The Rooster "Okeydoke"Sunday, September 25, 2011
"Good Night, Moon"
Waning Crescent
2.9% lit
Illuminated Fraction: 0.022
27.9% of Full
1.2 days before new moon
Sunday, 25 September, 2011
Looking close there is a hint of light on the far margin.
The Federal Budget for Fiscal Year 2012 (click title to entry - thank you)
This interactive website at the White House is active 24-7 and has been for some time now. I found it helpful to understanding where our focus lies in the coming year, I hope you do, too.
Social Security Disability is not in immediate danger. The only danger looming is a reduced return on the trust funds investments. Hello?
If the numbers increase in enrollment to SSD, it is because the general population of the nation has increased, so the 'incidence' increases as a function of the 'nature of the beast.'
It is what it is. No one is 'growing' SSD. It is a necessary function of the society of the USA. We are a compassionate country that realizes there are times when a human body doesn't do what it is suppose to do.
As far as the investments for SSD.This is where SSD is invested:
Funds not withdrawn for current expenses (click here) are invested in interest-bearing Federal securities, as required by law; the interest earned is also deposited in the trust fund.
...The projected decline (click title to entry - thank you) in costs relative to gross domestic product is not a function of decreasing numbers of SSI disabled recipients, since the number of recipients is projected to increase, albeit slowly, well into the future. The increase in the number of recipients appears to be related to the size of the population, rather than to an increase in the prevalence of disability, since the SSI population is projected to be relatively stable or even decline as a portion of the population in each age group (Chart 66). This relationship indicates that the projected growth in the economy will play a role in diminishing the cost of the program relative to GDP. This analysis does not include the cost of Medicaid for the disabled, which, as shown in Chart 17, has been growing much more quickly than has the cost of the disability programs administered by SSA....
The credit rating of the USA is going to be reflected in our bonds that we use in order to make money to keep Trust Funds going. We need to be sure our nation is sound because programs like this are insured by those bonds. We invest in ourselves, not Wall Street. That also says something about turning SSI into a private investment account. There is no better investment than USA Treasury Bonds. Turning SSI into a private investment account is a huge mistake and most smart Americans would invest back in US Treasury Bonds anyway. Why do through all the change unless there is a benefit for Wall Street that is more risky than the USA.
I listened to Steve Forbes speak the other day and it made me realize...
The problem with Wall Street is that they want THEIR 'Business Model" all wrapped up in a nice little package, like the one Senator Brown made for them.
But, it is more than corruption and crony politics, it is a sincere lack of ability to adjust to changes in any business climate. Basically, what occurred in 2008 with the global economic collapse is the Wall Street was given a bailout. They considered it theirs to be happy with and to be safe with so they walked away to play with billions of $US to 'set themselves up' because they are unable to sincerely understand the market or predict it.
Forbes was having a fit over Freddie Mac and Fanny Mae. He felt they needed to be dissolved. That the Wall Street answer, but, it isn't an answer for a nation of people, some unable to reach for that gold ring without some help.
The USA is a country, not a bank account and Wall Street can't seem to get their minds around that. Heck, the Republicans can't get their minds around it either, they allow the USA Treasury to be used as a Treasury to their cronies, so why expect Wall Street to think morally about a nation of people?
This is what Housing and Urban Development, Shaun Donovan said on August 17, 2010: "Given where we are today, our footprint needs to be smaller." (click title to entry - thank you)
I guarantee you Wall Street doesn't agree with that statement and doesn't even begin to understand it because they would have to understand the federal government besides having the ability to accumulate monies from taxpayers to be used at their beacon-call.
If Republicans are weak minded but loud mouths, then the people that they call cronies aren't at all different, except, they might be quieter until they have to ask for money of course.
Perhaps, Mr. Forbes and his pals on Wall Street need to take some 'government and public policy' courses for their degree on how best to have their companies serve the CITIZENS of this nation so they actually don't do stupid things like bundling mortgages.
MSNBC had the most wonderful meeting today at Rockefeller Center. Thank you. "Education Nation"
Below is an insightful Op-Ed from the NY Times. It's true. When I graduated from High School in 1973 the tests tested me, not my teachers. Now, its all backwards.
...Tests used (click title to entry - thank you) to be just for evaluating students, but now the testing of students is used to evaluate teachers and, in fact, the entire educational system. On an individual level, some students and parents have noticed a change — more standardized tests and more classroom and homework time devoted to preparation for them....
