Thursday, April 30, 2009

What a coup this is for President Obama. Three months after "Dubya" leaves office Justice Souter retires. It doesn't get better than this !

Ah, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!

This is so very, very cool!

"...Souter was a Republican appointed by President George H.W. Bush in 1990, largely on the recommendation of New Hampshire's former Gov. John Sununu, who had become the first President Bush's chief of staff...."

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

The Cheney Observer



...Even worse (click here), rather than focus on an agenda of real ideas that actually addressed the real problems in people's lives (you know, crazy things like healthcare or global warming or poverty or energy independence), Rove helped lead the right-wing Republican cabal in the White House, the House and the Senate on a frenzied power-grab.
During the Bush-Rove years, it was less about the right change and more about changing the country to the right. Only problem was, the country and the electorate are not right-wing. In fact, Rove’s quest for a permanent Republican majority lasted as long as they could use the fear of terrorism to scare people into voting for them — about five years, give or take....



When it comes to Arlen Spector, I think Rick Sanchez has it mostly right. It is interesting, but, since Sanchez has linked with Twitter, Facebook and My Space he has matured as a 'conversationalist journalist.' It has been an interesting transition to observe. I don't always tune in so it makes it easier to 'discover' the difference in his broadcast from week to week. He is a different journalist than he was six months ago because he has finally come to terms with 'where the average American lives.'

Spector is correct, the Republican Right Wing has become estranged from the electorate of the USA because they are still at odds with the fact, George W. Bush and Richard Cheney ran a 'criminal' White House. They see eight years of exploitation of the USA, after the fear of September 11th, as 'the right path' for the country. They actually believe their own rhetoric.

The switch by Senator Spector clearly indicts that he believes the Republican candidate most likely to win the domination will never win the general election. The Republicans completely ignore the fact that many moderates and independants aren't happy with the Republican Platform. They aren't. The party has gotten to be too extreme and they are being forced to the margins by the populous of the USA. They are holding on to 'old ideologies' thinking that Rovian fear mongering over 'Liberals' will actually drive the country back their way.

It won't.

The country voted in a Democratic President that is just as 'fed up' with the politics of the Right as we are and he is attempting to set the USA back on a path of productivity, discovery, invention and 'cutting edge' modalities to an economy that will sustain 'trends.'

President Obama is not an 'ordinary' President.

He is smart for one and that has got to be one of his biggest assets. He doesn't ignore trends in the country that are political and dangerous. He confronts most Americans that are disgruntled with him and that is a very smart thing to do.

Why?

Because it shows he cares about their point of view, it provides insight from him to those most invested in him doing well in his presidency and it opens up discussion with those that descent.

Example: He mentioned 'the folks with tea bags screaming trillion dollar deficits.' By exposing the fact he has knowledge of their point of view, he opens up a dialogue that will focus the issue, preventing lies, deception and futher exploitation of an electorate made ignorant by anger. Hopefully, by exposing the descent for what it is, it will bring reasonable and sincere people 'on board' if they aren't too stubborn to admit they are "W"rong and bitter.

Having ideals is one thing, but, for eight long years we watched complete indulgence of Right Wing ideology and it destroyed every semblance of decency and priority for this country. Right Wing ideology doesn't work, hasn't worked and they pervert every aspect of life to win their point of view. There is nothing the 'teatotalers' have stated that isn't the 'same old junk' that caused the country such dire problems in the first place.

The Right Wing is 'used to' assigning understanding of political issues to an electorate. The Right Wing likes a patriarchal relationship with its electorate and without it there is no political survival.

Those elected, such as Jim DeMint, like to assign understanding with flag waving. In the conversation with Sanchez, DeMint states 'the biggest tent' is 'freedom.' I don't know of an American that doesn't see freedom as a value highly esteemed in this country, yet, DeMint speaks as if 'freedom' is a choice on election day.

I thought we already had a Constitution and Bill of Rights which guarantees freedom and fairness. What the heck is DeMint talking about then? He is trying to say the Constitution will somehow magically change with a Democratic majority and President and the freedoms one enjoys under Republican leadership will disappear.

Isn't that what we want?

Don't we want the 'W'rongful priorities of Republicans that brought us to this juncture to disappear? Yet, DeMint would 'dress up' fear mongering as if the future of our democracy hung in the balance if Republicans weren't returned in majority in 2010.

Now, disregard what I write if I am way off base, but, I know I am not.

The words of DeMint are valueless EXCEPT for the flag waving. And he'll wave that flag to attempt to raise the sympathies of Americans to his point of view, hence his vote.

So, Sanchez got it right. There is a sincere emptiness to the words the Right Wing espouses as a priority. And get this, there is a new initiative by Republicans, lead by the next Presidential hopeful, Jeb Bush to 'reach out' to Americans and find a message to return to the Right Wing leadership now in the House and Senate. Won't it be a hoot when they return with the message, "Return to American values and legality or get out of office."

