carapace – Not your father's america

The latest from NASA’s Earth Observatory (27 June 2006)

In the News:

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/

* Latest Images:
Heavy Rain in the Mid-Atlantic States
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17320

Brins Fire near Sedona, Arizona
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17318

Site of Carthage, Tunisia
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17317

Shiprock Formation, New Mexico
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17316

Bryce Canyon National Park
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17315

Patterns of Lightning Activity
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17314

Thunderstorms in Texas
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17313

Warm Fire in Northern Arizona
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17312

* NASA News

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NasaNews/

- NASA Lightning Research Highlights Safety Awareness Week
- NASA Missions Help Dissect Sea Level Rise

* Media Alerts

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/MediaAlerts/

- ‘High Confidence’ That Planet Is Warmest in 400 Years
- Global Atmospheric Carbon Level May Depend Primarily on Southern Ocean
- Global Warming Surpassed Natural Cycles in Fueling 2005 Hurricane Season
- Researchers Develop New Model of Ice Volume Change Based on Earth’s Orbit
- New Scripps Study Reveals San Andreas Fault Set for the ‘Big One’
- What Can a Magnet Tell You About Rain Patterns? More Than You Would Guess
- Human Activities in Arid Urban Environments Can Affect Rainfall and Water Cycle
- Hurricanes and the U.S. Gulf Coast
- Hurricanes and the U.S. Gulf Coast

* Headlines from the press, radio, and television:

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/Headlines/

- Rain Sparks Evacuations on East Coast
- Philippines Brace for Deadly Storm-Volcano Combination
- Ohio Governor Declares Flood Emergency
- Extreme Weather Fits Global Warming Pattern
- Humans ‘Destroying Coastal Life’
- Denmark to Set Up Ice Cap Stations
- ‘Warm’ Species Invading Antarctic
- Global Warming Topped Natural Cycles in Fueling 2005 Hurricanes
- New Science Shows Greenhouse Gases Under-Reported
- Volcano Larger than Washington, D.C. Discovered
- Earth Hottest It’s Been in 2000 Years
- Ocean Temperatures Warm, But Not as Extreme as 2005
- Study: San Andreas Fault Overdue for Quake
- NASA Lightning Research Highlights Safety Awareness Week
- World Carbon Dioxide Emissions to Rise 75 Percent by 2030
- Reading the Poles: Earth’s Ice in Jeopardy
- Scientists Says Volcano Threatens Farmers
- Urban Irrigation Has Increased Phoenix Area’s Rainfall
- Torrential Rains Hit Houston and Louisiana

* New Research Highlights

 http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/Research/

             ======

Telecom Giants: Their Way on the Information Superhighway

ANTHONY RIDDLE, raiseeveryvoice@yahoo.com, http://www.alliancecm.org,
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/06/09/1427218

Executive director of the Alliance for Community Media, Riddle said today: “Before a Supreme Court decision last year, it was understood that all data on the Internet was to be treated equally and that nobody was to block any information going from anyone to anyone. With the Supreme Court decision and the recent House bill, the companies that operate the wires or fibers that bring the Internet to and from your house have the ability to offer preferential treatment for pay and also to block any content that they deem opposing their business interests.

“The media giants are trying to make this out to be poor little them against Google, but that’s not true. It’s about them having the power to decide based on finances, or even on point of view, how to treat data. These companies have not only cooperated with the NSA eavesdropping program, but just today we learn that AT&T has adopted a new policy that renders its customers’ phone records AT&T’s property, which it can sell to whomever it wants. These companies have proven themselves unfit to have this power.”

From: Institute for Public Accuracy

             ======

Matthews left unchallenged King’s false claim that NY Times is “acknowledging” Bush financial monitoring program is “legal”

Chris Matthews failed to challenge Rep. Peter King’s false claim that The New York Times is “acknowledging” that a secret Bush administration program designed to monitor international financial transactions “is legal.” However, New York Times executive editor Bill Keller has stated that “[i]t’s not [the Times'] job to pass judgment on whether this program is legal.”

