ThinkFast: April 22, 2006
ThinkFast: April 22, 2006
83: The number of U.S. soldiers who committed suicide in 2005. The Army’s suicide rate last year, 12.9 per 100,000 soldiers, is the highest since 1999.
Jawad al-Maliki, “an experienced, often outspoken Shiite leader,” will replace fellow Dawa Party member Ibrahim al-Jaafari as the nominee for Iraqi prime minister. “The decision comes one day after Jaafari stepped aside; Sunnis and Kurds see Maliki, a Jaafari ally, as more competent.”
A diverse coalition including MoveOn, the Gun Owners of America and Glenn Reynolds (Instapundit) have launched SaveTheInternet.com, a campaign to fight a law moving through Congress “that would abandon Network Neutrality, the Internet’s First Amendment.” (Watch a short video explaining the issue.)
The Chinese Embassy in Washington “sent a delegation to the White House on Friday to demand a detailed explanation of how an adherent of the Falun Gong spiritual sect, which is banned in China, managed to infiltrate the welcome ceremony for Mr. Hu.” Some analysts say “the security breach might end up heightening the distrust between the nations that the visit had been intended to dispel.”
Meanwhile, the protester has been charged with intimidating a foreign official, which carries a penalty of up to six months in jail. The Washington Post calls the charge an “overreaction,” arguing “the United States shouldn’t indirectly apologize to the Chinese by means of an action that affronts American values.”
In the face of a “horrendously bad and worsening situation” in Darfur, the U.N.’s top humanitarian official Jan Egeland says the Security Council and other international players are failing “to exert sufficient pressure on the government of Sudan and other responsible parties” to counter the genocidal violence.
$75.35: The price of a barrel of crude oil yesterday, setting a record high for the fifth day in a row. Also yesterday, congressional leaders announced plans “to ask President Bush to order investigations into possible price gouging by oil companies.”
Rep. Alan Mollohan (D-WV), the ranking minority member on the House ethics committee, “resigned from the panel yesterday over criticism of how he had handled earmarked appropriations and his own finances.” More on Mollohan at TPMMuckraker.
A federal trial judge has blocked a plan by Kansas Attorney General Phil Kline “to require doctors, school counselors and psychotherapists, among others, to report all sexual activity by people under 16, from kissing to sexual intercourse.”
And finally: “What happens if a penny is worth more than 1 cent? That is an issue the United States Mint could soon face if the price of metals keeps rising. Already it costs the mint well more than a cent to make a penny.”
What did we miss? Let us know in the comments section.
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Hello, MoDo. Maureen weighs in with this Falun Gong show in typically memorable terms. Gtg to Rhode Island. See ya’ll in a few.
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:10 pmThe Chinese Embassy in Washington “sent a delegation to the White House on Friday to demand a detailed explanation
Demand? Not request? Hmmm….
The woman was on CNN. Another brave soul, like Joe WIlson and Cindy Sheehan, who is risking the comfort of her own life for the greater good of others. She’s a doctor living in America as a legal resident, now facing up to 6 months in jail for speaking her conscience. No good deed ever goes unpunished in this Bush Regime, does it?
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:14 pmcongressional leaders announced plans “to ask President Bush to order investigations into possible price gouging by oil companies.”
How about annoucing that you’ve made the request instead? Enough of these ego-inflating buffons telling us what they are going to do and then never doing it. Just do your damn job, as elected and paid to do, and then give us the results. Stop wasting our money designing elaborate invitations to your grand intentions when you don’t plan to make it to the alter to begin with.
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:20 pmI am glad to see that Think Progress posted this one. Since we are progressives, we should see all government corruption as bad.
If Mollohan did it, he should lose his seat.
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:21 pmEarth Day today but Bush will just give it lip service only! Corporate sleazy profits are more important to Dubya and his CEO cronies! Shame on the Congress for doing nothing too!
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:25 pmI’ll second that Spudge Boy, it’s all about control. We have to fight on this one, they right now have no control here on the internet,and they want it, but they’re NOT going to get it. The trolls have failed, so they are trying this. They play hardball, WE play HARDERball.