...Negative test results should never be presented as reasons for immediate and drastic action. When our students fail standardized tests, we need to work through many further difficult steps before concluding what, if anything, needs to be done. There is a long argumentative path from bad tests results to a justified call to arms.
States can apply for No Child Left Behind waivers (click here)
By ANDREW WIND, andrew.wind@wcfcourier.com
By ANDREW WIND, andrew.wind@wcfcourier.com
Posted: Sunday, September 25, 2011 4:00 pm
WATERLOO, Iowa --- States that reform their education systems could gain relief from provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act under a plan announced Friday by the U.S. Department of Education.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan told Midwest reporters in a conference call that states that apply for a waiver can have the increased flexibility "in exchange for a real commitment to reform."
Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad's administration is expected to unveil a package of proposed education reforms Oct. 3. Jason Glass, director of the Iowa Department of Education, said in a statement that "we support and appreciate" efforts to improve the law.
"Iowa plans on responding to the calls for designing new school accountability systems," Glass said. "We will work with the major groups involved with education in Iowa and state policy makers to design a plan that makes sense for us over the long term. This work may begin before the end of 2011."…
No Child Left Behind Waiver To Give SCEducators Freedom
(click here)
Districts, schools could get more flexibility with funding, teaching to improve student achievement
By:
Published: September 23, 2011
Published: September 23, 2011
COLUMBIA, SC --
States can now apply for waivers for certain No Child Left Behind rules, which may give South Carolina’s education leaders the flexibility they’ve been looking for to improve schools.
Friday, President Barak Obama announced that a decade after the sweeping education policy was signed into law by former President George Bush it is clear the plan isn’t working and states need to be able to change. The laws set gradually higher achievement benchmarks for schools, and ultimately required that 100 percent of student be proficient in reading and math by 2014. Opponents of the plan complained that it set impossibly high standards and punished struggling schools by withholding federal funds.
South Carolina Education Superintendent Mick Zais, who took office in January, raised concerns in July that under No Child Left Behind schools were wrongly labeled as failing if they missed even one of over 30 achievement goals for the year. For schools that improved, but still didn’t meet national standards, the assessments were disheartening.
Last year only 27 percent of the state’s middle and high schools met No Child Left Behind standards, compared to 61 percent the year before, because the standards went up….
...Obama said he has urged Congress to "fix" the law, but, would no longer wait....
Neil Bush the king of Twitter in China.
Neil Bush, who runs an oil company in Texas and is nine years younger than his better-known sibling, only opened his account with Sina's Weibo - China's answer to Twitter - with the help of a Chinese-speaking assistant.
But by Friday morning, 41,418 people were following his posts on subjects ranging from China's rapid development to the impending marriage of his daughter Lauren, a former model.
"I have been to China 80 times and am in awe of its
development," read one posting.
"I hope all Americans see China's development has
come a long way and can gain a better understanding
of how China is growing into a global force."...
Are Americans a global force? Are Americans
obtaining good salaries? Do Americans have
manufacturing jobs to turn to?
Yet.
The Bush brother loves China and wants the people
of the USA to love the global economic effects of
China while "W"'s party sees no reason to support
new technologies or growth where it is impacted
by the economic deterioration due to China and
outsourcing.
The Bush family and the S&L Scandal (click here)
In case no one remembers Neal. It is an easy guess why he insists on being in China so much.
Katrina funds earmarked to pay for Neil Bush's software program (click here)
Former first lady's donation aids son
CYNTHIA LEONOR GARZA, Houston Chronicle
Published 05:30 a.m., Thursday, March 23, 2006
Former first lady Barbara Bush donated an undisclosed amount of money to the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund with specific instructions that the money be spent with an educational software company owned by her son Neil.
Since then, the Ignite Learning program has been given to eight area schools that took in substantial numbers of Hurricane Katrina evacuees.
"Mrs. Bush wanted to do something specifically for education and specifically for the thousands of students flooding into the Houston schools," said Jean Becker, former President Bush's chief of staff. "She knew that HISD was using this software program, and she's very excited about this program, so she wanted to make it possible for them to expand the use of this program."
The former first lady plans to visit a Houston Independent School District campus using the Ignite program today to call on local business leaders to support schools and education….
Indeed.
