From:
Sheldon Whitehouse: Clean Out Corporations From Government
The wealth of the international corporate world is staggering. The five biggest oil companies just this quarter posted profits of $23 billion--that is a 23 with 12 zeroes behind it--in just one quarter.
Sen. Whitehouse' example of corporate resources available to influence elections puts it into perspective:
The Republican appointees on the Supreme Court just overturned decades of precedent and 100 years of practice to give these big corporations freedom to spend unlimited funds in our American elections.
Put it to scale. Consider $23 billion of pure profits just in one quarter by big oil, and compare: The Obama and McCain campaigns together spent about $1 billion in the last election. Do the math. For 5 percent of one quarter's profits, big oil could outspend both American Presidential campaigns. That may be some politician's idea of a happy day because that is who they work to please, but it is wrong and it needs to be stopped.
He then looks at how deeply that influence is nestled into our agencies right now:
But think, if that is what corporate influence could do in a national election, think of what those vast, powerful tentacles of corporate influence can do to a little government agency such as the Minerals Management Service: Revolving doors to lucrative jobs in the industry so you are set for life; sports tickets, gifts, drugs; constant, relentless lobbying pressure and threats of litigation; steadily inserting operatives in regulatory positions.
There's more:
http://crooksandliars.com/
Jun 19, 2010
Jun 7, 2010
Osama Bin Laden and Bush Partnership - Congressman Grayson
Alan Grayson - Todays War is now the longest in American History -- Thanks to the Bush crime family.
It turns out that Bin Laden has a keen grasp of the federal budget: "As for the size of the economic deficit, it has reached record astronomical numbers estimated to total more than a trillion dollars. And even more dangerous and bitter for America is that the mujahidin recently forced Bush to resort to emergency funds to continue the fight in Afghanistan and Iraq, which is evidence of the success of the bleed-until-bankruptcy plan . . . ."
But Bin Laden felt that he needed to share the credit for the success of his plan -- share it with the Bush White House. "Rather, the policy of the White House that demands the opening of war fronts to keep busy their various corporations -- whether they be working in the field of arms or oil or reconstruction -- has helped al-Qaida to achieve these enormous results." why did the Bush White House do so? Because Bin Laden saw the Bush Administration as his partner in the destruction of America's economy: "It is true that this shows that al-Qaida has gained, but on the other hand, it shows that the Bush administration has also gained, something of which anyone who looks at the size of the contracts acquired by the shady Bush administration-linked mega-corporations, like Halliburton and its kind, will be convinced."
The new "war front" to which Bin Laden referred in 2004 was, of course, Iraq. As he put it: "So the war went ahead, the death toll rose, the American economy bled, and Bush became embroiled in the swamps of Iraq . . . ."
There is more:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-alan-grayson/the-longest-war_b_602108.html
It turns out that Bin Laden has a keen grasp of the federal budget: "As for the size of the economic deficit, it has reached record astronomical numbers estimated to total more than a trillion dollars. And even more dangerous and bitter for America is that the mujahidin recently forced Bush to resort to emergency funds to continue the fight in Afghanistan and Iraq, which is evidence of the success of the bleed-until-bankruptcy plan . . . ."
But Bin Laden felt that he needed to share the credit for the success of his plan -- share it with the Bush White House. "Rather, the policy of the White House that demands the opening of war fronts to keep busy their various corporations -- whether they be working in the field of arms or oil or reconstruction -- has helped al-Qaida to achieve these enormous results." why did the Bush White House do so? Because Bin Laden saw the Bush Administration as his partner in the destruction of America's economy: "It is true that this shows that al-Qaida has gained, but on the other hand, it shows that the Bush administration has also gained, something of which anyone who looks at the size of the contracts acquired by the shady Bush administration-linked mega-corporations, like Halliburton and its kind, will be convinced."
The new "war front" to which Bin Laden referred in 2004 was, of course, Iraq. As he put it: "So the war went ahead, the death toll rose, the American economy bled, and Bush became embroiled in the swamps of Iraq . . . ."