Of course that won't happen, the Right Wing Republicans will simply come back with a remake of Joe the Plumber into Susie Homemaker, Ken the Candlestick Maker and Buddy the Butcher and Baker. It is so predictable it is hideous.

The Right will never address the issues because they are the issue. They brought a complete disaster to this country, robbed its Treasury, sent the monies and jobs overseas and then turned to the American electorate as if nothing happened at all. As if they aren't responsible for the disaster, but, only the problem solvers.

Amazing.

In 2010, they expect the people of the USA to actually be so scared of the Obama administration that people will nearly apologize for removing them from office, yet a majority. I can't imagine what there is to fear from a President that sincerely loves us, carries through on his promises and upholds the dignity and esteem of the USA. If the promise of trillion dollar deficits are supposed to scare us, that is correct. But. The really scarey part is to come to realize trillion dollar deficits existed before, but, no other President exposed 'the truth' of it.
I found President Obama's willingness to have a press conference in the middle of the media engagement of his '100 Day Analysis' not only brave, but especially endearing. He is so concerned about completing the 'change' the USA needs that he competes for the electorates attention in order to secure any 'misinformation' away from us. He is so visible, so available for comment, so engaged with the people of this nation whether one exercises their right to vote or not that there is NO CHANCE for misinformation to seep into the impetus to abandon 'the truth' for lies that manipulate and deceive. I think he is a very smart man that never fears public engagement, including the media, as it is his strength of character that will protect us all. I admire him. I sincerely hope 'Bo' is a good confidant.

...The Carlyle Group, the politically connected private equity firm, is among the companies whose transactions are being examined. Steven Rattner, just appointed to serve as the Obama administration’s point man in the bailout of the auto industry, has emerged as a significant figure.

And an investment firm that manages money for the Hunts, the prominent Texas oil family that owns the Kansas City Chiefs football team, has already settled with the S.E.C., and one of its former executives has pleaded guilty to a felony and is cooperating with investigators....


Steven Rattner isn't as significant as some would like him to be. Murdoch's Wall Street Journal is trying to 'tabloid' the issue, but, it has to admit:

Neither Rattner nor Quadrangle has been accused of any wrongdoing, the Journal reported.(click here)

A representative for Quadrangle declined comment.

Steven Rattner is responsible for following the viability of the auto bailout.




04/27/09 08:49 PM
...This study investigated biased message processing of political satire in The Colbert Report and the influence of political ideology on perceptions of Stephen Colbert. Results indicate that political ideology influences biased processing of ambiguous political messages and source in late-night comedy. Using data from an experiment (N = 332), we found that individual-level political ideology significantly predicted perceptions of Colbert's political ideology. Additionally, there was no significant difference between the groups in thinking Colbert was funny, but conservatives were more likely to report that Colbert only pretends to be joking and genuinely meant what he said while liberals were more likely to report that Colbert used satire and was not serious when offering political statements. Conservatism also significantly predicted perceptions that Colbert disliked liberalism. Finally, a post hoc analysis revealed that perceptions of Colbert's political opinions fully mediated the relationship between political ideology and individual-level opinion....


...“Have you ever had a guest who overstayed his welcome and wondered, ‘why is he still here?’” Democratic National Committee executive director Jen O’Malley Dillon is wondering just that about Dick Cheney.

Cheney has been giving television interviews in the D.C. area that deride the Obama administration. Dillon responded by sending out a mass email asking supporters to donate money for a one-way bus ticket to send the former vice president back to Wyoming. Dillon says in the email a one-way ticket from D.C. to Jackson, Wyo. costs $202 and asks supporters to “chip in” to send Cheney “packing.”...


Why should AIG sell any of its assets if they don't receive fair market value? AIG will never 'bail itself out' if they sell off assets on 'the cheap.' This is the problem when the government gets involved with a bailout; they are taken advantage of with an understanding that it isn't supposed to be 'in the business' forever. AIG is preceived as 'under pressure' to perform, hence, it continues to keep coming up short because the market is taking advantage of the people of this country while trying to profit on taxpayer monies.

Bush's Bailouts are nothing but disasters. He did the same damn thing in Iraq. Once committed there is no way out. So now we have 'the forever bailout' along with 'the forever war.'

The fact of the matter is that AIG is not a 'viable' PRIVATE company. It cannot engage in insuring investment banks when they 'game' the insurance policy in order to bankrupt the economy leaving the government to
'bailout' the jerks. AIG and firms like it, if they is going to exist, have to be federal government. There isn't any private insurance firm that can conduct such insurance. Even flood insurance isn't privatized. If AIG is going to continue to exist, it has to be federalized forever, so why sell anything off?