The Times has also reported that banking experts, as well as banking executives and Bush administration officials familiar with the program, have concerns about its legality.

Read more

http://mediamatters.org/items/dailyemail/200606280003?src=other

             ======

BUSH VS. NEW YORK TIMES

Robert Scheer, Truthdig
Attacks on the New York Times aren’t about national security, they’re about muting criticism.

http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/38251/

             ======

Marianne Means: In a sea of conservatives constantly trying to drown out fundamental democratic principles in the pursuit of right-wing political objectives, Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter stands out as a beacon of common sense.

Complete article at:

http://p-i.com/cgi-bin/pimail.asp?uid=36689&url=opinion/275549_means28.html

             ======

Just in case you thought Homeland security was going to focus on protecting us from terrorism and not become a new Gestapo…

http://tinyurl.com/q8g3s

From: Poacnewsletter

             ======

Borowitz Report – amnesty shocker

IN BID FOR AMNESTY, DeLAY BECOMES IRAQI INSURGENT

Former Texas Lawmaker Changes Name to Hassan El-Medfaai

Just days after Iraqi Prime Minister Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki announced a sweeping plan that would offer amnesty to members of the Iraqi insurgency, former Texas congressman Tom DeLay announced that he would become an Iraqi insurgent.

Mr. DeLay, who is under indictment in state court on money-laundering and conspiracy charges, said at a Houston press conference today that he had put the legal gears into motion to attain Iraqi insurgent status.

“On my 2006 tax returns, my occupation will be listed as ‘insurgent,’ and my name will be legally changed to Hassan El-Medfaai,” Mr. DeLay said, adding, “Death to America.”

Mr. DeLay’s legal advisors seem confident that by changing his legal status to that of an Iraqi insurgent he will be entitled to amnesty from all of the criminal charges he currently faces in Texas.

But in order to become an insurgent, Mr. DeLay faces an immediately hurdle which may prove difficult to surmount: convincing the Iraqi insurgency that he deserves to be a member.

In Basra, the National Coalition of Iraqi Insurgents, a trade association representing over 250,000 Iraqi insurgents, met in an emergency session today to discuss Mr. DeLay’s bid for membership in the insurgency.

At the conclusion of the all-day session, however, a spokesman for the group gave the former Texas congressman a resounding thumbs-down.

“As Iraqi insurgents, we have certain ethical standards that we abide by,” said a spokesman for the insurgents’ group. “Unfortunately, Tom DeLay falls far below those standards.”

Elsewhere, scientists released a list of the top ten causes of obesity, including being suddenly fired from “The View.”

http://www.borowitzreport.com/

             ======

three to see

Matt Davies: must save the world

http://www.tmsfeatures.com/tmsfeatures/servlet/com.featureserv.util.Download?file=20060628eddav-a-p.jpg&code=eddav

Doug Marlette: our rights were still there

http://www.tmsfeatures.com/tmsfeatures/servlet/com.featureserv.util.Download?file=20060628edmar-a-p.jpg&code=edmar

Chan Lowe: wouldn’t have any other way

http://www.tmsfeatures.com/tmsfeatures/servlet/com.featureserv.util.Download?file=20060628edlow-a-p.jpg&code=edlow

EMPATHIC COMPUTER

Scientists at the University of Cambridge (Cambridge, UK) developed an “emotionally aware” computer. Via camera, the computer locates and tracks 24 “feature points” such as the eyebrows or mouth, and has been programmed to monitor 20 key facial movements indicative of specific emotions, such as arched eyebrows or a grin. Extraneous factors, such as facial shape, beards, and eyeglasses, have been taken into account.

Professor Peter Robinson observed that the technology could allow advertisers to time-target their products depending on a consumer’s mood. The system also can identify certain physical conditions, such as drowsiness or inebriation, and so can be installed as a safety device in autos.

