I say Bachmann is a hero. Let's join Ireland and become a junk bond, destroy Wall Street and get pay backs.

...The timing of the downgrade (click title to entry - thank you) was questioned by Mr Barroso, who made similar remarks when the US-based ratings agency downgraded Portugal last week, hours after the Portuguese parliament committed to more cuts than agreed under their austerity programme....

Ireland now has a reform program and everyone in the EU is loving it.  If every nation in the world attains Junk Bond Status the 'market system' would have to reset and then no nation in the world would be junk status ever again.  Sounds like a plan, Michelle.

The GOP are the very effective liars. The truth is on August 3rd it is anyone's guess.

Can Treasury effectively (click title to entry - thank you) choose among 80 million monthly
payments so that 40 - 45% of bills are NOT paid?

– Inflows and outflows do not match up well and are quite “lumpy,” as our daily analysis shows

The above statement is take from a 'daily analysis' of the federal budget after default.

The statement is on page nine and the daily analysis begins on page 21.  The pages from 9 through 20 is a discussion of 'scenarios.'

On August 12 there is finally a $1 Billion surplus.  Now, with all the past debt unpaid from August 3rd where is the one billion going to go?  Probably carried over to August 13.

Page 35 states:

Conclusions

• The risks are real:

– The Treasury market, interest rates

– Level and status of the dollar

– Our economy

– The global financial system
• No guarantee of the outcome; risks are risks

As of August 3, 2011, in the USA, Social Security Recipients ...

...won't be able to pay their rent, purchase groceries or medications and have air conditioning to keep themselves cool in this blistering heat.

How long does anyone believe they will last? 

There is no State or City prepared for these dynamics.

President Obama said today that Social Security Checks would stop after August 3, 2011.

Isn't that the goal of the Regressives? 

Don't they think of every dependent person in the country as 'baggage,'  trouble, lazy or any combination of the three?  Isn't that the truth regardless of what they say?  Why else would they be unwilling to see the folly of the Bush Tax Cuts, especially in disproportion to the wealthy. 

Yet, they claim want a flatter and fairer tax structure.

Liars.

The Unpretentious First Lady. She loved everyone and everyone loved her.

Shuttle Atlantis is equipped with robots and iPhones.

...The Robotic Refueling Mission (click here) flying aboard the space shuttle Atlantis will use the International Space Station’s Dextre robot to test tools for refueling and repairing existing satellites, none of which were designed with reuse in mind.

“I’ve likened it to a Fisher-Price play toy for a robot, and I don’t mean that in a negative sense,” Atlantis commander Chris Ferguson said in a preflight interview....

I don't believe it has the sticker price of Fisher - Price.

Android and iPhone ride to ISS on Atlantis (click title to entry - thank you)

By Jack Clark

ZDNet UK

11 July, 2011 17:45

 

Samsung's Nexus S is aboard Nasa's final shuttle mission for an experiment involving miniature satellites developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In the experiment, the smartphone will be attached to three bowling ball-sized Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites (Spheres), which have been on the International Space Station (ISS) since 2006....

Last of Atlantis' solid rocket boosters return to Space Coast (click here)

By Margaret Kavanagh, Reporter
Last Updated: Monday, July 11, 2011 12:06 PM
 PORT CANAVERAL -- 
An emotional day on the Space Coast as the solid rocket boosters return for the very last time Monday.
They're responsible for giving space shuttle Atlantis enough power to escape the gravitational pull of the Earth.
Crew onboard the Freedom Star has been out at sea since Thursday.
The rocket boosters separate from the external tank a few miles after liftoff and fall into the ocean. They're retrieved about 150 miles out at sea.
The crew members said the trip out there was difficult because of the weather, but said it was amazing to see the amount of people waving them in when they arrived.

An emotional day on the Space Coast as the solid rocket boosters return for the very last time Monday.

Speaker Boner does not have his facts straight. It is the same 'ole, same 'ole Republican rhetoric and not a sincere dedication to the people of the USA.

Ask any state and local government why they are cutting deeply into jobs and they'll tell you it is due to lack of revenue.

The American people need to realize how delicate this recovery is proceeding while realizing when a public employee is impacted because Republicans won't tax the wealthy and windfall profits to benefit their balanced budgets the economy loses.  Why does it lose?