By Justin Baer and Francesco Guerrera in New York
Published: April 27 2009 00:12 Last updated: April 27 2009 00:12
International Lease Finance Corp has drawn a step closer towards separation from its troubled parent, insurer AIG, with three investment groups submitting bids to acquire the aircraft lessor for less than $5bn.
People close to the situation said one consortium was led by Thomas H. Lee Partners and Carlyle
Group, while Onex and Greenbriar Equity Group headlined a second group. The third bidder’s identity could not be determined.
While the three bids may be considered to be low given ILFC’s book value of $7.6bn, they reflect the industry’s uncertain outlook, tough funding markets and AIG’s need to unload assets to repay $100bn in debt and equity to the US government. Nevertheless, the sale of ILFC, one of the most successful businesses in AIG’s sprawling portfolio, would represent the biggest disposal by the insurer since it was first bailed out by the US government last September.


I love this. First, the equity firms sanction financing (admittedly drunkenly) of high risk mortgages. Then they turn around after the market fails and blames the very investments they made as the problem while holding out their hands for bailouts. Then after receiving bailouts while the government is still listening to their moaning about their poor decisions in lending, they are offered a 'toxic asset' program to reinvest in the same damn commodity they failed at the first time. Is it me or is there something really bizarre about all this?

MIAMI, April 28 (Reuters) - David Rubenstein, co-founder of private equity firm Carlyle Group [CYL.UL], said the U.S. government program to buy toxic bank loans and securities should provide opportunities for good returns, but he needs to see the rules before committing to it.
"We're always interested in looking for opportunities for good returns. I suspect this will bea good opportunity, but we need to know what the rules are. They haven't been formulated yet," Rubenstein said Tuesday on the sidelines of the Super Return private equity conference in Miami.
He said Carlyle would assess whether to make investments under the Public-Private Investment Program....


I think we need more than 'rules' for investors and banks to live by, we need to legislate the ability of the private sector to develop such instruments such as AIG.

Over and over and over again we have witnessed during the last three decades the inability of any Republican economy to buoy their own outrageous investing habits. It is time to stop this hideousness.

There needs to be independant research to determine the benevolence of such firms as AIG and the other investment banks that caused all these issues. Then measure that benevolence against the risk of having generational impact on the future and the need to spend monies completely unexpectedly in order to be sure there is a fiscal future. If the country repeatedly is asked to 'indulge' the private sector at the expense of generations to come then there needs to be legislation that prohibits such needs in the first place.

I find it completely disgusting that millionaires 'play' with money without regard to the people that will inevitably 'bailout' their self indulges while never having received the benefit of enjoying the life of millionaires themselves. Then they have the appauling 'gall' to even think about denying a nation its health care initiative. Amazing and obscene lack of values of human life or even the consideration of decency.

...“Republicans can be assured that the Party is busy rescheduling the event, the details of which will be announced soon,” said Chairman Curry. “While we are working with Mr. Rove for a future date, I hope area Republicans will take advantage of another important Republican event in Clay County featuring Speaker Marco Rubio on May 16th.”...


The disinformation campaign to manipulate public opinion in favor of the invasion, the torture program, and the illegal exposure of a clandestine CIA agent-my wife, Valerie Plame Wilson-were linked events. In their desperate effort to gather material to whip up public support, Cheney and others resorted to torture, well known in the intelligence craft to elicit inherently unreliable information. Cheney & Co. then pressured the CIA to put its stamp of approval on a series of falsehoods-26 of which were inserted into Secretary of State Colin Powell's speech before the United Nations Security Council. At the same time, Cheney was furiously attempting to suppress the true information that Saddam Hussein was not seeking yellowcake uranium in Niger. After I published the facts in an article in The New York Times in July 2003, Cheney tried to punish me and discredit the truth by directing the outing of a CIA operative who happened to be my wife....

...The Federal government set up the committee of security chiefs to unravel names of Nigerians involved in the $180 million Halliburton bribery scandal. The Halliburton case spanned about eleven years from 1994 to 2005 in which many Nigerian public officials belonging to three different administrations and some private individuals involved directly or indirectly in the NLNG project have been fingered....


The government is talking out of both sides of its mouth again. "Yes we recognize the danger...but...we don't agree the danger is really a danger...but...we admit our conclusion is based in inconclusive evidence." They just need to write the checks and save money on court costs.
updated 10:46 p.m. EDT, Tue April 28, 2009
By Adam Levine CNN Pentagon Supervising Producer
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A series of civil lawsuits against defense contractors KBR and its former parent company Halliburton claims the companies endangered the health of U.S. troops and contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan by unsafely burning massive amounts of garbage on U.S. bases.
Six lawsuits were filed Tuesday and three more are scheduled to be filed Wednesday in state courts on behalf of current and former military personnel, private contractors and families of men who allegedly died because of exposure to the fumes from the burning garbage. Attorneys for the plaintiffs also are seeking to file a class-action suit.
The lawsuits are the first coordinated effort by plaintiffs to extract damages for the claimed health effects from the burn pits. The military has acknowledged the concerns but said its own test of the most notorious case, the Balad Air Force Base burn pit, found there is no prolonged health risk for those who were exposed for a year or less to the fumes.
But the military's report on the fumes also acknowledged it cannot account for all the items burned in the Balad pit. At one point the open pit burned everything from plastics and food to medical waste, with jet fuel used as an accelerant at times....

