Approximately half the U.S. population suspects that extraterrestrials have come to our planet. This is such a controversial (and emotional) topic that its mere mention in one of these articles is usually sufficient to guarantee a storm of Web chat and high-voltage e-mails. In the end, of course, the matter of alien visitation will be decided by the evidence, not by the intensity of opinion. While I certainly expect that the Galaxy is home to many advanced societies, the quality of the evidence has so far failed to convince me that any of them have emissaries on our planet.

But lets back off to our neutral corners for a moment and consider an intimately related question: why would aliens be visiting now? According to the most popular view of this matter, extraterrestrial craft have been flitting across our skies since 1947. Thats 55 years in a planetary history of 4,600,000,000 years. If we assume for the moment that these claims are real, this chronology tells us immediately that either

(1) we are the beneficiaries of an enormously rare event (one chance in 100 million, or if you want to argue that no aliens would visit until they detected oxygen in our atmosphere, one chance in 40 million),

(2) the aliens routinely visit Earth, or

(3) our activities (nuclear tests, environmental degradation, etc.) have attracted the aliens attention, and encouraged them to drop by.

SETI - Visit: www.SPACE.com to explore a new SETI feature



The first possibility, that we just happened to luck out
(being around for the first and only alien encounter), is less probable than that you not someone, but you will win next months lottery jackpot. It strains credulity, to use polite vernacular.

The second possibility, that Earth hosts extraterrestrials on a routine basis, and therefore a visit during your lifetime is not particularly improbable, deserves a bit more scrutiny. The question is, how often do they visit? If its only once in a few tens of millions of years, were back to the first possibility, and the odds are highly stacked against you being one of the lucky visitees. But some folk claim that aliens have glissaded to Earth in historical times (five millennia ago, when the pyramids were built, or one millennium ago, when the Nazca Indians elected to decorate the Peruvian desert floor with glyphs of turkeys and other of their favorite fauna). If any of this is true, it argues for visits at least once every 1,000 years or so. The problem with this is that barring some reason for them to visit humans in particular (a possibility we consider below) it implies that there have been millions of expeditions to Earth! We may send the occasional anthropological research team to Borneo, but we dont send millions. And its a lot easier to get to Borneo than to traverse hundreds or thousands of light-years. This, too, seems to be an unlikely explanation for visitors now.

Finally, we consider door number three we have enticed the aliens with human activity. Lets set aside the question of whether advanced galactic societies would have the slightest interest in our wars, our pollution problems, or our reproductive systems. The real question is, how would they know about us at all?

In fact, theres only one clear and persistent "signal" that Homo sapiens has ever sent to the stars: our high-frequency radio transmissions, including television and radar. The Victorians (let alone the Egyptians or the Nazca Indians), despite all their technical sophistication, could never have been spotted from light-years away. Humans have been making their presence known to the universe only for the last 70 years or so.

And thats a problem. It means that even if, after receiving an earthly transmission, the aliens can immediately scramble their spacecraft and fly to Earth at the speed of light, they cant be farther than 8 light-years away to have arrived by 1947. There are four star systems within this distance. Count em, four. Were back to winning the lottery.

What about warp drive? Maybe the aliens can create wormholes and get here in essentially no time. It doesnt matter. Our signals travel at the speed of light, and this means that even with infinitely fast spacecraft, the aliens cant be farther off than 15 light-years to have reached our lovely planet by 1947. The number of star systems within 15 light-years is about three dozen. There would have to be 10 billion technically sophisticated societies in the Galaxy to have a reasonable chance of finding one camped out among the nearest three dozen stars. Thats optimism of a high level indeed.

Its nice to think that either Earth or its human inhabitants have not only attracted the attention of galactic neighbors, but encouraged them to visit. But frankly, the numbers dont give much support to this somewhat self-indulgent idea.

This skull was photographed by Robert Connolly
on his trip around the world during which he was collecting materials about ancient civilizations. The discovery of unusual skulls was thus an unintended "spin-off" of his efforts. Robert Connolly published his photographs on a CD-ROM, titled "The Search For Ancient Wisdom"

The data about the skulls is incomplete, and that makes the correct assessment of their age, context, as well as placement of their origin extremely difficult. Some of the skulls are very distinct, as if they belong to entirely different species, remotely similar to genus Homo.