Because the disposable income to the economy falls and causes 'contraction' and not 'expansion' of the economy.
Why does it lose?

Because public workers now are receiving unemployment benefits instead of providing work for salary.  They become a cost without a benefit to the government using federal funds as well.  At least there are unemployment benefits to fall back on for these families.  Additionally, government layoffs or closings are ususally not a problem for the unemployed because it means the public sector is growning to take on the function of government such as the post office, Fed Ex and UPS.  That was a transition that was orderly and supported all available workers across the board.  The USA cannot completely do without the US Post Office either.  But, it is an example of what I am saying.

Government does not have to contract in a sustained and growing economy either.  More adults become of age and enter the work force everyday.  Those needs can be picked up by private industry rather than growoing government hence the potential of Fed Ex and UPS to grow with that population providing services and adding jobs.

The draconianism of the Republicans by not taxing the wealthy is contracting this economy and it is felt most in the public sector where employees are still needed and their work is still vital to this country, their states and their cities.  Ask a city worker if he or she were unneeded in the job they did?  Ask them if there are comparable private sector jobs to move into after a brief stent on unemployment?  The answer are obvious.

The public sector jobs contribute vital parts of the USA economy and should never be bargained away for campaign promises or rhetoric.

State and local governments bleeding jobs (click title to entry - thank you)

WASHINGTON
Fri Jul 8, 2011 6:45pm EDT

...The National League of Cities, which represents civic officials, foresees further job cuts for at least the next 18 months. In a statement commenting on the Labor Department report, the group voiced concerns that continued public job losses will also dampen job growth in the private sector....

The radical Republican Right lead by Cantor is destroying the economy and causing hardship when they are refusing to tax the wealthy.  It is outrageous and their messages are all rhteoric.  I'd like Cantor to have an open news covference and deal with the public rather than hide in his office for photo ops.  The problem with that is the answers would be nothing more than rhetoric to attack the President while never answering the real problems in a way that explains their position.  The do not have the statisiics or the 'on the ground' research to prove a thing they are saying.

I'll do this tomorrow. Probably during the day. I do want to say something about the USA Debt Ceiling.

I think the country has forgotten who did all the spending for eight years that resulted in this debt.  They have forgotten the surplus inherited by the previous administration.  They have also forgotten who exactly supported the bank bailout.

I cannot help believe that with all the leanings of Wall Street in favor of Republican rhetoric that there aren't banks in the background pulling some strings the President doesn't know about to allow the Debt Ceiling to be toyed with. 

I find it very strange that Republicans should be obstructing the 'Debt Ceiling Vote' as the clock ticks while their best friends in the banking industry should be stressed out while watching Wall Street diminish in returns.  I think that is very, very odd.

Until tomorrow.

Maybe tomorrow evening might be better unless it is a slow day.  The Shuttle needs attention for its last voyage.  Sincerely.

Good night.

I'll begin a little later this evening.

I am corresponding with people about a conservation issue that needs attention.

I started to assemble the issue for this evening and was interrupted unexpectedly.  I want to finish up what I began last week mixed with recent topics as well.  It is the way it is.  Don't want to miss an opportunity.

Later.

A 7.1 earthquake is wrongly considered an aftershock by the minimalist USA media.

A 7.1 anything can't be an aftershock.  Aftershocks have their toll as well as they further rattle apart any and all infrastructure.

I find it rather hideous to consider a 7.1 earthquake an aftershock.  Aftershocks are considered more benign than the original quake, that is not the case here.  It may be that the progress made with the nuclear reactors could be lost at this point.  The Japanese really need to consider terminal status for those reactors.  The earthquake zone is too dangerous to continue this form of energy.

This mission should really be followed closely by the USA media.

Mission Specialist Rex Walheim works aboard space shuttle Atlantis during Flight Day 2 of the STS-135 mission. (NASA TV)

This is a very historic time for NASA.

Docking day: Atlantis approaching International Space Station  (click title to entry - thank you)

By Greg Pallone

Reporter
Last Updated: Sunday, July 10, 2011 8:29 AM

COCOA --  Atlantis' crew is going through their checklist Sunday morning as they prepare the last ever docking of a shuttle at the International Space Station.