There was a lot of shady dealing going on behind closed doors when the Republicans decided to manipulate the economic collapse. I don't see how the President can leave Ben Bernanke at The Fed with obvious unethical and potentially illegal activities in the last days of the Bush Presidency. It was more than strange to witness the sedate behavior of legislators after Paulson quarterbacked the biggest haul of cash into the private investment markets since its inception.

...Last week, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) Chief Executive Kenneth Lewis was pressured by senior government officials Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke in mid-December to keep quiet about losses at Merrill Lynch ahead of the closing of their merger on January 1.
Cuomo said Lewis testified he was asked to minimize disclosure and that Paulson, then the U.S. Treasury Secretary, wanted the Merrill acquisition to go through "to stem a financial disaster" in the markets. The testimony came as part of Cuomo's probe into the circumstances of $3.6 billion of bonuses to Merrill executives before the buyout went through....
Schapiro declined to comment when asked if the SEC was reviewing Bank of America's disclosures surrounding those discussions. The talks occurred before Schapiro took over as SEC chairman this year.
She said, however, that "there is nothing in TARP nor anywhere else that I know of that overrides corporations' duty under federal securities laws to disclose material to shareholders."...


An Exclusive at the WSJ. Ah, but, would Murdoch approve? Thain is another Goldman Sachs Homeboy, but, he and Geithner ain't alone.

AIG
Hank Paulson installed Goldman vice chairman Ed Liddy as AIG's CEO to protect his old firm's $20 billion derivatives exposure in AIG. Then Hank and his Fed buddy Bernanke gave AIG another $150 billion to keep AIG out of bankruptcy, and to make sure AIG's derivative contracts were paid off, including Goldman's $20 billion.

There needs to be an investigation and Goldman Sachs needs to be divested with their assets, sold to pay off their debts, while a trust fund is set up for the American people after their divestiture.

The global economy immediately needs to examine the fiscal methodologies being implemented to markets and banking currently. This is more than RICO. This is a planned assault against the sovereignty of governments. Why would a company, an investment bank, train its executives to serve in capacity outside its own dealings?

It is so obvious to the intent of Goldman Sachs and its 'internal' priorities and methodologies. Would a solidly established investment bank seek to 'outsource' the best and brightest of its firm? No. When talent exists as it does at Morgan, as it did within the workings of other FORMER investment firms, a prudent company would hoard their 'take' of executives and lavish in their genius. The extent Goldman Sachs trained their executives to be 'farmed out' on a regular basis to external government entities is alarming and far more than suspicious. I guarantee there is no other 'internal executive' program like it anywhere. If there was, the market would be flooded with qualified executives and the positions Goldman Sachs execs hold today would be very diluted with others equally or better quaified.

This is more than conspiracy, its assault for control of governments, which they nearly achieved if it weren't for a new President, EXCEPT, Geithner has been 'afoot' abroad and seeking USA government funding for global priorities BEFORE the problems of the USA are solved.

This isn't coincidence. There are global methodologies at work that aren't solving the problems. We have 'second string' executives pandering to their 'home land insecurity.' Goldman Sachs is no longer a trusted entity.

Racial bias in our courts

Court hears bank lending bias case (click here)
Last update: 3:45 p.m. EDT April 28, 2009
WASHINGTON, Apr 28, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- An apparently skeptical U.S. Supreme Court heard argument Tuesday on whether national banks can be investigated by the states for loan discrimination.
The National Bank Act says no national bank can be subjected to "any visitorial powers" unless authorized by federal law or the federal courts, or by either house of Congress.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has issued an interpretation that says the act pre-empts state enforcement of state laws against national banks.
Then-Attorney General, later Gov. Elliot Spitzer began an investigation of the lending practices of some New York banks, and in 2005, the Federal Reserve released home mortgage data that for the first time contained data on the sex, race and income of applicants, SCOTUSblog.com reported.
Spitzer found the data showed the banks had issued high-interest home loans to minorities in a disproportionate manner.
But the state investigation ran afoul of the lower courts, which ruled that only federal investigators could conduct such an investigation.
Tuesday, several Supreme Court justices expressed concern about exposing national banks to state discrimination investigations, The Wall Street Journal reported.
"How is a bank to function if 50 different attorney generals, plus the federal regulators, all look at the books of the banks," liberal Justice Stephen Breyer said rhetorically from the bench, the Journal reported.
Other skeptics included Chief Justice John Roberts and liberal Justices John Paul Stevens, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and David Souter. The Journal said conservative Justice Antonin Scalia seemed to favor the state's position in his questions from the bench.
But comments from the Supreme Court bench are not always indicators of how a justice will vote in a ruling, which the high court is expected to hand down before retiring for the summer.
(Cuomo vs. Clearing House et al, No. 08-453)

The above case has nothing to do with whom sees or doesn't see bank records and whether or not a bank needs a full time clerk to answer the demands of the courts. This is about Civil Rights and equality under The Civil Rights Act of 1964 (click here).

