It's genocide.

The attack upon Ukraine has brought about  a reality that cannot be ignored or corrupted. There is only one moral side to this conflict and it is to oppose Russia in every way. There are no excuses for minimizing the impact of Russian assaults. It cannot be tolerated or brought into perspective to serve the purpose of providing comfort to Putin or the people of Russia endorsing this genocide. Countries that believe their economy should override human life are not allies or friends. There really isn't anything else to say about this atrocity.

We thought nothing like this would ever occur again after the Nazis were removed from power and held for trial. Certainly it wouldn't happen again. Well, it has. To live in denial for the convenience of profit is not living with the actual horror of the current actions of Russia and it's current president.

We want our money back. Now!

Who approved those payments? Just that simple. When the government has an agreement as to prices it will pay, anything else is corruption. It is inappropriate use of taxpayer money. I don't care if it came out of the president's budget, it was wrongfully paid and it all needs to be returned now!

October 17, 2022

By Carol D. Leonnig

Former president Donald Trump’s company (click here) charged the Secret Service as much as five times more than the government rate for agents to stay overnight at Trump hotels while protecting him and his family, according to expense records newly obtained by Congress.

The records show that in 40 cases the Trump Organization billed the Secret Service far higher amounts than the approved government rate — in one case charging agents $1,185 a night to stay at the Trump International Hotel in D.C. The new billing documents, according to a congressional committee’s review, show that U.S. taxpayers paid the president’s company at least $1.4 million for Secret Service agents’ stays at Trump properties for his and his family’s protection.

“The exorbitant rates charged to the Secret Service and agents’ frequent stays at Trump-owned properties raise significant concerns about the former President’s self-dealing and may have resulted in a taxpayer-funded windfall for former President Trump’s struggling businesses,” Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney (D-N.Y.) wrote to Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle....

Close the loopholes. All these military projects are supposed to be classified and our national security protected.

I refuse to believe these are open ended contracts and/or funding. No one is saying go ahead and make megadollars  by exporting American national security to China. No one is saying that.

This is no different than that wacko Chinese telecommunications outfit. This is all espionage, corporate or otherwise. The DOJ needs to step in and ask for an investigation into the wrongful dealings of these companies and the people acting as Chinese agents regardless of their American citizenship.

October 17, 2022

By Cate Cadell

 and 

Ellen Nakashima

In a new revelation (click here) by a Taiwanese news agency, the Chinese PLA has deployed its latest hypersonic cruise missile “DF-17” near the coastline aimed at Taiwan, allegedly in preparation of an invasion.

Military research groups (click here) at the leading edge of China’s hypersonics and missile programs — many on a U.S. export blacklist — are purchasing a range of specialized American technology, including products developed by firms that have received millions of dollars in grants and contracts from the Pentagon, a Washington Post investigation has found.

The advanced software products are acquired by these military organizations through private Chinese firms that sell them on despite U.S. export controls designed to prevent sales or resales to foreign entities deemed a threat to U.S. national security, the investigation shows.

Scientists who work in the sprawling network of Chinese military research academies and the companies that aid them said in interviews that American technology — such as highly specialized aeronautical engineering software — fills critical gaps in domestic technology and is key to advances in Chinese weaponry....

The Biden Administration needs to intervene early in the contract talks of the Longshoremen unions.

The EPA has a role in these talks as well. If the unions are responsible for the increased pollution to the area, that is something that cannot be ignored. Pollution shortens lives and no union is allowed to put lives in peril in these circumstances. The hospitals should be interviewed for increased asthma attack rates, especially with children.

October 17, 2022
By Tony Biscoe

When Janet Schaaf-Gunter peered (click here) through the window at San Pedro Bay last year, she saw so many cargo ships it looked as if Southern California was on the brink of an invasion.

As a veil of gray exhaust settled over the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, Schaaf-Gunter worried about how much more diesel pollution she and her neighbors would be inhaling during the shipping logjam.

“I’m looking out my window, and I have a view of the harbor, which is lovely — and used to be more lovely,” said Schaaf-Gunter, a member of San Pedro Peninsula Homeowners United. “And I’m seeing dozens of ships that are along our coast sitting out there spewing.”...

Importing these cars to the USA is possible as there are no emission requirements for electric cars.

October 16, 2022
By Saritha Rai

When Bhavish Aggarwal (click here) arrived for a recent visit at the Ola Futurefactory, marketed as the world’s largest electric two-wheeler plant, the company’s founder was quick to spot a shuttered entryway that should have been left open. He immediately summoned a custodial manager, people who were present said, and meted out a punishment: run three laps around the several-acre-large plant.