The crew awoke at 3:29 a.m. to the Electric Light Orchestra song "Mr. Blue Sky," played for STS-135 Commander Chris Ferguson....

Space is a fronteer and the dedication of the people that have lined its history is no different than many of the American settlers that provided the westward movement of the USA.

Through hardship and loss this program has gone forward with dedication and bravery.  Space is no minor element to the reality that is Earth.  It can kill a person in a heartbeat given the dire consequences faced by these women and men. 

The staff that prepares the mission, launches it and protects the precious lives in capsules and space stations are vital to the success of space exploration.  We, as a nation, cannot be grateful enough to have them there doing what they love, but, not only that doing it as well as they do. 

The vehicles were never in better hands.  When they failed, they failed royally.  And in at least one instance and probably twice they failed because of political pressure that placed performance ahead of safety.  They did, however, fail and now it is time to move on. 

In Flroida last week the end of an era came to pass.

Amid the wetlands of Florida the USA Space Program made a home.  The decades long program is taking a breather to redirect its efforts in a way that the private sector cannot achieve heights. 

I applaud the dedicated crews, the people that worked within the program and the everlasting record of their joint efforts etched into the history of the USA and space flight forever.

A grateful nation cannot thank you all enough for all that you did and the pride you afforded this country.

Let's bring Atlantis home and look forward to the next trip into the stars by the USA Space Program.

Okay. This is legislative over reaching and political grandstanding because of the media mess surrounding this case.

Legislators Introduce 'Caylee's Law' (click title to entry - thank you)

While the public went into shock when the jury declared Casey Anthony "not guilty" of killing her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee, lawmakers set out to make an example of the verdict. In more than a dozen states, legislators have introduced measures that would make it a felony for a parent to fail to report the death or disappearance of child within a certain time frame....

Know you are going to hear what I think.  To begin, I am concerned about Ms. Casey Marie Anthony's safety once she is released from jail.  Not prison, jail.  I do not believe the media can behave itself and there will be backlash against her for as long as they exploit this case.

Okay, I am not finished and this law is outrageous.

Casey Marie Anthony in every 'taped anything,' be it phone call or jailhouse family gathering was composed and centered on the truth that no one wanted to identify except her defense team.  IF people are willing to believe the truth the defense team put forward the evidence to that reality is all to clear.

First, the law is unrealistic.  There is no way that a parent can be held to such a standard espeically when considering there are children in boarding schools, nannies, travel for work, the military, etc., etc., etc.  The best the law can do is what occured with Mrs. Cindy Anthony and her phone call.  She went to through 'fact finding' the entire time Casey was with friends and not home.  I do not believe Mrs. Cindy Anthony was anyway connected with the missing body of Caylee. 

If anything can be said with brevity it is that Mrs. Cindy Anthony speaks her mind in a moment's notice. 

When leaving the courthouse a camera caught Mr. and Mrs. George Anthony as they were walking away from the a door of the courthouse.  There were dearly few people in that area except for the camera crew and Mrs. Cindy Anthony stated, "She received the sentence she deserved."  I thought that was odd.  She was so very, very victimizing of her daughter the entire time, from the beginning when Casey was arrested she was always on 'her husband's side.'

Mr. George Anthony is a very interesting guy.  He was once or still is a police officer.  Yes?  I told you I haven't followed this as closely as some of the 'gossip lawyers' have followed it, so I am not 'up' on all the particulars of this man.  But, he is a police officer by trade.  I was surpised more of the deception around Caylee's body wasn't directed at George Anthony but in reflection it would require more concrete proof in order to entertain the since influence he had to the jury.  I have a feeling based on their three 'Not Guilty" verdicts they were thinking exactly as I was.

He stated in his testimony he was familiar with the smell of a dead body.  He stated there is no other smell like it.  He stated he believed there was a dead body in the truck of his daughter's car before he smelled the odor.  Mrs. Cindy Anthony's reaction was more interesting than George Anthony's statement, because, she backed up her husband whom she would not question because there had been such outrageous allogations over the years by Mr. Casey Anthony of him. 

Cindy was the person to make the 911 call, not George.  Why didn't the police officer that was George Anthony 'take control' and call 911 before the car was cleaned and aired out?

A prudent act by someone in law enforcement that was not involved in any cover up or 'plan to protect' his dysfunctional family would have immediately protected evidence, IF IT WAS EVIDENCE AT ALL, after smelling the 'death rot' in the trunk.  He didn't do that.  He was as guilty as Ms. Casey Anthony of not telling police what occurred or where the body was kept and then where the body was disposed.

Cindy Anthony, for the emotional woman that she is, enables the dysfunction of her family.  Anyone could see that.  George controls the family's demeanor and Cindy is the gatekeeper.

See what is so believable about Ms. Casey Anthony is that she never ever sincerely changed her involvement in her understanding of her place in all this.  In the conversation with her Cindy after she was arrested she stated, "I saw your cameo performance...." and later when Cindy was playing her part in not knowing (which I believe she did not know) ... Ms. Casey Anthony stated, "Oh, come on."  That statement was very revealing.  There was a greater truth and the family was distancing themselves from Ms. Casey Anthony as fast as they could.  Why?  Why would a mother put so much emotional distance between her daughter and herself?  Because she might be guilty?  Or because to not allow her to be guilty George might be considered a person to arrest instead?

That is all speculation, but, I am not finished.

Who would know how to compromise evidence to a prosecutor? 

A police officer or an unwed mother with no means of successfully supporting her child?

I believe George Anthony was in complete control of the missing body of Caylee after she drowned in the pool after having swimming the night before in the pool with his wife and then retired to their bedroom.

Guilt?  Plenty.  The door was opened by the child and she reached the top of the ladder expecting to find her grandmother there.  She didn't, but, because she had no fear of water and like good parents and grandparents they instilled a feeling of success with every accomplishment Caylee made.  She jumped into the pool as she had done so many times before and drowned.

The cover up insued with a dysfunctional family and George in control.  She appeared to be assisting Casey in her own guilt in not going to police because he was just as scared as Ms. Casey Anthony.

He was afraid of being blamed for something he and his spouse did unwittingly when they were not thinking of the child 24-7, but, actually took time to celebrate their love of each other.

The guilt overwhelmed the household and Cindy was not made aware of the circumstances because George was overwhelmed with losing his wife if she found out what actually occurred.

Cindy is a good barometer to what actually existed in reality.  George Anthony knew that a body, a smelly body, would degrade when given enough time to be worthless to any prosecuter or forensic team.  He knew that for the many times that reality played on in not guilty verdicts and open ended investigations where cases were never closed.

So, was the defense team just that good.  Yes, except, they were provided by the realtiy of their client's home life and the ability to identify a very dysfunctional family controlled by a man determined to have himself exonerated of any guilt no matter the outcome.

For a law to be written and exploited for its 'political favor' only speaks to the grossly dysfunctional media.  Now, to that end there should be laws prohibiting such intense scrutiny of 'INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY.'  But, will that level of control every exist to protect the innocent?  Nah.  The political fodder is far to tempting to actually expect any legislator not to be corrupted by it.

These law is  far too overreaching and should never have Caylee's name attached to it as the case was never successfully prosecuted.  Politicians 'play' the public and not the decency of the true meaning of the law.

Oh, one other thing.

Was Ms. Casey Marie Anthony a pathological liar?

You betcha.  From very early on in a very dysfunctional family she knew exactly how and when to lie.

Oh, the partying.  Yeah.  Well, if your child is dead and you don't have to be around the man that has dominated your life for so long, then why not go out and find a way to take care of yourself.  The 'Hot Body Contest?'  The next step is being an exotic dancer and making some very lucrative money.

What the prosecution could do was to say what was untruth, as they should, but they could not say what was the truth.  They could not say where exactly Ms. Casey Marie Anthony was during the time she was not at the Anthony house.  There were a lot of missing pieces, not just a few.  If they could say where she was she might actually be found not guilty as well.  She is innocent of all charges and I wish her well.