For more information, visit:

http://link.abpi.net/l.php?20060627A2

   ======

New issue of Research Review

The fourth issue of RESEARCH REVIEW is available on the Boston Fed’s web site:

http://www.bos.frb.org/economic/ResearchReview/index.htm

This issue covers research posted from July 2005 to December 2005.

RESEARCH REVIEW provides an overview of recent research by economists of the Research Department of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Included are executive summaries of scholarly papers, staff briefings,and Bank-sponsored conferences.

http://www.bos.frb.org/economic/ResearchReview/index.htm

   ======

Collective amnesia: Matthews, Klein and Sullivan gush over Rice, forgetting history of misleading and false statements

Chris Matthews and Time columnists Andrew Sullivan and Joe Klein heaped praise on Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, never mentioning that Rice, in her current capacity and previously as national security adviser, repeatedly made false or misleading statements about the administration’s use of intelligence in advance of the Iraq war and pre-9-11 intelligence.

Read more

http://mediamatters.org/items/dailyemail/200606260010?src=other

   ======

CIA agent claims administration was informed numerous times that there were no WMDs in Iraq.

http://tinyurl.com/l7wps

From: Poacnewsletter

   ======

Bush Is Not Incompetent

Progressives have fallen into a trap.  Emboldened by President Bush’s plummeting approval ratings, progressives increasingly point to Bush’s “failures” and label him and his administration as incompetent.  Quite to the contrary, Bush’s disasters – Katrina, the Iraq War, the budget deficit -are the natural, even inevitable result of his conservative governing philosophy.  Read more.

http://ent.groundspring.org/EmailNow/pub.php?module=URLTracker&cmd=track&j=83909987&u=771412

The Rockridge Institute

   ======

The Right Redeploys Politics

For the past two weeks, both the House and Senate have been engaged in the “first extended debate on whether the time had come to end that war.” The House voted for a sham resolution linking Iraq to the “war on terror” while opposing a timetable. Yesterday, the Senate gave an “endorsement to President Bush’s Iraq policy,” and voted down two amendments calling for redeployment of our troops out of Iraq. The debates made clear that “rather than engage in a serious debate about America’s future course in Iraq,” conservatives “have again opted for sound bites.” (Take, for example, President Bush’s claim that those who disagree with him on Iraq “wave the white flag of surrender in this war on terror.”) As war veteran Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE) said yesterday, “War should not be drug down into the political muck. America deserves better. Our men and women fighting and dying deserve better.” However, a positive development has emerged. “Progressives,” writes the Center for American Progress’ Brian Katulis, “are offering sensible policy ideas to change direction and the chance for accountability.” Meanwhile, “White House allies are stuck on tired attempts to politicize national security, offering more of the same and serving as a rubber stamp for failed policies.”

From: Progress Report

   ======

Borowitz Report – launch Ann Coulter toward North Korea

U.S. THREATENS TO LAUNCH ANN COULTER TOWARDS NORTH KOREA

Rabid Pundit Could Destroy Entire Korean Peninsula, U.N. Warns

In an act of retaliation for North Korean president Kim Jong-Il’s plan to test a long-range missile that could reach California, the United States today threatened to launch conservative pundit Ann Coulter in the direction of North Korea.

President George W. Bush announced the plan to weaponize Ms. Coulter in a nationally televised address.

“If North Korea intends to test the most deadly weapon in its arsenal, we will have no alternative but to use the most deadly weapon in ours,” Mr. Bush said.  “And that weapon is Ann Coulter.”

Mr. Bush did not indicate how and when Ms. Coulter would be fired towards Pyongyang, but most military experts believe that she has already been loaded onto a nuclear submarine and could be launched at any moment.

At the United Nations, an emergency session of the Security Council was convened to discourage the U.S. from deploying Ms. Coulter, who is seen by many in the international community as the ultimate doomsday weapon.

