Take it from me, the big news Friday from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill is not BP CEO Tony Hayward removed from disaster responsibilities but scientists reporting the gusher contains about 40% methane that could turn Gulf waters into an ecological dead zone for fish and plant life. John Kessler, a Texas A&M oceanographer, reports oil deposits his team has examined potentially … [Read more...] about More Gulf Horror! Scientists Say ‘Unusual’ High Methane Could Turn Sea Into Dead Zones
The Hole To Hell
My partner over at Newshoggers, Ken Anderson, told us about a worse case scenario here but is there an even worse worse case scenario? At Energy and Capitol Christian A. DeHaemer presents us with one.The problem is that BP may not only have hit the mother of high-pressure wells, but there is also a vast amount of methane down there that could come exploding out like … [Read more...] about The Hole To Hell
Profiles in Stonewalling, Courage, Fear And Journalistic Integrity
Now that I have had a day to absorb and assimilate the House committee drilling of BP CEO Tony Hayward, some impressions people of higher intelligence may not have reached. Bart Stupak. Joe Barton. James Quinn. First, Mr. Stupak. He chaired the committee and asked probing, specific questions of which most the BP big wig either dodged or stonewalled. I haven't … [Read more...] about Profiles in Stonewalling, Courage, Fear And Journalistic Integrity
Sharron Angle Finally Meets a Real Journalist Named Nathan Baca
Yes, Virginia -- the are "real" journalists still out there who'll ask the tough questions, persist in questioning a public figure who tries not to give an answer after the figure has made an assertion elsewhere that he or she is trying to downplay, and is not doing a public relations spot but playing the traditional role of reporter as proxy for a readership/broadcast audience … [Read more...] about Sharron Angle Finally Meets a Real Journalist Named Nathan Baca
Whitman Ad Insults Latinos’ Intelligence
File this under Mexicans are Stupid and Gullible Department in the minds of white politicians. In California, Republican governor candidate Meg Whitman is releasing a new Spanish language television ad. Translated, it beckons, in part: "Meg Whitman is a different kind of candidate. She is a business leader ready to fix Sacramento, ready to create more jobs and better … [Read more...] about Whitman Ad Insults Latinos’ Intelligence
Who’s the Most Unpopular Man in Great Britain?
Who's the most unpopular man in Great Britain? Apparently it's the not-too-long-ago-praised Barack Obama.. … [Read more...] about Who’s the Most Unpopular Man in Great Britain?
The Battle over Elena Kagan is about to get More Fierce
The battle over Obama administration Supreme Court nominee is on the verge of shifting into a new gear...and revving up a bit: the AP reports that The William J. Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock, Ark., will today release some 80,000 pages of e-mails — about 11,000 of them written by Kagan. It's the final batch of documents being released that relate to when she … [Read more...] about The Battle over Elena Kagan is about to get More Fierce
Quote of the Day: On Joe Barton’s Apology as a “Fig Leaf”
Our political Quote of the Day comes from Philadelphia Inquirer columnist and blogger Dick Polman on Texas Rep. Joe Barton's apology for apologizing to BP's CEO Tony "I can't recall" Hayward: Nobody should be fooled by Joe Barton's staged apology yesterday afternoon. Granted, the Texas Republican congressman disavowed his morning lament about how the Obama White House had … [Read more...] about Quote of the Day: On Joe Barton’s Apology as a “Fig Leaf”
BP In No Danger of Going Bankrupt
Given the weeping and wailing that has been going on among some in Congress and in blogtopia regarding the threat to BP's solvency posed by having to set up a $20 billion escrow fund, this post, which I came across via Memeorandum, is a tonic. After noting Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour's publicly expressed anxiety about BP's ability to "make the income that they need to pay … [Read more...] about BP In No Danger of Going Bankrupt
Calling A Mob A Mob — Defending Rep. Barton
Once the howling mob forms wielding tar, feathers, and pitchforks, anyone who is even suspected of defending the intended target might get lynched too. That is the lesson being learned by Republican Representative Joe Barton right now, as he struggles desperately to backpedal from his comments in a House hearing apologizing to the BP CEO for the $20 billion "shakedown" by the … [Read more...] about Calling A Mob A Mob — Defending Rep. Barton
