We have previously discussed how the Obama Administration played down the environmental damage caused by the BP oil spill, including public statements by people like Carol Browner that the oil (which was later found) had miraculously disappeared. Now, documents have been disclosed suggesting that the Obama Administration blocked efforts by federal scientists to tell the public of how bad the oil spill was. Once again, there is relatively little attention to this story. The Bush Administration was accused of the same type of manipulation of scientific reports and was generally (and rightfully) savaged in the press.
The documents released Wednesday show that the White House budget office denied a request from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to make public the worst-case discharge from the blown-out well.
The documents indicate that the decision to withhold the information may have been made at a “high level.” One staff report stated that withholding the information played into the view that the spill could easily be controlled.
What is most disturbing is how this withheld information dovetails with the later efforts to downplay the significance of the spill and public indications from officials that President Obama would likely resume his controversial plan to open up pristine areas of the East Coast to drilling.
Source: Miami Herald
BP oil spill investigation critical of White House reaction to crisis
Barack Obama’s administration has been criticised for its handling of the BP Gulf of Mexico oil spill in a report commissioned by the White House.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/oilandgas/8047543/BP-oil-spill-investigation-critical-of-White-House-reaction-to-crisis.html
Ya don’t say….How surprising…..I am aghast…..The Government, our government suppressing a ….minimizing a report…..come on….you might think the thing will get lost or something or even deleted….Maybe it does not truly and accurately reflect the true state of affairs and is in a draft stage…..
Ah, change we can believe in.
so dissapointing…..
Oil? What oil? I don’t see no stinkin’ oil!
How could this administration think that people wouldn’t eventually find out about its duplicity on this matter?
*****
Scientists Find Oil On The Gulf’s Seafloor, In Least Surprising News Of 2010
by Jason Linkins (Huffington Post)
First Posted: 09-13-10
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/13/scientists-find-oil-on-th_n_714951.html
Does anyone even remember that time the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded and touched off a massive undersea oil volcano? Last I heard, the good news was that the oil had mainly disappeared, through a combination of hungry microbes, and also miracles! But reporters in the Gulf told other stories. And while America was preparing to burn Qurans for 9/11 Day, NPR went out and found the missing oil. Three guesses where they found it!
Scientists on a research vessel in the Gulf of Mexico are finding a substantial layer of oily sediment stretching for dozens of miles in all directions. Their discovery suggests that a lot of oil from the Deepwater Horizon didn’t simply evaporate or dissipate into the water — it has settled to the seafloor.
The Research Vessel Oceanus sailed on Aug. 21 on a mission to figure out what happened to the more than 4 million barrels of oil that gushed into the water. Onboard, Samantha Joye, a professor in the Department of Marine Sciences at the University of Georgia, says she suddenly has a pretty good idea about where a lot of it ended up. It’s showing up in samples of the seafloor, between the well site and the coast.
“I’ve collected literally hundreds of sediment cores from the Gulf of Mexico, including around this area. And I’ve never seen anything like this,” she said in an interview via satellite phone from the boat.
Scientists describe the oil they’ve found as “fluffy” and “porous” and “more than 2 inches thick” and “all over the place” and containing “recently dead shrimp, worms and other invertebrates.” Says Samantha Joye, of the University of Georgia’s Marine Sciences Department, “It’s starting to sound like a tremendous amount of oil. And we haven’t even sampled close to the wellhead yet.”
They don’t really care IF you find out, they only care WHEN you find out. Preferably, right after the elections, so they get two years for the outrage to fade and the relativists to say, “Yeah, but imagine what horrors the REPUBLICANS might unleash on us…”
Same horror, different face. Stop voting for criminals that only tell you what you want to hear and then sell your future to the highest bidder.
Obama’s a Lock in 2012
by Peter Beinart Info:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-10-06/why-obama-will-win-a-second-term/?om_rid=NsfYtq&om_mid=_BMrbayB8VGxJxi
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/07/boehner-targetted-as-bad-_n_754046.html Emily’s list has targeted republicans as bad for women, Tony C.
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/10/schools-cops-and-health-care-how-the-pledge-to-america-would-actually-cut-spending.php?ref=fpa Education spending is the number one item on their list. This includes Pell Grants.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/07/obama-pocket-veto-foreclosures_n_753987.html
Just another example of how Obama’s wit doesn’t carry over to political smarts.
He negotiates with insurance executives trying to please both sides and that backfires, he covers up the damage here, and many more examples of someone that doesn’t think at the consequences of his actions… that what you expect from someone on drugs, but not a capable, bright man that can come up with some of the greatest speeches of all time… it just makes no sense to me.