...After the verdict, (click here) George and Cindy Anthony described Casey's defense strategy as "baseless" but said the jury made a fair decision.
Moore said the jail has no need to know where Casey will live, and she was not sentenced to probation so she will not have to provide an address to the probation office.
Casey will be only the second inmate in the past 15 years to not walk out the front door of the jail lobby after being released from custody, Moore said. The jail has planned a secret exit for her protection.
The only other inmate who got such special handling was Noelle Bush, daughter of then-Governor Jeb Bush and niece of then-President George W. Bush. Moore said the Secret Service was concerned Noelle, who was arrested on drug-related charges, could be targeted by terrorists.
"Lisa Nowak, she walked out the front entrance," Moore said, referring to the former NASA astronaut who drove from Houston to Orlando to attack a romantic rival.
"And we've had local politicians, police chiefs and all sorts of people, and they're all required to walk out the front entrance," Moore said.

Of course.

As obese children become adults the rates will go up. Are the child obesity rates going down?

...Obesity rates (click title to entry - thank you) have doubled in seven states since 1995 and increased by 90% in 10 other states; 22 states saw obesity rates increase by as much as 80%, the report shows....

...Glimmer of Hope?

From 2006 through 2008, more than 30 states saw increased rates of obesity. During the following two years, the number of states experiencing increases in obesity rates was in the 20s. This year's report showed 16 states with increasing rates of obesity.
"This is a small victory and does not mean we can ease off the gas pedal," said James Marks, MD, MPH, senior vice president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in Princeton, N.J., during a teleconference.
This trend may be due to local, state, and federal efforts aimed at making communities more walkable as well as increasing the availability of fresh fruits and vegetables....


Indiana University Health Obesity Prevention Program's Laura McCarthy says the fight against obesity starts at the grassroots level....

Illinois finds a great opportunity in these facts.  That is the USA I understand.

...“It’s a great opportunity (click here) for Indiana University Health and other groups in the state to really fight in the attack on obesity. There will be lots of opportunities for community work,” McCarthy said.


Some of the easiest ways to combat obesity are things that people can begin doing today McCarthy said.


“Some of the main things are increasing fruit and vegetable consumption and getting more physical activity,” said McCarthy.


Colorado has the smallest percentage of obese residents at 19.8 percent, which would have been the nation's highest in 1995.

Below is an interactive from Robert Wood Johnson that spans over 25 years of recording obesity trends in the USA.  The 'Obesity Trend' never reverses in any state which is really interesting.  It begins in Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama.  These states are probably, and this is just a guess, the 'test grounds' of new product advertising to see what will work on the rest of the country.  The reason advertising exists is because it works.  The reason the trend starts in those states is because they are among the poorest states in the nation and it is easy to provide an incentive to citizens, local authorities such as mayor and councils and even state legislators to provide that 'population' for testing.  That is just my estimation, not research. 

Obesity Trends Among U.S. Adults  (click here)

National Map View

The data shown were collected through the CDC's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). Each year, state health departments use standard procedures to collect data through a series of monthly telephone interviews with U.S. adults. Prevalence estimates shown may vary slightly from those generated for the states by the BRFSS as slightly different analytic methods are used.

Also from Robert Wood Johnson.  I applaud them for their dedication to making the USA a healthier nation.

The Public Health and Economic Benefits of Taxing Sugar-Sweetened Beverages  (click here)

Kelly D. Brownell, Ph.D., Thomas Farley, M.D., M.P.H., Walter C. Willett, M.D., Dr.P.H., Barry M. Popkin, Ph.D., Frank J. Chaloupka, Ph.D., Joseph W. Thompson, M.D., M.P.H., and David S. Ludwig, M.D., Ph.D.

N Engl J Med 2009; 361:1599-1605

October 15, 2009

The consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages has been linked to risks for obesity, diabetes, and heart disease1-3; therefore, a compelling case can be made for the need for reduced consumption of these beverages. Sugar-sweetened beverages are beverages that contain added, naturally derived caloric sweeteners such as sucrose (table sugar), high-fructose corn syrup, or fruit-juice concentrates, all of which have similar metabolic effects.