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:28 pmA diverse coalition including MoveOn, the Gun Owners of America and Glenn Reynolds (Instapundit) have launched SaveTheInternet.com, a campaign to fight a law moving through Congress “that would abandon Network Neutrality, the Internet’s First Amendment.â€
I don’t smoke, do drugs, drink coffee, get drunk, sleep around, abuse a child, kick any dogs, litter, write bad checks, shop-lift, keep up with the Baldwins (my neighbors – don’t have any Joneses), gamble, trafic drugs, or any type of comparable vice. But I do need my internet free-speech fix daily, damn it!
We cannot let Congress violate our right to free speech, or think of how many of us will have to compensate with narcotics and domestic violence? (sarcasm off… it’s a rainy Saturday, what can you expect?)
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:29 pmShame on the Congress for doing nothing too!
Comment by Jay Randal — April 22, 2006 @ 12:25 pm
Did you see Ted Kennedy on The Daily Show? What you just said is pretty much the essence of what he said – that it’s become all about money. money, money.
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:33 pmYes post 8 the Republican controlled House and Senate are out to lunch on Global Warming and the environment > PERIOD. Too bad that Washington, DC, is inland from the East Coast > if it was on the coast, then perhaps a cat 5 cane could wipe it off the face of the planet?!
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:38 pmthen perhaps a cat 5 cane could wipe it off the face of the planet?!
Comment by Jay Randal — April 22, 2006 @ 12:38 pm
I’m sure they’ve made sure that they have state-of-the-art, superior warning systems for that sort of thing. Just like their kids won’t die in war, neither will they die in a natural disaster.
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:42 pmunbelievable,
I saw Teddy Kennedy on The Daily Show. Jon Stewart said in the three decades you have bee a Seantor, what has changed and Kennedy said “The money.”
Yes, the best Congress money can buy.
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:43 pmYes, the best Congress money can buy.
Comment by Spudge_Boy — April 22, 2006 @ 12:43 pm
Further proof that money cannot buy everything. I say we go back to paying them for the hours they work – perhaps minimum wage – for the rest of their theirs or until they get the money out of the system. Until they undo Corporate Personhood, things will stay status quo and we’ll just replace old corrupt politicians with new corrupt politicians.
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:47 pmTrue that.
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:50 pmOn a side note, there is no competition in telecommunications anymore. In our area there is basically SBC (calling themselves AT&T). We just want dial tone and we make a few national calls (no international), but our rates have been going up several times a year. The fixed charges have been increasing. We pay whether we use it or not. SBC is the biggest joke. They got sued because they were over-charging and not providing service as described.
Is there anyplace in Africa that isn’t having problems? Oprah had a show on about the epidemic of child and women rape in Africa. S. Africa the murder capital of the world. Then the DRC, Nigeria, Equatorial New Guinea. Although places like Columbia, S. America, seem just as bad.
Hope so.
We have all heard the stories that outsourcing jobs is good. That moving manufacturing to China and India is good because we can buy lots of cheap “stuff” at Walmart. We’ll ingore the environment impact of over consumption, but what you don’t hear about in the same breath is the increase in cost of things we actually have to have: the increases in metals, cement, paints, and other raw materials. Maybe if we get rid of pennies, we’ll finally get rid of that 9/10ths at the gas pump ;-) Bill Nye the Science guy said if we all live extravagantly (high standard, massive consumption) the planet can support 2 billion people without depleting the resources but if we all lived meagerly (lower standard of living) the planet could support more. There are more than 3 times that now.
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:53 pmBill Nye the Science guy said if we all live extravagantly (high standard, massive consumption) the planet can support 2 billion people without depleting the resources but if we all lived meagerly (lower standard of living) the planet could support more. There are more than 3 times that now.
Comment by Jack — April 22, 2006 @ 12:53 pm
Gotta love Bill Nye! This is something that I think very, very few people get. That we have LIMITED resources, and therefore, need to LIMIT the number of living things (including people) competing for them.