The Relatively Charmed Life Of Neil Bush (click here)
Despite Silverado and Voodoo, Fortune Still Smiles on the President's Brother
By Peter Carlson
Washington Post Staff WriterSunday, December 28, 2003; Page D01
Gang violence compliments of "Facebook"
Picton High School, (click title to entry - thank you) south of Sydney, was placed in lockdown today, after a group of 15 children allegedly threatened a student with a gun on Facebook....
...Police said they saw eight children walking around the school and told them to move along.
Wollondilly Shire mayor Michael Banasik, whose children attend the school, said he was shocked by the incident.
"My staff have told me a group of people threatened this student and said they and their friends were going to come to the school with a gun," Mr Banasik said.
"She alerted the principal, and the school shut down."
A spokesman for the Department of Education said the school went into lockdown after they were told ''threatening people'' were going to enter the campus.
He said the people did not enter the school and the police were called. ''We are working with the police,'' the spokesman added.
Picton High School sent a text message to parents this afternoon detailing the incident.
"We responded to a call of concern from the community re a student's safety and locked gates/call (sic) police as a precautionary measure. No incident occurred," it read.
Picton High School in Australia (click here) This being in Australia it sets up a bit of a different dynamic. The country has not financially strapped its government. The land mass and the population is different. The authorities were ready and able to respond. But, what if this wasn't Australia, but, the USA? Would the schools be able and ready to respond to such an emerging threat with cuts in funding and reduced staffing?
And Facebook? It is a place where hostility is in the planning stages? Really? There should be a filter of some kind set up by Microsoft that picks up trends. I don't believe any language used to indicate violence, anger or hostility should be allowed with children under 18 years old. It should not be allowed at all, but, that would be censorship of adult sites and that is probably more difficult to manage. But, young people should be easy.
Picton High School in Australia (click here) This being in Australia it sets up a bit of a different dynamic. The country has not financially strapped its government. The land mass and the population is different. The authorities were ready and able to respond. But, what if this wasn't Australia, but, the USA? Would the schools be able and ready to respond to such an emerging threat with cuts in funding and reduced staffing?
And Facebook? It is a place where hostility is in the planning stages? Really? There should be a filter of some kind set up by Microsoft that picks up trends. I don't believe any language used to indicate violence, anger or hostility should be allowed with children under 18 years old. It should not be allowed at all, but, that would be censorship of adult sites and that is probably more difficult to manage. But, young people should be easy.
Tornado Crosses New York Thruway - 9/4/11
No Republican, besides Jon Huntsman, wants to deal with the real dangers of Human Induced Global Warming?
It is the year 2012 and the majority of scientists on Earth concur. I've heard about ignorant, but, this is hideously political mind speak already. Are Republicans required to take IQ tests before they become a candidate so they can actually read the writing of the PhDs.
What is it going to take? This is the US Drought Monitor from September 20, 2011.
Hurricane Irene began August 20, 2011 and ended August 29, 2011.
Below is one of the worst reports of the USA drought. It was the week of July 12, 2011. It did spread after this. It spread across most of the Midwest up to the Mississippi.
Republicans don't have a conscience and I don't want to hear how the science is imperfect. It isn't. The climate is changing and we have had record heat this summer. People died. People died in the storm called Irene. When is it going to get past the political mind speak to actually defend the people of the USA. Even the US military doesn't deny the Climate Crisis is real. No one can be this stupid.
That is what is so curious about American Conservatives. At least they state they are conservatives.
One would think that after the drilling platform disaster of "The Deepwater Horizon" and the economic losses of the USA. The destruction to the fisheries, the contaminated Louisiana coastline and the oil that still lays at the bottom of the Gulf a conservative would be able to size up the situation and realize the country is unable to sustain these tragedies alone.
I am not talking about the BP Oil Companies liabilities. It is about the sincere losses the USA has sustained that is going to contribute to the downturn and possible double dip recession. I would think they would be able at least to measure all the tragedy that has occurred in the past year alone to realize how it all impacted any recovery effort.
I would think after additionally putting the INCOMPETENCIES of the petroleum industry on display along Yellowstone River, wiping out farming operations, destroying the fish in a pristine river and cleaning up the mess with absorbent towels it would be all to obvious the economy was taking a huge hit.
And they never, ever seem to believe these companies are so untrustworthy they should be REGULATED to prevent economic hardship of the citizens. I sincerely believe the Republicans are as incompetent as their cronies. And by the donations of Senator Brown of Massachusetts from his cronies after handing the banking industry billions in breaks with Dodd-Frank it is all too obvious.