That’s only the half of it. The government has acted as the oil industry’s handmaiden since the spill started and that extends to the health threat to the people in the coastal areas, the cleanup workers, the fishermen and the safety of the food supply from gulf waters. I’m not one for eating crustaceans often but I’ll never eat anything I know
Came from the Gulf because I don’t/can’t trust the assurances that it’s safe.
“Government withholding key data on Gulf seafood testing, scientists say”
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/10/government-withholding-key-data-gulf-seafood-testing-scientists/
Those of us who wished and hoped for Obama to be our savior in Washington may need to watch him and be leery of what is going on. As Plato said,” anyone wanting to be elected to public office, probably should`nt be there “.
Typical “No drama Obama”. Don’t release government scientists’ worst case scenario. Wait and get the most accurate information – which turns out to be, by the same government scientists, a little more than half of the original worst case estimate. Even though Salazar and others were speaking about the purported worst case estimates to reporters anyway.
A unnamed staff member, indeed.
Addiction Analyst- I think your problem in understanding President Obama’s actions may possibly stem from an assumption that Obama is a liberal who wants to achieve Progressive goals. If, instead, you assume that Obama represents corporate interests, you will find that his actions make perfect sense. As Rachel Maddow said, he began the the “fight” for the healthcare bill just barely to the left of center, having already given up on a “single-payer” system and quickly abandoned the “public option” without a fight and got nothing in return. For all the whining by the health insurance companies, they have given up very little in exchange for the MANDATORY purchase of health insurance which will give them a huge new customer base of some of the healthiest (young) people in America. I’m sure that Obama doesn’t view this as a defeat.
Buckeye, I would tend to agree with you BUT both the government and BP blocked all efforts by independent scientists to get information independently. The Coast Guard, local police and BP hired private security wouldn’t let anyone get near the beaches on on the water to do surveys or testing. They probably still are acting in an obstructionist manner but the story has fallen off the news radar.
If the government is trying to hide it, one can bet it ain’t good news.
their first reaction is always to hide or cover anything that might make them look bad.
as much as i like shrimp it’s off my menu. the best way they have to test for petroleum contamination is to sniff it. i haven’t heard if they are training people to sniff for corexit contamination.
@Swarthmore: I am for complete equality of women and women’s pay (by law if necessary) and I am pro-choice.
Although I do not teach, my university gig is certainly linked to Pell Grants. I am actually for 100% free college funded by the federal government, I think everybody that wants to go should be able to go; it is an investment in society’s future to have people be as educated as they are willing to be.
Foreclosures… eh. A tragedy, certainly, and I am 100% behind a safety net that includes some kind of generic living arrangements for those that would be otherwise homeless; but I also had to learn some hard lessons about debt, and recognizing crap that sounded free would not be, and all of that. I can sympathize but I won’t hold them harmless, hard lessons have to be hard or they aren’t lessons.
What you fail to understand is that the Democrats are going to be just as bad for women, for students, for poor suckers losing their home. All you can look at is the surface effect of what happens tomorrow, while ignoring the systemic effects of what is going to happen in 2012 and 2014 and 2016. Your vote for Democrats is going to give you Pell Grants in return for a bipartisan destruction of Social Security and Medicare.
As for women — I do not believe any realistic number of Republicans elected to Congress will erode the Constitutional rights of women in the next decade any more than Democrats would. I don’t care what their stated positions are; I firmly believe that if any of their batshit policies pass it will be with the help of elected Democrats already in office today, and signed by a Democrat President that could have vetoed it.
Too much of this pop-politics is just a distraction from the erosion of civil rights and domination of corporate influence that is the most dangerous, existential issue confronting our country.
It is as if you and others are in the living room watching a game and debating whether the red team or blue team has a better shot at the playoffs this year; while the kitchen is ablaze and burglars are upstairs stealing the jewelry.
Tony C You must be a republican if you actually think republicans are not worse on women’s issues than democrats. Many are against abortion even in the cases of rape and incest. Read the party platforms. A republican president only appoints justices who are anti-abortion to the Supreme Court.
@Swarthmore: Abortion is settled law, and I was specific in talking about a Republican CONGRESS.
Of course Republicans are worse on women’s issues; that’s their shtick, it is how they con their base into voting for them. Democrats have a different shtick they use to con us into voting for them (well, not including me anymore).
They are both thieves. You trust the thieves, I understand that. You are still being conned, I understand that. You think Democrats MEAN IT when they promise you crap, I understand that. I sympathize. Congressional level politicians are the best liars in the country, I do not blame you for being fooled. Out of a few hundred thousand adults per district (on average) these guys won the lying contest.
That doesn’t make them NOT LIARS. You don’t want to admit that Democrats have lied to you repeatedly and egregiously, okay fine. It remains true whether you admit it or don’t.