Fears abound that if Ms. Coulter were fired towards Pyongyang, she would spew noxious fumes that could lay waste to the entire Korean peninsula and might even destroy Japan and parts of China.

A spokesperson for Ms. Coulter today acknowledged that her client had the power to destroy large areas of Asia, but said that she was “stoked” about the mission.

“If destroying Asia will help Ann sell more books, she’s up for it,” the spokesperson said.

Elsewhere, a new study shows that a person using a cell phone during a thunderstorm could be struck by lightning, while a person using a cell phone during a movie should be struck by
lightning.

http://www.borowitzreport.com/

   ======

three to see

Slowpoke: Privacy funnies

http://www.workingforchange.com/webgraphics/WFC/sp062606.gif

Mike Keefe: you call that fair?

http://www.intoon.com/toons/2006/KeefeM20060624.jpg

Jeff Danziger: Bill Gates, Melinda Gates, Gates Foundation

http://danzigercartoons.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/06/dancart2829.jpg

Maxthon, a browser made by a tiny Beijing company

“Web surfers in China frustrated by censorship in search engines are increasingly turning to a little-known Internet browser with a big following in the Middle Kingdom. Maxthon, a browser made by a tiny Beijing company of the same name, has attracted millions of users in China for functionality that can funnel traffic through a Web proxy and circumvent government controls on information in search engines like Google, Yahoo, MSN, Baidu.com and other popular sites or Internet service providers in that country. From China, the browser has caught on in Europe, and now somewhat in the United States thanks to an appearance with Microsoft at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this year–though it’s still largely unknown stateside.”

Learn more at News.com.

http://news.com.com/Maxthon+Chinas+hip+browser/2100-1032_3-6086632.html?tag=nefd.lede

From: Future Brief

   ======

The June 2006 issue of the Stock Market Report is now available

The June 2006 issue of the Stock Market Report is now available on the Boston Fed’s web site:

http://www.bos.frb.org/economic/smr/smr.htm

Featuring market analysis through June 16, 2006

   ======

Newsweek, Sullivan continue to present “stay the course” as a winner for the GOP

Despite the fact that most Americans favor the Democratic position of setting dates for the withdrawal of U.S.troops from Iraq and disapproving of the war altogether, Newsweek and Andrew Sullivan continued to present the Republican Party’s “stay the course” platform for the Iraq war as a political winner.

Read more

http://mediamatters.org/items/dailyemail/200606250001?src=other

   ======

Abramoff Secretly Funneled Clients’ Money Through Nonprofits, Which Took Cut.

http://tinyurl.com/rmlet

From: Poacnewsletter

   ======

stem_cell_enews

Over the last month, an astonishing 41,000 DefCon members have sent emails to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, demanding he stop pandering to the religious right and bring embryonic stem cell legislation to the Senate floor for a vote. If you haven’t taken action yet, you can do so here.

http://ga3.org/campaign/stem_cell_enews/ig7nw5i4v5bewkm?

Our work seems to be paying off — intelligence from Capitol Hill indicates that action could come as early as July. We’re ready to keep the pressure on Senator Frist and poised to confront any last-ditch efforts by the religious right to keep the bill from going to a vote in the Senate.

Earlier this month, DefCon blogger Clark attended the Genetics Policy Institute’s Stem Cell Policy and Advocacy Summit.

http://ga3.org/ct/41MqIIM1hz6w/

The summit underscored the incredible work DefCon members have been doing around this issue, and only reinforced the importance of our campaign.

Nearly 20,000 more Americans have joined our fight since our stem cell campaign began, expanding our membership to nearly 80,000! This is just the beginning. Be sure to encourage your friends to sign on to DefCon and join this important fight.

From:  DefCon

   ======

Borowitz Report – cheney film shocker

CHENEY STARS IN PRO-GLOBAL WARMING FILM

‘A Really Convenient Truth’ Set For Nationwide Release

In an attempt to counteract the impact of former Vice President Al Gore’s cautionary film about global warming, “An Inconvenient Truth,” Vice President Dick Cheney is starring in a new film advocating global warming, Mr. Cheney confirmed today.

