (CAMRA), the small brewery sector has been revived and big brewers are continuing to produce cask-conditioned draught bitter beer. Consequently, British drinkers are still able to enjoy traditional draught and bottled ales.

Belgian Beer
Although only a relatively small country, Belgium is home to the greatest variety of beers brewed anywhere in the world. Besides classic lagers, Belgian beer varieties include a wide range of wheat beers, raspberry and cherry flavored lambics, Trappist strong ales, amber ales, brown ales, seasonal ales, golden and red beers. For the serious drinker, Belgium is Beer Heaven!

Labuan IS BEER Heaven for us !!

(Text taken from http://www.drinkfocus.com)

More stuff about beer here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer