North Fort Worth dealership felt the worst of hailstorm

March 29, 2009
York, Pennsylvania


Monday, March 30, 2009 8:43 AM
Photos, Radar: A Hail of a Storm For NYC, Philly (click here)


March 29, 2009
York, Pennsylvania
Photographer states :: The skies went green before an onslaught of hail and wind... After surveying all the damage trees were knocked down in all different directions... Springettsbury Township York Pa More Storm pics and damage can be found here... http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenmaciejewski/sets/72157616107315208/
Enjoy!!!


Posted on Mon, Mar. 30, 2009
Possible tornadoes, huge hail, high winds wreak havoc (click here)
By Peter Mucha
Inquirer Staff Writer
Severe thunderstorms yesterday brought reports of possible tornadoes, hailstones bigger than golf balls and 50 m.p.h. gusts to parts of southern and eastern Pennsylvania.
A trailer home overturned, crushing a car, and five other trailer homes were destroyed in Lancaster County's Clay Township yesterday afternoon.
Three people suffered minor injuries, said a county official.
In nearby Denver, Pa., "numerous roofs were blown off houses," according to a National Weather Service report.
A funnel cloud may have touched down, becoming a tornado, and a determination could come today after officials of the National Weather Service and county emergency management agency survey the damage and interview observers.
Funnel clouds were spotted between 4 and 4:30 p.m. by trained observers in York County, the county west of Lancaster.
Trees fell on houses in York, Pa., and poles and wires were down.
In Montgomery Township, Montgomery County, more than 20 homes in the Wethersfield and Summer Ridge developments suffered damage to siding, windows and roofs, according to the weather service.
Reports of golf-ball-size hail came in not only from Lancaster and Lebanon yesterday afternoon, but also during the early evening from Media, Delaware County; Northeast Philadelphia; and Ancient Oaks, Lehigh County.
One-inch hail even hit parts of South Jersey, from Mount Holly, Burlington County, to Hammonton, Atlantic County.
Gusts neared 50 m.p.h. at Northeast Airport and topped that mark in Reading.
For the latest forecast, go to http://go.philly.com/weather.


March 29, 2009
Upper Darby, Pennsylvania
Photographer states :: Early Sunday evening on March 29t, a brief, but fierce hail storm flew through the area. These were taken on Long Lane by Lewis Ave. in Upper Darby.


March 27, 2009
Conroe, Texas
Photographer stated :: the storms that came through dropping hail on austin were worse, but when golfballs are flying from the air it tends to makes the kids scared.

By JOHN AUSTIN
jaustin@star-telegram.com
FORT WORTH — Pingpong-ball-size hail smashed about 400 new and used vehicles at Allen Samuels Chrysler Dodge Jeep Alliance on Interstate 35 in north Fort Worth on Monday night, and large hail whacked Keller, Grapevine and Wise County as well.
"Every car on the lot was damaged to some degree or other," said Wes Harrison, Samuels’ president and general manager. "It was pretty severe. We had windshields knocked out." Harrison added that the damaged cars will sold at a "a pretty good discount."
Harrison wasn’t expecting insurance adjustors until today but said the price tag for the damage could be "close to a million [dollars]."
Tara Dudzik, meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Fort Worth, said the severe thunderstorms dropped quarter-size hail on Denton and golf-ball-size hail on Keller, Grapevine and parts of Wise County.
"It was kind of all over the place," Dudzik said....


Keller, Texas
March 30, 2009
Photographer states :: Golf ball to baseball-sized hail hits Tarrant County in Texas.

High Rate of Rehospitalizations Costing Billions

Salary Survey Report for Job: Nurse Case Manager (click here)

When a salary is this good, there is no limit on 'keeping the job.' The actual 'EVIL DOERS' are the CEOs that have faux perspective on what actually defines 'effective Case Management.' But, the 'warriors' themselves will do anything for their jobs and keeping 'Managers/Management' happy with their 'bottom line.' So much for compassionate care. Kick 'em to the curb !!!!

The current health care system is ineffective. Hospitals are still trying to 'make money' by finding a way to make stays shorter.

CASE MANAGERS over step the 'rights and privacy priviledges' of patients in order to please superiors and find early discharge dates.

I have witnessed Case Managers scouring patient records for ANY phone number or connection or word that would indicate the patient has NOT had a hospitalized event, but, the 'current health assessment' going forward IS their baseline. It is elder and patient abuse. It is amazing !

Example: "Hi are you Dora Darling, Mrs. Patient's great, great granddaughter once removed?"

"No? Then who are you, because, your phone number is listed in a patient history from five years ago?"

"Oh, who me? You want to know who I am? Well, I am Mrs. Patient's Case Manager and I am required (NOT BY LAW, BUT, BUY MANAGEMENT) to speak with family to ascertain the prior state of her mentality and physical well being."

"Oh, so you are her grand niece. My mistake. Can I ask you if you are aware of the current health of Mrs. Patient?"

"You are? How wonderful. So, Mrs. Patient is here in the hospital and we are attempting to determine if she truly needs to be and would like your insight."

"Her Health Care Power of Attorney? Oh, I see. You aren't her Health Care Power of Attorney. Well, thats okay because I am not asking you for permission for any procedure I am asking about a 'knowledge base' we may not have and I need your information."

"You know Mrs. Patient well? Okay. You know her Health Care Power of Attorney well. Okay. But, you didn't state the level of wellness she was WITNESSED to have before being SENT to the hospital this time."

"You were the one that sent her to the hospital because her Health Care Power of Attorney is out of town. Okay. And...you took Mrs. Patient to the doctor's yesterday because she was exhibiting a level of confusion. But, was this confusion permanent or don't you know? I mean what made YOU think you had to send Mrs. Patient to the hospital, plans to go out of town maybe?"

"Oh, I see, her physican stated her urinalysis was positive for bacteria. Okay. He was concerned it was resistant since she has been in the hospital recently, so you did what you were told and sent her by ambulance because your car didn't have enough gas. Okay. But, I still want to know if her confusion was permanent or not, can you tell me that?"

"Oh, sorry...I wasn't trying to insult you or Mrs. Patient, but, I was simply trying to determine her mental status AS YOU SEE IT before she was sent to the hospital. That's all. I wasn't trying to provoke anger or regret, Mame. Could you just answer the question? Oh...my boss? I am my boss, I am the Case Manager and need simple information. That's all. Oh...hello? Hello? Oh, well, what was that other number I found in the chart?"