Much easier to have 2 people sharing 10 gallons of water than 6. And at the rate we are going, the population is doubling every 49 years. So, soon, there will be 12 people sharing those 10 gallons of water. Some will die. And I don’t give a rat’s ass what the Bible says either, because people are already starting to die due to a lack of clean, potable water now.
April 22nd, 2006 at 1:00 pm#15, “I don’t give a rat’s ass what the Bible says”
I second that demotion.
April 22nd, 2006 at 1:14 pm$75.35: The price of a barrel of crude oil yesterday …
Wow! ExxonMobil can give that jowly jerk an even bigger retirement package!
April 22nd, 2006 at 1:27 pmSome sense from the Washington Post for a change. Since when do we care about China so much? I thought they were next on the nuke list after Iran and Syria?
I bet the military doesn’t count those suicides as casualties of the Iraq war.
http://www.lcoliberal.blogspot.com
April 22nd, 2006 at 1:34 pm“No Iran nukes for a decade”–John Negroponte
What about “16 days”? Right now on LCL
Africa falls further and further into genocide, Kansas slips into the dark ages, and the administration is arresting people for free speech. I swear I am in an alternate time-line. Where is Mr. Spock when you need him to find a way back to the real time-line.
Gad I’ve slipped into Trekie! OMG
April 22nd, 2006 at 1:43 pmOur government has always acted weird towards China! Even President Bill Clinton thought China was wonderfull?! I wrote a couple of faxes to Bill, years ago, about trade with China > warning him about not dealing with a criminal communist regime, but he believed that capitalism would change China into a democracy > lol. Made them fascist, just like America under Bush butt! Greedy unregulated capitalism always leads to militaristic fascism!7y6
April 22nd, 2006 at 2:06 pmlol 7y6 was caused in error by my cat walking on my keyboard as I hit post!
April 22nd, 2006 at 2:07 pmI heard on the telly the other day that the zinc in a penny is worth more than a penny. Take a truck loaded with pennies and melt them down you would have much more than the value of all the pennies in the truck.
Anybody got a smelter?
On the gas situation. Dont you all know that it is the consumers fault? If everyone just used 3% LESS gas the price of gas would fall through the floor. Believe that and I have a bridge for sale out west.
I have but one question. They start raising the price of gas but how come the gasoline in the pipeline that has been there for 2 weeks is also subject to higher prices? In other words they get the goldmine and you all get the shaft!
April 22nd, 2006 at 2:22 pmAll true paul in mex, for thoes who think we’re not being screwed over, I have for sale a ski lift and some beach front property in Kansas.
April 22nd, 2006 at 2:32 pmGonna hug some trees just as soon as I post this. Did you all hear last week that this congress is only working 93 days this year. ? What do they make per year.? Now given they are only going to work 93 days how much are they getting.? How about we out sorce all of them. We could hire a firm of consultents, send in our votes on the net how we want things to go and save a bundle. No more huge retirement the same as their wages and free medical. Yep! that’s what we should do, get them all out.
We don’t need no stinking liers and thieves in the white house either, hire a grounds keeper and ticket seller at the door, charge a few bucks for the tour to pay for the maintainance and be done with that. Out of country companies would pay a huge tarrif on imports. American companies doing business in other countries to dodge taxes would pay huge tarrifs as well. Equal trade or no TRADE WOULD WORK OUT WELL, and there would be no more huge foreign trade deficet. Any business would pay for all the clean up of their pollution and loose their business licence. All ceo’s who bilked the public out of money like the Enron thieves would get all their wealth auctioned off and payment made to the people they stole from.. No more 12 million dollar homes in Florida hiding their ill gotten gains. Tell the world we are no longer in the war business….Hire a couple of capable Generals to over see all our military needs, stop the war’s, bring the military from all over the world home and have them protect our borders. Any winey allies tell them they are on their own, get some of their own diplomats and make peace with their neighbors. No more marching all over the world, minding other peoples business, killing and looting. Help out poor nations with food, water and medical needs only.
Now I bet there will be lot’s of gripes from other posters after this one..