Nothing Else Happening
Thanks to the Gulf oil spill, nothing else is happening. … [Read more...] about Nothing Else Happening
Cowboy Down (Guest Voice)
Cowboy Down Raging Moderate, by Will Durst The same way that crème brulée is unlike pork rinds, and a Lincoln Town Car is not a pickup truck, so is Barack Obama not George Bush. As a matter of fact, one of the reasons Barack Obama is currently president is because he’s SO not George Bush. He might just be the most UnBushish politician currently in possession of a Y … [Read more...] about Cowboy Down (Guest Voice)
Ronnie Lee Gardner Executed by First Utah Firing Squad In 14 Years
The shots rang out in Utah this morning as Ronnie Lee Gardner, who used a handgun to kill two men, died by the method he chose after his sentencing: firing squad. It was Utah's first firing squad execution in 14 years. Here's the ABC News report: As ABC News reports, witnesses gave accounts of their reaction to it that were not always quite the same. Here are a few … [Read more...] about Ronnie Lee Gardner Executed by First Utah Firing Squad In 14 Years
ABC News Nails Obama Administration to the Wall
Watch this ABC News report and weep: ABC calls this segment, "Who's in Charge?" They may as well have named it "Bureaucrats behaving badly." To summarize, the Coast Guard ordered 16 barges vacuuming up more than 1.5 million gallons of crude every day (each barge can suck up around 94,000 gallons a day) to shore because of monumental bureaucratic shortsightedness and … [Read more...] about ABC News Nails Obama Administration to the Wall
UT AG Announces Firing Squad Execution on Twitter
Ironically, for this most barbarously antiquated means of carrying out a death sentence: Shortly after midnight [Mountain Time] in the US state of Utah, Attorney General Mark Shurtleff picked up his Apple iPhone, opened up a Twitter "app" on his handset and began tweeting. But Mr Shurtleff's 134-character composition was no ordinary post. This was not a piece of miscellany … [Read more...] about UT AG Announces Firing Squad Execution on Twitter
YouTube Adds Cloud-Based Video Editor
Late last night YouTube released an online video editor through TestTube, their ideas incubator: Without installing any software, it allows you to: Combine multiple videos you’ve uploaded to create a new longer video Trim the beginning and/or ending of your videos Add soundtracks from our AudioSwap library of tens of thousands of songs Create new videos … [Read more...] about YouTube Adds Cloud-Based Video Editor
24/7 News Cycle Class 101-A On VIP’s Speaking With Forked Tongues
Rap. Rap. Rap. Attention class. Let's get something straight in this era of 24/7 news. Grownups say stupid things. Two examples. BP chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg said he was sorry the Deepwater Horizons oil spill damaged the livelihoods of the "small people" on the Gulf coast. Then he said he was sorry that his choice of words were "clumsily" expressed. Class, give … [Read more...] about 24/7 News Cycle Class 101-A On VIP’s Speaking With Forked Tongues
The Politics of Ethics. And Regulation.
The last article of the four-page Goldman Sachs's “Code of Business Conduct and Ethics” stipulates that "From time to time, the firm may waive certain provisions of this Code." Really? Marketplace's Kai Ryssdal spoke with Greg Unruh, director of the Lincoln Center for Ethics, about that 'safety valve' provision: RYSSDAL: Rising once more to Goldman's defense, … [Read more...] about The Politics of Ethics. And Regulation.
Barton Apologizes for Apologizing to BP and Charging White House “Shakedown” on Escrow Fund (UPDATED)
Well, that didn't take long. Amid signs of consternation from Republican House members who hadn't listened to some talk radio hosts and callers who had already picked up what they thought was an emerging party line, Rep. Joe Barton has apologized for apologizing to BP CEO Tony Hayward for what Barton called a White House "shakedown" of the company in getting BP to agree to a … [Read more...] about Barton Apologizes for Apologizing to BP and Charging White House “Shakedown” on Escrow Fund (UPDATED)
SCOTUS Rules Against Florida Property Owners In Fifth Amendment Test Case
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday in a Florida eminent domain case that beachfront property owners not be compensated when the government improves the shoreline to restore beach erosion. The court's 8-0 verdict is a setback for eminent domain advocates and likely to draw the wrath of property rights groups across the nation. In this case, the government added sand to … [Read more...] about SCOTUS Rules Against Florida Property Owners In Fifth Amendment Test Case