Monthly Archives: June 2010

Sunday Roast: Dreary and Familiar

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SSDD in the Senate:  Republicans are blocking almost all legislation from moving forward, and continue to block the President’s nominees for important offices.

With the biggest disaster to hit this country going on in the Gulf, a disaster that will touch all of our lives before it’s over, obstruction is still SOP for Republicans in the Senate.  Exactly what is it going to take for the American people to say ENOUGH!!!?  Stop spending all your time trying to de-legitimize this President, and do the job you were elected to do — for the people.

Here’s something to discuss in the comments section:  What event or events can we point to that sounded the death-knell to the importance of the People in this country?  When did ‘We the People’ lose our footing, on this slippery slope to oligarchy?  Suggestions on how we can fix this mess?

This is our daily open thread.
Feel free to discuss this topic or anything else on your mind.

The Watering Hole: June 19 – Vultures

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As we’ve learned recently, Afghanistan possesses a wealth of up to now undiscovered, or rather undisclosed, mineral deposits. In a world hungry for gold, lithium, copper, iron  this was bringing out the buzzards double quick. The New York Times reports:

WASHINGTON — Mining companies around the world are eager to exploit Afghanistan’s newly discovered mineral wealth, but executives of Western firms caution that war, corruption and lack of roads and other infrastructure are likely to delay exploration for years.

A few high-risk investors are sufficiently intrigued by the country’s potential to take an early look. JP Morgan, for instance, has just sent a team of mining experts to Afghanistan to examine possible projects to develop.

[...]

Afghan officials have interpreted their mining regulations in such a way that if a company is awarded a concession to explore and then discovers valuable minerals, the government can tender the concession back and rebid it, undermining any incentive for a foreign firm to actually find large deposits, he said.

“They can take it back after you discover something,” Mr. Yeager said. “That needs to be corrected.”

(read more)

It is not as if the minerals are theirs, heh! Understandably the Afghans themselves are suspicious:

Many Afghans I have spoken with believe firmly that America wants to permanently occupy the country in order to take Afghan land and resources. Even educated Afghan friends who generally support a temporary US presence have told me the same. I had to laugh when one suggested that Americans would want to move to Afghanistan to snatch up Afghan land for homes. (read more)

The mining corporations will be falling over themselves to get a foot in, never mind what they say now. They are used to securing their interests with their own security forces or mercenaries. Right now, they have the benefit of the US Army, but Obama plans to withdraw the troops beginning 2011. However, help can be found in the usual places:

Several lawmakers, including former presidential candidate and war hero Senator John McCain, have criticized Obama for setting deadlines, saying they empower the enemy who would wait it out for U.S. forces to leave.

“It’s time for the president to state unequivocally that we will stay in Afghanistan until we succeed,” said McCain, who said all the key trends were moving in the wrong direction. (read more)

Same old. Same old.

This is our open thread. Go ahead and tell us what’s on your mind today.

Music night. Happy birthday, Sir Paul

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Paul McCartney was never my favorite Beatle, although in early days he did seem to be a lot of fun — I’m talking early 60s, pre-hippie phase Beatles. And there is no question that he and John Lennon wrote an incredible number of great, excellent, charming and influential songs. Most of the Wings-era stuff made me gag, though. I never believe he or John wrote much worth listening to without the other, but that is admittedly my own warped opinion. I was amazed to find McCartney on YouTube and figured I should go with one of my favorite singers, Alison Moyet, but… there is some good stuff here. A shout out to Alison, however. Happy birthday, Alison!

The first one is a corker! More music after the jump. You won’t believe #2. #3 has its moments, too.

Continue reading →

South Carolina’s 4th District Primary – Bob Inglis

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The Colbert Report: “Bob Inglis should quit Congress and get a job at Olive Garden to convince the people of South Carolina he’s not an incumbent.”

This was pretty funny.. Colbert does his leading questions where Inglis is supposed to finish that sentence..

Colbert says: “Complete this sentence. Barack Obama was born in…”

Inglis replies: “Not Hawaii.”

Hmmmm… I can’t believe Inglis would have answered that way, even if he was joking..

Poor BP…

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GOP congressman apologizes to BP for ‘$20 billion shakedown’

Barton Retracts Apology To BP

All cartoons are posted with the artists’ express permission to TPZoo.
Nick Anderson, Houston Chronicle Editorial Cartoonist and Animation Artist.
For Nick’s animations, visit Nick Anderson: Animation Archives.
For Nick’s cartoons, visit Nick Anderson.

The Watering Hole: June 17 – Why Obama Prays

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(image: Eric Gay/AP via nydailynews.com)

From The Oildrum
(HT: Motherjones)

I usually don’t cut and paste, but there is nothing to add here:

OK let’s get real about the GOM oil flow. There doesn’t really seem to be much info on TOD that furthers more complete understanding of what’s really happening in the GOM.
As you have probably seen and maybe feel yourselves, there are several things that do not appear to make sense regarding the actions of attack against the well. Don’t feel bad, there is much that doesn’t make sense even to professionals unless you take into account some important variables that we are not being told about. There seems to me to be a reluctance to face what cannot be termed anything less than grim circumstances in my opinion. There certainly is a reluctance to inform us regular people and all we have really gotten is a few dots here and there…

First of all…set aside all your thoughts of plugging the well and stopping it from blowing out oil using any method from the top down. Plugs, big valves to just shut it off, pinching the pipe closed, installing a new bop or lmrp, shooting any epoxy in it, top kills with mud etc etc etc….forget that, it won’t be happening..it’s done and over. In fact actually opening up the well at the subsea source and allowing it to gush more is not only exactly what has happened, it was probably necessary, or so they think anyway. (read full comment at The Oildrum)

I wish I’ve never read this.

This is our open thread, feel free to comment on this and maybe lighten my mood with a little optimism, too. I somehow can’t today.

The Watering Hole: June 16 – Calculations

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Oil Spill Diver

picture source: http://www.recursosmarinos.net/?p=81

The damaged well of the Deepwater Horizon site issues up to 60’000 barrels of oil into the Gulf per day. This is ongoing for 57 days now, that makes a total of 3.4 million barrels. The worst oil spill ever caused by Iraqi forces during Gulf War I added up to 8 million barrels leaked into the environment. If the relief well is in place and stops the spill, say mid August, there will be 7 million barrels in the Gulf of Mexico. There is no reason to be that optimistic, however. The Ixtoc oil spill, which occurred 160 ft below surface and not 5000 ft, took nine months to plug. If we take this as a model, there will be 16 million barrels of oil leaked into the Gulf of Mexico by January.

There is nothing BP, or all of the oil industry or your President can do about it now.

This time mankind has overreached itself and lost.

This is our open thread.

Halliburton On The Hot Seat

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Halliburton is charged with selling nuclear technology to Iran.  There is a loophole in the law that allows the foreign subsidiaries of American corporations that allows them to do business with countries like Iran, North Korea and Cuba.

(Thanks to Stranded Wind at DailyKos)

The Watering Hole: June 15 – Iron Lady vs. The Quitter

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Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is planning a trip to London and a visit with former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, her staff has confirmed to POLITICO.

In a Facebook post scheduled to go up Monday, Palin writes: “I have received an invitation for a visit to London, and part of that invitation included the offer of arranging a meeting between myself and one of my political heroines, the ‘Iron Lady,’ Margaret Thatcher.”

“I would love to meet her and hope I’ll be able to arrange the trip in the future,” Palin writes of the former conservative leader whom the former governor frequently cites in speeches. (read more)

She is suffering from dementia and I won’t say who.
This is our open thread. Speak your mind.