Tony C I have worked in a state legislature so I generally don’t believe the promises of politicians. Even if politicians are sincere, it is nearly impossible to get good legislation through the maze of lobbyists and obstructionists. I don’t think I am being conned. I am making a choice. The democrats represent my views more than the republicans do. It’s a clear choice to me now more than ever with the rise of the tea party. I could never be on the side of Carl Rove, the US Chamber of Congress, Jim D Mint or the christian fundamentalists. If you don’t care, that is your choice.
@Swarthmore: And your choice is yours; I just think you ARE being conned if you think the Democrats represent your views any more than the Republicans do. If you truly don’t believe the promises of politicians, why believe the Democrats when they say they represent your views? Why believe Republicans when they claim they are opposed to your views? How can you draw any conclusions at all from the statements of proven liars?
As Glenn Greenwald recently noted (with evidence), Obama cut a deal with doctors and hospitals and insurance companies to kill the public option early, and then lied to us for months that he wanted it. It was a sham from the beginning, the deal was cut and we were thrown under the bus.
We do not have a public option because OBAMA did not want a public option. This isn’t a promise he just couldn’t keep, it was a complete and egregious lie, he made the promise (on camera) during the campaign and then ditched it the minute he was in office. Why in the world would any Democrat think Obama, or any Democrat in Congress that went along with this, “represents their views?”
Unless your views are that we should sell out to corporations and the wealthy, and we shouldn’t pass any laws that might keep them from ripping off their employees and customers. Then they really will represent your views, but those are REPUBLICAN views, not liberal progressive views.
Tony C Are you anti union too?
Tony c The reason I asked is that the republicans would like to take away the right of the worker to form unions. I have to leave now.
As Glenn Greenwald recently noted (with evidence), Obama cut a deal with doctors and hospitals and insurance companies to kill the public option early, and then lied to us for months that he wanted it. It was a sham from the beginning, the deal was cut and we were thrown under the bus.
Teachers union gets a pass on ObamaCare rule
Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/teachers_union_gets_pass_on_obamacare_dhoJQgXRKLwbYtp6Nam7LK#ixzz11mvPp1t7
The Obama administration is already carving out exemptions to Obamacare, in order to allow some employers (like McDonald’s) to provide very minimal coverage to employees, far below the law’s standards.
According to NYT, the administration has already granted 30 such waivers to various organizations.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/07/business/07insure.html?_r=2&ref=business
Well, I have done it! I have read the entire text of proposed House Bill 3200: The Affordable Health Care Choices Act of 2009. I studied it with particular emphasis from my area of expertise, constitutional law. I was frankly concerned that parts of the proposed law that were being discussed might be unconstitutional. What I found was far worse than what I had heard or expected.
To begin with, much of what has been said about the law and its implications is in fact true, despite what the Democrats and the media are saying. The law does provide for rationing of health care, particularly where senior citizens and other classes of citizens are involved, free health care for illegal immigrants, free abortion services, and probably forced participation in abortions by members of the medical profession.
The Bill will also eventually force private insurance companies out of business and put everyone into a government run system. All decisions about personal health care will ultimately be made by federal bureaucrats and most of them will not be health care professionals. Hospital admissions, payments to physicians, and allocations of necessary medical devices will be strictly controlled.
http://michaelconnelly.viviti.com/entries/general/the-truth-about-the-health-care-bills
Michael Connelly
Retired attorney,
Constitutional Law Instructor
Carrollton, Texas
mrobertc@hotmail.com
http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/connelly.asp
Well, I have done it! I have read the entire text of proposed House Bill 3200: The Affordable Health Care Choices Act of 2009. I studied it with particular emphasis from my area of expertise, constitutional law. I was frankly concerned that parts of the proposed law that were being discussed might be unconstitutional. What I found was far worse than what I had heard or expected.
To begin with, much of what has been said about the law and its implications is in fact true, despite what the Democrats and the media are saying. The law does provide for rationing of health care, particularly where senior citizens and other classes of citizens are involved, free health care for illegal immigrants, free abortion services, and probably forced participation in abortions by members of the medical profession.
The Bill will also eventually force private insurance companies out of business and put everyone into a government run system. All decisions about personal health care will ultimately be made by federal bureaucrats and most of them will not be health care professionals. Hospital admissions, payments to physicians, and allocations of necessary medical devices will be strictly controlled.
http://michaelconnelly.viviti.com/entries/general/the-truth-about-the-health-care-bills
Michael Connelly
Retired attorney,
Constitutional Law Instructor
Carrollton, Texas
http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/connelly.asp
Pete Rouse braces White House for Republican gains
Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1010/43306.html?om_rid=NsfYtq&om_mid=_BMrxKMB8VHSDtd#ixzz11nBHR9aV
got this in my e-mail….I know SOME OF IT is true…
Things Obama has done
I’m sick and tired of people asking “What has Obama done?” So here’s a list of things he’s done since he’s been in office. Remember: He was elected President. He wasn’t elected Jesus!