Guilt as charged. The truth we will never know. Was Stevens involved with 'favors?' You bet he was.

What was the evidence withheld?
Someone's phone number?
Technicalities. What a shame.

...Faced with embarrassing revelations about withheld evidence, the Justice Department on Wednesday moved to reverse the conviction of former Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens, who lost his bid for re-election just days after a jury found that he had lied about gifts and home renovations....

There were NO home renovations?

No gifts?

Like hell there wasn't.

The Younger Generation - Time for Hope

Leaders wrangle on rescue measures (click here)
(China Daily)Updated: 2009-04-02 08:03

I haven't found the man's name.

Man dies during G20 protests in London (click here)
Day of protests that began peacefully turn sour as man dies during G20 demonstrations
James Meikle, Paul Lewis, Jenny Percival and Sandra Laville
guardian.co.uk
Thursday 2 April 2009 02.05 BST
...The man's death ended a day in which the contrasting faces of British policing were on display in London.
The Met called in support from 30 forces across the country to create a 5,000-strong team of officers for at least six diverse demonstrations in the City of London and Trafalgar Square. Outside the Bank of England police horses and riot officers were pushed back by the sheer force of demonstrators – helmets were torn from officers' heads and cans, fruit and flour rained down. In retaliation the police surged forward, cracking heads with batons, using pepper spray and CS gas, and sirens wailed all around.
Three minutes' walk away, in Bishopsgate, smiling officers shared a joke with men and women pitching tents along the road, a family offered them chocolate brownies from an organic food stall and a few lads politely queued up outside the compost toilet tent.
But late last night there was a stand-off as officers moved to start to break up the climate camp that had been set up.
Violence spread as far as London Bridge, with riot police chasing groups of demonstrators, who responded with bottles and other missiles....

Can the markets stand the strain of China - USA talks with a new set of rules?

Obama, China's Hu set up new economic dialogue (click here)
Obama accepts invitation to visit China later this year
By Robert Schroeder, MarketWatch
Last update: 10:20 a.m. EDT April 1, 2009
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao agreed to set up a high-level dialogue for the two countries to discuss issues of economics and security, and Obama will visit China at Hu's invitation later this year, the White House said Wednesday.
Obama and Hu met Wednesday on the sidelines of the G20 financial summit in London....

Obama’s Summit With Hu Follows Catalog of Trade Complaints (click here)
By Mark Drajem
April 1 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama took aim at Chinese barriers to U.S exports and investment, making good on a campaign pledge to take a tougher line on trade enforcement while risking increased tensions with the Asian nation....

The 'Progress' to peace will be more than interesting and I believe quick. The people of nations have elected leaders that are eager to address 'within their opportunity in history/time' the issues of nuclear weapons and their proliferation. It is more of 'the perfect storm' created by an oppressive USA Republican regime for eight years.

When it comes to 'counting' weapons to disarm, in my opinion, a weapon is a weapon and not just a warhead. Warheads are the destructive instrument, but, the delivery systems are just as destructive as the warheads themselves when it comes to 'potential to nuclear war.'

What is the sense in destroying warheads and even eliminating them IF the delivery systems are left in place? It is like saying, for the time President Obama is in office we will have peace without nuclear anniliation, BUT, by leaving the weapon delivery systems in place that could change in a matter of moments when the next USA President or Russian President takes office.

The manufacturer of nuclear weapons can occur quickly and with the delivery systems remaining in place, a signed Peace Treaty really isn't COMPLETELY an expression of peace if war can still occur within moments.




President Medvedev is age 43.

President Obama is age 47.

It is about time, the two largest nuclear powers met with a long view of the future and short on patience for peace.


Dmitry Medvedev and Barack Obama meet ahead of the G20 summit in London to discuss nuclear disarmament. Photograph: Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP

STEP ONE : Set the tone.

Russia, U.S. enter new phase of relations - Lavrov (click here)
21:56
01/ 04/ 2009
LONDON, April 1 (RIA Novosti) - Relations between Russia and the United States have a "new quality," with each side ready to give heed to the other's positions, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday.
"A new atmosphere of relations has been created," Lavrov said in London after talks between Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and U.S. President Barack Obama. "There is mutual interest and, most importantly, readiness to listen to each other, something we had lacked for many years."
"This means a new quality of relations," he said.
In a joint statement issued after their meeting, which took place ahead of the G20 summit on the global economic crisis, the leaders pledged "to move beyond Cold War mentalities and chart a fresh start."
"We today established a substantive agenda for Russia and the United States to be developed over the coming months and years. We are resolved to work together to strengthen strategic stability, international security, and jointly meet contemporary global challenges," the presidents said in a statement.
The sides agreed that the talks had opened up the route to cooperation in nuclear nonproliferation, the fight against terrorism and extremism, resolution of Middle East conflicts, and efforts to improve economic stability.
However, the leaders admitted that crucial differences remain on some issues, in particular Georgia and the U.S. missile shield plans for Central Europe.



Russia, Britain to rebuild ties despite differences - ambassador (click here)
21:49
01/ 04/ 2009
LONDON, April 1 (RIA Novosti) - Russia and Britain are set to improve relations despite persisting differences, Russia's ambassador to London said on Wednesday after a meeting between the Russian president and British prime minister.
"Dmitry Medvedev and Gordon Brown confirmed that the sides regard each other as partners in tackling the [global economic] crisis and creating a new architecture of economic and financial relations," Yury Fedotov said.
Medvedev and Brown met ahead of Thursday's Group of 20 summit in London, where leaders will discuss the ongoing financial crisis.
London wants Moscow to extradite a key suspect in the 2006 poisoning in London of former Russian security officer and Kremlin critic Alexander Litvinenko, and Britain is also unhappy about the closure of its British Council offices in Russia.
Moscow has long sought the extradition of fugitive oligarch Boris Berezovsky, Chechen separatist emissary Akhmed Zakayev and other high-profile suspects, without success.
Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, said on Wednesday that he saw no obstacles to the development of Russian-British relations.



Obama to Seek Unity at G-20 Summit, Agrees with Medvedev on New Round of Arms Talks (click here)
By Paula Wolfson Washington01 April 2009
U.S. President Barack Obama says he seeks unity at the G-20 economic summit in London, and a new arms deal with Russia. It was a busy day of diplomacy for Mr. Obama as he launched his first overseas trip as president....
...Barack Obama made his presence known on the world stage. "I came here to put forward our ideas. But I also came here to listen and not to lecture," he said....