The Cheney film, entitled “A Really Convenient Truth,” will open in theaters nationwide in time for the fall 2006 midterm elections.

“I saw the Al Gore movie, and quite frankly, the whole thing was a downer from the word go,” Mr. Cheney said at a White House press briefing. “I thought it was time to tell the American people the good news about global warming.”

“The truth is, as the entire world turns into a red-hot tropical zone, it will be possible to go on vacation wherever you are,” Mr. Cheney added. “When was the last time you wanted to take a vacation on a glacier?”

The vice president added that soon it will be so hot everywhere in the country that it will no longer be necessary to go to Florida for vacation, adding, “which is a good thing, because no one can afford to drive to Florida anymore.”

Mr. Cheney said he would show his film to the U.S. Supreme Court and let the justices decide whose film is better, his or Mr. Gore’s.

At the Supreme Court today, the justices found in favor of Mr. Cheney’s film by a 5-4 vote.

Elsewhere, after a new study showed that boys with older brothers are more likely to be gay, President Bush proposed a constitutional amendment banning older brothers.

http://www.borowitzreport.com/

   ======

three to see

Ted Rall: wartime i.q. test

http://images.ucomics.com/comics/trall/2006/trall060626.gif

Mike Peters: deadly wmd mustard  agents

http://www.grimmy.com/images/MP_Archive/MP_2006/MP0625.gif

David Horsey: 60th anniversary of the invention of the bikini

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/dayart/20060627/cartoon20060627.gif

NEW PULSE POSTED

http://www.ornl.gov/news/pulse/pulse_v212_06.htm

That’s the url to the June 26, 2006, issue of DOE Pulse. Pulse is a newsletter about accomplishments at the Department of Energy’s national laboratories. Here is some of what you’ll find in this issue:

* Brookhaven: Microbeam radiation therapy
* Los Alamos: Predicting starquakes
* Pacific Northwest: Mouse brain proteome
* Fermilab: Particles stick together
Feature:  PPPL and partners unlock “sawtooth” instability
Researcher profile: Idaho’s Harold McFarlane and space power programs

   ======

Subject: New Company Policy

EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY:

Company Policy:
Effective from  2006    

Dress Code

It is advised that you come to work dressed according to your salary. If we see you wearing Prada shoes and carrying a Gucci bag, we assume you are doing well financially and therefore do not need a raise. If you dress poorly, you need to learn to manage your money better, so that you may buy nicer clothes, and therefore you do not need a raise. If you dress just right, you are right where you need to be and therefore you do not need a raise.

Sick Days

We will no longer accept a doctor’s statement as proof of sickness. If you are able to go to the doctor, you are able to come to work.

Personal Days

Each employee will receive 104 personal days a year. They are called Saturday & Sunday.

Bereavement Leave

This is no excuse for missing work. There is nothing you can do for dead friends, relatives or co-workers. Every effort should be made to have non-employees attend to the arrangements. In rare cases where employee involvement is necessary, the funeral should be scheduled in the late afternoon. We will be glad to allow you to work through your lunch hour and subsequently leave one hour early.

Toilet Use

Entirely too much time is being spent in the toilet. There is now a strict three-minute time limit in the stalls. At the end of three minutes, an alarm will sound, the toilet paper roll will retract, the stall door will open, and a picture will be taken. After your second offence, your picture will be posted on the company bulletin board under the “Chronic Offenders category”. Anyone caught smiling in the picture will be sanctioned under the company’s mental health policy.

Lunch Break

Skinny people get 30 minutes for lunch, as they need to eat more, so that they can look healthy. Normal size people get 15 minutes for lunch to get a balanced meal to maintain their average figure. Chubby people get 5 minutes for lunch, because that’s all the time needed to drink a Slim-Fast.     