The list is still growing. Let me know if I missed anything.
1. Saved the collapse of the American automotive industry by making GM restructure before bailing them out, and putting incentive money to help the industry
2. Shifted the focus of the war from Iraq to Afghanistan, and putting the emphasis on reducing terrorism where it should have been all along
3. Relaxed Anti-American tensions throughout the world
4. Signed order to close the prisoner “torture camp” at Guantanamo Bay
5. Has made the environment a national priority, and a primary source for job creation
6. Has made education a national priority by putting emphasis and money behind new ideas like charter schools, but speaking directly to school children in telling them they have to do their part.
7. Won the Nobel Peace Prize
8. $789 billion economic stimulus plan
9.. Appointment of first Latina to the Supreme Court
10. Attractive tax write-offs for those who buy hybrid automobiles
11. Authorized construction/opening of additional health centers to care for veterans
12. Renewed dialogue with NATO and other allies and partners on strategic issues.
13. Beginning the process of reforming and restructuring the military 20 years after the Cold War to a more modern fighting force… this includes new procurement policies, increasing size of military, new technology and cyber units and operations, etc.
14. Better body armor is now being provided to our troops
15. “Cash for clunkers” program offers vouchers to trade in fuel inefficient, polluting old cars for new cars; stimulates auto sales
16. Changed the failing/status quo military command in Afghanistan
17. Closed offshore tax safe havens
18. Deployed additional troops to Afghanistan
19. Ended media “blackout” on war casualties; reporting full information
20. Ended previous policy of awarding no-bid defense contracts
21. . Ended media blackout on war casualties and the return of fallen soldiers to Dover AFB.
22. Ended previous policy of cutting the FDA and circumventing FDA rules
23. Ended previous practice of forbidding Medicare from negotiating with drug manufacturers for cheaper drugs; the federal government is now realizing hundreds of millions in savings
24. Ended previous practice of having White House aides rewrite scientific and environmental rules, regulations, and reports
25. American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has created 2.1 million jobs (as of 12/31/09).
26. Ended previous policy of not regulating and labeling carbon dioxide emissions
27.. Ended previous policy of offering tax benefits to corporations who outsource American jobs; the new policy is to promote in-sourcing to bring jobs back
28. Ended previous policy on torture; the US now has a no torture policy and is in compliance with the Geneva Convention standards
29. . Launched Recovery.gov to track spending from the Recovery Act, an unprecedented step to provide transparency and accountability through technology.
30. Ended previous practice of protecting credit card companies; in place of it are new consumer protections from credit card industry’s predatory practices
31. Ended previous “stop-loss” policy that kept soldiers in Iraq/Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date
32. Energy producing plants must begin preparing to produce 15% of their energy from renewable sources
33. Established a National Performance Officer charged with saving the federal government money and making federal operations more efficient
34. Established a new cyber security office
35. Expanded the SCHIP program to cover health care for 4 million more children
36. Expanding vaccination programs
37. Families of fallen soldiers have expenses
38. . Provided the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) with more than $1.4 billion to improve services to America’s Veterans.
39. Federal support for stem-cell and new biomedical research
40. Funds for high-speed, broadband Internet access to K-12 schools
41. Responded with compassion and leadership to the earthquake in Haiti
42. Immediate and efficient response to the floods in North Dakota and other natural disasters
43. . Launched Business.gov – enabling conversation and online collaboration between small business owners, government representatives and industry experts in discussion forums relevant to starting and managing a business. Great for the economy.
44. Improved housing for military personnel
45. Improved conditions at Walter Reed Military Hospital and other military hospitals
46. Changed failing war strategy in Afghanistan.
47. Improving benefits for veterans
48. Increased infrastructure spending (roads, bridges, power plants…) after years of neglect
49. Donated his $1.4 million Nobel Prize to nonprofits.
50. Increasing opportunities in AmeriCorps program
51. Provided tax credits to first-time home buyers through the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 to revitalize the U.S. housing market.
52. Increasing pay and benefits for military personnel
53. Increasing student loans
54. Instituted a new policy on Cuba, allowing Cuban families to return “home” to visit loved ones
55. Cracked down on companies that deny sick pay, vacation and health insurance to workers by abusing the employee classification of independent contractor. Such companies also avoid paying Social Security, Medicare and unemployment insurance taxes for those workers.
56. Limited salaries of senior White House aides; cut to $100,000
57. Limits on lobbyists’ access to the White House
58. Protected 300,000 education jobs, such as teachers, principals, librarians, and counselors through the Recovery Act that would have otherwise been lost.