I quote: "An Act To enforce the constitutional right to vote, to confer jurisdiction upon the district courts of the United States to provide injunctive relief against discrimination in public accommodations, to authorize the Attorney General to institute suits to protect constitutional rights in public facilities and public education, to extend the Commission on Civil Rights, to prevent discrimination in federally assisted programs, to establish a Commission on Equal Employment Opportunity, and for other purposes....

Did H1N1 Flu result from eating pork? Yes. The meat isn't exactly contaminated with the virus contagion, but, the consumption of pork resulted in flu


Meet Edgar Hernandez.  He is believed to be the first victim of unsanitary practices by Smithfield Farms.

...The farm, (click title to entry - thank you) which raises a million pigs per year, is partially owned by Virginia-based Smithfield Foods, the largest pork producer in the United States. According to the Times, people living near the facility have long complained about the stench and the hordes of flies emanating from the operation’s manure lagoon.

Many area residents became sick with a respiratory disease in February. One of them, a four-year-old boy who has since recovered, was found to have had swine flu—the first recorded case.

For years, environmental groups have been warning that the viruses, bacteria, antibiotics, metals, oxygen-depleting substances, and other toxins in factory-farm wastewater posed a threat to public health....

By eating pork, the well established practices of pig farmers like those of Smithfield Farms are consented to, continuing to endanger the people of at least nine countries so far.  I am confident the practices at this farm has not changed since the H1N1 outbreak.

The way to 'generational security' includes preservation of Earth.

Carbon Dioxide Pollution has real consequences:
-Doughts leading to famine
-Economic losses
-Loss of traditional lifestyles
-Biodiversity losses
-Human losses
-Spread of Disease

Kyoto Protocol is fundamentally correct, in that poorer countries cannot sustain the rigors of Global Warming and do not have the ability to convert their energy resources to renewables or sustainable sources, such as wind and solar. That is a fundamental fact and one that needs to be respected.

Poorer countries are struggling with quality of life for their people and reducing any chance of spawning violent terrorist regimes. The First World countries need to recognize the problems that beset the dynamics of reducing and reversing Climate Change before they saddle Third World countries with the responsibility for literally saving the planet. That is fundamentally flawed recognition of the brevity of the issue.

In the case of China, it has been more than willing to seek out every source of energy for a populous of over a billion people. It is up to the USA to harness technology that will clean the air in China including carbon dioxide emissions and institute trade agreements that bring them on board to improve their country's performance on the topic of Climate Change. That model for converting poorer economies to pollute less regardless of the noxious element or gaseous danger should be a mandate with all trade agreements.

Currently, China's CO2 pollution is directly related to their manufacturing sector. The Chinese manufacturing sector is dependent on USA trade relations, there is no way the USA should be substituting goods on our markets for those produced while imperiling Earth. Its a hideous reality to come to when one realizes the brand of product purchased has come from China where the carbon emissions are unregulated in order to keep prices down in competition with USA products. Hello?

One of the most devastated USA markets is the production of cloth and clothing. A huge amount of clothing in USA market places are manufactured in China. The WTO needs to include the concept of carbon dioxide pollution when setting standards of trade between countries. There needs to be trade taxes when countries don't attempt to rein in CO2 emissions.

Kyoto Protocol counted on 'voluntary' cooperation in the recognition of the seriousness of Human Induced Global Warming. It didn't recognize areas of international interaction where Kyoto standards could be levied to bring about compliance. Countries across the board need to have energy efficiency planned into their economies and the assistance of First World nations in implementing those standards. In India where 'the car' is now making its importance known, the emission standards of the country should be implemented at this early stage rather than later with 'trade negotiations' as a leveraging point to their attainment.

With cooperation of First World countries in exporting technology to Third World countries with burgeoning economies the 'containment' of carbon dioxide emissions will be far easier for First World countries to reach and maintain.

The future of Earth demands these measures to be recognized as a high priority. In the year 2025 it is estimated 8.5 billion people will populate Earth. With each person comes an economy to their lives. The potential for higher levels of CO2 pollution is exponential with the birth of every child. There is absolutely no reason to back away from an aggressive agenda to protect Earth's gaseous biosphere. The future demands attention and a promise of a healthy one for all generations demands aggressive recognition of the very real dangers Human Induced Gobal Warming brings.

6 tornadoes touch down (click here)
Last Update: 7:48 am
ENID, Okla. (AP) - As many as six tornadoes raked across Oklahoma over the weekend, with most of them occurring in Garfield County, according to the National Weather Service.Investigators determined that two confirmed tornadoes that struck the county were EF-2s, which can generate winds of up to 135 mph, said meteorologist Alex Lamers.One of the storms touched down in north Enid and another hit southeast of Kremlin, according to a report compiled by Rick Smith, warning coordination meteorologist....



Report: Southeast Asia Particularly Vulnerable to Climate Change (click title to entry - thank you)
By Daniel Schearf Bangkok27 April 2009
The Asian Development Bank says Southeast Asia is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Bank, whose goal is poverty alleviation, says more investment is needed to lessen the damage caused by rising temperatures....