Thank you for your loyalty to our company. We are here to provide a positive employment experience. Therefore, all questions, comments, concerns, complaints, frustrations, irritations, aggravations, insinuations, allegations, accusations, contemplations, consternation and input should be directed elsewhere.
  

   ======

Telecom Giants: Their Way on the Information Superhighway

The Senate is considering telecommunications legislation which would end “network neutrality” and give the telecom industry additional powers. The New York Times reports today that AT&T “has revised its privacy policy for its television and Internet customers, asserting that the personal information it collects is owned by the company.” See:

http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/06/22/business/att.php
BEN SCOTT, CRAIG AARON,

caaron@freepress.net, http://www.freepress.net, http://www.savetheinternet.com

Policy director for the media reform group Free Press, Scott said today: “Congress is pushing a law that would abandon the Internet’s First Amendment, a principle called network neutrality that prevents companies like AT&T, Verizon and Comcast from deciding which Web sites work best for you based on what site pays them the most.” Free Press has helped assemble a broad coalition on the issue, which includes the National Religious Broadcasters, the Service Employees International Union, the Christian Coalition, the American Library Association, AARP and nearly every major consumer group. Aaron is communications director for Free Press.

From: Institute for Public Accuracy

   ======

No surprise in Bush’s ‘emergencies’

Stacy Bannerman, guest columnist: President Bush has yet another supposed “emergency” on his hands. This time it’s illegal immigration. His response is to deploy thousands of National Guard troops along the Mexican border. The tactic is eerily familiar: Send soldiers on a murky mission under the pretense of promoting Homeland Security and the war on terror.
…

Complete article at:

http://p-i.com/cgi-bin/pimail.asp?uid=36689&url=opinion/274804_bannerman22.html

   ======

ADULTEROUS REPUBLICANS

It really is okay if you’re a Republican.

http://www.alternet.org/blogs/peek/37972/

   ======

Borowitz Report – world cup shocker

AL-QAEDA TO VIE FOR 2010 WORLD CUP

Bin Laden Makes Overture to Beckham

In what some terrorism experts say may signal a shift in strategy for the international terror network, Al-Qaeda announced today that it would field a football team to compete for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

Osama bin Laden, the leader of Al-Qaeda, made the announcement on the Arabic-language Al-Jazeera network’s popular “SportsCenter” program.

“Al-Qaeda will be competing for the 2010 World Cup and we are in it to win it,” Mr. bin Laden told the program’s host.

Mr. bin Laden used his appearance on the program to make a bold overture to British football star David Beckham to join the fledgling Al-Qaeda team.

“No one on the planet can bend it like Beckham,” Mr. bin Laden said. “David, if you’re watching, please join our team, and bend it like yourself – for Al-Qaeda.”

There was no immediate word from Mr. Beckham’s camp as to whether he would entertain Mr. bin Laden’s offer, but the British football star was said to be fielding competing offers from terror groups Hezbollah and Hamas, who are both trying to assemble teams for the 2010 tournament.

Soccer journalist Lachlan Callow said that while Al-Qaeda remains a long-shot to sign Britain’s most famous football player, Mr. Beckham could increase his fan base among radical jihadists by joining Mr. bin Laden’s team.

“Right now, David Beckham’s only link to terror is Posh Spice,” he said.

Elsewhere, in a wedding ceremony in Australia on Sunday, Nicole Kidman and country music star Keith Urban vowed to love, honor and protect each other longer than Renee Zellweger and Kenny Chesney.

http://www.borowitzreport.com/

   ======

three to see

Nick Anderson: we’re right behind you mr. president
http://images.ucomics.com/comics/wpnan/2006/wpnan060623.gif
Ann Telnaes: minimum wage earner – please help
http://images.ucomics.com/comics/tmate/2006/tmate060624.gif
KAL (Kevin Kallaugher): good! and how are you
http://images.ucomics.com/comics/cwkal/2006/cwkal060601.gif