59. Limits on White House aides working for lobbyists after their tenure in the administration
60. Children’s Health Insurance Reauthorization Act on February 4, 2009, provides quality health care to 11 million kids – 4 million who were previously uninsured.
61. Lower drug costs for seniors
62. Making more loans available to small businesses
63. Many more press conferences and town halls and much more media access than previous administration
64. . Signed the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act, the first piece of comprehensive legislation aimed at improving the lives of Americans living with paralysis
65. Negotiated deal with Swiss banks to permit US government to gain access to records of tax evaders and criminals
66. New Afghan War policy that limits aerial bombing and prioritizes aid, development of infrastructure, diplomacy, and good government practices by Afghans
67. Announced creation of a Joint Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record for members of the U.S. Armed Forces to improve quality of medical care.
68. New federal funding for science and research labs
69. New funds for school construction
70. Ordered all federal agencies to undertake a study and make recommendations for ways to cut spending
71. Ordered a review of all federal operations to identify and cut wasteful spending and practices
72. . Negotiated deal with Swiss banks to permit US government to gain access to records of tax evaders and criminals.
73. Phasing out the expensive F-22 war plane and other outdated weapons systems, which weren’t even used or needed in Iraq/Afghanistan
74. Reengaged in the agreements/talks on global warming and greenhouse gas emissions
75. Provided tax credit to workers thus cutting taxes for 95% of America’s working families.
76. Reengaged in the treaties/agreements to protect the Antarctic
77. Removed restrictions on embryonic stem-cell research
78. . Helped reverse a downward spiral of the stock market. On January 19, 2009, the last day of President Bush’s presidency, the Dow closed at 8,218.22. In February 2010, the Dow closed at 10,309.24
79. Renewed loan guarantees for Israel
80. Restarted the nuclear non-proliferation talks and building back up the nuclear inspection infrastructure/protocols
81. Provided attractive tax write-offs for those who buy hybrid automobiles.
82. Returned money authorized for refurbishment of White House offices and private living quarters
83. Sent envoys to Middle East and other parts of the world that had been neglected for years; reengaging in multilateral and bilateral talks and diplomacy
84. Unveiled a program on Earth Day 2009 to develop the renewable energy projects on the waters of our Outer Continental Shelf that produce electricity from wind, wave, and ocean currents. These regulations will enable, for the first time ever, the nation to tap into our ocean’s vast sustainable resources to generate clean energy in an environmentally sound and safe manner.
85. Signed national service legislation; expanded national youth service program
86. States are permitted to enact federal fuel efficiency standards above federal standards
87. Students struggling to make college loan payments can have their loans refinanced
88. Successful release of US captain held by Somali pirates; authorized the SEALS to do their job
89. The FDA is now regulating tobacco
90. Ended the previous stop-loss policy that kept soldiers in Iraq/Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date.
91. The missile defense program is being cut by $1.4 billion in 2010
92. The public can meet with federal housing insurers to refinance (the new plan can be completed in one day) a mortgage if they are having trouble paying
93. The “secret detention” facilities in Eastern Europe and elsewhere are being closed
94. US financial and banking rescue plan
95. US Navy increasing patrols off Somali coast
96. . Signed the Weapons Systems Acquisition Reform Act to stop fraud and wasteful spending in the defense procurement and contracting system.
97. Visited more countries and met with more world leaders than any president in his first six months in office
98. Improved relations with Iran
99. Improved U.S. policy on climate change
100. Set timetable for exiting Iraq (already started removing troops)
101. Improved relations with Russia
102. Improved relations with the Islamic World
103. Made progress towards grater cooperation on limiting nuclear proliferation
104. Economic stimulus plan has created jobs. (Unemployment rate decreasing)
105. Drastically slowed down the recession
106. Saved Wall Street
107. Passed the Lilly Ledbetter Act (equal work for equal pay) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lilly_Ledbetter_Fair_Pay_Act_of_2009
108. HEALTHCARE REFORM
Once again, this is a lot to accomplish in such a short amount of time. He was elected President, he wasn’t elected Jesus.
—————————–
still, a long way to go….
Woosty,
“106. Saved Wall Street”
Wish he hadn’t!
Oh my, quite an impressive list. I know you said that you know some of it’s true. I’d say 25%, maybe.
104. Economic stimulus plan has created jobs. (Unemployment rate decreasing)
THE FINAL NUMBER: EMPLOYMENT -95,000…
9.6%…
Analysis: Jobs report is bad news for Democrats
By TOM RAUM (AP) – 4 hours ago
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g2Qx8RaIHOCMU2rwz6lRCaOS0ijgD9INILMG1?docId=D9INILMG1
98. Improved relations with Iran
Come on man !!!!