You know I never really noticed how a Republicans head swivels when they look the other way, have you?
5:13 PM, Sep. 23, 2011
Wind Turbines have been tested under extreme weather conditions for decades.
Mitsubishi (click here) 250 kW wind turbines of the Kama‘oa Wind Farm in Ka Lae (a.k.a. South Point), Big Island of Hawaii. The wind farm came online in 1987, was decomissioned in 2006. Photo by Rebecca Stanek
...Two wind farm (click title to entry - thank you) projects in Kenedy County aren't far enough along to demonstrate how their giant fan blades would fare in a hurricane such as Ike.
But if they were operating, those traveling nearby on U.S. Highway 77 would have nothing to fear from them, said a spokeswoman with one of the companies spearheading the projects. Mitsubishi Power Systems, the turbine manufacturer, has designed the turbines to withstand hurricane conditions, said Beth O'Brien, of Australia-based Babcock and Brown, the developer of one of the wind farms.
O'Brien said Mitsubishi considered winds up to 172 mph in its turbine design. The turbines rotate the nacelle, or generator, to its best and safest position based on wind speed and direction.
That design also prevents excessive loads being applied to the blades and tower. If there is a strong wind, the nacelle rotates to face downwind, alleviating the load, O'Brien said....
From the New York Times today. It isn't just me that makes this 'HOSTILE' connection about Republicans. The 'attitude' is historical by now and their link with a corrupt and criminal media empire is legendary.
…Republicans (click here) have now pounced on the bankruptcy as proof that the loan program is a bust, that the president’s signature green jobs program is a fraud, and that this country’s solar energy business is in terminal decline.
None of that is true. Solyndra made a bad bet, investing heavily in a new type of solar array just as the price of silicon, the main ingredient in competitors’ solar cells, was dropping. Its demise should not spell the end of federal investment in the alternative fuels and energy sources that are critical to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, easing this country’s dependence on fossil fuels and keeping it competitive in the race for clean-energy jobs,
…The United States, which three years ago led the world in investments in clean energy, has now fallen behind China and Germany, which provide far more generous subsidies. The failure of a single company — and anyone who knows anything about transformative technologies knows there will be failures — is no reason to stop our efforts to catch up….
…The administration claims to have exercised due diligence and seems to have been forthcoming in responding to Congress. The company has been decidedly less so;…
…It is also important to note where some of the loudest criticism is coming from: House Republicans who want to undermine the president, belittle global warming and discredit clean fuels. Their agenda was on full display Thursday at a hearing led by Darrell Issa called “How Obama’s Green Energy Agenda Is Killing Jobs.”
The proceedings mainly consisted of Representative Issa and others asserting that money spent on environmentally friendly fuels and jobs would be much better spent on “domestic carbon-based resources” — that is, dirtier fuels like oil, gas and coal. What was not mentioned was that at least 10 of the 23 Republicans on the Oversight and Government Reform Committee — including Mr. Issa — have lobbied the Department of Energy to approve green projects in their own districts.
The truth of the matter is that when judged by its diverse portfolio, the loan program appears, at least so far, to have performed well….
Natural Gas: An Amazing Resource. A Responsible Way To Produce It.
This is like ExxonMobile, right? This commercial insults the intelligence of nearly every American if they ever stopped to realize how they are being treated by this disaster of a company.
They are trying to say there is at least one and a half miles of PROTECTIVE rock between the 'sellf contained' well and the ground water.
"W"rong. There is NO protective rock between the hydraulic fracturing of rock and the ground water, the drilling company destroyed that protective layer when they put a hole in it.
Do I have to say this? The Petroleum Industry actually believes people are this stupid. Or. At least they are hoping they are giving everyone a reason to believe the LIE.
Wall Street on trial. Finally. Why is it there was this 'mind set' dictated by Republicans ...
...that somehow the money changers are exempt from the law? Still today, nothing Bush, Cheney or their cabal including the episode with Wall Street is viewed by Republicans as a criminal act.
I thought the GOP believed in the rule of law. It would not seem the case. All the banks were given a pass on criminal activity when the 2008 collapse occurred. Yet. It was okay for that to be allowed, after all those are all the wealth merchants and bad things happen when they are put on trial.
So. There is NOT justice for all. The American people had to swallow $1.2 Trillion in a vanished economy that is still contracting today and the GOP has the nerve to call it 'tax and spend.' They have it "W"rong. The Bush White House gave a blank check to Wall Street and they had and still don't have any intention of reinvesting in the USA.