CloudSat

CloudSat was selected as a NASA Earth System Science Pathfinder satellite mission in 1999 to provide observations necessary to advance our understanding of cloud abundance, distribution, structure, and radiative properties. CloudSat will fly the first satellite-based millimeter-wavelength cloud radar—a radar that is more than 1000 times more sensitive than existing weather radars. Unlike ground-based weather radars that use centimeter wavelengths to detect raindrop-sized particles, the CloudSat radar will allow us to detect the much smaller particles of liquid water and ice that constitute the large cloud masses that make our weather.

http://cloudsat.atmos.colostate.edu/

   ======

The May/June 2006 issue of New England Economic Indicators

The May/June 2006 issue of New England Economic Indicators is now available on the Boston Fed’s web site:

http://www.bos.frb.org/economic/neei/neei.htm

Featured article in this issue:

“In the Shadows of the National Recovery:

An Overview of New England’s Economic Performance in 2005″

   ======

Ex-Leader of Christian Coalition Took $5.3M In Payments As Central Figure In
Abramoff Lobbying Operation.

http://tinyurl.com/j3sn8

From: Poacnewsletter

   ======

Despite all evidence to the contrary, media conservatives continued to hype Santorum’s “weapons of mass destruction”

Fox News’ Brit Hume, John Gibson, and Jim Angle, as well as nationally syndicated radio hosts Rush Limbaugh and Janet Parshall, continued to ignore conclusive assertions of intelligence officials that the degraded chemical munitions found in Iraq and hyped by Sen. Rick Santorum and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Peter Hoekstra were not, in fact, in the category of “weapons of mass destruction” that the U.S. was looking for at the time of the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.

Read more

http://mediamatters.org/items/dailyemail/200606230008?src=other

   ======

GOP KILLS BILL TO POLICE HALLIBURTON

Bob Geiger, AlterNet

Republicans in Congress have made it clear they’re willing to fight for military contractors’ right to lie, cheat and defraud taxpayers.
http://www.alternet.org/story/37849/

   ======

Congress on Iraq and War: Lax and Spend?

JOSEPH GERSON,

jgerson@afsc.org, http://www.afsc.org/pes.htm
Editor of “The Sun Never Sets,” a book about U.S. military bases worldwide, Gerson said today: “The House vote against creating permanent military bases in Iraq is encouraging, but we shouldn’t be fooled. It attempts to remove an irritant in U.S.-Iraqi and U.S.-Arab and Muslim relations, but the cement continues to be poured. The long-term infrastructure of U.S. bases in Iraq continues to be built, and the military continues to plan for as many as 50,000 U.S. troops remaining in Iraq for the long term. A goal of the Bush-Cheney war has always been to transform Iraq into an unsinkable aircraft carrier for U.S. domination of the oil-rich Middle East, and Congress has yet to do anything that legally and fundamentally alters this course. The goal of dominating the Middle East militarily has led to incalculable disasters, and it is only going to get worse.”

   ======

three to see

Tom Toles: cut and run
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/opinion/ssi/images/Toles/c_06252006_520.gif

Ben Sargent: stay the course  stay the course

http://www.uclick.com/feature/06/06/23/bs060623.gif

Mike Luckovich: politicizing the war
http://www.creators.com/0618/LK/LK0623bg.gif

The latest from NASA’s Earth Observatory (20 June 2006)

In the News:

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/

* Latest Images:
Warm Fire in Northern Arizona
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17312

Volcanic Activity on Merapi
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17311

Aves Island
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17310

Strelley Pool Chert and Early Life
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17309

Wasps Threaten Hawaiian Forests
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17308

Snow in New Zealand
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17307

Dust Storm over the Aral Sea
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17306

High and Low Tides in Bay of Fundy
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17305

* NASA News

  http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NasaNews/
- Watch NASA Plot Hurricanes Through The Season