Taxation has been proposed as a means of reducing the intake of these beverages and thereby lowering health care costs, as well as a means of generating revenue that governments can use for health programs.4-7 Currently, 33 states have sales taxes on soft drinks (mean tax rate, 5.2%), but the taxes are too small to affect consumption and the revenues are not earmarked for programs related to health. This article examines trends in the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, evidence linking these beverages to adverse health outcomes, and approaches to designing a tax system that could promote good nutrition and help the nation recover health care costs associated with the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages....

When did obesity start to increase so sharply in this country? How prevalent is it today? Click "animate" to view the yearly progression, or select an individual year. Clicking on any state will take you to full details for that state.

So everyone 'got that part' right?

A decrease in Social Security Benefits, Medicare and Medicaid is an INDIRECT increase in taxes.


Just want to make sure the nation is all on the same page as the BULLIES from the Republican Party.

By not raising taxes on the wealthy, the Republicans are raising taxes on the Poor and Middle Class of the USA.

How?

To begin the soveriegn debt of the USA is increasing through the NEGLIGENCE of Republican legislators to responsibly raise taxes on those that can best pay more.

That sovereign debt of the USA has provided SERVICES to many people including the wealthy.  They should be responsibly asked to contribute more to their protections as citizens and as a rule they have more to protect and get services for, such as Mrs. Bachman and her agritultural interests.

But, that isn't where the real damage is done.  The real damage is done to the Poor and Middle Class by removing BENEFITS from Social Security and Medicare and Medicaid after they have contributed to those BENEFITS for all their working years.

See, by reducing benefits of SSI, Medicare and Medicaid that is an indirect tax on the Middle Class and Poor of the USA.  Got it?  It isn't that complicated although no one will talk about it this way.  Other than me perhaps.

See, when a person's tax burden including SSI and Medicare are not raised or LOWERED, that is an indirect tax on their benefits in the future. 

The taspzyer although not having tax increses will be paying more for their future benefits. 

But, it doesn't stop there.

When one goes to receive benefits there will be far less income than orginally paid for, there will be no chance to save for their future by the reduced benefits in the future and there will higher costs of living.

So, by not raising taxes on those best to pay more taxes the Middle Class is having their lives taxed NOW and in the future all in one Republcan measure based in decades old rhetoric.

This is nonsense.  The wealthy need to pay more and that is mroe than reasonable in the year 2011 after our Treasury has been excoriated for eight years by Republicasn STILL unable to stimulate an economy without the burden of increased debt for those eight years in the name of 'a nation at war.

"Read my lips, no new taxes"

What did I say?  Didn't I say the Republican rhetoric has not changed in decades.  Am I correct?  Yes, I am correct.

So, let me get this right.  Eric Cantor is stating every Republican is in lock step regarding the debt ceiling in that in order to raise it there will be no increases in taxes.  Well, that is interesting, because if there were new taxes there might NOT be a reason to raise the debt ceiling.

So, Mr. Cantor goes on to say that if the Democrats want to raise the debt celing there has to be budgetary provisions in order for Republicans to approve to raise the debt ceiling.

Oh.

I didn't know the debt ceiling issue involved only Democrats.  Quite the contrary.

But, the ILLOGIC of the Republicans goes even further.

According to Mr. Cantor, NOW is not the time to raise taxes because it would cause the economy jobs.

Now, let's just pause and think about that a minute.

Assuming Walmart, the nation's largest employer is not going to be raising salaries above the poverty line anytime soon, that would mean there really is no sincere chance for the country to increase revenues.

Hm.

The disposable income of these Americans is not going to increase anytime soon and the ecomony will probably remain stalemated.  So, given the fact the 'idea' by Republicans is to continue to HIDE behind a sluggish economy, it really is not their place to 'bargain' over the sovereign debt of this nation since they can claim over 90% of it all by themselves.

But, to conclude that Mr. Cantor is saying that raising taxes now would cost jobs, of which he has not one shred of concrete evidence, that means he IS IN FAVOR of raising taxes when the good times roll.  Yes?  Yes.  Now if that is the case and the good times are rolling, why would we need to raise taxes?  I want Mr. Cantor to answer that one and have a comprehensive package to his RHETORIC that sincerely explains his premise and when the nation will recover enough to return all the sacrifices by the poor and middle class that have AGAIN been 'tapped' for precious little funds in the first place.