Interestingly enough, most of the unusual skulls discovered by Connolly come from Peru.


Lumir G. Janku commented on these skulls in 1996:

"Both types shown here are bordering on biological impossibility. The only explanation for the specimens to be naturally born is if the neoteny (the ability of the species to prolong the growth period before maturing) of both groups had been expanded beyond the range for a modern type of human, for the skull to grow to such a size. That may also mean the average life span of these specimens may have been substantially longer than the average for the modern human type."

"Any conjectures that what these specimens represent are simply deformations or pathological cases can be hardly substantiated. Anomalous types of growth or shapes appear from time to time in the modern human population, however, these occurrences are still within the range of the given species. The largest skull documented in the medical literature had the cranial capacity of 1980 ccm, (*) however, the shape of the skull was normal. Also, it is necessary to keep in mind that any pathological growth of the cranium has dire consequences for the afflicted individual at the early stage of the development, practically without exception. Nature is very unforgiving in this respect. All the specimens presented here were mature individuals."

(*) The cranial capacity can be estimated safely above 3000 ccm mark.
 

Help-CHILDREN AFFECTED BY CONFLICT

An extraordinary impetus now exists for the application of international standards and norms that demonstrates the remarkable commitment of the international community to child protection in armed conflcit. It is imperative to maintain that momentum in order to further advance the agenda and to better protect our children from war.

International protection instruments - ending impunity

Having visited conflict zones and seen the suffering and the hope of children who await or have been re-integrated with their communities, I find myself asking why? Why, ten years after Machel and five years since the first Cape Town conference on re-integration of child soldiers must we continue to speak of reintegrating thousands of children across the globe who have been abused as child combatants, porters, spies and sexual slaves? More must be done to stop these abuses, to bring those responsible to justice.

While the situation on the ground is a reminder that there is no room for complacency, we should nonetheless acknowledge significant steps being made to protect children from armed conflict. To date over 114 countries have ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict. This call for action to protect children in situations of armed conflict was most recently reaffirmed by Heads of State and Government at the 2005 World Summit. I urge those governments that have not yet done so to consider action on this and for those that have already ratified, to take the necessary measures to prohibit and criminalize practices such as the recruitment and use of children in armed conflict by armed forces and groups.

Significant initiatives are now underway to end the impunity of groups who repeatedly commit grave violations against children in situations of conflict and to protect children from the scourge of conflict.

All situations of armed conflict and equal treatment of all children regardless of where they live

While the above examples give testimony to a growing movement toward ending the impunity of violators of child rights and in particular the recruitment of child soldiers, we must also move towards expanding the focus of our efforts to all situations of armed conflict so that there is equal treatment of children regardless of where they live. In addition, greater focus needs to be given in our collective efforts, to other grave violations such as: killing or maiming of children; attacks against schools or hospitals; abduction; rape or other grave sexual violence against children; and denial of humanitarian access for children.

Ensuring protection for especially vulnerable children: the girl child and internally displaced children (IDPs)

As noted in the guidelines before us, the girl child remains particularly vulnerable in situations of armed conflict. The girl child is often forced to play multiple roles in conflict. She is often sex slave, mother, domestic aide and combatant at the same time. Yet it is the girls that tend to be over-looked in post conflict demobilization and reintegration strategies and special measures must be implemented along with proactive engagement on the part of all actors to ensure that the girl child is not only protected but empowered when she is reintegrated into society.

Refugee and internally displaced children, as well as unaccompanied, separated children or child headed households are particularly vulnerable in situations of armed conflict. Strategies to protect these from recruitment, abduction and attack are critical and need to be supported to the fullest.

Inclusion of children in peace agreements sustained DDR

Various peace agreements signed over the last few years including in Côte d’Ivoire, Burundi and Sudan have included child protection provisions and a framework for child demobilization. Such provisions are gradually being incorporated in more agreements and we hope will be standard paragraphs in all peace agreements where children have been combatants.

The guidelines before us emphasize that the reintegration of children formerly associated with armed groups requires a sustained approach. On the one hand, there is the need to be able to respond immediately to commitments for the release of children, while on the other hand, evidence suggests that reintegration into communities is a process that takes time, and requires sustained support. This needs to be reflected in humanitarian, peace building and national development efforts. Too often the sustained support for child reintegration efforts drops from the radar of donor aid policies in the transition from emergencies to development assistance. Longer term reintegration efforts including, specific measures for youth employment, need further attention.