3. Relaxed Anti-American tensions throughout the world
Really, who says.
4. Signed order to close the prisoner “torture camp” at Guantanamo Bay
It’s still open for business.
7. Won the Nobel Peace Prize
102. Improved relations with the Islamic World
Year After Obama Won Nobel, World Looks for Signs of Peace
Increased Fighting in Afghanistan, Stalled Negotiations in Middle East
By RUSSELL GOLDMAN
Oct. 8, 2010
http://abcnews.go.com/US/year-obama-wins-nobel-world-signs-peace/story?id=11825176
105. Drastically slowed down the recession
As in prolonged it.
20. Ended previous policy of awarding no-bid defense contracts
May 6 (Bloomberg) — KBR Inc. was selected for a no-bid contract worth as much as $568 million through 2011 for military support services in Iraq, the Army said.
The Army announced its decision yesterday only hours after the Justice Department said it will pursue a lawsuit accusing the Houston-based company of taking kickbacks from two subcontractors on Iraq-related work. The Army also awarded the work to KBR over objections from members of Congress, who have pushed the Pentagon to seek bids for further logistics contracts.
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-05-06/kbr-to-get-no-bid-army-work-as-u-s-alleges-kickbacks-update1-.html
99. Improved U.S. policy on climate change
Really? Copenhagen was Nopenhagen
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/10/08/cnntime-poll-was-bush-better-president-than-obama/
105. Drastically slowed down the recession
Dollar Falls Below 82 Yen for First Time Since 1995 on Job Cuts in U.S.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-10-08/dollar-falls-below-82-yen-for-first-time-since-1995-on-u-s-payroll-report.html
Bdaman,
Sit back.
Take a deep breath.
Relax.
If my memory serves me correctly (and it frequently doesn’t) the name inscribed on the Nobel Peace Prize was not “Barack Obama”, but, “Anyone Other Than George W. Bush”.
Swarthmore says: Are you anti-union too?
Why can’t you understand that I am against LYING, THIEVERY, and CONSTITUTION SHREDDING, and LAW BREAKING?
I think unions are a fine idea, until they become just like our government and start lying to their members, stealing from the union treasury, giving their buddies a break, cutting back room deals that enrich themselves at the expense of the workers, and otherwise defraud their union members by actively working AGAINST their interests in favor of their OWN interests and financial success.
THAT is why I am against Democrats and Republicans equally. I also think the idea of a public corporation where citizens can own stock in a proven profitable enterprise is a great idea: Until the leaders of the corporation take to stealing the profits for themselves and lying and cheating to do it.
I think government is a great idea, and I think most “common good” projects (like infrastructure) are wonderful things giving us great benefits without having to pay anybody any profits. Until they are used to enrich the buddies of the guys in Congress.
I think insurance is a wonderful thing; we get to pay just about the “average per capita” costs of a house fire or car crash or health problem or even premature death. Until the insurance companies get greedy for more money than their simple accounting skills warrant, and start denying valid claims and killing their customers to make another buck.
I AM A LIBERAL PROGRESSIVE. I am for taxing the rich and feeding the poor, I am for equality, I am for fair treatment.
I refuse to encourage and enable lying and thievery and lawbreaking and willful violations of the Constitution by VOTING for the crooks that have proven they will do those things, no matter what the consequences may be. Refusing to vote for one thief is not endorsing thievery.
“All decisions about personal health care will ultimately be made by federal bureaucrats and most of them will not be health care professionals.”
——————
anyone with health insurance and dependant upon that insurance for health care is already experiencing this from those who see profit margin as the deciding factor…
Wootsy with all do respect. I’d rather have them make the decision
than a bunch of people that there goal is to get rid of people who have little or no value left to society. You probably think I’m crazy for saying that but one need only look into the past statements of John Holdren the Presidents Science adviser who is so sure 30 years ago that if we didn’t control population growth the world would come to an end. He’s finally reached a position where he can quietly continue his beliefs.
Also if Obamacare is so good for everyone why are so many companies and unions now getting a temporary pass on having to comply with the new law. Which we all now could be extended.
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/teachers_union_gets_pass_on_obamacare_dhoJQgXRKLwbYtp6Nam7LK
And of course there is the forced abortion thing.
Obamacare firesale: Three Catholic hospitals for sale in Pennsylvania
Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/blogs/beltway-confidential/obamacare-firesale-three-catholic-hospitals-for-sale-in-pennsylvania-104465154.html#ixzz11rIVs1S4
And in anticipation of cost going up.
Health care: Microsoft ending 100% coverage for employees.
http://www.techflash.com/seattle/2010/10/health_care_microsoft_employees_to_share_in_their_costs_in_2_years.html
From Michael F. Cannon, director of health policy studies at the Cato Institute:
Some of the worst news for President Barack Obama’s beleaguered health care law comes from North Carolina. Yet the law’s supporters are treating it like good news.