Such an unsparing attitude has made Aggarwal, 37, one of India’s most determined entrepreneurs but also one of its most divisive. In his twenties, the founder of India’s largest ride-sharing company held off deep-pocketed rival Uber to remain the country’s top brand. Now, Aggarwal wants his Ola Electric Mobility Pvt Ltd to displace Elon Musk’s Tesla Inc and China’s BYD Co. as the industry leader for electric vehicles by carving out a niche in lower cost designs....

Half a billion in FEMA relief and five disaster centers in Florida.

Hurricane Ian was more of a climate storm than any other. The map of Florida is changing as I write this and there is more land lost to flooding in now three weeks since the hurricane.

Sure the hurricane has passed, but, it was assisted by sea level rise to impact Florida permanently.

October 16, 2022

FEMA is providing (click here) rental assistance, hotel stays, repair assistance, reimbursement for temporary lodging and other forms of support for Floridians affected by Hurricane Ian who can’t live in their homes.

Disaster Survivor Assistance specialists are going door-to-door in Florida neighborhoods to help individuals register for assistance. These teams have interacted with 26,500 individuals.

FEMA will pay hotel and motel costs for eligible survivors. FEMA and the state of Florida activated the Transitional Sheltering Assistance Program, which allows FEMA to make payments directly to participating hotels and motels in Alabama, Florida and Georgia that provide emergency shelter to survivors. As of today, the program is providing housing for 1,256 households with 3,233 members.FEMA has made individual assistance available to 26 counties in Florida. Residents in Brevard, Charlotte, Collier, DeSoto, Flagler, Glades, Hardee, Hendry, Highlands, Hillsborough, Lake, Lee, Manatee, Monroe, Okeechobee, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, Putnam....

There is just no argument. The melting that is occurring in Antarctica and in Greenland is causing storms such as Ian to far higher storm surges. Not only are there the wind driven waters, but, also the waters now find its way inland with paths opened by the storm. These lands will fill with water and will not be recoverable.

October 4, 2022

by Ben Clarke and Friederike Otto

Greenland Ice Melt (click here)

...On reaching the coast of Florida, (click here) Ian made landfall as a category 4 storm with winds of up to 249km/h (155mph) as well as storm surges and torrential rain.

But Ian wasn't finished there. The hurricane carved a path of destruction across the state before sweeping back out to sea, where it refueled and turned northwards, striking South Carolina and driving deeper into the U.S....

Florida was created and not actual land when real estate was developed. There are a lot of sink holes because there were drained swamps replaced with concrete and dirt fill for lawns, roads and communities. Florida has a high level of water intrusion with this storm and it isn't going to resolve. To believe it is a good idea to reclaim the land and make the same mistake all over again is foolish. People need to realize the climate crisis is doing immense damage and they need to move on. That may hold true for businesses as well. 

This is a USGS map of the Florida substrate (click here). The blue is all limestone and the yellow clay and mud. With water intrusion these lands are vulnerable to permanent instability and flooding.

Map color key (click here)

(from the article above)

...Scientists have studied the rainfall from several recent storms and consistently confirmed this pattern. The rainfall totals from Hurricanes Katrina, Irma, Maria, Harvey, Dorian and Florence were all made more intense by climate change....

The way I look at land reclamation, is the survivability this time as opposed to next time. Not all land should be recovered. 

October 12, 2022

By Maria Martin

Tallahassee – The state of Florida (click here) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have opened two additional Disaster Recovery Centers (DRC), one in Polk County and one in Seminole County.

Polk County

W.H. Stuart Center, 1702 S. Holland Pkwy, Bartow, FL 33830

Seminole County

Seminole State College - Barbara Miller Automotive Center, 100 Weldon Blvd., Sanford, FL 32773

The Centers are open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven days a week.

Disaster Recovery Centers provide disaster survivors with information from Florida state agencies, FEMA and the U.S. Small Business Administration. Survivors can get help applying for federal assistance and disaster loans, update applications and learn about other resources available.

Counties eligible for FEMA Individual Assistance include Charlotte, Collier, DeSoto, Flagler, Hardee, Highlands, Hillsborough, Lake, Lee, Manatee, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach, Pinellas, Polk, Putnam, Sarasota, Seminole, St. Johns and Volusia. Impacted residents can apply at DisasterAssistance.gov....