Study: Climate change affecting ocean food web

Over 1500 Dead Penguins Found In Chile (click here for video)
Authorities in Chile are investigating what caused the death of nearly 15 hundred penguins found in a southern bay.The dead birds were discovered yesterday on a beach more than 12 hundred miles north of Antarctica.Navy officials say experts from nearby Austral University are working to determine what killed the penguins.They did not know immediately where the penguins were from and sayIt's not unusual for some penguin species to migrate thousands of miles. (But it is unusual for 1500 to die trying.)

...The journal Science on Thursday published findings by Martin Montes-Hugo and Oscar Schofield that offer an explanation for the southern shift of Antarctic coastal species as the Western Antarctic Peninsula gets warmer -- at a rate scientists say is one of the fastest observed anywhere. Adelie penguins have been moving their range southward for years, leaving their old niches to species like gentoo and chinstrap penguins that are more adaptable to milder conditions, Schofield says....


acquired January 27, 2009
The Moderate Resolution Imaging (click here) Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this composite image on January 27, 2009. Few features are visible on the ice-covered landscape. The surface appears rough where the Transantarctic Mountains curve in a shallow “s” from the shore of the Ross Sea to the Ronne Ice Shelf. The Polar Plateau in the center of the continent is smooth, shaded only by the faint shadow cast by clouds. The Weddell Sea is textured with chunks of sea ice.




This image (click here), based on the analysis of weather station and satellite data, shows the continent-wide warming trend from 1957 through 2006. Dark red over West Antarctica reflects that the region warmed most per decade. Most of the rest of the continent is orange, indicating a smaller warming trend, or white, where no change was observed. The underlying land surface color is based on the Landsat Image Mosaic of Antarctica (LIMA) data set, while the topography is from a Radarsat-based digital elevation model. Sea ice extent in the Southern Ocean surrounding the continent is based on data from the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for EOS (AMSR-E) collected on May 14, 2008 (late fall in the Southern Hemisphere).

The weather at Glacier Bay National Park (Crystal Ice Chime) is:

Local Time: 2:07 AM AKDT (GMT -08)

Lat/Lon: 58.8° N 137.0° W

Elevation :: 33 ft

Temperature :: 32 °F

Conditions :: Overcast

Humidity :: 93%

Dew Point :: 30F

Wind :: Calm

Windchill :: 32F

Pressure :: 29.80 inches Falling

Visibility :: 10.0 miles

UV :: 0 out of 16

Clouds :: Mostly Cloudy 4200 ft
Overcast 4800 ft
(Above Ground Level)

State, Feds sue BP over 2006 spills (click title to entry - thank you)
Alaska Dispatch
Tuesday, 31 March 2009 19:58
Mar 31, 2009
By Tony Hopfinger and Margaret Cronin Fisk
March 31 (Bloomberg) -- The Alaska unit of BP Plc, Europe's second-largest oil company, was accused in a Justice Department lawsuit of violating federal clean air and water laws in the leak of more than 200,000 gallons of oil in 2006 at Prudhoe Bay.
Alaska filed a separate complaint in state court in Anchorage today seeking reimbursement of lost revenue over the Prudhoe Bay spills. The state also is seeking damages for violation of state environmental protection laws and injuries to land and mineral resources, according to the complaint.
The U.S. complaint, filed today in federal court in Anchorage, said BP failed to prevent spills and improperly removed asbestos-containing material from pipelines in 2006. The complaint covers two spills, one in March 2006 of more than 200,000 gallons and a smaller leak in August of that year....

Republican Legacy to the Middle Class - Bankrupt General Motors Corporation

GM should be allowed to be Employee Owned and Operated through the UAW !

What Corker advocated was protectionism, not capitalism.

Corker worries TN plant could be targeted by Obama auto industry plan (click here)
...``Certainly, I'm laying a marker out there,'' Corker said. ``I want it to be known (that) my sense is that the only reason they would close it is for political reasons.''
About 2,900 hourly workers are employed at Spring Hill, which opened in 1990.
The comments by the Tennessee Republican, a key player in congressional efforts to rescue the auto industry, were part of his scathing critique of the plan unveiled Monday by Democratic President Barack Obama.
The plan gives GM 60 days to come up with a proposal to fix the ailing company or face bankruptcy. It also pushes Chrysler to take a buyout from Fiat....

NO ONE WANTS THE CARS !!!!!!

The 'incentive' program will never work because General Motors manufactures the "W"rong cars !!!!!!!!!!!!

No one wants high performance cars OR SUVs. They suck down gasoline like it were water. We don't want them. What makes the morons at GM believe an incentive program will work?

That was the beauty of the Bush Offensive against American automakers, HENCE, American Unions. During his occupation of the White House, the 'trend' was to buy big, cumbersome, gas guzzlers so Security Mom's felt safe. No one in their RIGHT mind wanted the monstrosities and the manufacturers fell into huge debt. The debt complicated by the Banking/Housing Crisis, which was more "W"rong headed merchanizing; was spread out over international offices and venues to soak up the Bailout Monies as if sponges.

I said on November 19, 2008 (click here) to let the entire mess go to bankruptcy. Yeah, I did. How many billions later and what is going to happen? Yep. How many banks are still failing? Yep. There is a right way and a "W"rong way to do this and BAILOUTS are the "W"rong way. That's Bush and Paulson. They began to bailout everything under the sun rather than letting water find its natural course.

GM rolls out incentive program to quickly drive car sales (click here)
...On Tuesday, even as its new chief executive acknowledged the growing possibility of bankruptcy, the ailing carmaker announced an aggressive new incentive plan that, in part, will cover car payments for customers who lose their jobs....



...Under the plans being considered, GM would seek to quickly move its most profitable units into a new company separate from its other units in the early days of the bankruptcy filing, said the source who asked to remain anonymous because the person was not authorized to speak to the media.
The aim would be to show consumers, taxpayers, and the government that the new GM can survive and compete in the autos sector as a viable company, the source said.
Old components of the company not included in the new GM, such as Saturn and Hummer, would remain in bankruptcy over a longer period of time to be sold or wound down, said the source....

The Republicans finally get what they want. They broke the back of the strongest labor union in the country.

It is time to pass The Employee Free Choice Act. (click here) The country will eventually move past this economic disaster. When it does it will need legislation that will empower the Middle Class because Labor, such as the UAW, will be blamed for the economic collapse when it had nothing to do with it. The opposition to The Employee Free Choice Act want to oppress the opportunity to build strong unions. It is time to get it done !