US admits responsibility for emissions to bring big polluters together (click here)
Hillary Clinton offers admission to ease obstacles towards reaching agreement at climate change summit in Copenhagen
Suzanne Goldenberg, US environment correspondent
guardian.co.uk, Monday 27 April 2009 18.20 BST
...Clinton addressed the complaints of developing countries such as India and China that America and the EU, by demanding binding emissions cuts, want to saddle them with the burden of climate change; they argue they did not cause the problem and must prioritise growth. She said the US recognised industrialised countries bore a responsibility: "Some countries like mine are responsible for past emissions." She wanted China and India to grow their economies: "We want people to have a higher standard of living."
Obama had broken with eight years of denial under George Bush, Clinton said. "The
United States is fully engaged and ready to lead and determined to make up for lost time both at home and abroad … the US is no longer absent without leave."
She saw climate change as the gravest problem facing the international community: "The facts on the ground are outstripping the worst case scenario models."...

Europe pushing for US carbon reduction targets (click here)
Europe, disillusioned with the environmental policy of the previous US administration, has in particular been looking for new US leadership on fighting climate change. European leaders were often exasperated by Washington's failure to commit to climate change targets, especially because Europe has set itself ambitious goals.
EU nations have agreed to cut their greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent by 2020 from 1990 levels, rising to 30 percent if the rest of the developed world - mainly the United States and Japan - agrees to do so.
While Obama has promised to "be an active partner in the Copenhagen process and beyond," the US emissions reduction pledges have so far stopped short of the EU goals.
On Monday Obama told the US National Academy of Sciences: "Our future on this planet depends on our willingness to address the challenge posed by carbon pollution."...

Baptism by Fire. If it were anyone else besides Barak Obama they would have turned around and walked away from the challenge.


...The economy shrank at an annual pace of 6.1 percent from January to March, the Commerce Department reported this morning. That's a bit better than the 6.3 percent rate recorded in the last quarter of 2008, but it undermines economists' predictions that the rate of economic decline had begun to slow significantly. The report also shows that the U.S. economy suffered its worst six months since 1957-1958....

It would seem as though U.S. News and World Report found a silver lining to the continuing analysis that would find the economic 'deep recession' continuing.

If anyone told Barak Obama in 2006 when he started his campaign for President he would be facing the toughest challenges of any President in the history of the United States he wouldn't have believed it, but, it is my guess it would have caused him to run all the harder to be 'in place' to lead the USA to better days.

The economy wasn't the only bad news to this newly elected President, it was a global economic collapse that greeted him on arrival to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. He never faultered and has been a dynamo ever since. I congratulate him and welcome his continued leadership with all the high ideals he seems to thrive on and emulates to the nation and its allies.

His accomplishments to date have been incredible. He added a rudder to the floundering USA with the economic stimulus, set a timeline for an exit to Iraq, reconcentrated efforts in Afghanistan and Pakistan, focused on Global Warming, opened up the 'real' possibilities of all the government agencies in DC, became a father to a Portugese Water Dog and began in a very open and honest modality to return the country to the people. I am more than pleased at President Obama's 100 days and look forward to 'more' from a very vital administration.

The economy would have been far worse had the 'stimulus' plan not been put in place. The only unfortunate aspect to it is the speed at which the state projects are being engaged. There are some 'lags' between the bill's passage and the start of actual deployment at least at the state level. But, the upside to that is the beginning of 2009 will be the worse of the picture. There is every indication that once the stimulus is in full swing subsequent funds for 10 years will continue to build a stronger, stable and far, far more sustainable economy than existed under previous administrations. For the first time in the history of the USA, the economy will actually be 'user friendly' of Earth and guaranteeing future generations a stable run at sustainable ventures for economic growth.

The 'contracture' as Wall Street would like to call it is more or less a restructuring of the USA into 'generational' friendly business ventures. President Obama has instituted wide sweeping 'ideals' to changes in energy, transportation, health and education. The changes aren't taking place overnight, but, they are significant and backed by strong legislation and legislative proposals that provide the permission, vehicle and funding for movement toward a country 'powered up' for the future and reaching for the gold ring.

On the agenda is the breaching of Climate Change with a willingness to be a 'state of the art' leader to bring a hot planet back to biotic peace and prosperity.

He has empowered the USA military to scale back on unnecessary 'warring' priorities while seeking better procurement procedures that 'spend wisely' rather than lavishly. President Obama has directed the USA military to disengage from the 'policing' of Iraq by turning more of the operations to Iraqi forces and leadership. He has retooled the efforts with Pakistan and Afghanistan which has returned hope to the Karzai leadership and a reinvigoration of the potential to the people.

