Thursday, August 19, 2004
Bush and Missile Defense:
I think those who oppose this ballistic missile system really don't understand the threats of the 21st century. They're living in the past. We're living in the future. We're going to do what's necessary to protect this country. – Bush
Sure; since al-Qaeda, not the Soviet Union is the “threat” at hand, “full” funding of missile defense makes perfect sense. Let’s recall that in 2001 the Administration rejected the transferring of funds from missile defense to anti-terrorism and nuclear non-proliferation efforts.
Global Warming in Britain: They’re facing up to it, or at least anticipating.
John Vidal for the Guardian:
Britain should expect more dangerous flash floods, catastrophic rain and hail storms, droughts and heatwaves from the rapid changes in rainfall patterns brought by global warming, the European Environment Agency (EEA) said yesterday as clean-up operations continued in flooded Boscastle…"We are moving towards more intense rainfall. Drier summers are being punctuated by particularly intense incidents such as we have just seen in Cornwall."
The agency says Europe is warming faster than the global average.
The temperature has risen by an average of 0.95C in the past 100 years and is projected to climb by a further 2.0-6.3C this century as the emissions of greenhouse gases continue to rise http://www.guardian.co.uk/weather/Story/0,2763,1286155,00.html
Another report that focuses less on Britain, more on Europe.
European winters will disappear by 2080 and extreme weather will become more common unless global warming across the continent is slowed, warns a major new report.
Europe is warming more quickly than the rest of the world with potentially devastating consequences, including more frequent heatwaves, flooding, rising sea levels and melting glaciers, says the European Environment Agency (EEA) document, launched on Wednesday. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99996302
Oil Shock Coming?
The papers are warming to the subject; the price of oil is not coming down; the supplies are vulnerable- to attacks in Iraq, to refinery disruptions, etc and our economy is not very resilient. This is not a leftie opinion; it’s increasingly the view of the business sector.
With oil prices now in the high $40s (WTI basis), there is good reason to treat this development as yet another in a long string of energy shocks. The impact of such disruptions depends very much on context -- namely, the vulnerability, or lack thereof, in the underlying economy. When a weak economy is hit by any type of a shock, recession normally results. Conversely, a strong economy is better insulated to withstand such a blow. Most of the oil shocks of the past fall into the former category -- hitting economies when they are vulnerable. Unfortunately, the Oil Shock of 2004 fits that script to a tee. http://www.morganstanley.com/GEFdata/digests/20040819-thu.html#anchor0
WMD Follow-up: David Kay Roasts Condi
Now an outsider, he’s gotten much more blunt.
Dr. Kay did not identify Ms. Rice by name in his often-impassioned testimony. But his remarks were clearly aimed at her performance and reflected a widespread view among intelligence specialists that Ms. Rice, perhaps Mr. Bush's most trusted aide, and the National Security Council have never been held sufficiently accountable for intelligence failures before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and the Iraq war.
His criticism of the council, which is responsible for coordinating the work of national security agencies in the government, mirrored that made earlier this year by Richard A. Clarke, Ms. Rice's former top counterterrorism deputy, who accused her of paying little attention to dire intelligence threats throughout the spring and summer of 2001 that Al Qaeda was about to strike against the United States. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/19/politics/19panel.html
New York, 9/11 and the Republican Convention
New Yorkers hopefully have not forgotten that the Administration tried to shortchange them with 9/11 funds, and that the Bushies have never hesitated- as per the convention- to exploit the NY-based tragedy.
Ted Rall’s Common Dreams piece evokes the 1976 Daily News headline (Ford to NY: Drop Dead)
NYC to GOP: Drop Dead: …Anti-Republican sentiment is rising to a fever pitch here as the dog days tick down to the dreaded affair. A poll cited by the local ABC affiliate shows 83 percent of New Yorkers don't want their city to host the RNC. And many of them are planning to do something about it. http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0818-11.htm
Swift Boat Follow-up:
Right wing talk radio persists in hammering away on an hourly basis about Kerry’s alleged fabrication of his war record. The anti-Kerry ad continues to play with mixed results. One poll reported on MSNBC said that about 30% of independent-swing voters who had been leaning to Kerry changed their mind after seeing it. Yet, in Ohio, where the ad has been shown big time, Kerry’s numbers are up (see below).
The well-funded lying liars ran into trouble when their records were requested so as to further verify their charges against Kerry. One Larry Thurlow, one of the most vociferous critics, refused the Washington Post’s request for his records, specifically seeking to confirm the charge that Kerry was not under fire in the incident that led to his receiving his Bronze Star.
The WaPost learns- via the Freedom of Information Act- that Kerry’s account is confirmed, Thurlow’s is rubbish.