Good posts Unbelievable and all….Gonna hug some trees and one puppy…..Blessings
April 22nd, 2006 at 2:54 pmA new poll (by Fox News, of all people) puts Bush’s approval ratings at 33%.
Five Things More Popular than George W. Bush
1. Spinach. A March 2006 poll by Bon Appetit magazine finds 56% of respondents ranked spinach as their favorite vegetable.
2. Richard M. Nixon. The disgraced former president had an approval rating of 39% at the height of the Watergate disclosures in summer 1973.
3. Iraq War. A March 2006 poll finds 38% of Americans think the war in Iraq is going well.
4. Joseph McCarthy. A 1950 poll found 35% of Americans had a favorable opinion of the leader of Communist witch-hunts.
5. Cindy Sheehan. A 2005 poll finds 35% have a favorable opinion of Cindy Sheehan.
President Bush Still More Popular Than:
April 22nd, 2006 at 3:35 pm1. O.J. Simpson (just barely). The football star had a 29% approval rating following his 1995 trial for murdering two people.
2. Richard M. Nixon. Shortly before his resignation, Nixon had an approval rating of 24%.
3. Dick Cheney. The vice president is rated favorably by just 18% of people.
4. Michael Jackson. Only 16% of Americans had a favorable opinion of Michael Jackson in 2005.
5. Paris Hilton. The ditzy celebutante rated favorably with 15% of people in June 2005.
Everything the preznit has done offends me. For instance, I don’t shop at Walmart and I don’t understand why I should pay my taxes or lose my job to India so that somebody else can shop cheaper at Walmart. What, is the US government pimping for Walmart? In what warped world does “outsourcing for Walmart” make good political spin? But that’s just one example. Literally, if you look at what Bush’s people actually do, rather than what they say, it’s horrifying. That the man still has any support left in the country at all is a testiment to the strength of the hatred that the right has managed to engender in whites across America. If you read the blogs, what is striking to me is the hatred for all things not in their experience. Fear. Not fear for the country. Fear of losing their money and position, fear for the white race. And lately they are permeated by the fear of being wrong . Dead wrong. It’s hard used to be hard to read them because of the hatred that seeped through the writings, but lately it’s becoming more embarrassing as they twist and rationalize and speculate possible ways out of the political mess that Bush has made for them. Not ways out of the problems themselves, just ways to protect the Administration asses. Ways to pretend that maybe CLinton did it, or Hillary WOULD have done it, or it all goes back to the Welfare State they still claim we are in. It’s kinda pitiful, really.
April 22nd, 2006 at 3:51 pmDon’t Let Congress Ruin the Internet
Right now Congress is pushing a law that would abandon the First Amendment of the Internet — a principle called “network neutrality” that preserves the free and open Internet. Congress needs to hear from you today or they will hand over control of what you do online to companies like AT&T, Verizon and Comcast.
Politicians are trading favors for campaign donations from these companies. They’re being wooed by people like AT&T’s CEO, who says “the Internet can’t be free.” Sign this petition to tell your elected representatives to protect Internet freedom now.
It took all of 20 seconds to send an e-mail to all of my elected officials:
http://www.SaveTheInternet.com
April 22nd, 2006 at 4:14 pmI second that demotion.
Comment by Glenn Becker — April 22, 2006 @ 1:14 pm
I just get so tired of the standard, flippant response of “Well God said… be fruitful and multiply.”
In other words they get the goldmine and you all get the shaft!
Comment by Paul in Mexico — April 22, 2006 @ 2:22 pm
Capitalism at it’s finest!
Gonna hug some trees and one puppy…..Blessings
Comment by Sharon Cox — April 22, 2006 @ 2:54 pm
Sounds like a good idea Sharon, along with your many others. Funny how common sense isn’t that common. Hopefully the rain will end here and I can plant some tomatoes tomorrow. Farmer’s Almanac says to wait until May 15th, but with Global Warming, we haven’t seen freezing temps since February.
or Hillary WOULD have done it, or it all goes back to the Welfare State they still claim we are in. It’s kinda pitiful, really.