There is more:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-alan-grayson/the-longest-war_b_602108.html
Jun 6, 2010
IT IS TIME TO SEND OUT A MAINSTREAM MEDIA SOS
From:
http://usunemployed.blogspot.com/p/media-sos-campaign-main-street-needs.html
The long term unemployed have now went through the process of sending M-A-Y-D-A-Y faxes to all target members of Congress. Do you want to give those members of Congress the opportunity to ignore that massive campaign without any mainstream press coverage? Are we going to allow Tom Coburn to declare that we will get an extension to 103 weeks and extend it even more and then allow Senator Max Baucus say that he believes 99 weeks is enough and there is hardly any mainstream press coverage?
US Unemployed Blogsite does not believe this is the right thing to do. Too much time and effort has gone into this cause to allow it to be untouched by the larger audiences that will apply the heat to Congress for that "political will". When you consider that the one Senator who promised more weeks has voted against the extensions and then you consider the other Senator who said 99 weeks is enough has voted for the extensions - it really proves the point that these people in Washington are saying one thing to the camera and doing another on the Senate floor. Enough is enough. They all need to walk the walk if they are going to talk the talk.
If you are sitting there thinking to yourself, "what good will that do?” Think again please. Ask yourself again how in the whole wide world this effort could possibly hurt the cause. If you do not get that job you wanted but doesn't exist today, do you have anything better to do? The pressure needs to be mounted if Congress needs that "political will". Remember, the unemployed only represent 9.7% of the United States population.
Millions of other Americans need to fully know the plight of the long term unemployed because mainstream is failing to report the issue. If you are employed and not in this nightmare, you may be more inclined to believe the news story that Congress is actually doing an unemployment extension (or has recently already done an unemployment extension and things are fine until June) and not care about the detail that Congress only changed the dates available for existing tiers. There is still an unemployment crisis in this country and the larger media outlets need to be reporting the whole story.
Let's not allow mainstream media to report another half-truth unemployment extension story without mentioning the need for Tier 5 Unemployment Extensions!
There is more:
http://usunemployed.blogspot.com/
http://usunemployed.blogspot.com/p/media-sos-campaign-main-street-needs.html
The long term unemployed have now went through the process of sending M-A-Y-D-A-Y faxes to all target members of Congress. Do you want to give those members of Congress the opportunity to ignore that massive campaign without any mainstream press coverage? Are we going to allow Tom Coburn to declare that we will get an extension to 103 weeks and extend it even more and then allow Senator Max Baucus say that he believes 99 weeks is enough and there is hardly any mainstream press coverage?
US Unemployed Blogsite does not believe this is the right thing to do. Too much time and effort has gone into this cause to allow it to be untouched by the larger audiences that will apply the heat to Congress for that "political will". When you consider that the one Senator who promised more weeks has voted against the extensions and then you consider the other Senator who said 99 weeks is enough has voted for the extensions - it really proves the point that these people in Washington are saying one thing to the camera and doing another on the Senate floor. Enough is enough. They all need to walk the walk if they are going to talk the talk.
If you are sitting there thinking to yourself, "what good will that do?” Think again please. Ask yourself again how in the whole wide world this effort could possibly hurt the cause. If you do not get that job you wanted but doesn't exist today, do you have anything better to do? The pressure needs to be mounted if Congress needs that "political will". Remember, the unemployed only represent 9.7% of the United States population.
Millions of other Americans need to fully know the plight of the long term unemployed because mainstream is failing to report the issue. If you are employed and not in this nightmare, you may be more inclined to believe the news story that Congress is actually doing an unemployment extension (or has recently already done an unemployment extension and things are fine until June) and not care about the detail that Congress only changed the dates available for existing tiers. There is still an unemployment crisis in this country and the larger media outlets need to be reporting the whole story.
Let's not allow mainstream media to report another half-truth unemployment extension story without mentioning the need for Tier 5 Unemployment Extensions!
There is more:
http://usunemployed.blogspot.com/
May 28, 2010
Rand Paul and Libertarian blind spots
From the Progressive Democrats of America Website:
pdamerica.org
As observed by Juan González of Democracy Now! (video below), Rand Paul, the Republican candidate for a U.S. Senate seat in Kentucky, set off a "firestorm" of controversy when he criticized those portions of the 1964 Civil Rights Act which applied to private businesses, implying, when he appeared on MSNBC's Rachel Maddow Show, that the 46-year old federal legislation infringed on the First Amendment rights of private businesses.