Lloyd Blankfein, the chief executive of Goldman Sachs, (click title to entry - thank you) has hired one of America's top criminal defence lawyers to help him address claims that the bank misled clients in the run-up to the financial crisis, and Congress afterwards.
I thought the GOP believed in the rule of law. It would not seem the case. All the banks were given a pass on criminal activity when the 2008 collapse occurred. Yet. It was okay for that to be allowed, after all those are all the wealth merchants and bad things happen when they are put on trial.
So. There is NOT justice for all. The American people had to swallow $1.2 Trillion in a vanished economy that is still contracting today and the GOP has the nerve to call it 'tax and spend.' They have it "W"rong. The Bush White House gave a blank check to Wall Street and they had and still don't have any intention of reinvesting in the USA.
Lloyd Blankfein, the chief executive of Goldman Sachs, (click title to entry - thank you) has hired one of America's top criminal defence lawyers to help him address claims that the bank misled clients in the run-up to the financial crisis, and Congress afterwards.
Shares in the Wall Street bank fell in late trading on Monday when it emerged that Blankfein had retained Reid Weingarten, criminal defence attorney at Steptoe & Johnson. Blankfein turned to Weingarten after the US Department of Justice began investigating the way Goldman sold subprime mortgage securities – the toxic investments that triggered the credit crunch.
Blankfein has also been accused of misleading a Senate committee – a claim that is emphatically denied by Goldman.
Goldman confirmed that both Blankfein and other senior executives at the bank had engaged their own lawyers earlier this year. The move was triggered by the Senate permanent subcommittee on investigations, which in April issued a damning report into Goldman's activities. This report was then passed on to the DoJ....
And the 'Too Big To Fail" crowd seem so like it that way as the Middle Class falls into poverty and the American Dream is out of reach for more people today than in the last quarter century.
"Too Big To Fail" is also "Above the Law." At least until now.
By: cARRIE bAY
And the 'Too Big To Fail" crowd seem so like it that way as the Middle Class falls into poverty and the American Dream is out of reach for more people today than in the last quarter century.
"Too Big To Fail" is also "Above the Law." At least until now.
Goldman Sachs Posts $3 Billion Gain (click here)
10/16/2009By: cARRIE bAY
Just months after paying back billions in bailout funds, Goldman Sachs reported a profit of $3.19 billion for the third quarter, or $5.25 diluted earnings per common share, exceeding analyst expectations by about $1 a share. Goldman’s earnings were up 270 percent for the quarter compared to the same period last year….
A profit? Not income. Profit. Of $3.19 Billion US.
That wasn't for a year, but, a quarter.
Like?
What the fuck?
The Money Changers. Excuse me, but, didn't a NYC police officer state he was bribed by Murdoch's media service?
To begin with, how is any HONEST newsprint suppose to compete with criminals?
AND.
WHY does the GOP commingle their politics with a media service that has a strong criminal undercurrent in their management.
Is anyone worried about national security when it comes to Murdoch's media?
LONDON: A former “News of the World” executive was paid (click title to entry - thank you) more than £25,000 by the paper's publisher during his time at Scotland Yard, a report said on Saturday.
Neil Wallis, the former deputy editor of the paper, received the payments in late 2009 and 2010 for providing crime stories to the weekly, according to the Daily Telegraph.
The details of the payments from Rupert Murdoch's News International emerged in billing records obtained by detectives, said the paper. Wallis was hired as a part-time consultant by Metropolitan Police in late 2009, shortly after quitting the News of the World....
Neil Wallis, the former deputy editor of the paper, received the payments in late 2009 and 2010 for providing crime stories to the weekly, according to the Daily Telegraph.
The details of the payments from Rupert Murdoch's News International emerged in billing records obtained by detectives, said the paper. Wallis was hired as a part-time consultant by Metropolitan Police in late 2009, shortly after quitting the News of the World....
The Murdochs have tried to say each element of their media empire is separate and different from the others. I don't think so. From the story in NYC and now the FACT about London there seems to be a systemic understanding that 'snooping, bargaining, hacking and bribing' is all a matter of policy. Understood or written there is a culture within this media that is corrupt.
I dare anyone to look at long established media that actually FAVORS a religion, a set of values and enforces it WITH INTENT.
Murdoch is about power, not about information and if no one can see that, then I don't how much clearer it has to be.
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