Today, the Pakistani military is retaking portions of 'Taliban - al Qaeda occupied areas' to secure the well being of the people and better use of the land. Someday, Swat will be the tourist haven it was and the terrorist element will be gone. The reassertions of the Pakistanimilitary alone is a major accomplishment to this President as he and our military seek aggressive solutions to thwart further organization of terrorists while providing insight to the people of these countries to 'recommit' to democracy and hope.

The latest trip to the Americas Summit proved to be an opportunity to extend a friendly hand to our 'near border' neighbors. With plenty of 'photo ops' to be published in the newspapers of the perspective countries it will give the people a glimpse at an American President willing to 'try to come to compromise' to provide hope for better relations. We have a President who is not 'pretending' to be willing to go to war, so much as willing to be engaged. President Obama didn't provide obstruction to relations with any of the countries at the Summit and perhaps in days to come they will see the profit in opening up relations and 'settling' old hate.

There is no doubt Human Rights has a high regard by President Obama, as in the USA new health care initiatives are being handled with care to insure their passage. It is astounding to realize the vast difference between this adminisration who regards health care as a right, while the former administration saw it as an opportunity.

Imagine if babies could read a 'born into contract' whereby it stated, "You will be required to insure your health through whatever is available at your own expense."

How do people, such as Cheney, ever get the nerve to indulge in government provided health care while average citizens are spurned for lack of coverage. Averag citizens, by the way, that pay through taxes for Cheney's health care. At best these days when one has health insurance, it isn't insurance at all, but, a business seeking profits at the cost of treatment for fatal disease. That is an 'ideal' to be proud of? Wow.

To sum up the first 100 days of President Obama's adminisration one migh use the words, "A Country to be Proud Of." That in and of itself is a change worth noting.

There have been remarkable achievements across the spectrum of the USA, including the protection of a merchant ship from pirates and a Captain safely returned to his family. Remarkable. I look forward to the 'change' that is due the USA and its allies in the remaining 2820 days of the Obama Adminisration.

Oh. By the way. Welcome aboard Arlen Spector, any more converts? Amazing.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

President Obama is an attorney. Bush was not. McCain is not. There is a gross difference between 'Bad Legal Advice' & 'Purposeful Malicious Policy"

Any Indictment of Interrogation Policy Makers Would Face Several Hurdles (click title to entry - thank you)

In this article, Charlie Savage of The New York Times, outlines some of the difficulties in prosecuting those that authored the interrogation memos.

No doubt.

There is never an easy path when high level authority is involved in investigation and/or prosecution. No doubt these 'lawyers' (I hesitate to call them attorneys.) will drag out the 'justice' process as best they can, both as individuals and as a collective (Safety in Numbers).

However, when it comes to 'the end of the road' what they are all going to be too willing to do, is indict those in the Executive Branch that 'sanctioned' their opinion regardless of its 'purposefully poor opining.' Don't even try to tell me, "Captain Power" in the Oval Office didn't say, "Make It So." They all may as well state NOW, "The Executive Office solicited the 'Purposeful Opinion' and in the throes of September 11th we had no recourse among us to deny the act.' They may as well get it over with now. They might even be left with some dignity.

McCain on December 10, 2007 regarding destroyed CIA Tapes is below.



December 10, 2007 (video time reading 09:59 - 07:02) (From the tape above)
Destruction of CIA tapes was absolutely wrong….in a larger sense, it harms the credibility and the moral standing of America in the world again. There will be skepticism and cynicism all over the world of how we treat prisoners and whether we practice torture or not…Abu Ghraib was the best recruiting tool they (al Qaeda) had…I think it should be investigated…We are also setting up a false argument here between torture and moral high ground. That doesn’t have to be. We can keep the moral high ground without torturing people. Torture gives you reliable and unreliable information and why most people don’t do it….The Army Field Manual gives them every tool they need…


Below is the 'sameness' statement of McCain in 2009, except for this. "...But, are you going to prosecute people for bad legal advice? Are you going to keep on down this road...for maybe...the element of settling old political scores...no administration, I believe, would ever do this again?..."

Please See The Video Below in the next entry. Bob Schieffer manages to victimize the victim when he states, "...he has really opened a can of worms."

Excuse me, but, this is NOT President Obama's Can of Worms. That 'can of worms' sits directly on Former President Bush's desk and that of his administration. Kindly, get that straight. The media seems to think all this can 'discreetly' be swept under the carpet.

John McCain isn't qualified to ask the Obama Administration for a 'slap on the wrist' for the "W"rong advise.

This reference (click here) is regarding 'Bad Advice' by William Simon at Columbia Law School. It doesn't speak to the issue of torture, but, it lays out clearly the 'parameters' of legal practice in 'producing' bad advice at the client's request. John McCain overlooks the fact there are many lawyers involved in this 'episodic' and 'sustained' decision to proceed with an agenda of torture within the USA Department of Defense, OVER AND ABOVE, what is allowed in the Army Field Manual and potential precedent.

There wasn't one lawyer that is cited in the memos that ever stated there was a possiblity this was 'bad legal advise.' Not ONE.