RACHEL MADDOW: Should—Woolworth lunch counters should have been allowed to stay segregated?...
RAND PAUL:...I don’t believe in any discrimination. I don’t believe that any private property should discriminate either...But what you have to answer, when you answer...is an abstract, obscure conversation from 1964...you have to say then that you decide the rules for all restaurants. And then, do you decide that you want to allow them to carry weapons into restaurants?
As observed by Prof. Blair Kelley on Democracy Now, Rand Paul's public/private distinction bears an eerie resemblance to pro-segregationist arguments that older Americans like myself can all too well remember. Amy Goodman discusses a fact, first reported by the blog barefoot and progressive, that "Rand Paul’s former communications director, Christopher Hightower...resigned in December after his MySpace page was found to have a post declaring 'Happy N-Word Day'—but it used the full word—and showing a photo of a lynching around the time of the federal Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday."
pdamerica.org
As observed by Juan González of Democracy Now! (video below), Rand Paul, the Republican candidate for a U.S. Senate seat in Kentucky, set off a "firestorm" of controversy when he criticized those portions of the 1964 Civil Rights Act which applied to private businesses, implying, when he appeared on MSNBC's Rachel Maddow Show, that the 46-year old federal legislation infringed on the First Amendment rights of private businesses.
RACHEL MADDOW: Should—Woolworth lunch counters should have been allowed to stay segregated?...
RAND PAUL:...I don’t believe in any discrimination. I don’t believe that any private property should discriminate either...But what you have to answer, when you answer...is an abstract, obscure conversation from 1964...you have to say then that you decide the rules for all restaurants. And then, do you decide that you want to allow them to carry weapons into restaurants?
As observed by Prof. Blair Kelley on Democracy Now, Rand Paul's public/private distinction bears an eerie resemblance to pro-segregationist arguments that older Americans like myself can all too well remember. Amy Goodman discusses a fact, first reported by the blog barefoot and progressive, that "Rand Paul’s former communications director, Christopher Hightower...resigned in December after his MySpace page was found to have a post declaring 'Happy N-Word Day'—but it used the full word—and showing a photo of a lynching around the time of the federal Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday."
BP ROV Web Cam Status Press Release Gulf Oil Spill
From:
http://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/prices-and-news/news/market-news/market-news-detail.html?announcementId=10511119
Dont listen to the television -- Read this release on the status and plans.
May 28, 2010
UPDATE ON GULF OF MEXICO OIL SPILL RESPONSE
BP today provided an update on developments in the response to the MC252 oil well incident in the Gulf of Mexico.
Subsea efforts continue to focus on progressing steps to stop the flow of oil from the well through interventions via the failed Deepwater Horizon blow out preventer (BOP), and to collect the flow of oil from the leak points. These efforts are being carried out in conjunction with industry experts and governmental authorities.
Operations on the top kill procedure continue. Heavy drilling fluids were pumped under pressure into the BOP starting May 26 at 1300CDT, and top kill operations continue through 2400CDT on May 27. It is estimated that the full top kill procedure could extend for another 24 to 48 hours (June 1).
If the well were successfully 'killed', it is expected that cementing operations would then follow. The top kill procedure has never before been attempted at these depths and its ultimate success is uncertain.
In parallel with the ongoing top kill operation, preparations have been made for the possible deployment of the lower marine riser package (LMRP) cap containment system.
Deployment would first involve removing the damaged riser from the top of the failed BOP to leave a cleanly-cut pipe at the top of the BOP's LMRP. The cap, a containment device with a sealing grommet, will be connected to a riser from the Discoverer Enterprise drillship, 5,000 feet above on the surface, and placed over the LMRP with the intention of capturing most of the oil and gas flowing from the well.
The LMRP cap is already deployed alongside the BOP in readiness for potential deployment. If it is decided to deploy this option, this would be expected to take some three to four days.
In addition to these steps, planning is being advanced for deploying, if necessary, a second BOP on top of the original failed BOP.
Drilling of two relief wells began on May 2 and May 16. It is estimated that each of these wells will take three months to complete from the commencement of drilling.