White House support (click here)
...President Obama and Labor Secretary Hilda Solis have both said they support the passage of EFCA as an important way to rebuild the economy and strengthen the middle class....

GM reaches tentative deal with striking US workers (click title to entry - thank you)
Posted Wed Sep 26, 2007 10:06pm AEST

...Union officials praised the contract, which also includes job security guarantees.
"We feel very good about this agreement," UAW president Ron Gettelfinger said. "I think this strike helped our side."
Mr Gettelfinger predicts GM's employment level should remain constant over the four-year term of the contract....

The USA has come to realize we are owned by private industry. In the case of GM we have to profoundly ask, is it our choice?

Better Than Expected? GM September Sales Fall 15.8% (click here)
General Motors dealers in the United States delivered 284,300 vehicles in September, giving GM its best monthly share so far in 2008.


How many lifetime employees walk away with this for a retirement haul. And it is being given to him AFTER the AIG mess. Not bad Mr. Wagoner.

PAYDAY: GM's Rick Wagoner Drives Away with $20M Retirement (click title to entry - thank you)
Critic Calls Multi-Million Package "Perfect Example" of Frustration with Industry
By MICHELLE LEDER and JUSTIN ROOD
March 30, 2009
...Although the Treasury Department has barred GM from paying severance to Wagoner or any other senior executive, Wagoner is eligible to collect millions in retirement benefits from his former employer, according to the documents reviewed by ABC News...

This is our baby, by the way. If one recalls it was the close of the Bush Presidency when he came forward to support the new President-Elect. Yep. We called for a program to protect labor and its retirees (Didn't know Wagoner was included, but, contracts are contracts, I suppose.). So, we have no one to blame but ourselves on this one. So far it has been an important step to realize we wanted to salvage GM, but, we didn't bargain for failure before success. It was determined the automakers were important to the American landscape, not only from an aesthetic perspective, a matter of national pride, employment but also for national security.

We haven't done badly. So far, Ford is surviving the best without need for assistance and Chrysler is seeking to stay afloat with a merger most people expected would happen eventually. Some also anticipated a further bailout of GM while hoping they were wrong.

Americans are working today in good paying jobs at GM regardless of its management failure. If the USA can rid the organization of its CEO, it can assist in the future direction of the type of vehicles that come out of the factories as well.

Let's get this thing right and return 'reason' to American manufacturing. American Automakers have to realize they can't dictate auto availability forced down the consumer's throat by lack of choice, technology and 'jazzed up' commercials. If I were CEO of GM, I would concentrate on highly efficient 'green' automobiles and manufacture as many of those as the market will bear while manufacturing only to order other vehicles less green and less desired by Americans.

I hope the unions have strong suggestions for the continued operation of GM, including market studies regarding models that actually sell.

Contact Notre Dame. They are appauling. I cannot believe they are religiously bigoted to fellow citizens of this country.

Christian Bigotry (click title to entry - thank you)
'Although Christianity does have its good points, the exclusive nature of many Christian sects opens the door to Christian bigotry. Christian bigotry is a disgusting and insidious evil. To Christian bigots themselves, their bigotry is usually invisible. It disguises itself as piety and righteousness. But to non-Christians at the receiving end, it is often plain old unadulterated bigotry....


Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C. (click here)

It is amazing. REV seems to insulate himself from contact. Maybe he spends most of his day in prayer. The best contact information is below, if one calls the main switchboard I would imagine someone might even be able to reach his office.

Everyone knows the drill !!!!!

And to think I nearly consented to sending my son to school there. Wow.

When Presidents are asked to speak anywhere, including their own fund raisers with people of the same mind, it is the 'majority' country they represent. No one can get away from that. When a President is asked to speak it is with the understanding he or she represents the entire nation and not the 'particulars' of one faith or persuasion.

The exception to that understanding may have begun 'unsuccessfully' by George W. Bush, but, he abused the powers of his Presidency for political reasons while oppressing and ridiculing through 'exclusivity' citizens with needs for individual rights. He did not respect the separation of church and state.

President Obama was completely inclusive during his inauguration, even to his ridicule by some citizens. He did it bravely. He did it without concern for politics. I cannot believe Notre Dame is actually bigoting themselves, AS EXAMPLE, to their students and the nation. They should be ashamed.

Contact (click here)
Committee information is udpated annually. Should you have revisions to committee information, please contact Micki Kidder at mkidder@nd.edu or complete this form and return to:
Micki KidderAssociate Director, Office of the Board Secretariat
Office of the President
405 Main Building
Notre Dame, IN 46556
Phone: 574.631.6526
Email: committees@nd.edu


Why Notre Dame Should Welcome Obama (click here)
By Kenneth L. Woodward
Monday, March 30, 2009; Page A17
The nation's Catholic bishops have another sticky issue on their plates. President Obama has accepted an invitation to deliver the commencement address at the University of Notre Dame in May and to receive the customary honorary degree. It is quite a coup for the nation's most resonantly Catholic university. American Catholics and their bishops should be proud.
But the bishops have a policy that says "Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our [Catholic] fundamental moral principles." Upon taking office, Obama lifted Bush administration restrictions on funding for abortions and for embryonic stem cell research, as he had promised to do. Both actions violated fundamental Catholic principles on the protection of human life.
Although the bishops' policy is directed at dissident Catholic politicians such as Sen. Ted Kennedy, Notre Dame is being criticized for putting institutional prestige ahead of moral principle by allowing its graduating class to hear from the president of the United States, who is not a Catholic. And at least some Catholic bishops agree with the critics....

CHARLES DHARAPAK / Associated Press
President Obama in Washington last week. Some oppose his talk at Notre Dame, citing abortion and other issues.
Posted on Sun, Mar. 29, 2009
Head Strong: Giving Obama a listen at Notre Dame (click here)
By Michael Smerconish - Inquirer
Inquirer Currents Columnist
Some call his invitation to speak in May a travesty, but why shouldn't he speak? At a time of so much incivility, from politics to sports, his visit should not be denied.
Here's a postcard from South Bend, Ind., where sports fans and some spiritual types have at least one thing in common: Neither is afraid to yell from the sidelines.
The University of Notre Dame announced that President Obama had accepted an invitation to speak at the school's May 17 commencement. The president, of course, supports abortion rights, civil unions, and funding for stem-cell research - positions that don't correspond with the Catholic teachings that underpin an institution like Notre Dame....