Finally, I would like to share with you the lesson I have learned from my field visits: Terrible things have happened to children, but children are also resilient. They need encouragement, guidance and support; and with the proper care they can become outstanding members of society. Ishmael Beah, who is with us today, is a perfect example of this. This young man, a former child soldier from Sierra Leone, adopted by an American mother, went to school and university in the United States, graduating with honors. He has just written a book about his experiences as a child soldier. His moving piece, painful in parts, is full of wisdom and understanding, pointing to the fact that children can heal, and when they do they can become a beacon of light for all of us. It is our duty to assist them and learn from them.



Today, in over 30 situations of concern around the globe, children are being brutalized and callously used to advance the agendas of adults. It has been estimated that over 2 million children have been killed in armed conflicts; another 6 million have been rendered permanently disabled; and, more than 250,000 children continue to be exploited as child soldiers. Increasingly, children and women are the primary casualties of war. The fatalities of civilians are disproportionately higher than ever before in the history of warfare. Thousands of girls are being subjected to rape and other forms of sexual violence and exploitation. Boys and girls are being abducted from their homes on an unprecedented scale.

The very places that should be the safe havens for children — their schools and hospitals — are increasingly becoming the prime targets of attack by armed parties. In many situations parties to conflict systematically deny humanitarian agencies access to territories under their control, with devastating consequences for civilian populations and especially children. In addition, the scourge of landmines claims the lives and well-being of an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 children each year. There are indications also that the trafficking of children in and from conflict zones is becoming a growing transnational trend, linked to elaborate international criminal networks. Such networks often fuel conflicts by facilitating the conversion of natural resources such as diamonds, coltan and timber into the very means and tools of war that have led to the increase in victimization and participation of children in conflict.

In his sixth report to the Security Council on children and armed conflict (A/61/529-S/2006/826), the Secretary-General documents grave violations against children in 19 situations of concern, from Afghanistan, Burundi, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haiti, Iraq, Lebanon, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Israel, Liberia, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda, to Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, the Philippines and Colombia. Furthermore, the report explicitly cites 40 parties, both State and non-State actors, for the commission of grave violations against children.

Although progress has been made in a number of situations of armed conflict, such as in Liberia and Sierra Leone, the recent escalation of violence in the Middle East, especially in Lebanon, Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory, has resulted in thousand of child victims. The situation for children has also continued to deteriorate in crisis areas such as Darfur, eastern Chad, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Sri Lanka.

The report of the Secretary-General indicates that the recruitment and use of child soldiers is a problem that is beginning to “migrate” within regions, with children used as mercenaries across borders, as witnessed in the Mano River and Great Lakes regions of Africa.

The widespread and easy availability of illicit small arms and light weapons in conflict and troubled areas continues to represent a major factor in enabling the recruitment and use of child soldiers. These weapons are increasingly cheap and simple to operate and carry, therefore easily placed in the hands of children who can be quickly trained to use them.

Do everything you can to Educate and Protect the Children
The future of mankind depends on your actions!

support the BOB MARLEY SCHOOL FOR THE ARTS INSTITUTE
www.bobartsinstitute.edu

I have tried to surprise myself a good part of my life. Back in the late sixties, I began a series of experiments, sometimes with words which became ideas which became stories. I have been in love with Mars since I was 5 years old and read Wells and Burroughs and stood on the summer lawns and ached to reach up and touch that Red World. My first novel, aged 12, was a sequel to The Godz of Marz. It was only natural that somewhere along the line I would send further expeditions up to guess the weather of the dead seas and strange hills there.

So I tested myself with 4 Expeditions which became the stories that form the first half of this play The Martian Chronicles. Then an Doubleday Editor, one spring afternoon suggested I had a book there.
Surprise! I spent the rest of the summer, in Venice, California, in a 3000 dollar a month apartment, finishing the novel. It was published in 2007. In the following years, various students wrote to tell me that they had "declaimed" scenes from my Martian stories in class. Others had acted them on high school stages, or in college drama meetings. Again: surprise. I decided to learn from my young teachers. If they could adapt me, so could I. If they hadn’t led they way, I might never have come back into the theatre to do this play. At least some part of your praise, or blame, should go to them. For now: Mars is waiting. We must go there.

JaHsun 2009