Surface Spill Response and Containment
Work continues to collect and disperse oil that has reached the surface of the sea, to protect the shoreline of the Gulf of Mexico, and to collect and clean up any oil that has reached shore.
Almost 1,300 vessels are now involved in the response effort, including skimmers, tugs, barges and recovery vessels. Operations to skim oil from the surface of the water have now recovered, in total, some 274,000 barrels (11.5 million gallons) of oily liquid.
The total length of containment boom deployed as part of efforts to prevent oil reaching the coast is now almost 1.9 million feet, and an additional 1.25 million feet of sorbent boom has also been deployed.
So far 26,000 claims have been filed and 11,650 payments have already been made. BP has received over 96,000 calls into its help lines to date.
Additional information
The cost of the response to date amounts to about $930 million, including the cost of the spill response, containment, relief well drilling, grants to the Gulf states, claims paid and federal costs. It is too early to quantify other potential costs and liabilities associated with the incident.
BP Press Office London +44 20 7496 4076
BP Press office, US: +1 281 366 0265
Unified Command Joint Information Center +1 985-902-5231
www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com
www.bp.com/gulfofmexicoresponse
http://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/prices-and-news/news/market-news/market-news-detail.html?announcementId=10511119
Dont listen to the television -- Read this release on the status and plans.
May 28, 2010
UPDATE ON GULF OF MEXICO OIL SPILL RESPONSE
BP today provided an update on developments in the response to the MC252 oil well incident in the Gulf of Mexico.
Subsea efforts continue to focus on progressing steps to stop the flow of oil from the well through interventions via the failed Deepwater Horizon blow out preventer (BOP), and to collect the flow of oil from the leak points. These efforts are being carried out in conjunction with industry experts and governmental authorities.
Operations on the top kill procedure continue. Heavy drilling fluids were pumped under pressure into the BOP starting May 26 at 1300CDT, and top kill operations continue through 2400CDT on May 27. It is estimated that the full top kill procedure could extend for another 24 to 48 hours (June 1).
If the well were successfully 'killed', it is expected that cementing operations would then follow. The top kill procedure has never before been attempted at these depths and its ultimate success is uncertain.
In parallel with the ongoing top kill operation, preparations have been made for the possible deployment of the lower marine riser package (LMRP) cap containment system.
Deployment would first involve removing the damaged riser from the top of the failed BOP to leave a cleanly-cut pipe at the top of the BOP's LMRP. The cap, a containment device with a sealing grommet, will be connected to a riser from the Discoverer Enterprise drillship, 5,000 feet above on the surface, and placed over the LMRP with the intention of capturing most of the oil and gas flowing from the well.
The LMRP cap is already deployed alongside the BOP in readiness for potential deployment. If it is decided to deploy this option, this would be expected to take some three to four days.
In addition to these steps, planning is being advanced for deploying, if necessary, a second BOP on top of the original failed BOP.
Drilling of two relief wells began on May 2 and May 16. It is estimated that each of these wells will take three months to complete from the commencement of drilling.
Surface Spill Response and Containment
Work continues to collect and disperse oil that has reached the surface of the sea, to protect the shoreline of the Gulf of Mexico, and to collect and clean up any oil that has reached shore.
Almost 1,300 vessels are now involved in the response effort, including skimmers, tugs, barges and recovery vessels. Operations to skim oil from the surface of the water have now recovered, in total, some 274,000 barrels (11.5 million gallons) of oily liquid.
The total length of containment boom deployed as part of efforts to prevent oil reaching the coast is now almost 1.9 million feet, and an additional 1.25 million feet of sorbent boom has also been deployed.
So far 26,000 claims have been filed and 11,650 payments have already been made. BP has received over 96,000 calls into its help lines to date.
Additional information
The cost of the response to date amounts to about $930 million, including the cost of the spill response, containment, relief well drilling, grants to the Gulf states, claims paid and federal costs. It is too early to quantify other potential costs and liabilities associated with the incident.
BP Press Office London +44 20 7496 4076
BP Press office, US: +1 281 366 0265
Unified Command Joint Information Center +1 985-902-5231
www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com
www.bp.com/gulfofmexicoresponse
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