Comment by Solitaire — April 22, 2006 @ 3:51 pm
Very thoughtful post. You summarized the hate of the extremists very well. It’s truly sad that people would rather divide the nation than accept someone who is different, or that they made a mistake. Untimately, it will be their own downfall. I just hope it won’t be ours.
April 22nd, 2006 at 4:26 pmMUST WATCH/READ BLACKWATER EXPOSE:
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/04/20/1340246
Frontline, this Tuesday here in Los Angeles (Channel 28), is apparently going to cover this scandal as well. Also, Jeremy Scahill has a new article in The Nation (he is also in the Dem Now! piece).
In short, it appears that among the four Blackwater ‘mercs’ who were killed in Fallujah, an event used by the Bushoviks to justify their pogrom on the entire city, at least one was a WHISTLEBLOWER who was SET-UP BY BLACKWATER OWNERS for assassination by local militia.
That man was the YOUNGEST NAVY SEAL IN US HISTORY, who had, fresh out of the military, taken a short-term contract to GUARD BREMER (which is NOT a mercenary assignment, rather a private security task), as a source of income for raising his new child.
This man, Scott Helvenston, had only been in Iraq for two days when he was killed. He had complained to the owner of Blackwater that he had observed unprofessional conduct (in one day of being there!). Subsequently, he was tasked to pickup kitchen equipment from a base near Fallujah (no longer ‘guarding Bremer’). His team was denied rear-gunners (as guaranteed in his contract), denied armored vehicles (as guaranteed in his contract), denied maps (as guaranteed in his contract), and denied the right to refuse the task (as guaranteed in his contract).
Without rear-gunners, without armored vehicles (but rather brand-new SUVs which stand out like sore thumbs), without maps, without GPS (they had the units, but Blackwater failed to supply the Iraq modules), they bumbled into the Fallujahn rush hour, and were PREDICTABLY capped by the local militia.
It was YET ANOTHER ATTACK ON A WHISTLEBLOWER. A lawsuit has now been filed, and the truth is coming out.
This story, ThinkProgress, is HUGE. Please cover it, and please link the Frontline info and Dem Now! report on your front page.
In case readers don’t know, Blackwater is a Bush operation from start to finish. It didn’t exist before Nine-eleven, is owned by a hardcore rightwinger in Bush’s camp, and is dirty, dirty, dirty.
Read the transcript — it will BLOW your mind.
April 22nd, 2006 at 5:01 pmHas anyone seen Ryan Neat on TP posts lately? I am just wondering what happened to him > he kept the Bush loving trolls from getting out of hand!
April 22nd, 2006 at 5:03 pmA rare comment from home…
#26 – Everything the preznit has done offends me.
Amen, bro.
For instance, I don’t shop at Walmart and I don’t understand why I should pay my taxes or lose my job to India so that somebody else can shop cheaper at Walmart.
I keep meaning to ask commenters about this:
There are Wal-Marts everywhere, of course, but also several different “dollar store” companies. I’m seeing them everywhere! I seem to remember the last time the economy was crap, there were an abundance of dollar stores.
Anybody else noticing this?
April 22nd, 2006 at 5:09 pmHas anyone seen Ryan Neat on TP posts lately? I am just wondering what happened to him > he kept the Bush loving trolls from getting out of hand!
Comment by Jay Randal — April 22, 2006 @ 5:03 pm
I last saw him was a week ago today when we were talking about the psychosis of MA after she went off the deep end. Was wondering the same thing. I know he has a rocky relationship with Judd, so I didn’t know if that has anything to do with it.
I actually ran across another blog where he posts, so might check in there.
Am hoping we’re done with this intense rain. Know we needed it, but couldn’t it wait until Monday? :)
April 22nd, 2006 at 5:11 pmPost 29 I have read about that event! Someone in Blackwater wanted him killed, but they also used his gruesome death as an excuse to destroy the Iraqi city of Fallujah! Estimates range up to 50,000 Iraqis were killed in that city on Bush’s order > since our military used napalm and phospherous bombs on civilians that makes the destruction of Fallujah a war crime! I hope the lawsuit brings out the truth of what happened to Helvenston, but someone might kill his parents to keep this covered up?!