Bush Country (click here)
BY R. Bruce Dold
...They saw and admired a man of faith, resolve and optimism. They saw a president who understood that this was a critical moment, that the nation was vulnerable in a way that it had never been in its history. They had their eyes wide open.
George Bush’s America does include those who view themselves as conservative, evangelical Christians. That’s about one in four voters in this country. The growth of the evangelical movement is one of the great stories largely missed by the news media in recent years....


March 23, 2009
Is Bush an appropriate commencement speaker for Notre Dame? (click here)
I do not envy the administrators who have to choose commencement speakers at Catholic colleges and universities, and I do not have any bright-line rules in mind for navigating these issues, so please take these questions as sincere and snark-free: Given George W. Bush's record on the death penalty as Governor of Texas, should Notre Dame have invited him to be the commencement speaker in 2001? And now given what we know about his record on torture as President, should Notre Dame invite him to be commencement speaker in 2009? If Bush is fine, but Obama is not, how exactly do you articulate the difference in terms of appearing to support those who "act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles?" Abortion stands alone as a disqualifier? Some other explanation?

If Mike believes its possible then it must be.

The workers at GM Plants and those fired and laid off should have a job action and occupy the plants. I don't care which ones and if the doors are locked. If there is going to be plant closings or bankruptcy then occupy the factories and force union ownership. Produce the cars themselves !

Even Workers Surprised by Success of Factory Sit-In (click here)
...There was a murmur of shock, then anger, in the drab room lined with snack machines. Some women cried. But a few of the factory’s union leaders had been anticipating this moment. Several weeks before, they had noticed that equipment had disappeared from the plant, and they began tracing it to a nearby rail yard.
And so, in secret, they had been discussing a bold but potentially dangerous plan: occupying the factory if it closed.
By the time their six-day sit-in ended on Wednesday night, the 240 laid-off workers at this previously anonymous 125,000-square-foot plant had become national symbols of worker discontent amid the layoffs sweeping the country. Civil rights workers compared them to Rosa Parks. But all the workers wanted, they said, was what they deserved under the law: 60 days of severance pay and earned vacation time....

Morning Papers - Its Origins

The Rooster
"Okeydoke"

Earth Hour

Xanterra Parks & Resorts (click here)
Bringing carbon dioxide Savings to National and State Parks
Xanterra Parks & Resorts operates lodges, restaurants, and other concessions at 18 national and state parks. As the first hospitality company with an absolute greenhouse gas reduction target, Xanterra aims to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 10% below 2000 levels by 2015. By 2004, Xanterra was already nearly halfway to reaching its goal with emissions 4.75% below 2000 levels. In 2006, Xanterra is using 6,011,723 kilowatt hours of renewable wind, solar, or geothermal energy, totaling more than 7% of total energy use at its operations nationwide. This prevents 2,300 tons of carbon dioxide from being emitted. Wind power provides 50% of Xanterra's electricity at Crater Lake and Zion, and a third at Mount Rushmore. In addition to renewable energy, Xanterra is reducing emissions through fuel switching (from heating fuel oil to propane), strategic conservation programs, energy control systems in rooms and facilities, and efficiency upgrades including 27,000 lighting retrofits. Xanterra is one of only a few hospitality companies to construct buildings that have achieved the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED green building rating system certification (one at Yellowstone and another being built at Crater Lake National Park). Last year the company designated its own company-wide CAFE standard of 35 miles per gallon for all company vehicles purchased.

WWF (click here)

Removing the Death Penalty. What does that do to incarceration and the courts?

House Votes to Repeal Capital Punishment (click title to entry - thank you)
By Dan Gorenstein on Wednesday, March 25, 2009.
New Hampshire House lawmakers shocked many today when they voted to repeal the state’s death penalty.
The measure passed by 19 votes, one-hundred ninety-three to one-hundred seventy-four.
This comes after a jury sentenced Michael Addison to death last fall for the murder of Manchester Police Officer Michael Briggs.
New Hampshire Public Radio’s Dan Gorenstein reports.
This year death penalty opponents had their hopes on a bill to study the issue.
That measure sailed through the House.
Nobody, really, thought the bill to repeal the death penalty had a chance.
In fact, many members left their seats, or chatted as the first few Representatives spoke in favor of the legislation.
But then....
TAPE: the chair recognizes the member from Hampton, Representative Cushing....Thank you Madame Speaker, members of the House....
....Democrat Renny Cushing started talking about how his dad was murdered.
TAPE: my father was sitting at the kitchen table reading Foster’s Daily Democrat, and my mother was on the couch watching the Boston Celtics playoff game...There was a knock on the front door....my dad got up to open it...and two shotgun blasts rang out, turned his chest into hamburger and he died in front of my mother in the home they lived in for 35 years and raised their seven years.
On hearing such intimate details, House members grew quiet and leaned forward.
Cushing went on.
TAPE: an old friend came up to me and he said, ‘you know Renny, I hope they fry the bastards. I hope they fry the bastards so your mother, and you and your family can get some piece.”
But he says he didn’t have the “normal” reaction to his father’s murder.
On principle, Cushing had always opposed to the death penalty.
And he said, if he changed his opinion in the wake of the murder, he would only give his father’s murderer more power.
TAPE: because not only would my father be taken from me. But so would my values. And it’s the same for society as it is for individuals. If we let those who kill, make us into killers, than evil triumphs. And we all lose.
SFX: That was amazing, honey. That was amazing.
After the vote, teary eyed lawmakers greeted Cushing, people patted his back, others just gave long knowing looks....

Federal shield law moves out of House committee

U.S. · March 25, 2009

The House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday approved a federal shield bill that aims to protect journalists from compelled disclosure of their confidential sources, in language identical to that of a 2007 bill that overwhelmingly passed the U.S. House of Representatives. The new bill heads next to the floor for a new, full House vote.
The Free Flow of Information Act of 2009, or H.R. 985, would offer a qualified privilege for journalists, meaning they could not be compelled to identify sources or hand over confidential material except under several scenarios: If doing so would prevent harm to national security, or death or bodily harm; if it were essential to the investigation, prosecution or defense of a crime; if it were deemed "critical to the successful completion" of a legal, non-criminal issue. Also, a reporter could be pressed for confidential information if it were necessary for pinpointing who leaked trade secrets, certain health data or classified national security information.
The bill defines a journalist as someone who "regularly" reports and writes "for a substantial portion of the person's livelihood or for substantial financial gain."...