Read more: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2010/10/06/1741514/bcbsncs-premium-refunds-show-the.html#ixzz11rKt9ee9
Lots of people around the country are pissed. Why ? because if you like your current coverage you can keep it. That is unless the companies that help provide it dump it. Which of course is what they want, to force you to turn to the government for health care.
3M to Change Health-Plan Options for Workers.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703859204575526953379583836.html?KEYWORDS=3M+and+insurance
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/10/ohio-tea-partier-spent-Marcyweekends-playing-nazi-games.php?ref=fpa He is running in against Marcy Kaptur in Ohio’s 9th district.
Swarthmore mom,
Your link didn’t work.
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/10/ohio-tea-partier-spent-weekends-playing-nazi-games.php?ref=fpa
HenMan
1, October 8, 2010 at 4:01 pm
If my memory serves me correctly (and it frequently doesn’t) the name inscribed on the Nobel Peace Prize was not “Barack Obama”, but, “Anyone Other Than George W. Bush”.
===========================================================
Yep … you got that right … at least that’s the impression they gave me
Woosty’s still a Cat
That has to be the biggest pile of Neo-Marxist Bull C**p
propaganda I have ever seen. However you left a few off
1)He with allot of help from his partners in crime, invented “Transparent Closed Doors”.
2) Made all Lobbyist vanish from Capital Hill, only to miraculously reappear in the Whitehouse.(and you say he is not like Jesus)
3) He has through support and defense of Sanctuary Cartel Empires, and Arab Muslim Leaders known for promoting Slavery,managed to put America back on the list of Slave-Trade Nations for the first time since the Civil War.(this issue I have dedicated my life to for 3 decades, and without fear of just rebuke attest as true before Congress.)
4)Proven to the world that Black Americans can be Racist Bigots too.
5) Succeeded in exposing who his true Masters are, by blocking an audit one of the most egregious criminal organisations in the world.
6) Made over a hundred million barrels of oil (real data), along with millions of gallons of highly toxic chemicals vanish before the eyes of the world. (that like Jesus thing again).
I could go on, but unlike the majority of your mythical list these are all documented fact. To realize one of my own could do the things he has done to our nation, sickens me to my stomach.
He has set African Americans political credibility back by a half century, heaven only knows how far that will be by 2012.
There is a growing contingent among our people who are awakening to see Obama for what he is, and he is not one of us. He has no natural ties to our American history, to our culture, to our struggles, not even to our communities way of life.
Above all, he has openly expressed his disdain for the very Constitution he has sworn (twice) to uphold and defend. This alone, no matter his origin of birth, proves to me he is not an American in any true sense of the word.
Like his predecessor before him, Obama is a treasonous traitor to the principles of our nation. He and his political & media cronies are the greatest Terrorist threat our Nation faces.
He must not only be stopped, he must be exposed for what he is, just as we have done with Bush.
There is no doubt that Obama was backstabbed by people within the administration, who up until that time were above suspicion on environmental matters.
http://blogdredd.blogspot.com/2010/10/youre-doin-heckuva-job-browner.html
Follow up to this original Story
Bdaman 1, October 9, 2010 at 7:06 am
And of course there is the forced abortion thing.
Obamacare firesale: Three Catholic hospitals for sale in Pennsylvania
Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/blogs/beltway-confidential/obamacare-firesale-three-catholic-hospitals-for-sale-in-pennsylvania-104465154.html#ixzz11rIVs1S4
*****************************************************************
The President’s Nun: Obamacare Scranton Scandal Explodes
A mushrooming political battle over ObamaCare involving the White House, two incumbent Pennsylvania congressmen, three Catholic hospitals and a nun has just exploded in, of all places, Scranton, Pennsylvania. Charges from the Scranton medical community of intimidation by the Obama White House and its allies are filling the air.
All of this just as Vice President Joe Biden arrives in Scranton today to raise money for one of the participants.
There are two issues at the core of the controversy.
1. ObamaCare and the sale of three Scranton-area Catholic hospitals.
2. The re-election prospects of the two House members, Democrats Paul Kanjorski and Chris Carney, both of whom cast key votes to pass ObamaCare.
http://spectator.org/archives/2010/10/11/the-presidents-nun-obamacare-s
Hey all you enviro whack jobs and left leaning numbnuts, talk about your mother earth. The oil spill that all you comatose dipsticks thought would bring environmental catastrophe has pretty much come and gone.
In like a Lion and out like a Lamb. Seems mother earth isn’t such a candy ass after all. Global Warming morons take head.
When is the Left ever right?
Answer: not one friggin time about one friggin thing.