John McCain is not only unqualified to speak regarding the issue, he is proposing to state that MANY of those that 'signed off' on these torture procedures are capable of 'bad legal advise' as a collective. Where does that come from, except, he and the RNC as well as every Republican pundit on the planet believe this is the "Nuremberg Trials" that will put the final nail in the coffin of the RNC.

McCain's pandering statements, such as, "...no administration (meaning future UNKNOWN administrations) would ever do this again." That is simply a bizarre statement. It indicates that Georgie Bush and his administration are guilty of any and all allogations, but, in realizing that guilt we should all be good sports and it will never happen again.

Is that CLASSIC Republican remorse or what? "It will never happen again Mommy, I promise. As God as my witness, it will never happen again." Please tell me this Republican Senior Stateman is not treating the American People as children. Please tell me that.

John McCain has hit rock bottom here and maybe that is what he intended. If the nation feels sorry enough for him we might actually look the other way on the ONE time in the history of the USA we were the world's enemy.

Dear God, John, what are you thinking. The USA was 'contained' in an unending war in Iraq by the world for God sake! The illegal invasion into Iraq was going to be the last illegal invasion the USA would ever see in its history regardless of the innocent people that were to die because there was a MADMAN at the switch with his finger on the nuclear button. And McCain wants us to look the other way in HOPES of this never happening again. Where does he think the 'return to credibility' is going to come from? Where? The Republicans are astounding in their pleading for forgiveness. Absolutely astounding.


Watch CBS Videos Online

I haven't located a second reference yet to this claim. Precedent is precedent. What already?

Reagan's DOJ Prosecuted Texas Sheriff for Waterboarding Prisoners (click here)
By Jason Leopold, TruthOut.org.
Posted April 27, 2009.
George W. Bush's Justice Department said subjecting a person to the near drowning of waterboarding was not a crime and didn't even cause pain, but Ronald Reagan's Justice Department thought otherwise, prosecuting a Texas sheriff and three deputies for using the practice to get confessions.
Federal prosecutors secured a 10-year sentence against the sheriff and four years in prison for the deputies. But that 1983 case -- which would seem to be directly on point for a legal analysis on waterboarding two decades later -- was never mentioned in the four Bush administration opinions released last week....

Currently there is a weather pattern over the Southern Plain States causing concern. Click for 12 hour loop.


More than 20 buildings were damaged early Monday when a tornado hit the Jonah area in eastern Williamson County. The storm system also knocked down trees in Gillespie County and soaked Central Texas as it headed east. Despite the downpour, the region's drought is not over yet.

TORNADO
Tornado tears through Williamson County (click here)
Storm system brought rain but no injuries to Central Texas Monday.
By
Claire Osborn
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
A tornado tore through parts of eastern Williamson County on Monday, damaging more than 20 buildings and knocking out power to thousands....













April 27, 2009
10:31 PM CDT [0331Z]

Monday, April 27, 2009

They had to be F2 tornadoes. Severe Flooding in Kansas. (Video - click title - thank you)


A yard in west Wichita near 119th street and Maple is flooded by Sunday rains.

Heavy rain drenches state (click here)
...He said an automated gauge near Andover had recorded 6.87 inches of rain as of 3 a.m. Monday, and as much as 2 more inches may have fallen since then....
...The slow-moving storm system also spawned at least two tornadoes in the Wichita area, injuring two people in a camper at Afton Lake on Sunday night....

Monday, April 27, 2009 (from article at title)
...Emergency Response Crews have kept busy over the past 24 hours, after storms brought several inches of rain to parts of KAKEland.
The Wichita Fire Department responded to more than 200 water rescues. One of those rescues happened near 2nd and Bleckley where several cars got stranded.
A few blocks away, both a mother and daughter, who were in separate vehicles, were nearly swept away while the mother was trying to rescue her daughter....


Tornadoes hit Oklahoma for 2nd straight day (click here)
Associated Press - April 26, 2009 10:35 PM ET
CRAWFORD, Okla. (AP) - A mobile home and frame home were damaged when a tornado touched down in far western Oklahoma today, but no one was hurt.
State emergency management spokeswoman Michelann Ooten says the two homes were damaged in Ellis County but no injuries were reported from the second batch of storms in as many days.
Three people were hurt when twisters struck Enid and Kremlin in northwestern Oklahoma overnight Saturday into Sunday morning.
Numerous roads and bridges have also been closed due to high water in northwestern Oklahoma, and Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co. reports about 3,000 customers without power in the Shattuck area in northern Ellis County.


Tornadoes Rip Through State (click here)
4/27/2009 (Undated) -- Tornadoes ripped through western Oklahoma during a weekend of severe weather. According to weather officials, two homes were leveled by a twister in Ellis County. Another tornado touched down in Roger Mills County over the weekend, but didn't cause any damage. A twister in Garfield County tore the roof off an expo center and destroyed a home. No serious injuries were reported.


April 26, 2009
Roll, Oklahoma
Photographer states :: Tornado touchdown north of Roll, OK earlier this afternoon!