April 22nd, 2006 at 5:11 pmHas anyone seen Ryan Neat on TP posts lately? I am just wondering what happened to him > he kept the Bush loving trolls from getting out of hand!
Comment by Jay Randal
I’m pretty sure he was commenting earlier this week. We were commiserating about Squeegy. I think he gets sick of the more idiotic trolls and takes a break from TP.
April 22nd, 2006 at 5:14 pmAnybody else noticing this?
Comment by Zookeeper — April 22, 2006 @ 5:09 pm
Actually my mother mentioned it a couple weeks ago when we were going to visit my niece. We passed one and she said that they were going up everywhere lately. Ever been in one? I went once while waiting for my Chinese food to be ready, to see if they had cheap candy for the ‘Game Show’ study review we play in class. A lot of made in China or Taiwan or Mexico crap.
I thought you were hiking? I was envious :) That is one thing I really miss about living out west.
April 22nd, 2006 at 5:16 pm#35 – Thanks for the confirmation, Salma. I went into the dollar store we have here not too long ago, and it was basically what you’d expect for a dollar. Oh well.
I went out hiking early this morning, and now I’m back. I love this time of year, it’s warm in the sun, and cool in the shade. Nature is happy with me because I left the f*cking dog home. Now she’s all over me for her turn, so I better be off. My eldest wants to go see “Silent Hill” this afternoon, so I may be up all night posting comments!
April 22nd, 2006 at 5:23 pmRegarding Network Neutrality:
“In the first decades of the twentieth century, as a national telephone network spread across the United States, A.T. & T. adopted a policy of “tiered access” for businesses. Companies that paid an extra fee got better service: their customers’ calls went through immediately, were rarely disconnected, and sounded crystal-clear. Those who didn’t pony up had a harder time making calls out, and people calling them sometimes got an “all circuits busy” response. Over time, customers gravitated toward the higher-tier companies and away from the ones that were more difficult to reach. In effect, A.T. & T.’s policy turned it into a corporate kingmaker.”
“If you’ve never heard about this bit of business history, there’s a good reason: it never happened. Instead, A.T. & T. had to abide by a “common carriage” rule: it provided the same quality of service to all, and could not favor one customer over another. But, while “tiered access” never influenced the spread of the telephone network, it is becoming a major issue in the evolution of the Internet.”
“Until recently, companies that provided Internet access followed a de-facto commoncarriage rule, usually called “network neutrality,” which meant that all Web sites got equal treatment. Network neutrality was considered so fundamental to the success of the Net that Michael Powell, when he was chairman of the F.C.C., described it as one of the basic rules of “Internet freedom.” In the past few months, though, companies like A.T. & T. and BellSouth have been trying to scuttle it. In the future, Web sites that pay extra to providers could receive what BellSouth recently called “special treatment,” and those that don’t could end up in the slow lane. One day, BellSouth customers may find that, say, NBC.com loads a lot faster than YouTube.com, and that the sites BellSouth favors just seem to run more smoothly. Tiered access will turn the providers into Internet gatekeepers.”
The common carriage rule (and not tiered access) which is established precendent, must continue to reign since folks can now use the Internet as their inter and intra-lata exchange carriers.
April 22nd, 2006 at 5:30 pmThe danger of moving towards the mainstream media model is in the potential to usurp the consensus view of the readership that the blogosphere offers something different and more importantly, something more. The backbone of the blogosphere is clearly supported by these serious and thoughtful readers who have been able to find the substance they crave in light of the vacuum that is the media establishment. If we simply become an extension of that establishment, not only will bloggers be devoured by huge news organizations, we will have forsaken our enablers.
Ultimately, the blogosphere is an opportunity to participate in the exponential advancement of communications. Each day our world grows smaller as those connecting on the blogosphere grow closer. Keeping this new frontier chastened is a daunting task but the potential benefits make the effort essential. In the rush for a segment of the audience, we mustn’t pollute the soil from which this cabal of cable germinated…wherein…ever nourished by the pursuit of truth and its application to the events that impact each of us, we sit glaring into our computer screens…ever hopeful that those looking back are similarly motivated. Without question, the stakes are enormous.
read more observations here:
http://www.thoughttheater.com
April 22nd, 2006 at 5:48 pmThe details of Helvenston’s career are not quite accurate in what I just posted. He had worked for Hollywood between his 12 years in the military and the time of the Blackwater contract, including a stint training Demi Moore.
