Search

Results

Mounting evidence of magma under Washington volcanoes?

01 Nov 2009 - Preaching the News for Sunday

"Who can ascend the mountain of the Lord?" asks the psalmist this Sunday, while in the gospel Jesus climbs a mountain to deliver the teachings commonly known as the Beatitudes. Mountains in Washington State may be less welcoming to visitors because of a vast pool of molten rock that could supply magma to three active volcanoes, according to a new study that's causing a stir among scientists. The study concluded that the magma pool under three active volcanoes in the Cascade Mountains--Mount St. Helens, Mount Rainier, and Mount Adams--could be the "most widespread magma-bearing area of continental crust discovered so far." Other scientists, however, dismiss the existence of an underground vat of magma covering potentially hundreds of square miles as "farfetched" and "highly unlikely." Rather than magma heated to 1,300-1,400 degrees, some think it could be water. Even so, the study is another piece of the puzzle as scientists try to understand the deep plumbing of volcanoes and, perhaps eventually, learn how to predict their eruptions better. In the late 1980s scientists discovered a massive underground electromagnetic anomaly known as the Southern Washington Cascades Conductor. However, the two-year study published this week is the first to suggest that it may be the source of magma for Mounts St. Helens, Rainier, and Adams. "We believe our results speak for themselves and are reluctant to extrapolate from the conclusions reached in the paper," Graham Hill, the lead author of the study, said in an email from New Zealand. The study was sponsored by GNS Science, the New Zealand equivalent of the U.S. Geological Survey, and Monash University in Australia. Source: An article by Les Blumenthal for McClatchy Newspapers

washington state cascades mount st helens mount rainier mount adams volcanoes magma southern washington cascades conductor graham hill
A capital decision, death penalty opponents agree

16 Feb 2014 - Preaching the News for Sunday

The reading from the Book of Sirach this Sunday speaks of humanity needing to choose between “life and death, good and evil.” Jay Inslee, governor of the State of Washington, announced Tuesday that he will not permit death by execution in Washington while he remains in office, despite the fact that it is legal in his state.Citing “problems that exist in our capital punishment system,” Inslee, a Democrat, said he would issue a reprieve in any death-penalty case that crossed his desk, though he would not let any death-row prisoners go free. A future governor could reverse this action, he noted, and order an execution to be carried out.The move makes Washington the latest in a series of states to step away from capital punishment and Inslee the third Democratic governor in recent years to do something similar. Gov. John Kitzhaber of Oregon announced in 2011 that he would not permit any executions on his watch, and last year Gov. John Hickenlooper of Colorado issued an indefinite reprieve in the only death-penalty case during his tenure.The death penalty is legal in a majority of states, although 18 states have outlawed it, including six which have done so in the last six years. For governors who oppose the death penalty, refusing to order executions may be an easier way to make a point than to try to reverse a law.“There are too many flaws in the system,” Inslee said on Tuesday. He noted that since the state’s current capital punishment laws were enacted in 1981, more than half of the 32 death sentences imposed in Washington had been overturned. “And when the ultimate decision is death, there is too much at stake to accept an imperfect system.” He added, “With my action today, I expect Washington State will join a growing national conversation about capital punishment.”Homily hint: One of the critical weaknesses of capital punishment, critics argue, is that it leaves no margin for human error—and it is manifestly evident that humans are prone to err. There are many ways that justice can be served, but the “ultimate penalty” should be reserved for the better judgment of a much higher authority than fallible humans. Source: An article by Ian Lovett for the New York Times

washington state capital punishment death penalty jay inslee
Grim search continues for mudslide victims

30 Mar 2014 - Preaching the News for Sunday

The prophet Samuel needs some divine guidance as he struggles in his search to find the one among the sons of Jesse chosen by the Lord for anointing and leadership. Authorities in the State of Washington continue to struggle in their search for survivors and bodies at the site of a deadly massive landslide, and search dogs are providing their best guidance.Late Wednesday crews had not recovered any additional victims but the number of missing had dropped dramatically. Snohomish County Emergency Management Director John Pennington said the official death toll remained at 24 people. The number of missing or unaccounted for now stands at 90 with an additional 35 whose status is unknown and may or may not have been in the area, Pennington said. He acknowledged that not everybody may be located. "Would I like to see it drop to zero? Yes. Do I think it will? No," he said.Rescuers have been using search and cadaver dogs, small bulldozers, and their bare hands to push through sludge strewn with splintered homes and twisted cars."The situation is very grim," Snohomish County Fire District 21 Chief Travis Hots said, stressing that authorities are still in rescue mode and are holding out hope. But he noted: "We have not found anyone alive on this pile since Saturday.“Going on the last three days the most effective tool has been dogs and just our bare hands and shovels uncovering people,” Hots said. "But the dogs are the ones that are pinpointing a particular area to look, and we're looking and that's how we're finding people."Homily hint: Human decisions sometimes factor into natural disasters. In the case of the mudslide in Snohomish County, surveyors had warned of the dangers for decades but building permits continued to be issued. May human safety always come first in urban planning. Sources: Articles by Heather Graf for King TV Seattle and Molly Hennessy-Fiske for the Los Angeles Times

washington state landslide john pennington cadaver dogs search dogs snohomish county travis hots