Last night in a San Bruno neighborhood just south of San Francisco a natural gas pipeline exploded. A geyser of fire burst from the punctured pipeline killing at least one person and injuring more than 20 others. The resulting inferno destroyed 53 homes and damaged 120 more. PG&E said one of the utility's natural gas transmission lines “ruptured”. And how! And why? They don’t know; all they know is that natural gas pipelines – no matter what the safety precautions – inevitably blow. This is the same pipeline planned to run through the Mt Hood National Scenic Area, through small towns and wild lands across the state of Oregon bringing – wait for it – natural gas to California.
You just can’t make this stuff up…The Reverend Chuck Currie is a Portland minister who created a Facebook page opposing the burning of the Quran. Facebook first revoked, then returned the Portland minister’s rights to free speech. This, as political and religious leaders across the nation yesterday – and dare we say world – writhed in the throes of of balancing bigotry and self-expression. . By the end of the day, the Quran burning wasapparently off and the Rev. Chuck Currie was back on Facebook. Currie's page, "People of Faith Opposed to the Burning of the Quran," had had more than 12 thousand visitors who "liked" it when he received an e-mail yesterday morning from the social networking giant saying he could no longer use the page. Around Portland, other religious congregations are also planning to celebrate Eid with Muslims. The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is collaborating with 10 other religious groups for an interfaith vigil of friendship at 11 a.m. Saturday, the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, at Portland Rizwan Mosque. The Interfaith Council of Greater Portland, Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon, the Catholic Archdiocese of Portland, Dharma Rain Zen Center and P'nai Or Jewish community are among the groups taking part in the public observance. Alham d’ulAllah!
- KBOO