It is also possible that his death resulted from actions by his immediate supervisor, and not the owners, though clearly the owners of this merc outfit operate in a haze of illegal and corrupt actions.
April 22nd, 2006 at 6:02 pm“an abundance of dollar stores.” –Zookeeper
These stores are, TMK, mostly FRANCHISES. Buying a franchize licence is one way of ‘transitioning’ from having a real job. As with restaurants, most franchizes FAIL after a year or two, generally due to rent costing more than profits.
April 22nd, 2006 at 6:06 pmSharon Cox, hug a tree..hmmm…ok but it’s not as easy for a man. First I have to make sure no lumber jacks or guys with banjos are around. Next, hug my kitty…well…my kitty doesn’t like to be hugged and let’s me know it with kitty cuss words. But that walk in the woods sounds great, ma nature is a great gal.
April 22nd, 2006 at 6:17 pmGuess we’ll start having some tangible statistics of Greenhouse Effect. (Venus’s atmosphere is mostly CO2 and sulphuric acid. Surface temperatures can reach over 450 degrees – enough to melt lead.)
Lessons from Venus
by Rasmus Benestad and Ray Pierrehumbert
A special report in The Observer on Sunday (April 9) titled ‘Venus – The Hot Spot’, provides a well-written account on a mission called the Venus Express. The Venus express is an European Space Agency (ESA) mission to probe the the atmosphere of Venus and address questions regarding the differences between the climates on Venus and Earth. According to the plans, the probe will enter the final orbit around Venus in May 2006, i.e. within about a month.
What relevance does a mission to Venus have for a blog like RealClimate? Primarily, Venus offers scientists the chance to see how the same basic physics used to study Earth’s climate operates under a very different set of circumstances. In one sense, Venus is rather similar to Earth: it has nearly the same mass as Earth, and while its orbit is somewhat closer to the Sun, that effect is more than made up for by the sunlight reflected from Venus’ thick cloud cover. Because of the cloud cover, the surface temperature of Venus would be a chilly -42C if were not for the greenhouse effect of its atmosphere. In reality, the surface of Venus, at 740K (467C) is even hotter than the surface of Mercury, which is a (relatively!) pleasant 440K. Per unit of surface area, the atmosphere of Venus has as much mass as about 100 Earth atmospheres, and it is almost pure CO2. This accounts for its very strong greenhouse effect. In contrast, the CO2 in the Earth’s atmosphere accounts for a mere .00056 of the full mass of one Earth atmosphere.
http://www.realclimate.org/
April 22nd, 2006 at 6:22 pmThanks for the confirmation, Salma.
Comment by Zookeeper — April 22, 2006 @ 5:23 pm
No problem Pippi… Enjoy your scary movie (have you seen SAW 2 yet?). We got a few minutes of sunshine, so I got to dig the holes and set up the cages for my tomatoes. Got some Earth in today after all!
April 22nd, 2006 at 6:25 pmProtesters force Bush to move Stanford meeting
President Bush’s visit to Stanford University’s Hoover Institution was quickly moved to another location after more than 1,000 protesters converged around the Hoover tower.
The White House said the protesters blocked the only road into the central areaof the campus where Hoover is located, which forced a meeting with several Hoover fellows to be moved to the campus home of former Secretary of State George Shultz, a Hoover fellow who organized the gathering.
The motorcade instead traveled to the house, which is on the outer edge of campus.
The change in plans delayed the president’s arrival by about 15 minutes.
Protesters said they were disappointed that the President would not see them and accused the President of sneaking around to avoid them.