Newly obtained military records of one of Sen. John F. Kerry's most vocal critics, who has accused the Democratic presidential candidate of lying about his wartime record to win medals, contradict his own version of events.
In newspaper interviews and a best-selling book, Larry Thurlow, who commanded a Navy Swift boat alongside Kerry in Vietnam, has strongly disputed Kerry's claim that the Massachusetts Democrat's boat came under fire during a mission in Viet Cong-controlled territory on March 13, 1969. Kerry won a Bronze Star for his actions that day.
But Thurlow's military records, portions of which were released yesterday to The Washington Post under the Freedom of Information Act, contain several references to "enemy small arms and automatic weapons fire" directed at "all units" of the five-boat flotilla. Thurlow won his own Bronze Star that day, and the citation praises him for providing assistance to a damaged Swift boat "despite enemy bullets flying about him." http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A13267-2004Aug18?language=printer
Conservative Chris Matthews (“Hardball” on MSNBC), went ballistic on the ‘Swiftie renegades, ripped apart his anti-Kerry guest and told viewers that Administration spokespersons refused to appear. Kerry’s answering back also was necessary, helpful.
What’s Happening, Iraq: Sadr still has not settled, and we’re resorting to air power as the weapon of choice in heavily populated urban areas. The media are hardly commenting, as we aim bombs, missiles, etc at Sadr City, a virtual slum that houses 2 million as well as Samarra, Najaf, Fallujah…you get the picture.
Agence France Presse’s report (via spacewar.com):.
"Heavy overnight US bombing of Kut killed 84 people and wounded nearly 180 others, a day after clashes between Iraqi police and Shiite militiamen in the southern city, a hospital official said… Police Colonel Salam Fakhri said the bombing started at 1:00 am Wednesday and lasted until 3:00 am. 'The bombing was concentrated in Al-Sharkia district as the US military felt there were a lot of Shiite militiamen in that area. It also has an office of (radical Shiite Muslim cleric and militia chief) Moqtada Sadr,' he said." http://www.spacewar.com/2004/040812170350.4tvl64e1.html
And,
Meanwhile, on Thursday in Samarra, 500-pound bombs were dropped on two "known enemy locations" killing, according to the American military, a suspiciously well-rounded-off 50 "anti-Iraqi forces" ("But Dr Abdul Hamid al-Samarrai told AFP news agency at the main hospital that most of the casualties were women and children"). http://www.tomdispatch.com/index.mhtml?emx=x&pid=1687
And, Sadr’s forces targeted the oil sector
Iraqi Shiite sources say the Mehdi Army has launched several coordinated attacks on oil sector objects in the southern Iraq. After overrunning corporate Iraqi and Western security guards, militants blasted the southern pipelines and set several oil wells on fire in many places close to Basra and Al Amara. http://www.stratfor.com/coms2/page_home
What’s Happening, Iran:
They’ve learned the lesson of Iraq.
Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani warned that Iran might launch a preemptive strike against US forces in the region to prevent an attack on its nuclear facilities."We will not sit (with arms folded) to wait for what others will do to us. Some military commanders in Iran are convinced that preventive operations which the Americans talk about are not their monopoly," Shamkhani told Al-Jazeera TV when asked if Iran would respond to an American attack on its nuclear facilities.
America is not the only one present in the region. We are also present, from Khost to Kandahar in Afghanistan; we are present in the Gulf and we can be present in Iraq," said Shamkhani, speaking in Farsi to the Arabic-language news channel through an interpreter."The US military presence (in Iraq) will not become an element of strength (for Washington) at our expense. The opposite is true, because their forces would turn into a hostage" in Iranian hands in the event of an attack, he said. http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/101754/1/.html
Michael Moore to release two new books …by November…
1) The Official Fahrenheit 9/11 Reader, a companion book to the DVD, and
2) Will They Ever Trust Us Again?, a collection of letters written to Moore by U.S. soldiers in Iraq.
“Democrat” Zell Miller to nominate Bush
He’s a Democrat in name only, used for the past years by the Administraiton to claim “bi-partisan” support. His retirement is cause for celebration.
Polls: Hardly conclusive…
Pennsylvania: Kerry 48 Bush 43
Iowa: Kerry 49%, Bush 47% (Strategic Vision)
Minnesota: Kerry 49%, Bush 44% (Strategic Vision)
Ohio: Bush 49%, Kerry 46% (Strategic Vision)
Ohio: Kerry 48%, Bush 46% (University of Cincinnati)
Ohio: Kerry 52%, Bush 43% (CNN/USA Today/Gallup)
Nationally, the Economist poll has Kerry leading Bush 48% to 41%.
A new Harris Poll has Bush and Kerry tied, 47% to 47%, among likely voters.