Former McCain Adviser Endorses Same Sex Marriage

Steve Schmidt and John McCain
Photo: AP
7/23/08 at 10:30 AM
Holly Bailey
Steve Schmidt, who was John McCain’s chief political strategist during the campaign, has largely stayed out of sight since the election. He went back to California, where he lives with his wife and kids, and went back to work as a consultant, though he no longer formally advises political candidates. During the campaign, Schmidt made no secret of the fact that his personal views often ran far to the left of his party. In an interview this week with the Washington Blade, Schmidt, whose only sister is gay, came out in favor of marriage rights for same-sex couples and called for the Republican Party to be more inclusive of gays and lesbians. “I am personally supportive of (marriage) equality for gay couples, and I believe it will happen over time,” Schmidt said. “I think that more and more Americans are insistent that, at a minimum, gay couples should be treated with respect and when they see a political party trying to stigmatize a group of people who are hardworking, who play by the rules, who raise decent families, they’re troubled by it.” The former McCain strategist told the paper that he voted against Proposition 8, which ended same-sex marriage in California....


Thursday, March 26, 2009
Last updated 2:52 p.m. PT
House committee approves expanded rights for domestic partners (click here)
State Senate had previously OK'd same-sex domestic parnership rights
By CHRIS GRYGIEL
SEATTLEPI.COM STAFF
A state House committee on Thursday approved a measure that would give same-sex domestic partners all of the rights married people in the state get.
Senate Bill 5688 passed out of the House Judiciary Committee by a seven to four vote. Rep. Jamie Pedersen, D-Seattle, said he expects the bill will now be referred to the House Ways and Means Committee. Pedersen, a long-time supporter of expanded rights for gay couples, said he's confident the measure will ultimately pass.
Earlier this month SB 5688 passed out of the state Senate by a 30-18 vote.
The bill adds domestic partners to all remaining areas of state law where now only married couples are addressed, statutes ranging from employment to pensions....



Same-sex marriage wins by 7 votes (click here)
After hours of debate, bill sent on to Senate
By DANIEL BARRICK
Monitor staff
KEN WILLIAMS / Monitor staff University of New Hampshire students (from left) Morgan O’Neil, Erin Thesing, Rebecca Romanoski and Jenelle DeVits react to a first vote shooting down same-sex marriage. The House then refused to table or kill the bill, and it passed on a second try.
It took a while to make up its mind, but the New Hampshire House voted yesterday to allow same-sex couples to marry.
The bill, which will now head to the Senate, passed by a seven-vote margin. Gov. John Lynch, a Democrat, has said he opposes same-sex marriage, but he has not said whether he would veto a bill allowing it. He supported legislation two years ago that legalized civil unions for same-sex couples, and a spokesman for Lynch indicated yesterday that the governor was satisfied with the status quo.
"The civil unions bill he signed into law prevents discrimination and provides the same legal protections to all New Hampshire families to the extent that is possible under federal law," said Colin Manning, Lynch's press secretary.
Yesterday's House vote of 186-179 was cheered by gay-rights activists and others who watched from the House gallery. But the result came after hours of debate and several roll call votes that failed to achieve a majority for any course of action....

How much does your President love you? As Chief Executive to the Country, how could food contamination have been tolerated?

Who was 'safeguarding' the country for eight years? No one? It would seem as though 'belief principles' replaced science and monitoring at a time when National Security needed to address in every aspect the protections of our food system.

I haven't yet 'counted' the number of infringments of human rights existing in the USA under the Bush administration, but, it has to be a record setter.

DEREGULATION, budget cutting and downsizing government in vital areas of National Security is NOT an option.

In a country that is supposed to value 'health' and 'access' would find it more prudent to prevent disease than treat it. A country that has NO vested interest in the cost of health care would find it better to defer 'survival' to those that could find access and treatment through wealth while removing all safeguards in the way of government regulation. Dereglation 'at any cost' provides profit to companies that want to squeeze every cent or fraction there of out of their products.

What occurred in the eight years of the Bush Administration that actually facilitated a $14,000 DOW?

Planter: ‘It’s safe to eat peanuts’ (click here)
Mississippi man comes to Georgia to talk up the peanut, which is still suffering from the salmonella scare.
By Mark Davis
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Don Self has come from Hamilton, Miss., to Atlanta this weekend to spread the word: You need Arachis hypogaea.
That’s what scientists call that gooey stuff in the jar, the bag of edibles you get at the Braves games. We call them peanuts.
“We’re trying to let the public know that it’s safe to eat peanuts,” said Self, handing out free stuff at the Health & Fitness Expo on Friday at the Georgia Dome. The festival continues today....


Judge: Bush White House Wanted Right-to-Lifers on FDA's Contraception Panel (click title to entry - thank you)
By Jim Edwards
March 24th, 2009 @ 12:01 pm
A federal court ruling on Teva’s Plan B “morning after” contraceptive reveals how the Bush White House corrupted the internal operations of the FDA, encouraged decisions not based on science, and led to months-long delays in approvals process.
Judge Edward Korman’s ruling makes Plan B (pictured) available over-the-counter instead of behind-the-counter, ending a long and wasteful drama over Teva/Barr’s contraceptive.
The ruling describes in juicy detail how the Bush Administration twisted the FDA in knots in order to appease right-to-life constituents who were opposed to young women getting contraceptives. The office of the commissioner even proposed right-to-life campaigners be added to an advisory committee on Plan B.
The judge wrote that “These political considerations, delays, and implausible justifications for decision-making are not the only evidence of a lack of good faith and reasoned agency decision-making.”...

There are many Malawi children needing a home. I am not surprised Madonna would seek another to love.

...Malawi Children's Village (click title to entry - thank you) is a home based orphan and other vulnerable children support program in Mangochi, Malawi. It now supports over 2000 orphans in 37 villages whose parent(s) have died of HIV/AIDS...

What do you say to a country that has become cynical of their government? (click title - thank you)

Rachel Maddow and Michael Moore Say Barack Obama Is Just Like George Bush (click here)
By John Cook
10:00 AM on Sat Mar 28 2009, 5,966 views
The attack from Obama's left flank began in earnest yesterday, as two reliably liberal forces openly compared Barack Obama's plan for escalating the war in Afghanistan to Bush's fiasco in Iraq.
Obama fangirl Rachel Maddow put together an Obama-Bush mashup on last night's show, playing Obama's speech announcing his Afghanistan plan next to clips of Bush talking about Iraq, and pointing out the eerie similarities. She hesitantly defended Obama—or at least seemed like she was trying to give him the benefit of the doubt—but it was clearly a shot across the bow.