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/states/california/the_valley/14400850.htm
April 22nd, 2006 at 6:33 pmlink to #37 theresa – thank gawd for google and ” ” …
http://www.newyorker.com/talk/content/articles/060320ta_talk_surowiecki
always best to add that link for authenticity and reliability…just sayin’
April 22nd, 2006 at 6:34 pmSharon, here’s another petition if you haven’t run across it… It’s from John Edwards:
Over the past few weeks, the investigation into the leak of CIA secrets on Iraq has produced disturbing new information. Court filings in the Scooter Libby case have connected both President Bush and Vice President Cheney with an effort to selectively disclose classified and highly flawed intelligence to the media in order to discredit people who were asking legitimate questions about the Iraq invasion. The White House even admitted that President Bush himself authorized the disclosure.
Now that he is firmly linked to this deepening scandal, it’s time for President Bush to level with the American people about his role in this egregious manipulation of sensitive intelligence. But you and I know he’s not going to do it. And we know that the Republican-controlled Congress will not hold him accountable either.
More…
http://oneamericacommittee.com/action/sign-petitions/em…
April 22nd, 2006 at 6:40 pmThat the PRC embassy sent a delegation to demand an explanation for Dr. Wang’s infiltration of the press corp. that covered Mr. Hu’s visit to the White House really pissed me off.
So I faxed them a letter.
In a polite manner I wanted to ensure that at least my voice was heard there in support of Dr. Wang’s actions and in opposition to any criminal charges levied against her. I don’t believe that our president or our state department will send them a message that is true to First Amendment rights and American principles.
I’m commenting here to help encourage others to get involved in a similar way. I feel that being engaged in our government does extend to communicating with foreign embassies if they are a relevant point of contact for an issue that concerns me.
April 22nd, 2006 at 7:03 pm#46,
April 22nd, 2006 at 7:09 pmTry this link:
http://oneamericacommittee.com/action/sign-petitions/realaccountability/
#45, didn’t have the link (thank you) since it was in an e-mail, but at least give me credit for quoting what came from said article. My opinion is not swayed though; common carriage rule must reign since that first phone call many, many years ago in our great (great great to a few) grand parents’ time. Opting to use an Internet phone carrier, such as Vogage, is a no different medium than opting to use your local Bell carrier in regards to telephone service. It’s just a different means; you’re typing rather than dialing or pressing buttons, but you still demand, and expect, the same service without prejudice, or interruption: your request will go through, just like Grandma’s (or Grandpa’s).
April 22nd, 2006 at 8:04 pmThree more days and W is down to his last 1000 days. My only concern is the depth of damage he did in the first 233 days and the first 778 of his prior term. I understand now why the NeoCons wanted to remain insolated from The Hague. They were hot to commit crimes of war.
April 22nd, 2006 at 9:54 pm“The Chinese Embassy in Washington “sent a delegation to the White House on Friday to demand a detailed explanation”
The explanation should have gone something like “because this is the U.S. and we have free speech”. But I doubt that they used those words. I hope this doesn’t offend anybody, but screw the Chinese Embassy.
April 23rd, 2006 at 12:38 amAlthough we are not alarmed by the slight increase, we do take suicide prevention very seriously,” said Army spokesman Col. Joseph Curtin.
WTF!
April 23rd, 2006 at 1:29 amThat is a jump of 20%. It is apparent that Col. Curtin is looking to be promoted by Bush rather than by merit.
I too am waiting for the explanation.
Though I sympathise and agree with those seeking to expand freedoms in China, there is no way any nation can accept a heckler interfering with a state visit. We are going to have to punish this heckler both as an example for the future and even as an example to the world that we do actually take seriously the pomp and circumstance that nations give to other heads of state.
China Lawyer
April 26th, 2006 at 2:28 am[...] Blog Name: Think Progress Article Title: ThinkFast: April 22, 2006 83: The number of U.S. soldiers who committed suicide in 2005. The Army’s suicide rate last year, 12.9 per 100,000 soldiers, is the highest since 1999. Jawad al-Maliki, “an experienced, often outspoken Shiite leader,” will replace f… [...]
May 23rd, 2006 at 2:23 amkitchen units
Still, I believe some people (like me) think in different way regarding this topic
March 14th, 2008 at 12:51 pm