-R
I think those who oppose this ballistic missile system really don't understand the threats of the 21st century. They're living in the past. We're living in the future. We're going to do what's necessary to protect this country. – Bush
Sure; since al-Qaeda, not the Soviet Union is the “threat” at hand, “full” funding of missile defense makes perfect sense. Let’s recall that in 2001 the Administration rejected the transferring of funds from missile defense to anti-terrorism and nuclear non-proliferation efforts.
Global Warming in Britain: They’re facing up to it, or at least anticipating.
John Vidal for the Guardian:
Britain should expect more dangerous flash floods, catastrophic rain and hail storms, droughts and heatwaves from the rapid changes in rainfall patterns brought by global warming, the European Environment Agency (EEA) said yesterday as clean-up operations continued in flooded Boscastle…"We are moving towards more intense rainfall. Drier summers are being punctuated by particularly intense incidents such as we have just seen in Cornwall."
The agency says Europe is warming faster than the global average.
The temperature has risen by an average of 0.95C in the past 100 years and is projected to climb by a further 2.0-6.3C this century as the emissions of greenhouse gases continue to rise http://www.guardian.co.uk/weather/Story/0,2763,1286155,00.html
Another report that focuses less on Britain, more on Europe.
European winters will disappear by 2080 and extreme weather will become more common unless global warming across the continent is slowed, warns a major new report.
Europe is warming more quickly than the rest of the world with potentially devastating consequences, including more frequent heatwaves, flooding, rising sea levels and melting glaciers, says the European Environment Agency (EEA) document, launched on Wednesday. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99996302
Oil Shock Coming?
The papers are warming to the subject; the price of oil is not coming down; the supplies are vulnerable- to attacks in Iraq, to refinery disruptions, etc and our economy is not very resilient. This is not a leftie opinion; it’s increasingly the view of the business sector.
With oil prices now in the high $40s (WTI basis), there is good reason to treat this development as yet another in a long string of energy shocks. The impact of such disruptions depends very much on context -- namely, the vulnerability, or lack thereof, in the underlying economy. When a weak economy is hit by any type of a shock, recession normally results. Conversely, a strong economy is better insulated to withstand such a blow. Most of the oil shocks of the past fall into the former category -- hitting economies when they are vulnerable. Unfortunately, the Oil Shock of 2004 fits that script to a tee. http://www.morganstanley.com/GEFdata/digests/20040819-thu.html#anchor0
WMD Follow-up: David Kay Roasts Condi
Now an outsider, he’s gotten much more blunt.
Dr. Kay did not identify Ms. Rice by name in his often-impassioned testimony. But his remarks were clearly aimed at her performance and reflected a widespread view among intelligence specialists that Ms. Rice, perhaps Mr. Bush's most trusted aide, and the National Security Council have never been held sufficiently accountable for intelligence failures before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and the Iraq war.
His criticism of the council, which is responsible for coordinating the work of national security agencies in the government, mirrored that made earlier this year by Richard A. Clarke, Ms. Rice's former top counterterrorism deputy, who accused her of paying little attention to dire intelligence threats throughout the spring and summer of 2001 that Al Qaeda was about to strike against the United States. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/19/politics/19panel.html
New York, 9/11 and the Republican Convention
New Yorkers hopefully have not forgotten that the Administration tried to shortchange them with 9/11 funds, and that the Bushies have never hesitated- as per the convention- to exploit the NY-based tragedy.
Ted Rall’s Common Dreams piece evokes the 1976 Daily News headline (Ford to NY: Drop Dead)
NYC to GOP: Drop Dead: …Anti-Republican sentiment is rising to a fever pitch here as the dog days tick down to the dreaded affair. A poll cited by the local ABC affiliate shows 83 percent of New Yorkers don't want their city to host the RNC. And many of them are planning to do something about it. http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0818-11.htm
Swift Boat Follow-up:
Right wing talk radio persists in hammering away on an hourly basis about Kerry’s alleged fabrication of his war record. The anti-Kerry ad continues to play with mixed results. One poll reported on MSNBC said that about 30% of independent-swing voters who had been leaning to Kerry changed their mind after seeing it. Yet, in Ohio, where the ad has been shown big time, Kerry’s numbers are up (see below).
The well-funded lying liars ran into trouble when their records were requested so as to further verify their charges against Kerry. One Larry Thurlow, one of the most vociferous critics, refused the Washington Post’s request for his records, specifically seeking to confirm the charge that Kerry was not under fire in the incident that led to his receiving his Bronze Star.
The WaPost learns- via the Freedom of Information Act- that Kerry’s account is confirmed, Thurlow’s is rubbish.