And people listen to these yahoos? No wonder our economy is in the shitter and we are still at war in Iraq and Afghanistan. That’s what we get for electing a dip shit like Bush in the first place. Son, just cause he wore cowboy boots and a stetson and owned an oil company and a baseball team doesn’t make him a conservative. Look at LBJ, more liberal than FDR hisself. Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan, same god damn wars from the same god damn moronic ideas – liberalism.
And that dumb ass John Stuart Mill called us stupid? Hell he couldn’t figure out if he was a liberal [in the proper sense of the word] or a socialist till the end of his miserable life.
Hey, you oil company scumbag apologist.
Come and gone?
Tell it to the sick people.
As to Iraq? Invaded illegally by a conservative right wing lunatic – Bush. He’s as liberal as Stalin.
Afghanistan? Same deal.
Don’t try historical revisionism around here, sport.
It’ll get your ass handed to you.
Isnt most of that caused by the chemicals in the dispersent that BP was forced to use out of environmental concerns?
Yep Alice in friggin Wonderland world.
You must be the Mad Hatter.
We haz troll. Well Driller has wandered into the wrong pond, methinks. Keeps mind in logic tight compartment and cannot be bothered by facts or actual, you know, scientific research. It is a lot more fun to call folks names. Sorry WD, this is not a fact-free zone. Try RedState, it is that way <<<<<<<<<.
well, driller, get your facts straight. The EPA told BP to stop using Corexit and switch to less toxic dispersants and they were ignored. At some later time, after massive political/lobby pressure was brought to bear on the administration the order to stop was downgraded to an order to report usage. BP has been driving the bus from day one and the blood is on their hands.
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/may/23/nation/la-na-oil-spill-20100523
Lottakatz:
did you even read the article to the end? The idea that the EPA could not shut down the use of dispersants is laughable at best. They were used for fear of environmental catastrophe. I stand by my assertion, they were not necessary and their use was pushed on BP out of environmental fears.
Troll is as troll does. What bridge do you, Otteray Scribe and Buddha is Laughing live under?
From your link:
“Government officials have justified both uses, saying that if oil reaches the shore, it would do more environmental harm than if it were dispersed off the coast.
Dispersants break oil into droplets that decompose more quickly. But scientists worry that extensive use of the chemicals in the BP spill is increasing marine life’s exposure to the toxins in oil.
“While the dispersant BP has been using is on the agency’s approved list, BP is using this dispersant in unprecedented volumes and, last week, began using it underwater at the source of the leak — a procedure that has never been tried before,” the EPA noted last week, acknowledging that “much is unknown about the underwater use of dispersants.”
In the company’s May 20 letter to the EPA and the Coast Guard, responding to the EPA’s directive, BP operations chief Doug Suttles wrote that only five products on the EPA’s approved list meet the agency’s toxicity criteria. And only one, besides Corexit, is available in sufficient quantities in the next 10 to 14 days, it said.”
Fascist apologist is as fascist apologist does, oil company puppet.
Again, tell it to the sick people.
Maybe they ought to talk to the Sierra Club. BP wouldn’t have used the dispersant if it wasn’t forced to by the EPA.
Well then hows that national health care working for them? The Feds ought to be paying for them. Why aren’t they?
Call me a fascist apologist all you want, it doesn’t change the fact that the EPA has a very large share of blame in those people’s health.
You a government apologist? Government apologist is as government apologist does, congressional puppet.
Again, tell it to the sick people.
“BP wouldn’t have used the dispersant if it wasn’t forced to by the EPA.”
BP wouldn’t have cleaned up a damn thing if they had their way.
“Well then hows that national health care working for them? The Feds ought to be paying for them. Why aren’t they?”
Because we don’t have national health care. We have insurance company welfare disguised as “health care reform”.
“Call me a fascist apologist all you want,”
Okay, I will, fascist apologist.
“it doesn’t change the fact that the EPA has a very large share of blame in those people’s health.”
Except the EPA didn’t maintain negligent business practices on a deep sea oil drilling platform. That would be BP and their business partners. Causation is key. Ideally, the EPA wouldn’t have had anything to do because BP, Halliburton and Transocean would have been doing the proper job on safety. As to the dispersant? The EPA was doing their job in telling BP to stop using them. It was only when BP starting bribing and threatening politicians that the EPA was called off. So it would be politicians that have “a very large share of blame in those people’s health.” Not the EPA.
Congressional puppet? ROFLOL
Yeah, I’m their puppet . . . that’s why I’m on their ass all the time for not doing their Constitutionally mandated job of representing all citizens interests instead of the profit motive interests of corporations like BP, Halliburton and Transocean.
Congratulations, Well Digger!
You’ve struck bullshit.
Fascist apologist.