It is somewhat alarming the "eerie similarities" of the 'vocabulary' that surrounds war. I am confident it appears to be 'the same war in the same way.' Is it? Some are saying Afghanistan is Obama's Vietnam. Is it? Are we following NATO into hell no different than Johnson's USA followed SEATO? Possibly.

However, there are MARKED differences in the rhetoric that some are NOT identifying or addressing and I have to alarmed at THAT reality as well.

In the years of Vietnam we were chancing a ghost called, The Domino Theory. Certainly if South Vietnam were to fall the rest of the nations and ultimately the USA would fall to a Cold War enemy called Communism. In FEAR of that reality, Nixon's USA built a faux government in Saigon and called it a progressive democracy when all it consisted of was a similar circumstance behind concrete walls such as Baghdad.


Some say CURRENTLY, Kabul is Obama's Saigon. The sad truth is that it isn't Obama's Saigon, it is a BUSH and RUMSFELD Siagon. One of the sad realities we all touted in opposition of the 'war agenda' was that Afghanistan was abandoned by Bush for an oil war in Iraq. Is that not true? I believe it is. Certainly, if the last five and a half years of Iraq and Baghdad were concentrated on Afghanistan the global community would be far safer than today and Afghanistan, Pakistan, Cashmir, India and Iran may already have a workable solution for a peaceful economy that ENHANCES the region of Arab Nations ALREADY conducting peaceful societies with benevolent agendas for their people. Jordan is not a peace based economy and nation? Egypt? Saudi Arabia? Hello?


The 'rhetoric' is really quite amazing. I was astounded to realize how the 'sameness in vocabulary' pervaded both administration when it comes to 'the choice' of addressing 'the enemy' and other 'aspects' of war. After all, it is Obama that never voted for war funding for Iraq and has demanded the return of troops from Iraq, regardless of the long drawn out reduction of forces now currently planned. Was promising a sixteen month troop reduction simply a way of saying to the American people sceptical at all of any withdrawal that, 'it was okay to vote for Barak, because he is the man of reason?' Hm?


To simply state, in terms not stated but expressed, our new President is as much a puppet to the military as perhaps Bush due to 'dictation' would be to say the USA has a Military Industrial Complex that is out of the rhelm of control by its people and we are subject to its demands. That my friends is NOT a deomcracy, it is a 'managed' political state whereby the military is in control. I see. Is the USA actually a Pakistan in disguise or in denial with a faux President that might be better called General? I don't think so.


Why then is there not a Gerald Ford solution to Iraq? Why do we have to RETURN to the 'theater' of Afghanistan? Haven't we suffered enough in the death of our children and can't this President simply bring home the troops and close the borders so we are safe? Would we settle for that? Is it realistic? Could NATO be the real issue and all the struggle in Afghanistan and Pakistan is simply an illusion like Vietnam where INDEED The Military Industrial Complex sincerely did have control of the USA's '? peace ?' agenda.


To begin, this is NOT the 1960s or The Silent Majority. We did learn from those idiotic and meaningless warring years. The troops from Vietnam were brought home and we enjoyed a 'peace time economy' for decades that followed. So, to say we as Americans are doomed to be dominated by our military isn't realisitic, it is reactionary.

Civilized societies do feel pain. They do not advocate torture or seek to war. Troop loses are profoundly felt and in the case of "W"rongful wars it is direly felt by all those that 'realize the truth' with every death like Chinese Water Torture. There goes those 'Chinese' implications again. Hm?


So. Like. What is it with the rhetoric? Did the military Psy-Ops actually kidnap the President in his sleep and 'do a number on him?' Nah, that is too sci-fi. Not to make light of an issue that has brevity, so like what's up?


It is the same military with Generals that have been around for decades. It is the same vocabulary because it is THE SAME military. Charlie, Baker, Einstein. It is also the same Secretary of Defense, oops, back in the day it was Rumfeld. But, sincerely, the military is regimented so in a 'sad' way there is a lot of 'sameness' in its mechanisms and 'cultural' implications. AND. What do you call a terrorist, except, a terrorist? How do you say there are known threats to the USA by terrorists, except to say, "There are known threats to the USA by terrorists." I remind, it was the days BEFORE September 11th that the Bush/Cheney White House completely dropped the ball. It was the "Bin Laden Known to Strike the USA" that Condi Rice could never explain away. It was the reports from Germany that was never given brevity. Remember? The 911 Commission and all that.

I mean there was a September 11, 2001. Certainly THAT is real enough to classify as THE TRUTH.

The profound difference, that rhetoric ignores and seeks to desanctify, is the enemy. In Vietnam it was a 'concept' of world domination. The enemy in Afghanistan and that has exploited Pakistan and probably Kashmir is real. We aren't fighting a 'concept,' we are fighting to defeat 'an entity' that is KNOWN to kill innocent people from within the borders of their country by using their own infrastructure. The 'enemies' in Vietnam AND Iraq were contrived. They were based in 'fear' and elements of 'possibility.' The USA does have enemies. Only. This time. It isn't a nation that can be invaded. It is THE LACK of a sincere government in countries sadly ignored and controlled by more powerful nations to keep war from the borders of powerful players and instead played out in regions such as Afghanistan.

I refuse to put blinders on to the dangers of terrorist networks allowed to grow in the last eight years, inspired by victories of al Qaeda and the weakening of civilization. I didn't expect, nor do I think, President Obama expect the sincere reality of the 'vigor' of The Taliban and its affiliations with al Qaeda that actually allows Mullah Omar to entertain a return to Kandahar. That is completely bizarre.


I am impressed by the prowess of Secretary Clinton and her 'rigorous' agenda with all the nations of region of Afghanistan. I am impressed by her ability to draw the attention of Russia to an agenda of peace and 'inclusion' of a NATO activity. I am impressed by a Karzai I witnessed yesterday with renewed consent to battle an enemy the world sincerely regards in 'unison' as an enemy worth defeating.


Karzai Says US War Strategy 'Better Than Expected' (click here)
By Barry Newhouse Islamabad
28 March 2009
The presidents of Afghanistan and Pakistan welcomed the Obama administration's new plan for the conflict in the region on Saturday, with each highlighting key parts of the strategy for praise....