Newly obtained military records of one of Sen. John F. Kerry's most vocal critics, who has accused the Democratic presidential candidate of lying about his wartime record to win medals, contradict his own version of events.
In newspaper interviews and a best-selling book, Larry Thurlow, who commanded a Navy Swift boat alongside Kerry in Vietnam, has strongly disputed Kerry's claim that the Massachusetts Democrat's boat came under fire during a mission in Viet Cong-controlled territory on March 13, 1969. Kerry won a Bronze Star for his actions that day.
But Thurlow's military records, portions of which were released yesterday to The Washington Post under the Freedom of Information Act, contain several references to "enemy small arms and automatic weapons fire" directed at "all units" of the five-boat flotilla. Thurlow won his own Bronze Star that day, and the citation praises him for providing assistance to a damaged Swift boat "despite enemy bullets flying about him." http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A13267-2004Aug18?language=printer
Conservative Chris Matthews (“Hardball” on MSNBC), went ballistic on the ‘Swiftie renegades, ripped apart his anti-Kerry guest and told viewers that Administration spokespersons refused to appear. Kerry’s answering back also was necessary, helpful.
What’s Happening, Iraq: Sadr still has not settled, and we’re resorting to air power as the weapon of choice in heavily populated urban areas. The media are hardly commenting, as we aim bombs, missiles, etc at Sadr City, a virtual slum that houses 2 million as well as Samarra, Najaf, Fallujah…you get the picture.
Agence France Presse’s report (via spacewar.com):.
"Heavy overnight US bombing of Kut killed 84 people and wounded nearly 180 others, a day after clashes between Iraqi police and Shiite militiamen in the southern city, a hospital official said… Police Colonel Salam Fakhri said the bombing started at 1:00 am Wednesday and lasted until 3:00 am. 'The bombing was concentrated in Al-Sharkia district as the US military felt there were a lot of Shiite militiamen in that area. It also has an office of (radical Shiite Muslim cleric and militia chief) Moqtada Sadr,' he said." http://www.spacewar.com/2004/040812170350.4tvl64e1.html
And,
Meanwhile, on Thursday in Samarra, 500-pound bombs were dropped on two "known enemy locations" killing, according to the American military, a suspiciously well-rounded-off 50 "anti-Iraqi forces" ("But Dr Abdul Hamid al-Samarrai told AFP news agency at the main hospital that most of the casualties were women and children"). http://www.tomdispatch.com/index.mhtml?emx=x&pid=1687
And, Sadr’s forces targeted the oil sector
Iraqi Shiite sources say the Mehdi Army has launched several coordinated attacks on oil sector objects in the southern Iraq. After overrunning corporate Iraqi and Western security guards, militants blasted the southern pipelines and set several oil wells on fire in many places close to Basra and Al Amara. http://www.stratfor.com/coms2/page_home
What’s Happening, Iran:
They’ve learned the lesson of Iraq.
Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani warned that Iran might launch a preemptive strike against US forces in the region to prevent an attack on its nuclear facilities."We will not sit (with arms folded) to wait for what others will do to us. Some military commanders in Iran are convinced that preventive operations which the Americans talk about are not their monopoly," Shamkhani told Al-Jazeera TV when asked if Iran would respond to an American attack on its nuclear facilities.
America is not the only one present in the region. We are also present, from Khost to Kandahar in Afghanistan; we are present in the Gulf and we can be present in Iraq," said Shamkhani, speaking in Farsi to the Arabic-language news channel through an interpreter."The US military presence (in Iraq) will not become an element of strength (for Washington) at our expense. The opposite is true, because their forces would turn into a hostage" in Iranian hands in the event of an attack, he said. http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/101754/1/.html
Michael Moore to release two new books …by November…
1) The Official Fahrenheit 9/11 Reader, a companion book to the DVD, and
2) Will They Ever Trust Us Again?, a collection of letters written to Moore by U.S. soldiers in Iraq.
“Democrat” Zell Miller to nominate Bush
He’s a Democrat in name only, used for the past years by the Administraiton to claim “bi-partisan” support. His retirement is cause for celebration.
Polls: Hardly conclusive…
Pennsylvania: Kerry 48 Bush 43
Iowa: Kerry 49%, Bush 47% (Strategic Vision)
Minnesota: Kerry 49%, Bush 44% (Strategic Vision)
Ohio: Bush 49%, Kerry 46% (Strategic Vision)
Ohio: Kerry 48%, Bush 46% (University of Cincinnati)
Ohio: Kerry 52%, Bush 43% (CNN/USA Today/Gallup)
Nationally, the Economist poll has Kerry leading Bush 48% to 41%.
A new Harris Poll has Bush and Kerry tied, 47% to 47%, among likely voters.
-R