S.O.P. from the Petroleum Industry, "We will be here as long as it takes to clean up the oil."

An emergency response crew in Laurel, Montana, clean a section of the Yellowstone river affected by the ExxonMobil oil spill. Photograph: Reuters

Joking!

Oil executives criticised for conflicting accounts of breach and regulators accused of failing to ensure safe operation...

Op-Ed

Climate change and disaster in Montana  (click title to entry - thank you)

The flooding of the Yellowstone River and the oil spill in the riverbed are connected, and the burning of fossil fuels is the key.

By Naomi Klein

July 7, 2011

...But my conversation with Bonogofsky was four full days before the pipeline began pouring oil into the Yellowstone River. And no, it's not that she's psychic; she was talking about this year's historic flooding.

"It's unbelievable," she said. "It's like nothing I've experienced in my lifetime. It destroyed houses; people died; crops didn't get in the fields…. We barely were able to get our hay crop in."Everyone agrees that the two disasters — the flooding of the Yellowstone River and the oil spill in the riverbed — are connected....

There is this continuing dialogue about the petroleum industry that always contains the same content, DESTRUCTION and DEATH.  When is the government going to get their minds around this and end the suffering for this nation from an industry that has no conscience !

Crews work to clear oil from along the Yellowstone River in Laurel, Mont., on Tuesday. (Jim Urquhart, Associated Press / July 5, 2011)

Exxon oil spill on Yellowstone River disrupts farms

By Emilie Ritter

Reuters 

Wed, Jul 6, 2011

HELENA, Montana (Reuters) - Governor Brian Schweitzer (click here) vowed on Tuesday to cling to Exxon Mobil like "the smell on a skunk" for as long as it takes to get the company to clean up a weekend oil spill that fouled an otherwise pristine stretch of the Yellowstone River in Montana.

A 12-inch Exxon pipeline ruptured on Friday night about 150 miles downstream from Yellowstone National Park near the town of Laurel, Montana, southwest of Billings, dumping up to 1,000 barrels, or 42,000 gallons, of crude oil into the flood-swollen river.

Toxic fumes from the oil overcame a number of people who reported breathing problems and dizziness and were taken to local hospitals. But state and federal officials on Tuesday said they lacked a tally of health problems or the number of riverside homes that were evacuated after the accident....

Yes, indeed, it is only a weekend oil spill.  It isn't as though it has gone on for three months and caused an entire coast to be destroyed.  No, no, nothing like that.  After all the American people are so resilient and can withstand all kinds of death and destruction,. this is simply something else we need to take on the chin after all.

Scope of Yellowstone River oil spill may grow (click here)

Exxon Mobil Corp. says leak could extend far beyond 10-mile stretch

By MATTHEW BROWN

The Associated Press

7/5/2011 8:28:34 AM ET 2011-07-05T12:28:34

LAUREL, Montana — The scope of Exxon Mobil Corp.'s oil leak into the Yellowstone River could extend far beyond a 10-mile (16-kilometer) stretch of the famed waterway, the company acknowledged under political pressure Monday.

As the company intensified its cleanup of tens of thousands of gallons (liters) of spilled crude, Exxon Mobil Pipeline Co. President Gary Pruessing pledged to do "whatever is necessary" to find and mop up oil from the 12-inch (30-centimeter) pipeline that broke at the bottom of the river over the weekend.

The company had earlier downplayed assertions from state and federal officials that damage from the spill was spread over dozens of miles (kilometers). That drew sharp criticism from Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer, who planned to tour the damaged areas Tuesday.

Company officials said their statements were misconstrued, and Pruessing pledged that crews would begin walking the Yellowstone shoreline as soon as the flooding river recedes to look for pooled oil along the banks.

"We're not limiting the scope of our cleanup to the immediate site," Pruessing said at a news conference along the river near Laurel, as crews mopped up oil in the background. "We are not trying to suggest in any way that that's the limit of exposure."…

Just a couple of things, 10,000 gallons is NOT the same as 10,000 liters, so does someone want to get that right?  Okay?