* Media Alerts

  http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/MediaAlerts/
- Thawing Permafrost a Significant Source of Carbon
- Chlorine May Contribute to Formation of Ozone Pollution
- New Satellite Set to Collect Most-Detailed Data Yet About Atmospheric
  Particles

* Headlines from the press, radio, and television:

  http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/Headlines/
- UAF Gets $1 Million to Study Sea Ice in Arctic
- Residents Run for Cover as Philippine Volcano Spews Ash
- Thawing Permafrost Could Unleash Tons of Carbon
- Louisiana Faces Battle Against Mother Nature
- Wildfires Burn More than 20,000 Acres Across Arizona
- Drought Plagues Southern Louisiana
- Arctic Dips as Global Waters Rise
- ‘Green Slime’ Returns to Great Lakes
- Nighttime Flights ‘Boost Warming’
- As the World Warms: A Glacier Archive that Documents a Melting
  Landscape
- Alberto Hits Florida with Rain, Gusty Winds
- Hurricane Plane Files Into Storms to Sharpen Forecasts
- Video Projections on a Globe Make Planetary Data Click
- Indonesian Volcano Quiets Down

   ======

With less than six months before the mid-term Congressional elections, U.S. President George W. Bush and his top aides are gambling that Iraq will not be the political liability for Republicans that most pundits have believed it would be.

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=33638

   ======

Congress on Iraq and War: Lax and Spend?

CINDY WILLIAMS,
cindywil@mit.edu

Principal research scientist at the Security Studies Program of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Williams is editor of the book “Holding the Line: U.S. Defense Alternatives for the Early 21st Century.” She said today: “In terms of the military appropriations already passed by Congress, with $98 billion for the Iraq war this year, the $2 billion inserted into the supplemental appropriation for border patrol activities is relatively minor. Military spending in Iraq is $2 billion per week — that’s what we spend in an entire year for vaccines and medicines to use in the event of a terrorist attack using biological or chemical weapons. And aside from spending in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Pentagon’s annual budget tops $400 billion.”

From: Institute for Public Accuracy

   ======

Borowitz Report – kerry timetable shocker

KERRY SETS FIRM TIMETABLE FOR MAKING UP HIS MIND ABOUT WAR

Will Decide about Iraq ‘Once and for All’ by Year’s End

In a speech to the United States Senate today, Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass) made his strongest policy statement to date about the war in Iraq, saying that he had set a firm timetable for making up his mind about the conflict.

“I will make up my mind about Iraq, once and for all, by the end of this year, and not one day later,” a resolute Sen. Kerry told his colleagues. “June 2007 at the very latest.”

After initially voting for the war in 2003, then arguing for finishing the job in Iraq in 2004, and then calling for a complete troop withdrawal in recent days, Mr. Kerry may have difficulty convincing skeptics that he will stick to his timetable of making up his mind by the end of 2006.

But according to one Democratic operative, Sen. Kerry’s recent flipflopping on the war may be a sign that he is tuning up for another presidential run in 2008: “He wants to be in full flipflopping form in time for the Iowa caucuses.”

Sen. Kerry’s words may have fallen on deaf ears at the White House, however, where President Bush vowed to remain in Iraq “until we have determined why we are there.”

“Pulling out now would send the message that we actually know the reason we are in Iraq,” Mr. Bush said. “We will stay there until we know that reason, and if that means forever, so be it.”

Elsewhere, in her latest act of philanthropy towards those less fortunate than herself, Angelina Jolie offered to adopt Jennifer Aniston.

http://www.borowitzreport.com/

   ======

three to see

Deb Milbrath: you a member of congress
http://www.milbrathdraws.com/archives/2006/06/23.jpg

Randy Bish: scalia didn’t mention doorbells either
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/photos/062306bish-a.jpg

Matt Davies: construction / wetlands
http://www.tmsfeatures.com/tmsfeatures/servlet/com.featureserv.util.Download?file=20060621eddav-a-p.jpg&code=eddav