If I thought for one minute, I was reacting to fear, willing to endanger civilian lives or disregard the pain I feel for every military soldier facing a fate in battle for some irrational exchange of ideation or domination by the USA Military Complex, I won't entertain for one minute 'the idea' that a continued war in Afghanistan that also includes regions of Pakistan. I would be stating as I have always stated regarding Iraq. We don't belong in Iraq. We never did. I can sincerely say, there is UNFINISHED and ABANDONED business. It is NOT 'local' issues of civil war. It is not a matter of uniting Pakistan and Afghanistan as if it were a Kurdistan. It is about actual events, actual dangers and the desire for civlization to 'victor' its potential and win its safety.

This is about towers crashed to the ground, civilians dead, airplanes used as bombs and a Pennsylvania farm field evidenced to the struggle of our people against an invading force.


There is no one a bigger BELIEVER of the talent and insight of Michael Moore. There is no one that would seek to engage his ability to 'police' the government and its depersonalized ability to control the fate of its citizens more than I. The 'LEFT' as it is called has talent beyond anyone's willingness to say. It has insight that is disregarded for its potential to change the dynamics of business and wealth. It is characterized all too often as socialist when in fact it is conservative with an ability to 'realize' shortcomings of what any democracy is rightfully responsible. "The Left" in politics doesn't believe in causing pain. It believes in 'resulting' justice that a democracy, of...by...and for the people...is supposed to be responsible for. The Left believes in 'the promises' of our forefathers. It believes in a responsible society with 'realistic' platforms that work for its citizens. It isn't about postponing human issues, it is about addressing them in a timely and forthright manner that is dictated by compassion and human rights.

I don't seek to ridicule any of those I would consider as peers. I would seek to elevate their concern while advocating for reason and potential for shortsightedness, while indeed, I will examine any that I am guilty of.

I trust Barak Obama. At. Least. For now.

The Midwest may be catching a break. Click title for 12 hour loop.

March 9, 2009

1830z

UNISYS Water Vapor Satellite of the North and West Hemisphere

As is the case in this dynamic called Human Induced Global Warming, it waxes and wanes and there have been innumberable instances that have exhibited exactly that.

It would appear the 'system' currently causing much of the percipitation and freezing temperatures is reaching a maximum and the 'contributing' water vapor is somewhat diminished.

The interesting aspect to all this is the 'arctic' circumstances that have kept ground water frozen and unable to contribute to higher flood levels may actually still be a problem if the temperature warms enough and ice becomes a tributary to the Red River. That dynamic will eventually become a reality as Spring moves into Summer, but, hopefully it won't happen in a manner that adds to the mass of water currently flowing south.

It is a bit too early to call this a prolonged break that will resolve so people can go home. In my opinion, the actual dynamic that desperately has to be addressed is the fact the flooding of the Red River has been consistently a problem and the likelihood of this river resolving to a SAFE level is not likely.

In recalling last year and I believe the year before, Spring and Summer saw a chronic arrival of drenching rains from the Gulf through the entire Midwest. There is no reason to believe this year will be any different and Hurricane Season is on the way. With all the 'seasons' of tornadoes and one type of storm or another extending beyond what is 'normal' there is every reason to believe this season will see an early hurricane season and probably a prolonged one was well. I doubt tornadoes will give us a break and if the 'trend' of the last four years continues, the less hurricanes we have the more tornadoes occur.

According to the 'predictions' there are a few 'significant' storms with a potential for fourteen named storms. (click here) That is somewhat of a mild season, except, these years since 2002 aren't 'normal' seasons as they are dynamically effected by Human Induced Global Warming. So, while the water vapor may be diminished in the number of storms that occur it is questionable to the degree they do damage as they are stronger, wetter and having a higher degree of unpredictability under 'warming' conditions.

So, in regard to the Red River, the conditions that exist in the region are of saturated ground, with erosion and undetermined damage in subsoil stability due to repeated flooding conditions. In other words, after the negligent administration of the last eight years, we don't know what we have and studies have to proceed to determine the degree soils have changed and subsoil conditions could be adverse to communities along the river.

In the short term, MONITORING the Red River needs vigilance and attendance to river gauges along the entire system. Astute scientists with knowledge of geology, hydrology and an understanding of the communities and their dependence on the river for its benevolence are essential to the future of these towns and states. Both climate specialists and biologists are also important as the dynamics of water movement is guaranteed to change weather patterns, hence, changes to species dynamics and potential for threatened, endangered and invasive species. The farming communities don't need tropical systems from Indonesia carrying a crop disease foreign to American farmers with an understanding too late to act to protect their yields.

The unfortunate reality this new administration has to face is the huge degree of negligence of the past eight years to these sciences and their potential to protect the interest of our nation, including its communities and agriculture. Literally, the country is a mess. It is a mess in every department of the President's cabinet and the disrepair we find ourselves in also includes the underfunding of our sciences that act as part of upholding the dignity of industries such as agriculture.

To accurately predict when communities will be safe from river levels is tenuous and knowing the American people at the first glimmer of hope that storms are abating and river levels are coming down, they will head to their homes and attempt to resume their lives. So, predicting 'safe' conditions isn't really the issue, it is protecting the public from themselves when they seek to return to reestablish their lives that is the issue. The Red River has to be a work in progress that starts today and goes forward with chronic monitoring, assessing and modification. There won't be a 'safe' situation so much as a 'managed' circumstance that has flux built in to its vigilance.

Public officials, hired or elected, can seek to reach communities to empower a sense of urgency for evacuation with daily reports of river conditions and weather anticipations. The public has to come to terms with its circumstances and realize suddenly they may have to move to safety. During this time productivity of daily living can continue and the work of agencies involved in 'controlling' the river to the extent they can to prevent damage to communities will eventually reach a point where 'the river' is simply a body of water that flows by. There will be a point in time when flooding will be a matter of history and the 'river rising' won't be so much a threat as a manageable reality.

The sad reality of this administration is that it has to pick up the pieces and actually do the work that should have been done for decades, but, certainly should have been done in urgency since 2002 when vortices began to dominate the troposphere and weather patterns and climate began to dramatically shift.

I hope all those effected by the Red River will return to their homes soon and we as Americans won't find it necessary to rush to 'sandbagging' the floods so much as building sustainable barriers that will simply protect the regions activities from a highly unpredictable climate pattern.