July 7, 2001
1800:13z
UNISYS Enhanced Infrared of the Northwest USA

This is the current map of the weather.  There is a ridge between the north and south airmasses right now.  It isn't easy to see on Infrared at this point, but, if the Arctic Air Mass (north air mass) decends within the next day or so which it looks as though it might because there is a vortex forming in the Arctic Oscillation south of Alaska, there may be more heavy rains.  So to say there will be repair work done as soon as the river recedes is NOT realistic.

EXXON-Mobile needs to bring one of their deep water dive teams to the Yellowstone River and STOP THE DAMN LEAK NOW !!!!!!!!!!

The all knowing and all seeing Petroleum Industry knows what to do, they can call Halliburton and have them bring in one of those concrete caps that collect oil so well in water.  This time it might actually work becuase the leak isn't a mile down in the Oean !

Wed, Jul 6, 2011

Reuters

Oil mixed with water from an oil spill along the Yellowstone River is pictured in …

Well, what a joy.  Once again, we are looking at water and oil mixing in precious waters that fish and wildlife depend on .  It is so magnificent to see, espeically when vacationing to see the great outdoors in the beautiful, or is ONCE BEAUTIFUL United States of America.  Why is it I don't see any fish of any kind swimming by?  So, now when young people ask their parents, "Where are all the fish, Daddy?" they can reply, "Dead because our alligence to the petroleum industry over our own children has yet destroyed another ecosystem."  Ah, the wonders of big business.

Casey Marie Anthony looks very different today than she had in a trial that was about her death.

She looks as though she has a future again.  Something to celebrate about by asserting 'her person.'

I am not surprised about the sentencing.  The judge, and this is more proof of it, has sided with the State the entire time. 

I am confident she'll serve her sentence, for what length of time remains for her, with the same dignity she affored herself the past three years. 

(CBS/WKMG/AP) ORLANDO, Fla. - Casey Anthony click title to entry - thank you) was sentenced Thursday by Judge Belvin Perry to four years in prison for lying to police, but with credit for time served and good behavior she is likely to be released in late July or early August....

There has been nonsense in the media about the fact she is planning to have another baby when she is released.  That is astounding to realize the media has access to her prison mates or legal team to understand her plans that deeply. 

If that is the truth about Ms. Anthony, then it is normal coping after the loss of a child as far as I am concerned. 

Personally, I hope she takes time to reflect, grow, develop a relationship with longevity with a man and then marry before a child is born.  What actually will happen here is completely up to her, at least I hope so.

Companies are loved because of their unions and the way their employees are treated.

Members of the United Auto Workers Union are expected to vote to accept more concessions as part of revised contract with General Motors Corporation, including a ban on strikes until 2015. GM needs the concessions to survive and the union has no choice but to give them, observed one local union leader. “Ron Gettelfinger and Cal Rapson did about as well as they could do,” he added....

I was speaking to a daughter of a Union Member that works with GM.  In her statement she was very grateful for the benefits her father earned over many years of service.  Her father is suffering from a cancer that is very difficult to detect, Gall Bladder Cancer.  She stated he is getting the best of care.  During the conversation she called General Motors, "GENEROUS MOTORS."  That is the way the family had viewed the company and endeared their experience working for them.  There was no hatred or harsh words, they knew who they were in relation to the products produced to serve consumers and the best outcome of the company.  The media has it all "W"rong, literally.

...The 28 workers at the company's plant in Lordstown, Ohio, (click here) alleged they were misclassified as temporary employees and lost pay and benefits to which they were entitled under collective bargaining agreements between GM and the union.
Kenneth Myers, the attorney for the workers, told Reuters on Monday they are seeking $3 million to $4 million in back pay.
GM and the UAW did not immediately return phone calls requesting a comment.
The plaintiffs were hired as temporary workers in 2006 and were terminated in April 2007, according to their complaint, which was filed Saturday in U.S. District Court in the Northern District of Ohio. They were rehired six months later, when they were briefly paid the same wage as staff employees, it said....

Mistakes happen in large corporations when it comes to pay and benefits to members of a union.  What I find interesting about this case is that both the company and the union are cited by these 29 employees.  The Employees are probably correct in their complaint because it sounds like a mistake more than any malicious intent, but, the union is standing with the company until all the facts are known.  When does the media ever portrary that point of view so much as vicious lies and overtones that cause unions to be degraded in their esteem?